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HomeMy WebLinkAbout161017_Gorsuch Haus Application Updates MemoDesign Workshop, Inc. Landscape Architecture Planning Urban Design 120 East Main Street Aspen, Colorado 81611 970.925.8354 970-920-1387 fax Asheville Aspen Austin Chicago Denver Dubai Houston Lake Tahoe Los Angeles Shanghai designworkshop.com October 17, 2016 Jennifer Phelan Community Development Department City of Aspen 130 South Galena Street, 3rd Floor Aspen, CO 81611 Dear Jennifer, In response to your request for additional details/revisions to the plans submitted on September 1st we have prepared an updated package of materials and a response to some questions raised in your review. The information included includes some previously requested materials and additional studies which were provided during the Planning and Zoning review. The materials included provide additional details and refinements to the plans submitted as an amendment to the application on September 1st, 2016. While some of the calculations have changed slightly due to conversations/clarifications with Staff, no substantial changes have been made. The amended materials include the following: Supplemental Materials Package: Page 1) Slope Analysis for Net Lot Area/FAR Generation Calculations Page 2) Lot Area/FAR Calculations Page 4) Requested GMQS Allotments Page 5) Affordable Housing Calculations Page 7) Sketch Up Views Along S. Aspen Street Page 10) Retaining Wall Details Page 11) Adjacent Property Cross-section Comparison Sections Page 12) Drainage Analysis Update (Sopris Engineering) Page 13) LSC Transportation Report (Provided June, 2016) Page 23) Tree Survey Report (Aspen Tree Service – Provided June, 2016) Large Format Exhibit Revised Materials: Only the requested materials have been included in this package of updated exhibits. C.1) Illustrative Plan/Site Plan C.2) Neighborhood Plan C.3) Site and Grading Plan (reflecting wall heights where applicable) C.4) Turnaround Enlargement D.1) Architectural Floor Plans D.2) Floor Area Diagrams and Calculations D.3) Net Leasable/Net Livable Diagrams and Calculations D.4) Height Plan Design Workshop, Inc. 2 D.5) Proposed Exterior Elevations D.6) Proposed Building Sections D.7) Illustrative Renderings E.1) Improvement Survey Plat E.2) Street and Easement Vacation Plat E.3) Planned Development/Subdivision Plat E.4) Engineering Sheets (Grading/Drainage & Utility Improvements) Notes Regarding Updated Materials: - The Site Plan has been revised with additional details and height identification of each of the retaining wall elements on the site. Additionally, sample cross-sections of the retaining walls are included (Page 10 of the Supplementary Materials). The exterior retaining wall materials will be finished with stone veneer. - The floorplans have been detailed with additional internal elements for the lodge, condo-lodge, free market units and additional spaces. - Takeoffs are provided for balconies, exterior deck spaces, and rooftop terraces on each level pursuant to code section 26.575.020.D.4 (illustrated in Exhibit D.1). These areas cumulatively total 18,469 sf. The external deck space that serves as the Après Ski Plaza area adjacent to the restaurant is approximately 1,650 sf with a maximum capacity of 110 people (15 nsf/person). In addition, the Upper Plaza terrace is 820 sf accommodating approximately 54 people and the lower Plaza terrace of 1,760 sf accommodating 117 people. - A note has been added to the Plat and Subdivision documents at the request of the Community Development department to better illustrate that the full extent of Government Lot 31 extends beyond the City’s limits into the County. - Six (6) additional renderings are in progress and will be provided on October 20th per the instruction and photos provided the week of October 3, 2016. Summary of September 1st Application Amendments: Subdivision and right of way vacation: The Street and Vacation Plat and the PD/Subdivision Plat reflect Applicant’s subdivision request and proposed lot configuration which has been amended in response to Staff’s comments: Lot Configuration: The Applicant has amended the application to reflect a two lot configuration which aligns more closely to the original townsite plat. Lot 1 incorporates the two existing parcels of the original townsite plat and extends to the south on the gentler slopes within the City of Aspen boundary. Lot 2 largely resembles the original configuration of Government Lot 31. The review standards under the general subdivision and major subdivision are addressed in the revised PD/Subdivision Plat, including the guaranteed access of both lots to a public way, alignment with the original townsite plat, and the removal of non-conforming site improvements. Design Workshop, Inc. 3 Lot 1 - Lot 1 is the primary development lot for the mixed use lodge, the