Town of Cary, North Carolina

Mixed Use Sketch Plan Datasheet

08-MU-002 Old Apex Townhomes

Kevin A. Hales, Staff Contact

Request

The applicant, Jerry Turner and Associates, Inc., on behalf of the property owner, Lewis Group Properties, LLC, has requested Town Council consideration of a Mixed Use Sketch Plan (MUSP) entitled, “Old Apex Townhomes.”  The MUSP consists of 19 townhomes located on approximately 2.84 acres,  approximately 1,000 feet northwest of the intersection of Old Apex Road and Southwest Cary Parkway.  The property is located within the Parkway Pointe Mixed Use Center.

Mixed Use Sketch Plans are located within the Mixed Use Overlay District (MUOD).  The MUOD includes areas that are identified as “activity centers” (now referred to as “Mixed Use Centers”) on the Land Use Plan and are intended to be developed following the general guidelines of the Comprehensive Plan.  The MUOD is intended to promote higher-density, mixed-use developments of varying sizes, as an alternative to lower-density, separate-use suburban sprawl-type development.

Mixed Use Sketch Plans are conceptual documents that address the general density, the mix of uses, and the development patterns within a mixed use center.  Less detailed than the plans required for full site plan review, the intent of MUSPs is to provide information sufficient to determine consistency with the Comprehensive Plan and with the Town’s Design Guidelines.  Specific development issues must be addressed for compliance with existing requirements specified in the Land Development Ordinance (LDO) when the site plan is submitted.  All such requirements can be found at http:vic.townofcary.org.

Background Information

* Future meeting dates are tentative

Property Owner Information

Consistency with the Comprehensive Plan

A.  Land Use Plan
This rezoning request conforms to the adopted Land Use Plan.  The land use designation for the subject parcel is Medium Density Residential (MDR), which is typically defined as single-family attached or detached housing between 3 and 8 units per acre.  This property is located within the Parkway Pointe Neighborhood Mixed Use Center.

B.  Growth Management Plan
The Growth Management Plan includes the following three 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.       L1 Guiding Principle:  Concentrate growth near existing and planned employment centers and near available and planned infrastructure to minimize costly service-area extensions.

3.       A1 Guiding Principle:  Increase permitted densities in preferred growth areas to encourage desired forms of development.

C.  Affordable Housing Plan
The Affordable Housing Plan includes the following four goals, which may be relevant to this case:

1.       Provide a full range of housing choices for all income groups, for families of various sizes, for seniors, and for persons with special challenges.

2.       Facilitate the creation of a reasonable proportion of the Town of Cary’s housing as affordable units providing additional homeownership opportunities for individuals and families earning between 60% and 80% of area median income and providing affordable apartments for individuals and families earning up to 60% of the area median income.

3.       Encourage the location of high density housing within walking and commuting distance convenient to employment, to shopping, and to other activities, or is within a short walk to a bus or transit stop, through "mixed use" developments, through residences created on the upper floors of nonresidential downtown buildings, and through other creative strategies.

4.       Assure a quality living environment and access to public amenities for all Town of Cary residents, present and future, regardless of income.

D.  Transportation
Existing Section Old Apex Road:  2-lane major thoroughfare, approximately 60’ R/W

Future Section Old Apex Road:  5-lane major thoroughfare, 91’ R/W

Road Improvements:  None scheduled by the Town

Sidewalks Requirements: Sidewalks required on both sides

Bicycle Requirements: 14’ wide outside lanes

Transit Requirements: None

E.  Parks & Greenways  Greenways Map
According to the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Facilities Master Plan, there are no issues related to this site.  A recreation payment-in-lieu would be required for residential development, in accordance with the Land Development Ordinance.  According to the Open Space and Historic Resources Plan, no significant natural or historic resources were identified on this site.

Consistency with the Land Development Ordinance

The proposed project is in the mixed use sketch plan stage and, therefore, only preliminary engineering of the site has been done.  At the time of site plan submittal, the applicant would be required to demonstrate consistency with the Land Development Ordinance (LDO) with respect to specific development requirements, such as access, stormwater management, road improvements, utility line placement, road connectivity, and landscape plantings.

A.  Environmental
According to Town of Cary GIS maps, there are no Urban Transition Buffers (UTBs) that will impact the detailed portion of the MUSP.  A potential UTB is located on the conceptual portion of the MUSP and may impact future development in that portion of the quadrant.  At the time of full site plan submittal, the project would be required to meet all applicable stormwater requirements of the LDO.

