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Home My WebLink AboutSDP200500083 Action Letter 2007-07-24�cF sts�,� c - rlkci�l'' COUNTY OF ALBEMARLE Department of Community Development 401 McIntire Road, Room 227 Charlottesville, Virginia 22902 -4596 Phone (434) 296 -5832 Fax (434) 972 -4126 July 23, 2007 Peter Van der Linde Van der Linde Housing, Inc. 2820 Hydraulic Road, Suite 1 Charlottesville VA 22901 RE: OFFICIAL DETERMINATION REGARDING OFF -SITE IMPROVEMENTS- SDP -2005 -00083 RIO TRUCK REPAIR- TAX MAP 61, PARCEL 146 - RIO MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT- Section 32.7.3 Dear Mr. Van der Linde This letter is in response to information provided to the County by your attorney, Corban Klug. As a result of his legal points, staff has revisited the applicable Zoning Ordinance regulations relating to off -site improvements for this proposed site development. In consultation with the County Attorney's office, staff has reversed our previous position and now find that off -site improvements are not required as a result of the unique facts in this case. This will be discussed more fully in the proceeding. Background The applicant requested preliminary site plan approval to allow the construction of an 8,000 square foot building to be used for a truck repair business on the property identified as Tax Map 61, Parcel 146 (hereinafter, the 'parcel "). The parcel is approximately 1.428 acres in size and is zoned C -1, Commercial, and EC, Entrance Corridor. The truck repair business is a by -right use in the C -1 zoning district. The parcel is located at the end of Rio School Lane, which is a 20 foot wide privately owned and maintained access easement, approximately 370 feet east of its intersection with Rio Road (State Route 631). There is no existing use on the parcel, and County approval of a site plan is required before a permitted use in the C -1 zoning district may lawfully exist. In order to approve the applicant's preliminary site plan, Staff determined that Rio School Lane needed to be upgraded to include curb and gutter under Zoning Ordinance § 32.73. Because the curb and gutter and the minimum required travelway cannot fit within the existing 20 foot wide easement, the applicant requested a waiver of the curb and gutter requirement. Negotiations to obtain additional easement width between the applicant and landowners adjoining Rio School Lane were unsuccessful. Staff has re- evaluated the applicant's request for a waiver and has determined that under the facts of this case a waiver is not required because the County's site plan regulations do not require that Rio School Lane be upgraded as described above. Peter Van der Linde July 23, 2007 Page 2 Discussion Both the parcel and the 20 foot access easement were created before the County had private street standards, so the access easement exists with no minimum standards for construction or maintenance. The County may require the installation of improvements in conjunction with a site plan if the Zoning Ordinance requires such improvements and those improvements are enabled by State law. In prior reports, Staff identified Zoning Ordinance § 32.7.3 as the authority to require the upgrading of Rio School Lane. Section 32.7.3 requires that the principal means of access to a site conform to VDOT standards, or in the case of a private road, to the applicable standards for private roads set forth in the Subdivision Ordinance. However, by its express language, the requirements of Section 32.7.3 apply only "ji]n the case of any site plan involving multiple uses, including multiple dwelling units ..." Therefore, Section 32.7.3 does not apply in this case because the applicant's site plan involves a single use. Staff also has considered whether Zoning Ordinance § 32.7.2 might apply in this case, though it was not identified in prior reports. Section 32.7.2 requires in part that "[e]ach development shall be provided with safe and convenient ingress from and egress to one (1) or more public roads ..." and to these ends, "the commission or the agent in the review of a site plan may specify the number, type, location and design of access points to a public street together with such measures as may be deemed appropriate to insure adequate functioning of such access points." In this case, the access already exists in the form of Rio School Lane. Section 32.7.2 applies only to the point of ingress and egress to a public street. In this case, that point is where Rio School Lane