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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Committees - Planning and Economic Development Committee - 09/09/1991 KENT BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES September 9, 1991 The scheduled meeting of the Kent Board of Adjustment was called to order by Chair Cosby on the evening of Monday, September 9, 1991, at 7 :00 p.m. in the Kent City Hall, City Council Chambers. BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MEMBERS: Jack Cosby, Chair Berne Biteman Walter Flue Ron Banister, excused Raul Ramos, excused CITY STAFF MEMBERS: Carol Proud, Senior Planner Charlene Anderson, Planner Lois Ricketts, Recording Secretary APPROVAL OF THE AUGUST 5. 1991 BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT .MINUTES Mr. Biteman MOVED that the minutes of the August 5, 1991 meeting be approved as printed. Mr. Flue SECONDED the motion. Motion carried. Chair Cosby administered the oath to all who intended to speak. HEATH TECNA AEROSPACE CO.--HAZARDOUS MATERIALS #1-91-3 (CA) Charlene Anderson presented the Heath Tecna Aergs-pace Company's application for a variance from Kent Zoning Code Section 15. 08.050D.9.c which would allow construction of, xL :6, 600 square foot hazardous materials storage facility within a 100-year floodplain. The site is located at 19819 84th Avenue South, Kent. The variance is required because Heath Tecna �s classified a hazardous substance land use facility. One of the, performance standards for such a facility is that it cannot be located within a 100-year floodplain. The property includes three parcels and is approximately 16.5 acres in size. The square footage of combination of existing buildings and the proposed building would not exceed the 65 percent maximum site coverage. Within the M2, Limited Industrial, zoning district. The surround,ing properties are zoned M2 and consist mainly of manufacturing and wholesale distribution, although there are a few nonconformipg ,uses, retail and single family residences, scattered in the are.. The project was issued a mitigated Determination of Significance on January 25, 1991, although variances are categorically exempt from SEPA provisions. The environmental review considered both the building permit and the conditional use permit. The conditional use permit Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes September 9, 1991 is necessary because the applicant proposes to exceed 20, 000 pounds of hazardous substances on the site at any one time. The site is relatively flat. Vegetation occurs within landscaped areas, along 84th Avenue South and the southeast corner of 84th and South 200th. The site has access to South 200th Street, which is a local arterial. It is not anticipated that the project will cause any additional trip generation. The Comprehensive Land Use Plan designates the site as Industrial. 1. The variance shall not constitute a grant of special privileges inconsistent with a limitation upon uses of other properties in the vicinity and zone in which the property, on behalf of which the application was filed, is located. Planning Department comments that there have been similar variances granted for performance standards but not for locations within the 100-year floodplain area. Variances have been granted for locations within 50 feet of a property line and also within one quarter mile of a public recreational area. There are other performance standards which must be met for a hazardous substance land use facility. Therefore the variance would not constitute a grant of special privileges that other properties could not have. Although the proposed site is in a 100-year floodplain, during the recent flood in November 1990, the site was not flooded and other sites on the Heath Tecna property were flooded. The applicant is requesting that the hazardous materials facility be located in an area that does not flood even though it is located in the floodplain. The applicant wishes to locate the facility away from the proposed South 196th Street east-west corridor project. This corridor project will create additional traffic to the area. By locating the hazardous materials facility away from South 196th Street and on the South 200th Street side, the applicant is proposing that truck maneuvering would be placed away from the heavily travelled area. The applicant is proposing to locate the facility next to the manufacturing building of the Heath Tecna property where approximately 65 percent of the hazardous materials are used. The present facility is located approximately 400 feet to the southwest of the manufacturing building. This causes transporting of materials and additional handling. By locating the facility closer to the area where the materials will be used, the safety factor on the Heath Tecna site would be increased. 2. The variance is necessary, because of special circumstances relating to the size, shape, topography, location or surroundings of the subject property, to provide it with use rights and privileges permitted to other properties in the vicinity and in the zone in which the property is located. 2 Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes !� September 9, 1991 Other areas on the Heath Tecna site have experienced flooding, but this particular site did not flood in 1990 during the 100-year flood. By developing the structure closer to the manufacturing facility it will tighten controls for storing ,w and dispensing materials, monitoring of inventory levels and will lessen the distance for transporting materials. 