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Home My WebLink AboutMinutes CC - 10/21/2013 - MINS 10 21 13 REG (Migrated from Optiview)Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page I of34 This summary is provided as a convenience and service to the public, media, and staff. It is not the intent to transcribe proceedings verbatim . Any reproduction of this summary must include this notice. Public comments are noted and heard by Council, but not quoted. This document includes limited presentation by Council and invited speakers in summary form. This is an official record ofthe Milton City Council Meeting proceedings. Official Meetings are audio and video recorded. The Regular Meeting of the Mayor and Council of the City of Milton was held on October 21, 2013 at 6:00 PM, Mayor Joe Lockwood presiding. INVOCATION Pastor Brent Deakins, Reach One Church, Milton, Georgia CALL TO ORDER Mayor Joe Lockwood called the meeting to order. ROLLCALL Councilmembers Present: Councilmember Thurman, Councilmember Kunz, Council member Lusk, Councilmember Hewitt, and Councilmember Longoria. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA (Agenda Item No. 13-241) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Kunz moved to approve the Meeting Agenda with the following changes: • Add an Executive Session to discuss real estate. Council member Thurman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). PUBLIC COMMENT Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21, 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 2 of34 CONSENT AGENDA 1. Approval of the October 7, 2013 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes. (Agenda Item No . 13-242) (Sudie G ordon, City Clerk) 2. Approval of an Intergovernmental Agreement between the City of Milton and Fulton County Board of Education for the Use of Northwestern Middle School. (Agenda Item No. 13-243) (Jim Cregge, Parks & Re cr eation Dir ec tor) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to approve the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Kunz seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS (N one) FIRST PRESENTATION (Non e) PUBLIC HEARING ALCOHOL BEVERAGE LICENSE APPLICATIONS 1. Consideration of the Issuance of an Alcohol Beverage License to Sequoia Golf North Atlanta, LLC dba Atlanta National Golf Club, Located at 350 Tournament Players Drive, Milton, Georgia 30004 . The Applicant is Robin Spradlin -Consumption on Premises Wine, Malt Beverages and Distilled Spirits. (Agenda Item No. 13-244) (S ta cey Inglis , Ass istant City Manager) Stacey Inglis, Assistant City Manager This application is simply a change of ownership . The establishment already has a Consumption on Premises license and this is just the formality of changing ownership. They have followed all of the requirements of the law and we are asking for your approval. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Hewitt moved to approve Agenda Item No . 13-244. Councilmember Longoria seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 3 of34 2. Consideration of the Issuance of an Alcohol Beverage License to Sequoia Golf North Atlanta, LLC dba White Columns Country Club, Located at 300 Clubhouse Drive, Milton, Georgia 30004. The Applicant is Robin Spradlin -Consumption on Premises Wine, Malt Beverages and Distilled Spirits. (Agenda Item No . 13-245) (Stacey Inglis , Assistant City Manager) Stacey Inglis, Assistant City Manager This application is simply a change of ownership. The establishment already has a Consumption on Premises license and this is just the fonnality of changing ownership. They have followed all of the requirements of the law and we are asking for your approval. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-245. Councilmember Thunnan seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). Zoning is transcribed verbatim ZONING AGENDA 1. Consideration of U13-02IVC13-03 -Deerfield Parkway (West Side), Crescent Communities, LLC. for a Use Permit to Allow the Construction of256 Multi-family Residential Units and Related Accessory Uses (Sec . 64-1839) and a 2-part Concurrent Variance to 1) Provide 100% of the Site for Apartments (Chapter 64, Division 5.A, 4.6.6.a.ii) and 2) to Delete the Requirement to Provide a Minimum of 300 Cubic Feet of Separate Contiguous Storage Space Shall be Provided to Each Dwelling Unit. (Agenda Item No. 13-231) (First Presentation at October 7, 2013 Regular Council Meeting) (Kathleen Field, Community Development Director) Kathleen Field, Community Development Director Thank you. Good evening Mr. Mayor and members of the council. This map shows the subject site in red. It is a proposal for 256 apartment units. The subject site contains 21.368 acres which are undeveloped. The applicant seeks a use pennit for 256 apartment units with one and two bedroom units and two concurrent variances which I will refer to later. It incorporates a farmers market on the site for public use. The existing zoning is T6 which is the Deerfield / Highway 9 Fonn Based Code Overlay District that requires a use pennit when apartments are requested. The subject site is located within a Regional Activity Center of the Highway 9 / GA 400 Masterplan Livable Centers initiative LCI study approved on April 23, 2012. The subject site, continued. Staff notes that the Deerfield / Highway 9 Form Based Code requires the following when an applicant requests to develop apartments. Section 4.6.6 -Specific to zones T4-0pen, T5 , T6: Apartments shall only be pennitted subject to a use pennit as follows: • In buildings where the entire first story is used for non-residential functions or residential lobbies, leasing offices, fitness centers, or mUlti-purpose rooms serving the residential function, or • On sites where more than 50% of the total floor area is dedicated to office, retail, or lodging functions. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21, 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 4 of34 Previous Action on the Subject Site: Crescent Communities LLC previously requested to rezone from C-l (Community Business) and 0-1 (Office-Institutional) to A (Medium Density Apartments). This request was denied by the Mayor and City Council on September 6, 2012. The applicant exercised their right to appeal the decision of the Mayor and City Council to the Fulton County Superior Court. On May 20, 2013, the Fulton County Superior Court ordered that the plaintiffs application be remanded to the City of Milton to process a new application for a Use Permit for apartments and other variances or warrants under the new Deerfield/Hwy 9 Form Based Code within 60 days of the said order. This is the reason that the applicant's request has been filed for the same request on the subject site. And , here is the Deerfield I Highway 9 LCI Plan and you see the subject site is in that pink area which is noted on the LCI Plan as a Regional Activity Center. I wanted to define for you a little more about what a Regional Activity Center is and that denotes high density, mixed use , walkability, interconnectivity. That was the intent of the LCI Plan for this particular area of the Deerfield area. So , when we come to the new zoning that was put in place to implement the plan , you will see the T6 is the area that is really enacting the intent of the Regional Activity Center with all the facets that I just mentioned to you. The intent of the plan is all reflected in that T6 zoning. The revised site plan was submitted on October 18 , 2013 and then another revised site plan to that was submitted on October 2 , 2013 where the parking calculations were revised and that is really the only difference between the two site plans. In terms of the site plan analysis , based on the applicant's revised site plan submitted to the Community Development Department on October 2, 2013 , staff offers the following considerations: Under the DeerfieldlHwy 9 Form Based Code Standards (Chapter 64 , Division 5.A) Based on detailed review of the revised site plan and architectural elevations by City Staff, including the City Architect, the proposed 256 unit apartment development meets all the standards except for the item discussed below in YC13-03 -Part 1. It is Staffs opinion that the site and architectural plans have accomplished the overall goal of "form based" development by meeting the multiple standards of the Code. Staff has included the architectural elevations at the end of the report. In addition, a condition has been included referencing the elevations if the Mayor and Council choose to approve the Use Permit. YC13-03 -Part 1 -To provide 100% of the site for Apartments. The applicant is requesting a concurrent variance to Chapter 64, Division 5.AA.6.6.a.i that requires the following: Apartments shall only be permitted subject to a use permit as follows: • In buildings where the entire first story is used for non-residential functions or residential lobbies, leasing offices, fitness centers, or multi-purpose rooms serving the residential function, or • On sites where more than 50% of the total floor area is dedicated to Office , Retail, or Lodging Functions. The applicant proposes the entire development to be developed as apartments . So, that is the variance he is looking for. It is Staffs opinion that the applicant has not demonstrated that: relief if granted, would not offend the spirit or intent of this zoning ordinance. It is the intent for this area of Deerfield to be developed with higher densities so that a mix of uses can be provided for the use of current and future residents and employees. Within the Deerfield/Hwy 9 Form Based Code, the Intent states: "That the Deerfield Hwy 9 area is the focal point for high-quality, mixed use development in the City of Milton as established in the Hwy 9/Georgia 400 Master Plan Livable Centers Initiative and the City of Milton 2030 Comprehensive Plan" and additionally, "That within the DeerfieldlHighway 9 area, ordinary activities of daily life should be able to occur within walking or bicycling distance of most dwellings." There are such extraordinary and exceptional situations or conditions pertaining to the particular piece of property that the literal or strict application of this zoning ordinance would create an unnecessary hardship due to size, shape or topography or other extraordinary and exceptional situations or conditions not caused by the variance applicant. The applicant states in the letter of intent that to meet the Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 5 of34 requirement stated above, that: "In order to provide such accessory nonresidential uses, such building space would be required to be developed at an economic loss, which would have the effect of having the development costs exceed the income that could be generated from any proposed development of the Property ..... Finally, a hardship arises in providing for 50% of the total floor area as retail, office or lodging functions because there does not exist a market for such functions at this location." It is Staffs opinion that economic hardships do not meet the standard of the variance consideration outlined above. Relief, if granted would not cause a substantial detriment to the public good and surrounding properties. By not implementing the requirement of mixed use for the site, it negates the plan's intent to ensure that ordinary activities of daily life should be able to occur within walking or bicycling distance of most dwellings and provide an overall cohesive development for live and work for the community. Thus, the requirement for the mixed use component when developing apartments is required. Therefore, Staff recommends denial of VC 13-03 -Part 1. Apartment development standards for the Use Permit (Section 64-1839) -the proposed development meets all the standards for a use permit except for the following: a minimum of 300 cubic feet of separate contiguous storage space shall be provided for each dwelling unit (Section 64-1839, subsection 8). VC 13-03 -Part 2 -is another concurrent variance and this one is to delete the requirement to provide a minimum of 300 cubic feet of separate contiguous storage space shall be provided for each dwelling unit. The applicant is requesting to delete the above required storage space for each dwelling unit. It is Staffs opinion that the applicant has not demonstrated that: • Relief if granted, would not offend the spirit or intent of this zoning ordinance. The Use Permit development standards for apartments require a minimum of 300 cubic feet of separate storage space. The request does in fact offend the intent of the requirement by requesting that all of the storage space be deleted for each unit. • There are such extraordinary and exceptional situations or conditions pertaining to the particular piece of property that the literal or strict application of this zoning ordinance would create an unnecessary hardship due to size, shape or topography or other extraordinary and exceptional situations or conditions not caused by the variance applicant. It is Staffs opinion that the number of units can be decreased to accommodate the additional square footage required by the requirement of providing 300 cubic feet of separate storage. • Relief, if granted would not cause a substantial detriment to the public good and surrounding properties. It is Staffs opinion that this development standard facilitates an adequate storage area so that the storage of belongings will not occur on porches or balconies which would cause a negative impact on nearby occupants and properties. Thus, the development standard for providing storage space is required . Therefore, Staff recommends denial of VC 13-03 -Part 2. In terms of pedestrian circulation, the proposed site plan indicates a comprehensive internal pedestrian network throughout the development via required sidewalks adjacent to the proposed roads and within the natural area to the north. Staff recommends that the paths within the natural area be constructed of pervious materials and be a minimum of 10 feet wide. In addition, there are sidewalks that provide connections with the pedestrian sidewalk on Deerfield Parkway where there are two existing MART A bus stops available to residents and visitors. Staff will require that the applicant provide bus stop shelters without any signage to be installed at the designated MARTA bus stops along Deerfield Parkway. The pedestrian and bus stop shelters will assist in meeting the vision of improved pedestrian interconnectivity stated in the Hwy 9/Georgia 400 Master Plan Livable Centers Initiative. These additional requirements will be reflected in the recommended conditions. