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HomeMy WebLinkAboutordinance.council.029-84 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves ORDINANCE NO. (Series of 19~) AN ORDINANCE REPEALING AND REENACTING ARTICLE VII, CHAPTER 24 OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO SPECIALLY PLANNED AREAS; AMENDING SECTION 24-2.1 BY IDENTIFYING PUD AND SPA AS ZONE DISTRICT OVER- LAYS; AMENDING SECTION 24-3.4 TO PROVIDE THAT THE AREA AND BUL~ REQUIREMENTS OF THE PARK ZONE DISTRICT SHALL BE SET BY THE ADOP- TION OF AN SPA PLAN; AND TO ESTABLISH THE INTENT OF THE CITY COUN- CIL WITH RESPECT TO A FUTURE CLASS ACTION REZONING OF THE TWELVE PARCELS CURRENTLY DESIGNATED SPA WHEREAS, during 1983, the Aspen City Council did direct the Planning Office to evaluate Article VII of the Municipal Code, Special Planned Area (SPA); and WHEREAS, following an extensive review of the regulations as well as the status of properties currently identified on the zon- ing district map as "SPA", the City Council did refer the matter to the Aspen Planning and Zoning Commission; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission did hold a public hearing on July 17, 1984, which hearing was continued to August 7, August 21, and September 4, 1984, to consider Code amendments to Section 24-7 and to identify on a preliminary basis the intent behind having an SPA designation remain on various key sites in Aspen; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission did adopt Resolution 84-9, recommending that the Aspen City Council adopt various amendments with respect to the Specially Planned Area provisions of the Muni- cipal Code; and WHEREAS, the Aspen City Council does wish to accept the recommendations of the Planning Commission. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO: RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves Section 1 That Article VII, Chapter 24 of the Municipal Code of the City of Aspen, be and the same is hereby repealed and reenacted to read as follows: "ARTICLE VII. SPECIALLY PLANNED AREAS Sec. 24-7.1 Statement of Intent (a) Specially Planned Areas (SPA) refers to those parcels designated on the zoning district map by the overlay "SPA" upon which uses may be permitted and development shall proceed only upon compliance with the requirements of this article. (b) The purpose of a specially planned area (SPA) designa- tion is to: (1) Provide design flexibility for parcels which are found to be unique in that traditional zoning tech- niques do not adequately address their potential. (2) Allow the integration of mixed use projects on a single parcel of land through the encouragement of innovative design practices and by permitting variations from standard use limitations. (3) Establish a precise development plan which provides a detailed land use plan for the entire parcel in question. (4) Establish a mechanism by which parcels upon which there has historically been a variety of uses or parcels which are considered appropriate for multi- ple uses can be planned and developed in a manner which provides the greatest public benefit. Sec. 24-7.2 Procedure for Designation of Sites as SPA (a) Parcels of land shall be designated with a specially planned area (SPA) overlay or the boundaries of parcels already designated with an SPA shall be adjusted only by following the procedures and requirements for~amendments to the zoning map described in Article XII of this chap- ter. (b) Parcels which are designated with an SPA overlay shall also be designated on the zoning map with an appropriate underlying zone(s); based on the currently available information as to the intended use of the parcel. The underlying zone designation shall be used by the Plan- ning Commission and City Council in their review of any precise development plan submission for the parcel as a guide, but not as an absolute limitation, to the uses and development permitted on the parcel. (c) In designating parcels with an SPA overlay, the Planning Commission and City Council shall make findings as to the unique characteristics of the parcel which justify its designation with an SPA overlay, including how the 2 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves parcel complies with the intents and purposes of this article. (d) The removal of an SPA designation from a parcel shall follow the same procedures used in designating the par- cel with the SPA overlay, but shall leave an underlying zone(s) on the property. (e) An applicant need not submit a precise development plan in order to have a parcel designated as SPA. However, the burden of proof shall be on the applicant to demon- strate that SPA designation is in the best interests of the City of Aspen, meets the review criteria for a pri- vate application by a landowner, and is consistent with the intents and purposes of this article. (f) If a parcel proposed for SPA designation is owned by more than one individual, consent to the application from all owners shall be required before the application may be processed. Sec. 24-7.3 Variations Permitted Within SPA Overlay (a) Applicants shall only be permitted to obtain variations from the zoning requirements of the underlying district or otherwise develop a parcel designated as SPA, by first obtaining approval of a precise development plan for the entire parcel in question by following the pro- cedures in this article. (b) For the purposes of this