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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWrite-Up for LU2022-19-01 FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 Name: Land Use Plan Amendment – Chenal Planning District Location: Southeast of the Maywood Drive and Cantrell Road intersection Request: Residential Low Density (RL) to Suburban Office (SO) Source: Brian Winstead, Winstead Properties LLC PROPOSAL / REQUEST: Applicant requests a Land Use Plan amendment from Residential Low Density (RL) to Suburban Office (SO). The site is approximately 2.75-acres. The application is located southeast of the Maywood Drive and Cantrell Roads intersection, in the Chenal Planning District. The existing Residential Low Density (RL) category provides for single family homes at densities not to exceed 6 units per acre. Such residential development is typically characterized by conventional single family homes, but may include patio or garden homes and cluster homes, provided that the density remain less than 6 units per acre. The proposed Suburban Office (SO) land use category provides for low intensity development of office or office parks in close proximity to lower density residential areas to assure compatibility. A Planned Zoning District is required. EXISTING LAND USE AND ZONING: The subject site is developed with a house on each of the two tracts included in the application area. The current zoning is Single Family District (R-2). All of the land from Norton Road west to Bishop Place is zoned R-2 with most occupied with single-family houses. Either side of Bishop Place is zoned Planned Development Residential (PDR). This is a single-family subdivision of zero lot-line houses. There is a welding business and house on the land across Maywood Figure 1. Zoning FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 (Cont.) 2 Drive to the west of the site. East of Norton Road is a tract zoned Planned Development Office (PDO) with a daycare business. The land north of Cantrell Road, either side of Valley Ranch Drive is zoned Quiet Office District (O-1). These tracts are undeveloped land (pastureland). The land to the northwest is zoned R-2 Single Family District and is part of a large tract of mostly pastureland. Beyond the R-2 land, to the west is a Planned Office Development (POD). This is the location of Little Rock Christian Academy, a K though 12 private school. FUTURE LAND USE PLAN AND RECENT AMENDMENTS: The City’s Land Use Plan Map shows Residential Low Density (RL) land use along the southside of Cantrell Road in both directions from the application site. This classification is also shown on the Plan Map south of the application site. Suburban Office (SO) is proposed to the north, across Cantrell Road on the west side of Valley Ranch Drive. Office (O) is shown east of Valley Ranch Drive, north of Cantrell Road. Mixed Use (MX) is proposed further to the east. RL is shown northwest of the application site across Cantrell Road. Public Institution (PI) is shown on the Land Use Plan Map to the west of the RL. LU2005-19-02 & LU2005-19-03 involved a package of changes proposed in 2005. The request for the land to north, to the east, and southeast was from Residential Low Density (RL) to Commercial (C). This was denied. A request north of Cantrell across from Bishop Lane from RL to Mixed Office and Commercial (MOC) was also denied. LU2005-20-02 involved a package of changes proposed in 2005. The request for the land north of Cantrell Road, across from Bishop Lane was from Residential Low Density (RL) to Public Institutional (PI). This was approved April 2005. LU1998-20-02 changed the area north of Cantrell Road, either side of Valley Ranch Drive from Residential Low Density (RL) to Suburban Office (SO) west of the roadway and Office (O) east of the roadway. Figure 2. Land Use Plan Map FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 (Cont.) 3 MASTER STREET PLAN: The application area is bound to the north by Cantrell Road, which is designated a Principal Arterial. Maywood Drive to the west of the site is a Local Street on the Master Street Plan. The primary function of a Principal Arterial Street is to serve through traffic and to connect major traffic generator or activity centers within an urbanized area. Entrances and exits should be limited to minimize negative effects of traffic and pedestrians on Cantrell Road since it is a Principal Arterial. Cantrell Road is State Highway 10. ArDOT has constructed this portion of the highway as a five-lane section with shoulders on both sides. The southside of the road currently has open ditches with no sidewalks. The primary function of Local Streets is to provide access to adjacent properties. Local Streets that are abutted by non-residential zoning/use or more intensive zoning than duplexes are considered as “Commercial Streets”. These streets may require dedication