HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes 5-26-2010MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF
THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT
AMES, IOWA MAY
26, 2010
The Ames Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) met, pursuant to law, in regular session at 7:00
p.m. on May 26, 2010, in the Council Chambers of City Hall with the following members
present: Bruce Calhoun, Elizabeth Erbes, and Gary Taylor. Board Members Sandra McJimsey
and Thomas Weber were absent. Staff members Charlie Kuester and Judy Parks were also
present.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Moved by Erbes, seconded by Taylor, to approve the minutes of
the meeting of April 14, 2010.
Vote on Motion: 3-0. Motion carried unanimously.
CASE NO. 10-04
CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT - IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY, 1422 SOUTH 4TH
STREET
Public Hearing on application for Conditional Use Permit in the Floodway Overlay
for placement of a storage building on Iowa State University property
Planner Kuester reviewed the City’s floodplain regulations. He explained that there is a
floodplain ordinance designed to regulate development in the floodway, to help reduce loss of
life and reduce property damage. Mr. Kuester stated that the City is a participant in the National
Flood Insurance Program, and as such has adopted regulations that have been approved by the
Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Because of that approval, Ames is a “delegated
community”and can implement and enforce floodplain regulations almost autonomously. In
general, the City regulates development activities in the floodway and floodway fringe; the
floodway is the area intended to carry the bulk of the water in a flood event, and the development
regulations are quite strict.
Mr. Kuester explained that the subject site is a vacant field which serves as the practice facility
for the Iowa State University (ISU) football team. The proposed storage facility will be an
enclosed structure, approximately 20 feet by 40 feet, with a covered porch on one side
approximately 14 feet by 40 feet. The main use will be for the storage of practice equipment. He
explained that there will not be sanitary sewer service to the site, but there will be City water and
electricity.
Planner Kuester stated that the Code allows structures in the Floodway Overlay District only
upon the issuance of a Conditional Use Permit, and such structures must be accessory to an
open-space use. City staff determined that the principal use on this site is the football practice
facility, and the proposed storage shed is an accessory structure to that open-space use.
Mr. Kuester reviewed the performance standards which must be met in order to grant the
Conditional Use Permit. He noted that the City Planning, Public Works, Water & Pollution
Control, and Electric Departments have all reviewed the application. Mr. Kuester said that the
applicant had a hydraulic analysis performed by a licensed professional engineer. The study
indicated that the proposed project will cause “no-rise” in the base flood elevations upstream
from the site. He showed a map of the subject property relative to the floodway, and noted that it
is approximately 1000 feet from Squaw Creek, and about the same distance from Worle Creek.
According to Mr. Kuester, the orientation of the building is such that it would offer little
resistance to flood flows, and the equipment inside can be readily removed in a flood warning.
The equipment itself would not pose an immediate health or safety hazard to the general public if
released into flood waters. He explained that the building will be oriented to present a reduced
resistance to flood flows. There will be no impact on the channels of the nearby waterways or to
the floodway, except within the footprint of the structure.
The proposed structure will be served by City water and electricity, and Mr. Kuester indicated
that the electricity will be brought underground from a nearby pole. The electric meter and panel
will be raised three feet above base flood elevation, putting the bottom of the meter eight feet off
of the ground. He said that it is very important to keep the electric meter out of the reach of flood
waters. The water meter will be located inside the building and will be removed during the
winter months, and does not need to be elevated. He noted that the building will not have
sanitary sewer service or natural gas lines.
Mr. Kuester said that the building will house football practice equipment, and reiterated that
these materials are not injurious if inundated with flood waters. He also noted that no
watercourse alterations will occur because of this project, and no fill will be brought onto the site
- the building will be constructed at grade. He indicated that ISU will be responsible for
maintaining the area within and around the project site.
According to Mr. Kuester, the application needs to meet requirements in the floodway fringe in
addition to the floodway requirements. He reviewed five relevant standards with the Board. He
noted that the building will be anchored to footings to prevent buoyancy and lateral movement
during a flood event, and the concrete block structure itself will be resistant to flood damage. He
stated that City staff is satisfied that the application meets all of the requirements.
Board Member Calhoun stated that one of the considerations is the availability of alternative
locations that are not subject to flooding. He requested that the applicant show the Board where
the practice occurs on the subject property.
Cathy Brown, Iowa State University, showed the Board the practice area on a map. Mr. Calhoun
asked what the hardship would be in placing the building elsewhere when half of the field is out
of the floodway. Mr. Kuester clarified that all of it is in the floodway. In reference to the
engineer’s hydraulic analysis, Mr. Calhoun asked for clarification about the “mathematical
floodway”. David Moeller, Snyder and Associates, 2727 SW Snyder Boulevard, Ankeny, Iowa,
stated that the dashed line on the map represents a mathematical end of where the water moves
downstream.
Mr. Calhoun asked if it was the applicant’s opinion that the dotted line is the mathematical limit
of the floodway. He stated that it is usually customary in non-mapped floodplains to perform
similar analyses to determine the floodplain. He asked Mr. Moeller if he has determined a new
and different boundary for the floodplain, even though it is already mapped. Mr. Moeller stated
that they only studied an interim cross section, not an in-depth study, and have not re-mapped the
floodway. He explained the factors behind the calculation. Mr. Calhoun asked if this was the
procedure that would be used if one did not have a mapped floodway and was asked to determine
it. Mr. Moeller said that further analysis would be required in that scenario. He noted that if the
structure were proposed on the other side of the floodway, it would still be subject to a
Conditional Use Permit.
Mr. Kuester showed a map of the official floodway designation, and explained that it was
adopted through information provided by the National Flood Insurance Program study that was
conducted on the area. The map has been adopted in the Code. If the applicants do a study and
come up with a different result, they can present it to the Board, but staff would not consider it
official until FEMA amended its map. For all intensive purposes, the Board’s decision has to be
based on the map that the City has adopted through the zoning code.
Mr. Calhoun asked Mr. Kuester if the City keeps track of “no -rise” claims. Mr. Kuester stated
that the City does track the issuance of the no-rise certificates. Mr. Calhoun asked what analysis
the City has done to consider the cumulative affect of all of the no-rise certificates. Mr. Kuester
stated that no such study has been done.
Mr. Calhoun suggested that, since the applicant is placing a volume in the floodplain, they may
likewise provide an additional volume by digging a hole next to the building so there is no
displacement. Mr. Moeller stated that they are not flood-proofing the doors and walls, so the only
volume displaced is the width of the walls, which is not a significant volume. He explained that
the flood water would rise in the building.
Moved by Taylor, seconded by Erbes, to adopt ORDER NO. 10-04, granting a Conditional Use
Permit in the Floodway Overlay for an accessory structure to an open-space use at 1422 South
4th Street.
Vote on motion: 3-0. Motion declared approved unanimously.
COMMENTS: There were no comments by the Board.
ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 7:36 p.m.
______________________________ _____________________________
Emily Burton, Recording Secretary Bruce Calhoun, Vice Chair