HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-5723-C Staff AnalysisJuly 26, 2001
ITEM NO.: 5
FILE NO.: Z -5723-C
NAME: Terry Elementary School - Conditional Use Permit
LOCATION: 10800 Mara Lynn Road
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Little Rock School District
810 West Markham Street
Little Rock, AR 72201
ARCHITECT:
The Borne Firm
2601 Kavanaugh Blvd., Suite #7
Little Rock, AR 72205
AREA: 13.98 acres NUMBER OF LOTS: 1 FT. NEW STREET: 0
ZONING: R-2 ALLOWED USES: School
PROPOSED USE: School expansion
VARIANCES/WAIVERS REQUESTED:
1. A variance to allow reduced driveway spacing.
A. PROPOSAL/REQUEST:
The applicant, Little Rock School District, requests a
conditional use permit to allow a building addition and
other site improvements to the existing Terry Elementary
School site at 10,800 Mara Lynn Road. The proposed addition
and improvements include the following:
1.5,600 square foot media center addition.
2. Remodel of existing media center into classrooms.
3. Removal of three (3) portable classroom buildings from
the site.
4. New site design consisting of a bus loading/unloading
traffic loop and separate public loading/unloading
traffic loop, and redesigned parking areas.
5.New ADA ramp to playground.
The new media center addition will be made along the west
side of the existing school building. The addition will not
exceed 18 feet in height.
July 26, 2001
ITEM NO.: 5 (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z -5723-C
There are two (2) existing access drives from Mara Lynn
Road. The new vehicular use area design includes three (3)
drives. The easternmost drive will serve the drop-off/pick-
up area for private passenger vehicles. The two (2)
westernmost drives will serve the bus circulation area. The
two (2) westernmost drives are in approximately the same
locations as the existing drives.
The applicant is requesting a variance for reduced driveway
spacing. The ordinance requires that the drives be
separated by a minimum of 250 feet. The two western drives
are separated by 150 feet, with the separation of the two
easternmost drives being 165 feet. The two existing drives
on the property are separated by approximately 180 feet.
After adding the new media center and converting the old
media center to classrooms, there will be a total of 27
classrooms on the site. The additional classrooms will
allow the three (3) existing portable buildings, which are
located on the east side of the existing school building, to
be removed from the site.
The proposed site plan shows a total of 74 parking spaces, a
reduction in the existing parking of five (5) spaces. The
ordinance requires a minimum of 27 parking spaces.
There are three (3) existing ground -mounted signs along Mara
Lynn Road. No new signage is proposed with this
development.
B. EXISTING CONDITIONS:
There is an existing school building with paved parking
areas on the site. A large portion of the property is
undeveloped and wooded. There are multifamily residences to
the south across Mara Lynn Road, with single family
residences to the west and north. There are also some
multifamily dwellings to the west. The future Immanuel
Baptist Church site is across Shackleford Road to the east,
with a mixture of commercial uses to the southeast.
C. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS:
As of this writing, staff has received two (2) phone calls
from persons requesting information on this application.
The Walnut Valley and Beverly Hills property owners
associations were notified of the public hearing.
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July 26, 2001
ITEM NO.: 5 (Cont.)
D. ENGINEERING COMMENTS:
PUBLIC WORKS CONDITIONS:
FILE NO.: Z -5723-C
1. Eliminate one driveway and connect parking lots.
2. Align easternmost drive with Monterey Drive.
3. Property frontage needs to have the sidewalks and ramps
brought up to the current ADA standards.
4. Repair or replace any curb and gutter or sidewalk that is
damaged in the public right-of-way prior to occupancy.
5. Plans of all work in right-of-way shall be submitted for
approval prior to start of work.
6. Stormwater detention ordinance applies to this property.
7. Easements for proposed stormwater detention facilities
are required.
E. UTILITIES AND FIRE DEPARTMENT/ COUNTY PLANNING:
Wastewater: Sewer available, not adversely affected.
Entergy: A 15 foot easement is requested along the
existing power line. Contact utility for details.
ARKLA: No Comment received.
Southwestern Bell: No Comment.
Water: If there are facilities that need to be adjusted
and/or relocated, contact Central Arkansas Water. That
work would be done at the expense of the developer.
Fire Department: Private fire hydrants may be required.
Contact Dennis Free at 918-3752 for details.
County Planning: No Comment received.
CATA: Project site is not located on a dedicated bus route
and has no effect on bus radius, turnout and route.
F. Landscape Issues:
Areas set aside for buffers and landscaping meet with
ordinance requirements.
July 26, 2001
ITEM NO.: 5 (Cont.)
G. SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE COMMENT:
FILE NO.: Z -5723-C
(JULY 5, 2001)
Doug Eaton, Robin Borne and Earnie Peters were present,
representing the application. Staff briefly described the
proposed conditional use permit, noting that some additional
information was needed.
The Public Works requirements were discussed. The proposed
number of driveways (4) and the locations of the drives were
discussed at length. Public Works representatives noted
that the two (2) easternmost drives shown (on the original
submitted plan) needed to be combined into one (1) drive and
aligned with Monterey Drive to the south. Mr. Eaton noted
that he thought the four (4) drives as proposed would
provide better circulation, but that he would look into
closing one (1) of the easternmost drives.
Bob Brown, of the Planning Staff, noted that the areas set
aside for buffers and landscaping conformed with ordinance
standards.
After the discussion, the Committee forwarded the
application to the full Commission for final action.
H. ANALYSIS:
The applicant submitted a revised site plan to staff on
July 11, 2001. The revised plan addresses the issues as
raised by staff and the Subdivision Committee. The
additional items as requested by staff have been shown on
the revised plan.
The original plan submitted for staff review had four (4)
access drives from Mara Lynn Road. The two (2) easternmost
drives as shown on the original plan have been combined into
one (1) drive and will align with Monterey Drive to the
south, as requested by Public Works. This drive is to have
a maximum width of 36 feet. Public Works has reviewed the
revised plan and notes no outstanding issues.
As noted in paragraph A., the applicant is requesting a
variance for driveway spacing for the three (3) proposed
drives along Mara Lynn Road. Given the fact that it is the
applicant's intent to separate the bus and passenger vehicle
circulations, staff can support the variance as requested.
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July 26, 2001
ITEM NO.: 5 (Cont.)
FILE NO.: Z -5723-C
To staff's knowledge, there are no outstanding issues
associated with this application. The proposed building
addition and vehicular use area revisions should have no
adverse impact on the general area. The proposed building
addition conforms to the ordinance requirements for setbacks
and height.
I. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS:
Staff recommends approval of the conditional use permit
subject to the following conditions:
1. Compliance with the requirements as noted in paragraphs
D, E and F of this report.
2. Any site lighting must be low-level and directed away
from adjacent residential property.
3. The dumpster area must be screened on three (3) sides
with an eight (8) foot high opaque fence or wall.
4. Staff recommends approval of the variance to allow
reduced driveway spacing.
5. The three (3) existing portable buildings must be removed
with the new building construction.
PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION:
(JULY 26, 2001)
Staff presented a positive recommendation on this application, as
there were no further issues for resolution. There were no
objectors to this matter present.
The Chairman placed the item before the Commission for inclusion
within the Consent Agenda for approval as recommended by staff.
A motion to that effect was made. The motion passed by a vote of
9 ayes, 0 nays and 2 absent.
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