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1 Star City Council Meeting Minutes March 21, 2017 The regular meeting of the Star City Council was held on March 21, 2017 at Star Elementary School, 700 N. Star Road, Star, Idaho. Mayor Chad Bell called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm and all stood for the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll Call: Councilmen Kevin Nielsen, Trevor Chadwick, Richard Lockett, and David Hershey were present. Approval of the Agenda: Chadwick moved to approve the agenda, Nielsen seconded the motion. All ayes: motion carried. Consent Agenda: Chadwick moved to approve the Consent Agenda consisting of: Regular Meeting Minutes of March 7, 2017, Proclamations for: Year of the Lions, March for Meals, and Arbor Day, Lockett seconded the motion. All ayes: motion carried. Mayor Bell asked Chadwick to read the proclamations for the Year of the Lions and Arbor Day, and asked Nielsen to read the proclamation for March for Meals. Public Input: The Mayor explained this time was for the public to address the Council about anything except items on the agenda. Ashley Freeman, 12336 Foxhaven Street, Star, stated she would like to see the creation of a community action team; having people come together to help others, such as when there’s possible flooding issues, illness, etc. Mayor Bell noted there is a Community Services Fair being held June 3, at Blake Park, which is looking at doing service projects along this line. Gary Smith, 258 S. Langer Lake Way, Star, passed out a packet of information regarding community planning. He is concerned about key City documents not being followed. The City’s Comp Plan is part of a larger plan for neighboring communities, not just Star. He would like the City to be proactive in planning and asked the elected officials to follow the plans entrusted to them. Judy Simpson, 1081 N. Nebula Place, Star, asked if the Mayor could address the rumors that Albertsons is building in the City. The Mayor stated there is multiple interest from stores looking at coming to Star, but he was not at liberty to give names out. Old/New Business: Star Lions Request for Park Libraries – Mayor Bell explained the Star Lions Club are wanting to install two Little Free Libraries to distribute books. Pat Gore, representing the Star Lions Club, explained the origins of the program and requested they be allowed to install the little libraries at Blake Haven Park and Hunter's Creek Park. She explained the Lions would construct the small ---PAGE BREAK--- 2 libraries, install them, and be responsible for monitoring the books for suitability. She noted the Star Library was in support of the project and has offered them some used books. They would like to request that if the location was not suitable that they would have the right to relocate. Chadwick asked for clarification in that they would stock the books, and people would come and switch books, and they would be monitoring the books. Gore stated that was correct. Nielsen asked if the installation of the libraries wasn't something the City should take on to insure safety. The Mayor stated the Lions could install the units, but the maintenance staff would coordinate it with them. Hershey stated he like the idea. Lockett moved to approve the Star Lions Little Libraries to be installed at locations agreed upon between the Lions and the City, Nielsen seconded the motion. All ayes: motion carried. Public Hearing – S. Springs Court – Rezone & 2 Development Agreements (continued from March 7, 2017) – The Mayor explained they had already held a public hearing for this application and certain items were not open to discussion tonight. That the only comments to be heard tonight during the public hearing were to be in regards to transportation. He informed the audience that if they had sent in a comment in writing or by e-mail that their comments were a part of the public record. He encouraged them to let them know they had and that there was no need to read them to the Council. The Mayor reviewed the procedures for the public hearing and informed everyone they had the use of the school facility only till 9:00 pm. Mayor Bell opened the public hearing and asked the Council if they had any conflicts of interest or exparte contact, hearing none the Mayor asked the applicant to speak. Applicant - Bob Taunton, 2724 S. Palmatier Way, Boise stated that T.J. of US19 LLC and John Ringer with Kittelson and Associates were also present. He reviewed the process they had been through so far and noted Kittelson & Associates had done a traffic analysis, as a formal Traffic Impact Study (TIS) was not possible in the timeframe required for the hearing. The traffic study indicated no traffic light was warranted, Moyle Road did meet Ada County Highway District (ACHD) standards, and traffic through Heron River Subdivision was below ACHD's threshold. He reviewed the steps they would be taking next: Step 1 will be requesting rezone approval; Step 2 the applicant would develop and submit plans for approval. They have agreed to meet with the Heron River HOA and look at mitigating traffic through Heron River, but it is up to ACHD to give approval. They are prepared to pay for a TIS study and the cost for traffic mitigation as may be required by ACHD. Step 3 is to create a master plan with the City for the Highway 44 and Highway 16 corridor. Step 4 will be submitting development plans for the commercial property, including a site development TIS for the commercial property. If there is to be a signal light they would pay their proportionate share as it would benefit other properties. They realize there will be a need for more traffic studies. Chadwick asked what leadership from the Heron River HOA was at the meeting they had with Heron River. Taunton stated he believed the HOA president was there. ---PAGE BREAK--- 3 Nielsen asked regarding Step 2, were they suggesting redoing the plans and resubmitting. Taunton stated there were no changes; they will submit the actual plans proposed. Hershey noted Taunton had said if approved as strictly residential they would work with Heron River HOA as they go. He asked how they plan to do this. Taunton stated that at the meeting they had agreed they would accept being conditioned to work with