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Home My WebLink AboutHUMAN BEAN - Filed GC-GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE - (3)3555 Stanford Road, Suite toy Fort Collins, Colorado 8o525 Phone: (970) z26-4074 Fax: (970) z26-4i96 www.cityscapeud.com e@cityscapeud.com Request for Modification of Standard Orientation to a Connecting Walkway and Orientation to Build -to -Lines for Streetfront Buildings July 21, 2004 The right to request this modification to the Land Use Code and procedure is set forth in Division 2.8.2 Modification Review Procedures of the City of Fort Collins Land Use Code. 1) This letter is requesting a modification to Land Use Code Section 3.5.3 (B) (1) and (2) to allow the a vehicle use area between the building fagade and a street (N. College Avenue.) 2) This letter is also requesting a modification to Land Use Code Section 3.5.3 (B) (2) (c) to allow the proposed building setback to be greater than the twenty-five (25) feet behind the street right-of-way of an adjoining street that is larger than a two-lane arterial street. General Operations of Proposed Use The Human Bean coffee drive thru is a ± 400 square foot drive through restaurant proposed at 799 N. College Avenue. Business is conducted by providing drivers to order, pay and receive coffee and limited food items while remaining in their vehicle. The driver also has the option of parking the vehicle and using a walk up window to receive their product. The drive-thru window is the primary means of service for this use. The vehicular circulation and site use allow the driver to enter and exit the site from a single access point along the N. College Street frontage. The Colorado Department of Transportation Short Term Access Control Plan has determined that the site will be allowed only a single point of access. The driver has the option of using one of two drive-thru lanes located on either side of the building. Once the driver reaches the window, the driver orders, pays and receives their product. The driver then exits the site through the single point of access. Two drive-thru windows are provided for the driver to limit the wait time for ordering. Modifications Requested and Grounds for Approval Section 2.8.2 (H) (3) Modification Review Procedures allows the Planning and Zoning Board to grant a modification of standards only if it finds that the granting of the modification would not be detrimental to the public good, and that: 3) "by reason of exceptional physical conditions or other extraordinary and exceptional situations, unique to such property, including, but not limited to, physical conditions such as exceptional narrowness, shallowness or topography, or physical conditions which hinder the owner's ability to install a solar energy system, the strict application of the standard sought to be modified would result in unusual and exceptional practical difficulties, or exceptional or undue hardship upon the owner of such property, provided that such difficulties or hardship are not caused by the act or omission of the applicant; or" 1. Pedestrian Oriented Street Front 1-A Code Section 3.5.3 (B) (1)) Orientation to a Connecting Walkway and Section 3.5.3 B) (2) Orientation to Build -to Lines for Streetfront Buildings Code Sections 3.5.3 (B) (1) and (2) provides in part that "At least one (1) main entrance of any commercial or mixed -use building shall face and open directly onto a connecting walkway with pedestrian frontage. " And; The site provides "pedestrian -oriented streetfronts with no vehicle use area between building faces and the street. " The applicant requests that these code walkway to cross from the street sidewalk along vehicular use area. Justification sections be modified to permit the connecting N. College Avenue to the building by crossing a The site's access point along N. College Avenue — a physical condition of the site - limit the owner's ability owner to provide a dedicated "entrance only" and dedicated "exit only" access onto the subject property. The applicant originally proposed that a dedicated entrance drive and separate dedicated exit drive exist on site to allow for the "connecting walkway" to meet the street sidewalk along N. College Avenue. The Colorado Department of Transportation Short Term Access Control Plan dictates a single point of access to the site and thus limits the ability to provide the connecting walkway" where "pedestrian -oriented streetfronts with no vehicle use area between building faces and the street" can exist. A second physical condition of the site is it's narrowness. The narrowness of the site limits the ability to provide turning movements such that a vehicle cannot maneuver to avoid crossing the connecting walkway". The site is approximately 100' in width north to south. 