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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-06-10 CITY OF EULESS ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT JUNE 10, 2020 MINUTES A regular meeting of the Zoning Board of Adjustment was called to order by Chairman Crites at 5:00 p.m. on June 10, 2020 in the Pre-Council Room of City Hall, 201 North Ector Drive. Those present included Chairman Ruby Anne Crites, Vice Chairman Clarence Moore, and Board Members: Charles Cinquemani, Steve Elliot, Ron Young, and Alternate Board Members: David Brown and Carol Dufinetz. During the Pre-Session Meeting: ➢ Director of Planning and Economic Development Mike Collins reviewed the regular agenda and the staff reports. ➢ Board Attorney, Brad Bullock reviewed executive session and board procedures. CLOSED SESSION The Zoning Board of Adjustment convened into closed session at 5:05 p.m. for deliberation regarding the following: Seek legal advice from the Board Attorney as authorized by Section 551.071 of the Texas Government Code related to: • ZBA Case 20-02-ZBA Chairman Crites recessed closed session at 6:21 p.m. ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT CONSIDERATION OF SCHEDULED ITEMS — COUNCIL CHAIMBERS The Euless Zoning Board of Adjustment continued their meeting in the Council Chambers at 6:30 p.m. for consideration of scheduled items. STAFF PRESENT: Brad Bullock, Board Attorney Wayne Olson, City Attorney Loretta Getchell, City Manager Chris Barker, Deputy City Manager Mike Collins, Director of Planning and Economic Development Jeanne Flores, Administrative Secretary Brett Bennett, Computer Support Specialist II VISITORS: Anthony Mai Art Anderson Dan Quinto Spencer Long Tim Coltart Jason Portilla Lance E.L. Ouellette Page 1 of 9 Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 2 of 9 June 10, 2020 INVOCATION Board Member Young gave the invocation. THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Board Member Elliot led the pledge of allegiance. ITEM 1. APPROVED ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT MINUTES Board Member Young made a motion to approve the minutes for the regular meeting of February 27, 2020. Vise Chairman Moore seconded the motion. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairman Crites, Vice Chairman Moore, and Board Members: Cinquemani, Elliot, and Young. Nays: None Abstention: None Chairman Crites declared the motion carried. (5-0-0) ITEM 2. HELD A PUBLIC HEARING FOR ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT CASE NO. 20-02-ZBA AND CONSIDERED APPEAL OF INTERPRETATION OF ORDINANCE NO. 1904 Chairman Crites began by explaining the procedures and regulations for the public hearing. All persons that gave a testimony on this case were sworn in by Chairman Crites. Director of Planning and Economic Development, Mike Collins gave a brief description of the case. On April 24, 2020, the City received a Zoning Board of Adjustment Hearing Application from Mr. David Martin (Applicant/Agent) on behalf of SLF IV-Euless Riverwalk JV, L.P. (Property Owner). The application was a request for an appeal of interpretation of Ordinance No. 1904. Specifically, the Applicant is appealing the "right of the developer to utilize at least a portion of the first floor of mixed use buildings in Sub-Zone T5b for at- grade garage parking" and "the timing of the development permitting process for T5b buildings". The Riverwalk Development is located northwest of the intersection of SH 360 and SH 183. First approved by the Euless City Council on March 22, 2011, the zoning of the property is Planned Development (PD). Conceived as a master planned community, the Riverwalk PD contains Sub-Zones which allow for a variety of land uses including single- family detached, single-family attached, multi-family, commercial and commercial mixed- use. The implementation of the PD ordinance consists of a sequence of submittals and Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 3 of 9 June 10, 2020 approvals outlined in Section 3, Table 3-1 of the Riverwalk Development Code which was adopted by Ordinance No. 1904. To date all single-family and multi-family uses entitled by the PD have be constructed. Mr. Art Anderson, the applicant's representative, approached the board and gave the applicants testimony for the case. Mr. Anderson began by stating that Realty Capital wants to build the original vision however if the board grants the appeal then the vision could get developed faster. If the Riverwalk gets built sooner, then the City