Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout04 11 78 PC Minutes79Z S April 11, 1978 The Albemarle County Planning Commission conducted a public hearing on Tuesday, April 11, 1978, 7:30 p.m., Board Room, County Office Building, Charlottesville, Virginia. Those members present were Col. William Washington, Vice -Chairman; Mr. Kurt Gloeckner; Mr. Layton McCann; Mrs. Norma Diehl; Mr. James Huffman; Dr. James Moore; Mr. Charles Vest; Mrs. Joan Graves; and Mr. Tim Lindstrom, ex-officio. Absent was Mr. Peter Easter, Chairman. Other officials present were Mr. Robert W. Tucker, Jr., Director of Planning; Mr. Ronald S. Keeler, Assistant Director of Planning; and Mr. Frederick W. Payne, Deputy County Attorney. In the absence of the chairman, Col. Washington presided. Col. Washington established that a quorum was present and called the meeting to order. Minutes of March 21, 1978, and March 28, 1978, were approved as submitted. Mrs. Graves, though not present during the approval of the minutes, later requested that the minutes of April 4, 1978, be amended to include the statement that Mr. and Mrs. Robert Huff, applicants for SP-78-09, do indeed live at the Knollwood property. Other than that correction, minutes of April 4, 1978, were approved as submitted. SP-78-09. Mr. Keeler advised the Commission that in view of the absence of Mr. and Mrs. Huff, the staff would prefer to defer discussion of this matter until later in the meeting. ( Mrs. Graves entered the meeting. ) The Albemarle County Planning Commission has adopted a resolution of intent to amend the M-2 Zone to provide all those uses permitted in the M-1 Zone in the following manner: Section 9-2-24 Unless such uses are otherwise provided in this article, USES PERMITTED in Article 8 Limited Industrial District M-1; and to provide for the following by special use permit in the M-2 Zone: Airports, Drive-in theaters; Go-cart and trail bike tracks; and Veterinary or dog or cat hospitals, kennels. Mr. Keeler presented the staff report, noting that this matter has been discussed by the Commission on several occasions. There was no public comment, and Col. Wasington closed the public hearing. Mr. Gloeckner stated that since the noise makers are provided by special permit, he feels that the amendments should be approved as recommended by the staff. He moved that the ordinance be amended to include Section 9-1-24 Unless such uses are otherwise provided in this article, Uses Permitted in Article 8 Limited Industrial District M-1, and he moved that the following be provided by special use permit: Section 9-1-23(2.1) Airports; Section 9-1-23(9.1) Drive-in theaters; Section 9-1-23(10.2 Go-cart and trail bike tracks; and Section 9-1-23(20) Veterinary or dog or cat hospitals, kennels. Mr. Huffman seconded the motion, which carried unanimously, with no discussion. ( Mr. Lindstrom entered the meeting. ) ZMA-78-03. North Rivanna 1st and 2nd and 3rd Land Trusts have petitioned the Board of Supervisors to rezone 292.9 acres from A-1 Agriculture to M-1 Industrial. Property is located on the north side of Route 649 and east side of Route 606 at the Charlottesville/Albemarle Airport. County Tax Map 32, Parcel 19, part thereof; Parcel 6, part thereof; and Parcel 17. Rivanna Magisterial District. Mr. Keeler presented the staff report, and also read into the record the comments from the Virginia Department of Highways. He cited letters from James R. Tirrell, Mrs. S. Handy, and Mrs. Lucille Tirrell Miller, all adjoining property owners. Mrs. Diehl established that the building setback in the M-1 zone is 50 feet, however Mrs. Graves reminded the Commission that the parking lot can go up to the lot line. Mr. Wendell Wood, the applicant, stated that he has accomplished a feasibility study, and noted that 4000 people within a 20 mile radius of the property are unemployed. He stated that he has met with the adjoining property owners, the League of Women Voters, the Albemarle Taxpayers, the Citizens for Albemarle prior to drawing these plans. Mr. Wood said that all these people supported the concept and the location, however, he noted that all were concerned about the traffic situation in the area and what the increased traffic would do to the road. He said that he is entering into a contract to build the sewer plant at Camelot and will run the sewer lines from the plant to this property at his expense. He stated further that his plan is endorsed by the Retail Merchants Association. Mr. Bob McKee, engineer for the project, explained the property through a series of maps pointing out the vegetation and the slopes on the property and finally a synthesis of all the environmental factors which led to the development concept. Mr. Tom Tirrell, an adjoining property owner , told the Commission that he is in accord with the concept though he feels as though something should be done with the roads , especially Route 606, prior to putting any more