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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC Minutes for MSP2023-01April 13, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 FILE NO.: MSP2023-01 NAME: Master Street Plan Amendment – Add a portion of Shepard Drive/Extension/Russ Street and remove a portion Old Oak Drive/Extension/Black Road as a Collector. LOCATION: South of Cantrell Road between Sam Peck Road and Taylor Loop Road in/near Pankey Addition. OWNER/AUTHORIZED AGENT: City Staff AREA: N/A WARD: 4 PLANNING DISTRICT: 1 CENSUS TRACT: 42.14 CURRENT ZONING: R-2 BACKGROUND: A. PROPOSAL/REQUEST: The request is to remove Old Oak Drive/Extension/Black Road, north of Shepard Drive and add Shepard Drive/Extension/Russ Road, east of Old Oak Drive as a Collector on the Master Street Plan. B. EXISTING CONDITIONS/ZONING: The land surrounding the change areas is all zoned R-2, Single Family District. There is a developed single-family subdivision along the constructed portions of both Old Oak Drive and Shepard Drive. The proposed portion of Old Oak Drive is currently undeveloped and zoned R-2. The land along Black Road is also zoned R-2 and in currently undeveloped and partially wooded. The northwest corner of Black Road-Cantrell Road is zoned with a Planned Development Commercial (PDC) district and is developed with a Tobacco Store/Vape shop. The land through which the extension of Shepard Drive would go is zoned R-2 and is vacant wooded land. The last segment of the proposed new alignment uses Russ Road to get to Cantrell Road. This land is zoned R-2 and PR, Park and Recreation District. The land on both sides of Russ Street north of Piggee Street is zoned PR with a developed park on the east and open recreation land on the west. There are no structures on the R-2 zoned land south of Cantrell Road either side of Russ Street. May 11, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01 2 C. NEIGHBORHOOD NOTIFICATIONS: A letter was mailed March 31, 2023, to all property owners in the two corridors affected by the amendment. A second letter was sent to try and clarify the request, April 10, 2023. Staff has received multiple informational calls on the amendment as a result of the notification. As of the writing of this report, twenty-seven (27) letters opposing any connection from the Secluded Hills subdivision to Pankey Addition and Highway 10/Cantrell Road have been received. G. TRANSPORTATION/PLANNING: Land Use Plan: The Land Use Plan Map shows Residential Low Density (RL) for the existing portions of Old Oak Drive and Shepard Drive. The Residential Low Density (RL) category provides for single family homes at densities not to exceed 6 dwelling units per acre. Such residential development is typically characterized by conventional single family homes, but may also include patio or garden homes and cluster homes, provided that the density remain less than 6 units per acre. There is a single-family subdivision in the RL areas along the existing portions of Old Oak and Shepard Drives. An area of Residential Medium Density (RM) is shown along Black Road at Cantrell Road. The Residential Medium Density (RM) accommodates a broad range of housing types including single family attached, single family detached, duplex, town homes, multi-family and patio or garden homes. Any combination of these and possibly other housing types may fall in this category provided that the density is between six (6) and twelve (12) dwelling units per acre. This land is currently undeveloped. An area of Park/Open Space (PK/OS) is shown either side of Russ Street, north of Piggee Street. The Park/Open Space (PK/OS) category includes all public parks, recreation facilities, greenbelts, flood plains, and other designated open space and recreational land. This is a partially developed city park. Master Street Plan: The application area is bounded on the north by Cantrell Road shown as a Principal Arterial on the Master Street Plan. Taylor Loop Road is on the west and Hinson Road is to the southwest, both are shown as Minor Arterial on the Master Street Plan. To the south and east is Pleasant Forest Drive and Sam Peck Road, both shown as a Collector on the Master Street Plan. A Principal Arterial serves through traffic and connects major traffic generators 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. 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 May 11, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01 3 and exits should be limited to minimize negative effects of traffic and pedestrians on Taylor Loop and Hinson Roads since they are both a Minor Arterial. The Collector Street primary function is to provide connections between Local Streets and Arterial Streets or activity centers. Access to adjoining properties is a secondary function of Collector Streets. Bicycle Plan: The Master Bike Plan shows a proposed Class I Bike path along Cantrell Road. Class I bike paths are completely separated from motor vehicle traffic and are for the exclusive use of cyclists. Along Taylor Loop Road to the north of the intersection with Shepard Drive a proposed Class II Bike Lane is shown to Cantrell Road. Class II bike lanes consist of a painted bicycle lane on each side of the paved roadway. Along Shepard Drive from Taylor Loop Road, then north along Jerry Drive to Cantrell Road is a proposed Class III bike route. Class III bike routes have sharrows and use the existing vehicular travel area. Historic Preservation Plan: No Historic Sites or District in the vicinity. H. ANALYSIS: The proposed Collector (Old Oak Drive-Black Road connection) on the Master Street Plan is to connect the neighborhoods