HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes 11/12/2020
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF
THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT
AMES, IOWA NOVEMBER 12, 2020
The Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment met, pursuant to law, in regular session at 6:01 p.m. on
November 12, 2020, via Zoom communication with the following members present: Amelia
Schoeneman, Leila Ammar, Ronald Schappaugh, Rob Bowers, and Chad Schneider. Also
present were Assistant City Attorney Jane Chang, Planning & Housing Director Kelly
Diekmann, and City Planners Eloise Sahlstrom and Benjamin Campbell. Board Chair
Schoeneman stated that it is impractical to hold an in-person meeting due to the Governor of
Iowa declaring a public health emergency because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, limits
have been placed on public gatherings, and this meeting is being held as an electronic meeting.
Ms. Schoeneman noted that the agenda needed to be amended stating that the square footage of
agenda item 2 needed to be changed to 6,600 square feet.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Moved by Ammar, seconded by Bowers, to approve the Minutes
of the meeting of August 26, 2020.
Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion declared carried.
CASE NO. 20-32
SPECIAL USE PERMIT – RYAN PEI, REMEDY CROSSFIT, 525 EAST 2ND STREET
Public Hearing on application for a Special Use Permit for 6,600 square feet of use as a
Retail Sales and Service – General within the General Industrial Zoning District for the
property at 525 East 2nd Street
City Planner Eloise Sahlstrom introduced the request. She stated that the applicant, Ryan L Pei,
of Remedy CrossFit was seeking to lease one of the warehouse buildings, composed of 6,600
square feet, located at 525 East 2nd Street, for use as a CrossFit training facility. The property is
zoned General Industrial and is located at the northeast corner of Borne Avenue and East 2nd
Street. It includes seven buildings totaling 46,635 square feet of indoor storage and warehouse
space. The portion of the site proposed for this use is accessed from Borne Avenue, just before it
dead ends at the railroad tracks.
The applicant has described the use as providing personal fitness training to individuals and in
small group classes along with some retail sales. Staff has determined that the use is similar to
martial arts instruction, which the Zoning Ordinance classifies as “Retail Personal, Business and
Repair Services” in the category “Retail Sales and Services - General.” “Retail Sales and
Services - General” is permitted in the General Industrial (GI) zoning district but requires a
Special Use Permit if the use exceeds 3,000 square feet.
A determination requires a case-by-case assessment which depends upon surrounding
compatibility, condition of the individual site, and whether there are any relevant concerns about
commercial land use needs of the Land Use Policy Plan. Staff believes that the discussion of
Findings supports this use.
2
The proposed use is based on a scheduled class or workout training session format and will not
be open to the public for fitness as a health club facility. In order to be consistent with the
Special Use Permit standards of the Zoning Code, the proposed use must operate in this manner,
with scheduled appointments. A fitness center or health club type use is not permissible in the
General Industrial Zoning District as it is classified as a recreational use rather than a service use.
The building proposed for the CrossFit use has shared driveway access from Borne Avenue with
other buildings on the site.
The large parking area will also accommodate the required parking, maneuvering, and loading
areas for the existing uses on the property. A minor site development plan was recently approved
for this site; it identifies 33 spaces and includes seven overstory trees dispersed around the
paving area. Parking for the CrossFit use will be located immediately to the west of the building on
an existing paved area. Twenty-two spaces are shown meeting the required 1 space per 300 square
feet requirement for Retail Sales and Service – General Use.
Notification was made to all owners of property within 200 feet. A notice of public hearing was
placed on the property and published in the newspaper. As of this writing, no comments have
been received.
Staff frequently receives inquiries about the use of industrial areas for a wide range of uses that
are not typically thought of as traditional industrial uses. The LUPP supports a more
homogenous use of industrial areas and distinction from commercial uses overall. This principle
of distinct areas is embodied in the purpose of the G-I zoning district, which then allows for
case-by-case evaluation of commercial uses through the Special Use Permit required for this
project.
There is a balance of maintaining industrial areas for employment and uses that are less
compatible with commercial and residential uses and potential commercial interest outside of
established commercial areas. A spread of commercial uses into industrial areas would be a long
term drain on existing commercial areas. It would also potentially concern industrial businesses
about how their operations are compatible with and perceived by new neighbors. At times there
would also be concerns about changing uses when a site is deficient or non-conforming in site
improvements compared to investments made by other properties for similar or new
development.
