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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/23/2001BOOK AGENDA MAPLEWOOD COMMUNITY DESIGN REVIEW BOARD January 23, 2001 6:00 P.M. City Council Chambers Maplewood City Hall 1830 East County Road B 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Approval of Minutes: January 9, 2001 4. Approval of Agenda 5. Unfinished Business 6. Design Review a. Rose-Rice Auto Sales Site Plan Revisions/Variances- 1908 Rice Street b. Election of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson 7. Visitor Presentations 8. Board Presentations 9. Staff Presentations a. CDRB representation needed for the February 12,. 2001 city council meeting. 10. Adjourn p:com-dvpt\cdrb.agd WELCOME TO THIS MEETING OF THE COMMUNITY DESIGN REVIEW BOARD This outline has been prepared to explain the review process of this meeting. The review of an item usually follows this format. 1. The chairperson of the meeting will announce the item to be reviewed. The chairperson will ask the applicant or developer of the project up to the podium to respond to the staff's recommendation regarding the proposal. The Community Design Review Board will then discuss the proposed project with the applicant. The chairperson will then ask the audience if there is anyone present who wishes to comment on the proposal. After everyone is the audience wishing to speak has given his or her comments, the chairperson will close the public discussion portion of the meeting. 5. The Board will then discuss the proposal. No further public comments are allowed. 6. The Board will then make its recommendations or decision. Most decisions by the Board are final, unless appealed to the City Council. You must notify the City staff in writing within 15 days to register an appeal. jw\forms~cdrb.agd Revised: 11-09-94 MINUTES OF THE MAPLEWOOD COMMUNITY DESIGN REVIEW BOARD 1830 COUNTY ROAD B EAST, MAPLEWOOD, MINNESOTA TUESDAY, JANUARY 9, 2001 I1. III. IV. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Ledvina called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Matt Ledvina Present Ananth Shankar Present Tim Johnson Present Jori LaCasse Absent Craig Jorgenson Present Staff Present: Recording Secretary: APPROVALOFAGENDA Tom Ekstrand, Associate Planner Lori Hansen Board member Johnson moved approval of the agenda, as submitted. Board member Jorgenson seconded. Ayes-All The motion carries. APPROVAL OF MINUTES December 19, 2000: Chairperson Ledvina noted the following changes: Page 2, 1st paragraph, 10th sentence should read "there does not appear to be any unusual problems". Also, the 5th paragraph, second sentence, "in" should replace "me". Board member Shankar approved the minutes as submitted. Board member Jorgenson seconded. Motion carries. UNFINISHED BUSINESS There was no unfinished business. Ayes-All CDRB -2- Minutes of 01-09-2001 VI. DESIGN REVIEW A. Conditional Use Permit and Design Review-Jehovah's Witness--(925 Century Avenue North). Mr. Tom Ekstrand, Associate Planner, gave the staff report for the city. He explained that Gil Shipshock, of the Mounds Park/Oakdale Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall, is proposing an expansion of the Kingdom Hall, 925 Century Avenue North. The proposal is to build a 1,120-square-foot addition onto the west end of the existing building. The proposed addition would have an exterior of brick that would match the existing building. They will add a drive-under canopy on the end of the proposed addition that will be supported by wood columns and have a metal fascia which would conceal rooftop mechanical equipment. They will also build a 24 x 24 foot two-car garage to replace the small shed on the property. This garage would be brick with horizontal-lap metal siding on the gable ends above the soffit lines. Thirdly, the parking lot will be enlarged by adding 17 more spaces south of the existing parking lot and will be curbed according to code. They also propose to close the southerly driveway into the site and turn the north entrance into a two-way traffic flow. Presently, the church is using the southerly neighbor's residential driveway as a means to enter their site. Staff does not feel the proposed church and parking lot expansion would cause any negative effect for the neighbors as long as certain precautions are taken. The existing parking lot lights need to be replaced with downward-cast fixtures. This type of fixture would eliminate light overspill onto the neighbors' properties. The city code requires that the applicant provide a lighting plan (photometric) to be approved by the staff before the city issues a building permit. A second concern was storm water runoff. Two neighbors to the south of the proposed parking lot expansion at 2701 and 2707 Brand Avenue have expressed concerns about storm water run off. Chris Cavett, Maplewood Assistant City Engineer, has met with Ms. Stafholt (2707 Brand), on the site to discuss her concerns. The applicant is proposing to add 16 evergreen trees on the south side of the parking lot. Code requires 80% opaque screening that is six feet in height. In lieu of the trees, staff is recommending that a decorative wood fence be placed along the southerly edge of the new parking lot curb. This fence would be high enough to hide the cars and headlights from the neighbors to the south. Staff is also recommending three evergreens be added in the corner of the new parking lot to help buffer the neighbors to the southwest. Staff is pleased with the overall architectural elements of the proposal. All