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HomeMy WebLinkAboutS-1636-A Staff AnalysisITEM NO.: 4. NAME: Heights Addition Preliminary Plat S-1636-A LOCATION: located East of South Ridge Drive, South of Walton Heights Subdivision Planning Staff Comments: 1. Provide notification of all abutting property owners, complete with the certified abstract list, notice form with affidavit executed and proof of mailing. The notice must be mailed no later than November 19, 2009. The Office of Planning and Development must receive the proof of notice no later than November 25, 2009. 2. The R-2 zoning district requires the placement of a 25-foot front building line. 3. The notes indicate the street to be private but the cover letter indicates the street as a public street. 4. Provide details as to who will be responsible for maintaining the indicated tracts and open space. Label the tracts adjacent to Southridge as Tracts B and C. Is the tract south of Beau Rivage Drive separate or a part of Tract A the Conservancy Dedication Easement area? Variance/Waivers: None requested. Public Works Conditions: 1. Plans of all work in right-of-way shall be submitted for approval prior to start of work. Obtain barricade permit prior to doing any work in the right-of-way from Traffic Engineering at (501) 379-1805 (Travis Herbner). 2. A grading permit in accordance with Section 29-186 (c) and (d) will be required prior to any land clearing or grading activities at the site. Other than residential subdivisions, site grading and drainage plans must be submitted and approved prior to the start of construction. Is the applicant requesting a variance for advanced grading? 3. Provide the profile of the proposed street showing centerline grade, sight distance, and horizontal radius of the centerline. 4. Provide on the plan the location of area of restricted parking. 5. Measures to control the increase in stormwater runoff from the increased impervious surface should be implemented to not damage adjacent property. 6. Stormwater detention ordinance applies to this property. 7. If disturbed area is one (1) or more acres, obtain a NPDES stormwater permit from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality prior to the start of construction. 8. Provide a letter prepared by a registered engineer certifying the sight distance at the intersections comply with 2004 AASHTO Green Book standards. 9. Repair or replace any curb and gutter or sidewalk that is damaged in the public right- of-way prior to occupancy. 10. Street Improvement plans shall include signage and striping. Traffic Engineering must approve completed plans prior to construction. Item # 4 11.Streetlights are required by Section 31-403 of the Little Rock code. Provide plans for approval to Traffic Engineering. Streetlights must be installed prior to platting/certificate of occupancy. Contact Traffic Engineering 379-1813 (Steve Philpott) for more information. 12. Vegetation must be established on disturbed area within 21 days of completion of harvest activities. 13.The proposed median at the entrance should be removed due to the restrictions in the intersection area. If you have any questions, contact Bill Henry in Traffic Engineering at 379-1816. 14. Retaining walls designed to exceed 15 feet in height are required to seek a variance for construction. Provide proposed wall elevations. Prior to construction of the retaining wall, the engineer's certification of design and plans must be submitted to Public Works for approval. After construction, an as -built certification is required for construction of the retaining wall. 15. Plat a no access easement along the south side of Beau Rivage Drive east of the last proposed lot. 16.100 foot spacing is required between the proposed tangent curves of the street or a variance is required to be requested. 17. A maintenance access easement should be provided from Beau Rivage Drive to the detention ponds for access when maintenance is required. 18.The provided plan shows the street and storm drainage/maintenance to be private. Utilities and Fire Department/County Planning: Wastewater: Sewer main extension required with easements for this project. Gravity sewer system required, Force Main not acceptable for this project. Contact the Little Wastewater Utility for additional information. Entergy: No comment received. Center -Point Energy: No comment received. AT & T: No comment received. Central Arkansas Water: All Central Arkansas Water requirements in effect at the time of request for water service must be met. Please submit plans for water facilities to Central Arkansas Water for review. Plan revisions may be required after additional review. Contact Central Arkansas Water regarding procedures for installation of water facilities. Approval of plans by Central Arkansas Water, the Arkansas Department of Health Engineering Division and Little Rock Fire Department is required. This development will have minor impact on the existing water distribution system. Proposed water facilities will be sized to provide adequate pressure and fire protection Fire Department: Fire Hydrants will be required. Contact the Little Rock Fire Department for additional information. County Planning: No comment. CATA: The site is not located on a dedicated CATA Bus Route. Item # 4. Planning Division:. No comment. Landscape: No comment. Revised plat/plan: Submit four (4) copies