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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.apz.19960604PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 Chairperson Sara Garton called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. with members Jasmine Tygre, Roger Hunt, Timothy Mooney, Marta Chaikovska, Steve Buettow and Dave Johnston present. Member Robert Blaich was excused. STAFF COMMENTS Dave Michaelson, Staff said the Aspen Club PUD amendment is on the June 18th agenda, Dick Butera has come up with a new proposal and has chosen to go before City Council with P&Z' s recommendation of denial with his new proposal to keep a certain number of lots retained on the North side, Crystal Lake Rd. and he will convert a number of spaces on the other side, if Council does not entertain the amendment the project will die, if they are interested it will be before P&Z on the 18th. Garton asked for clarification on the proposed amendment, "Butera is not asking for entrance off Ute Avenue". Michaelson responded that he is not asking for exclusive entrance, he will retain a certain number of spaces on the North side and is requesting 80 spaces on Ute Avenue. Garton asked if the applicant would have to public notice the entire neighborhood again. Michaelson responded that the City Attorney's perspective is that the applicant does have the ability to amend an application, the second reading before Council will be a public hearing. Buettow asked how P&Z's previous action will be presented to Council. Michaelson responded it would be presented as a recomendation of denial and because we talked about alternatives he included the minutes in the Council packet. There were no public comments' on items not on the agenda. Minutes MOTION: Hunt moved to adopt the minutes of May 14, 1996. Seconded by Mooney. All in favor, motion carries. Aspen Redhead Tours - GMQS Exemption Suzanne Wolff, Staff said the applicant, Susan Thomas was here until 6 p.m. but had to leave for her daughters graduation and asked that P&Z go ahead with the application. Wolff stated that the applicant is requesting to set up a booth on the Popcorn Wagon property to book scenic four wheel drive tours and sporting activities, the impacts will be one employee running the booth for approximately 1 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 four months of the year, the booth is 12 sqfl. it is considered net leaseable and Staff has calculated a payment in lieu of $660 for employee generation. Wolff said HPC will look at the application for the booth and the signs located on the booth to comply with their requirements, the applicant will be required to pull a building permit. Mooney asked if the applicant would hire the drivers, fishing or rafting guides or will she take names and sell them to existing raft companies, he said that because we measure the way a business impacts the city by the size of their office, it has nothing to do with what really goes on. Mooney said that if the nature of this business is that one person will spend the customers into existing businesses, then we have mitigated through those business applications, but if this new business will buy jeeps and hire drivers, buy fly fishing materials and have guides standing around, then he does not know if it is being properly mitigated. Michaelson responded that using the square footage factor by land use is not directly related to the number that could be generated. Mooney stated nor the impact in the city with parking, traffic and everything that everyone, who does business in Aspen has to mitigate for. David Hoefer, Assistant City Attorney said in answer to Mooney's question, that the applicant's letter indicates that she plans to add two vans and two 7 person, open top jeeps. Garton stated that Mooney has a good point and what happens if the business increases to 15 jeeps, this is a discussion that will have to happen with the county because there are impacts that are hidden but very important to the community. Tygre stated that in the past when we have had questions as to the employee generation figures provided by the applicant, we have asked for a review after a period of time and if they did have more employees they would have to provide additional mitigation and she would like to see that condition added to this. Wolff said that the calculation used to mitigate this application is not based on the number of employees, but the sqfl. used. Tygre said that if the Commission has reason to believe that a particular commercial use exceeds the normal amount calculated, there is no reason we can not ask for additional mitigation. Tygre stated, quote "all commercial uses generate the same number of employees" and we know that is not true. PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 Garton asked if the Commission should add a condition that this application be reviewed a year from now. Wolff asked if the application would come back to the Commission. Tygre said it should come back if there is a significant change, if not Staff can sign off on it. MOTION: Hunt moved to approve the GMQS Exmeption to allow 12 square feet of new net leasable area to allow a booth for booking of tours on the Popcorn Wagon property from June 1 to October 1 of each year, with the following conditions: 1) All representations made in this application shall be adhered to as conditions of approval. 