Agenda - Council - 10/05/2010 - Special

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Preliminary Site Plan Review- Ramsey Medical Building September 9, 2010 Page 2 of 6 Lot Coverage/Floor Area Ratio (FAR): The subdivision plan indicates that the lot created from Outlot AA of the Ramsey Town Center Addition will be 102,174 square feet in size (2.35 acres). The proposed building footprint is 21,765 square feet and an overall square footage of final build -out (two [2] stories) of 43,530 square feet. The TC -1 District requires a minimum FAR of 0.75 and encourages the highest densities in the City and shared parking. The proposed site plan represents a gross FAR of 0.43. It is Staff's understanding that a portion of the parking lot proposed on Lot 1 will be converted to a vertical parking structure in order to maximize shared parking, as indicated on the proposed Master Plan for The COR. The proposed development of Lot 1 also includes areas of shared access as well. Staff finds it reasonable, subject to City Council approval, to exclude the areas of future structured parking and shared access from the FAR calculation, resulting in an FAR of approximately 0.83, in conformance with City Code. In order for the City to exclude this from the calculations, these shared areas shall be encumbered by a separate, recordable easement with appropriate exhibits drafted by a real estate attorney. These easements are subject to review of the Zoning Administrator, City Engineer, and City Attorney. Setbacks: The TC -1 District requires a minimum front yard setback of 0 feet and a maximum front yard setback of 5 feet. At least 60% of the building should comply with the front yard setback requirement. The Design Guidelines encourage recessed space for outdoor dining and other street level activities, including recessed entries. The proposed building provides for recessed spaces at the corners of the structure that help assist with street level presence and vision clearance triangles and appears to generally meet setbacks along Sapphire Street. However, it appears that the proposed building may need to be shifted to the South in order to meet setbacks along Civic Center Drive or find an alternative way to ensure at least 60% of the proposed building is within the maximum setback area. Architectural Standards: The design standards for this site are subject to the provisions laid out in the Development Guidelines manual referenced in City Code for The COR. The Design Guidelines place a high emphasis on high- quality architecture, materials, and site design, particularly with regard to building placement, parking areas, and the pedestrian environment. Overall, the submittal meets or exceeds these requirements. Staff would like to call out the following specific items from the Guidelines: Provide parking spaces to support the use through a mix of on- street and surface lots internal to the block. Encourage shared parking solutions. No more that 25%of the street frontage should be used for surface parking. The proposed parking plan utilizes on- street parking, surface lot parking, and shared parking with the remainder of development that will occur on the block. The master plan for the block reflects that buildings will line the circumference of the block and the surface parking will be Generally provided on the interior of the block as well as structured parking. Generally, buildings should be located at the street right -of -way; with no more than 60% of the building beyond the maximum setback. Encourage recessed entries and windows to create street level interest. The generally meets setbacks, with minor adjustments needed along Civic Center Drive. • Promote multiple stories in this sub - district but occasional single story buildings are acceptable; continuous rooflines and single story buildings should not dominate any street frontage and should be a minimum of 18 feet to the roofline. The proposed building is two