Kevin Rudd displayed the proposed Zone Change areas (a copy is available at Ivins City offices) which includes the Concept Plan that was previously discussed. This area is proposed to be RE-20 (Residential Estates Min. 20,000 sq ft). The majority of the lots in the Concept Plan are over 20,000 sq ft.
Just south and below the proposed RE-20 the property is proposed as RE-12.5 (Residential Estates Min. 12,500 sq ft lots). No plans have been submitted for this property. The parcel below the RE-12.5 is proposed as RE-15 (Residential Estates Min. 15,000 sq ft lots) which is located above Center Street.
The Zone Change next to Willow Springs Subdivision is proposed as RE-15 (Residential Estates Min. 15,000 sq ft lots). Kayenta has furnished a Concept Plan that has not been formally submitted but shows the proposed lot sizes well over the minimum 15,000 sq ft lots. Since Kayenta develops conventional subdivisions, they are forced to go with the lower zone because the project may end up with one lot that is an odd size.
Chair Murphy advised that Commissioner Anderson has recused himself but is available for comments and he will not make decisions on these zone changes. She opened the Public Hearing.
Comments on proposed RE-20 zone in the Taviawk Subdivision area:
Gayle Bray is a resident of Taviawk. She asked if the current Concept Plan will take over the dog park and asked what contingency plans the City has for the dog park.
Commissioner Anderson stated the southeastern portion of the Concept Plan is the dog park. That is owned by Ivins Irrigation Company. They have let Ivins use it until they do something with the property. He suggested to Kay Ence, president of Ivins Irrigation Company, to move the park to the south side if it was feasible with Director of Parks and Recreation Benny Sorensen. However, Kayenta does not have any control over that area. The Irrigation Company has the authority to say when that area will be developed.
Gayle Bray also commented that across from Paiute Drive the zone is RE-37 and other parts of Taviawk are RE-25. She asked the Commissioners to consider a zone change more consistent to the existing zoning of RE-37 or RE-25.
Fletcher Shives lives on the corner of Chusi Way and Paiute Drive and is the only full time resident on Paiute. The Zone Change signs were not posted until yesterday morning. Is there a statutory requirement that the signs be posted and if so how long do they have to be posted?
Dale Coulam explained the ordinance states that the signs are a courtesy only and not required.
Fletcher Shives stated that people choose to live in Kayenta the setting, the low density housing and community. When he purchased his lot three (3) years ago he was advised that the property surrounding them would be no smaller than one acre. Now, the conceptual plan across the street is barely one half acre. In addition, the plan increases the footprint of the structures on smaller lots. He asked that the zoning not be reduced lower than RE-25 and asked that the developer not increase the footprint of structures. Paiute Drive is a private street but there are signs directing the public down a private street that is maintained by homeowners' and association fees. Since 450 North and 600 West are already shown on Ivins Transportation Maps as public unimproved streets, those streets should be made available and required to be used for access to any new construction in the areas being proposed. Consider RE-25 zoning, reduce the allowed footprint and provide construction and other access to 450 North and 600 West.
Commissioner Anderson referred to the zone change from RE-25 to RE-20. As Kevin Rudd noted in the Concept Plan, there is 1.13 lots per acre which is .75 acres per house. The average lot size in the plan is 32,670 sq ft which is well over the 25,000 sq ft. The lots north of Paiute Drive are .59-.67 acre, and they are larger as it goes south. In reference to the directional signs, as the roads are built traffic will be reduced. There is no reason to drive down Paiute because there's no commercial center, etc. There is a time frame for when the roads will be built. After the last meeting, they looked at traffic flows and drainage. They may want to change the Concept Plan so that the second road goes through to relieve traffic on Paiute.
John Curry lives in Taviawk Phase 4 and supports Mr. Shives statements. Phase 11 should be consistent with Phase 9 which is RE-25. If it is changed to RE-20, it won't be necessary to have the larger lots and that could be changed. The coverage is the percentage of a lot that can be disturbed and the rest has to be maintained in its natural state. Everything in the top portion is required to have 30% or less disturbance. The zone should be consistent with the adjacent properties and stay RE-25 zone.
Comments on proposed zone RE-12.5 zone:
Kevin Rudd explained where the Hell Hole Wash is located along these parcels.