Heron River to mitigate cut through traffic. ACHD is the ultimate authority; and he believed the Council could make it a requirement. Nielsen stated he believed they could only condition that they meet ACHD requirements. Chris Yorgason, City Attorney, stated ACHD ultimately has to approve any roads. He would hate to see them require a written agreement as not every resident would sign off. They could word it that they need to work closely with the HOA to cut traffic on Wildbranch, with approval ultimately from ACHD. Public Input – The Mayor explained each person speaking would be limited to three minutes, and asked them to be concise. Teri Haigh, 9257 W. Wildbranch Drive, Star, stated she went to the meeting and didn’t recall an agreement being made. She is concerned with traffic if property is rezoned to high density. She is concerned about safety if traffic goes through their subdivision. She hopes the Council will vote against the application. Chris Butterworth, 9044 W. State Street, Star, stated he is concerned with traffic and doesn’t feel a light at Moyle will help. He counted cars and estimates there were 3.4 cars per second for a two hour period. From a traffic standpoint he felt it may be better for developers to cut down on the number of units. David Hitz, 9323 W. Wildbranch, Star, pointed out he has two young kids who play out front. He is concerned with safety for kids should cut through traffic go down Wildbranch. He urged the Council to deny the application. Mayor Bell had to remind the audience there was to be no more cheering and applauding, they need to show respect to each speaker. Arna Day, 9433 W. Wildbranch Drive, Star, passed out a letter to the Council. She stated she had spoken with Ken Couch from ITD and he said there would be no light. She estimates there will be 500 cars using their street to get in and out. She is concerned with safety for kids and adults riding bikes. She stated that at the meeting the developer stated he wasn’t concerned with traffic, he was there to make money. Day asked the Council to review the Comp Plan and she doesn’t feel high density serves this community. Mike Crance, 9389 W. Wildbranch Drive, Star, stated they moved here because they were attracted by quiet street and access to a main connector. He believed they had moved to a community that would have safe streets and he sees no need in jeopardizing Heron River’s safety or their property values for this development. ---PAGE BREAK--- 4 Andrew Freeman, stated that due to the time restraint he would give up his time to allow others to speak. Gary Smith, 258 S. Langer Lake, Star, stated he was at the Heron River meeting and knew of no agreement made. At the January Council meeting he heard the Council say they would meet with Representative Mike Moyle and asked how it went. Mayor Bell stated he didn’t believe they said they would meet with Moyle and hadn’t. Smith stated he recollected the Council saying if they couldn’t get a light they would not approve this rezone. Mayor Bell stated that had not been stated. Smith asked that they deny because no light was going in. He had met with ITD and they said there would be no light and he met with ACHD and they said they would not block roads. He again requested they deny this application until a light has been approved, funded and installed. Scott Kunau, 10260 W. Broadford Court, Star, stated he is against approval of this application due to the fact current traffic infrastructure will not handle the traffic. This high density project will bring hundreds of cars. He has seen accidents due to no traffic lights. The additional traffic will add time to everyone’s travel times. He stated he is against any development that would add traffic. Douglas Weiser, 9420 W. Wildbranch, Star, stated his concern is safety, especially at the mail box. He doesn’t understand how the light will improve traffic, it will only force traffic thru Wildbranch. He asked Council to deny. Carol M. Fleischer, 183 S. Rivermist, Star, stated she is not opposed to growth, but asked they deny the rezone due to traffic concerns. She did not feel a light would improve the traffic situation. She is especially concerned with the added noise and traffic 240 apartments will generate; it will have a negative effect on their community. She noted the traffic evaluation didn’t take in all the new construction or the school being built. She felt the master plan should be followed and asked that there be no approval until the light is approved and put in. Jorge Vargas, 1126 Finsbury Avenue, Star, stated he wanted to support the previous speaker. He welcomes growth and knows infrastructure lags behind. He asked Council to consider other communities being built. He doesn’t believe we need high density projects at this time. Doug Pfeiffer, 9515 W. Wildbranch Drive, Star, pointed out there is a growing traffic problem and this development is proposing billboards. The Mayor reminded him they are not here to discuss billboards, only traffic. Pfeiffer noted billboards distract drivers and asked that they consider the cost of accidents from distracted drivers. Jack Givens, 9459 W. Wildbranch Drive, Star, said he would like to echo the safety concerns already presented. Moyle Road doesn’t meet the standards for this much additional traffic; and more traffic will become more of an issue. He recommends denial. Kevin Dents, 9468 Deerfawn, Star, stated it was clear to them that the traffic study was incomplete. He asked they not approve until the traffic study is completed. ---PAGE BREAK--- 5 Carol A. Fleischer, 226 S. Rivermist Avenue, Star, stated she agreed with what has been said so far. She is all for smart growth and for options for affordable housing. She doesn’t feel this is a good project and will have negative effects. She spoke with ACHD and Moyle Road is outside their jurisdiction. The road is substandard and will remain so until ACHD takes it over. She feels the road is dangerous and asked Council not to rezone the property. Judy Simpson declined speaking. Michael Traficante, 301 S. Selwood Way, Star, asked why they didn’t have the public hearing two weeks ago. The Mayor explained because they had not yet met with ACHD but have since. Traficante asked that they make their decision based on their meeting