AGENDA 13(c)

 

MEMORANDUM

 

TO:                  Mayor and Town Council

 

FROM:            W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager

 

SUBJECT:       Request for Expedited Processing of Special Use Permit Modification Application for the Dobbins Hill Development

 

DATE:             January 10, 2005

 

On December 6, 2004, the Town Council received a petition from Crosland Inc., and referred it to the Town Manager for review and recommendation.  The petition (Attachment 1) requests expedited processing of a pending Special Use Permit Modification application for the Dobbins Hill Development.  The petition was submitted in response to Council comments from the November 15, 2004 Public Hearing on the proposed Wilson Assemblage Special Use Permit.  Please refer to the accompanying agenda item 13(b) on continuation of the Wilson Assemblage Special Use Permit. 

 

We recommend adoption of the attached resolution, which would authorize expedited processing of the pending application.

 

BACKGROUND

 

On November 15, 2004, the Council held a Public Hearing on the Wilson Assemblage Special Use Permit.  The proposed development, located northeast of the intersection of US 15-501 and Erwin Road, proposed 149 dwelling units, 50,000 square feet of office/retail space, and 402 parking spaces on a 20.81 acre site.  The Public Hearing was continued to January 10, 2005. 

 

On December 6, 2004, in response to Council’s comments during the Public Hearing concerning affordable housing, the applicant for the Wilson Assemblage proposal presented the Council with a petition (Attachment 1).  The petition includes a proposal for an affordable housing component and requests expedited processing for modifications to the Dobbins Hill Special Use Permit.  The petition was referred to the Town Manager for comment.

 

APPLICANT’S REQUEST

 

In order to provide an affordable housing component for the proposed Wilson Assemblage Special Use Permit, the Wilson Assemblage applicant, Crosland Inc., is proposing development of affordable housing on the adjacent Dobbins Hill development.   Crosland Inc. is the property owner and developer for the adjacent Dobbins Hill affordable housing community.  Crosland Inc. believes that there is adequate space on the Dobbins Hill site for one to two new tax credit apartment buildings.  However, Crosland Inc. believes that in order for this proposal to be successful, it will be necessary for the Council to grant expedited processing of the pending Special Use Permit Modification application and Final Plan Review for construction of additional housing on the Dobbins Hill site.  Please refer to the applicant’s December 1, 2004 petition for additional details on the affordable housing and expedited processing request (Attachment 1).

 

In order for the applicant to proceed with the proposal to construct affordable housing on the Dobbins Hill site and keep within a strict time frame associated with the State’s tax credit requirements, the applicant is requesting that the Council grant a date specific expedited processing schedule for the pending Dobbins Hill Special Use Permit Modification application.

 

An expedited schedule for the pending Dobbins Hill Special Use Permit Modification application, which we believe is in accordance with the applicant’s desired schedule, is shown below: 

 

Dobbins Hill Special Use Permit – Proposed Expedited Schedule

 

CDC Concept Plan Review

January 20, 2005

Council Concept Plan Review

January 24, 2005

Town Staff Reviews

February 14, 2005

Advisory Boards Review

Late March/Early April  2005

Council Public Hearing

April 18, 2005

Council Action

April 25, 2005

Final Plan Approval (Zoning Compliance Permit)

December 31, 2005

 

EXPEDITED PROCESSING

 

Expedited processing grants priority status for review at every step of the process, and grants priority status in being scheduled on agendas of advisory boards and the Town Council.  A Special Use Permit application would normally take nine months to a year to be reviewed by all the required boards and commissions and to be heard at a Public Hearing.

 

Following approval, an application normally takes four to five months to obtain approval of detailed construction drawings and final plans, prior to obtaining a Building Permit.  The review process is often long because of the breadth and depth of review and analysis, and because many projects are usually being reviewed at any given time.

