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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-07 July 11 2013 PBM Page 1 of 16 Minutes of the New Hanover County Planning Board July 11, 2013 The New Hanover County Planning Board met Thursday, July 11, 2013 at 6:00 p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Historic County Courthouse, Wilmington, NC to hold a public meeting. Planning Board Present: Staff Present: Dan Hilla, Vice Chairman Chris O’Keefe, Planning & Inspections Director Andy Heath Shawn Ralston, Planning Manager Lisa Mesler Ken Vafier, Current Planning & Zoning Supervisor Tamara Murphy Sam Burgess, Senior Planner Anthony Prinz Ben Andrea, Current Planner David Weaver Sharon Huffman, Deputy County Attorney Absent: Chairman Richard Collier Vice Chairman Dan Hilla opened the meeting by welcoming the audience to the public hearing. Sam Burgess led the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance. Vice Chairman Hilla reviewed the procedures for the meeting. He announced Chairman Collier had conducted an extended public hearing on Item #1 at the June meeting to hear every comment from the public on both sides of the issue; therefore, he would open an abbreviated public hearing, allocating fifteen minutes for comments from either side, and would strictly adhere to that timeframe. Approval of the June 2013 Planning Board Meeting Minutes Anthony Prinz made a motion to adopt the minutes as drafted. David Weaver seconded the motion. The Planning Board voted 6-0 to approve the June 6, 2013 Planning Board meeting minutes. Item 1: Rezoning Request (Z-926, 06/13) - Request by Paramount Development Corporation on behalf of New Hanover Regional Medical Center Employee Pension Trust and the YMCA of Wilmington, Inc. to rezone 44.68 acres located at 8025 and 8107 Market Street from B-2, Highway Business and R-15, Residential to CZD (B-2), Conditional Zoning District Highway Business in order to develop a retail center. The subject properties are classified as Transition according to the 2006 CAMA Land Use Plan and are located within the Market Street Corridor Plan and the Porters Neck Small Area Plan. This item was continued from the June 6, 2013 Planning Board meeting. Sam Burgess gave an abbreviated presentation of the rezoning item, providing the location of the site, nearby land uses, and site plan adjustments, as well as staff recommendations. Page 2 of 16 Staff Sumary The subject properties are located in the northeastern portion of the County’s jurisdiction near the 8100 block of Market Street and are classified as Transition on the 2006 CAMA Land Use Plan. The Transition classification provides for future intensive urban development on lands that have been or will be provided with necessary urban services. The location of these areas is based upon land use planning policies requiring optimum efficiency in land use utilization and public service delivery. The properties are adjacent to a B-2 Highway Business District to the northeast and southeast, a R-15 Residential District to the northwest and southwest, a smattering of O&I Office and Institution to the southwest along with an I-1, light industrial district to the southeast. The B-2 district presently contains a State Employees Credit Union which fronts Market Street, Medac clinic along with a variety of commercial services leading up to Porters Neck Road. The R-15 district contains two established neighborhoods (Cypress Pond Apartments & Country Haven) with the O&I containing a pet grooming operation and an exterminating business off Sweet Water Drive. The I-1 District has an existing medical campus and other services located nearby. The Level of Service along this segment of Market Street is E meaning that the average number of daily vehicular trips is nearing its design carrying capacity. Market Street was widened with additional lanes in the early 1990’s. Mr. Burgess noted existing residential developments accessing off Market Street south-southwest of the petitioner’s properties include Country Haven, along with Mendenhall, Marsh Oaks, Amberleigh, and Brickstone Estates. Mr. Burgess stated efforts had been made to soften the “franchise” effect of the frontal features of the major anchor tenant. The July 1, 2013 updated site plan reflects a total square footage of 189,544 feet for the anchor tenant. This square footage has not changed since the original plan. Parking for the anchor tenant has been reduced from 806 spaces to 781. Inverted islands around the parking area are proposed as well to reduce run-off. Shops and outlots noted on the plan will account for a total of 71,740 square feet which is a slight decrease from the original plan due to the removal of one proposed building adjacent and southwest of the SECU. The number of ingress and egress points from Market Street serving the project has not changed. There are three ingress/egress points. Internal access points in front of the State Employees Credit Union and Wilmington Health Associates are amenable between Paramount and the two parties. The third internal access at the Medac facility is still under discussion. Planning Board Action: In regular session on June 6, the PB “continued” the item at the petitioner’s request until five issues relating to the project could be addressed. A copy of the Planning Board action letter to Paramount Engineering was included in the July meeting Page 3 of 16 package. A number of the issues have been addressed since the letter dated 6/13/13 was issued and will be addressed by the petitioner during their presentation. At the June 6 meeting, a number of nearby residents voiced concerns regarding increased traffic, inadequate buffering to reduce noise, environmental concerns, and proposed median treatment along Market Street. Several citizens spoke in favor of the project citing the creation of jobs, improvement of traffic flow, additional services provided to nearby residents, and tax revenue. Staff Recommendation: Mr. Burgess stated staff recommended approval of the rezoning request with the following conditions: 1) Complete all roadway improvements as recommended in the TIA and incorporated within a NCDOT Encroachment Permit prior to the issuance of an occupancy permit; 2) Construct and dedicate