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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-5719 Staff AnalysisAugust 24, 1993 ITEM NO • 12 FILE NO.: Z-5719 NAME: LOWE'S HOME CENTER LONG -FORM PLANNED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND EXCLUSIVE ABANDONMENT OF ALHAMBRA DRIVE, BRISTOL DRIVE, SHADECREST DRIVE, A PORTION OF ALAMO CIRCLE, AND A PORTION OF CHENAL PARKWAY LOCATION: On the north side of Chenal Parkway, east of Bowman Road and west of Autumn Road DEVZLOPER: ARCHITLQT: LOWE'S COMPANIES, INC. DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANTS Highway 268 East 10411 West Markham St. North Wilkesboro, NC 28659 Suite 210 (919)651-4000 Little Rock, AR 72205 221-7880 AREA: 21 ACRES NUMBER OF LOTS: 1 FT. NEW STREET: None ZONING: 0-1 & R-2 PROPOSED USES: Lowe's Home Center to PCD i PLANNING DISTRICT: 11 CENSUS TRACT: 24.04 VARIANCES REQUESTED: Waiver from the requirement to construct an additional lane along the north edge of Chenal Parkway STATEMENT OF PROPQ$AL : Proposed is a Long -form Planned Commercial Development (PCD) for the development of a Lowe's Home Center facility. The site is designed to accommodate a Lowe's building containing 121,148 square feet of floor area for the home center itself, plus another 32,195 square feet for the garden center. Parking for 673 vehicles is provided. The site also designates three "out - parcels" for future development, two along the Bowman Road frontage of the site, and one at the corner of Chenal Parkway and Autumn Road. The proposal includes a provision for a buffer along the north property line backing up to the residences in the Birchwood Addition. This buffer is shown to range in depth from 60 feet for approximately 2/3 of the length of the property line to a minimum of 30 feet in the area north of the building. The applicant proposes to supplement the plantings in the buffer to ensure visual screening, and, where the buffer is reduced to 30 feet, to provide evergreen trees and scrubs in the buffer and on the sloped fill area to provide a minimum 60 foot visual screening effect. The applicant proposes to construct the full width of Autumn Road from Chenal Parkway to the north line of the site, including raising the grade of the street to reduce the height of the resulting embankment along the Autumn Road frontage August 24, 1993 ITEM 12 n in FILE Z-5719 and to eliminate the deep dips which are present in the existing street. At the same time, the applicant proposes to utilize land to the east of Autumn Road for the storm water detention from the site. The alternative and originally designated site for the storm water detention area is the now -designated out -parcel at the corner of Autumn Road and Chenal Parkway. Review by the Planning Commission and approval by the Board of Directors is requested for the establishment of the Lowe's Home Center Long -form PCD. Approval by the Board of Directors is requested for the exclusive abandonment of streets within the boundary of the site: Alhambra Drive, Bristol Drive, Shadecrest Drive, and Alamo Circle, and the exclusive abandonment of a small portion of the Chenal Parkway right-of-way which is excess right-of-way and which protrudes into the site. The applicant requests approval for a PCD which includes provisions for three out -parcels and a stormwater detention area which is off site. The request also prPvides for the construction of the full width of Autumn Road, without the curb and gutter section on the east side of the street, from Chenal Parkway to the north line of the site. The applicant requests exemption from the requirement to construct the additional lane along the Chenal Parkway frontage, providing, instead, a right turn lane from and an acceleration lane onto Chenal Parkway at the parking lot entrance. The Lowe's Home Center involves the construction of a building containing 121,148 square feet in the home center portion of the building, plus another 32,195 square feet in the garden center. Parking for 668 vehicles is provided. Buffering, with supplemental plantings, along the north boundary of the site, behind the Birchwood Addition residences, is designed into the site plan. Slopes in the area at the north-east corner of the property, where the most sever "fill" will take place, are shown to be kept at 113:1" so that these areas can be planted and maintained. This area also contains a retaining wall to allow the slopes to be kept at the 113:1" ratio. A 6 foot wood privacy fence is proposed for the entire north property line and along the east property line to the front line of the building. In the area behind the residences, the fence is proposed to be located to the