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HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report Entrada Development Plan TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TX STAFF REPORT TO PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION/TOWN COUNCIL ENTRADA DEVELOPMENT PLAN Date: 10-9-2013 Request: Approval of a Development Plan for PD1-2 Entrada Agenda Item: Consideration of a Development Plan for PD1-2 Entrada CASE INFORMATION Development Name: Westlake Entrada Location: The subject property is generally located at the northeast corner of FM 1938 and Solana Boulevard. Subject site is bounded on the south by Solana Boulevard, on the west by FM 1938 (Davis Blvd), on the north by SH 114, and to the east by the Solana office park development that is part of the PD1-1 zoning district. Owner: Maguire Partners-Solana Land, LP (Mehrdad Moayedi) Applicant: Jeffory D. Blackard Developer: Centurion American Development Group Acres: 85 acres (approx.) Approved Use(s): The approved uses for this tract are set out in Ordinance No. 703. Generally speaking, the approved uses utilize a Spanish architectural theme to create a European style village that blends a wide range of various uses: offices, governmental, retail, restaurants, business services, medical services, entertainment establishments, single family residential detached homes, villas, town homes, and condominiums. These uses are located around or largely a major water amenity (lake). I. DISCUSSION OF COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AND ZONING RELATED TO THIS DEVELOPMENT A. Comprehensive Plan. Prior to the zoning (which was unanimously recommended by the P&Z Commission and approved unanimously by the Town Council), the Land Use Component of the Town's Comprehensive Plan was amended to provide for all the uses proposed for the zoning that was requested for this tract in April of this year. B. Zoning. Public Hearings were held by both the Commission and Town Council, as required by law, in considering the zoning change request for this site. These hearings culminated in the Town Council's consideration of Ordinance No. 703: Amending the Permitted Uses and Development Regulations of Planning District 1-2 (PD 1-2) Including Development Guidelines, Design Standards, Residential Development Standards, Roadway Design Standards, Signage Standards, and the Concept Plan for PD1-2 to Page 1 of 7 Allow for a Mixed Use "Village"Planned Development on an 85 Acre (approx.) Zoning was approved for this district on April 22, 2013. Ordinance No. 703 amended the permitted uses, special uses, and development regulations of this newly established Planning Area 2 (PD 1-2) to allow for a mixed use planned development styled after a Spanish village. Permitted and special uses include office, governmental, retail, restaurants, hotels, as well as residential uses (single family residential detached, and villas or townhomes). Ordinance No. 703 also imposes certain requirements on building materials, roofing materials, and the pace of development of residential to commercial structures. Included in the regulations which govern development in this district contained in Ordinance No 703 are: • Development Guidelines for Planning Area 2, PD 1-2 • Design Standards for Planning Area 2, PD 1-2 • Residential Standards for Planning Area 2, PD 1-2 • Roadway Design Standards for Planning Area 2, PD1-2 • Concept Plan for Planning Area 2, PD 1-2 Adoption of the zoning in Ordinance No. 703 also included the following Staff recommendations for adoption: • Solana Boulevard additional lanes on the south side of the subject tract shall be constructed by the developer as stipulated in a development agreement to be executed at site plan/plat approval. • Dedication of water and sewer easements for public lines. All on-site and off-site water and sewer improvements necessary to serve the development are the developer's responsibility. • The developer shall pay, via a development agreement, a pro-rata share of the costs for signalization, per a traffic impact study approved by the Town, of the intersection at Davis Blvd. and Solana Blvd or any other intersections near or on his development. • A detailed landscape plan and parking plan must be submitted with the Site Plans. • A detailed streetscaping plan shall be submitted showing how it will be integrating and transitioning well in terms of aesthetics with the development at the southeast corner of FM 1938 and Solana Boulevard. • Sidewalks and trails internal to the site will need to connect by access points to sidewalks, trails, or pubic rights-of-way on the perimeter of the site as well as to sidewalks or trails on adjacent tracts. II. DISCUSSION OF THIS DEVELOPMENT PLAN A. Purpose of a Development Plan. If development involves land uses not contained in the current zoning, the zoning must be requested for change as was the case for this tract. Approved zoning must include a Concept Plan. Next, the Town can then require the developer to prepare a Site Plan for all or portions of the tract or prepare a Development Plan for the entire tract. If the Development Plan option is selected, once the Development Plan is approved, the developer can then submit site plans for portions of his development, however, these site plans must comport to the approved Development Plan. If this approach is used, the practical effect is that the Development Plan becomes a master site plan and all the site plans for portions of the site must fit within the template created by the Development Plan for the entire site. Staff Page 2 of 7 recommended to the developer to utilize the Development Plan option as it provides an overall "road map" for development of the entire tract and gives both the Town and developer to go into even greater detail on site plans for specific buildings and/or portions of the site. B. Design Plan Comportment to the Zoning Concept Plan. The purpose of the Concept Plan is to provide an overall eg neral design layout that shows the general locations of uses as well as major design features such as water features. The Concept Plan is intended to guide the preparation of the Development Plan. There are a few differences between the Concept Plan adopted with the zoning via Ordinance No. 703 and the Development