uses on the road that are big traffic generators. Mr. Forrest Marshall, speaking on behalf of the Retail Merchants Association, supported the concept noting that it is important that this rezoning be approved. He noted the assets it will provide the county through employment opportunities, tax base, and putting more money into the community. He felt it to be the perfect location for an industrial park and urged the County to approve the rezoning. Mr. Fred McDaniel said that he does not feel that the concept is undesirable, though he is concerned about the liveability of the area adjoining the park, due to any increased traffic that will occur on substandard roads. Mr. Lloyd Smith also noted his concern for the roads, especially due to the school aged children, and noted that the roads are not patrolled by the sheriffs department. Mrs. Paula Clark said that her concern is the taxi -strip shown to the airport on the plan. Mr. Winston Wood supported the rezoning on the basis that it will assist the county's tax base, however he did state that he is concerned about the road situation. Mr. Mike Boggs, manager of the Charlottesville/Albemarle Airport, said that the Airport Commission is looking forward to the location of the industrial park and especially to the location of Bede in the park. He stated that they are known to be an extremely good small business. Mr. Fred McDaniel noted that time is of the essence in approving the plan, since Bede General also has an optional plan for locating in the Petersburg area. He feels as though the County should act as soon as passible, however also felt that the County should do something to improve the roads in the area as soon as possible. Mr. Tucker at this point explained that the County of Albemarle is not permitted by law to upgrade roads, that this is the responsiblity of the Highway Department. Mr. Mike Quesenberry said that he does not want an excess amount of air traffic due to the proposed location of Bede General in the industrial park and wondered if each plane constructed will be tested. Mr. Wendell Wood stated that the company builds 15-20 planes per day, and some will be shipped. However, he said that he does not know their testing program on the planes, though noise should be minimal since the planes built are only 400 pounds in weight and very small. Mr. Quesenberry then questioned how the industrial park will affect Chris Greene Lake and the Rivanna River Impoundment. Mr. Wood said that this property drains into the North Fork of the Rivanna which is below all water impoundments. Mr. Coburn of the Highway Department, stated that the County long adopted a 6-Year Plan for road priorities. Route 649 falls within the 1980-1981 Fiscal Year for upgrading and should be completed in 1983-1984. 50% of the funds for construction are necessary before a contract is drawn up. However, Mr. Coburn felt that a project such as this might make the County want to change its priorities for road upgrading. Col. Washington questioned the possibility of industrial access funds for this project. Mr. Coburn said that as far as he knows, no consideration has been given as to whether this qualifies for those funds. He noted that qualification for industrial funds is a very complex situation with lengthy criteria for qualification. Mr. Tirrell questioned if it would be possible to get a reduced speed limit for Route 649. Mr. Coburn said that it could be applied for through the Highway Department and he said that he would be willing to do a feasibility study of it. Dr. Moore asked if the Highway Department has studied the possible future road to Route 29 North shown on the plan. Mr. Coburn replied that this was the first time he has seen this plan. Mr. Wendell Wood stated that the location of the property permits the 14 traffic to fan out without overcrowding any one particular route. Dr. Moore suggested that perhaps construction of the connection to Route 29 should be the first consideration. Mr. Wood replied that with the next 200 employees he will build the connection to Route 29, however with all the other things he has to accomplish regarding sewer, etc., he feels he cannot do that connection at this time. Mrs. Susie Sherwood said that the League of Women Voters is very concerned about Route 649, especially with truck deliveries. Mr. Norman Pierson questioned if accel and decel lanes from Route 606 are still proposed. Mr. Wood replied that they are, however pointed out that that will be covered at the site plan level. Col. Washington closed the public hearing and called for a two minute recess. After the recess, Mr. Wood said that he would like to note that Parcel 17 is a small tract for smaller businesses than those planned for the larger tract, and therefore felt it would be important for the county to approve that section as well, though he pointed out that this had not been clarified for the staff. He further noted that time