 

Of sixteen applications currently seeking Town Council approval, nine have expedited processing status.  The following nine current applications awaiting Council review have previously been granted Expedited Processing:

 

·            Eastgate Shopping Center – Starbucks (Expedited Processing granted November 10, 2003);

·            229 North Graham Street – EmPOWERment Zoning Atlas Amendment and Special Use Permit (Expedited Processing granted September 23, 2002);

·            Southern Community Park Special Use Permit (Expedited Processing granted March 22, 2004);

·            Homestead Park Aquatic Center Special Use Permit Modification (Expedited Processing granted March 22, 2004);

·            Holy Trinity Church Special Use Permit (Expedited Processing granted May 24, 2004);

·            OWASA I-40 Booster Pump Station Special Use Permit (Expedited Processing granted June 30, 2004);

·            Southern Orange Senior Center Special Use Permit Modification (Expedited Processing granted September 27, 2004);

·            McCorkle Place Development Special Use Permit (Expedited Processing granted September 27, 2004);

·            Sunrise Road Habitat for Humanity Development (Expedited Processing granted November 8, 2004).

 

The following seven active applications awaiting Council review do not have expedited status:

 

·          Chapel Watch Zoning Atlas Amendment and Special Use Permit;

·          The Farm Special Use Permit;

·          Montessori School Special Use Permit;

·          Wilson Assemblage Special Use Permit;

·          Chapel Hill North Special Use Permit;

·          UNC South Substation Special Use Permit;

·          Bradley Green Subdivision.

 

Sixteen other applications that are in Final Plan review have recently been approved by the Town Council.  Of these sixteen Final Plan applications, eight have expedited processing status.  In total, of the applications both seeking approval and that have been approved by the Council, including Final Plan applications, seventeen of 32 applications have expedited processing status.

 

DISCUSSION

 

We follow the Council-endorsed criteria listed below in making recommendations to Council on request for expedited processing:

 

  1. Recommend expedited processing only in cases where there is a public interest or public objective involved.
  2. Recommend expedited processing only when a project that involves public interest would be harmed by following normal rules of procedure.
  3. Avoid expedited processing in situations where other applications that do not carry this special status would be delayed.

 

We believe that the development of new affordable housing opportunities would promote a public interest and a public objective, and that normal processing schedules would preclude the achievement of this new affordable housing.

 

Several development applications are currently working toward being placed on the Council’s Public Hearing schedule.  The impact of granting expedited processing for Dobbins Hill Development is that one less space would be available on the Council’s schedule for which other applications are competing.  We believe that this application meets the Council’s criteria for granting expedited processing. 

 

We believe that the applicant’s proposal to provide additional affordable housing in Dobbins Hill as the affordable housing component for the Wilson Assemblage, is a practical plan worth pursuing.  We believe that there is a significant public purpose associated with developing additional tax-credit affordable housing in Dobbins Hill.  We recommend that the Council grant the expedited process schedule as outlined in the above table.

 

We recommend that the Council grant Expedited Processing Status for the Dobbins Hill Development.

 

Projects that have been granted expedited processing are identified in Attachment 2.

 

RECOMMENDATION

 

Manager’s Recommendation:  We recommend that the Council adopt the attached resolution.  Adoption of the resolution would grant expedited processing for the pending Dobbins Hill Development application, if the Council chooses to grant this request.

 

ATTACHMENTS

 

  1. December 1, 2004 Petition from Crosland Inc. (p. 6).
  2. List of Projects Granted Expedited Processing (p. 8).

 

A RESOLUTION DIRECTING EXPEDITED PROCESSING IN THE REVIEW OF A PENDING SPECIAL USE PERMIT MODIFICATION APPLICATION FOR DOBBINS HILL DEVELOPMENT (2005-01-10/R-15)

 

WHEREAS, the Town of Chapel Hill has received an oral petition for Dobbins Hill Development requesting expedited processing of a Special Use Permit application seeking approval of construction of affordable dwelling units; and

 

WHEREAS, the Town Council finds that there is a significant public purpose associated with development of this application;

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Town Manager is directed to expedite processing of a pending Special Use Permit Modification application for Dobbins Hill, as outlined in the table below, in a manner that will speed review without sacrificing breadth or depth of analysis.

 

Dobbins Hill Special Use Permit Modification –  Expedited Schedule

 

CDC Concept Plan Review

January 20, 2005

Council Concept Plan Review

January 24, 2005

Town Staff Reviews

February 14, 2005

Advisory Boards Review

Late March/Early April  2005

Council Public Hearing

April 18, 2005

Council Action

April 25, 2005

Final Plan Approval (Zoning Compliance Permit)

December 31, 2005

 

This the 10th day of January, 2005.