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Re-zoning Fox Farm - 10th Ave. So.

Status: Closed
Assigned To: ctryon (Planning and Community Development)
Ticket ID: 157196b1

At the conclusion of the public remarks, at last night’s commission meeting, with regard to Agenda Item 13 - the re-zoning issue – Commissioner Bronson expressed that he was disheartened by some of the comments he received from citizens expressing their concern that the commission was engaged in some purposeful stalling. Well, I was probably one of the citizens who created his sense of disheartenment. You can rest assured that it’s based on experience and not on unfounded suspicion.
Many of us have been involved on city boards and committees over the course of decades. We see how things are done. Sometimes the things we see are very “disheartening”. It would be very helpful to us if you could tell us why it is so difficult to reject Town Pump’s application for re-zoning.
We also need to be sure we have the facts straight. Is this the chronology of events?

1. Town Pump applied for a permit to build a hotel within the confines of C-1 zoning.
2. The city gave its approval.
3. Then, for some reason, Town Pump changed its mind and wanted to build a larger hotel – a hotel that cannot be constructed unless the zoning is changed.
4. Town Pump, along with other businesses in the area, requested a re-zoning.
5. The city commissioners were advised to comply with the request and re-zone the area.
6. Area residents became aware of the situation and protested.
7. Protests mounted.
8. A vote on the re-zoning issue was tabled.
9. A public hearing is scheduled for May 2 when, presumably, a vote will be taken.

Do I have that right? Please let me know if I don’t.
Why did Town Pump change its mind about the hotel size? They are business people. Certainly, they did their homework. Did someone say, “Oh, shoot. We meant to apply for a permit to build a larger hotel. Could you please re-zone this neighborhood so we can do that?”
Why would the city even consider re-zoning this area? Mr. Bronson, you have to understand that when this neighborhood was zoned C-1, it was with the understanding that it would remain C-1 because the residents of the neighborhood were so “disheartened” by the appearance of Lucky Lil’s in an area in which there were to be no more casinos. We have every right to be suspicious of the goings-on behind the scenes in situations such as the current re-zoning effort. Furthermore, we are Americans. We have good reason to suspect that businessmen and people in public office aren’t always on the up and up. Sorry.
So, can you please tell me why it is so difficult to deny the re-zoning petition?
I look forward to hearing from any or all of you. Thank you very much.

Ticket History

Closed
Updated By: ctryon
Assigned To: ctryon (Planning and Community Development)
04/25/2017 - 11:40am
Public
Open
Updated By: ctryon
Assigned To: ctryon (Planning and Community Development)

Dear Craig,
    For what exactly did Town Pump apply - a dirt-moving permit? Correct. A fill permit is where a property owner may haul in or "import" dirt to raise the grade level of the property. In this case to bring the property out of and above the flood plain. They asked for a "lawful fill" (dirt work) permit with what intention? To prepare the site for eventual development. Admittedly the owners of the property are at some risk if the Commission does not approve of the rezone. They would either have to develop a different plan for a shorter hotel or some other use that is compliant with the C-1 zoning or sell the property to another developer who has another vision. Or, do nothing at all and wait and decide for another day what they might do with the property.  Certainly the city would want to know for what purpose the dirt was being moved, wouldn't it? Yes we knew what it was for and both the City and Town Pump folks were aware that Town Pump was at risk of spending money improving property without being able to ultimately do what they want. So, Town Pump has been moving dirt around in the hope that it will be granted the C-2 zoning it desires and therefore is moving dirt to accommodate a 4-story hotel? Correct
    Regarding the casinos: yes, there are two other casinos in the area - two too many in the opinion of many residents. I generally share your opinion of casinos C-2 zoning opens the door for more. Why would the city want to do this to our neighborhood? I don't think it's that the City "wants" to do this to your neighborhood specifically, but the bottom line is the State regulates the gaming industry in so far as how many casino licenses are issued or allowed in any given city. So, there is very little the City can do to prevent any additional casinos from being established in town. I know many people (including myself) don't like the seemingly abundant casinos here and don't want them in their neighborhood but Helena doesn't seem to care enough about this issue to change the law. As it stands today, we do our best to keep them out of residential areas as an obvious conflict but aside from that, it's tough to balance other commercial development with the casino conflict. All that being said, the proposal that we will bring to the Commission with the PUD zoning designation will actually prevent new casinos from being established upon those properties within the PUD area.  
    Thank you, Craig. Thank you. I hope this helps explain what is going on and why the City has taken the steps it has to this point.

