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HomeMy WebLinkAboutGARTH COMMERCIAL PLAZA - MODIFICATION OF STANDARDS - 20-02 - REPORTS - RECOMMENDATION/REPORT W/ATTACHMENTS (3)EXISTING HOTEL FUTURE PEDESTRIAN PEDESTRIAN CONNECTION TO MAS ONNECTION —i STREET CORRIDOR TO HOTEL ]000�1 F LOT 3 PROPOSED t"0 RETAIL BUILDING PARKIN c = 2SPA ESvnRwnc = sz svncEs4.0: 1.000 50 d � I • 14p I44I4s I41 I41 I4U I39I38I 36135131 31 3131I30I \`\-J/ / PEDEISTRIIANI LOT 4 W. CONNECTION 1A11mmmmm R� PEDESTRIAN CONNECTION TO EXISTING HOTEL EXISTING COMMERCIAL Boardwalk Drive EXISTING COMMERCIAL PLAN B - PLAN TO MEET CODE SECTIONS EXISTING HOTEL FQT"RE PEDESTRWN o� PEDESTRIAN CONNEcnoN r CONNECTION TO MASON TO HOTEL I CiFFFT rnaainna — E • L. 7� Flip.. r� r O o �� RioI , EXISTING PEDESTRIAN CONNECTION TO EXISTING HOTEL EXISTING COMMERCIAL ■ PLAINT A - PROPOSED SITE PLAIN • The proposed site plan promotes better pedestrian connectivity between the proposed site and adjacent uses, and • The direct pedestrian connection and pedestrian amenity provide a `node' for pedestrians between Mason Street/Boardwalk, and the proposed transportation corridor, and • The small vehicular use area is not intrusive to the overall streetscape, is consistent with adjacent uses, and will be well screened. • The proposed building and site plan would be consistent with other developments in the area both in terms of use, and contextual setbacks. • The proposed building placement would place this development on an equal economic footing with other developments in the area. We recommend approval of Garth Commercial Plaza Lots 3&4 Modification Request. Garth Commercial Plaza Modifications of Standards Request 5/10/02 4 Implementing the code as intended without the modification would cause undo hardship to the applicant for the following reasons: • The three buildings of Garth Commercial Plaza were originally conceived, and developed, to be part of one center with continuous vehicular and pedestrian access between the various buildings. • This is the last lot to develop on the west side of Mason Street between Horsetooth and Troutman Parkway, adhearing to the standards, while setting a new standard for development, would force a building design and configuration that is not economically favorable to the applicant with a building orientation that would be hard to lure and keep tenants. • The code does acknowledge existing development, and the desire for new development to not be disjointed with existing developments, particularly with the use of contextual setbacks. By arranging the site as proposed, this building and use is compatible with other neighboring uses and with the contextual setbacks. • _ Having buildings that more directly face the street with easy vehicular and pedestrian access, are more valuable to individual retailers. An orientation that `hides' part.of the building would be more difficult to attract and retain tenants, thereby creating an unfair hardship on the building owner that is largely different from other buildings in the immediate vicinity. • The placement of the pedestrian amenity adjacent to Mason Street provides a street visibility and identity to the site, and provides a gateway for pedestrians wishing to travel from the intersection of Boardwalk and Mason Street to the proposed transportation corridor west of the site. • The small parking lot between the building and the street does not impair pedestrian mobility within the site. It does reduce the presence of a building on the street, however, there is limited parking, with about 36 spaces that are visible from the street versus the plan that meets the code with 45 visible parking spaces. This parking area would be screened from the street with a 3-4 foot hedge, and meet other landscape criteria. • The proposed site plan promotes pedestrian connectivity better between this site and the adjacent uses than the plan meeting code. Both of the adjacent uses were designed with a continuous pedestrian connection in mind. The proposed site addresses this with a clean and clear pedestrian connection from site to site in a mostly straight line, crossing two existing driveways. The plan meeting the requirements actually blocks the direct pedestrian access. From the hotel, pedestrians would have to cross a drive and walk around the proposed building to get to the entrance of it. Crossing to the retail building to the south would require pedestrian to cross two driveways. • With the modification, the three buildings would work together to create more of a unified center, which was the intent when the other two sites were developed. Findings of Fact/Conclusion We understand that in order to approve the Modification Request the Planning and Zoning Board must make the following findings: A. The request for a modification to Land Use Code Section 3.5.3(B)(2) is subject to review by the Planning and Zoning Board. B. Granting the requested modification would neither be detrimental to the public good nor impair the intent and purposes of this Land Use Code. C. Granting the