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2013-06 June 6 2013 PBM Page 1 of 27 Minutes of the New Hanover County Planning Board June 6, 2013 The New Hanover County Planning Board met Thursday, June 6, 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: Richard Collier, Chairman Chris O’Keefe, Planning & Inspections Director Dan Hilla, Vice Chairman Shawn Ralston, Planning Manager Lisa Mesler Ken Vafier, Current Planning & Zoning Supervisor Tamara Murphy Sam Burgess, Senior Planner Anthony Prinz Sharon Huffman, Deputy County Attorney David Weaver Absent: Andy Heath Chairman Richard Collier opened the meeting by welcoming the audience to the public hearing. Sam Burgess led the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance. Chairman Collier reviewed the procedures for the meeting. Approval of the May 2013 Planning Board Meeting Minutes Anthony Prinz made a motion to approve the May 2, 2013 Planning Board meeting minutes. Lisa Mesler seconded the motion. The Planning Board voted 6-0 to approve the May 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. Sam Burgess presented the staff summary and provided information pertaining to location, land classification, access, level of service and zoning. Mr. Burgess also showed maps, aerials, video, and photographs of the property and the surrounding area. Page 2 of 27 Staff Summary Current Zoning and Land Classification The subject properties are located in the northeastern portion of New Hanover County near the 8100 block of Market Street are classified as Transition on the 2006 CAMA Land Use Plan. The Transition classification provides for future intensive 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 and land utilization and also public service delivery. The properties are adjacent to a B-2 Highway Business District to the northeast and to the southeast, as well as an R-15 Residential District to the northwest and southwest and a smattering of O&I Office and Institutional zoning to the southwest, along with I-1 Light Industrial across the street to the southeast. The B-2 district contains a State Employees Credit Union, which is in front of the proposed rezoning, also a MEDAC clinic located northeast and adjacent to the property, along with a variety of commercial services leading up to Porters Neck Road. The R-15 district contains two established neighborhoods, including Cypress Pond Apartments developed in the 1990s and the Country Haven subdivision established in the late 1980s. The O&I district to the southwest contains a pet grooming operation and an exterminating business off Sweetwater Drive. The I-1 Industrial district located directly across the street has a medical campus that has been in existence for a number of years. Level of Service The level of service along this segment of Market Street is E, meaning the number of daily vehicular trips is nearing its design capacity. Market Street was widened with additional lanes during the 1990s. Proposed Zoning The proposed zoning is CZD (B-2) Conditional Zoning Highway Business. The purpose of the CZD procedure is to address situations where a particular land use would be consistent with the New Hanover County Land Use Plan and the objectives of the Zoning Ordinance and where only a specific use or uses is proposed for the project. Although similar to the Conditional Use District, the CZD does not require a companion Special Use Permit and the hearing is not quasi-judicial. However, like the CUD, the CZD requires that a specific site plan accompany the application, that a Traffic Impact Analysis be completed and that a community meeting be held prior to the submittal of an application. The subject project includes a proposal to accommodate a major anchor tenant, in this case Walmart, and a series of retail and office establishments in order to service the need of a growing Porters Neck area. The petitioner’s site plan displays a total of nine proposed accessory buildings and the Walmart building. The Walmart is proposed to be 189,544 square feet, and the nine outlots are proposed to be a total of 61,180 square feet. Two of the nine outlots proposed will consist of 22,400 and 19,940 square feet, and smaller accessory buildings Page 3 of 27 will range in size from 4,000 square feet to 5,400 square feet. A list of specific uses has been provided on the site plan for the outlots and will be limited to banks, restaurants, general mercantile, general retail, office, medical, automobile service station/gas station and convenience store. Based on the developer’s phasing schedule, construction is slated to begin between October 2013 and October 2014. Full build-out is slated for March, 2015. Mr. Burgess reported several changes had been made to the site plan and would be addressed by the petitioners during their presentation. Staff Discussion This area of the County has witnessed an explosion of population growth over the past twenty years with an increase of 4% to 5% based on census data for that period. This growth has placed a huge demand for services and has resulted in the establishment of two grocery stores, a home improvement facility, medical park, landscape nursery, and pharmacy along with other smaller retail stores located between Marsh Oaks Drive and Porters Neck Road. Increased growth has placed a high demand for water and sewer infrastructure and produced traffic congestion along Market Street during peak hour periods. Based on the recommended TIA road improvements between Bayshore Drive and Porters Neck Road along Market Street coupled with the proposed construction of Military Cutoff Extension in 2017, traffic congestion is anticipated to be alleviated. A cement median from Marsh Oaks Drive to Porters Neck Road is recommended in the approved TIA. Staff believes that efforts should be made to create and install a landscape median (of various widths depending on the turn lanes recommended) that would enhance the gateway leading into Wilmington from Pender County. Long term maintenance would be the responsibility of the anchor tenant through a recorded deed. The project will be accessed through three (3) curb cuts or access points off Market Street. The primary entrance/access with signalization will be located near the SECU facility and extend north and connect with Hays Lane, a platted 50’ public right-of-way, (see attached site plan). The second access will be from the existing Medac driveway, and the third access will be near the southeastern portion of the project. Currently, Hays Lane connects to a private, unimproved road to the rear of the subject property line. The proposal includes for Hays Lane (on the site plan the road is listed as Hayes Lane, so staff has recommended as a condition that a correction be made to the site plan) to be connected through the proposed project as an 80’ right-of-way from Market Street to the rear property line. However, in order for Hays Lane to set the stage for future extension and connection with the Lowes Home Improvement access and to be compatible with the preferred access plan in the adopted Market Street Corridor Study, it will need to be dedicated, designated, recorded, and built as a public collector road meeting or exceeding Page 4 of 27 minimum NCDOT standards. Once built, the developer would then be charged with petitioning NCDOT to take over the maintenance of the road at a future time. Until NCDOT assumes road maintenance, road maintained will be assured through covenants and restrictions which will be signed by the developer and anchor tenant. The connection of the new segment of Hays Lane to the existing portion of Hays Lane will also allow pedestrian and bicycle access from the abutting residential communities to the rear of the subject project. To further encourage pedestrian and bicycle movement into and throughout the project, and to comply with the Market Street Corridor and Comprehensive Greenway Plan, an eight foot multi-use path has been proposed that runs the width of the property frontage for a distance of over 800’. Additionally internal pedestrian sidewalks have also been provided throughout the development. Proposed building setbacks based on a building height of 23’ for the anchor tenant exceed the requirements of Section 60.3 of the Zoning Ordinance. Proposed buffer yards meet the requirements of Section 62 of the Zoning Ordinance by proposing ample screening from the adjacent neighborhoods. The buffer will be comprised of existing natural vegetation and supplemented with additional buffer plantings. A loading dock barrier located to the rear of the anchor tenant is also proposed to baffle noise pollution (see attached renderings). Low level lighting is proposed as well. The original site plan has been refined in response to the stated concerns of adjacent residential landowners. Changes to the site plan included improvements to internal circulation and access, increased setbacks and buffer yards and retaining natural vegetation along with a baffling wall adjacent to the loading dock to mitigate noise. Four community meetings were held between April and May to gather input from surrounding communities. Staff Position Based on the information submitted, staff concludes that the petitioner’s proposal to rezone approximately 44.68 acres from B-2 Highway Business and R-15 Residential to CZD B-2 Conditional Zoning District Highway Business is compatible with applicable plans including the 2006 CAMA Land Use Plan, and Porters Neck Small Area Plan and is compatible with many of the recommendations of the Market Street Corridor Plan. Staff also concludes that the proposal is reasonable and is in the public’s interest. Although staff attempted to impress upon the developer that the Market Street Corridor Plan discourages franchise architecture in order to create a “sense of place” unique to the area, the proposed anchor clearly identifies itself as Walmart, America’s largest retail franchise. Further, proposed parking spaces for the anchor tenant and all of the retail shops (1,107) well exceed the minimum requirements of Section 81-1 of the Zoning Ordinance. The proposal seeks to provide parking for the heaviest anticipated parking demand without the use of structured parking areas or pervious pavement which would help to reduce the size of stormwater facilities necessary to contain runoff and to minimize any impact from Page 5 of 27 Sweetwater Branch that leads into Everett’s Creek, which leads into Pages Creek. Staff recommended the following conditions to alleviate these concerns: 1) Work with a local architect to identify the unique character of the area in order to create a design for the retail center that looks less like a Walmart franchise and more in tune with the Porters Neck Community; 2) Complete all improvements as recommended in the TIA prior to the issuance of an occupancy permit; 3) Construct and dedicate Hays Lane as a public collector road meeting or exceeding minimum NCDOT standards; 4) 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; 5) Work with the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority (WAVE Transit) to secure an easement for the future construction of a bus shelter; 6) Prohibit RV overnight stays in the parking lot; 7) Control or baffle the HVAC systems located on the roof of the anchor tenant to mitigate noise pollution; and 8) Reduce the total number of parking spaces to meet the minimum standards allowed in the County Zoning Ordinance. If the minimum standard cannot be met, reduce the amount of impervious surface by building structured parking decks or utilizing pervious pavement or pavers. 