Town of Cary , North Carolina
Rezoning Staff Report
10-REZ-03 The Park at West Lake Commons – Phase 6
Town Council Meeting
August 26, 2010

To Amend the Town of Cary Official Zoning Map to apply initial zoning; Associated Annexation Petition: 10-A-09

Property Owner	County Parcel Number (10-digit)	Real Estate ID	Proposed Zoning District	Deeded Acreage
Winslow Properties Development Co.	0679-03-3123 0679-03-2175 0679-02-1979 0679-03-2137 0679-03-1023 0679-03-2201 0679-03-0076 0679-03-1253 0679-03-0039 0679-03-0286 0669-93-9193 0669-93-9157 0669-93-9220	0377893 0377894 0377886 0377895 0377887 0377896 0377888 0377897 0377889 0377898 0377890 0377891 0377892	TR	0.14 0.15 0.21 0.17 0.17 0.19 0.16 0.14 0.16 0.15 0.15 0.14 0.14
	0669-92-8702	0377885	R/R	2.54
		TOTAL DEEDED ACREAGE		4.61

Historical Background:
In 2002, a developer, John Brown, requested that council allow a 363-acre parcel to be served with Town utilities, but developed under Wake County's zoning regulations. At the time, the Town of Holly Springs was receiving and approving annexation petitions for properties within the Town of Cary's Land Use Planning Area (outside of our zoning jurisdiction or ETJ). This 363-acre parcel was closer to Holly Spring's town limits than Cary's so by state law, Cary was unable to annex this property in 2002. In addition, the Town had not been successful with Holly Springs representatives to establish a Holly Springs/Cary Utility Service and Annexation Boundary Agreement. This agreement would have established what properties each town could annex. In 2003, both Towns executed this agreement which allowed us to annex development within the Park at West Lake development.

At the time, the options before council were to allow the property:

1) To be developed as a Wake County subdivision using well and septic systems. This option would have resulted in property owners benefiting from being near Cary without contributing financially for the benefits received. In addition, the well and septic systems within the cluster subdivision may have proved environmentally harmful in the long run.

2) To be developed and annexed into the Town of Holly Springs. This option would have allowed Holly Springs to further encroach into Cary’s planning area and reduce the future tax base of Cary while increasing theirs.

3) To be developed through the County using Cary utilities and have sections of the subdivision annexed into the Town prior to any lot being transferred from the builder to a resident (developer's request).

In 2002, the council chose option 3. This option would eventually allow for the citizen-initiated annexation of all the property into the Town. Unfortunately, the development would not comply with our development standards and the annexation would occur in a piece-meal fashion. At the present time, most all the property is platted; it is too late to require our development standards (e.g., 100-foot stream buffers). This would also alter the approved agreement that is being implemented.

As this property has developed over the years, the Town has received numerous annexation petitions as each section was platted. A limited amount of the original property remains to be annexed (see General Location map - white areas remain to be annexed).

Current Request:
The current request includes 13 single-family lots and one open space lot totaling 4.61 acres. The specific parcels are listed in the table above. The minimum lot size for the existing residential lots is at least 7,000 square feet. Transitional Residential (TR) zoning district is proposed since this is the most comparable Cary zoning district for lots of this size. Rezoning to Resource/Recreation (R/R) is proposed for the open space lot.

Applicant & Agent	Winslow Properties Development Co.
General Location	Moneta Lane
Tentative Schedule	Public Hearing June 24, 2010	Planning & Zoning Board July 19, 2010	Town Council Decision August 26, 2010
Land Use Plan Designation	Very Low Density Residential (VLDR) or Low Density Residential Cluster (LDR Cluster)
Existing Zoning District	Wake County Residential 30 (R-30)
Proposed Zoning Districts	Transitional Residential (TR), and Resource/Recreation (R/R)
Town Limits	The subject properties are located outside the corporate limits and the Town of Cary ETJ. Voluntary annexation petition 10-A-09 has been submitted by the property owner in conjunction with this rezoning request.
Valid Protest Petition	Protest petitions are not applicable to a map amendment (rezoning) that initially zones property that is being added to the Town’s jurisdiction by annexation.
Staff Contact	Mary W. Beerman, AICP (919) 469-4342 mary.beerman@townofcary.org

Design Standards and Permits
The property was subdivided in accordance with Wake County cluster subdivision development standards. Building permits for the individual lots will be reviewed and issued through the Town of Cary.

Traffic
There are 13 existing single-family lots that would generate 10 a.m. and 14 p.m. peak hour trips using the 8^th edition of ITE Trip Generation Manual. The proposed zoning would allow a maximum of 22 a.m. and 30 p.m. peak hour trips. No traffic study is required since this does not generate a net increase of 50 or more peak hour trips.

