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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTHE HUB ON CAMPUS - PDP - PDP160038 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - PLANNING OBJECTIVESland planning g landscape architecture g urban design g entitlement Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 419 Canyon Ave. Ave., Suite 200 g Fort Collins, CO 80521 g tel. 970.224.5828 g fax 970.224.1662 www.ripleydesigninc.com November 16, 2016 Hub on Campus Fort Collins Project development Plan (PDP) - Planning Objectives Project Description The Applicant, Core Spaces, is a full-service real estate development and management company who builds industry-leading assets on prime, urban sites across the country. Here in Fort Collins, Core Spaces is proposing a mixed-used development located on West Elizabeth Street on the site previously occupied by CB Potts restaurant and tap house. The greater part of the site is located in the Community Commercial (CC) District while a smaller, narrow appendage to the west side is in the Medium Density Mixed-Use Neighborhood (MMN) District. The odd shape of the project site, existing public utilities, and the different zone districts pose a site planning challenge for the property. Even so, the design team has created a design solution that utilizes the site efficiently to create a project that meets many City Plan Principles and Policies as well as incorporating many design objectives found in the West Central Area Plan. The proposed development on 1.93 acres will include student-oriented housing with ±9,650 square feet of retail and restaurant uses along the West Elizabeth Street frontage. The housing component includes 219 dwelling units with 387 beds in studio, 1, 2, 3 and 4-bedroom configurations. The project will provide needed student housing in a managed environment where students can walk or ride their bikes to the CSU campus. The location also affords students convenient and safe access to employment, shopping, entertainment and recreational opportunities. Retail space will anchor the northeast corner of the project and enliven the streetscape along West Elizabeth Street. The building’s face along West Elizabeth Street is set back to allow a comfortable scale for pedestrians and create an active street frontage. The intent is to provide a promenade experience along West Elizabeth Street by providing appropriate vegetation, outdoor seating and small areas for social gatherings to create a campus feel and a comfortable neighborhood vibe. The commercial space will also support the economic vitality of the Campus West shopping area. The project will provide 332 parking spaces in structured parking located to the interior of and below the mixed-use building and in a parking structure located on Hub on Campus at Fort Collins PDP Planning Objectives November 16, 2016 Page 2 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 401 W. Mountain Ave., Suite 100 g Fort Collins, CO 80521 g tel. 970.224.5828 g fax 970.224.1662 g www.ripleydesigninc.com a portion of the site located to the south and west, away from the Elizabeth Street frontage with access from a private drive adjacent to the site on the west. Seventeen fixed bicycle parking spaces are being provided at the Elizabeth Street frontage and 387 enclosed spaces are being provided within the units. Pedestrian access to the site is convenient with the main building entrance and lobby facing West Elizabeth Street. Additional pedestrian corridors will exist along the east, south and west facades connecting the residential portion of the project to the western parking structure and to adjacent sites. The existing pedestrian connection to the west is maintained by providing a walk along the private drive in front of the proposed parking structure. In addition, a pedestrian connection to the east has been added to facilitate pedestrian movement in the neighborhood while also providing street level access to the duplex units. Existing structures on the site currently include the former CB Potts restaurant and bar as well as a tap house located further south on the site. The Applicant is proposing to demolish all of the existing structures. The mixed-use building facing West Elizabeth Street it is proposed to be five stories as allowed in the CC District. The restaurant/retail space is 22 feet floor- to-floor to accommodate the type of commercial uses anticipated. Since parking levels and residential space require approximately one-half of that floor-to-floor height, duplex style residential units have been programmed along the less visible sides of the building. The duplex units create a residential mezzanine that occupies 42% of the main floor space. Because the residential units may appear as an extra story on the east and west sides of the building a Modification Request has been submitted for a small portion of the building to be six stories. Project materiality is intended to be a modern blend of local fabric while providing architectural language for current applications. Specifically composite wood siding, fiber-cement siding, engineered stone veneer, composite metal panel, and high-efficiency glazing with aluminum frames. Overall, the project will supplement the local context, recognize its relationship to the University and enrich the architectural community along West Elizabeth. Grading, Drainage and Utilities Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. will serve as the civil engineering consultant for the project. The existing 1.93-acre site consists of three developed parcels (88.1% impervious) and is a part of the Old Town Drainage Basin. Stormwater runoff is currently directed towards the Elizabeth Street ROW flowing to Spring Creek and ultimately tributary to the Poudre River. The site is designated as an area outside the 500-year floodplain. The proposed mixed-use development will provide a net decrease in impervious area (71.5%), and therefore detention will not be required for the development Hub on Campus at Fort Collins PDP Planning Objectives November 16, 2016 Page 3 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 401 W. Mountain Ave., Suite 100 g Fort Collins, CO 80521 g tel. 970.224.5828 g fax 970.224.1662 g www.ripleydesigninc.com with respect to stormwater release. Runoff for the site will primarily be directed to the proposed pervious paver system located on the south, west, and east sides of the building. Roof drains for the proposed mixed-use building will discharge on the surface, directing flow to the pervious pavers. The storm sewers will be properly sized for a minor storm event (2-10 year storm). Adequate provisions will also be made to pass a major storm event (100-year storm) through the development. The proposed development