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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 09/16/2014 - SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 116, 2014, EXTENDIAgenda Item 4 Item # 4 Page 1 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY September 16, 2014 City Council STAFF Laurie Kadrich, Community Development & Neighborhood Services Dir SUBJECT Second Reading of Ordinance No. 116, 2014, Extending Ordinance No. 024, 2013, Which Amended the Land Use Code by the Addition of a Temporary Planned Development Overlay Zone District for One Additional Year. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This Ordinance, unanimously adopted on First Reading on September 2, 2014, requests a twelve-month extension of the Planned Development Overlay District pilot to September 9, 2015. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on Second Reading. ATTACHMENTS 1. First Reading Agenda Item Summary, September 2, 2014 (w/o attachments) (PDF) 2. Ordinance No. 116, 2014 (PDF) Agenda Item 8 Item # 8 Page 1 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY September 2, 2014 City Council STAFF Laurie Kadrich, Community Development & Neighborhood Services Dir SUBJECT First Reading of Ordinance No. 116, 2014, Extending Ordinance No. 024, 2013, Which Amended the Land Use Code by the Addition of a Temporary Planned Development Overlay Zone District for One Additional Year. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The purpose of this item is to request a twelve-month extension of the Planned Development Overlay District pilot. STAFF RECOMMENDATION At the Planning and Zoning Board (P&Z) work session on August 8, 2014, staff recommended that the Planned Development Overlay District (PDOD) pilot expire, which would have required no additional action on the part of P&Z or City Council. P&Z discussed the PDOD pilot at their regular meeting on August 14. During citizen participation, three individuals spoke on behalf of the same potential project and requested that the pilot be extended. After discussion, the Board made a formal recommendation that Council extend the pilot. While staff remains unconvinced that the PDOD provides value to infill and redevelopment projects, there are no significant concerns with extending the pilot for an additional year. Therefore, staff recommends adoption of this Ordinance. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION To address the challenges of infill and redevelopment, staff worked collaboratively in 2011-2012 with the Planning and Zoning Board (P&Z) to develop the Planned Development Overlay District (PDOD), a unique zoning mechanism that blends the concepts of Planned Unit Developments and performance-based zoning. The PDOD provides flexibility on certain development regulations in the Land Use Code without having to use the existing Addition of a Permitted Use or Modification processes. In return for this flexibility, projects must achieve at least 60 points on a supplemental performance matrix that is designed to reward projects for going beyond minimum standards. The PDOD has a defined boundary, which was drawn to be consistent with the City’s targeted infill and redevelopment areas and Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Overlay District (PDOD boundary map attached). One final characteristic to note is that all PDOD projects are processed as Type 2, meaning P&Z is the decision-maker in terms of whether or not the project gets approved. Being an untested concept for the City, the PDOD was proposed first as a pilot to allow for real-world test cases. The pilot was unanimously recommended by P&Z and ultimately adopted by City Council on February 26, 2013; it provided a six-month window where PDOD submittals would be accepted, but the number of applications accepted was capped at five. The pilot began immediately after adoption and was set to expire on September 9, 2013. According to the PDOD Ordinance, City Council has the option to extend the pilot “in the event that, during the six-month term of its existence, there have been insufficient development proposals presented to the City within the boundaries of the PDOD map to adequately inform the City Council as to the viability of the District” (Ordinance No. 24 attached). ATTACHMENT 1 Agenda Item 8 Item # 8 Page 2 Despite efforts to market the PDOD to potential applicants, there were no submittals during the first six months of the pilot. At a work session on August 2, 2013, P&Z discussed whether or not to recommend extending the pilot. Staff presented feedback gathered from the local development community and citizen taskforce that was formed to help staff evaluate the PDOD (feedback summary attached). Ultimately, the Board agreed the best course of action was to extend the pilot for an additional year. City Council agreed and passed Ordinance No. 115, 2013 (attached), extending the PDOD pilot until September 9, 2014. Despite the high level of development activity since adoption of the pilot, zero projects have chosen to try the PDOD. Anecdotally, applicants are choosing the more predictable Land Use Code process which provides the opportunity to request modifications should their project require flexibility. The PDOD, on the other hand, was designed for complex projects, requires a greater level of review, is more subjective, and sets higher standards through the performance matrix. Staff was prepared to let the PDOD pilot expire on September 9 primarily because of the lack of interest in the last 18-months. Considering the projects that have been through development review in the same timeframe, it is difficult to make the case that the City’s Land Use Code is ineffective for infill and redevelopment. At the same time, the PDOD may still prove useful for a larger, complex project, and it requires minimal staff resources to continue the pilot. At their regular meeting on August 14, 2014, P&Z voted unanimously to recommend that City Council extend the PDOD pilot for an additional twelve-month period, making the new expiration date September 2015. The same conditions of the original pilot as established by Ordinance No. 24, 2013 would apply:  Only projects within the defined boundary area are eligible to use the PDOD.  Up to five PDOD submittals will be accepted within the twelve-month pilot extension.  City staff will collect data on any PDOD projects that submit, and with help from the citizen taskforce, evaluate how well the PDOD is working and report back to City Council.  