An ordinance that has been in the works for a couple of years in Red Bank about developing properties with steep slopes was passed on the first reading at the commission meeting Tuesday night.
Watchtower Investments bought 8.29 acres on Strawberry Lane in an area of steep slopes, intended for a neighborhood of residential townhouses. At a commission meeting on May 2, there was a request to rezone the property from R-1 single family residential to R-TZ townhomes. The vote that night was postponed until the city’s requirements for building on steep slopes was clarified. Conditions recommended by the planning commission were aimed at responsible land disturbance and slope stabilization.
At the following meeting on May 16 the ordinance had been rewritten, but Jay Craven with Watchtower told the commissioners that he and the engineer for the project did not understand the ordinance and asked for it to be amended for clarity. The developer was seeking amendments that would allow Watchtower to build more houses on the property than the maximum allowed by the ordinance.
Since then, the planning commission, engineers, staff and the city commissioners have been discussing it. At the meeting Tuesday, a plan for responsible development was presented to the commissioners for properties with a slope of 20 percent or greater. A public hearing for the ordinance will be held at the next commission meeting on Aug. 15.
Watchtower has agreed to the conditions in the revised ordinance and has presented data and grading plans to the city for their townhome development, said Leslie Johnson, capital projects manager. City Attorney Arnold Stulce clarified that the conditions in the ordinance apply only to the steep slope portion of the property, and that each property will have to be looked at on an individual basis.
A new fee structure was approved for a stormwater utility service charge. The annual fee will increase from $40 to $70, which is expected to ensure that the stormwater fund is self-sustaining. It is an enterprise fund that is supposed to be self-supporting. In the past two years money had to be used from the city’s general fund to make up for shortages. There is a sliding scale to set rates for multi-family residences and credits are available for stormwater improvements that are made on site, for quantity and quality. There are also some exemptions. The $9 fee from Hamilton County is included in the $70 fee.
The city’s sign ordinance was also amended regarding pole signs and murals. The requirement to move existing pole signs was eliminated, and the annual fee for a sign permit was removed. Both measures are to reduce financial burdens on business owners. The amendments also included providing clarity to business owners about all signs for commercial sites. Murals which are viewed as “decorative or artistic expression were removed from signage and were given a definition separate from the definition of a sign. Murals cannot contain any commercial message.
City Manager Martin Granum said that McKamey Animal Center, which provides animal control services for the city, has been doing a very good job. For the past two years, he said calls to McKamey and impounding animals have been flat, warnings and citations have about doubled, and court cases are in the low single digits. The commissioners approved authorizing the agreement for animal control services for the amount of $77,164, which is a five percent increase over last year.
Also approved on the final reading was the addition of permitted uses in the city’s R-4 zone. This district is on the West side of Highway 27 around the middle and high schools, Erlanger Hospital, and the Red Bank pool and community center. New uses include studios and galleries, specialty shops, taverns/wine and cocktail bars, bed and breakfasts, banks, restaurants, indoor special event venues and outdoor stages. Each use would require an application for a special exemption.
Fire Chief Brent Sylar received approval to declare a 44-year-old fire truck that is no longer needed by Red Bank as surplus and to donate it to the Fredonia, Tn. Volunteer Fire Department.
Also, approval was given to apply for and accept a “Safety Partners” matching grant from Public Entity Partners. The city applies for this matching grant each year and it is used by the Fire Department and Police Department on alternating years. The fire department will be the beneficiary this year of the $3,000 grant that the city is required to match for a total of $6,000 that will be used to purchase 50 firefighters’ hoods that filter soot and cancer-causing particulates for the firefighters.
In an effort to reduce the mosquito population and occurrences of West Nile Virus and in response to a medical alert, Public Works Director Greg Tate has put in place a plan to pick up and dispose of old tires and drums that hold water and contribute to breeding mosquitoes. This service is available for residential homes, but is not available for commercial parcels. The service must be requested on the citizen’s portal on the city of Red Bank website.
Bill Cannon was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Red Bank Planning Commission.