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CONSIDERATION OF ORDINANCE O-1415-19 UPON SECOND AND FINAL READING: AN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NORMAN, OKLAHOMA, AMENDING SECTION 460 OF CHAPTER 22 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF NORMAN SO AS TO REMOVE ALL OF BLOCK 1, CONTAINING LOTS 1-26, OF THE REPLAT OF REPLAT OF BLOCK 1 OF MILLER ADDITION, TO NORMAN, CLEVELAND COUNTY, OKLAHOMA, FROM THE R-3, MULTI-FAMILY DWELLING DISTRICT, AND PLACE SAME IN THE PUD, PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT; AND PROVIDING FOR THE SEVERABILITY THEREOF. (PAGE CIRCLE)
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SYNOPSIS: This applicant, Elsey Partners, applied for a rezoning and preliminary plat of the entire area known as Page Circle; an area directly north of Page Street, east of Trout Avenue and west of the BNSF ROW. Currently, this site consists of a public street with 26 smaller single-family properties. From the records staff received, all of the properties located on Page Circle are leased/maintained by a property management company. There are no owner-occupied homes. The rezoning request is to rezone the entire area from R-3, Multi-Family Dwelling District to PUD, Planned Unit Development for a multi-family/student based housing project.
ANALYSIS: This proposal is an in-fill multi-family/student housing project. The existing homes located on Page Circle are situated between two multi-family developments, Ray Apartments to the north and Bishop's Landing to the south. The applicants plan to clear the site and construct a student based/multi-family housing development consisting of 372 units.
This area of Page Circle was placed in the R-3, Multi-Family Dwelling District with the adoption of the 1954 Zoning Ordinance and the zoning has remained in place since that time.
The particulars of this PUD include:
USE: This proposal consists of 4.2 acres with 372 units for a student based multi-family housing project. The housing proposal will be developed in three phases; with 109 studios or one bedroom units, 13 two bedroom units, 81 three bedroom units, 58 four bedroom units and 11 five bedroom units, this is a density of 89 units per acre.
SITE PLAN AND ACCESS: The "Master Site Development Plan" details and identifies the requirements set forth in the PUD Narrative. The PUD Narrative and Master Site Development Plan for this development will be the guidelines and regulatory document that control this development. Design guidelines identified within the PUD include; required setbacks, landscaping, bicycle racks, access, exterior building materials, dumpster location, parking requirements and open space areas.
Access for the development is approximately 340 feet east of the Page Street and Trout Avenue intersection. As noted this is an infill development, encompassing the entire area currently known as Page Circle. This development will front Page Street while abutting the alley to the west and abut the newly installed fire lane which wraps around the north and east side of the development.
OPEN SPACE: Of the 4.2 acres in this development there are 1.43 acres or 34% open space designated for the residents. There are seven exterior courtyards around the entrances of the building and two large interior courtyard areas. These designated open space areas are landscaped and include seating and amenities for the residents.
PARKING: The PUD Narrative states there will be one parking stall per bedroom and visitor parking for this development. Parking will be located in a parking garage which is surrounded by the apartment buildings. The parking structure will be eighty feet in height. There will also be several parking spaces along the west side of the facility, adjacent to the alley. Bicycle parking will be provided within the parking garage.
EXTERIOR LIGHTING: The project will be developed in accordance with the Commercial Outdoor Lighting Standards. During the building permitting process all exterior lighting will be reviewed and approved by City staff prior to installation. A photometric plan, lighting cut-sheets and a lighting plan will be required.
LANDSCAPING REQUIREMENTS: The applicant submitted a preliminary landscape plan for this development. There are no parking areas to be landscaped between abutting properties. However, the applicant has heavily landscaped the areas fronting Page Street as well as the alley along the west side. The areas that abut the fire lane along the north and east sides will also be landscaped but to a lesser extent.
EXTERIOR APPEARANCE: The renderings depict and the PUD Narrative details the exterior building materials as brick and stucco finishes. The sides of the development fronting Page Street and the alley are shown with setbacks/cutouts for the entrances and courtyards.
PHASES: The project may be developed in phases, beginning late summer of 2015 for a scheduled move-in in late summer 2016 for Phase 1. There are three phases planned for this development. Depending on the market the phases may be developed in a different order as each phase/area of the development houses a different product, i.e. number of units/bedrooms.
