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Record of Proceedings

Kearney Planning Commission Meeting - November 21, 2025

Planning Commission — Friday, November 21, 2025
BodyKearney, Nebraska
SessionPlanning Commission
DateFriday, November 21, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

Morning.

0:02

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

0:07

And in accordance with section 841412 of the Nebraska revised statutes, a current copy of the Open Meeting Act is available for review and is posted in the meeting room.

0:22

Roll call, please.

0:23

Start.

0:24

Here.

0:26

Scott Pandor.

0:27

Here.

0:27

Cochrane.

0:28

Here.

0:28

Record.

0:29

Here.

0:29

Yeah.

0:30

Here.

0:30

McGinnis.

0:31

Here.

0:31

And then absent R.

0:32

Baker and Dakin.

0:34

And we have a quorum.

0:36

Before we get too far into this, if you are here to uh talk about one of the projects, uh, we appreciate if you'd come to the center podium and speak into the microphone so we can have you on the record.

0:48

Give us your name and your address.

0:52

Um before we get too far into this, we have the minutes from the October 17th meeting, and Melissa has something to add to this.

1:04

Uh this is Malia, just speaking for the record.

1:06

I just wanted to note that there was an error in the roll call voting for the minutes last month.

1:11

I had put Dakin and Cochrane as absent, and no one has abstained.

1:16

Dakin and Cochrane actually abstained, and Baker was absent.

1:19

So that correction has been made to the minutes, and you all have the correct copy.

1:25

So we do not have to note that specifically in any motion.

1:29

They can be approved as written because they are correct across all platforms at this time.

1:34

So a motion in regards to our October 17th meeting would be in order.

1:38

I move that we approve the minutes of the October 17th 2025 meeting as a second moved and seconded.

1:48

Any discussion?

1:50

All in favor?

1:52

Oh, I'm sorry.

1:54

I was trying to scoot along.

1:57

Malone.

1:58

All right.

1:58

Scott Pierre.

1:59

Aye.

2:00

Cochrane.

2:00

Hi.

2:01

Rickard.

2:02

Again, it's also please note that if you are here for I think is items numbered 11 and 312.

2:13

That they have been postponed.

2:15

We will be requesting to postpone them.

2:17

Okay.

2:18

But we will postpone them later in the uh the first item we've got is a hearing uh and uh rezoning uh to rezone from commercial one and the neighborhood center disc district planned development overlay district to district CO office district property located at 5808 10th Avenue.

2:46

Good morning.

2:47

Good morning.

2:47

My name's Craig Bennett at 1111 Central Avenue with Miller Associates here to represent Cobalt Skies LLC.

2:54

And so what I have before you here is a rezoning project, um rezoning of the North Track because it was a minor subdivision.

3:02

So the legal description was part of two lots with which one was split.

3:06

And so the location that we have here for the property is located east of 11th Avenue and south of 59th Street in Northwest Carney in the Spruce Hollow area and Spruce Hollow edition area.

3:19

Um the site map shows uh nothing on this at one point in time.

3:23

There was a house that has been raised and moved, and so now it's back to an original location.

3:29

And so we will be utilizing those services that are there, but before you today is just a rezoning application for that.

3:36

So we'll take a look at the future land use map.

3:39

The future land use map is MU1.

3:41

MU1 is compatible with the zoning districts that are listed at the bottom there.

3:46

Um, all of which um we are uh applying for CO for you today, part of which is already CO.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning and Land Use█████████████████████████████████████████████64%
Procedural███████████15%
Short Term Rentals███████████15%
Pending Litigation██3%
Public Safety██3%
Summary of Proceedings

Kearney Planning Commission Meeting - November 21, 2025

The Kearney Planning Commission met on November 21, 2025, at 9:00 a.m. in City Council Chambers. The commission approved minutes from the previous meeting, considered three development applications (rezoning, subdivision vacation, and plats), and postponed pending code amendments regarding short-term rentals to the December meeting. All votes were unanimous.

Consent Calendar

  • The minutes of the October 17, 2025 meeting were approved as corrected. Commissioner Melissa Scott-Pandorf noted an error in the roll call: Commissioners Dakan and Cochran had abstained (not absent as originally recorded), and Commissioner Baker was absent. The correction was accepted.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public spoke in person during the hearings.
  • For items 8–10 (Buckshot Addition), two emails from an attorney representing a neighboring property owner were entered into the record. The letters raised a potential boundary dispute. City Attorney Mike Ty clarified that the planning commission is not the forum to resolve boundary disputes and that such matters would be handled by the courts.

