Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrono Amber, LLC TO: Park Commission Greg Gappa, Public Services Director FROM: Paul Weinberger,Zoning Administrator/Planner DATE: November 29, 2000 SUBJECT: Orono Amber, LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640 Preliminary Subdivision/CUP-Rezoning/Comprehensive Plan Amendment #2641 Site Plan Reviews Public Hearing Existing Zoning: B-1, Retail Sales Business District Lot Area: +6.7 acres List of Exhibits A Plat Map J L 1 Office Building Landscaping B Site Plan/Preliminary Lot Layout K L1-1 Senior Building Landscaping C Office Building Views L Section 10.52 Hwy 12 Rezoning D Senior Housing Building Views M Section 10.53 Hwy 12 PUD Ordinance E A2.1 Second Level Building Plan N Proposed RPRD Landscaping Req. F A2.2 Third Level Building Plan 0 Traffic Consult. Review I (11/7/00) G A2.3 Typical Building Plan P Traffic Consult. Review II (11/14/00) H A4.1 Unit Floor Plans Q Property Owner Notification List I A4.2 Unit Floor Plans Application Summary: Orono Amber,LLC.has submitted an application for a two lot plat of a 6.7 acre property. Proposed is a rezoning for the two properties from B-1, Retail Sales Business District to B-6/PUD(for office use of the proposed west parcel)and RPUD/PUD (for multi-family residential use of the proposed east parcel). The intended use of the properties are a 3 story 70 unit senior housing project and a 23,000 s.f.office building. The proposed residential use of the property would require a Comprehensive Plan Amendment as the property is not guided for residential use in the 1980 Plan or the proposed Comprehensive Plan (CMP). The City has a Highway 12 PUD procedure and a Highway 12 rezoning procedure established that provide the process the review requires. Section 10.53 is the Code section that defines the standards and review process for a Highway 12 PUD and Section 10.52 defines the special requirements for rezoning along the Highway 12 corridor and study area. Those Code sections have been attached as exhibits to this report. Park Dedication Fees: The 2000 Fee Schedule requires residential properties pay a park dedication fee when no land dedication is made of 8% of the predevelopment fair market value (Subject to a min. fee of$3,100 per dwelling unit, max. $5,300 per dwelling unit. Commercial properties shall pay an 8%predevelopment fee,subject to a min.fee of$7,250 per acre,max.$12,250 per acre. Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 1 The applicant has provided site plans for both properties. A commercial site plan review for the office and senior housing properties and buildings will include a full review of the following items: 1) Landscaping 2) Traffic Flow/Road System 3) Parking Arrangement 4) Building Height/Setbacks 5) Review of Architectural Materials/Building Design 6) Lighting 7) Screening 8) Other I. Preliminary Subdivision/Rezoning/Comprehensive Plan Amendment Uses within the PUD may include only those uses designated by the official Comprehensive Land Use Plan. The 1989 Comprehensive Plan Amendment had guided the property for commercial use. The Comprehensive Plan (CMP) as preliminarily approved by the City Council in September designated several Orono properties as areas that would allow medium density. The density proposed in the CMP does not have an existing zoning district that would allow the types of housing that would be offered by as proposed in this application. The proposed CMP did not include this property as a residential site. In fact it has been guided for commercial use as was the case with 1989 CMP amendment. The entire property has been zoned B-1 since at least 1967, perhaps earlier. To rezone the east property would require changing the land use designation to residential. The 70 unit building on the 4 acre site would provide 17.5 units/acre of senior housing units at a variety of unit sizes and rental rates. The proposed RPUD zoning district would be the appropriate zoning district to provide the units/acre density requested. Section 10.33, Subdivision 5(E) in the proposed RPUD district would allow the City of Orono to provide incentives to encourage projects which are consistent with housing goals. "Incentives may include modification of density and floor area ratio requirements for developments providing lifecycle housing and low and moderate cost housing." The City has the ability to ensure the housing need, for lifecycle housing, is met. The RPUD district would rely heavily on the CMP designation for housing density and the ability of the developer to meet the housing needs of the community. The office use would not require a CMP amendment as the underlying land use designation is for commercial use. The property is proposed as a 2.7 acre site. The use of the property as office/clinic would be permitted under the B-6 district should the Council approve an amendment to the permitted uses in the B-6 district to permit clinic uses. Platting Process This review