ALTERNATIVES/ISSUES:
IMPACTS: Page Circle Apartments will provide a student based multi-family housing product to the students at the University of Oklahoma. The development is situated within a five minute walk from the areas of Campus Corner, OU Campus and Gaylord Stadium. In addition to the walkability of the location there is a CART location one block south on East Brooks Street. This location will create an environment of easy access to several locations the students will be frequenting.
With an in-fill project such as this there has been concern the additional traffic will create problems for the adjacent neighborhoods and streets. The traffic impact analysis submitted to City staff has been reviewed and approved with no additional requirements. As stated previously with the student housing product the typical 8-5 work rush hour will not occur. If the residents drive to a destination it should be staggered.
OTHER AGENCY COMMENTS:
PRE-DEVELOPMENT MEETING - PD NO. 14-26 - Meeting of September 25, 2014
Concerns expressed by citizens:
1. Density - no more than one person per bedroom
2. Lack of adequate Infrastructure in this area for a development of this size
3. Not enough green space in the development
4. Drainage impacts on adjacent properties
5. Floodplain impacts downstream
6. Only one access point off Page Street will create problems for the neighborhood
7. TIA for University of Minnesota is not comparable to the University of Oklahoma area
8. Adequate fire lane/fire protection
9. Citizens don't like this type of development in this area/doesn't fit with neighborhood
10. Height is an issue
GREENBELT COMMISSION - GBC NO. 14-22 - Meeting of September 15, 2014
The Greenbelt Commission reviewed the statement and forwards with the following comments:
The Commission expressed concerns about egress and of traffic and pedestrian safety through the surrounding neighborhoods.
The Commission asked that:
1. The final design includes widening of the alley between Page Street and Boyd to include 6 foot sidewalks.
2. Parallel parking and trees be added on the west and south sides to buffer pedestrians from street traffic.
3. Balconies be added to the exterior upper floors on the west and south sides.
4. The west and south buildings have active fronts.
5. The Commission also asked that a tree inventory be done and replacement trees of significant caliper be used.
The applicants responded favorably to the comments and concerns from the Greenbelt Commission. The new design submitted reflects changes in several of the above noted design elements. The design now includes sidewalks along all sides of the building. There are step-backs and cut-outs along the south and west sides of the building, adding detail to the design so there is not a blank wall. The applicant proposed parallel parking along the south side of the development, adjacent to Page Street; however, that was not supported by City staff so it has been removed. The applicant also submitted a tree survey.
PARKS BOARD: On Thursday, November 7, 2014, the Norman Board of Park Commissioners met and reviewed the change in zoning/development plan and preliminary plat for the Page Circle Apartments. A fee-in-lieu of land decision was proposed by the applicant, the application received a unanimous approval by a 6-0 vote.
PUBLIC WORKS/ENGINEERING: This area is currently platted with several single-family lots, the applicant is required to re-plat the area and essentially vacate the existing easements, already located on-site, dedicating new easements on a Final Plat. A new curb and gutter section of Page Street is required to bring Page Street to a 26' wide local street, meeting City standards. There is an additional ROW of two feet for Page Street. Fire hydrants will be installed in accordance with the approved plans; hydrant locations have been approved by the Fire Department. Sanitary sewer mains and water mains will be installed in accordance with the approved plans and City and State standards. There will be public sidewalks constructed adjacent to Page Street and sidewalks have been included adjacent to the existing alley, abutting the parallel parking for visitors, these two sidewalk areas are included in an easement. There are sidewalks along the north and east sides of the proposal, however, these are not proposed public sidewalks, therefore, there is no public easement.
As outlined above under Impacts, the traffic impact issues have been reviewed and approved by the City Traffic Engineer, recommending approval of this project.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: The location of this development makes it an appropriate in-fill development, not only for the University of Oklahoma residents/students but also the City of Norman. City staff often hears a concern with expanding infrastructure to the outer edges of the city creating additional strain on existing infrastructure; this proposal, as an in-fill project, addresses this often expressed concern. The University continues to purchase property, expanding its ownership to the east from Jenkins Avenue, essentially one street to the west of this proposal. Reviewing the ownership map discloses the greater majority of ownership belongs to the University. The continued change in the neighborhood component, the University ownership and rental properties supports the proposal for in-fill development for this area. Staff supports this rezoning request and recommends approval of Ordinance No. O-1415-19.
PLANNING COMMISSION DISCUSSION: Planning Commissioners commented on the following: density of the development, traffic impacts on neighboring streets, impacts on adjacent residential properties, and location and scale of development.
The applicant addressed all questions and comments.
Planning Commission, at their meeting of December 11, 2014, moved to recommend adoption of this ordinance which failed on a vote of 1-7.