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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/03/2019Approved December 12, 2019 1 Regular Planning Commission Meeting October 3, 2019 Minutes of a Regular Meeting Town of Los Altos Hills PLANNING COMMISSION Thursday, October 03, 2019, 7:00PM Council Chambers, 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, CA 94022 ______________________________________________________________________________ 1. ROLL CALL AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Present: Commissioner Smith, Commissioner Patel, Commissioner Mandle, Chair Couperus Staff: Planning Director Zach Dahl, Principal Planner Steve Padovan, Planning Technician Keren Brunner, City Attorney Representative Alex Mog Absent: Commissioner Abraham 2. PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FLOOR No public presentations. 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 3.1 Approval of September 5, 2019 - Regular Meeting Minutes Remove Chair Couperus' second reference to palm trees as it was a clerical error. MOTION MADE, NO SECOND REQUIRED: Commissioner Mandle motioned to approve September 5, 2019 minutes as addressed. AYES: Commissioner Smith, Commissioner Patel, Commissioner Couperus, Chair Mandle NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioner Abraham ABSTAIN: None MOTION CARRIED: 4-0-1 4. PUBLIC HEARINGS EX PARTE: Commissioner Smith spoke to no one. Commissioner Patel met with Cheryl Matthews and staff. Commissioner Mandle and Chair Couperus spoke with Cheryl Matthews. Approved December 12, 2019 2 Regular Planning Commission Meeting October 3, 2019 4.1 LANDS OF TIWARY AND SUKLA; 12181 Padre Court; File #VAR19-0012; A request for a Variance to allow construction of a 6'-0" solid wood fence within 20'- 0" of the centerline of an adjacent private road right-of-way (Altamont Court); CEQA review: Categorical Exemption per Section 15301(l)(4) - Construction of accessory (appurtenant) structures including fences. Staff: J. Loh. Chair Couperus opened the PUBLIC HEARING. Assistant Planner Loh presented the staff report. Commissioner Patel posed a question to staff about landscape screening and possible neighbor comments. Chair Couperus posed a question to the staff about a backyard fence detail. Public Comment Chair Couperus opened the floor to the applicant. The applicant declined to speak. Chair Couperus opened the floor to public comment. Lena Hsu, a Los Altos Hills resident, expressed concern about having a fence right in front of her home and requested that the fence height comply with the Code. Chair Couperus closed the PUBLIC HEARING. Commissioner Discussion Commissioner Patel asked a question regarding a nonconforming fence. Commissioner Mandle noted the staff analysis was good and was in favor of the staff recommendation, which would allow for landscape screening, and suggested an open fence. Commissioner Smith agreed with Commissioner Mandle’s comments. Commissioner Patel noted the property is along a private road, would have preferred a landscape screening plan with a hedge along the property line, and could support any type of fence with landscape screening. Chair Couperus agreed with the staff report and recommendation, noting that he prefers an open, landscaped fence. MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Commissioner Mandle moved to approve a variance for a five-foot tall visually open fence set back 22.5 feet from the center line of the adjacent road, subject to the findings in Attachment 2 and the recommended conditions in Attachment 3. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Smith. Approved December 12, 2019 3 Regular Planning Commission Meeting October 3, 2019 AYES: Commissioner Smith, Commissioner Patel, Commissioner Couperus, Chair Mandle NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioner Abraham ABSTAIN: None MOTION CARRIED. 4-0-1 4.2 Introduction of an Ordinance to add Article 13 (Wireless Telecommunications Facilities) to Chapter 1 (Zoning) of Title 10 (Zoning and Site Development) of the Los Altos Hills Municipal Code establishing regulations for Wireless Telecommunications Facilities; File# MCA18-0001. (Staff: S. Padovan). Chair Couperus opened the PUBLIC HEARING. Principal Planner Padovan presented the staff report. Commissioner Mandle and Commissioner Patel asked for clarification on co- location terminology, noting that the language needed to be explicit. Commissioner Smith asked about facilities in the public right-of-way on private property. City Attorney Representative Mog clarified the code’s language. Commissioner Patel asked, who determines a technically feasible solution? Chair Couperus noted that the Town should specify the maximum dimensions for equipment. He also asked about co-location and if the six cubic feet was for each vendor or all of them together? Public Comment Chair Couperus opened the floor to public comment. Jim Frazier, a Los Altos Hills resident, asked for clarification on