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Home My WebLink AboutA015 - Council Action Form dated May 8, 2007 Ll ITEM # 6%- 1 DATE 05/08/07 COUNCIL ACTION FORM SUBJECT: PRELIMINARY PLAT FOR THE STREETS OF NORTH GRAND SUBDIVISION BACKGROUND: At its regular meeting of April 24, 2007, the City Council received a letter (attached) from Patrick T. Burk dated February 19, 2007, requesting review and reconsideration of a stipulation placed upon the Streets of North Grand Preliminary Plat. Patrick Burk, representing the property owners, North Grand Mall Partners, LLC and Grand Center Partners, LLC, addressed the Council during public forum. The Council then referred Mr. Burk's request to staff for placement on the Council's May 8, 2007 agenda during Council Comments. The condition that was placed upon the Preliminary Plat for the Streets of North Grand, identified as Alternative 1.c. in the original Council Action Form, which the property owner's wish to have reconsidered, is as follows: c) Prior to final plat approval,the parking spaces on Lot 2 shall be reconfigured to provide Code required parking as indicated on the associated Adaptive Reuse/ Major Site Development Plan being reviewed concurrently with this application. During the Preliminary Plat process, it was determined that proposed Lot 1 and Lot 3, as shown on the "Proposed Lot Lines" map attached, comply with the off-street parking requirements. However, proposed Lot 2 includes 320,920 square feet. This building square footage would require a minimum of 1,284 regular parking spaces and 23 accessible spaces. As proposed, Lot 2 includes 1,204 regular spaces with 10 accessible spaces, which yields approximately 80 regular spaces and 13 accessible spaces under the minimum requirement. Ames Municipal Code Section 29.406(18) states the following: All parking spaces required by this ordinance shall be located on the same lot as the use served, except parking spaces required for principal uses permitted in the DSC, CSC, HOC, CCN, CCR, S-HM and S-SMD zoning districts may be located on the same lot as the principal building or on a lot within 300 feet of the lot on which the principal building is located... North Grand Mall, specifically proposed Lot 2, is located within the Planned Regional Commercial (PRC)zone,which according to the Code Section above, does not allow required parking to be located on another property. Further, according to the following Municipal Code Sections, the created lots must comply with the parking requirements of the Municipal Code, specifically the zoning standards. a f Ames Municipal Code Section 23.302(6): (3) City Council Action on Preliminary Plat: (a) Based upon such examination, the City Council shall determine whether the Preliminary Plat conforms to relevant and applicable design and improvement standards in these Regulations, to other City ordinances and standards, to the City's Land Use Policy Plan and to the City's other duly adopted plans. In particular, the City Council shall determine whether the subdivision conforms to minimum levels of service standards set forth in the Land Use Policy Plan for public infrastructure and shall give due consideration to the possible burden of the proposed subdivision on public improvements in determining whether to require the installation of additional public improvements as a condition for approval. Ames Municipal Code Section 23.107 is as follows: In addition to the requirements of the Regulations, all plats of land must comply with all other applicable City, county, state and federal statutes or regulations. All references in the Regulations to other City, county, state or federal statutes or regulations are for informational purposes only, and do not constitute a complete list of such statutes or regulations. The Regulations are expressly designed to supplement and be compatible with, without limitation, the following City plans, regulations or ordinances: (1) Land Use Policy Plan (2) Zoning Ordinance (3) Historic Preservation Ordinance (4) Flood Plain Ordinance (5) Building, Sign and House Moving Code (6) Rental Housing Code (7) Transportation Plan (8) Parks Master Plan (9) Bicycle Route Master Plan Plats may be disapproved on the basis of the above, and other City Council approved plans and policies that may be adopted from time to time. City staff met with Patrick Burk in person and Dan Sullivan via conference call on Wednesday, May 2, 2007, to further discuss their concerns regarding stipulation 1.c., above. The applicant has several concerns regarding this stipulation as follows: • If the applicant were to reconfigure (which includes re-striping parking stalls and relocating medians)only Lot 2, they would then need to restage for the other site work for Lot 1 and 3 at a later date. Essentially this would require that a contractor work on- site twice, which according to the applicant is a financial and efficiency burden. • There is a concern that the newly reconfigured parking area on Lot 2 could be 2 damaged as construction occurs on the other two lots. • There is also a transformer that would need to be abandoned and a new transformer installed at a different location to reconfigure the parking lot on Lot 2. The applicant does not want to phase the electrical work being done on-site due to efficiency and cost issues and would like to keep the electrical down time at the mall to a minimum as this work is done. Further, the staff asked the applicant about reconfiguring the entire site parking lot at one time. This would essentially result in the need to obtain demolition permits for Wells Fargo and the Ames Back& Neck Care Center and would create a parking lot that will be difficult to understand until the Lifestyle Center is constructed on Lot 1. The applicant is also concerned about damaging the newly reconfigured parking lot as construction occurs on the structures. The applicant has supplied staff with a copy of a recorded Grant of Easements with Covenants and Restrictions Affecting Land. This document essentially allows all of the properties (Lot 1, Lot 2, and Lot 3)to utilize parking and access on each other's lots. When platting occurs, there will be sufficient spaces to meet the total parking requirements on the site for all three lots combined. ALTERNATIVES: 1. The City Council can approve the amended stipulation c) for the Streets of North Grand Preliminary Plat as follows: Prior to final plat approval, the applicant shall: A. Enter into an improvement agreement with the City promising to reconfigure the parking area on Lot 2 to comply with the minimum off-street parking standards in the Ames Municipal Code not later than one year from the recording date of the final plat. This agreement shall be recorded against the property prior to final plat recordation; B. Acknowledge in the improvement agreement that no occupancy permits shall be issued for any new construction on Lots 1 and 2, except for interior tenant space alterations and tenant changes that do not require increased parking under the provisions of the Ames Municipal Code, until the parking lots on Lots 1 and Lots 2 are reconfigured, re-striped, and constructed in accordance with the Adaptive Reuse/Major Site Development Plan approved by the Ames City Council on March 27, 2007. C. Provide a temporary access and construction easement to the City to complete and install all required parking lot, landscaping, and electrical improvements in accordance with the Adaptive Reuse/Major Site Development Plan approved by the Ames City Council on March 27, 2007 in the event the applicant fails to perform as promised in condition A. above. D. Provide a Letter of Credit in an amount satisfactory to the City based on a 3 contractor's itemized costs, projected through July 2008, to reconfigure the parking area including but not limited to re-striping/repaving the parking stalls, removing and relocating medians/islands/parking aisles, and relocating electric transformers in accordance with the Adaptive Reuse/Major Site Development Plan approved by the Ames City Council on March 27, 2007. This will allow the City to complete the required improvements in the event the applicant fails to perform as promised in Condition A. above. 2. Retain the previous stipulation in the Preliminary Plat approval as follows: Prior to final plat approval, the parking spaces on Lot 2 shall be reconfigured to provide Code required parking as indicated on the associated Adaptive Reuse/ Major Site Development Plan being reviewed concurrently with this application. MANAGER'S RECOMMENDED ACTION: The City of Ames has processed only one other Adaptive Reuse application in its past. Not only is this an uncommon application, the site is also fully developed, which creates a complexity not experienced with vacant sites. To try and balance the complexity of this unusual site and existing Code requirements provides a needed level of flexibility. The applicant has provided documentation that Lot 2 can utilize the parking on the other two lots, Lot 1 and Lot 3. Further,the financial and timing concerns expressed by the applicant appear to be valid concerns. Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that Alternative#1 be adopted revising the previously approved Stipulation c of the Streets of North Grand Preliminary Plat whereby: Prior to final plat approval, the applicant shall: A. Enter into an improvement agreement with the City promising to reconfigure the parking area on Lot 2 to comply with the minimum off-street parking standards in the Ames Municipal Code not later than one year from the recording date of the final plat. This agreement shall be recorded against the property prior to final plat recordation; B. Acknowledge in the improvement agreement that no occupancy permits shall be issued for any new construction on Lots 1 and 2, except for interior tenant space alterations and tenant changes that do not require increased parking under the provisions of the Ames Municipal Code, until the parking lots on Lots 1 and Lots 2 are reconfigured, re-striped, and constructed in accordance with the Adaptive Reuse/Major Site Development Plan approved by the Ames City Council on March 27, 2007. C. Provide a temporary access and construction easement to the City to complete and install all required parking lot, landscaping, and electrical improvements in accordance with the Adaptive Reuse/Major Site Development Plan approved by the Ames City Council on March 27, 2007 in the event the 4 L applicant fails to perform as promised in condition A. above. D. Provide a Letter of Credit in an amount satisfactory to the City based on a contractor's itemized costs, projected through July 2008, to reconfigure the parking area including but not limited to re-striping/repaving the parking stalls, removing and relocating medians/islands/parking aisles, and relocating electric transformers in accordance with the Adaptive Reuse/Major Site Development Plan approved by the Ames City Council on March 27, 2007. This will allow the City to complete the required improvements in the event the applicant fails to perform as promised in Condition A. above. 5 LAW OFFICES BRADSHAW, FOWLER, PROCTOR & FAIRGRAVE, P.C. KENT M.FORNEY BEAN Y.O'BRIEN 601 GRAND AVENUE, SUITE 3700 CHARLES 9.BRADSHAW MI C HAEL H.FIGENSHAW TODD A.STROTHER DES MOINES, IOWA 50309-8004 'ST'•'SSS JOHN C.CORTESIO,JR. PATRICK D.SMITH REX X.FOWLER EDWARD E.JOHNSON JASON T.MADDEN WILLIAM F.FANTER LORI A.SRANDAU TELEPHONE ISIS)243.4191 +FES-t BTZ DAVID J.W.PROCTOR MATTHEW J.HAINDFIELD W.Z.PROCTOR JAPES M.HOLCOMB DAVID N.MAY FAX ISIS)246-5806 1B 2--S D' NNY Y.OENNIS JASON C.PALMER DONALD F.MEIN PATRICK T.BURN WEB www.bradshawlawxom D.J.FAIR DRA VE MARK L.TRIPP SCOTT WORMSLEY - 1SOS•1 SSO DAVID L.JENKINS JANICE M.THaWAS WRITER'S DIRECT DIAL NUMBER STEVEN LI.AUO BPUROER LORI E.COLE YAGERKO D REOORY A.WITKE VEGAN Y.ALTH OFF WOLFE (515) 246-5816 OF COUNSEL D.BRIAN SC I EBIINSHI ANDREW C.JOH NEON O RE GORY L.KENYON KARIM A.STRAMEL J.EDWARD POW IN L ARRY D.A.HURLEY KAItL L.MCCARTY CANE R.C Y.DREXLER KARL T'.OLSON ANNE R.COOK WRITER'S E-MAIL ADDRESS crxTHIA A.HURLEY MICHAEL L.POCK THOMAS M.Bog JEF FR EY 0.GOE TZ JULIE A.BUENZOW burk.patrick@bradshawlaw.com OOUGLAS A.FULTON TIMOTHY N.LILLWITZ IRIS J.P05T MELIN DA O.YOUNG OOR DON R.FISCHER ORADLEY M.BEAMAN ANN C.9PELLYAN February 19, 2007 City of Ames Department of Planning and Housing 515 Clark Avenue P.O. Box 811 Ames, IA 50010 Re: Preliminary Plat for Streets of North Grand To All Concerned Individuals: Please consider this letter as a request for review and reconsideration of the conditions placed upon the approved Preliminary Plat for the Streets of North Grand as submitted by North Grand Mall Partners, LLC and Grand Center Partners,LLC ("Owners"). The Owners respectfully request that the condition related to the reconfiguration of the parking on proposed Lot 2 of the Streets of North Grand indicate that the Owners be permitted to file a letter of credit in lieu of physically reconfiguring the parking as set forth in Staff s recommendation. The Owners further request that this request for review and reconsideration be placed on the agenda for the Ames City Council Meeting to take place on Tuesday April 24, 2007. Respectfully submitted, Patrick T. Burk On behalf of GK Development North Grand Mall Partners, LLC and Grand Center Partners, LLC PTB/dr 11�� 2 • i' i nu� �Ci1� ► - r�� q�'��"�l11 �1+'' � ='nun■nnumnullnl:.i 41 t low (i IIY i��C— r • _ � IIIIUIIWI� Illlllllk�.f" �71 l�[is _,:� �: l '"-!► ; CAFAPPROVAL SS BK SL DM JP To be sent to: Dan Sullivan GK Development 303 East Main Street Barrington, Illinois 60010 Patrick Burk Bradshaw Law Firm 801 Grand Avenue, Suite #3700 Des Moines, Iowa 50309