PUBLIC HEARING ITEM:
ITEM NO. 6A: PRD-2 (WITH RESTRICTIONS) TO PRD-2; 12.5508 ACRES; SOUTH OF 24TH PLACE BETWEEN CROSSGATE DRIVE & INVERNESS DRIVE (SLD)
Z-05-19-04: A request to rezone a tract of land approximately 12.5508 acres from PRD-2 (with restrictions) to PRD-2. The property is generally described as being located south of 24th Place between Crossgate Drive & Inverness Drive. Submitted by Peridian Group, Inc, for Callaway Development Corporation, Contract Purchaser, and Inverness Park Limited Partnership, property owners of record.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Surrounding Zoning and Land Use: RO-1B (Residence-Office) District to the north; vacant.
PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) to the east; existing multi-family planned residential development.
RS-2 (Single-Family Residence) District to the south and west; existing single-family homes.
Introductory summary:
The proposed request is made to facilitate multi-family development at a higher density than allowed as currently restricted. The base zonings and intended development will not be altered as a planned residential development. The current PRD is restricted to a maximum 12 dwelling units per acre. The proposed rezoning request is accompanied by a Preliminary Development Plan as noted above. A copy of the original 1999 rezoning report is provided for reference and as background information related to this request. Findings of fact have been updated as appropriate.
The original rezoning was considered as part of a complete development package tied to the preliminary plat of Inverness Park Addition. Many of the original development issues were so integrally related that review of the total development project was presented in a combined staff report covering annexation, land use (rezoning) and preliminary plat elements.
I. ZONING AND USES OF PROPERTY NEARBY
Staff Finding – The subject property is part of the Inverness Park Addition which includes residential development to the south and east. The area to the north is undeveloped, but zoned for mixed office/residential uses. The area to the west is a developed single-family neighborhood.
II. CHARACTER OF THE AREA
Staff Finding – The subject property is undeveloped and characterized as gently rolling. The property is bounded by 24th Place along the north and Inverness Drive on the west. The area is surrounded by residential development on the east, west and south. The west and south areas are developed with single-family homes and include a drainage area along the south property line anticipated for passive recreational development in the future. An elementary/junior high school campus is located to the southwest of the subject property and provides a focal point for the surrounding neighborhoods.
III. SUITABILITY OF SUBJECT PROPERTY FOR THE USES TO WHICH IT HAS BEEN RESTRICTED
The property was initially requested for RO-1B (Residence-Office) District as a mixed use district. The Commission recommended that the development of residential uses with a restricted density was in the best interest of the community and would limit the non-residential use.
Staff Finding – The proposed request has been made to allow a multi-family development that increases the density by including more dwelling units per acre that the current zoning limitation allows. The submitted development plan proposes construction of 172 units, a density of 13.7 dwelling units per acre. There is no justification to support a change in the zoning from the original approval. The subject property is suitable for medium density residential development as originally recommended.
IV. LENGTH OF TIME SUBJECT PROPERTY HAS REMAINED VACANT AS ZONED
The subject property is zoned for PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) subject to a maximum density of 12 dwelling units per acre. This action was part of the Planning Commission’s land use recommendations based on the Lesser Change Table per their decision in June 1999. A development plan did not accompany the rezoning at the time. The rezoning was not subject to approval of a development plan.
Staff Finding – The subject property has been zoned PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) with a maximum density limitation of 12 dwelling units per acre since June 1999.
V. EXTENT TO WHICH REMOVAL OF RESTRICTIONS WILL DETRIMENTALLY AFFECT NEARBY PROPERTY
Staff Finding – The proposed change will not alter the base district in so much as the property is currently zoned for planned residential development. The proposed change however will increase the density beyond what was previously recommended regardless of the impact of the existing and recently developed single-family neighborhood. The applicant has not adequately demonstrated the need for increased density within the proposed district.
VI. RELATIVE GAIN TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELFARE BY THE DESTRUCTION OF THE VALUE OF THE PETITIONER’S PROPERTY AS COMPARED TO THE HARDSHIP IMPOSED UPON THE INDIVIDUAL LANDOWNERS
Staff Finding – The current PRD zoning allows multi-family development. The proposed development plan could be approved with the current zoning with the condition that the density be reduced as the current limits exist for the subject property. Denial of the rezoning request to modify and increase the base density would not prohibit the intended multi-family development.
