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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES-07/26/1994-AdjournedJuly 26, 1994 COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS, COLORADO Council -Manager Form of Government Adjourned Meeting - 6:30 p.m. An adjourned meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins was held on Tuesday, July 26, 1994, at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the City of Fort Collins City Hall. Roll Call was answered by the Following Councilmembers: Apt, Azari, Horak, Janett, Kneeland, McCluskey and Smith. Staff Members Present: Jones, Krajicek, Roy. Appeal of the June 6, 1994, Decision of.the Planning and Zoning Board Approving the Indian Hills Village PUD, Final, Planning and Zoning Board Upheld, with conditions. The following is staff's memorandum on this item. "Executive Summar On June 6, 1994 the Planning and Zoning Board voted 6-0 to approve the Indian Hills Village PUD, Final with conditions regarding execution and filing of the utility plans and development agreement, height of homes on Lots 40 and 47, a variance to allow 7' wide on -street parking, and incorporation of a neighborhood agreement into the development agreement. The Indian Hills Village PUD is a residential development for 35 single family lots and 12 duplex lots on 6.25 acres with a gross residential density of 7.5 dwelling units per acre. The site is located on the south side of Stuart Street, east of Busch Court and West of Stover Street. The property is zoned RP, Planned Residential. The preliminary PUD was approved on January 24, 1994 with conditions regarding landscaping, parking width, and fire protection. On June 20, 1994 an appeal of the Board's decision was filed by homeowners on Busch Court, an adjacent neighborhood. In the statement of appeal, regarding the Board's decision on the final PUD, it is alleged that: 1) The Board did not properly interpret and apply relevant provisions of the Code and Charter. 2) The Board considered evidence relevant to its findings which was substantially false or grossly misleading. 3) The Board exceeded its authority or jurisdiction. 51 July 26, 1994 The procedures for deciding the appeal are described in Chapter 2, Article II, Division 3 of the City Code." City Attorney Steve Roy briefly described the procedure for appeals to the City Council. He stated the appeal is not to be an entirely new hearing but instead is to be a hearing on the record of the proceedings before the Planning and Zoning Board. The Council has been provided with the same materials reviewed by the Board plus a transcript and video tape of the June 6 hearing. Parties are given an opportunity to present their positions on why the Board decision should be overturned or upheld. No new evidence is permitted at these appeal hearings except if there is an allegation that the Board was mislead by some false or misleading evidence. At the end of the hearing the choices available to Council are to remand the matter to the Planning and Zoning Board for a new hearing if it believes the Board failed to conduct a fair hearing, or to uphold, overturn or modify the decision of the Planning and Zoning Board. Kirsten Whetstone, City Planner, described the Indian Hills Village PUD residential proposal. She spoke to the eight appeal allegations noted in the Notice of Appeal and stated the allegations had been addressed in the staff response to the appeal dated July 20, 1994. Bruce Cohen, 1812 Busch Ct., one of the representatives from the Busch Ct. Homeowners Association. He stated the appellants were not against the development and want to make it work. He stated the appellants believe there are ' very few changes that need to be made to mitigate the appellants' concerns. He reviewed the concerns listed the Notice of Appeal which centered around building placement and orientation, neighborhood compatibility (architecture), setbacks, landscaping, natural features, vehicular, pedestrian and bicycle traffic, and shading. Ron Follett, 1824 Busch Ct., spoke of building placement with respect to existing homes and of the potential for damage to trees and the drainage ditch. He spoke of safety concerns with regard to the ditch and described drainage concerns. Hari Iyer, 1840 Busch Ct., spoke of vehicular, pedestrian and bicycle traffic. He spoke of multiple access points on Stuart St. and of the proximity of three schools in the neighborhood. He stated the accident potential is high at the intersection of Stover and Stuart with the additional traffic to be generated and with the turn patterns proposed by the project. He asked that the necessary modifications to the development plan be made before final approval. Jonathan Prouty, President, Lagunitas Company, gave a slide presentation depicting the patio home project. He stated the project was an example of cooperation between the public and private sectors to make creative solutions 52 ' July 26, 1994 possible. He spoke of the efficient use of existing sewer and water line resources and of landscaping and drainage concerns. He spoke of neighborhood group meetings, a newsletter and 50-100 telephone and letter contacts to attempt to address neighborhood concerns. Dick Rutherford, consulting engineer, Stewart and Associates, addressed the storm drainage concerns along the west line of the property. He stated the utility plans have not been signed by the City Engineering Department but signing is getting very close. He noted the City Forester has indicated the drainage swale will not damage the existing Chinese Elm trees. George Betz, 1101 Kirkwood, one of the original developers of Indian Hills West, the first phase of this project, spoke of site limitations of this infill project and supported the project. Harold Syas, 636 Cheyenne Dr., N8, President of the Indian Hills West Townhomes Association, stated the Association Board was present and supported the project. Gene Scanlon, 636 Cheyenne Dr., #18, Indian Hills West, disagreed with the appellants' contention that the new project is incompatible with Indian Hills West. He stated the Board of Indian Hills West was very excited and in accordance with the plans for Indian Hills Village PUD. ' Rebuttal: Bruce Cohen, 1812 Busch Ct., stated the appellants have no problems with the quality of the design or with the lighting. The privacy, buffering, safety and offset issues still concern the appellants and have not been resolved. He stated the Indian Hills West townhomes are not as affected as the Busch Ct. homeowners. F Ron Follett, 1824 Busch Ct., pointed out the appellants do not object to the project but object to the need to get a 4-1 slope on the ditch behind their properties. Bonnie Weber, 1836 Busch Ct., questioned the accuracy of the artist's renderings shown by Mr. Prouty with regard to green space, landscaping, and driveway placement. Hari Iyer, 1840 Busch Ct., stated the appellants like the concept behind the project but want the safety, neighborhood compatibility, drainage, and privacy issues addressed. Jonathan Prouty, President, Lagunitas Company, responded to the building height, privacy, safety, landscaping and drainage concerns voiced. Councilmember Smith asked about the traffic volumes generated for this project. 