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HomeMy WebLinkAboutS-1080 Staff AnalysisDecember 12, 1995 ITEM NO.: B _ FILE NO.: S-1080 NAME: T. H. J. R. ADDITION -- PRELIMINARY PLAT LOCATION: On the north side of W. Markham St., approximately 0.2 mile east of the Chenal Parkway intersection DEVELOPER: ENGINEER: Jim Irwin Joe White THE IRWIN CO. WHITE-DATERS & ASSOCIATES, INC. 10800 Financial Center Parkway 401 S. victory St. Little Rock, AR 72211 Little Rock, AR 72201 225-5700 374-1666 AREA: 3.1311 ACRES NUMBER OF LOTS: 2 FT. NEW STREET: 0 ZONING: C-3 PROPOSED USES: Commercial PLANNING DISTRICT: 19 CENSUS TRACT: 42.06 VARIANCES REQUESTED: None STAFF UPDATE: Following the submission of the proposed preliminary plat, the applicant discovered that, instead of a 481, Water Utilities easement along the 39" raw water line which bisects the property, that Water Utilities has a 50 foot right-of-way across the property. This necessitated a complete re -design of the lot layout, and resulted in the applicant seeking, and being granted, a deferral of the hearing of the preliminary plat issue until the December 12, 1995 Commission hearing. The revised preliminary plat has three, instead of the originally proposed two, lots; two lots (Lots 2 and 3) along the W. Markham St. frontage of the land, and one lot (Lot 1) in the triangular area at the north corner of the property. This lot, Lot 1, has no frontage on a public street, and access to this lot is proposed to be provided by private common access easements across Lots 2 and 3. Sec. 31-231 of the Subdivision Regulations states that every lot shall abut upon a public street, except where a private street is explicitly approved by the Planning Commission. Sec. 31-287 of the Regulations requires that, where a development requires the creation of an internalized circulation system to provide access to multiple lots, the Planning Commission may authorize the use December 12, 1995 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: B (Cont.) FILE NO.: s-108 of a service easement in lieu of public commercial streets. The Regulations require that the location of the private -service easements be indicated on the plat and the drive to be built to public street design standards. Design of service easement improvements shall, requires the Regulations, be subject to the review and approval by the City Engineer. Section 210 of the Regulations states that commercial subdivisions abutting arterial streets are to be limited to one access point for each 300 feet of lot frontage, and that shared or common driveways are encouraged on lots with less than 300 feet of frontage. Any variance from the design standards must be appealed_to-the City Board of Directors. The Public Works review of the revised preliminary plat notes that the two lots fronting on W. Markham St. are each less than 300 feet in width, and, consequently, the two entry drives, one each along the east and west boundaries of the tract, must be combined into one central common drive. The entry drive -must, according to the Regulations, meet minimum commercial street standards, with a cul-de-sac, or other approved turn -around, within the easement, and must have a sidewalk along both sides of the drive. The minimum width of the drive at the entry must, states Public Works, be 36 feet to allow for left turn capability. The applicant requests Planning Commission approval of a private access easement to provide the required access to Lot 1. The applicant has, however, requested a variance from the requirement that the improvements in the access easements be constructed to commercial street standards, to permit the drive to be 25 feet in width, to have no sidewalks, and to have no cul-de-sac. Also, the applicant requests that the subdivision not be -limited to the one central access point, but be permitted to have two access points at the east and west boundaries of the plat area. The applicant requests a deferral of the requirement to make Master Street Plan improvements along the W. Markham St. frontage of the subdivision until Lots 2 or 3 are developed. The Planning staff recommends approval of the preliminary plat, and of a private access easement for access to Lot 1. The Public Works staff recommends denial of the variance from the requirement that the improvements in the access easement meet City street standards, and recommends that the drive be constructed to 27 feet in width, with a sidewalk along both sides of the street, and that a turn -around device be constructed within the access easement at the north end of the street. At the intersection of the private commercial street with W. Markham St., the drive should be constructed to 36 feet in width to permit a center left -turn lane. K December 12, 1995 SUBDIVISION ITEM B on FILE NO.: S-1 8D TATEMENT OF PROPOSAL: The applicant proposes a 2-lot subdivision of a 3.1311 acre tract. One of the lots is a 0.80 acre site; the other, the remaining 2.3311 acres of the tract. Both lots have frontage on W. Markham St.; however, a single central common access drive is proposed for access to the subdivision. No street