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Record of Proceedings

Kearney Planning Commission Meeting - July 20, 2018: Multiple Development Approvals, Annexations, and Blight Study

Planning Commission — Friday, July 20, 2018
BodyKearney, Nebraska
SessionPlanning Commission
DateFriday, July 20, 2018
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:50:50

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:09

Good morning.

0:09

I'm going to call this meeting of the Planning Commission to order.

0:12

And in accordance with section 841412 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes, current copy of the open meetings act is available for review and is posted on the wall of the council chambers.

0:23

Roll call, please.

0:24

Frederickson?

0:25

Here.

0:26

More.

0:26

Here.

0:26

Malone.

0:27

Here.

0:27

Dart.

0:28

Here.

0:28

Berglin.

0:29

Here.

0:29

McKean?

0:30

Yeah.

0:30

McGuinness.

0:31

Here.

0:32

We have a quorum.

0:34

You all have copies of the minutes of the meeting of June 15th.

0:38

The motion in regards to those would be in order.

0:40

I'll make a motion to approve as so written.

0:43

Second.

0:44

It's been moved and seconded.

0:45

Is there any discussion?

0:46

Additions, corrections?

0:51

Lauren.

0:52

McGuinness.

0:53

Aye.

0:54

More.

0:55

Hi.

0:55

Dart.

0:56

Frederickson.

0:57

Malone.

0:58

Berglin.

0:59

McCann.

1:01

Motion passes.

1:03

We have a variety of items on the agenda this morning.

1:06

Do we have copies of the agenda available for folks?

1:10

We have them over there on that chair.

1:11

Over here on in front.

1:13

Uh if you'd like to have something so you can read and keep awake throughout this process.

1:19

The first item on the agenda is a hearing for conditional use number 201803 for Vieira Wireless.

1:25

This is an item that was continued from the June 15th planning commission meeting.

1:38

And John Becker on behalf of Vieira Wireless, the owner.

1:58

So Division of the City of Carney, property located at 3821 2nd Avenue.

2:03

Good morning.

2:03

Good morning.

2:04

My name is Craig Bennett, 1111 Central Avenue from Miller Associates, and I'm here to represent Viera Wireless for this particular community telecommunications tower.

2:13

So just to kind of give you an overall, I guess we're going to show you the site and what improvements we're making, although that's not really the requirement for what we're here.

2:23

We're really here for a telecommunications tower, but it'll help you understand better what the site's gonna look like and how it'll be developed.

2:30

So the the property boundary that you see here is located in or highlighted in yellow.

2:35

It's on the south side of 39th Street, east side of 2nd Avenue.

2:40

And the current zoning that we have is C2, so to have a telecommunications tower, we have to come through this PD process here essentially.

2:48

It's kind of like a PD.

2:50

Um the property you can see consists right now of an existing building, which was a eating establishment.

2:57

It has concrete parking lot on the west and some grass and drainage and I guess slope sloping downhill from the west to the east towards the electrical substation.

3:09

Um this is an existing site topography map of that, and primarily drainage goes in the westerly direction here and the easterly direction there in our process.

3:20

I'll show you.

3:20

We're gonna demolish this building and parking lot and and raise it and put a new building and parking lot along with the tower in the site.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning and Land Use█████████████████████████████████████████████54%
Engineering And Infrastructure████████████14%
Economic Development███████8%
Procedural██████7%
Public Works████5%
Technology and Innovation███4%
Parks and Recreation██2%
Real Estate Matters██2%
Public Safety█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Kearney Planning Commission Meeting - July 20, 2018

