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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZTA200500005 Executive SummaryCOUNTY OF ALBEMARLE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AGENDA TITLE: ZTA 05 -05 Farm Worker Housing I AGENDA DATE: 4/18/06 ITEM NUMBER: SUBJECT /PROPOSAL/REOUEST: Public hearing on proposal to amend sections 3, 5, and 10 of the Zoning ACTION: X Ordinance to permit the housing of farm workers in facilities intended only for temporary habitation. STAFF CONTACT(S): Scott Clark REVIEWED BY: Benish, Cilimberg, McDowell BACKGROUND: CONSENT AGENDA: ACTION: ATTACHMENTS: Yes INFORMATION: INFORMATION: In April, 2005, the Zoning Division of Community Development issued a determination that, while the housing of farm workers in structures intended for temporary, seasonal use (i.e., not dwelling units as defined in the Zoning Ordinance) has existed for decades in the Rural Areas of the County, it is not currently a permitted use in the Rural Areas (RA) zoning district. The determination also stated this use is not considered accessory to agriculture. This means that existing farm- worker housing facilities are non - conforming uses, and cannot be changed or expanded (with a few exceptions) under Section 6 of the Zoning Ordinance. Further, no new facilities can be created. The Zoning Division determination was in response to a request regarding the creation of an on -farm program using seasonal interns who would provide labor while learning about agriculture. However, the determination affects all forms of seasonal farm -labor housing in the RA district. The determination was appealed to the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA). On July 6, 2005, the Board of Supervisors considered a Resolution of Intent to pursue this text amendment. The Board referred the issue to the Planning Commission rather than adopting a formal motion. The BZA appeal has been deferred while staff and the applicant have been working on this text amendment as an alternative method to make this use permissible in the Rural Areas. After working with the applicant and representatives of the farming community, staff presented a proposed text amendment to permit farm- worker housing at a Planning Commission work session on January 17, 2006. The Commission decided to proceed to a public hearing, with one change to the proposed text and more input from the Building Official (see below). The Commission identified two issues to be addressed before the public hearing: (1) changing the scale of the sketch plan to "at a scale of not more than one (1) inch equals forty (40) feet. "; and (2) establishing that these structures would be subject to building - permit review and not exempt from that review as farm buildings (those used for residential purposes would be reviewed). On March 21, 2006, the Planning Commission held a public hearing on this amendment. The Commission identified several additional areas for changes to the proposed text (see "Discussion" below), and asked for a revised version to be presented for this hearing. STRATEGIC PLAN: Goal: 2.1 Protect and/or preserve the County's rural character This text amendment is intended to maintain rural character by protecting the viability of existing and future agricultural operations. DISCUSSION: At the March 21 hearing, the Commission identified several changes to be made to the draft text amendment. Those changes are addressed individually below. Please see Attachment A for the current draft ordinance that includes these changes. Clear indication that workers livine in these facilities may only work on that farm. The proposed section 5.1.44(e) specifies that workers living in these facilities must engage only in seasonal agricultural work, and only on the farm where the facilities are located. Individual structures cannot have all of the features of a dwelling unit. The revised definitions for Farm Worker Housing Class A and Class B now specifically require that "no single structure contains all of the following: provisions for sleeping, eating, food preparation, and sanitation (bathing and/or toilets)." Remove "human habitation" as a reference in subsection d. Subsection d. should be rewritten to permit any use to a primary agricultural use. This section, now 5.1.44(f), has been changed appropriately. Ensure that the facilities will not be permitted to convert to uses that are not consistent with the ordinance, which can be done through the affidavit. As noted in the meeting, proposed section 5.1.44(d)(2)(c) requires a recorded instrument that will address this concern. This instrument will run with the land. Determine a threshold for the number of facilities which will trigger a requirement for a special use permit. The proposed definitions for section 3.1 now specify that a Class A facility may contain no more than five structures "designed and arranged for sleeping." Staff felt that setting this limit on the structures for sleeping would address the concern without making the regulations unreasonably inflexible. Various farms and types of farm work might require different arrangements of structures, and regulating the total number of structures might force some less- impacting uses into the Class B category while leaving larger uses in the Class A category. "Seasonal agricultural workers" should be defined more specifically. The proposed definitions for section 3.1 now include a detailed