Peoria Standard

Peoria County Board - Land Use Committee met Oct. 23.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

MEMBERS PRESENT: Paul Rosenbohm – Chairperson, Terry Ruhland, Sharon Williams, Daniel Kelch, James Dillon, Matt Windish

MEMBERS ABSENT: Linda Daley – Vice Chairperson, Eden Blair

OTHERS PRESENT: Jennie Cordis Boswell - State's Attorney's Office; Scott Sorel, Shauna Musselman - County Administration; Heather McCord – Finance; Kathi Urban, Andrew Braun - Planning & Zoning

Call to Order:

Mr. Rosenbohm called the meeting to order at 4:09 p.m.

Approval of Minutes:

A motion to approve the Land Use Committee minutes from September 14, 2023, and September 25, 2023 was made by Ms. Williams and seconded by Mr. Ruhland. A vote was taken on the motion and carried. (6-0)

Reports/ Other Minutes/Updates:

Tri-County Regional Planning Commission Minutes: No questions or comments. Unsafe Structures: No questions or comments.

Development Summary: No questions or comments.

Mr. Rosenbohm motioned to receive and file the reports.

Zoning Cases:

ZBA-2023-044, Petition of Cyndi Collins

Mr. Ruhland made a motion to approve the special use request with restriction and was seconded by Mr. Windish.

Ms. Urban summarized the case. A special use request to allow for a commercial kennel in the “A 2” Agricultural zoning district. The petitioner would like to locate a toy poodle and Maine coon cat breeding business on the parcel, with plans to allow up to 20 dogs and 10 cats. There are no consents or objections on file.

The 16.3-acre parcel is located on State Route 91 in Radnor Township, and consists of a single family dwelling, in which the petitioner’s parents reside, agricultural buildings, agricultural fields, timber, and a creek. The parcel is zoned “A-2” as well as the adjacent parcel to the west. Surrounding parcels to the north, south, and east form the municipal boundaries of the Village of Dunlap. Surrounding land uses include agriculture, residences, and timber.

The petitioner is proposing to locate a 560 square foot building on the property, for housing the dogs and cats, which will be visually separated from the surrounding properties by other agricultural buildings and topography. The petitioner runs her business online and would deliver the pets to buyers off-site. There would not be customers allowed on this site. Animal waste will be removed daily and disposed of at the dump, and bleach will be used for disinfection. The petitioner has stated that the dogs and cats will only be let out of the kennel when she is at the property, which will be several times a day. The kennel building will be located approximately 123 feet from the nearest property line, which exceeds the ordinance requirement of 100 feet. It will be 840 feet from the nearest off-site residential building, exceeding the ordinance request of 200 feet. the request also meets the ordinance requirement of a minimum 2-acre parcel size. The petitioner’s request is consistent with existing agricultural zoning and uses at the subject property and would mitigate impacts on the surrounding properties due to distance from property lines and visual separation due to topography and existing buildings on the lot. The parcel is currently served by private well and septic, and the Health Department had no objections. The parcel is accessed via gravel driveway from Route 91 and no new access points are proposed. No comments were received from IDOT. The request is consistent with the County’s Land Use Plan designation of Village, as the request will relocate a small commercial use to this area, and it does not negatively impact the parcel’s Environmental Corridor designation.

Staff recommends approval with the following restriction:

1. The Special Use is null and void in the event that the commercial kennel is no longer operated by the subject case’s petitioner, Cyndi Collins.

The Zoning Board concurred unanimously with the same restriction.

A vote was taken on the motion and carried (6-0)

ZBA-2023-043, Petition of Peoria Solar 3, LLC

Mr. Kelch made a motion to approve the special use request with restrictions and was seconded by Ms. Williams.

Ms. Urban summarized the case. A special use request to operate a 4.875 MW commercial solar energy facility on the northern approximately 28 acres of a 39.3-acre parcel located on W. Grange Hall Rd. in Radnor Township. There are no consents and one objection on file. The one objection was from Jason Mulay, who was representing his mother, Rita Mulay, who lives on an adjacent property to the west. His concerns were property values, possible impact to soil quality and drainage, and aesthetics.

The subject parcel consists of an agricultural field. All adjacent parcels are zoned “A-2” agriculture and consist of agricultural fields and homesteads. There are Ameren Transmission lines located on the adjacent parcels to the east.

The nearest non-participating dwelling would be located approximately 220 feet from the proposed solar panels, and it is buffered from the subject parcel by an existing tree line and that would be Mrs. Mulay's property. The petitioner's request is consistent with adjacent public utility land use and the ag character of the surrounding area.

The proposed community solar facility will include rows of photovoltaic cell panels, with single access tracking technology to move the panels with the sun for maximum efficiency. In order to minimize impact on neighboring residential properties, the panels will be designed to prevent glare and the panels will face southward, angled away from the roadways, and the properties across from Grange Hall Road. The inverters were produced between 50 to 60 decibels, which is comparable to the sound of a household refrigerator. The nearest non-participating dwelling would be located approximately 220 feet from the proposed solar panels which exceeds the requirement of 150 feet. The petitioner will install an eight-foot-tall fence to enclose all panels and electrical equipment on site with required warning signs and a lockbox for twenty-four-hour response for emergencies. The petitioner will also use a perennial native vegetative ground cover and vegetative maintenance to control soil erosion. This proposal does meet all of the standards of the Unified Development Ordinance for solar generation facilities.

