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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-09-27 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes MINUTES REGULAR MEETING PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION RIVERSIDE, MISSOURI Thursday, September 27, 2007 7:00 p.m. The Planning and Zoning Commission for the City of Riverside, Missouri, met in regular session in the Board of Aldermen Chambers at City Hall, 2950 NW Vivion Road, Riverside, Missouri. Mayor Rose called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Answering roll call were Harold Snoderley, Ray Uhl, Al Bowman, Raye Sanders, Evelyn Poe, Cheryl Melton, and Mayor Kathy Rose. Members absent: Stephen King, Barbara Snyder, Mark Salyer and Aaron Locke. Also present: Brent Miles, Director of Planning and Economic Development and Sarah Wagner Administrative Clerk. Approval of minutes Commissioner Evelyn Poe moved to approve the minutes from from September 13, September 13, 2007. 2007 Commissioner Al Bowman seconded and the motion passed. Public Hearing to Chair Barbara Snyder opened the Public Hearing to consider a consider a request for request for rezoning from "GP -P" General Planned Industrial to rezoning from "GP -I" "PD" Planned Development for property generally described as General Planned City owned property north and west of I -635, south of Highway 9 Industrial to "PD" and BNSF Railroad. Planned Development for property generally Brent Miles, Director of Planning and Economic Development described as City owned gave a staff report to the Board. He explained that the property in property north and west question is approximately 373 acres of City owned property that of I -635, south of is in the process of entering into a development agreement with Highway 9 and BNSF prospective developers to transfer ownership of the property Railroad. pursuant to a plan agreed upon by the City and the chosen developer. The City has sent out a total of 42 Due Diligence books to prospective developers and has dwindled their decision down to two. The Board of Aldermen and the City have been in closed session discussion about this issue. There is a request for rezoning before an agreement is signed. Developers prefer to purchase the property after it is rezoned. The property in question is currently zoned "GP -I: General Planned Industrial" and is proposed to be an industrial "Planned Development ". The UDO states that "the GP District shall be a holding district, no development shall occur within the GP District until the property has been rezoned ". This requirement of the UDO was specifically put in place so that the Planning Commission and Board of Aldermen would have the ability to review development plans for each property with the Horizons area to ensure that it meets the Master Plan approved by the City. 1 A rezoning of property requires public hearing before the Planning Commission and the Board of Aldermen after notice has been given at least fifteen days in advance in a local paper, all property owners being rezoned and properties owners within 185 feet have been notified. Normally, it is required that the property is posted with a sign indicating the dates and times of the Public Hearings, but in this case the City decided that the property was so large that the small sign would not be noticeable. In general, the revised standards set forth by the proposed developer are more stringent than established by the UDO. The standards will be the minimum standards enforced for development of the subject property. The developer will be required to present Final Development Plans for each development or phase of development proposed. This Final Development Plan will include building elevations, landscaping plans, site development plans, specific signage proposed, etc. The revised standards for the building lines have greater setbacks because of the size of the buildings. The building materials and construction regulations are directly out of the UDO. The building material and color regulations are something that the City does not require. Their regulations state that the color of materials used on the construction of all buildings, enclosures, and appurtenant structures will present a predominantly warm earth tone appearance. The parking requirements are the same as the UDO. The off -street loading regulations are addressed in the UDO, but the developers are more exact and allow for more control over the truck docks. It states that no loading docks may be on any street frontage, unless properly screened and approved. Outside storage and equipment regulations is the same as the UDO. The permanent park signage is taken from other high end industrial parks in the area such as South Lake in Overland Park, Kansas and Pine Ridge in Lenexa, Kansas. The landscaping regulations are much more stringent then the UDO. It calls out for decorative flowers and really shows an investment in the buildings. Exterior lighting and underground utilities are the same as the UDO. Fencing regulations are more