Kevin Rudd explained that the Planning Commission and City Council recently reviewed and held public hearings on the General Plan. Recommendations were made to amend the General Plan, the Land Use Plan and other documents/maps that are included in the General Plan. Once the General Plan and Land Use Plan are amended then the Zoning Map should be amended to reflect those changes of which have not been done. Currently, there are some conflicts between the two (2) maps. The Planning Commission will be working on those revisions.
Mr. Rudd referred to the state code and explained the requirements of a General Plan but focused on the legend of the newly adopted Land Use Plan which added a significant number of categories. The previous Land Use Plan was more consistent with most Land Use Plans because most plans only list commercial and industrial. However, the City Council decided to define the commercial in several categories.
Low Density (equal to or less than 2.32/acres) The density has not been increased. However, there has been discussion and questions about adding a category for RE-17.5 (Residential Estates, 17,500 min. sq ft). The Planning Commission may want to discuss adding this category.
Medium Density (2.33 to 4.64 units/acre) The density for medium density has been lowered. R-1-7.5 (Residential, 7,500 min. sq ft) would be a new zone that could be created, and the Commission would need to decide if the R-1-8 should remain as a zone if the R-1-7.5 is recommended.
High Density (4.65 or greater units/acre) The density increased from 3.50 to 4.65 units/acre. The R-M (Multi Residential District) zone will remain within high density. The Commission recently passed a Multi Residential Guidelines for residential zones, and there were discussions about creating two (2) new zones: R-1-5 (Residential, 5,000 sq ft) which would allow detached single family dwelling on smaller lots and R-2-6 (a duplex or twin home, 6,000 sq ft) lot.
Old Town Overlay The current zones would be retained but with the revision an underline zoned could be changed. The two zones in the Old Township are RE-12.5 (Residential Estates, 12,500 min sq ft) and M-H (Mobile Home District).
He distributed information about a website that refers to infill development (copies available Ivins City offices). The Old Town Overlay would create an infill zone. An infill example was presented which is similar to the Old Township. This would create a zone with roads being built within the blocks and develop smaller lots. Currently, infill consists of flag lots behind people’s lots. Sometimes it is not economically feasible to develop a subdivision to create one lot because improvements are required. The question is: Are flag lots the most desirable? Currently, this is the only option available for this area. This overlay would encourage better infill development. The trailer park also has an overlay which would allow a developer to take 3-4 lots and create a development.
Resort Mixed Use Town Center There is an eighty acre parcel located on the northeast corner of Center and 200 East that extends to the LDS Chapel.
Resort Mixed Use Village The Red Mountain Spa property is located in this zone, and the Spa has property that is not developed but is developable even though there is lava. Some residents will be concerned about expanding that property to the north. The property south of the roundabout is also included in this zone.
Commercial The amendment of the Land Use Map has created additional commercial zoning. Each category will require creating a zone. This will make commercial zoning easier to explain. The commercial zones are: Community, Resort, Neighborhood, Professional & Research, and Light Manufacturing. There are no zones for these categories. The Commission will take each category and create a zone.
C-1 (Community Commercial), Resort Commercial and Neighborhood Commercial These areas will need to be reviewed.
Professional & Research This is a new category which is south of Highway 91 and a zone will need to be created.
Light Manufacturing GouldEvans recommended that Sexually Oriented Businesses (SO) be designated in this zone. After reviewing the state law, there may be some problems with the SO zoning. Previously, the SO’s could not be within a mile of residential zones. In Ivins that does not work and it may open the door to areas that the City doesn’t want. The two (2) areas designated is one by Terry Marten’s storage area and the other storage area by Pioneer Parkway. It will be difficult to find any zone that is not within a 1,000 feet of a residential zone.
Open Space There is no change on Open Space or the rest of the zones.
He noted issues about changing residential R-1-8 and allowing R-1-7.5. The biggest concern is setbacks because the lots get smaller. There needs to be enough area left for the building pad. The setbacks for R-1-8 are ten feet (10’) on the sides and rear. It might be tight on R-1-7.5. St. George allows ten feet on one side and eight feet (8’) on the other side. Setbacks are very arbitrary, and the setbacks can be five feet (5’) before it affects the building code. Ten feet (10’) between homes is allowed under the building code, anything above is aesthetics. It is not a safety issue to have smaller setbacks. Under High Density the R-1-5, the setbacks would have to be reduced.
The current standard height is twenty-five feet (25’), and he was confident that the City Council would like that to remain on any new construction.
The R-2-6 zone will reduce setbacks. Twin homes will be discussed and are a good solution to affordable housing. If done correctly, it’s hard to tell if the homes are not single family homes.