requested modification would alleviate undo hardship to the applicant: Garth Commercial Plaza Modifications of Standards Request 5/10/02 3 • The proposed site plan `A' does allow for a direct pedestrian connection to the building from Mason Street, with direct pedestrian connections to both the hotel and retail building to the south. A connection to the proposed Mason Street Corridor is also possible. • To compensate for the lack of direct building frontage, a pedestrian amenity has been located at the setback line along Mason Avenue, adjacent to the pedestrian connection. While not specifically designed at this time, this would be a structure with a small plaza and benches. This would serve as an Icon for the overall center. The Code Requirements can be met by developing Plan `B'. This plan places the building perpendicular to Mason Street, with parking between it and the retail building to the south. This would be a good workable plan for a single user building; however, it is not as desirable for a multi -tenant building. Retail users, particularly those along this corridor at this time, want direct visibility to the street. Spaces to the rear of the building would be more hidden, without direct street visibility, would be more difficult to lease, and at a far less favorable rental arrangement. This building also turns its back to the hotel to the north, with service areas adjacent to the hotel. An east west orientation to the building, would also partially block visibility to the existing retail building to the south from vehicles traveling south along Mason Street. This building placement also hinders pedestrian circulation between the various uses immediately adjacent to this site as well. Taken as a whole, the three separate buildings would not read as one well thought out center. Justification We understand that in order to approve the Modification Request the Planning and Zoning Board must make the following findings: A) The Planning and Zoning Board may grant a modification of standards only if it finds that the granting of the modification would not be detrimental to the public good; We feel that the proposed design allows the pedestrian to interact with the vehicle in a safe and convenient manner, allows better circulation between this site and the adjacent uses, and is not detrimental to the public good. B) 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. The purpose of the LUC code section 3.5.3(B)(2) "is intended to promote the design of an urban environment that is built to human scale to encourage attractive street fronts and other connecting walkways that accommodate pedestrians as the first priority, while also accommodating vehicular movement. " Garth Commercial Plaza Modifications of Standards Request 5/10/02 2 MODIFICATION REQUEST (REVISED 3/8/02) GARTH COMMERCIAL ALTERNATIVE PROPOSED SITE PLAN We are submitting this request for modification of standards for the Garth Commercial Plaza, Lots 3&4 project to address the following item: A. Modification of standards to Section 3.5.3(B)(2) of the LUC PROJECT BACKGROUND Garth Commercial Plaza is a small infill commercial site located along Mason Street just south of Boardwalk Drive. This site is 1.28 acres in size. The applicant is proposing a small retail building on the site, approximately 12,500 square feet in size. The developer owns the land to the north of this site that the Quality Inn and Suites Hotel sits on, and the retail building to the south. The original retail building was built in the early 1980's with the intent of continuing with an identical building to the north. The hotel building was constructed in the late 1990's. An original preliminary PUD site plan was approved for both the hotel and the site that this development is being proposed for. When designing the hotel site, considerable attention was paid to providing the ability for pedestrian connections between the hotel and the proposed building, as well as auto circulation. The developer has worked with staff on a variety of conceptual plans, both those that meet the LUC criteria and those that don't. As a result, the applicant is requesting a modification to 3.5.3(B)(2), Orientation to Build -to Lines for Street front Buildings. Modifications to setback requirements Code Sections: 3.5.3(B)(2) Orientation to Build -to Lines for Street front Buildings. Build -to lines based on a consistent relationship of buildings to the street sidewalk shall be established by development projects for new buildings and, to the extent reasonably feasible, by development projects for additions or modifications of existing buildings, in order to form visually continuous, pedestrian -oriented street fronts with no vehicle use area between building faces and the street. (b) Buildings shall be located no more than fifteen (15) feet from the right-of-way of an adjoining street if the street is smaller than a full arterial or has on -street parking. Purpose: These standards are intended to promote the design of an urban environment that is built to human scale to encourage attractive