of a revised preliminary plat/plan (to include the additional information as noted above) to staff on Wednesday, November 19, 2009. Item # 4. December 3, 2009 ITEM NO.: 4 FILE NO.: S-1636-A NAME: Heights Addition Preliminary Plat LOCATION: Located East of South Ridge Drive, South of Walton Heights Subdivision DEVELOPER: Kenneth Sholimier 6000 Scott Hamilton Drive Little Rock, AR 72209 ENGINEER: The Holloway Firm, Inc. 200 Casey Drive Maumelle, AR 72113 AREA: 16.438 acres CURRENT ZONING PLANNING DISTRICT NUMBER OF LOTS: 30 R-2, Single-family 1 — River Mountain CENSUS TRACT: 42.05 FT. NEW STREET: 1341 LF VARIANCESM/AIVERS REQUESTED: None requested. A. PROPOSAUREQUEST: The applicant is requesting preliminary plat approval to allow the development of 16.43 acres with 30 single-family lots and four (4) Tracts. Tract A is proposed as a conservation easement with a nature trail containing 8.0 acres. Tracts B and C are indicated along Southridge Drive containing 0.056 and 0.179 acres and proposed as open space and buffering along the existing street. Tract D is indicated as open space containing 0.46 acres. The subdivision is proposed with lots averaging 0.224 acres with a minimum lot size of 0.164 acres. The subdivision is proposed with an overall density of 1.825 units per acre. A new public cul-de-sac street will be constructed to serve the new homes. The street is indicated with 1,341.39 linear feet with a street width of 25-feet constructed to City standard for a minor residential street. December 3, 2009 .qI IRni\/I.qIr)N ITEM NO.: 4 (Cont.) B. EXISTING CONDITIONS: FILE NO.: S-1636-A The site is heavily wooded and appears to contain a significant slope from north to south. The site abuts the Walton Heights Subdivision to the north and to the south an area zoned Open Space. Along the southern boundary the site is adjacent to a City of Little. Rock Fire Station, vacant property, an office building, a church and single-family homes located on large lots all in excess of five (5) acres which are accessed from River Mountain Road. Pleasant Ridge Towne Center is located to the south and across Cantrell Road. The Center has developed with a number of retail and restaurant uses. Within the general area are a number of apartments, commercial and office uses located to southeast and southwest of the site, along and across Cantrell Road. C. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS: As of this writing, staff has received a few informational phone calls from the area property owners. All property owners abutting the site and the Walton Heights Property Owners Association were notified of the public hearing. D. ENGINEERING COMMENTS. - PUBLIC WORKS CONDITIONS: 1. Plans of all work in right-of-way shall be submitted for approval prior to start of work. Obtain barricade permit prior to doing any work in the right-of-way from Traffic Engineering at (501) 379-1805 (Travis Herbner). 2. A grading permit in accordance with Section 29-186 (c) and (d) will be required prior to any land clearing or grading activities at the site. Other than residential subdivisions, site grading and drainage plans must be submitted and approved prior to the start of construction. 3. Provide the profile of the proposed street showing centerline grade, sight distance, and horizontal radius of the centerline. 4. Provide on the plan the location of area of restricted parking. 5. Measures to control the increase in stormwater runoff from the increased impervious surface should be implemented to not damage adjacent property. 6. Stormwater detention ordinance applies to this property. 7. If disturbed area is one (1) or more acres, obtain a NPDES stormwater permit from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality prior to the start of construction. K December 3, 2009 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: 4 (Cont.) FILE NO.: S-1636-A 8. Provide a letter prepared by a registered engineer certifying the sight distance at the intersections comply with 2004 AASHTO Green Book standards. 9. Repair or replace any curb and gutter or sidewalk that is damaged in the public right-of-way prior to occupancy. 10. Street Improvement plans shall include signage and striping. Traffic Engineering must approve completed plans prior to construction. 11. Streetlights are required by Section 31-403 of the Little Rock code. Provide plans for approval to Traffic Engineering. Streetlights must be installed prior to platting/certificate of occupancy. Contact Traffic Engineering 379-1813 (Steve Philpott) for more information. 12. Vegetation must be established on disturbed area within 21 days of completion of harvest activities. 13. The proposed median at the entrance should be removed due to the restrictions in the intersection area. If you have any questions, contact Bill Henry in Traffic Engineering at 379-1816. 14. Retaining walls designed to exceed 15 feet in height are required to seek a variance for construction. Provide proposed wall elevations. Prior to construction of the retaining wall, the engineer's certification of design and plans must be submitted to Public Works for approval. After construction, an as -built certification is required for construction of the retaining wall. 15. Plat a no access easement along the south side of Beau Rivage Drive east of the last proposed lot. 16. 100 foot spacing is required between the proposed tangent curves of the street or a variance is required to be requested. 