intersects with Rio Road, and does not pertain to the condition of Rio School Lane itself. To the extent that Section 32.7.2 could apply to the applicant's preliminary site plan, VDOT determined that the entrance to the site (from Rio Road onto Rio School Lane) is adequate. Staff analyzed whether the improvements to Rio School Lane could be considered to be onsite improvements that would be required in conjunction with the site plan. The applicant's parcel is accompanied by "an unexclusive right of way or easement for ingress and egress over the 20 foot easement shown on the plat ..." The applicant has offered to make improvements within the existing easement. The issue in this case — which makes it unique — is that the curb and gutter improvements that might otherwise be required would have to be constructed outside of the easement, on private property outside of the ownership and control of the applicant. Finally, Staff considered whether the improvements described above could be required under the theory that their need was substantially generated by the applicant's proposal. Staff has confirmed that the conditions of Rio School Lane requiring the installation of curb and gutter already exist: Drainage: The April 17, 2007 staff report states: "The existing paved and gravel areas are in poor condition, particularly in areas adjacent to the parking lots along the roadway. This has created wash- out and erosion and impacted downstream channels between these parking areas and the subject property." Although the development of the parcel will increase the amount of impervious surface, only a small amount of the runoff from the parcel will flow toward Rio School Road. Safety concerns arising from parking: The April 17, 2007 staff report states: "There is also an overflow of parking along the street, including the travel lanes, creating an unsafe condition. This situation will likely be exacerbated by the large truck traffic that would be associated with the proposed use of this site." Although the development of the applicant's parcel may exacerbate these conditions, the need for the curb and gutter improvements is not being substantially generated by the applicant's project. In the absence of an express regulation requiring these improvements as a condition of preliminary site plan approval, these improvements may not be required. Peter Van der Linde July 23, 2007 Page 3 Conclusion Although it would be preferable that Rio School Lane be upgraded to include curb and gutter, on further analysis Staff has concluded that the County's zoning regulations do not require such improvements in order for the applicant's preliminary site plan to be approved. Neither Sections 32.7.2, 32.7.3 nor any other regulations apply to the unique facts in this case. For the foregoing reasons, a waiver from those provisions is not required. If you are aggrieved by this determination, you have a right to appeal it within thirty days of the date notice of this determination is given, in accordance with Section 15.2 -2311 of the Code of Virginia. If you do not file a timely appeal, this determination shall be final and unappealable. An appeal shall be taken only by filing with the Zoning Administrator and the Board of Zoning Appeals a notice of appeal which specifies the grounds for the appeal. An appeal application must be completed and filed along with the fee of $120. The date notice of this determination was given is the same as the date of this letter. If you have any questions, please contact me. Sincerely, R& Amelia G. McCulley, A.I.C. ✓ Zoning Administrator Copies: William J. or Ann P. Debutts 921 Rugby Road Charlottesville VA 22903 Corban A. Klug Scott/Kroner, PLC P.O. Box 2737 Charlottesville VA 22902 James E. Treakle, Jr. 700 East Nigh Street Charlottesville, VA 22902 Katurah Roell Dominion Development Resources, LLC 172 S. Pantops Drive Charlottesville VA 22911 Church of Our Savior Grace Carpenter, Dennis Rooker, Charles Mason - Trustees 1165 E. Rio Road Charlottesville VA 22901 Rio Road Enterprises, LLC 2861 Duneshop Road Ruckersville VA 22968 Peter Van der Linde July 23, 2007 Page 4 Additional Copies: Betty W. Anderson P.O. Box 300 Fredericksburg VA 22404 Rio Road Laserwash, LLC 3406 Piperfife Ct. Keswick VA 22947 Greenbrier Service Center, LLC 1067 Gasoline Alley Charlottesville VA 22901 Belvedere Station Land Trust 2421 Ivy Road Charlottesville VA Covenant Church of God Ernesto V. Deomampo, et al - Trustees 1025 East Rio Road Charlottesville VA 22901