is at the preliminary plat stage. A complete review of the preliminary plat will require review and approval of the proposed site plans. The plat would result in two lots. Lot 1 (west property) = 116,832 s.f. or_+ 2.7 acres Lot 2 (east property) = 173,871 s.f. or+4.0 acres Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 2 The preliminary plat review falls under the standard platting procedures as established in the Subdivision Ordinance. Additional requirements may be imposed by the City on non-residential subdivisions to protect adjacent residential areas from potential nuisance from a proposed commercial/office development including for provisions for a permanently landscaped buffer strip if necessary. Additional special requirements may be imposed to protect the residential areas surrounding the development. The developer has proposed to plat the senior housing project as condominiums. Each unit would have a separate legal description and tax statement. Under this type of plat the units would be owned by a non-profit agency and rented to the occupants under the agreements established for the building. Surrounding Land Use The subject parcel was platted as Outlot F, Sugarwoods the parcel immediately south of the Sugarwoods neighborhood. The only buffer between the residential use in Sugarwoods is a 40'wide platted outlot that is owned by the Sugarwoods homeowners association. Restrictions were placed on each lot within the Sugarwoods neighborhood that prohibits removal of trees greater than 2" in diameter within the rear setback for those lots located closest to the proposed development. The property is located on Highway 12 and the City of Long Lake is located south of Highway 12. Two lots that are located west of the project are developed as the Orono Shopping Center and Conoco gas station. U.S.Highway 12 is proposed to be relocated to the south and the existing Highway 12 will be turned over to Hennepin County. Part of the proposed Highway 12 relocation includes a change to the existing 12 and Brown Road intersection. Currently, Brown Road North ends in a T intersection with 12. The Brown Road south of 12 will be realigned to create an intersection with existing 12 directly across from Brown Road North and a signal light would be installed at that intersection. The property east of Brown Road is the Long Lake State Bank site, in the City of Long Lake. IA. Financial Considerations Briefly,applicant has requested the Council consider various methods of financial assistance to make this project feasible. Such methods include the creation of a TIF district or similar provisions or reimbursements. Council has had early discussions regarding this and has indicated it is willing to consider this. The City's financial consultant is also reviewing the request. II. Site Plan Review (Lot 1 - Office Building) The proposed office building is two stories with approximately 23,000 s.f. of gross floor space. Under the building is a 21 stall underground parking area. The actual building size is 172' X 80' or 13,760 s.f. The building is designed to step down from a two story structure to one story immediately adjacent to the Sugarwoods neighborhood. The building would be constructed to only expose the 80' width to the neighborhood. Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 3 Site Characteristics,B-6 Conformity (Note: Needed variances are shown in bold type) Required/Allowed Existing/Proposed Site area: 2 acres 2.7 acres Defined lot width: 100' 195' Parking setbacks: Required front yard: 15' 15' Required rear yard: 10' 35' Required side yard adj. to "R" district: 10' 125' Required side yard adj. to "B" district: 5' 15' Building setbacks: Front lot line: 30' 190' Rear lot line: 35' 35' Side lot line adj. to "R" district: 35' 30' Side lot line adj. to "B" district: 10' 83' Building Height: 30' (2 '/2 stories) 30' and 32' for the decorative tower to the left of the side entrance No. of Parking Stalls: Required= 1 per 200 s.f. Required= 1 per 200 s.f. of"net usable floor area for office/medical use" (Net= 20,880 s.£+/200 = 105 stalls required) Total stalls required = 105 Total stalls proposed = 105 Signage Allowance 190 s.f. Not known Additional Standards required by the current B-6 zoning district (Section 10.45): A. At least twenty five percent(25%)of the land area shall be landscaped with grass,approved ground cover, shrubbery and trees. At least three percent (3%) of the land area within a parking area shall be landscaped. B. All trash and trash handling equipment shall be stored within the principal structure,within an attached structure accessible from within the principal structure,or totally screened from eye-level view from public streets and adjacent residential properties.If accessory structures are proposed, they shall be constructed of the same building material as the principal structure and be readily served through swinging doors. Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 4 C. Garages,accessory structures, screen walls and exposed areas of retaining walls shall be of similar type, quality and appearance as the principal structure. D. The ground level view of all mechanical utilities shall be completely screened from contiguous properties and adjacent streets, or designed to be compatible with the architectural treatment of the principal structure. E. External loading and service areas must be completely screened from the ground level view from contiguous residential or commercial properties and adjacent streets, except at access points. F. The light from automobile headlights and other sources shall be screened whenever it may be directed onto adjacent residential windows. *Note that the proposed B-6 landscaping/screening and architectural standards(application #2638) will be much more detailed than the current standard. The proposed standards have been forwarded to the developers landscape architect for this project. III. Site Plan Review (Lot 2 - Senior Housing) The senior housing building is designed with the same concept of stepping down to decrease the mass of the ends of the building from 3 stories to 2 stories. The building is designed to have 3 levels and a level of underground parking for 83 cars. One significant design element of the building is the clock tower,designed to break up the roof line of the building. The building is designed to have the east 1/2 of the entire structure located 10' lower than the west 1/2 due to the existing topography. A MnDot stormwater pond is located at the northwest corner of Highway 12 and Brown Road. The pond is owned and maintained by MnDot. Developer has indicated this pond has existing designed capacity to serve both proposed structures as well as other existing/future development in the area. Site Characteristics, Conformity with the proposed RPUD zoning district standards (Note: Needed variances are shown in bold type) Required/Allowed Existing/Proposed Site area: 5 acres 4 acres * The RPUD district allows the Council flexibility to this standard when findings are made as listed in proposed Section 10.33, Subdivision 5 (A). Parking setbacks: Required front yard: 20' 45-50' Required rear yard: 20' NA Required side yard 20' 60' Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 5 Building setbacks: The setback for all buildings from exterior RPUD lot lines would be 35' except that in no case shall the setback be less than the height of the building. One concern is the building location being proposed at 41'to the rear lot line. The developer will provide a new site plan at the Planning Commission meeting that would indicate a greater setback to the rear property line. The property is very limited by the MnDot pond for developing the housing further from the property line. One non-desirable option to allow the building to be located even further from the rear lot line would be to located the access to north of the building. This may not be the best option as a building would be a better"neighbor"to the residential properties to the north than a service road providing access to the buildings and a clinic. Building Height: The intent of the RPUD district is to provide housing to meet lifecycle, and affordable and moderate cost housing needs. As discussed with the review of the RPUD ordinance, the housing types may require buildings to exceed the 30'standard that applies to single family residential homes and office buildings. The only district that could allow a building greater than 30' is the Industrial district which all 3 stories or 40'. The proposed building would have a peak height of close to 50'as viewed from the back side of the structure. Staffs determination of the defined height of the building averages 38'. Strict interpretation of the ordinance would define the height at 45', lowest grade adjoining building to highest midpoint of the roof. Because the RPUD ordinance has not been adopted,no standard exists for building height in the district. The developer has stated to allow the project to work the building would have to be three stories or moderately priced senior rental units would not be feasible. No. of Parking Stalls: Required=2 per dwelling unit (Section 10.61) Required= 140 spaces Total stalls proposed = 83 interior spaces 70 exterior spaces Section 10.30 establishes required parking for the M-6, Multiple Family Zoning District as 2 spaces per unit plus .25 spaces for each unit as additional parking areas for guests. A minimum of one space per unit shall be provided on the interior of the building. While this proposal is not subject to the M-6 standards,these standards provide a guideline for parking for a standard apartment building. The standards for a building designed for senior housing use may not require the same parking standards. The applicants have stated they do not feel all the parking proposed on site will be necessary for the use. They will be providing additional information as to parking needs for