Hays Lane as a public collector road meeting or exceeding minimum NCDOT standards along with a maintenance agreement until such time that the road is accepted and maintained by NCDOT; 3) Receive certification from the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for the wetlands onsite prior to development approval, and adapt site plan as necessary to comply with Corps permit requirements; 4) At such time as a bus route begins operation to the site, developer will work with the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority (WAVE Transit) to construct a bus shelter and trash receptacles on the east side of the Walmart facility; 5) The site plan should display the inverted islands with the parking area in front of Walmart and the off-site street labeling of Hays Lane; 6) As the budget allows, install landscaped median sections. Responsibility for maintenance of median sections will be defined in a development agreement and subject to approval of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners. Chris O’Keefe provided updated information on the median treatment along Market Street. He explained several discussions had been held between the developer, County staff, and NCDOT. The County maintains a desire for planted medians on several gateways to the County, including Market Street, and perhaps Castle Hayne Road and Highway 421. In regard to this particular situation, a program would need to be developed to support planted medians in our roadways. At a future County Commissioners meeting, staff will present information regarding the maintenance of landscape medians. If the County can maintain the medians, staff will continue to work with the Paramount development team to have planted medians installed in this area as a prototype median style. Currently, the budget for transportation improvements is $1.6 million, and 15% of that budget or $240,000 is earmarked for contingency. Planted medians will cost approximately $125,000 more than stamped, concrete medians. Staff hopes the contingency will be enough to cover the cost of planted medians. If the County Commissioners accept the proposal for planted median maintenance from staff, they will move forward as directed. Vice Chairman Hilla entertained questions from the Planning Board members. Page 4 of 16 Anthony Prinz commented budgeting and creating a program for planted median maintenance is important, but the practicality of maintaining the medians must be considered as well. In this particular case, the median is going to be of a width that is so constrained that lane closures will be associated with that maintenance on a regular basis. Our willingness to accept the traffic delays required to perform that maintenance must also be a part of the discussion. Vice Chairman Hilla then opened the public hearing and recognized the applicant. David Harner spoke on behalf of the applicant, Paramount Development Corporation, reviewing the conditions proposed by staff and providing the following comments: 1) Applicant concurs with condition. 2) Applicant concurs with condition. 3) Applicant concurs with condition and is already in receipt of a permit from DWQ. Applicant anticipates a permit in the near future from the Army Corps of Engineers. 4) Applicant concurs with condition. A preliminary location for the bus shelter has been identified and approved during applicant’s discussions with WAVE Transit officials. 5) The applicant’s transportation improvements budget is $1.6 million. Work consists of an overlay from Marsh Oaks to Porters Neck Road, approximately 5,000 linear feet and includes a median, which if it can be afforded in the budget will be converted into a landscaped median. Paramount will work closely with staff on the design of the median, which is anticipated to include grass, some trees, and irrigation. Mr. Harner commented Mr. Prinz concerns are not only true in the maintenance of a landscape median, but also in regard to the construction of it. A stamped concrete median doesn’t necessarily involve lane closures. The construction of a grassed or landscaped median would involve lane closures. 6) In regard to the site plan, David Graffius of Gray Engineering Consultants explained several inverted islands have been incorporated into the plan, which include landscaping and accommodate stormwater management as well. Overall, impervious area was decreased by nearly one acre. In addition, the number of parking spaces was reduced by 85 spaces from the last site plan. David Harner commented the entire 44 acres development is over 50% pervious surface. 7) In regard to the rear buffer, Mr. Harner reported he had a very cordial meeting with approximately 40 residents of Country Haven, who wanted the developer to hear and understand their concerns. The meeting provided the opportunity to share the revised site plan and work through several items of concern to the residents. Mr. Harner announced the buffer on the left side of the parking lot had been doubled from 30 feet to 60 feet by redesigning the truck drive to tighten up the angle, which allowed an additional 30 feet of green space for heavy plantings. Mr. Harner pointed out the cross-section reflects an initial 50 feet of existing trees 30’ - 60’; two rows of landscaping to augment the initial buffer of 6’ – 8’ plantings measured from the ground, the ponds will have plantings if DWQ permits, preferably Leyland Cypress; a third row of vegetation 6’ – 8’, and a privacy fence that will run across the entire rear of the development property. Page 5 of 16 Mr. Harner stated a three foot (3’) parapet wall had been added to buffer the air conditioning noise. At the request of staff and the board at last month’s meeting, Walmart hired a third-party engineer to conduct an acoustical test. Most importantly, the lengthy report indicates the highest noise level allowed on this property is 50 decibels, which is the sound of a quiet conversation. The report also indicates the proposed development will be okay, however, there is the possibility of truck noise coming over when trucks are in that driveway and loading. The report recommended a 10’ – 12’ high sound wall. After lengthy discussion with the tenant, Walmart and Paramount are in agreement that a 10’ – 12’ sound wall will be placed likely on a berm of 1’ – 3’ for the entire length of the back of the shopping center, which will mitigate the noise on the residents on Lily Pond Lane and to the northwest. The sound wall is not shown on the site plan, but is part of their commitment. Additionally, following discussions with the Country Haven residents, the developer agreed to the following conditions: 1) Shield the perimeter lights; 2) No pole lights in the rear of the building; 3) Limit the height of the rear wall packs at Walmart. (If the requirement is 15’, the packs will be 15’ and will not be raised to the top of the parapets). 