9) Create and install a landscape median in lieu of a cement median as recommended in the TIA. Require that maintenance of the median be the responsibility of the anchor tenant through a recorded deed. 10) Correct the site plan to show Hayes Lane as Hays Lane. Mr. Burgess stated in conclusion, staff has received a number of emails and phone calls with concerns ranging from traffic and internal driveway modifications to adjoining landowner and neighborhood concerns. Chairman Collier opened the public hearing and recognized the applicant. David Harner spoke on behalf of the applicant, Paramount Development Corporation, stating the process began two years ago and a great deal of time was spent on improving the plan. He provided a PowerPoint presentation outlining the highlights of the plan. Upon learning the area was identified as a suburban commercial center, they engaged the YMCA in regard to their property located in the back and began exploring the options for the larger piece of property. They had in mind a suburban commercial center anchored by a large retailer. Mr. Harner stated Jane Daughtridge, a former Planning staff member, had impressed upon him the importance of connectivity to the back of the site early in the process. They worked with Rynal Stephenson of Ramey-Kemp, who helped them understand the Market Street Corridor Study and what the preferred access plan truly envisioned, as well as the importance of the Military Cut-Off Extension. He explained it was important to see the site in context with the greater area because of the tremendous potential to achieve the County’s goals for the Market Street corridor. He pointed out the outlets to the back property and the connectivity to the Porters Neck intersection Page 6 of 27 and to Military Cut-Off Extension, noting they were pleased to play a role in facilitating that connectivity. Mr. Harner commented he had been informed that the Military Cut-Off Extension contracts would be let within 3-5 years. Mr. Harner explained they had reached out to different national retailers to check interest and were fortunate that Walmart jumped onboard for the project. He noted Walmart is an excellent retailer and has the potential to make projects like this happen. Mr. Harner stated the changes in the site plan mentioned by Mr. Burgess during his presentation were made late last week in response to comments received from Ms. Emily Hughes of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and for other reasons. Changes included the removal of the third outparcel from the site plan, as well as the removal of another intersection. In the absence of an agreement with the adjacent landowner, they had removed those items from the site plan and focused on their entitled access, a shared access way in a recorded easement. Mr. Harner announced they remain open to the opportunity to work with the adjacent property owner to provide additional connectivity. David Harner reported four community meetings were held during March, April, and May. Two meetings took place in May, including a meeting with NCDOT to discuss the proposed road improvements. The meetings were well attended. The applicants learned a lot and made many changes to the plan in response to the public input. Some of the most notable concerns were from the residents in the rear of the property along Country Haven. Mr. Harner stated he had made a number of phone calls to individual residents and had spoken to the homeowners association; specifically a gentleman named Steve and made sure he knew the location of the meetings and provided a conduit for questions and concerns to come directly to him. He noted the presence of the engineer and traffic engineer to answer questions from the board. Mr. Harner stated in response to the concerns expressed by the residents along the rear of the property, a minimum buffer of 130 feet off the back was proposed, including three rows of landscaping. He reported the residents had expressed concerns about noise, lights, and safety. He stated they had created the best plan they could with the room they had, noting the plan includes an additional landscape buffer, leaves the perimeter trees along the back, and creates a sound wall to block the Walmart loading area and raises a parapet along the back wall to buffer the air conditioning noises, both of which Walmart agreed to do to address noise. In addition, they added a fence design that will meander in and out of the third row of landscaping to help with the safety issues and prevent people from entering the neighborhood from the rear of Walmart, and provided additional five foot fencing around the ponds for safety reasons. Mr. Harner reiterated there would be full cut-off of the LED lighting at the property lines to address concerns about light spillover. He noted Walmart has an excellent LED light design, almost like a low-impact light. The containment areas and dumpster pads in the rear will also be screened. Mr. Harner stated he would ask their engineer, David Graffius, to address specific technical questions in regard to stormwater. He noted they had worked with the Corps of Engineers to add stormwater retention facilities for the main purpose of hydrating those wetlands after eliminating the third outparcel from the site plan. A resident and an engineer had expressed concerns that the area, which is classified as a high-quality wetland, probably wouldn’t be a wetland in thirty years if a means wasn’t designed to hydrate and preserve it. He pointed out a small area of low-quality wetlands and two areas of medium-quality wetlands on the site and noted they had worked with Page 7 of 27 Kim Williams of Land Management, the Corps of Engineers, and the Division of Water Quality to preserve the high-quality wetland in the site design. Mr. Harner stated another item of importance on the site plan is the reduction in parking. They started the site plan with a 5-1 ratio of over 1,000 spaces directly in front of the Walmart itself. After consideration of comments from the Corps of Engineers and residents, and the economic impact, they eliminated the parcel and raised the parking up closer to the anchor tenant. Walmart agreed to go below their required minimum of 4.5 spaces per 1,000 to 4.25 spaces per 1,000, removing 200 spaces from the site plan. Wal-Mart also allowed the developer to convert from a diagonal parking design, which takes up more land, to ninety degree parking, with the goal of reducing the impervious area. The ninety degree parking, combined with the 4.25 spaces per 1,000, and the loss of the third parcel resulted in the entire site being approximately 45% pervious surface. David Harner addressed one of the residents’ major concerns, the traffic. He reported that Ramey-Kemp had conducted a traffic study to determine where the concerns would be and how to alleviate the traffic. He noted the mitigation found in the traffic impact analysis (TIA) was included in the packet provided by Mr. Burgess and had been approved by NCDOT. He acknowledged they were still working through the design requirements and the particulars of those improvements with NCDOT. In a nutshell, the developer will install a signalized entrance, provide the desired connector road to the back, provide three controlled access points, and work in conjunction with NCDOT to provide the required Market Street median from Marsh Oaks to Porters Neck Road. The median was not included as a recommendation in the TIA, but rather was pointed out as a recommendation in the Market Street Corridor Study. It was his understanding it was a safety issue and the applicants were willing to do whatever they can to accommodate and alleviate that issue. He commented other requirements allow for U-turns at Marsh Oaks, Cypress Pond Way, and at their intersection, as well as a left turn lane at Cypress Pond Way entering the Food Lion development. The curbing and the internal median would allow for a left turn lane. Mr. Harner explained the plan includes dark sky or low impact lighting focused down with cut- off shields at the property lines to prevent light from spilling over to adjacent parcels. He pointed out the specific buffer details, which include three rows of landscaping, plus the existing perimeter trees, in addition to the fencing and the wall directly behind the Walmart loading docks. In regard to the multi-purpose path, he reported the sidewalk discussed with management at the community-specific meeting with the apartment complex has been incorporated into the plan. Mr. Harner then presented the overall traffic improvement design, emphasizing the design remained conceptual. They have gotten as much survey information as they can to get them to this point. He noted the left-over at Cypress Pond Way, the shared access with the adjacent property owner, the main access road, the ancillary right-in, right-out, the median, and an entire overlay from Marsh Oaks to the Harris Teeter. Mr. Harner stated representatives from Walmart were present to address questions related to the Walmart architecture. He noted the representatives didn’t care for the fact that they won’t have Page 8 of 27 visibility, commenting you might not know a Walmart is located there when you drive past the site. Mr. Harner stated their commitment to the Corps of Engineers was not to preserve the dense, five acres wetland, but rather to not impact it. Under the County’s guidelines, they do request the ability to do periodic maintenance, pulling out dead trees or removing trees that fall onto the road. He stated there was obviously some minor thinning under the county guidelines they would like the opportunity to do. He noted he believed that request had been received favorably by the Corps of Engineers, whose staff was presence to address the issue. Mr. Harner asked the Walmart representative, Sunday Brewer, to address the elevations and architecture. Ms. Sunday Brewer of SGA Design Group stated New Hanover County doesn’t have any design standards, but the City of Wilmington has elaborate design standards. She felt they had incorporated the spirit of the City’s design standards in the architecture presented. She noted the inspiration for the additional design features of the building was the result of her discussions with Chris O’Keefe regarding the eclectic collection of architecture in New Hanover County and pointed out the features, including the cornices drawn from the colonial buildings, the brick from the courthouse, and the glass from the PNC and the Cape Fear Community College. Ms. Brewer stated she felt the architecture would complement the community and offered to answer any questions the board may have. David Harner then requested the following clarifications on the conditions recommended by staff: 1) Work with a local architect to identify the unique character of the area in order to create a design for the retail center that looks less like a Walmart franchise and more in tune with the Porters Neck Community. Mr. Harner commented the building is obviously a very large building of 189,000 square feet, but many architectural features have been incorporated, such as bump-outs, landscaping in front, landscape planters, and multiple building materials, including glass, brick, stone, and split-face block. 