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Home My WebLink Aboutboard of directors itemsOFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS BOARD OF DIRECTORS COMMUNICATION November 19, 2002 AGENDA Subject Land Use Plan Amendment — Central City Planning District - LU02-08-03 north and east of 12th and Thayer Streets Action Required 4Ordinance Resolution Approval Information Report Submitted By Bruce Moore Interim City Man SYNOPSIS Land Use Plan amendment in the Central City Planning District from Light Industrial, Industrial, Park / Open Space and Commercial to Mixed Use to develop the property to provide temporary lodging, offices, and social services. Prompted by this Land Use Amendment request, the Planning Staff expanded the area of review to include the area between the Union Pacific tracks and Thayer Street extending south to 11th Street. The boundary continues west on 11th Street to the alley between Thayer and ]ones Street continuing south to the area shown as Commercial along 12th Street then west to the railroad tracks. The railroad tracks serve as the western boundary for the expanded area. With these changes, the entire area of Park / Open Space between I V' and 11`h Streets west of Thayer Street will also be eliminated. The area was expanded to 1) remove a remnant of Industrial that would be between Single Family and Light Industrial, 2) recognize existing commercial zoning that was shown as Light Industrial and Industrial, 3) and remove Park / Open Space that was placed as a buffer between Industrial and Single Family. FISCAL IMPACT N/A RECOMMENDATION Planning Staff recommends approval. Planning Commission recommended approval on September 19, 2002 (10-0-0-1 in favor). CITIZEN Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: PARTICIPATION Capitol Hill Neighborhood Association, Central High Neighborhood Association, East of Broadway Neighborhood BACKGROUND Association, Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association, MLK Neighborhood Association, South End Neighborhood Association, South End Neighborhood Developers, Wright Avenue Neighborhood Association, Capitol View Stifft Station Neighborhood Association, and Pine to Woodrow Neighborhood Association. The expanded area consists of vacant land, houses, and a commercial building on 12th Street currently zoned I-2 Light Industrial, R-4 Two Family Residential, and C-3 General Commercial and is approximately 9.54 + acres in size. A bus barn and a print shop are located in an I-2 zone to the west. A warehouse, junkyard and vacant property are located in the I-2 zone to the north. The property lying to the east of the expanded area is zoned R-4 and R-3 Single Family and is occupied by single-family residences. The property to the south of the expanded area is I-2, C-3, R-3, and R-4 occupied by residential and commercial structures. The area is shown on the Future Land Use Plan as Light Industrial, Industrial, Park / Open Space and Single Family. Industrial is shown on the Land Use Plan to the north of the area while Light Industrial is shown to the west. Single Family is shown to the east of the area while Commercial is shown to the south. FILE NO.: LU02-08-03 Name: Land Use Plan Amendment - Central City Planning District Location: An area north and west of 12th and Thayer Streets. Request: Light Industrial, Industrial, Park / Open Space and Commercial to Mixed Use Source: William Willis, Union Rescue Mission PROPOSAL/REQUEST: Land Use Plan amendment in the Central City Planning District from Light Industrial, Industrial, Park / Open Space and Commercial to Mixed Use. The Mixed Use category provides for a mixture of residential, office and commercial uses to occur. A Planned Zoning District is required if the uses are entirely office or commercial or if the use is a mixture of the three. The applicant has submitted an application to develop the property to provide temporary lodging, offices, and social services. Prompted by this Land Use Amendment request, the Planning Staff expanded the area of review to include the area between the Union Pacific tracks and Thayer Street extending south to 11th Street. The boundary continues west on 11th Street to the alley between Thayer and Jones Street continuing south to the area shown as Commercial along 12th Street then west to the railroad tracks. The railroad tracks serve as the western boundary for the expanded area. With these changes, the entire area of Park / Open Space between 10th and 11th Streets west of Thayer Street will also be eliminated. The area was expanded to 1) remove a remnant of Industrial that would be between Single Family and Light Industrial, 2) recognize existing commercial zoning that was shown as Light Industrial and Industrial, 3) and remove Park / Open Space that was placed as a buffer between Industrial and Single Family. EXISTING LAND USE AND ZONING: The expanded area consists of vacant land, houses, and commercial building on 12th Street currently zoned 1-2 Light Industrial, R-4 Two Family Residential, and C-3 General Commercial and is approximately 9.54 ± acres in size. A bus barn and a print shop are located in an 1-2 zone to the west. A warehouse, junkyard and vacant property are located in the 1-2 zone to the north. The property lying to the east of the expanded area is zoned R-4 and R-3 Single Family and is occupied by single-family residences. The property to the south of the expanded area is 1-2, C-3, R-3, and R-4 occupied by residential and commercial structures. FILE NO.: LU02-08-03 (Cont. FUTURE LAND USE PLAN AND RECENT AMENDMENTS: On March 19, 2002, multiple changes were made from Single Family, Mixed Office Commercial, Public Institutional, and