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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWATERS EDGE - MODIFICATIONS OF STANDARDS 1, 2 AND 3 - MOD150001 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - MODIFICATION REQUEST (5)Waters’ Edge West, LLC Attachment to Application for Modification of General Development Standards Modification Request #3 October 30, 2015 Code Section and Modification Requested The applicant respectfully requests a modification from Code Section 3.8.26(C)(4) “Residential Buffering – Additional Standards Applicable to Buffer Yard D”. Buffer Yard D standards are only applicable to oil and gas operations, including plugged and abandoned wells. Buffer Yard D standards require a minimum setback of 350 feet from “the outer edge of an existing oil and gas operation site to the nearest wall or corner of any occupied building proposed in the residential development” as well as intensive levels of landscaping and screening. Specifically, the applicant requests a modification of the above-referenced standard to eliminate the Buffer Yard D plant material and screening requirements in the areas surrounding the three oil wells located on its property conditioned upon the oil wells having been permanently plugged and abandoned in accordance with Colorado Oil and Gas Commission standards. Background Discussion Waters’ Edge at Richard’s Lake was originally recorded on July 19, 2010. As with most other developments, the housing downturn prevented Waters’ Edge from moving forward. The original development time frame expired in July 2013, but the project was granted a one-year extension of the approved plans to July 2014. Towards the end of 2013 the City adopted residential buffer standards, which dramatically affected the Waters’ Edge project. In May of 2014 application was made for another one-year extension, but was denied since the project plan no longer met the residential buffering standards regarding oil and gas operations. Waters’ Edge West, LLC Page 2 Attachment to Modification Request #3 The graphic below shows the location of five existing oil wells that are located within the Waters’ Edge property and in the adjacent Hearthfire and Richard’s Lake neighborhoods. The wells numbered 2, 3 and 5 are within the Waters’ Edge West development. Graphic of Well Head Locations Well Head 1 is an existing operating pump within the Hearthfire neighborhood. Well Head 2 is an existing operating pump within Waters’ Edge, but immediately adjacent to Hearthfire. Well Head 3 is an existing operating pump within Waters’ Edge. Well Head 4 is an existing operating pump within the Richard’s Lake neighborhood. Well Head 5 is an operating well that has no pump. Oil flows due to pressure. Waters’ Edge West, LLC Page 3 Attachment to Modification Request #3 Justifications for Modification This proposed modification meets three of the four criteria upon which a modification of standards may be granted. 1. The plan as submitted will promote the general purpose of the standard for which the modification is requested equally well or better than would a plan which complies with the standard for which the modification is requested. Buffer Yard D plant material standards require 1.25 times the “base standard” amount of plants or .75 and .85 the amount with construction of a 6 foot wall or a 3 foot berm or 6 foot fence, respectively. Code Section 3.8.26(B) states that the purpose of the residential buffering standards “is to provide standards to separate residential land uses from existing industrial uses, in order to eliminate or minimize potential nuisances such as dirt, litter, noise, glare of lights and unsightly buildings or parking areas or to provide spacing to reduce adverse impacts of noise, odor or danger from fires or explosions. Once the oil wells on the Waters’ Edge property have been permanently plugged and abandoned, the visual and noise nuisances that the screening is intended to mitigate will no longer exist. Therefore, the requested modification will promote the general purpose of the standard equally as well as a plan which complies with the standard. 2. The granting of this modification will substantially alleviate an existing, defined and described problem of citywide concern and will result in a substantial benefit to the city by reason of the fact that the proposed project will substantially address an important community need specifically and expressly defined and described in the city’s Comprehensive Plan and Resolutions of the City Council. The specific benefit that the applicant has identified and related City policy is as follows: • Resolution 2015-039 of the Council of the City of Fort Collins Adopting the Nature in the City Strategic Plan as an Element of the Comprehensive Plan of the City – The City’s Nature in the City Strategic Plan has as its goal “easy access to nature, high quality natural spaces and responsible land stewardship”. By providing an incentive to the developer of Waters’ Edge to permanently plug and abandon the three operating wells on its property, the City helps the developer work Waters’ Edge West, LLC Page 4 Attachment to Modification Request #3 towards achieving this goal. The applicant believes that easy access to nature and a connected system of high-quality natural spaces are profoundly important to the quality of life of its future residents and has designed the community accordingly. Removing the operating wells from the community will allow the applicant to use the buffer areas in furtherance of these goals. The buffer areas might be used for activities such as urban agriculture, including community gardens and orchards, composting, dog parks, wildlife habitat, or solar arrays. It would also create a better aesthetic and provide a healthier environment for both people and wildlife. 3. The plan as submitted will not diverge from the standards of the Land Use Code except in a nominal, inconsequential way when considered from the perspective of the entire development plan. Once the oil wells have been permanently abandoned, the nuisances that the Buffer Yard D landscaping requirements were intended to mitigate will no longer exist. Accordingly, the requested modification is nominal and inconsequential when considered from the perspective of the entire development plan.