2) Complete all improvements as recommended in the TIA prior to the issuance of an occupancy permit. Mr. Harner commented because they are still in transition with NCDOT, he would prefer to tie the improvements to the encroachment permit. Anthony Law of NCDOT, who was present, will not issue the encroachment or driveway permit until he is satisfied. There is still tweaking of the exact verbiage in the agreement so he would prefer to have NCDOT issue an encroachment permit when they are satisfied and tie the issuance of an occupancy permit to the NCDOT encroachment permit. 3) Construct and dedicate Hays Ln. as a public collector road meeting or exceeding minimum NCDOT standards. Page 9 of 27 Mr. Harner clarified they are not building Hays Lane, but are only constructing and dedicating the development’s main access road as a public collector road that meets or exceeds minimum NCDOT standards, which shall connect and become a part of Hays Lane 4) 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. Stating he wasn’t sure what a development approval was, Mr. Harner suggested making this contingent upon the start of construction and issuance of related construction permits. 5) Work with the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority (WAVE Transit) to secure an easement for the future construction of a bus shelter. Mr. Harner felt it would be fine, but they would need to work with staff to find a location for it. He noted a Walmart representative was present to address the issue. 6) Prohibit RV overnight stays in the parking lot. Mr. Harner requested clarification on whether this condition was applicable only to RVs or also applied to campers, 18-wheelers, etc. He noted from a safety perspective, trucks delivering merchandise to the store may be impacted by regulations that keep them off the road after a certain number of hours, but they are willing to work with staff. 7) Control or baffle the HVAC systems located on the roof of the anchor tenant to mitigate noise pollution. The current design addresses this issue. 8) Reduce the total number of parking spaces to meet the minimum standards allowed in the County Zoning Ordinance. If the minimum standard cannot be met, reduce the amount of impervious surface by building structured parking decks or utilizing pervious pavement or pavers. Mr. Harner stated this condition was written before the third parcel was eliminated. If the goal was to reduce impact, the elimination of the 70,000 sq. ft. outparcel should be taken into consideration, as well as the concession by the anchor tenant to come down below their normal requirement of 4.5 to 4.25 parking spaces per 1,000, and the reduction of overall impervious by going to a ninety degree parking design. The high water table on the site makes it difficult to find locations for pervious surface and Walmart does not generally use pervious surface because of heavy trucks driving over it, damaging it and producing gravel and the maintenance costs associated with it. Page 10 of 27 9) Create and install a landscape median in lieu of a cement median as recommended in the TIA. Require that maintenance of the median be the responsibility of the anchor tenant through a recorded deed. Mr. Harner stated the idea of putting their maintenance staff on a public street to maintain a landscape median is worrisome, particularly 3,000 feet down the road. The landscape median with the appropriate right-of-way would be a good concept, but a landscape median in this particular case would be marginalized to a smaller width, making it difficult to keep alive and maintain. He pointed out the City of North Myrtle Beach blocks off an entire lane of traffic twice a week to maintain the landscape median. For those reasons, he requested this condition be removed. 10) Correct the site plan to show Hayes Ln. as Hays Ln. Mr. Harner noted this condition was fine with the petitioner. Mr. Harner completed the presentation and provided copies of the requested revisions to the conditions for the record. Chairman Collier opened the opposition portion of the public hearing. Todd Bartlett, a resident of Country Haven, stated he had been elected by many of his neighbors to speak on their behalf about their concerns. He stated environmentally, most of the retention ponds are located at the highest points of the property. Residents were concerned how the run-off would defy gravity and get to those retention ponds. Mr. Bartlett stated the property is nice and natural, but not very pervious. Rain storms turn the paths into rivers flowing toward the wetlands so residents weren’t sure the current design could handle a heavy rain with the amount of pavement it will have. He expressed concern about the slope of the development, which he assumes will follow the land which slopes toward the wetlands. He explained the Corps of Engineers report indicates the wetlands are the beginning of Pages Creek, flowing directly under Highway 17 and straight into Pages Creek. He and his neighbors are concerned about pollution in that regard. He asked the board to take into consideration that a Walmart in this location will bring a tremendous amount of traffic from Pender County and the Ogden community that is currently not on that street. Mr. Bartlett stated it was his understanding based on a 2011 traffic study that the street was at capacity, pointing out many developments had been added since then and it was clear to the residents that traffic was constantly increasing due to development north and in Pender County. He noted the proposed median at Country Haven would be right turn only and their entrance currently had left and right turn access. He pointed out the Gold’s Gym would be impacted by the change and may result in people cutting through their neighborhood on Country Haven and Mendenhall Drives to access it instead of making the U-turn. Mr. Bartlett was also concerned about traffic backing up at the light at the Mendenhall intersection due to people trying to get out of the neighborhood and out of the Gold’s Gym. Residents had purchased homes in the neighborhood with the understanding that the YMCA property was zoned residential and no one could have foreseen this proposal to rezone the residential property to commercial or that their property would be located next to a Walmart. He imagined it would create a lot of sound for the neighborhood to absorb, with loading docks, trucks idling, garbage Page 11 of 27 trucks, delivery trucks, air handlers, vacuum trucks, etc. He commented it was also a proven fact that crime increases with a Walmart, which will result in more emergency vehicles, police vehicles, etc. Mr. Bartlett stated Hays Lane runs next to their property and is a very lightly traveled road. Residents didn’t foresee that road becoming a major collector road. He reported he was recently made aware of a thirty feet utility easement for Cape Fear Public Utility Authority that runs directly behind their neighborhood. Residents were unsure if that easement would be clear cut to provide utilities to Walmart and remain clear cut or if there would be maintenance done on the easement and no one had addressed that issue during the presentation. Mr. Bartlett stated he had read on the internet that Walmart had provided sound-proof walls when they located next to residential developments in other areas and asked if there was a possibility that a sound-proof wall could be built across the entire neighborhood property line to provide privacy and sound protection. Mr. Bartlett reiterated the residents of Country Haven are very much against the Walmart development and would like the property to remain residential and not be rezoned commercial. Residents felt alternate sites #2 and #3 at Porters Neck mentioned in the Corps of Engineers report or any site along the I-40 bypass would make more sense for traffic management and be more in line with the County’s long term growth plan. Those sites would also allow for additional development as Walmart tends to attract satellite businesses. The proposed site does not allow for additional growth outside of that designed. It would also be a jumpstart to connecting Porters Neck via Plantation Road with the new Military Cut-off Extension and the large network of Ogden neighborhoods and Murrayville, which would allow a more direct route to this growing business corridor. Walmart would gain more visibility from the I-40 bypass and Market Street. The alternate sites have an established traffic light at Market Street and are better suited for managing traffic coming off the by-pass from Highway 17 North and Porters Neck. He pointed out Highway 17 only has one lane going north, which is confusing so many people change lanes at the last minute. Putting more Pender County residents on that street to shop at Walmart would cause more traffic problems and accidents. Edward McCormick, a resident of Country Haven, stated Mr. Bartlett did a good job of expressing their concerns. He expressed concern that traffic turning onto Mendenhall to access Gold’s Gym, as well as traffic which normally makes a left turn onto Country Haven Drive will not be able to do so and that combined traffic will instead come down Placid Drive and Country Haven Drive, both of which are privately owned streets. Upkeep of those streets must be paid for by the residents of Country Haven. Placid Drive already needs repair and will certainly need repair much sooner if this project goes through. In addition, this traffic pattern will put children at play, walkers, joggers, dog-walkers and stroller-pushers at greater risk from the increased traffic. Mr. McCormick noted the Walmart representative had spoken about fences, but the tree and shrubbery plan he had seen showed only one fence, and contained the statement “Wooden fence or third row planting to be determined.” He hoped the discussion tonight would ensure there would be more fences. Mr. McCormick noted in regard to property values, efforts were being made by the developers to lessen the offensive characteristics of a big box store; however, they will never replace the raw character that brought many of the residents to Country Haven in the first place. He asked if with a big box store there, they would be able to lure buyers for the houses in their development without lowering prices. The loss of the raw character will make the Page 12 of 27 area less attractive to home buyers. He also noted the stigma associated with being in the Walmart neighborhood. Ms. Betsy Albright, a mom and resident of Ogden, stated making a left out of her neighborhood from Wendover onto Market is horrendous. She felt would be taking her life in her hands to take her kids to pre-school every day and run errands after reading 10,000 – 11,000 more cars would be added to the roadway. She has asked for a light at that intersection to no avail. Ms. Albright stated the residents in her neighborhood are concerned about the situation and want to be safe. While the Walmart is proposing traffic remedies in Porters Neck, she foresees the impact of the additional cars on the Ogden area all the way to Gordon Road as people stop shopping at the other Walmart and go to the new one. She hoped the County would learn the lessons from the delayed road improvements on Military Cut-Off Road in response to the Mayfaire development. Ms. Albright recommended the County fix the roadway infrastructure first and then welcome Walmart. Attorney Jeff Keater spoke on behalf of Dan Furr, Andy Furr, and the Furr family, who own 8044, 8048, 8064, 8066, 8068, 8086, 8090 and 8108 Market Street, which is the ubiquitous medical facility seen in the reports. Beginning in 1982, the family acquired the properties over a number of years and spent their hard earned money developing the medical campus. The plan as submitted has a requirement that the primary intersection involve a lighted intersection on Highway 17 Market Street. That requirement has been recommended by NCDOT, the MPO and staff. The only voice that hasn’t been heard is the property owner that will be affected by this requirement, Mr. Furr, who will lose parking spaces in his developed properties, as well as large oak trees as the stem required by NCDOT is put in. Mr. Furr will also lose access points to the buildings off his private easement that gain access to those medical facilities. Mr. Keater stated that would create a dangerous situation as often times, patients of the medical practices, who are tenants of his client, have need for care beyond that provided by the family practitioners so EMS personnel come to the medical offices to take those folks to the hospitals for advanced medical care. As presented, the parking lots will become unmanageable. The widening of this private right-of-way will cramp the ability of any emergency vehicles to circumnavigate the buildings to get in and out of that intersection. Mr. Keater emphasized this is private property and pointed out where the right-of-way ends, noting everything that is proposed as a change is on privately owned property. His client has proposed the simple solution of moving his portion of that intersection to the south nine to twelve feet, which will allow the medical office the opportunity for medical vehicles to circumnavigate the building and will preserve oak trees and a couple of parking spaces, although he will still lose 1-2 parking spaces. Mr. Keater stated they have proposed that alternative solution, as well as requested an access way back beyond the stem required by NCDOT to provide a common access to each of the two buildings on either side of that private easement. He stated Mr. Furr has plans to develop more of these office buildings on undeveloped land in the back of this property and they currently don’t know what impact this intersection will have on his ability to develop his own property as he has been doing periodically over the last thirty years. Mr. Keater requested that the board not remove condition #2 recommended by staff and also add an additional condition that the approval by the County Commissioners be conditioned upon the applicant satisfying within the scope of what is allowed by NCDOT the requirements of his Page 13 of 27 client to preserve his property and what he has maintained. He offered to answer questions from the board. Thomas Appollonia, a resident of Marsh Oaks, had concerns about traffic and elevation. He made specific points about U-turns on Market from Marsh Oaks Drive to Porters Neck Road. The installation of the median necessitates a substantial number of U-turns, but based on the information available, it doesn’t appear that the width of the roadway at those intersections will facilitate the necessary distance required for U-turns. He noted he wasn’t sure there was any additional space available for that at Marsh Oaks Drive. Mr. Appollonia stated part of the major congestion in that area is from traffic northbound on Highway 17 into the Pender County area past Porters Neck Road. None of the information provided addressed that backup that will be increased due to a lot of Pender County folks coming in to Walmart and needing to return again. Mr. Appollonia also spoke in regard to elevation, noting according to the New Hanover County GIS mapping system, the property where Walmart is targeted is approximately thirty feet higher than residential areas. He explained from the Marsh Oaks neighborhood, the water tower on that property is visible from the residences on their properties. The residents are concerned that the elevation of the big box store on top of that thirty feet higher elevation would make it visible from the residential areas. That is not occurring currently and is not very desirable to the residents. He asked the board to also consider the higher elevation and the impact it may have on the lighting of the site, making it more visible and more annoying. Dr. Robert Parr spoke in opposition, thanking the residents of the area for attending the meeting. He noted they are familiar with the traffic congestion in the area. He read a prepared statement from Seamist LLC, located at 8115 Market Street, which was compelled to comment on the impacts to vehicular access to their professional office center adjacent to and directly affected by the proposed development. Seamist LLC is a group of twelve emergency medical physicians, who have practiced medicine in New Hanover County for over thirty years at New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Cape Fear Memorial Hospital, and Pender Memorial Hospital, in addition to three MEDAC locations. They have attended to the needs of thousands of local citizens injured in motor vehicle accidents and are concerned that the traffic flow pattern for the proposed development is not right. Seamist LLC is presently in direct negotiations with the applicant concerning their shared access on Market Street. How this access is constructed and functions on a daily basis will have a direct impact on the safety of their patients, staff, tenants, and the general public on Market Street. Dr. Parr stated they had counsel in place, Shipman and Wright, to document agreements reached and while they are confident the negotiations will be successful, they reserve the right to state their opposition before the County Commission if resolution is not forthcoming. If an agreement is not reached with Paramount, they will not agree to the plan that has been submitted. Dr. Parr stated the traffic flow pattern and the shared access point as depicted on the plans in the conditional zoning file in the Planning office are not presently acceptable for reasons of public safety and negative impacts on their adjacent commercial property. He explained the problems with traffic pattern. Dr. Parr stated workable solutions to these objections are available and have been presented to the development, but so far have been rejected. They look forward to completing these negotiations in the near future, but if they can’t come to a negotiated solution, they will not give their permission for this project to go forward. Page 14 of 27 Dr. Parr showed photos of the MEDAC building, which won architectural awards in 2008, noting they practice safe building and safe medicine. He provided information on the services provided by the medical group, stating they need the safest entry onto Market Street for their patients. He commented what has been provided by this development does not meet that criteria. He stated the Seamist physicians heartily support the Market Street Corridor, which notes that citizens have an intimate understanding of the community and planning decisions that have a direct impact on their daily lives. He pointed out the local residents who were in the audience to express their concerns about the traffic and the inability of the roadway in the area to handle this size of development. Dr. Parr provided statistics from NCDOT of the crash rates in the area compared to the statewide averages, noting the local crash rates are much higher. The best possible traffic plan is needed for this area. He noted the developer may perhaps be trying to do too much with too small a piece of property. He asked the board to consider the safety issues to save people, noting the other physician group in the area was also concerned about safety. Dr. Parr also provided data and information on recent traffic accidents on that stretch of Market Street, which includes a large number of rear end collisions. He offered to answer questions and added there are problems with the size of the property, noting two medical practices are concerned about safety. Cathy Clausen stated she is a homeowner on the property line with the proposed development. She noted they have a six feet fence that their daughter routinely hops over whenever the volleyball goes over it so a five foot fence will not provide safety for them or prevent people from coming into their yards from the Walmart. They never expected the property to be zoned to anything other than residential and are very concerned about reduced property values. She was also concerned the glow from the lights will be visible even though it may not come into the neighborhood. The residents’ request for Paramount to construct a sound barrier wasn’t well received because they felt a five feet fence was acceptable. She was concerned that the only way to access the Gold’s Gym would be