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 6 of34 City Arborist Comments: the site appears to have been selectively timbered within the past 15 years or so. The plan shows preserving some of the mature trees in the northern part of the project. Per the revised site plan, the applicant indicates approximately ten specimen trees are proposed to be removed equating to 128.1 tree density units to be recompensed. Recompense required will be 183 -four inch caliper hardwood/canopy trees. Specimen trees removed or preserved may vary. Final count will be done during the Land Disturbance Permit process. Public Works Department -Transportation: the applicant updated the Traffic Study and there have been no significant changes in the results since the original study in 2012. The results of the traffic study indicate that for both existing and future conditions, the intersection of Morris Road at Deerfield Parkway does not operate at an acceptable level of service in the peak hour. A project currently under construction by City of Milton for Deerfield Parkway and Morris Road will improve the overall operations in the base and design years. The City of Alpharetta has recently reconstructed the intersection of Windward Parkway at Deerfield Parkway as part of the Westside Parkway extension volumes. This will also improve the overall peak level of service. In terms of the impact from the Fulton County Board of Education you can see according to this chart that all three schools are over capacity and so they would negatively be impacted by the amount of students to be generated from this project. The Fiscal Impact Model -the following slide depicts the result of the Fiscal Impact Model for the proposed project. The assumptions included that the first year of permit revenue was approximately $120,000 which included both building permit and land disturbance permit fees for the entire project. And, you can see on this that there is a, over 20 years, there is a negative amount of $7,799,530 in terms of cost versus revenue generated from this project. Public Involvement -there was a Community Zoning Information Meeting was held on August 27, 2013. The applicant was present at the Community Zoning Information Meeting held at the Milton City Hall. Ten people were in attendance. Attendees questioned why the development was back when it was denied last year. Staff addressed that concern. In addition, there were concerns about increased traffic, reduction in their home values, public safety, and required inter-connectivity to the Frys development. City of Milton Design Review Board held a courtesy meeting on this application on September 9, 2013. The following comments were made at the meeting: 1. Delete interconnectivity requirement to the adjoining lot to the west (Fry's) for pedestrian safety. 2. Update traffic study for Deerfield and consider adding a bike lane. 3. Preference for a flat roof in lieu of a low pitched roof (current roof pitch proposed 4: 12). 4. Architectural character should replicate the Crabapple area vernacular. 5. Milton has established different development nodes, this site plan does a good job of representing the new block structure ofT6 transect zone as outlined in the Form Based Code. 6. Integrate some commercial uses on the ground floor -these uses should be placed in the entry block at a minimum. Suggested uses: Starbucks, laundry mat, deli, etc. These commercial/retail uses should be opened to the general public to help support their longevity. 7. Future re-use of the buildings must be considered; ground floor levels must be designed with bay sizes and column grids that would accommodate future conversion to commercial/retail applications. This includes the floor to floor height and exterior appearance, window placement awnings etc. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21 , 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 70f34 8. The cubic space storage requirement should be maintained as it offsets the problem of occupants utilizing the balconies for storage. The PlaIlling Commission reviewed this application on September 25,2013. They recommended denial of the application (6-0) and also denial of the two concurrent variance requests (6-0). The PlaIlling Commission made the following comments regarding the final vote to recommend denial of the use permit and the two part concurrent variance: The proposed development doesn 't meet the requirement of the Form Based Code for mixed use. It goes against all the work that the community has contributed to the Form Based Code . Even though there was a high demand for apartments, the city's vision is truly mixed use. Just because apartments are economically viable , the PlaIlling Commission does not want to give up the vision of the city. Public Participation Plan and Report -the applicant has met the requirements of the Public Participation Plan. The applicant submitted the first Plan Report on September 11 , 2013 and an update on October 4, 2013 to the Mayor and City Council meeting. The Public Participation Meeting was held on September 9, 2013 at 6:00 p.m. There were four members of the community in attendance. Use Permit Considerations -In the interest of the public health, safety and welfare, the Mayor and City Council may exercise limited discretion in evaluating the site proposed for a use that requires a Use Permit. In exercising such discretion pertaining to the subject use, the Mayor and City Council shall consider each of the following as outlined in Sec . 64-1552 of the Zoning Ordinance: Use Permit Considerations. Staff has reviewed said items pertaining to the subject use , and , offers the following comments: 1. Whether the proposed use is consistent with the land use or economic development plans adopted by the Mayor and City Council -the Hwy 9/Georgia 400 Master Plan identifies the subject site and surrounding area as a Regional Activity Center. This area is bounded by GA 400 to the east , Webb Road to the north , and the properties adjacent to Deerfield Parkway and Windward Parkway to the west and south. The intent of the Plan is to facilitate development with higher densities in the Regional Activity Area. This includes higher densities for residential, office, and commercial developed in a veltical mixed use development. The proposed development of 256 units, at 12 units per acre , with no other type of non-residential development is inconsistent with this plan for the area. 2. Compatibility with land uses and zoning districts in the vicinity of the property for which the use permit is proposed -the applicant is requesting a 256 unit, multi-family development at a density of 12 units per acre. As indicated below, the adjacent and nearby zonings are inconsistent with the proposed development. Staff notes that there are townhomes to the northeast but at a lower density of 7.39 units per acre which is incompatible with the requested 12 units per acre. The nearest multi-family development is on the north side of Webb Road and west of Deerfield Parkway . 3. Whether the proposed use may violate local, state and/or federal statutes, ordinances or regulations governing land development -the proposed use is in violation of the Use Permit development standard that requires storage areas and in violation of the DeerfieldlHwy 9 Form Based Code that requires the development to provide a minimum of 50% of other uses other than apartments or the first floor to be non-residential. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 8 of34 4. The effect of the proposed use on traffic flow, vehicular and pedestrian, along adjoining streets it is Staffs opinion that the proposed use may cause an increased burden on the streets and transportation facilities, utilities, and schools. However, the increase should be mitigated with the Recommended Conditions that provides for inter-connectivity between uses. 5. The location and number of off-street parking spaces -the following chart illustrates the parking required by Section 64-1410 of the City of Milton Zoning Ordinance for the proposed uses. And, you can see at the bottom of the chart that there are 456 required spaces and 456 are provided. Bedroom Size / Use Ratio Number Spaces Required 1 bedroomi128 units) l.4/unit 180 2 bedroom (128 units) 2.0/ unit 256 Amenity/Pool 6 per pool plus 1 per 15 dwelling units beyond 60 served 20 456 required 456 provided The table above indicates a total of 456 parking spaces required and provided in the revised site plan submitted on October 2,2013. Staff notes that the revised site plan dated Septemberl8, 2013, presented at the Planning Commission reflected a total of 404 spaces on the site plan utilizing the allowable administrative reduction in parking spaces. A condition will be included in the recommended conditions to reflect the reduced number of parking spaces from 456 to 404 if the Mayor and City Council choose to approve this petition. 6. The amount and location of open space -the proposed development meets the required amount and location of open space as listed in the development standards of the Use Permit for apartments as well as the requirements of the Deerfield/Hwy 9 Form Based Code. 7. Protective screening -the proposed development meets the required amount and location of protective screening as required by the Deerfield /Hwy 9 Form Based Code . 8. Hours and manner of operation -the proposed development is a use that is utilized twenty-four hours a day. The applicant has stated that they will work with the City regarding the proposed farmer 's market and the specifics of how it would if operate if approved. 9. Outdoor lighting -in the applicant's letter of intent, the applicant states that the development will be in strict compliance with the outdoor lighting standards contained in the DeerfieldlHwy 9 Form Based Code. lO. Ingress and egress to the property -the proposed development shows two entrances where the existing full accesses are located on Deerfield Parkway: one on the southern end of the property and one in the central area of the property. In addition, there is an additional right-inlright-out access on the northern end of the development. These entrances further the goal of inter connectivity and discourage dead-end streets. The site plan provides an inter-parcel connection with the northwestern property line adjacent to the Fry's Electronics parking lot. This type of connection is recommended and illustrated in the Hwy 9/GA 400 Master Plan and the DeerfieldlHwy 9 Form Based Code. The intent is to decrease the size of the "super block" to encourage vehicular inter-connectivity and enhance utilization of excess parking lots. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 9 of34 In addition, the site plan indicates inter-parcel access along the southern property line to the undeveloped office property . These access requirements will be reflected in the Recommended Conditions if the Mayor and City Council choose to approve this petition. Conclusion -the proposed 256 multi-family development is inconsistent with the policies and intent of the City of Milton Hwy 9/GA 400 Master Plan and previous City Council action on the subject site. Therefore, Staff recommends DENIAL of U 13-02. In addition, Staff recommends DENIAL for VC 13-03, Parts 1 and 2 . If the Mayor and City Council choose to approve these requests, a set of Recommended Conditions is provided as follows: If this petition is approved by the Mayor and City Council, it should be approved for a Use Permit for Apartments CONDITIONAL subject to the owner's agreement to the following enumerated conditions. Where these conditions conflict with the stipulations and offerings contained in the Letter of Intent, these conditions shall supersede unless specifically stipulated by the Mayor and City Council. 1. To the owner's agreement to restrict the use of the subject property as follows: • No more than 256 total dwelling units at a maximum density of 12 units per acre based on the total acreage zoned, whichever is less. • Unit size shall be 128 one bedrooms and 128 two bedrooms. • The entire development shall be developed with apartments. 2. To the owner's agreement to abide by the following: • To the revised site plan received by the Community Development Department on October 2, 2013. Said site plan is conceptual only and must meet or exceed the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance, all other applicable City ordinances and these conditions prior to the approval of a Land Disturbance Permit. In the event the Recommended Conditions of Zoning cause the approved site plan to be substantially different, the applicant shall be required to complete the concept review procedure prior to application for a Land Disturbance Permit. Unless otherwise noted herein, compliance with all conditions shall be in place prior to the issuance of the first Certificate of Occupancy. 