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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/13/25 Planning Commission Minutes/ Town of Pulaski Planning Commission Municipal Building, Council Chambers January 13, 2025 Present: Van Taylor, AJ Schrantz, Kevin Meyer, Terry Hale, Jeremy Clark Absent: None Guests: None Staff: Summer Bork, Planning & Zoning Administrator, Olivia Hale, Clerk of Council Call to Order Chairman Meyer called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. The roll was taken by Ms. Bork and a quorum was determined with five members present at the time of the roll call. Chairman Meyer asked if there were any membership changes. Ms. Bork reported Ms. Arthur resigned as of December 2024. Review and Approval of Minutes Chairman Meyer called for a review of the December 9, 2024 minutes and asked for a motion to adopt. The motion was made by Mr. Clark and seconded by Mr. Taylor. The motion passed unanimously. Public Hearing No public hearings were scheduled. New Business Discussion of proposed changes to the zoning ordinance- “Nursing Home” clean-up Ms. Bork reported part of the conundrum with ‘nursing homes’, ‘assisted living’ type housing is that it is fairly well governed by the state legislature and without putting delineation, if you call it a ‘assisted living’ or ‘nursing home’, it becomes what the state dictates it as. She stated she is proposing to eliminate the ‘nursing home’ definition and use and come up and implement an ‘elderly living’ and ‘care facility’ because it is not defined by the state and we can then put in senior living parameters. She stated if a company wanted to come in and do ‘assisted living’, they can by right up to eight people because of state law for those with mental illness and physical disabilities. She mentioned this would enable the town to ensure that we’re encouraging elderly continuing care and living options in the town. Chairman Meyer asked how is ‘continuing care’ defined, the state has continuing care ‘retirement communities’, we have ‘nursing homes’, ‘rehabilitation hospitals.’ Ms. Bork stated they are ill defined and they tend to be outpatient in the few definitions we have, and we have a fairly broad and encompassing hospital definition, so anything that is live-in could potentially fall under the hospital definition. Chairman Meyer asked if we were trying to define something and give it a name that might be more confusing. Ms. Bork stated this is specifically for elderly care, we’re trying to limit it to the age, she suggested 55 or older, and such facilities may also provide ‘continuing care’ and ‘nursing services’, both of those are defined by the state. Chairman Meyer stated it sounds like we are defining ‘assisted living facility.’ Ms. Bork stated we are basically defining an ‘assisted living facility’ and limiting it by age. She reported in 2022 the state legislature passed an amendment that basically said that mental disabilities and addiction are synonymous when it comes to these sorts of facilities and if you’re trying to protect the town as to uses of what can and cannot go in a specific location, if we don’t limit it by age, you’re opening it up to the possibility of anything inpatient. Chairman Meyer commented stating we are going to define a type of facility for elderly people who need care, probably encompassing some level of nursing care, therapies, some medical care, but it’s not a continuing care retirement community because patients not buying or owning something there, they’re just there as long as they need to be. Ms. Bork stated we are not dictating a model, we are simply dictating what we are allowing in our town and we don’t have a ‘nursing home’ definition, where it does show up in our zoning, is a broad, multi-use definition. She stated what we are trying to do is limit other models that could come up that are not geared towards elderly care. She reported group homes with six or under are allowed by right with certification by the state, and they are allowed currently over six people with a special exception and assisted living facilities under eight people fall under a similar regulation, and we don’t have currently have the regulations but by sate code we have to allow them. Ms. Bork stated this would enable the town to have elder care on a much larger scale but would limit the models that are coming into town to solely elder care that is larger than eight people. Ms. Bork also asked the commissioners to consider looking at what the American Planning Association deems ‘assisted living care’ or ‘elder continuing care’ as more of a multifamily bordering on commercial use, so given that the town has it as R1 and R2 but we don’t have it in RO, she suggested that the commissioners take a look at the benefits or impacts of redistricting the use to R3 or RO by special exception, and leaving it as a permitted use in PDU, which is a floating zone or an overlay zone, that someone by application would be reviewed on a case by case situation. She reported she was looking at recovery housing, and in Virginia we have to treat recovery housing like a group home or like a single-family home, so we cannot regulate it more strictly but you can specify that they be certified and that comes with monitoring and strict standards that must be met to maintain that certification. Chairman Meyer asked where the commissioners want to go with what’s presented. Ms. Bork stated the town has a lot of definitions that were defined in the 80s and/or 90s and they aren’t currently present in manifesting the uses, there’s some that could be resurrected and would have to be updated. She stated with ‘nursing home’, there are quite a few uses in that definition that are not defined, but they are defined by the state. Chairman Meyer stated the town can always adopt, through reference, what the state has and it’s inferred by if you officially adopt it, if the state changes it, then we are automatically up to date. He stated he did have concerns on the state end of things mentioning that there are a lot of entity types that present themselves as one thing and become something new or different that has no definition to it, and it ends up being a hybrid. He stated he wanted the board to be aware of how this definition would fit and know whether we’re missing other