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DRRC 04-24-14 Meeting Minutes Page 1 Development Review and Regulations Committee (DRRC) Meeting Minutes April 24, 2014 MEETING MINUTES OF THE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW AND REGULATIONS COMMITTEE (DRRC) Held in the First Floor Conference Room of the Frederick County Administration Building, 107 N. Kent Street, Winchester, Virginia, on April 24, 2014. DRRC MEMBERS PRESENT: Greg Unger, Whitt Wagner, Tim Stowe, Kevin Kenney, Jay Banks, June Wilmot, Gary Oats, Larry Ambrogi, Eric Lowman, Dwight Schenk DRRC MEMBERS ABSENT: Roger Thomas STAFF PRESENT: Candice Perkins OTHERS PRESENT: John Goode, Bruce Carpenter, Ty Lawson CALL TO ORDER The Development Review and Regulations Committee (DRRC) meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. Item 1: Landscaping Requirements. Continued discussion on potential revisions to the landscaping requirements contained in the Zoning Ordinance pursuant to the Business Friendly Committee recommendations. Staff provided an overview and turned the meeting over to John Goode who was a member of the Business Friendly Committee (land use). Mr. Goode stated that landscaping is cosmetic and that it's hard to put the requirement into an ordinance. Homeowners aren't subjected to this requirement, only business owners. He further stated that he has never seen public support for landscaping. The ordinance isn't flexible enough, if you have a small site change you may have to upgrade an entire site. The requirements only benefit landscapers, not property owners. Property owners have to cram in trees to get a specific required number and the ordinance assumes that business owners will not make their site look good. Mr. Goode stated that business owners should be able to choose their own landscaping; should be a private issue and covered under the covenants or left up to the owner. Need to stop debating over beauty and eliminate the entire ordinance. Ty Lawson stated that the Business Friendly Committee stated that the entire landscaping ordinance should be rescinded. Owners should be able to do whatever they want. At the end of the day the committee stated that the ordinance went too far. Bruce Carpenter - by putting requirements in by number instead of quality you don't wind up with a good project. When doing an expansion the upgrades should be proportional to the expansion. Page 2 Development Review and Regulations Committee (DRRC) Meeting Minutes April 24, 2014 DRRC committee members stated that the County can’t legislate the individual values of business owners, and that the ordinance can only provide a minimum. Mr. Wagner stated that new security requirements for industrial properties can sometimes be counterproductive to the landscaping ordinance and that snow removal can be an issue. On the other hand the County is getting new stormwater regulations that are going to require more pervious area. The new stormwater regulations are going to require more plants and infiltration. The committee stated that they understood where the business friendly group is coming from, but the DRRC has a challenge. DRRC committee members questioned whether or not property owners would plant landscaping if it were not required by ordinance. If the ordinance didn’t place any restrictions, you don’t know what you will get; you need some type of continuity and aesthetics. Also, buffers are necessary to protect adjacent land owners. It was also stated that Frederick County’s ordinance is much easier to understand and requires far fewer plantings than other localities. Mr. Oates stated that he had not encountered a site where the plants didn’t fit. Mr. Banks further stated that there is enough space on sites to accommodate trees and shrubs and regarding damage to plants, that’s an issue with poor placement of the plants. Moving shrubs and trees back from the curb is will eliminate plants being damaged because of snow removal equipment. Poor placement seems to be the issue, the cost isn't that much. Landscaping is pennies compared to the total site work and the DRRC questioned why the Business Friendly Committee didn’t look at pavement and curb and other site work that constitute the majority of the site cost. The DRRC requested staff to look at a proportional upgrade waiver; sites that are increasing 10-20 percent may request a waiver of the landscaping requirements. It was further stated that that trees aren’t simply provided for aesthetic reasons; they help shade parking which is necessary because of the heat that comes off them and the air pollution that comes from that. The DRRC questioned whether the Business Friendly Committee was primarily concerned about residential or commercial/industrial. Mr. Lawson replied that they also wanted to eliminate all residential landscaping requirements. He further stated that it isn’t about trying to save money; it’s about trying to deliver a quality product. Mr. Lawson stated that home builders are already going above the ordinance and therefore minimums are unnecessary. DRRC members stated that residential builders will cut costs where they can and providing flexibility can be a slippery slope and that the ordinance needs to have minimum standards. DRRC members acknowledged that the landscaping costs for commercial and residential are different. Commercial landscaping is much more expensive because of the amount of damage that can occur; however, business budget for repair and replacement of the landscaping. Page 3 Development Review and Regulations Committee (DRRC) Meeting Minutes April 24, 2014 The DRRC requested time to think about the existing ordinance and would meet further discuss the ordinance at the next meeting. The DRRC stated that while changes may be appropriate, minimums are necessary. The DRRC will further discuss waiver options at the next meeting. Next meeting of the DRRC is May 22, 2014 The meeting adjourned at 8:30 p.m.