4) No overnight RV parking (Walmart representatives agreed to restrict overnight RV parking, with the caveat that enforcement of the restriction be assumed by local law enforcement officials). 5) No visible bare trees. (In the rear buffer plan, the first 50’ of existing trees will be preserved. In response to residents’ concerns about sparse areas, the developer agreed to infill those bare areas once the grading has taken place). 6) No breaks in the fence along the rear of the property. (There will be a 10’ - 12’ bale and pallet storage area, but the wall will go up to that area and will be a consistent height all the way across the rear. David Harner reported other items of concern to the residents would be extremely difficult to accommodate, for example, no overnight truck deliveries and no overnight truck parking. David Harner stated in regard to the proposed shared access, Paramount and Walmart had worked extensively with Dr. Parr and Medac to ensure the proposed driveway access is safe and approved by NCDOT. He pointed out the recorded easement on the new site plan is a shared easement for the mutual benefit of both properties and explained that half of Medac’s existing driveway is located on the property Paramount intends to purchase. The other half of their existing driveway is on the Medac property. Paramount intends to use that mutual access easement for their development as well. For the last six months, Paramount and Medac have worked on a solution for the access and great progress has been made. Paramount suggested a linear connection to the driveway, which they felt was the safest option, but would impact Medac’s parking spaces. Medac disagreed and recently proposed a logical connection point via a traffic circle. He noted there is no entitled right for Paramount to need to go to that traffic circle. Mr. Harner also pointed out because the shopping center was not designed around their property it became difficult for the traffic circle to be logical for their project. Mr. Harner stated Paramount will commit to make the connection point at the shared access with Medac. He commented during conversations earlier in the week with Dr. Parr and his attorney, it was acceptable to them that there be a diagonal connection and they felt they could work with the Page 6 of 16 loss of a couple of parking spaces. Mr. Harner stated he felt they have done what they can and will continue to work with Medac to make the connection point. David Harner reported the Market Street entrance has been reviewed by NCDOT and does achieve the 100’ stem, which is important to them. It allows patrons of Medac to enter the property and allows patrons to stop at a stop sign and then go out. Medac’s right in, right out access is preserved. The entrance also allows the Walmart traffic to enter and exit. The proposed entrance has been reviewed by NCDOT. He concluded by stating the only change on the plan the board received is the new curve to the Medac access. Vice Chairman Hilla opened the opposition portion of the public hearing. Kyle Nutt, an attorney with Shipman & Wright, spoke on behalf of Seamist, LLC and distributed materials to board members, which included a map of the impacted area, a traffic study and accident study report from NCDOT, and a letter from the law firm on behalf of Seamist, LLC previously submitted in regard to the changes discussed in front of the Medac facility. He stated it was correctly pointed out there had been many negotiations over the last six months to facilitate an amicable resolution to the entrance to the Medac facility; however, he could not concur that the issue has been totally resolved and the parties are 100% on the same page, but significant progress has been made. While the proposed plan reflecting the traffic circle is more satisfactory to his clients, they have not reached a full agreement on that plan and feel that further discussion and study as to the safety and impact of the traffic circle connection and entrance need to be further fleshed out to ensure it is safe and the best option for everyone involved. Mr. Nutt requested a condition be placed on the plan approval that the traffic circle connection be subject to further study and further development so the parties could agree at a later point on a solution and ensure that it is safe. Mr. Nutt stated their second item of concern is the placement of the large storefront in front of the Medac facility. On the new site plan, there is a reduction in the square footage to account for the diagonal entrance. The unfinished rear façade of the 20,000 square feet building, which will also contain dumpsters, is facing the Medac facility. Because the primary viewpoint for the Medac building, which has been there quite a long time, will be the rear of that building, Mr. Nutt requested that a condition also be placed on the approval of the plan requiring a buffer be erected between the unfinished rear of the proposed building and the Medac facility in order to screen the Medac facility’s view of the unfinished rear building façade, including dumpsters and cargo bays. Cathy Clausen spoke on behalf of the residents of Country Haven. She stated they did have a very good meeting with the developer; however, there were some items that were not agreed to that the residents would like for the board to consider. She also reminded the board that when the residents built homes in their neighborhood, the adjacent property for the proposed development was zoned residential. She commented it was an undue burden on the residents to have a large Walmart with sound and traffic issues on adjacent property; not to mention the impact on the value of their homes if you can actually see the building. Page 7 of 16 Ms. Clausen stated the following items were not agreed upon by the residents and the developer at the meeting: 1) No overnight truck parking. (The reason provided was the safety of tired truck drivers; however, if drivers are unable to leave the site after unloading and drive to a rest stop, everyone should be concerned about them being on the roads. The residents still feel strongly there should be no trucks left overnight in those parking lots). 