definitions that would surround it and or work with it. Ms. Bork stated this was designed to bypass all of that, because they would still need to be licensed by the state presumably to function but this would enable the town to not have to worry so much if it is pulling away from the specificity, we are enabling a broader ‘assisted living’ that could also be a rehab for elderly persons, or the ‘nursing home’ that’s also the assisted living facility but limiting it by a population type verses an activity. Chairman Meyer questioned defining a term that could reference a ‘group home’, an ‘assisted living facility’, a ‘nursing home’. Ms. Bork stated we are leaving it broad enough on what they’re able to do, but they have to meet the demonstration of how they are providing room and board when they submit an application, and if they are presenting continuing care, what sort of continuing care is being presented, and since we are leaving it as a special exception, they will have to present a synopsis of their business model to the commission and Town Council for review. Ms. Bork stated we are looking at two different things; one is state certification, which the facility will have to go through in order to get a business license and get a building permit, but what the town is allowing is the possibility of being ‘assisted living’, ‘nursing home’, or ‘convalescent home’, we are broadening the options of the potential licensures that they could get and still be an allowable use in town. She stated we want to review on a case by case basis and ensure that this holds up to what the intent that we have for the use of the town, how it aligns with the comprehensive plan and future land use. Mr. Taylor asked if the board saw any major risks going forward. Chairman Meyer stated he doesn’t see a risk but he’s not sure of the need because the town can put limitations on facilities like this, if they want to locate in town now. He stated any project from ‘nursing home’, ‘rehab’, medical type facility through ALF or large group homes would come to the commission through us requesting a special exception wherever they wanted to be. Chairman Meyer stated he would like to think about the definition a little more in depth along with the rest of the ordinances in that section and do some comparing with state and other localities. Mr. Taylor made the motion to table the discussion, Mr. Clark seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Old Business No old business was discussed. Other Business Ms. Bork recommended an agenda amendment to vote in officers. The motion was made by Mr. Taylor and seconded by Mr. Clark. The motion passed unanimously. Chairman Meyer asked for nominations for Chairman. Hr. Hale made a motion to nominate Mr. Meyer as Chairman. Mr. Clark seconded. Mr. Taylor made a motion to nominate Mr. Schrantz as Chairman. Due to the second nomination not having a second, Chairman Meyer closed the nominations. The nomination passed unanimously for Mr. Meyer to be Chairman. Chairman Meyer asked for nominations for Vice-Chair. Chairman Meyer nominated Mr. Schrantz. With no further nominations, Chairman Meyer closed the nominations. The nomination passed unanimously for Mr. Schrantz to be Vice-Chair. Chairman Meyer nominated Ms. Hale for secretary. With no other nominations, Chairman Meyer closed the nominations. The nomination passed unanimously for Ms. Hale to be Secretary. Staff Report Justice Property Housing Development Ms. Bork reported the town received a proposal that Council accepted at the previous Town Council meeting for development of the Justice Property with over 100 single family housing units, green space, sidewalks, and curb and gutter. She stated the commission will be involved in subdivisioning because anything over 25 parcels gets sent to the commission for review. Chairman Meyer asked what the process was for the board suggesting inclusion of certain amenities within the new development, specifically having a substation for emergency services, with a fire truck and ambulance, to service that portion of the town more quickly and recreation activities such as a dog park, or pickleball court. He also mentioned he heard the property being traded for a building behind the current fire station. Vice-Chairman Schrantz stated there is a building that houses a fire truck that SHAH Development owns and the town would trade properties. Chairman Meyer asked if the property was going to be deeded to SHAH Development or some other entity so that they have control of it or will the town retain it and who would be responsible for maintaining the open space. Ms. Hale stated everything is still under negotiations. Vice-Chairman Schrantz asked if there’s any rezoning that needs to be done. Ms. Bork stated there should be no rezoning, but it will probably be coming to the board as a planned development unit and because it’s one parcel being broken into hundreds of parcels there will also be a review of the actual subdivisioning of the park. Mr. Taylor asked how the commission gets involved in a land unit development. Ms. Bork stated the commission would approve the site plan and make it a floating zoning, which is a layer of zoning that happens on top of existing zoning, which is more conditional zoning or if they choose not to do it as a planned development unit, they do as small area zoning, where the commission would be rezoning the portion of land in small chunks. Vice-Chairman Schrantz voiced his concerns of the helicopter pad landing being so close to the development. Ms. Bork stated there would be a tree buffer between the development and the pad. Staff changes Ms. Bork reported she will be resigning from the Town of Pulaski and will no longer be the Town Planner, Zoning Administrator. Chairman Meyer stated he appreciated all the effort Ms. Bork has put into the job and she will be missed. Mr. Clark made the for a motion to postpone the February 10th meeting to March 10th unless something urgent comes up. Mr. Taylor seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Commissioner Comments Chairman Meyer reported the physician on Main Street will be relocating to Fairlawn. Adjournment With no further business, the motion was made by Mr. Hale and seconded by Mr. Clark to adjourn the meeting at 7:12 p.m. The motion passed unanimously.