is of essence if the County believes in the project. Mrs. Graves said that she sees no place that aircraft manufacturing fits in the M-1 Zone. She stated that the statement of intent governs the uses. Mr. Wood said that the following day he will get an opinion from the Zoning Administrator on this matter, and if need be, he will apply for an amendment to the ordinance at the same time. He said that he certainly hopes the county will not get bogged down by small technicalities. Mr. McCann said that the ordinance does speak in that statement of intent to what is and isn't desirable, but it is impossible to list everything that might take place. Mrs. Graves said that if a use is not listed, then it is not a permitted use . Mr. McCann said that the county will either have to amend the ordinance or approve a special permit that he would seek. Furthermore, he felt that it was not necessary at this point to discuss the uses, since the tropic before the Commission is a rezoning for an industrial park. Mr. Huffman said that he agreed with Mr. McCann. Col. Washington questioned the alternative suggested in the staff report ( a device similar to the Residential Planned Neighborhood or Planned Community which could be applied to commercial and industrial. rezonings ). Mr. Keeler said that that is a suggestion for the future, however the Commissio must now deal with the rezoning before it. TZq At the present the county has no way to cope with the suggestion in the staff report. Mrs. Graves questioned the possible use of the RTM zone and asked if the this had been mentioned to the developer. Mr. Keeler said that this had not been discussed with the applicant because the RTM zone was created for one specific use. Mr. Tucker stated that an RTM zone is more restrictive, and that the staff has only dealt with what the applicant is proposing. He further stated that the staff has not discussed with the applicant what was noted in the staff report as a possible future alternative. Mr. Gloeckner did not see this as a problem, since the uses can be controlled through the site plan ordinance. Mr. Tucker said that the problem with that theory is that someone may get stuck with a major portion of the road construction costs. Mr. McCann said that the tool mentioned in the staff report is not available and the county is looking at a proper rezoning application. He felt that the highway situation is what is discussed with every application - who is going to build them and who is going to pay for them. He said that he favors the rezoning as presented that night, and other controls can come at site plan level. He felt that the county could control at that level what will happen from here on out. Messrs. Gloeckner and Vest agreed with Mr. McCann. Mr. Vest further stated that the county will get a shot at the roads through the various future site plans. Mr. Gloeckner agreed, stating that the county will be aware of the total impact from the very beginning, and should make recommendations for the roads from the very beginning that will cover the traffic that will eventually occur. That way no one will get stuck with the major cost of the road upgradings. Mr. Gloeckner then moved approval of the rezoning request. Mr. McCann seconded the motion. Discussion: Mrs. Diehl established that no pre-existing conditions are a result of the PUD. Mrs. Graves said that she wished some thought had been given to the RTM as the proper zone for this proposal. She felt that the M-1 zone is too large for M-1 zoning since the county will really have no control over what will go there. Mr. Tucker advised that the Commission can always rezone a piece of property to a less intensive zone that what has been applied for, and in this particular case, the RTM is less intensive than the M-l. Em Mrs. Diehl questioned the staff's reasons for not recommending the smaller parcel for rezoning. Mr. Keeler .replied that the staff had not seen the concept for development until that evening, and had considered that the parcels are not connected. He said that he can appreciate the idea of smaller uses on the smaller tract, separated from the larger uses. However, he pointed out that the staff considers this as strictly a traditional rezoning and would therefore still recommend that the smaller tract not be rezoned to M-1. Col. Washington stated that in his opinion the entire quadrant will eventually be M-1 if the smaller tract is rezoned. However, he said that this is not necessarily a bad concept. Mr. Gloeckner pointed to the land use map, and noted that the large corner is already M-1. Dr. Moore said that he could not support the rezoning on the basis that the roads cannot handle the traffic that will be generated. Mrs. Diehl said that she favors the park and feels the concept for development is good, however she said that she cannot support the rezoning with the increase in traffic volume for the existing conditions of the