between Hinson Road and Cantrell Road to Cantrell Road (State Highway 10). This provides a northern access point to the residential area. The primary function of a Collector Street is to provide connections for neighborhoods to Arterial Streets or activity centers. Collectors tend to have a 60-foot Right-of-Way with road surfaces 36-feet back-of-curb to back-of-curb. Both Hinson and Cantrell Roads are classified as Arterial. Arterials function to move goods and people around and through the city. Arterials usually have 90 or more feet of Right-of-Way and are often four or five lane roadways. The proposal of a Collector connection between Hinson Road and Cantrell Road which touches the Pankey Addition has been on the City’s Master Street Plan for over 40 years (prior to the development of the Secluded Hills Subdivision). A Collector to the east connecting from this proposed Collector to Sam Peck Road has also been shown on the Plan in the past. (This was removed in the early 1990s re-adoption of the Master Street Plan). Currently along Cantrell Road (State Highway 10) there is a signal light on Cantrell Road for the ‘Kroger’ shopping center, between Candlewood and Black Roads. The next signal light on Cantrell Road is at Sam Peck Road, a distance of approximately 0.9 of a mile. A Collector serving the neighborhoods south of May 11, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01 4 Cantrell Road would likely ‘warrant’ (justify) a signal in the future. The connection at Russ Road rather than Black Road would make this connection closer to halfway between the two existing signalized intersections on Cantrell Road. The eastern portion of Shepard Drive is a replat of one of the original Blocks of the Pankey Addition. The southern 7 by 4 ‘Block’ portion of the Pankey Addition has not developed. The area remains a ‘paper’ plat east of the terminus of Shepard Drive. This land is platted in a grid street system of proposed roads. It is currently wooded and undeveloped. There is a ridge which traverses the area parallel with Cantrell Road. Due to the topography the platted grid pattern of streets is not likely to be the method of the future development of the land. A pattern of curvilinear roads similar to that to the west and south is more likely. The park on Russ Road is a public, City of Little Rock neighborhood park. By providing a connection to the south and west, this neighborhood park can serve more than just the immediate area within a Block or two around the park. The Collector connection to the north, whether the extension of Old Oak Drive or Shepard Drive are proposed general alignments. The exact alignment will be determined when the land is proposed for development (through the Subdivision process). Currently Old Oak Drive serves as the Collector for the residential area. This connection basically only serves the neighborhood between Old Oak Drive and Taylor Loop Road. The proposed connection to Cantrell Road is via Black Road. Black Road is the western boundary of the Pankey Addition and is very close to the signal for the ‘Kroger’ shopping center on Cantrell Road. Shepard Drive is currently a Collector on the Plan west of Old Oak Drive to Taylor Loop Road. Having Shepard Drive serve as the Collector connection to the east and north through Pankey Addition would increase the residential area that would be served by the proposed Collector. In addition, it would help to integrate the land of Pankey Addition with the rest of west Little Rock. I. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Approval PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (MAY 11, 2023) Walter Malone, Planning Staff addressed the Commission. He started with the purpose of the Master Street Plan. Then Mr. Malone reviewed the request to relocate the Collector designation from Old Oak/Black to Shepard/Russ. He presented some of the reasons/benefits to moving the Collector connection for the neighborhoods to the southwest further to the east on Highway 10. May 11, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01 5 Chairman Hart explained to those present that there was a 20-minute time limit per side and that there were eleven cards requesting to speak. Larry Crenshaw spoke to the Commission. He asked about the difference between an Arterial and Collector. Mr. Malone was asked to return and explain. He gave a short response on the function of each and examples in the area. Mr. Crenshaw continued expressing concern about widening Shepard Drive. He explained about the narrowness of the existing street and problems with passing/parking on street and trash containers. He asked if Shepard would be widened. Chairman Hart indicated it would not be. Chairman Hart stated staff was looking to getting feedback on concerns such as parking and narrowness of existing roads. Pamela Vess, stated she was not sure about the request but had lots of concerns. Her family has owned Block 10 of Pankey Addition (Russ at Highway 10) immediately next to Pankey Park for approximately 60 years. There are platted streets and alleys on her land. Ms. Vess believes the best use of her land is for commercial. Currently she has about one acre. The impacts of this request and the ArDOT requests for widening Highway 10 are all unknown. She has no details and has concerns that the impact to her property might make it unusable. There is a need for more information. She closed noteing that the land should be rezoned. Gregg Mueller addressed the Commission. He has lived on Shepard Drive for 26 years. The road is built as a Local Street which is 26 feet not the 31 feet of a Collector. It does not make since to continue Shepard