The Mobile Home District implies that Ivins allows mobile homes. Bruce Parker, consultant, on the last revision to the Zoning Ordinance discouraged having too many zones but suggested that the City keep the M-H zone. However, some residents have asked that the zoning be changed because it is difficult to get their manufactured homes refinanced.
Commissioner Reed asked if an existing mobile home is considered a conditional use and could it be replaced with a similar mobile home.
Kevin Rudd stated that single wide mobile homes are not allowed in Ivins. If a single wide mobile home moved out, it’s a nonconforming use. If it burns down and is a nonconforming use, it can be rebuilt.
Dale Coulam explained that legal nonconforming means that it can be maintained but cannot be replaced.
Kevin Rudd wasn’t sure but if it was a natural disaster such as a fire or earthquake it could be rebuilt but not expanded.
Dale Coulam stated that the owner would have the alternative to build a manufactured home.
Kevin Rudd explained how he would interpret it if a mobile home burned. The use is not being taken away. However, the overlay may be helpful in the Mobile Home District.
He encouraged the Commission to look at creating new zoning districts and get that in place before fine tuning the text of the Zoning Ordinance. It might be better to recommend the zoning to the City Council, then the text, etc.
With regard to commercial, the question is how can the Commission create seven (7) zones and make the zones different enough. To define the commercial zones, the uses need to be significant enough to create two (2) different zones.
A PowerPoint presentation was given on the GouldEvans’ recommendations that showed how much commercial is needed at buildout, and how much High Density Residential would be required to support the commercial. The following was reviewed:
Town Center (RMU): This location consists of eighty (80) acres on the north side of Center. The uses included commercial retail and office, public recreation, medium density residential, lodging, restaurant and dining. GouldEvans recommended heights of sixty-five feet (65’) but the Commission had problems with the recommended heights.
The differences within resort zones are the amount of residential that would be allowed. That would be the only way to change the commercial uses so that the zones would not be the same. GouldEvans recommended that 25% of the total acreage had to be medium or high density residential with 75% being commercial and the minimum residential over commercial at 25% which means 25% of the commercial buildings would have to be two-story with some type of residential, condo or apartments above the commercial. That’s not to say that is what Ivins wants but what was recommended.
Commissioner Reed asked if the differences in the two zones could be based on how large the footprint of the commercial building.
Kevin Rudd explained that the current zoning does limit the maximum building size based on use, not zone. It is restrictive but the City Council did change the ordinance to be able to increase the size. Zoning could address this.
RMU Village: The Red Mountain Spa and The Villages are in this zone. The residential component could be increased but they recommended 25% of mixed use within the commercial building.
Commercial Resort: This zone covers Tuacahn and Coyote Gulch area. The Coyote Gulch zone has increased significantly, and some high density and medium density residential has been included. There is a bubble across from the Villas of Bellagio entrance which also includes some medium density residential. The uses in this zone include artist work and living space.
In commercial resort, a minimum amount of residential should be specified. Currently under Resort Commercial, condos are allowed as a use. If someone wanted to come in and develop a hundred acres in condos, under the current zoning ordinance the City would have to allow it to happen. If a residential component is allowed in commercial areas, it should be specified how much is allowed. If residential is allowed in commercial zoning and there is not a limit, it might end up residential and may not be what the City wants.
Chairman Mehr referred to the Short Term Lease Ordinance (less than 30 days) and asked where will it be allowed?
Kevin Rudd envisioned it being allowed in the resort areas because motel/hotel uses are allowed in Commercial Resort. The Commission can recommend which of these zones would be appropriate for the short term rentals.
Neighborhood Commercial: There were several locations recommended. The rule of thumb is to ask is this something I would want in my backyard. He gave an example of the Tri-Mart location. There should be some buffering between neighborhood commercial and residential, if possible.
Community Commercial: The medical building is located in this zone, and property owner, Gary Jones, has plans to add more buildings. The two properties across from the medical building, the location on the north side of Highway 91 near the Western Corridor and a bubble of C-1 at Ryder’s are in this zone. C-1 does not have a residential component, and he felt it should not have residential components.
Commercial Industrial: There are two areas designated for light industrial. This does not have any residential component but artist live-in could be considered.
Commercial Professional & Research: This is located on the south side of Highway 91. The name implies the types of uses allowed.
