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HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report_MinutesApril 22, 2004 ITEM NO.: E FILE NO.: LU04-01-02 Name: Land Use Plan Amendment - River Mountain Planning District Location: North side of Highway 10, East of Taylor Loop Road Request: Transition to Commercial Source: John Rees PROPOSAL/REQUEST Land Use Plan amendment in the River Mountain Planning District from Transition to Commercial. The Commercial category 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 applicant wishes to develop the property for strip retail with offices and warehouses in the back. Prompted by this Land Use Amendment request, the Planning Staff expanded the area of review to include the area to the south fronting Cantrell Road. This expansion would recognize the existing uses fronting Cantrell Road. OX&Ii1ReIX_Irk F§XI&-]FW_IVkl-93010110 Cc The applicant's property is vacant land currently zoned R-2 Single Family and is 8.93 acres t in size. The expanded area also includes a restaurant, antique store, and a house located on the north side of Cantrell Road west of Pinnacle Valley Road. The property to the north and east consists of large -lot single-family houses along Pinnacle Valley Road and houses built on traditional sized lots on Pine Mountain Road. The property along the south side of Cantrell Road consists of vacant land along Ison Creek, houses along Westbury Drive, a bank zoned Planned Commercial Development at Jerry Drive, a church zoned R-2 with a C.U.P., a second bank closer to Taylor Loop Road zoned PCD, and a house zoned R-2 on the southeast corner of the Taylor Loop / Cantrell Road intersection. A shopping center zoned C-3 General Commercial is located southwest of the amendment area at the northeast corner of the Taylor Loop / Cantrell Road intersection. The land to the west is vacant property zoned R-2. April 22, 2004 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU04-01-02 FUTURE LAND USE PLAN AND RECENT AMENDMENTS: On August 19, 2003 a change was made from Transition to Commercial at 14410 Cantrell Road less than 1/10 of a mile to the east of the applicant's property to accommodate proposed development. On February 18, 2003 multiple changes were made from Transition and Low Density Residential to Suburban Office, Single Family, Commercial, Park / Open Space, Low Density Residential, Office, and Public Institutional along Cantrell Road within a 1 mile radius of the amendment area to recognize existing conditions. On April 20, 1999 a change was made from Single Family and Low Density Residential, to Commercial, Office, Multifamily, and Park / Open Space on Cantrell at Black Road about a'% mile east of the property in question to recognize existing conditions. The expanded amendment area is shown as Transition on the Future Land Use Plan. Ison Creek running along the east side of the applicant's property is shown as Park / Open Space along the creek floodway. The property to the north is shown as Single Family while the property to the east is shown as Transition. The land on the south side of Cantrell Road from ]son Creek to Taylor Loop Road is shown as Park / Open Space, Single Family, Suburban Office, Public Institutional and Commercial. The property at the north side of the Taylor Loop / Cantrell Road intersection is shown as Commercial. The land to the west is shown as Single Family. An area shown as Transition near the northwest corner of the Taylor Loop / Cantrell Road intersection is the subject of another item on this agenda for a change to Commercial. MASTER STREET PLAN: Cantrell Road is shown on the Master Street Plan as a Principal Arterial and is built as a four -lane highway with an additional center turn lane. Pinnacle Valley Road is shown as a Minor Arterial and is built as a rural two-lane road and would be subject to half -street improvements in order to bring the road into conformance with Master Street Plan Standards. A Class III bikeway is shown on Pinnacle Valley Road from State Highway 300 to Cantrell Road. Although, a Class III bikeway does not require any additional right-of-way or paving, but would require bike lanes to marked on the street and would also require additional signage. April 22, 2004 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU04-01-02 PARKS The Little Rock Parks and Recreation Master Plan of 2001 shows the Taylor Loop Park located a short distance to the southwest of the applicant's property Taylor Loop Park is about 35.0+ acres. Taylor Loop Park is listed as an undeveloped Community Park intended to remain as a passive open space parcel of undeveloped land and is designed to serve the open space needs of several neighborhoods. The plan also shows a Potential Greenbelt along the floodway of Ison Creek running parallel to Pinnacle Valley Road along the east side of the expanded amendment area. Development of the study area will need to respect the integrity of the drainage system located in the 100 -year flood plain of the creek as well as the integrity of the Potential Greenbelt shown in the plan. There are no city recognized historic districts that would be affected by this amendment. City Recognized Neighborhood Action Plan: The applicant's property lies in the area covered by the River Mountain Neighborhood Action Plan. The Sustainable Natural Environment goal listed an objective of promoting the vigorous enforcement of the Landscaping & Excavation Ordinance. This action could result in the removal of trees in order to accommodate the development of uses possible in the Commercial land use category. ANALYSIS: The application area is located in close proximity to two intersections between Minor Arterials with a Principal Arterial. In addition, areas shown as Commercial have expanded recently and further reduced the area shown as