of right-of-way and may require street improvements for entrances and exits to the site. BICYCLE PLAN: A Class I Bike Path is shown along Cantrell Road. A Bike Path is to be a paved path physically separate for the use of bicycles. Additional right-of-way or an easement is recommended. Nine-foot paths are recommended to allow for pedestrian use as well (replacing the sidewalk). No bike or pedestrian facilities have been constructed on this portion of Cantrell Road. PARKS: There are no city recognized parks in the immediate vicinity. Figure 3. Master Street Plan FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 (Cont.) 4 HISTORIC DISTRICTS: There are no city recognized historic districts that would be affected by this amendment. ANALYSIS: The application area is situated along the south side of Cantrell Road at the southeast corner of Cantrell Road’s intersection with Maywood Drive. This site is part of an area annexed in 2007 as part of the City’s effort to close several islands (areas totally surrounded by the City of Little Rock). This ‘island’ was made up of the ‘Stones Market’ area, and residential neighborhoods on Norwood Road, North Ridge Road and Maywood Drive. The area was basically developed at the time. The ‘Stones Market’ area consisted of a group businesses along either side of Cantrell Road (over a tenth of a mile to the east of the application area). Most of the structures annexed in 2007 remain today. There has been some redevelopment of businesses in the ‘Stones Market’ area (near the intersection of Cantrell Road with Stones Road). To the west over the last two decades the Divide Parkway has been constructed; Little Rock Christian Academy campus was developed; the Bishop Lane residential subdivision was developed; and the Walmart Super Center at Chenal Parkway and Cantrell Road was built. North of Cantrell Road along Valley Ranch Drive in the last two decades two residential subdivisions have been developed - Valley Ranch Subdivision and Ranch West Villas. There was also a long- term nursing care facility constructed during this time along Valley Ranch Drive. More recently the new Bank OZK headquarters building has been constructed approximately a third of a mile to the east near the intersection of Chenonceau Boulevard with Cantrell Road (first phase of an office/commercial campus). The Land Use Plan Map shows large areas of Commercial (C) at the intersections of Chenal Parkway and Chenonceau Boulevard with Cantrell Road (either direction from the application site). There is available commercial land in both areas. Between these ‘Nodes’ the Plan Map shows a mix of Office (O), Suburban Office (SO), and Residential Low Density (RL). An area of Mixed Use (MX) is shown in the area which had been the ‘Stones Market’ area along Highway 10. This Mixed Use (MX) area is just east of the application site. There has been little to no development of ‘new’ uses in the immediate area of the application during the last couple of decades. The first Design Overlay District (DOD) in Little Rock was adopted in 1989/1990 for Cantrell Road/Highway 10. It was designed to help keep the corridor more visually rural and highly landscaped (‘more green’) leading to Pinnacle State Park and western Pulaski County. The DOD requires larger tracts, greater set-backs, monument signage and enhanced landscaping among other things. The road has been significantly widened since most of the structures were built in the vicinity of the application. As noted earlier the land is already developed for the most part. Any future developments in the vicinity of the application will be re-developments of property. FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 (Cont.) 5 Beside the construction of the new headquarters building for Bank OZK in the Chenonceau node, there has been no real office construction in the vicinity over the last decade. There have been three subdivisions (Bishop Place, Valley Ranch, and West Villas) of single-family houses and duplexes developed over the last decade just north or south of Cantrell Road in the vicinity of the application. In addition, there have been three apartment developments (Ridge at Chenal, Autumn at Divide, Renaissance Point) and an assisted living facility (Clarity Point) constructed over the last decade in this vicinity (all except for Clarity Point at one of the nodes). The application area is made up of two tracts with single-family houses on each. The houses were built when Highway 10 (Cantrell Road) was a two-lane highway outside the city limits of Little Rock. Since then, the roadway has been widened to five-lanes with shoulders in this location. Most of this widening has been on the opposite side of the roadway. The volumes for this section of Cantrell Road have been fairly consistent since 2007 with volumes generally around 17,000 ADT. Prior to 1995, the volumes for this portion of Cantrell