VII. CONFORMANCE WITH THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
An evaluation of the conformance of this rezoning request with the City’s Comprehensive Plan is based on key features, goals, policies and recommendations of the plan. As in the original discussion, the primary issue related to residential development is the establishment of the appropriate density. Horizon 2020 defines residential densities as a function of the number of dwelling units per acre. Low density is described as 6 or fewer dwelling units per acre; medium density is described as 7-15 dwelling units per acre. High density residential development is described as 16-21 dwelling units per acre. The corresponding zoning districts establish the maximum range or cap of density as well as the housing type.
The existing PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) did not limit housing type, but did limit total density given the existing and planned single-family development to the west and south. The originally proposal of RO-1B (Residence-Office) District would have allowed a mix of residential and office uses. The office use was not found to not be appropriate or compatible with existing and planned land uses for the area and was not consistent with land use recommendations as discussed in the 1999 report.
The principal residential strategies stated in Horizon 2020 related to the proposed request are as follows:
The original “area plan” was 160 acres included in the preliminary plat of Inverness Park Addition. Significant planning efforts were required during the review of the development as a large infill project. Provision of basic infrastructure, land use and impact on surrounding areas were all items of concern and required coordinated implementation between the developer and the public entities. The previous review included the assessment and determination of appropriate land use density set out in the land use approval for the entire 160 acres that identified the expectation for development in the area. It is arguable that the previous land use approvals function as a legitimate “neighborhood or area plan” and thus deviation by way of change in density is out of character with the approved plan.
Several sections of the comprehensive plan have been updated since the original adoption and since the consideration of this original request. None of the changes so far have amended the residential land use recommendations or policies related to compatibility, land use transition, buffering, or density. The current zoning is compatible with the adopted residential land use recommendations for the area.
Staff Finding – The 1999 report stated: “The rezoning to PRD-2 (Planned Residential District), with density restrictions, would provide an appropriate transition development between proposed office uses to the north and low-density residential uses to the south.”
Medium density is described in detail in Horizon 2020 as intended to promote a mix of housing types within a planned development area. It “should include a mix of single-family detached and attached homes, cluster homes, townhouses and similar housing types, designed and arranged to create compatible and attractive new residential environments.” The current zoning restrictions do not dictate housing type or housing mix within the development but only limit density to assure compatibility.
STAFF REVIEW
The following finding was included in the 1999 staff report discussing the issue of compatibility and impact on adjacent property.
The report stated: “Based on the location of the RO-1B (Residence-Office) District and the PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) rezoning requests within the overall 160 acre tract, the property to the west, which is currently developed, would be the most affected. Property to the west is residential in nature with a maximum allowable density range from 6 to 12 units per acre. Stone Meadows South No. 3, zoned RM-1, has an approximate developed density of 6 dwelling units per ace and Stone Meadows South No. 2, zoned RS-2, has an approximate density of 3 units per acre. The allowable density in an RO-1B District [which was the original request in 1999] is 12 units per acre, and the allowable density is a PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) District [unrestricted] is 15 units per acre.” This finding went on to state that a lack of a submitted development plan further complicated the ability to discern compatibility and how buffering would be provided. It was also noted that there was a disparity between the minimum building setback between the RO (conventional zoning district) and a planned unit development. Thus the finding concluded that “A rezoning to a Planned Residential Development (PRD-1 or PRD-2) [with a density restriction of 12 units per acre] would be more appropriate adjacent to the existing single-family residential development to the west. A density restriction of 12 units per acre would also be more appropriate for the area proposed for PRD-2 give the overall nature of the surrounding low-density residential neighborhood.”
The proposed request is intended to increase the density to allow additional apartments to be development. The proposed development plan is intended as a continuation of the existing development to the east. The existing multi-family (The Legends at KU, Phase I) was developed at 11.85 dwelling units per acre. A copy of the development is attached for reference.
The subject property is in the same relative proximity to single-family development as the developed portion of the PRD-2 to the west. Staff does not support the proposed increase in density.
PROFESSIONAL STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Planning Staff recommends denial of the PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) with a maximum density of 13.7 dwelling units per acre and to retain the existing zoning of PRD-2 (Planned Residential District) with a maximum density of 12 dwelling units per acre based on the findings of fact presented in the body of the staff report and forwarding it to the City Commission with a recommendation for denial.