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|
TOWN
OF CARY
,
NORTH CAROLINA
REQUEST FOR REZONING STAFF RECOMMENDATION
TO TOWN COUNCIL
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|
Rezoning
Petition:
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04-REZ-25 (Gabel
Farms)
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Land
Use Plan Amendment:
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NA (Amended
3/1/05
)
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Meeting
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Date
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Staff
Recommendation
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Action
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Town Council
Public Hearing
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January 27, 2005
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Recommend
forwarding the requests to the March 21, 2005 Planning and Zoning
Board meeting
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Forwarded to
March 21, 2005
Planning and Zoning Board meeting
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Planning and
Zoning Board
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March 21, 2005
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Staff recommends
approval of the request
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Forwarded to Town
Council with unanimous recommendation of approval
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Town Council
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April 14, 2005
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Staff recommends
approval of the request
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Town Council
approved the request
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TOWN
OF
CARY
CASE MANAGER
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|
Beth Lewis, Senior
Planner
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Phone:
(919)462-3944
Email: beth.lewis@townofcary.org
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STAFF
RECOMMENDATION
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Staff
recommends approval of the request.
The request was reviewed for compliance with the criteria
established in Sec. 3.4.1(E) of the Land Development Ordinance and
was found to meet the criteria outlined:
- The
request is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.
The requested Planned Development District is located so
as to fall into both the Northwest Area Plan and the Southwest
Area Plan. The
proposed Gabel Farms meets the density and minimum lot size
requirements of both plans.
While Land Use Plan amendments were proposed when the
project was originally submitted, the project has been changed
so as to not require any amendments.
- Adequate
public services are available.
Utility extensions will be made by the developer, who
will then be eligible for reimbursement by the Town.
The extension of
Morrisville Parkway
from the I-540 interchange westward will be constructed in
conjunction with this project.
- The
proposed rezoning is unlikely to have significant adverse
impacts on the environment.
Environmental impacts were mitigated through the adoption
of the Northwest and Southwest Area Plans, which Gabel Farms
meets. Approximately
32% of the site will be left in stream buffers and open space.
- The
proposed rezoning will not have significant impacts on other
property in the vicinity of the subject tract.
As the area develops to meet the Northwest and Southwest
Area Plans, the surrounding areas will be developed in a like
manner.
- The
proposed zoning classification is suitable for the subject
property. This
request aligns the development plan for
the area with the applicable Area Plans.
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PLANNING
AND ZONING BOARD ACTION
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- The Planning and Zoning
Board discussed the location of the recreation facility to be
located in Gabel Farms. The
Board asked if the planned location, at the far western edge of
the property, was appropriate, because it is not a central
location. Planning
staff noted that the open space that is to be dedicated to take
advantage of the density bonus calculation was located at the
far eastern end of the property and that the open space would
provide passive recreation area.
Planning staff added that the location of a private
recreation area is not dictated by the Land Development
Ordinance. Parks,
Recreation, and Cultural Resources (PRCR) Department staff added
that the location of the private recreation facility would be
studied at the subdivision plan stage.
The Board asked about the payment-in-lieu process for the
plan. PRCR staff
explained that in some cases, the improvements provided in the
development off-set the payment-in-lieu requirement and no
further funds are required, but that in some cases, even with
the value of the improvements, further funds are required to
meet the payment-in-lieu requirement.
That payment –in-lieu fee would be determined at the
subdivision plan stage, based on the number of units to be
constructed and the costs associated with the planned
improvements, such as greenways and pedestrian crossings.
The Board suggested that the applicant review the
location of the proposed recreation site to determine whether it
could be located more centrally.
The applicant indicated a willingness to review the
site’s location. A
public hearing was held, because changes had occurred since the
Town Council public hearing.
No one spoke at the public hearing.
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APPLICANT
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OWNERS
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Don Fraley
MI Homes
1500 Sunday Drive
Raleigh
,
NC
27607
(919) 828-1106
|
Kitt
Creek Farms, LLC and Green
Level to Carpenter LLC
Daniel Gabel, Manager
20 Exchange
Place
New York
,
NY
10005
Bonnie
and James Mills
9320 Green Level
Church Road
Cary
,
NC
27519
Kenneth
and Katherine Yates
1317 Bolton
Street
Winton-Salem
,
NC
27103
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PROJECT
DESCRIPTION
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Gabel
Farms is a Planned Development containing 658 attached and detached
single family residences on 196.61 acres. (Amended
3/1/05
)
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Parcel
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Maximum
Density (Du/Ac)
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Acreage
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Total
Units
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Minimum
Lot
Size
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Tract
A
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6.29
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44.06
|
277
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·
6,000
square feet for a detached dwelling
·
No
minimum for other housing types
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|
Tract
B
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8.00
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7.24
|
58
|
·
6,000
square feet for a detached dwelling
·
No
minimum for other housing types
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Tract
C
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2.20
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9.45
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20
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10,000 square feet
(Amended
3/1/05
)
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Tract
D
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2.46
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20.72
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51
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10,000 square feet
(Amended
3/1/05
)
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Tract
E
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3.00
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67.37
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202
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·
6,000
square feet for a detached dwelling
·
No
minimum for other housing types
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|
Tract
F
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0.76
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6.58
|
5
|
10,000
square
feet (Amended
3/1/05
)
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Tract
G
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4.07
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8.60
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35
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·
6,000
square feet for a detached dwelling
·
No
minimum for other housing types
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Right-of-way
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16.94
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Recreation
Area
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15.65
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Total
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3.30
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196.61
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658
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APPLICANT’S
JUSTIFICATION STATEMENT
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“The
current zoning of Residential 40 (R-40) does not allow for efficient
or practical use of the land. The
change in zoning to Planned Development District (PDD) Major
proposes single-family residential, detached and attached units.