The Kearney Planning Commission met on July 20, 2018, at 9:00 a.m. in City Council Chambers to consider a wide-ranging agenda including conditional use permits, plats, vacations, annexations, a blight study, and the city's capital expenditure budget. Several items were continued from the previous month. All motions passed, with occasional dissent from Commissioner Dart on the Elementary School Second Addition items.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes of June 15, 2018: Approved unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Honey Hill Estates/Hillside Estates (Items 8-12): Ralph Hanson (3915 11th Avenue, lot 7) expressed concern about water management for lots 3 and 4 and the removal of mature trees for a proposed hike/bike trail. He noted he was "considerably happier with this proposal" compared to previous versions. Developer Craig Bennett responded that a 20-foot stormwater drainage easement would remain and that the trail would be elevated above the flow line; tree removal would be minimized during design.
  • Younes Center Sixth Addition (Items 13-19): Paul Younes, owner, spoke in favor of the development, comparing parking ratios to the La Vista convention center and noting that 1,100 people would attend a conference the following week, using shared parking across his hotels.
  • Annexation 2018-04 (Airport Area): No public testimony.
  • Blight Study Area #12 (Items 21-22): Kevin Bennett (2515 West 43rd Street, adjacent property owner) stated his business (Beacon Distribution, 10 employees) was outside the area but adjacent. He expressed concern that the city would compete with private developers by using TIF on its own property, and noted dust and wear from previous construction. He requested the boundary be moved to include Cherry Avenue businesses.

