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staff visited the site, it was clear that it was a very short distance, and the Fire Chief and Fire Marshall agreed that there would be no widening necessary for that particular point. For the EVA beyond that point, for about 130 feet, it would be widened to a full 20-foot wide improved access road. In response to an inquiry by Commissioner O’Connor regarding the EVA right-of-way and the 20-percent grade in the short run of the EVA, Ms. Decker replied that the information provided by the Fire Chief on June 13, 2007 reflected that the although the Code provided a certain measurement, they had the ability through the Code to evaluate an appropriate grade on a case-by-case basis. With respect to other projects, the City has gone up to 20 percent and has approved and implemented projects with short runs of 20-percent grades, as evidenced by the Reznick property, which was approved unanimously by the Planning Commission and City Council. With respect to the language “if it cannot, then additional right-of-way would need to be acquired,” she was somewhat uncomfortable with the language, but it was a standard, overarching comment that appeared in City documents. She added that this was an easement, not a right-of-way; Public Works may be able to address that issue if desired. Staff believed that the road could be built within the 20-foot width that was provided. Mr. Roush advised that if the road could not be built within the 20-foot width provided, the cited language would apply that something else must be done to build the access road. If that occurred, the cost would fall on the developer if it could not otherwise be negotiated. Commissioner O’Connor would like to hear from the Fire Chief again on this issue and wanted to ensure that the City was not taking an action that ultimately could be found in the future to have been illegal or for which the City could be found liable by making a certain approval. He inquired about the amount of latitude allowed by the 12-percent grade. Chairperson Fox inquired when the Commission may be able to weigh in on alternative EVA’s and inquired whether another EVA would be possible without the steep slope. Fire Chief Cody noted that there were requirements for emergency vehicle access road, and where they go was based on good exiting requirements. For instance, an EVA or second egress would not be adjacent to the primary road; separation was necessary in the event that should an ingress or egress became inaccessible, there would be a separate route that could be used. With respect to the grade, much of the determination came from the run; while there could be short distances that a fire truck could easily negotiate that exceed the requirement, a long run with a steep grade would make it extremely difficult and inadvisable for an EVA to be placed on the route. When he and the Fire Marshall visited the site, he drove his two-wheel-drive SUV up the easement to get an idea on whether it would be passable by the fire engines. With the improvements, it seemed that the existing easement would meet the Fire Department’s requirements as a secondary access and potential evacuation route for the development. He believed it was appropriately placed based on how the development spread across the hillside. They did PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 27, 2007 Page 14 of 28