south, against the developed area and at the top of the filled area, to give the screening added effect and provide the greatest benefit to the residents to the north. B. EXISTING CGNDITIQN,T : The site is primarily undeveloped, with homes on the west side fronting on Bowman Road and on the north side of the tract on a private drive. A few remnants of former 2 August 24, 1993 SOBDIVZSION ITEM NO.: 12 ( Cant inugd ) FILE NQ.; Z-5719 structures which have already been removed are scattered around the site. The site contains a great deal of wooded area with natural undergrowth. To the north, in an R-2 zone, is the Birchwood Subdivision; homes back up to the proposed site. At the north-west corner of the site is a newly designated C-1 site. To the west is a large C-3 tract. To the east is 0-2 and C-3 property. Across Chenal Parkway, to the south, is a PCD for the Home Quarters development currently taking place. South-west across Chenal Parkway is a large C-3 zone. C. ENGINEERING/UTILITY COMMENTS: Little Rock Engineering Division relates that the requirements relating to traffic access to and from the site, discussed at a July 27, 1993 meeting involving the developer and Traffic Engineering, must be followed. Traffic Engineering reports that there is a sight distance problem at the Autumn Road-Chenal Parkway intersection, and that no traffic signalization is recommended. The blaster Street Plan wild require that the developer provide an additional lane along the north edge of Chenal Parkway, plus providing the deceleration and acceleration lanes at the access point to the parking lot. Engineering reports that they object to the provision of off-site storm water detention and to the proposal to omit the curb and gutter section to the east edge of Autumn Road. The Detention and Excavation Ordinances are applicable to this development. Water Works will require that the project connect to the 12" main in Bowman Road with an 8" connection. Information is needed as to whether the building will be sprinkled and the size and location of the meter. A pro -rata front footage charge of $12.00 per foot applies along Bowman Road. Water Works has no objections to the abandonment of the rights-of- way of the internal streets. Wastewater reports that sewer is available. There is no objection to the abandonment of the streets. The Fire Department indicates that additional fire hydrants appear to be needed at the east end of the building; also, that "no parking -- tow -away" signs are to be placed in the fire lane encircling the building. Southwestern Bell Telephone Co. comments that any removal and relocation of lines in rights-of-way to be abandoned will have to be done at the developer's expense. Arkansas Power and Light approved the site plan as submitted. 3 August 24, 1993 SUBD_IVISIQI�I STEM NO.: 12 (Continued) FiI, NO.: Z-5719 D. ISSQES/LEGAL/TECHNICALIDESI N: All required exhibits and amendments to exhibits have been submitted which relate to the site plan. Deficiencies, remain relative to the street rights-of-way abandonment, since not all adjacent property owners have endorsed the petition. The options available to the developer are being pursued, including pursuing the course of "advesarial abandonment" directly to the Board of Directors. In the issue of the street right-of-way abandonment, close coordination with the City Clerk's office and with the City Attorney's office is necessary. The City Attorney's office needs to be involved in the abandonment of the Chenal Parkway excess right-of-way and transfer of that right-of- way to the developer. Since the site drops in grade nearly 75 feet from west to east, the building "pad" is elevated to decrease that change in elevation tq approximately 35 feet, resulting in as much as a 35-40 foot of fill. At the north-east corner of the property, backing up to the residences in Birchwood, the difference in grade between the rear yards of the residences and the grade around the building is 10 to 30 feet. Factoring in the building height of 28 feet, there is as much as 58 feet from the elevations of rear yards of residences in Birchwood behind the building to the top of the building parapet. Parameters (e.g., buildable area, parking and access, and proposed uses) for the out -parcels have not been identified by the developer. In a Planned Unit Development, these must be established as part of the review by Staff and the Commission. The adopted land use plan designates the majority of this site for office uses, with the remainder designated for mixed office and commercial uses. Service access to the site for trucks and customer access to Lowe's and the out -parcel at Autumn Road is by way of Autumn Road. The