3. To the owner's agreement to the following site development considerations: • To provide two bus shelters at MART A bus stops without signage as approved by the City of Milton Design Review Board. • Provide a maximum of 404 total parking spaces. • To construct the buildings as depicted in the elevations and renderings dated September 17,2013. The internal multi-use trail shall be a minimum often feet wide or as approved by the Public Works Department. Internal multi-use trail shall be constructed of impervious materials as approved by the Community Development Department. 4. To the owner's agreement to abide by the following requirements , dedication and improvements: • Dedicate at no cost to the City of Milton prior to the approval of a Certificate of Occupancy, sufficient land as necessary to provide the following: • Provide at least 12 feet of right-of-way from the back of curb of all abutting road improvements or 1 foot from the back of sidewalk, whichever is greater, along the entire Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21 , 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 10 of34 property frontage , as well as allow the necessary construction easements while right-of way is being improved. • Installation/modification of the following transportation infrastructure to be installed in accordance with Chapter 48 Streets, Sidewalks and Other Public Places of the City of Milton Code of Ordinances: • SB Right Tum Lanes on Deerfield Pkwy at all site driveways • Any existing sidewalk or utilities in conflict with new tum lane location shall be relocated. • Any new required entrances shall meet the City of Milton Code of Ordinances and AASHTO guidelines as approved by Milton Public Works and shall conform to the following: • The Deerfield Parkway driveways shall provide a minimum of 100 feet or the 95% queue length , whichever is greater, of uninterrupted access. This distance shall be measured from the edge of the thru lane on Deerfield Pkwy to the edge of any interior drive aisle or parking space. • Provide two full access drives and one right-in, right-out access on Deerfield Parkway. • At the time of development of the property to the south, a 50-foot access easement is required along the southern driveway from Deerfield Parkway right of way to the location on the south property line where inter-parcel access will be provided to the property to the south. • Location of access to shared drive shall be at a minimum distance of the 95th percentile queue for the combined condition with future development or one hundred feet, whichever is greater. • Provide a 50-foot access easement free of any structures or utilities for vehicular and pedestrian inter-parcel access on the northwest property line as coordinated with property owner to the north and as approved by Milton Public Works. 5. To the owner's agreement to abide by the following : • The stormwater management facilities shall comply with the City of Milton stormwater requirements and shall utilize earthen embankments, where possible. Walled structures are not encouraged. If walled structures are proposed, they must meet the acceptable design standards of the Department of Community Development. • Where side slopes for stormwater management facility are steeper than 4: I the facility shall have a six foot high , five-board equestrian style fence with two inch by four inch welded wire constructed around it, or as may be approved by the Director of Community Development. And, that is my presentation. Mayor Lockwood If anyone has any specific question for Kathy while she is still standing here, I ' ll allow you to ask it. If not, then we will ask , since we are under Public Hearing, for those to come up and speak . Are there any questions, at this point , for Kathy? Okay, then we will open it up for Public Comment and we will start with those who are in support of this application. Pete Hendricks, 6085 Lake Forrest Drive, Suite 200, Atlanta, Georgia 30328 Before we begin the presentation, I would request of you, given the significant rework that has been done visa vi the application that lies in front of you, we would ask for more time for the presentation. Typically, in most jurisdictions you have ten minutes proper for the application and ten for any associated requests. Not that we would need a total of thirty minutes, the application proper, the two Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 2 J, 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 11 of34 variances, but if we could have up to twenty minutes, it would be appreciated and I think it might be a benefit to you. Bob Preston, I can tell you based on the last presentation we had used up the ten minutes just taking you through the site plan and explaining to you how the effort has been there and staff has recited to you in your report to be compliant other than the two variance requests so if you would consider that we would appreciate it if we could have a total of twenty minutes. Mayor Lockwood I don't necessarily have a problem at any time extending time to somebody who needs it. I will leave that up to the council if we want to do that or let you make your presentation and if it looks like you are going to run over, we would be glad to look at it then or if council wants to consider that now, adding another ten minutes to each side. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Longoria moved to extend 10 additional minutes for support/opposition on public comment time for Agenda Item No. 13-231 . Councilmember Kunz seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). Pete Hendricks Thank you. Kathy has articulated for you what the request is. I think we all know what the request is and why we are all back in front of you. I would like to hit on the meat of the thing which are the two variance requests. The site plan that Bob Preston is going to work you through because of the extraordinary constraints of the topography on that property and being able to deliver the grid system that the new Form Based Code is requiring has resulted in over $2.5 million in extra grading and retaining wall activity that was not present in the site plan that was last in front of you that you denied the application on. So, you couple that extraordinary cost and expense with the thought and idea of trying to carry what is not market receptive in the sense of office and retail. It has just been prohibited and it folds you in when you go under your requirements for variance consideration then it talks to shape, size, topography of the property and in exceptional situations and conditions not caused by the variance applicant and that is the situation in which we find ourselves. In addition to that, on the $300 cubic feet per unit, there will be, it is not a zero storage area and Jay Curran, when he gets up here, will be able to walk you through that. There will be storage area it is just the 300 cubic feet is excessive but the Crescent folks have been at this business for well over five years and they have an understanding and appreciation of what the market needs. With that, I am going to let Jay step up and also I know he is going to want his office fellow, John Bell, has some comment for you. They will follow Bob Preston who is going to walk you through the modified and revised site plan, the site plan that you have in front of you. Thank you. Robert "Bob" Preston, 5515 Redbark Way, Dunwoody, Georgia 30338 I'm with the Preston Partnership with the architects for the project before you. I've only got four slides that I would like to see if I can walk you through and I wanted to see if I can quickly walk you through and maybe just let you know how hard we have worked for this project to meet your new Form Based Code and your architectural standards. I will say, we have worked very hard with the city staff through numerous meetings that we have had over the summer to design a project that I feel meets just about every aspect of your new Form Based Code. Those meetings have been frequent. They have been very productive . I feel staff has been very supportive and I think we have made fabulous progress on the project. There is a site plan in front of you which I will talk about quickly. You have a requirement in your new code that is a block structure requirement so whenever we design a project you have to first and foremost look at this block structure and if you have more than four acres, which we do obviously, Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 12 of34 then we have to meet a thoroughfare network defined by these blocks. It is like a network of publicly accessible roads and we are in the T6 zone which is the most dense and urban of all your zones and there is a maximum limit on the size of the blocks, 3,200 linear feet. And, if you apply that to this 21 acre site we end up with seven blocks and the genesis of the blocks goes back to the southern end which is on the left hand side of your screen, the southern end of the site, we've got blocks that are more civic oriented, there is a civic requirement, we've got recreational blocks, we've got some town square and arrival oriented blocks and on the northern end we have a residential oriented block. So, the site plan, because of this breakdown in blocks, it ends up being far more formal and far more urban which is very much the intent of the T6 zone and it results in these thoroughfares, these public streets that run east/west and north/south. We have three points of access which Kathy alluded to on Deerfield; two full cut curbs, one right-in and right out and we have connectivity to adjacent parcels in both the southern end and the rear site too at the Fry's parking lot that is at the rear. All of which are encouraged, obviously. We have pedestrian connectivity internal of the site which is a requirement of the new Form Based Code. We have a density, as Kathy said, of 256 units which is 12 units per acre which is the maximum that we are allowed. We have an 80% maximum lot coverage. We are actually at 70% so we conformed to that. We meet the parking requirement of 456 spaces with no variance request. And, there is a 400 foot limit that the parking must be within the reach of each dwelling unit which we also meet. The buildings are mostly three stories. There are a couple of 3/4 splits. There is 80 feet of grade elevation of difference on this site so it does make it a very challenging site. There is a civic space requirement of 10% which is just over two acres, 2.14 acres, which we have exceeded and we have shown it incorporated on three different areas on the site plan. We have a ci vic square which is more formal on the southern end of the site and we have a community space along Deerfield Parkway and we have about half an acre of recreational space by the retention pond on the northern end of the site. And, in addition to the civic space, there is a code requirement for amenity space which is 75 square feet per resident. That's about 19,000 square feet and we have provided almost 27,000 so that is a half an acre of community amenity space. There is a balcony requirement that 50% of the units must have balconies. We are at 100%. And, there are required landscape strips and setbacks. The largest of which is along Deerfield Parkway at 20 feet where there are existing sidewalks and there are mature oaks and it is our intent to keep and maintain all of those to the degree that we can barring the deceleration lanes. This is a typical floor plan of one of the buildings. There are 12 buildings on this site. It happens to be 1200 by the main entry. It has thoroughfares on all three sides, top, north and south, and on the bottom is Deerfield Parkway. There are lots of requirements in the code as to how buildings should be laid out on the site and I am not going to get into all of them but all these buildings are separated basically by the thoroughfares, by the public streets, by parallel parking, and then there is a landscape strip, a furniture zone, a five foot sidewalk, and then there is what is called a building setback zone which must be a minimum of two feet, a maximum of 15 feet to the back of the sidewalk. And , we conform to all of those requirements on each of these buildings. And, we have added patios to every ground floor unit as livable outdoor space to enhance that experience, to engage the streetscape, we've provided direct access from all of those out to the sidewalks. The main building entries have been dressed up. They are no longer just breezeways but we have enclosed them at the request of staff through some of our discussions and meetings to make them look and feel much more a part of the building. And, we have broken up the building facades which is another requirement every 50 feet. If you look at the plan you will see that they can't be more than a linear frontage of 50 feet without breaking the plane. So, from a rendering perspective, and architecturally we have gone in a little bit more of an urban direction which we feel has been very much encouraged by this new Form Based Code, we have basically designed pretty much on commercial buildings and vernacular mills from the early 1900's. They were very much rectangular in form. They are fairly simplistic in their details both of which lend themselves very well to this new Form Based Code. There is a limit palette in forms of materials and colors. Colors that you can