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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1984-10-05 - Minutes• • • MINUTES OF THE SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE A meeting of the Subdivision Committee of the Fayetteville Planning Commission vas held on Friday, October 5, 1984 at 9:00 A.M. in Room 111 of the City Administration Building, 113 West Mountain Street, Fayetteville, Arkansas. MEMBERS PRESENT: Barbara Crook, Melanie Stockdell, Sue Madison and Stan Green MEMBERS ABSENT: None The meeting was called to order by Chair, Barbara Crook and the minutes of the meeting of September 21 were approved as distributed. CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST THE LATTER DAY SAINTS Crook advised that, because this church has a Conditional Use, it requires approval for the expansion of same from the Planning Commission. Planning Administrator, Jones, reported that she was in possession of a letter from Street Superintendent, Powell, stating that engineering plans and profiles for Zion Road have been approved as submitted and that Powell wants the easements recorded as a plat. She added that adjoining property owners have been notified. Albright stated that he has the plans for sewer extension which have been approved by the health department and the City. Crook asked if there were any problems with utility company comments and Albright replied that there were not. Crook said she was concerned about where the surface drainage from the parking lot would end up. Albright replied that it will follow the natural drainage path. Green asked if the developer was willing to widen Zion Rd. on the south side and he also questioned whether this would be a wise plan at this time. He said he thought it might present a dangerous situation to a citizen who was not familiar with the road because a wide section followed by a narrow section of road may, perhaps, delude a driver into believing that the entire road was as wide as the widest stretch. Wimberley, Northwest Engineers, said he felt there was much work needed on Zion Road in the way of grading and widening to provide for site distance. He said he thought if it were done piecemeal, it may at some point need to be torn out and the entire length finished correctly. Crook suggested drawing up a resolution to have the Street Dept. and the City Board determine when these improvements should take place. g3 • • • Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 2 Jones explained that a cash bond could be retained by the City for five years to pay for street improvements and that, if by the end of this time, the street improvements are not under way, the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing to decide whether to refund the money or make the improvements. She said that accepting Bills of Assurance for street improvements requires approval from the Board. Crook indicated that the work would probably not take place until the City fund for said improvements was adequate enough to provide for the entire project under consideration. She said that if total reconstruction was a consideration within the next five years, she would be in favor of holding funds towards this end. Stockdell agreed that widening in scattered places along Zion Road would add to the hazard and Madison said that she, too, didn't like the idea of a piecemeal road. Madison added that she didn't think sidewalk was needed presently but that she would like to see it constructed at the time the street improvements are done. Green said he thought the City would be best served to accept a cash bond and he added that he felt the residents of Zion Road were being penalized because so many citizens elect to use this east -west throughway for access to the Northwest Arkansas Mall. MOTION Stockdell made a motion to recommend approval of this plat subject to 1. Plat Review comments; 2. A Bill of Assurance for sidewalk; and 3. 100% cash deposit in lieu of immediate street improvements, to be used at the call of the City for said street improvement. Crook seconded followed by discussion. Green said he did not see any point to restricting the church from widening the street at this time if they so desired, as that is what has transpired in the past with regards to two other recent developments along this same road. The motion to recommend approval failed on a 2-2 vote; Green and Madison voting "nay". MOTION Stockdell made a motion that a resolution be passed recommending that the City Street Department consider street improvements on Zion Road be added to the priority list and that some guidance be given to this committee with regard to street widening in particular. Madison seconded and the motion to recommend this resolution passed 4-0-0. 8H Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 3 Albright said that Powell had asked for the street widening at the Plat Review meeting and if this committee approves the plat subject to Plat Review comments, he requested to know why Powell's comment would not apply. Crook explained that there are areas where this committee's recommendations supercede other comments. Green suggested that Albright ask the developers what they would like to do with regards to street improvements and report the results at the Planning Commission meeting Monday following this meeting. Albright said that he was agreeable to this plan. MOTION Madison made a motion to approve this plat subject to 1. Plat Review comments and; 2. the widening of Zion Road being supported by a 100% cash bond or immediate commencement of construction of street improvements, at the option of the developer. Green seconded and the motion to recommend approval failed on a 2-2 vote; Crook and Stockdell voting "nay". CHRISTIAN LIFE CENTER: RED DIXON b AMERICAN COLLEGE: RIM FDGIT Because there were no representatives present for either one of these plats: MOTION Stockdell moved to table both of these items Seconded by Madison, the motion to table Christian Life Center and American College passed 4-0-0. DANDY OIL CO. SPOT -NOT CAR WASH The fourth plat for consideration was that of Spot -Not Car Wash to be located at the southeast corner of Razorback Road and Highway 62, represented by Ervan Wimberley of Northwest Engineers. Wimberley advised that a recent Board of Directors decision restricted the number of points of ingress/egress onto Highway 62 to a total of three for the entire tract owned by Howell Trumbo (between Razorback and Garland lying south of Highway 62 west. Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 4 Crook asked if there were any problems with the Plat Review comments and Wimberley replied that there were not and that all revisions have been made as requested. Crook asked if the ditch on the south side was in the railroad right-of-way and Wimberley said that it was and he felt there was no need to rip -rap as requested by Powell because the ditch is flat. Madison asked if there was enough room for cars to pass each other within the room allowed between wash bays and vacuum bays and Wimberley said he thought there was. Jones commented that 80 ft. of right-of-way has been shown for Razorback Road as requested and as required by the Master Street Plan. MOTION Stockdell moved to recommend approval subject to 1. Plat Review comments and approval of waiver for driveway location being granted. Madison seconded and the motion to approve passed 4-0-0. JIM -BON ADDITION J. B. HAYS Jones advised that part of this development is encompassing some parts of Lots 31 & 32 of West Wind Phase III which adjoins it at its southeast corner. Wimberley reported that the lawyers for these developments are currently working out the legalities with regards to lot lines. Jones also advised that there was an error made on the zoning map and that this property is zoned R-1. Crook asked why the utility companies have requested their easements be in the front yard building setbacks and Jones reported that there is a problem here because this area is on the border line of service between SWEPCO and Ozarks Electric and some lots cannot be served unless it is done in the requested manner. She added that this property is mostly heavy rock and SWEPCO would like to serve it with overhead lines installed along Jimmie Avenue. Green said he would like to allow the developer to make arrangements with the utility companies with regard to easement placement and Jones commented that SWEPCO usually asks for easement in the street right-of-way only if there is a problem with an alternate method while Ozarks Electric requests this type of easement quite often. Crook said she felt this committee should offer some direction at this point because whatever was decided now would carry to the final Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 5 plat. She inquired about Traffic Superintendent, Franklin's, comments regarding the "bow" in Jimmie Ave. and Wimberley replied that it is very slight and doesn't effect sight distance greatly. Madison said she would like to see this street intersection straightened and Wimberley said straightening the bow would involve the expensive removal of a rock outcropping and a residents extensive landscaping. Crook asked Wimberley about Jones' request that the sidewalk be continued all the way around the curve of the cul-de-sac and Wimberley replied that he had intended to correct this item but had overlooked it. He added that he was working on getting proof of notification from adjoining property owners. Crook asked about the problem of having too little road frontage on Lot 19 and Wimberley said he felt the submitted alignment was best. Jones advised that the code calls for a lot to have at least 70ft. of width on road frontage, measured from the foremost point of said lot, (at least 80% of the frontage at that point) with 100% of that width measured at the 25 ft. building setback. Wimberley said that it will probably never be necessary to extend this road (West View) down the hill because it is so steep and Jones added that the Planning Commission would not allow the owner/developer to build a road there because there is only a 40 ft. right-of-way when a 50 ft. is necessary. Crook said she saw the two alternatives to this problem as 1. moving the driveway so that it faced the opposite lane of traffic; 2. leaving this lot out of this plat and develop it at a later date. Crook asked about the effectiveness of a French drain being installed as requested by Powell and Wimberley agreed that it would not handle surface drainage. Crook reminded Wimberley of the City's concern with hillside developments and the runoff they create. Wimberley explained that the property lying to the east is composed of very large, flat lots that will not contribute greatly to runoff water and that whatever surface water existing is intended to be carried off between Lots 9 & 10 to an existing storm drain system. Madison inquired as to where Powell had suggested locating a detention pond and Wimberley said it had been mentioned only as a possibility. He also said he was working with the street grade so as to eliminate a great deal of runoff water. Jones said she would check on the sidewalk requirement for West View Street and Wimberley indicated that he was aware of the parks fee that is required. 87 • • • Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 6 MOTION Stockdell moved to recommend approval subject to 1. Plat Review comments; 2. sidewalk being shown on the north side of West View Street if required by the Master Sidewalk Plan; 3. the sidewalk on Jimmie Avenue being extended into Lot 11 completing the cul-de-sac; 4. proof of notification of adjoining property owners by Monday, Oct. 8 (Planning Commission meeting); 5. drainage at the northwest end being sized to meet the requirement of 4-5 hundred ft. of runoff for Jimmie; 6. the utility companies reassessing their requirement so as to avoid front yard easements; 7. the developer's lawyers reaching an agreement on where the property lines are to be located (West Wind Phase III Lots 31 & 32 and Jim -Bow Addition Lots 1, 2 & 3); Crook seconded followed by discussion. The motion to approve passed 3-1-0; Green voted "nay" because he said he did not agree with the requirement that the utility companies needed to reassess the placement of their easements. Jones explained that utility companies, at one time, had the full use of the street easements for power lines placement, but in 1983 the City Board passed an ordinance allowing only the first 7 ft. of street right-of-way to be used for this purpose because when utilities (in street rights-of-way) need to be serviced, the street is usually destroyed. She advised that there are specific separations that are needed between the different utilities resulting in a great deal of footage being requested. DISCUSSION OF AMENDMENT TO LSD STREET REGULATIONS Crook reported that she had not received any response to her request for input on the wording of the proposed amendment to the large scale development street regulations. She said what she had intended by her suggested wording was that the maintenance of said streets be tied down to either the developer, the owner or the neighborhood property owners association. Crook said the word she inserted was "owner". STREET WIDENING Wimberley asked to comment on the problems of street widening in a piecemeal fashion as mentioned earlier in