53 July 26, 1994 Tom Vosberg, Transportation Planner,. spoke of the traffic study developed by the applicant's traffic consultant. He stated the consultant met with City staff and concluded that documenting the volume of turning traffic in and out of the entry- way would be sufficient traffic impact analysis. He noted the volume varies at different places along Stuart, but the average daily trips are approximately 6,400. Councilmember McCloskey asked City Forester Tim Buchanan for his opinion on the impact on the existing trees. City Forester Tim Buchanan replied that the row of 200-300 Siberian Elms on the west line of the property provide a visual screening for the neighbors. The preservation of those trees would best be accommodated by not disturbing the root systems at all. The management plan submitted calls for removal and replacement of those trees over a 10-year period. His recommendation was that to preserve the trees for a reasonable amount of time, enough undisturbed space around the bases would need to be provided. As described in the plan, there could be a significant amount of stress and mortality in as many as 15-20% of the trees over the next couple of years. The larger trees will suffer more because of the root cutting. The final stormwater design needs to accommodate the dimensions described in his recommendation in order to protect the trees. Civil Engineer Glen Schlueter stated staff is reviewing the stormwater design plans. He noted the proposal leaves the 4-6 ft. buffer but staff has asked for ' more detail. Kirsten Whetstone, City Planner, clarified that the Planning and Zoning Board imposed a condition on its approval that utility plans be finalized, approved and signed prior to filing of the plat which means no building permit could be issued. The Board was aware that the City Forester's recommendations need to be addressed by the storm drainage plan. Councilmember Horak asked if the utility plans must conform with the City Forester's recommendation. City Attorney Roy replied that it was his understanding that they must conform. Councilmember Janett asked if one or two-story units are indicated for the eight units on the west boundary and asked about the height and placement of the windows. Whetstone replied that the type of unit could be specified in the PUD. The current PUD states the structures will be a combination of one, one and a half, and two-story units. There is a maximum height on the PUD of 30 feet. Windows in all developments are in about the same locations. The extra 2-4 feet of height is coming in the pitch of the roof not in the living space. Second story windows are generally 12 foot off the ground. 54 ' July 26, 1994 Councilmember Janett asked if there has been any recent review of the turning movements related to the Stuart and Stover intersection. Vosberg replied that the traffic conditions on the entire Stuart corridor were reviewed and considered in the decision to maintain continuous bike lanes through the entire corridor. As a result of that work, it was concluded that no special mitigation was needed anywhere on Stuart including the jog at Stover. Transportation staff believes the new development can be handled safely. Councilmember Kneeland asked if the two units closest to the houses on Busch Ct. will be single story homes. Whetstone replied that Planning and Zoning had made that point a condition of final approval. There will be a note on the site plan that will restrict those two lots to a certain type building. City Attorney Roy stated that after a review of the transcript, it is not entirely clear that the utility plans would have to conform to the recommendations of the City Forester. He recommended that if that is important to the Council, it should be made an express part of any motion, if Council decides to uphold the Planning and Zoning Board decision. Councilmember Janett asked about the acceptability of the parking space variance from 8 foot to 7 foot. Whetstone responded that in this instance the variance was granted because Planning and Zoning believed that due to the constraints of the site, it was better to reduce the parking space from 8 foot to 7 foot rather than reduce the sidewalks from 4 foot to 3 foot. The Board believed it was better to compromise the convenience of the automobile over the safety and convenience of a pedestrian. Staff had recommended the sidewalk reduction. Councilmember Horak made a motion, seconded by Councilmember McCluskey, that the Planning and Zoning Board did conduct a fair hearing and did not exceed its jurisdiction. The vote on Councilmember Horak's motion was as follows: Yeas: Councilmembers Apt, Azari, Horak, Janett, Kneeland, McCluskey and Smith. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Councilmember McCluskey made a motion, seconded by Councilmember Smith, to uphold the decision of the Planning and Zoning Board, to. find that the Board did properly interpret and apply the relevant provisions of the Code and to add a condition that the City Forester's recommendation be incorporated into the approved utility plans. 55 July 26, 1994 1 Councilmember Kneeland stated she would support the motion and expressed appreciation for the neighborhood involvement in this project. Councilmember Janett supported the motion and pointed out the condition is designed to maintain the health of the trees while the replacement process goes on. She reminded that the two lots closest to the Busch Ct. neighborhood have a one-story unit restriction and that the other units along that boundary have their garages at the back part of the lot which means that even if they are two story, the higher part will be a further from the boundary line. The conditions and the layout will help protect the privacy of the Busch Ct. neighborhood. Councilmember Apt thanked the neighborhood for greatly improving the project with its participation. He stated the developer and staff did a great deal to mitigate neighborhood concerns. Councilmember Horak noted his support was in the gray area of support. He stated the neighborhood did an excellent job of presenting information; however, based on the information presented, Planning and Zoning made the right decision but it is a close call. Mayor Azari noted there had been an excellent presentation by the neighborhood. This project is an opportunity for Council to approve an innovative infill project. She asked that the neighbors continue to be in communication with each ' other and work closely as this development gets under way. The vote on Councilmember McCluskey's motion was as follows: Yeas: Apt, Azari, Horak, Janett, Kneeland, McCluskey and Smith. Nays: None THE MOTION CARRIED. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 8:30 p.m. Mayor City Clerk 56 '