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PRELIMINARY PLAT FOR CLASSEN LANDING ADDITION. (GENERALLY LOCATED AT THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF CLASSEN BOULEVARD AND LINDSEY STREET.
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BACKGROUND: This item is a preliminary plat for Classen Landing Addition and is located at the northeast corner of the intersection of Classen Boulevard and Lindsey Street. The property currently consists of 2.28 acres and one (1) lot. The property is vacant. The proposal is for retail commercial and restaurant.
The following actions failed by a vote of 2-5, during the Planning Commission meeting on March 9, 2017:
recommendation to City Council for the closure and vacation of Oklahoma Avenue.
recommendation to City Council to amend the NORMAN 2025 Land Use and Transportation Plan from Residential Designation to Commercial Designation for Block 14, Southridge Addition.
recommendation to City Council that Block 14, Southridge Addition be placed in the C-2, General Commercial District and removed from R-1, Single Family Dwelling District.
recommendation to City Council that the preliminary plat for Classen Landing Addition be approved.
DISCUSSION: This application will construct 19,040 square feet of commercial space along with a 4,209 square foot restaurant. In total, this preliminary plat is expected to generate approximately 1,388 trips per day. The traffic capacity on the affected roadways exceeds the demand for existing and proposed trips as a result of this development. No negative traffic impacts are anticipated on these facilities.
Because of the development’s size and traffic generation potential, the applicant was required to submit a traffic impact study. The study was completed by Traffic Engineering Consultants, Inc., and was submitted in November, 2016.
The study location is east of Classen Boulevard and north of Lindsey Street. The proposal includes two access locations along Classen Boulevard and one at the intersection of Enid Street and Oklahoma Avenue. Also a part of this development is the improvement of the portion of Enid Street between Classen Boulevard and Oklahoma Avenue and the elimination of the Oklahoma Avenue between Classen Boulevard and Enid Street. A separate agenda item has been prepared for consideration of the closure of Oklahoma Avenue. The location of access points were agreed upon in early discussions with the developer while the project was in its earliest formative stage.
Driveway spacing along Classen Boulevard will not be in accordance with the guidelines offered in the City of Norman’s Engineering Design Criteria (EDC). However, these locations were agreed to during the early discussions as the best locations for potential site access. While an administrative variance to the requirements in the EDC will be needed, staff is able to support such a request.
Public improvements for this property consist of the following:
Fire Hydrants. Fire hydrants will be installed in accordance with City standards. Their locations have been reviewed by the Fire Department.
Permanent Markers. Permanent markers will be installed prior to the final plat being filed of record.
Sanitary Sewers. There is an existing 30” sanitary sewer interceptor within the property. There is a proposal to relocate a portion of the interceptor main.
Sidewalks. A five-foot (5’) width sidewalk will be installed adjacent to Classen Boulevard in the areas where it does not currently exist.
Storm Sewers. Storm sewers and appurtenant drainage structures are existing. There is less impervious area proposed on the property than was previously there.
Streets. Classen Boulevard is existing. A portion of Oklahoma Avenue will be removed. The developer will reconstruct Enid Street.
Water Mains. There is an existing 12” water main adjacent to Classen Boulevard. A portion of the existing water main will be relocated.
Public Dedications: All rights-of-way and easements will be dedicated to the City with final platting.
Flood Plain. The property contains flood plain. However the owner does not propose any structures or improvements within the flood plain/floodway.
The proposed preliminary plat also includes a small triangle of property currently owned by the City of Norman. The City-owned property was designated as Park Land when the area was originally platted in the 1920’s. The small triangle of land, consisting of approximately .13 acres, is currently classified as a beautification island, with little more than a few cedar trees and amur maples planted where Enid Street meets Classen Boulevard. Mowing is currently being provided through a contracted service. The Parks and Recreation Department does not classify the area as a park, due to its small size and busy location.
The land being redeveloped as Classen Landing was used for decades by various car lots, repair garages, small commercial ventures and auto storage. The redevelopment will build modern commercial facilities and retail shopping space, with associated parking. As part of this plan, the developer plans to re-design the access to the site, which will include re-designing the Enid/Classen intersection. The traffic island owned by the city and given as park land is in this plat; and the developer wishes to acquire that land from the City to make it part of the development of the site. The developer’s plans would retain most of the island as a landscape area along the parking lot edge (see plat). This addition is located less than a quarter of a mile from Faculty Heights Park to the east and less than a half mile from Earl Sneed Park to the north.
In reviewing the deed, and discovering that the “grantors” have long-since passed away, the City of Norman Legal Staff has determined that the City could sell the land to the developer via quit-claim deed in order to accomplish three things: 1. It would remove an area from the mowing contract the city pays annually; 2. It would generate some revenue for the City to be used for other projects; and, 3. It would put any legal responsibility for fulfilling the directives of the original 1929 deed onto the new owner (the Developer of Classen Landing Addition).
In summary, since there is no residential component, the Classen Landing Addition is not required to provide any Park Land as part of their development; however, there is a small parcel of “Park Land” located in the proposed development which they would like to acquire and incorporate into their development as green space. Staff agrees with this proposal, which would transfer ownership and maintenance of this small traffic island from the City to the Developer and not make any noticeable impact on the amount of usable public park land in the Norman Parks System. The Parks Board also considered this proposal and approved the recommendation unanimously.
Through the platting process for residential development, the City of Norman acquires dedicated parkland from the developer. Recently, in the same approximate area Norman, the Parks and Recreation department has acquired parkland within the Bishops Landing Addition and the Eagle Cliff Addition at a cost to the City of $12,500 per acre. Since this beatification island is raw land similar to the land recently acquired by the City for parkland, Staff recommends sale of the beatification island at an equivalent rate. Due to its .13 acre size, that would be a cost of $1,625.00. The developer of Classen Landing has agreed to this cost.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Based on the above information, staff recommends approval of the preliminary plat for Classen Landing Addition subject to approval of R-1617-69 and adoption of O-1617-23 and Ordinance -1617-24.
In addition, Staff recommends that Council authorize the Mayor to execute a quit claim deed for the small traffic island adjacent to the Classen Landing Redevelopment in exchange for payment in the amount of $1,625.00.