other similar projects to justify the amount of spaces provided. IV. Road/Parking/Access The property would have two access points. One on Brown Road North to serve the entire development and provide access to a future signal light at the intersection of Highway 12 and Brown Road. A second access point for the properties would be to Highway 12 for right in/right out turns. The City of Orono's traffic consultant has reviewed the plan and has determined the development Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 6 would expect to generate approximately 500 vehicles trips per day (250 in 250 out). Both reports dated 11/7/00 and 11/14/00 have been attached for your review. A primary concern addressed by our consultant is the proposed interior road would be used for the clinic traffic as well as the residential use. The individual parking spaces in the lots located in front of the senior housing building would back out directly into through traffic. They have recommended a separate primary parking area be designed to not allow two sided parking to have to back out into the through traffic. When the original planning for the site was completed in 1988 it was envisioned that a service road would pass through this property to the Orono Mall property, Often Bros. and connect to Willow Drive. The plan was completed many years prior to the final route of the Highway 12 relocation. A full service road may not be required since Highway 12 will be relocated and the intersection with Brown Road and 12 will be realigned and lighted in the future. However, the traffic consultant believes that many motorists would seek this service road route as an alternative to the other direct access drives to Highway 12 increasing the amount of "cut thru" dramatically. V. Grading and Drainage The proposed grading plan shows the parking lot in the northwest corner of the site approximately 10' higher than the adjoining property to the south. The City Engineer is recommending this part of the site be lowered at least 4'. The retaining wall could then be eliminated. Additional engineering is required for further review of the proposal. The developer should provide storm sewer and ponding calculations for review. VI. Landscaping Plans/Pedestrian Ways Proposed standards for landscaping are attached as Exhibits J and K. The applicants have provided landscaping plans for each property under review. The plans have placed an emphasis on heavier planting between the buildings/parking areas and the residential use to the north. The Code requires a screen not less than 50% opaque be located between commercial uses and residential uses. The RPUD ordinance has proposed a landscaping value to be required based on a percentage of the project value. For a development greater than$4,000,000 the minimum landscaping value that must be provided would equal 1% of the project value. Wally Case, the City's landscaping consultant, would complete an estimate of the landscaping value based on the proposed ordinance. Some of the existing trees would be removed to make room for the project. The plans submitted have been designed to protect several mature trees that are located between the proposed building and Highway 12. Protection of those trees requires the building and access road to be shifted to the north. An adjacent property owner to the north has expressed concerns about the location of the building being 40'from the rear property line. The Planning Commission should consider the option of shifting the building forward 20' to allow a 60' setback between the rear property line and the senior housing building. Shifting the building forward would likely require removal of the trees Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 7 located between Highway 12 and the pond. If the trees are removed, it would make the building more visible to the future 12 and Brown Road intersection. This may be a more desired option as the building would be moved further from the adjacent residential properties. A suitable landscape plan would soften the impact of the building as viewed from the Brown/12 intersection,and perhaps enhance the urban feel of this area. The developer is preparing an alternative site plan that will show a road without two-sided parking and relocating the senior housing building 60' from the north property line. They will present that option to the Planning Commission on Monday night. Pedestrian paths should be made available between parking areas and all entrances to the buildings. It would be appropriate to provide for a pedestrian access between the senior building and the clinic, and the existing sidewalks abutting Hwy 12. Planning Commission Recommendation: 6 to 0 for conceptual approval of a Hwy 12 PUD rezoning and forward the discussion to a 12/7/00 joint work session with the City Council. The application will also be reviewed by the City Council at their 12/11/00 meeting. Orono Amber,LLC. 2060 Wayzata Boulevard #2640/#2641 Page 8