The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutJEROME STREET STATION - PDP210009 - SUBMITTAL DOCUMENTS - ROUND 3 - MODIFICATION REQUEST (3) MINIMAL RISK. PAINLESS PROCESS. BEAUTIFUL SPACES. o: 970.224.5828 | w: ripleydesigninc.com RIPLEY DESIGN, INC. | 419 Canyon Avenue, Suite 200 | Fort Collins, CO 80521 Jerome Street Townhomes Modification Request – Relationship of Dwellings to Streets July 20, 2022 Land Use Code 3.5.2(D)(1)(b) -Relationship of Dwellings 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 and the address shall be posted to be visible from the intersection of the connecting walkway and public right of way. The following exceptions to this standard are permitted: (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. Article 5 – Terms and Definitions 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 Jerome Street Townhome Project Development Plan (PDP) is a residential project that aims at providing a luxury urban townhome product to the Fort Collins market. Part of what makes Fort Collins special is the opportunity it offers to residents to enjoy the luxuries of a world class city while still having direct access to nature. That is what drives the vision and goal of the development to harmonize the funky urban fabric of the North College Corridor with the inherent attraction of the natural habitat along Lake Canal on the southern boundary of the property. The site plan proposes twelve townhome style buildings, each with elegantly defined architecture that aims to create a cohesive homage to this area’s industrial past. The development strives to create an upscale, pedestrian-oriented environment unique to this area complete with a public custom alley, enhanced pedestrian circulation, and distinctive streetscape elements. One way the development aims create an exciting and varied pedestrian-oriented community is by providing alley loaded dwellings that front on to a Major Walkway Spine (MWS) in lieu of a street, MINIMAL RISK. PAINLESS PROCESS. BEAUTIFUL SPACES. o: 970.224.5828 | w: ripleydesigninc.com RIPLEY DESIGN, INC. | 419 Canyon Avenue, Suite 200 | Fort Collins, CO 80521 as allowed in LUC Section 3.5.2(D)(1)(b). One of the major advantages to the public of alley loaded dwellings is that they are designed to hide the garage, which is generally less aesthetically appealing, from the public view. The fronts of the units are no longer dominated by large, unattractive garage doors, and instead present articulated and human-scaled elements to the public. Traditionally alley loaded townhomes front public streets, however more and more people are wanting to live in a home that fronts directly onto nature instead of a vehicle dominated domain. The reason for this modification request is that one building (6 out of 67 dwellings) is located along a MWS that is longer than 350 feet from a street. The furthest door is 540 feet away from Jerome Street without crossing a drive. See Exhibit A attached with this request for more detailed information. The intent of this memo is to prove that providing a longer MWS (i) is not detrimental to the public good, (ii) promotes the general purpose of the standard equally well or better than a plan which complies with the standard, and (iii) is the result of exceptional physical conditions. 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. No Detriment to the Public Good The additional length of MWS being requested does not create an unsafe condition for the future residents of the development or the general public. Three cut-through walk connections are provided along the pedestrian spine to ensure adequate accessible connectivity to the rest of the site. These connections also allow emergency personnel to access the main entrance of the residences quickly and efficiently in the event of an emergency. Additionally, the three buildings which are located along this longer-than standard MWS are all distinctly different building models. This guarantees that there is no visual monotony for the public as they traverse the site along the Major Walkway Spine. The additional length of the MWS does not cause any other standard or code to be violated, nor does it create a condition on site that impacts those of others off-site. Therefore, increasing the allowable length of a Major Walkway Spine from 350 feet to 540 feet is not detrimental to the public good. Justification Criteria – Equally Well or Better Than MINIMAL RISK. PAINLESS PROCESS. BEAUTIFUL SPACES. o: 970.224.5828 | w: ripleydesigninc.com RIPLEY DESIGN, INC. | 419 Canyon Avenue, Suite 200 | Fort Collins, CO 80521 LUC 2.8.2(H)(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; · LUC 3.5.2(A) Purpose – The standards in this Section are intended to promote variety, visual interest and pedestrian-oriented streets in residential development. · LUC 3.5.2(B) General Standard – Development projects containing residential buildings shall place a high priority on building entryways and their relationship to the street. Pedestrian usability shall be prioritized over vehicular usability. Buildings shall include human-scaled elements, architectural articulation, and in projects containing more than one (1) building, design variation. The general purpose of the standard which is requested to be modified centers around a visually interesting, pedestrian oriented streets and environments. The custom public alley section (Pascal Street) planned to serve the buildings which front the proposed MWS is designed to provide a unique sense of place to the development. The twenty-six-foot-wide alley is accompanied by eight-foot-wide attached sidewalks on each side to create enhanced pedestrian comfort and facilitate east/west movement through the site towards the commercial uses along North College Avenue. Tree grates are provided in the attached walks along with vertical green screens between each driveway to help soften the urban paving. Other custom design