2) No deliveries, loading/unloading, trash pickup between 10pm and 7am. (Residents with two story homes with 17’ of visible space were concerned about noise traveling over the 10’ - 12’ sound barrier wall when they are sleeping and would like a condition placed on the approval). 3) Plant mature trees in the tree buffer closest to the building. (Immature 10’ trees are planned for the buffer, which will take 5-8 years to mature to provide a visual barrier. Residents with two story homes with 17’ of visible space were concerned about waiting that long to no longer see the Walmart building and would request those immature trees be changed to mature trees). 4) Concerns about the proposed median. (Residents feel the median causes undue burden on the residents because it will result in visitors to Gold’s Gym using the neighborhood’s private roadways as public access in order to make a left turn onto Market Street. The community has many middle class residents who are concerned about needing to constantly repave their private roads at their expense if they are used for public access) 5) Ensure the site plan approved contains the sound barrier and all of the other comments made by the developer. (Ms. Clausen noted the site plan mailed to residents and the site plan shown by staff were not the same plan reviewed during the recent meeting. The residents would like to ensure the plan reviewed at the meeting, which includes the comments regarding the barriers, etc. is the site plan approved by the board). Dr. Robert Parr of Seamist, LLC stated he was also representing OrthoWilmington, a condo owner in their building that also supports their concerns in this matter. They anticipate the plan will go through with a stronger traffic plan. Their objections are partly due to the fact that the stacking from the traffic light will extend far past their present entry point. Dr. Parr stated they own two-thirds of the shared easement, not one-half so they are giving up some space for it. They are located 550’ from the light and their concern is that if 10,000 trips per day are added and a long cycle light, the traffic stacking will interfere with the Medac entry and with Walmart’s entry and also cause stacking on Market Street. During a.m. and p.m. peak hour traffic, there will stacking that goes past their entry point. They have worked very close with the developer to ensure the safety of their patients and the citizens on Market Street. Dr. Parr stated he and David Harner have a vision and have been working diligently to achieve that vision, but the plan is not there yet. He noted it is a very difficult problem and Seamist is giving up property rights and access for the safety of their patients and the citizens on Market Street. In regard to the NCDOT traffic data, Dr. Parr commented he would like for NCDOT to review that data because this is an incredibly dangerous area of Market Street and most of the accidents are rear-end collisions. While at the last meeting these collisions were characterized as fender benders, the data indicates that only 9 of the 51 rear-end collisions were classified as fender benders. Most of them were 30 mph to 50 mph collisions into a stopped vehicle, which is not a fender bender. Stacking leads to those rear end collisions. Dr. Parr also noted they were told at Page 8 of 16 the last meeting they would have to depend on courtesy passes to access the Medac facility. A courtesy pass out of their parking lot to access Market Street is not good traffic planning. Courtesy passes actually lead to dangerous driving. Dr. Parr acknowledged there is a solution and he and Mr. Harner were working on it day and night. He then suggested the Seamist traffic engineer, David Tunstall, work directly with the traffic engineer for Paramount to achieve a solution. In conclusion, he restated Seamist could not let go of their restrictions for the safety of their patients and the people on Market Street. Todd Bartlett reiterated he had never seen a Walmart in a location like the proposed cramped site. In his opinion, the site was not good for economic growth because there is no space for other businesses to build. He pointed out there is plenty of room to build with acres of space for expansion further down the street at the I-40 bypass. Mr. Bartlett commented the adjacent property is a residential neighborhood and nobody in the room would want a Walmart next to their neighborhood and neither did the residents of his neighborhood. He noted the residents had held discussions with the developer because they are scared. Mr. Bartlett felt the proposal would only benefit Walmart, the YMCA, and a pension fund and would not benefit the neighborhood. Vice Chairman Hilla closed the public hearing and asked for questions from the board. Anthony Prinz thanked Dr. Parr for his presentation and his effort to work with the petitioner on a solution for the shared access. He then asked Dr. Parr to elaborate on the 2/3 right to the access easement belonging to Seamist, LLC. Dr. Parr explained only one lane of the proposed entrance is located on Paramount’s property and two lanes are located on the Seamist property. Of the three lanes, two lanes are on Seamist, LLC property and one lane is on Paramount’s property. He stated it’s not so much who owns the property because there is a shadow effect on the easement so Paramount does have rights to the easement just as Seamist has rights. They are working with NCDOT so there are less points of conflict at that point so their patrons and the Walmart patrons can have easy ingress/egress. The 100’ anchor point could actually be extended with the plans they are proposing. He noted there will be stacking due to the light so they are in favor