17. A maintenance access easement should be provided from Beau Rivage Drive to the detention ponds for access when maintenance is required. E. UTILITIES AND FIRE DEPARTMENT/COUNTY PLANNING: Wastewater: Sewer main extension required with easements for this project. Gravity sewer system required, force main is not acceptable for this project. Contact the Little Wastewater Utility for additional information. Entergy: No comment received. Center -Point Energy: No comment received. AT & T: No comment received. 3 December 3, 2009 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: 4 Cont. FILE NO.: S-1636-A Central Arkansas Water: All Central Arkansas Water requirements in effect at the time of request for water service must be met. Please submit plans for water facilities to Central Arkansas Water for review. Plan revisions may be required after additional review. Contact Central Arkansas Water regarding procedures for installation of water facilities. Approval of plans by Central Arkansas Water, the Arkansas Department of Health Engineering Division and Little Rock Fire Department is required. This development will have minor impact on the existing water distribution system. Proposed water facilities will be sized to provide adequate pressure and fire protection Fire Department: Fire Hydrants will be required. Contact the Little Rock Fire Department for additional information. County Planning: No comment. CATA: The site is not located on a dedicated CATA Bus Route, F. ISSUES/TECHNICALIDESIGN: Planning Division: No comment. Landscape: No comment. G. SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE COMMENT: (November 12, 2009) Mr. Mark Redder was present representing the owner. Staff presented the item to the Committee members stating a plat was reviewed by the Commission at their September 3, 2009, public hearing. Staff stated the previous plat contained variances and the Commission denied the request based on the variance requests. Staff stated they felt the current request was substantially different since the current request did not contain any variance requests. Staff requested Mr. Redder provide a 25-foot front building line on the proposed plat. Staff noted the cover letter indicated the street as a public street but the plat indicated the street as private. Staff requested Mr. Redder revise the general notes section of the plat to indicate the street as a public street. Public Works comments were addressed. Mr. Redder stated the developers were not requesting a variance from the Land Alteration Ordinance to advance grade the site. He stated he would provide the profile of the proposed street showing centerline grade, sight distance and horizontal radius of the centerline. Staff stated 100 foot of spacing was required between the proposed tangent curves of the street. Mr. Redder stated he would correct the plat to provide the required spacing. Staff requested a note be provided on the plat to indicate the n December 3, 2009 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: 4 (Cont. FILE NO.: S-1 total height of the retaining wall. Staff also requested a maintenance access easement be provided from Beau Rivage Drive to the detention pond area. Staff noted comments from the other reporting departments and agencies suggesting the applicant contact them individually for additional clarification. There was no further discussion of the item. The Committee then forwarded the item to the full Commission for final action. H. ANALYSIS: The applicant submitted a revised preliminary plat addressing the issues raised at the November 12, 2009, Subdivision Committee meeting. The revised plat provides the profile of the proposed street showing centerline grade, sight distance and horizontal radius of the centerline. The plat has also been revised to allow the proper spacing for the tangent curves of the street. The applicant has indicated the retaining wall will not exceed the height allowed per City ordinance. A letter has been prepared by the engineer certifying the sight distance is adequate at the intersection of the new street and Southridge Drive. The development is proposed as a single-family subdivision containing 30 residential lots and four (4) tracts. Tract A is indicated as a Conservancy Dedication containing 7.563 acres. Tracts B (0.056 acres) and C (0.179 acres) are indicated as open space located along Southridge Drive. Tract D also identified as open space is located on the south side of Beau Rivage Drive and contains 0.46 acres. The plat is indicated with a 25-foot front building line along the new street. A note on the plat indicates side and rear yard setbacks consistent with the Zoning Ordinance for R-2, Single-family zoned property. The lot widths and areas are indicated consistent with the development standards established by the Subdivision Ordinance for R-2, Single-family zoned property. Beau Rivage Drive is indicated as a public street with a centerline grade of 17.6 percent. The Master Street Plan allows for a maximum centerline grade of 16 percent but allows staff to administratively approve a variance in the design standard of up to ten percent. The Master Street Plan states this variance in design standard does not require an amendment to the Master Street Plan. With the administrative variance the street is allowed a maximum centerline grade of 17.6 percent, as proposed by the developer. To staff's knowledge there are no remaining outstanding technical issues in need of addressing associated with the request. The subdivision is proposed with an overall density of 1.825 units per acre which is consistent with single-family 5 December 3, 2009 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: 4 (Co FILE NO.: S-1636-A development per the City's Future Land Use Plan. The proposed subdivision appears to fully comply with the typical design standards of the City's ordinances. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval of the request subject to compliance with the comments and conditions as outlined in paragraphs D, E and F of the agenda staff report. PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION'. (DECEMBER 3, 2009) Mr. Mark Redder of the Holloway Firm was present. There were registered objectors present. Staff presented the item with a recommendation of approval. Staff stated the Commission reviewed a plat at their September meeting and denied the request based on the associated variances. Staff stated the current request did not include any variances from the Subdivision Ordinance. Deputy City Attorney Cindy Dawson addressed the Commission. She stated the City Attorney's office was asked to review the International Building Code with regard to access. She stated it was the opinion of the City Attorney that the development should be allowed access to Southridge Drive. Ms. Dawson also reminded the Commission of the Richardson case stating if the subdivision complied with the City's Subdivision rules and regulations the Commission had no discretion. Commissioner Smith questioned if the Commission could take safety into consideration. Ms. Dawson stated the Staff had reviewed the proposed entrance drive and determined there was adequate distances to meet ordinance standards. Mr. Mark Reeder addressed the Commission on the merits of the request. He stated the subdivision was being developed in full compliance with the City's rules and regulations. Mr. John Miller addressed the Commission in opposition of the request. He stated his home was on Bainbridge Drive and he would be directly affected by the proposed subdivision. He stated safety was a concern. He stated the entrance to the new subdivision was in the worst place possible on Southridge Drive. He stated when the street was wet there were a number of persons who missed the curve both up and down hill. He stated the traffic on Southridge was very congested and his concern was the additional traffic would cause problems at the fire station and possibly block their ability to get in and out. He stated he felt the plan a poor plan for the entire Walton Heights Subdivision. Mr. Jim Persell addressed the Commission in opposition of the request. He stated he was an architect by trade and had served on a number of commissions and committees. L December 3, 2009 SUBDIVISION ITEM NO.: 4 (Cont.) FILE NO.: S-1636-A He stated just because a development met the ordinances did not mean it was a good plan. He stated the subdivision was not good for the neighborhood. Mr. Steve Reed addressed the Commission in opposition of the request. He stated he was President of the Walton Heights Candlewood Property Owners Association and was speaking for the group. He provided the Commission with a photo of the curve. He stated the neighborhood was disappointed with the City Attorney's opinion that the development would be allowed access to Southridge Drive. He stated Walton Heights had 465 homes fifteen times to number of homes allowed on a cul-de-sac per the fire code. He provided the Commission with an aerial indicating locations for access to River Mountain Road. He stated with the extension to River Mountain Road this would relieve some traffic on Southridge Drive and allow a second access from the neighborhood. Ms. Ruth Bell addressed the Commission in support of the request. She stated this was not the first plat the Commission had been told they had to support based on Richardson and she did not feel it would be the last. She stated maybe it was time for the Commission to review their Subdivision Ordinance and make changes. Mr. Redder addressed the Commission stating the development was in full compliance with the City's ordinances. He stated the access to the south did not exist and the developer did not have the ability to obtain the access. He stated the property was located adjacent to a right of way and the developer had the right to access the right of way. The Commission questioned how Walton Heights became a cul-de-sac neighborhood. Staff stated the neighborhood requested the Board of Directors abandon right of way along the western edge which would have provided a future connection to Pinnacle Valley Road and Cantrell Road. There was a general discussion by staff and the Commission concerning the street location and sight distances. Staff stated the developers had prepared a letter certifying the sight distance for the new street based on the posted speed limits of the street. Staff stated the information provided did provide for adequate stopping distances. There was no other discussion of the item. The Chair entertained a motion for approval of the item as presented by staff. The motion carried by a vote of 8 ayes, 0 noes, 0 absent, 1 abstention (Commissioner Adcock) and 2 open positions. 7