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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1974-06-05 Special Minutes - Shoreline Master Program Public HearingJune 5, 1974 7:30 P.M. CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL OF COUNCIL MEMBERS MEETING DISCUSSION Shorelines Master Program OPEN PUBLIC HEARING 8:35 P.M. Byron Sneva TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING MINUTES 72 Tukwila City Hall Council Chambers Mayor Pro Tem Traynor called the meeting to order and explained the purpose of the meeting to discuss the Tukwila Shorelines Master Program. TRAYNOR, DAVIS, SAUL, JOHANSON. MOVED BY TRAYNOR, SECONDED BY DAVIS, THAT COUNCILMAN STERLING BE EXCUSED. CARRIED. Councilwoman Harris arrived at 7:35 P.M. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor turned the meeting over to the Planning staff to enable the Council to ask questions before the meeting was open- ed to the public. Gary Crutchfield, Planning Technician, introduced Mike Sweeney from Jones Et Jones, a firm hired by the City under Res. #379 to prepare the Shorelines Master Program. Mike Sweeney stated the State's Master Program and the Department of Ecology's guidelines were followed in the preparation. It was determined the Green River in the City of Tukwila would have a highly developed urban environment. Mr. Sweeney then covered each page briefly of the Tukwila Shorelines Master Program. He stated it was determined that the characteristic of the land was most important to preserve. Councilman Johanson stated Mr. Sweeney had mentioned some changes made at the Planning Commission level. Are these alterations re- flected in the report we have before us now? Gary Crutchfield replied yes. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor stated the report indicates a 50 foot river zone, and a 40 foot river zone. Which is proper? Mike Sweeney stated both are proper and it is the choice of the developer ac- cording to the requirements of each zone. The requirements of the 40 foot zone are more restrictive. He then went on to explain the use of property in the 40 and 50 foot zones. Councilman Saul stat- ed this idea came out of the Planning Commission and not from the Shorelines Management Act. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor thanked Mike Sweeney for the presentation and asked for the recommendation of the Planning Department. Gary Crutchfield stated it is the recommendation of the Planning Com- mission to adopt the Program as amended by the Planning Commission. He stated the Planning Commission has held several public hearings. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor opened the Public Hearing for audience com- ments. Mr. By Sneva, Don Koll Northwest, stated at this time the City has not adopted any ordinance implementing what the Shorelines Program was instituted to do. In a letter written by John Biggs, dated June 2, 1972 and which accompanied the final guidelines from the Department of Ecology, stated the primary duty for implementing the planning phase of the Shorelines Program is based on the direc- tion set by the guidelines now rest with the cities and counties of the State. We should now have an ordinance and be operating under it. I would like to know what the status of my permit is right now and how long will it be good for. The Master Program here does not refer to any previous action on the permits. Gary Kucinski, Planning Director, stated he had contacted the Attorney General's Office and spoke to the person assigned to the Department of Ecology. That person indicated any Shorelines per- mit that was granted some time in the past would be valid at this time even though a Master Program had not been adopted. The Shore- lines Management permit will not be affected by this Program even if the requirements differ. He stated the developer must build within the two years after the date the permit is granted. Councilman Saul stated there are builders operating under this document now even though it is not officially enacted. TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING June 5, 1974 Page 2 PUBLIC COMMENTS Cont. Byron Sneva Cont. Peter Buck 7ly Mr. Sneva noted Page 1.3 regarding endangered species and stated he wondered what they might be in the City of Tukwila. They are not identified in the document. On Page 2.2, it states the Green River qualifies as a state -wide significant stream. He stated all the items that can make it significant state -wide do not all happen on the same reach of the river. It should be up to the local com- munities to identify the significance. He asked what are the state wide significant items on the Green River as it flows through Tukwila. He stated he could only think of two: fishing and flood control. Also, regarding the preservation of natural characteris- tics along the river, he stated there are now very few of these left to preserve and those are not identified in the Program. He stated the only natural lands left along the river are