City of Homer

Planning & Zoning           Telephone        (907) 235-8121

491 East Pioneer Avenue                      Fax                  (907) 235-3118

Homer, Alaska 99603-7645                 E-mail              Planning@ci.homer.ak.us

                                                                                                Web Site          www.ci.homer.ak.us

MEMORANDUM 09-30

 

TO:                 Mayor and Homer City Council

THROUGH:   Rick Abboud, City Planner

FROM:           Dotti Harness, Planning Technician       

MEETING:    March 9, 2009

SUBJECT:     Draft Parking Ordinance

 

The purpose of this change is to provide a more concise ordinance that is simplified, provides more opportunities for parking solutions, and, in instances, reduces the amount of required parking spaces. This ordinance brings clarity and simplifies several issues in the current parking code.  First, a housekeeping measure:  This ordinance moves the parking code into Title 21; it is currently in Title 7.  The city attorney rewrote, reordered and streamlined the parking code from 18 pages to 10 pages. 

 

This ordinance provides clarity for developers when determining the location and the number of parking spaces required.  For example, one building having multiple uses such as office, retail, church and/or restaurant is currently required to provide the sum of all the individual parking requirements regardless of varying peak parking demands (weekday, evenings, Sunday).  Only the planning commission could approve requests to lower the parking requirement.  This left developers unsure of the parking requirements until heard by the planning commission, while the decisions varied from commission to commission creating inconsistencies.  This ordinance allows the City Planner to approve a parking plan that shows 75% of the required parking agreement if the peak parking demands vary.  Further reductions must be approved by the planning commission. 

 

Another obstacle has been when parking was provided on another parcel.  A parking agreement is recorder on the “providing” parcel.  Only by resolution of the City Council could the agreement be removed, therefore few used this viable option to meet the parking requirements.  This draft ordinance allows the City Planner to release this obligation when the parking is no longer needed or provided elsewhere. 

 

The City Planner recommends Council conduct a public hearing and approve this ordinance.  On February 18, 2009 the HAPC voted to approve the parking ordinance with unanimous approval.  Summarized below are changes. 

 

  1. Relocate the parking code into Title 21; it is currently in Title 7.  Variances, appeals, and enforcement are outlined in HCC 21.72 Variances, HCC 21.90 Administration and Enforcement and HCC 21.93 Appeals.

 

  1. Line 44-71.  Added definitions include aisle, arterial, guest room, joint use parking area, kitchen, parking stall and senior housing.  This provides clarity for bed and breakfasts and rooming houses that have guest rooms with or without kitchens.

 

  1. Line 81-82.  The American Planning Association (APA) recommends including parking reductions in the purpose statement.  HCC 21.55.010(c).

 

  1. Line 147-152. Location of parking areas.  Increasing the distance for off-site parking provides greater flexibility for development or redevelopment, especially of small parcels within a business core.  Based on the research, the distance for off-site parking to be located within 700 feet of the use.

 

  1. Line 165-189.  Off-site parking allows property owners to use nearby parcels for additional parking if peak parking demands vary.  For example, Sunday morning church parking use of a near by week-day office-retail parking area.  Recorded parking agreements must define the number of spaces, type of users (daytime employees or night-time) and length of agreement.  Previously, removal of a parking agreement required a resolution by the City Council.  This is changed to allow the City Planner to remove the restriction upon evidence that the required parking spaces are no longer needed or provided elsewhere.

 

  1. Line 223. Table.  Parking requirements for senior housing and one-bedroom units are reduced from two to one parking space per unit.

 

  1. Line 228-230.  For buildings with multiple uses, the number of required parking spaces may be 75% of the sum of the required parking.  Greater reductions must be approved by the Planning Commission.  Previously, only the Planning commission could approve parking reductions.  These decisions varied, and took time. 

 

 

ATTACHMENTS

 

            1.         Ordinance 09-XX, An Ordinance of the Homer City Council, Amending Homer City                            Code Section 21.03.040 to add Definitions Related to Off-Street Parking….

            2.         Staff Report PL 08-93, September 3, 2008, and meeting minutes

            3.         Staff Report PL 08-104, October 1, 2008, and meeting minutes

            4.         Staff Report PL 08-123, November 5, 2008, and meeting minutes

            5.         Memorandum to the HAPC from Julie Engebretsen, Planning Technician dated                                      November 5, 2008

            6.         Staff Report PL 09-12, February 4, 2009, and meeting minutes

            7.         Staff Report PL 09-18, February 18, 2009, and unapproved meeting minutes