with ACHD. Chris Saunders, 184 S. Rivermist Avenue, Star, presented an information sheet he had requested from ACHD regarding the number of accidents at Highway 16 and State Street in the last year. He noted that increased traffic increased accidents. COMPASS has listed the State Street corridor from Middleton to Eagle as the second highest accident corridor. As for commercial we do not need additional storage on the left side of State Street. He is concerned with safety for kids Applicant Rebuttal – Bob Taunton passed out a sheet of “Proposed Revisions to the US 19 Development Agreement” which reflect some of the statements made earlier. The owner is willing to have a traffic study agreement and participate in the additional cost of the study as well as pay their portion of the cost of a traffic light if one is warranted. In the “Proposed Revision to the US 19 Commercial Development Agreement” the signs have been reduced to three and they addressed the lighting of the signs. At the meeting with Heron River the developer said he was willing to come up with some new designs for streets and to consult with the HOA, nothing said about an agreement. It has been mention there will be 2000 car trips per day and he noted the developer did not state this. ACHD allows up to that many trips. There had not been enough time for a full TIS so they had the consultant do a study and he did include more than just this project. They are committed to doing a full TIS study, not one based on speculation, but based on actual fact. There has been a lot of comments on Moyle Road being substandard and they will look at the road and it will be up to the developer to mitigate the road to be safe. There were comments that ACHD would not restrict roads, and he wanted to let them know they do and do it on a case by case basis. There were comments about putting in single family homes near a major road (Highway 16) and he wanted to let them know that based on his many years as a realtor and developing property that single family homes would be inappropriate, multi-family is much more appropriate. Mayor Bell asked the representative from ACHD, Mitch Skiles, if he would come forward for questions. Chadwick asked if Skiles could discuss the possibility of bypassing traffic through Wildbranch. Skiles stated traffic calming can be done; it is done on a case by case basis following traffic studies. Mayor Bell declared the public hearing closed and moved to Council deliberation. The Mayor explained the next step was for the Council to discuss and then make a decision if appropriate. They need to consider does it follow the State, County and City laws? Landowners have the ---PAGE BREAK--- 6 right to make application for their property. Sometimes things are not popular, but they are charged with making sure they have a fair consideration and they follow the laws. He reminded the Council they cannot make decisions regarding roads, sewer & water, or fire department. The Council will deliberate then vote. Nielsen stated he was able to attend the meeting with ACHD and ITD, along with Lockett, and recognized the traffic issues are bigger than this application. From the meeting he learned the jurisdiction of roads does not belong to the City, but they are responsible to look at the elements. They indicated that a traffic light is not a definite no; there are IDAPA Rules to follow. ITD and ACHD indicated that a traffic light is not warranted there at this time and that people do not use State Street as it was designed. ITD & ACHD will make recommendations to mitigate traffic concerns and make traffic safe. ITD indicated no access had been requested or approved. IDAPA rules will go into effect for an impact study. Nielsen stated he had major concerns regarding the development's traffic study but knowing ITD's IDAPA study rules will kick in relieves some of his concerns. Chadwick stated he would like to see a light at that intersection. He does like the project and feels the City needs diversity. He would like to see the application denied and they come with a master plan for the eastern end of town. Hershey thanked everyone for their input. His first thought was the traffic study is critical; he wanted an official study done and was willing to wait the four months for it to be done. They need diversity in the City, but need to do it right. Before approving he would like the traffic study to be done. Lockett stated he heard a lot of things and there are many concerns with roads. He feels we need a plan and wants to have the community involved in the planning. Lockett moved to deny files RZ-16-02, DA-16-01 and DA-16-02 and not rezone the property at this time, Chadwick seconded the motion. The Mayor asked if there was any further discussion. He noted they would move forward with a Master Plan regardless of this application. Hershey asked if a complete denial would send this away as he believes it is a good plan. He would like possibly approving the plan with conditions and having a traffic study done. Nielsen felt it is bad to have a motion to deny. There is a lack of diversity in the City and the City needs businesses that are waiting for more residents. From a previous application people wanted apartments put down the road and this is it and now they don't want it. This project will be a buffer along a major highway. ITD has no concerns with the road for this project. Mayor Bell called for a vote: Lockett and Chadwick aye; Nielsen and Hershey nay: motion tied. Mayor Bell stated he felt many things needed to be done right for the City and everyone has rights. Mayor Bell voted nay: motion denied. Following disruptions from the crowd, the Mayor stated he will not bend to intimation, threats or blackmail. The motion to deny failed. ---PAGE BREAK--- 7 Nielsen moved to table the hearing for another two weeks to the next Council meeting as the development agreements need to be considered. Hershey seconded the motion. Nielsen and Hershey aye; Lockett and Chadwick nay: motion tied. Mayor Bell vote aye: motion carried. Adjournment: Due to the time the Mayor dispensed with the rest of the agenda, to be placed on the next agenda, and the meeting was adjourned at 9:05 pm. Approved: Respectfully submitted: Charlten Bell, Mayor Kathleen Hutton, Deputy City Clerk