Discussion Items

  • Conditional Use Permit 2018-03 – Viaero Wireless (Item 4): Craig Bennett (Miller & Associates) presented a 59-foot telecommunications tower at 3821 2nd Avenue. The tower would be a single 42-inch diameter column, colored to match the building, and would accommodate one additional co-location. Staff required a notarized letter confirming compliance with EIA/FAA standards before a building permit. The tower's base would be below finished floor elevation. Approved with that condition.
  • Elementary School Second Addition (Items 5-7): Mitch Humphrey (Buffalo Surveying) presented a partial vacation of Lot 1, Block 1, Elementary School Addition, and the preliminary/final plat for a two-lot subdivision. The school is selling 3.58 acres (Lot 1) while retaining 9.86 acres (Lot 2). The plat includes a 100-foot right-of-way dedication along 56th Street. Commissioner Dart criticized the sale as "short-sighted" for eliminating open space near the school. The vacation and plats were approved 6-1 (Dart nay).
  • Honey Hill Estates/Hillside Estates (Items 8-12): Craig Bennett presented the vacation of platted utility easements, street vacation (Century Road, 10th Avenue, 9th Avenue, 40th Street), partial vacation of 38 lots, and the preliminary/final plat for Hillside Estates (9 lots). Density was reduced from 38 to 9 lots. Infrastructure includes water line extension, sanitary sewer, stormwater detention, and a hike/bike trail easement. Lot 9 may be subdivided in the future. Commissioner Frederickson noted disappointment in lost smaller lots. All vacations and plats approved unanimously.
  • Younes Center Sixth Addition (Items 13-19): Craig Bennett presented a comprehensive package for a 17.75-acre subdivision (two lots) plus a 30.38-acre annexation west of 6th Avenue and north of Talmadge Street. The development plan includes a five-story hotel (85 feet tall), a conference center, and a restaurant on a combined footprint. Three deviations were requested: (1) building height from 45 ft to 85 ft, (2) building setback encroachment of 12.5 ft into the 25-ft setback at two points along Talmadge, and (3) parking reduction from 1,010 spaces to 174 spaces, based on a shared-campus parking model. Commissioner McGinnis asked about signage; staff noted sign code would apply. Staff supported all deviations. The land use map amendment, rezoning, preliminary/final plat, annexations, and development plan were all approved unanimously.
  • Annexation 2018-04 (Airport Area) (Item 20): City Attorney Michael Tice presented the annexation of 99.22 acres (4,322,057 sq ft) in the industrial area near the airport, including properties owned by the city, Chief, Deluxe, and others. The area is adjacent and contiguous, and city services (water, sewer, paving) are available or can be extended. Existing annexation agreements are in place with LNS, Dyna Tool, Chief (2012), and Deluxe (2010). The annexation will enable potential TIF and grant funding for infrastructure. Approved unanimously.
  • Blight and Substandard Study #12 & Redevelopment Plan (Items 21-22): Eric Hellrigal (Assistant City Manager) and Joe Johnson (Olson Associates) presented the study for a 99.22-acre area (mostly city-owned) near the old Army Air Base. The area meets blight/substandard criteria due to structure age (>40 years), dilapidated city-owned building, inadequate drainage, lack of fire hydrants, and poor infrastructure. The study notes that 28.85% of the city is currently designated blighted, below the 35% statutory cap. Commissioner Paul questioned the city using TIF on its own property, calling it a conflict of interest. Johnson explained that the designation is statutory and that TIF is project-driven, not automatically applied to city land. The redevelopment plan is broad, allowing future specific projects. Both the blight study and the redevelopment plan were forwarded to City Council without comment, approved 6-1 (Dart nay? Actually transcript shows all ayes except? The vote was 6-1? Let's check: After the blight study motion, Dart said "Aye"? Actually transcript: "Dart? Aye. Frederickson. Um. Malone? Berglin? Aye. McKeon? McGinnis. Aye. Motion carries." So unanimous. But earlier there was discussion. The transcript shows the motion passed without comment. So both were approved unanimously.
  • Capital Expenditures (Item 23): Wendell Wessels presented the 2018-2019 capital budget, including $557,000 for street improvements (Northridge Estates, downtown LED lights, paving districts), $700,000 for a CDBG project (not yet identified), $4 million for wastewater treatment plant phase one (sludge handling), and other items. The budget also includes future projects for the Holiday Inn/convention center. Approved unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • Conditional Use Permit 2018-03 (Viaero Wireless): Approved with condition requiring a notarized letter confirming FAA/EIA compliance before building permit.
  • Elementary School Second Addition: Partial vacation, preliminary plat, and final plat approved (6-1, Dart dissenting).
  • Honey Hill Estates Changes: Three vacations (utility easement, street, partial) and Hillside Estates preliminary/final plat approved unanimously.
  • Younes Center Sixth Addition: All six items (land use map amendment, rezoning, preliminary/final plat, two annexations, development plan) approved unanimously, including three deviations (height to 85 ft, setback to 12.5 ft, parking reduction to 174 spaces).
  • Annexation 2018-04 (Airport Area): Approved unanimously.
  • Blight Study #12 & Redevelopment Plan: Approved unanimously, forwarded to City Council without comment.
  • Capital Expenditures Budget: Approved unanimously.
  • Board Member Departure: Dave Malone attended his last meeting; thanked staff and Colette.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning. I'm going to call this meeting of the Planning Commission to order. And in accordance with section 841412 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes, current copy of the open meetings act is available for review and is posted on the wall of the council chambers. Roll call, please. Frederickson? Here. More. Here. Malone. Here. Dart. Here. Berglin. Here. McKean? Yeah. McGuinness. Here. We have a quorum. You all have copies of the minutes of the meeting of June 15th. The motion in regards to those would be in order. I'll make a motion to approve as so written. Second. It's been moved and seconded. Is there any discussion? Additions, corrections? Lauren. McGuinness. Aye. More. Hi. Dart. Frederickson. Malone. Berglin. McCann. Motion passes. We have a variety of items on the agenda this morning. Do we have copies of the agenda available for folks? We have them over there on that chair. Over here on in front. Uh if you'd like to have something so you can read and keep awake throughout this process. The first item on the agenda is a hearing for conditional use number 201803 for Vieira Wireless. This is an item that was continued from the June 15th planning commission meeting. And John Becker on behalf of Vieira Wireless, the owner. So Division of the City of Carney, property located at 3821 2nd Avenue. Good morning. Good morning. My name is Craig Bennett, 1111 Central Avenue from Miller Associates, and I'm here to represent Viera Wireless for this particular community telecommunications tower. So just to kind of give you an overall, I guess we're going to show you the site and what improvements we're making, although that's not really the requirement for what we're here.

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