November 29, 2023 Joint Planning Commission & Variance Committee Minutes

Call to Order

The regular meeting of the Joint Planning and Variance Commission of the Town of Kiowa was called to order at 6:00pm by Co-Chairperson Todd Lane.

Roll Call

Present: Co-Chairperson Todd Lane, Commissioner Sandy Kalish, Member Shannon Lane, Member Lori Rafferty, Director Andrew Lowry, Member Julie Mizak, Mayor Rick Kolm, Town Board Member Terry Howard. Mayor Pro Tern Trevor Smith joined on zoom at 6:26pm

Absent: Chairperson Wendy Frenzel

There was a quorum to conduct business.

Also present: 

Ruth Borne, Town Legal Counsel on Zoom 
Kim Boyd, Town Administrator 
Sasha Davidson, Town Clerk 
Elizabeth Barnes on Zoom - 6:l7pm - 6:48pm

Public Comment

None. 

Consent Items

1. Approval of agenda
   Co-Chairperson asked for approval of the agenda with the amendment to remove "N" section from the agenda due to the information not being in the board packet. Commissioner Sandy Kalish made a motion to approve the amended agenda. Shannon Lane Seconded, and the motion carried with no discussion.
2. Approval of minutes from November 8, 2023, meeting
   Sandy Kalish made the motion to approve the minutes from the November 8, 2023, meeting. Lori Rafferty seconded, and the motion carried with no discussion.

New Business

1. Kiowa Museum and School Rezoning.
   Joe Martel, president of the Elbert County Historical Society and Don Gabehart representing Kiowa School District came before the board to seek approval for the school to donate a piece of land to the museum and have the minor subdivision be rezoned from PL to MU. After a brief presentation and discussion, a motion was made by Sandy Kalich to approve the subdivision and rezoning and send it to the Town Board. Julie Mizak seconded, and the motion carried with no discussion.
2. Updates on Zoning Codes
   1. Items Covered: Definitions, Zoning Maps, Zoning Map Amendments, Development Standards, Table of Uses- Residential and Non-Residential, Planned Unit Development, Vested Property Rights, Building Permits, Accessory Uses, Non-Conforming Uses, SRU Permits, Variances, Public Facilities, Sign, Code, Special Event Permits, Medical Marijuana, and Mobile Vending.
   2. Annexation was tabled for a later time.
   3. There was a lot of discussion about the issue of Accessory Uses - primarily about what constitutes an accessory dwelling/building and whether it is an issue of a separate building on a person's private property, or a basement apartment in a house with separate entrance. At the end it was decided that both would be acceptable under the code.
   4. Another discussion revolved around the maximum weight of operational vehicles that could be parked near a property and it was decided that further research needed to be carried out before a decision could be made regarding the code.
   5. Open space in PUD's was discussed also, on what the correct amount should be - 20%, 50% and how many residential dwellings on a certain amount of acreage should be allowed. Members agreed they should look at other residential neighborhoods here an in other towns to get a better understandingthat of the issue. Additionally, the drain on water resources came up as a possible issue with new developments.

Old Business

Correspondence/Information/Review/Discussion

Adjourn

Sandy Kalish made a motion to adjourn the meeting, Co-Chairperson Todd Lane seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 8:05pm with no further discussion.

The next meeting will be on December 13, 2023, at the Town Hall at 6:00pm.