Planning committee looks to future

CLOVIS — The Clovis planning and zoning commission had some business in front of it during its Wednesday afternoon meeting, but also considered some future pressing items.

Within the next month, the commission expects to gain a new member. And a little more than a month away the city plans a town hall on its upcoming Unified Development Ordinance.

The commission unanimously recommended a pair of zone changes, allowing residents to place carports at 920 Fairmont Ct. and 100 Lynn Ave. Louis Gordon of the city’s building safety department said neither carport was pre-fabricated, and both were designed to match the current structures. Both items will likely be on the April 18 city commission agenda for final approval.

Before adjourning, commission members got a briefing on the resignation of member Carolyn Spence and a 6 p.m. May 15 town hall on the UDO at Clovis city hall.

Member resignation — The board received a letter of resignation from Spence, who with “great reluctance and appreciation” gave up the position due to ongoing vision troubles. The city has 30 days to appoint a replacement for Spence. The commission must, according to city code, be comprised of either Clovis citizens or people who own property in the city, with one member representing some utility. The utility requirement is met with Thom Moore of Farmer’s Electric serving.

Unified Development Ordinance — In 2016, the city retained consulting firm Duncan & Associates and Sites Southwest to complete a review and revision of the city’s zoning and subdivision codes. Along with the planning and zoning commission and city staff, the firm has worked on the UDO. A copy of the draft ordinance is available at:

cityofclovis.org

The UDO is an update to city zoning regulations, which largely haven’t been updated since 1989.

Many existing zones will retain their characteristics in the UDO, but do so under different names. The UDO also recognizes that more people work at home and includes regulations that are less stringent toward home-based businesses, daycares or short-term rentals like AirBnb.

The new code also covers items like electric car charging ports that may be a blip on the radar now but could become commonplace over the next few decades.