Title
Ordinance - Third and Final Reading on an Ordinance Amending Section 7960.B.11 of the Zoning Ordinance Regarding the Time Limits and Extension of Time Limits for Gas Well Drilling and Production (OA#15-003)
Requested Action
To consider the subject ordinance amendment
Recommendation
The Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on March 16, 2015, and voted 6 to 0 to recommend approval. Commissioner Smithee was absent.
Description/History
The purpose of this amendment is to clarify the language of the provision in Section 7960.B.11.b of the Zoning Ordinance and to create a procedure to request extensions of time, allowing for due process. Under the current regulations, any drilling, fracturing or completion operation at a drill site must cease if the operation was not finished within 5 years from the approval of the site’s Specific Use Permit (SUP). Although the original provision was drafted by the City Attorney’s office, the wording is confusing and does not include a process for an operator to request an extension of time.
The amendment will require an operator to submit an application for a new SUP and public hearings at the Planning & Zoning Commission and City Council. However, an operator of an existing drill site will not be required to obtain written consent from property owners within 600 feet of the site unless he proposes changes such as an increase in the number of wells, a change in the dimensions or size of the drill site or the original boundaries of the SUP, and/or the addition of equipment that was not approved with the preceding SUP.
An application for a new SUP under this amendment will also require that the drill site comply with the technical, operational and safety regulations in Chapter 114 of the Code of Ordinances.
Third and Final Reading
In accordance with the Council’s direction at the last meeting, the City Attorney has revised the language in Subparagraph 3 in Exhibit A related to the conditions in which wr...
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