Plan approved by the zoning. However, Staff views these differences as either a.) not being a substantive difference or b.) the difference as laid out on the Development Plan improves the site layout (such as new location of the amphitheatre as well as the shape and configuration of the water feature). C. Criticality of Design and Its Relationship to the Success of the Development Plan. In Staff's view, design and the execution of good design are paramount for the success of the implementation of the vision, planning, and the zoning regulations for this rp olect. For this reason, it is imperative that the following, as approved as a part of the zoning (Ordinance No. 703) for this tract, be followed by the Development Plan for this tract: 1.) Development Standards. The Development Standards for this zoning establish standards to achieve the goal of a site design that creates community with a balanced sustainable mix of uses blended as a village. According to these Development Standards, buildings are multi-use and follow the size, scope, scale and variety of a small European (Spanish) village. Further, the Development Standards intend to promote an efficient pedestrian access network between residential and non-residential uses. The physical relationship between the development, adjacent properties, public streets, neighborhoods, and the natural environment is created by: • Site design that mimics the efficient pedestrian patterns that have evolved in European villages • High quality street and sidewalk-oriented environments that support pedestrian mobility and are appropriate to the roadway context • Ensuring large sites are developed in a manner to support and encourage connective, cohesive visual identity, and attractive street scenery. Key design elements have been identified in these Development Standards which are intended to achieve this type of development. They are: 1.) centrally located parking areas, 2.) use of structured parking, 3.) building size and shape variety, 4.) varied orientation of buildings to other buildings and the street, 5.) multiple building faces (4-sided building architectural design), 6.) pedestrian Page 3 of 7 friendly environment and 7.) use of public art as well as sitting and gathering spaces throughout. The Standards espouse being flexible enough "...for creative building solutions, while being prescriptive enough in areas necessary to preserve consistency throughout the development..." Key development features identified in the Development Standards include a plaza, amphitheater, waterfront homes, bridges and water features, chapels, open space with trails and landscaping as in a European village (i.e. these standards are intended to not suburban commercial development type landscaping). 2.) Design Guidelines, Building Design, Lighting, Parking, and Architecture. The Design Guidelines establish design principles for PD1-2 that shape building design including building massing, scale and rhythm, architectural elements, entrances, facade treatments, lighting, signage, and streetscape. Each permanent structure must have building elevation review and approval from the Town prior to issuance of a building permit. For residential buildings, only durable materials such as clay fired brick, natural stone, granite, marble, stucco, and manufactured stone, and will be considered primary materials for residential buildings in Entrada (note: manufactured stone can only be used when approved by the Town Council). Native Texas stone materials will be given primary consideration in the building material selection process. Primary materials as describe here must comprise at least 80% of each floor, excluding windows and doors. Other building material standards are contained in the proposed Zoning Ordinance for this request as well. Architecture should emphasize Spanish-Mission or Spanish type architecture. Four-sided architecture is required for all buildings. Residential and townhomes structures must have have 80% stone exterior wall materials. Non-residential buildings must be 100% masonry except for doors and windows. Brick, stone, cast stone, and stucco are approved materials for non-residenitail buildings. Siding of any type is prohibited. Manufactured stone may be approved by the Town Council via the Site Plan approval process. No composition roofs are allowed. Roofing materials are limited to natural slate or authentic clay tile, or have the appearance of slate or clay tile. Flat roofing systems may me used where appropriately masked from street-level view corridors by parapets and/or other architectural features. Standing seam metal roofing may only be used for minor areas such as porches and patios and in areas not generally visible. Page 4 of 7 A lighting plan must be submitted at the site plan stage. Lighting must meet reflect Town standards established by ordinance. Limited up-lighting may be considered in the lighting for the chapel, bell tower, and town hall. Overhead lighting for public and private parking areas must use full shielded and/or full cut- off fixtures. Parking standards for a mixed-use development are set out in the proposed Zoning Ordinance. Additionally, other Town ordinances for parking apply unless a parking analysis for a specific use is provided at site plan application and approved by the Town. Parking garages are permitted, however, if they are visible from streets or adjacent property, they shall have an architecturally finished facade compatible with surround buildings and look like a regular building, not a parking garage, unless approved otherwise by the Council via the site plan process. 