Staff previews vehicle-impact protection code options, updates on local projects

Community Development staff briefed the Montgomery Planning and Zoning Commission on proposed code work and near-term permitting activity.

Director Adams said staff is drafting amendments related to vehicle-impact protection — measures to protect storefronts and entrances from vehicle intrusions — and requested that the commission hold a detailed discussion at an upcoming meeting. Staff described options including placing requirements in the Unified Development Ordinance or in the building code; building-code changes typically do not require a Planning and Zoning Commission public hearing, while UDO changes would.

Adams also reported staff is close to issuing a building permit for R & L Carriers and is finalizing site-plan and building-permit approvals for a three-unit strip center that includes a Hawaiian Brothers restaurant with a drive-through adjacent to an existing Cooper’s Hawk on Route 30 at Ogden. The director noted the state (IDOT) governs right-of-way and guardrail requirements, while local regulations govern internal access and circulation.

A commissioner asked whether the village or the state reviews high-traffic access; Adams said the state controls right-of-way matters while the village addresses internal access, and staff are examining other jurisdictions’ approaches to impact protection, including how drive aisles perpendicular to storefronts can trigger protections.

The commission took no formal action on the code concept and was asked to be prepared for further discussion at future meetings.