of extending that anchor point. In response to Mr. Prinz’ question, Dr. Parr stated they were willing to increase the internal protected stem if that would help. He said Medac would also like to have the option of a right- out of their property through the Paramount development. Anthony Prinz stated the parties seemed to be close to an agreement and asked for clarification on the deficiencies in the proposal, noting he would like to see the access issue resolved as quickly as possible because he was concerned about placing a condition on the project that would leave it in limbo. Dr. Parr stated in regard to the entry point on Market Street, their only condition is that the 60 feet MRI truck has to be able to enter and exit their property easily. That would require the islands to be mountable. The main problem on the site plan is toward the back at the round-about where the drive cuts too close to the OrthWilmington parking spaces. The OrthoWilmington office has a limited number of vital parking spaces in front of it to accommodate elderly people, Page 9 of 16 and people with walkers, on crutches, and with prosthetics that are being impacted. He commented they had just learned that the 30’ wide water line easement from the water tower located behind the two properties to Market Street could be built across. That is 30’ that runs parallel to the property with a significant amount of buffer and design capability that aren’t a part of the proposed plan. Dr. Parr felt there is a solution to the issue, and the development will go forward, but not until the Seamist, LLC concerns are satisfied. The patients need a safe and secure parking lot, with close access parking spaces. Bernice Johnson of Cape Fear Public Utility Authority stated a concentrated water line runs in a 30’ easement to the water tower. CFPUA does allow roads over their easements, but they prefer the road not be graded down due to the depth of the water lines. She has been working with Paramount and has been contacted by John Tunstall and she felt the situation could be worked out. She will be researching the as-builts for the depth of the water line, which is assumed to be three feet (3’) deep. In response to a question from Mr. Prinz, Dr. Parr stated in regard to the buffer/screening of the utility services at the rear of the facility, Medac would like to see some screening between their facility and the proposed development. He felt sure Mr. Harner would be willing to work with them on that issue, which is customary when there are high density air conditioners or truck deliveries. He suggested there may be much more flexibility to move the road over given the information provided by Ms. Johnson of the CFPUA. Anthony Prinz stated he had some concerns about the geometry at the intersection and the amount of uncontrolled area shown on the traffic plan, as well as the movement at one of the other intersections. Dr. Parr stated access for their trucks could be provided by the use of mountable curbs. He reported the Seamist traffic engineer, Dan Cumbo, had conducted truck entry tests on the round- about and the entry. He felt Seamist, LLC, OrthoWilmington, and Paramount were at an 8.5 on a 10 point scale in regard to reaching a final agreement. David Weaver stated he had raised concerns at the last meeting about the impact of Walmart on the neighborhood behind them. Based on the information presented earlier, he felt Walmart had addressed many of the neighborhood’s concerns very well. He also thought it was important for neighbors to understand in regard to the vacant R-15 property, if the front portion of the property along Market Street, which is zoned B-2, was developed as commercial property, it would be very easy to develop a high density residential project on that site behind it. In his opinion, the current proposal really mitigated many of the concerns he would have as a resident of that neighborhood in terms of sound and visibility. He noted planting a big tree doesn’t mean it will be a better sound barrier than a small tree and the proposed Leyland Cypress trees grow very quickly. In regard to the transportation improvements, Mr. Weaver felt the parties were very close to a solution and the availability of the 30’ easement for a road may provide an opportunity for a solution. Mr. Weaver stated he would not want the project to go forward to the Commissioners with a condition that a transportation plan be in place that is completely agreed upon by Medac and OrthoWilmington. He felt it would hold Walmart to a condition they may never be able to satisfy. In regard to the screening of the rear façade facing Medac, Mr. Weaver Page 10 of 16 commented it would be great if Walmart was agreeable to it, but he thought it would set a precedent to require screening between commercial uses, which has typically not been done in the county. He noted it appeared that most of the service area actually backs up to the parking area. No one likes to look at a dumpster, but it is a commercial area. In conclusion, Mr. Weaver stated while it is a fine commercial area with the Medac and OrthoWilmington offices, he personally could not require Walmart to provide the requested screening. Vice Chairman Hilla stated he agreed with Mr. Weaver’s comments on both the traffic and screening issues. He then asked Mr. Harner to elaborate on the construction of the sound wall added to the rear façade of the Walmart to screen the adjacent neighbors. David Harner explained the sound wall is a synthetic wall with insulation designed to baffle the noise and bring the decibels down an average of ten. The wall will be 10’ – 12’ high. Based on the third party analysis, the noise generators, such as engines, smokestacks, refrigeration units, and loading vehicles are located within the first ten feet so the wall is designed to baffle the noise generated within the first ten feet. The wall is made of a synthetic material like pvc or a masonry product or concrete board. The 6’ – 8’ Leyland Cypress trees will also be planted behind the wall on the residential side. David Weaver inquired if the hours of trash pickup could be restricted. Mr. Harner replied the concern with limiting truck traffic during non-peak hours is that truck traffic is then added to the existing