PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT

Non-Public Hearing Item

 

PC Staff Report

07/24/06

ITEM NO. 4B:                             REPLAT OF HOMEWOOD GARDENS ADDITION; LOTS 1-4, BLOCK 9 & LOTS 4-6, BLOCK 10 (MKM)

 

 

PF-06-14-06: 

REPLAT OF HOMEWOOD GARDENS ADDITION; LOTS 1-4, BLOCK 9 & LOTS 4-6, BLOCK 10 (MKM)

 

Replat of Homewood Gardens Addition, replat of lots 1-4, block 9 & lots 4-6, block 10. Submitted by Bartlett & West Engineers, Inc, for Tenants to Homeowners, Inc, property owner of record.

 

 

STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval  of the Replat of Homewood Gardens Addition and forwarding it to the City Commission with a recommendation for acceptance of easements and rights-of-way subject to the following conditions: 

 

1.       Submission of public improvement plans prior to the recording of the Final Plat with the Register of Deeds Office.

2.       Recordation of pedestrian access easement to the linear park by separate instrument.

3.       Provision of revised plan with the following changes:

a.  Book and Page Number of pedestrian access easement noted;

b.  Note added granting ‘temporary right of entry’ for City to plant Street Trees.

c.  10’ utility easement along the front of the property reduced to 7.5’.

d.  10’ Westar easement required along the northern property line of Lot 1.

4.       Provision of the following fees and recording documentation:

a.      Recording fees made payable to the Douglas County Register of Deeds;

b.      Provision of a revised master street tree plan. The notes concerning credit for existing street trees and protection measures must be listed on the Master Street Tree Plan.

 

Applicant’s Reason for Request:

Reconfiguration of property to include vacated portion of La Salle Street and for development of 10 single-family residences. 

 

KEY POINTS

§         Application is preparatory to development on site.

§         Pedestrian access to the linear park will be dedicated along Ward Street approximately 160 ft to the north.

§         The right-of-way for La Salle Street is being vacated with this plat.

§         Application was submitted before July 1st, and is being considered under the 1966 Zoning Ordinance and Subdivision Regulations. Any reference to the Code in this report is to the 1966 Code.

 

SUBDIVISION CITATIONS TO CONSIDER

·         No proposed variances associated with this request.

 

ASSOCIATED CASES/OTHER ACTION REQUIRED

§           Homewood Gardens Suburban Addition original plat.

§           Z-05-13-06: Rezoning from RS-2 [RS7] to RS5, is also listed on the July Planning Commission agenda.

§           Dedication of pedestrian easement from Bullene Street to the linear park, along Ward Street.

§           Acceptance of easements, additional right-of-way for Bullene Avenue and the vacation of existing utility easement and La Salle Street right-of-way by the City Commission.

§           Public Improvement Plans submitted to Public Works Department.

§           Recordation of final plat.

 

PUBLIC COMMENT RECEIVED PRIOR TO PRINTING

§           Letter of support from Aaron Brown, President of Brook Creek Neighborhood Association which encouraged the City to address drainage problems along the Burroughs Creek corridor while planning for the development of this project.

§           Letter of support from Janet Good, of Old East Lawrence Neighborhood Association.

§           Letter of support from Matthew R Tomc, President of The Woods on 19th Homeowner’s Association, Inc., expressing support for the project.

 

 

GENERAL INFORMATION

 

Current Zoning and Land Use: 

 

 

 

 

Surrounding Zoning and Land Use:

RS7 (Single-dwelling Residential) District (RS-2 in previous Code); previously developed as residential, now vacant as flood-damaged houses have been razed.

 

 

RS7 (Single-dwelling Residential) District to the east (RS-2 in previous Code); single-family homes and light industrial uses such as contractor shop and mini storage.

 

RS7 (Single-dwelling Residential) District to the west (RS-2 in previous Code); future City linear park.

 

PUD (Planned Unit Development) further to the west and north (PRD-1 in previous Code). Single-family homes.

 

IL (Limited Industrial) District to the south and southeast (M-1A in previous Code); Light industrial uses, such as contactors shop and undeveloped property (proposed future Salvation Army site).

 

 

 

Site Summary

 

 

Number of Lots:            10 lots

 

Gross Area:

1.40 acres

 

Minimum Lot Size:

5,055 sq. ft. (.12 acre)

 

Maximum Lot Size:

6,591 sq. ft. (.15 acre)

 

Rights-of-way:

La Salle Street right-of-way is being vacated with this plat.

5’ of additional right-of-way is being dedicated for Bullene Avenue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

STAFF REVIEW

The subject property is located at on the west side of Bullene Avenue to the south of Ward Street. The property is adjacent to the future City ‘Rails to Trails’ linear park. The land had previously been developed with single family homes. However, flooding damaged the homes and the City purchased the property and razed the homes in the mid-1990s. The property is being donated to Tenants to Homeowners for development of affordable housing. Stormwater drainage improvements have removed this property from the floodplain. The City Stormwater Engineer has reviewed and approved this plat.

 

Streets and Access

The property lies on the west side of Bullene Avenue. Part of the land transfer agreement was the requirement that pedestrian access to the future City park to the west would be provided on the final plat. The pedestrian access will be provided along Ward Street, rather than reducing the buildable area of the subject lots. A 10’ pedestrian and bicycle easement currently exists at Ward Street and the applicant will dedicate an addition 20’ of pedestrian and access easement to the rail corridor on Lot 14, Block 1 which is also owned by TTH. This easement will be dedicated by separate instrument and the Book and Page No. will be noted on the final plat. A 5’ sidewalk will be constructed along Bullene Avenue and is noted on the plat.

 

Utilities and Infrastructure

 

The sanitary sewer line needs to be extended for several lots. Lots 4-10 do not have a sanitary sewer main that is available for private sanitary sewer connection.  Public improvement plans will need to be submitted to the Public Works Department prior to recording of the final plat. Waterline front footage fees will be due upon application for service.

 

Easements and Rights-of-way

Easements which are no longer needed are shown on the plat as being vacated. The 6’ utility easement which crosses Lot 1 about 15’ from the northern property line has been increased to 10’. Bullene is a local street which requires 60’ of right-of-way. Currently, the street has a 50’ right-of-way. The final plat will dedicate 5’ of additional right-of-way to provide 30’ of right-of-way from the street centerline. Southwestern Bell required a 10’ utility easement along the front property line which is shown on the plat. However, this easement conflicts with the planting of street trees, so the utility easement must be reduced to 7.5’. Westar requires a 10’ utility easement along the northern property line of Lot 1.

 

Summary

 

The Replat for Homewood Gardens Addition is in substantial compliance with Zoning Ordinance and Subdivision Regulation requirements.