Commissioner Anderson stated that the parcels begin at the top of the ridge. Their goal is to protect the ridge by keeping the houses lower, and they have been working on an agreement with SITLA.
Kevin Rudd explained that the Land Use Plan shows a bubble of commercial within these parcels and High Density Residential along Kwavasa Drive. However, the applicant is asking for Medium Density Residential which is RE-12.5. Also, there is a ten (10) acre parcel below this area that ends at Center Street. It is proposed as RE-15 which is the highest density allowed under Low Density Residential.
There were no comments received on these two zone changes.
Comments on proposed RE-15 zone near Willow Springs Subdivision:
Kevin Rudd stated the location is at the intersection of Kwavasa and Kayenta Parkway. The total acreage is 88.13 acres and would allow a maximum number of 204 lots but probably won't happen because of the washes, etc.
Betty Blank lives on Wisteria against the wash. She and her neighbor photographed the wash area to show the erosion that has happen in the last ten years and the 1,000 year flood we had this year. The pictures would show the erosion of the wash. Also, it would interrupt the life of the critters and animals. She asked not to rezone the wash area.
Commissioner Loris asked what the current zoning is for the upper portion of the parcels.
Kevin Rudd stated that the entire area being rezoned is RA-5. There are a series of washes that come down in the area. The FEMA map shows the washes and they regulate how close homes can be built.
Rebecca Isakson lives on the wash and questioned the previous statement about the footprint being changed and the 30% coverage. The Concept Plans have larger lots but it doesn't mean that it will stay large after they get the rezoning.
Mike Berkley lives above the wash and shares the same concerns about the wash area. FEMA has some restrictions but we don't know what they are. He asked where are the FEMA restricted areas are.
Kevin Rudd advised that the City Engineer has the FEMA maps that he could review. One of the washes does show up on the FEMA map and the map is very specific. It comes down and ties into the Hell Hole Wash.
Commissioner Anderson stated that sometimes history gets lost, new people move in and don't know everything that goes on. These maps were done in 2008 and some of the property already had entitlement on zoning. We as a community agreed in 2008 to let everything go back to RA-1 and RA-5 that did not have a subdivision on it. This parcel has not always been RA-5. Terry Marten has been very consistent on achieving the general plan. It's a nice area and we think the lots should be a little bigger. An overlay in Ivins allows clustering but Kayenta does not cluster because we want the open space between the homes. The way Kayenta builds they have to drop to the lower zone because we might get the odd lot that is 14,000 - 16,000 sq ft. Some of the surrounding subdivisions are .46 per acre or .35 per acre.
Chair Murphy closed the Public Hearing after no additional response.
Kevin Rudd reported on the ten (10) acre parcel adjoining the Taviawk Subdivision. When the applicant did the Zone Change on the lower portion, they realized they needed to change this parcel from RE-25 (Residential Estates Min. lot size 25,000 sq ft) to RE-20 (Residential Estates Min. lot size 20,000 sq ft).
In reference to the commercial Zone Change, there are two (2) parcels proposed for a Zone Change. There is a corner parcel located at Kwavasa and Kayenta Parkway, and there is small parcel north of the Coyote Gulch Commercial area. (A location map is available at the Ivins City offices.) The Land Use Plan shows a wash that comes through the area. When the parcels are developed, the wash could affect how it is developed and the drainage will be taken into consideration. Staff is not saying that the property is undevelopable or that it should not be rezoned because of the wash, but it will be taken into consideration. In Kayenta's past plans for this commercial area, this parcel was identified on other Conditional Use Permits as future commercial. The Land Use Plan clearly shows this parcel as commercial. Although the smaller parcel proposed is outside the commercial bubble area on the Land Use Plan, the current Resort Commercial zoning of this property does extend up above the Land Use Plan area. Sally McMorrow's house is zoned Resort Commercial and the zoning extends to her vacant lot. The commercial zoning does cut across the lower portion of the proposed lot. The Land Use Plan does not show it as commercial but the Zoning Map does. The Land Use Plan is not meant to follow property lines.
Chair Murphy opened the Public Hearing.
John Curry asked what does Resort Commercial mean.
Kevin Rudd stated it is a zoning designation and in the Zoning Ordinance there is a use chart that lists the allowed uses in Resort Commercial. One of the uses is a resort. It also shows restaurants, shops and uses that are currently in the area.
John Curry next referred to the Zone Change in the Taviawk area.
Dale Coulam clarified that the Zone Change on this parcel came about because the applicant misunderstood the lot requirements. The applicant thought they just needed an average of 25,000 sq ft lots but a conventional zone requires each lot to be a minimum 25,000 sq ft. They had four (4) lots that were 24,000 sq ft and did not meet the RE-25 zoning so they had to include this parcel in their Zone Change request.
John Curry expressed that the proposed area should be compatible with the existing Taviawk 9 which is RE-25.
Kari Kelley is a new resident in Kayenta and asked that they discuss everything by square feet or percentage of acres because going from five (5) acre lots to 12,000 square feet is confusing.
Chair Murphy advised that an acre consists of 43,560 sq.; 12,500 sq ft = .28 acres, 15,000 sq ft = .33 acres and 20,000 sq ft = .46 acres.
Bill Thompson lives on Kotori Court just off Kwavasa and adjacent to the property that is being rezoned Resort Commercial (RC). If these parcels are rezoned to RC, what guidelines do they have and are they different from residential property? There already is a motel at the end of Kayenta. Our homes are restricted to one level but the Crescent Moon Motel is two (2) stories high. Do they have to meet the same guidelines as residential as far as heights? Previous comments from Kevin Rudd were about high traffic areas and some of the areas are already zoned commercial. During the summer months and events it is difficult to get down the street to get to their driveway and also there is the noise. He was concerned about Kayenta's plans for the small piece adjacent to his property and the larger piece. If we already have high traffic areas, making more plots commercial other than housing will increase traffic and noise. In the summer we can vividly hear the bands and amplifiers. Also, there is a rat infestation problem because garbage cans are left open in Coyote Gulch. There are several concerns about making more properties Resort Commercial and he is strongly opposed to it.
Jeannine Thompson stated they enjoy some activities in Kayenta but with more commercial development brings more activities, traffic, noise and the the maintenance of Coyote Gulch. She gave some examples of lack of maintenance and lack of maintaining the streets. This small parcel can be seen from their bedroom and this summer water trucks, heavy duty equipment, backhoes and large trucks could be heard. If that becomes the maintenance yard, the equipment and trucks will be parking along that road, not only visible for them but everyone else that goes down Kwavasa and to see the art work. She felt it should be located in another area maybe by the storage sheds and it would not impact the residents. They moved there because it was a quiet peaceful neighborhood and it had a footprint on the houses where you could only build some much and the rest stayed natural. We understood that commercial was going to be there but if it grows it adds to problems in our life style. She asked that the small strip not be changed to RC. She also express concerns about the homes where people rent because they don't keep the maintenance up and if they are taller than one story it will block their views. It won't block our view but she doesn't want to hear the noise of trucks early in the morning with that small green strip.
James Lundhome lives at 1266 Wisteria Court and directly abuts the proposed Zone Change. The proposed property does not adjoin the Coyote Gulch commercial area. According to the web it is contiguous or touching but it is across a major roadway, Kwavasa Drive. Kwavasa Drive is an existing roadway and forms a physical boundary between residential and commercial property. There are, in fact, three occupied residential properties that do adjoin the proposed RC zoned property and his is one of them. His property is zoned residential. He understood that any development of this property would be residential in nature. This is consistent with all the properties around him. His property is under an HOA with all the protections and descriptions of HOA's in Kayenta. Commercially zoned property provide no such protections. The proposed Zone Change affects my residential property in two ways, residential on one side and commercial on the other. This is neither fair nor consistent with members of his HOA nor does it address the affect on his property values or the entire different set of dynamics that commercial zoning presents to the surrounding residents. It should remain RE-43. The rest of his concerns are submitted in his communications presented to the Commission.
Grant MacFarlane lives at 1269 Wisteria CT and mentioned that at the last meeting his concerns were about building on the berm across the street. Little did he realize a week and half later he should be concerned about someone building in his backyard. When he originally purchased his house, he was told by the Kayenta real estate agent that no one could build between him and the mountains or between him and Coyote Gulch. He thought he was moving into a residential area where a resort motel can be built. No one knows what can happen.