Transition as well as reducing the potential for future residential development on the north side of Cantrell Road. The proposed change from Transition to Commercial located to the southwest of the area covered by this application will also have the same effect. Since a large amount of the property shown as Commercial in the vicinity of the applicant's property is developed with existing Commercial uses the properties not developed for businesses will face increased pressure to develop April 22, 2004 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU04-01-02 for non-residential uses. All of these changes will result in a large strip of non- residential development on the north side of Cantrell Road from an area east of Pinnacle Valley Road to an area west of Taylor Loop Road. The first 300 feet of the applicant's property and the expanded study area are located in the Highway 10 Design Overlay District. Any development of the property within 300 feet of Cantrell Road would need to conform to the design standards of the Highway 10 DOD. In areas shown as Transition, a Planned Zoning District is required unless an application conforms to the Design Overlay standards. The design standards of the Highway 10 DOD are intended to protect the scenic value of the Highway 10 DOD through the requirement of PZD's. The amendment proposed for the study area would place Commercial uses next to developing and existing Single Family uses to the north. Since Commercial is a more intense use than Single Family, any non-residential development in the study area should be done in a manner which will protect and buffer the residential areas from any Commercial uses. In addition, although the vacant land to the west is not yet developed, the integrity of future Single Family should also be protected. The applicant's property was the subject of a Land Use Plan Amendment for a change from Transition to Suburban Office. It was a part of a Future Land Use review along Cantrell Road presented to the Planning Commission on January 9, 2003. The change to Suburban Office affecting the applicant's property was denied at that meeting based on Staff recommendation. It was determined that the Transition land use category allowed for office development similar to the requirements found in the Suburban Office category but also allowed residential development. Although the Transition category allows for both office and residential development, the pattern of development in areas shown as Transition along Cantrell Road has favored the creation of new office spaces. However, the areas shown as Transition do not eliminate the possibility of future residential development along Cantrell Road. This amendment would not only expand the amount of land shown as Commercial, but it would reduce the amount of land available for office development along the Cantrell Road corridor and eliminate the possibility of future residential development in the area shown as Transition covered by this amendment. A change to Commercial would reduce the buffer between the intense uses fronting Cantrell Road and the less intense uses located to the north. April 22, 2004 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU04-01-02 NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: Pleasant Valley Property Owners Association, River Valley Property Owners Association, Pankey Community Improvement Association, Piedmont Neighborhood Association, Pleasant Forest Neighborhood Association, Secluded Hills Property Owners Association, Walton Heights-Candlewood Neighborhood Association, Westbury Neighborhood Association, Westchester/Heatherbrae Property Owners Association, Charleston Heights/North Rahling Rd N.A., and Chenal Ridge Property Owners Association. Staff has received one comment from area residents that was neutral. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff believes the change is not appropriate. This application would result in a strip of commercial development along the north side of Cantrell Road from Pinnacle Valley Road to an area west of Taylor Loop Road. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (March 11, 2004) The item was placed on the consent agenda for deferral to the April 22, 2004 Planning Commission meeting. A motion was made to approve the consent agenda and was approved with a vote of 9 ayes, 0 noes and 2 absent. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (APRIL 22, 2004) Brian Minyard, City Staff, made a brief presentation to the commission. Donna James made presentations of item E.1 so the discussion could coincide with the discussion for item E. See item E.1 for a complete discussion concerning the Planned Commercial District. John Rees made a presentation in support of the application. Commissioner Bill Rector started a discussion of the uses in the various buildings as it pertained to the Land Use Plan and summarized that the back buildings would comply with the Land Use Plan while the front building would require the amendment. Mary Beth Ringgold, of Capers Restaurant, spoke in support of the application. She stated that this has become a commercial node. April 22, 2004 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: E (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU04-01-02 Elizabeth Berg opposed the application. She is a property owner to the north and was unclear as to where the property lines were. Ruth Bell, of the Pulaski League of Women Voters, commented that Cantrell had at one time been rural. She stated that the overlay was not doing what it was supposed to be doing. She continued that it was important to keep office uses on Cantrell. A motion was made to approve the item as presented. The item was denied with a vote of 4 ayes, 6 noes, and 1 absent. The item failed because of a lack of 6 votes for the change per the commission's bylaws.