street fronts and other connecting walkways that accommodate pedestrians as the first priority, while also accommodating vehicular movement. Discussion: For The Garth Commercial Plaza, we are requesting to modify the code requirement by placing a small vehicular use area between the building and the street for the following reasons: • Buildings to both the north and the south of this site have vehicular uses between the street and the buildings. Both projects were originally designed with a use and building placement on the proposed site consistent with the proposed site plan. Garth Commercial Plaza Modifications of Standards Request 5/10/02 ...,, A T ' T i{ a � r No Text Modification of Standards for the Garth Commercial Plaza, File #20-02 May 16, 2002 P&Z Meeting Page 4 to exceptional physical conditions unique to such property. Directly north and. south of the site on Mason Street are buildings built under a previous code that have substantial building setbacks from the street, and have parking areas located directly between the street and the building. If the modification were to be granted for this site, the building would be consistent within its context. The other side of the issue, however, is that the Land Use Code has established a new set of priorities for the interaction of a building with the street. Even though a building in this location built to satisfy the Land Use Code would have a more street oriented building configuration, this building could be the first in the immediate vicinity to chart a new direction for the future character of Mason Street as envisioned under the Mason Street Corridor Plan. As long as the building orientation standards are consistently applied to all development and redevelopment along Mason Street, in the future the street will eventually be pedestrian -oriented with buildings closer to the street and vehicles at the sides or rear of the buildings. In light of the adopted Mason Street Corridor Plan, staff finds that it would be detrimental to the public good to grant the requested modifications because the sidewalk along Mason Street will likely be a very important component of the pedestrian network that will link the surrounding neighborhood with the future transit stops, and the human scale of the Mason Street sidewalk will be better served by buildings satisfying the building orientation standards. 5. FINDINGS OF FACT/CONCLUSION: A. The requested modifications for the Garth Commercial Plaza are subject to review by the Planning and Zoning Board. B. Staff finds that the granting of modification would be detrimental to the public good. 6. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends denial of the modification requests. Modification of Standards for the Garth Commercial Plaza, File #20-02 May 16, 2002 P&Z Meeting Page 3 2. THE MODIFICATION PROCESS (A) Section 2.8.2(H) of the LUC specifies that in order to approve a modification the Planning and Zoning Board must find that: (1) the granting is not detrimental to the public good, and that (2) the plan as submitted would satisfy one of the following: (a) the general purpose of the standard is satisfied equally well or better than a plan that satisfies the standard, or (b) the proposed project would, without impairing the intents and purposes of the LUC, substantially address an important community need specifically and expressly defined and described in the city's Comprehensive Plan, adopted policy, ordinance or resolution, and that the strict application of such a standard would render the project practically infeasible, or (c) strict application of the standard sought to be modified would result in unusual and exceptional practical difficulties or exceptional or undue hardship due to exceptional physical conditions unique to such property. 3. APPLICANT'S REQUEST For illustrative purposes, the applicant has submitted the following diagrams: (i) The "proposed site plan" (Plan A) depicting the applicants proposed modification requests. (2) The "plan to meet code sections" (Plan B) depicting what the site would look like if it satisfied the code without any modifications. The applicant has proposed that the modification request meets the requirements of LUC 2.8.2 Modification Review Procedures (H) Step 8 (Standards). Please see the attached written justification by the applicant. 