Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Douglas County

Planning & Development Services

 

TO:

Planning Commission

 

FROM:

Mary Miller, Planner

 

Date:

July 15, 2016

 

RE:

Item No. 2:  Z-16-00147 – GPI to IG, 7.7 acres located at 711 E 23rd Street

 

Attachments:

Attachment A: Traffic Impact Study

Attachment B: June Planning Commission Staff Report

 

Staff Recommendation:

Staff recommends the approval of the rezoning request from GPI (General Public and Institutional Use) to IG (General Industrial), for approximately 7.7 acres located at 711 E 23rd Street based on the findings listed in the June staff report and the additional information provided by the First Student Management and the Traffic Impact Study.

 

Background

 

The Planning Commission held a public hearing on the rezoning request for 711 E 23rd Street/K10 Highway at their June meeting and deferred action to the July meeting. The Commission directed the applicant to provide a Traffic Impact Study evaluating the impact of the proposed use Fleet Storage on the adjacent street network and nearby residential neighborhood. Two members of the public spoke at the Commission meeting with concerns regarding the safety of the proposed location’s access to E 23rd Street/K10 and the possible impact on nearby residential properties.  The Commission also directed staff to expand the notification area to include the residential properties near Learnard Street.  The notification area was expanded from 200 ft to 1,000 ft from the subject property boundaries to include this area.

 

The applicant provided a Traffic Impact Study which is included with this memo as Attachment A. The following is a discussion of the study and the recommendations.

 

TRAFFIC IMPACT STUDY   JULY 8, 2016

The study notes that the site is bordered on the north by two streets: E 23rd Street/ K10 Highway, an arterial, and N Perimeter Road, a local street. The study identifies a portion of N Perimeter Road as a private street along the north side of Haskell Indian National University.

 

The study noted that the transportation provider, First Student, has a fleet of 88 buses of which 78 are in routine service with 10 buses being kept as spares when buses need maintenance. Approximately one-half the fleet are 40 ft long and the other are the smaller buses. First Student has a policy which restricts bus movements across E 23rd Street/K10. At the current location buses may only enter and exit the site via a westbound right-turn.  

Figure 1. Scenario # 1 site access.

 

The traffic study looked at several scenarios (Page 3-4) but concluded by recommending Scenario # 1.  (Figure 1) Scenario # 1 would use the access on to E 23rd Street/K10 Highway and continue the policy of restricting bus movements to right-in and right-out movements. This prevents the buses from making left turns across E 23rd Street/ K10 Highway. The study states that “...sight distance is sufficient for all vehicles, passenger cars and buses, to make all turning movements from a stopped condition at this access point to/from 23rd Street.” The City Engineer agreed that Scenario #1 would be the best option.

 

The TIS study recommends a scenario that provides a safe ingress/egress for the school buses and addresses the concerns of the Barker Neighborhood regarding bus traffic through the residential neighborhood.

 

BUS SYSTEM ROUTING:

The following information was provided by Wayne Zachary, Branch Manager First Student regarding their routing policy for the school buses:

 

“Our egress/ingress plan for the proposed facility would have our buses exit the facility onto 23rd Street Eastbound. From there buses to the South, West, and Northwest areas would utilize Haskell Avenue to either the new SLT or 31st Street. Buses going to the North or central parts of town would utilize Haskell Avenue to the North and utilize 19th, 15th, or 11th Streets. Bus drivers would be instructed as part of our return policy to utilize these routes for return to the lot.

 

We do not plan on any left turns onto or off of 23rd Street entering or exiting the lot. Louisiana Street and Massachusetts Street would both be alternative routes for return to the lot.

 

There is the possibility of some buses being routed for pickups, primarily for Special Needs students in the Barker Neighborhood areas. There may also be right turns off of 23rd Street onto Learnard to access the frontage road. However, any use of Learnard or Barker Avenue will be limited and minimal.”

 

CONCLUSION

The Traffic Impact Study recommends a scenario in which there would be no buses making left turns across E 23rd Street; all buses would make right turns when exiting and entering the facility. The First Student management indicated that neither Learnard Avenue nor Barker Avenue would be utilized as a route to and from the facility but they may be used for pick-ups in the neighborhood. Based on this information, and the additional review that will occur with the site planning of the property, the rezoning of the property from GPI to IG should have minimal impact on the neighborhood.