A decommissioning plan will be needed prior to issuance of a building permit, and an executed interconnected connection agreement between Ameren Illinois has been provided. An approval letter was also submitted from the Village of Dunlap. The Fire Chief would like an on-site visit prior to the project going live as well as some training. This was added as a restriction on this case.

Neither the health department nor the highway department had objections, and the FAA has issued a letter indicating no hazard for air navigation. The IDNR has reviewed the proposal and found no threatened or endangered species. The parcel had a low LESA of for agriculture protection. It is consistent with Peoria County Land Use map. It's within the mile-and-a-half extra territorial jurisdiction of the City of Peoria and no comments were received from the city.

Staff recommended approval with eight restrictions. The Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously recommended approval with those same restrictions.

A vote was taken on the motion and carried (6-0)

ZBA-2023-039, Petition of Coral Ness and Lynn Ann Boone

Ms. Williams made a motion to approve the special use request with restriction and was seconded by Mr. Ruhland.

Ms. Urban summarized the case. A request to rezone a 1.55-acre parcel from “A-2” Agriculture to “R-R” Rural Residential in order to convert the existing garage of the property into an accessory dwelling for the petitioner's mother. Accessory dwellings may only be established in residential zoning districts. There are no objections and no consents on file.

The parcel is located on US Route 150 in Kickapoo Township. The parcel as well as all surrounding parcels is zoned “A-2” Agriculture. Land is used agriculturally to the north, south, and west. There are three single-family dwellings adjacent to the east, and there are 10 single-family dwellings outside of platted subdivisions along this half-mile stretch. In addition, the Berkshire Estate subdivision which is zoned “R-1” is less than half-a-mile to the east, and the Christ Alive subdivision zoned “R-R” Rural Residential is located approximately .8 miles to the west.

The request is consistent with surrounding residential uses and the residential zoning districts in the area. The ordinance does allow for accessory dwellings in any residential district provided a number of factors are met, which this request does.

The property is served by an existing well and septic system. The health department has recently issued a permit for a new septic system for both properties and has no objections. The parcel is currently accessed by an existing gravel drive off Route 150 and no new access points are proposed. There were no comments from IDOT.

The Land Use plan designates this parcel as agriculture. While stating that agriculture is the predominant land use, other types of development are restricted to the lowest producing ag land. This is a one-and-a-half-acre parcel that is not being farmed and no farmland will be taken out of production. It is consistent with our county land use plan. The parcel is within the mile-and-a-half buffer of the City of Peoria, but no comments were received from the city. The Kickapoo Township Planning Commission commented that they’re not overly opposed but do have reservations on the request.

Staff recommended approval and the Zoning Board also recommended approval unanimously. A vote was taken on the motion and carried (6-0)

Resolution:

Strong Communities Grant Program Agreement

Ms. Williams made a motion to approve the resolution and was seconded by Mr. Ruhland.

Mr. Braun stated that his summer, Peoria County Planning and Zoning applied for a grant with the Illinois Housing Development Authority, the Strong Communities Program. This grant is for the demolition of abandoned residential properties. The County was recently awarded $239,000, 10% of which will be for administrative purposes. We hope to demolish eight houses and seek reimbursement for one house that was previously demolished last year. These are properties that are continuously included in the unsafe structures report. The properties are scattered throughout the county, in unincorporated areas. Over the last couple of years, the County did execute Strong Communities Program round one and demolished six homes. This is an extension of the success had with previous grant programs.

Mr. Rosenbohm asked what happens to the property after the house is demolished. Mr. Braun stated that the County has the ability to place liens on the property through the grant. If the lien is recouped, the County would then have to repay the state. It would be at the discretion of the State's Attorney's office as to whether there is a lien placed on the property.

Mr. Ruhland asked how the 10% administrative value is applied to Planning and Zoning’s payroll. Mr. Braun stated that zoning is part of the general fund, the 10% is transferred into the general fund as a general reimbursement.

Mr. Dillon asked if all of the properties had been identified. Mr. Braun stated that they had, and that emails had recently been sent to township supervisors to see if there were additional properties that needed to be called to the attention of Planning and Zoning. Mr. Dillon asked if these properties had been identified by townships or by the County. Mr. Braun stated that it is a combination. Ms. Williams added that Limestone Township and Planning and Zoning meet quarterly to discuss problem properties.

Mr. Rosenbohm asked if there would be other grants coming up. Mr. Braun stated that the department will look for grants and proactively research them.

Mr. Dillon asked if there were additional properties that could be demolished that are not on the list. Mr. Braun stated that properties are continually being added and subtracted from the list.

A vote was taken on the motion and carried (6-0)

Public Comment;

NONE.

Miscellaneous:

NONE.

Adjournment: Mr. Rosenbohm adjourned the meeting at 4:28 p.m.

https://www.peoriacounty.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11272023-1532