3.) Sign Regulations. Sign regulations proposed in the Sign Standards for this rezoning request are the same or similar to those used on Planning Districts located in the property known as the Circle T Ranch in Planning District 3-4. Additionally, the Design Guidelines speak to signage in this development as well. 4.) Importance of Water Features, Public Gathering Areas, Trails, and View Corridors. This Development Plan, in order to create a unique, vibrant sense of place that draws people to it, must make effective use of its central water feature (i.e the lake), public trails along this water feature, and visually appealing view corridors. The success of this Development Plan hinges on what the National League of Cities Making Cities Liveable initiative describes as having a well-functioning public realm. By that they mean "...a well- functioning public realm - meetings, encounters, dialogue among people young and old with a diversity of backgrounds, acquaintances, friends and strangers - that exists in multi-functional public places, squares and marketplaces..." The Making Cities Liveable Initiative advocates that successful places like Entrada must do this with "...the time-tested principles of appropriate human scale architecture, mixed use shop/houses, and a compact urban fabric of blocks, streets and squares, outdoor cafes and restaurants, farmers'markets and community festivals also enliven the public realm..." III. Recommendations Related to the Submitted Development Plan for PD1-2 Entrada Staff recommends approval of this Development Plan with the two (2) phases shown subject to the following stipulations: Page 5 of 7 1. The Development Plan must have architectural engagement of all buildings to the water feature in a way that accommodates public use of the trail (palisade) on the water's edge. 2. All structures adjacent to the water, including those involving fee simple ownership, must be handled dimensionally to maximize an aesthetically pleasing adjacency and interaction with the water. 3. Location of the plaza in Phase 1 in relationship to the water feature must allow for a high degree of public access to the water feature from this plaza. This should be done in a manner that forces any and all vehicular access into the plaza space via a separate conduit. This can be done in European village fashion with bollards defining the vehicular path across the plaza ground plane, while separating cars from pedestrians (note: the Arts District in Dallas has a street where this pedestrian and vehicular traffic are separated with bollards as recommended here). This plaza should be extended to or as near as possible to the water feature. 4. Attention must be paid to the architectural and spatial relationship of the storage building that will surround the gas well pad site with the residential uses across the street from the storage building. This includes some type of architectural feature at the corners of the storage building to create architectural interest. 5. The entire residential area in the southwest quadrant of the tract must have a view corridor established where all streets and lots are terraced in a manner whereby residences on the street above another residence are viewing a roof top and horizontal vista, not looking downward into a backyard. 6. The location of the proposed Town Hall building should be set to maximize and create a public gathering area near the water, as well as interact well in terms of the Town Hall's site's adjacency to the trail system that goes along the edge of the water feature. This may mean moving it further away from the round-about in front of the building. 7. Pedestrian bridge should be point of strong architectural interest creating a "Ponce Vecchio" visual impact type bridge. The other bridge, which will carry vehicular, bike and pedestrian traffic should be a significant design feature of this development as well. Both bridges should be located to link well with public plaza areas. 8. A publicly accessible trail system must be located around the entire the perimeter of the water feature with the exception of the villas' section. Locations for fountains, benches, tables, public art, and other public gathering areas must be shown along the trail system on the Development Plan. This trail shall have a point of inter-connection with the trail system in Solana on the tract adjoining to the east. Page 6 of 7 9. Engineering standards for this development must be approved with the preliminary plat and must assist in carrying out the Staff's recommendations for the Development Plan contained in this report as well as meet the intent of the design standards and guidelines contained in Ordinance No. 703. 10. When the tract is site planned, both the southeast corner of FM 1938 (Davis) and Solana Boulevard and the northeast corner of FM 1938 (Davis) and SH114 must, include strong design public design elements that tie those corners to the intent of the design standards and guidelines for this tract. Site plans for these corners shall minimize surface parking from being the main visual feature at these hard corners (note: requiring some berming when these locations are site planned may help with this). This includes incorporating design features from the Town's FM 1938 Streetscape plan on the side of the subject tract that abuts FM 1938. Also, a 3-4 foot stone wall that fits with the site's design standards and guidelines shall be required around the perimeter of the site on Solana Boulevard and FM 1938. 11. Show on the Development Plan the type of Town Edge landscaping that will be utilized along the SH114 side of the tract. Also show where along this Town Edge landscape zone the landscaping will consist of trees and when other treatments such as vineyards, as proposed by the developer, will be used. 12. Approve use of Italian Cypress trees on the tract as the predominant tree of choice for the landscaping. 13. All recommendations made by Staff in the Staff Report presented at the time of zoning approval on April 22, 2013 continue in place (discussed above in Section I of this report). 14. All site plans submitted subsequent to approval of this Development Plan shall comport to all the design standards and guidelines as set out Ordinance No. 703. 15. A lighting plan must be submitted for this Development Plan that meets the requirements of the Section 14 of the zoning ordinance for this site (Ordinance No. 703) as well as Chapter 102 of the Town's Code of Ordinances. This plan should emphasize use of bollard lights along trails, plazas, and gathering areas. It should also emphasize shielded low intensity down lighting for parking lots and intersections. 16. A Master Landscape Plan for all common areas, right-of-ways, public and private open spaces, and Town Edge Landscape zones must be submitted along with the next Site Plan and before any buildings permits are issued, other than the Site Plan and building permit for the Sales Office. Page 7 of 7