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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLINCOLN CORRIDOR HOTEL - PDP - PDP170026 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - VARIANCE REQUEST (3)DELICH ASSOCIATES Traffic & Transportation Engineering 2272 Glen Haven Drive Loveland, Colorado 80538 Phone: (970) 669-2061 Fax: (970) 669-5034 July 14, 2017 Marc Ragasa Fort Collins Engineering Department 281 North College Avenue Fort Collins, CO 80524 Dear Marc: This letter pertains to a variance request with regard to the intersection spacing for the proposed permanent access to the Hydro Construction property at 310 E. Lincoln (the “Site”) from East Lincoln Avenue. The Site is under contract to Spirit Hospitality for potential redevelopment as a Staybridge Hotel with 106 long-term stay rooms with a restaurant. Historically, access to the Site has been via an unimproved driveway approximately 220 feet wide. However, improvements to East Lincoln Avenue adjacent to the Site are currently underway by the City. Such improvements include curb and gutter, two paved driveway entrances, one 50 feet wide and one 24 feet wide in their existing locations which are offset from 3rd Street, and a two-way left-turn lane, west of 3rd Street to accommodate full turning movements into the Site. The Lincoln Corridor Plan depicts these improvements as an interim condition until redevelopment of the Site. In the long term, the Lincoln Corridor Plan shows the preferred location of the Site access as aligning with 3rd Street when the Site redevelops. The criterion in question is the minimum distance between driveways and intersections. Specifically, the intersection spacing requirements between 3rd Street, on the north side of Lincoln Avenue, and the proposed high volume driveway (Staybridge Hotel Site Access), on the south side of Lincoln Avenue. According to Table 7-3, Fort Collins Street Standards – Technical Design Criteria, the distance between high volume driveways and intersections on two-lane arterial streets with a raised median should be 330 feet. The distance between 3rd Street and the Staybridge Hotel Site Access is approximately 150 feet (on-centers). The “Staybridge Hotel Transportation Impact Study,” July 2017, shows the Staybridge Hotel Site Access in its current location. The forecasted westbound left- turning vehicles entering this driveway are forecasted to be 14 and 28 in the respective peak hours. Third Street on the north side of Lincoln Avenue is expected to generate 1 and 6 eastbound left-turning vehicles in same respective peak hours. Based on the delay and number of westbound left-turns into the Site, there will be westbound vehicles in the turn lane for 120 seconds in the morning peak hour and 249 seconds in the afternoon peak hour. Based on the delay and number of eastbound left-turns onto 3rd Street, there will be eastbound vehicles in the turn lane for 8 seconds in the morning peak hour and 58 seconds in the afternoon peak hour. DELICH Slaybridge Hotel Intersection Spacing Variance, July 2017 ASSOCIATES Figure 1 is a depiction of the Site Access offset to the west of 3rd Street. There will be stop sign control southbound from 3rd Street and northbound from the Site Access, no right-turn lanes to either 3rd Street or the Site Access, and a two-way left-turn lane between 3rd Street and the Site Access. The Lincoln/Woodward Access-Odell Access will be aligned with stop sign control from both the Woodward and Odell sites. Given the above evaluation of the transportation considerations, together with a number of other very practical considerations, all of which are summarized below, Delich Associates concludes that it would be safer and more efficient to allow the access into the Site to remain in its proposed/current location, i.e. the interim condition depicted in the Lincoln Corridor Plan, upon redevelopment of the Site as a Staybridge Hotel:  The northbound calculated delay from the Lincoln/Site Access intersection (Alternative (2)) is less than that with the aligned Lincoln/3rd Street-Site Access intersection Alternative (1)).  The southbound calculated delay from the Lincoln/3rd Street intersection is less than that with the aligned Lincoln/3rd Street-Site Access intersection.  The overall LOS at both the Lincoln/3rd Street intersection and the Lincoln/Site Access with the Site Access offset from 3rd Street is better that the overall LOS when the Site Access is aligned with 3rd Street.  There would be no need for additional construction to extend the center raised median from 2nd Street to 3rd Street.  Not installing such median would preserve the ability for residents on the north side of Lincoln Avenue to access their driveways.  When the Site Access is not aligned with 3rd Street, the access spacing requirement of 330 feet between the Site Access and the Lincoln/Woodward Access on the south side of Lincoln Avenue would be exceeded (~370 feet).  When the Site Access is not align with 3rd Street, the Woodward Access would have an adequate right-turn lane that complies with LCUASS and Woodward’s Access Plan.  There would be fewer vehicle conflicts, in both morning and afternoon peak hours, in the two-way left-turn lane under Alternative (2) compared to Alternative (1).  The median planned between the Lincoln/3rd Street intersection and the Lincoln/Woodward Access-Odell Access could remain in place and would not have to be removed. LINCOLN CORRIDOR PLAN WITH SITE ACCESS OFFSET FROM 3RD STREET Figure 1 DELICH ASSOCIATES Staybridge Hotel Intersection Spacing Variance, July 2017 BB BB BB BB BB BB 150 Feet 220 Feet 275 Feet Right-Turn Lane Staybridge Site Access Woodward Site Access Odell Brewing Site Access 3rd Street SCALE 1"=80'