development of the site as proposed, then, will generate a great deal of traffic on Autumn Road, and, as reported by Traffic Engineering, there is a sight distance problem at the Autumn Road-Chenal Parkway intersection. A traffic signal would not be advised. E. ANALYSIS: The adopted land use plan envisions a mixture of office and commercial development at this site. This is a much less intense vision of the site than the proposed development 4 August 24, 1993 ITEM NQ, • 12 [Continwed] FILE NO.; Z-5719 imposes. The amount of the fill at the north-east corner of the property creates an imposing facade, rising 38-58 feet above the rear yards of adjoining residences. The established residential neighborhood to the north of the proposed development has a limited number of access points: two to Markham Street to the north and the one by way of Autumn Road. The intensity of the proposed Lowe's use, coupled with the future out -parcel use at Autumn Road, and truck and customer traffic utilizing Autumn Road will greatly impact the Birchwood and Markham Pines neighborhoods' utilization of Autumn Road. F. 5TAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: The staff recommends denial of the establishment of the PCD for the Lowe's Home Center. The use is not in conformance with the adopted land use plan, and, after review, Staff finds that conditions and development patterns have not sufficiently changed to warrant amendinpr the plan. The land use plan envisions a mixture of office and commercial uses. The proposed uses are much more intense. The proposed development is an overdevelopment of the site involving the Lowe's building itself, its traffic, and the three proposed out -parcels and their traffic. The site grading plan as proposed does not relate to the topography of the terrain, causing sever changes of grade. Too sever a grade differential is created between the adjoining yards and area around the proposed building. With the grade differential at the east end of the project and the proximity of a 583 space parking lot at the center of the project, the impact on the residential neighbors is significant and the proposed buffering is inadequate to midigate these effects. The revised site plan proposes the placement of the storm water detention pond off site across Autumn Road, in lieu of the original which is now designated as the out parcel on Autumn Road. The impact on the abutting and neighboring residential subdivisions will be significant. The intense commerical uses proposed and out -parcel uses which are possible will create significant noise and traffic. Parking area and building area lighting, on a grade which is significantly above the yards of the abutting residences, could be an objectional situation for the neighbors. The buildable area, parking provisions, proposed uses, etc. for the out -parcels, which are required parameters to be reviewed as part of the review for a planned unit 5 August 24, 1993 ITEM NO.: 12 (Continued Q,: Z-5.719 development, have not been furnished by the applicant. The Commission, then, is unable to consider all the factors which are applicable to the site development of this project. The applicant requests a waiver from the requirement to construct the required additional lane on Chenal Parkway, as reflected in the Master Street Plan. The applicant also proposes to delete the curb and gutter on the east edge of Autumn Road which they propose to construct along the east boundary of the site. Staff does not concur with these proposals. Traffic Engineering has cited the Chenal Parkway -Autumn Road intersection as having a sight -distance problem and one at which a traffic signal would not be advisable. The amount of traffic which would be generated for this intersection by the proposed development would cause a dangerous condition. SUBDIVISION MMITTEE MME T: (August 5, 1993) A representative from Lowe's and the architect were present. Staff outlined the proposal and the architect presented the proposal to the Committee members. The discussion outline for the meeting was reviewed, and the applicant indicated that deficiencies would be addressed. The applicant discussed the effect of the proposed site development plan on the adjacent residential property to the north, and indicated that buffering would mitigate adverse effects. Trees and evergreen plantings would augment the natural planting in the buffer area. Utilizing a retaining wall, the slope from the rear yards behind the building and the grade at the building would be kept at a low enough slope so that trees and plants could be successfully grown and maintained. The Committee referred the request to the commission for the hearing. 6