4. ANALYSIS OF MODIFICATION REQUEST The applicant contends that strict application of the standard sought to be modified would result in unusual and exceptional practical difficulties or exceptional or undue hardship due Modification of Standards for the Garth Commercial Plaza, File #20-02 May 16, 2002 P&Z Meeting Page 2 COMMENTS 1. BACKGROUND The surrounding zoning and land uses are as follows: W: C — Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way, RL — Existing residential neighborhood, Manhattan Avenue, NW: C — Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way, LMN — existing residential development, existing wetland, vacant developable area, Manhattan Avenue, N: C — Existing 3 story Hotel, existing 1 and 2 story retail buildings between the railroad tracks and Mason Street. NE: C — Intersection of Boardwalk and Mason Street, existing Olive Garden with large parking lot along Mason Street, E: C — Mason Street, vacant lot, existing bank and office building, existing KFC Restaurant, SE: C — Existing REI store, Barnes and Noble bookstore, S: C — Existing one and two story retail buildings, SW: C - Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way, RL - Existing residential neighborhood, Manhattan Avenue, The property was annexed as part of the Horsetooth Harmony Annexation in July of 1978. The property is adjacent to the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way, which is the future location for the Mason Street Multi -modal Transportation Corridor. The site is located tentatively about halfway between an anticipated transit stop at Troutman Parkway and a potential transit stop at Horsetooth Road. Current Planning staff is currently working on the Mason Street Corridor Land Use Framework effort to determine more specifically how the land use regulations and processes should best be organized to implement the adopted Mason Street Corridor Plan. Although no specific conclusions have been determined in the implementation effort because it is still early in the process, a few basic assumptions have been established: • areas in the immediate vicinity of future Mason Street Corridor transit stops should have development at a higher intensity so that more people have the opportunity will live, work and/or shop close to the transit stop; and • areas just beyond the immediate vicinity of the transit stops should have a convenient pedestrian network of streets and/or sidewalks that allow easy pedestrian access from the residential and commercial neighborhoods to the transit stop. ITEM NO. 3 MEETING DATE 5116102 STAFF Troy Jones City of Fort Collins PLANNING AND ZONING BOARD STAFF REPORT PROJECT: Modification of Standards for the Garth Commercial Plaza, File #20-02 APPLICANT: Terrance Hoaglund Vignette Studios 100 Mason Street Fort Collins, CO 80524 OWNER: George Holter PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The property is a 1.28 acre vacant infill site just southwest of the intersection of Boardwalk Drive and Mason Street. The applicant would like to construct a retail building in a configuration that does not satisfy section 3.5.3(B)(2) of the Land Use Code which requires that no vehicle use area be located between the building and the street. The applicant is a modification to the Land Use Code in order to configure the site in a way that has a vehicular area between the building and the street. RECOMMENDATION: Denial EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This is a request for modification to the following sections of the Land Use Code: 3.5.3 Mixed -Use, Institutional and Commercial Buildings (B) Relationship of Buildings to Streets, Walkways and Parking (2) Orientation to Build -to Lines for Streetfront Buildings - This section of the Land Use Code requires that build -to lines based on a consistent relations of buildings to the street sidewalk shall be established by development projects for new buildings.... in order to form visually continuous pedestrian -oriented street fronts with no vehicle use area between building faces and the street. COMMUNITY PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES 281 N. College Ave. P.O. Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522-0580 (970) 221-6750 PLANNING DEPARTMENT 05/16i2002 09:57 19702429477 KWAL F'AIIAT GJ #65 PAGE 01 KtVA May 15, 2002 George Holter Holter Realty 3509 So. Mason St Ft. Collins, CO 50525 Plr,(970)226-1900 Fax(970)223-6934 Re: Store Site Plan Mr. Holter, dWPAINT ,M0 Joliet Street Denver, CO 50239 From our conversations, the site plan as now proposed for the relocation of our 1t. Collins store is currently not acceptable for the following listed reasons, Items of concern are: Layout does not allow for front parking. 2. Layout does lend easy access from North lot entrance. Customers will have to drive around to the south side entrance. 3. Layout does not accornrnodate separate customer access for both retail and professional. Second side door entrance would not have close parking. 4. Layout will not allow for easy access of company delivery truck and satisfactory door placement to receive material goods. The original proposed site plan is more conducive to our needs to accommodate our existing customer base. It is imperative that both access and parking be similar to both individual entrances. The alternative proposed plan as it exists does not provide for these measures. Should Holter Realty decide to go forward with the current site plan as proposed, Kwal Paint may elect not to continue to pursue tenant space. Please advise me on the ongoing negotiations with the City of Ft. Collins in these matters. if can be of any assistance or if you have any questions, please feel free to contact us here at Kwa) Paint. Respectfully, Pttil .Long�� District. Manager Cc: J. Gatnberg