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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutesMay 23, 2002 ITEM NO.: A FILE NO.: LU02-14-01 Name: Land Use Plan Amendment - Geyer Springs -East Planning District Location: 1 Voorhees Dr. Request: Low Density Residential to Commercial Source: Jim Hill, Putnam Realty Inc. PROPOSAL / REQUEST: Land Use Plan amendment in the Geyer Springs -East Planning District from Low Density Residential 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 they serve. The applicant wishes to use the property for commercial purposes. EXISTING LAND USE AND ZONING: The property is currently zoned R-2 Single Family with non -conforming C-4 Open Display Commercial uses and is approximately 4.08± acres in size. Two shop buildings occupy the southwest portion of the property. The primary building is a truck repair shop building with a six -bay garage; a smaller three -bay garage building is adjacent on the western part of the property. All of the surrounding zoning is R-2. Properties to the north include two manufactured housing developments. The first development is located on the north leg of Vorhees and consists of vacant boarded up pre -1974 manufactured homes. The second manufactured housing development is located on Regina Circle. The property to the east consists of houses located on Fairlee Drive and Stratton Avenue. In addition, to the east of the application area is a property consisting of a house, motorcycle sales, two cabinet shops, an upholstery shop and one warehouse. Uses south of the applicant's property consist of houses, large out buildings, and manufactured homes. Property to the west consists of a day care center, a church, and a house. A mixture of uses is located in the vicinity of the applicant's property along Stanton Road. Starting at the north end of the neighborhood, a convenience store is located on the southwest corner of the 1-30 Frontage Road and Stanton Road. Three blocks south of the convenience store, is a machine shop on the west side of Stanton Road at Stanton and Voorhees. South of Vorhees on the May 23, 2002 ITEM NO.: A (Cont. FILE NO.: LU02-14-01 east side of Stanton Road are two more day care centers. A fencing company is located south of Vorhees on the east side of Stanton Road between Vorhees and Larry Circle. The remainder of the uses on Stanton Road is a mixture of single-family houses and manufactured homes. FUTURE LAND USE PLAN AND RECENT AMENDMENTS: On October 5, 1999 a change took place from Multi -Family to Mixed Office Commercial and Commercial in the 9100 block of Lew Drive about 3/ of a mile southwest of the property in question. On September 1, 1998 a change took place from Low Density Residential to Commercial at 4201 Baseline Road about 2/3 of a mile southeast of the application area. On September 16, 1997 a change took place from Single Family to Multi -Family at 3615 — 3706 American Manor Drive about 1 mile southeast of the review area' On May 20, 1997 a change took place from Mixed Office Industrial to Commercial at 8001 1-30 about 1/10 of a mile north of the area under review. The property under review as well as all of the surrounding property is shown as Low Density Residential on the Future Land Use Plan. MASTER STREET PLAN.- Vorhees LAN: Vorhees Drive is a substandard commercial street with a 30 -foot Right-of-way. The east -west portion of Vorhees is a paved street with open drainage. The north -south leg of Vorhees consists of a gravel surface. Stanton Road is shown on the Master Street Plan as a Collector Street and is built to standard. There are no bikeways shown that would be affected by this amendment. PARKS: The nearest park shown on the Little Rock Parks and Recreation Master Plan of 2001 is Wakefield Park, listed as a neighborhood park of 5 — 20 acres. Wakefield Park provides a playground, a basketball pad, a tennis court, a lighted baseball field, a restroom, and a picnic area. The park is located about a Y2 mile to the northwest of the application area at Fisher Street and Woodson Road. This park primarily serves the Geyer Springs and Wakefield neighborhoods and would not be affected by this amendment. This amendment is located in a neighborhood service deficit area. Additional park facilities would need to be developed closer to the amendment area to provide adequate park facilities. 