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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSANCTUARY ON THE GREEN - PDP190003 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 1 - MODIFICATION REQUESTland planning  landscape architecture  urban design  entitlement Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 419 Canyon Ave. Suite 200  Fort Collins, CO 80521  tel. 970.224.5828  fax 970.224.1662 www.ripleydesigninc.com February 12, 2019 Modification Request 3.5.2 Residential Building Standards (D) Relationship of Dwelling to Streets and Parking. (1) Orientation to a Connecting Walkway. Every front facade with a primary entrance to a dwelling unit shall face the adjacent street to the extent reasonably feasible. Every front facade with a primary entrance to a dwelling unit shall face a connecting walkway with no primary entrance more than two hundred (200) feet from a street sidewalk. The following exceptions to this standard are permitted: (a) Up to two (2) single-family detached dwellings on an individual lot that has frontage on either a public or private street. (b) A primary entrance may be up to three hundred fifty (350) feet from a street sidewalk if the primary entrance faces and opens directly onto a connecting walkway that qualifies as a major walkway spine. (c) If a multi-family building has more than one (1) front facade, and if one (1) of the front facades faces and opens directly onto a street sidewalk, the primary entrances located on the other front facade(s) need not face a street sidewalk or connecting walkway. Definition of Connecting Walkway Connecting walkway shall mean (1) any street sidewalk, or (2) any walkway that directly connects a main entrance of a building to the street sidewalk without requiring pedestrians to walk across parking lots or driveways, around buildings or around parking lot outlines which are not aligned to a logical route. Definition of Major Walkway Spine Major walkway spine shall mean a tree-lined connecting walkway that is at least five (5) feet wide, with landscaping along both sides, located in an outdoor space that is at least thirty-five (35) feet in its smallest dimension, with all parts of such outdoor space directly visible from a public street. Reason for the Request The Sanctuary on the Green Project Development Plan (PDP) takes advantage of the abundant open space. Rather than putting the back of house and garages along the open space, front doors line the natural areas to take advantage of the common areas. Shared amenities are located throughout the development to encourage neighbor interaction. The proposed site plan emphasizes pedestrian connectivity and minimizes Sanctuary PDP Modification Request – LUC Section 3.5.2 (D) (1) January 14, 2019 Page 2 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 419 Canyon Ave. Suite 200  Fort Collins, CO 80521  tel. 970.224.5828  fax 970.224.1662 www.ripleydesigninc.com pedestrian/vehicular conflicts. Creating a walkable neighborhood has been a key design objective from the very beginning. One device used to accomplish this is to orient some dwelling units on green courts and along greenbelts. In these situations, the home front faces onto the green space and the garage faces an alley. Connecting sidewalks are provided along these green spaces providing access to front doors, however, there is no “street” on the front side. This is done purposely to provide an alternative lifestyle or way of living with less interaction with vehicles. Many families prefer this for safety reasons, others like it for the visual advantages or because green courts are generally quieter than streets. In addition, the feedback received from adjacent neighbors was that they would rather see the front face of a building rather than the car headlights and garages. While the “connecting walkway” standard works well for traditional street-oriented communities it has created some difficulty for the Sanctuary on the Green lots in a few instances. The intent of this Modification Request is to clarify those situations and demonstrate that the pedestrian connections provided are equal to or better than connections provided in a more traditional, street-oriented design. Justifications The Land Use Code states that the decision-maker may grant a modification of standards only if it finds that the granting of the modification would not be detrimental to the public good; and the decision-maker must also find that the Modification meets one of the following four criteria described in the LUC. (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 a modification is requested; 3.5.2 (A) Purpose. The standards in this section are intended to promote variety, visual interest and pedestrian-oriented streets in residential development. The site boundary has an abnormal shape which results in one main local street traversing the site from east to west. The homes have been placed facing that street whenever possible. In order to take advantage of the existing green space the other homes have been placed along alleys facing those open views. In our opinion, homes oriented along green courts or along greenways, (where pedestrian access is provided to the front of the home and vehicular access is provided via an alley in the back of the home) promotes variety and visual interest without eliminating the pedestrian-oriented streets. It adds to the housing diversity in our community and is not detrimental to the public good. Overall, the proposed plan complied equally well or better than the standard. In all cases, the Major Walkway Spine has been widened to 6 feet rather than 5 feet and connecting walkways are provided in between buildings. In areas were connecting Sanctuary PDP Modification Request – LUC Section 3.5.2 (D) (1) January 14, 2019 Page 3 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 419 Canyon Ave. Suite 200  Fort Collins, CO 80521  tel. 970.224.5828  fax 970.224.1662 www.ripleydesigninc.com walkways cross alleys, raised crosswalks are provided giving priority to the pedestrians. Additionally, the minimum width of 35 feet of outdoor space has also been exceeded in most areas. Along the north boundary the closest structure is over 240 feet away due to being adjacent to a City of Fort Collins Natural Area. Along the New Mercer Ditch, the average width of the outdoor space is 120 feet. The width along the north/south drainage easement is a minimum of 124 feet. In a few instances, illustrated on sheet L-2, the design while meeting the intent, does not meet the standard precisely. There are three areas where the Major Walkway Spine outdoor space is pinched down below the 35-foot requirement. The first area occurs between two buildings, one for a length of 10 feet and one for a length of 77 feet. In order to mitigate this, there is parking provided within 140’ of the front door of the furthest building. The second area is on the west side of Calvary Baptist Church. This plan proposes 21 feet before the property line of open space and the closest building is over 230 feet away. The third area is along the north property line which is adjacent to City of Fort Collins Open Space. Over 23 feet of open space is provided within the property and over 147 feet are protected by the City. There are two areas where the length of the Major Walkway Spine is exceeded. The northwestern