PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT
REGULAR AGENDA – PUBLIC HEARING ITEM
ITEM NO. 7: TEXT AMENDMENT TO SECTION 21-1201, CITY/COUNTY SUBDIVISION REGULATIONS (DDW)
TA-01-01-06: Consideration of repeal or amendment of the 50' setback along W. 6th Street/US 40 between Monterey Way & Wakarusa Drive (Chapter 21, Article 12). Initiated by the City Commission on January 17, 2006.
This item was forwarded to the Planning Commission by the City Commission on January 17, 2006. The action of the City Commission came with no recommendation.
Proposed amendments to the regulations are in bold.
ARTICLE 12. BUILDING SETBACKS, ENFORCEMENT, EXCEPTIONS
21-1201. BUILDING OR SETBACK LINES ON MAJOR STREETS OR HIGHWAYS.
Building and parking setback lines are hereby established on certain major streets or highways as follows: West Sixth Street from County Route 13 to Monterey Way: setback line of 50 feet, except that portion of 6th Street between Wakarusa Drive and Monterey Way, which will abide by the setback requirements of the controlling zoning district. (Ord. 6146)
21-1202. APPEALS-SETBACKS.
Notwithstanding Article 8 of this Chapter, any appeal of the building and parking setback line established for major streets or highways shall be to the Board of Zoning Appeals. The Board of Zoning Appeals shall have the power to modify or vary the building and parking setback line in specific cases in order that unwarranted hardship, which constitutes a complete deprivation of use as distinguished from merely granting a privilege, may be avoided. In the absence of such a hardship, the intended purpose of the building and parking setback line shall be strictly observed. (Ord. 6146)
21-1203. ENFORCEMENT.
No building or occupancy permit shall be issued for any new building within the plat approval jurisdiction of the City of Lawrence, or the unincorporated land in Douglas County, which fails to comply with the requirements of this Article. (Ord. 6146)
21-1204. EXCEPTIONS.
Any non-conforming residential building or structure located within the 50 foot building and parking setback, which is damaged by fire, flood, explosion, wind, earthquake, war, riot, or other calamity or Act of God, may be restored or reconstructed provided; said restoration or reconstruction occurs on the original foundation. The building or structure may not be rebuilt to a greater density than existed before the damage. (Ord. 6146)
The proposed amendment to Section 21-1201 of the joint City-County Subdivision Regulations addresses how much distance a property owner along 6th Street between Wakarusa Drive and Monterey Way is required to setback buildings and parking areas from the roadway. The proposed amendment requires those property owners to abide by the setback requirements for the controlling zoning district on the property instead of the 50 foot extraordinary requirement currently in place.
Article 12 of the Subdivision Regulations was adopted by the City of Lawrence and Douglas County in 1990 with the recommendation of the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission. Article 12 is rooted in the Western Development Plan which addressed the visual quality of the corridor. Policy 6 of the Western Development Plan states: “A 50 foot easement, in addition to right-of-way required for street and utility purposes, will be required for property being platted adjacent to and on each side of West Sixth Street. This easement will be used as greenspace easement to be landscaped and maintained by the developer or owner of the property”. The 50 foot setback establishes a buffer area that helps protect the visual integrity of the 6th Street corridor while also providing a buffer to properties that adjoin the 5-lane arterial road.
The distance between Wakarusa Drive and Monterey Way is approximately 1 mile. The property along this section of 6th Street is predominantly developed. There are 18 subdivisions, of which only one small parcel is undeveloped. There are 6 properties that are not platted, of which Bauer Farms remains the last to be developed. Of the subdivisions, 13 have a platted 50-foot setback.
It appears that Article 12 has been an effective tool for properly planning the development along 6th Street. There generally is a consistent 50 foot buffer area within this section of 6th Street. The buffer area helps this section retain a visual character that stands in contrast to that portion of 6th Street east of Monterey Way. The setbacks of parking and buildings east of Monterey Way typically fall well short of 50 feet and have no consistency of distance.
The benefit of this text amendment is providing those property owners yet to develop on 6th Street between Wakarusa and Monterey Way more flexibility in developing their properties. Redeveloping properties also could enjoy that benefit in the future. The effect, over the long-term, is that this portion of the corridor could lose its visual integrity and evolve into something more like 6th Street east of Monterey Way.
Consistency along the roadway is one of the keys to properly planning and maintaining the visual character of the roadway. Reducing the setback requirement from Wakarusa Drive to Monterey Way removes an important element in the consistency of planning and developing the visual character of the roadway and provides certain property owners along the roadway a benefit not previously enjoyed by others.
The text amendment, as presented, provides relief from the extraordinary 50 foot setback requirement by allowing the controlling zoning district setback to guide future development. The general zoning setback requirements for buildings along this corridor range from 25 to 30 feet. Planned development zoning districts have a 30 foot perimeter setback requirement. However, the Planning Commission is allowed to reduce the perimeter setback requirement to something less than 30 feet for planned developments.
It does not appear the benefits of the proposed text amendment outweigh the possible negative outcomes that may occur if this text amendment is adopted.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION