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HomeMy WebLinkAboutARB199800008FB Staff ReportCOUNTY OF ALBEMARLE PLANNING STAFF REPORT SUMMARY Project Name: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's- Staff: Judith C. Wiegand, AICP Belfield Planning Commission Worksession: Planning Commission Public Hearing: April 29, 2007 Not Scheduled Owners: St. Anne's - Belfield Applicant: St. Anne's - Belfield, represented by Kurt Gloeckner, Gloeckner Engineering/ Surveying, Inc. Acreage: 28.05 acres Special Use Permit for: Increase the maximum number of students from the current 330 students to 550 students. TMP: TM 60, Parcels 57, 57A, 57B, and Conditions: Yes 57C. Location: The property is located at 720 Faulconer Drive off the Route 250 bypass. (Attachment A) Existing Zoning and By -right Use: R -1 Magisterial District: Jack Jouett Residential (1 unit /acre) Requested # of Dwelling Units: NA DA (Development Area): Development Area 7. Proposal: The applicant is seeking Comp. Plan Designation: Institutional — approval to construct new academic schools, universities and colleges and ancillary buildings on the existing lower campus. facilities and public facilities and utilities, in The new academic buildings will Neighborhood 7. accommodate students in Pre - School through 8t" grade. The addition of Middle School students on this campus will result in a total enrollment of 550 students. Character of Property: The St. Anne's- Use of Surrounding Properties: To the Belfield Lower School campus includes northeast, the subject property is adjacent to one building complex, several playing property owned by the University of Virginia fields (including tennis courts), and surface Foundation (currently vacant). To the northwest parking areas. There is some open space and southwest, the property is bounded by large on the site and several areas of steep residential parcels and the Rural Areas. To the slopes, some of which may have been southeast, the subject property adjoins the 250 created when the ground was leveled for Bypass. construction of the existing playing fields and parking lots. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: Staff requests guidance from the Commission on the historic structure (the Head Master's Dwelling) and on possible offsite road improvements to offset impacts on the transportation system. Any other expectations the Planning Commission has are also important to identify for the applicant and staff at this time. Staff Report: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's - Belfield, April 29, 2008 2 STAFF PERSON: JUDITH C. WIEGAND, AICP PLANNING COMMISSION: April 29, 2008 SP 2007 -053 ST. ANNE'S - BELFIELD WORKSESSION PETITION PROJECT: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's - Belfield New Academic Building Project PROPOSED: to increase the number of students from 300 to 550 by adding new buildings and demolishing some existing buildings. No residential units are proposed. ZONING CATEGORY /GENERAL USAGE: R -1 Residential (1 unit/acre). SECTION: 13.2.2.5, which allows private schools by Special Use Permit. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN LAND USE /DENSITY: Institutional - schools, universities and colleges and ancillary facilities and public facilities and utilities in Neighborhood 7. ENTRANCE CORRIDOR: Yes X No LOCATION: 720 Faulconer Drive (Rt.855), Charlottesville, VA 22903, approximately 1620 feet from the intersection of Faulconer Drive and the Ivy Road /Rt 250 offramp from the 250 Bypass. TAX MAP /PARCEL: TM 60, Parcels 57, 57A, 57B, 57C. MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT: Jack Jouett APPLICANT'S PROPOSAL The applicant is seeking approval to construct new academic buildings on the existing lower campus in Albemarle County, Virginia. Currently, 300 students in Pre - School through 4th grade attend classes on this site between 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. An after care program continues until 5:30 p.m. The new academic buildings will accommodate students in Pre - School through 8th grade. The addition of Middle School students on this campus will result in a total enrollment of 550 students. To avoid any increased traffic both on and off campus, staggered arrival and dismissal times will be used for Lower and Middle School students. The applicant is requesting amendment of the existing special use permit, SP 1994 -017, to increase the maximum number of students from 330 to 550. (Attachment B) PURPOSE OF THE WORKSESSION This worksession is primarily intended to obtain direction from the Planning Commission regarding the County's preferred treatment of an historic structure and the need for a contribution from the school to offset impacts to the transportation network. Information is also provided about a number of other issues that are expected to be resolved prior to the Commission's public hearing. CHARACTER OF THE AREA The St. Anne's - Belfield Lower School campus includes one building complex, several playing fields (including tennis courts), and surface parking areas. There is some open space