setbacks are being met with the exception of a 5-foot setback on the westerly lot line. The existing parking lot is about 5 feet from the west line and code requires 20. There are no neighboring homes directly west of the parking lot, so staff does not feel there will be any negative impact with the parking lot five feet from the lot line. Board member Shankar asked if the driveway under the canopy allowed enough of a turning radius for cars and if the drive was a one or two-way flow of traffic. Staff noted there is enough width for a turn, but would be too narrow for two-way traffic flow. Gil Shipshock, Chairman of the building committee for the Mounds Park/Oakdale Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall, was present for the applicant. Mr. Shipshock addressed the driveway situation explaining the traffic under the canopy will be a one-way traffic flow with the appropriate signage being installed. The driveway coming in from Century Avenue is currently one-way. It will be used now for two-way traffic when the southerly entrance is closed. CDRB -3- Minutes of 01-09-2001 Mr. Shipshock explained that the scope of the project is to remodel the interior of the building and add on to the back of the building. The purpose of the remodeling is to make the restrooms handicapped accessible and to make the building more energy efficient. The exterior of the building is a Chicago brick on the existing building and still available to use on the addition. The new window framing will be anodized aluminum to blend with the exterior, with the garage being a matching brick. Rodney Gordon, 3552 Brookdale Drive, is the civil engineer for the project, and was present to answer questions. Mr. Ledvina asked what provisions will be taken to address the drainage issues that have been raised by the neighbors. Mr. Gordon responded in saying they are proposing a rainwater garden between the parking lot addition and the neighbors to the south which will hold about 26,000 gallons of water. Currently the drainage flows directly to the lots to the south, so this rain garden will greatly reduce the amount of water flowing to the south of the properties. Mr. Shankar was concerned that the slope from the handicapped parking stall to the entrance may be too steep. Mr. Gordon felt the slope was less than the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) two percent guideline, but will ensure that is the case. Mr. Jerry Hicks, the father of Angela Stafholt, 2707 Brand Avenue, spoke on behalf of his daughter. Mr. Hicks felt a 10-year storm event produces 60,000 gallons of runoff. The pond will hold 25,000, which means 35,000 will flow toward the two homes. Mr. Hicks felt when the church was originally built, the storm water issue should have been addressed. Since it was not, he feels now is the time to correct the problem. Mr. Cavett, assistant city engineer, addressed Mr. Hicks' concerns. He explained that 100 percent of the water flow is draining to the south, uninhibited. What the applicant is proposing is to capture about 75% of that water flow in the rain garden. The applicant has also agreed to create diversion swales to direct the remaining 25 percent of the water flow away from the homes to a commOn property line. Mr. Cavett sees the proposal as a definite improvement over what is there now. Mr. Shankar asked Mr. Cavett if it was possible to crown the parking lot at the center so half slopes to the north and half to the south. Mr. Cavett stated it would be up to the applicant's engineer to see if the grades are possible. It is a possibility. Mr. Gordon responded in saying to re-slope the parking lot they would have to destroy the existing parking lot and they did not want to do that. He also felt doing that would result in overloading the storm sewer on Century Avenue. Angela Stafholt, 2707 Brand Avenue, was present to express her concerns. She thought the current parking lot was being destroyed and grading adjusted. She was concerned the flow to the north would be eliminated and all the flow would be toward her home to the south. Her other concern was the large pile of snow next to their backyard. She hoped the church would be required to have the snow hauled away. Mr. Ledvina explained both of Ms. Stafholt's issues were land use issues and conditions of a conditional use permit, therefore, not the types of issues dealt with at the design review board. Mr. Cavett explained there is not a requirement in the city to have the snow hauled away unless the site did not meet the number of required parking spaces for the conditional use permit. This lot exceeds the number needed. He also did not feel hauling the snow away would benefit the drainage situation. CDRB -4- Minutes of 01-09-2001 Mr. Ledvina felt the addition was attractive and overall in favor of the staff recommendation. Mr. Johnson moved the board to approve the plans date-stamped November 29, 2000 for the proposed expansion to the Mounds Park/Oakdale Jehovah's Witnesses Kingdom Hall and parking lot at 925 Century Avenue North. Approval is based on the findings required by the code and subject to the following conditions: Repeat this review in two years if the city has not issued a building permit for this project. Before obtaining a building permit for the addition, the property owner shall provide the following for staff approval: A site-lighting plan which shows the proposed lighting fixtures (a "shoe box" style fixture that fully conceals the lens and bulb is a preferred style), the light intensity (code limits the maximum light intensity to .4 foot candles at a residential property line) and the extent of light cast. b. A revised site and landscape plan showing: (1) A decorative wood fence to be placed on the south side of the proposed parking lot. This fence will run from the west edge of the westerly space to the proposed two-car garage. The fence must be at least six-feet-tall and 80 percent opaque according to code. Opening(s) shall be provided at the bottom of the fence so storm water runoff is not impeded, if required by the city engineer. The applicant shall also review with staff the need for additional screening on the north side of the parking lot for the home at 2704 Harvester Avenue. The applicant shall provide any supplemental screening as may be required by staff. (2) Three six-foot-tall evergreen trees in the grass area in the southwest corner of the parking lot. (3) At least two handicap-accessible parking spaces and the elimination of the four handicap-accessible spaces from the northerly driveway. (4) A one-way traffic flow beneath the canopy, with signs posted accordingly, or provide a two-way, 24-foot-wide drive aisle between the handicap parking spaces and the median. (5) A grading, drainage and erosion control plan for the city engineer's approval. This plan shall address the comments and issues addressed by Chris Cavett in' the staff report. Complete the following before occupying the building addition: a. Provide continuous concrete curbing around any new portions of the parking lot. Restore all ground disturbed during this construction and provide all required landscaping and screening. Provide at least two handicap-accessible parking spaces. One must be van- accessible with an eight-foot-wide loading aisle. Handicap-parking signs are to be provided as the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requires. C~)RB Minutes of 01-09-2001 -5- Construct a trash dumpster enclosure if there will be any outdoor storage of refuse. The enclosure must match the building in color and materials and shall have a closeable gate that is 100 percent opaque. Provide site-security lighting as required by the city code and in accordance with the approved plan. The old site lights must be removed. Screen all new rooftop equipment from residential neighbors as required by the code. g. Provide a stop sign at the exit drive onto Century Avenue. If any required work is not done, the city may allow temporary occupancy if' a. The city determines that the work is not essential to the public health, safety or welfare. bo The city receives a cash escrow or an irrevocable letter of credit for the required work. The amount shall be 1% times the cost of the unfinished work. Any unfinished landscaping shall be completed by June 1 if the building is occupied in the fall or winter or within six weeks if the building is occupied in the spring or summer. All work shall follow the approved plans. The director of community development may approve minor changes. Mr. Shankar seconded. Ayes-All Motion carries. Mr. Ledvina recommended that Ms. Stafholt, her father and their neighbor attend the city council meeting since it makes the final decision. B. Lighting Ordinance Review Mr. Ekstrand gave the staff report for the city. July of 2000, Ms. Tina Thevenin attended the community design review board to discuss site lighting. She gave a presentation on the pros and cons of good lighting, bad lighting and an overview of what a lighting ordinance should include. Staff feels that lighting is needed for providing security and visibility for the people on the site without creating a nuisance for neighbors or drivers. He feels the current Maplewood Lighting Code accomplishes this and is open to suggestions of how the code could be improved. Mr. Shankar asked if the code defines a minimum foot candle level. Staff stated the maximum is .4 foot candles of light intensity at a residential lot line. Staff has not seen a need for minimum standards. Mr. Ledvina asked if staff had an opportunity to view other lighting ordinances from other cities. Staff had not, but did compare the current Maplewood Lighting Ordinance to the suggested guidelines from Ms. Thevenin. Staff was concerned about enforcement if more guidelines were established. For instance, it would be difficult to make a determination of the amount of lumens from site lights. Mr. Ledvina felt the potential gains could be great and well worth it to further define the ordinance. He would like to see further research done and other city ordinances reviewed and compared to our current policy. Possibly other elements could be provided to guide developers in creating their lighting plans. He also stated he likes statements of purpose and intent in ordinances which would provide a goal for developers. CDRB -6- Minutes of 01-09-2001 VII. VIII. IX. Mr. Ekstrand said he would research this issue further and report back to the board. Board member Jorgenson moved the board to table the lighting ordinance review pending further research by staff. Mr. Johnson seconded. Motion carries. Ayes-All VISITOR PRESENTATIONS None BOARD PRESENTATIONS Mr. Shankar attended the Maplewood City Council meeting January 8th. He reported the ATP Monopole and Mounds Park Academy proposals were passed by the city council. STAFF PRESENTATIONS Mr. Ledvina will attend the January 22, 2001 city council meeting. Mr. Jorgenson asked staff to update the board on upcoming projects. He asked about the status of the Pep Boys proposal. Mr. Ekstrand reported that Pep Boys have applied for a permit and they have until May to start their project or their conditional use permit will expire. The Carpet Court applicant has not submitted any revised plans as of yet. The Rose-Rice Auto Sales proposal will be at the January 23rd CDRB meeting. Plans were just recently submitted to the city for a townhome development off of McKnight and Maryland. Also, Auto Zone on Century Avenue (the old A & W site), just made application. MEETING ADJOURNED Meeting Adjourned at 7:28. MEMORANDUM TO: FROM: SUBJECT: LOCATION: DATE: City Manager Thomas Ekstrand, Associate Planner Parking Lot Setback and Curbing Variances and Conditional Use Permit - Rose-Rice Auto Sales 1908 Rice Street January 10, 2001 INTRODUCTION Request and Project Description Brad Beatty, of Rose-Rice Auto Sales, 1908 Rice Street, is requesting approval of parking lot setback and curbing variances for his recent parking lot expansion and a conditional use permit (CUP) for used-car sales. Mr. Beatty recently paved the easterly part of his site. This is the unpaved side yard that had been used for unapproved car-parking by the previous owner, Jerry Anderson. Refer to the maps on pages 6-8 and the applicant's letter on page 9. The applicant has improved the property by residing the two buildings, adding a pitched roof to one of the buildings, and in general, cleaning up the site. He also removed the cars Mr. Anderson had parked on the grass east of the buildings. This project requires the following approvals: A parking lot setback variance since the new parking lot is paved up to the east (side) and north (front) lot lines. The city code requires that the parking lot have a five-foot side yard setback and a 15-foot front setback from the Roselawn Avenue right-of-way. (The applicant said that the new pavement is setback about 20 feet from the south lot line.) The applicant would also need a curbing variance since the code requires continuous concrete curbing around the new parking lot. A CUP. The city code requires a CUP for used car sales. The previous owner did not have this permit. He was grandfathered in. The current owner needs a CUP because of the expansion of the paved parking lot. BACKGROUND This property was a continual source of parking-code violations when Mr. Anderson owned the site. This site was also used for a short time as part of a golf-ball ddving range for Amusement city. On December 11, 2000, the city council approved a CUP for used car sales across the street from this property at 1930 Rice Street for Affordable Auto Sales. DISCUSSION Setback Variances State law requires that the city council make two findings in order to approve variances. First, they must determine that the applicant cannot meet the code because of "circumstances unique to the property." They must find that the applicant cannot meet the code due to some unique physical characteristic of the site. There is no unique circumstance in this case. The applicant could have met the setback and curbing requirements if they had checked with the city before paving this site. Secondly, the variances mUst meet the "spirit and intent of the ordinance.' The purpose of the setback and curbing requirement are so parking lots do not crowd neighboring properties, so there is area provided for snow storage and landscaping for esthetics. Curbing also provides a neat edge to parking lots and controls storm water runoff. Staff appreciates the improvements the applicant has made at this site. Their buildings are attractive and the site is now nicely maintained. As mentioned above, Mr. Beatty also did an excellent job of removing Jerry Anderson's care from the unpaved side yard, which for a long time was an eyesore. Unfortunately, staff cannot make the findings that state law requires for approval. Staff recommends that the applicant make the necessary changes and corrections to the new parking lot as follows: saw-cut the bituminous to meet the required five-foot side setback as well as the required 15-foot front setback; provide continuous concrete curbing around the south, north and east sides of the parking lot (keeping in mind that the required setbacks must be measured to the back edge of the curb); backfill behind the curbing and restore with sod. Conditional Use Permit Staff does not find a problem with the proposed CUP to sell used cars as long as the parking lot is altered to meet code requirements. Other than the setback and curbing issues, the applicant has vastly improved this comer by refurbishing the buildings and eliminating a long-occurring eyesore. Approval of this CUP should be conditioned on the applicant's correcting the parking lot issues described above. Staff recommends that the city council give the applicant until next summer to correct these items. Site Plan With the exception of the requirement to meet setback and curbing requirements, the site plan looks fine in concept. However, the applicant should stdpe the parking lot according to the parking space and ddve aisle dimensions required by the code. The code requires parking spaces to be 9 % by 18 feet in size and drive aisles to be 24 feet wide. RECOMMENDATIONS A. Deny the proposed parking lot setback and curbing variances since the proposed variances do not meet the following findings required by state law: Strict enforcement of the code would not cause undue hardship because of circumstances unique to the property. The applicant could have met the setback and curbing requirements without any hindrance by site characteristics. The variances would not be in keeping with the spirit and intent of the ordinance. The ordinance requires parking lot setbacks and curbed edges to maintain a neat appearance, control drainage and provide an on-site area to store snow in the winter. Adopt the resolution on pages 10-11 approving a conditional use permit for used car sales at 1908 Rice Street. Approval is based on the findings required by ordinance and subject to the following conditions: 1. All construction shall follow the site plan approved by the city, except as stated below. The director of community development may approve minor changes. 2. The applicant shall revise the site plan as follows: a. Cut away the portions of the new easterly parking lot which encroach into the required five-foot side-yard and 15-foot front-yard setback areas. b. The excess pavement material shall be removed from the site. c. The edges of the new parking lot shall be curbed with upright continuous concrete curbing. The plan for this curbing shall be submitted to staff for approval by the city engineer who will evaluate the parking lot for drainage control. d. The required five and 15 foot setbacks shall be measured to the back of the curb, not to the parking lot edge. e. Stripe the parking spaces as required by code. f. Backfill and sod the setback areas and restore the boulevard if it is damaged. 3. The applicant shall complete these parking lot corrections by June 30, 2001. The city council shall review this permit after that date if the work is not completed. The council may extend this deadline if an extension is warranted. 4. The city council shall review this permit annually as required by the code, unless they determine that there is no need for such subsequent reviews. REFERENCE INFORMATION SITE DESCRIPTION Site size: One acre Existing land use: Rose-Rice Auto Sales North: West: South and East: Terminal) SURROUNDING LAND USES Affordable Auto Sales Rice Street and commercial businesses in the City of Roseville Amusement City (currently proposed as the new Comfort Bus Company PLANNING Land Use Plan designation: BC (business commercial) Zoning: BC Code Requirements Section 36-151(b)(5)(a) requires a CUP for the sale or leasing of used motor vehicles. Section 36-17(e) allows the enlargement of a nonconforming use by CUP if it would not affect the development of the parcel as it is zoned. Section 36-28© requires that parking lots be setback 15 feet from a street right-of-way and five feet from abutting commercial property. Section 36-22© requires that parking lots which have more than 12 parking spaces have continuous concrete curbing. Criteria for Variance Approval State law requires that the city council make the following findings to approve a variance from the zoning code: 1. Strict enforcement would cause undue hardship because of circumstances unique to the property under consideration. 2. The variance would be in keeping with the spirit and intent of the ordinance. "Undue hardship", as used in granting of a variance, means the property in question cannot be put to a reasonable use if used under conditions allowed by the official controls. The plight of the landowner is due to circumstances unique to his property, not created by the landowner, and the variance, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the locality. Economic considerations alone shall not constitute an undue hardship if reasonable use for the property exists under the terms of the ordinance. Criteria for CUP Approval Section 36-442(a) states that the city council may grant a CUP, subject to the nine standards for approval. Refer to the resolution on pages 10-11. Application Date We received the applicant's applications on December 13, 2000. State law requires that the city take action within 60 days of this application date. City council action is required by February 13, 2001. psec~cerose.cup Attachments: 1. Location Map 2. Property Line Map 3. Site Plan 4. Applicant's letter of CUP request dated-stamped December 13, 2000 5. CUP Resolution Attachment 1 LITTLE CANADA LOCATION MAP ~;~ N · . Attachment 2 PROPERTY LINE MAP L Attachment 3 ..! k o s &. L,4.,.o /0 iii LIJJJ .LILI LI LI Li_ SITE PLAN 8 Attachment 4 CITY OF MAPLEWOOD ~t the following address of 1908 Rice Street, we are trying to obtain a zoning variance for the parking of cars for sale and reconditioning. The front half of the existing property is already approved for the sale of used cars and we are looking to further expand our lot to include the back half of the property. This area has been utilized in conjunction with the front half for used cars during the past ten years, we are looking to obtain the permits and zoning to legally conform to the cities requirements. The proposed area has already been cleaned up and is ready for use. We have improved the existing property and feel the request for the "CUP" would be a natural extension of the total property. We would appreciate your consideration in this request and look forward to working with the city of Maplewood and surrounding businesses to make things work as soon as possible. THANK YOU RECEIVED uP.c 9 MEMORANDUM TO: FROM: SUBJECT: DATE: City Manager Thomas Ekstmnd, Associate Planner Election of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson January 17,2001 INTRODUCTION The city code requires that the community design review board elect a chairperson and vice chairperson at the second meeting of January for the new year. The current chairperson is Matt Ledvina. The current vice chairperson is Tim Johnson. RECOMMENDATION Elect a chairperson and vice chairperson for 2001. p:~miscell~cdrbelec.sav