article, development shall be defined as any activity which materially changes the use of the land in question including but not limited to the construction or substantial modification of residential or lodge units or commercial square footage, the con- struction or substantial modification of roads, any sig- nificant site grading or other earthwork, or the instal- lation or substantial modification of utilities. (c) Variations from the following requirements of the under- lying zone district may be allowed: open space, minimum distance between buildings, maximum height, minimum front yard, minimu~ rear yard, minimum side yard, mini- mum lot width, minimum lot area, trash access area, external and internal floor area ratios, number of off- street parking spaces, use and minimum lot area per dwelling unit. Variations may also be imposed by the Planning Commission and City Council which, in any of the above requirements, limit the applicant's ability to develop to less than the standards of the underlying zone district. (d) Nothing herein shall exempt any applicant from satisfy- ing the requirements of Chapter 20, 'Subdivision Regula- tions', of the Municipal Code, if a subdivision of land is proposed, or from complying with the other zoning requirements of this chapter including, but not limited to those associated with Article XI, the Growth Manage- ment Quota System. 3 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves (e) Applications for development in the public, park, aca- demic or any other zone district listed in Section 24- 3.4 of the Municipal Code for which the area and bulk requirements are to be set by adoption of a plan for a specially planned area shall follow the procedures set forth in this article. However, any such application shall not be permitted to obtain variations from the use requirements of the underlying zone district unless the site shall also be designated with an SPA overlay. Sec. 24-7.4 Procedure for Review of Precise Development Plan (a) Applicants must meet with the Planning Director in a pre-application conference at which time there shall be identified the review procedures, submission require- ments and evaluation criteria for the processing of the Precise Development Plan. (b) Following the submission of the application and its cer- tification as complete by the Planning Director, the Planning Commission shall hold a public hearing on the precise development plan. Notice of the hearing shall be published once in a newspaper of general circulation in the City at least fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing date. Written notice shall be sent by first- class mail to all property owners within the area of the proposed development plan and within 300 feet of the property at least fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing date. Owners of residential multi-family condominium units may be served by mailing sufficient copies of any such required notice (one for each owner) to the record address of their homeowners' association. The applicant shall post, a sign meeting the specifications of Section 2-22(c)(3) on the property noticing the public hearing at least ten (10) days prior to the hearing date. (c) At the close of the hearing, the Planning Commission shall recommend the approval or denial of the precise development plan to the City Council, including any necessary conditions thereto. (d) The City Council shall grant final approval or denial to the plan at a public hearing, provided, however, that if the applicant is requesting any variations in the use of the property from that permitted in the underlying zone, then the meeting shall be noticed in a newspaper of general circulation in the City at least fifteen (15) days prior to the hearing date. (e) In the case of an SPA which is also a subdivision, the adoption of the precise plan shall occur at the prelim- inary and final subdivision stages. However, should the applicant so desire, a conceptual precise plan may be submitted for consideration by the Planning Commission and City Council at the conceptual stage of subdivi- sion. (f) Following the approval of a precise development plan, the plan shall constitute the development regulations for the parcel until such time as the plan is amended or 4 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves the SPA designation is removed from the parcel. The precise development plan shall be recorded in the office of the Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder and shall be binding upon the applicant and the applicant's succes- sors and assigns, and shall limit and control the issu- ance and validity of all zoning permits and certificates of occupancy for improvements thereon. Sec. 24-7.5 Submission Requirements for Review of Precise Development Plan (a) The submission shall reflect the proposed development for the entire ownership and shall indicate all adjacent lands owned or under option by the applicant. (b) The precise plan submission package shall include ten (10) copies of all maps, tabular data and narrative materials described under Section 24-8.9 of the Code as they may apply to the type of development being pro- posed. The applicant shall consult with the Planning Director as to the applicability of each of these requirements to the project proposal. (c) The precise plan shall specify the zone district regula- tions which are to apply to the parcel by designating