directly through the private streets of their neighborhood. Ms. Clausen was also concerned that the traffic plan did not take into consideration that there are left turn lanes in certain areas of the plan, but not in others where private roads will be affected. She expressed serious concern about the noise from the loading dock and would like to see the residents’ issues addressed. Howard Capps, a landscape architect, expressed concern about the proposal to include an almost 5,000 linear feet concrete median along Market Street. As a planner, he is aware of the Market Street Corridor Study, which clearly calls for a twelve feet wide landscaped median from Military Cut-Off Road to Porters Neck Road. When he read the proposal included a concrete median, he was very concerned because the area is a gateway into Wilmington and New Hanover County and felt it would set a very bad precedent to allow a development this large with the means to develop a landscaped median to construct a concrete median instead. Mr. Capps has spoken with the manager of Landfall and confirmed they were required to install a landscaped median on Eastwood Road and were still required to maintain that median. He also worked with Independence Mall to construct the landscaped median on Independence Boulevard, which is still maintained by the mall. Mr. Capps provided various photos of landscaped medians and concrete medians around the county and stated staff was recommending a landscaped median for this project. Page 15 of 27 Alton Porter, of Lily Pond Lane directly behind the proposed Walmart, stated as a resident of New Hanover County for 27 years he wanted to go on record as opposing the Walmart project for several reasons. His home will be located 150 feet directly behind the Walmart. He purchased his home with the understanding that property was zoned R-15 residential and there would be no department stores or Super Walmarts. He asked if the board realized this would be a 24/7 Super Walmart store with noise, smells, trash, waste disposal materials, etc. He expressed concern about flooding from the three retention ponds on the property, as well as the stagnant water from those ponds resulting in odors, snakes, mosquitoes, etc. He didn’t believe the NCDOT had properly thought out the median. He was concerned about the safety of school kids waiting for buses with the increased traffic placed on those private streets. Mr. Porter stated he didn’t believe anyone would want a Walmart in their backyard. Brian Moeller, an adjoining property owner on Lily Pond, stated he and his family opposed the project for many reasons, but he would focus on two reasons: crime and environmental concerns. He commented that having a Walmart nearby results in an increase in crime for surrounding communities. The company videotapes crimes committed in their parking lots; however, their security does not intervene in those crimes. He stated concern about the safety of customers in the parking lots because Walmart security focuses on the protection of their products. Mr. Moeller asked who would pay the high cost for low prices, noting he felt it would be the surrounding community and the citizens of New Hanover County. He also had some environmental concerns about the proposed site because he had witnessed a number of different species in the area, including foxes, deer, and a protected woodpecker species. He also felt it was a terrible mistake to convert any natural wetlands in a coastal community into a parking lot for Walmart and expressed concern about reports that Walmart had been fined for runoff and chemical pollution in other areas. Allison Johnson spoke in support of the development, noting she lives, works and frequents the businesses in the area a great deal. She felt the development would serve the people in Ogden and the people that already travel into town from Hampstead and Scotts Hill and didn’t believe people would make a special effort to come there to shop. She stated traffic has always been an issue on Market Street. In her opinion, the real congestion begins at the intersection of North College and Market Street near the other Walmart. Ms. Johnson felt the proposed store would free up people in the northern area of town to shop and frequent restaurants in Porters Neck. She believed she spoke for many people in the area who would like the convenience. She also noted restaurants like Carrabba’s and Cracker Barrel have chosen locations because of a nearby Walmart. She felt the developer was making a valiant effort to accommodate everyone’s needs and desires. Ms. Johnson stated she is also a proponent of free enterprise and residents should welcome the opportunities for employment that Walmart will bring, particularly in this tough economy. Jim Streeter stated he received notification his property would be affected by this project and he was disappointed that a large company would be allowed to modify zoning to fit something so large on such a small piece of property. His concerns included the impact of the proposal on the natural animal habitat and the potential drop in his property values by 20-30%. He also agreed with the concerns expressed by adjacent residents. Mr. Streeter pointed out that the jobs Walmart Page 16 of 27 brings are low paying jobs and expressed his preference for smaller types of businesses in the area, noting he hoped the board would agree with the residents on this issue. Doug Shaw, a retired physical education teacher in New Hanover County and resident of the northern county who frequents the Porters Neck area, stated he was elated and excited about this opportunity for Wilmington to see businesses originate rather than close, bringing optimism to our economy. He felt the project was important to the economic recovery for many unemployed individuals and for the potential tax revenue to the county, even if the jobs are low paying. He stated the project will also alleviate the wasteful drive into the heart of Wilmington to frequent the Walmart near New Centre Drive and in his opinion, will improve traffic congestion in and around the College Road/New Centre Drive area. Mr. Shaw gave his full support to the proposed project for those reasons. Richard Miller of the Bishops Park community approximately 1-1/2 miles from the site presented a petition signed by 36 residents of the community in opposition to the proposed Walmart development. The main reason for their opposition is the lack of diligent planning for the project. He agreed with Dr. Parr and felt safety should come first. Mr. Miller expressed concern about traffic congestion and accidents, noting he felt the project should be moved further north to a more suitable site. Dick Jones, President of the Wilmington Family YMCA, spoke in support of the project. He was on the YMCA board when the property was donated in 2001 and was present when they received a special use permit to develop a YMCA there. He was also with the medical center at that time and helped acquire that piece of property for the medical center that is also a part of this discussion. Howard Capps actually designed the YMCA for the site, which included a 35,000 square foot YMCA building with multiple playing fields, lights, parking, etc. The medical center had plans to put a diagnostic center and surgery center there. In 2006, New Hanover County asked for an easement to access the water tower. In 2007, the YMCA board didn’t feel they had the support to build a center there so the property was put on the market. At that time, they learned County Planning staff preferred B-2 zoning for the property. In 2010, Paramount Development Corporation contacted the YMCA about acquiring the property, expressing interest in acquiring the YMCA property, as well as the hospital’s property. An agreement was reached in December of 2011. The plans were very consistent with the County’s Planning Office and fit with the master plan for New Hanover County. Mr. Jones stated the sale of the property is important to the YMCA because it is the first step in making the repairs to their existing facility on Market Street. The sale will help them to get out of debt and build a nest egg to jumpstart their plan to build a new facility. Mr. Jones stated the YMCA serves all of New Hanover County and they are hopeful they will be able to rebuild the Market Street facility if this plan comes to fruition. He noted a lot of other stores will be built in this project and the sales tax will be paid to New Hanover County. Mr. Jones stated there will be an increase in traffic at that particular intersection, but the project will take traffic off the other areas further south on Market. He felt it would have a positive impact on traffic closer to Wilmington. Mr. Jones encouraged the board to approve the rezoning request. David Kaiser, a landscape architect with O’Brien-Atkins, spoke on behalf of the State Employees Credit Union. He limited his statements to the impacts on the ingress/egress of the Page 17 of 27 State Employees Credit Union site. He noted they were excited to see the traffic signal proposed for their intersection. They were initially very concerned about the ingress/egress points, but the developer has agreed to provide a third full-access into the branch office site that will alleviate the concerns they had. There will also be a dedicated left-turn lane. Mr. Kaiser stated for those reasons, they were in support of the project. He noted they felt the benefit of the traffic signal outweighs the negative impacts of the circulation. Chairman Collier closed the regular portion of the public hearing and announced a five minutes recess. Chairman Collier then opened the rebuttal portion of the public hearing. David Harner stated there would be a six feet fence going all the way down to Market Street. They are not trying to buck grade with respect to drainage. They are here to speak land use and there has been a very public process that included NCDOT, the MPO, and the County. He stated the front property consists of 28 acres that is zoned high intensity commercial. Mr. Harner noted they offer the opportunity to really scrutinize the plan to make it the best plan possible. He referred the traffic concerns to Rynal Stephenson for comment. In 2005, the traffic counts were 42,000 vehicles per day. The last traffic count was down to 35,000 cars per day. The reality is the NCDOT, MPO, the County, and the City of Wilmington have worked very hard to alleviate traffic concerns and it is starting to work. The US 17 Bypass is a huge infrastructure for this area. The Military Cut-Off Extension is funded. Additional outlets behind this area will come in with additional development. Development is a catalyst for these projects. Mr. Harner noted he has spoken with Daniel Furr several times and he was in favor of the