2) Within 15 days of this approval, the applicant shall pay an affordable housing mitigation fee of $660 to the City Finance Department. Proof of payment shall be provided to the Community Development Department. 3) If the booth is in use for a period of more than 4 months (June 1 to October 1) of each year, the applicant must pay additional employee mitigation in effect at the time of review. 4) The applicant shall provide a copy of the Jack Stanford lease to the Community Development Department before a building permit is issued to verify the lessor has the ability to sublease the property. 5) The applicant shall provide records to the Community Development Director regarding employment activities within one year of this approval to determine if further review by the Planning & Zoning Commission is necessary. Seconded by Tygre. All in favor, motion carries. Marta Chaikovska excused herself due to illness. Power Properties Conditional Use for an Accessory Dwelling Unit PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 Hoefer stated the notice is adequate and the Commission has jurisdiction to proceed. Garton opened the public hearing. Wolff said the applicant has requested conditional use approval to construct an ADU within a proposed new residence at 939 E. Cooper, unit "B". Wolff stated there is a historic residence as well this proposed new residence, Staff recommends approval with conditions, the proposed unit complies with basic ADU standards, the unit is located subgrade, below the garage and will have to comply with U.B.C. sound attenuation requirements. Wolff said that Housing has recommended that the kitchen face into the main portion of the unit and Staff agrees with the Housing office recommendation. Garton asked about the "tree escrow" account. Wolff said there was an escrow account for a tree that was relocated, the tree did not survive and the money went into escrow, the money will be released for the purchase of a replacement tree. John Davis, representing the applicant said there is no problem with reconfiguring the kitchen, he thinks it is a personal opinion if you want to see the kitchen area from the living area, he personally would not want to see it. Davis said it's not an issue, but yet it is adequate from the requirements stand point, if that is what everyone wants then we will re-address it. Hunt asked if the lightwell is sufficient for the emergency egress. Davis responded yes it is. Hunt also said the kitchen is a personal preference. Wolff stated that the feeling from Housing is that since the only natural light is coming from the window well, the current configuration blocks natural light and reconfiguring would add natural light. Davis stated that if it meets the guidelines it shouldn't become personal. Johnston asked for clarification on the Commissions ability to dictate design. Michaelson responded that the Housing guidelines define the specs. Davis said it is minimal on requirement. Mooney stated that the Commission has perview over whether or not there will be a certain quality of life and we have made recommendations in the past if we felt the design did not accomplish the quality of life. Buettow asked about the door that used to be on the lower level floor plan. Davis responded that when the original plans were drawn there was a door accessible through there, but that was before the Commission started enforcing no interior door connections. PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 Garton asked if this was an RO. Davis responded it is a single family second home, they come and ski here all the time. Hunt asked if the applicant had any problems with the conditions of approval. Davis said no. MOTION: Hunt moved to approve the conditional use for an ADU of approximately 415 sq.ft, at 939 E. Cooper Avenue, Unit B, with the following conditions: 1) Prior to the issuance of any building permits, the applicant shall comply with the following: A) The owner shall submit the appropriate deed restriction to the Aspen/Pitkin County Housing Office for approval. Upon approval of the deed restriction by the Housing Office, the applicant shall record the deed restriction with the Pitkin County Clerk and Recorders Office with proof of recordation to the Planning Department. The deed restriction shall state that the accessory unit meets the housing guidelines for such units, meets the definition of Resident Occupied Unit, and if rented, shall be rented for periods of six months or longer; B) Kitchen plans shall be verified by the Housing Office to ensure compliance with specifications for kitchens in ADUs; C) If the floor plan for the ADU is revised based on the recommendations of the Housing Office, a revised copy shall be submitted to the Housing Office. 