TREMONTON CITY CORPORATION
PLANNING COMMISSION
AUGUST 27, 2024
Members Present:
Micah Capener, Chairman—excused
Mark Thompson, Co-Chairman
Kaden Grover, Commission Member
Andrea Miller, Commission Member
Raulon Van Tassell, Commission Member—excused
Bret Rohde, City Councilmember
Jeff Seedall, City Planner
Bill Cobabe, City Manager
Tiffany Lannefeld, Deputy Recorder
Sam Taylor, Landscape Planner

Co-Chairman Thompson called the Planning Commission Meeting to order at 5:33 p.m. The meeting was held August 27, 2024 in the City Council Meeting Room at 102 South Tremont Street, Tremonton, Utah. Co-Chairman Thompson, Commission Members Grover and Miller, City Councilmember Rohde, City Planner Seedall, City Manager Cobabe and Deputy Recorder Lannefeld, Landscape Planner Taylor (joined via Zoom) were in attendance. Chairman Capener and Commission Member Van Tassell were excused.

1. Approval of agenda:

Motion by Co-Chairman Thompson to approve the August 27, 2024 agenda. Motion seconded by the Commission. Vote: Co-Chairman Thompson– aye, Chairman Capener – absent, Commission Member Grover – aye, Commission Member Miller – aye, Commission Member Van Tassell – absent. Motion approved.

2. Declaration of Conflict of Interest: None.

3. Public Comments: None.

4. Approval of minutes: No minutes to approve at this time.

Co-Chairman Thompson called a Public Hearing to order at 5:34 p.m. to discuss the landscaping plan. There were three people in attendance.

5. Public Hearing:

a. To receive public input on amending Chapter 1.18 Landscaping, Buffering, & Fencing Regulations

There were no public comments. Co-Chairman Thompson closed the Public Hearing at 5:35 p.m.

6. New Business:

a. Discussion and consideration of updates to Chapter 1.18 Landscaping, Buffering, & Fencing Regulations.

Mr. Taylor said we had a good discussion last time and made some modifications. Let us start with general landscape provisions. Under street trees, we added the prohibit street tree list to curb any unwanted trees from our rights-of-way. Moving forward to the landscape plan section. We reduced this section considerably. We previously had requirements for grading, drainage plans and soil reports, but pulled those out. We said the planting plan should demonstrate the desired contours. An applicant is still going to have to submit a grading and drainage plan, but it seemed not related to the landscape portion of this, so we broke that out. We also added an additional civil requirement, based on our conversation among staff. Section D is the addition of a tree protection plan. In the event that a site is being redeveloped and has existing trees, this plan would require those to be documented. The details on how the existing trees are going to be retained and protected during construction. He read the Tree Protection Plan (see attached). Mr. Taylor added in section B we added a sixth line to include the landscape areas provided for snow storage.

Mr. Taylor discussed commercial landscape requirements. The parking lot landscaping section was very confusing previously, so we rewrote that. It is clearer now. He read what was required and concluded the changes made.

Planner Seedall said the parking medians for me are huge. If you look at new development, there are quite a few big box stores that have implemented this. These are ideal for safety when herding small children into a store from a parking lot. They have their own walkway. It also really helps with connectivity from some of the stores. I think they have a huge impact on pedestrian safety. They are also an ideal spot for ADA parking stalls. I think it creates a better sense of accessibility because you create that crossing and safe loading spot to get accessible needs for people through a parking area. Mr. Taylor said it says a pedestrian walkway may also be included, but I have added that. Providing an accessible route is a good thing.

Mr. Taylor said the previous version was lacking, I think this is much better. Commission Member Miller said even throughout the whole document, it is easier to understand. It says very clearly, this is for single homes or this is not for single homes. It is a lot more defined. Planner Seedall said we will work with development, but the single-family is mostly written to be a recommendation. Manager Cobabe said developers crave clear information. They can work this into their budget. When they are planning out their parking lot, they will know they are expected to put in trees and raised walkways. What they do not like is when the ordinance is poorly written so they do not know what to expect. This is a step to help cover that. Commission Member Grover said is that six feet of landscaping or is that curb to curb? Mr. Taylor said that is a good point. We could make that clearer. Planner Seedall said I would do back of curb to back of curb.

Mr. Taylor said we are looking to reduce water consumption in our landscapes. We have a few extras in here, like the parking lot landscaping and street trees, but the bulk of what is here—the various requirements are already in the code. We have just reorganized and tried to make this as clear and interpretable as possible. That will go a long way. The main change is that we are asking people to plant less turf. That is in line with the whole reason for why we started this process. We are following the goals of the City and the Water Preservation Plan and being good stewards of this precious resource. I think overall it will build wealth in the City to have this in place.

Motion by Commission Member Grover to recommend to the City Council to accept the updates explained above, adding curb to curb for the minimum width on the landscaped areas in parking lots. Motion seconded by Commission Member Miller. Vote Co-Chairman Thompson– aye, Chairman Capener – absent, Commission Member Grover – aye, Commission Member Miller – aye, Commission Member Van Tassell – absent. Motion approved.

b. Presentation on Rural Community Opportunity Grant Report for 2023.

Manager Cobabe said this report is required by the State every year based on what we have done the previous year with spending State money. We have not done anything yet. We have been putting together this committee and working on a plan for Main Street and for the redevelopment of Midland Square. However, we have not expended any of the funds as of yet. That was the report, and it was the same as last year. We have already submitted the report, this is just for your information. Our goal is to get things started and maybe even finished by this time next year.

7. Planning commission comments/reports

Planner Seedall said we will go through a lot of code updates, how much time should I plan on giving the Commission to review so we can have good discussions? The Commission agreed a week would be beneficial. Manager Cobabe said we will try to do it in manageable increments. If there is a large section, we will get one to you to chew on that before we send the next section.

Councilmember Rohde said I did not support the Commission in your vote last week on the facade of those buildings. We turned that down so that they can fix it and live up to the development agreement. I support the Commission all the time but wish I would have been here.

8. Adjournment

Motion by Commission Member Grover to adjourn the meeting. Motion seconded by consensus of the Board. The meeting adjourned at 6:06 p.m.

The undersigned duly acting and appointed Recorder for Tremonton City Corporation hereby certifies that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Planning Commission held on the above referenced date. Minutes were prepared by Jessica Tanner.

Dated this _____day of ___________, 2024.

______________________________
Cynthia Nelson, CITY RECORDER

*Utah Code 52-4-202, (6) allows for a topic to be raised by the public and discussed by the public body even though it was not included in the agenda or advance public notice given; however, no final action will be taken