TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Rosemary Street Mixed Use Development– Application for a Zoning Atlas Amendment
INTRODUCTION
Tonight the Council continues the Public Hearing from June 17, 2002, regarding an application for a Zoning Atlas Amendment to rezone approximately 6,700 square feet of a 45,906 square-foot site (1.05 acres) that is located at the northwest corner of the West Rosemary Street and Mitchell Lane intersection. The site is located about 75 feet east of Mama Dips Restaurant. The site is currently located in the Residential-3 (R-3) and Town Center-2 (TC-2) zoning districts. The application proposes to rezone the Residential-3 (R-3) portion of the site to Town Center-2-Conditional (TC-2-C). The attached Ordinance would approve this rezoning. The attached Resolution would deny the rezoning.
The applicant has submitted an accompanying application for a Special Use Permit to authorize construction of a mixed use development on the site. Please refer to the accompanying memorandum for a discussion of this application.
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This package of material has been prepared for the Town Council’s consideration, and is organized as follows:
¨ Cover Memorandum: Summarizes the application, reviews procedures for review and offers a recommendation for Council action.
¨ Attachments: Includes an ordinance approving and resolution denying the rezoning, as well as the June 17 Public Hearing memorandum and related attachments.
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This is an application for a Zoning Atlas Amendment. The Development Ordinance requires the Town Manager to conduct an evaluation of this Zoning Atlas Amendment application, to present a report to the Planning Board, and to present a report and recommendation to the Town Council. We have reviewed the application and evaluated it against Article 20 of the Development Ordinance; we have presented a report to the Planning Board; we submitted our report and preliminary recommendation to the Council on June 17; and, tonight the Council will continue its discussions on the application.
Article 20.3.9 of the Development Ordinance sets forth the procedures for a protest petition.
Article 20 states that: If a petition protesting a proposed amendment to the Zoning Atlas is filed, such amendment shall not become effective except by favorable vote of not less than seven members of the Council. In order to be valid for the above purpose, a protest petition must:
a) be signed by the owners of twenty percent or more of the land area contained in either 1) the lots included in the area proposed for rezoning, or 2) the lots within one hundred feet of either side or the rear of the area proposed for rezoning, or 3) the lots directly opposite the area proposed for rezoning and the lots within one hundred feet from the street frontage of such opposite lots;
b) be in the form of a written petition actually bearing the signatures of the requisite number of property owners and stating that the signers do protest the proposed amendment;
c) be received by the Town Clerk at least two normal working days prior to the date established for the public hearing on the proposed amendment; and
d) be on a form prescribed and provided by the Town Clerk and contain all the information requested on the form.
Property owners within 1,000 feet of both the proposed Rosemary Mixed Use Development site and the proposed Merritt Mill Road auxiliary parking lot were notified June 24th of the Public Hearing continuation (see Attachment 2). The original April 19, 2002 notification for the Public Hearing did not refer to the right of adjacent property owners to submit a petition to protest the rezoning request. As of August 16, 2002 we have not received any protest petitions for the Zoning Atlas Amendment application.
Zoning determines the type and intensity of uses and development that are allowed on a piece of land. A rezoning involves a change to the zoning of the land. In Chapel Hill, a rezoning may be requested in two ways: general use and conditional use rezoning requests. A general use rezoning request is to change the zoning to a different zoning district in which any of several kinds of developments and uses are permissible. A conditional use rezoning request is to allow development and uses only with approval of a Special Use Permit. This rezoning application is a conditional use rezoning request.
The zoning designation of a property determines the range of land uses and development intensities permitted on the property. Article 20 of the Development Ordinance establishes the intent of Zoning Atlas Amendments by stating that, “In order to establish and maintain sound, stable, and desirable development within the planning jurisdiction of the Town it is intended that this chapter shall not be amended except:
a) to correct a manifest error in the chapter; or
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.”
Article 20.1 further indicates:
It is further intended that, if amended, this chapter be amended only as reasonably necessary to the promotion of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and in conformance with the Comprehensive Plan.
As related to conditional use zoning, Article 20 of the Development Ordinance stipulates that:
An application for rezoning to a conditional use district may include a request, by the property owner, to limit the uses allowed with approval of a Special Use Permit. An application for rezoning to a conditional use district may be accompanied by an application for a Special Use Permit, as provided in Article 18, and may be reviewed concurrently with the Special Use Permit application.
The Council has discretionary authority to approve or deny a rezoning request. As a conditional use rezoning request, the specific proposal in the accompanying Special Use Permit application is related to the rezoning request. Approval of a conditional use rezoning for a property would mean that no development could occur other than that allowed under the previous Residential-3 portion of the property without Council approval of a Special Use Permit. We believe it is appropriate for the Council to consider a specific Special Use Permit proposal on the application, in tandem with a conditional use zoning hearing. If the Council does not find the Special Use Permit proposal to be an acceptable use of the property, we would recommend that the Council not approve the rezoning request.