Since this 196.61 acre site encompasses both the Northwest
and the Southwest Area Plans, the layout proposed will be consistent
with each of those corresponding Plans in terms of density and land
use.
This
plan, which proposes 658 single-family detached and attached units,
would allow for residential housing options in the west area of
Cary
.
The proposed Gabel Farms PDD represents a resourceful use of
the land that is also sensitive to the surrounding stream buffers
associated with the site. A
total of 32 percent of the gross area of the site is proposed to be
left as open space.
In
summary, Gabel Farms will be a quality development that is
consistent with what is envisioned by the Town and will preserve
critical open space, provide neighborhood amenities, and assure
future neighborhood compatibility.”
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CHANGES
SINCE PUBLIC HEARING
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Maximum
number of dwelling units shall be 658.
Tracts
C, D, and F will have minimum lot sizes of 10,000 square feet.
Tract
E will be limited to three (3.0) units per acre.
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CURRENT
USE & ZONING
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Current
Land
Use:
Conservation
Residential – Very Low Density (VLCR)
Conservation
Residential – Low Density (LCR)
Low
Density Residential (LDR)
Medium
Density Residential (MDR)
The
property currently is in use for agriculture and contains a single
family residence.
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Proposed
Land Use: Unchanged
from the current Land Use Plan designations:
Conservation
Residential – Very Low Density (VLCR)
Conservation
Residential – Low Density (LCR)
Low
Density Residential (LDR)
Medium
Density Residential (MDR)
The
proposed use is a Planned Development District containing a mix of
detached and attached single family residences.
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Current
Zoning: Residential
40 (R-40)
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Proposed
Zoning: Planned
Development District (PDD) Major
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ADJACENT
ZONING & LAND USES
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Existing
Use
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Existing
Land Use Designation
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North:
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Town
of
Cary
park property
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Residential
40 (R-40)
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Low
Density Residential (LDR); Institutional (INS)
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Town
of
Cary
park property
Vacant
land
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Residential
40 (R-40)
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Institutional
(INS); Mixed Use (MXD); Medium Density Residential (MDR)
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South:
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Agricultural
uses
Vacant land
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Residential
40 (R-40)
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Conservation
Residential – Very Low Density (VLCR); Conservation Residential
– Low Density (LCR)
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West:
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Vacant
land
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Planned
Development District (PDD) Major –
Southbridge
and
Forest
Oaks PDDs
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Low
Density Residential (LDR)
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PLANNING
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Comprehensive
Plan Analysis
|
The
proposal is in compliance with the Land Use Plan.
When the applicant originally submitted the application,
there were two areas that required Land Use Plan amendments.
First, the portions of the development that were in the
Conservation Low Density category in the Southwest Area Plan (SWAP)
were planned at 6,000 square foot lots, while the SWAP required
10,000 square foot lots. Secondly,
Tract E, which is under the guidance of the Northwest Area Plan (NWAP)
was designed at 3.8 units per acre, while the NWAP limited the
density to 3.0 units per acre.
Since
the Town Council public hearing, the applicant has amended the
request.
- The
applicant proposes to use the density bonus provisions described
in the Southwest Area Plan (dedication of open space and the
increase in lot sizes to a minimum of 10,000 square feet) in
order to achieve the maximum allowable density (2.5 dwelling
units/acre) for those sections of the project within the
Southwest Area.
- The
applicant has decreased the density in Tract E to 3.0 units per
acre.
These
changes have lowered the unit count from 750 to the current 658.
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Parks
and Greenways
|
If
this rezoning is approved, a payment-in-lieu in place of parkland
dedication for the value of approximately 19 acres (658 units) is
recommended. In
addition, the applicant has agreed to the following:
- The
applicant to receive credit against the required payment-in-lieu
for the construction of a pedestrian underpass under
Morrisville Parkway
extension.
- The
applicant to construct a greenway segment through eastern buffer
of project site to link with Hawes park property located to the
north.
- The
applicant to construct a short greenway segment along western
buffer to link with
Southbridge
and Cary Park Planned Developments located to the north.
- The
applicant to construct a 10’ wide multi-purpose trail along
the north side of the Morrisville Parkway extension as well as
the north side of Green Level to Durham Road.
These
recommendations were reviewed and approved by the Parks, Recreation
and Cultural Resources Advisory Board at its March 2005 meeting.
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Transportation
Planning
|
The
applicant will meet the requirements of the Comprehensive
Transportation Plan. Fourteen-foot shared outside lane bikeways will
be required along
Green Level
Church Road
and Green-Level
to
Durham Road
. This area
falls within the C-Tran service area.
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School
Information
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Enrollment
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Permanent
Seat Capacity
|
Average
Percent Occupied
|
Projected
Number of Additional Students
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Elementary
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15,388
|
12,745
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120.74%
|
113
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Middle
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7,715
|
7,116
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108.42%
|
58
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High
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7,481
|
6,625
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112.92%
|
80
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Total
for all Area Schools
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30,584
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| |
