Council asked to consider joint workshop after planning commission presents three zoning options

Councilmembers discussed a planning commission briefing on zoning-district options and asked whether the commission should make a formal recommendation or whether the two bodies should meet jointly to review the consultant's three options.

City staff said the planning commission received a consultant presentation and provided no formal recommendation, and that the commission is seeking collective direction from council on how to proceed. Councilmembers suggested a joint workshop or a work session between the planning commission and council to review use cases, compare outcomes under the old and new zoning codes and identify whether changes would be advisable.

Councilmembers noted they expected an advisory opinion from the planning commission rather than proposed legislation. A councilmember suggested staff or a commissioner could prepare a comparison showing how decisions since 2018 would have differed under the old code to inform discussion. The group agreed to defer deeper work until early in the new year and asked staff to arrange a joint session rather than meeting during the December planning-commission meeting.

No formal council action was taken; council gave direction to staff to plan a joint workshop and to solicit fuller comparative analysis for that session.