use are actually Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 13 of34 specified in the code. Hopefully, it gives a little bit more of a commercial feel, particularly to the ground floor, in some of the areas with the store fronts and canopies. And, it also gives the appearance of a flat roof even though, as Kathy mentioned, it is not actually a flat roof. It is just a very low slope and pitched roof of 4 and 12, but from this distance, 60, 80, 90 feet away from the building when you are walking along the sidewalks, you won't appreciate that pitched roof. It will actually look like a pitched roof. And, then just another rendering, this is building 700 which is back by the pool courtyard, both of these buildings are around what we call the arrival town square. It is very similar in terms of style. You can see the balconies toward the units. It has the retail looking store front at the bottom. Residential scale street lights. Stock Browne storefronts. All the buildings have the street facade which is another requirement of the code, with a base, middle, and top. We have gone to efforts, for example, with the downspouts, to disguise and hide the downspouts, which has been requested by staff. You can see the building entrances which have become very much now a part of the form and function. The second and third floor ceilings heights are at 9 feet but we bumped the ground floor up to 10 feet. It allows for the conversion of the ground floor space, at some point down the road, to commercial space. So, the higher ceiling at 10 feet makes it easier to do that. So, that is about two dozen design features of the project. I feel that we have worked very hard. It has been a good partnership with the city and the staff and I hope it can find a way to continue. Thank you so much. I will be happy to take questions. Actually, Jay is going to take over. Jay Curran, 535 Owens Farm Road, Milton, Georgia 30004 Good evening, Mayor and City Council. I am Vice President of multi-family development for Crescent Communities. I not only have the opportunity to be a resident of Milton but also on the Crescent team and both provide a great source of pride for me. I think that Crescent has an opportunity to do something great in a great town. I am proud of Crescent, a company of great capabilities, great institutional capital partners, and great values. I think it all fits well in the community here. As Bob reviewed in his presentation of the program, the development has been modified substantially from last year's plan. If you remember, it was a much different look and feel than what we presented to you this year but, obviously, still focused very much on providing a very high quality product. We have made a lot of modifications in working closely with the staff trying to adhere to the block oriented plan. One that presents an opportunity, not only to break up the site in the future should market conditions change and condominium conversion be the desire of the market through small block settings and independently metered utilities for all of the units, but also, as Bob mentioned, there are 10 foot ceilings and much more of a retail look and feel of the base of the building should the opportunity be there for demand for commercial components in this area. But, what we presented to you is 256 residential units because the residential component is the limited ingredient in the city's Regional Activity Center. It will put a fraction of the stress on the area roads that the by-right office or retail development would. And, as shown in the staff report would pay for itself even without the benefits that are critical to Milton. The benefits that we talked about last year that you all recognize are the need to provide housing options to young professionals and executives re-locating to Milton looking for quality for rent product. The limited availability, the quality options for young professionals is a material factor in Milton's inability to compete for commercial office leasing and development. Our town primarily provides housing for upper income executives on a single-family basis. The multi-family community will attract not only young professionals, but also empty nesters who provide high disposable income that the area needs to support the retail and commercial that does exist. This site, as you know, is the last multi-family development site in Milton with the only other zoned property for multi-family sitting in a one hundred year flood zone. The land next door is bordered to the west by Fry's Electronics which is surrounded by additional retail on Highway 9. To the north it is bordered by this office park that we are currently standing in and to the east it is across the street from the Verizon office complex. To the south there is a Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 14 of34 hospitality and retail corridor. So, as you can see the missing ingredient in this Regional Activity Center is a residential component. Staff just outlined that there are three components that define that Regional Activity Center: high density, a mix of uses, and walkability or bike ability. Those were the three components that were outlined. The high density we are achieving because we are putting the maximum permissible density on this property. It is 12 units per acre and 256 units is what we have proposed to develop. The mix of uses is within the Regional Activity Center and the study that was adopted last year states that the activity center should offer a mix of uses and connect adjacent residential particularly, a new residential development and two commercial areas, where appropriate. So, the study recognizes the need for a mix of uses within the center and that is exactly what we are trying to provide. There is only one residential component to the Regional Activity Center right now and this will be the second and only other that would ever exist. So, I believe again that we are providing the one missing piece in this area that actually does achieve the principles of the Regional Activity Center. It is the only opportunity to make that truly walkable and bikeable area within this area. So, obviously, the key component, we think as a significant investor in Deerfield and in Milton and one of the largest landowners in Milton, is providing this component to help stimulate additional development in the area. With that, I want to introduce John Bell. John runs our commercial development area here and has acquired substantial land nearly fifteen years ago for commercial development. And, without this stimulus and without this kind of housing, we will continue to own undeveloped land in Milton which doesn't benefit either the city or Crescent. So , with that, I would like to introduce John. John Bell, 1366 Ragley Hall Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30319 As Jay mentioned, I am the Regional Senior Vice President for Crescent. Basically, I run our commercial division for Atlanta as well as Nashville. I am going to keep this short and sweet. All of you guys are probably tired of hearing from me already. I think the last time we were here pursuing a rezoning, the message I took from that was that you guys are really anxious and would like to have more commercial office in the City of Milton. One of the things I would like to mention and Jay already has, we are vested in the City of Milton. We have over forty acres in the City of Milton. We built two office buildings. I didn't buy the land here in Deerfield. I wish I could take credit for it but I came on board with Crescent in 2004 and I did lease both those office buildings in Deerfield. We like Deerfield a lot but I can tell you that employees like to live near where they work and employers want to locate where their employees live. Proof to that, I just completed a development in Buckhead called Phipps Tower and we sawall the tenants that left the North Fulton marketplace to come back to Buckhead and the main reason those tenants did, and we have heard it from those tenants, was that they wanted to be near their young professional employee base. Likewise, in Nashville, we've got a development called Corporate Center. It is a development very similar to Deerfield. It is a masterplan business park development. We built ten office buildings; 1.2 million square feet in those office buildings. And, we are hearing the same demand for housing in the Cool Springs / Franklin City, TN submarket. We took a non-contiguous property but walkable to those office buildings and created 355 units which helped us to attract a regional headquarter deal with Jackson National Life and 25% of their employees live in that apartment housing. Lastly, I applaud you for adopting the Form Based Code and trying to make way for apartments in this submarket but unfortunately the Form Based Code does not work. It is economically non-feasible based on the way it is drafted related to the 50% use of commercial or all the ground floor space be retail or commercial. It is just prohibited for a multi-family development. If you want continued commercial office, which the price point this office land demands, something has got to give. Either the Form Based Code or that is all I've got. I'd like to introduce John Heagy, a formidable competitor. He is a Senior Development Director for Hines , and Hines was the original developer for Deerfield and that is who we bought our commercial land from. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 2J, 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 15 of 34 John Heagy, 3920 Lower Roswell Road, Marietta, Georgia 30319 Thank you. Again, I'll be very brief. I think these fellows have really nailed it in terms of their presentation tonight. Going back, I think the Crescent professionals have really nailed it this evening in terms of what their message is. It is interesting; I heard the word from the architect, connectivity, that is truly the key to successful development these days. We are going to have a gathering tomorrow, in fact, among our professional community to talk about the office market. And, it is very clear, we have seen it happening now that markets that can provide that kind of connectivity, and it is not just connectivity to roads and other services , but rather connectivity to retail services and residential. That is the difference. That is the key for success for our commercial industry. I think that is all I have to say. Thank you. Mayor Lockwood Do we have any more public comment in support of this application? Sudie Gordon, City Clerk That is all in support, sir. Mayor Lockwood Okay, I will open up the floor to those in opposition to the application, if there are any. City Clerk Gordon Our first comment comes from Mr. Russ Munisteri and, for the record, he is speaking on behalf of Lake Deerfield Homeowner' s Association and he has completed an affidavit to represent this HOA. Russ Munisteri, 12803 Doe Drive, Milton, Georgia 30004 Good evening gentlemen. I live directly across the street in the Lake Deerfield subdivision. I am the HOA President and I am speaking on behalf of the residents there. The presentation that was given to us tonight seems great on paper but, as homeowners, we have concerns. Our first concern is our property values. Since there are many apartment complexes that do surround us, another apartment complex, we feel, is going to harm our values. Over the past couple of years, our property values have been increasing but, again, with the addition of the 256 unit complex, we feel those properties will get harmed. We have concerns in regards to traffic and public safety on Deerfield Parkway. Over the past couple of years, traffic has increased dramatically and with the addition of the apartment complex, traffic is going to be even more intense. And, my question is, how is that traffic going to be handled? We are concerned about a possible increase in crime and drug use. Many residents spoke and we also have concerns in regards to how the schools are going to be affected. I know that Kathy had mentioned that the increase in the population won't affect the schools but as an elementary school teacher, I've seen it first-hand that when new developments go up, class sizes do increase, therefore, education can be affected. We also don't want to be known as the apartment capital of Milton . Many of the residents have spoken that they like the Milton way and they want to keep the Milton way and they want to keep it safe, clean, and with the addition of so many apartment complexes that are in the surrounding area, we are just afraid that all the things I have mentioned are going to increase; traffic, crime, drug use. So, that is all I have to say on the behalf of the residents of Lake Deerfield. Thank you very much, gentlemen. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21, 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 16 of34 Lisa Bilz, 13279 Marrywood Drive, Milton, Georgia 30004 Good evening. The community I live in is called the Regency at Windward and I am asking you to deny this request tonight by the applicant. Our community has seen an onslaught of rentals instead of the actual homeowners living in their houses. We are suffering the burden of that and to add in another 250 plus apartment units would impact the area not in a positive way. One of the things that comes to mind is the crime that has happened in apartment complexes. I have moved out of Sandy Springs due to the crime in apartment complexes and the homeowners on this side of town of Milton would like to be treated in the same way that the homeowners on the other side of Milton are treated also with the appreciation of the quality of life. We expect the same thing here too even though we do live close to commercial and retail properties and I think it would have a negative impact. It has been stated that it would have a negative impact on the school system as well so I am asking you to vote no to this applicant. City Clerk Gordon Our next speaker would just like to have the following read into the record. Mr. Ron White at 12870 Deer Park Lane, Milton, Georgia 30004. "Over 1200 apartments in the area already. Don't need to become the apartment capital of North Georgia." Pete Hendricks I stand to be corrected but, I don't believe there has been a multi-family development approved since cityhood in JOMS Creek. And, I think that you all here in Milton have got the opportunity to be able to step forward and deliver a mix of uses that will be engaged and set the record that you are open to quality multi-family development. Thank you very much. Mayor Lockwood Okay, we will close the public hearing portion and at this point I will open it back up to our council to ask questions of both our staff or any of the applicant representatives. At this point, are there any questions or comments from council? Joe Longoria, Councilmember I have some questions for Kathleen. So, the applicant mentioned that even though we changed up how we were managing the space, in other words going from just straight zoning to the mechanism today that the commercial on the first floor just doesn't work the way it is called out. Do you have any clue what they mean by that? Do you have any idea what would make our insistence that the first floor be commercial or a substantial portion of that be commercial? What would make it work? Kathy Field Well, first of all they have designed the first floor so it can be transferred to office or commercial. And, I guess the issue is, is the market here at this point for that to happen. And, I guess their position is, if I may speak for them, is that the market is not here yet but could be in the future and, if so, they may be willing to look at a change of use on that first floor from apartments to something else. I think, we as the planners, have looked at this proposal and felt that two things: we just really rezoned with the new Form Based Code in the last six months and the vision of the masterplan was for mixed use and we really thought the mixed use is more of a vertical mixed use. We look around the region, we look down the street at Avalon, which is coming out of the ground now and that is a complete vertical mixed use type development. You look at Peachtree Comers at the one over there that is proposed. So, these types Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21, 2013 at6:00 pm Page 17 of34 of developments are coming out and they reflect more of the vision of our masterplan and implemented through the T6 zone of the Form Based Code which says not only what the form should look like, which they have responded to, I must admit, the form that is articulated in the Form Based Code is certainly responded to by this proposal, what is not is the requirement on the first floor for either non-residential uses on the first floor or 50% mixed of mixed uses. And, that is really where the diversion happens. Councilmember Longoria Is it the kind of thing that where, and maybe we should be asking the applicant the question but, do we need to have more residents to support the commercial? I'm guessing that it is not a commercial use isn't appropriate, I'm guessing it is the amount that's in question here. Kathy Field Right, I mean our requirement is 50% mixed use. You can only have 50% of apartments. It cannot be 100% apartment use and, of course, I am speaking for them and maybe they should come up. They were saying that the market is not there for that requirement for the mix of uses and that really the market is only there for the apartments. Now, obviously, we disagree. We, the planners, staff, feel that there is a market there. We even discussed with them, to some extent, the idea of maybe having a performance standard that within two years so much of that first floor can be converted to a mixed use and then two years after, whatever the amount is, so there is a performance standard. But, to have 100% of the apartment usage in the development really does not speak to the newly enacted zoning code. Karen Thurman, Councilmember Kathy, the applicant made note of the fact that there is a real need for multi-family up in this area. know under our plan we want to have this area be a true mixed use area. What are the number of multi family units that we have in this area? Kathy Field I am going to turn to Robyn to answer that question. Robyn MacDonald, Principal Planner I would have to go back and look at the old file, I mean, I can't remember off the top of my head. We searched it for the case last year but I can run and get it for you. Councilmember Thurman It seems to me that if we had no multi-family here then I would say we probably need the multi-family in order to get the balance of the multi-family commercial. But, if we already have the multi-family, a significant amount of it, we don't need more multi-family , it just makes the balance worse than it already is. And, so that is what I was wondering, if we had any idea how many units we already have, if we have a significant number of units, then we want to make sure a new development doesn't tilt that balance. Robyn MacDonald The applicant is saying 2,200 but do you want me to check my records from last year? It will be the san1e number. Councilmember Thurman Well, that is a significant number of mulit-family units in the area . It is not like there is a huge need for multi-family that we are not able to meet if we have 2,200 units. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 18 of34 Kathy Field And, what we are looking for, again , which goes back to the intent of the Regional Activity Center is that vibe, if you will, with the mix of uses that creates excitement and walkability and connectivity that having a single use type development doesn't really reflect. And, so I think it is a vision of what we are looking for. You heard the presentation from MARTA last week that Windward will be the end of the line and that you really want the area around it developed in a way that can utilize that MART A stop so that, again, you've got the transportation access, you've got the development here, the walkability, the density, the vibe , as you will, for this whole area. So , that is what we are trying to create. Councilmember Thurman Personally, I don 't like the idea of approving a plan and then going against what was just approved less than a year later. To me, if you have done your homework and approved the right plan, you ought to be able to live with it at least a few years before it has to be changed. Bill Lusk, Councilmember Kathy, you mentioned imposing performance standards on converting the first floor level to commercial over some given time period. What kind of legal imposition could we put on that, and if they were not to meet that over a stated course of time , what would be the consequences as far as the city is concerned? Kathy Field Again, we sort of discussed conceptually but we did not get into detail so, clearly, Ken would have to weigh in on whether or not that could work legally. Ken Jarrard, City Attorney I've seen some jurisdictions do that with conditions and what I have seen done traditionally is perhaps trigger a certain amount of residential build out based upon meeting certain performance standards on commercial, so if you are able to fill up this amount of commercial then you can have this amount of residential. It works as an incentive to try and incentivize the developer to try to build out their commercial. Have I seen it work? I typically have seen it brought back in for a zoning condition amendment, is what I typically see occur, if you want to know the truth, but that is the concept. Mayor Lockwood And, this is kind of the opposite because, the way I am reading it, they would want to build out the residential and then, is it your understanding convert that to commercial if the market was there? That would be kind of tough. I guess the question I have, obviously if the applicant had come back with 50% non-residential, besides any other variances, it wouldn't be here before us tonight, correct? Kathy Field Correct. Mayor Lockwood Obviously, that is a big ... Kathy Field Well, I take that back, because it is apartments, it is a use permit. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 19 of 34 Mayor Lockwood Use permit, but, it is a much bigger difference. Whether it is 50% non-residential and 50% residential per our code, we are a long way off. I will say this is a really tough decision. I certainly understand the economics and the viability of the property right now. I also understand the concerns of the citizens. Milton is a little bit different; we have a lot of residential, a lot of open space and very little commercial so that kind of puts us at a different issue than most cities. It is easier for most uses to go from commercial to residential because they have plenty of commercial but we don't have much commercial, less than 15% of our land. So, pretty soon, if we rezone everything back to residential just because the residential market is hot right now, so I understand everybody's issue here. I have a question for the applicant, Pete, like I just asked Kathy; there is a big difference between 100% residential and 50% residential. I know Mr. Preston mentioned having the first floors designed or built so they could be converted later. At this point, we are at two different extremes. Is there anything else that you guys could have come back to us on that even met somewhere in the middle? Could you comment on that? Jay Curran The volwne of commercial that is required for the code is not, the difference in examples tend to be given of successful mixed use developments of places where there is demand for each of the product types. So, if there was a substantial amount of demand in the area for additional retail along Deerfield Parkway, then there might be an additional opportunity to get that kind of deal financed. What happens often with a mixed use deals with a multi-family environment is that a small amount of mixed uses are put into the deal where the strength of the multi-family market can carry that small amount of burden. There is no, we've got a site here with substantial topography issues in a suburban area, and we think that bringing a multi-family component will help stimulate the commercial demand. So, if we are to try to further burden that particularly with a substantial amount of commercial component, it will be very difficult to actually have a multi-family component. There isn't an incremental driver for additional commercial component here and there isn't retail or office and so to say that all the ground floor component, or even a substantial amount of that ground floor component, needs to be an economic burden on the project just doesn't allow us to do something that is financeable that we think can be done at a very high quality level. Additionally, it is often done in situations like this where you are in a high rise environment. You may be going up 25 floors and you have to have a whole ground floor level be commercial. Well, that is an attractive component where it is a relatively small portion of your overall development component. But, here on a two or three story community, you would be talking about a large portion of that being driven by commercial. Councilmember Longoria So, as a follow-up to that, you guys must have run some models or something that would have said, "Here's what we could support from a commercial space point of view or if we had this much residential we could support the commercial that is required." What did you guys find out? Jay Curran A very small component of it, and it is interesting because we are talking a lot about the demand for mixed use and the desire for mixed use and the importance of that to this Regional Activity Center. But, the only mixed use requirement on this is if you are building apartments, then there has to be a mixed use component. If we were here tonight asking just to build office, there is no requirement for office, so the mixed use component that keeps being required here is actually an inconsistency in the code. So, there is very little demand for the commercial in the office components and there is a strong demand, Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 20 of34 there is 97% occupancy in the submarket, and we are talking about 2,200 apartments in a city of 35,000 people so let's put it in perspective of the overall market. CouDcilmember Longoria Right, but we are talking about 10% of what is available today is being offered in this development. Should it be 50%, should it be 25%, if you had the flexibility to have more units does the success of the commercial piece of this become easier to understand or easier to plan? Jay Curran Potentially, particularly if we were able to separate those components out and allocate the 256 units to a greater portion of the property and have additional density granted on the property in the future could be built when there is demand for office and retail, but the way this is being required is it is a cumulative 256 across the entire property whether it is a unit of residential or a unit of commercial and secondly it is being required to be vertically integrated which means it has to be done at the same time which makes it unfinanceable in this market