3 . That the granting of such variance will .not be materially detrimental to the public welfare, or injurious to the property or improvements in the vicinity and zone in which the subject property is situated. Staff recommended approval of the variance with ; the following conditions: A. New buildings, including the hazardous materials storage areas, shall be constructed at least one (1) foot above 100-year flood elevation established by ,the most recent FEMA study conducted as part of the - National Flood Insurance Program. B. The storage areas as well as any required „containment dikes, etc. shall not be capable of discharging into any private or public storm drainage systemAn the area. C. If floor drains are installed within the ,building, they shall be connected to the sanitary sower system via facilities approved by METRO for proper monitoring and control. D. Prior to development plan approval, Heath Tecna will provide written documentation from the %tiate Department of Ecology that the proposed facility satisfies state requirements. E. No outside storage of hazardous materials or wastes is allowed. F. Prior to development plan approval, Heath Tecna will obtain a lot line , adjustment to eliminate the lot line which divides the property on which the Chemical Stores facility will be located. Ms. Proud commented that there was a Declaration of, Noansignificance issued on January 25, 1991, and not a Declaration of� Significance for the conditional use aspect of this proposal. Richard McCann, Attorney, Perkins Coie, 1201 Third Avenue, 40th Floor, Seattle, submitted several documents including a brief which 3 Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes September 9, 1991 examines City of Kent's code criteria and an affidavit from Oscar Martin regarding flooding of the area. The site is located within an area that has been designated as a 100-year floodplain by Federal Emergency Management Office (FEMA) . FEMA maps have been widely used to identify flood plains, but the map in this instance does not accurately reflect actual conditions on the site. Part of the Heath Tacna property has been flooded twice in the last two years, once during November 1990 and once in January 1990. He pointed out that the area that floods will drain away within 24 hours. The current drainage .system is not adequate to handle storms and floods. The site that Heath Tacna has chosen remained dry during both the 100-year storm and the 100-year flood. He pointed that there is an affidavit in the record that attests to this fact. George Thompson, representing the applicant, explained that Heath Tacna Aerospace Company manufactures aircraft components which are made of composite materials. , Heath Tacna is primarily a subcontractor for the major aircraft manufacturers such as Boeing, McDonald Douglas, and Airbus Industries. These customers require the components to be ready for immediate installation. The hazardous materials used to do the finishing work include paints, thinners, resins and potting compounds which are used to provide a smooth surface on the exterior of the parts. Most of the materials are classified as flammable. The facility is designed so that it would contain 6,980 gallons, maximum for these types of materials. Corrosive materials, resin hardeners, DTA and stripping agents would also be used. There would be storage for 180 gallons of oxidizers, and storage for 3,800 gallons of corrosives. There would be some combustible materials, primarily resins and fillers. The current facility is located across the street from most of the materials. When the storage area was built, Heath Tacna was owned by another corporation that also owned HyTek Finishes. After the sale of HyTek, the current storage area was situated on the property line. Heath Tacna would like to comply with the requirement of a 60-foot setback from the nearest property line. The new facility would have a resin-dispensing area. At the present time the resins are dispensed from different locations at the plant. Having a central area for dispensing resins would ensure proper mixing and handling of the materials in addition to providing a safer environment for this work area. The corporate company, CIBA-GEIGY, imposes more stringent requirements upon their manufacturers than the various codes and regulations which the local, state and federal authorities require. They have requested Heath Tacna to upgrade their facility and provide a larger area as well as an area that can handle all the upcoming code requirements, segregate the materials properly and have a better containment system. 4 Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes September 9, 1991 John Hansen, architect with CH2M Hill Engineers, consultants retained by Heath Tecna to design the Chemical Stores facility, stated they are proposing to maximize the space around .the facility to meet codes and for safety. They will be locating the storage a minimum of 60 feet away from the existing manufacturing building. The Chemical Stores facility would be a minimum of, 70 feet away from the property line along South 200th Street, and more than 100 feet from the property line on the east along 84th Avenue South. The exterior walls would be constructed of concrete masonry with minimum two-hour fire rating. The building would'be, constructed to meet or exceed all current building and fire cedes and all the requirements for storage and handling of appropriate quantities of the particularly hazardous classes of materials to be stored. There would be separation of different hazardous plassifications within the building. There would be separate rooms for flammable storage, combustible and noncombustible storage, oxidizers, corrosives, and three separate rooms for the handling of materials being transferred from one container to another. There would be a separate area for waste materials, storage and handling until these are sent off site. The building would have exit doors ;from each of the separate classification of spaces directly to.the outside which would facilitate Fire Department access in case„ of emergency. There would be an automatic sprinkler system throughout, designed according to the type and class of material in each space. There would be special mechanical ventilation to capture fumes or vapors at the point of generation. There would be explosion-proof electrical fixtures throughout the facility. The floor would be constructed as a liquid-tight floor with containment areas within the building to hold possible spills, plus 20 minutes of sprinkler water. This secondary containment would be handled within each separately classified storage and handling are . within the building. Outside of the building possible spills at the loading dock and ramp would be controlled at that point by sloping the entire paved area to a sump. Mr. McCann