The June 17 Public Hearing memorandum reviewed this application, including both supporting and opposing arguments for the rezoning. We have provided the Public Hearing materials as an attachment to this memorandum.
There were no issues raised in regard to the rezoning of this property during the June 17 Public Hearing.
Recommendations are summarized below. Please see the attached summaries of board actions and recommendations.
Planning Board Recommendation: The Planning Board considered this application on May 7, 2002, and voted 7-0 to recommend approval of the Zoning Atlas Amendment application. Please see the attached Summary of Planning Board Action.
Transportation Board Recommendation: The Transportation Board considered this application on May 7, 2002, and voted 8-1 to recommend approval of the Zoning Atlas Amendment. Please see the attached Summary of Transportation Board Action.
Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board Recommendation: The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board considered this application on May 28, 2002, and voted 7-0 to recommend approval of the Zoning Atlas Amendment. Please see the attached Summary of Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board Action.
Community Design Commission Recommendation: The Community Design Commission reviewed this application on May 15, 2002 and voted 7-0 to recommend approval of the Zoning Atlas Amendment. Please see the attached Summary of Community Design Commission Action.
Parks and Recreation Commission Recommendation: The Parks and Recreation Commission reviewed this application on March 27, 2002 and voted 7-0 to recommend that the Council approve the application without reference to a specific Resolution. Please see the attached Summary of Parks and Recreation Commission Action.
Manager’s Recommendation: We believe that this rezoning could be justified based on the finding that the rezoning would achieve the purposes of the Comprehensive Plan. Our recommendation is that the Council adopt the attached Ordinance, rezoning the portion of the property requested from Residential-3 (R-3) to Town Center-2-Conditional (TC-2-C) zoning.
The attached Resolution would deny the rezoning request.
ATTACHMENTS
ORDINANCE
(Rezoning to TC-2-C zoning)
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE CHAPEL HILL ZONING ATLAS FOR THE ROSEMARY STREET MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT (Chapel Hill Tax Map Number 85, Block A, Lot 9) (2002-08-26/O-6)
WHEREAS, the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill has considered the application of Thomas Tucker to amend the Zoning Atlas to rezone the portion of the property described below from Residential-3 (R-3) to Town Center-2-Conditional (TC-2-C) zoning, and finds that the amendment is warranted, in order to achieve the purposes of the Comprehensive Plan;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Chapel Hill Zoning Atlas be amended as follows:
That the portion of the site identified as now or formerly Chapel Hill Township Tax Map 85, Block A, Lot 9, that is currently zoned Residential-3 (R-3), located at the northwest corner of the West Rosemary Street and Mitchell Lane intersection, shall be rezoned from Residential-3 (R-3) to Town Center-2-Conditional (TC-2-C) zoning.
That the portion of the site identified as now or formerly Chapel Hill Township Tax Map 85, Block A, Lot 9, that is currently zoned Town Center-2 (TC-2) located at the northwest corner of the West Rosemary Street and Mitchell Lane intersection, shall remain unchanged with Town Center-2 (TC-2) zoning.
The description of the portions of this site to be rezoned are indicated on the attached map.
SECTION II
That all ordinances and portions of ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed.
This the 26th day of August, 2002.
(Denying TC-2-C Rezoning)
A RESOLUTION DENYING AN APPLICATION FOR A ZONING ATLAS AMENDMENT FOR THE ROSEMARY STREET MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT (Chapel Hill Tax Map Number 85, Block A, Lot 9) (2002-08-26/R-15)
WHEREAS, the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill has considered the application of Thomas Tucker to amend the Zoning Atlas to rezone property described below from Residential-3 (R-3) to Town Center-2-Conditional (TC-2-C) zoning, and fails to find that the amendment:
a) corrects a manifest error in the chapter, or
b) is justified because of changed or changing conditions in the area of the rezoning site or the community in general, or
c) achieves the purposes of the Comprehensive Plan.
For the reasons that:
a) the Zoning Atlas is not in error;
b) there have not been changed conditions that would justify this rezoning; and
c) the Land Use Plan, a component of the Comprehensive Plan, identifies this parcel for low-density residential use.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill that the Council hereby denies the application of Thomas Tucker to amend the Zoning Atlas to rezone the property identified as Chapel Hill Township Tax Map 85, Block A, Lot 9, located at the northwest corner of the West Rosemary Street and Mitchell Lane intersection from Residential-3 (R-3) to Town Center-2-Conditional (TC-2-C) zoning. The description of the entire property is as indicated on the attached map.
This the 26th day of August, 2002.