City council deliberates over code

The City of Sisters has a vision statement that says, in part, "We create our future through a strong planning process."

The Sisters City Council is trying to live up to that standard in its revision of the city's development code.

The council has stepped up the number of workshops held during March and April to prepare for the first public hearings, which begin April 15. The city hopes to wrap up development code hearings by April 23, with the code possibly not being finalized until June.

To aid in the decision making process, the council invited some developers and business owners to city council meetings to discuss plans for their business.

Shane Lundgren appeared regarding Sun Ranch Business Park, focusing on zoning for the former Conklin Guest House and other property along Barclay. Lundgren has also reviewed the code with senior planner Pauline Hardie. His comments and concerns, along with those of developer Steve McGhehey, will aid the council in their decision-making process.

Business owner Kris Calvin suggested an advisory group be formed for the light-industrial (LI) district. The committee would work with city staff. The idea received a welcoming reception.

"If people have concerns about anything happening in the LI area, there is an avenue for those concerns to be addressed," Councilor Pat Thompson said.

Calvin stated, "Many of us were caught by surprise (by proposed changes to the code), which is not the fault of the council that we did not keep up on issues. We'd like to act like the planning commission in making recommendations to the council, except that we are a special interest group."

Vicki Hornbeck, business owner in the light-industrial area added, "We wasted a lot of time last year with landscaping in the back (of my business)," she said, to which Hardie nodded in agreement.

Hornbeck felt an advisory group could solve some problems like that as long as their voice is heard before the final vote.

City planning director Eric Porter cautioned that some issues brought to the table by those in the LI zone will affect other zones.

Debates continued over screening and landscaping in the LI.

Porter suggested all publicly accessed areas should be ADA compliant, and pointed out there is a difference between an industrial zone, which is not public-access, and commercial use, which is public-access.

A lengthy discussion ensued about drive-throughs in the highway commercial zone.

Councilors were concerned about lack of public input on an issue that could significantly affect Sisters. This is just one key issue community members may want to direct their attention to, they said.

The highway commercial zone extends from McDonald's to Bi-Mart, with a second highway commercial zone at FivePine to the south.

City Recorder Kathy Nelson advised timeliness in submitting e-mailed or mailed-in comments for council consideration.

"It is important to send in your comments well before the meeting to allow councilors the opportunity to read input before their final vote," she said.