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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-7050 Staff AnalysisJune 25, 2001 Item No.: 9 File No.: Z-7050 Owner: Mercy Seat Missionary Baptist Church Address: 4523 West 12th Street Description: Lots 13-16, Block 6, H. F. Buhler's Ninth Addition Zoned: C-3 Variance Requested• Variances are requested from the area regulations of Section 36-301 and the on-site parking provisions of Section 36-502. Justification: The proposal is outlined in an attached letter. Present Use of Pro ert : Church Proposed Use of Pro ert : New Church Staff Report: A. Public Works Issues: With Buildin Permit: 1. West 12 Street is classified on the Master Street Plan as a minor arterial. A dedication of right-of-way 35 feet from centerline will be required. 2. Adams Street is classified on the Master Street Plan as a collector street. Dedicate right-of-way to 30 feet from centerline. 3. A 20 feet radial dedication of right-of-way is required at the corner of West 12th and Adams Streets. 4. Provide design of street conforming to "MSP" (Master Street Plan). Construct one-half street improvement to these streets including 5 -foot sidewalks with planned development. 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. June 25, 2001 Item No.: 9 (Cont. 7. Driveways shall conform to Section 31-210 or Ordinance 18,031. B. Landscape Review: Areas set aside for landscaping and buffers meet with ordinance requirements with the exception of interior landscaping. The Landscape Ordinance calls for eight percent (729 square feet) of the interior of the vehicular use area be landscaped with interior islands of at least 150 square feet each. Since this site is located within the designated "mature area" a 25% reduction with this requirement is allowed. With this reduction, the interior requirement is 546 square feet. C. Staff Analysis: Mercy Seat Baptist Church is located on the C-3 zoned property at 4523 West 12th Street. The church property consists of 4 contiguous, 140 foot X 50 foot lots. The church building is located on the western 2 lots. The eastern 2 lots contain a gravel parking lot. Mercy Seat proposes to construct a new church building on the site. The new 10,000 square foot facility will occupy most of the eastern 2 lots and a portion of a 3=d lot. The existing building will be removed and a new, 25 space parking lot will be built on the western 2 lots. There are 3 variances associated with the proposed development. The new church will have a total sanctuary seating capacity of 280 persons; 237 congregation seats and 43 choir seats. A 280 seat sanctuary requires 70 on-site parking spaces; 25 are proposed. The new building will have a rear yard setback of 5 feet. A rear yard setback of 15 feet is required for this development since an exterior side yard setback exceeding 25 feet is provided. A drive-through canopy extends over a driveway at the front of the church. The canopy has a front yard setback of 9.5 feet. The code requires a front yard setback of 25 feet. Once the required right-of-way is dedicated for West 12th Street, the canopy will have a setback of 4.5 feet. Staff has concerns about the proposal and feels that the applicant is overbuilding this small site. Of the variances 2 June 25, 2001 Item No.: 9 {Cont. requested, only the proposed rear yard setback of 5 feet can be supported by staff. A 20 foot, undeveloped alley right- of-way separates the church site from the residential properties to the south. The new building will be built over an area currently used as vehicle parking. The impact of the building should be no greater, and may be less, than that of the parking lot. The church building will be located adjacent to the rear yards of the abutting residential properties; not adjacent to the dwellings themselves. The issues of the parking and front yard setback are of greater significance in staff's mind. Once the required interior landscaping is provided and the right-of-way dedicated for West 12th Street, 4 of the proposed 25 on-site parking spaces will be lost; leaving only 21 spaces for a 280 seat sanctuary. Parking is not permitted on West 12th Street, indicating that the bulk of the church parking will take place on the nearby residential streets. The applicant has mentioned the availability of parking on an adjacent commercial lot. No written, long-term agreement has been provided to staff. Without such an agreement to assure a greater percentage of the church parking is accommodated, staff cannot support the variance. Once the required right-of-way dedication takes place for West 12th Street, the canopy will have a front yard setback of 4.5 feet. The canopy will be cantilevered out from support posts with a front yard setback of 14± feet. The face of the building itself will be at a 23 foot front yard setback. Staff feels the proposed reduced front yard setback of 4.5± feet for the canopy is unreasonable adjacent to this minor arterial street. With the proposed drop-off driveway along the front of the church, there is no way to make up the difference in lost landscaping at the front of the site. A 7 foot landscape strip is proposed; just above the minimum. With right-of-way dedication, that landscape strip is reduced to 2 feet. The driveway and canopy need to be removed from the plan to provide a reasonable setback and to accommodate minimal landscape and buffer requirements. D. Staff Recommendation: Staff recommends denial of the application as filed. 3 June 25, 2001 Item No.: 9 (Cont.) BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT: (JUNE 25, 2001) Ron Woods was present representing the application. There were no objectors present. Staff informed the Board that the application had been amended by removing the driveway and canopy from the front of the building; allowing for full landscaping and buffers along 12th Street and leaving only the building itself with a slight variance to allow a 23 foot front yard setback. Ron Woods confirmed the elimination of the driveway and canopy. Mr. Woods stated he had letters from 3 area businesses allowing the church to use their parking lots on Sundays. He stated the agreements would accommodate approximately 23 more vehicles. Dana Carney, of the Planning Staff, questioned whether the letters had been -provided by property owners or tenants. Mr. Woods responded that he thought they were tenants. Mr. Carney stated that the agreement needed to come from the property owner. During the ensuing discussion, it was determined that it would be appropriate to approve the amended application with the condition that parking agreements be provided by the adjacent property owners within 2 weeks or the item must be returned to the Board. A motion was made to approve the amended application subject to compliance with the following conditions: 1. Compliance with Public Works Comments including any variance or waiver as may be granted by the Board of Directors or the Director of Public Works. 2. Compliance with the City's Landscape and Buffer Ordinances including any variance or waiver as may be granted by the City Beautiful Commission. 3. Written authorization must be provided by adjacent property owners to accommodate up to 23 vehicles. The authorization must be provided within 2 weeks or the item must return to the Board. The motion was approved by a vote of 3 ayes, 0 noes and 2 absent. 4