traffic during peak hours and would be a concern for the truck drivers, for Walmart, and for the motoring public. The idea was that the truck noise has been studied and the baffling effect of the sound wall was the concession to mitigate that truck noise. Vice Chair Hilla inquired about the wishes of the board. Mr. Harner stated he would like to make one additional comment with respect to their dealings with Medac. He felt staff would agree nobody has tried harder to reach an agreement with Medac and noted they will continue to work toward an agreement. He then echoed Mr. Weaver’s comments and respectfully requested no additional concessions in that regard. Anthony Prinz commented he had one additional concern. He reported during a break at the last meeting Matt Davis with Fire Services had asked about the berm proposed at the end of the collector street. He noted the intent of that berm is to prevent people from driving off the end of the collector street and four-wheeling on the undeveloped property behind it. The intent of this project berm is to do that for a temporary period of time and when the collector street is then extended, that berm will be removed. David Harner stated the berm was also a visual option chosen instead of concrete barriers. He explained they would incorporate the removal of that berm and installation of pavement to the property line in the development agreement. Anthony Prinz agreed it would be appropriate to incorporate the removal of the berm in the development agreement. He then echoed the comments hear earlier in the meeting, noting Mr. Page 11 of 16 Harner and his staff had been in frequent contact with the community, other stakeholders, staff and planning board members. He reported his experience with them had been positive, noting he had provided them with a red lined site plan an hour prior to the June Planning Board meeting and they had accommodated every technical comment he had made from a traffic management standpoint in the most recent site plan. Mr. Prinz stated belief that Mr. Harner had the best intentions of working with Medac to resolve the traffic management concerns because that had been demonstrated by the successful resolution to the access point at the traffic signal with the property owner across the street. He also noted an entire outparcel development had been removed from the project, which further reduced the traffic demand and wasn’t reflected in the traffic impact analysis (TIA). In his opinion, the TIA over- represents the amount of traffic that will be generated. In regard to the requested acoustic analysis, it is scientific and the mitigation measures will prevent adverse impacts on the neighbors. Mr. Prinz stated regardless of how the median turns out, he wholeheartedly supported the project limited with the conditions recommended by the staff. Vice Chairman Hilla pointed out the rear buffer sound wall agreed to by Paramount and Walmart was not included in the staff recommendations. Mr. Harner acknowledged the sound barrier wall was not reflected on the site plan, but stated they were definitely agreeable to that condition, as well as to the six other conditions he had verbally committed to the residents of Country Haven. He listed the following conditions: 1) A 10’ – 12’ high sound barrier wall along the entire rear of the property; 2) Shield all perimeter lights; 3) No pole lights in the rear; 4) Limit the height of the rear wall packs (goal is 15’, but it might be slightly higher due to the trucks); 5) No overnight RV parking; 6) Bare spots in existing tree line along the rear 50’ buffer will be augmented with 6’ – 8’ trees; 7) No breaks in the fence around the back. He noted it may be a concrete wall, but it will be consistent. He commented the as-built survey clearly shows a lot of mature trees will be saved within that 50’ buffer so second story homes will be looking out on the canopy of those existing mature trees, which are 12” - 18” in diameter. 8) Raise the rear parapet three feet. Mr. Harner clarified the rear parapet will be raised three feet along the entire rear of the store. Anthony Prinz made a motion concurring with the additional conditions and given the six conditions outlined in the staff report to recommend approval of the requested rezoning to the board of commissioners. During discussion, Mr. O’Keefe asked Mr. Prinz how the traffic and the discussions with Seamist, LLC should be addressed in the motion. Mr. Prinz explained he didn’t address those issues in the motion and asked if the board was comfortable with Paramount dealing with the issue in good faith. He noted if they don’t deal with it, he had the feeling their attorneys would work it out so it would resolve itself. Mr. Prinz stated he would rather not tie the Walmart approval to a specific proposal because we can’t characterize what we are trying to accomplish other than cross connectivity. He stated he was confident it would come together. Page 12 of 16 Andy Heath seconded the motion. The Planning Board voted 6-0 to recommend approval of Rezoning Request Z-926 with the following conditions: 1) Include a 10’ – 12’ high sound wall; 2) Shield perimeter lights; 3) No pole lights in rear of building; 4) Limit height of rear wall packs; 5) No overnight RV parking; 6) Bare spots in existing tree line augmented with vegetation; including 6’ – 8’ trees; 7) No breaks in fence around back; 8) Entire rear parapet will be raised three feet (3’); 9) Complete all roadway improvements as recommended in the TIA and incorporated within a NCDOT Encroachment Permit prior to the issuance of an occupancy permit; 10) Construct and dedicate Hays Lane as a public collector road meeting or exceeding minimum NCDOT standards along with a maintenance agreement until such time that the road is accepted and maintained by NCDOT; 11) Receive certification from the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for the wetlands onsite prior to development approval, and adapt site plan as necessary to comply with Corps permit requirements; 12) At such time as a bus route begins operation to the site, developer will work with the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority (WAVE Transit) to construct a bus shelter and trash receptacles on the east side