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HomeMy WebLinkAboutA016 - October 28, 2025, Regular Meeting of the Ames City CouncilITEM #:19 DATE:10-28-25 DEPT:P&H SUBJECT:APPROVAL OF MAJOR SITE DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR 3200 UNIVERSITY BOULEVARD COUNCIL ACTION FORM BACKGROUND: The subject property, 3200 University Boulevard (Attachment A), is owned by Hunziker Construction Services, Inc. The owner is proposing to develop the undeveloped, 6-acre lot into a mix of 74 dwelling configured as 60 total apartment units in four buildings and 14 dwelling units in seven duplex buildings. Two of the apartment buildings will have 12 units and the other two will have 18 units. The proposed PUD Site Development Plan is required to fulfill the requirements of the PUD Master Plan that was approved for the site in 2024. The Site Plan also includes construction of a shared driveway with the County park property to the south. A preliminary plat accompanies this request in order to create individual lots for the duplex units and for each apartment building with one outlot. The 3200 University property, along with 3300 University Boulevard to the south, was recently rezoned to Floating Suburban – Residential Medium Density (FS-RM) with a Planned Unit Development Overlay (O-PUD) (Attachment B). A small portion of this property (3200) falls within the Environmentally Sensitive Overlay (O-E), indicative of a floodway for a small stream. The PUD Overlay zoning and review process was originally required with the approval of the Land Use Map change to residential because of the sensitivity of the site in terms of compatibility with the abutting Story County park, the Tedesco Environmental Learning Corridor. The Master Plan established the maximum density for the site but left individual site and building design features until now. The PUD allows the developer to take advantage of design flexibility for the proposed platting of the site and for setback and landscaping variations in support of diverse housing options. This flexibility is subject to achieving other design principles of the PUD for high quality design and compatibility with the surroundings. The majority of the site is not visible from University Boulevard; however, the site is visible from multiple trails and features within the abutting County park. Two informal trail loops are within 120-150 feet. These include the low water crossing to the east and the main paved trail, which is as close as 150 feet from the east property line to the south. The nest, a staired access to the main pond, is 330 feet away to the east. One grove of trees exists near the southeast corner of the site. The County is in agreement, as communicated to City staff, to have a shared access easement to facilitate the private street extension for the site. A formal easement will be required to start development. The County hopes to eventually construct a parking lot within the park that also utilizes the private drive. 1 The applicant is proposing to have 74 residential units on the subject site. The property is a flag lot, and the ‘pole’ of the site extending from University Boulevard will be lined with seven duplexes (14 units). The ‘flag’ part of the lot will have four apartment buildings: two three- story12-unit buildings on the west side and two three-story 18-unit buildings on the east side , totaling 60 apartments. Covered garages are provided to serve the apartments. The duplexes will be three stories tall with attached, two-car garages. In the pole part of the lot, the drive to the apartments will overlap the south property line into the park. On the north side of the drive, the duplexes will be in a row, with direct vehicular access onto the shared drive. A Workiva parking lot is to the north of the duplexes. The park is to the south. In the flag of the lot, the four apartment buildings will be placed around the edge of the lot with a mix of garage buildings and parking lot spaces interspersed between the residential structures. All apartment buildings will be three stories tall. To the west of the flag is the Workiva parking lot and to the north is primarily vacant industrial land and parking lots. There is a stream along the north property line. To the east and the south of the flag is the park. The buildings in the development are in a contemporary style that matches the architecture at neighboring 3300 and that compliments the other architecture of the Research Park. The design incorporates brick and siding with shed roofs (Attachment C). The apartment buildings contain a mix of one- and two-bedroom units. The townhome apartments are a mix of two- and three-bedroom units. PUD OVERLAY STANDARDS: The PUD standards require setbacks around the perimeter of the site to reflect those of the base zoning, FS-RM. The standard FS-RM building setbacks are 20 feet in the front, 6 or 8 feet on the side (depending on the height), and 20 feet in the rear. All buildings are at least 20 feet from the exterior property lines, which complies with the FS-RM base zone. The applicant is proposing to subdivide the existing lot to place the individual duplex units and the individual apartment buildings in