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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZ-7677 Staff AnalysisOctober 21, 2004 ITEM NO.: H FILE NO.: Z-7677 NAME: Abraham Day Care Center — Conditional Use Permit LOCATION: 8824 West 34th Street OWNER/APPLICANT: Scott Turner/Frederick Abraham PROPOSAL: A conditional use permit is requested to allow use of the existing residence on this R-3 zoned property as a day care center. 1. SITE LOCATION: The property is located at the northeast corner of West 34th and Ludwig; one block west of John Barrow Road. 2. COMPATIBILITY WITH NEIGHBORHOOD: The site is located near the commercial node which extends along John Barrow Road, from 32nd to 36th Street. It is, however, within the residential neighborhood. Single family residences are located adjacent to the east and across Ludwig to the west. A church is located across 34th Street to the south. Along Barrow Road, one block to the east, a variety of smaller scale commercial uses extend from 32"d to 36th. Single family homes are located in the overall area around the site. Staff is concerned that allowing a commercial use of this intensity to be located out of the commercial node and in the residential neighborhood could have a detrimental effect on the nearby residences. All owners of property located within 200 feet of the site, all residents within 300 feet who could be identified and the John Barrow and Campus Place Neighborhood Associations were notified of this request. 3. ON SITE DRIVES AND PARKING: The site currently has a paved, single -wide driveway; typical of a single family residence in the area. The proposed day care center is to have a maximum enrollment of 50 children with a total of 6 employees, not counting the director. The day care is to operate with two shifts; with no more than 25 children present at any time. There will be 3 employees on each shift, not counting the director. The applicant has proposed to construct a 6 -space, paved parking lot, utilizing the existing driveway off of 34th Street. This will satisfy the parking requirement for 4 employees and 25 children. Staff is concerned that the parking will prove inadequate when the shifts overlap; resulting in vehicles having to park on 34th and October 21, 2004 ITEM NO.: H (Cont.) FILE NO.: Z-7677 Ludwrq Streets. Very much congestion could result in vehicles stacking on 34= back to John Barrow Road. 4. SCREENING AND BUFFERS: Compliance with the City's Landscape and Buffer Ordinances is required. The playground area must be screened from the adjacent residential properties to the north and east. This can be accomplished with a 6 -foot high opaque wooden fence with its face side directed outward. If a parking area is to be developed, then it must be properly screened and landscaped according to ordinance standards. 5. PUBLIC WORKS COMMENTS: 1. Show the proposed location of all driveways and parking areas. Driveway width is limited to 36 feet for a commercial driveway. 2. Queuing of vehicles for pick-up and drop-off of children must be done in a manner that does not cause stacking of vehicles back to Barrow Road. 3. Ludwig and 34th Street are improved streets with curb and gutter. Sidewalk construction may be required to be included with future construction. 6. UTILITY, FIRE DEPT. AND CATA COMMENTS: Wastewater: Sewer available, not adversely affected. Entergy: Approved as submitted. CenterPoint Energy: No Comments received. Southwestern Bell: No Comments received. Water: Additional fire hydrant(s) will be required. Contact the Little Rock Fire Department to obtain information regarding the required placement of the hydrant(s) and contact Central Arkansas Water regarding procedures for installation of the hydrant(s). Fire Department: Age of children may require the building to be sprinkled; contact the Fire Marshall's office at 918-3700. County Planning: No Comments. 2 October 21, 2004 ITEM NO.: H (Cont. .: Z-7677 CATA: The site is not located on a CATA bus route. The nearest route is located on 36th Street, two blocks to the south. SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE COMMENT: (JULY 8, 2004) The applicant was present. Staff presented the item and noted additional information was needed regarding the number of children and employees, days and hours of operation, signage, fencing and site lighting. Staff stated screening needed to be installed on the perimeters of the playground area where the site was adjacent to residential properties and use of the playground should be limited to daylight hours. Staff noted there was no on-site parking shown on the site plan. The applicant responded that he intended to install parking. He was advised to meet with staff to devise a parking plan. Public Works, Landscape and Utility Comments were noted. The applicant was advised to contact the Fire Marshall's office regarding the fire hydrant and sprinkler comments. The applicant was advised to respond to staff issues by Wednesday, July 14, 2004. The Committee then forwarded the item to the full Commission. STAFF ANALYSIS: The R-3 zoned property at 8824 West 34th Street is occupied by a one-story, brick and frame, single family residence that is typical of homes in the area. The applicant is requesting approval of a conditional use permit to allow for the conversion of the residence into a day care center. The application is not for a day care family home where the care giver occupies the residence. The proposed day care center is to have two shifts; operating Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight. The maximum proposed enrollment is 50 children, with no more than 25 children present at any time. There will be 6 employees, not including the director. There will be 3 employees on each shift, plus the director. A single ground -mounted sign is proposed to be placed on the 34th Street frontage. The sign will measure 3' X 4' and will be 6 feet tall. A 6 foot tall, wood privacy fence will be erected on the east, west and north perimeters of the site. A playground will be located behind the building and will be used only during daylight hours. A single light will be placed to illuminate the parking lot. The light will be shielded downward and into the site. There is no valid bill of assurance. The applicant submitted a revised site plan and responses to issues raised at Subdivision Committee. 