definition of "seasonal agricultural work." The other proposed definitions and the proposed regulations for section 5.1.44 refer to this definition. The definition allows for workers to change from one form of seasonal work to another on the same farm, in order to provide flexibility for farm owners and workers. Indicate what tykes of units (structures, trailers, vehicles, etc.) should be either included or excluded. The proposed section 5.1.44(b) specifies that the units shall include only structures, and not motor vehicles or "major recreational equipment" (including travel trailers, pickup campers, motorized dwellings, tent trailers, boats and boat trailers, house - boats, and trailers). However, it does specifically permit industrialized buildings and tents that are erected on concrete or wooden platforms. Tents were raised as an option by the organic -farm internship proposal that led to this amendment. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Commission forward the attached text amendment to the Board with a recommendation for adoption. ATTACHMENTS: A. Proposed Code Amendment for Section 3, 5, and 10 of the Zoning Ordinance Draft: 08/22/06 ORDINANCE NO. 06 -18( ) AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND CHAPTER 18, ZONING, ARTICLE I, GENERAL PROVISIONS, ARTICLE II, BASIC REGULATIONS, AND ARTICLE III, DISTRICT REGULATIONS, OF THE CODE OF THE COUNTY OF ALBEMARLE, VIRGINIA BE IT ORDAINED By the Board of Supervisors of the County of Albemarle, Virginia, that Chapter 18, Zoning, Article I, General Regulations, Article II, Basic Regulations, and Article III, District Regulations, is hereby amended and reordained as follows: By Amending: Sec. 3.1 Definitions Sec. 10.2.2 By special use permit By Adding: Sec. 5.1.44 Farm worker housing Chapter 18. Zoning Article I. General Regulations Sec. 3.1 Definitions Farm: The term "farm" means one or more parcels of land, whether such parcels are abutting or not, operated under the same management and whose primary use is agriculture. Farm worker housing: The term "farm worker housing" means: (i) structures located on a farm that are designed and arranged to be occupied exclusively by persons employed to work on the farm on which the structures are located for seasonal agriculture work and their immediate families; (ii) the number of such structures designed and arranged for sleeping does not exceed five (5); and (iii) no single structure contains all of the following: provisions for sleeping, eating, food preparation, and sanitation (bathing and/or toilets). Seasonal agriculture work: The term "seasonal agriculture work" means work by a person employed to work on a farm to perform either field work related to planting, cultivating, work related to keeping livestock and/or poultry, or harvesting operations, or work related to canning packing, ginning, seed conditioning or related agriculture operations, and the work pertains to or is of the kind exclusively performed at certain seasons or periods of the year and which, from its nature, may not be continuous or carried on throughout the year. A person who moves from one seasonal activity to another while employed by the farm to perform agriculture work is engaged in seasonal agriculture work even though he or she may continue to be employed by the farm throughout the year. Draft: 08/22/06 Article II. Basic Regulations Sec. 5.1.44 Farm worker housing Each farm worker housing facility shall be subject to the following: a. Concept plan to be submitted with application for special use permit. In addition to any other information required to be submitted for a special use permit: 1. The applicant shall submit a concept elan showing: (i) the boundary lines of the parcel (may be shown on an inset man if necessary); (ii) the location and general layout of the proposed structures at a scale of not more than one (1) inch equals forty (40) feet: (iii) vehicular access, travelways and narking for the facility: (iv) topography (with a contour interval of no greater than ten (10) feet): (vj critical slopes: (vi) streams, stream buffers and floodnlains: (vii) source(s) of water for fire suppression: (viii) building setback lines as provided in subsection 5.1.44(cl below: and (ix) outdoor lighting. 2. The concept plan shall include a written description of each structure's construction and materials used, and the number of persons to be housed in the farm worker housing facility. 3. The concept plan shall include a written description of the type(s) of seasonal agricultural work to be performed on the farm by the persons housed in the farm worker housing facility. 4. The concept plan shall be reviewed in conjunction with the special use permit application, b. Motor vehicles and major recreational equipment prohibited. Farm worker housing facilities shall not use motor vehicles or major recreational equipment, as that term is defined in section 4.12.3(b)(1) of this chapter, to provide for sleeping. eating. food preparation, or sanitation (bathing and/or toilets). C. Minimum yards. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the minimum front yard shall be seventy -five (75) feet. The minimum side and rear yards shall be fifty (50) feet. All yards shall be measured from the farm worker housing structures. d. Zoning compliance clearance. The owner shall obtain a zoning compliance clearance from the zoning administrator as provided in section 31.2.3.2 of this chapter before a farm worker housing facility is occupied, subject to the following additional requirements: 1. The applicant shall apply for a zoning compliance clearance at least thirty (301 days prior to the first expected occupation of the farm worker housing facility. The application shall be submitted to the zoning administrator. 