separate lots. This arrangement will require deviations from the base zoning requirements, which is allowed within a PUD. Deviations include internal side yard setbacks reduction, lots without frontage on a public street, parking off-site or apartment buildings in an outlot. Staff reviewed the park interface with the applicant to refine the architecture and landscaping transition as is currently proposed. The interface will be an access drive along the shared property line of 3200 and Tedesco Park. At the southeast edge of 3200, there will be a future driveway connection into the park where there is intended to be a small parking lot with access to a shelter. FS-RM commonly requires a 10-foot planter buffer with trees as a transition between low density residential and higher density. However, in this case, it was not specifically required in relation to the park since it is not residential. For the park interface, the developer included native prairie planting/grasses rather than lawn areas along the parking interface. There is a minimum of 20 feet of prairie planting materials between the eastern apartment buildings and the park. Trees as buffers have not been proposed by the developer, assuming the trees in the park support the compatibility of the park environment with the proposed structure 2 locations along the east side of the flag area. The provision of garages with the apartments is viewed as a benefit of the PUD process to diversify housing options. Typically garages are not provided with large apartment projects. The parking lot will be planted with trees for shading. The parking lot landscaping does get more complicated to meet planting requirements due to building placements and utility easements compared to open parking lots. Staff has worked with the developer to address the required tree plantings in the parking lot. There will be front yard landscaping along the small portion of the lot on the traffic circle near University Boulevard. Within the site, trees will be dispersed to give shade to the parking. The newly extended drive includes small street trees with the townhomes on the north side of the drive. No additional landscaping is part of the drive extension on the County property. The lot was platted with a 75-foot stream bank stabilization easement along the north of the property. Within this easement is a small stream that is within a floodplain. This easement area will not be improved with buildings or parking, though some grading will be done. This area remains as a sloped open space. A PUD includes expectations for amenities as trade off for flexibility. Sites over 50 units have a specific requirement for an on-site amenity. The PUD Overlay does not specify specific amenities and allows for the developer to propose an improvement that addresses the PUD principles. Staff provided options to the developer for active and passive amenities such as recreational space, a tot lot, gathering spaces, etc. The developer was required to be address the amenity requirement as a condition of the Planning and Zoning Commission review. The developer has since responded with a covered shelter within their internal green space area serving the apartments. SITE ACCESS: Staff worked with the applicant to refine the entrance to the property off the traffic circle where University Boulevard and Cottonwood Road meet for both vehicles and pedestrians and bicyclists entering the park. The entrance will be shared for both lots and will also serve as an access to a planned parking lot for the park. The County’s bike trail also crosses through this area. The park path is also proposed to be reconfigured to facilitate pedestrian and bicycle movement. The Story County Conservation Board representatives support an easement along the park property for the shared entrance to cross the three properties. The property will have a driveway that is partly on the park property, which has been planned in conjunction with Story County. The site plan depicts a future driveway extension and potential park improvement for a parking lot in Tedesco Park. No park improvements are included in the approval of this major site development plan. PUBLIC NOTICE: Major Site Development Plan reviews have no formal notice requirement. A courtesy notice was mailed to the adjacent property owners. 3 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION: The Major Site Development Plan was reviewed by the Planning and Zoning Commission on October 15, 2025. No one from the public was present at the meeting. The Commission discussed the park proximity and storm water treatment measures for the project. The Commission voted 5-0-0 to recommend approval of the Major Site Development Plan to the Council with the following conditions, as recommended by staff: 1. Include required amenity details prior to City Council approval. 2. Include updated parking and tree landscaping plan details prior to City Council approval. The above conditions have since been met with updates provided by the applicant. ALTERNATIVES: 1. Approve the Major Site Development Plan for 3200 University Boulevard. 2. Approve the Major Site Development Plan for 3200 University Boulevard with conditions. 