Discussion Items

  • Rezoning No. 2025-16 (5808 10th Avenue): Craig Bennett of Miller & Associates presented on behalf of Cobalt Skies LLC. The request was to rezone a 0.67-acre vacant lot (north tract) from C-1(N)/PD (Neighborhood Center District/Planned Development Overlay) to C-O (Office District) to match adjacent zoning. Staff found the proposal compatible with the comprehensive plan and less intensive than existing zoning. The hearing had no public speakers. The commission approved the rezoning unanimously.

  • Subdivision Vacation No. 2018-05, Preliminary Plat No. 2025-12, and Final Plat No. 2025-12 (Elementary School Third Addition, south of 5508 Avenue N): Applicant Buffalo Surveying Corp. (representing General Properties LLC and developer Ron Eckloff) requested vacating part of Lot 1 of Elementary School Second Addition and replatting two lots (1.1 acres and 0.98 acres) zoned C-O. Existing utilities and fire hydrant are in place. The final plat includes ingress/egress easements. Commissioners questioned access to Lot 2 from Avenue N; staff noted it would be determined at time of development. The commission approved the vacation, preliminary plat, and final plat unanimously.

  • Rezoning No. 2025-15, Preliminary Plat No. 2025-11, and Final Plat No. 2025-11 (Buckshot Addition, 119 Central Avenue): Craig Bennett of Miller & Associates presented for Buckshot Farms LLP. The request combined two unplatted parcels (totaling 4.83 acres) into one platted lot, rezoned from C-2 (Community Commercial) and M-1 (Light Industrial) to C-3 (Business Park). Confined electrical easements from MPPD were recorded. A future land use map amendment was withdrawn. Staff recommended approval. The city attorney addressed boundary dispute concerns raised in public correspondence. All three items were approved unanimously.

  • Short-Term Rental Code Amendments (Items 11 & 12): Staff requested postponement to the December 2025 meeting. Melissa Scott-Pandorf provided an update from the subcommittee: discussions covered life safety, occupancy limits (max 12, with adjustments based on square footage), digital permitting, annual renewal, and public education. The subcommittee also worked on an appeal process. The commission voted to postpone both code amendments.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved minutes of October 17, 2025.
  • Approved Rezoning No. 2025-16 (C-1(N)/PD to C-O) for 5808 10th Avenue.
  • Approved Subdivision Vacation No. 2018-05, Preliminary Plat No. 2025-12, and Final Plat No. 2025-12 for Elementary School Third Addition.
  • Approved Rezoning No. 2025-15 (C-2/M-1 to C-3), Preliminary Plat No. 2025-11, and Final Plat No. 2025-11 for Buckshot Addition.
  • Postponed Code Amendments No. 2025-01 and 2025-02 (short-term rental regulations) to the December 2025 Planning Commission meeting.

Meeting Transcript

Morning. I'm going to call this meeting of this of the Planning Commission to order. And in accordance with section 841412 of the Nebraska revised statutes, a current copy of the Open Meeting Act is available for review and is posted in the meeting room. Roll call, please. Start. Here. Scott Pandor. Here. Cochrane. Here. Record. Here. Yeah. Here. McGinnis. Here. And then absent R. Baker and Dakin. And we have a quorum. Before we get too far into this, if you are here to uh talk about one of the projects, uh, we appreciate if you'd come to the center podium and speak into the microphone so we can have you on the record. Give us your name and your address. Um before we get too far into this, we have the minutes from the October 17th meeting, and Melissa has something to add to this. Uh this is Malia, just speaking for the record. I just wanted to note that there was an error in the roll call voting for the minutes last month. I had put Dakin and Cochrane as absent, and no one has abstained. Dakin and Cochrane actually abstained, and Baker was absent. So that correction has been made to the minutes, and you all have the correct copy. So we do not have to note that specifically in any motion. They can be approved as written because they are correct across all platforms at this time. So a motion in regards to our October 17th meeting would be in order. I move that we approve the minutes of the October 17th 2025 meeting as a second moved and seconded. Any discussion? All in favor? Oh, I'm sorry. I was trying to scoot along. Malone. All right. Scott Pierre. Aye. Cochrane. Hi. Rickard. Again, it's also please note that if you are here for I think is items numbered 11 and 312. That they have been postponed. We will be requesting to postpone them. Okay. But we will postpone them later in the uh the first item we've got is a hearing uh and uh rezoning uh to rezone from commercial one and the neighborhood center disc district planned development overlay district to district CO office district property located at 5808 10th Avenue. Good morning. Good morning. My name's Craig Bennett at 1111 Central Avenue with Miller Associates here to represent Cobalt Skies LLC.

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