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DRRC 06-27-19 Meeting Summary 1 DRRC Meeting Summary for 06/27/19 Members Present: Kenney, Stowe, Shenk, Ambrogi, Banks, Cline, Wagner, Unger, Morrison, & Dawson Members Absent: Oates Staff Present: Mike Ruddy, AICP, Planning Director and M. Tyler Klein, AICP, Senior Planner Public: One (1) Citizen The meeting was called to order at approximately 7:00 PM by Chairman Unger. Item #1 – Election of Officers. As stipulated in the Development Review & Regulations Committee Operating Procedures, a Chairman and Vice-Chairman will be elected during the first meeting of each year. Mr. Dwight Shenk made a motion to re-appoint Chairman Greg Unger and Vice-Chairman Tim Stowe for calendar year 2019, the motion was seconded by Mr. Whit Wagner and unanimously approved. Item #2 – Update on Previous Zoning Ordinance Text Amendments. Staff provided a summary of previous Zoning Ordinance text amendments that were sent forward by the DRRC at their last meeting in June 2018. Staff noted that the following items were not moved forward for a public hearing (action) by the Board of Supervisors: • Self-Storage Facilities as a Conditional Use in the RA Zoning District Staff noted that the BOS did not support self-storage facilities in the RA District citing concerns over traffic on unpaved roadways and the perceived incompatibility of the industrial type use with the County’s rural areas. Chairman Unger inquired if there were any self-storage facilities operating illegally in the RA Zoning District; Staff responded they were not aware of any such facilities, but if they were made aware, they would pursue a zoning violation to extinguish the use. Staff concluded that the County has seen many site plan applications for self-storage facilities in business and industrial districts. • Shipping Containers as Accessory Structures/Uses in all Zoning Districts Staff noted that the BOS did not support shipping containers as accessory structures/uses as they were “unsightly” and not regulated by the Virginia Building Code. Staff responded to comments that shipping containers were already allowed as “temporary” storage for construction activities and they would need to be removed prior to issuance of Certificates of Occupancy. • Solar Farms as a Conditional Use in the RA (Rural Areas) Zoning District Leading into Item # 3, Staff noted that the BOS did not support adding solar facilities as a conditional use in the RA Zoning District and had raised concerns about abandonment/decommissioning of such facilities. No action was requested by the DRRC for Item #2. 2 Item #3 – Public Utilities. Discussion of a request by County Staff to include a definition for “Public Utilities” that includes utility-scale solar energy generating facilities and solar power generating facility decommissioning requirements in the Fredrick County Zoning Ordinance Supplemental Use Regulations as required under the Code of Virginia. Staff noted that a revised text amendment proposal was distributed in response to comments from the County Attorney. Providing some context, Staff noted that in discussion solar facilities as a CUP in the RA Zoning District, Staff and the County Attorney made a determination that solar facilities would fall under the definition of a “public utility” given that such facilities operate under a “Certificate of Public Convenience” issued by the SCC and may be public or privately owned but their commodity (power) is ultimately sold to the public. Staff also provided a brief summary of a solar workshop held at LFCC with the Northern Shenandoah Valley Regional Commission and the Alliance for the Shenandoah Valley, noting that a few Planning Commissioners also attended. Specifically, Staff highlighted the “Permit by Rule” process through the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and solar projects underway in other parts of the Commonwealth (Spotsylvania County 6,000-acre facility). In recognition of this determination, Staff outlined their proposed text amendment to: include a definition of a “public utility” which further specifies “utility-scale solar power generating facilities” as a type of utility, revised supplemental use regulations to incorporate changes to the Code of Virginia which require localities to have a plan of decommissioning for such solar facilities through the establishment of a bond, and updating the “use type” across zoning district to ensure “public utility” replaces the various terms (utilities, utility distribution facilities, etc.) within the Zoning Ordinance for ease of use. Staff noted that in ultimately taking this public utilities amendment forward to the Board of Supervisors, they would also present the previous text amendment proposal, to add only solar facilities as a CUP in the RA Zoning District, so that the Board may direct staff in the direction they would like to go. Committee members generally expressed support for including solar facilities under the definition of “public utilities” and as a by-right use in certain zoning districts as opposed to a CUP, given the relatively small number of such facilities that may be viable in Frederick County. The DRRC raised concerns with the definition of public utility not being specific to wind energy (i.e. wind turbines) and what impact it may have if a developer wanted to locate wind turbines on a ridge (such as Great North Mountain). Staff noted they had not previously considered this issue but would do some additional research and come back to the Committee with more information. The DRRC also raised concerns about what the Code of Virginia allows localities to regulate regarding public utilities versus what the Code allows for regulation of solar facilities. No action was taken by the DRRC on Item #3; Staff was instructed to research comments raised at the meeting and report back at the next meeting in July 2019. Staff inquired if there were any other topics or areas of interest; no additional topics were discussed. The meeting concluded at 7:46 PM.