will be able to see benefits by the new commercial revenue that this development would generate sooner. Mr. Anderson presented four issues that the applicant would like the board to pass and approve on: 1. Ground floor parking is allowed on the first floor of multi-use buildings in the Subzone T5b mixed-used buildings and is an ancillary use to the primary use of multi-family in those buildings. This allowance is supported by the Staff Report that was presented to the City Council on April 14, 2020. Where Mr. Anderson highlights "Ancillary uses are uses that provide necessary support to the primary activities or operations of an organization, intuition, or land use, upon the same lot as the primary use and not exceeding 20% of the primary use." This provision allows no more that 20% of the ground floor to be occupied by ancillary uses, including parking. 2. The maximum square footage for parking on the first floor is calculated by multiplying the gross square footage of the multi-family use in the multi-story building times 20%. Section 9-Lot Type Standards of the Riverwalk Development Code defines the category of uses and building standards of each lot. T5b is located on Lot Type C1: defined as Mixed-Use Commercial/Residential. This section of the code identifies the primary use of the lot as vertically-integrated Mixed-Use Buildings with a maximum height of 6-stores. The approved Concept Plan includes 4-story mixed-use residential buildings with the top three floors as multifamily. The Ancillary Use (Note A) provision clearly refers to the primary use of the Lot as the buildings as a whole. 3. Site plan applications for multi-story buildings in the Subzone T5b can be approved prior to the commencement of construction of the Riverwalk amenity. The Staff Report from the city references Section 3 Implementation for the submittal requirements under the Planned Development. The Concept Plan requires that the Riverwalk is included in the Concept Plan submittal. Table 3-1 states that a Site Plan and Preliminary Plat may be submitted "concurrent with the Concept Plan." This clearly indicates that the review and approval of developments in T5b can be completed before the RiverWalk is constructed. The Site Plan may be submitted concurrently with the Concept Plan for review and approval. 4. Construction of building in the Subzone T5b may start prior to completion of construction of the minimum required segment of the Riverwalk amenity, but Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 4 of 9 June 10, 2020 cannot be occupied until after said Riverwalk segment construction is completed. Section 1 Planned Development of the agreement includes the specific interpretation that the Riverwalk PD allows flexibility in the timing of the subzone developments based on the construction of the Riverwalk, which can be constructed commensurately. Board Member Cinquemani asked if the plans to have commercial retail on the bottom floors of the buildings were still in the applicants plans. Mr. Anderson stated that the buildings facing the Riverwalk will all have retail space on the ground floor. The buildings that are further away from the Riverwalk will not have retail stores but rather store front facades or office spaces. Mr. Tim Coltart, representative from Realty Capital, stepped forward as Mr. Anderson's witness. Mr. Coltart presented Realty Capital's new Riverwalk Vision. The concept of the Riverwalk Planned Development would contain an interactive Riverwalk feature, retail/restaurants area, open trail connections, and mixed-use development. The concept was based on similar projects such as the Venue at Hometown in North Richland Hills, Texas. The commercial space in the mixed-use area will be concentrated along the primary frontages and Riverwalk feature. The buildings would be 4-stories in height, with the ground floor built to commercial standards with commercial storefront and tuck-under parking on the rear of the storefronts. Mr. Coltart explained that the front buildings near the Riverwalk feature, and easily accessible to the public, would have the commercial spaces. But, the buildings to the back would not have commercial spaces. The back buildings are not considered prime commercial real estate and, therefore, Realty Capital believes a store front façade would be more suited. Mr. Bullock asked Mr. Coltart to clarify what the ground floor of the back buildings of his slide would be occupied by. Mr. Coltart stated that some of the space would be best suited for office space and other