HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes 4-26-2017MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF
THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT
AMES, IOWA APRIL 26, 2017
The Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment met, pursuant to law, in regular session at 6:00 p.m. on
April 26, 2017, in the Council Chambers of City Hall with the following members present:
Amelia Schoeneman, Kyle Perkins, Shelby Ebel, Matthew Koehler, and Susan Bradbury.
Assistant City Attorney Mark Lambert and City Planner Charlie Kuester were also present.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Moved by Bradbury, seconded by Perkins, to approve the
minutes of the meeting of April 12, 2017.
Vote on Motion: 5-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
CASE NO. 17-07
SPECIAL USE PERMIT – Chamness Technology, Inc., Public Hearing on application for
a Special Use Permit to allow a yard waste storage and transfer facility on the property
located at 400 Freel Drive*
City Planner Charlie Kuester displayed a site plan for the project. Chamness Technology, Inc.,
has contracted with the City of Ames to collect and dispose of yard waste. For the past few years,
they operated the business outside of the City at 26107 530th Avenue (Black’s Farm). Chamness
now seeks to establish the yard waste operation for one year at a new location, 400 Freel Drive,
as they seek a permanent location. The site is zoned General Industrial and has no buildings or
other notable improvements on the site. The site is also within the Floodway Fringe.
The yard waste collection site will be open on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons and
Saturday mornings through late fall. Customers can bring their yard waste and, for a fee, leave it
at the facility where Chamness employees will reduce the bulk and ship it to their composting
facility near Eddyville, Iowa. During those days, no more than a handful of customers are
expected to show up during the course of the morning or afternoon. Community-wide free yard
waste collection days will also be hosted at the proposed site. Once in spring (set for May 13)
and four times in the fall, there will be yard waste free days when Ames residents can drop off
accumulated yard waste. These events occur on Saturdays.
Yard waste will be collected and stored at the east end of the property. When a sufficient amount
has been collected, the material will be ground up, if needed, and loaded onto trucks, covered,
and transported to Eddyville. A grinder/chipper will be brought on site when needed to reduce
the bulk of the material prior to loading.
Access to the drop-off area will be from Freel Drive, looping around the eastern portion of the
lot. The physical improvements needed to conduct this are minimal. The applicant requests that,
as a temporary use, the drive aisle will not be paved and remain as grassed area. A stabilized
construction entrance of rock, 25 feet by 50 feet, will be placed at the entrance of the site. The
applicant has verbally agreed to install the rock although the site plan has not been updated to
reflect that. Staff will recommend a condition of approval that the rock entrance be installed prior
to the first yard waste free day on May 13. There is an existing fence at the front property line,
and a gate will be installed to prevent after-hours dumping.
There will be a single employee during regular collection days. Yard waste free days will have
15 to 20 more employees and volunteers on site.
During the five yard waste free days, additional traffic can be expected. The applicant and the
city traffic engineer propose a traffic management pattern that will reduce congestion on Lincoln
Way to the north and keep the queued traffic off of arterial and collector streets. On those free
days, signage will be posted to direct eastbound traffic on Lincoln Way to South Dayton Avenue,
thence south to SE 5th Street where access to Freel Drive and the site can be made. Northbound
traffic on South Dayton Avenue will be directed to the site at SE 5th Street. Traffic exiting the
site will be directed north to Lincoln Way. This circulation pattern allows over one-half mile of
queuing from South Dayton Avenue to the site. The city traffic engineer has reviewed the traffic
management plan and has accepted it. The city reserves the right to, after the first yard waste free
day in May, to amend the plan.
The storage of materials will be located 360 feet east of Freel Drive on the eastern portion of the
property. The outdoor storage of materials is not unique to just this use in this neighborhood as
there is another approved yard waste storage facility and auto salvage yards in the immediate
vicinity. This site was previously approved for a car crushing and salvage facility, which is now
an expired permit.
The site would not be a source of noise, smoke, fumes, or odor as the materials will be removed
from site regularly to avoid being a harborage for vermin. The wood grinder that will be brought
in will be diesel powered so there may be intermittent noise and fumes from its operation. The
grinder will be on site only prior to loading trucks for transport to Eddyville.
City staff has reviewed the information submitted by the applicant. Staff concludes that the
criteria of Section 29.1503 are met. Because this use has not been common in Ames and that
anecdotal evidence based on their previous location seems to indicate that there may be traffic
issues on yard waste free days, staff is recommending a condition that the Special Use Permit be
approved for only one season. The applicant has indicated that this is acceptable as they are
seeking another site outside the city limits. If they are unsuccessful in that endeavor and need to
continue at this site, the applicant would need to apply for a new Special Use Permit.
Mr. Kuester stated that based upon the Findings of Fact and Conclusions, it is the
recommendation of the Planning and Housing Department that the Zoning Board of Adjustment
approve the request for a Special Use Permit for a yard waste collection and transfer facility at
400 Freel Drive, based on the findings of fact and conclusions stated herein, as detailed on the
submitted site plan and application materials with the following conditions:
a. That a rock stabilized construction entrance 25 feet wide by 50 feet long be placed
at the entrance to the site prior the first yard waste free day on May 13.
b. That the approval of the use be allowed through May 1, 2018, by which time all
material and equipment shall be removed from the site and the site restored to its
current or better condition. If the site is sought for use again in 2018, the
applicant will need to seek a new Special Use Permit.
c. A flood plain development permit must be approved prior to initiating use of the
site.
Doug MacCrea, Chamness Technology, Inc., was sworn in and testified under oath. Mr.
MacCrea answered several questions that had been asked by the Board. He stated that typically
the volunteers are students, and they help track and unload vehicles on the free days. He also
mentioned that other waste collectors can pay to drop off yard waste at their site; however, most
tend to hold off until the free days as well. Mr. MacCrea stated that for safety reasons, the height
of the piles will be kept at less than eight to 10 feet, and will be chipped and removed weekly.
No burning will occur, and the grinding of yard waste will only be done when the site is closed.
He said he was unsure if the surrounding sites are open on Saturdays, but believes if they are,
they will most likely just be open in the morning. Mr. MacCrea also mentioned that their
previous location was cost prohibitive.
It was said that no comments or concerns had been received from surrounding property owners.
Moved by Perkins, seconded by Koehler, to approve ORDER NO. 17-07, thereby approving the
request for a Special Use Permit for a yard waste collection and transfer facility at 400 Freel
Drive, based on the findings of fact and conclusions stated herein, as detailed on the submitted
site plan and application materials with the following conditions:
a. That a rock stabilized construction entrance 25 feet wide by 50 feet long be placed
at the entrance to the site prior the first yard waste free day on May 13.
b. That the approval of the use be allowed through May 1, 2018, by which time all
material and equipment shall be removed from the site and the site restored to its
current or better condition. If the site is sought for use again in 2018, the
applicant will need to seek a new Special Use Permit.
c. A flood plain development permit must be approved prior to initiating use of the
site.
Vote: 5-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
COMMENTS: Ms. Ebel asked if the applications for Conditional Use Permits in the Flood
Plain are still decided on by the Board. It was said that most development in the Floodway now
requires a Major Site Development Plan approval from the City Council rather than a
Conditional Use Permit approval from the Zoning Board; however, some development in the
General Flood Plain still requires a Conditional Use Permit.
ADJOURNMENT: Moved by Perkins, seconded by Ebel, to adjourn the meeting at 6:31 p.m.
_____________________________ _____________________________
Heidi Petersen, Recording Secretary Shelby Ebel, Chair