B.  Perimeter Buffers
The LDO recognizes that flexibility in the arrangement of internal buffers is desired within a mixed use center.  Therefore, except where property lines may delineate, the perimeter of the mixed use center, properties located within a mixed use center are exempted from the strict application of perimeter buffer requirements established by the LDO.  The northern property line, and a portion of the western property line adjacent to The Ranches subdivision, define the perimeter of the Parkway Pointe Mixed Use Center.  The applicant is proposing to provide an undisturbed Type A (Opaque) buffer with an average width of 40 feet along these property lines.  The applicant has also indicated that in no place shall the 40-foot average buffer be reduced in width to less than 30 feet.  According to Section 7.2.3(B) of the LDO, a 40-foot Type A (Opaque) buffer is required where townhouses are located adjacent to detached dwellings.  Section 7.2.10(C)(1) of the LDO does, however, allow administrative flexibility to average buffer widths with the caveat that areas reduced in width should have enhanced planting schedules and should potentially include fences or walls in order to enhance the performance of the narrower buffer.  Perimeter buffers proposed along property lines internal to the mixed use center would be required to meet the performance criteria of a typical buffer required by the LDO in similar situations, but not to meet the width requirement.  The applicant is proposing a 10-foot landscape strip adjacent to the Parkway Pointe Shopping Center, which is also located within the mixed use center.

C.  Streetscape
The applicant’s proposal provides the 50-foot streetscape that is required of residential development located along a thoroughfare pursuant to Section 7.2.4(C) of the LDO.  This streetscape, as proposed, is required to meet a Type A (Opaque) buffer standard.

D.  Adequate Public Facilities (Traffic Analysis)

This project is proposing construction of 19 townhomes, which would generate 9 AM and 10 PM trips using the Residential Townhouse Code (230) of the 7^th edition of the ITE Trip Generation book.  The project would not require a traffic study since it does not meet the 50-trip peak hour threshold.

Approval Criteria For Mixed Use Sketch Plans

Section 4.4.2 (J) of the LDO establishes certain criteria that must be considered in reviewing mixed use sketch plans.  Though it may not be practical for some existing or partially-built mixed use centers to achieve certain design standards, proposed MUSPs shall be reviewed for compliance with the following approval criteria where deemed appropriate:

(1)        The mixed use sketch plan has been prepared consistent with the requirements of Section 4.4 of the LDO and the Land Use Plan;

(2)        The mixed use sketch plan includes an appropriate mix of land uses for the overall activity center, including residential, commercial, office, and institutional uses;

(3)        The mixed use sketch plan meets or exceeds Town design guidelines and other established Town standards;

(4)        The mixed use sketch plan includes medium and higher-density housing;

(5)        The mixed use sketch plan includes some formal outdoor space for public use, such as a park, a village green, or a plaza with larger mixed use centers including more such space than smaller centers; and

(6)        The mixed use sketch plan demonstrates participation by residents, by property owners in the surrounding neighborhoods, and by the Town, so that the proposed development responds to the unique conditions of the area.

Other Reference Information

Schools:

The school information is being provided for review; however, the Wake County Board of Education controls capital projects for school capacities.

* Current Enrollment and Building Capacity is based on the 20^th day of the school year for 2007-2008 as supplied by the Wake County Public School System.  School assignment will be determined at the time of development.

* The Projected Number of Additional Students is only a rough approximation.  The actual number of students will vary depending on several variables, such as dwelling unit type, number of bedrooms, dwelling size, and other factors.  For example, a site with 134 two-bedroom units could yield 27 additional students, while 134 three-bedroom units could yield 100 students.  The basis for making this calculation is based on multipliers provided from Wake County Schools’ Office of Student Assignment.

Applicant’s Justification Statement, Submitted on June 26, 2008

The following statements are provided by the applicant in response to the criteria established in the application and do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the Town of Cary.  Any statements as to the type, the quality, or the physical features of the plan are at the direction of the applicant and may be formulated into a condition:

1.  Any issues with the size of the tract?

The size of the tract is appropriate and conducive to the residential use being proposed.

2.  How is the request compatible with the comprehensive plan (i.e., Land Use, Transportation, Open Space and Historic Resources)?

The adopted Land Use Plan designates the parcel for MDR, ALT. HDR.  The proposed land use classification is medium residential.

3.  What are the benefits and detriments to the owner, the neighbors, and the community?

The Town of Cary has identified this area as a MUOD.  Within an MUOD, there is a residential component.  There is a minimal amount of residential development currently within the Parkway Pointe MUOD.  The proposal would provide additional residential development within MUOD.  The residents would have the opportunity to walk or bike to the adjacent commercial center, thus reducing the length of and need for automobile trips.  This is one of the main reasons why residential development is encouraged within MUOD.  The interest of the residential property owners will be adequately protected by the provisions of the LDO.

4.  How are all the allowable uses for the proposed rezoning compatible with, or how do they relate to, the uses currently present on adjacent tracts?

Other property in the vicinity of the proposed rezoning is currently developed for the same type of use proposed.  Good land use planning principles typically advocate and support the development of this type of use in this type of location.  The proposed development will be compatible with the uses on the nearby properties.