project, but he is protecting his interests. The current design addresses most of his issues. He committed to continue to work with Mr. Furr and with Dr. Parr as well. Mr. Keater stated he and Mr. Furr were committed to working with the applicant on the project. He explained that Mr. Furr had received a site plan three weeks ago after multiple requests, and it was then that he learned how he and his tenants would be impacted. He reiterated they would like a condition to be added that they arrive at an agreeable intersection plan because frankly the plan has to be satisfactory to his client. NCDOT is not going to condemn it. Another gentleman pointed out this type of development should be located further north at Plantation Road for traffic reasons. There are only small traffic businesses in this area of Market Street. He also noted he didn’t receive a notice that the R-15 property would be zoned commercial. He stated the citizens would not benefit from the project, but the YMCA, Walmart and the Pension Plan would benefit from it. Cathy Clausen commented the traffic is so bad in that area of Market Street, it took six months for them to convince their daughter to drive out of their neighborhood after she received her learner’s permit because she was uncomfortable. She also expressed serious concern about the distance between their home and the Wal-Mart, noting they built their home in a residential neighborhood with the expectation that the property would remain residential. Page 18 of 27 Todd Bartlett stated the County needed to think about the long term plan for traffic on Market Street and move large buildings/developments off Market Street. He commented the board should think long term and move this project to a different location. The heavy traffic will cost many public lives. Chairman Collier closed the public hearing and asked for questions from the board. Vice Chairman Dan Hilla asked the traffic engineer to explain the effect the completion of the Military Cut-Off Extension would have on the area and whether there would be any effect on traffic due to people not driving into town to shop. Rynal Stephenson of Ramey-Kemp stated the traffic impact analysis prepared for the development looks at the horizon year of the development, essentially when it would be built out. In this case, it is anticipated that the development would be constructed prior to the completion of the Military Cut-Off Extension so it didn’t take that into account other than to note the extension would be expected to relieve some traffic on Market Street when it is constructed. Mr. Stephenson stated there aren’t exact traffic calculations for that in the analysis, but the engineers did note that help was on the way for traffic volumes on Market Street. He stated the traffic study is done in coordination with the MPO, the County, and NCDOT, which meets several times throughout the process to discuss the intersections and roadways that will be studied, the assumptions for the future traffic in the area, and where the traffic is going to and coming from. He commented it was a good point mentioned by several people that this project as anticipated will intercept some of the traffic currently traveling down Market Street to shop. In terms of quantifying that, the study only focuses on the intersections, primarily the signalized intersections in the immediate vicinity of the development. Mr. Stephenson stated the analysis is conservative in that it doesn’t necessarily say it will take off traffic currently going south and southwest, but basically assumes that traffic continues to go there and adds the Walmart traffic on top of it. He noted the study is double counting some of that traffic that would be intercepted. He said the study does not reduce the traffic for that and pointed out that traffic studies are typically done in that manner to be conservative. The NCDOT and the County would rather err on the side of assuming too much traffic on the road ways than not enough. For that reason, those situations are not taken into account in the traffic impact analysis (TIA). Anthony Prinz asked Mr. Stephenson to address the background growth rate that was assumed for the traffic study and how that relates to what has actually been seen in recent history with regard to traffic patterns. He commented his concern was that we are also factoring in an additional 3% compounded annually on top of what is already out there. He noted under a true scenario, we may actually see the volumes going down from year to year. Mr. Stephenson explained this is a conservative assumption. The historical data published by NCDOT does show that traffic in this area on Market Street has gone down over the years at a slow, but steady decrease every year since 2007. He agreed with Mr. Prinz that the I-140 by-pass was one reason for that decrease. He stated if you went strictly by that, you would take the traffic volumes counted on Market Street at the intersection and decrease those if you wanted to match the data, but to be conservative that is not done. In accordance with the requirements of the County, MPO, and NCDOT, the increasing traffic that is there today is reviewed. It is increased Page 19 of 27 every year in our traffic studies so we are likely over estimating the traffic. Mr. Stephenson noted there can be lower traffic volumes or the same traffic volumes with congestion or increased congestion, which makes it feel like there are a lot more cars on Market Street. The worsening congestion may be due to several factors, including multiple driveways and multiple turning conflicts, with crashes and bump-ups. In addition, a key factor in this congestion is the traffic signals in this area are not timed together very well. Mr. Stephenson reported they will be installing cameras at some of these signalized intersections and linking these signals together to allow them to watch the traffic and make adjustments to the signals in real time. Mr. Prinz asked Mr. Stephenson to give his interpretation of the accurate crash data from NCDOT provided during Dr. Parr’s presentation, noting there are many ways to interpret data. Mr. Stephenson stated he couldn’t vouch or validate any of the data, but noted it sounded accurate that there is a higher than normal crash rate on this section of Market Street. He noted it was his understanding that was one of the primary reasons the Market Street Corridor Study recommends the installation of a median. The most serious crashes typically occur with left turn or head-on crashes, which result in the most serious injuries. By putting a median in, the left turn movements are blocked except at signalized intersections. Rear end crashes are typically not serious injury crashes, but are usually bump-ups which occur at signalized intersections. Mr. Prinz asked Mr. Stephenson to provide the logic behind where the left-over points and traffic signals are recommended, as the Market Street Corridor Study didn’t specifically recommend some of the proposed improvements. Mr. Stephenson stated there were a lot of concerns expressed in regard to the installation of the median on Market Street, but the decision to install the median has already been made by the MPO, the NCDOT and other agencies. The median will be installed regardless of whether the development is built. Mr. Stephenson reported he had confirmed with NCDOT that there is currently no funding available to install any portion of the median along Market Street so this is an opportunity for a public/private venture to get that is project started. He reiterated the median is not being proposed by the development. In terms of the spacing requirements, there is over 2,000 feet of separation between the proposed signalized intersection and the nearest signal to the north and to the south. The adequate spacing of those signals is one of the first items reviewed during the process. They like to see 1,200 to 1,500 feet between traffic signals. The spacing of left-overs is not quite as stringent, but the decision to have a left-in at the Food Lion area in order to not overload the traffic at the Porters Neck signal. Anthony Prinz asked Mr. Stephenson to expand on the future collector street and how it factored in to the proposed location of the signal, as well as the impact the future collector street may have on Market Street itself. Mr. Stephenson stated the future collector street will be set up to provide connectivity to development in the rear of the property. There are a series of roads on the County’s transportation plan that would connect in the rear and likely would be done as development occurred. The purpose of that is to capture the traffic from these areas and provide multiple opportunities and options to get to Market Street. The collector street through the project would Page 20 of 27 serve not just the property, but would serve the larger area behind it that will likely be developed. Having multiple signalized access points along the corridor will prevent the loading up of vehicles at any one traffic signal along Market Street. Vice Chair Dan Hilla asked for more details about the proposed median, noting Mr. Capps had made some good points about the planted median versus the concrete median and this being the entrance to New Hanover County. Vice Chair Hilla felt it was valid that this project would set a precedent for other areas of the County and for the Market Street Corridor. He also noted the study recommends a planted median and questioned why a planted median was not included in the presentation. David Harner stated they had two concerns, cost and maintenance. He felt they should consider economies of scale of the projects mentioned, including Landfall and the Independence Mall. He noted they are a smaller project and it is a major commitment to maintain a state road. Mr. Harner encouraged Mr. O’Keefe to consider upping the county’s ability to maintain public roads. He deferred to Mr. O’Keefe to determine if that was possible, commenting the developer will obviously be spending a great amount of money in the road to mitigate the additional traffic due to their project. He asked the County to consider the economic impact of the proposed development, which is staggering from a tax standpoint and consider augmenting the cost. He noted while it isn’t a tremendous amount more to landscape the median, the budget for the median is probably equivalent to the entire off-site budget for the project and came about late in the process. Mr. Harner noted they are glad about the public/private partnership with NCDOT, but that funding has its limitations and NCDOT is not going to be able to provide even half of it. He encouraged the County to consider the actual width that is available for the median, the feasibility of irrigation, and who would provide