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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHOWES/CANYON MIXED-USE (CORTINA) - PDP - 45-02 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - PLANNING OBJECTIVESPRINCIPLE HSG —1: A variety of housing types and densities will be available throughout the urban area for all income levels. Policy HSG-1.1 Land Use Patterns The downtown location of the Canyon/Howes development is ideal for encouraging housing near employment, services and other amenities. PRINCIPLE DD-1: The Downtown will provide a balanced mix of land use activities. While encouraging a mix of land uses throughout the Downtown, the predominant land use character of each sub -district will be maintained. Policy DD-1.9 Land Use Policy DD-1.10 Service -Oriented Businesses Policy DD-1.13 Ground Floor Uses Policy DD-1.15 Housing The Canyon/Howes Mixed -Use Building embraces the objectives of the Downtown District, offering employment in the form of professional offices located on the first two floors of the structure. High density residential is located above the offices. Further, the development truly illustrates many of the objectives of the 1989 Downtown Plan in terms of land use, building height, pedestrian activity, and streetscape image. Thanks for your time and consideration. I look forward to working with you during the development review process. Sincerely, Cathy Mathis VF Ripley Associates, Inc. Page 4 of 4 scale foundation plantings. The high quality finishes from the building are carried throughout the landscape and hardscape to provide consistency and a timeless character. As mentioned, there are many large trees on the lot that will be preserved and protected. Several on -site meetings have occurred with the City Forester and a professional arborist to evaluate the trees. It is the developer's intent to make the most of safeguarding measures and pruning methods during construction to assure the safety and preservation of the trees. Principles and Policies achieved by the Canyon/Howes Mixed -Use proposal include: PRINCIPLE LU-2: The city will maintain and enhance its character and sense of places as defined by its neighborhoods, districts, corridors, edges. Policy LU-2.2 Urban Design This neighborhood will compliment the surrounding land uses and promote a compact development with a unique identity. PRINCIPLE T-1: The physical organization of the city will be supported by a framework of transportation alternatives that maximizes access and mobility throughout the city, while reducing dependence upon the private automobile Policy T-1.1 Land Use Patterns Policy T-1.2 Multi -Modal Streets Policy T-1.3 Street Design Criteria Policy T-1.4 Adequate Facilities PRINCIPLE T-2 Mass transit will be an integral part of the city's overall transportation system. Policy T-2.1 Transit System Policy T-2.2 Transit Stops Policy T-2.3 Transit Route Design The site is located on South Howes Street, one block away from the future Mason Street Transportation Corridor, which is proposed to be an enhanced travel corridor. Transfort bus service is currently available on Howes and Meldrum Streets. The proposed development will connect with existing street bicycle lanes as well as provide pedestrian connectivity to transit stops, shopping, schools and employment and other downtown destinations. PRINCIPLE CAD-2: Public spaces, such as plazas, civic buildings, outdoor spaces, parks, and gateway landscapes should be designed to be functional, accessible, attractive, safe and comfortable. Policy CAD-2.2 Public Space Design This mixed -use building has a well-defined plaza, located at two major pedestrian walkways, providing a place for seating, gathering and public art. Page 3 of 4 r while surface parking is available on street or in a small lot at the southwest corner of the property. The site has been designed with the pedestrian in mind by utilizing enhanced 8-foot wide sidewalks adjacent to the building, culminating in a cobblestone plaza at the northeast tip of the lot. From the plaza, existing crosswalks lead to many downtown destinations, including easy access to the Mason Street Corridor, one block to the east. Steps, seat walls, planters and special paving promote visual interest for the pedestrian in this urban downtown setting. Additionally, the columns and planters along the Canyon Avenue sidewalk provide an opportunity for sculpture and artwork, implementing the "art walk". (Downtown Plan, Policy 8 — Pedestrian Environment) The two curb cuts from South Howes Street have been eliminated. Vehicular access to the below -grade parking structure will be from a 28- foot wide driveway off of Canyon Avenue. The drive will ramp down to a garage door entrance. A surface parking lot containing 8 spaces is located at the southwest corner of the site. At both auto entrances, a clearly articulated six-foot wide sidewalk has minimized potential pedestrian/auto conflicts. Pedestrian entrances