2) The ADU shall be clearly identified as a separate dwelling unit on building permit plans and shall comply with UBC 35 sound attenuation requirements. 3) Prior to issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy, the Community Development Department shall inspect the unit 5 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 to ensure compliance with the conditions of approval. 4) The applicant shall comply with the following requirements of the City Engineer: A) All new surface utility needs and pedestals must be installed on-site. B) The applicant shall obtain permits for any work or development, including landscaping, within public rights-of-way from the Community Development Department. C) The approved 12' wide driveway shall be aligned in the middle of the ADU parking space and the garage to permit access to both parking spaces. D) All drainage shall be retained on-site. E) Construction of sidewalk, curb and gutter, and the driveway cut, and relocation of the existing street light, shall be completed by the City as part of the East Cooper Avenue Street Improvements Project and shall be billed to the applicant. Payment shall be made within 30 days of receipt of the bill. Any public improvements damaged by the applicant during construction shall be replaced prior to issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy. 5) All material representations made by the applicant in the application and during public meetings with the Planning and Zoning Commission shall be adhered to and considered conditions of approval, unless amended by other conditions. Seconded by Tygre. All in favor, motion carries. PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 Aspen Mountain PUD, Lot 3 (Top of Mill) Jasmine Tygre excused herself. Michaelson said with Lot 3 there are some geotechnical issues, Staff wants to have the Engineering Department and the Colorado State Geologist look at the geotechnical report. John Sarpa, representing Savanah Limited Partnership stated that the Environmental report has been submitted, there is lead on the site but not in a concentration level that would be of any concern, we hope to work with the P&Z through the other various issues. Sarpa stated that one of their very strong objectives was to keep the density on Top of Mill as low as possible, that is why they have worked so hard with P&Z to make sure the larger density of the 47 units was on Lot 5 (Galena). Sunny Vann, representing applicant said Lot 3, Top of Mill is approximately 5.5 acres, it's located in a natural bowl at the very end of Mill St., it is surrounded by Aspen Mountain on three sides, the property is three separate zone districts, the lower portion next to Summit St. and S. Mill is zoned LTR, above the LTR zone and following the 8040 Greenline elevation is zoned R15 and above the 8040 Greenline is zoned C - conservation, all the property is subject to a manadatory PUD overlay and the portion of the property zoned R15 has a lodge overlay, existing manmade improvements on the site is the "black" duplex, which will be a reconstruction credit and the Aspen Valley Ski Club building at the very top of Mill St., we have an obligation to either build a new facility or pay a cash-in-lieu payment. Vann stated that several problems arise out of multiple zone districts, a regulation that was adopted in the 1988 land use code dealt with density, if you have multiple zone districts it says that you would compare the various dimensional requirements and use the most stringent one, if those regulations were to be applied today they would preclude Savanah from realizing the development parameters that were agreed to as part of the first amended PUD agreement. Vann stated that their application asks for a code amendment and the R15 portion of the property be rezoned to LTR with the purpose of accomodating the multi family use, multi family density and FAR, upon rezoning of the project the development proposal for 17 units complies with all the dimensional requirements in the LTR zone district, in addition the code requires development within 150' above or below the 8040 Greenline to go through 8040 Greenline review, the Greenline is actually on the flat portion of the site. Vann said that the elevation and grades that are there today are the result of a considerable amount of fill that has been placed on the property, the various drawings in the application and model are based on the 7 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 historic grades, he feels, upon further review by the Engineering Department they will have a relatively clean bill of health on the 8040 criteria, the road has been designed to comply with the Fire Department and fire code requirements for turning radius and so forth, the Top of Mill site is also in the Wheeler Opera House viewplane, that viewplane basically intersects the ground below the Top of Mill, meaning anything built in the Top of Mill will be in the viewplane, this development will be essentially invisible from the Wheeler Opera House, the property is encumbered by an easement that is