the appropriate underlying zone(s) for the development and specifying any variation requested from the stan- dards of that district(s). (d) Applications for development on parcels which contain lands having slopes in excess of 20% shall meet the slope reduction submission requirements of Section 24-8.18 of this Code and shall have their underlying density calculated according to the provisions of that section. Sec. 24-7.6 Standards for Review of Precise Development Plan (a) In their review of the precise development plan, the Planning Commission and City Counoil shall consider the following standards: (1) Whether the proposal is compatible with neighboring developments in terms of use, density, height, bulk, open space, landscaping and other site and architectural design features. (2) Whether sufficient utilities and roads exist to service the intended development. (3) ~ether the parcel is suitable for the intended development, considering the slope, ground insta- bility and the possibility of mud flow, rock falls, avalanche dangers and flood hazards. (4) Whether the applicant has employed techniques such as setbacks, clustering, screening, buffering and architectural design to preserve significant view planes, avoid adverse environmental impacts and provide open space, trails and similar amenities RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves for the users of the project and the public at large. , (5) Whether the proposal is in compliance with the Aspen Area General Plan, as it may be amended from time to time. (6) Whether the development will require the expendi- ture of excessive public funds to provide services and facilities for the site or surrounding neigh- borhood. (b) The burden shall rest upon an applicant to show the reasonableness of the precise development plan, its con- formity to the requirements of this article, the lack of adverse effect of the proposed development and the com- pliance with the City's intent in originally designating the site as SPA. Any application found to not meet these standards shall be denied by the Planning Commis- sion and City Council. Sec. 24-7.7 Amendment of Adopted Precise Development Plan (a) Minor changes in the adopted precise development plan may be authorized by the Planning Director without addi- tional public review, if required by engineering stan- dards or other technical design needs not anticipated during the review of the project. The Planning Director shall use the standards of Section 24-8.26 in determin- ing whether or not a change is deemed minor. (b) All other changes to the precise development plan shall require a repetition of the review procedures outlined in this article. Changes shall only be approved which can be shown to be consistent with the intents and pur- poses of this article, including the criteria for the review of the precise development plan." Section 2 That Section 24-2.~ of the Municipal Code of the City of Aspen be and the same is hereby amended such that subsections (21) and (22) read as follows: "(21) SPA Special Planned Area (Overlay). (22) PUD Planned Unit Development (Overlay)." Section 3 That Section 24-3.4 of the Municipal Code of the City of Aspen be and the same is hereby amended such that the area and bulk requirements for the P - Park zone district are set by an adopted plan for a specially planned area. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves Section 4 That an evaluation regarding rezoning the parcels designated on the zoning district map as SPA be initiated by the Planning Office as part of its 1985 work program; and further that the following nine sites be evaluated for the following zoning desig- nations: Castle Ridge - RMF/PUD **2. City Water Treatment Plant - Public **3. Fire Station/Thrift Shop - Public 4. Forest Service - Public **5. Jail - Public ***6. Marolt - Park 7. Rubey Park - Public 8. Smuggler Mobile Home Park a. Parcel A (pre-existing park) - MHP/PUD b. Parcel B (single-family house) - R-15 c. Parcel C (new park) - MHP/PUD 9. Trueman a. Lot 1 (Clark's) - NC/SCI/PUD b. Lot 2 (Post Office) - Public co Lot 3 (City Purchase) - Park d. Lot 4 (Undeveloped) - Conservation *Note: The City Council and Planning Commission's intent by suggesting a change in this site's zoning from R-15/SPA to RMF/PUD is to recognize the existing use of the property. Neither body is supportive of any increase in the property's buildout at this time and neither do they intend for surrounding property to be rezoned to RMF as a result of this action, due to the inconsistency of further multi- family development with the Aspen Land Use Plan. The Council and Commission suggest that a note be placed on the City's official zoning maps estab- lishing this intent at such time as the site is rezoned to RMF/PUD. **Note: Though the City zoning maps already show these sites as zoned public, there may be inconsistencies between the maps and the ordinance which zoned the property and therefore this action would confirm the zoning as public. ***Note: The adjoining Thomas property should also be rezoned, with the appropriate designation being from conservation to park. The following three sites should continue to be designated as SPA, and should be evaluated for the following underlying zone and intents as a guide to the adoption of SPA plans for their develop- ments: Institute: Academic/SPA Intent for SPA designation: There are at least three aspects of the