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PLANNING
Town of Chapel Hill
405 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Chapel Hill, NC  27514                                              

phone (919) 968-2728    fax (919) 969-2014
www.townofchapelhill.org

 

CONCEPT PLAN REVIEW SUMMARY MINUTES

COMMUNITY DESIGN COMMISSION

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2008, 7:00 P.M.

 

Chairperson George Cianciolo called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Commission members present were Mark Broadwell, Mary Margaret Carroll, Chris Culbreth, Laura King Moore, Glenn Parks, and Jonathan Whitney. Staff members present were Senior Planner Kay Pearlstein, and Planning Technician Kay Tapp.

SOUTHERN VILLAGE CENTER CONCEPT PLAN (File No. 9787-05-5432)

 

The Town has received a Concept Plan Review proposal from Southern Village Center, LLC for the Southern Village Center. The Concept Plan proposes to demolish an existing parking lot and construct a 6-story building with 90,000 square feet of floor area and underground parking. The proposed development is located in the parking island in Southern Village Center surrounded by Market Street, Kildaire Road, and Aberdeen Street. A drop-off area and vehicle parking for 147 spaces is also proposed.  Access to the parking area is proposed from all surrounding streets. The .9-acre site is located in the Neighborhood Commercial-Conditional (NC-C) zoning district. The site is identified as Orange County Parcel Identifier Number 9787-05-5432. 

CONCEPT PLAN PRESENTATION

 

The applicant presented a proposal for a concept plan for a 6-story building proposed to be either a hotel or residential condominiums. The applicant stated that a 1993 concept plan showed a building on the proposal site.

 

CITIZEN COMMENTS

1.      George Selkirk read a letter written by his wife inquiring what the zoning application would include.

 

2.      Ann Bohner, a resident of Southern Village, stated that she moved there for the safety and convenience of grocery store parking. She believed that this project would take away the security currently provided by the open air parking lot. Replacement with an underground parking lot is not a safe or convenient for grocery shopping. Further, she believed that not having the parking in front of the stores will be difficult for shop owners.

 

3.      Elliot Baron, a resident at 211 Westside Drive, showed a graphic that superimposed a building onto the proposed site to show how the proposed building might fit into the scale of the surrounding buildings.  He stated that he also flew a balloon to a height of 75 feet against the adjacent church steeple. He said that the current zoning for the area is for low intensity neighborhood commercial and that TC-3 is the only zoning district that allows the floor area proposed. He believes that the scale and size is too big for the site.

 

4.      Frank Miller, a resident at 119 Graylyn Drive, submitted a petition signed by approximately 90 people objecting to the scale and impact of the proposal. He was concerned by available parking for shoppers, store owners, and residents of the buildings.

 

5.      A resident at 108 Graylyn Drive, supports the concept plan. He stated that the developer has been successful with Southern Village and believes that he will be successful with this application. He suggested that the parking deck be disguised and not be an eyesore and that public space for art would make a big difference if incorporated into the design. He cautioned that the height, bulk, and scale not overwhelm the site and that a 3-D simulation would be helpful to convey the design and space. He envisioned the site as a European village.

 

6.      Lou Weinstein, a resident in southern Village, stated that he canvassed the residents on his street and none wanted a building instead of the existing parking lot. He was concerned that if the building were approved, that the retail businesses might not survive during the construction process. He was concerned about property values if the businesses in the district failed.

 

7.      A resident who lived over Weaver Street Market loves her location. She loved the Village Green that brings the area to life and brings people into southern Village. She applauds the developer for a successful development. She stated that she is in a “wait and see” mode but believes that the proposed building could impact the area in a great way.

 

8.      Chuck Osborn, a resident of 603 Aberdeen Drive, says that he loves raising his children here. They ride their bikes to Weaver Street Market and to get pizza. He does not want to take his kids to a dark, creepy parking garage to park. He stated that a village center will not work with a big building in this location.

 

9.      David Cox, a resident of 701 High Grove Drive and a business owner in Southern Village, is concerned about sunshine being blocked by the proposed building. He does not recommend that a hotel should count on in-bound traffic and that most hotel users spend their money at the hotel (average $245/day) rather than at surrounding businesses.

 

10.  Scott Rochart, a resident at 202 Glenhaven Drive, loves southern Village with the open space surrounded by stores,; it has a beautiful symmetry. He shares others concern with parking. He would likely go to the store less often if he has to park in an underground garage. He did not like the location of the dumpsters and garage as the view one would have driving into Southern Village from Hwy15-501. He was concerned how a hotel might impact the character of the area and what would happen if the hotel did not do well. He wanted to keep the parking lot.

 

11.  Eliza Reed, a resident at 610 Bookgreen Drive thought that an inn with 90 rooms might work better than a hotel. She believed that the elementary school may need to be expanded if the building became condominiums. Either way, she wanted to see the parking garage camouflaged.

 

12.  Linda Foy, a resident of Southern Village, believed that a 6-story building would not be in the best interest of the community. She stated that the design for Southern Village is not always what was built (not as many houses) and the pool was intended as a “cash cow” and not big enough. She believed it was a money –maker and no one cares who runs over it or about the concerns of the residents.

 

COMMUNITY DESIGN COMMISSION QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS

1.     Commissioner Mary Margaret Carroll asked the applicant what the retail owners thought of the application and what percentage of them lived in Southern Village. The applicant replied that they have talked with the retail owners on several occasions and were working with them and did not know how many retailers lived in Southern Village.

 

      Commissioner Carroll was concerned that the feeling of Southern Village would be altered with the insertion of the building.

 

2.     Commissioner Amy Ryan was concerned about the missing parking spaces. She felt that the height of the proposed building was a big problem. She recommended that the building should be two or three stories high. She thought that site sections would be helpful. She did not believe that there was interest in a hotel but that condominiums had more appeal. She stated that the Village Green was a very important anchor in the area in addition to the Lumina Theater and Weaver Street Market. She believed that Weaver Street Market in Carrboro is a great outdoor space and that a similar outdoor space should be created in Southern Village that includes a place for teenagers to hang out. She wanted the sight lines to the church to be maintained with any new building.

 

3.     Commissioner Jonathan Whitney stated that a 1993 plan that shows two U-shaped buildings with 2 stories could be interesting in the location and the original scheme should be maintained. He did not support the building in the location.

 

4.     Commissioner Laura Moore wanted to see a more comprehensive plan and what would have been built with the current plans without any change to the Special Use Permit. She did not support a tall building in the location. She wanted a more mixed use development with some surface parking.

 

5.     Commissioner Scott Nilsen stated that he was firmly against the proposal. He wanted the space to stay open or to wow him with a new design.

 

6.     Commissioner Polly Van de Velde liked the 1993 plan the applicant presented which showed an opening between buildings into a larger green space. She liked the idea of being able to walk through the space rather than around it like the proposed building that did not have any “through space”.

 

      She felt that density should be a trade-off with the open space; that in order to increase the density, open space would need to be preserved.

 

7.     Commissioner George Cianciolo liked the village feel with the open space as it exists. He felt that a building could work in this location, but not this one. He did not like the hotel concept and wondered where customers would come from.

 

      He thought that a building that created spaces like Weaver Street Market in Carrboro would provide open space and would work well in Southern Village and enhance the space. He believed that a building with the correct concept could enliven the area at night noting that more people on the street make people feel safe. He did not support underground garages that are enclosed and dark. He does support something there that draws people into the area, but not a 6-story hotel.

 

SUMMARY

     The Commission’s comments are below. They did not support the proposed building for the following reasons:

 

Prepared for:                     George Cianciolo, Chair

Prepared by:                      Kay Pearlstein, Staff