Planning Commission recommends Elmwood rezone to allow multifamily, with survey condition

The Sheridan Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of PL 25-24 (Ordinance 2298), an application to rezone 31.82 acres at 900 East Fifth Street from R-1 (residence) to B-1 (business), to the City Council on a voice vote Tuesday evening. The recommendation includes a condition that the applicant submit a corrected legal description and exhibit stamped by a licensed surveyor before final approval.

Planning staff member Kelly Schroeder told commissioners the parcel is currently vacant land adjacent to Interstate 90 and that the requested B-1 zoning would permit a range of residential and lighter commercial uses. "A rezone to B-1 will allow for the intended multifamily use on the property as well as for certain commercial uses in the future," Schroeder said, adding that the site aligns with the city’s 2017 future land use map, which suggested the area for residential use but also that commercial uses could be appropriate given the property’s location.

Applicant Mark Christiansen, of ABIPC, said the developer plans about 103 apartment units and has been coordinating with a local surveying firm to correct boundary and closing-calculation errors on the submitted exhibits. "We have reviewed the staff report and agree with everything that's included in there," Christiansen said. He said the project will meet entryway design-corridor standards for landscaping and building elevation.

Commissioner Windsor asked about the future land use designation and whether the change to B-1 would conflict with that plan. Schroeder said the 2017 map is a guidance document and that staff often weighs adjacent uses and transportation access when reviewing rezones. "Whenever I review rezones in relation to our future land use map, I try to take a little bit bigger of a picture and look at where they are and adjacent to other existing uses, and transportation networks such as I-90 and East Fifth Street," she said.

Schroeder said staff sent notices to 19 surrounding property owners and received one inquiry seeking more information. She also said the Major Subdivision application for the parcel has been submitted and will be scheduled for public hearings. Schroeder told the commission that, if the recommendation moves forward, city council readings are scheduled for Sept. 15, Oct. 6 and Oct. 20.

A commissioner moved to recommend approval of PL 25-24 to the City Council with the condition that the applicant revise and resubmit the legal description and exhibit with the stamp of a licensed surveyor prior to final approval; a second was recorded. The motion passed by voice vote; no roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript.

The commission briefly discussed the Wyoming Planning Association conference, scheduled for Sept. 17–19 at Sheridan College, before adjourning.

The motion to recommend approval will be forwarded to the City Council for its readings on the dates noted; final action will be at council and is subject to the applicant’s submission of the corrected survey materials.