lift infrastructure and associated site improvements. The Lot has access to a public way with its entrance and driveway provided along the expanded South Aspen Street frontage. Lot 1 will total 75,446 sf, inclusive of a 201 sf area within the South Aspen Street right of way to support the structural columns required for the porte cochere of the building. Additional air rights for the porte cochere as described below will be retained through the subdivision process. Lot 1’s "donut hole" within the S. Aspen Street turnaround has been designated as an integral portion of the fee ownership of Lot 1 within the Gorsuch Haus PD/Subdivision, in order to have the vertical structural elements within the “donut hole” (both subgrade and above grade) support the structures to be constructed in the airspace above the ROW. Maintaining the fee ownership of this area is important to the condominium mapping of the building improvements which will be constructed within Lot 1. The ownership of this portion of Lot 1 (rather than utilizing tools such as an easement or encroachment license) is understood by the Applicant to be important to avoiding potential challenges with title insurance and construction lending. Subgrade Structural Improvements: - The applicant is not proposing that any attached structural elements required for the building on Lot 1 will encroach onto Lot 2 or the adjacent rights of way thus creating a non-conforming condition. - The current intent is to do a temporary cantilevered shoring system to the east and/or west of the building. This might be micropile but more likely will be drilled pier system. The shoring in the north/south direction is intended to be permanent soil nail system to help hold the mountain slope, but this shoring should be under the building in most if not all instances and therefore no encroachment agreements should be required as it should stay within the lot lines. - As the project moves forward the design may be refined to reflect the construction techniques required to maintain the full extent of the structural element within Lot 1 which may result in changes to the configuration of the subgrade spaces. Any changes to the subgrade spaces will not impact the Applicant’s ability to satisfy the parking requirements. Lot 2 - Lot 2 will comprise the remaining portion of the Planned Development and will include site improvements such as the re-grading of the mountain access road as well as skiable terrain and open space. Lot 2 will total 213,303 sf. Guaranteed access to a public way is provided with a non-exclusive private access easement as described in the PD/Subdivision Plat under the certificate of ownership, dedications and reservations, #5. This mountain access road will traverse the north and northwestern portion of Lot 1 providing access to Lot 2. The mountain access road is seasonal in nature which supports the use of Lot 2 as a ski area parcel. No changes to the use of this road are proposed. Public Access - The proposed lot configuration and subdivision facilitate improved access to the ski area from the public right of way at the terminus of South Aspen Street. The right of way dedication facilitates significant improvements to the South Aspen Street terminus to meet the City’s engineering standards, supporting a full 50’ radius for the Design Workshop, Inc. 4 dedicated right of way. The additional use of private land will support public transportation with an 11’ pull out for transit and vehicle drop off as well as a 13’ wide sidewalk/permeable pavement area for enhanced pedestrian facilities, providing access to skier services and the lift. Along the southern side of the turnaround, between the Gorsuch Haus and Shadow Mountain Village a minimum 6’ sidewalk has been included to accommodate pedestrian traffic, primarily from existing neighborhood uses located west of the turnaround. The combination of existing rights of way and the dedication of private lands for the turnaround will accommodate traffic circulation and improve access for emergency service vehicles, with ambulance parking provided outside of the traffic circulation area for on mountain emergency egress and loading. The minimum clearance of the porte cochere and grades of the turnaround are a significant improvement for emergency services over existing conditions. The adequacy of the turnaround area to accommodate the pressures of the hotel and increase to skier visits is verified in the LSC Transit Report (Page 13 of the Supplemental Materials). With strategies such as snow-melt within the turnaround space this configuration will also meet the needs of the Fire Department. Public access through the site is formalized and enhanced by connecting South Aspen Street to Summit Street is provided through a pedestrian easement across Lot 1. Recreational Ski Access and Historic Views - The site plan greatly