Council will continue to have the option to extend the pilot should insufficient projects submit during the twelve-month timeframe. FINANCIAL / ECONOMIC IMPACTS The purpose of the PDOD is to reduce barriers for infill and redevelopment projects, which directly implements Economic Health Policy 4.2 from City Plan. Additionally, the performance matrix provides the opportunity for the economic benefits of a project to be considered; this is unique and not something that existing development review can take into consideration. Concern has been raised that complying with the PDOD (specifically, the performance matrix) may add cost to a development project. While it is true that the performance matrix rewards projects for going beyond minimum Land Use Code standards, it is very difficult to provide an accurate analysis of costs for a PDOD project because of the trade-offs and variety of options an applicant has to comply with the performance matrix. Financial impact is something the pilot will evaluate to determine whether the concerns raised are justified. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS Implementing the PDOD pilot would facilitate infill development and redevelopment projects throughout the boundary area, which may or may not have environmental issues to address. Article 3.4.1 of the Land Use Code, Natural Habitats and Features, must be complied with in its entirety, which maintains existing environmental protections from development activity. Additionally, the performance matrix provides the opportunity to reward projects that go beyond code minimums in terms of environmental protections and green/sustainable building/site design; this is a unique feature of PDOD that the existing development review process does not consider. Agenda Item 8 Item # 8 Page 3 BOARD / COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION The Planning and Zoning Board made a unanimous recommendation that City Council adopt the Ordinance. Minutes from the August 14, 2014, P&Z meeting are provided. PUBLIC OUTREACH Prior to the first extension of the PDOD pilot, the following outreach occurred:  Staff met with eight representatives from local planning/development firms prior to adoptions of the first pilot extension to understand what, if anything, they were hearing from their clients regarding the PDOD, and any general observations they had on why no PDOD pilot projects had been submitted. A similar conversation was had with City Planning staff based on input heard from recent applicants.  A citizen taskforce comprised of eight individuals was formed at the onset of the pilot, whose role was to assist staff with the evaluation of the PDOD. The taskforce met on three different occasions, and at the last meeting in summer of 2013, discussed whether or not the pilot should be extended. The group unanimously supported continuing the pilot, although there was not agreement on whether it should be extended as-is or whether it should be modified to be more enticing, e.g., expanding the PDOD boundary or lowering the point requirement on the performance matrix. Since adoption of the first extension in September 2013, no formal outreach has taken place. ATTACHMENTS 1. PDOD Pilot Boundary (PDF) 2. PDOD Ord 24 (PDF) 3. PDOD 2013 Feedback Summary (PDF) 4. PDOD Ordinance 115 (PDF) 5. Draft August 14, 2014 P&Z Minutes (PDF) - 1 - ORDINANCE NO. 116, 2014 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS EXTENDING ORDINANCE NO. 024, 2013, WHICH AMENDED THE LAND USE CODE BY THE ADDITION OF A TEMPORARY PLANNED DEVELOPMENT OVERLAY ZONE DISTRICT FOR ONE ADDITIONAL YEAR WHEREAS, on February 26, 2013, the City Council adopted on second reading Ordinance No. 024, 2013, amending the Land Use Code by the addition of a temporary Planned Development Overlay Zone District (“PDOD”); and WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 024, 2013, provides that, at the end of the pilot program, City staff will evaluate the program and report the outcomes to the City Council and, based on staff's report, the City Council will determine whether the PDOD should be continued, amended or terminated; and WHEREAS, since the adoption of Ordinance No. 024, 2013, no applications have been filed with the City for the processing of a development proposal under the PDOD and, therefore, no report has been prepared; and WHEREAS, on September 3, 2013, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 115, 2013, extending Ordinance No. 024, 2013 to September 9, 2014; and WHEREAS, on August 14, 2014, the Planning and Zoning Board recommended that the PDOD be extended for one additional year; and WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that it is in the best interests of the City to extend the PDOD adopted by Ordinance No. 024, 2013, for one additional year. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That Ordinance No. 024, 2013, amending the Land Use Code by the addition of a PDOD shall remain in effect until September 9, 2015, whereupon it shall terminate and be of no further force and effect unless extended by ordinance of the City Council. Section 2. That Section 4.29 (A)(2) of the Land Use Code is hereby amended to read as follows: (2) Applicability. Any property located within the PDOD (Figure 22) shall be eligible to develop according to the standards set forth in subsection (D) at the option of the developer. This Division shall be applicable only to an application for approval of a detailed development plan which has been filed with the City on or before September 9, 2015, unless said deadline has been extended by subsequent ordinance of the City Council. No more than five (5) applications shall be received and accepted for processing - 2 - during the effective term of this ordinance, which term ends on September 9, 2015; and the Director may determine to close the acceptance of applications prior to September 9, 2015, if necessary in order to properly and adequately process and administer the applications received. Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 2nd day of September, A.D. 2014, and to be presented for final passage on the 16th day of September, A.D. 2014. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ Chief Deputy City Clerk . Passed and adopted on final reading on the 16th day of September, A.D. 2014. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk