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HomeMy WebLinkAboutP & Z - 01/24/2001 MINUTES OF THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING HELD WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2001 CALL TO ORDER Chairman Bond called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. A moment of silent meditation was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. A quorum was declared present. PRESENT: Chairman Bond, Vice Chairman Landefeld, Members Golden, Matthys, McKey, Miller (arrived 7:45 p.m.), and West (arrived 7:48 p.m.). Also present were Planning Director Wagner, Principal Planner Lewis, Assistant City Attorney Formella, and Deputy City Clerk Green. ABSENT: Members Christoefl and Rhodus (both out of town). CONSENT AGENDA The consent agenda consisted of approval of Item A: A. Minutes of the Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting held on Tuesday, December 12, 2000. Vice Chairman Landefeld, seconded by Member Matthys, moved to accept the Consent Agenda as presented. Motion carried 5 -0. (Members Miller and West had not yet arrived.) NEW BUSINESS WEST OAKS UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, PRELIMINARY SITE PLAN /MASTER PLAN PROJECT No. LS -99 -017 PUBLIC HEARING Principal Planner Lewis presented the staff report for the proposed Preliminary Site Plan/Master Plan for the five acre West Oaks United Methodist Church site located on the east side of Clarke Road about 700 feet north of White Road. He explained the proposed Plan is a long range master plan to permit incremental expansion of the facility. The first phase of development will include an administration building and a Sunday School building. The site will have two entrances and both will be constructed with the first phase of development. The southern entrance, near the middle of the site, will be a full access entrance with a median cut on Clarke Road for left turns into and out of the site. The northern entrance will be a right -in /right -out only entrance. He pointed out that a significant portion of the parking on the site will be unpaved as permitted by the Code. He said two proposed waivers from the normal Code requirements have been requested and are supported by Staff: Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 1) Maximum Building Height (35') - requested waiver to allow 65" for the church steeple. 2) Ground or Pole signs not permitted in A -1 zone - requested waiver to allow a 36 square foot ground sign. On January 8, 2001, the DRC reviewed the Plan and voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Preliminary Site Plan, including all the proposed waivers. In response to questions from Member McKey, Planning Director Wagner said the current plan has no right turn lane leading into the site. He said Staff thought the site plan as now proposed would provide adequate stacking room within the site to get the cars off the road. He said there are no current plans to widen that portion of Clarke Road. He said it may need to be widened to six lanes in the future and the church had adjusted their parking area in case there was that eventuality. Member McKey said he thought the right turn lane was needed due to the speed of cars on Clarke, and Member Matthys said that the school would cause extra traffic. Member Miller arrived at 7:45 p.m. Addressing the unpaved parking area, Chairman Bond suggested that grass and shrubs should be required as had been done with the Church of God of Prophecy. Vice Chairman Landefeld expressed concerns about drainage in the unpaved parking area. It was his view that the entire parking area should be paved. Mr. Wagner said the Master Plan approved for First Presbyterian of Citrus Oaks allowed grass parking area but hard surfacing on driveways. He said the Code is not specific on this point, and members might want to discuss it with the pastor to see if that should be a requirement or not. Member West arrived at 7:48 p.m. Member Golden asked about the setbacks to the north and east. He asked if a 25 foot setback could be required due to the increase in building height. Mr. Lewis said the Code does not address setback requirements for churches. He said an office use requirement was 15 feet, and it would have to be a commercial use to require a greater setback. 2 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 Member Golden asked if the City had an elevation for the church. Mr. Lewis said it was probably on file but not available in the meeting. Mr. Wagner said the Code does not have specific design requirements that affect churches or multi- family buildings. The applicant is not required to provide the elevation and the City does not have control over the architecture. They are asking for a height waiver and should Planning and Zoning members desire to see what that is going to look like to evaluate the impact to the neighborhood, it would be their right to request it. The public hearing was opened. Tom Griffin, architect for the church, with McCree Inc., 500 East Princeton, Orlando, said the church has worked diligently with the staff for over a year to reach this point. He said the church is very anxious to finish with the permitting and begin construction. Mr. Griffin displayed a drawing of the first phase building. He said the Master Plan is a future conceptual plan that may or may not happen in 10, 15 or 20 years. He confirmed that the steeple would be part of the final phase. Member Matthys asked when future phases might come on line and Mr. Griffin said he had no idea. Mr. Matthys asked if and when phase 4 does come and the sanctuary is moved, what would happen to the existing sanctuary. Mr. Griffin said it would be used as a fellowship hall or multi - purpose area. Mr. Matthys asked, as to the school, how many grades and how many students were expected. Mr. Griffin responded that it would be elementary grades in a small private school. Mr. Lewis pointed out that usually these types of schools would be primarily pre - school rather than elementary. Responding to questions by Members Golden and McKey, Mr. Griffin said the steeple had not yet been designed and the buildings in the first phase would not be designed so that a second floor could be added later. The material for the buildings will be concrete block with a stucco finish. Discussion ensued about the waiver to allow for a higher pitched roof and a 65' church steeple. Members expressed concern about the height of the building Mr. Wagner explained how measurements of actual building height vary according to the type of roof. He said they may wish to limit the building height to that in the vicinity and to modify the waiver to specify the steeple. Assistant City Attorney Formella advised that the Justification Box on the Waiver Table provides "to allow for higher pitched roof and steeple" and that could be changed 3 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 to allow for steeple. She said she would construe that to mean it would be treated like any other building in terms of the 35 feet height limit except for the steeple. Member McKey asked Mr. Griffin if the suggested change to the waiver which would allow the steeple to extend 20' to 25' above the roof line of the major mass of the building would be acceptable. Mr. Griffin said that was a little short, but it should be fine. Member McKey said this board was concerned about the grass parking area becoming a quagmire. Mr. Griffin said they would provide a stabilized soil base under sodded grass. Mr. Wagner pointed out that the grass parking area is covered under Condition of Approval No. 6 which provides that the parking areas will be stabilized and the rows will be physically delineated with landscaping and timber wheel stops. Stabilized driveways will be finished with asphalt, compacted shell or gravel. Responding to a question from Member Matthys, Mr. Griffin said the 438 parking spaces were calculated for the sanctuary in phase 4. Member McKey asked about the waiver for the sign and Mr. Lewis explained that the waiver was necessary because of the parcel's A -1 zoning. Mr. Wagner suggested that the board may want to specify a maximum height of nine or ten feet for the sign. The public hearing was closed. Member McKey said he thought a right turn lane into the site should be considered, but was otherwise satisfied. Member Matthys said, with the speed on Clarke Road, there may need to be accel and decel lanes in the future by phase 4, if not phase 3. Member Golden said he was okay with the waivers as changed limiting the steeple height and the sign height to nine feet. Member Landefeld said he was concerned about the parking area when it rains. Member Miller had no comments. Member West said he had no problems with any of the waivers. He thought it was a good project and would be an asset to the Community. 4 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 Mr. Wagner pointed out that Planning and Zoning would not see this again. He said once P & Z and the City Commission approve the Master Plan, Small Scale Site Plan approvals will be done by Staff. Member Matthys suggested requiring a traffic study before Phase 3 or 4. Mr. Griffin asked what the traffic study would be based on. Mr. Wagner said traffic impact studies are done on virtually every commercial project that comes through the City. The scope varies depending on what it is and where it is located. The study would definitely include an impact analysis on turning movements in and out of the site at peak conditions, and that would reveal whether or not a turn lane was warranted. Member West asked if results of the study could stop the project. Mr. Wagner said there are two parts to traffic studies. The first part is to look at concurrency and that has to do with volumes of traffic on the road (daily trips). The second and more significant part of the traffic study is the operational aspects. Staff always looks at that on every commercial project. He said for a church, they would normally look at a peak situation such as on Sunday morning and would literally do a traffic count for a certain period of time and from that a traffic engineer can determine whether it is warranted and, if it is warranted, how long that lane needs to be. Member West asked if turn lanes would take care of it, they would not have to six lane the road for the project to continue. Mr. Wagner said once this is approved they will receive a permanent concurrency certificate. He said only a traffic operational impact analysis would be needed, not concurrency. Mr. Griffin said they had worked with Staff in good faith for over a year and had re- designed the site plan to better utilize the traffic flow off of Clarke Road specifically at jeopardy of the building locations and other things that the church wanted to have, but now cannot. They also added a secondary exit on to Clarke to alleviate the traffic problem. Mr. Wagner confirmed that at first Staff was requiring a right turn lane and the church had made site plan changes to give more free flow movement into the site. Chairman Bond asked if Mr. Wagner still thought that the way it has been planned out will be adequate even when the school is built. Mr. Wagner said Staff felt that it was adequate based on the changes that they made. 5 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 Ernie Post, pastor of West Oaks United Methodist Church, 1711 Sparkling Water Circle, Ocoee, said they had been working with the architect for 18 months and with City Staff for a year. He said they have paid secondary design fees of almost $7,000.00 to avoid a right turn lane. He said they redesigned their buildings and put in a right turn out to aid traffic flow. Chairman Bond said she understood what Member McKey was saying and she agreed with him, but she felt they could rely on Staff's expertise. Member McKey said he has personal experience with the situation and has mixed feelings about asking for this, really feeling that it needs to be done, but understanding their requirements and all the work that Staff has done as well. Member Matthys said they had reworked the site for stacking, but Clarke Road is still heavily traveled regardless of how far back it is. He said what they are asking for is a traffic study that may or may not conclude that anything is needed. He said if they are going to develop this in 10 or 15 years, Clarke Road will look different and probably be a lot more crowded. Mr. Wagner said this is a policy matter and if the board has public safety concerns, it is certainly under the purview of the board to make those recommendations. A Condition of Approval could be added requiring that, "prior to Phase 3, a traffic operational analysis shall be conducted to determine whether a right turn lane from Clarke Road into the site will be necessary to mitigate traffic impacts. The recommendations of the analysis shall be implemented." Member Matthys, seconded by Member Golden, moved that Planning and Zoning Commission forward Project No. LS -99 -017, West Oaks United Methodist Church Preliminary Site Plan/Master Plan, as date stamped received by the City on January 11, 2001, to the City Commission with a recommendation of approval subject to the Conditions outlined by Staff to include the maximum height of the ground sign to be 10 feet, the maximum steeple height to be 65 feet, and also subject to a traffic operational impact analysis to be conducted prior to Phase 3. Motion carried 7 -0. Recess: 8:32 p.m. - 8:43 p.m. FOREST RIDGE PUD FINAL SUBDIVISION PLAN - PROJECT NO. LS -99 -004 Principal Planner Lewis presented the staff report for the proposed Final Subdivision Plan for the Forest Ridge PUD. The subject property is located east of Lakewood Avenue 6 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 about one quarter mile south of Wurst Road. As proposed, the project would include a total of 57 single family residences on 60 foot width lots (minimum 6,000 sf). He said there had been concerns about drainage during the review process, but those concerns have been addressed to the satisfaction of the City's engineering department. On January 8, 2001, the DRC voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Final Subdivision Plan, subject to making certain revisions to the plans and receiving a letter confirming approval from the Water Management District. All of the DRC requirements have now been satisfactorily addressed in these plans. He concluded with Staff's recommendation for approval. Chairman Bond asked if the neighbor near the cemetery who needed access to his property had been accommodated. She said she had originally voted against this project because of the small lots and single car garages; she was concerned about parking of the cars. Though she would have preferred larger lots, she is now okay with the project. Ms. Formella said that Condition of Approval No. 31 ensures access to Mr. Creech's property and the adjacent cemetery as it provides that "the land which is not part of the project and is located adjacent to the south end of Basking Ridge Court shall have access to Basking Ridge Court subject to all applicable approvals from the City of Ocoee and other governmental agencies." Member McKey asked about a turning lane and if Lakewood Avenue was scheduled to be enlarged at some point. Mr. Lewis said Staff is not aware of plans to widen Lakewood. Mr. Wagner said they could not do the left turn lane because they do not own enough property on either side of the subdivision to extend the tapers out to meet the County requirements for a turn lane. He said Staff had originally at one time asked for a turning lane and they tried to make it all happen but could not. Member McKey asked about the tree on lot 48. Mr. Lewis said they had looked at it, but the plan was designed with a drainage pipe through there. Member McKey said he was also concerned about parking, suggesting that they rotate the lots so that the 100 foot side is along the street or place garages in the rear of houses to provide parking space. Mr. Lewis said that issue is not addressed in the Code now and Mr. McKey may wish to suggest the issue be addressed in Code amendments. Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 Mr. Wagner said the Code requires two off street parking spaces per residential unit. He pointed out that the entire Cross Creek subdivision is made up of 60 foot lots, and they do not seem to have a huge parking problem. Member Matthys said he liked the suggestion as something to be looked at in the future, but had no comments on this case. Member Golden asked for the engineer for the project. As the engineer for the project was recuperating from heart surgery, Mr. Ron White, of Common Sense Solutions and a d/b /a Land Surveying and Mapping Specialists, was present to answer questions. He said the houses could have two car garages. Member Golden asked if sidewalks were planned all along the road and Mr. White said they are. Noting trees to be removed between the pavement and sidewalks, Mr. Golden asked if trees would be saved where feasible. Mr. White said they always try to save as many trees as possible. Vice Chairman Landefeld asked who would decide which trees could be saved and Mr. White said it would be a cooperative effort between the engineer and owner and the City. Mr. Wagner explained the details of the process to determine which trees can be saved and confirmed that it is a combined effort between the developer and the City based on the realities of the site. Mr. Landefeld said he supports building affordable homes but is very concerned about saving the trees. Member Miller had no comments. Member West said he thought it would be a good project and would be an asset to the City. Chairman Bond said she supports the project. As had been recommended by Staff, Member West, seconded by Member McKey moved to recommend approval of Forest Ridge PUD Final Subdivision Plan, Project No. LS -99 -004, as date stamped received by the City on January 18, 2001. Motion carried 6- 1, with Vice Chairman Landefeld voting "No." 8 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 OLD BUSINESS None. OTHER BUSINESS ELECTION OF OFFICERS Chairman Vice Chairman Landefeld, seconded by Member West, moved to nominate Mrs. Bond as Chairman. Member McKey moved to nominate Member Matthys as Chairman. Motion died for lack of a second. Member West, seconded by Vice Chairman Landefeld, moved that nominations for Chairman cease. As the only nominee, Mrs. Bond was declared Chairman by affirmation. Vice Chairman Chairman Bond, seconded by Member Miller, moved to nominate Lou Landefeld as Vice Chairman. Member Golden, seconded by Member McKey, moved to nominate Dan Matthys as Vice Chairman. Four votes were cast for Mr. Landefeld, so he was determined to have been re- elected as Vice Chairman. Member McKey asked, and there was general agreement, that Staff seek solutions to the problem with parking of cars on streets in neighborhoods and bring back suggestions for Planning and Zoning to consider and then recommend to City Commission. Mr. Wagner said Staff can look into it, but Staff has met with representatives from the Home Builders Association and they want the City to change the Code to lower the number of requirements and the amount of information needed for the projects. 9 Planning and Zoning Commission Regular Meeting January 24, 2001 COMMENTS Chairman Bond suggested having shirts for P & Z members as had been provided for members of some other City boards. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:25 p.m. Attest: APPRO ED: Mea Green, Deputy City Clerk Pat Bond, Chairman P Y Y I0