enhances the visual connection of the historic ski corridor from Dean Street toward the on-mountain skiing as well as improving the practical use of the ski corridor for return skiing into town. Skiing along the western side of the building will remain possible for those skiing the western edge of the Norway Ski run to the top of S. Aspen Street. The primary ski return will be relocated to the eastern side of the lift where skiers will have the option of exiting at the turnaround or returning through the Lift One Park ski corridor all the way to Dean Street. This area has been widened and at its minimum is 30’ in width, sufficient to accommodate skiing as well as the operational needs of the ski area. ADA access will be accommodated with the integration of an ADA elevator and ramps, taking skiers from elevation 7,999’ to the lift load elevation of 8016.5’ providing access to the lift where none currently exists as the lift is now only accessed by stairways. Right of Way Vacation - A number of criteria are considered in vacating the unimproved vehicular rights of way, including the City’s requirements for vehicular and pedestrian access, utility and drainage provisions, and recreational connections. When considered as a whole, the vacation of the rights of way achieves the criteria to maintain or improve the public health, safety and welfare of the community and has no negative impact on current needs, with alternative accommodations provided with easements to support the current and future public needs served by the existing rights of way. The vacation of the rights of way adjacent to the parcel are important to facilitate a functional site plan while accommodating community goals to re-establish the historic ski corridor of Lift 1 and create a welcoming public portal to Aspen Mountain. The applicant is proposing to dedicate private property to the city to accommodate expanded right of way improvements at the terminus of South Aspen Street. The total land area of the unimproved rights of way requested for vacation for S. Aspen Street, Summit Street and Design Workshop, Inc. 5 Hill Street is 13,234 sf and the proposed private land dedication of the original lots to the city for the public right of way is 2,828 sf. The function of the rights of way to be vacated will be met through the use of permanent easements to address the utility and drainage requirements typically fulfilled within the rights of way. The proposed utility corridor improves upon the current conditions by providing greater width and a more direct route for the city’s utilities across Lot 1 through a perpetual easement. The waterline and utilities easement running across the northern end of Lot 1 will be a minimum of 30’ wide, whereas currently the corridor is limited to the 25’ width of the Hill Street ROW. The width and more direct route are improvements over the current conditions, providing additional separation between utilities within the sloped site. Treatment of Private Easements/Coordination with Neighboring Properties: - Mountain Queen Fire Access and Drainage Easement: o Additional information was requested regarding the impact to the Mountain Queen Fire Access and Drainage Easement that currently encumbers proposed Lot 2. The purpose of this 20’ wide easement is to “provide a course for drainage or water from adjoining property [the Mountain Queen] and to provide emergency access for municipal fire equipment to and from the Grantee’s property [the Mountain Queen]” The easement recorded in Book 275 Page 378 also stipulates that the Grantee [the Mountain Queen] agrees not to alter the surface condition of said strip of land without the written consent of Grantor [Aspen Skiing Company] and agrees that it will do nothing to said land which will impair its usefulness to the Grantor for downhill skiing purposes.” o The proposed plans will adjust grading within this easement and will accommodate drainage from both the Mountain Queen and Gorsuch Haus Properties in addition to the ski area. The proposed use of the easement area for skiing is consistent with the easement’s language which requires that this area accommodate downhill skiing purposes. The method of conveying drainage in the current proposal differs from the existing surface drainage conditions as culverts would be utilized to achieve the drainage requirements of the three properties. o The applicant has met a number of times with Aspen Fire Department’s Fire Marshal, Parker Lathrop, and is of the understanding that the current configuration of this fire access is not optimal for Mountain Queen’s fire protection and that a dry standpipe system is a better alternative. This dry standpipe system would require three dry standpipe hydrants to be placed on risers distributed along the Mountain Queen’s western property line. These would allow for firehose connections