Planning staff: final development code goes to city council March 5 after 250+ public comments

CJ, a city planning staff member, told the Board of Adjustments on Feb. 23 that the city’s final development code is scheduled to go to city council on March 5. CJ said the planning department received "over 250 comments from our public," and that staff and the consultant held multiple walk‑in sessions to gather and incorporate feedback before planning commission review.

CJ said large development activity has slowed recently, which staff attributed to higher interest rates. The TAVA development was identified as the largest active ground‑up project with entitlements in place but delayed construction. From a variance standpoint staff reported very few current variance applications and said there might be only one potential variance tied to a local fire department request.

Board members and staff discussed that once the code is approved by city council, staff will need to update internal procedures and edit code cross‑references. Members noted the draft development code does not currently call out language for fire facilities and local EMS, and suggested borrowing language from other municipalities to cover training and facility provisions. CJ introduced Rick Dieter as the city’s code compliance specialist and said Dieter will be the field contact for code compliance matters.

No public hearings or applications were on the agenda for the March meeting, the board was told. The board closed the meeting after brief recruitment discussion for one open regular seat and two alternate positions.