on the site and several areas of steep slopes, some of which may have been created when the ground was leveled for construction of the existing playing fields and parking lots. The area around the campus is bounded by the 250 Bypass, property owned by the University of Virginia Foundation (as yet undeveloped), and several large residential lots with structures on them. The property is also adjacent to the County's Rural Areas. PLANNING AND ZONING HISTORY 2 Staff Report: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's - Belfield, April 29, 2008 3 St. Anne's - Belfield is currently operating under SP 1999 -017, which was approved on August 10, 1994. The one condition on SP 1999 -017 is "Enrollment at this campus shall not exceed 330 students." All four of the parcels that are part of this application are owned by St. Anne's - Belfield and have been zoned R1- Residential since the County adopted the current zoning ordinance in 1980. Private schools are permitted in R1- Residential districts by special use permit approved by the Board of Supervisors. These four parcels have been the subject of 11 site plans and subdivisions from 1995 through 2003, relating to a new gym, tennis courts and baseball fields, athletic field revitalization, addition of a storage building, field lighting, parking lots, football /lacrosse fields, play field bio- retention, and addition of classrooms. CONFORMITY WITH THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN The Comprehensive Plan designates the subject property as Institutional, which includes schools, universities and colleges and ancillary facilities and public facilities and utilities. The requested Special Use Permit is consistent with this designation. The Comprehensive Plan also recommends to: Maintain or establish a buffer [along] the Route 250 bypass to protect the visual quality and character of the area as seen from the roadway. (page 76) This buffer is also shown on the Open Space Plan map. Conformity with the Neighborhood Model This special use permit request is for an expansion in the number of students permitted to attend a private school and includes an application plan showing significant changes in the campus. Because this SP is for a campus rather than the typical neighborhood, staff believes that four of the principles of the Neighborhood Model are relevant to this proposal. Interconnected Streets and Transportation Networks. Access to the site is via Faulconer Drive. Because of the need for controlled access to the school, there are no other existing or planned interconnections to adjacent parcels. However, even though it is a campus, St. Anne's needs an adequate connection to the local transportation network in order for parents to drop off and pick up their children, as well as for traffic to /from special events held at the school. A Traffic Impact Analysis (TIA) is required by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) as part of this SP. Staff has reviewed both the first draft of the TIA and additional information provided at the County's and VDOT's request. However, the TIA needs to be completed in order for County and VDOT staff to determine whether to recommend that the school make certain offsite improvements to one or more nearby intersections to mitigate traffic impacts attributable to the expansion. It is not yet certain whether this principle will be met. Parks and Open Space. The plan shows a number of fields and open space on the campus. This principle is met. Redevelopment. This plan shows that the applicant is using an existing site more intensively. Several of the existing buildings on the campus are to be demolished and new ones constructed. The applicant is proposing to demolish one potentially historic building (see Staff Report: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's - Belfield, April 29, 2008 4 discussion under Staff Comments below). This principle is met, however, the issue of demolition of the potentially historic structure needs to be resolved. Site Planning that Respects Terrain. The applicant has provided a conceptual grading plan, which the County Engineer considers adequate. The application plan shows extensive grading, including possible disturbance of critical slopes. These slopes, however, are manmade and not shown on the Open Space Plan. Grading in some locations is very close to the edge of the site, which may require a temporary grading easement from the owner of the adjacent property. The applicant will need to provide information on the willingness of the adjacent owner to provide an easement prior to the public hearing. The resubmitted plan does show terraced slopes in place of a significant retaining wall adjacent to one of the playing fields. The applicant has removed the wall at County staff's request. This principle is met. STAFF COMMENT Historic Structure. Staff's Comment Letter to the applicant, dated December 14, 2007, included the following request: The Virginia Dept. of Historic Resources (DHR) has identified a post -1900 house on TMP 50 -57B as historic (fifty years or older). This building