and fire department pumpers to charge the system from Summit Street. The system would be separate from the proposed utilities serving the Gorsuch Haus. Some safety padding during the ski season may be required to ensure skier safety but should not otherwise impact the skier corridor and return skiing to access Lift One Park. Design Workshop, Inc. 6 o The applicant has held preliminary discussions with the Mountain Queen Homeowners and their legal counsel in advance of the application submission and throughout the process to discuss the opportunities to work together to achieve an improved fire protection solution for the Mountain Queen Property. Norway Island is committed to working with the Mountain Queen Homeowners to ensure that a mutually agreed upon solution is achieved and is willing for this to be a condition of the development approvals for the Gorsuch Haus. - Shadow Mountain Revocable Encroachment License o The Shadow Mountain Village to the west of the proposed Gorsuch Haus Project currently has a Revocable Encroachment License for improvements developed within the S. Aspen Street right of way including portions of their stairways and deck space. The Gorsuch Haus Proposal’s request to vacate the eastern half of S. Aspen Street Adjacent to Shadow Mountain has a minimal effect on the Shadow Mountain Improvements with the exception of a small sliver of lawn space that extends into the eastern half of the ROW. No change to this agreement is therefore proposed or requested. Process: A two-step process is required to create the lot configuration represented in the revised site plan. The first step, as described on the Street and Easement Vacation Plat proposes that the City of Aspen vacate all portions of the original platted S. Aspen Street, Summit Street and Hill Street Rights of Way which are adjacent to Blocks 10 and 12 of the Eames Addition. Upon vacation, the ownership of these strips of land vest with the owner of Blocks 10 and 12, currently the Aspen Skiing Company. The subgrade public utilities will be accommodated along the vacated rights of way in the form of wider and more practical easements that satisfy the City’s existing and future needs. In the second step, represented on the Final Plat for Gorsuch Haus PD/Subdivision, ASC plats and dedicates a new, larger public right of way area for the expanded turnaround area with a 50’ radius. To facilitate the construction and use of the building’s porte cochere, the dedication language reserves the “doughnut hole” in the center of the radius to accommodate the vertical structural support serving the porte-cochere, as well as the air space above the lowest point of the underside of the porte-cochere. These elements are illustrated and described on the revised final plat. The air space reservation described in Step 2 is permitted under Colorado Revised Statute Section 38-12-101, et. seq., which expressly allows for estates above the surface of the ground to be created, owned, used, conveyed and encumbered in the same manner as any other interests in real estate. This process and ownership structure meet the city’s desire to terminate South Aspen Street within a public right of way incorporating the full 50’ radius. It also accommodates the private development improvements that will be constructed and maintained in a fee simple ownership structure. Utility & Drainage Revisions: Design Workshop, Inc. 7 While the right of way vacations are described above, the function of the utility corridors is accommodated through the provision of utility easements. The utility plans and corresponding easements have been revised to reflect the changes to the plan and a greater width along the City’s main water line which benefits from a more direct alignment shown in the plans than is accommodated under current conditions. As described in the attached memo from Sopris Engineering (Page 12 of the Supplemental Materials), the “Revised building and associated hardscape areas have been reduced from previously estimated 37,660 SF down to 27,937 SF that equates to a 26 percent net reduction. Our drainage analysis and designs as submitted are intended to assure that the proposed stormwater management system is feasible and adequate to address the development impacts of this project. A more detailed engineering study will be provided at next level of review with more information and adequate design details, however, downstream changes are anticipated to be insignificant and have no negative impacts on the proposed storm sewer trunk line capacities and drainage appurtenances.” Architectural Floor Plan & Amended Program: - The Building Footprint and Floor Plans for the mixed-use building were significantly revised in response to Staff and Planning and Zoning comments in order to accommodate a better visual connection and public access to the lift. - The amendments to the building south to maximize efficiencies with the relocation of the publicly accessible restaurant from the southern end of the building to the eastern edge adjacent to the skier plaza and the lift. This change allowed some duplicative spaces to be removed and consolidated including the back of house, kitchen and circulation areas. - The proposed program includes the following: o 81 lodging keys (7 condos with lock offs, and 60 regular hotel rooms and suites), average lodging room size has gone up slightly but retains a standard modest room size of 417 sf, flexible unit configurations and suites.  