Helen Nel- sen's farm and parts of the golf course. Regarding Page 6.1, he stated he believed the general regulations are impossible to en- force because they are not definitive enough. And on that Page under Item #9, he stated he did not understand what was to be done to protect the wildlife habitat. He stated the river zone and low impact zone are far too specific in a number of areas. There are potential conflicts of uses within the river zone and low impact zone. These could be combined or else have alternatives specified. The document has unique circumstances in it and these are hard to define. Regarding Page 6.3, where is the outside top of the dike and what is it? Mike Sweeney drew illustrations of the outside top of the dike on the board and read the definitions of dike and dike road. A discussion on these items followed. Peter L. Buck of the firm Hillis, Schell, Phillips, Cairncross, Clark Martin representing M. A. Segale asked when does the Coun- cil anticipate taking action on this Program. Mayor Pro Tem Tray- nor stated the Council cannot take action at a Public Hearing but probably will have some decision to discuss at the Monday night regular meeting. Mr. Buck stated he has attended the meetings on the Shorelines Program and wanted to say the staff has done a very good job, spent a lot of time on it and always listened to the input. All of you should be aware of the effort spent by many people. He stated the major issue now as in the past is the ex- tent of the river zone. We have asked that it be reduced to 30 feet and this is easy to understand. There have been efforts made to encourage development in the area by the City in the past. We have a heavy density of industrial property there and many long range plans have been made. We think it is possible to accomplish the necessary goals with a 30 foot zone. It is absolutely wrong to use 40 or 50 feet. A serious study should be made on this point. Mr. Biggs' statement is very important and this document we are considering is necessary and should be very carefully re- viewed. He stated there are some tremendous costs involved in this river zone concept and there will be a tremendous impact on the property owners. We are not talking about a small, insignifi- cant program, this will involve millions of dollars. Some property rights and values will be taken away. He referred to Page C -13. Then referring to Page E -4, he stated the Program can accomplish all the same benefits listed here by having a 30 foot river zone. It is written to suggest we are considering only the intangible benefits and that we can only achieve these benefits by having the severe regulations. The seriousness of taking an extra 20 feet if it is not needed is pointed out by the letter included here by Daryl Bastion which states there is a serious constitutional ques- tion about having that much river zone. Another constitutional question is raised in the environmental impact statement's equal protection clause. And on Page C -14, a strong argument is raised for the 30 foot river zone by the consultants themselves. Beyond this most important consideration, there are a few techni- cal ramifications he wished to point out. First, on Page 6.3, different types of live ground covers are suggested. We would like to see possibly a fourth type which would be some type of aggregate on the steep slopes which would decrease the problem of mainten- ance and give some flexibility. The review board should also have more flexibility to make decisions in this particular consideration. TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING June 5, 1974 Page 3 PUBLIC COMMENTS Cont. Peter Buck Cont. Byron Sneva Peter Buck Byron Sneva RECESS 9:20 P.M. 9:30 P.M. 730 Mr. Buck referred to Page 6.4, Item #2, and stated the requirements there were probably intended to mean only those roads that are par- allel to the river. If so, language should be added to suggest that access roads which are perpendicular to the river could come in closer to the loading facility. Gary Crutchfield stated that situation is covered in Item #3. Mr. Sneva stated the Fiorito site where there are 30 foot openings between the buildings and they exit from this interior court to the access road and it is not possible to have 15 feet of landscap- ing within that low impact zone. Mr. Buck stated perhaps this problem could be solved by applying Item #2 to those roads parallel to the river. Then referring to Page 6.5, he stated Items #4a. and #4b. are both required but not needed, just one or the other. And in Figure 6.1, he stated if you are going to require these things, then there should be a good purpose. Is there a need for this double buffer? Gary Crutchfield stated as it reads, both 4a. and 4b. are required. Mr. Buck agreed there should be the buffer at the dike, but with the Segale proper- ty, there are two railroad tracks and spur track to the loading area. There is no logical place to comply with the requirements in Item 4b. Discussion followed on the requirements of access roads and loading areas. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor stated if the area is for the purpose of parking, loading or storage, then both the re- quirements would apply. Mr. Buck stated there may be some trouble with the railroad easements and this landscaping. Mr. Buck refer- red to Page 6.4, Item #3, and stated this also applied to the rail- road tracks by reference later in the report. The problem arises because there is a 25 foot requirement between the river and an access road. Then there is the requirement to landscape to a depth of 15 feet from the river. The average width of the access road is 14 feet. Add these all together and you will find a conflict in requirements, it is over 25 feet. Councilman Johanson asked if the problem is with the variable sizes of dike and stated the dikes are controlled by other agencies. He stated the outside top of the dike is going to be a constant thing and the only point to wor- ry about. Peter Buck stated the language to solve this would then require landscaping to the river or to the outside top of the dike or 15 feet. Councilman Saul asked if anything about gravel had been considered by the Planning Commission relating to Page 6.3, Item #3b. Gary Crutchfield stated the Planning Commission could discuss this, but it probably will be the responsibility of some approval authority as to what will be allowed. At the time this was discussed, the live ground covers were stipulated. Mr. Sneva stated this is an urban setting and we should bear that in mind when we are talking about all this landscaping and the use of the property. Landscaping can add a lot, but lets keep it nice and urban. We do not have the natural woods down there and this is a point of the Master Plan. The area should be well developed and urban. MOVED BY HARRIS TO RECESS FOR TEN MINUTES, SECONDED BY JOHANSON. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor called the meeting to order with all Council Members present as previously listed. Councilman Johanson stated at this point, he would like to encour- age the thought of another work session to consider the comments made at this Public Hearing and meet with the staff and their recom- mendations. Councilman Saul stated there is a deadline for this Program of June 20, 1974. Councilman Johanson stated he was concerned about those items, such as Items 4a. and 4b. on Page 6.5. There may be cases where both apply or only one would apply. We don't know what document will implement the Program and what the language of it will be. He TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEARING June 5, 1974 Page 4 PUBLIC COMMENTS Cont. 9:42 P.M. ADJOURNMENT 9:43 P.M. ATTEST: 731 stated some of this should be left up to the Planning Commission. There should be some alternatives given to them by the Council and we would need to have a work session. Mayor Pro Tem Traynor stated, on that suggestion, we will then have this Master Program on the Agenda for Monday night for the staff and the Council to discuss. The next few days should be enough time for the staff to prepare their recommendations on the ques- tions raised tonight. Councilwoman Davis asked that the taped transcription of this Public Hearing not be erased. Councilwoman Harris stated she had many questions, but the most important point is that there is no implementation section. And rather than define unique circumstances, it would seem more reason- able to catagorize these as conditional uses and include those sections regarding variances and non conforming use. Procedures, policies, qualifications, etc. should be specifically spelled out. We need to clarify to the administrators and applicants what is expected of them. We need a standard set of policies and criteria. She stated she has a great deal of respect for Mr. Bastion and agrees with the statement in his letter regarding government taking land for public use which is actually an exercise in eminent do- main. She then read from the letter on this point. With this very rigid zoning system on the river, she stated she feels we could run into trouble. It is contrary to the intent of the Shore- lines Management Act which approaches the shorelines management situation in the 200 foot management zone with the philosophy of enhancing and developing the shorelines in a managed, properly coordinated manner rather than restricting uses. We should serious. ly take a second look at this because we can achieve the same things by setting up policies, regulations and criteria and having more flexibility of the use of the land in the 200 foot area. We need proper guidelines and an implementation program. She stated she supported Councilman Johanson's suggestion for more work sessions. CLOSE PUBLIC HEARING Mayor Pro Tem Traynor closed the Public Hearing for audience com- ments. MOVED BY SAUL, SECONDED BY JOHANSON, THAT THE PUBLIC HEARING BE ADJOURNED. CARRIED. ice Dwayne T #aynor, Mayor Pro Tem 2 R ckey ji. Greer, Deputy City Clerk