Mixed Use to Public Institutional and Multi -Family about'/4 of a mile to the east of the applicant's property in the vicinity, and including, the campus of the Arkansas Children's Hospital. On July 17, 2001, a change was made from Single Family to Park / Open Space at Stephens Park about 9/10 of a mile southwest of the amendment area. On September 19, 2000, multiple changes were made from Service Trades District to Park / Open Space, Public Institutional and Mixed Use in the 1100 block of Cantrell Road about 3/ of a mile northeast of the expanded area. On March 7, 2000, multiple changes were made from Mixed Use, Office, Commercial, Mixed Office Commercial, Service Trades District, and Public Institutional to Public Institutional and Mixed Use Urban covering most of the Downtown Planning District starting east of Woodlane Street about 3/ of a mile northeast of the study area. The area is shown on the Future Land Use Plan as Light Industrial, Industrial, Park / Open Space and Single Family. Industrial is shown on the Land Use Plan to the north of the area while Light Industrial is shown to the west. Single Family is shown to the east of the area while Commercial is shown to the south. This property was the subject of a previous Land Use Plan amendment heard and approved by the Planning Commission on November 11, 1999. The amendment was forwarded to the February 15, 2000 Board of Directors meeting and was tabled. The current land uses shown for the area have remained unchanged. The current application is similar to, but slightly smaller than, the original application heard by the Planning Commission. MASTER STREET PLAN: 12th Street is shown on the Master Street Plan as a Collector Street and is built to standard. 10th, 11th, Jones, and Thayer Streets are standard residential streets in need of repair. There are no Bikeways shown on the plan that would be affected by this amendment. PARKS: The nearest park shown on the Little Rock Parks and Recreation Master Plan of 2001 is Fletcher Park located at 1-630 and Woodrow Street west of the railroad tracks. Fletcher Park is listed as a mini -park of less than five acres equipped with a playground, basketball pad, a practice / active recreation area, and two picnic tables. This park is designed to serve the recreational needs of the neighborhood this application area is located in. The main disadvantage of the park is the partial barrier created by the railroad tracks located at 10th and 11th Streets. The railroad may be crossed at 12th Street. 2 FILE NO.: LU02-08-03 (Cont. HISTORIC DISTRICTS: The south boundary of the expanded area of review is located one block north of the north boundary of the Little Rock Central High School National Historic District. Since the historic district in a national district and not a local district, development within the amendment area hopefully will respect the character of the surrounding neighborhood. However, this amendment should not affect the area inside the historic district. CITY RECOGNIZED NEIGHBORHOOD ACTION PLAN: The applicant's property lies in the area covered by the Stephens Area Neighborhood Action Plan. The Housing goal recommends the removal of substandard houses and lots with an objective of providing a safer living environment. Action statements support the removal of burnt and unsafe buildings while cleaning vacant weed lots and alleys. Since a large portion of the property in the area is vacant this amendment would provide for infill development that would minimize the occurrence of weed lots. Most of the neighborhood's burnt and unsafe structures are located to the east outside of the study area. ANALYSIS: At an earlier time, industrial enterprises located along this section of the railroad tracks for the obvious transportation reasons. Other industrial buildings lie along these tracks, but no notable development has occurred in the recent past. As market forces change, this site has become less desirable for industrial infill, even though it is zoned 1-2. Mixed Use would also provide a transition between the remaining area shown as Light Industrial west of the Railroad Tracks and the residential uses to the east. The use of Planned Zoning Districts in the area shown, as Mixed Use would protect the character of the residential areas to the east and the area adjacent to Central High by providing a mechanism for design review of future developments located in this area. Mixed Use would provide for redevelopment in an area where the conforming industrial development would likely not happen. Outside the application a mixture of industrial, institutional, commercial and residential uses characterizes area the neighborhood. Most of the neighborhood to the east is residential in character. The northern edge of the neighborhood, next to 1-630, is a marginal residential area with a junkyard and machine shop located at the railroad and freeway. The Dorcus House located at the southeast corner of 1-630 and Park Street serves as a mixture of both residential and institutional activities. The Children's Hospital located at Martin Luther King is a large Public Institutional use that serves as the eastern boundary of the residential area. The Future Land Use for the properties to the east of Schiller Street shows Public Institutional, which will limit the possibility of new residential development. In addition to the Future land Use plan, the Children's Hospital Campus Long Range Plan shows that the hospital plans to extend its campus to 41 FILE NO.: LU02-08-03 (Cont.) Schiller Street north of 11th Street which would limit the long term viability of residential uses in that area. 12th Street east of Thayer consists mainly of residential uses while west of Thayer storefront churches and small commercial businesses with a day care center located at the railroad tracks. The businesses on 12"' at the railroad consist of a commercial building on the south side of the street and a building on the north side that is a warehouse and office building. The neighborhood to the south of 12th Street is strictly residential in character. About two block of housing separate the Central High School Historic Site from the study area. Based on the general development pattern of the area, small retail business, small offices, quasi -public institutions, and affordable historic residences would be compatible with the current development pattern of the neighborhood. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS: Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: Capitol Hill Neighborhood Association, Central High Neighborhood Association, East of Broadway Neighborhood Association, Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association, MLK Neighborhood Association, South End Neighborhood Association, South End Neighborhood Developers, Wright Avenue Neighborhood Association, Capitol View Stifft Station Neighborhood Association, and Pine to Woodrow Neighborhood Association. Staff has received one neutral comment from area residents. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff believes the change is appropriate. The change to Mixed Use should provide flexibility for, and review of, future development in the area. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (June 20, 2002) The applicant was notified that less than 8 Commissioners were present and that a minimum of 6 votes would be needed for the item to pass. The applicant was given the option to defer the item to the August 8th Planning Commission meeting. The applicant requested the deferral. A motion to defer item 15 to the August 8th meeting and was approved with a vote of 7 ayes, 0 noes, 3 absent and 1 open position. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (AUGUST 8, 2002) The item was placed on the consent agenda for deferral to the September 19, 2002 Planning Commission meeting. A motion was made to approve the consent agenda and was approved with a vote of 9 ayes, 0 noes, 1 absent, and 1 open position. 12 FILE NO.: LU02-08-03 (Cont.) PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (SEPTEMBER 19, 2002) Brian Minyard, City Staff, made a brief presentation to the Commission. Donna James made a presentation of item C.1 so the discussion could coincide with the discussion for item C. See item C.1 for a complete discussion concerning the Short Form Planned Office Development. William Willis, the applicant, made a presentation to the commission about the Union Rescue's mission to serve the homeless. He spoke of crime records for the area, the Consolidated Housing Plan and the support of contributors throughout the city. Commissioner Nunnley stated that he did not agree last time and he is still opposed to the application. Commissioner Faust asked if Ms Ambrose was opposed to the Land Use Plan Amendment. Ms. Ambrose stated that she would not oppose it. Susan Leslie stated that she could not say. It was noted that Commissioner Bill Rector has recused and had left the room at the beginning of the discussion. A motion was made to approve the item as presented. The item was approved with a vote of 10 ayes, 0 no, 0 absent, and 1 recusal. 61 co _ - µT RSA T � •y �Rti ■��t- did KI �- 1:FIMM a OR 1 �IZL ■ �I PIP, r �o �C3 -73 "T° �O Sr cl - o D oaD �DO0 a ImoCD ; a 0 a: c�i Q '- 0-. Pl _ 000 p �� D is •� — _ r n •�' � ! _..._, Vicinity 1V. Plan Amendment Case # LU02-08-03 N U, I, PKlos, Tom ADJACENT To THE UNIOIN PAM IC RAILROAD NORTH OF WM I l TH STREET WEST OF THAYER STREET Ci: 10 TRS: T1NR12W4 0 200 400 Feet PD 8 Ward: 2 Item # OU 0 13 0 R2 NT R3 ORDINANCE NO. AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE LAND USE PLAN (16,222) IN THE CENTRAL CITY PLANNING DISTRICT FROM LIGHT INDUSTRIAL, INDUSTRIAL, PARK/OPEN SPACE AND COMMERCIAL TO MIXED USE; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. WHEREAS, as the Little Rock Planning Commission believes it appropriate to amend the plan. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CITY OF LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS. SECTION 1. That Light Industrial, Industrial, Park/Open Space and Commercial in an area north and east of 12th and Thayer Streets: more particularly described as the area shown as Light Industrial east of the railroad tracks from 12th to 9th Streets; the area shown as Industrial from 12th to 9th Streets; the area shown as Park/Open Space from 11th to 10th streets west of Thayer Street; Single Family west of Thayer from 11th to 10t�'; and Single Family on the southeast corner of 11th and Jones Street be amended to Mixed Use. SECTION 2. That the ordinance shall take effect and be in full force from and after its passage and approval. PASSED: ATTEST: City Clerk APPROVED: Mayor INFORMATION RELATIVE TO PLANNING COMMISSION BUSINESS FOR THE LITTLE ROCK BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING ON November 19, 2002 A Land Use Plan Amendment # LU02-08-03 in the Central City Planning District north and east of 12th and Thayer Streets. ITEM N0.# Planning Staff Recommends: Planning Commission Recommends: Right -of -Way Issues: Vote: 10 Ayes 0 Noes 0 Absent 1 Recusal The River Mountain Neighborhood Action Plan Update. ITEM N0.# Planning Staff Recommends: Planning Commission Recommends: Right -of -Way Issues: Vote: 10 Ayes 0 Noes 3 Absent 1 Abstention ITEM N0.# Planning Staff Recommends: Planning Commission Recommends: Right -of -Way Issues: Vote: _ Ayes Noes ` Absent Abstention