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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 03/10/1980CITY COUNCIL MARCH 10, 1980 The South Burlington City Council held a meeting on Monday, March 10, 1980 at 7:00 pm in the Conference Room, City Hall, 1175 Williston Road Members Present Paul Farrar, Chairman; Martin Paulsen, Kenneth Jarvis, William Burgess, Michael Flaherty (late) Others Present William Szymanski, City Manager; Bruce O'Neill, Recreation Director; David Spitz, Planner; William Schuele, Natural Resources Committee; Ethel Schuele, Sylvia Smith, Marjorie Kneeland, Marc Kaplan Agenda additions The following items were added: 1) appoint Council member as a representative to the study group of the Burlington Airport Commission, and 2) $$et as the Liquor Control Board to discuss a request for an entertainment permit. Review Community Library and Natural Resources 1980-81 proposed budgets Mrs. Ethel Schuele, discussing the library budget, gave the members copies of a breakdown of the budget changes since last year. This year they are asking to add another person to the staff. They have had a CETA worker recently. Mrs. Schuele said the library had more community involvement now than in the past and that they wanted to stagger working hours so the library could be open from 3:30 to the supper hour. The proposed new employee would be paid minimum wage. Asked what could be cut if 5% were to be removed from the budget, Mrs. Schuele felt that they could do with less audio-visual funding. Mr. Schuele spoke to the Natural Resources budget. He felt that the amount requested was conservative compared to what could be done with it. He also invited the members to the open house to be held March 21 at 7:00 pm. Appoint member to the Burlington Airport Commission study group Mr. Burgess moved to appoint Ken Jarvis as the Council representative to meet with the Airport Commission to resolve mutual disagreements. Mr. Paulsen seconded and all voted aye. Meet as Liquor Control Board Mr. Jarvis moved to adjourn as the City Council and convens as the Liquor Control Board for the purpose of reviewing an application for an entertainment permit. Mr. Burgess seconded the motion and all voted aye. Mr. Farrar said the request was from the Brick Oven Restaurant and that they wanted to have a solo guitarist, but no dancing, from 6-9 pm. on three weeknights. Mr. Burgess moved to authorize the City Manager to sign the entertainment permit as read into the record. Mr. Jarvis seconded the motion and all voted aye. Mr. Jarvis then moved to adjourn as the Liquor Control Board and reconvene as the City Council. Mr. Burgess seconded the motion and it passed 4-0. Review Master Plan Southeast Quadrant and Development Management chapters Mr. Farrar was concerned with keeping some of the land in the Quadrant open, if for no other reason than to have a viable alternative for sludge disposal in the future. 300-500 acres might be necessary. He felt the best way to keep land open was to allow for transfer of development rights. Mr. Paulsen felt such transfer had never worked and that the pressures to develop the open land would be very great. Mr. Burgess did not disagree with the concept. Mr. Farrar felt that if the future Council wished to develop the land which had stayed open, that was their option, as it is the option now to change the zoning previously adopted. Mr. Burgess did not see the city encouraging low-cost housing, but Mr. Farrar felt it was the cost of the land in the city which made housing costs so high. Mr. Flaherty arrived at this point. Mr. Farrar felt that transfer of development rights would allow high density development without high service costs, which would lead to lower cost housing. He felt the man who sold his development rights would be the only one with an economic reason for wanting to develop the land later. Mr. Burgess did not see any incentive for selling the rights and he did not think it would be done until it became a proven idea, not just a theory. Another issue discussed was the growth line, and Mr. Farrar also objected to the mixed uses spelled out in the Quadrant chapter. Mr. Flaherty was concerned that the "neighborhood-serving commercial uses" wording was too broad. Mr. Spitz said that would be a grocery or drug store and that the zoning regulations could be more specific as to permitted uses and sizes. These commercial uses could be part of a PUD and the number of them allowed could be limited by area population, perhaps. Mr. Flaherty pointed out that the size of these uses could be increased through zoning variances. He felt that if this were to be allowed, the neighborhood concept would have to be spelled out with controls attached. Mr. Farrar did not feel that type of use would be required in the Quadrant, because that area is not far from existing shopping areas in other parts of the city. Mr. Flaherty felt it was not necessary now and there were procedures to allow for it later if the need arose. Mr. Spitz felt that if a large development came into the Quadrant, its residents might want a small convenience store. Mr. Burgess felt that might be desirable if the concept of a neighborhood store could be defined. Mr. Farrar felt that no one would want to live next to the store, but Mr. Jarvis felt it was a good idea. Mr. Farrar felt that if stores were to be permitted, it would be better to allow the neighborhood to be built around the store, not allow the store to be constructed in someone's backyard. Mr. Burgess felt that some land could be zoned to allow a store, and when people bought their homes, they would know that there would be a commercial use there. Mr. Spitz said that the commercial use could be isolated from the residential use, or it could be placed at the entrance to the project. Open space could be left between the commercial use and the residences, and that land could be treed. Mr. Farrar felt that anyone living in the Quadrant was only 3 miles from a commercial center and he noted that there was already one commercial use there (Chittenden Cider Mill). Mr. Burgess felt the Commission had the right idea on this issue and he wanted to support them, even though he did not like the present wording. The Council members liked the idea of a parcel of Industrial land in the Quadrant. Transfer of development rights was discussed. Mr. Burgess did not have a problem with the concept, but did not want to rely solely on that concept to do what the city wanted to do (retain open space). Mr. Spitz felt transfer could work in this city and he said that the worst that could happen would be that no one would try to do it. Appoint member to Zoning Board of Adjustment It was decided to do this at the meeting on Monday, March 17. The meeting was adjourned at 9:25 pm. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.