SITE PLAN REVIEW

February 7, 2006

 

A.                 SUMMARY

 

SP-01-06-06: Co-Location on City Hall, a site plan for co-location of communication equipment on the roof of City Hall located at 6 E. 6th Street. Submitted by Lawrence Freenet. City of Lawrence; property owner of record.

 
B.        GENERAL INFORMATION

 

 

Current Zoning and Land Use:

M-2 (General Industrial) District; City Hall Offices

 

Surrounding Zoning and Land Use:

M-2 (General Industrial) District to the east and west; park property and public right-of-way to the west and parking garage and commercial building to the east.

 

C-3 (Central Commercial) District to the south; parking lot and Journal World building.

 

C-4 (General Commercial) District to the north; Bowersock Dam and Consolidated Barbwire building.

 

Site Summary:

Gross Area:

4.49 acres including parking garage area to the east.

Existing Building

Existing 4 story building.

Proposed construction

Addition of roof-mounted antenna

Off-Street Parking Required:

None

 

Staff Recommendation: Planning staff recommends approval of the site plan subject to the following conditions:

 

1. Execution of necessary agreements with the City.

2. Review and approval of the request by the Historic Resources Commission.

 

 

C.        STAFF REVIEW

 

The subject property is located on the north side of E. 6th Street and is at the north end of the Downtown Business District. The proposed request is for the addition of roof mounted equipment and is described in the application as the “backbone of the data service to the downtown wireless project.”  The property is owned by the City of Lawrence and is developed with a multi-story office building. There are no proposed changes to the building, parking or access to the site other than the addition of communication equipment. There is no equipment cabinet associated with this request.

 

The existing structure [City Hall] predates site plan requirements for building in an industrial district.

 

The proposed request represents one of a series of requests to co-locate on public properties. The Stratford water tower, W. 6th Street water tower, and City Hall sites provide a basic framework for the provision of internet data service to the community. The Downtown area is unique and will be followed with requests for location on traffic signals along Massachusetts Street at the intersections of 7th, 8th, 9th 10th, and 11th Streets. This type of consideration – use of traffic signals in public right-of-way -- does not require a site plan review. However, such a proposal is subject to review by the Historic Resources Commission under K.S.A.  75-2715 to 75-2725 and any pertinent codes and design guidelines. That proposal will be a separate action going directly to the City Commission following HRC review and action.

 

Section 20-1428 of the Zoning Regulations provides the criteria to evaluate the use as either a significant or minor alteration.

 

·         The proposed change does not include any alteration to the existing building footprint or size. [(a)The development results in the construction of a building, structure, or addition that increases the gross square footage of the existing development by more than ten percent (10%); provided, that separate incremental developments below the 10% amount shall not be used to avoid the requirements of Sections 20-1428:1435 if in the aggregate the developments over a period of 18 months would meet those requirements]  

·         The proposed equipment addition represents less than 10% of the total value of the property [(b)The estimated construction costs of the development exceeds ten percent (10%) of the most recent appraised fair market value of the existing property as determined by the County Appraiser, provided, that separate incremental developments below the 10% amount shall not be used to avoid the requirements of Sections 20-1428:1435 if in the aggregate the development over a period of 18 months would meet those requirements]

·         No new parking areas are proposed that add impervious cover to the site that did not previously exist. [(c) The construction or paving of any parking lot or facility which covers ground previously not used as a parking lot or facility, or the construction or paving of any parking lot or facility which does not conform to City pavement standards pursuant to 20-1217].

·         Section 20-1428 (3)(d) regarding the definition of a significant alteration states; “The alteration or intensification of any use which increases off-street parking requirements pursuant to Article 12 of this Chapter.”  The proposed site plan is not an intensification of the use.

 

In staff’s opinion, the proposed changes satisfy the definition of a minor alteration. The proposed request is part of a development package that includes placement of similar equipment on both public and private properties to provide free internet access service within the City of Lawrence. Staff recommends approval of the site plan for the proposed communication co-location subject to approval by the City and execution of appropriate agreements regarding use of public buildings and access to the equipment.