3. Deny the Major Site Development Plan for 3200 University Boulevard. 4. Defer action on this request and refer it back to City staff and/or the applicant for additional information. CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDED ACTION: The proposed housing types are allowed in the zoning and the PUD Overlay facilitates creation of individual lots. The proposed density achieves the required minimum density of 10 units per acre. The PUD Overlay is intended to address two issues for the site. The first is design compatibility with the surroundings with sensitivity to the adjacent park open space. The second is to promote diverse housing types with high quality design features. The proposed development at 3200 will contain a mix of housing types that will help to serve a growing Research Park. The PUD enables desirable duplex units that may be owned or rented and rental apartments with garages that would likely otherwise be difficult to accommodate on the site. The compatibility is a unique issue with the park. The shared driveway is a partnership with the County. The design of the site places its most prominent 18-unit buildings in the closest proximity to the park, which with the open nature of a prairie style park makes the development features quite visible. The structures are readily visible from numerous features in the park but do have some physical separation. The developer agreed to native plantings to blend with the park in an effort to be compatible with the park. The County has provided no specific critique of the development to staff in terms of compatibility. With the County facilitating the proposed development along the park boundary, the 4 proposed project can be found to be compatible with the surroundings. Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council act in accordance with Alternative #1. ATTACHMENT(S): Addendum.pdf Attachment A.pdf Attachment B.pdf Attachment C.pdf Attachment D.pdf 5 1 ADDENDUM PUD MASTER PLAN AND SITE DEVELOPEMNT PLAN. Approval of the PUD requires the findings of conformance to the Principles of the PUD Overlay inclusive of the Site Plan or Master Plan that accompanies the request (See PUD Purpose in Attachment D). The PUD requires a site plan approval for development, which is typically a Major Site Development Plan. However, it also allows for Master Plan approval of conceptual uses when a precise site plan is not yet ready for consideration. Both plan types set building types, site development features, and deviation allowances. The submitted Major Site Development Plan for 3200 University proposes housing types and supportive site improvements for: - 7 duplexes, each with 2 units for a total of 14 units; the townhomes 2 or 3 bedrooms - 2 apartment buildings containing 12 units; each building has 4 one-bedroom and 8 two-bedroom units - 2 apartment buildings containing 18 units; each building has 6 one -bedroom and 12 two-bedroom units - Site access is shared between 3300 and 3200 University Boulevard and the County parcel Deviations The PUD permits certain design flexibility. The site at 3200 University Boulevard will have the following deviations: - There will be lots along a private street. - Required parking for the apartment buildings is located off-site on the outlot. - The outlot between the apartment buildings will be used for accessory garage structures to the individual apartment buildings. - The internal lots for the individual duplexes and apartment buildings do not have frontage on a public street. - The duplex setbacks for interior lot lines (all setbacks for the perimeter of the project are at least 20 feet): o Side setbacks are approximately 7 feet on the side where 8 are required for 3-story structures o Front setbacks are 20 feet for garages where 25 feet are required o Front setbacks for the individual units is 13 feet where 20 feet are required Infrastructure. During the review, an analysis of the necessary infrastructure to accommodate residential development was undertaken. Water The development is currently served by City of Ames water. The 3200 site will require extension of a water main and looping to the north on the Workiva property to interconnect the system and avoid a long dead end. 6 2 Sewer The development is currently served by City of Ames sewers. Extension of mains and services into the sites will be accomplished with development. Electric The development is within the Ames Electric service territory. (The adjoining development at 3300 is in the Alliant Energy service territory.) Stormwater and Drainage The site complies with the requirements for on-site retention/detention. The 3200 property will construct a pond in the northeast of the site for drainage. Shared Use Paths and Trails The development abuts the Tedesco Environmental Learning Corridor. An existing trail connection that leads from University Boulevard into the park will be disrupted during construction but will be replaced. The driveway into 3200 does lie partially in the park, with the permission of Story County. The driveway into the development will also give access to a small parking lot within Tedesco Park that will be public. Streets No new public streets will be required. Both lots will use a shared access point off the traffic circle at University Boulevard and Cottonwood Road. An interior driveway will be given a street name for addressing and emergency response purposes. This driveway will straddle the line between the subject property and the park property with the permission and coordination of Story County. This driveway will be designed as a private street and will meet minimum SUDAS standards. This drive will have a sidewalk on the north side that will give access to the rest of the development. The driveway will be 26 feet wide, which complies with the design requirements for public streets. The pavement thickness will comply with SUDAS requirements. Parking The applicant is providing parking in compliance with the minimum parking standards in the Zoning Ordinance. There will be large garage buildings for the apartment buildings (one indoor garage space per unit) in addition to outside parking. The townhomes will have two-car garages and space between the garage and the back of the sidewalk for two additional cars. Additional guest parking for the townhomes will be situated at the top of the ‘pole’, in the southeast part of the property. PUD OVERLAY Purpose. Sec. 29.1114(1) outlines the intent of a Planned Unit Development. Staff find that the proposed development complies with the standards: (a) Provide for innovative and imaginative development through flexibility in the design, placement of buildings, clustering of housing types, use of open space, and related site and architectural design considerations; 7 3 The proposed design of the north lot (3200) provides two housing types: four apartment buildings (two with 12 units, two with 18 units) and seven duplexes (14 units). The developer is proposing to place the townhomes in the “pole” of the flag lot where they will face Tedesco Environmental Learning Corridor to the south. The developer believes they have met this with creating different lotting patterns for housing types and providing higher level amenities for the apartments with garage parking. The shared driveway with the county facilitates the development. They believe the 20-foot setback to the east and south for the 18-unit buildings exceeds minimum requirements and within native grass planting makes the site compatible. (b) Increase the stock of diverse housing types for a variety of income levels; The range of apartment sizes (one- and two-bedrooms) and the two- and three- bedroom duplexes will provide a diversity of housing price points. Adding covered garage parking is not always common with apartment projects. (c) Promote efficient land use and infrastructure construction, while maintaining high-quality living environments for privacy, architectural interest, streetscape, walkability, and open spaces for private and common use; The applicant will incorporate drainage into the project with a drainage pond in the northeast corner. The architecture of the development complements the architecture in the nearby buildings in the Research Park and in the nearby 3300 University Boulevard project. The development will provide internal path connections and will extend the sidewalk along University Boulevard. The lot has a short frontage on University Boulevard. An existing shared-use path is along the frontage, with a short bike trail that extends into the bike land on University Boulevard. The Public Works Department does not require an extension of the path to the north. There is no shared use path on the Workiva property to the north, and an existing drainage ditch makes extending a path on the east side of the street unfeasible currently. The west side of the street has a shared use path that extends from Collaboration Place to the south up to the ISU campus several miles to the north. Although the park acts as a neighborhood amenity for the area as public resource, the PUD requires on site amenities as well. The applicant is providing a picnic shelter surrounded by trees for use by the residents. (d) Provide for a variety of private and common open space areas corresponding to smaller lot sizes along with additional amenities for larger developments; Each duplex unit will have private space at the rear. There are internal private spaces for the apartments, and the development provides pedestrian 8 4 connections to the adjacent Tedesco Environmental Learning Corridor. A condition is in place for a specific amenity for the apartments. There is open space to the north of the site, but it is graded with a significant slope and is unlikely to provide any specific usable open space value. (e) Encourage and preserve opportunities for energy efficient development; and The development will meet the minimum density of 10 units per acre and will make sidewalk and trail connections to surrounding amenities. The design of the townhomes with shed roof sloping to the north does not permit for future solar installations, the apartment buildings could accommodate solar. (f) Encourage context-sensitive infill development. The development buildings are designed in a style that will complement the nearby Research Park architecture. The site is not readily visible from a public street. There will be landscaping along the park border that will blend this site with the public space. Findings of Fact. Based upon an analysis of the proposed rezoning and laws pertinent to the applicant’s request, staff makes the following findings of fact related to the PUD Overlay and Major Site Development Plan/Master Plan request. 1. Ames Municipal Code Section 29.1507(2) allows owners of 50 percent or more of the area of the lots in any district desired for rezoning to file an application requesting that the City Council rezone the property. The property represented by the applicant is entirely under one ownership representing 100 percent of the property requested for rezoning. 2. The subject property is requesting a Future Land Use Map designation of RN-3. This supports a “FS-RM” zoning designation, including apartments with densities above 10 units per acre. 4. Infrastructure is adequate to serve the site. New sidewalks will be constructed along University Boulevard. 5. The Master Plan identifies developable areas and range of uses consistent with the proposed FS-RM zoning district. Densities can be achieved consistent with the FS-RM minimum of 10 units per acre. Open spaces are identified within the project site, and the project complements the adjacent County park. Public Notice. Notice was mailed to property owners within 400 feet of the subject site, and a sign was posted on the subject property. Conclusions. Based upon the analysis in this report, staff conclude that the proposed major site development plan of the subject property is consistent with the Ames Plan 9 5 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The proposal is consistent with the allowances of the proposed PUD Overlay Master Plan requirements. 10 1 Attachment A Location Map 11 1 Attachment B Existing Zoning 12 1 Attachment C - Site Plan 13 2 14 3 15 4 16 5 17 6 18 7 19 8 20 9 21 10 22 11 23 12 Apartments 24 13 25 14 Townhomes Facing Tedesco Park 26 15 Garages 27 16 28 1 Attachment D Applicable Regulations • Ames Plan 2040 Goals, Policies, and the Future Land Use Map: The Ames Plan 2040 identifies the land use designations for the property proposed for rezoning. • Ames Municipal Code Chapter 29, Section 1507, Zoning Text and Map Amendments, includes requirements for owners of land to submit a petition for amendment, a provision to allow the City Council to impose conditions on map amendments, provisions for notice to the public, and time limits for the processing of rezoning proposals. • Ames Municipal Code Chapter 29, Section 1200, Floating Zones, includes a list of uses that are permitted in the Village Residential, Suburban Residential and Planned Residential zoning districts and the zone development standards that apply to properties in those zones. Sec. 29.1114 “PUD” PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT OVERLAY DISTRICT (1) Purpose. The Planned Unit Development (PUD) Overlay zone is intended to allow flexibility in Zoning District and General Standards where design flexibility helps further the goals of the Comprehensive Plan and is compatible with its surroundings. The PUD zone is intended to: (a) Provide for innovative and imaginative development through flexibility in the design, placement of buildings, clustering of housing types, use of open space, and related site and architectural design considerations; (b) Increase the stock of diverse housing types for a variety of income levels; (c) Promote efficient land use and infrastructure construction, while maintaining high-quality living environments for privacy, architectural interest, streetscape, walkability, and open spaces for private and common use; (d) Provide for a variety of private and common open space areas corresponding to smaller lot sizes along with additional amenities for larger developments; (e) Encourage and preserve opportunities for energy efficient development; and (f) Encourage context-sensitive infill development. (3) Establishment. The PUD Overlay zone applies to all lands that are zoned PUD on the Zoning Map. A Zoning Map Amendment may be approved provided the City Council makes the following findings: (a) The Zoning District and Overlay are consistent with the comprehensive plan. (b) The property on which the PUD is requested has a residential zoning of RL, RM, UCRM, RH, FS-RL, FS-RM, S-SMD, or is concurrently proposed to be changed to one of these Zoning Districts. 29 2 (c) The existing and proposed infrastructure is sufficient in design and capacity to support the project with water, sanitary sewer, storm drainage, streets and other transportation related facilities. (d) The PUD Master Plan includes interconnected pedestrian and bicycle circulation routes to the surrounding areas and within the development. (e) The proposed PUD Master Plan is consistent with the requirements of this ordinance and all deviations, exceptions, and limitations stated on the Master Plan are clear, identifiable, and necessary in support of the design concept and the purpose statements of the overlay. (f) The proposed PUD Master Plan is in harmony with the purpose of the overlay. (g) Findings for approval of a Master Plan with a PUD Overlay rezoning may be deferred, when the City Council initiates a property rezoning. 30