because there is just not enough economic demand for the retail or the commercial to justify the investment in new development. Councilmember Longoria There is a focus on the commercial aspect of this which is why the residential is the only part that requires mixed use. If it was all going to be developed as commercial, we wouldn't have an issue with that. The commercial space is what we believe is the value in this particular area. This is your second time to come back here and I'm trying to think through how do we work with you guys because I don't want you to leave if we deny this thinking that we just don't like it. That is not it at all. We are trying to figure out how to work with you guys and so I am really interested, if we missed the mark with the Form Based Code, how far off are we? To get back to Joe's question, if there was some way for us to understand what we could do to help out, it would be important for us to understand. John Bell One of the things that I have seen, vertically mixed use is very difficult. It is difficult to get financing. It is difficult to get all the product types working on the same demand at one time so they are difficult to pull off. What I have seen be very successful, and I am going to speak specifically to the national market, is separate but mixed use developments. Separate but mixed use. So, when the office demand is there, you build out the office. When the retail demand is there, you build out the retail. When multi family demands, you develop the multi-family. At the end of the day when it is all developed out, you get separate but mixed use development which is very successful, very easy to finance, and at the end of the day, in my opinion, we did a vertically mixed use development in Charlotte, Piedmont Town Center, and the retail piece was very difficult and the requirement that we put on ourselves was much smaller than the Form Based Code than what you guys are requiring and we still had to subsidize that retail component. My answer to your question is, we've only got 21 acres . To do separate mixed use or vertical mixed use is very difficult on 21 acres. What I would tell you is that we have another 20 acres in Milton in the Deerfield business park that if we had this type of product that is walkable, then it is going to help us develop those office buildings. You are still mixed use. You can walk to the retail. I wish it was larger. We have 30 acres, half of which is in Milton and half in Alpharetta that we are dearly holding on to. It is a core asset for us and I would like to see separate but mixed use there, not vertical mixed use because I think that is what makes sense on that 30 acres. I've got a little more acreage to work with to make that type of opportunity happen but with your Form Based Code, it is going to be a real challenge for me on that 30 acre site when it is time to put that into play. I hope that helps you. I Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 2) , 2013 at 6 :00 pm Page 21 of34 Mayor Lockwood I have a question for the applicant. And, Ken stop me if I am going out of line. Legally, to the applicant, whoever wants to speak once I ask the question , I think you guys understand our concerns. think you have also heard concerns from the community which I totally understand. Some of the comments tonight where folks were worried about traffic, density, crime, other things, what makes this project different than a typical apartment complex or multi-family anywhere else in this area or other areas that concern people. John Ben I would like to just make a quick comment then let Jay address that question. I think that the people who are renting these types of walkable apartment developments, it is a different renter than what we have seen in the past. Jay Curran There is truth to the fact that the demographics have changed for apartment renting, there are more renters by choice, obviously, we are planning to build a very high quality product, and by building a high quality product , we will demand higher rent. I think there is support in this market for young professionals and for executives who need a rental home to come into the area as well as there will be a lot of demand for empty nesters. It is becoming more and more popular in communities like this where there are downsizing empty nesters who are looking for an opportunity to live in and around areas like Milton to be closer to their grandchildren. The interesting thing about the comments about the concern about stress on schools so I would presume that these same people would be against any new residential development in the community. In fact , we will have much less of a ratio of children who would be attending the schools than a typical single family development so I would think these same people would be against single family developments . And , I don 't think that we are going to be seeking and attempting to retain individuals who are going to be more apt to have a criminal background than other residential developments. It is in our best interest to run a very high quality organization and community and we will obviously run it in the most professional manner we can. Obviously, when we have a professional management association you have better controls over your community than a lot of single family or condominium developments . Burt Hewitt, Councilmember What are you looking for as far as rent ? What is your target? Jay Curran A verage rent would be in the $1,300 to $1,350 range considering that the most recent product has been developed in this area is over a decade old. The quality of the product has changed dramatically and most of what we build in the apartment world used to be considered condo quality and the fact is that it is a higher quality than a lot of condominiums that were built before the last c ycle. So, I think there is an opportunity to provide something that reall y will attract the renters by choice . Mayor Lockwood Was that, and you may not remember about last time, Pete could answer this , when this came to us before weren't we talking about double rent than that, more like $2,500 to $3 ,000 per month , a real high end product, does that ring a bell ? I was thinking that is what you guys said originally. ------------------ Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 22 of34 Pete Hendricks That plan, if yall can remember, had the unusual component of having duplexes in it. And, the thought and idea there was that you would get corporations to come in and do long term leases on those duplexes for the executives that they would have trafficking in and trafficking out of the City of Milton. That is where you would have the ability to get some juiced up rentals. But, of course, the building configuration is now being compliant with your Form Based Code. Councilmember Lusk This is for the applicant's team, I'm not sure who wants to address it, but both Mr. Curran and Mr. Hendricks brought up site development issues. Mr. Hendricks stated that there is some cost in the range of $2.6 million and I am kind of unclear what's driving that, I know the issue about the extreme topography out there, but it sounded like there was a hardship involved between building commercial and office and building a residential or multi-family. Is there a relationship there or did I miss something? Jay Curran Bob Vance is our civil engineer and is familiar with the grading plan and the anticipated volume of retaining walls that will be built on the site. But, the 21 acres has substantial topography and has changes in elevation of 50 feet so the development, whether it is a residential development or commercial development, will suffer from the challenges on that site. The plan that we had presented previously tried to move with the site more than what we have been directed to pursue with the current design. So, the current design is certainly going to be more expensive from a development standpoint than what we presented last year just because of the linear nature of the block oriented site plan. But, generally speaking, the topography of the site no matter what we develop on it is going to be very expensive. Mayor Lockwood So, that site work number, wasn't just new that was just with the site that no matter what you did ... Bob Preston It is going to be far more expensive to design the new Form Based Code because of its grid like nature and the urban nature of the layout that we have to meet. It doesn't give us the flexibility , if you wish, from a grading perspective , to go with the flow of the land because we have thoroughfare requirements , we have block requirements, we have parallel parking requirements and sidewalks, and furniture zones that took us 15 feet , by the time you plug that into the formula, it is what it is and if there is a 20 foot grade differential on the existing topography, we can't work with that 20 foot grade differential. We have to basically masquerade and put in a lot more retaining walls. Whereas , the old plan a year ago, was more organic , if you wish, more informal and it was laid out more a little bit like an old garden style complex where you basically put the buildings, you have 21 acres so we had enough land to place the buildings where it made most sense and carve them into the topography. That is almost impossible to do now with the new Form Based Code because of the dimensional criteria that comes with it. I think that is what he is referring to. The site development cost is significantly higher. Councilmember Lusk So, comparatively, would you say that the site development cost for this current plan that you have now would be the same as if you were to develop an office and commercial, the current zoning? Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 23 of34 Bob Preston Yes , I believe it would be. It is because of the requirements of the Form Based Code. It is not so much the use. It is the restrictions and the criteria code on the street widths and buildings to streets and the urban grid like nature you have to come up with in the site plan. So, personally, I don't think it is much use related. Whether it is an office use or a commercial/retail use, or residential use; you still have to meet the confines of the Form Based Code which is still going to require masquerading additional site development and retaining walls. I fully anticipate there will be a couple of million dollars more on a 21 acre site than what we would normally do. Councilmember Lusk More than if you were to develop it for commercial and office. Bob Preston It is not due to the use so much. It is due to the Form Based Code; the criteria and the restrictive nature of the Form Based Code. I don't have the flexibility to put my buildings where it makes most sense to put them on the 21 acres. It has to be dictated and driven by the requirements of the Form Based Code. For example, the block structure; it sets up the whole concept of the site and there are certain maximum sizes to the block structure so you have to divide the site into, on this 21 acres, into 7 blocks, that is 3 acres a piece. And, then you have to have thoroughfares pretty much divided in all of those blocks. Then, you have to have the buildings so far from the thoroughfare so I don't really have much of a choice in laying out the plan. The plan begins to drive and dictate itself, really , irrespective of the topography. If that makes sense; it is always one of the challenges of a Form Based Code. I am working numerous projects across the country. I will tell you this is an extremely restrictive Form Based Code. It is the most restrictive Form Based Code that I have worked with and I have been doing this for 30 years . I am working seven different jurisdictions at the moment across the country, up and down the east coast, with similar Form Based Codes. Your architectural standards, DRBs and ARBs, Historic Preservation Committees and the like. That commercial requirement is the most restrictive that I have seen. Mayor Lockwood I would like to comment on that, and this may be going in a different discussion than where we are at right now , but that is probably something where if it made that big of a difference on a project that fit the code, I'm sure the city could work with you with variances or look at it to possibly wouldn't have a huge impact. Again, we don't want to impact something; we have a Form Based Code which we believe is to try to make Milton a great place and do the best we can but obviously we don't want to price somebody out of being able to do anything. This is just a general statement, but I would think that the council and the mayor and staff would be open that if there was a project that was going to cost you , make it that it wasn't viable , we could work with you a little bit or take a look at that. Councilmember Lusk I would like to have Kathy or Bob Buscemi respond to that answer. Kathy Field I don ' t know if you have all met Bob Buscemi our City Architect. Yes , the Form Based Code does require a more specific development pattern than previously utilized under the old zoning and it does have more constraints to it and as a result, in terms of where the buildings are placed and the requirements for the sidewalks and the roads and the size of the, so there is a certain amount of extra expenditure to implement the facets of the Form Based Code. It is just part of the creation of that grid Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 24 of34 pattern which then enhances walkability which is what we are looking for and so that is inherent in Form Based Codes. Councilmember Lusk Mr. Preston mentioned that it is more, it is not a