Town of Cary
06-REZ-27, Modern Woodmen of America
Rezoning Staff Report to Town Council

Background Information

Existing Zoning:  Zoning Map
Residential 20 (R-20)

Proposed Zoning:  Proposed Zoning Map
Office/Institutional Conditional Use (OI-CU)

Proposed Zoning Conditions:  Hotels/Motels and banks are prohibited on the property.  Ancillary commercial uses normally permitted within an office building shall be prohibited.

Note: Staff suggested the applicant provide a supplemental condition that would limit the style of building architecture to residential character and would place all parking to the side or rear of the building.  This condition will not be finalized until after the April Planning Board meeting.  According to LDO Section 3.4.2(C)(4) more restrictive conditions or additional conditions may be added to the application if such conditions are received by the Planning Department in writing and signed by all owners at least ten days before the date scheduled for final Town Council action on the application.

Typical Town of Cary development requirements would limit parking between the building and the adjoining roadway to no more than one double-loaded parking bay.  The building style could be residential or nonresidential, but would be required to comply with Cary’s Architectural Design Guidelines.  The added zoning condition would eliminate parking between the building and the adjoining roadway and would ensure that the building design maintains the existing residential character along Piney Plains Road .

Conformance with the Land Use Plan Designation:  Land Use Map

The governing element of the Comprehensive Plan for the subject parcels is the Southeast Area Plan.  On March 8, 2007, the Town Council approved a Comprehensive Plan amendment (case 06-CPA-10) to change the SE Area Plan’s future land use designation for the subject properties to “Office and Institutional or Medium-to-High Density Residential” (“OFC/INS or MDR-to-HDR”).  The proposed zoning request is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.  This request conforms to this designation.

Location:  Vicinity Map
2011 and 2013 Piney Plains Rd., Cary, NC 27518. 
The property is located inside Cary’s town limits.  

Acreage
Approximately 0.97 acres

Applicant
Doug Polk
Modern Woodmen of America (MWA)
405 Oakridge Road
Cary, NC 27511
(919) 467-5444
dpolkmwa@earthlink.net

Applicant’s Contact
Tom Wells
Doug Polk Agency of MWA
312 Hunters Crossing
Cary, NC 27518
(919) 233-8298
tawells@bellsouth.net

Town of Cary Case Manager:
Bob Benfield, Senior Planner
316 N Academy Street
Cary, NC 27513
(919) 469-4045
bob.benfield@townofcary.org

Summary of Requested Rezoning

Transportation, Piney Plains Road
Existing & Future Roadway Section:  5 lanes, 90’ Right-of-way (ROW) - complete
Sidewalk Requirements:  Exists on both sides
Bicycle Requirements:  Construction Complete
Transit Requirements:  Transit stop not required

Traffic Impact Analysis

A proposed office building on the property would not generate more than 20 peak hour trips.  No traffic impact study is required.

Parks & Greenways  Greenways and trails map

According to the approved PRCR Facilities Master Plan, there are no required parks or greenways associated with this zoning petition.

Reference Information

Meeting Schedule: 
Town Council Public Hearing
Date:  December 14, 2006
Action:  Forwarded to the April 16, 2007 Planning and Zoning Board meeting.

Planning & Zoning Board:
Date:  April 16, 2007
Approval:  The Planning Board unanimously recommended approval of the plan 
and forwarded to May 10, 2007 Town Council meeting

Town Council Action:
Date: May 10, 2007 
Action:  Approved

Applicant’s Justification Statement Submitted September 26, 2006

Please note that the following statement is that of the applicant and does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of the Town of Cary:

How is the proposed request reasonable?  In explaining how it is reasonable, please address the following, if applicable:

1.  Any issues with the size of the tract?
The size of the two parcels (0.97 acre) is sufficient to build an office building for The Doug Polk Agency of Modern Woodmen of America.  The proposed structure will be no more than two stories and less than 8,000 sq ft.

2.  How is the request compatible with the comprehensive plan (i.e. Land Use, Transportation, Open Space and Historic Resources)?
The existing land use designation is high-density residential.  Just northeast of these two parcels is the Dillinger Planned Development which is consistent with our request.  Also along Piney Plains Road to the south, there are two tracts that have already been rezoned O/I.  The mix of high-density residential and O/I is already present and should present no significant issues with our request.

3.  What are the benefits and detriments to the owner, neighbors and the community?
This section of Piney Plains has been widened to five lanes and will undergo some transformation.  The look of our office will fit in well with the existing home and O/I development that is already on the street.

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

There are two existing tracts along Piney Plains Road that care currently O/I.  To the east of our tract is an apartment complex.  To the Northeast is the Dillinger Planned Development.  To the West is a tract that is being developed into Town Homes.  This office building will be in a style that fits in well with the existing development and proposed future development.

5.  What reductions/amendments and/or modifications to the development standards of the LDO are being requested and how are they justified? 

No reductions and/or modifications to Cary Design Standards and Cary’s Land Development Ordinance are proposed.

Development Plan Issues

The purpose of a rezoning is to evaluate the appropriateness of land use for specific parcels of land.  Development requirements related to the technical aspects of land development, such as access, stormwater management, road improvements, utility line placement, road connectivity and landscape plantings, are not considered during the rezoning process.  However, all of these development issues must be addressed for compliance with existing requirements addressed in the Land Development Ordinance (LDO) when the site or subdivision plan is submitted.  All such requirements can be found at http:vic.townofcary.org.

Changes since the Town Council Public Hearing:  The original zoning condition was amended to clarity that retail type uses normally allowed in an office building would be prohibited and to eliminate service stations because service stations are not allowed in the Office and Institutional District anyway.  No other modifications were made to the application.

Feedback at the Town Council Public Hearing:

At the December 14, 2006 Public Hearing, no one spoke in opposition to this application.

Changes since the Planning and Zoning Board meeting:

The zoning conditions have been amended to add a new condition:  ”All buildings placed on the properties shall be residential in character and detail.  All vehicular parking shall be limited to the side and rear of buildings.” The added zoning condition will eliminate parking between the building and the adjoining roadway and would ensure that the building design maintains the existing residential character along Piney Plains Road.

Consistency With The Comprehensive Plan And LDO:  The request is consistent with the Land Use Plan and Land Development Ordinance.

Ordinance for Consideration:  06-REZ-27

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAP OF THE TOWN OF CARY TO CHANGE THE ZONING OF APPROXIMATELY 0.97 ACRES LOCATED aT 2011 and 2013 Piney Plains Road owned by DOUG POLK, JOHN WELCH, AND GREG McNEELY FROM RESIDENTIAL 20 (R-20) TO OFFICE/INSTITUTIONAL CONDITIONAL USE (OI-CU).

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 (“Property”):

Section 2:  That the Property is rezoned from Residential 20 (R-20) to Office/Institutional Conditional Use (OI-CU) subject to all the requirements of the Cary Land Development Ordinance (LDO) and other applicable laws, standards, policies and guidelines, and conditions which state that:  Hotels/Motels and banks are prohibited on the properties.  Ancillary commercial uses normally permitted within an office building are prohibited.  All buildings placed on the properties shall be residential in character and detail.  All vehicular parking shall be limited to the side and rear of buildings. 

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

Adopted and effective:  May 10, 2007