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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLOT 1, HARMONY COMMONS - PDP - PDP170023 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - PLANNING OBJECTIVESPage 1 Lot 1 Harmony Commons Statement of Planning Objectives June 30, 2017 The project is located on Lot 1 of the Harmony Commons, Second Filing Subdivision. The proposed use is for a 25,000 sq. ft. building containing professional offices along the Harmony Road frontage. The property is zoned HC-Harmony Corridor. The site is currently a vacant parcel of land and contains 1.615 acres. Lot 1 is a continuation of the existing Harmony Commons convenience shopping center currently under construction. The area surrounding Harmony Commons contains a mix of residential, retail, restaurant, educational, office, medical and employment. The site is ideal for this use as it provides an office building that is consistent with the employment base. The site is also located within walking and biking distance to Front Range Village and the surrounding residential subdivisions and major employers in the area. The project is providing access via the private east-west drive that has been constructed by the first phase of the Harmony Commons convenience shopping center. All of the interior drives will be private and will continue the patterns established by the first phases of the center. Parking areas are located internally to minimize impacts on the neighborhood. There will be multiple pedestrian connections into and through the site. There will be a north-south sidewalk connecting the hotel site through to the existing 8’ path located within the 80 foot buffer. There also will be connectivity within the site in an east to west direction connecting the building uses and tying them into the perimeter walks and adjacent properties. The building is located along the Harmony Road frontage in order to maximize visibility and create a strong gateway entry into Fort Collins. This plan offers attractive and inviting pedestrian scale features and amenities such as plazas and other outdoor spaces that will create a vibrant urban environment with benches, seat walls and landscape planters. Both building architecture and landscape design will build upon the momentum of the contemporary design language which has been used in the first phases of the shopping center. Notable characteristics of this design language include clean, horizontal roof lines, simplicity in materials and large masses of buildings broken into smaller massing by placement of color, texture, material and elevation change. Material selection is consistent with surrounding context buildings incorporating masonry, architectural metals, exposed steel and stucco tones. The site and building architecture function integrally. It is our intent to activate architectural spaces and pedestrian experience through thoughtful indoor and outdoor connections. Page 2 Statement of appropriate City Plan Principles and Policies achieved by the proposed plan: Economic Health Principle EH 3: The City will support local, unique, and creative businesses. Policy EH 3.1 – Support Programs Emphasizing Local Business Policy EH 4.1 –Prioritize Targeted Redevelopment Areas Principle EH 4: The City will encourage the redevelopment of strategic areas within the community as defined in the Community and Neighborhood Livability and Neighborhood Principles and Policies. Policy EH 4.2 – Reduce Barriers to Infill Development and Redevelopment Lot 1 Harmony Commons will continue to promote and sustain local businesses thereby further enhancing the economic health of Fort Collins. This represents job creation and business retention for businesses that are successful and unique to Fort Collins. Environmental Health Principle ENV 19: The City will pursue opportunities to protect and restore the natural function of the community’s urban watersheds and streams as a key component of minimizing flood risk, reducing urban runoff pollution, and improving the ecological health of urban streams. Policy ENV 19.2 – Pursue Low Impact Development Lot 1 Harmony Commons is implementing LID by incorporating new permeable pavement areas with under drain systems (25% of new pavement area will consist of permeable pavement). Community and Neighborhood Livability Principle LIV 38: Employment Districts will be the major employment centers in the community, and will also include a variety of complementary uses to meet the needs of employees. By design, they will be accessible to the City’s multimodal transportation system and encourage walking, bicycling, car and van pooling, and transit use. Policy LIV 38.1 – Mix of Uses Policy LIV 38.5 – Coordinate District Design Policy LIV 38.7 – Address Parking Policy LIV 38.8 – Provide Walkways and Bikeways Lot 1 Harmony Commons consists of an office building, representing a primary use in the Employment District. The area surrounding the Harmony Technology Park contains a mix of residential, institutional, employment, office and retail. The site is located in the Harmony Technology Park, which provides a campus-like setting, with platted lots, streets, sidewalks, Page 3 and infrastructure already in place. The visual impacts of the parking lot has been reduced by placing the parking to the interior of the project. Transportation Principle T 9: Enhanced Travel Corridors will contain amenities and designs that specifically promote walking, the use of mass transit, and bicycling. Policy T 9.1 – Locating Enhanced Travel Corridors Principle T10: Using transit will be a safe, affordable, easy, and convenient mobility option for all ages and abilities. Policy T 10.1 – Transit Stops Policy T 10.6 – High Frequency Transit Service Principle T11: Bicycling will be a safe, easy, and convenient mobility option for all ages and abilities The location of this project at the north end of an employment campus, near residential subdivisions, Fossil Ridge High School and its proximity to Harmony Road will promote and support the idea of a predominance of the daily trips of the employees of this project utilizing alternative modes of transportation (walking/biking) or public transportation. The on-street bike lanes will help to encourage safe cycling. Harmony Road is designated as an enhanced travel corridor. (ii) Description of proposed open space, wetlands, natural habitats and features, landscaping, circulation, transition areas, and associated buffering on site and in the general vicinity of the project. There are no wetlands or significant natural habitats within the boundaries of the site. (iii) Statement of proposed ownership and maintenance of public and private open space areas; applicant's intentions with regard to future ownership of all or portions of the project development plan. The buildings will be owned by the building developer/owner and will be leased to individual tenants. (iv) Estimate of number of employees for business, commercial, and industrial uses. 30-40 (v) Description of rationale behind the assumptions and choices made by the applicant. The impetus of this project is to create a professional office building that is a complimentary use to the employment campus. (vi) The applicant shall submit as evidence of successful completion of the applicable criteria, the completed documents pursuant to these Page 4 regulations for each proposed use. The planning Director may require, or the applicant may choose to submit, evidence that is beyond what is required in that section. Any variance from the criteria shall be described. The submittal documents address the applicable criteria. No variances are anticipated at this time. (vii) Narrative description of how conflicts between land uses or disturbances to wetlands, natural habitats and features and or wildlife are being avoided to the maximum extent feasible or are mitigated. There are not existing wetlands, natural habitats or features currently located on site. (viii) Written narrative addressing each concern/issue raised at the neighborhood meeting(s), if a meeting has been held. No neighborhood meeting was held. (ix) Name of the project as well as any previous name the project may have had during Conceptual Review. The project name is Lot 1 Harmony Commons. The project name at the PDR meeting was “Harmony Commons Lot 1 – Office Building, PDR170009”.