improvements are anticipated with this plat, and no variances are requested. A. B. C. PROP05AL/REQUEST Planning Commission review and approval of a preliminary plat is requested. EXISTING CONDITIONS: The site is, predominantly, heavily wooded. There is a cleared strip along the west property line which is an 80 foot wide Arkansas Power and Light Co. utility easement, and a cleared strip running east and west approximately 125 feet to the north of the W. Markham St. right-of-way, at the north line of Lot 1, which is a Water Utility easement. The existing zoning of the tract is C-3. This zoning district includes abutting land to the west, and extends southward across W. Markham St. To the east and north, is R-2 zoned land. ENGINEERING UTILITY COMMENTS: Public Works comments: On the preliminary plat, provide the base flood elevation and the proposed minimum floor elevations of structures to be constructed on the property. This must be provided before the applicant obtains an "SFHAII development permit. Water courses entering the tract and the planned exit points for drainage are to be shown. Rights -of -way for drainage courses leaving the site must be dedicated. A stormwater detention analysis is required. West Markham St. is a minor arterial, and the right-of- way and the width of pavement for W. Markham St. must conform to Master Street Plan requirements. A sidewalk will be required along the W. Markham St. frontage of the lots. 3 December 12, 1995 SUBDIVISION ITEM N B nt. FILE N S-1080 Construct the common access drive to commercial street standards (36 feet of street width, plus sidewalks on each side of the street.) Water Works comments that Water Works owns a right-of-way which includes the land 20 feet north of and 30 feet south of the 39" raw water main. Water Works will have to approve any construction in the right-of-way, and no building will be allowed in this area. Wastewater comments that a sewer main extension, with easements, will be required. Arkansas Power and Light Co. will require a 15 foot easement along the W. Markham St. frontage of the subdivision and a 15 foot easement along the north side of the 39" raw water line easement. Arkansas Louisiana Gas Co. approved the submittal. Southwestern Bell Telephone Co. noted that easements will be required. The Fire Department approved the submittal. D. ISSUES LEGAL, TECHNICAL DESIGN: Sec. 31-87 requires that, in addition to the information furnished: a) the type of subdivision is to be denoted; b) the name and address of the owner of record, and the source of title, are to be shown; and, c) the source of water supply and the means of wastewater disposal are to be indicated. Sec. 31-89 requires that: a) a storm drainage analysis, showing drainage data for all watercourses leaving the plat boundary, is to be provided; b) the names of all recorded subdivisions abutting the proposed subdivision, with plat book and page number or instrument number, and the names of owners of all land abutting the plat area are to be shown; c) "accurate and adequate" descriptions of all monuments is to be provided, showing the size and type of material of all monuments; d) the zoning classifications of the area of the proposed subdivision, as well as of abutting land, are to be shown; and, e) proposed PAGIS monuments are to be shown. Sec. 31-91 requires that the Certificate of Preliminary Engineering Accuracy be executed. Sec. 31-210 provides that, for lots fronting on minor arterial roadways, shared or common driveway points are encouraged for lots that are less then 300 feet in frontage. 4 December 12, 1995 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: B (Cont.) FILE NO.: 5-1080 The applicant has provided for this shared access easement. The Traffic Engineer has commented that the drive in this access easement is to be built to a 36 foot wide commecial street standard, with a sidewlk on each side of the drive. The common access easement shown on the plat is 25 feet in width. With the Public Works comment that this access drive is to be a 36 foot wide street, with sidewalks on both sides, the access easement needs to be adjusted, or a variance from the Public Works requirement needs to be sought. The plat fails to show the 50 foot wide Water Utility right- of-way which runs east and west across the tract. E. ANALYSIS• Nearly all of the deficiencies in the submittal which have been noted are easily remedied, and are minor in scope. The matter of the Water Utility right-of-way not being shown, however, affects the buildable area of, especially, Lot 1, and could mandate a change in the lot layout. F. STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff recommends deferral of the hearing of the preliminary plat approval pending the applicant amending the plat to reflect the Water Utility right-of-way, and any change in the lot layout made necessary by the presence of this right-of-way. SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE COMMENT: (OCTOBER 12, 1995) Staff reported that the applicant had asked that the hearing of the item be deferred until the December 12, 1995 Planning Commission hearing. There was, then, no discussion of the item. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (OCTOBER 31, 1995) Staff reported that the applicant had submitted a letter requesting that the hearing of this item be deferred until the December 12, 1995 Commission meeting. The deferral was included on the Consent Agenda, and the deferral was approved in the approval of the Consent Agenda with the vote of 9 ayes, 0 nays, 2 absent, and 0 abstentions. 5 December 12, 1995 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: B(Cont.)FILE NO.: S-1080 PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION: (DECEMBER 12, 1995) Staff reported that the applicant and the Public Works staff had resolved the Public Works concerns noted at the Subdivision Committee meeting and in the agenda "write-up"; that a central common access drive had replaced the two access points, as were shown on the submitted drawing. Staff reported that the Ordinance provides that, when a development requires the creation of an internalized circulation system to provide access to multiple lots, the Planning Commission may authorize the use of a service easement in lieu of a Public Street. The applicant, noted staff, requested such an easement. Staff reported that the design of the street, with a sidewalk along one side of the drive, meets with Public Works requirements, and staff recommends approval of the service easement, subject to the turn -around device at the north end of the drive meeting the Public Works specifications. The item was proposed to be included on the Consent Agenda for approval; however, Commissioner Daniel indicated that he understood that the plan had been "drastically" changed from the plan presented at Subdivision Committee meeting, and asked that the item be deferred until he had a chance to review the revised plan. David Scherer, with the Public Works staff, explained that, in the original "write-up", the Public Works staff had expressed a concern about the circular drive effect of the internal private access drive, with its two access points off W. Markham St., and had suggested a single, central access point and private drive, with a turn -around device at its north end. This, he said, would be in conformance with the Ordinance provisions which provides for common access drives for access to multiple lots, where lots have less than 300 feet of frontage on a public street. He indicated that the applicant had complied with this design requirement, and would provide a single 36 foot wide private street running north off W. Markham St. between the two lots fronting on W. Markham St., with a "T" at the north end to provide access to the interior lot. Public Works, he said, had agreed to permit the construction of the private street with a sidewalk along one side of the street, only, in lieu of requiring a sidewalk along both sides of the street, due to the short length of the street and the limited number of lots being served by the street. He added that this would not preclude a developer from adding the sidewalk along the other side of the street, if it is desirable when the lot is developed. Neighborhoods and Planning Director Jim Lawson suggested that the item be removed from the Consent Agenda and placed on the Regular 6 December 12, 1995 IIBBIVz zo ITEM NO.; B (Cont.) FILE NO.:S-1080 Agenda, to permit the applicant to present the revised plan to the Commission. Mr. Jim VonTunglen, representing the applicant, explained that the original request for a deferral had been brought about due to the title company's not discovering the existence of a 50 foot wide "fee simple" right-of-way across the property which is owned by the Water utility Commission, necessitating a redesign of the site. He explained that, with the re -design, the property owner had attempted to coordinate with the developer of the property to the west for a common access drive, so that the subject property could have two access points and retain the circular drive effect. This, however, had not been able to be worked out. To get the item before the Commission, then, the property owner had agreed to comply with the Public Works requirement for a single access point, with a 36 foot wide private street. He related that the property owner felt that this was too wide of a street, and that the loss of the circular drive would not proved as good a traffic flow through the property, but that, to avoid further opposition from Public Works, the property owner had decided to comply with the Public works requirements. He said that the required sidewalk would be a 5 foot walk, as required by Public Works, and that the depth of the turn -around would be adjusted to comply with Public Works. Interim Chairperson Ball noted that he would need to abstain on any vote concerning the subject item, and would defer to Interim vice -Chairperson Chachere to chair the meeting for the hearing of the subject item. Interim Vice -Chairperson Chachere confirmed that there was no further discussion, and called the question. The item was approved with the vote of 9 ayes, 0 nays, 1 abstention (Ball), and 1 absent. 7