pointed out that there were two potial places to locate the proposed facility. They chose to locate in an area that does not flood. They also took into consideration the future widening of 196th. The proposed corridor would eventually create additional traffic which would be affected by trucks bringing materials in and taking hazardous materials out of the ,site. Heath Tecna feels that this is the best location on th-1s,;,, site for this structure. They feel they have met the criteria for granting a variance, and that it does not constitute a grant of special privilege because the Board has found other cases In which similar situations and circumstances justified a variance, from performance standards. He felt that this variance was necessary because of special conditions on this site, the topography and the observed existence of areas that flood. He felt Heath Tecna was going 5 Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes September 9, 1991 further to meet code requirements than was otherwise apparent because of the FEMA map. He felt they would not be creating a detriment to public welfare. In fact they would be improving the situation not only from the existing condition but from what might otherwise take place if the FEMA map were to be strictly observed rather than the facts that can be demonstrated. The Planning staff has fully reviewed the facts and support the report. There is a linkage between 100-year storm and 100-year flood. Both events are characterized in the staff report as 100-year floods. He suggested that the proposed findings on page 4 of the addendum to the staff report be changed from the following: D. In the 100-year floods. of January and November 1990 the proposed location for the Chemical Stores facility did not flood and the other land on the Heath Tecna property did flood. Mr. McCann suggested that "D" be changed to the following: D. In both the 100-year flood of November 1990 and the 100-year storm of January 1990 the proposed location for the Chemical Stores facility did not flood and the other vacant land on the Heath Tecna property did flood. He asked the Board of Adjustment to grant the variance. Chair Cosby asked why the staff recommended denial in the staff report and approval with conditions in the addendum to the staff report. He pointed out that Heath Tecna is located in a 100-year floodplain and questioned construction on the site. Ms. Proud explained that buildings are allowed to be built in the floodplain, but Public Works requires that the buildings be constructed one foot above the floodplain. There is language in the zoning code regarding performance standards for hazardous substance land use facilities `which require that these not be located in the floodplain. Because of the Public Works and the Fire Department requirements, the building would be elevated out of the floodplain and would not necessarily need a variance. If the applicant wanted to store these materials outside, then the Planning Department would have the authority to request a variance to place the outside storage one or two feet above the flood level. Mr. Biteman visited the site and felt that placing the materials as close as possible to the use and one foot above the floodplain would be much better than transporting the materials back and forth. He asked the applicant how long Heath Tecna had been at that location. 6 Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes September 9, 1991 Mr. Thompson responded that Heath Tecna had been ,a't the site since the mid 19601s. Currently there are 1, 500 employees. Mr. Biteman felt Heath Tecna was very conscious of safety for their employees and the public. He pointed out that the materials under discussion were hazardous materials, not ha%ardous waste. Hazardous waste is what is left after the materials have been used. He added that Heath Tecna is not a generator of this waste but stores the materials and uses them in production. He emphasized that this was not a chemical plant. Mr. Flue stated that he works with hazardous materials and is impressed with the design of the facility and comfortable with the findings of the Planning Department and their recommendations. Chair Cosby adjourned the meeting to a private session. Chair Cosby called the meeting back into session. Mr. Flue MOVED that the Board of Adjustment grant the applicants request with the following conditions recommended by ,the Planning staff: 1. New buildings, including the hazardous materials storage areas, shall be constructed at least one (1) foot above 100-year flood elevation established by' the most recent FEMA study conducted as part of the National Flood Insurance Program. 2 . The storage areas as well as any required containment dikes, etc. shall not be capable of discharging into any private or public storm drainage system in the area. 3 . If floor drains are installed within the building, they shall be connected to the sanitary sewer system via facilities approved by METRO for proper. monitoring and control. 4 . Prior to development plan approval, Heath Tecna will provide written documentation from the State Department of Ecology that the proposed facility satisfies state requirements. 5. No outside storage of hazardous materials or wastes is allowed. 6. Prior to development plan approval, Heath Tecna will obtain a lot line adjustment to eliminate the lot line 7 i Kent Board of Adjustment Minutes September 9, 1991 which divides the property on which the Chemical Stores facility will be located. Mr. Biteman SECONDED the motion. Motion carried. The Board felt that the three conditions necessary to grant a variance had been met. Mr. Biteman asked about the corrections to the 100-year definitions. Ms. Proud suggested that Proposed Finding D be changed as follows: D. In both the 100-year flood of November 1990 and the 100- year storm of January 1990 the proposed location for the Chemical Stores facility did not flood and the other vacant land on the Heath Tecna property did flood. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Flue MOVED that the meeting be adjourned. Mr. Biteman SECONDED the motion. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Jam s P. Harris, Secretary 8