2. The zoning compliance clearance application shall include all of the following information: Draft: 08/22/06 a. Written approval of the farm worker housing facility as a migrant labor camp under 12 VAC 5- 501 -10 et sea., the food preparation area, the private water supply, and the septic disposal system by the Virginia Department of Health. b. Approval of the access to the site from a public street by the Virginia Department of Transportation: provided that nothing herein shall be deemed to require that a commercial entrance be constructed. C. Written approval of the adequacy of the access to the site for emergency_ vehicles by the fire marshal. d. Written approval of the adequacy of the structures intended for human habitation by the building official. 3. Upon the zoning administrator's determination that all reauirements of this chapter are satisfied, that all conditions of the special use permit authorizing the farm worker housing facility are satisfied, and upon receipt of the approvals and documents required in section 5.1.44(d)(2), the zoning administrator shall issue a zoning compliance clearance for the facility. e. Use of farm worker housing facility by workers and their families only. A farm worker housing facility shall be occupied only by persons employed to work on the farm on which the structures are located for seasonal agriculture work and their immediate families as provided herein. f. Use of farm worker housing facility when not occupied. When not occupied by seasonal farm workers, a farm worker housing facility may be used for any use accessory to a primary agriculture use. Article III. District Regulations Sec. 10.2.2 By special use permit The following uses shall be permitted only by special use permit approved by the board of supervisors pursuant to section 31.2.4: (Added 10 -9 -02) 51. Farm worker housing (reference 5.1.44). Draft: 08/22/06 I, Ella W. Carey, do hereby certify that the foregoing writing is a true, correct copy of an Ordinance duly adopted by the Board of Supervisors of Albemarle County, Virginia, by a vote of to , as recorded below, at a regular meeting held on Ave Nay Mr. Boyd Mr. Dorrier Mr. Rooker Mr. Slutzky Ms. Thomas Mr. Wyant Clerk, Board of County Supervisors COUNTY OF ALBEMARLE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AGENDA TITLE: ZTA 05 -05 Farm Worker Housing I AGENDA DATE: September 13, 2006 ITEM NUMBER: SUBJECT /PROPOSAL/REOUEST: Public hearing on proposal to amend sections 3, 5, and 10 of the Zoning ACTION: X INFORMATION: Ordinance to permit the housing of farm workers in facilities intended only for temporary habitation. CONSENT AGENDA: ACTION: INFORMATION: REVIEWED BY: Benish, Cilimberg, McDowell, Clark I ATTACHMENTS: Yes This report addresses the process of developing this proposed ordinance to this point, and in particular the changes requested by the Board of Supervisors at the June 7, 2006, meeting. Attachment A is a the revised draft of the ordinance addressing concerns from that meeting; see "Discussion" below for explanations of the changes to the text. BACKGROUND: In April, 2005, the Zoning Division of Community Development issued a determination that, while the housing of farm workers in structures intended for temporary, seasonal use (i.e., not dwelling units as defined in the Zoning Ordinance) has existed for decades in the Rural Areas of the County, it is not currently a permitted use in the Rural Areas (RA) zoning district. The determination also stated this use is not considered accessory to agriculture. This means that existing farm- worker housing facilities are non - conforming uses, and cannot be changed or expanded (with a few exceptions) under Section 6 of the Zoning Ordinance. Further, no new facilities can be created. The Zoning Division determination was in response to a request regarding the creation of an on -farm program using seasonal interns who would provide labor while learning about agriculture. However, the determination affects all forms of seasonal farm -labor housing in the RA district. The determination was appealed to the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA). On July 6, 2005, the Board of Supervisors considered a Resolution of Intent to pursue this text amendment. The Board referred the issue to the Planning Commission rather than adopting a formal motion. The BZA appeal has been deferred while staff and the applicant have been working on this text amendment as an alternative method to make this use permissible in the Rural Areas. After working with the applicant and representatives of the farming community, staff presented a proposed text amendment to permit farm- worker housing at a Planning Commission work session on January 17, 2006. The Commission decided to proceed to a public hearing, with one change to the proposed text and more input from the Building Official (see below). The Commission identified two issues to be addressed before the public hearing: (1) changing the scale of the sketch plan to "at a scale of not more than one (1) inch equals forty (40) feet.'; and (2) establishing that these structures