most condo building and the northwestern most single family detached homes. This project exceeds the standards near the condo building by providing a tree lined, 6-foot-wide, Major Walkway Spine and over 124 feet wide of open space. Additionally, there is public parking within 150 feet from the front door. The standard is exceeded for the single-family residences by providing a 6-foot-wide, tree-lined walk and faces open space which stretches over 665 feet to Cherry Street. In case of future development of that land, 35 feet of open space has been provided on this property. Land Use Code Section 3.2.2(C)(5) Walkways (a) Directness and Continuity. Walkways within the site shall be located and aligned to directly and continuously connect areas or points of pedestrian origin and destination, and shall not be located and aligned solely based on the outline of a parking lot configuration that does not provide such direct pedestrian access. Walkways shall be unobstructed by vertical curbs, stairs, raised landscape islands, utility appurtenances or other elements that restrict access and shall link street sidewalks with building entries through parking lots. Such walkways shall be raised or enhanced with a paved surface not less than six (6) feet in width. Drive aisles leading to main entrances shall have walkways on both sides of the drive aisle. (b) Street Crossings. Where it is necessary for the primary pedestrian access to cross drive aisles or internal roadways, the pedestrian crossing shall emphasize and place priority on pedestrian access and safety. The material and layout of the pedestrian access shall be continuous as it crosses the driveway, with a break in continuity of the driveway paving and not in the pedestrian access way. The pedestrian crossings must Sanctuary PDP Modification Request – LUC Section 3.5.2 (D) (1) January 14, 2019 Page 4 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 419 Canyon Ave. Suite 200  Fort Collins, CO 80521  tel. 970.224.5828  fax 970.224.1662 www.ripleydesigninc.com be well-marked using pavement treatments, signs, striping, signals, lighting, traffic calming techniques, median refuge areas and landscaping. (See Figure 3.) Alleys have a low traffic volume and vehicles are moving at reduced speeds. To further increase pedestrian safety and to make the pedestrian experience as pleasant as possible, we propose to enhance the crossing by providing crosswalks and special paving at these crossings. This will accomplish two purposes. The special paving will alert drivers to the fact that pedestrians may be crossing the alley at these points and the special paving will be more visually interesting. The walkway will not be obstructed with a vertical curb and the paving material and layout of the pedestrian access will be continuous as it crosses the driveway, with a break in continuity of the driveway paving and not in the pedestrian access way. (3) 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 physical shape and constraints of the site such as the exceptional narrowness, existing regional stormwater drainage easements, New Mercer Ditch, floodway, and existing wetlands create unique situations of hardship which were not caused by the applicant. Only about 24 acres out of the over 41-acre site is developable. The remaining land is divided into three areas averaging 8 acres each. Local streets take significant amounts of land and would result in homes being double fronted. Instead, a system of alleys is used and front doors face the available open space. In order to maximize the available land some buildings are over 350 feet from a public sidewalk. See attached exhibit. (4) the plan as submitted will not diverge from the standards of the Land Use Code that are authorized by this Division to be modified except in a nominal, inconsequential way when considered from the perspective of the entire development plan, and will continue to advance the purposes of the Land Use Code as contained in Section 1.2.2. The Major Walkway Spine exceeds 350 feet in two areas where dwelling units front to a greenway. We maintain that where dwelling units front on to a green court or a greenway, the walk in front of these homes is a public sidewalk. It will have a public access easement and it acts the same as a public street sidewalk connecting people from their home to other places in the neighborhood. The only difference is that the vehicular street has been replaced with a green space. This arrangement has the following advantages: Sanctuary PDP Modification Request – LUC Section 3.5.2 (D) (1) January 14, 2019 Page 5 of 5 Thinking outside of the box for over two decades. 419 Canyon Ave. Suite 200  Fort Collins, CO 80521  tel. 970.224.5828  fax 970.224.1662 www.ripleydesigninc.com  Fronting on to a green space provides an alternative way of living with less interaction with vehicles.  It has the advantages of being safer, visually more interesting and quieter than fronting onto a public street.  People living in these dwelling units don’t walk any further to access neighborhood amenities or to leave the neighborhood on foot than they would if they lived on a public street. Given that homeowners will access a public sidewalk right out their front door, we believe this particular Modification Request is not detrimental to the public good and only diverges from the Land Use Code in a nominal inconsequential way. In instances where the most direct access to a “public street” sidewalk, requires crossing an alley, we maintain that the proposed plan diverges from the standard in a nominal inconsequential way for the following reasons:  First we would argue that providing a “connecting walkway” to a “public street” sidewalk is superfluous because these dwelling units are connected to a public sidewalk at their front door.  Crossing the alley is only one pedestrian alternative. There are other pedestrian options that don’t require crossing an alley.  Alleys have a low traffic volume and vehicles are moving at reduced speeds.  To increase pedestrian safety and to make the pedestrian experience as pleasant as possible, we propose to enhance the crossing by providing special paving and crosswalks at these crossings. This will accomplish two purposes. The special paving will alert drivers to the fact that pedestrians may be crossing the alley at these points and the special paving will be more visually interesting. In instances where the width of the outdoor space is less than 35 feet the difference is nominal and inconsequential. The first case is in between two buildings from porch to porch. The actual building wall is further than 35 feet. The distance that the standard is not met is less than 10 feet thus it is nominal and inconsequential. The second case is along Calvary Baptist Church. From the porch to the property line is 21 feet however the next closest structure is over 230 feet away. The church is planning a parking lot and will not be constructing any buildings in this area. This open corridor is much larger than the 35 feet required. The third case is on the north property line which is adjacent to City of Fort Collins open space. The City land is a minimum of 147 feet and the next closest structure is over 241 feet away. The other attributes of a major walkway spine, including shade trees, walk width and landscaping on both sides, are provided.