The Brookings Planning Commission met on Monday, May 6, 2024, at 5:30 PM in the City & County Government Center. The meeting included a Board of Adjustment session and a Planning Commission session. The commission considered multiple variance requests, conditional use permits, a rezone, initial development plans, and a commercial corridor site plan. Several items were related to a proposed telecommunications tower for Brookings Municipal Utilities, an apartment development on 9th Street, the Campanile Flats project, the Brookings Marketplace, and a mixed-use building on 6th Street.
I will now call this meeting to order. I would like to welcome all those in attendance at tonight's meeting. The City Planning Commission is a nine-member commission whose function is to make recommendations to the city council regarding requests for land use classification changes, subdivision plats, conditional use permits, zoning ordinance amendments, and other matters. The commission makes a recommendation based upon the adopted comprehensive plan for the physical development of the city of Brookings and the surrounding area. As a matter of policy, all motions are made in the positive. After a motion is moved and seconded, it is open for debate. Those supporting the motion shall, in turn, give their reasons. Those opposing the motion shall then offer their reasons. After everyone has been given a chance to be heard, the commission shall review the testimony and information presented, make findings of fact, and forward the recommendation to the city council. First item on tonight's agenda is the roll call. Uh Ryan, could you note the roll? Roll as noted with everybody in attendance tonight. Excellent. Uh item two is the approval of the agenda for tonight's meeting. Could I get a motion for approval? Mr. Chair, move to approve so motion and a second. Uh any comments on the agenda. Okay. All in favor uh of approval, please signify by saying aye. Aye. And all opposed. Moving on to item three, the approval of last meeting's minutes. Um I'll entertain a motion for approval. So move, so long. Second, Mills. Okay, got a motion and a second. Any uh comments on those minutes? Corrections. Seeing none, all in favor of approval, please signify by saying aye. Aye. And all opposed. Okay, that's gonna move us down to convene as the Board of Adjustment. And here are our first variance request of the night. Board of Adjustment is a seven-member board which has the power to hear requests for variances and special exceptions. The concurring vote of two-thirds of the full membership is necessary for approval of any action by the board. So a seven-member board requires five votes, a six-member board requires five votes, and five members would require five votes. In accordance with Robert's rules of order, we require a motion to approve a request before the request can be debated. As a matter of policy, all motions are again made in the positive. The board under specific powers granted it by the state shall authorize variances from the zoning requirements where special conditions existing on the land will result in unnecessary hardship for the applicant. This is the Lee variance. Fences shall not exceed 48 inches in height when located between the front line and the principal building. The first item tonight is a variance for a fence setback at 320 20th Avenue. The applicant are the property owners, Caitlin and Andy Lee, homeowners of the single family residence at 320 20th Avenue. It is zoned in the residence R1B single family district. Request is for a reduced setback for a six-foot fence. They're proposing a five-foot setback from Iowa Street. Section 94125 F states that in the R1B single family district, the minimum uh front yard setback is 30 feet. However, there is an exception allowed in section 94402 that applies to this particular lot, which reduces the front yard setback to 25 feet. Section 94398 B2 states that fences and walls up to six feet in height may be placed in a front yard opposite the street address of a lot abutting a local street when A, the lot is a double frontage lot, and B, the fence or wall meets the minimum required setback of the district the lot is located in.