Town of Cary, North Carolina

Staff Report for the Town Council

07-REZ-16 Davis Grove Office Condominiums  

Request

The applicant is requesting Council approve an Ordinance to amend the official zoning map of the Town of Cary for approximately 4.95 acres located at the intersection of Davis Grove Circle and Davis Drive from Office Research and Development Conditional Use (ORD-CU) to Office and Institutional Conditional Use (O&I-CU).

The purpose of a rezoning is to evaluate the appropriateness of a proposed land use for the subject parcel(s) of land.  Specific 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 specified 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.

Background Information

*Dates subject to change pending Town Council’s recommendation.

Property Notification

On August 6, 2007, 46 property owners within 400 feet of the subject property were mailed notification of the request.  The property was posted and advertised according to requirements in the Land Development Ordinance.

Changes since Public Hearing

The applicant added School to the list of prohibited uses

Feedback at Public Hearing

Staff presented the request and the applicant concurred with the report.  No one spoke against the request.  Staff reported that two citizens called to voice support for the rezoning.  Council asked for a clarification of Cary’s ordinance requirements for the amount of personal service use allowed in O&I Zoning.  Staff explained that 20% is normally permitted, but to have that, the applicant would have needed to obtain a revised traffic study.  In the interest of saving time and expense, the applicant agreed to a zoning condition that would limit the Personal Service Use to less than 10% and thus not be required to submit a new study.

summary

The request provides the applicant broader flexibility for uses on the site.  The ability to offer Personal Service establishments could also provide a benefit to surrounding residents with little negative impact. By prohibiting many high impact uses, the adjacent property owners are further protected. Staff finds that the request is consistent with the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan and the Land Development Ordinance and is reasonable and in the public interest.

The applicant has submitted the following proposed zoning conditions:

1. The following uses shall be prohibited:

Heliport;  cemetery; public utility facility;  outdoor amphitheater; college; utility facility (major); transportation facility; utility substation (minor);  kennel, indoor only; kennel, indoor/outdoor;  club, lodge or hall; nightclub/bar, indoor; hotel or motel; commercial indoor recreation facility; farm market; funeral home; postal center (private); retail store; trade school; parking lot; parking structure; antenna co-location on existing tower; concealed (stealth) antenna or tower; other freestanding towers, and schools.

2. The amount of area permitted for Personal Service Establishments shall not exceed 3,334 square feet

Consistency with the Comprehensive Plan

A. Land Use Plan:  This rezoning request conforms to the adopted Land Use Plan.  The land use designation is Office and Institutional which is consistent with the requested zoning. 

B.  Growth Management Plan: 
The Growth Management Plan includes the following five 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 available and planned infrastructure to minimize costly service-area extensions.
3. A1 Guiding Principle: Increase permitted densities in preferred growth areas to encouraged desired forms of development.
4. A2 Guiding Principle: Ensure that the overall amount of development in Cary is consistent with the Town’s growth management goals.
5. C1 Guiding Principle: Identify sustainable funding sources for community infrastructure, services, and amenities.

C.  Affordable Housing Plan: 
This request does not propose any residential units; therefore the Affordable Housing Plan would not apply.

D.  Comprehensive Transportation Plan:  
Davis Dr.:

Existing Section:  110’ ROW, 4-lane median divided

Future Section:  4-lane median divided

Road Improvements:  N/A

Sidewalks Requirements: Sidewalk on east side, multi-use path on west side

Bicycle Requirements: 14’ wide outside lanes

Transit Requirements: None

Morrisville Parkway:

Existing Section:  N/A

Future Section:  100’ ROW, 4-lane median divided

Road Improvements:  Construction scheduled fall 2007

Sidewalks Requirements: Sidewalks on both sides

Bicycle Requirements: 14’ wide outside lane

Transit Requirements: None

Traffic Analysis:  A traffic study (06-TAR-207) was conducted by MAB on May 16, 2006 which analyzed 40,000 SF of office, 10,855 SF of day care and 70,000 SF of mini-storage.  The applicant proposes to change the 40,000 SF portion of his development to 3,334 SF of personal service and 33,266 SF of office.  This change will not require a revision to the traffic study since the request will not generate a net increase of 20 or more peak hour trips.

The following improvements were identified in the original study and remain as requirements:

At the Davis Drive and Middle School Driveway/Site Access #1 (unsignalized/future signalized),

• Construct the westbound approach to provide one ingress and two egress lanes, a shared through-right lane and a left turn lane with approximately 100 feet of storage length.
• Construct an exclusive left-turn lane on the southbound approach that provides 150 feel of storage.
• Install a traffic signal at the location (peak hour warrants met)
• Provide coordination between the new signal and the Davis Drive at Park Village Drive signal the south and the Davis Drive at Waldo Rood Boulevard/Leonard Christian Road signal to the north.

At the Davis Drive and Site Access #2 (unsignalized),

• Construct the westbound approach to provide one ingress and one egress lane.

E.  Open Space and Historic Resources Plan: 
The proposed site contains no known historic resources and was not identified in the OSHRP as a site to be conserved as open space.

F.  Parks & Greenways Master Plan:  Greenways Map
According to the approved Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Facilities Master Plan the multi-use trail along the west side of Davis Drive has already been constructed.  Thus, there are no issues related to this site.  A recreation payment-in-lieu will be required for any subdivided residential development in accordance with the Town’s Land Development Ordinance.  No subdivided residential units are proposed.