will meet all applicable water quality design criteria of the UDFCD Manual. In total, there will be approximately 9,500 SF of pervious pavers with 1,900 CF of water quality storage in the stone voids. The pervious pavers will consist of 61% of the proposed pavement areas, treating 1.20 acres of the site, thus meeting the applicable LID requirements. Building and Fire Code Compliance For purposes of Building Code compliance, the project will be divided into three (3) “buildings”, as defined in the building Code. • One “building” is the four-level (three story) open parking structure that will occupy the panhandle at the west end of the site, where the site accesses the Public Way through the paved easement at the west end. This building will host an S-2 occupancy (a Low Hazard Storage occupancy) and will be constructed of architectural precast concrete building elements, with fire-resistance ratings requirements necessary for Construction Type II-B construction (“Non- Combustible, Unprotected”, 0-Hour ratings). This part of the project will not include fire-suppressive elements (sprinklers). • The second “building” is the first floor of the retail, parking structure, residential, and gymnasium structure that will occupy the northern portion of the land that accesses the Public Way on West Elizabeth Street. This building will host M, S-2, R-2, and A-3 occupancies (“Mercantile”, “Low Hazard Storage”, “Residential” and “Assembly”) and will be constructed of architectural precast concrete building elements, with fire-resistance ratings requirements necessary for Construction Type 1-A construction (“Non-Combustible, Protected”, 3-Hour Ratings). This part of the project will include fire-suppressive elements (sprinklers) in accordance with IBC section 903.3.1.1. • The third “building” is the second through sixth floors of the retail, parking structure, residential, and gymnasium structure that will occupy the northern portion of the land that accesses the Public Way on West Elizabeth Street. At the second floor level, this upper part of the structure will be separated from the single floor below by three-hour rated construction. This building will host an R-2 occupancy (“Residential”) and will be constructed of wood stud and joist construction, with fire-resistance ratings requirements necessary for Construction Type III-B construction (“Non-Combustible, Unprotected”, 0-Hour ratings, Hub on Campus at Fort Collins PDP Planning Objectives November 16, 2016 Page 4 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 401 W. Mountain Ave., Suite 100 g Fort Collins, CO 80521 g tel. 970.224.5828 g fax 970.224.1662 g www.ripleydesigninc.com generally). This part of the project will include fire-suppressive elements (sprinklers) in accordance with IBC section 903.3.1.1. There will be a twenty-foot wide fire lane completely encircling the building that fronts on West Elizabeth Street. Firefighters and trucks will be able to approach the parking structure on the panhandle from the west via the paved easement at that end of the site and from the east from the fire lane at the south side of the residential building. Enclosed exit stairways in the parking structure will be completely separated from the rest of the structure by 1-hour rated construction. Enclosed exit stairways in the residential, retail, assembly structure will be completely separated from the rest of the structure by 3-hour rated construction. Community Outreach A neighborhood open house was held on October 27 th at Plymouth Congregational Church. The developer’s design team and City staff representatives from the planning department and transportation services staffed the open house. Six members of the community attended the open house. Questions and comments were noted and recorded. The notes taken on issues raised at the neighborhood meeting are listed below with answers included by the applicant. • How does the maintenance of private drive work? o This is still being investigated. • Would the City Park Ave and Elizabeth St intersection design take the development into consideration? o According to our traffic study, this development’s traffic will not trigger any changes to the existing City Park and Elizabeth intersection. • Build enough parking for each bed o This project is providing .75 spaces per bedroom in line with Transit Oriented Development standards for complexes rented by the bedroom. • Provide a loading zone for development o This project is providing a loading area within podium level parking of the main residential building to service the retail uses. No loading activities will take place in, or block the fire access lane. • Lighting on Elizabeth Street for safety o The streetscape along Elizabeth Street is planned to activate the pedestrian with intimate seating areas and site lighting. • Density on Elizabeth Street a concern o Density fosters efficient land use, increases efficiency of public utilities, streets, facilities, and services and accommodates multiple modes of travel. Less dense student housing in Fort Collins is limited to developing on the urban fringe, far away from CSU’s campus. That type of Hub on Campus at Fort Collins PDP Planning Objectives November 16, 2016 Page 5 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 401 W. Mountain Ave., Suite 100 g Fort Collins, CO 80521 g tel. 970.224.5828 g fax 970.224.1662 g www.ripleydesigninc.com development can lead to deteriorating traffic conditions due to the lack of alternative transportation options. • How does the courtyard concept work? o There are two interior courtyards that start on the second story and continue up through the roof. • Worried about building height o The CC District allows five stories. While this project is asking for a modification to provide six, the building height would remain the same with or without the additional story. This is due to a tall first story needed for retail use along Elizabeth Street. The tall first level allows for an additional story of residential use behind the retail that fronts Elizabeth. Mitigation measures such as stepping the building back on the fifth story have been provided to reduce massing of the building and be sensitive to the overall height. • Setback makes Elizabeth Street too urban o The setback provided is to ensure the building fits in context with the adjacent buildings. The building is placed twenty-nine feet off the curb of Elizabeth Street (nineteen feet off the right-of-way) and provides ample room for an intimate pedestrian plaza. • Why is CSU not taking care of student housing? o It is not uncommon for universities to rely on private development for student housing. City Plan Support Please see attached City Plan document for a list of City Plan policies that support this project.