Notification
On June 8, 2010, the Planning Department mailed notification of a public hearing on the request to property owners within 400 feet of the combined subject properties. Notification consistent with General Statutes was published in the Cary News on June 9 and 16, 2010. Notice of the public hearing was posted on the property on June 9, 2010.

Neighborhood Meeting
Not required for rezoning requests that apply initial Town of Cary zoning.

Town Council Public Hearing
The public hearing was held on April 29, 2010.  There were no comments or concerns expressed by citizens.

Planning and Zoning Board Meeting
The Planning and Zoning Board considered the request at its July 19, 2010 meeting and recommended approval by a vote of 9-0.

A. Land Use Plan
The land use designation for the subject parcels is Very Low Density Residential (VLDR) with an alternate land use of Low Density Residential Cluster (LDR Cluster). VLDR refers to densities of less than one dwelling per acre, with uses typically restricted to single-family-detached units. LDR Cluster refers to residential development in a clustered manner that preserves rural and forest land. A significant portion of the development remains undeveloped, preserving natural areas and providing common open space, and development occurs only on the remainder of the site. The total number of dwellings that could have been built, had the entire site been used for residential development, are still permitted, and the overall development density remains the same. The residential lots included in the subject property were laid out under Wake County regulations using the cluster option.

B. Growth Management Plan
The Growth Management Plan includes the following Guiding Principles which are relevant to this case:

1. R1 Guiding Principle: Ensure that adequate infrastructure and services are available concurrently with new development.
2. L2 Guiding Principle: Ensure that future growth protects sensitive natural resources and protects open space.
3. A2 Guiding Principle: Ensure that the overall amount of development in Cary is consistent with the Town’s growth management goals.

C. Affordable Housing Plan
The Affordable Housing Plan is not applicable to this case.

D. Comprehensive Transportation Plan
The subject property is served by local streets, as approved by Wake County for The Park at West Lake, and Optimist Farm Road which is classified as a major thoroughfare.

Optimist Farm Road
Existing Section: 2-lane undivided
Future Section: 4-lane median divided, 100-foot ROW
Road Improvements: N/A
Sidewalks Requirements: Sidewalks required on both sides
Bicycle Requirements: 14-foot-wide outside lanes required on both sides
Transit Requirements: No transit requirements
Traffic Analysis: No traffic study required

E. Parks & Greenways Master Plan
According to the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Facilities Master Plan, a greenway is proposed to loop around the south end of the entire Park at West Lake development; the trail connects to and crosses Optimist Farm Road on both sides of the development.

F. Open Space and Historic Resources Plan
According to the Open Space and Historic Resources Plan, there are wetlands, bottomland forests and hardwood swamps on the proposed R/R parcel; this parcel was identified as priority open space for conservation. No significant historical resources were indicated by the plan.

ORDINANCE FOR CONSIDERATION

10-REZ-03 The Park at West Lake Commons (Portion of Phase 6)

AN ORDINANCE TO ESTABLISH CARY ZONING FOR APPROXIMATELY 4.16 ACRES LOCATED ON MONETA LANE IN THE PARK AT WEST LAKE SUBDIVISION BY APPLYING TRANSITIONAL RESIDENTIAL (TR) AND RESOURCE/RECREATION (R/R) ZONING TO PROPERTY CURRENTLY ZONED WAKE COUNTY RESIDENTIAL 30, AS SPECIFIED IN THE ACCOMPANYING TABLE OF PARCEL AND OWNER INFORMATION.

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF CARY:

Section 1: The Official Zoning Map is hereby amended by rezoning the area described as follows:

PARCEL & OWNER INFORMATION

Property Owner	County Parcel Number (10-digit)	Real Estate ID	Proposed Zoning District	Deeded Acreage
Winslow Properties Development Co.	0679-03-3123 0679-03-2175 0679-02-1979 0679-03-2137 0679-03-1023 0679-03-2201 0679-03-0076 0679-03-1253 0679-03-0039 0679-03-0286 0669-93-9193 0669-93-9157 0669-93-9220	0377893 0377894 0377886 0377895 0377887 0377896 0377888 0377897 0377889 0377898 0377890 0377891 0377892	TR	0.14 0.15 0.21 0.17 0.17 0.19 0.16 0.14 0.16 0.15 0.15 0.14 0.14
	0669-92-8702	0377885	R/R	2.54
		TOTAL DEEDED ACREAGE		4.61

Section 2: That these properties are rezoned from Wake County Residential 30 to Transitional Residential (TR) and Resource/Recreation (R/R) subject to all the requirements of the Cary Land Development Ordinance (LDO) and other applicable laws, standards, policies, and guidelines.

Section 3: This ordinance shall be effective on the date of adoption.

Adopted and effective: August 26, 2010

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Harold Weinbrecht, Jr.
Mayor

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