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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning Report CITY OF COLUMBIA HEIGHTS PLANNING REPORT CASE NUMBER: 2006-1002 DATE: October 3, 2006 TO: Columbia Heights Planning Commission APPLICANT: City of Columbia Heights REQUEST: Zoning Amendment to the Zoning Code as it relates to Transitional Housing. PREPARED BY: Jeff Sargent, City Planner BACKGROUND: On March 8, 2006, a group called ATTIC approached the City with a request to place a halfway house in the City. ATTIC specializes in placing ex-convicts into halfway homes in residential areas, as part of the transition for these individuals back into society. ATTIC worked in conjunction with the Minnesota Department of Corrections to locate a transitional housing unit at 1008 Gould Avenue. It was discovered that the proposed housing unit would be located adjacent to an existing residential facility used to house people with drug and alcohol dependencies. The Council indicated that locating these types of uses next to each other would not be appropriate in a predominately single-family neighborhood, and imposed a moratorium regarding transitional housing on March 13, 2006 for a one-year period. At this time, Staff proposes an amendment to the Zoning Code to address the Council’s concern. The current zoning code directly addresses the halfway home type of housing, referring to this type of housing as a “Correctional Residential Care Facility”. The Code, however, only addresses this type of housing in Section 9.107, which is the Specific Development Standards section of the Code. There is no other reference to this type of housing anywhere else throughout the code and it is also not defined in the definitions section. Staff proposes modifying the Correctional Residential Care Facility Section, by defining the term and permitting this type of use in the “I-1” and “I-2” Industrial Districts through the Conditional Use Permit process. Essentially, these types of facilities shall only be located in the “I” and “I-2” Districts and cannot be located within ¼ mile, or 1,320 feet from another similar facility. City of Columbia Heights Planning Commission October 3, 2006 Text Amendment, Transitional Housing Case # 2006-1002 CONSISTENCY WITH COMPREHENSIVE PLAN: The Comprehensive Plan would not be affected with the proposed zoning amendment, as there will be no rezoning of any parcel in the City. FINDINGS OF FACT: The City Council shall make the following findings before granting approval of a request to amend the City Code. These findings are as follows: a) The amendment is consistent with the comprehensive plan. The Comprehensive Plan would not be affected with the proposed zoning amendment, as there will be no rezoning of any parcel in the City. b) The amendment is in the public interest and is not solely for the benefit of a single property owner. It is in the public interest to locate these types of housing units in an area in the City that would have the least influence on the residential neighborhoods in the City. One of the major goals of the Comprehensive Plan is to preserve the character of the residential areas throughout the City and the proposed amendment would help accomplish this. c) Where the amendment is to change the zoning classification of a particular property, the existing use of the property and the zoning classification of property within the general area of the property in question are compatible with the proposed zoning classification. The proposed zoning amendment would not change the zoning classification of any parcel in the City. d) Where the amendment is to change the zoning classification of a particular property, there has been a change in the character or trend of development in the general area of the property in question, which has taken place since such property was placed in its current zoning classification. The proposed zoning amendment would not change the zoning classification of any parcel in the City. RECOMMENDATION: City Staff recommends that the Planning and Zoning Commission recommend approval of the proposed zoning amendment as outlined in the attached draft ordinance. This ordinance amendment would limit the location of Correctional Residential Care Facilities to the Industrially zoned parcels in the City. Page 2 City of Columbia Heights Planning Commission October 3, 2006 Text Amendment, Transitional Housing Case # 2006-1002 Motion: The Planning Commission recommends that the City Council approve the text amendments as outlined in the attached draft ordinance. Attachments Draft Ordinance  Page 3