Commissioner Reed felt that this presentation laid out the Commission’s work. He also referred to Chris Hart’s previous comments about becoming a city connected by subdivision with walled enclave zones within and looking at ways to change that image. There are a lot of ideas available. He contacted a land use planner that’s a non-profit organization that works adjacent to the Vision Dixie Implementation Committee to help communities write ordinances to bring them around to the Vision Dixie style of development and communities. They are interested in helping with resources. Form-base incentives would provide more incentives in an individual area such as the two by two block areas. The reason there is a series of walled enclaves is the evolution from the old neighborhood style development to the current style which has mostly been driven by pedestrian foot traffic being replaced by automobile traffic and development being more centered on the automobile. Therefore, the arterials do not have driveways going into the homes but come in from the secondary streets which is the long way around. This needs to be broken up but don’t put roads everywhere and driveway coming out on arterials. We do want to break it up for pedestrians and vary the size and types of buildings within a zone. An example is a Village Green in the middle surrounded by townhomes or twin homes, then on the outside edges the larger zoned lots. In addition connect each area with the pedestrian trails that do not just follow the roads. The City has a trails map but it’s the same as the driving map. Most of the trails are a sidewalk on the side of the street which is curved instead of straight. Allowing people to converse by foot between neighborhoods would be a valuable way of interconnecting and adding the neighborhood feel. It is the same as having common space in a multi-family housing unit. Take that concept and put it in the neighborhood concept to create more of a neighborhood feel instead of a subdivision feel. We need to accomplish what Kevin Rudd has explained but change the shape of Ivins to keep from having a bunch of subdivisions. The developers in Ivins have a tendency to build residential, not commercial. To make these changes it will take some thinking outside the standard zoning concepts and come up with some incentive overlays that will perhaps shape the City toward the future and toward the Vision Dixie process.
Kevin Rudd explained where traditional zoning came from and explained that it separated industrial from residential. Most cities use it to separate zoning. However, that creates broth but now the zoning has gone back to creating villages. There is form-base zoning, performance zoning and the city is moving in that direction with this zoning.
Commissioner Reed felt that the City is moving in that direction but he would like to see the commercial broken up on a smaller scale and make it "kid friendly" so that children don’t have to be driven.
Commissioner Scott explained that he was new to this process and wasn’t present during previous discussions. It appears that the Commission is looking at two (2) different responsibilities. The first responsibility is that the Commission may have a legal responsibility to make the zoning conform with the Land Use Plan which could be Phase I. Phase II is a more interesting and important long run which is a planning responsibility to rethink our way of looking at the Land Use Plan and zoning codes. If this is the correct way to break it into two sections, would it be appropriate to meet the legal responsibility by working on the residential zones, add or modify, and submit that to Council, then work on the commercial and submit to Council. Phase III could be the review of the overlays with form-base and the real planning issues and let the Council know that the recommendation will come in three (3) packages.
Kevin Rudd suggested having a work meeting to get some direction from the Council. The Council may want the whole package. He asked Judy Gubler’s opinion.
Judy Gubler felt it might be good to kick the project off with a joint meeting as early as April since there are new Council and Commission members. In response to Commission Reed’s comments regarding the enclaves, gated communities and how to bring this together, these are important but the uses make a difference as well. The City had an ordinance that dictated cookie cutter subdivision, then we moved completely away from that, and it was so discretionary that the City Council and Commission got uncomfortable with it. There are several options available to the developer and those options developed some creative developments. To get away from the cookie cutter subdivision, a developer has to apply for a Subdivision Enhancement Overlay (SEO) and give up open space, etc. to vary the lot sizes. This allowed cookie cutter subdivisions next to SEO which is not what she felt was intended. It’s important how it’s developed, not just the uses, and that should be considered. A joint work meeting would be good to develop a work plan and determine how the Council wants to receive the material. She suggested working on portions of the large picture with the City Council.
Commissioner Reed felt the Commission needs to see parallel development because the Commission has the responsibility mandated by state law that anything that happens in the community has to conform to the General Plan. The Commission has that responsibility but the Commission could start exploring what other communities have done to develop incentives away from cookie cutter developments. He respects property owner’s rights, and he doesn’t want to tell owners what type of subdivision they have to build. However, if the City encourages a developer to build it the way the City wants, the developer get bonuses, densities, etc. and make more money. If a land use planner could give the Commission examples, it might be helpful.
Commissioner Scott agreed with working in parallel but it’s a question of how quickly does the Commission have to move on the legal side. It makes more sense once something is implemented and approved by the Council that it is what we intended it to be ultimately.
Kevin Rudd explained that the Land Use Map shows some property as commercial but it is zoned residential. Another example is the Blood property that’s zone RE-43 and the map shows it as RMU. If an application comes in before the zoning is changed, the city could loose the opportunity for the Blood property to be commercial. These are the types of areas that are of concern.
Chairman Mehr thanked Commissioner Reed and Commissioner Scott for their comments. He also felt it would be good to have a joint work meeting to identify the priorities and work plan. He thanked Kevin Rudd for the presentation, and felt it is a big undertaking but the Commission was up for the challenge.
The Commissioners discussed the following dates available for a joint meeting: April 7, April 21, or April 23.
Dale Coulam advised that he would present the dates to the City Council at there next meeting and the Commission will be notified.