would be subject to building - permit review and not exempt from that review as farm buildings (those used for residential purposes would be reviewed). ZTA 05 -05 Worker Housing 1 BoS exec sum 091306.doc September 13, 2006 On March 21, 2006, the Planning Commission held a public hearing on this amendment. The Commission identified several additional areas for changes to the proposed text: The workers must be employed on the farm containing the housing only. The intention would not be to provide housing for non -farm related workers or to have housing for many farms inside and outside the area. That restriction needs to be very specifically indicated in this ordinance. Individual structures in the facilities cannot have all of the features of a dwelling unit. That needs to be very specifically referenced. Remove "human habitation" as a reference in subsection d. Subsection d. should be rewritten to permit any use accessory to a primary agricultural use. The facilities will not be permitted to convert to uses that are not consistent with the ordinance, which can be done through the affidavit. The affidavit will be recorded and run with the land. Determine a limit to the number of structures. Determine a threshold for the number of facilities which will trigger a requirement for a special use permit. "Seasonal agricultural workers" should be defined more specifically. Indicate what types of units (structures, trailers, vehicles, etc.) should be either included or excluded. Changes reflecting those comments were made to a version presented at a Commission hearing on April 18, 2006. On April 18, 2006, the Planning Commission reviewed staff's proposal and made further modifications to the proposed ordinance (see below). The following changes were made, as recommended by the Commission, and presented to the Board on June 7, 2006. • Notification of adjacent property owners shall be required after the submittal of the concept plan for temporary farm work housing. Sections 5.1.44(a)(3) and (4) were added to require this notification process and to specify how adjacent landowners may request Planning Commission review of the concept plan for the use. • Modification of the definition of "seasonal agricultural work" to include livestock operations activities by inserting the clause, "work related to keeping livestock and/or poultry." • In subsection e, striking the phrase "farm worker ". That was relating to some additional language in an earlier draft. • In 10.2.1 adding to o the phrase "up to twen , occupants" (for the by- right) the phrase "and five or fewer sleeping structures." This change was intended to help clarify the language for the people looking at the rural areas regulations. • In 10.2.2 adding to o the phrase "more than twenty occupants" the phrase "or six or more sleeping structures." • In 10.2.2.a. (iii) "vehicular access to, and parking for, the facility;" to read, "Vehicular access and adequacy of travel ways and parking for the facility." This change was made, but was moved to section 5.1.44(d)(2)(e), as adequacy is not something to be shown on the plan by the applicant, but a matter to be judged by the Fire /Rescue department as they review the plan. Subsection (d)(2)(e) is the appropriate location for review standards. STRATEGIC PLAN: Goal: 2.1 Protect and/or preserve the County's rural character This text amendment is intended to maintain rural character by protecting the viability of existing and fixture agricultural operations. ZTA 05 -05 Worker Housing 2 BoS exec sum 091306.doc September 13, 2006 DISCUSSION: Requested Changes: On June 7, 2006, the Board considered the proposed amendment as revised by the Planning Commission. After considering the proposal, the Board decided to defer action so that staff could address the following items: Special use permits: o Issue: The Board directed staff to change the proposal to require special use permits for all farm worker housing facilities. o Solution: The attached version has been changed to remove the by -right "Class A" facilities and to require special use permits for all facilities. Commercial entrances: o Issue: The Board wanted to avoid requirements for commercial entrances where possible. o Solution: Section 5.1.44(d)(2)(b) of the attached amendment specifies that: Approval of the access to the site from a public street by the Virginia Department of Transportation; provided that nothing herein shall be deemed to require that a commercial entrance be constructed. This reflects the Board's intent that the County not require commercial entrances for these facilities. o Remaining Issue: While the County would not require commercial entrances for these facilities, entrance requirements will be set by the Virginia Department of Transportation based on their standards. County Engineering staff has explained that VDOT would be likely to require an entrance permit for either new entrances or entrance upgrades that served uses that were commercial or similar in character to commercial uses (as opposed to single private residences). VDOT would control the type of entrance to be built. Housing quality: o Issue: The Board wanted to ensure that this ordinance would not encourage the creation of housing facilities not suited for human habitation. o Solution: Housing quality for migrant farm workers is regulated with detailed standards by the US Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), under