ASpen Institute property which render it unique in Aspen and require the flexibility of the SPA process for the 7 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves review of any development application. First, the property is the largest unified developable parcel in the City of Aspen which is in private ownership. Next, the property is accessed through the West End single-family neighborhood, and is surrounded by residential developments which, therefore, requires sensitivity to create a compatible development. Finally, and possibly most importantly, the Aspen Institute property represents among the most historically significant developments in the community since it constitutes the most direct link to the Walter Paepcke heritage for Aspen. Historically, uses on or contemplated for the Institute pro- perty have included academic, cultural, institutional, resi- dential, restaurant, short- and long-term accommodations and health and recreational facilities. No single zone in Aspen has been able to address this wide array of uses, and to date, no single plan has come forward to meet the needs of the City, the neighborhood and the owner with respect to this property. Therefore, it is.the intent of this SPA designa- tion to obtain an integrated plan for the mixed uses of the Institute which addresses its unique characteristics without necessarily confining the applicant or the City to a review within the context of any adopted zone district(s). Little Nell: Commercial Core/SPA Intent for SPA Designation: The Little Nell base area pro- perty is a critical piece of land in Aspen. The property provides skier access to one of the premier ski areas in the country. Furthermore, this parcel provides a unique oppor- tunity for Aspen Mountain's facilities to be properly oriented and linked to the facilities in the downtown and lodge districts, while maintaining the feeling that ski area drops right into town and can be easily viewed from town. Historically, uses on or contemplated for the Little Nell property have included accessory skiing facilities, commer- cial, lodge and residential. It is most important for both the City and the Ski Company to obtain a comprehensive plan for the area which optimizes the accessibility of the base area to skiers while also creating a tasteful, high quality base development to serve the ski area and blend with sur- rounding development. The intent of the SPA designation is to provide flexibility to the developer to achieve a design which protects public views of the mountain and provides desired skier access within the context of a mixed use com- mercial, accommodations and ski base complex complimentary to the remainder of the Aspen downtown area. Rio Grande: Public/SPA Intent for SPA Designation: The Rio Grande property came into public ownership in the early 1970's by the expenditure of "7th penny" transportation funds which were later reappro- priated by the use of "6th penny" open space funds to allow the interim use of the playfield, and has since been looked at by various segments of the community for a multitude of public purposes. In 1977 an "Interim SPA Plan" was adopted by the City identifying recreation and parking as the key uses for the property, recognizing certain key outparcels, and providing for a land trade to build the Eagle's Lodge. RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves In 1980-81 the Rio Grande Task Force completed a report list- ing potential uses for the property and a general configura- tion for such uses. Key facilities included a performing arts center, jail, parking structure, transit facility, recreation, library, greenway and restaurant. Subsequently, in 1982, the report was used to formulate a conceptual SPA plan for the site containing most, if not all, of these areas. Despite the long history of planning for this property, a consensus has never been reached as to the optimal mix of uses and the best development plan for this land. Neverthe- less, due to its being one of the last large undeveloped par- cels in the downtown area, with proximity to many other key public properties, this parcel provides a unique opportunity to meet various public priorities benefitting the entire com- munity. The intent of the SPA designation is to provide the design flexibility within which open space, cultural and transportation needs can be met through a plan which is sen- sitive to the Roaring Fork Greenway Plan and the desire for pedestrian and mass transit access to this site from the downtown area. Section 5 If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or por- tion of this ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconsti- tutional in a court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions thereof. Secti09'6~7~i~! A public hearing on the ordinance shall be held on the ~/ day of ~~ ....... , 1984, in the City Council Cham- bers, Aspen City Hall, Aspen, Colorado, 15 days prior to which hearing notice of the same shall be published once in a newspaper of general circulation within the City of Aspen. INTRODUCED, READ AND ORDERED published as provided by law of the City Council of the City of Aspen on the J~ day of ,~ , 1984. William L. Stirling RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 100 Leaves Kathryn S. Koch, City Clerk FINALLY adopted, passed and approved this day of ......... , 1984. William L. Stifling ATTEST: Kathryn S. Koch, City Clerk ~0