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Record of Proceedings

Kearney Planning Commission Meeting – August 19, 2022

Planning Commission — Friday, August 19, 2022
BodyKearney, Nebraska
SessionPlanning Commission
DateFriday, August 19, 2022
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:50:01

Original source
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0:29

I'm gonna call this meeting of the planning commission to order and ask for a roll call, please.

0:34

Sorry.

0:35

Here.

0:36

Day caner.

0:38

Here.

0:38

Pandor.

0:39

Here.

0:39

Cochrane.

0:40

Here.

0:41

Rickard.

0:41

Here.

0:42

Yah.

0:42

Here.

0:43

McGuinness.

0:44

Here.

0:45

We have a quorum.

0:46

Uh, you all have copies of the minutes of the July 15th meeting.

0:50

A motion in regards to those would be in order.

0:53

Mr.

0:54

Chairman, I move that we approve the minutes of the meeting held on January 15, 2022.

0:59

Second.

1:00

Moved and seconded.

1:01

Is there any additional discussion, corrections, additions?

1:05

I think he said January 15th.

1:07

Did I say January?

1:08

No, I think.

1:09

I said January.

1:10

Okay, I'll revise that July 15th.

1:13

John will second that again.

1:22

All in favor?

1:23

Oh, we'll just do a real call without that.

1:26

Taken.

1:27

Hi.

1:28

Abstain.

1:29

Pandor.

1:30

Hi.

1:30

Cochrane.

1:31

Absolutely.

1:31

Rickard.

1:32

Hi.

1:32

Yeah.

1:33

McGuinness.

1:34

Sorry.

1:35

All right.

1:36

Motion passes.

1:37

Um we have several items on the agenda this morning.

1:41

For those of you that are presenting, we appreciate it.

1:43

If you please come to the center podium, speak into the microphone and talk to us and everybody else in the room from the microphone.

1:52

Please also give us your name and address for the record.

1:57

The first item we have on the agenda actually is three items together.

2:02

They all are associated with the same parcel of property, which is 40 4140 30th Avenue.

2:09

The first item is a hearing on the rezoning 220 2022-11 for the Freedom Hills estate.

2:17

And this is to rezone that from District A G agricultural district to district R R1 rural residential district rural standards.

2:25

Again, this property is located at 4140 30th Avenue.

2:28

The next two items also pertain to that and our hearings.

5:04

The existing driveway sits in there and uh the utilities, but we're gonna have an exit uh create a ingress egress easement that will be used for access.

5:14

Well, basically for both lots, but it'll be sitting on lot two, but then the inhabitants of lot one will also use the same driveway that's been in use for years to get up up to the existing house.

5:30

Uh there is a 50-foot road right-of-way dedication along 30th Avenue because that is one of our designated arterials, which is standard, the same thing as we did for the lighthouse point development number of years ago.

5:43

And and then uh again resulting in the 3.15-acre lot and the 9.61 acre lot.

5:52

Um this area is in an area that according to the land use map is designated as rural estates, and from what I understand, the single family residential zoning that we're asking for, or I'm sorry, the the our one zoning that we're asking for, the rural standards uh designation uh is compatible with that uh land use designation.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning and Land Use█████████████████████████████████████████████49%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████████19%
Procedural███████████12%
Transportation Safety█████5%
Environmental Protection████4%
Real Estate Matters████4%
Public Works██2%
Technology and Innovation██2%
Parks and Recreation█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Kearney Planning Commission Meeting – August 19, 2022

The Kearney Planning Commission met on August 19, 2022, at 9:00 a.m. in City Council Chambers to consider several zoning, subdivision, and development plan proposals. All items on the agenda were approved, including the Freedom Hill Estates rezoning and plats, the Sorensen Park Fifth Addition subdivision vacation and plats, a revised planned development plan for the Elken Subdivision, and the Younes Center Eighth Addition plats and vacations. The commission also elected officers for the upcoming term.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes Approval: The commission unanimously approved the minutes of the July 15, 2022 meeting, with a correction to the date (originally stated as January 15, 2022).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Kenneth Richter (adjacent landowner) introduced himself and expressed appreciation for the board’s consideration of the Elken Subdivision item.
  • Paul LaFayve (CBRE) introduced himself as the commercial real estate advisor for Great Plains Communications, supporting the Elken Subdivision revision and noting the company’s investment in Kearney.
  • Ian Taylor (Great Plains Communications) stated that the proposed facility would serve as a regional hub and improve operational efficiency, citing a current 45-minute round trip for materials.