regulations contained in 29 CFR 1910.142. The Virginia Department of Health inspects the facilities to ensure that they meet those federal standards and any state requirements for camp operation as directed in 12 VAC 5- 501-10 et seq. Section 5.1.44(d)(2)(b) of the attached amendment has been changed to require that applicants submit a "[w]ritten approval of the farm worker housing facility as a migrant labor amp under 12 VAC 5- 501 -10 et seq." before receiving a zoning clearance for the use. In addition, Section 5.1.44(d)(2)(d) of the attached amendment now requires that facilities have "[w]ritten approval of the adequacy of the structures intended for human habitation by the building official" before issuance of the zoning clearance. Misuse: o Issue: The Board was concerned that abuses of this ordinance might lead to the creation of additional housing in the Rural Areas not related to legitimate agricultural uses. o Solution: Staff has added a new section- 5.1.44(a)(3) —that requires that: ZTA 05 -05 Worker Housing 3 BoS exec sum 091306.doc September 13, 2006 The concept plan shall include a written description of the type(s) of seasonal agricultural work to be performed on the farm by the persons housed in the farm worker housing facility. Use of the facilities for non -farm worker residents would be violation of the special use permit, and the Zoning Administrator could require that the violation cease. o Remaining Issue: If a plan was approved for a certain agricultural use and the landowner later needed to house workers for different agricultural use, the special use permit would have to be amended. This would create a burden for landowners. General Analvsis The Rural Areas chapter of the Comprehensive Plan contains the following policies for agricultural land uses: GOAL: Protect Albemarle County's agricultural lands as a resource base for its agricultural industries and for related benefits they contribute towards the County's rural character, scenic quality, natural environment, and fiscal health. OBJECTIVE: To support agricultural land uses and to create additional markets for agricultural products through creative economic and land use strategies. Housing for farm labor is a traditional part of some forms of agriculture in Albemarle County (especially in orchards), and is expected to be increasingly important in other forms, particularly vineyards. While the Zoning determination regarding farm- worker housing established that this use is not currently permitted by ordinance, allowing it to continue is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan policies. However, the proposed ordinance (Attachment A) would create significant restrictions and difficulties for landowners hoping to upgrade existing facilities or to build new ones. Even for small facilities, farm worker housing, which supports a preferred use in the Rural Areas, would be subject to more review and regulation than many other uses in the Rural Areas that do not support agriculture, forestry, or conservation. If such an abuse were likely in the Rural Areas, more convenient residential -type housing could be obtained through the use of guest houses or pool houses, which are permitted by -right in the RA, as long as there is no provision for cooking. Many of these guest houses come equipped with wet bars, creating an even greater potential for abuse. Due to the requirements proposed in this ordinance such as, restricting work location to the farm in which the housing is located and provisions contained in the definition (no waivers possible) requiring separate structures from sleeping for eating, food preparation and sanitation (bathing and or toilets), the risk for abuse through the unintended creation of new residential units is significantly reduced Staff feels that by focusing on potential abuses rather than the benefit to agriculture, the current proposal to require a special use permit for farm worker housing would create unnecessary difficulties for agriculture, while the overall potential for illegal dwellings is not greatly reduced. This concern is shared by the Farm Bureau, which participated in the development of the first proposed ordinance. The Farm Bureau has significant objections to the current state of the proposal (see their comments in Attachment B). In summary, their concerns are: • Increased expense and time delays due to the requirement for special use permit approval. (During discussions with staff, Farm Bureau representatives agreed that special use permits were appropriate if more than 20 workers would be housed.) • Concerns over potential misuse as dwelling units should be sufficiently addressed by the requirement that no single structure include all the facilities typical for dwelling units. • The relative importance of supporting agriculture compared to controlling any potential misuses, which could be controlled through monitoring and enforcement. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Board of Supervisors consider revisions to this proposed ordinance that would make facilities with 20 or fewer workers by right in the Rural Areas zoning district. ZTA 05 -05 Worker Housing 4 BoS exec sum 091306.doc September 13, 2006 ATTACHMENTS: A. Proposed Code Amendment for Section 3, 5, and 10 of the Zoning Ordinance B. Letter from A. Colquitt Shackelford, Jr., Albemarle County Farm Bureau ZTA 05 -05 Worker Housing 5 BoS exec sum 091306.doc September 13, 2006