stringent then the UDO. It states that all metal fencing shall be black vinyl coated or with mesh screen and shall be screened by landscaping from view from existing or proposed streets, highways and contiguous building sites. Miles went on to explain that the development will take place in pods or phases of about three to four buildings at a time. The developer will come before the Planning Commission for approval of all phases. When the deal is complete the developer plans to put in around 500,000 square feet first. This is a lot of information and the Planning Commission will begin to see final development plans as they come. The standards set for this development will help set the stage for other developments as 2 they come along. Commissioner Ray Uhl asked why the City did not include color regulations in the UDO. Miles explained that the City and Staff had discussed that, but decided that they did not want to lose a large business because they could not meet such high standards. The UDO sets good minimum standards for development. Lynn Anderson from River Valley Enterprises at 4301 Tullison Rd addressed the Commission and asked what the plan was for the Belgium Bottoms. Miles explained that they have about 35 acres that are zoned under previous zoning codes before the UDO. They have recently purchased an additional 47 acres that will have to be zoned in accordance to the UDO. The City is willing to work with them to establish similar standards to the Horizons Development. Mayor Rose asked about the color scheme for the Belgium Bottoms. Miles replied that the building is acceptable, but the material that they chose is stucco and it is not as high of a standard as what the City's master developer has set as standards. Commissioner Cheryl Melton moved to approve the request for rezoning from "GP -I" General Planned Industrial to "PD" Planned Development for property generally described as City owned property north and west of I -635, south of Highway 9 and BNSF Railroad. Commissioner Uhl seconded and the motion passed. General Discussion Miles explained that at the last Planning Commission meeting the Gatewoods Master Sign Commission approved an 8x12 sign to be place off 50 street to Plan be viewed on I -635 to advertise the Gatewoods Developments in place of a trailer. Gatewoods Development market personnel explained that an 8x12 sign was not large enough to bee viewed from I -635 and came to the Board of Aldermen meeting and requested an 8x24 sign and the Board of Aldermen approved it. Streetscape Master Plan Miles explained to the Commission that the Streetscape Master Plan went before the Board of Aldermen on Tuesday night and an ordinance for design will be on the agenda next week. The City hired Brick Owens from Nearing, Staats, Prelogar and Jones Architecture Firm. This is the same landscape architect that is designing the West Platte Liner Park and working with Briarcliff Development Company. 3 Miles explained the project goals for the Streetscape plan. They were: • Timeless, Classic, Tasteful • Elegant Beauty • "Wow" Factor • Look to Past — Incorporate History • Continuity/Consistent Theme • Marketing Tool • Safety/Longevity • Quality/Ease of Maintenance /Sustainable Construction • Coordinate with Other Projects within the City (Gatewoods, Briarcliff) • Create re- usable elements for future gateways • Variety of mediums /components • Build on what's started • Create a sense of place • Increase Walkability With all those goals in mind the Committee bang to describe the unique characteristics of Riverside which included: • Bluffs /Geography • History (Interurban Railroad, Belgium Bottoms, Race Track) • Small Town Feel • Brick and Stone • Regional Connectivity/Access • Riverside is the Gateway to Platte Co. Finally, they took into consideration the history of Riverside which included: • "Where the past and the future flow together." • Landing — Origin — River - Belgian Bottoms • Interurban Railway • Race track • Farming • Physical History - Natural Formation of the Land • Native Americans The Committee took into account the history and identity that the towers in E.H. Yung Park bring to Riverside and to many small towns through out history. They tried to incorporate the river and the bluffs as well. All these elements have been brought together to make up the plan for the City Streetscape. There are five project sites that have been discussed. They include: • I -29 and Gateway Ave.: o Ideally use whole interchange, Monumental Design • Intersection of Vivion Road and Gateway Ave.