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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Committees - Land Use and Planning Board - 11/27/2017Land Use and Planning Board November 27, 2017 Minutes Kent, Washington Approved February 26, 2018 Page 1 of 4 Date: November 27, 2017 Time: 7:00 p.m. Place: Council Chambers Attending: Charlene Anderson, AICP, Long Range Planning Manager; Hayley Bonsteel, Senior Long Range Planner, Adam Long, Assistant City Attorney Agenda: 1. Call to Order Chair Katherine Jones called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. 2. Roll Call Board Members Katherine Jones, Chair; Randall Smith, Vice Chair; Shane Amodei and Jack Ottini were in attendance. Dale Hartman and Paul Hintz were absent and excused. Frank Cornelius was absent and unexcused. 3. Approval of Minutes Board Member Smith Moved and Board Member Ottini Seconded a Motion to Approve the Minutes of October 23, 2017. Motion Passed 4-0. 4. Added Items None 5. Communications None 6. Notice of Upcoming Meetings None 7. Public Hearing Meet Me on Meeker Design and Construction Standards Chair Jones stated that the Board will consider adopting an ordinance to establish a design and construction overlay for the Meeker Street Corridor as provided in the Meeker Street Streetscape Design and Construction Standards (D&CS). Chair Jones Opened the Public Hearing. Hayley Bonsteel, Senior Long Range Planner, stated that Kent City Council adopted a vision for Kent and this project is one way the City can move forward with some of those adopted policies and goals: for Meeker to be a place people want to be. This project came out of the Economic Development Plan of 2014, which encouraged staff to seek transportation and urban design funding to plan, redesign and redevelop key corridors that would improve function, and attract and support new private, residential and commercial development. Staff has been involved with community outreach efforts since 2015, worked with Smart Growth America and began working on urban design in 2016. The Marquee on Meeker Development kick-started development of this document, as staff worked to apply some of those design decisions. The main goals this document seeks to address are to create a sense of place and distinctive identity, to improve pedestrian safety for students walking to school, for bicyclists, residents, employees, and visitors, to connect visitors to the historic core, and extend the energy of the downtown core outward. Land Use and Planning Board November 27, 2017 Minutes Kent, Washington Approved February 26, 2018 Page 2 of 4 The D&CS were streamlined to express what Kent wants for the Meeker corridor. The document will be used for private development and redevelopment coming through the permit counter; it gives the City the ability to negotiate and acquire a great product for any development that comes in. The Meeker Street concept includes on-street parking, a promenade on the south side of Meeker with a buffer zone for street trees, lighting and landscaping, a 10- foot two-way path primarily for bicyclists, a four foot wide amenity zone for trash receptacles, benches, planters, pedestrian lighting and a walk zone. All uses are separated for safety and ease to move about the street. Bonsteel explained why the D&CS does not currently focus attention on the section of Meeker between Washington Avenue and the 167 underpass. The D&CS has been carefully thought out to reflect the priorities and goals of the project, while balancing feasibility and practicality. Staff received comments from Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) primarily about traffic analysis. The City is required to undergo a WSDOT public art plan if they plan to put public art on their facilities. Questions from the state centered on a traffic analysis completed in 2016 that explored different alternatives, with one alternative to reduce the street to two or three lanes the entire length. Staff opted against that alternative as it would back up traffic and the road wouldn’t have the capacity to handle the traffic load. Staff opted for two to three lanes for most of it, widening to five lanes around Washington Avenue where there is more vehicle movement. Other comments from the state included suggestions for bicycle and pedestrian accessibility at certain intersections, which staff felt were valid and will work with WSDOT if applicable when the City has a design project. Comments from Kent Downtown Partnership (KDP) identified a transition area between the overpass and 4th Avenue in which certain streetscape items were chosen to create a smoother transition from the Meeker Streetscape to historic downtown. The D&CS Key shows 4th Avenue and eastward as part of the historic district within the downtown overlay district. KDP requested that the area west of 167 not be included