is referred to as the Head Master's Dwelling on the plan and is slated for removal. The building has not been evaluated by DHR for historic significance. Recommendation: The Head Master's House should be documented and evaluated for historic significance by an architectural historian or other qualified person approved by staff prior to any site work or demolition. A brief architectural description and historic significance determination of the existing building and associated outbuilding(s) should be submitted to the Director of Planning accompanied by 3'/2" x 5" black and white photographs of all elevations and context shots. If the Head Master's House is determined to be significant, a revised plan should be submitted incorporating the historic building into the new proposal. At this juncture, it is unknown whether the applicant intends to document and evaluate the existing structure. The applicant has told staff that the structure is to be demolished. After the applicant resubmitted information for this report, staff received a call from an architectural historian who had been contacted by the school. It appears that the school has three choices for the Head Master's Dwelling: 1. Preservation of the historic structure and redesign of the conceptual site plan to accommodate the structure 2. Documentation of the historic structure, followed by demolition 3. Moving the house to another location Staff believes that the evaluation should be done prior to the decision being made regarding this special use permit so that the preferred approach to addressing it historical significance can be accommodated with the special use permit action. Staff notes that nothing prevents the applicant from demolishing the structure now. Question for the Planning Commission: Staff Report: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's - Belfield, April 29, 2008 5 1. Should the school conduct an evaluation before the Commission and Board act on the special use permit to determine which option is preferable? Traffic Impact Analysis. A traffic study is required for this project by VDOT. An initial Traffic Impact Analysis (TIA) has been submitted, followed by some of the additional information requested by staff. Both the County Engineer and VDOT staff have requested additional actual data to back up assumptions used and conclusions made in the TIA. This additional information is necessary to determine the impact of the additional traffic on several intersections in the vicinity of the school. Staff cannot determine what offsite improvements to area intersections might be justified by the increased traffic without accurate counts and reasonable estimates of the traffic that will result from the school's expansion. The current version of the TIA indicates that improvements will be necessary at several intersections in the area near the school, but indicates that all of them will be due to the projected background traffic in the year 2010 — before the additional traffic due to the school expansion is factored in. County and VDOT staff note that other institutions requesting special use permits have been required to make improvements to nearby intersections to mitigate traffic impacts from construction or expansion of their facilities. Question for the Planning Commission: 1. If the finalized TIA shows that expansion of the school will increase traffic at intersections in the area, should the school be requested to make improvements to one or more of those intersections, as recommended by the County Engineer and VDOT? Additional Information The following items are still needed from the applicant in order for staff to complete its review prior to the Planning Commission's public hearing. 1. A more legible plan that clarifies properties boundaries and identifies which are public streets, private streets, and driveways. 2. A conceptual stormwater management plan. 3. The County Engineer notes that an erosion and sediment control plan has been provided, but it does not appear possible without variances from the minimum standards. Enhancements to erosion and sediment control and stormwater management plans in keeping with recent rezonings may be warranted here. 4. Additional information on parking because it is not clear how parking requirements can be met. 5. Information on peak water demand and projected sewer flows will be necessary. The Albemarle County Service Authority (ACSA) does not believe that there will be capacity or distribution problems with the site. This matter can be addressed at the site plan stage. Conclusions and Recommendations Staff requests guidance from the Commission on the historic structure (the Head Master's Dwelling) and on possible offsite road improvements to offset impacts on the transportation Staff Report: SP 2007 -053 St. Anne's - Belfield, April 29, 2008 0 system. Any other expectations the Planning Commission has are also important to identify for the applicant and staff at this time. ATTACHMENTS ATTACHMENT A — Location map ATTACHMENT B — Application plan ATTACHMENT C — Design Planner's comments, dated March 20, 2008 R