- "Welcome Plaza ": o /z acres piece of land, Entrance to Civic Area • Vivion Road Corridor- Gateway Ave. to High Drive: o Connect City Hall to the Welcome Plaza • Riverway Boulevard Corridor o Link NW Platte Road Improvements adjacent to 4 Briarcliff • West Platte Road & Levee o Detention Pond Improvements The first site is I -29 and Gateway Ave. Here the Committee has analyzed how to use this entrance into the City as a point of interest and place the sign where it can be seen by all movement on that interchange. The idea is to incorporate river, bluffs and towers which are all aspects of the City. For best placement of the sign it will actually have to be located in Kansas City, Missouri. The landscaping for this sign will extend down the threshold of Gateway and tie in with the Village at Gatewoods. This will use all the same materials that are already seen in the City such as the stone, rocks and bricks. The crossings will also include embellished pavement throughout the City. The next site is the intersection of Vivion Road and Gateway Ave. The Committee has been calling this the "Welcome Plaza ". The concept here is to do something to enhance all the corners and focus views to the center. The center piece will be a 50 foot clock tower and there will be a 20 foot waterfall that drops four feet over the word Riverside. The "Welcome Plaza" will include historical signs and commemorative bricks that citizens can purchase. There will also be a do- it- yourself sundial. The construction will tie in bricks, stones, and the same fencing that is used at E.H. Young park. There will also be a digital information sign on the corner in front of Deb's Diner because that is a location where the sign will be able to be read from any of the stoplights. The next site is the Vivion Road Corridor which will extend from Gateway to High Drive. It will incorporate sidewalks and trails on the south side of Vivion Road and will connect to Jumping Branch. Next is Riverway Blvd. This will include heavy landscaping to create a screen and future path for trail connection. There will be green space on both sides of the road. Finally, there is West Platte Road and the Levee which includes the detention pond. There are two phases to the detention pond. Ideally the City would like to see if the water that the detention pond holds can be detained up on the bluffs eliminating the need for the pond. The first phase will be landscaping along the walkway and planting trees along the high side to block it. If the water can not be detained on the bluffs then the next phase will be to lower the basin of the detention pond and create a fountain it the center. A brick wall will be built in and the same fencing used at E.H. Young Park will be put around the pond and heavily landscaped. If the water is able to be detained on the bluffs then the next step will be to remove the pond all together. Miles commented that the landscaping is an immediate fix to the detention pond while Briarcliff looks into detaining the water on the bluffs. If the detention pond is not needed, all the landscaping will be able to be moved and used somewhere else. He went on to explained that the timing for these projects will be stretched over three fiscal years. The 2007 /2008 fiscal year will be the "Welcome Plaza" and the first phase of the detention pond. The 5 2008/2009 fiscal year will be design and construction of the entrance off I -29 and the entrance off of Riverway Blvd. These are timed so that they will coordinate with the developments going in at Skyline and Briarcliff. Finally, in 2009/2010 Vivion Road will be complete and the second phase of the detention pond. The next steps for this project will be: • Contract / Ordinance for Construction Design of Welcome Plaza and Gateway Park Phase I • Begin Design of Welcome Plaza • Completed Design / Final Review by Board of Aldermen • Bid Construction of Projects Miles commented that the goal is to have the grand opening of the "Welcome Plaza" ready for July 4, 2008. Mayor Rose commented that she hopes to have a liner park connection from the "Welcome Plaza" to Renner Brenner Park so that people can park there and walk over to the clock tower. That way there will be adequate parking for the attraction. Commissioner Poe commented that she would like to see some drinking fountains in some of these areas. Miles explained that the City has gotten away from putting in water fountains because they are the highest vandalized item in the City. Commissioner Poe commented that there are some drinking fountains at E.H. Young Park. Miles replied that he will look into the water fountain situation. Commissioner Poe commented that there are a lot of trees and bushes and trees and asked who would be maintaining them. Miles replied that the City has contracted out the maintenances of all these areas to a professional landscaping business because the City does not have the expertise or staff to take care of all of them. Commissioner Melton asked if there was going to be a sprinkler system for these areas. Miles replied that these areas will have a sprinkler system and the City is still looking into a City wide system. Commissioner Poe asked if the City has done anything about benches at the bus stops. Miles replied that the City needs to work with ATA on expanding their services and getting better accommodations for those who use the bus system. 6 Commissioner Ray Uhl Motioned to adjourn Adjournment Commissioner Harold Snoderley seconded and the motion passed Sarah 7 agner, Administrative Clerk. 7