Discussion Items

  • Freedom Hill Estates (Items 4–6): Mitch Humphrey of Buffalo Surveying Corp. presented a proposal to rezone 4140 30th Avenue from AG (Agricultural) to RR‑1 (Rural Residential), subdivide the 12.76‑acre parcel into two lots (3.15 and 9.61 acres), and approve preliminary and final plats. The existing house will remain on Lot 1, and a new home will be built on Lot 2; both will use individual wells and septic systems. A 50‑foot building setback line was added on the south side of Lot 1. Staff found the proposal consistent with the comprehensive plan and recommended approval. The commission approved all three items unanimously.
  • Sorensen Park Fifth Addition (Items 7–9): Mitch Humphrey presented a request by CFT NV Developments, LLC, to vacate Lot 1 of Sorensen Park Second Addition (4910/4920 3rd Avenue) and create two separate lots—one for Panda Express (0.67 acres) and one for OfficeMax (2.43 acres). New easements for water, sanitary sewer, stormwater, and a sign were dedicated. Board member Stan Dart expressed concerns about traffic circulation and potential future separation of access, but acknowledged the existing conditions. Staff recommended approval, and the commission unanimously approved the vacation, preliminary plat, and final plat.
  • Elken Subdivision Revised Planned Development (Item 10): Mitch Humphrey presented a revised plan for 7310 2nd Avenue (the former Cowpoke site). The applicant, CBRE on behalf of D&M Cowpoke, Inc., sought to allow outdoor storage for a communications company (Great Plains Communications), add a future speculative building, and delay certain improvements including paving of 74th Street, sidewalk installation, and planting of street trees along 74th Street. Staff recommended approval with conditions: the outdoor storage area to remain unpaved (crushed rock), sidewalks delayed, and the minimum required street trees (11) along 74th Street to be planted—though the applicant requested a delay on the additional six trees beyond the five existing. The commission discussed the practicality of tree planting along a gravel road and the 10‑year timeline from the original agreement. The motion passed with all members voting aye, including the increase in standards (additional trees along 2nd Avenue and screening).
  • Younes Center Eighth Addition (Items 11–15): Craig Bennett of Miller & Associates presented a proposal to vacate lots in Younes Center Third and Fourth Additions and replat the 5.34‑acre area as four lots to align with existing apartment buildings (workforce housing) and future development. The rezoning (Item 11) was withdrawn. Staff found the plats compliant with the comprehensive plan and recommended approval. The commission unanimously approved both subdivision vacations, the preliminary plat, and the final plat.
  • Election of Officers (Item 16): The commission re-elected Stan Dart as Chair and Richard McGuinness as Vice Chair for the upcoming term.

Key Outcomes

  • Rezoning No. 2022-11 (Freedom Hill Estates): Approved unanimously.
  • Preliminary Plat No. 2022-08 (Freedom Hill Estates): Approved unanimously.
  • Final Plat No. 2022-08 (Freedom Hill Estates): Approved unanimously.
  • Subdivision Vacation No. 1997-05 (Sorensen Park Second Addition): Approved unanimously.
  • Preliminary Plat No. 2022-09 (Sorensen Park Fifth Addition): Approved unanimously.
  • Final Plat No. 2022-09 (Sorensen Park Fifth Addition): Approved unanimously.
  • Revised Planned Development Plan No. 2007-13 (Elken Subdivision): Approved unanimously, with staff’s recommended deviations (delayed paving, unpaved outdoor storage, delayed sidewalks, delayed additional street trees along 74th Street) and increases in standards (additional trees along 2nd Avenue, screening, and extra parking). A new development agreement will be required.
  • Partial Subdivision Vacation No. 2015-05 (Younes Center Third): Approved unanimously.
  • Partial Subdivision Vacation No. 2015-09 (Younes Center Fourth): Approved unanimously.
  • Preliminary Plat No. 2022-10 (Younes Center Eighth Addition): Approved unanimously.
  • Final Plat No. 2022-10 (Younes Center Eighth Addition): Approved unanimously.
  • Chair and Vice Chair: Stan Dart re-elected Chair, Richard McGuinness re-elected Vice Chair.

Next Steps & Notes

  • Staff announced the Nebraska Planning and Zoning Conference (in Kearney) and requested registrations by August 29, 2022.
  • A development agreement for the Elken Subdivision will be drafted to formalize the approved deviations and standards.

Meeting Transcript

I'm gonna call this meeting of the planning commission to order and ask for a roll call, please. Sorry. Here. Day caner. Here. Pandor. Here. Cochrane. Here. Rickard. Here. Yah. Here. McGuinness. Here. We have a quorum. Uh, you all have copies of the minutes of the July 15th meeting. A motion in regards to those would be in order. Mr. Chairman, I move that we approve the minutes of the meeting held on January 15, 2022. Second. Moved and seconded. Is there any additional discussion, corrections, additions? I think he said January 15th. Did I say January? No, I think. I said January. Okay, I'll revise that July 15th. John will second that again. All in favor? Oh, we'll just do a real call without that. Taken. Hi. Abstain. Pandor. Hi. Cochrane. Absolutely. Rickard. Hi. Yeah. McGuinness. Sorry. All right. Motion passes. Um we have several items on the agenda this morning. For those of you that are presenting, we appreciate it. If you please come to the center podium, speak into the microphone and talk to us and everybody else in the room from the microphone. Please also give us your name and address for the record. The first item we have on the agenda actually is three items together.

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