Agenda - Council - 04/24/2007 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Per the MU -PUD district, Staff used some of the bulk standards in the B -2 Business District to evaluate the proposal. The submitted site plan meets all the B -2 setback requirements. Based on net leasable area, 471 parking spaces are needed on the site. 402 spaces are shown on the site plan. The parking requirements in City Code do not contemplate commercial sites like this proposal, with multiple buildings per lot. A reduced number of parking spaces is permissible with the MU -PUD designation; Staff believes parking as shown on the site plan is adequate for the site, as some sharing of parking will occur between the uses. There was substantial discussion at the Planning Commission meeting about loading docks for the main building. An earlier site plan showed 2 loading docks: one on the south end of the building off Riverdale, and another in the middle of the building at 139 Lane and Jasper Street. Several residents raised concerns about this middle dock, and the impact of truck traffic on the neighborhood. The Planning Commission directed the applicant to relocate this middle loading dock. On the revised site plan, all loading will take place at the southern dock or through the front doors of the businesses. A small maintenance area remains off of 139 Lane, which will house 2 garbage dumpsters and maintenance equipment for the site. While some truck traffic will still access this area, staff believes this is a significant improvement over the previous plan. All loading on the southern dock will be interior to the building, which will also help lessen the impact to the adjacent townhomes. Staff has asked the applicant to demonstrate that trucks using the maintenance area will not substantially interrupt traffic flow on the adjacent streets. There was also considerable discussion at the Planning Commission meeting about the design of the NE corner of the main building, just north of the intersection of 139 Lane and Jasper Street. The applicant initially designed this corner with a substantial amount of glass, around a landscaped plaza, in order to draw pedestrians into this corner of the site. Neighbors were concerned that the amount of glass would provide too much visual access to their homes. The glass in this area has been somewhat reduced. The applicant will be present at the meeting to discuss the design of this area (shown on Sheet P2 in the elevation package). In the concept planning stage of this project, Staff recommended that the applicant investigate options for combining the western access with an existing access for Village Bank. The Planning Commission reinforced this Staff recommendation. The applicant had some preliminary discussions with the bank, and drew up some alternative access arrangements. Given the size of the subject property (9.3 acres) and traffic conflicts between the 2 sites if the access is combined, a shared access does not seem feasible, and Staff is no longer recommending it. Staff does recommend that the parking areas for the 2 sites be combined; this seems amenable to both the applicant and Village Bank. A revised landscaping plan has been submitted; staff is recommending that some additional revisions be made as part of the final site plan submittal. The grading, drainage, and utility plans are generally acceptable. A minor subdivision is also being processed along with the site plan request. The final plat will come before the City Council with the final site plan. Though no action is needed by the City Council on