HomeMy WebLinkAboutWrite-Up for LU19-11-03
FILE NO.: LU19-11-03
Name: Land Use Plan Amendment – I-430 Planning District
Location: Northeast Corner Kanis Road and Embassy Suites Drive
Request: Office (O) to Commercial (C)
Source: Marion Scott Foster, City of Little Rock
PROPOSAL / REQUEST:
Land Use Plan amendment in the I-430 Planning District from O, Office to C, Commercial.
Commercial includes a broad range of retail and wholesale sales of products, personal
and professional services, and general business activities. Commercial activities vary in
type and scale, depending on the trade area that they serve. The request is to allow for
future commercial development on the site.
EXISTING LAND USE AND ZONING:
The amendment property consists of 2 lots, totaling ±1.3 acres. The lot adjacent to
Embassy Suites Drive is currently vacant and wooded. It is currently zoned as POD,
Planned Office District and 0.5 acres ± in size. The lot to the east is zoned as O-3,
General Office District, and there is a commercial building on it. To the north, east of
Embassy Suites Drive, south of Embassy Suites Hotel is undeveloped land zoned
Planned Commercial Districts (PCD). To the north, west of Embassy Suites Drive is
undeveloped land zoned Planned Office District (POD), and to the east of this POD is
a developed office area on a Planned District Office (PDO) zoning. To the east of the
subject property are 6 lots of undeveloped Single Family District (R-2) along Kanis
Road. To the west of the area is the continuation of the subject undeveloped POD of
amendment property. Further west is an R-2 zoned lot with a Single Family house on
it, and a POD zoned lot with two occupied office buildings on it. Across the street
southeast of Kanis & Centerview Drive is a ± 3.5 acres undeveloped PCD zoned
property, to the southwest of Kanis Road & Centerview Drive is a ± 2.2 acres C-3 zoned
undeveloped lot.
FUTURE LAND USE PLAN AND RECENT AMENDMENTS:
The property is currently shown as Office (O) on both lots, on the plan, the lot adjacent
to Embassy Suites Drive is vacant and wooded, the lot to the east is occupied with a
commercial building on it. North of the property is shown as Office on the Plan to the
both sides of Embassy Suites Drive. To the east are 6 vacant lots shown as Office (O)
on the Plan. To the west to Autumn Road is shown as Office (O). The eastern portion
of this area undeveloped followed by single family house, and two office building at
Autumn Road. To the southeast of Kanis & Centerview Drive is ± 3.5 acres of an
undeveloped Office use, to the southwest of Kanis & Centerview Drive is ± 2.2 acres of
an undeveloped Commercial use (changed from Office in September 2019).
FILE NO.: LU19-11-03 (Cont.)
2
On March 2, 1999, by ordinance number 17951, a change was made from Suburban
Office (SO) to Office (O) to the south of Kanis Road and to the west of Centerview
Drive.
On September 3, 2019, by ordinance 21773, a change was made from O to C to the
southwest of Centerview Drive & Kanis Road.
MASTER STREET PLAN:
Kanis Road is along the south boundary and shown as a Minor Arterial on the Master
Street Plan. Embassy Suites Drive is along the eastern boundary and shown as a
Collector on the Master Street Plan. A Minor Arterial provides connections to and
through an urban area and their primary function is to provide short distance travel
within the urbanized area. Entrances and exits should be limited to minimize negative
effects of traffic and pedestrians on Kanis Road since it is a Minor Arterial. The primary
function of a Collector Street is to provide a connection from Local Streets to Arterials.
These streets may require dedication of right-of-way and may require street
improvements for entrances and exits to the site.
BICYCLE PLAN:
There are no Bicycle facilities shown adjacent to the application.
PARKS:
There are no public parks shown in the immediate vicinity.
HISTORIC DISTRICTS:
There are no city recognized historic districts that would be affected by this amendment.
ANALYSIS:
The property requesting the Land Use Plan change is northeast of intersection of Kanis
Road and Embassy Suites Drive. It is currently shown as Office on Land Use Plan. The
property has become one ownership. There is a separate application on this agenda to
abandon the undeveloped right-of-way between the existing two lots to create one lot
for future development. The request is to amend +1.3 acres of Office to Commercial.
The west portion of the property is undeveloped Office and east portion of property is a
vacant hair salon and accessory structure. The site is within a prominent business
center near the intersection of two Interstates. Much of the retail and commercial is in
the northern quadrants along Markham and Chenal Parkway. With Commercial also
shown at the Kanis-Shackleford Roads and Kanis-Bowman Roads Intersections. Large
office areas are along Markham west of I-430, and Kanis Road south I-630. West of
I-430 along Kanis Road is mostly medical related office associated with Baptist Hospital.
East of I-430 is an area built as an Office Park with additional office uses surrounding it.
FILE NO.: LU19-11-03 (Cont.)
3
Directly northeast, northwest, west, east of the subject property is currently undeveloped
Office land approximately 9 acres in size. Southwest of subject property, southwest of
Kanis and Centerview Drive intersection has recently (September 3, 2019) amended
from Office to Commercial and is currently undeveloped, +2.2 acres. To the south there
is +3.5 acres of undeveloped office land. In addition to these office areas, to the
southwest of the property (east of Bowman Road) there is undeveloped Office and
Commercial land both to the north and south of Kanis Road within the Mixed Office and
Commercial (MOC) shown areas on the Plan.
There are two commercial nodes at the arterial intersections to the west and east. To
the west is the Bowman and Kanis Road intersection with a beverage shop, a Goodwill
Donation Center, a strip mall to the northeast, and a big box retail shop (Lowe’s) to the
northwest of this intersection. To the east is Shackelford and Kanis Road intersection
with a gas station to the southwest, a bank, some restaurants to the southeast, a hotel
and retail to the northwest, and Arkansas Farm Bureau to the northeast of this
intersection.
The total undeveloped Commercial land between Bowman and Shackleford Roads
in that area is approximately +12 acres and these properties are zoned as C-2
Shopping Center and C-3 General Commercial. Another 2-plus acres of undeveloped
Commercial land was recently added at the southwest of Kanis Road/Centerview
Drive and zoned as C-3. These undeveloped commercial areas are to the northwest
and southwest of the Kanis and Shackleford Roads intersection.
To the west is an undeveloped General Commercial (C-3) within the +13 acres of
Mixed Office and Commercial land (MOC), as mentioned previously, southeast of
Bowman & Kanis Roads. In this MOC shown area the remaining +11 acres is zoned
as General Office (O-3). The available undeveloped Office area on the Land Use map
in the vicinity is approximately +16 acres including the amendment area. Two areas
are northeast and northwest of Embassy Suites Drive & Kanis Road (north of the site),
and another is adjacent east of the amendment property. The available vacant Office
and General Office (O-3) zoned areas are more than the available Commercial or
General Commercial (C-3) zoned areas both on the Land Use plan and Zoning Map.
The proposed change to the Land Use Plan would expand a recently created Land
Use area on the Plan. There has been limited to no commercial or office development
along Kanis Road which has remained a two-lane rural road. The city has begun a
public project to widen Kanis Road to Arterial standards, and the intersection
southwest of the amendment area will be signalized.
NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS:
Notices were sent to the John Barrow Neighborhood Assoc. Staff has received no
comments from area residents or neighborhood association.
FILE NO.: LU19-11-03 (Cont.)
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STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
Staff recommends approval.
PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (OCTOBER 24, 2019)
The item was placed on the consent agenda for approval. By a vote of 10 for, 0 against
and 1 absent the consent agenda was approved.