into the professional offices will be from several locations at the ground floor level. Access into the 2"d floor offices will be located in the circular tower off of the plaza. The office levels are designed to offer the flexibility to accommodate from one to five offices of various sizes per floor. Access to the residential levels will be from either stair tower or the elevator located in the southwest corner of the building. The condominium units are configured in combinations of one and two bedrooms, ranging in size from 1,417-1,700 sq. ft. Each unit will have it's own outdoor balcony. There will be three penthouses located on the sixth floor ranging from 2,423-2,974 sq. ft. Each penthouse will have multiple outdoor balconies. The architectural design for this building was inspired by a walking tour with our client that covered downtown Fort Collins and the CSU campus. This walking tour was followed up by research of Italian Architecture on the Internet and in Italian magazines. The style of this building has evolved to include an Italian renaissance formality at the base of the building and corner tower reminiscent of the Old Post Office downtown, the adjacent Masonic Temple and some of the buildings on the CSU Oval. The upper residential floors of the building have more of an Italian village character, which is less formal and more fun. The finishes on the proposed building will include precast concrete or cut stone with metal entry canopy detailing at the lower two office levels capped off with a heavy belt cornice. The residential floors above will be finished in a weathered stucco finish complimented by a variety of residential features including open balusters, shutters, window boxes and bay windows. The roofing that would cap off the entire building will be red clay tile on sloped roofs in a combination of 5/12 and 8/12 roof slopes. The interest of authentic Italian architecture is maintained with the use of varied roof forms, soffit details, chimney elements and wall bracketing. The design objectives of the landscape plan are to provide an attractive streetscape and also to enhance the pedestrian and experience within the site. The urban location and character of the project minimized the quantity and location of plant materials. Rather, architectural columns, art display areas, pre -cast planters, window boxes, seat walls, Itailian-style light fixtures and enhanced paving create the atmosphere of this project. Simple, strong plants are use as backdrops for the architecture and urban exterior of this building. This approach to landscape design is often utilized in downtown areas where pedestrian movement is a priority over large - Page 2 of 4 November 19, 2002 Bob Barkeen Current Planning Department City of Fort Collins 281 North College Avenue P.O. Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80521-0580 RE: Planning Objectives for Canyon/Howes Mixed Use Building Dear Bob, c) ro 0 off, o F r � VF RIPLEY ASSOCIATES INC. Landscape Architecture Urban Design Planning 401 West Mountain Avenue Suite 2201 Fort Collins, CO 80521-2604 PHONE (970) 224-5829 FAX (970) 224-1662 The Canyon/Howes PDP is a proposed mixed -use building to be located on a .4-acre site at the southwest corner of Canyon Avenue and South Howes Street. Because Canyon Avenue is angled, it intersects with Howes Street at a point, creating a triangular -shaped piece of land. Currently, the site contains the former Key Bank drive through building and parking lot. There are presently three vehicular entrances from Canyon Avenue and two from South Howes Street. Four and five foot wide detached sidewalks run parallel along both street frontages. Significant existing vegetation is in the form of several large mature trees. The property is in the D- Downtown District, Canyon Avenue Subdistrict. Existing buildings and land uses located adjacent to the lot are as follows: • There are three residential -type buildings to the south of this site that are two stories in height. Two of the buildings contain businesses and one is a private home. • The 3 1/2-story Masonic Temple is located east across Howes Street • The 12-story Key Bank is north of this site. • The Rocky Mountain Building is located west of Canyon Avenue. The south portion of the building is one-story and the north portion is seven stories. • The new Larimer County building is located northeast of the intersection and is proposed to be five stories tall, with a seven story tower element. The building will be six stories or approximately 76 feet tall. The upward direction is a resourceful utilization of a small, irregular -shaped site. The building is placed on the property lines as allowed in the Downtown District, which encourages minimal setbacks. The project will offer professional office space on the first two floors and four floors of luxury condominiums. Parking for the residences will be available in a below -grade structure underneath the building Page 1 of 4