designed to provide open space and a ski easement for the SkiCo, this application proposes to re-define that easement and we have an agreement with the SkiCo to modify their ski easement to reflect the area skiers actually ski on. Vann stated that there were two trail easements on the Apsen Mountain PUD plat, one is referred to as the Aspen Mountain trail easement, it will be retained and improved under the conditions of the PUD agreement, the second easement the Top of Mill trail easement, designed to provide access from Ute Avenue across this property. Vann summarized the application, it requests conceptual subdivision PUD approval, 8040 Greenline review, Wheeler Opera House viewplane review, a code amendment and rezoning of the portion of the property zoned R15 to LTR. Bill Poss, architect stated that Lot 5 and the lower portion of the development is a transitional point between the high density C 1 district and then it starts to break down, we continued with the city's orthangenal grid having the buildings orient to the street, bringing the parking around the back and keeping the footprints as small as possible, then break them down into smaller buildings that are remeniscent of mine shaft architecture. Poss stated that the road follows the road that has been built where they dumped the fill, it bends around and we will create a landscaped open space that will screen the homes that are built around the natural contours, we chose an architectural aesthetic that is more compatible to the city's core which is brick oriented but as we went up the hill we chose to do more of a mountain design, break them up, orient to the street with front porches, it is somewhat urban because we are making a transition as go up, there are two designs for the duplexes, more of a residential design working into the base of the mountain with very tall vertical elements built on a stone base, building a level into the side of the hill with smaller residential structures on top breaking down the scale. Poss said the attempt is to keep the footprints small, going for the height, building space under the roofs, allowing the landscape to come down between the buildings, what is important in urban design are what is called "negative spaces", that set up as you come up the street. Vann stated that this is designed to work under the underlying zone district requirements, with respect to height as measured from natural grade. Vann said 8 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 the proposal also involves the upgrade of the Mill St. streetscape, sidewalk, curb and gutter, streetlights, all previously done in the lodge districts below. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS Mooney asked if the street is public all the way up around the proposed circle. Vann responded that it is privately owned and may be maintained by the homeowners association. Garton asked if the applicant would advertise these as ski-in, ski-out, will they cut into the ampitheater so they can ski over to chair 1. Sarpa stated that they had not contemplated that. Poss responded that he did not think they could do it. Vann said there is quite a bit of vegetation that we want to maintain, not only to help stabalize the slope but it also provides a marvelous ammenity to those homes. Garton asked what is the total count of bedrooms that will be added to Top of Mill and she has concerns of the streets and grade of the road in the winter. Sarpa stated that based on the type of people who will purchase these homes, more activity will be in the units below. Vann stated there will be 6 four bedroom townhouses, 6 three bedroom duplex units and 5 single family homes, there will be approximately 62 bedrooms, we are well under the density that can be accomodated, under the FAR that could be accomodated and over the minimum required open space, we are within the height limitations and have 46 parking spaces. Garton asked if the applicant will build the homes and then sell or will the lots be sold individually. Sarpa stated that in previous developments when that question arose, we agreed on guidelines. Mooney stated that he is very sensitive to 8040 reviews, one on Ute Avenue required retaining walls because of a radical road cut to get up there, we don't understand the site work that will be done to get down to the original grades and how much of the mine tailing is left up there. Mooney asked if after the applicant excavates the site, will there be retaining walls and what will the landscaping have to be like to create the former natural grade to measure what we will see in the height of the house. Vann responded that the prior grade is a matter of public record and the topo was certified and recorded as part of the original Aspen Mountain PUD, the fill does not disturb the surrounding hillside it has been built up in the center of the site, there is no retainage required to stabilize the site. Mooney stated that he wants to anticipate how radical it will be to place these homes above the 8040. Poss stated that it is not, we anticipate using the back wall PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 of the homes built into the hill, the lower level will be the retainage, it looks harsher than it is. Garton asked if the applicant would review one of the corners, there is a concern that a few units in the back of the Fifth Avenue Condominiums will be boxed in by the proposed duplex. Vann stated they are willing to look at anything to be good neighbors however, there are some units on the basement level that will be impacted, to some degree by any development on that side. PUBLIC COMMENTS Doug Nehaus, public stated that the Summit Place Condominiums asked him to comment about the driveway for the tri-plexes, Summit Street is basically a one lane street and they feel there is too much traffic to allow this driveway to go up where it is, they would like to see a driveway come up Mill Street and go between the two sets of tri-plexes, they would like to see a one story pole on the front of the lowest tri-plex to see how high that building will be, and finally it is the Summit Place Homeowners position that Savanah Limited has a contractual obligation to build three garages by January 1 st, will this be affected in any way by the planning & zoning going on here today. Vann stated that service parking is already there, we have an obligation to enclose them. Nehaus said Fifth Avenue Townhomes are very concerned about the West duplex, the height of the tri-plexes are ominous and would like to see a story pole, there is a skier access trail behind the Durant and the Fifth Avenue as ski-in, ski-out, we would like to see some kind of access remain for the Durant and Fifth Avenue after these buildings are built, he asked the applicant about their concerns of the SkiCo's plans to change the top of Kleenex Corner and adding more snow making, we have a lot of problems with water flooding us out. Nehaus stated that Fifth Avenue, Durant and the Mountain Queen have all had building movement and he would like to make Savanah aware and ask what precautions they will take. Ann Merkasen, public a resident and board member of the Fifth Avenues said her way off the mountain has always been the little road that cuts through the trees and is actually above the Ski Club building, she would like to keep some access to the top of the street for the skiers, it's been there for a long time and she thinks it should stay, in regard to building movement her home the C building, foreign water caused it to shift and has caused pipes to break, and all sorts of problems, two years ago they had to jack hammer in her living room to find out what is happening underneath her house. Merkasen said she is very worried about the addition of any more foreign water to this area and asked the applicant to keep a serious eye on this because she does not want to see her home heading down the 10 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 hill any more than it has, the pipes that were put in to existing storm sewers were defenses to catch leakage have been working, so far. Michaelson stated that Engineering has pulled in and there are some issues that we need to get to some closure with before July. Sarpa said that for all kinds of reasons whether it is being good neighbors or the safety of Merkasen's place or the safety of what we build, we are going to have to take a lot of precautions and do many things to make sure all those needs are met. Sarpa stated that even if we had permission to build the homes, no one will buy them if there is doubt about them sliding into the Fifth Avenue's back yard, we have taken a long time reviewing this with our own engineers and we will start working with the State and City engineers, P&Z and Council to try to figure all this out, short of solving the Mountains problems we are going to work very hard to come up with a plan that everyone should be comfortable with. Merkasen stated that her main concern is the addition of more foreign water because foreign water is the cause of this problem. Garton said the the Aspen Mountain Master Plan presented improvement of Kleenex Corner and asked for additional snow making, Garton said she questioned adding more water and they responded that they are expanding the area of snow making, not adding more water. Vann said that we acknowledge this is a difficult site in the sense that it has more issues associated with it, there have been substantial sums of money spent on any number of reports and studies on a variety of issues, all of which have come back with a variety of issues that require careful attention, but can be mitigated. None of the Commissioners had comments on design issues but were concerned with the technical issues. MOTION: Garton moved to table Aspen Mountain PUD to July 2, 1996. Seconded by Mooney. All in favor, motion carries. Meeting adjourned at 8:20 p.m. Amy G. Schmid, Deputy Clerk 11 PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION JUNE 4~ 1996 Minutes 1 Aspen Redhead Tours - GMQS Exemption 1 Power Properties Conditional Use for an Accessory Dwelling Unit 3 Aspen Mountain PUD, Lot 3 (Top of Mill) ? 12