factor of use, it is more of the Form Based Code. Would you agree with that? Kathy Field Yes, because we are not looking at what the use is, again, we are just looking at the box. So, it is how we place the box on the site. The original proposal that came through last year, if you remember, as Mr. Preston said , was more organic. It reminded you of a college campus. There was just one road through it that meandered and then the various setbacks of the buildings. This is a much more fonnalized development and pattern that is embedded within this Form Based Code. Again, it is the box , whether it is used for apartments or commercial or office or a mixture, again, it is the box and how that box is located on the site is really what the Form Based Code is dictating. Council member Lusk So , you could do the same development using Form Based Codes and still be homes or commercial. Kathy Field Correct. Correct. Councilmember Kunz Kathy, are we getting the same type of argument from other builders that have experienced our Form Based Code? Kathy Field Well, most of the development that we have seen so far has been over in Crabapple, which is a smaller scale. But, they have been able to work through the Form Based Code, I think very creatively and have certainly come up with something that they have thanked us in terms of what it has looked like and how the siting has happened on the parcel of land. This is essentially in the Deerfield area in the terms of the scale of the project, this is the largest scale project that we have seen using the Deerfield Form Based Code but don't forget, the Deerfield area, especially T6, has been created to be a very dense type of development. Also, this site, if one used TDRs, one could utilize 36 units per acre. So, there is a tremendous amount of density that is available on the site but, of course, by right, you can only go up to 12 units and then subsequent to that you could go up to 36 but you would have to buy the TDRs. But, there is a lot of density built in on this site to be utilized if one wanted to obviously. Councilmember Kunz Is the topography on this land really that much different from what other developers have experienced in Crabapple? Is it really that much different? Kathy Field Yes, because of the topography. You are dealing with 20 acres. In Crabapple, you've got some large development sites that have been developed residential, but the topography is not as great as it is here. But, again, it is the nature of the beast in Georgia. You do have these topography changes so it has to be built into the development costs, clearly. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 25 of34 Mayor Lockwood We are getting off on another subject, obviously, if we start to see where the Fonn Based Code is really a hurdle, we can have a work session and talk about it. At this point, I'm hearing the applicant say that the Fonn Based Code put a larger financial burden on them, but the reality is we are still looking at a usage issue and that is the hurdle on this project from both sides, it is a use issue. Kathy Field Yes, it is a use and a variance issue. Councilmember Kunz Could Bill O'Connor come up? I have a question for him. Bill, we are hearing a lot that there is no demand for commercial in this area and, since you are our Economic Development Coordinator; I would just like your opinion on that. Bill O'Connor, Economic Development Manager With a few developers and brokers I have dealt with along the way, they have indicated that the demand really isn't there yet and they have got some spaces that they are having trouble filling. I think the Kohl's/Target plaza is one example where they have some local space, too much local space, to get filled up. Many of the outparcels, they are having trouble moving those at this point in time. Eventually, we expect the economy will come back and development pressure will be here for commercial, but they indicate to me that is a very small sample, they do indicate that there is not a high demand for retail space . Councilmember Thurman What about office because they could do this as office, it wouldn't have to be retail, correct? Bill O'Connor Yes, the same is true for office space. It has been described to me that during the boom years, so much commercial office space was built up in this region that now that the economy is coming back, it is taking time to get that filled back up again and there isn't the demand yet for any significant new commercial office space either. The demand is coming back for residential but not for commercial office space or retail; to any significant extent. It is showing signs of improvement but we are trying to fill up what we have now. Councilmember Thurman But do they , for the most part, feel like eventually it will be what we have now will be filled and then there will be a demand? Bill O'Connor We certainly hope so, but it is really hard to predict. They tell me it is really hard to predict when that would be. It could be 18 months, 2 years, 5 years; it is hard to tell. Mayor Lockwood Again, that is a tough call from our side too . We don't have a crystal ball; you guys don't either. Your crystal ball may be a little sharper than ours, again, if we start trying to predict with other people's land, we can't do that. This is a tough one because we are looking at a multi-family development that doesn't fit our code right now and there are concerns with that. But, on the flip side, I see the property owners and developers perspective too. They don't think there is a market there, again, that is why I was asking Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 26 of34 earlier that if there was a quasi-mix, even it wasn't a 50/50, but it doesn't sound like that makes sense for what you guys are trying to do. Councilmember Hewitt Along those lines, I guess this is a statement not a question, but when the applicant came through the first go round, I supported it; however, the majority didn't. And, I was really hoping that you could give me a little bit of something mixed to grab a hold to and help push it through this time. I'm disappointed in that. I understand where you are coming from but I sure would have liked to have seen something to be vertically integrated with this as you are building the mixed use. Councilmember Lusk Just a quick statement, the next item on our agenda has to do with the opportunity zone in the Deerfield corridor. And, I think we are pursuing that in the vain of helping to bring in more commercial development and I just wish it had been in place here a couple of years ago so you could have taken advantage of it. Hopefully, in the not too distant future, we will have another tool in our development tool box that we can work with, not only with this type of development, but other properties in the city. Councilmember Kunz I just wish we could have seen some aspect of a commercial component in that. If you go over by the LA Fitness in Alpharetta and I see that the area is busy all the time and I know that where we are on this; initially it was zoned entirely commercial, you guys tried two different projects; 100% commercial, the downturn of the economy at that time, for whatever reason the numbers worked then, why they are not working now, I am still trying to understand that. I'm just not clear on why you think there is no demand. I know there are challenging demands and we are trying to improve that but that doesn't mean it won't come. So, from where I am, I think I have to hold true to the vote I had last time. Mayor Lockwood Ken, I have a question, legally, can you recap where we are. Obviously, we heard this as a different application and legally where we are with that and this was submitted as a totally new application, is that correct, based on the new code? Ken Jarrard, City Attorney Mr. Mayor, I believe where we are is that request came back down from the court to have it considered pursuant to our Form Based Code so the City of Milton is doing everything correctly. We are in the process. You need to take action based upon your own public policy objectives and, of course, the code set forth. And, then, of course, the applicant will do whatever they need to do based upon the decision you make this evening. There is nothing more to it. Mayor Lockwood Ken, can you explain how it basically went to the court so is the court just saying, "relook at it, give it another shot at best" or what is your opinion. City Attorney Jarrard It wasn't like a traditional remand upon a zoning loss; it wasn't that. It was, we have instituted this new code, and I believe the applicant said, "Well, I would prefer that it be looked at under this new code" and, therefore, for purposes of efficiency, etc. asked that it be remanded, without a finding on the original action, back to the city council for review under this new code. That is it. So, it is different. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 27 of34 Mayor Lockwood What I am asking is, does the applicant have the ability to go back to the original application and go through the process and continue or is this a step? City Attorney Jarrard Mr. Mayor, I am not going to be able to speak to what the applicant may do as far as some sort of future action. My sense would be that given that there has been a remand that you ask to look at it under this new code, to the extent that there is further legal action on this, it will probably be based upon this code and this decision this evening and we would not revert back to the old one. But, that is my opinion and, of course , the applicant may have something else in mind. Mayor Lockwood You are saying it would not be based on the old application but this application? City Attorney Jarrard That is my belief. Mayor Lockwood That is all I have. Does anybody have a comment, motion, or question? Councilmember Lusk I will move to deny UI3-02NCI3-03 Deerfield Parkway (West Side), Crescent Communities, LLC for a use permit to allow the construction of 256 multi-family residential units and related accessory uses (Sec. 64-1839) and a 2-part concurrent variance to I) provide 100% of the site for apartments (Chapter 64, Division 5.1, 4.6.6.a.ll) and 2) to delete the requirement to provide a minimum of 300 cubic feet of separate contiguous storage space shall be provided to each dwelling unit. Agenda Item No. 13-231. Councilmember Thurman I will second that. Mayor Lockwood Okay. I have a motion from Councilmember Lusk as read into the record and a second by Councilmember Thurman. Is there any discussion? Again, I would like to say that this is a really tough one but I can see both sides. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to deny Agenda Item No. 13-231. Councilmember Thurman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). End of verbatim transcription ------~ ------------------- Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21 , 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 28 of34 UNFINISHED BUSINESS 1. Consideration of an Ordinance to Amend Chapter 2, Article VI, Administration-Financial Management Program Section 2-626(a)(2) to Provide for Piggybacking from Contracts of Other Public Entities. (Agenda Item No. 13-232) ORDINANCE NO. 13-10-J89 (First Presentation at October 7, 2013 Regular Council Meeting) (Stacey Inglis, Assistant City Manage,) Stacey Inglis, Assistant City Manager This is the current policy that we are trying to change some of the language in it. Currently, it provides for piggybacking off of municipality contracts which means other cities. It doesn't allow for us to contract on other counties, authorities, or school boards. So, we are asking to change the language to allow for piggybacking on those other entities. This is in line with other jurisdictions around us that also allow for piggybacking. We are also clearing up some of the language that discusses the length of term that we can allow for the piggybacking to occur which is within 12 months after the bidding. Councilmember Lusk Ifwe were to piggyback on each municipality, county, authOlity, or school board in the state, it implies to me that there is a restriction on competition; that everyone has the same list of vendors. How do we know we are getting the best deal? Stacey Inglis The Department Heads understand what the market looks like and if they think they can get a better deal within our market with the vendors that we currently use then we would certainly go after that. Allowing us to piggyback with other public entities will allow for better efficiency. Councilmember Thurman So, this allows us instead of having to go to bid, if there is a time constraint or if we know someone else has gotten the best price, we can just piggyback with them instead of having to go through a pu blic bid process. City Attorney Jarrard This piggybacking will only occur at a City of Milton level. It will not occur at a state or federal level. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Thurman moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-232. Councilmember Kunz seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). PUBLIC COMMENT Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 29 of34 NEW BUSINESS 1. Consideration of a Resolution of the City Council of Milton, Georgia; to Adopt an Urban Redevelopment Plan for Areas Within Milton, Georgia, Pursuant to the Provisions of the Urban Development Law, O.e.G.A. Section 36-61-1 et seq.; to Approve an Application for an Opportunity Zone for all or Part of the Area Encompassed by such Redevelopment Plan Pursuant to O.C.G.A. Section 48-7-40.1; to Promote the Public Health, Safety and Welfare, and for Other Purposes. (Agenda Item No. 13-246) RESOLUTION NO. 13-10-273 (Discussed at October 14, 2013 Work Session) (Bill O 'Connor, Economic Development Manager) Bill O'Connor, Economic Development Manager As we discussed at last week's work session, we are recommending that we attempt to get another tool in our Economic Development tool box. Every development law provides for opportunity zones in certain areas and it would provide a $3,500 tax credit per job for five years. Other North Fulton cities have already identified opportunity zones and if we can get an area in Milton designated as an opportunity zone then it would be beneficial in helping us compete for new businesses. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Kunz moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-246. Councilmember Hewitt seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). 2. Consideration of a Resolution Adopting the Master Plan for Bell Memorial Park. (Agenda Item No. 13-247) RE OLUTJON O. 13-10 -274 (Discussed at October 14, 2013 Work Sess ion) (Jim Cregge, Parks and Recreation Director) Jim Cregge, Parks and Recreation Director You should have in front of you the newest drawing which is the result of seven months of work, research, and public input. We have tried to put together the best plan to utilize the existing land that we have at Bell Memorial Park as well as the land we recently acquired. We reviewed this plan at the last work session. We have the opportunity to have 7 fields laid out over 6 fields; one being a dual utilized mulit-purpose field for rectangular and diamond shaped sports . This plan balances the need for additional facilities, parking and green space. We currently have four fields which is not sufficient for the population we are attempting to serve. By adding an additional field by using a mUlti-purpose field, it will allow us to serve the larger sport in the spring which is baseball and still gives us a field to support lacrosse. In the fall, we can focus more on football by converting to the rectangular shaped fields . We are projecting a 12 month build out. ~ -------~-- Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6:00 pm Page 30 of34 During that time, the baseball program will continue through Memorial Day and then we would shut down the park for the Summer and Fall 2014 seasons and the Spring 2015 season. Our surrounding communities have expressed a willingness to help relocate our athletes during this time. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Kunz moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-247. Council member Thunnan seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). 3. Approval of Change Order #2 to the Professional Services Agreement between the City of Milton and Foresite Group, Inc . for the Master Planning, Public Involvement, Traffic Study and Design of Bell Memorial Park. (Agenda Item No. 13-248) (Jim Cregge, Parks & Recrealion Director) Jim Cregge, Parks and Recreation Director In March 2013, city council approved an initial contract for $54 ,100 for the first three phases of the design. At that time, the contract contemplated that we would be coming back at the stage we are at now to request additional funding for the construction documents and administrative and bidding assistance as well. The first three phases resulted in a design that was completed focused on public input. That design greatly reduced the amount of green space we would have available and greatly increased the amount of parking which resulted in impervious surface in the layout. Therefore, Change Order #1 was for approximately $8,700 to create a second draft master plan. That draft master plan evolved into what you have in front of you tonight. Change Order #2 addresses all of the concepts we discussed that would be part of task 4 which included schematic design, design development construction plans for the construction bid documents, bidding assistance, and construction administration assistance. We are creating two optional phases . I would like to see if we can explore the well that is on the property. If that well can be used to provide irrigation for the natural grass baseball fields, we would have an opportunity to reduce a very large ongoing annual line item which is watering. Currently, at Bell Memorial Park we are paying Fulton County for watering the fields. There is a functioning well on the property that was acquired so we would like to explore that and see if we can use that as an opportunity to reduce the operating cost of the park going forward. Councilmember Thurman What is the time frame of this project? Jim Cregge We believe it is going to take us four months to create the construction documents and then that gives us two months to go to bid , select a vendor, and then ask for your approval. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Hewitt moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-248. Councilmember Kunz seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,20 J3 at 6:00 pm Page 31 of34 4. Consideration of a Waiver of Conflict Affirmatively Waiving any Actual, Potential or Apparent Conflict of Interest Arising from or Attributable to Jarrard & Davis, LLP's Simultaneous Representation of Milton and Cherokee in the Preparation of an Automatic Aid and Mutual Aid Agreement between the City of Milton and Cherokee County to Provide Supplemental Fire Suppression and Emergency Services for the City of Milton and Cherokee County. (Agenda Item No . 13-249) (Ken Jarrard, City Attorney) Ken Jarrard, City Attorney My law finn represents both the City of Milton and Cherokee County. In the abundance of caution, I want to fully disclose and be as transparent as I can be and assure you that I can fairly represent both jurisdictions. Therefore, I am asking for your approval of this Waiver of Conflict. I have also asked Cherokee County for a Waiver of Conflict as well. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Longoria moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-249. Councilmember Thurman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). 5. Consideration of an Automatic Aid and Mutual Aid Agreement between the City of Milton and Cherokee County to Provide Supplemental Fire Suppression and Emergency Services for the City of Milton and Cherokee County. (Agenda Item No. 13-250) (Bob Edgar, Fire Chief) Bob Edgar, Fire Chief This is an automatic aid agreement with Cherokee County. The map in front of you outlines the automatic aid area. This agreement limits the City of Milton going into Cherokee County by five road miles from Fire Station 43 and Fire Station 41. That coincides with ISO so we create a possible benefit to our ISO rating because this adds additional resources. It is limited to one engine company from station 43, depending on the area, or one engine company from station 41. So, we would go to any structure fire that Cherokee County has within this area and they would do the same for us which gives all of us additional resources when needed. Both Cherokee County and the City of Milton will benefit from this mutual aid. From January 2013 to date, Cherokee County has had 26 structure fires in those areas. In 2012, there were 30 structure fires reported in those areas; mostly near station 43. There is an automatic dispatch under this aid agreement but if additional resources are needed beyond the 5 road mile radius, they would have to come in under a mutual aid request. If we had units available to respond then we would go to the scene and Cherokee County would do the same. -~------ Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,2013 at 6 :00 pm Page 32 of34 Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-250. Councilmember Kunz seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). 6. Consideration of a Third Amendment to an Intergovernmental Agreement between the City of Milton, Georgia and the City of JOMS Creek, Georgia for the Provision of Infonnation TecMology Services. (Agenda Item No . 13-251) (Chris Lagerbloom. Cily Manager) Chris Lagerbloom, City Manager This is the contract portion of our discussion during the budget process regarding the restructuring of our IT deployment by bringing another aspect in-house but keeping the IGA for GIS services. This amendment will allow us to reduce the scope of work we have with JOMS Creek but keep the opportunity to contract with them on a daily basis if needed. Motion and Vote: Council member Thunnan moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-25l. Councilmember Lusk seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). 7. Consideration of a Sublease and Option to Purchase between the City of Milton, Georgia and Fulton County for the Northwest Fulton Fire Station located at 750 Hickory Flat Road , Milton, Georgia. (Agenda Item No . 13-252) (Chris Lagerbloom. City Manager) Chris Lagerbloom, City Manager We have been working with Fulton County for almost a year now to establish an agreement that would allow us to continue to rent Fire Station 43 and the underlying 44 acres of park land secures the debt issued prior to the fonnation of the City of Milton. We tried to create an agreement that would give the City of Milton some type of guarantee that in October 2019 the debt would be officially retired on the fire station and we would have the option to purchase, specifically, the payments we are making now would go toward the purchase of the fire station. This document specifies a payment schedule which we have budgeted for and during October 2019, we will be given the option of purchasing this for $10.00. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Kunz moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-252. Councilmember Hewitt seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21,20 J3 at 6:00 pm Page 33 of34 8. Consideration of a Conflict Waiver regarding Jarrard & Davis, LLP's Representation of the City of Milton in Relation to the Second Amendment to an IGA and Sublease Agreement. (Agenda Item No. 13-253) (Ken Jarrard, City Attorney) Ken Jarrard, City Attorney This is the other side of the PF A conflict that you adopted earlier at the PF A meeting. This pertains to the second amendment of the sublease. Hopefully, we will adjourn this meeting and go back to the PF A meeting and discuss the second amendment to the lease. Motion and Vote: Council member Hewitt moved to approve Agenda Item No. 13-253. Councilmember Thunnan seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). MAYOR AND COUNCIL REPORTS ST AFF REPORTS EXECUTIVE SESSION (to discuss real estate) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Longoria moved to go into Executive Session to discuss real estate at 8:56 p.m. Councilmember Hewitt seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). RECONVENE Motion and Vote: Councilmember Longoria moved to reconvene the Regular Meeting at 9: 14 p.m. Councilmember Thunnan seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council Monday, October 21, 2013 at 6:00 pm Page 34 of34 ADJOURNMENT (Agenda Item No. 13-254) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to adjourn the Regular Meeting at 9: 15 p.m . Councilmember Thunnan seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (6-0). After no further discussion the Regular Council Meeting adjourned at 9: 15 p.m. Date Approved: November 18,2013. Sudie AM Gordon, City Clerk ----;-- STA TE OF GEORGIA ) ) AFFIDAVIT RE: CLOSURE OF COUNTY OF FULTON ) OPEN MEETINGS ) CITY OF MILTON ) Personally appeared before the undersigned officer, duly authorized under the laws of the State of Georgia to administer oaths, JOE LOCKWOOD, who in his capacity as Mayor and the person presiding over a Council meeting of the CITY OF MILTON, and after being first duly sworn, certifies under oath and states to the best of his knowledge and belief the following: At a Regularly Scheduled City Council Meeting held on October 21,2013, at 6:00 PM the Council voted to go into closed session and exclude the public from all or a portion of its meeting. The legal exceptions applicable to the exempt matters addressed during such closed meeting are as follows: [Check or initial as appropriate] 1. X discussion or voting to authorize negotiations to purchase, dispose of, or lease property; authorizing the ordering of an appraisal related to the acquisition or disposal of real estate; entering into contract to purchase, to dispose of, or lease property subject to approval in a subsequent public vote; or entering into an option to purchase, dispose of, or lease real estate subject to approval in a subsequent public vote pursuant to O.C.G.A, 50-14-3(b)(1)(B-E); 2. discussing or deliberating upon the appointment, employment, compensation, hiring, disciplinary action or dismissal, or periodic evaluation or rating of a public officer or employee or interviewing applicants for the executive head of the city with the vote on any such matter coming in public pursuant to O.C.G.A. 50-14-3(b)(2); 3. attorney/client privilege in order to consult and meet with legal counsel pertaining to pending or potential litigation, settlement, claims, administrative proceedings or other judicial actions brought or to be brought by or against the agency or any officer or employee or in which the agency or any officer or employee may be directly involved, pursuant to O.C.G.A. 50-14-2(1). 4. other (explanation): I certify that the subject matter of the closed meeting or the closed portion of the meeting was devoted to matters of official business or policy, with the exceptions provided by law as set forth above. 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