maintenance. He noted the Independence Boulevard landscaped median didn’t appear to be well maintained earlier that day when he drove by. In response to Chairman Collier’s question, Mr. Harner explained the economic factor of the landscaped median was a consideration, but it was the maintenance of it that really scared the developers. Chairman Collier asked Mr. Harner what he thought the percentage above the cost of the concrete median the landscaped median would be. Mr. Harner explained if the concrete median is $250,000, a landscaped median for the entire length would be a premium of $180,000 to $200,000. Chairman Collier asked if they would entertain the same type of landscape median as those in the downtown area, noting there are areas where there is no ability to have a large landscape median without widening the road. He commented they would need to discuss the maintenance of the landscaped median, but the Market Street Corridor Plan had always addressed the median as a landscaped median rather than a monolithic island. Chairman Collier noted it would set a precedent for medians installed for future development along Market Street and it was his perception the project was large enough to handle a landscaped median. If it is truly the maintenance cost, the issue of who maintains the median needs to be addressed as we move Page 21 of 27 forward. Chairman Collier felt this was an opportunity to construct the median as envisioned. He indicated the developer shouldn’t have to pay for the sins of the whole world; however, the project impacts a significant stretch of road and the County must handle the situation as they see fit. Mr. Harner stated agreement, acknowledging their project was significant enough and they certainly wanted to do their share. With 1,000 linear feet of frontage and a 4,700 feet median, they definitely like the word “partnership” and want to do the right thing. If the County’s vision is beyond what safety calls for, they would like to work with them. Chairman Collier acknowledged he couldn’t commit to partnerships, but could share what the County’s vision is for Market Street with the applicant. He stated the median is a foregone conclusion, but asked if the Country Haven Drive intersection may entertain a left-over. Mr. Harner and Mr. Stephenson confirmed the corridor study did not recommend a left-over at the Country Haven Drive intersection. Anthony Prinz stated the left-over at the Cypress Pond intersection was a recommendation of the Market Street Corridor Study, noting he worked on that study. He stated in regard to the median, we have to be practical about what can be done there. The reason we were able to do the project on Third Street, which is a great investment for the community, was because the City of Wilmington committed to taking over Third Street from NCDOT for maintenance and they were able to install a non-standard DOT island, which is not wide enough and has materials and plants in it that are non-standard DOT. He commented from a practicality standpoint, none of us can expect the County to take over the maintenance of Market Street and make that commitment with the island as well. He said the question is to determine the middle ground. A monolithic island is an ugly feature. The task is to come up with an alternative that has a better appearance, but doesn’t require the ongoing maintenance. There will be very few areas where there is adequate width to place impressive and sustainable landscaping. In order for certain plant species to survive, they have to have adequate areas to grow, capture moisture, and thrive. Mr. Prinz stated he didn’t think they would find those places out there and while he agreed there is a better alternative to concrete, they won’t be able to achieve the lush vegetated island seen on Third Street. Howard Capps stated it would be difficult to address that question without knowing the configuration of the medians or the widths of the turning lanes. He cited the photo he had shown earlier of the thin area merging from Martin Luther King Parkway onto Third Street and noted there are opportunities for alternatives such as pavers or features stamped into the concrete to make the median more attractive and there should be sections wide enough for vegetation. David Weaver stated he also felt there were also opportunities to improve the medians other than using concrete, but he would like to address another issue related to the residents on Lily Pond Lane purchased their property thinking the property behind them was zoned residential. While there is no guarantee that won’t change. This is a possible change to B-2 zoning. Mr. Weaver stated if the residents are forced to suffer the impact of a B-2 development behind them, he Page 22 of 27 would ask Walmart if it was possible to build a higher, sound-proof barrier that has apparently been built elsewhere to mitigate the impacts of Walmart on their residential development. Mr. Harner asked Mr. Weaver to consider what had been done to-date to address the noise concerns, as well as the distances from the residences. He offered to provide some evidence of what noise is like from 150 feet away from a truck dock that is protected by a concrete wall. He also noted Wal-Mart’s policies regarding no idling by trucks, delivery hours, and prohibiting trash removal during the wee hours of the morning. In regard to the concerns about lights, there will not be any 35 feet light poles in the rear of the shopping center. The lights will be wall packs on the back of the center, directed downward. Mr. Harner explained the applicant can do things to address those concerns before they construct $400,000 wall that is nine feet high. Mr. Weaver stated understanding of Mr. Harner’s concerns, noting everything he had read indicated that Wal-Mart had transitioned to a very responsible corporate citizen. In response to Mr. Weaver’s question, Mr. Harner replied it would cost $600 per linear foot to construct an eight feet high sound proof masonry barrier wall. Vice Chair Hill echoed Mr. Weaver’s concerns, commending the applicant on the majority of the design of the project, but noted the balance the board has to provide between the applicant and the residents is a delicate one. He stated other than the median, his greatest concern is the residents that have R-15 in their back yard that the applicant is asking to be rezoned. Vice Chair Hilla asked if a berm or some other barrier could be constructed instead of just plants and a chain link fence. Mr. Harner asked David Graffius to address Vice Chair Hilla’s question regarding a possible berm. David Graffius with Gray Engineering Consultants in Greenville, SC explained they moved the building from seventy feet off the rear property line to 170 feet off the property line to increase that buffer distance. In that buffer, they would like to maintain 30’ to 35’ of existing vegetation. He reported the existing utility easement will be repealed and they will be able to maintain the existing vegetation in that area. Beyond that, from the back of the curb, there will be a small 2-3 feet high berm with a planned six feet high wooden opaque fence along the entire back property, and along the left side of the property. Within the 35’ of existing vegetative buffer, two rows of screen landscaping will be placed and a third row of additional screen landscaping will be added on the property line side along the six feet high fence. Mr. Graffius stated the stormwater management facility will be located between those two landscape rows. The stormwater facilities will have two fences surrounding them. In response to a question from Mr. Weaver, Mr. Graffius confirmed the fence would be located on top of the landscape berm for a total height of ten to eleven feet. In addition, Walmart will incorporate sound barrier walls along the truck docks and around the compactor, which will be ten feet high, as well as a parapet the height of the building for sound proofing. Page 23 of 27 Tamara Murphy asked if any evaluation was done in regard to installing pervious pavers in the main parking areas instead of in the main travel ways, noting she understood the concerns about placing the pavers in areas traveled by heavy vehicles. She has seen some instances of pervious pavers where fire trucks are able to travel over them. Mr. Harner stated the concern expressed by Walmart in regard to maintenance issues was related to the high water table in the area. He said their hope and intent was to make some modifications to the shopping center plan, like losing the third outparcel consistent with the Corps request and increase the pervious nature of the shopping center so that the porous asphalt would not be part of the plan. He stated he wasn’t completely familiar with porous asphalt, but was aware of the maintenance responsibilities and that it is more susceptible to damage from heavy vehicles so they tried to offset the project and eliminate the need for the porous asphalt. Ms. Murphy asked if the developer had considered concrete pavement instead of asphalt to alleviate some of the aspects of heat islands. Mr. Harner stated they had not considered the use of concrete pavement although the project is broken up with a number of landscaped islands. He indicated they typically go by the specs of the large retailer. He noticed the Lowes Home Improvement did use concrete, but he wasn’t sure why. Mr. O’Keefe stated the Lowes Home Improvement had constructed some areas of pervious concrete as a result of a similar process to facilitate the pervious. Chairman Collier stated the developer had done a nice job of putting together the project and working with the exterior concerns. He commented he was glad to see the out parcel removed from the site plan, noting he would have had trouble passing the plan on with it shown on the plan covering the wetlands. He felt the parking spaces were fine and had no issues with the parking count number. He agreed with the other board members about pervious concrete, commenting it is a good product and is used a lot in this market. The maintenance has improved on it, but it can be fairly thick, eight by eight or in the parking spaces, six by six. He noted depending on the soils, if the water table is really high, it may not work. Upon hearing the water table ranges from two to five feet below existing grade, Chairman Collier stated pervious concrete or asphalt could be installed without issues. He noted in this market he would push them toward that type of surface. Mr. Graffius pointed out those were the areas that have been studied, but to finish the plan, they would need to conduct further soil investigations. Chairman Collier agreed because they would need to check the permeability and the separation to groundwater. He noted in regard to the stormwater all