3 October 21, 2004 ITEM NO.: H (Cont. FILE NO.: Z-7677 While the applicant has done a good job of addressing most of the site plan related issues, staff does not support the proposed use. Staff's concerns center around the intensity of the proposed use, the hours of operation and the proximity of the site to existing single family residences. The site is on the fringe of the commercial node that is located along John Barrow Road, between 32" and 36th Streets. There is a clear delineation between those commercial uses and the surrounding residential neighborhood, of which the property is a part. Other than the church to the south, single family homes and properties comprise the majority of the neighborhood immediately around the site. The proposed day care is to operate from 6:00 a.m. until midnight. Staff feels that having this commercial activity and its related traffic extend past 6:00 p.m. will negatively impact the nearby residents. The applicant has proposed to operate the day care in two shifts, with no more than 25 children per shift. Staff does not see how this is workable. There is a likelihood that there will be a time at "shift change" when the number of children and vehicles.at the site will exceed the capability of the site to handle them. This will result in vehicles being parked on the street, possibly impacting traffic one block to the east on John Barrow Road. A day care of this size needs to be located in an appropriate commercial location, not within a residential neighborhood. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends denial of the application. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (JULY 29, 2004) The applicant was not present. There were no objectors present. Staff informed the Commission that the applicant had requested that the item be deferred to the September 9, 2004 meeting to allow him to meet with the neighborhood association. The deferral request had been made on July 28, 2004. There was no further discussion. A motion was made to waive the bylaws and to accept the late request for deferral. The motion was approved by a vote of 9 ayes, 0 noes and 2 absent. The item was then placed on the Consent Agenda and approved for deferral by a vote of 10 ayes, 0 noes and 1 absent. STAFF UPDATE: The applicant has revised his application. The proposed maximum enrollment of the day care center is now 25 children. There will be three employees, plus the director. The days and hours of operation are now proposed as Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 4 October 21, 2004 ITEM NO.: H Cont. FILE NO.: Z-7677 Staff is supportive of the application, as amended. The scale of the proposed day care center has now been reduced such that the day care could serve as an appropriate "step-down" use, transitioning from the commercial uses along Barrow Road to the residential neighborhood which extends to the west. The adopted land use plan recommends Mixed Office Commercial for the eastern half of this block. It is reasonable to assume that the properties east of this site will develop as some non-residential use. The day care center's proposed parking lot is located on the east side of the building and access is off of West 34th Street. A church occupies the block directly across West 34th Street, south of the site. There is no access to the site from Ludwig Street. The proposed six- foot tall, wood, privacy fence should provide screening of the site from the residential properties to the west and north. Staff believes signage should be limited to the single, twelve square foot, ground -mounted sign proposed to be located in front of the structure. Screening should be extended along the entire eastern perimeter of the site, including east of the new parking lot. REVISED STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval of the amended application subject to compliance with the following conditions: 1. Compliance with the staff comments and conditions outlined in Sections 4, 5 and 6 of the staff report. 2. Signage is to be limited to the single, six foot tall, twelve square foot ground - mounted sign. 3. The proposed six foot tall, wood privacy fence is to be constructed in "good neighbor" fashion, with the finished side facing out. 4. Use of the playground is to be limited to daylight hours only. 5. All drop-off and pick-up of children is to take place on the site, utilizing the parking lot, not the public street. 6. Compliance with Building Codes and Fire Department requirements for conversion of this residential structure into a day care center. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (SEPTEMBER 9, 2004) The applicant was present. There was one objector present. There were only 7 commissioners present and the applicant was offered the opportunity to defer the item. Mr. Abraham requested the deferral. There was no further discussion. A motion was made to defer the item to the October 21, 2004 meeting. The motion was approved by a vote of 7 ayes, 0 noes and 4 absent. R October 21, 2004 ITEM NO.: H (Cont. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: FILE NO.: Z-7677 (OCTOBER 21, 2004) Staff informed the Commission that the applicant submitted a letter requesting that the application be withdrawn. Staff supported the withdrawal request. With a vote of 9 ayes, 0 nays and 2 absent, the Commission voted to waive their bylaws and accept the withdrawal request less than five (5) days prior to the public hearing. The Chairman placed the item before the Commission for inclusion within the Consent Agenda for withdrawal. A motion to that effect was made. The motion passed by a vote of 9 ayes, 0 nays and 2 absent. The application was withdrawn.