HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 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.
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ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01
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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
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ITEM NO.: 15 (Cont.) FILENO.: MSP2023-01
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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
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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