details are being contemplated as well and will be refined at Final Plan. Potential ideas so far include unique paving materials, pedestrian-oriented lighting, and custom site furnishings. The public alley is then transformed into a truly pedestrian oriented street, despite the presence of garages. By providing an enhanced pedestrian-oriented alley in the rear of the townhomes, along with a MWS on the front of the townhomes, this plan promotes the general purpose of the standard better than a plan which complies with the standard. The Major Walkway Spine designed along the southern boundary of this site connects to the Jerome Street public walk, which then turns into a public regional trail which is master planned to head south to the new Whitewater Park. The City’s regional trails act as an arterial thoroughfare for pedestrians and bicycles. While the MWS is longer than standard, it is operating as a frontage road for the arterial regional trail for the residents of this development. It collects pedestrians and bikes at a slower speed as they leave their home, and then allows access to a trail system that can connect the residents throughout town. There are some obvious benefits and necessities provided by vehicular streets, which are not ignored by this plan. The private street and alley system provided to the north of these units still offers MINIMAL RISK. PAINLESS PROCESS. BEAUTIFUL SPACES. o: 970.224.5828 | w: ripleydesigninc.com RIPLEY DESIGN, INC. | 419 Canyon Avenue, Suite 200 | Fort Collins, CO 80521 convenient access for residents and emergency services. Allowing six extra residences direct access to a bicycle and pedestrian circulation network which truly acts as a pedestrian street promotes the Purpose of the code better than a plan which complies with the code. Additionally, the three buildings which are located along this longer-than standard MWS are all distinctly different building models. The Purpose of this code is intended “to promote variety” and “visual interest.” Increasing the length of the MWS allows an additional distinctly different building with human-scaled elements, architectural articulation and design variation to be placed along the eastern boundary of the site. The addition of these building models promotes the Purpose of the code better than a plan which complies with the code. Justification Criteria – Exceptional Physical Condition LUC 2.8.2(H)(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; Typical parcels are square or rectangular, which provides the most amount of site design flexibility. The boundary of the subject property is oblong with the majority of the site being exceptionally narrow. The southern portion, and the only portion of the property which is not exceptionally narrow, is bounded by an existing ditch. This ditch is a defined natural feature and requires an average of a 50-foot Natural Habitat Buffer, limiting the development potential (including streets) along the southern boundary. Additionally, this site acts as an infill development between two existing developments. These developments predetermined access to the site via two public street locations and locked this development into a predefined street pattern. These exceptional physical conditions, which are unique to this property and are not caused by the act or omission of the applicant, create an undue hardship by generating dimensional constraints that limit the development of another public street along the southern boundary. Therefore, three buildings are planned to front open space and a Major Walkway Spine along the southern boundary in lieu of a street. The length of this boundary is over the 350-foot limit of a MWS, thus requiring this modification request. VAULT VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT ELECHYDWWWWWWWW WE EGGGGGGGGGGGGGGAS WWXXGGGGGGGGOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUWWWWGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG G G E E EEEMH / / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / /GASOHUOHUBUILDING 9 (6-PLEX) BUILDING 11 (7-PLEX) BUILDING 12 (4-PLEX) BUILDING 10 (6-PLEX)JEROME STREET PUBLIC ALLEY 0 10 20 40 SCALE: 1" = 20'-0" VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT ELECHYDS S S S D D D / / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / /XX/ / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / /XWWWWW WWWWWWWWWWWWWWW EEEGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS SS STSS S SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUOHUWWWGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG E E E E E EELID MHEEGFO / / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / /OHUSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS BUILDING 4 (5-PLEX) BUILDING 5 (4-PLEX) BUILDING 6 (7-PLEX) BUILDING 7 (6-PLEX) BUILDING 8 (7-PLEX) BUILDING 9 (6-PLEX) BUILDING 11 (7-PLEX) BUILDING 12 (4-PLEX) BUILDING 10 (6-PLEX)JEROME STREETJEROME STREET PUBLIC ALLEYPRIVATE ALLEYCAJETAN ST 0 15 30 60 SCALE: 1" = 30'-0" VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE TRAFFIC VAULT VAULT ELEC HY DVAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE VAULT ELEC VAULT CABLE C.O.H2OCONTROL IRRC.O.C.O.CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR CONTROL IRR S S D D S S S / / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / /XX/ / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / // / / / / / / /XX XXXXXXXXWWWWWWWW WWWWWWWEEWW WWWWW WWWWWWWWWW W W W W W W W WEEEEEEEEEE EGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG G G ST ST ST ST ST ST ST ST ST SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS SS SS SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS BUILDING 1 (6-PLEX) BUILDING 2 (4-PLEX) BUILDING 3 (4-PLEX) BUILDING 4 (5-PLEX) BUILDING 5 (4-PLEX) BUILDING 6 (7-PLEX) BUILDING 7 (6-PLEX)JEROME STREETJEROME STREETSUNIGA ROAD PRIVATE ALLEYPRIVATE ALLEYCAJETAN ST PRIVATE ALLEY 0 15 30 60 SCALE: 1" = 30'-0"