PC Minutes 3/24/08
ITEM NO. 4A RS7 TO RS7-PD; 9.27 ACRES; 1301
Z-02-05-08: A request to rezone approximately 9.27 acres from
RS7 (Single-Dwelling Residential) to RS7-PD (Single-Dwelling Residential
Planned Development Overlay). The property is located along the west side of
ITEM NO. 4B
PDP-02-02-08: Preliminary Development Plan for
STAFF
PRESENTATION
Mr. Paul Patterson presented items 4A &
4B together.
Mr. Matt Bond, City Stormwater
Engineer, showed a map of the existing topography. He explained natural flow
and proposed system. He said that the biggest change would be the flow of
water. He stated that basins will hold water for 12-24 hours after rain.
Commissioner Harris asked if the entire
property drains to the park.
Bond stated that all except a little piece
on
Commissioner Harris asked Mr. Bond if he
has read the concerns of the neighbors and if he thought this would help.
Mr. Bond said yes he read the concerns and
this will help with the concerns.
(A gentleman from the audience who did not
state his name), Chair of Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, stated that
having the park used by the public would be good. He would like more details
about how the land will be developed.
APPLICANT
PRESENTATION
Mr. Allen Belot, agreed with Mr.
Patterson’s presentation. He felt this was a good infill development. He tried
to use the existing topography so as not to do a lot of excavation and by
putting the garages in the back would be using the natural elevation. He stated
that the alleys are not at the same level so connecting is not practical. He
objected to ‘walling off’ the development from the neighborhood. He did not
have a problem with preserving the historic weigh station. His only concern was
erosion that has built up dirt around the slab.
Commissioner Lawson asked Mr. Belot to walk the Commission through the entrance and exist
of the project with respect to
Mr. Belot said he
met with KDOT and they approved this plan contingent upon
Commissioner Lawson asked the applicant if
they had considered a lower density, especially along the north edge.
Mr. Belot said
they did not.
Commissioner Lawson asked if the entrance
onto
Mr. Belot
replied, yes.
Commissioner Lawson inquired about the
square footage of the houses.
Mr. Belot said
the houses would be around 1800 square feet.
Commissioner Lawson inquired about a fence.
Mr. Belot said it
was a requirement that the PDP must be walled off and that the home owners
association would maintain it.
Commissioner Lawson inquired about the
weigh station.
Mr. Belot said
the building would be preserved and become part of the park.
Commissioner Harris inquired about Mr. Belot’s interaction with the public.
Mr. Belot said he
has been working on the project for two years and have met with quite a few
people in the past year. He said this project has not been a secret and that it
has pretty much been the same plan for the past few years.
Commissioner Harris asked if
Mr. Belot
replied, yes.
Commissioner Harris asked if
Mr. Belot said
there was not enough right-of-way for that.
PUBLIC
HEARING
Mr. Bob Lichtwardt was concerned about the valid
covenant signed by all property owners. They do not agree with Staffs
interpretation that an alley can substitute as a street. He recapped his letter
that he submitted as correspondence. He was concerned that there are things
about the plan that violate the covenant. He would like for all lot and
structures to conform to the Rockledge Addition covenant and that the covenant be put on all plats. He said that if the plan was accepted
with the covenant being violated it would jeopardize the neighborhood for
future development.
Commissioner Hird stated that the
neighborhood had the right to enforce the covenant.
Mr. Lichtwardt said that going to court
would not be desirable.
Ms. Betty Lichtwardt, League of Women Voters,
referenced the letter they sent. She felt the waivers would set precedence.
Mr. Bill K. ?? (did not sign in), neighbor, spoke about section 20-701j. which requires buffering to protect neighborhoods from less
desirable ones. He was opposed to the project.
Lee Eldridge, lives on
Mr. Paul Kitos,
resident of
Gweneth Kitos, was concerned about
drainage.
Ms. Betty Lichtwardt,
Commissioner Finkeldei asked Ms. Lichtwardt
what she thought about closing off
Ms. Lichtwardt said that all the neighbors
agree with that.
Ursela ?? (did
not sign in), area neighbor, was concerned about where drivers would turn
around if
Commissioner Harris asked Staff if the
hammerhead would be installed by KDOT.
Mr. Patterson replied, yes, the alley to
the North goes up and it would need to be worked out the dimensions for the
hammerhead.
Ms. Susan B. (did not sign in),
Mr. Steve Heilman, was concerned about drainage.
Ms. Jeannie Pees, President of Sunset
Hills Neighborhood Association, said there was a need to have more open
dialogue between the developer, Planning Department, neighborhood, and stormwater engineer.
Mr. Mike Goans, representing Lawrence
Preservation Alliance, desired to see the weigh house be
preserved. He encouraged to have the structure
included in the park and covered by the Parks and Recreation Department.
Mr. Joe Mehl, lives on
Ms. Kylee Manahan,
APPLICANT
CLOSING COMMENTS
Mr. Belot said he
served on the Board of Zoning Appeals and he did not think that the variance
did not set a precedence. He stated that the project
met the zoning requirements and that the public alley is meeting all the public
requirements. He did not have any objection with screening and buffering.
Commissioner Harris inquired about the
setback waivers.
Mr. Belot said
that if this was not an infill development he would not ask for the waivers.
COMMISSION
DISCUSSION
The Commission discussed the concerns
brought up by the public.
Commissioner Finkeldei asked Mr. Bond to
respond to some of the public comments.
Mr. Bond showed runoff patters and contours
on a map.
ACTION TAKEN
ON ITEM 4A
Motioned by Commissioner
Finkeldei, seconded by Commissioner Moore, to approve the proposed rezoning of approximately 9.27 acres from
RS7 (Single-Dwelling Residential) District to RS7 (Single-Dwelling Residential)
with a Planned Development District Overlay and forwarding to the City
Commission a recommendation for approval based on the findings of fact as found
in the body of the staff report.