co-location. Susan Mungalick, a Los Altos Hills resident on Miranda Road, commented on the proximity of her guest house to a proposed cell tower. Cheryl Matthews, a Los Altos Hills resident, thanked the staff for taking this issue seriously, for listening to public input, and read a prepared statement. Ramon Jimenez, a Los Altos Hills resident, submitted a document for Commission review and asked about transmission coverage. Danielle Meyer, a Los Altos Hills resident, cited the Mill Valley ordinance, asked a setback question, mentioned possible health risks to children, and expressed concern about the towers' proximity to other cities with stricter ordinances. Approved December 12, 2019 4 Regular Planning Commission Meeting October 3, 2019 Brian Croll, a Los Altos Hills resident on Miranda road, spoke against allowing wireless facilities and would like to see them undergrounded. Liz Frazier, a Los Altos Hills resident, spoke against the ordinance. Carol Meyer, a Los Altos Hills resident, expressed support for a 1,500-foot setback from schools and 500-foot setback from residential structures. Barbara Wright, a Los Altos Hills resident, expressed support for a setback of 1,500-foot for all wireless facilities, to remove schools from possible locations, and require conditional use permits. Jillian Draeger, a Los Altos Hills resident, agreed with the proposed setbacks and asked for a larger notification radius for these types of projects. Jim Frazier, a Los Altos Hills resident, expressed support for everything said by other residents earlier and asked about locating facilities in open spaces. Chair Couperus closed the PUBLIC HEARING. Commissioner Discussion Commissioner Smith agreed with the public comments, noting that the setbacks and other concerns should be addressed. Commissioner Patel cited the challenge regarding federal laws and noted that adopting an ordinance that does not follow those laws could result in it being nullified in court. Commissioner Mandle recommended another round of discussion to ensure resident concerns were addressed, the ordinance should be as strict as legally possible, and supported a 500-foot setback from homes and a 1,500-foot setback from schools. Chair Couperus noted that the setback requested by the residents may conflict with federal law, expressed support for a 100-foot setback for residences and a 1,500-foot setback for schools. He also supported the issue returning to the Planning Commission for another round of discussion before moving forward to City Council. Commissioner Patel would prefer to maximize setbacks around schools, supported the 100-foot setback from residences as a compromise, and noted that stricter setbacks could violate federal law. Chair Couperus stated that other municipalities have multiple zones to solve this type of zoning situation and that the Town of Los Altos Hills does not, and questioned how much of the Town would be available for wireless facilities with increased setback? MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Commissioner Mandle moved to modify the code amendments and return with an amended ordinance to the next regularly Approved December 12, 2019 5 Regular Planning Commission Meeting October 3, 2019 scheduled Planning Commission hearing. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Patel. AYES: Commissioner Smith, Commissioner Patel, Commissioner Couperus, Chair Mandle NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioner Abraham ABSTAIN: None MOTION CARRIED. 4-0-1 5. NEW BUSINESS 5.1 Discussion of Upcoming Planning Commission Meetings for December 2019 and January 2020. Staff: Z. Dahl. Planning Director Dahl proposed cancelling December's and January's Regular Planning Commission meeting dates and rescheduling them as Special Planning Commission meetings a week later than the regular dates to accommodate the holiday schedule. MOTION MADE AND SECONDED: Commissioner Mandle moved to cancel December and January’s Regular Planning Commission Meetings and reschedule each one week after their regular dates as Special Planning Commission Meetings. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Patel. AYES: Commissioner Smith, Commissioner Patel, Commissioner Couperus, Chair Mandle NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioner Abraham ABSTAIN: None MOTION CARRIED. 4-0-1 6. REPORTS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS No reports. 7. REPORTS FROM SITE DEVELOPMENT MEETINGS – October 1, 2019 Director Dahl reported the outcome of the Site Development meeting on October 1, 2019 8. REPORTS FROM FAST TRACK MEETINGS – October 1, 2019 No reports. Approved December 12, 2019 6 Regular Planning Commission Meeting October 3, 2019 9. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:24 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Keren Brunner Planning Technician The minutes of the October 3, 2019 Regular Planning Commission were approved as presented at the December 12, 2019 Regular Planning Commission Meeting.