Drive at Collector standards which would have to transition to the current Local Street. Old Oak is already 80 percent built as a Collector. It should be completed. It would be better to just continue Old Oak Drive. There was discussion about the time for each side of the issue and how speaker time would be charge. Billie Tursley indicated that she grew up on Russ Street. The road is not in the right-of- way and her mother’s house had to be moved since it was built in the ‘street’. We all need to know where the current street is. She finished with asking what is the benefit of this for those in Pankey Addition. Jonathan Kazami spoke next. He noted that he had faxed 48 letters yesterday in opposition to the Shepard-Russ amendment (and was asked to speak for many). The change would increase traffic and reduce the safety of the residents. He noted that Jerry Street already experiences high cut-through traffic to Hinson Road. This connection will create a heavy traffic flow. The streets are too narrow to increase the traffic they must carry. Since the City is not doing a project now, why must this be done now? Mr. Kazami stated that they would like the Secluded Hills neighborhood to be a one-way in and one- way out like Westbury off Cantrell Road to the north. The neighborhood does not want May 11, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01 6 Shepard Drive to be like St. Charles or Green Mountain. They have moved to this neighborhood and want to maintain the neighborhood the way it was when they purchased their homes. Wally Hall was called. He stated he agreed with the previous speaker’s comments. Nancy Lott addressed the Commission. She is in opposition to the Shepard-Russ amendment. Ms. Lott noted the map does not show the streets in Pankey Addition south of Pankey and Piggie. They have names and reviewed several. She agreed that Russ is was not within its right-of-way. Also, the intersection of Russ and Highway 10 is dangerous (blind). The proposed Collector would be more a problem for both Pankey Addition and the Shepard Community. Sky Brower spoke next. He is against the proposal and gave some of his history in the Pankey Addition. We need to preserve one of west Little Rock’s few black neighborhoods. He noted Pankey Park is used by the residents there. Mr. Brower is part of the ‘Pankey Community group’ working on the park. There is no benefit to the Pankey Community to make this change. There is no benefit to flow people through the Pankey Community. Mr. Brower does understand some of the arguments for but has concerns of what ‘integrating’ into the area means losing the history of Pankey which we should be working to preserve. Madison Hudrick addressed the Commission. She lives in the Secluded Hills neighborhood and is against the amendment. Ms. Hudrick has concerns about the streets and traffic increases with recent new developments. She discussed crime and crime rates and congestion in the area. If multifamily is built it will decrease her home values at least 10 percent. Kids will not be able to play in the front yards. This is a quality-of-life issue. It will impact her children, affecting where they play and will negatively impact the area. Brenda Henson spoke next. She seconded the concerns of several speakers. City and Highway department have eliminated historically black communities. Pankey is a historic black community and we should be helping and supporting it. She reminded the group about the scenic corridor. This proposal does not benefit anyone. Arnold Hill spoke against the application. Traffic is a concern. The street already is a busy street. The change can not be justified. Mr. Hill supports the one-way in one-way out suggestion for Secluded Hills. No reason to open up that would serve the community. Chairman Hart called on Mr. Malone. He asked about deferring or addressing the item tonight. Mr. Malone suggested addressing it tonight. Chairman Hart invited those with hands up to come to the mic. May 11, 2023 ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01 7 Director BJ Wyrick spoke to the Commission. Ms. Wyrick indicated that she was the liaison from the Board of Directors to the Planning Commission and would be attend more meeting in the future. After hearing the comments on this item she felt that the community has a lot of concerns and needed some answers. It is not enough to say that this would be a Collector from now on. Not enough information to the community on this issue. Maybe Director Capi Peck who represents this Ward should set up a meeting with the neighbors to discuss the issues. Then there is the issue of ArDOT and what they might be doing in the future with Highway 10. We need to hear from the community that will be impacted by the traffic in the future. Chairman Hart suggested that the Commissioners ask staff or anyone else questions now. There was discussion about misinformation and needing to be more clear; why it was proposed and the timing (Commissioner Thomas, Chairman Hart). In response to a question from Commissioner Brown, Mr. Malone indicated he was not sure what the reason to move now is but as noted by one of the speakers this could be to get a head of the ArDOT re-design of Highway 10. Mr. McClardy stated he had seen an application that needed the Old Oak alignment removed and that the item was to be on the June Commission agenda. There was further discussion about deferral of the item. There was a motion (Latture, second Thomas) to defer to allow more input from the neighbors. By a vote of 6 for, 1 against, 3 absent and 1 vacancy the item was deferred to a later time. Staff to communicate with the neighborhood.