in the transition area. Kent Bicycle Advisory Board (KBAB) resubmitted comments, the only changes included a new date (Nov 20th) and signature confirmations. Public comment also came from Mel Roberts. Over 30 comments received from Mel Roberts generally supports the project, encourages the City to commit to a timely completion of the project to ensure connectivity in the long term, favors separating the modes, and encourages the City to work with other agencies to seek funding. Additional comments related to language, the use of photos to provide better clarification, design elements, and questioned whether the D&CS overrides the Transportation Master Plan (which it does). Mr. Roberts commented in support of raised midblock crosswalks and two-way bike paths, but opposed the use of similar colors for the walk and bike zones rather than differentiating those spaces. The D&CS must be consistent with adopted plans and with other decisions made in the past. The Standards are a method for following through on the vision that has Land Use and Planning Board November 27, 2017 Minutes Kent, Washington Approved February 26, 2018 Page 3 of 4 been set out through the Comprehensive Plan, the Transportation Master Plan (TMP) and the Economic and Development Plan. Policies in the Comprehensive Plan direct staff to revise standards to ensure the public streetscape is attractive, safe and supports people who are walking or biking, to beautify Kent streetscapes (especially commercial corridors), to prepare a multimodal streetscape plan for commercial corridors, and provide safe environments. The TMP calls for five lanes along Meeker. The Green River Bridge is two lanes wide and would be prohibitively expensive to replace it with a wider bridge; the idea of five lanes has been dropped as alternative parallel routes are available and the City wants to be consistent with other adopted plans and policies. After the Standards are adopted, staff will pursue funding to get segments of the project built. Private redevelopment will complete much of the work. As developments come in, decisions will be made about how to preserve connectivity. Staff is exploring the design of certain segments in terms of funding and to ensure that what is being designed can be built in a reasonable period of time so the design will work by the time the City is ready to build it. This project is embraced by the development community, is already attracting investment, and the City wants to continue that momentum. Board Members deliberated with Chair Jones questioning if there were existing driveways into any businesses along the planned Meeker Street change area and asked how that would be managed. In response Ms. Bonsteel stated that the City does not want driveways off of Meeker so would implement consolidation or access management to design driveways off of side streets. This is an engineering detail that will be included in the document. At the conclusion of staff’s presentation, Chair Jones introduced speakers: Barbara Smith, Executive Director Kent Downtown Partnership (KDP), 202 W Gowe St; voiced her appreciation for staff’s efforts and how the Land Use and Planning Board challenged how these changes would affect businesses; how they worked closely with the KDP, and collaboratively agreed on the transition area into the historic core. Mel Roberts, KBAB, 9421 S 241 St, Kent, WA; spoke in support of the Meeker St vision, stating it is a smart move. He encouraged staff to look at defining separate walk area for pedestrians and cycle tracks for bicyclists, and not imposing speed limits for cyclists as it would slow their commute time. He suggested using green stripes on bicycle lane cross walks at major intersections like those used at the 277th Street intersection crossing. He spoke about the need for a connection under the 167 overpass to the Interurban Trail and the need to provide a safe commuting route to the transit centers. Chair Jones questioned if universal signage standards exist for these types of transitions. In response Roberts stated that the Uniform Traffic Control manual identifies various signs that are used. Land Use and Planning Board November 27, 2017 Minutes Kent, Washington Approved February 26, 2018 Page 4 of 4 Seeing no further speakers, Chair Jones closed the Public Hearing and called for a motion. Board Member Smith MOVED and Board Member Ottini SECONDED a motion to recommend to the City Council to adopt an Ordinance establishing a Design and Construction Overlay for the Meeker Street Corridor as provided in the Meeker Street Streetscape Design and Construction Standards as presented by staff. Chair Jones called for the vote to approve the motion as presented. Motion PASSED 4-0. Chair Jones adjourned the meeting at 7:45 pm. Pamela Mottram Planning Technician Economic and Community Development November 27, 2017