the meeting. He said he felt this method was sometimes ridiculous and needed to be examined by the Board Using the Zion Road situation as an example, he said that charging back the expense of street improvement to an individual developer was unfair when Zion Road is used mostly by non-residents. Crook said this method is being used because it was felt that this was the only way a street would wind up being improved. She said that street assessments give a developer less control. Wimberley replied g0 • • • Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 7 that, on Zion in particular, it may be valid for the City to share the expense of said street improvements. Wimberley next commented that he felt it would be a worthwhile effort for the City to clear and rough grade rights -of -ways on major street dedications in the initial stage of a development so that it would not be as much of a shock to adjoining property owners a major street is constructed in what they thought was their backyard. AMERICAN COLLEGE RIM FUGIT Crook explained to architect Fugit, who arrived at this point, that there would be a Public Hearing on the street situation on Milsap and Masonic which may have some effect on this development. MOTION Stockdell made a motion to remove this item from the table. Green seconded and the motion to remove it from the table for discussion passed 4-0-0. Crook advised Fugit that, at a recent Street Committee meeting that she had attended, Mayor Noland had suggested a possible building permit moratorium in this area. She said she thought that the Public Hearing on Monday, October 8th would result in a recommendation from the Planning Commission to the City Board and it would then be up to the Board to act on that recommendation. Crook made note that this architect has provided two different sets of plans, one which shows a proposed access road to the rear, which may address the anticipated recommendation. Crook asked if adjoining property owners were to be notified and Jones explained that the owner to the east has seen the plans and has refused to sign because he assumed his signature would mean acceptance of a possible 25 ft. easement being taken from his property. She said she advised Fugit to make a note on the plat of what transpired for the files, serving as notification. Crook expressed her concern regarding the ingress/egress onto Highway 71 and the turn lane. She said she thought the Highway Dept. might extend the left -hand -turn lane and/or install a traffic light in this location which would alay her concerns. Fugit indicated that a few weeks delay would not be too detrimental to the developer under these extenuating circumstances. g-1 • • Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 8 MOTION Stockdell moved to table this plat discussion until next Subdivision Committee meeting as both the Committee members and the representative felt that further discussion was pointless until the issue of amending the Master Street Plan in the Milsap/Masonic area is addressed. Madison seconded and the motion to table passed 4-0-0. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 11:50 A.M. AN ADJOURNED MEETING OF THE SUBDIVISION COMMITTEE At 4:30 P.M. on Friday October 8, 1984, the Subdivision Committee reconvened to discuss the preliminary plat for Christian Life Center which was tabled at the meeting of October 1, 1984. Crook advised Dixon, representative for this development, of the options available with regards to tabling this item and Stockdell explained the time frame for continuing this discussion. Crook added that a Public Hearing, regarding the street situation in the area of this proposed development, would take place at the Planning Commission meeting tonight at 5:00 P.M. that may have an influence on this plat's approval. Dixon expressed his concern for expediency due to inclement weather about to begin. He requested that all aspects of this plat be considered except for its location and Committee members agreed to the discussion. Dixon reported that there had been some concern about the drainage from neighboring Summerhill Addition running through this property and he explained that his parcel is of a higher elevation and he didn't expect any runoff. He said he felt the runoff would collect in the two natural ravines on his property. Stockdell replied that, at the request of the City Board, this committee has the responsibility of examing all drainage and that it all must be handled on-site without effecting any neighboring property. Stockdell advised that, because this property is nearly at the top of the hill, the handling of runoff would be particularly important to those properties below and Dixon replied that he owns all of that property which lower than this one. Crook said that there must be a plan for handling the drainage before this plat can be approved. Charles Presley, engineer for this project, demonstrated on the plat where the drainage path will be and he said it will be handled with a 15" corregated metal pipe under the road. • Jones and Dixon discussed the requirement for written requests for waivers on the building setback (from cemetery property) and screening q0 • • • Subdivision Committee October 5, 1984 Page 9 and it was determined that these letters had been received. Crook inquired as to sewer and Presley replied that he is currently working on the perc test. Jones stated that any new vacant lot created after July 1977 needs to be at least one and one-half acres and Dixon replied that his property does meet this requirement. Presley assured committee members that the septic tank installation would be installed in accordance with the State Board of Health. Madison asked if Dixon had considered extending sewer from Summerhill and he replied that it was cost prohibitive. Stockdell explained that the City desires to connect every property possible into the sewer system and Presley replied that there are future plans for sewer expansion to this property. Dixon said he thought that if his property was 500 to 600 ft. from the existing sewer, that he was not required to connect with it. Jones advised that one criteria for refusing to approve a LSD was if it is not currently served by water and/or sewer and there are no plans to extend them. Crook advised that the results of the perc are needed as well as the type of road surface proposed before this discussion can be continued. MOTION Stockdell moved to table this item until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Subdivision Committee because she felt that some of the issues being discussed needed to be developed in writing for closer examination. Madison seconded the the motion to table passed 3-0-0. q