Condo-Lodge floor plans are planned in a three key configuration with one kitchen/studio module and two lock-off bedrooms. o Restaurant, après ski deck, and grab n’ go retail o Aspen Ski Company operations, patrol locker room, ticketing and restrooms (The ticketing area and public restrooms are located adjacent to the lodge entrance at the level of the turnaround, elevation 7,999’, and will be a visual signal to the public identifying the ski area portal and skier services). o Six (6) Free Market Residential Units. o One (1) Affordable Housing Unit, now is a 3-bedroom unit totaling 1,357 net leasable square feet. o Accessory Lodging Facilities including: spa and fitness areas, meeting room and pre-function space, bar and lounge area, pool and roof deck, and boot/ski storage areas. o 61 parking spaces – includes the code requirement for the proposed development and four (4) public spaces. Design Workshop, Inc. 8  The four public parking spots required within the right of way improvements associated with Lift One Lodge approvals have been accommodated within the subgrade garage (additionally, temporary loading and unloading areas for skiers is accommodated outside of the 50’ right of way). - Additional changes to the building’s configuration include: o Loading Dock and parking garage entrance has been relocated to the southern edge of the turnaround, further from the public ski entry and not impeding the public arrival. o The Trash / Recycling area complies with the sq. ft. requirements identified in Title 12, Solid Waste of the city code for a Lodge building. This area includes 420 sf or a 42’ long x 10 wide x 10’ height space for trash, recycling and compost. Special Review is still required for the location and configuration of this space, absent an alleyway on the site.  As the space is shared with the receiving dock, floor paint or another strategy will be used to delineate between the loading dock and the trash/recycling area. Floor Area Diagrams and Calculations: The combined existing/interpolated contours as described above were also utilized to update the slope reductions for the net lot area calculations to determine the Floor Area Ratio of the proposed development (Page 1 and Page 2 of the Supplemental Materials). The Floor Area allocation and calculations have been adjusted to reflect staff’s comments from October 6th, 2016 (D.2). The October 17th updates to the September 1st amendments include reallocating the elevator serving the condo-lodge and free market units to non-unit space rather than assigning it only to lodge and free market uses. The bar and living room area remains non- unit space pursuant to the Administrative Policy for Commercial Space in Lodges dated November 9, 2015. This bar/living room area does not meet the commercial space designation criteria as it would have the following characteristics: It would be run under the same proprietary identity as the lodge. Additional exterior walls were incorporated to reflect the area leading to the Ski Company lockers adjacent to the ticketing area, thus slightly higher floor area numbers are show even though no building elements have been added. The total Floor Area for the proposed development on Lot 1 is 71,559 sf which includes the lift canopy and operators shed in addition to the mixed use lodge which also houses the Aspen Ski Company lockers and operations space. With a net lot area of 46,607 sf, the total FAR for the development is 1:1.54 and the allocations by use are summarized in the table below. The complete allocation diagrams and calculations and are included on exhibits D.2 and D.3. The total building square footage is 127,556 sf. The Gorsuch Haus’ total above grade floor area is 69,856 sf with the additional improvements for the lift canopy and the lift house totaling 1,703 sf for a total Floor Area for Lot 1 of 71,559 sf. Design Workshop, Inc. 9 Notes regarding the floor area calculations: - Floor assembly is excluded from both subgrade and above grade wall sf calculations - Each face of the building including inside faces of balconies and notches in the building are including in the surface area calculations for the subgrade percentages. - The Lift Canopy is classified as non-unit space as this is open air/mechanical