Bill Thompson lives close to the RC parcel. There is a large gulch behind their home. As properties are built in certain areas it would increase the ground water. There is the possibility of adding more runoff into the gullies. He asked that the Commission disapprove the RC proposal. He thought it had already been approved because there has been excavation on the small piece of property.
Commissioner Anderson explained that the area called Resort Commercial at one time was the main truck yard where trucks and material were parked. In 2003-2004 they were just changing the Juniper Sky Gallery so that it wasn't a storage unit. The Kayenta office was the shop. That was the maintenance area to keep materials to build these lots, etc. Eventually because of the growth in the area, it moved down to the Reservoir where Crescent Moon is now. Others in that area were concerned about the same issues. In Kayenta there is no property where we can park trucks. Currently, trucks and equipment are being parked at Anasazi Valley. The trucks that Mrs. Thompson referred to are the fire trucks and equipment. There are three (3) white water trucks that are the fire trucks. The only equipment left there is the fire equipment, but sometime there is a backhoe. The smaller area is where they want to put the fire equipment. The fire station was sold to Whitakers. It's a temporary fire station until Kayenta and Ivins can decide where to put a permanent fire station. We have decreased in that area not increased and tried to soften the area to make it more of a Resort Commercial instead of commercial. In regards to building casitas, maps from 1994 show that area for future casitas. There has been a General Plan in the office since 1992 or 1994 that showed exactly what we are trying to do today. In 2003 there was a Public Hearing on the Conditional Use Permit. Terry Marten has put a lot of thought into this with a lot of acres and is still following the plan. There will be no two stories, and we have already made a commitment to the homeowners association that we would meet the height regulations and coverage. We could build five homes on it right now because it is zoned residential.
Chair Murphy advised that they have received letters from James Lundholm, Richard Bryant, Charles Peterson, Ivy Ruckman, Diane Ryczek, Melanie Florence, and Grant MacFarlane and Marilyn Richardson.
Dennis Ellis owns property adjacent to Grant MacFarlane. There is drainage that runs almost down the middle of the proposed property. Lance Anderson advised him that the whole area across the street was like that at one point, and they would just fill it in. He objected to that and encroaching that close upon a small neighborhood. Also, in regards to the smaller parcel, a more appropriate use would be land that was already zoned for that purpose down below the Reservoir. It would take the traffic out by the Reservoir area to Highway 91.
Commissioner Anderson clarified that there are two washes in that area: one is the Cactus Wash to the west which they would not touch; the other is the Coyote Gulch that went up through Coyote Gulch and it's all piped now. Everyone keeps saying take it to the Reservoir but there are also homeowners along there.
Dennis Ellis advised that the Commission should have a letter from Trish Greenfield and Dennis Ellis. The letter was received.
Fletcher Shives commented that he supports those that are objecting to expanding the Resort Commercial. Recently, a new road was being put in by his home near Taviawk Phase 9, and he asked Lance Anderson to have the developer comply with the authorized work hours in Taviawk because they were hauling before 7:00 am and after dark at 6:00 pm. He was informed that the developer was exempt from what the homeowners have to abide by.
Gayle Bray lives in Taviawk and supports John Kerry's request for consideration that the proposed Taviawk Zone change stay RE-25 and be consistent with the parcel adjacent to it and be more in line with the RE-37 zone.
Richard Bryant lives at 1298 Wisteria Court and is close to Grant MacFarlane's home. He asked if Kevin Rudd had received communication by email from Joan Bell.
Kevin Rudd advised that he talked with her on the phone but did not receive an email from her and asked her to resend it.
Tom Fabio lives south of the proposed commercial area. Commercial is not subject to the ACC covenants. Kayenta's commercial is exempt so we have no control over it. There is supposed to be a roundabout put in to control traffic. If there is a 200 foot roundabout, it would affect any building of condominiums. The expansion of the commercial area is close to residential, is known for its lack of upkeep and piecemeal buildings are not desirable. It will affect homeowners' value especially those that abut it.
John Eisner lives on Wisteria Way. Of the ten (10) acre triangle, how much of the land is in the commercial bubble?
Kevin Rudd stated it doesn't necessarily cover the entire parcel but the Commission and City Council do have the ability to look outside the bubble.