Road were below 8000 ADT. There is a non-conforming commercial use across Maywood Drive to the west. This is Wright Welding which has been there since before the area was annexed. The houses along Norton and Maywood are in good condition. The three closest use changes to the site are: the Little Rock Christian Academy campus to the northwest, across Cantrell Road; a daycare center on the east side of Norton Road adjacent to existing commercial uses further east; and The Bishop Place subdivision of single-family houses to the west (beyond Wright Welding). There is available office land both shown on the Plan Map and zoned in the area. Much of this land has been available for years. There is available non-residential land at the nodes to both the east and west. There has been new residential activity in the general area. This demonstrates there is still some demand for residential in the area - single- family and attached housing. There are other areas in Little Rock where single-family houses exist on major roadways. There is no evidence of a demand for more non- residential use in this area. This is based on the continued availability of undeveloped non-residential zoned land and lack of development of new non-residential in the immediate area. NEIGHBORHOOD NOTIFICATIONS: Notices were sent to the following neighborhood associations: Aberdeen Court POA, Maywood Manor NA, Valley Ranch POA. As of the time of writing the Staff report only an information call had been received from area residents or from neighborhood associations. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: It is not appropriate at this time to change the Plan Map from Residential Low Density (RL) to Suburban Office (SO). FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 (Cont.) 6 PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (MAY 12, 2022) Walter Malone, Planning Staff, reviewed the staff report. This gave the location and developments that have occurred since annexation in the immediate area. Mr. Malone stated that there was available land for both office and residential use in the area (on the Land Use Plan and zoned). There has not been new office development in the immediate area in the last ten years. Staff cannot support a change at this time. Carolyn Dodds was called to speak. Ms. Dodds is a long-time resident on the Maywood area. She spoke in opposition to the application. Ms. Dodd handed out a list of eight reasons not to support the application and read them (since some of the Commissioners were attending virtually). (Handout is in case file). She closed by making a request not to approve the request. Ms. Dodd expressed concern the application would encourage other property owners in the vicinity to make requests from residential to non-residential uses. Chairman Vogel noted he had mistakenly not called the applicant. He asked the applicant if he wished to speak now or wait to hear the opposition. Mr. Winstead elected to wait. Carol Bullah was called to speak. Ms. Bullah requested the Commission reject the request. Their neighborhood is a quiet area with children playing. This application wound negatively affect that. Brian Winstead, applicant, indicated he represented the two properties. He stated that the area was only 1.5 acres not the 2.7 as stated in the Staff Report. The owners are marketing the land as one tract. Mr. Winstead noted this was a Land Use Plan amendment only and that the uses would be quiet office. This should be conducive to the residential on Maywood. He presented the Commission a PowerPoint to make his case of the appropriateness of the application (included information on Highway 10 traffic and widening; sewer and development on the edge of the City; availability of non- residential land listed for sale; and a list of negatives for residential along Highway 10). (PowerPoint is in case file). He closed by giving some offers that had been made for this land (all non-residential). Commissioner Hart indicated he felt that a quiet office use was a good choice for the land. Commissioner Brooks asked about the two structures on the land. Mr. Winstead stated one was owner occupied the other was rented. Due to the negative impacts of Highway 10, the rental rates have had to reduce which has led to reduced maintenance. Mr. Brooks indicted dilapidated structures was not a good thing. He felt that a move to office was a positive change. Commissioner Vogel stated watching the various requests along Highway10/Cantrell is interesting – the discussion between residents and developers. The piecemeal process is troubling. There needs to be a wholistic plan for the future of Highway 10. FILE NO.: LU2022-19-01 (Cont.) 7 Chairmen Vogel asked for a motion. The motion was made to approve that application with all staff recommendations except that of denial. By a vote of 9, for 1 against, and 1 open position the item was approved.