uses. When the original concept plan was approved, the intention was to have the bottom floors to be retail. But, after constructing similar projects it was discovered that the back buildings were not suited for commercial development. Therefore, the back buildings were redesigned to be used as office space and amenity space for the multifamily developments. Mr. Anderson called his last witness, Mr. Dan Quinto. Mr. Quinto, Architect, worked with Realty Capital and the City of Euless to assist in drafting the Development Code for this project. Mr. Quinto noted that with the submission of the concept plan the City Staff requested to have some reassurance that the concept plan would not change or alter any of the zoning requirements. Therefore, on the cover page of the concept plan some clarifying language was included to indicate that any change to the concept plan would not change the zoning requirements. However, the City Council's action on April 14th changed the interpretation and some of the text of the zoning from 20% of the primary Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 5 of 9 June 10, 2020 use to 20% of the ground floor. Mr. Quinto also pointed out that the PD does permit garages and that 10% of the parking be covered. The only restriction to the parking is that they have architectural material restrictions and be assessable by an alley. Mr. Wayne Olson, City Attorney, asked what is the definition of a general store front and if an operating store is required. Mr. Olson also asked for an explanation of a concept plan and its purpose. Mr. Quinto answered that a general store front is defined by the components that make up the space. The presence of window glass, sign band, the entry door and so forth will classify a space as a store front. The code does not require the space to be an operational store to be called a "store front." Mr. Quinto went on to state that a concept plan lays out an open space, lays out the lots and primary streets, identifies Riverwalk lines, and primary trails. Mr. Chris Barker, Deputy City Manager, presented the City Staff's interpretation of the ordinance. 1. The City Staff's interpretation is that parking is not an ancillary use and, therefore, the ground floor of buildings with the T5b Sub-Zone. Mr. Barker went on to discuss the City's version of what an ancillary use of the first floor is. Section 4 Part D Sub- Zone T5b (Mixed-use Zoning.) states that the ground floor of all buildings shall be built to commercial standards and shall only be used for retail, commercial or office uses. The Riverwalk Development Code does not use the Unified Development Codes that the City uses, but a permitted use table that was developed for this Development Code only. The permitted use table shows that a multi-family dwelling is allowed within in the T5b Sub-Zone district. However, there is a special condition that is assigned to this permitted use. Note A states that where a use is prohibited on the ground floor, public access and ancillary uses may be permitted on the ground floor. Ancillary uses are uses that provide necessary support to the primary activities or operation of an organization, institution, or land use, upon the same lot as the primary use, and not exceeding 20% of the primary use. 2. The City Staff's interpretation is affirmed in that development and any T5b Sub- Zone is prohibited until the construction of the Riverwalk Amenity is completed. Section 13 D Creation of T5b Sub-Zone is dependent upon the development of the Riverwalk amenity. Prior to the development of the Riverwalk amenity, the landowner shall be entitled to establish T5b Sub-Zone whose boundaries comply with the following rules and regulations. 1. For each linear foot of Riverwalk amenity that is dedicated and constructed, a maximum of 750 square feet of T5b Sub-Zone shall be entitled within the Riverwalk! Development District at the election of the Landowner. Mr. Barker also noted that the exhibits presented are not part of the City's exhibits but are exhibits from the Developer. He also noted that the exhibits from the Developer are not a Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 6 of 9 June 10, 2020 part of the PD, the Regulating Plan, or the Concept Plan that was approved. These exhibits were shown to the City Staff after the Regulating and Concept Plan that is being discussed at this hearing was approved by the City Council. Mr. Barker referred to the comments made by Mr. Quinto concerning the definition of a store front. Mr. Barker pointed