John Eisner stated he lives in an HOA that has very restrictive covenants and CC&R's. Kayenta is a tightly controlled community for good reasons. Now, we introduce a commercial use within the confines of our HOA, if not illegal certainly from a geographic point of view would be inappropriate by exposing us to noise, traffic and no control of colors, heights, etc. He asked for their consideration.
Terry Marten explained that Kayenta has one location to provide a lot of services to the community. A lot of equipment has been purchased to protect the community from fire as well as all the effort that Kayenta Homesites and the ownership in Kayenta have made including purchasing all the land to maintain the Kayenta concept by controlling 2,200 acres so that they can be assured that they are not going to be looking across the gulch at a colonial mansion, Tudor home or worse. This has required a lot of sacrifice on his part and the people in Kayenta who have been involved for the last 35 years. He understands their concern, but the lack of trust is very hurtful. For residents to think we have turned cold and done something inappropriate is hard to take. The cost of maintenance in Coyote Gulch including picking up paper along the highway, and watering/ maintaining 2,500 trees is $50,000-$75,000/year, and we have never asked any of the associations to do very much. He also pays the property taxes on all that land that residents walk on. Now, the community needs a fire station location. To keep the fire insurance reasonable we have to have a fire facility within a two and one half mile radius. Everyone wanted to put it on the triangle parcel. A fire station needs twelve foot (12') doors and a tall building. We almost went that direction but there is a fifteen foot (15') height limitation. He thought it would be inappropriate because people live immediately west of that in the Kayenta Patio Homes. There were people in 1992 that did not think it should go there either but willing to allow RV storage buildings so we built it, but then it turned into Coyote Art Village. In order to keep a residential scale he picked the wash, the low lying land through Coyote Gulch. There was drainage and we were able to drop the site 5-6 feet to get all the buildings there at residential scale. It was no secret that it would be a small commercial area. It's been on the map since 1978 when it was annexed and that intersection was declared commercial. We have never drifted from the original concept. The fire station was going to be too impactful on the triangle. We don't know where we will ultimately build a fire station but we need a fire station for Ivins City to provide services. We can't put it on Kwavasa Drive or the triangle and make it look descent because of the height. The small proposed piece of property has access and a hill to cut the fire station into. It will be built into the break and the building will be 15-16 feet high but it will be bermed in by 7-8 feet. It will be sitting in the area of Whitaker's center and the Kayenta building which is twenty feet (20') high. That's a good place for the firehouse. It has access, it has the 2 1/2 mile requirement, and it keeps a fire station presence in the community. Kayenta has seven pieces of equipment and trucks that have been made available for a fire. If there is a fire, he doesn't want to go all over Kayenta looking for the equipment. They don't need zoning to build a fire station but they do need zoning to create the rest of what they are trying to accomplish. They also need zoning for some small discrete casitas for those that may do something at the art village. It covers 24% of the site, it is one story and the site isn't owned by him. It's owned in part but it's a project that his partner has wanted to do. Currently, they could build five lots with 2,000 sq ft homes and 500 sq ft garages. The casitas would not be close to that square footage, and they would be tucked into the site like Coyote Gulch.
Jeannie Thompson stated that her previous comments did not refer to fire trucks or fire station. She was referring to what she had heard it was going to be a commercial construction yard and that was unacceptable because they come and go early and late. She is not opposed to a fire station especially being behind the berm and if it did not block the view. She is opposed to a construction maintenance yard.
Terry Marten stated that he is not suggesting that it's just a fire station. They have always had a presence there with a shop. At one time it was 5,000 sq ft but now it is 600 sq ft. They have always had a place to park smaller equipment and trucks that are used on a daily basis and most have fire apparatus on them. There are people who work for Kayenta that do landscaping, weeding, a small survey crew, and a maintenance person. That's the level of construction. The fire house plan is 32 X 50 with two bays and a building 28 x 40 that would be twelve feet (12') high for staff to occupy so that they can have communication on a daily basis. Kevin Rudd suggested it would be easier to put it in the storage area and an easy solution for approval but the time frame would not work. It is general maintenance but we need to be in one spot. Some others have said they wanted an enclosed theater/performance center, etc. If they build it there, we lose the shop and storage. The purpose is to have access to the main office, accounting, the architect, and Lance Anderson instead of everybody working out of different locations and to be efficient and to have access to emergency fire equipment.
Chair Murphy closed the public hearing.