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Plan Commission delays CDO impervious cover changes after commissioners raise clarity concerns
Summary
The commission denied a waiver of final hearing on ZOA‑25‑2 (impervious cover amendments) and asked staff to return with clearer text and illustrations; denial sends the item to further review on May 20.
The Monroe County Plan Commission on April 15 denied a request to waive final hearing and sent a proposed text amendment to the county development ordinance on maximum impervious cover back for further revision and public review.
Planning staff described ZOA‑25‑2 as an amendment intended to reduce the number of variances triggered by the current impervious cover rules by clarifying calculation methods and adding exemptions — primarily for driveways and certain existing features. “The goal is not to eliminate the need for any variances,” a planning presenter said, adding staff expects the driveway exceptions to eliminate roughly 25% of the variances the office has been seeing.
Commissioners raised multiple concerns about clarity and administration: how the code defines the point at which a driveway is excluded, how gravel is counted, the 03/11/2024 aerial imagery date used to determine preexisting conditions, and whether increases to maximums properly balance new and previously platted lots. Members asked staff to reconcile the text and the illustrative graphic showing where driveways would be counted, and to refine language on gravel coefficients and the administrative process for desk reviews.
After discussion, Commissioner Jeff Morris moved to deny the waiver of final hearing and bring the item back for additional work at the May 20 meeting; the motion passed 8–0. Staff said the denial will allow additional edits and potentially an administrative meeting discussion before final action.
The commission’s action did not adopt the text amendment; it only required additional drafting and review. Staff noted that about one in three building permits had raised impervious calculations and that roughly 10 of this year’s variances involved impervious cover issues.
