18.02.130 Neighborhood review meeting

18.02.130 Neighborhood review meeting.

A. Purpose. The purpose of the neighborhood review meeting is for a developer/applicant of a proposed project to hold a meeting with surrounding and adjacent neighboring residents, property owners, homeowners’ associations, residents and businesses (hereinafter collectively referred to as “neighbors”) prior to submitting an application to the city. The neighbors would have an early opportunity to become familiar with either a residential subdivision, multifamily or mixed development proposal of a certain size and scale early in the development review process and to identify any associated issues. The neighborhood review meeting is intended to assist in producing applications that are responsive to neighborhood concerns, and to reduce the likelihood of delays and appeals. The city expects an applicant to take into consideration the reasonable concerns and recommendations of the neighbors and other interested persons when preparing an application.

B. Applicability. A neighborhood review meeting shall be required for the following types of new land use application in any applicable zoning district within the city:

1. A residential subdivision project comprising 40 or more lots or units; or

2. A multifamily residential project comprising 40 or more units; or

3. A mixed-use development project comprising 40 or more units.

1. Prior to submittal of an application, an applicant shall provide an opportunity to meet with neighboring residents, property owners, homeowners’ associations, residents and businesses (hereinafter collectively referred to as “neighbors”) within the city-specified notice radius to review the proposal.

2. The applicant shall not be required to hold more than one neighborhood review meeting.

1. The applicant shall select the meeting time and place. The starting time selected shall be limited to a weekday evening after 6:00 p.m. or a weekend at any reasonable time and shall not occur on a federally recognized holiday. The meeting shall be held at a location open to the public and in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The public meeting shall be held within the Auburn city limits, at a location no further than two miles from the project site, unless an alternate meeting location is approved by the planning director. A sign at least 22 inches by 28 inches in size with minimum two-inch lettering shall be placed at the main entrance of the building where the meeting will take place at least one hour prior to the meeting. Such sign will announce the meeting purpose, that the meeting is open to the public and that interested persons are invited to attend. This sign shall be removed upon conclusion of the meeting by the applicant.

2. The applicant shall send by regular mail a written notice announcing the neighborhood review meeting to the director of the city of Auburn planning and development department and property owners within 300 feet of the property(ies) involved in the development review application. The notice shall include the date, time and location of the meeting and briefly discuss the nature and location of the proposal. The notice shall be mailed not less than 20 calendar days prior to the meeting date. The mailing list shall be obtained by the applicant and based on the most recent property tax assessment rolls of the King County department of assessments or the Pierce County assessor-treasurer’s office, whichever is applicable.

3. Not less than 20 calendar days prior to the neighborhood review meeting, the applicant shall post a notice on the property which is the subject of the proposed application. The notice shall be posted at the property in a visible and accessible location. The notice shall state that the site may be subject to a proposed development and shall set forth the name of the applicant and a telephone number where the applicant or applicant’s contact person can be reached for additional information. The site shall remain posted until the conclusion of the neighborhood review meeting. The city will not be responsible for posting of any signs.

4. The sign at the building entrance under subsection (D)(1) of this section, the notices sent by mail under subsection (D)(2) of this section and the site posting under subsection (D)(3) of this section shall each contain the following statement:

The intent of this meeting is to facilitate an early informal discussion between the project developer and the neighbors regarding the project. While required by the City of Auburn, this meeting is not conducted by the City of Auburn and is in addition to any future hearings or public comment opportunities available under city development review processes.

5. At the neighborhood review meeting, the applicant shall describe the proposed application to persons in attendance. The attendees may identify any issues that they believe should be addressed in the application and recommend that those issues be submitted for city consideration and analysis.

6. The applicant shall prepare and make available the following materials for review and discussion at the public meeting:

a. Total number of dwelling units/lots expected to be built;

b. Conceptual site plan/plat layout showing buildings, road layout, landscape, parking, topography and open space areas, and adjacent properties; and

c. Aerial photograph showing the subject property and adjacent properties.

7. At the neighborhood review meeting, a sign-in sheet shall be distributed to all meeting attendees that specifies the date, time and location of the neighborhood review meeting and asks for the name, address, phone number and electronic mail address of each meeting attendee.

8. At the neighborhood review meeting, the applicant shall take notes of the discussion on the proposed application for eventual submittal to the city.

E. Submittal Requirements. The applicant shall submit the following information with the submittal of a development application:

1. A copy of the notice provided to surrounding property owners within 300 feet of the proposed development site.

2. A copy of the mailing list used to send out meeting notices.

3. A written statement containing the information posted on the property.

4. An affidavit of mailing and posting notices.

5. A copy of the meeting sign-in sheet.

6. Copies of written materials and eight-and-one-half-inch by 11-inch size plans presented at the neighborhood review meeting.

7. Notes of the meeting including a summary of oral and written comments received.

8. If responses to the meeting notice were not received by the applicant and no one attended the neighborhood review meeting or persons in attendance made no comments, the applicant shall submit evidence as indicated above, with the notes reflecting the absence of comment, attendance, or both.

1. All property owners who receive notice of the neighborhood review meeting shall be eligible to receive a copy of the written city decision for the development proposal.

2. All neighbors receiving notice of or attending the neighborhood review meeting shall be eligible to receive a copy of the written city decision for the development proposal through a request made to the city.

G. Consideration. The city shall consider as part of the development review process the concerns and issues raised by the neighbors and applicant at the neighborhood review meeting, including any agreed-upon solutions or resolutions to outstanding issues or areas of contention. The city, however, shall not be bound in its decision-making by any agreements or understandings made between the neighbors and applicants. Nothing in this section shall be construed to delegate design or project review decision-making authority to the participants in the public meeting.

H. City Involvement. The neighborhood review meeting is intended to be a developer-neighborhood interaction. City staff are not required to attend and/or participate in neighborhood review meetings. There will be other official opportunities for residents and neighbors to make comment during the development review process that would follow the neighborhood review meeting. The director of the planning and development department or designee shall be notified a minimum of seven calendar days prior to the scheduled date of the neighborhood review meeting. Any city staff attendance at a neighborhood review meeting is for informational purposes only, does not represent the city’s position on the merits of the development proposal and does not constitute an approval or denial of an application, now or submitted in the future. (Ord. 6287 § 2, 2010; Ord. 6245 § 2, 2009.)