use, the lift house has been included as commercial square footage. Net Leasable/Livable Diagrams and Calculations - Exhibit C.3 illustrates the net leasable and livable areas of the building. - The diagrams identify the basement/upper floor commercial areas that are subject to the 25 percent reduction for GMQS and affordable housing generation. These areas have been incorporated into the updated Affordable Housing mitigation requirements. Affordable Housing Generation: - The Affordable Housing Mitigation credits have been recalculated pursuant to code section 26.470.070.8.b for projects with less than one (1) lodge unit per 500 sf of lot area. The proposed project has one Lodge unit per 931.7 sf of lot area. - The Affordable Housing Mitigation calculations sheet illustrates the reconstruction credits generated by the existing building and ticket shed which are proposed to be demolished and replaced. The ticket shed houses an approximate 42sf of net leasable area which has been added to the replacement credits for the existing building’s affordable housing mitigation purposes. Additionally, the subgrade, basement level generates 25 percent less replacement FTEs than the other three levels of the existing building which are each considered to be a main floor. The total reconstruction credit is therefore 9.369 FTEs. - The on-site affordable housing unit is 1,357 net livable square feet which can accommodates a three-bedroom affordable housing unit, mitigating for 3 FTEs. This exceeds the required minimum size of 1,200 per the 2015 adopted guidelines. - The additional 40.75 FTEs will be mitigated consistent with the strategy identified in the March submission through a combination of Affordable Housing Credits and New Affordable Housing Construction. As established previously, applicant will work with the city and APCHA at the detailed design stage to establish the category required for the employee mix of the mixed use development. - There is no expected increase to the employee generation for the actual replacement of the lift facility. Design Workshop, Inc. 10 Neighborhood Compatibility - Building Height, Mass and Scale City Staff, Planning and Zoning commissioners, as well as community members have acknowledged that lodging is an appropriate use at this location. While efforts have been made to minimize the building’s mass and scale, a minimum number of rooms and square footage is required to develop an operationally successful hotel project. - A detailed roof plan has been included as well as a height plan and updated charts (D.4) identifying the exterior building heights (as measured from the lower or natural/interpolated or proposed grades) as well as heights within the interior of the building’s 15’ offset as measured from natural/ interpolated grade). Note that natural/interpolated grade has been compiled from the 1950s topography for the portions of the site below elevation 8025 and from the Sopris Engineering Existing Conditions Survey for the area above the 8025 elevation. This strategy was agreed on as a more accurate methodology for estimating natural/predevelopment conditions. - As a dimensional standard, the building’s maximum height is 49 feet with allowances for elevator and stair enclosures as identified on exhibit D.4. (as allowed under the code for structures other than single-family or duplex residential buildings). The average height of the building is 34.93 ft. - The heights of the proposed Gorsuch Haus project, though higher than what would be allowed for in the Lodge Zone District, are compatible with the adjacent neighborhood’s existing and approved projects. The Lift One Lodge property, for example, measures up to 53’3” in height and other buildings in the neighborhood have heights between 30’ and 40’ above grade. - Additional design strategies have been incorporated to minimize the perceived height and scale of the building, including: o The height of the building is laid against the mountain with a combination of two, three and four story sections. o Established a four bay rhythm setting up smaller facade modules that step up with the natural slope of the mountain with sensitivity to the protected view planes from town, with lower heights on the uphill portion of the project. o Removed balconies from the top most level to de-emphasize mass on the top portion of building. o Created vertical recessed glass elements to break the horizontal mass of the building, giving the perception of varying building elements. o Reduced rooftop amenity / terrace space to reduce mass o Relocated the mechanical screen to the lower southernmost roof to spread perceived density o Created two-tone wood facade palette to compliment the one story stone base and to articulate building divisions moving up the mountain. These material variations create more individualized layering of the building.