Motion
carried 7-0-1, with Commissioner Jennings abstaining.
ACTION TAKEN
ON ITEM 4B
Motioned by Commissioner
Finkeldei, seconded by Commissioner Moore, move to approve the following
waivers for University Park Preliminary Development Plan with a change to B
(20’ to 25’):
A. Waiver from the minimum lot size for RS7 lots from
7,000 square feet to a range of 4,441 to 10,266 square feet with the average
lot size of 5,862 square feet.
B. Waiver from the required front yard setback from 20’
to 25’.
C. Waiver from the required Common Open Space of 20%
(1.77 acres/8.86 acres) to 1.6% (0.14 acres/8.86 acres), after the dedication
of approximately 1.61 acres of park land to the City (1.61 acres/8.86 acres =
18.2%).
D.
Waiver from the
required 60’ peripheral boundary between a Planned Development and abutting
properties:
1.)
Setbacks vary
(from proposed 10’, 15’, 20’ and location of three existing houses along
2.)
Minimum PDP lot sizes along periphery
boundaries vary from 5,120 square feet to 8,183 square feet with the average
lot size of 6,073 square feet. Abutting properties range in size from 7,950 to
12,617 square feet.
Commissioner Harris said
she would vote against this and would like to defer it for one month.
Motion
carried 4-3-1, with Commissioner Eichhorn, Finkeldei, Hird, and Moore voting in
favor. Commissioners Blaser, Harris, and Lawson voted in opposition.
Commissioner Jennings abstained.
Motioned
by Commissioner Finkeldei, seconded by Commissioner Moore, to approve the University Park Preliminary Development
Plan based upon the findings of fact presented in the body of the Staff Report
and forwarding the PDP to the City Commission for approval, subject to the
following conditions (This recommendation includes the Planning Commission’s
approval of the preliminary plat and the City Commission’s acceptance of the
dedication of rights-of-way and easements).
1.
The approved uses for the University Park PD are detached single-family
dwellings, common open space, and additional land dedicated to the City’s
2.
As required by subdivision regulations, street and sidewalks connection
of
3.
Agreement Not to Protest the Formation of a Future Benefit District for
geometric and infrastructure improvements to Iowa Street (street widening,
sidewalks, and turning lanes) must be executed by the applicant and provided to
the Planning Office prior to recording of the Final Development Plan.
4.
Provision of a
revised Preliminary Development Plan with the following changes:
a.
The dead-end north-south alley shall be connected to the east-west
alley with turning radii to the approval of the City Engineer, unless waived by
City Engineer due to slop changes.
b.
Modify General Note No. 10, update the referenced tract/block numbers,
and include the dedication of Tract B4 to the City for additional park land to
c.
List the waivers, as approved by the City Commission, within the
‘Waivers Block’ on both the Preliminary Development Plan and Final Development
Plan.
d.
Provide traffic calming on
e.
Update Additional Condition Note No. 1 to reflect current code section.
f.
Relocation of the residential Lot 12, Block 4 (containing the existing
Quarry Weigh Station stone building) to the northwest area of Tract B-4, and
dedication of the lot containing the Quarry Weigh Station to the City as park
land, and relocation of lots containing waivers.
g.
Update the referenced tracts on the site summary to correspond with the
development plan graphics.
h.
Modify ‘Additional Condition Note No. 5’ to agree with the graphic note
referencing the signage and fencing for the preservation of the wooded areas.
i.
Provide curb and gutter on the west side of
j.
Per Section 20-701(j)(2), at a minimum, screening with a 6’ high fence
be applied to the northern property boundary of the PDP and the west property
boundaries of Block Two, Lot 3 and Block Three, Lot 3 and the property to the
south of Quarry Lane.
k.
Per Section 20-1304(iii)(u) provide at least
one north-south and one east-west elevation across the site to show typical
site layout and grade.
l.
Per Section 20-1304(iii)(v) show the required
landscape plan in conformance with Section 20-1001(d).
m.
Provide the standard note that the City will not be responsible for any
damage due to trash trucks for the private streets and alleys.
n.
Per Section 20-1304(d)(3)(s), provide the
following note, “We hereby dedicate to the City of Lawrence, the right to
regulate any construction over the area designated as common open space, open
air recreation area, and non-encroachable area and to
prohibit any construction within said areas and spaces inconsistent with the
approved use or enjoyment of residents, lessees and owner of the planned
development.”
o.
Per Section 20-812(a)(5)(ii), provide the
Minimum Elevation for a Building foundation Opening (MEBO’s)
for lots adjacent to all drainage easements and drainageways.
p.
Per Sections 20-812(a)(3)(i)
and 20-1304(d)(3)(g), provide grades of the proposed streets.
5.
Submittal and approval of public improvement plans to Public Works
Department and Utilities Department prior to the submittal of the Final
Development Plan.
Motion
failed 3-4-1, with Commissioners Eichhorn, Finkeldei, and Moore voting in
favor. Commissioners Blaser, Harris, Hird, and Lawson voted in opposition.
Commissioner Jennings abstained.
Motioned by Commissioner
Harris, seconded by Commissioner Hird, to defer the Preliminary Development
Plan for one month to allow staff, developer, stormwater
engineer, and neighborhood to meet and discuss issues (stormwater
issues, covenant issues, road being close to house, definition of alley versus
street, resolve hammerhead/turnaround issue)
Motion
carried, 5-2-1, with Commissioners Finkeldei and Moore voting in opposition.
Commissioner Jennings abstained.