of the Walmart facility; 13) The site plan should display the inverted islands with the parking area in front of Walmart and the off-site street labeling of Hays Lane; 14) As the budget allows, install landscaped median sections. Responsibility for maintenance of median sections will be defined in a development agreement and subject to approval of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners. Item 2: Special Use Permit Request (S-590M, 07/13) - Request by Janie Walker for an in- home child daycare for 8 children at 4432 Jason Court in the Churchill Estates Subdivision. The subject property is zoned R-10, Residential and is classified as Urban according to the 2006 CAMA Land Classification Map. Ken Vafier presented the staff summary and provided information pertaining to location, land classification, access, level of service and zoning. Mr. Vafier also showed maps, aerials, video, and photographs of the property and the surrounding area. Mr. Vafier stated the applicant, Mrs. Walker, is seeking a special use permit for a daycare for 8 children. She currently operates a daycare at 4432 Jason Court that accommodates five children. Per the requirements in the zoning ordinance in the table of permitted uses, as well as the definition of a child daycare center, the increase to eight children requires a special use permit in the R-10 district. The subject parcel is located in an Urban land use classification and is zoned R- 10 residential district. The area is surrounded by single family residential with some multi-family residential to the west. Page 13 of 16 Mr. Vafier explained a similar request was heard by the Planning Board on May 7, 2009. The Planning Board unanimously passed a motion to approve the request; however, at the June 1, 2009 New Hanover County Board of Commissioners meeting, the request was denied particularly due to concerns about traffic and access. When the applicant came forth with a request to resubmit the special use permit, there were some things that had to constitute a substantial change in order for the request to be accepted and processed. Mrs. Walker has provided that information. Mr. Vafier reported the main access has been reconfigured to abandon a circular driveway feature previously proposed in 2009. In order to accommodate Section 72-20 of the zoning ordinance, the circular driveway was proposed in 2009. One of the reasons the request was denied was because the proposed driveway would be constructed in that manner. Some residents felt the circular driveway would not be consistent with the aesthetic appearance of the rest of the neighborhood. Mr. Vafier stated the existing driveway will be improved to accommodate the applicant’s parking proposal. There is approximately 55’ in length from the edge of the garage to the property line and 45’ in width for the parking area. He reviewed the site plan, indicating the proposed parking area, which provides multiple spaces to accommodate access, as well as preserve the existing driveway and be in harmony with the existing neighborhood. Mr Vafier reported all the Findings of Fact were positive. He highlighted Finding 2(C), which states, “An existing paved driveway with access to Jason Court for ingress and egress will be improved to meet access requirements detailed in Section 72-20(2). Mr. Vafier explained this would require some sort of designation for the parking spaces. It was his understanding Mrs. Walker would like to use some type of vertical reflecting indicators for the parking spaces. Mr. Vafier also mentioned in regard to the 2009 deliberation of this request, along the northwestern boundary of the property, a solid privacy fence has been constructed on that property to address some concerns regarding separation of the children in the rear play area from pets at the adjacent residence. He then entertained questions from the board. In response to a question from Mr. Prinz, Mr. Vafier confirmed the applicant was going through the process was because Mrs. Walker would like to increase the number of children from 5 to 8. Mr. Prinz stated he wanted to bring it to the board’s attention that Ms. Walker was required to provide a site plan and place reflectors to designate parking spaces because one additional family would like to bring their children to her home in the morning. He commented he felt it was excessive to require her to go through this process for three additional children. He noted childcare is very scarce in New Hanover County in his opinion. He said he recently had a son and they had put their name on lists over a year ago and haven’t heard from any of them. Mr. Prinz stated he would rather see the request as an open and closed case, but they should certainly hear from any folks who would like to speak against it. Vice Chairman Hilla opened the public hearing and recognized the petitioner. Page 14 of 16 Mrs. Janie Walker, the applicant, declined to make a presentation. Vice Chairman Hilla asked if anyone else would like to speak in favor of the request. Cory Lewis, the adjacent neighbor, stated he had led the petition against the 2009 special use request. He stated his reason for opposing the request at that time were not due to child care, but were due to the proposed parking and driveway not being consistent with the neighborhood. The proposed parking area looked like a commercial parking lot and didn’t look like the others in the neighborhood. Mr. Lewis stated he had no problems with the new special use request as long as the driveway looked like every other driveway in the neighborhood. He stated he also spoke on behalf of everyone who was listed on the petition opposed to the 2009 request. Vice Chairman Hilla opened the opposition portion of the public hearing. Sharon Kissling of 4406 Jason Court stated she was opposed to the special use permit because of the proposed parking. She felt it was not in harmony with the rest of the neighborhood, which typically have a double-wide concrete driveway with no printing or cars parking on the lawn diagonally. She felt the proposed parking resembled a shopping center and was not what a residential neighborhood should look like. Ms. Kissling noted at this time, there are always multiple cars parked in front of the house and on the lawn on