G.  Environmental:  
There are no stream buffers currently impacting this property. The Davis Drive Dilweg Development Plan approved by the Town of Cary Development Review Committee July 24, 2006 included plans for erosion control, grading and stormwater and nitrogen management.

H.  Buffers: 
The approved site plan for the existing Davis Drive /Dilweg Development project complies with Chapter 7 of the Land Development Ordinance by providing a 20’ Type “C” buffer along the northern property line, and a 10’ Type C buffer between the subject property and lots east and west of the project. Because the area to the north contained existing vegetation, there is also a ten foot building set back established along the northern buffer.

I. Streetscape:  
In accordance with Chapter 6 of the LDO, the applicant has provided a 30’ ft Streetscape along Davis Drive as part of an approved site plan. No additional streetscape will be required as a result of this request.

Consistency with the Land Development Ordinance

The proposed request does not include any additions to the existing buildings and therefore, is consistent with the Land Development Ordinance. The subject site is already developed.  The requested rezoning would permit up to 3,334 square feet of personal service uses which include, but are not limited to, a tailor shop, a dance studio or a hair salon.

Feed Back from the Planning and Zoning Board

The Planning and Zoning Board verified with Staff that several uses that are listed as prohibited uses under the current zoning conditions would also be prohibited with out being specified under the proposed base zoning of Office and Institutional.

Planning and Zoning Board Recommendation

The Planning and Zoning Board recommended the request unanimously for approval.

Town CouncilCriteria for Consideration in Reviewing Rezonings

Section 3.4.1(E) of the Land Development Ordinance sets forth the following criteria that the Town Council should consider in reviewing rezonings:

1.             The proposed rezoning corrects an error or meets the challenge of some changing condition, trend or fact;

2.             The proposed rezoning is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan set forth in Section 1.3 (LDO);

3.             The Town and other service providers will be able to provide sufficient public safety, educational, recreational, transportation and utility facilities and services to the subject property while maintaining sufficient levels of service to existing development;

4.             The proposed rezoning is unlikely to have significant adverse impacts on the natural environment, including air, water, noise, stormwater management, wildlife and vegetation;

5.             The proposed rezoning will not have significant adverse impacts on property in the vicinity of the subject tract; 

The proposed zoning classification is suitable for the subject property;

Other Reference Information

Applicant’s Justification Statement Submitted June 28, 2007

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

For the following reasons, we are requesting that property be rezoned primarily to allow the use of a very small portion of the property for Personal Service Establishments (PSE) in addition to the predominant office use.

Person service establishments are permitted with the current zoning however; there is the stipulation that the property must be at least 25 acres. This property does not meet that criterion. Under the current zoning ordinance, PSE’s are allowed in the O&I zoning district, regardless of size of the parcel, but are limited to a floor area no greater than 20 percent of the total gross floor area of the building, among other requirements. Even with these limitations, a broader mix of uses can be encouraged to the betterment of the development and the enhancement of the community.

Office and Institutional zoning is in exact compliance with the current Land Use Plan.

We believe that personal services will be an amenity to the surrounding community and will offer ownership and employment opportunities for small businesses that want to be located in a suburban residential locale.

Office & Institutional is a less intensive use than the current Office, Research & Development zoning. Table B.1 is a comparison of the permitted uses listed in the Cary Code of Ordinances for the current ORD-CU zoning, the previous O&I-CU zoning and the proposed O&I-CU zoning. The table demonstrates that through conditional use rezoning, we are excluding not only the uses previously prohibited, but including additional prohibited uses to ensure that any future use in the proposed zoning district will be compatible with the surrounding environment.

Ordinance for Consideration

07-REZ-16 Davis Grove Office Condominiums  

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAP OF THE TOWN OF CARY TO CHANGE THE ZONING OF APPROXIMATELY 16 ACRES LOCATED ALONG DAVIS GROVE CIRCLE OWNED BY DCF V, LLC C/O THE DILWEG COMPANIES FROM OFFICE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CONDITIONAL USE TO OFFICE AND INSTITUTIONAL CONDITONAL USE CONDITIONAL USE.

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:

 Section 2. That this Property is rezoned from Office Research and Development Conditional Use to Office and Institutional Conditional Use subject to the individualized development conditions set forth herein, and all the requirements of the Cary Land Development Ordinance (LDO) and other applicable laws, standards, polices and guidelines.

Section 3:  The conditions mutually approved by the Town and the applicant for promoting public health, safety and the general welfare are:

1.  The following uses shall be prohibited:

Heliport;  cemetery; public utility facility;  outdoor amphitheater; college; utility facility (major); transportation facility; utility substation (minor);  kennel, indoor only; kennel, indoor/outdoor;  club, lodge or hall; nightclub/bar, indoor; hotel or motel; commercial indoor recreation facility; farm market; funereal home; postal center, private; retail store; trade school; parking lot; parking structure; antenna co-location on existing tower; concealed (stealth) antenna or tower; other freestanding towers

2.  The amount of area permitted for Personal Service Establishments shall be limited to 3,334 square feet.

These conditions address conformance of the development and use of the Property to ordinances and officially adopted plans and address impacts reasonably expected to be generated by the development and use of the Property.

Section 4:  This ordinance shall be effective on the date of adoption.

Adopted and effective:  October 11, 2007