2 May 23, 2002 ITEM NO.: A (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU02-14-01 HISTORIC DISTRICTS: There is not any historic districts near -by that would be affected by this amendment. CITY RECOGNIZED NEIGHBORHOOD ACTION PLAN: The applicant's property lies in the area covered by the Upper Baseline Neighborhood Action Plan. The Neighborhood and Housing Revitalization goal contained an action statement of encouraging Low Density Residential development in the area. The Economic Development goal contained an objective of retaining existing businesses, and when necessary, finding new businesses to replace those that close. ANALYSIS: The applicant's property is an existing non -conforming use, formerly used as a truck repair business, and located in a marginal neighborhood characterized by a mixture of residential and non-residential uses. The property in the application area is accessed at the point where Vorhees Drive curves toward the north, providing the property with a minimum amount of street frontage. The northeast portion of the study area touches Fairlee Drive and could potentially be accessed by Fairlee. This amendment could produce commercial traffic on Fairlee Drive. Traffic accessing the property in question must already pass the two houses located on Vorhees at Stanton Road. The current access of the property from Vorhees, and the potential of access to the property from Fairlee, could cause a conflict of traffic between residents living in the area and commercial vehicles accessing the potential commercial uses located in the application area. Any Commercial development would generate traffic that would affect the residents living on Vorhees and Fairlee. Any Commercial development of the property would need to mitigate the impacts of commercial traffic passing through residential areas. Commercial traffic impacts on neighboring residential properties could be minimized by limiting commercial traffic to Vorhees and improving Vorhees Drive while limiting the use of Fairlee Drive to accessing residential uses. Although other non -conforming uses are located in the neighborhood, those uses are accessed from either Stanton Road or Doyle Springs Road, not the side streets. Any development of Commercial uses would need a sufficient buffer between any buildings and parking lots and the neighboring residential uses to compensate for the scale and massing of future buildings built on the property. Without sufficient buffers, the neighboring residential properties would be impacted by intense commercial uses on the applicant's properties. Any commercial development in this area should be limited to the types of 3 May 23, 2002 ITEM NO.: A Cont.) FILE NO.: LU02-14-01 commercial uses that would have the minimum amount of impact residential uses. This amendment would place Commercial uses in a location that is accessed by a commercial street that is not built to handle commercial traffic and create an island of land shown as Commercial surrounded by land that is shown as Low Density Residential. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS: Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: O.U.R. Neighborhood Association, Upper Baseline Neighborhood Association, Windamere Neighborhood Association, and Woodland Ridge Property Owners Association. Staff has received one comment from area residents. The one comment was neutral. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff believes the change is not appropriate. This amendment could produce new commercial traffic in residential areas and create an island of Commercial in the middle of an area shown as residential on the Land Use Plan. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (APRIL 11, 2002) The item was placed on the consent agenda for deferral to the May 23, 2002 Planning Commission meeting. A motion was made to approve the consent agenda and was approved with a vote of 10 ayes, 0 noes and 1 absent. 4 May 23, 2002 ITEM NO.: A (Cont.) FILE NO.: LU02-14-01 commercial uses that would have the minimum amount of impact residential uses. This amendment would place Commercial uses in a location that is accessed by a commercial street that is not built to handle commercial traffic and create an island of land shown as Commercial surrounded by land that is shown as Low Density Residential. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: O.U.R. Neighborhood Association, Upper Baseline Neighborhood Association, Windamere Neighborhood Association, and Woodland Ridge Property Owners Association. Staff has received one comment from area residents. The one comment was neutral. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff believes the change is not appropriate. This amendment could produce new commercial traffic in residential areas and create an island of Commercial in the middle of an area shown as residential on the Land Use Plan. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (APRIL 11, 2002) The item was placed on the consent agenda for deferral to the May 23, 2002 Planning Commission meeting. A motion was made to approve the consent agenda and was approved with a vote of 10 ayes, 0 noes and 1 absent. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (MAY 23, 2002) The item was placed on the consent agenda for withdrawal. A motion was made to approve the consent agenda and was approved with a vote of 9 ayes, 0 noes and 2 absent. 4