2. Build to Line 1-A Code Section 3.5.3 (B) (2) (c) Orientation to Build -to Lines for Streetfront Buildings Code Section 3.5.3 (B) (2) (c) provides that "Buildings shall be located at least ten (10) and no more than twenty-five (25) feet behind the street right-of-way of an adjoining street that is larger than a two-lane arterial that does not have on -street parking. " The applicant requests that this code section be modified to permit the building to be located more than 25' back from the future right-of-way of N. College Avenue. As proposed on the concept plan the building is located approximately 82' from the future N. College Avenue right of way. Justification Section 3.5.3 (B) (2) (d) (1) and (2) allow for exceptions to the build -to line be permitted: in order to form a patio or courtyard with associated amenities. The applicant is proposing a patio with umbrella -covered tables, a bike rack, landscaping to form a sense of enclosure and tree plantings to provide shade. The patio is intended to provide a shaded seating area for pedestrians to enjoy. The patio is located away from N. College Avenue — an adjacent (6) lane arterial street where high volumes of traffic and high vehicle speeds are present. Other site issues determining the building setback are the single point of access from N. College Avenue to the site and the site circulation pattern. Vehicles entering the site from N. College Avenue will be able to stop for pedestrians present in the enhanced crosswalk. This enhanced crosswalk provides pedestrians a visual connection from the street sidewalk to the walk-up window. The area for stopped vehicles and vehicular stacking requirements places the building further back from the future right-of-way of N. College Avenue. Section 3.2.2 (c) (5) Access, Circulation and Parking — Walkways b) Street Crossings. Where it is necessary for the primary pedestrian access to cross drive aisles or internal roadways, the pedestrian crossing shall emphasize and place priority on pedestrian access and safety. The material and layout of the pedestrian access shall be continuous as it crosses the driveway, with a break in continuity of the driveway paving and not in the pedestrian access way. The pedestrian crossings must be well -marked using pavement treatments, signs, striping, signals, lighting, traffic calming techniques, median refuge areas and landscaping. (See Figure 3.) For compliance with the standards, the applicant proposes a design that addresses these issues as follows: A. Where the walkway crosses the vehicle use area, the walkway will be delineated with colored concrete; B. Signs will be posted to warn vehicle users to yield to pedestrians C. Pedestrian lighting will be provided D. Landscaping will be provided to allow an unobstructed view between the driver and the pedestrian E. Bicycle facilities have been provided for the pedestrian F. The walkway connects directly to the patio seating area and to the walkup window. Conclusion The Planning and Zoning Board has the authority to grant the modifications as requested as provided in Section 2.8.2 (H) of the Land Use Code given that the proposed plan is not detrimental to the public good and by reason of "exceptional physical conditions or other extraordinary and physical conditions". The applicant maintains that the single point of access to the site from N. College Avenue represents such a condition. The Land Use Code also allows for consideration where sites have limitations "such as exceptional narrowness", which also apply to this site. By granting these modifications, the development will be enhanced, this development can be a positive contribution to the development that exists along the N. College Avenue corridor and be beneficial to the residents in this area of Fort Collins. Solid grounds exist for granting the modifications to the pedestrian access to cross a vehicle use area and to allow the building to be setback from the build to line. Thank you for the opportunity to submit these requests for modifications. in er y, Joe Carter Cityscape Urban Design Attachments: 8.5" x 11" — Site and Landscape Plan 8.5" x 11" — CDOT Short Term Access Control Plan OC1WO'IO0'SNI IgOD ixo3 !i j mV'Id WfuCl2[D IO0 Egg a iw `o Z 0- afIMaAV 9091100 HIXOM im- 7u mjdaouoo\6Mp\q ZLV1000VV 0 if] mvgclIvfucla3I00LLI im-,—ur aClKaAd 303TI00 HIXOM telisx\lenldaouoo\Bmp\9ZLt,\OOOti\: J 0-?0 7f+> O-2 ow W ZD gz a> a 0 Z V0 W !— UO I<Z