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TO: |
Roger L. Stancil, Town Manager |
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FROM: |
J. B. Culpepper, Planning Director David Bonk, Long Range and Transportation Coordinator |
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SUBJECT: |
University Station - Proposed Town-Initiated Zoning Atlas Amendment - (File No. 9880-56-2680) |
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DATE: |
May 21, 2007 |
The attached Ordinance would rezone a 42.64 acre tract known as University Station, Orange County Parcel 9880-56-2680 from Mixed Use Office/Institutional-1 (MU-OI-1) and Residential-3 (R-3) to the Residential-1 (R-1) zoning district.
We recommend against the proposed Zoning Atlas Amendment.
The Council held a public hearing on May 7, 2007, and received citizen, Planning Board, and Council comments (see memorandum, Attachment 2). The Council referred comments received at the hearing to the Manager and Attorney for consideration in developing a follow-up report and recommendation. All comments were reviewed and considered in developing this follow-up report.
We recommend against the proposed Zoning Atlas Amendment. We recommend that the Council enact a moratorium for the Northern Area terminating at the end of January 2008. If the Council decides not to enact a moratorium, we recommend that staff provide a follow-up report with alternative zoning recommendations for the property.
The key issue raised during the May 7, 2007, public hearing, with staff comments, is summarized below. Correspondence received related to the public hearing is included as Attachment 3.
1. Reasons for Rezoning at this time: A representative for the property owner acknowledged that a recent Concept Plan for the property, which had been submitted to the Council for preliminary feedback, had not been well received by the community. The property owner opposes the proposed rezoning to Residential-1 (R-1), considering it a blunt way to control the development potential of the property, and would prefer to engage in a conversation with the Northern Area Task Force during any moratorium to devise suitable alternatives for the site.
A speaker and member of the Northern Area Task Force asked for assurance that development of the University Station property would be covered by the proposed moratorium. The speaker considered that, for this property, the future could be decided now, and rezoning to Residential-1 would allow the Task Force to focus on broader vision questions and development guidelines for the study area.
The Planning Board recommended that if the Council decides not to proceed with a moratorium the Council should rezone the property to Residential-1 (R-1).
Comment: We believe that rezoning the property to Residential-1 (R-1) is not appropriate at this time. The rezoning does not match the Land Use Plan, a component of the Comprehensive Plan. The Land Use Plan calls for mixed use office with commercial emphasis, and for medium density residential, 4-8 units to the acre. We acknowledge that the property may not be best suited to multi-family residential uses, but equally, it may not be appropriate for single family residential use. We believe that other alternative uses compatible with the location may be appropriate for the property including office and institutional uses.
We note that all existing zoning districts in the Land Use Management Ordinance allow residential use. Therefore, if residential use is not deemed appropriate the Town could amend the Land Use Management Ordinance to modify or create a zone.
A Concept Plan was considered for the University Station property in February 2007. Concept Plans are pre-application submittals designed to receive preliminary feedback from the Council and the community before submitting a formal development application. A formal development application would be required to move forward with development of the University Station property. Tonight the Council will consider enacting a moratorium for the Northern Area, which includes the University Station property. Enacting the moratorium would stop all major development applications in the Northern Area, including this property, until January 2008.
We believe that if the Town wishes to take a comprehensive look at the area, the property is an integral part of the area, and should be planned as a part of the whole. During the moratorium, we anticipate that the Northern Area Task Force will develop amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Plan vision for the area, including alternative recommendations, which may require the Town to amend the zoning atlas for the University Station property compatible with that vision.
The proposed moratorium schedule allows time for any rezoning(s) recommended by the Task Force to be enacted before the moratorium terminates at the end of January 2008. We recommend against the rezoning of the property to Residential-1 (R-1), and that the Council delay any consideration to rezone the property until after the Northern Area Task Force has completed its tasks.
However, if the Council decides not to enact a moratorium, we recommend that staff return to the Council June 20, 2007 with a report on alternatives for the zoning of the property.
As discussed in the May 7, 2007, memorandum, there are three potential justifications for rezonings: a) to correct a manifest error in the chapter; b) because of changed or changing conditions in a particular area or in the jurisdiction generally; or c) to achieve the purposes of the Comprehensive Plan. Analysis of the proposed rezoning in accordance with Article 4.4 of the Land Use Management Ordinance was provided in the staff memorandum for the Public Hearing (Attachment 2).
By law, formal “Protest Petitions” may be filed against a rezoning. If a protest petition is submitted and determined sufficient, a three-fourths vote by Council would be required to enact a new zoning. The deadline for filing protest petitions for this proposal was at 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 2, 2007. A valid petition had not been submitted by the deadline. Although the owner missed this deadline, he and his representative have both opposed the rezoning.
Planning Board Recommendation: On May 1, 2007, the Planning Board voted 8-0 to recommend approval of the proposed Zoning Atlas Amendment if the Council does not enact a moratorium for the Northern Area. Summary of Planning Board Action (Attachment 3).
Staff Recommendation: We continue to recommend against the proposed rezoning from the current zoning of Mixed Use Office/Institutional-1 (MU-OI-1) and Residential-3 (R-3) to the Residential-1 (R-1) zoning district. We believe that rezoning the property to Residential-1 (R-1) is not appropriate as alternative non-residential uses may be more appropriate for the property and better facilitate the proposed uses of the Land Use Plan. We recommend that the Council enact a moratorium for the Northern Area terminating at the end of January 2008. We recommend that the Council delay any consideration to rezone the property until after the Northern Area Task Force has completed its tasks and considered the future of this property as part of that work. If the Council considers rezoning to be an appropriate action at that time, a zoning atlas amendment could be enacted before the termination of the moratorium at the end of January 2008.
If the Council decides not to enact a moratorium, we recommend that staff provide a follow-up report with alternative zoning recommendations for the property.
If the Council decides to proceed with the rezoning, the attached Ordinance would rezone the property to Residential-1 (R-1). In accordance with North Carolina General Statute 160A-383, if the Council elects to proceed and enact this ordinance, it will need to explain why it considers the action to be reasonable and in the public interest.