Thanks,

Craig

Jenny

04/06/2017 - 10:27am
Public
Open
Updated By: ctryon
Assigned To: ctryon (Planning and Community Development)

Craig Raymond, Director of Planning and Community Development, responded on 4/5/17 at 4:56 PM.

 

Hi Jennifer, thank you for your inquiry and giving us the opportunity to clarify what's actually going on as opposed to the numerous rumors out in the community. I will answer each of your questions below:

 

1. Town Pump applied for a permit to build a hotel within the confines of C-1 zoning. This is false. Town Pump has not formally applied for any building or zoning permits for a hotel yet. They came and spoke to us about building a hotel at a preliminary meeting and we stated that they could not build a 4-story building in the C-1 zoning district as the max height is 35 feet.
2. The city gave its approval. Completely false. The only approval the city has granted was for a lawful fill (dirt work) permit issued through the city and FEMA in compliance with all city, state and federal regulations. This permit is for filling and grading of property only and does not include any foundation or other development work outside the scope of an ordinary fill permit in the flood plain.
3. Then, for some reason, Town Pump changed its mind and wanted to build a larger hotel – a hotel that cannot be constructed unless the zoning is changed. Again, false. Town Pump has never changed their plan since we have met with them in the beginning. We simply told them it couldn't work in C-1 zoning so that is when the zone change application was submitted and brought through the appropriate process.
4. Town Pump, along with other businesses in the area, requested a re-zoning. Correct
5. The city commissioners were advised to comply with the request and re-zone the area. The City Commission has a duty to hear zone change requests as with many other land use applications. After a public hearing and discussion, the Planning Board/Zoning Commission recommended approval to the City Commission. City Staff also recommended approval based on the criteria outlined in city code and state statute. Using the words "comply" implies they are being forced or threatened under duress to approve it which is not the case.
6. Area residents became aware of the situation and protested. True
7. Protests mounted. True
8. A vote on the re-zoning issue was tabled. True
9. A public hearing is scheduled for May 2 when, presumably, a vote will be taken. True

Do I have that right? Please let me know if I don’t.
Why did Town Pump change its mind about the hotel size? They did not change their mind. They are business people. Certainly, they did their homework. Did someone say, “Oh, shoot. We meant to apply for a permit to build a larger hotel. Could you please re-zone this neighborhood so we can do that?” Again, this is not what actually happened. There is no truth to this rumor.
Why would the city even consider re-zoning this area? 2 reasons. (1) by law, the City has a duty to process any and all land use applications. This does not mean that all have to be approved but we do have to follow the law and render decisions based on what the state statutes require. (2) The City would consider rezoning this property because what is actually in place now (gas stations, drive through restaurants, casinos, convention hotels) is perfectly characteristic of what C-2 is intended to be. High intensity uses. The granting of C-2 zoning will not, in our view, increase the intensity of traffic or any other impact as it really doesn't get any higher in impact than what already exists.  Mr. Bronson, you have to understand that when this neighborhood was zoned C-1, it was with the understanding that it would remain C-1 because the residents of the neighborhood were so “disheartened” by the appearance of Lucky Lil’s in an area in which there were to be no more casinos. There are two other casinos in the immediate area. We have every right to be suspicious of the goings-on behind the scenes in situations such as the current re-zoning effort. Furthermore, we are Americans. We have good reason to suspect that businessmen and people in public office aren’t always on the up and up. Sorry.
So, can you please tell me why it is so difficult to deny the re-zoning petition?
I look forward to hearing from any or all of you. Thank you very much.

I hope this answers your questions adequately. I understand that it can be difficult to discern fact from fiction when you are hearing things out in the community but those are the facts. I hope you take the opportunity to correct any misinformation when you hear it. If you have any more questions or hear any more rumors please feel free to call me and I will do my best to help in any way I can.

Thanks,

Craig Raymond

Director, Planning and Community Development

City of Great Falls

04/06/2017 - 8:13am
Public
Open
Updated By: lkunz
Assigned To: ctryon (Planning and Community Development)
04/05/2017 - 3:14pm
Public
Open
Updated By: lkunz
Assigned To: lkunz (City Commission)

Hi Jennifer - your comments will be forwarded to the City Commission, and this ticket will be re-assigned to the proper department for a response to your questions.

Thank you.  Lisa Kunz, City Clerk

 

04/05/2017 - 2:48pm
New
Assigned To:

Citizen request/question created.

04/04/2017 - 9:21pm

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