For this proposed use of retail and service use, it is the first commercial use subject to special use
permit review to be considered in the East 2nd Street area. There are other commercial areas
south of this site, across East 2nd Street. While this use could be allowed by right in these
commercial areas, the applicant has not identified available space meeting their interests. In
support of the application it appears that the use will not have a significant effect on adjacent
industrial operations due to the proposed business location, size, and schedule of operations.
Based upon the Findings of Fact and Conclusion above, it is the recommendation of the
Department of Planning and Housing that the Zoning Board of Adjustment approve Alternative
One to allow 6,600 square feet of Retail Sales and Service – General use at 525 East 2nd Street.
3
Applicant Ryan Pei, 3315 Aurora Avenue, Unit 101, Ames, Iowa, was sworn in and testified
under oath. Mr. Pei stated that Ms. Sahlstrom gave a thorough overview of his request.
Moved by Bowers, seconded by Schappaugh, to adopt ORDER NO. 20-32, thereby approving
Alternative One as outlined by staff.
Roll Call Motion: 5-0. Motion declared carried.
CASE NO. 19-08
SPECIAL HOME OCCUPATION PERMIT REVIEW – YASSIR OBEID, CLEAN
INDEED CARPET, 4004 ARKANSAS DRIVE
Public Hearing to review a Special Home Occupation Permit allowing carpet cleaning,
water damage mitigation, and odor removal for 4004 Arkansas Drive
On November 13, 2019, the Zoning Board of Adjustment approved a Special Home Occupation
Permit to allow carpet cleaning, water damage mitigation, and odor removal with a maximum of
two non-family member employees at 4004 Arkansas Drive. One of the conditions that was
required by the Zoning Board with approval was that the home occupation be reviewed with a
public hearing in one year to determine whether it has complied with all conditions imposed by
the Board and otherwise complied with all other requirements of the City Municipal Code.
The approved permit did not have an expiration date included as part of its approval and the one-
year review does not require any specific action as a result of the Board’s requested review. No
citations have been issued by the City related to the Permit, although a complaint was received
regarding this site and it is discussed below. A one-year review is not a component of the City’s
Special Home Occupation standards or its enforcement procedures with Article 16 of the Zoning
Ordinance, therefore, staff has no specific recommendation or action related to the item.
In May 2020, the City received a complaint from a neighbor regarding vehicles parked on the
street related to the home occupation. City Code Chapter 18 prohibits parking in the same
location on a City street for more than 48 hours. According to Parking Enforcement, the vehicles
in question were moved before enforcement could occur.
Notification was made to all owners of property within 200 feet. A notice of public hearing was
placed in the front yard of the property.
Ms. Schoeneman asked if Staff did a site review upon placing the signage in the applicant’s yard.
Mr. Campbell stated that Ms. Sahlstrom placed the notification signs in the applicant’s yard and
that there was no site review at that time.
Mr. Schappaugh asked Staff if there would be continued annual reviews for this permit in the
future. Mr. Campbell stated that there is no condition for continued reviews. He also stated that
there is a complaint process with the City, and if there were any future complaints, staff would
review them and determine if there were violations.
4
Mr. Schappaugh asked if the Board needed to take action and make a motion for another review
in another year. Planning & Housing Director Diekmann stated that it is not necessary nor should
staff continually do reviews on home occupations. He stated that there is no expectation that
there is a continued annual review going forward.
Mr. Bowers stated that this was a contentious issue the previous year with quite a few neighbors
coming to speak. He felt that the annual review was a good compromise in approving the permit
the previous year, but he didn’t feel that there was a need for annual reviews going forward. He
felt that the lack of neighbors present at the one year review was an indication that another
review was not necessary.
Applicant Yassir Obeid, 4004 Arkansas Drive, Ames, Iowa was sworn in and testified under
oath. Mr. Obeid stated that he felt that the first four conditions of his permit had not been
violated in the last year. He stated that he had not received any citations or warnings since his
application hearing.
Ms. Schoeneman noted that no action needed to be taken.
ADJOURNMENT: Moved by Schappaugh, seconded by Schoeneman, to adjourn the meeting
at 6:32 p.m.
_____________________________ _____________________________
Jacque Higgins, Recording Secretary Amelia Schoeneman, Chair