Planning Commission Minutes 2021 06 10

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Planning Commission Meeting Minutes June 10, 2021 Page 6 of 15 Brauneis opened public comment. Tamar Krantz, 691 West Street, stated that in the last meeting it had been said that the public comment was closed and she thought that was how the item would continue to today. She and others thought there would be no more time for public comment and she had shared that information online with community groups. There were people who wanted to make substantive comments who would not be here tonight and she requested that this be a noticed hearing. Stephanie Rowe, 631 West Street, stated that the City Attorney's reasoning regarding site visits made sense, but the responsible solution was for all of the commissioners to do a site visit. She stated that the only way that the property could speak for itself was for the Commission to visit it so that the place could appeal to the Commission in the way that the applicant was able to. She stated that there would be a wildlife impact, including the extermination of 5,000 prairie dogs, which would affect the prairie dogs and the animals that depend on them. She added that the Open Space Advisory Board (OSAB) was not allowed to advocate for more Open Space at that site and she described that hearing as problematic. She advocated that they limit the development to 2.5 million square feet, given that the Comp Plan allowed for 3.1 million square feet for a single user with a cohesive use. RJ Harrington, 457 East Raintree Court, stated that he too thought that the public comment was officially closed on May 20th. He referenced his written comments and asked how workshopping with staff was entered into the public record. He welcomed the PCZD updates but they did not mention eliminating fossil gas infrastructure, and these plans needed to address that issue. Otherwise, it was kicking the fossil can down the road. He described the current air pollution status and asked the applicant to withdraw their fossil fuel plans. Krantz stated that burrowing owl surveys needed to be completed. If the City or the developer didn't have that survey it could be in violation of the Endangered Species Act and for the Western tiger salamander. There were white-tailed deer on the site and nearby there were bald eagles and they had been seen feeding at the site, and if there were no provisions against using rodenticide it would be problematic. She added that the LEED certification had been changed from being for all buildings over 50,000 square feet to all office buildings. This meant that there was no requirement for LEED on industrial or retail spaces. She thought that the public needed the ability to comment on the sustainability document. Michiko Christiansen, 543 Adams Avenue, stated that the City created an EDI task force and they should be involved in the meeting to address multiple issues and uses, including affordable housing. She stated that the buildings should achieve LEED Gold, the same standard as the City regulations downtown. She advocated for clustered buildings, no surface parking lots, and underground lots. She thought that the development team was not competent and had not reached their qualifications if they had only studied in the US. She did not think that seeing the buildings on 36 was necessary; instead, what was important was open space, net zero, and sustainability, more important than having a view of the mountains. She thought that CTC revenues