out that the code does not define a "store front", but on page 142 the code does define what a "shop front" is. The code defines a shop front as a private frontage for retail use and usually has awnings and entrances at sidewalk grade. Mr. Barker states that the developers are proposing to have "store fronts" added to the buildings, not "shop fronts' as defined by the code. In other words, the "store fronts" will have a façade of a "shop front", meaning there would be a glass front and awnings, but no entrances to the public. Chairman Crites opened the public hearing at 9:33 p.m. Chairman Crites asked to hear from any proponents/opponents who wish to speak. Mr. Jason Portilla, 501 Rustic Lane, Euless, thanked Mr. Coltart for answering his questions prior to this meeting. As a homeowner with an interest in the final development of the Riverwalk, he spoke to the board asking them to make sure the developers uphold their agreement with the city. That they deliver what was promised, which is the Riverwalk amenity with commercial development. Chairman Crites read the following mailed responses into the record: Craig M. Scott, 408 Dominion Drive, Euless, protests stating there is already less commercial and more apartments than we were originally told by the developer there would be. This has great potential of lowering our property values. Stephanie Mai, 500 Rustic Lane, Euless, protests stating she does not approve of any changes to the zoning development. Joseph Rene Rodriguez, 800 Duckett Drive, Euless, stated that he agreed with the City of Euless that all ground floor buildings be for commercial uses that excludes parking. He would like to see zoned businesses such as restaurants, cleaners, bars, etc. Chairman Crites asked if anyone else wished to speak. Seeing none, Chairman Crites closed the public hearing at 9:38 p.m. There were no further questions or comments presented by the Board. CLOSED SESSION The Zoning Board of Adjustment convened into closed session at 10:07 p.m. for deliberation regarding the following: Seek legal advice from the Board Attorney as authorized by Section 551.071 of the Texas Government Code related to: Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 7 of 9 June 10, 2020 • ZBA Case 20-02-ZBA Chairman Crites recessed closed session at 12:19 a.m., June 11, 2020. Board Member Cinquemani motioned to adopt the following order: ORDER OF THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT OF THE CITY OF EULESS, TEXAS WHEREAS, a public hearing was held on June 10, 2020 before the Zoning Board of Adjustment of the City of Euless, Texas (the "Board") regarding appeals from interpretations of the Riverwalk Planned Development Ordinance No. 1904 (the "Ordinance"); and WHEREAS, after consideration of all evidence and arguments presented by the applicant, the City, and members of the public, the Board makes the following findings of fact and conclusions of law: FINDINGS OF FACT 1. Note A, Section 6, Exhibit A of the Ordinance states that where a use is prohibited on the ground floor, public access and ancillary uses may be permitted on ground floor, and that ancillary uses are uses that provide necessary support to the primary activities or operation of an organization, institution, or land use, upon the same lot as the primary use, not exceeding 20% of the primary use. 2. Section4 (D), Exhibit A of the Ordinance states that the ground floor of all buildings within the T5b Sub-Zone shall only be used for retail, commercial or office uses. 3. Section 9 Lot Type Standards of the Ordinance defines the primary use of C1 Lots as multi-story "Mixed-Use Commercial/Residential" buildings. 4. In the June 10, 2020 city staff report to the Board of Adjustment, city staff states that the interpretation of the Ordinance is that ground floor "parking is considered an ancillary use." 5. The Ordinance permits ground floor parking within T5b Sub-Zone multi-story buildings. 6. Table 3-1 of the Ordinance expressly allows a building site plan to be processed concurrent with the Concept Plan. The Concept Plan is approved prior to starting actual construction of the Riverwalk amenity. 7. Section 13.B.2 of the Ordinance states that one of the criteria for Subzone T5b is that the concept plan must contain a "description of the minimum segment of the Riverwalk amenity which will be constructed concurrent with any mixed use development or any commercial development within 150 feet of the Riverwalk amenity." Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 8 of 9 June 10, 2020 CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. Pursuant to Note A of the Table of Permitted Uses in Section 6 of Ordinance 1904, at-grade ground floor parking is allowed on the ground floor of multi-family buildings in the T5b Sub-Zone as an ancillary use to multi-family buildings because it is incidental to the multi-family structure on the same lot. 2. Pursuant to Table 14-2 of Ordinance 1904, multi-family residential parking is calculated as one parking space per living unit. Parking requirements for multi- family residential are not calculated based upon square footage. Pursuant to Section 14 (B), the maximum number of at-grade ground floor parking spaces allowed for multi-family buildings in the T5b Sub-Zone is limited to ten (10) percent of the total parking demand for multi-family buildings. Therefore, the number of at- grade ground floor parking spaces permitted in the T5B Sub-Zone for multi-family buildings is calculated by multiplying the total number of living units in a multi-family building by ten percent (10(Y0). 3. Pursuant to Sec. 10 (3), at-grade ground floor parking spaces for T5b multi-family buildings must be accessed from an alley or parking lot. 4. Pursuant to Sec. 3 (G) of Ordinance 1904, site plan applications for multi-family buildings in the T5b Sub-Zone shall be processed in accordance with the UDC, Article VII. 5. Pursuant to Sec. 13 (D) of Ordinance 1904, the entitlement to develop property within the T5b Mixed-use Sub-Zone is dependent upon the development of the riverwalk amenity. Prior to the development of the Riverwalk amenity, no T5b sub- zone development shall occur until a site plan for the Riverwalk amenity has been approved in accordance with the Ordinance and the UDC. Upon completion of construction of the minimum Riverwalk amenity, as set forth in Sec. 13 (F), the landowner shall be entitled to establish a T5b sub-zone in accordance with Sec. 13 (D). 6. Pursuant to Section 13(B) of Ordinance 1904, the developer may not begin construction of the Riverwalk amenity until such time as the details of a cooperative arrangement have been finalized. NOW, THEREFORE, THE ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT OF THE CITY OF EULESS, TEXAS HEREBY ORDERS THAT: 1. Pursuant to Note A of the Table of Permitted Uses in Section 6 of Ordinance 1904, at-grade ground floor parking is allowed on the ground floor of multi-family buildings in the T5b Sub-Zone as an ancillary use to multi-family buildings because it is incidental to the multi-family structure on the same lot. Zoning Board of Adjustment Page 9 of 9 June 10, 2020 2. Pursuant to Table 14-2 of Ordinance 1904, multi-family residential parking is calculated as one parking space per living unit. Parking requirements for multi- family residential are not calculated based upon square footage. Pursuant to Section 14 (B), the maximum number of at-grade ground floor parking spaces allowed for multi-family buildings in the T5b Sub-Zone is limited to ten (10) percent of the total parking demand for multi-family buildings. Therefore, the number of at- grade ground floor parking spaces permitted in the T5B Sub-Zone for multi-family buildings is calculated by multiplying the total number of living units in a multi-family building by ten percent (10%). 3. Pursuant to Sec. 10 (3), at-grade ground floor parking spaces for T5b multi-family buildings must be accessed from an alley or parking lot. 4. Pursuant to Sec. 3 (G) of Ordinance 1904, site plan applications for multi-family buildings in the T5b Sub-Zone shall be processed in accordance with the UDC, Article VII. 5. Pursuant to Sec. 13 (D) of Ordinance 1904, the entitlement to develop property within the T5b Mixed-use Sub-Zone is dependent upon the development of the Riverwalk amenity. Prior to the development of the Riverwalk amenity, no T5b sub-zone development shall occur until a site plan for the Riverwalk amenity has been approved in accordance with the Ordinance and the UDC. Upon completion of construction of the minimum Riverwalk amenity, as set forth in Sec. 13 (F), the landowner shall be entitled to establish a T5b sub-zone in accordance with Sec. 13 (D). Vice Chairman Moore seconded the motion. The vote was as follows: Ayes: Chairman Crites, Vice Chairman Moore, and Board Members: Cinquemani, Elliot, and Young. Nays: None Abstention: None Chairman Crites declared the motion carried. (5-0-0) ITEM 6. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 12:30 a.m., June 11, 2020. c.k ., G10 ) 0g12( Chairmarekuby Anne Crites Date