occasion. She stated this area is very heavily trafficked. There are over 350 families between Churchill Estates, the apartments, and the townhouses behind them. She commented adding all these cars to our street is difficult. When the cars back out onto Jason Court, they are backing into a narrow street, which will tie up traffic. Ms. Kissling said this is not what a residential neighborhood is about. She stated she admired the fact that the applicants have a daycare and would like to contribute to the community by adding slots for additional children, however, this is a residential neighborhood and putting in that type of parking makes it look like a business, which is not in harmony with the neighborhood. Vice Chairman Hilla opened the five minute rebuttal period. Mr. Walker, the applicant’s husband, stated they had come before the board four years ago with a similar request and due to a lack of communication with their adjacent neighbors and other neighbors, their request was denied. The neighbors thought they were going to put up a daycare sign and concrete their entire front yard. He stated if not for the letter sent to the nearby residents by the County, most of the neighbors were not aware that they operate a daycare facility out of their home. He stated they have very little traffic. Mr. Walker commented that the request is for “up to eight children” because the County requires the petition to be filed that way. There will be one more family so one more car may come each day. They filed the request because their current parents have additional children they would like to bring to the daycare. At this point, Mrs. Walker can’t accept the families’ other children because she doesn’t have a special use permit. In response to the comment about parking on the lawn, Mr. Walker stated he chooses to park his vehicle on his lawn occasionally because he has a large family that visits. He thanked the board for their time. Vice Chairman Hilla closed the public hearing and entertained questions from the board. Page 15 of 16 David Weaver asked how the parking would be handled and marked. Mrs. Walker explained they planned to install reflective pole markers to designate parking spaces. The parents come at staggered times in the mornings and afternoons. Mr. Weaver asked if they could limit the parking markers to low profile landscape timbers to designate parking instead of pole markers to look more in harmony with the neighborhood. Mrs. Walker stated she could use landscape timbers if need be, but she had planned to simply use reflectors. Anthony Prinz inquired how many cars were in the driveway during drop-off and pick-up each day at the same time. Mrs. Walker stated there were two cars in the driveway at the same time each morning – her van and one parent’s vehicle. One parent walks her child to the daycare from their home down the street. Mr. Prinz stated that was perfect – community oriented childcare. He stated he was in full support of the request and would question the requirements in the ordinance to provide unneeded parking at unnecessary expense. He recommended staff review the ordinance before the request goes to the board of commissioners and determine whether it is reasonable to require the parking. Tamara Murphy agreed wholeheartedly with Mr. Prinz’s comments and also felt the parking requirement was overkill. She stated she fully supported approval of the special use permit. Andy Heath stated he supported the special use permit in 2009 and was in support of the current request. Andy Heath then made a motion to recommend approval of the special permit request. Anthony Prinz seconded the motion. During discussion, David Weaver asked for clarification that the site plan was not specifically requiring reflectors on poles to designate parking spaces. Chris O’Keefe explained the off-street parking requirement in the ordinance would be satisfied as long as Mrs. Walker has the ability to designate where people should park. She has proposed a very low profile arrangement that will satisfy the requirements and will not detract from the appearance of the neighborhood. Mr. O’Keefe also noted the point about the requirements in the case was very well taken and staff appreciated the thought going into it. Mr. Weaver asked if a condition should be included that parking spaces will not be paved. Ken Vafier stated the governing provision of parking for a child daycare center does not require the parking to be paved, but states it must be paved or otherwise improved. For that reason, staff has asked for designations on each individual space to indicate the minimum parking requirements are being met. Page 16 of 16 With no further discussion, the Planning Board voted 6-0 to recommend approval of Special Use Permit Request S-590M. Technical Review Committee Report (June) Sam Burgess provided the following report: The County’s Technical Review Committee met once during the month of June. Two projects were slated on the agenda. Hanover Reserve (Performance Plan) Hanover Reserve is located in the northeastern portion of the County near Murrayville Road and is classified as Urban and Wetland Resource Protection on the 2006 CAMA Land Use Plan. The petitioner for the project requested preliminary site plan approval for 86 residential lots to be served by public water and sewer. Access to the property would be thru Quail Woods Road (public) and Rabbit Hollow Drive (public). Most of the proposed roads within the project are designated as private. In a vote of 5-0, the TRC approved Hanover Reserve for 86 residential lots with six conditions, which were included in the package. Middle Sound Village (EDZD Exceptional Design Plan) This item was continued because the petitioner did not attend the meeting. The item will be probably be scheduled for the July 26, 2013 TRC meeting. Chris O’Keefe reminded board members of the joint Planning Board/County Commissioners workshop to kick-off the Comprehensive Plan, which will be held on Friday, July 26, 2013 at 9:00 am in the Lucie Harrell Conference Room in the New Hanover County Government Center. Mr. O’Keefe also introduced Ben Andrea, the new current planner, who came to New Hanover County from Pender County. Vice Chairman Hilla adjourned the meeting at 7:46 p.m.