road. The motion carried by a vote of 5-3, with Dr. Moore, Mrs. Diehl, and Mrs. Graves dissenting. SP-78-09. Dennis G. and Betty M. Stokes: Mr. Keeler read to the Commission the recommended conditions of approval for the special use permit. He stated that the Planning Commission at the previous meeting had questioned why the Highway Department was requiring full frontage development, and noted that in this particular case, they know the exact location of the future Hydraulic Road. He stated that full frontage development was required for the Hydraulic Apartment Complex, and therefore a precedent for this sort of requirement has been set. Mrs. Graves noted that the applicant has three alternatives - (a) abandon the request; (b) wait a couple of years until Hydraulic Road is upgraded at that particular point; or (c) comply with the Highway Department requirements. Mrs. Graves then moved approval of the special permit subject to the following conditions: 1. Buffering of play area from adjacent residence and chain linked fence to be approved by staff; 2. Permit is issued to applicant and is non-transferrable; 3. Approval by Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation; 4. Approval of paving specifications by County Engineer; 9 4-'3 I 5. Approval of appropraite state and local agencies. Conditions stated are supplementary and nothing stated herein shall be deemed to preclude application of requirements and regulations by the Virginia Department of Welfare or any other agency; 6. Licensure by the Virginia Department of Welfare as a child care center. In the event of license expiration, suspension, or revocation, the Zoning Administrator shall refer this petition to the Board of Supervisors for public hearing after notice pursuant to Section 15.1-431 of the Code of Virginia, as amended. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to transmit to the Zoning Administrator a copy of the original license and all renewals thereafter. Failure to do so shall be deemed willful non-compliance with the provisions of this special use permit. Dr. Moore seconded the motion. Discussion: Mr. McCann questioned the cost of the construction, since he stated he is not in favor of individuals building state highways. Mr. Huff, the contract/purchaser, stated that the chairman had asked that the sight distance be measured. Mr. Coburn stated that the sight distance was measured by the Highway Department and that it is inadequate from the existing entrance. He stated that to the north it can be corrected with minimal grading. However, minimal grading will not correct the inadequate sight distance to the south to meet the commercial entrance requirement. This could be done only by off -site grading. Mr. Huff refuted these statements, commenting that the sight distance from the Stokes property is far greater than that from the Doctor's Offices. He said that he cannot afford to develop Hydraulic Road for 190 feet and feels this is an excessive requirement for one person. Dr. Moore questioned the appeal process for such a requirement. Mr. Keeler replied that this is done through the Highway Department. Mrs. Diehl said that she had visited the property that date, and felt the sight distance to be inadequate. The motion to approve subject to the six conditions carried by a vote of 6-2, with Messrs. Huffman and McCann dissenting. The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors has adopted a resolution of intent to rezone all properties owned by the City of Charlottesville lying within the watershed areas of the Sugar Hollow, Ragged Mountain, and the South Fork Rivanna River Reservoirs from their present classifications to the CVN- Conservation District. Mr. Keeler presented the staff report. There was no public comment. Mr. Keeler noted for the record that the total land area is 2,566.553 acres. Mr. Gloeckner moved that the properties be rezoned from the current classification to the CVN designation. Those tax map and parcel numbers are as follows: Tax Map 75, Parcel 1 Tax Map 24, Parcel 1 Tax Map 25, Parcel 7 Tax Map 30, Parcels llA1, 11B, 12A, 14B, 15A, Tax Map 44, Parcels 3A, 12V, 21E Tax Map 45, Parcels 6, 67A, 69A Tax Map 41A, Parcel 74 16C1, 16D, 17A1, 18A, 18B, 24A1, 24G Mrs. Graves seconded the motion, which carried unanimously, with no discussion. New Business: Mr. Tucker stated that he wished the Commission to know that the Cosmopolitan Spa will be opening in the near future and would like to locate for 90 days an office trailer on the property. Parking would be on the Western Sizzlin property, for which permission has been granted. He stated that the ordinance does provide for such a temporary use and that he wanted the Commission to be aware of this. There was no objection to the temporary use of the office trailer from the members of the Commission. Since there was no further business, the meeting adjourned at 10:30 p.m. Rob rt W. Tucker, Jr. - Sec etar 19