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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-5800-E Staff Report 042122 ITEM NO.: 4 FILE NO.: Z-5800-E NAME: Bowman Business Park – Revised POD LOCATION: 1515-1527 S. Bowman Road DEVELOPER: Bowman Business Park, LLC PO Box 241025 Little Rock, AR 72223 OWNER/AUTHORIZED AGENT: Bowman Business Park, LLC – Owner Terry Burrus – Agent 11912 Kanis Road, Suite F8 Little Rock, AR 72211 SURVEYOR/ENGINEER: Terry Burrus 11912 Kanis Road, Suite 8 Little Rock, AR 72211 AREA: 9.44 acres NUMBER OF LOTS: 1 FT. NEW STREET: 0 LF WARD: 6 PLANNING DISTRICT: 11 CENSUS TRACT: 24.07 CURRENT ZONING: POD VARIANCE/WAIVERS: None requested. BACKGROUND: The original POD zoning was approved on April 19, 1994 by the Little Rock Board of Directors with adoption of Ordinance No. 16,632 which approved an office use development with a required 25 percent of the floor area being dedicated to office use with the remaining 75 percent being dedicated to warehouse uses. The approval also required service courts to be located in the rear of the building and the front of the building was to maintain the appearance of an office development with the height of the building equal to two stories with floor area limited to the first floor. The developed site contains four (4) buildings totaling 110,400 square feet. The site contains 249 parking spaces. The service drives are shared between the buildings with parking located in the front of the buildings. One building is located along South Bowman Road with the remainder of the buildings located to the east and accessed from a thirty (30) foot driveway. Ordinance No. 19,480 adopted by the Little Rock Board of Directors on February 7, 2006 allowed a revision to the previously approved POD to expand allowable uses for the site. The approval also allowed the placement of a sign on the site not to exceed six (6) feet in height (as measured from grade along S. Bowman Rd) and sixty-four (64) square feet in area. Ordinance No. 20,840 adopted by the Little Rock Board of Directors of February 11, 2014 allowed a revision to the previously approved POD to add additional uses as allowable uses for the existing complex. These additional uses included places of worship, meeting space for community organizations and an art gallery. The square footage was limited to a total of 10,800 square feet within the overall development with a maximum occupant load of 432. The existing parking was adequate for the use mix proposed. The request excluded the allowance of private clubs and/or event center as allowable uses. The approval allowed the hours of operation to be extended from 6:00 am to 10:00 pm. Ordinance No. 21,045 adopted by the Little Rock Board of Directors on June 2, 2015 allowed a revision to the previously approved POD to allow a commercial laundry as an allowable use for the existing complex. The square footage is limited to 7,500 square feet of floor area. The use required the same number of parking spaces as the existing office/warehouse use. The hours of operation for the commercial laundry are from 5:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday with a maximum of ten (10) employees. The facility utilizes three (3) 20-ft delivery vans which will be parked within the service area during non-delivery hours. A. PROPOSAL/REQUEST/APPLICANT’S STATEMENT: The applicant is now proposing to amend the previously approved POD to add an automotive service facility and detail shop as allowable uses. All other aspects of the previously approved POD will remain unchanged. B. EXISTING CONDITIONS: The site contains four (4) office, warehouse buildings. One building fronts S. Bowman Road with the remainder of the buildings located to the east and accessed from a 30-foot driveway. To the south of the site is vacant O-3 zoned property. A portion of the northern perimeter is also vacant O-3 zoned property. There is a skating center located to the north of the site with a non-conforming zoning status. To the east of the site is an office development accessed from Centerview Drive. To the west of the site there is a scattering of single-family homes located along S. Bowman Road. Further west of the site is Cherry Creek Subdivsion. C. NEIGHBORHOOD NOTIFICATIONS: All owners of property within 200 feet of the site and all neighborhood associations registered with the City of Little Rock were notified of the public hearing. D. ENGINEERING COMMENTS: No comments. E. UTILITIES/FIRE DEPARTMENT/PARKS/COUNTY PLANNING: Little Rock Water Reclamation Authority: No comments received. Entergy: No comments received. Summit Energy: No comments received. AT & T: No comments received. Central Arkansas Water: No objections; All Central Arkansas Water requirements in effect at the time of request for water service must be met. Fire Department: No comments. Parks and Recreation: No comments received. County Planning: No comments Received. F. BUILDING CODES/LANDSCAPE: Building Code: No comments received. Landscape: No comments. G. TRANSPORTATION/PLANNING: Rock Region Metro: No comments Received. Planning Division: The request is in the I430 Planning District. The Land Use Plan shows Service Trades District (STD) for the requested area. The Service Trades District provides for a selection of office, warehousing, and industrial park activities that primarily serve other office service or industrial businesses. The district is intended to allow support services to these businesses and to provide for uses with an office component. The requested area is currently zoned as a Planned Office District (POD). The application is to revise the existing POD to allow for auto body repair and collision repair as additional permitted uses. Surrounding the application area, the Land Use Plan shows Suburban Office (SO) to the south, Office (O) to the east, Mixed Office and Commercial (MOC) to the north, and Service Trades District (STD) to the west. The Suburban Office (SO) category provides for low intensity development of office or office parks in close proximity to lower density residential areas to assure compatibility. The Office category represents services provided directly to consumers (e.g., legal, financial, medical) as well as general offices which support more basic economic activities. The Mixed Office and Commercial category provides for a mixture of office and commercial uses to occur. Acceptable uses are office or mixed office and commercial. The land surrounding the application area is currently zoned General Office District (O-3) primarily to the south, east, and north, and Single-Family Residential (R-2) to the west. A variety of Planned Commercial Development properties exist northwest and northeast of the stie. A Planned Office Development tract exists directly east. The General Office District (O-3) accommodates offices and associated administrative, executive and professional uses in new and existing structures together with specified institutional and accessory uses. Single-Family Residential (R-2) establishes areas that protect single-family uses by promoting and encouraging a suitable environment for family life, by providing a reasonable standard for light, air and similar amenities, by minimizing traffic congestion, and by avoiding the overloading of utilities and public facilities designed to service only one-family residential uses. The Planned Office District (POD) is intended to accommodate planned office developments, as well as mixed use developments combining residential, commercial, or both, with office uses in a carefully planned configuration in such a manner as to protect and enhance the viability of each independent use. The PD-Office district is intended to accommodate single use office developments which are determined to be more appropriate for a PD application than a general office reclassification. Master Street Plan: To the west of the site is Bowman Road, a Minor Arterial 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 Bowman Road since it is a Minor Arterial. This street may require dedication of right-of-way and may require street improvements for entrances and exits to the site. The lot south of the applicant property provides access between the property and the minor arterial. The applicant owns both lots. Bicycle Plan: There are no existing or proposed bike routes adjacent to or through this land. Historic Preservation Plan: There are no existing historic sites on, or in proximity to, this land. H. ANALYSIS: The applicant proposes to amend the previously approved POD located at 1515-1527 S. Bowman Road by adding two (2) uses as permitted uses. The applicant proposes an automotive service center to be located within Building #1 at 1515 S. Bowman Road. The total square footage of Building #1 is 28,000 square feet, which currently contains a beauty school (3,000 sf) in Suite A, medical offices (6,000 sf) in Suite B and COUNTOURMED offices (6,000 sf) located in Suites C&D. The automotive service center, Car Star, will occupy 12,800 square feet of the overall space and will be located in Suite E. The proposed use is an auto body shop. The applicant proposes to add an automotive detail shop as a second use located at 1527 S. Bowman (Building #4, Suite B). The total square footage of Building #4 is 24,000 square feet, which currently contains Otis Elevator (1800 sf) and 1,200 sf of warehouse space in Suite A, Kaba Fusion (6,000 sf) in Suites C & D, United Health Care (3,000 sf) located in Suite E, Natvana (3000 sf) in Suite F, Speas Tech (3,000 sf) in Suite G and Clear Defense Pest Control (3,000 sf) located in Suite H. The proposed auto detail shop, Diamond Star will occupy 3,000 sf of building area. Business hours for both uses will be from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm Monday through Friday with ten (10) employees present for each use. The applicant is not proposing any changes to the existing footprint of the buildings. The allowable uses approved under the existing POD will remain unchanged. The existing parking spaces provided and approved under the existing POD will remain unchanged. Staff feels the existing parking is sufficient to serve the applicant’s requested proposed uses. The applicant is not proposing additional signage at this time. Any future signage must comply with Section 36-553 of the City’s Zoning Ordinance (Signs allowed in office zones). The applicant is not proposing any dumpster(s) at this time. Any new dumpster(s) must comply with Section 36-523 of the City’s Zoning Ordinance. Any new sight lighting must be low-level and directed away from adjacent properties. Conditions shall be limited to the following for both proposed uses: All work on vehicles for both businesses must take place within the enclosed buildings. There is to be no salvaging of vehicles on the site. No vehicles are to be stored on the site for any period exceeding thirty (30) days. No storage / accumulation of parts will be allowed outside the buildings. Any damaged vehicles awaiting repair must be parked behind the building(s) within the service areas, and at no time in the customer parking area(s) Staff is not supportive of the requested revision to the POD zoning. Staff feels that an auto body shop and an auto detail shop are not appropriate uses for this office park. The proposed uses align more with permitted uses in C-4 zoning. A more appropriate location for the proposed auto related, heavy commercial uses would be closer to major arterial intersections. The Cherry Creek neighborhood lies directly across Bowman Road along with all abutting properties which are zoned R-2 and office. Staff believes the requested heavy commercial uses will have an adverse impact on the surrounding properties and will be difficult to control with respect to activities outside the buildings. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends denial of the revised POD zoning.