HomeMy WebLinkAboutstaff reportJanuary 9, 2014
ITEM NO,: 17 FILE NO.: MSP13-02
Name: Master Street Plan Amendment - 1-430 Planning District
Location: Labette Drive
Request: Remove Collector
Source. Pat McGetrick, McGetrick Engineering.
PROPOSAL / REQUEST:
The amendment to the Master Street Plan amendment in the 1-430 Planning
District is to remove a Collector. A collector street is the traffic connection for
Local Street to Arterials or to activity centers, with the secondary function of
providing access to adjoining property. The Collector system should not be
continuous bus should direct traffic to Arterials. This class of Road is generally at
a spacing of a quarter to a half -mile.
A Local Street is to provide access to adjacent property. The movement of traffic
is a secondary purpose. Residential street use by heavy trucks and busses
should be minimized. The Local Street generally has a right-of-way of 50 feet. In
suburban location with larger acreage single family tracts, Local Streets may be
designed with paved shoulders and open space drainage. In the case of short
residential streets, a lesser standard is allowed.
CURRENT MASTER STREET PLAN:
Labette Drive is shown as a Collector on the plan from Marilyn Drive to Labelle
Drive. The existing part of Labette Drive is built to Collator standards with a 36'
width.
UTURE LAND USE PLAN:
The easternmost and westernmost sections of Labette are shown as Residential
Low Density. The area immediate fronting John Barrow Road on the east is
shown as Office, the area facing John Barrow Road on the west is shown as
Mixed Office Commercial (MOC). The remainder of the un -built portion, the
subject of this Master Street Plan amendment is shown as MOC and Residential
High Density.
HISTORIC DISTRICTS:
There are no historic districts that would be affected by this amendment.
January 9, 2014
Sl1RDIVISION
ITEM NO.: 17 (Cont.
ANALYSIS:
FILE NO.: MSP13-02
This amendment is in a developed portion of the city. Labette Drive has been on
the Master Street plan since at least 1982 and provides a connection between
the Twin Lakes neighborhoods and John Barrow Road. Three quarters of the
street has been built to Collector Standards with a 36' wide section. A zoning
action, Z -2501-A, in 1978 showed Labette Drive crossing Barrow utilizing this
site.
Labette is the only collector shown on the Plan from Kanis Road to 36th Street,
west of John Barrow Road. This is a distance of over a mile. As noted earlier,
the standard spacing would suggest at least two Collectors should be in place.
Tanya Drive and Morris Manor Drive / Labette Manor are lined with single family
and multi -family houses with many driveways and curb cuts. They are built to a
Local Street standard with 24' wide section. They are a full 12' less width than a
Collector Street. Yet these streets are serving as Collector Streets as the
quickest access to John Barrow from the west. In addition, Labette Manor is a
private street that was built to serve a multi -family housing complex. It is not
desirable to have a private street functioning as a Collector.
Morris Drive / Labette Manor Drive and Tanya Drive have not been designed to
serve Collector needs and are likely to see road failures, higher traffic volumes
and speeds and unsafe conditions on those roadways.
Connectivity is important in the layout of the Master Street Plan. Alternate ways
of entering a neighborhood for emergency vehicles is a must. Streets blocked
with ordinary traffic stops can block access for other passengers and emergency
vehicles, especially large fire trucks. State Fire code requires that subdivision
with over 30 lots must have an alternate entry. This subdivision has 32 single
family residential lots and a tract with 40 apartment units, a total of 72 residential
units with an anticipated 720 trips per day that must exit via John Barrow Road
only. The second entrance will be achieved with a "knock box" located at the end
of Labette Drive at the west side of the subject property off an alley.
The Master Street Plan does not show any bike routes on Labette. Thus the
requested change should have no impact on the bicycle section of the Master
Street Plan.
To not make the connections will require the continued use of a private road as a
public street to connect the Twin Lakes neighborhood to John Barrow Road.
Different applications have been approved on this site with nothing built to date.
Currently, the applicant is requesting as a separate item on this agenda a
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January 9, 2014
SUBDIVISION
TEM NO.: 17 (Cont.) FILE NO.: MSP13-02
rezoning of the land as a Planned Residential Development (PRD). Although
staff has concerns with the removal of Labette Drive from the Master Street Plan
as a Collector street, Staff is in support of this development and if the street is not
removed then the overall layout of this development cannot be achieved. The
Master Street Plan Amendment could be postponed until construction of the
proposed PDR is eminent. Staff recommends Labette Drive remain on the
Master Street Plan until such time as the developer requests a grading permit for
the development. At that time staff recommends the Master Street Plan item be
forwarded to the Board of Directors for final action. If the project is built: no
harm, no foul. But if the project is not built, the City may, with a different
development plan, require the Collector to be built as shown on the plan.
NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS:
Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: John Barrow,
Twin Lakes A POA, and Twin Lakes B POA. Staff has received no comments
from area residents.
STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
Staff believes the change is appropriate with the condition that Labette Drive
remain on the Master Street Plan until such time as the developer requests a
grading permit for the development. At that time, Staff recommends the Master
Street Plan item be forwarded to the Board of Directors for final action.
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