the way around, they had done fairly well at 45% impervious. He commented they are pumping into Pages Creek so they are still under SA waters and will have to have an infiltration component somewhere in the high density permit. He asked for that information. Page 24 of 27 Mr. Graffius explained the project is located just outside the one-half mile SA waters, but will have the wet retention ponds. The project will actually have seven perimeter pond systems. The project will exceed the County’s stormwater requirements, and re-hydrating those wetlands will also have a good impact on reducing the stormwater. Chairman Collier agreed, but stated he was more concerned the half mile would not be removed and the applicant would need infiltration. If it is needed, the pervious concrete will help limit the impervious surface. In regard to the Chairman’s questions, Mr. Harner confirmed that Hays Lane will be platted as a public street which may later be accepted by NCDOT. Currently, there is not a connection from Lily Pond Lane to Hays Lane, nor is that connection proposed. In response to a query by Chairman Collier, several residents in the audience indicated they did not want a connection from Lily Pond Lane to Hays Lane. In response to the chairman’s question, Mr. Graffius explained the 2-3 feet high landscape berms are located on the applicant’s side of the ponds and two rows of supplemental vegetation are included. The credit union’s stormwater pond will remain on the site to re-hydrate the wetland on the north side. Chairman Collier applauded the applicant for conducting four community meetings. He noted the applicant is improving the traffic, and long term, he felt it would have a better effect on that portion of Market Street. He encouraged them to continue dialogue with the neighbors. He felt the project had been well thought out and he was glad to see the efforts the applicant had gone through to meet the concerns expressed about the project. Chris O’Keefe stated he had conferred with Jim Iannucci and would like to correct his earlier statement in regard to pervious surface at the Lowes Home Improvement. Lowes did not apply for a permit for pervious surface so they most likely put in concrete and not pervious surface. In response to queries from Vice Chair Hilla and Chairman Collier, Mr. Graffius confirmed the stormwater ponds on Market Street were landscaped ponds only, with one pond to serving each out lot. The ponds are similar to the pond at the credit union, a wet pond with four bays and a vegetated shelf, berms and a security fence. There will be streetscaping along the eight foot wide, multi-use path on Market Street and the berm for the ponds will be located behind it. Anthony Prinz stated he liked the project and the concept of the development in this location. He also noted the most comfortable part of the project for him is the traffic because the developer is making a huge investment in the long, on-going traffic problem in the community. Mr. Prinz commented the only way that Market Street will get better is if some of the access is restricted. Without this project, there is no end in sight for that problem in the community. With that being said, he also felt there were a lot of unanswered questions and had compiled a list of seven or eight. He mentioned concerns about the access to Dr. Parr’s property, as well as the concurrence agreement with the property owner on the opposite side of the roadway, the possibility of pervious parking on the site. He also commented he would like to see some evidence that the Page 25 of 27 sound and light buffering solutions proposed will work appropriately, and he would like to spend more time looking at the landscaped island or investigating alternative materials. Anthony Prinz stated this is a huge issue for our community and a major recommendation to be making to the county commissioners. He elaborated that with very key questions still lingering, he didn’t feel the board had done enough homework to recommend approval or denial of the proposal. Mr. Prinz suggested that thirty additional days would give the board the opportunity to explore the plan in more detail. He also noted he had concerns about the building architecture and the landscaping because he felt a high quality appearance development was needed to support the Porters Neck area. Lisa Mesler stated Mr. Prinz had made some good points and she had similar concerns. If they were to move forward with the conditions, they would need to be very specific. Tamara Murphy agreed with Mr. Prinz and Ms. Mesler, noting she felt it may take quite a bit of time to determine the conditions necessary to move forward with a motion for approval. She didn’t feel she had enough information to make a decision for approval or denial at the current time. Vice Chairman Dan Hilla stated he felt the board had enough information to move forward with conditions and if those conditions were outlined properly, he would feel comfortable moving forward. David Weaver stated he also felt the board could move forward with the item. He would like to provide the applicant with a specific set of questions as mentioned by Mr. Prinz that would need to be answered before the project goes forward to the Commissioners. He cited the example of the landscaped median, noting much could be done to improve the concrete median without going to a great expense; for example, stamping and coloring the concrete to give it the appearance of brick in various areas, and providing landscape vegetation that requires little water in wider areas. He expressed great concern about the impact on the residents of Lily Pond Lane and the need to improve the buffers. He commented he also liked the idea of a six foot wall on top of the three feet berm and beefing up the wall. Chairman Collier asked Mr. Harner if he would like to request a 30-day continuance to provide answers to the questions the board has reservations about and update the site plan to reflect those items. He stated the board could also vote on the proposal this evening. In his opinion, the applicant had designed a very nice development in a good location that would help the northern end of Market Street and bring the stability needed to reduce accidents; however, he wanted to make sure the items requested by the adjacent residents in regard to lighting and sound barriers, etc. were included on the site plan. He agreed with the noise barriers proposed behind the building, noting they were miles above the remedies in other locations and applauded the applicant for those. He commented the layout and transportation plan were good and the drawings were fine, but there was still work to be done on stormwater and there were ways to include pervious pavers in the project. The chairman reiterated the board felt this was a nice development, but there were 4-5 items of concern to the neighbors that need to be addressed to ensure the board is representing their interests as well as they can. Page 26 of 27 David Harner stated they had worked diligently over the last 6-8 months to address concerns and were willing to answer a list of questions provided by Planning staff. Chairman Collier stated the vote by the board appeared to be 3-3 and offered the applicant the opportunity to continue the item to a later date. Mr. Harner requested a short recess to consult with his team and the engineers. David Harner stated the applicant would like to continue the rezoning request for one month and requested a list of items to be addressed and submitted through the Planning staff. Chairman Collier stated the board felt the applicant had done a great job with the project, but they would like to provide the technical analysis expected of the board to the Commissioners. David Weaver commented staff had done a great job analyzing the complex case and thanked them for their work. Richard Collier made a motion to continue the item #1 to the July 11, 2013 Planning Board meeting. Anthony Prinz seconded the motion. The Planning Board voted 6-0 to continue Rezoning Request Z-926 to the July Planning Board meeting. Technical Review Committee Report (May) Sam Burgess reported the County’s Technical Review Committee met twice in May and reviewed three (3) projects. Scotts Hill Village (Conceptual Plan) At their May 8, 2013 meeting, the TRC discussed a 226 residential site plan known as Scotts Hill Village. The proposed project is located in the northeastern portion of the County and is classified as Watershed Resource Protection on the County’s Land Use Plan. The project is limited to 2.5 units per acre. Total acreage is 90.44. The project is proposed to have private roads with public water and sewer. Access is limited to Scotts Hill Loop Road in Pender County. During discussion with the developer, the following observations were noted by TRC. There was no time table set for formal submission. Watermark Landing (Performance Extension) At their May 22, 2013 meeting, the TRC reviewed an extension request for a 48 residential complex with 32.94 acres known as Watermark Landing. The project is located near the 8400 block of River Road, west side and is classified as Conservation on the County’s 2006 Land Use Plan. Private water and sewer are proposed along with private roads. Page 27 of 27 The developer for the project requested a one year extension since the last preliminary approval in September, 2007. Under the Permit Extension Act, the project is set to expire in September, 2013. In a vote of 5-0, the TRC approved the one year preliminary extension to Watermark Landing for 48 lots. Approval of the project came with several conditions listed in the Planning Board package. Laurenbridge (Performance Extension) Laurenbridge is located between Beacon Woods subdivision to the north and Greenbriar subdivision to the south. The project is also anchored between South College Road to the west and Masonboro Loop Road to the east. The area is classified as Urban on the County’ 2006 Land Use Plan. The project contains 34 residential lots that will be served by public water and sewer. One private road is proposed connecting to a public road. The developer for the project requested a one year extension to the preliminary validity to the plan. The plan was originally approved in May, 2009 and set to expire in May, 2013 under the Permit Extension Act. In a vote of 5-0, the TRC approved the extension of Laurenbridge subdivision for 34 lots. No specific conditions were imposed on the plan. However, the plan will require that the County’s two new Private Certificates be placed on the preliminary plan and final plat(s). Chairman O’Keefe reminded the board there would be a joint Planning Board/County Commissioners Work Session on July 26, 2013 on the Comprehensive Plan. Chairman Collier adjourned the meeting at 9:45 p.m.