Town of Cary

07-REZ-37 Cary Park Planned Development District (PDD) Amendment

The applicant is requesting Town Council approve an Ordinance to amend the official zoning map of the Town of Cary to change the zoning of approximately 19.69 acres, located at 3800 Cary Glen Boulevard, by amending amend a portion of the previously approved Cary Park PDD by replacing certain currently approved areas for residential uses with all uses permitted within in Resource/Recreation zoning districts.

More specifically, the applicant proposes to remove the condition, as shown on Tract MR-7 of the Cary Park PDD Master Plan, which requires a minimum of 27 dwelling units and sets a maximum of 133 dwelling units. Furthermore, uses proposed on the subject property would be limited to parks, greenway trials, conservation area and open space. The PDD Map has been also adjusted to more precisely reflect the current calculated acres on the subject property.

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.

Applicant/Agent	Town of Cary Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department 316 N. Academy Street Cary, NC 27513
Acreage	19.69 +/-
General Location Vicinity Map	3800 Cary Glen Boulevard
Hearings / Meetings	*Public Hearing* *February 14, 2008*	*Planning & Zoning* *March 17, 2008*	*Town Council* April 7 or 24, 2008*
Land Use Designation Land Use Map	Medium Density Residential
Town Limits	Subject property is located within Cary’s corporate limits
Annexation	Not required
Valid Protest	None
P&Z Recommendation	To be provided after the Planning and Zoning Board meeting
Existing Use Zoning Map	Vacant
Proposed Use Proposed Zoning Map	Parks, greenway trails, conservation area, open space
Staff Contact	Debra Grannan, Senior Planner PO Box 8005 Cary, NC 27512-8005 (919)460-4980 Debra.grannan@townofcary.org

*The date of this meeting will be determined after the P&Z Board recommendation. If a unanimous recommendation is made, it will go to the first meeting of the month on consent; if not on consent, it will go to the second meeting. Furthermore, if the case has a valid protest petition, it will go to the second meeting of the month as a discussion item, even if there is a unanimous recommendation for approval.

Public Notification:
On January 28, 2008 notices were mailed to property owners within 400 feet of the subject property. In addition, notification consistent with General Statutes was present in the Cary News on January 30, and February 6, 2008. 2008.

Staff presented the request and noted that no protests had been filed. Staff further reported that there had been calls of support from adjacent property owners in regard to the proposed rezoning. No one spoke in favor of or opposition to the request. One Council member expressed support for the request and the efforts of the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Department to obtain potential sites for park land.

Staff has reviewed the application and information provided prior to this meeting, and the analysis of Staff is that the application is consistent with the Goals and Objectives of the Comprehensive Plan, the Land Development Ordinance and is reasonable and in the public interest.

A. Land Use Plan: This rezoning request conforms to the adopted Land Use Plan which designates Parks, Open Space and Greenways as an acceptable neighborhood use for Medium Density Residential (MDR) under the Northwest Cary Area Plan.

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

The Town of Cary adopted an Affordable Housing Plan and the applicable goals to this proposal are the following:

Traffic Analysis: Since this request does not generate any additional traffic, a traffic study is not required

According to the Open Space and Historic Resources Plan (OSHRP), there are urban transition buffers on site as well as mixed hardwood/conifer forests. The urban transition buffers along Morris Branch were identified as priority open space.

F. Parks & Greenways: Greenways Map
According to the approved Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Facilities Master Plan, this parcel was purchased by the Town in 2006 for neighborhood park, greenway and open space purposes. The Morris Branch Greenway will cross the parcel and a multi-use trail will be located along the east side of Green Level to Durham Road.

G. Environmental:
According to the Town of Cary GIS maps, there is a stream buffer on the perimeter of this property. The project will be required to comply with all buffer requirements of the Land Development Ordinance during the site plan approval process.

H. Buffers:
According to Chapter 7 of the Land Development Ordinance, uses permitted under the Park and Open Space use category, except athletic fields, amphitheaters and neighborhood recreation centers, are a Class 1 use and require a 20’ Type “B” Buffer when adjacent to residential uses. Should the subject property be developed as an athletic field, then a 20’ Type “B” Buffer shall be required between this site and the adjacent property zoned R40 and a 30’ Type “A” Buffer shall be required adjacent to the single family residential property south of the subject property.

I. Streetscape:
The existing Cary Park PDD requires a 30’ Streetscape along Cary Glen Boulevard and McCrimmon Parkway.

The proposed project is in the rezoning stage and therefore preliminary engineering of the site has not been provided to Staff for review. Prior to Site Plan or Subdivision Plan approval, the application will be required to demonstrate compliance with the Land Development Ordinance with respect to specific development requirements, such as access, stormwater management, road improvements, utility line placement, road connectivity and landscape plantings.

Planning and Zoning Board Criteria for Consideration in Reviewing Rezonings And Planned Development District Amendments:

Section 3.4.1(E) of the Land Development Ordinance sets forth the following criteria that the Planning and Zoning Board 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;

7. The PDD designation is necessary to address a unique situation or represents a substantial benefit to the Town, compared to what could have been accomplished through strict application of otherwise applicable zoning district standards; and

8. The request complies with the standards and intent of a PDD, as outlined is Section 4.2.3 (LDO).

No residential use is proposed on the subject property; therefore, school enrolment will not be increased as a result of this proposal.

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAP OF THE TOWN OF CARY TO CHANGE THE ZONING OF APPROXIMATELY 19.69 ACRES, LOCATED WITHIN THE MR 7 TRACT OF CARY PARK PDD AT 3800 Cary Glen Boulevard, and Which is OWNED BY THE TOWN OF CARY FROM PDD TO PDD AMENDMENT. THIS AMENDMENT WOULD CHANGE THE USE DESIGNATION FROM RESIDENTAIL TO USES PERMITTED UNDER RESOURSE/RECREATION ZONING.

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

PARCEL & OWNER INFORMATION
Property Owner(s)	County Parcel Number(s) (10 digit)	Real Estate ID(s)	Area Acres
Town of Cary PO Box 8005 Cary, NC 27512-8005	0725957928	0324346	19.69±
Total Acres			19.69±

Section 2: That this Property is rezoned from PDD to PDD Amendment subject to the individualized development conditions set forth within the PDD Document 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 set forth in the Cary Park PDD document. 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.