Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-08-23 CC Meeting Packet EnclosureMeeting Date August 23, 2005 Time: 10 minutes Agenda Placement New Business Originating Depar mentlRequ Requester's Signature Action Requested ' rnsider Oak Park Heights Request for Council Action Agenda Item. Title: E / Life — Desi ► Guideline Review Site Plan Review and Si Variance. Eric ohnson Ci Administrator Background /Justification (Please indicate if any previous action has been taken or if other public bodies have advised): Please see attached from Scott Richards: 1. Planning Report (see August Planning Packet for Exhibits) 2. Planning Commission Recommending Resolution 3, City Council Resolution NORTHWEST ASSOCIATED CONSULTANTS, INC. 4800 Olson Memorial Highway, Suite 202, Golden Valley, MN 55422 Telephone: 763.231 .2 555 Facsimile: 753,231 .2551 planners@nacplanning.com PLANNING REPORT TO: Eric Johnson FROM: Scott Richards DATE: August 4, 2005 RE: Oak Park Heights — eq life - Site Plan, Design Standards Review, And Signage Variance FILE NO: 708.02 -- 05.08 BACKGROUND Eq life has made an application for a site plan review, Design Standards review, and sign variance for a portion of the former Rainbow Foods store located at the Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center on 58 Street and Neal Avenue North. Eq life will take the remaining 26,367 square feet of the former Rainbow Foods store for a health, wellness and technology center. The primary exterior changes are to the entrance portion of the front facade and the addition of a loading dock and trash compaction area at the rear of the space. The parking lot in front of the store will not be changed. The site plan and Design Standards review will focus on the front facade changes and the rear loading dock/compactor addition. The sign variance is requested to allow a total of five wall signs where two would be permifted. Attached for reference: Exhibit 1: Exhibit 2: Exhibit 3: Exhibit 4: ISSUES ANALYSIS Letter from Philip Foster Explaining Project (with attachments) Building Elevations Site Plan Interior Plan Background Information. The Rainbow Foods and Oak Park Ponds development approvals were granted in 1997. At that time, the City granted variances to allow for the Rainbow wan signs and the three monument signs for the development. The original pylon sign was in conformance with the sign requirements in place at that time. In 2001, a conditional use permit, an amendment to the planned unit development, and a sign variance was granted to allow the construction of a fuel service center in the g parking lot in front of the Rainbow Foods store. Following the closure of the Rainbow Foods store, the fuel service station and tanks were removed and the parking lot was restored. The conditional use permit has expired for the fuel station and signage allowances. Kowalski's Market was granted approval for a site plan, Design Standards review, and sign variance in November of 2004. The sign variance was granted to allow a total of g four signs from the allowable two signs. At that time, approval was granted to allow the facade update to the portion of the building that will be occupied by eq life. Project Proposal. Eq life is a health, wellness and technology center catering to primarily women. The space will be occupied by PrairieStone Pharmacy, Leek Squad, Caribou Coffee and an eq fife salon that will provide beauty and hair treatments as well as pedicure and manicure stations. An eq life spa will have treatment rooms to provide full body and facial massages. Eq life will modify the store front slightly to provide a more prominent front entrance to the facility. The materials and colors will be similar to what currently exists with the most recent remodels. A truck dock and compactor will be added at the rear of the building, A new screening wall will be added to match the existing materials. The site plan also indicates truck turning radius which demonstrates that delivery and waste trucks can easily access this area. Comprehensive Plan. The Proposed Land Use Map guides the subject property for commercial use. Zoning. The site is zoned PUD, Planned Unit Development. The PUD, as approved, utilizes the B -2, General Business District as the basis for land use and performance standards approvals. Retail sales and service businesses such as what will be provided by eq life are permitted in that district. Parking /Access. The Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center was originally constructed with a total of 611 parking stalls. When the fuel station was constructed, 32 parking stalls were lost. Additionally, the seasonal garden center occupies approximately 50 stalls. With restoration of the parking lot after the fuel station removal, the stall count is back to 611 stalls. A total of 443 stalls are required by Zoning ordinance for the Oak Park Ponds development. There are no parking issues with replacement of the Rainbow Foods store with a Kowalski's Market and eq life. Site Changes/Front and Rear of Building. The site plan /elevation plans for the building indicate the front entrance will be built out with a prominent entrance. Awnings would be placed above each of the glass windows and signage would be placed above the entrance /window areas. The plans also show the truck door and screen wall that will be placed to the rear of the structure for deliveries. Adjacent to the truck door will be an enclosed compactor screened with a gate. The applicant should provide additional details on the gate and 2 what materials it will be constructed of. The applicant shall also be required to provide additional information on noise generation from the compactors. Lighting. The elevations of the building indicate the existing decorative light fixtures that were added as part of the Kowalski's approval. The approvals granted by the city Council indicated the allowance for the decorative fixtures. All lighting at the rear entrance /loading dock shall be required to be full cut off and compliant with the Zoning Ordinance provisions. Signage. Eq life would be allowed, by ordinance, two wall signs with a total of 500 square feet of total signage. The elevation plans indicate five wall signs with a total of 162 square feet. It is expected that eq life will also advertise on the Oak Park Ponds pylon sign which is expected to be replaced in coming months. All of the proposed wall signs are on the front facade and include the following: eq life Geek Squad eq life Spa and Salon Caribou Coffee PrairieStone Pharmacy 92 square feet 14 square feet 15 square feet 18 square feet 25 square feet Section 401.04.A.5 of the Zoning Ordinance states that a variance from the terms of this ordinance shall not be granted unless it is demonstrated that: a. Undue hardship will result if the variance is denied due to the existence of special conditions and circumstances which are peculiar to the land, structure, or building involved and which are not applicable to other lands, structures or buildings in the same district. b. Literal interpretation of the provisions of this Ordinance would deprive the applicant of rights commonly enjoyed by other properties in the same district under the terms of this Ordinance or deny the applicant the ability to put the property in question to a reasonable use. c. The special conditions and circumstances causing the undue hardship do not result from the actions of the applicant. d. Granting the variance requested will not confer on the applicant any special privilege that is denied by this Ordinance to other lands, structures or buildings in the same district under the same conditions. e. The request is not a result of nonconforming lands, structures or buildings in the same district. The request is not a use variance. The variance requested is the minimum variance necessary to accomplish the intended purpose of the applicant. h. The request does not create an inconvenience to neighboring properties and uses. f. g• Staff recommends that a maximum of three wall signs be allowed for this business. The main sign over the front entrance could remain with two others on either side. The additional two signs could be incorporated as permanent window signs which is allowed by the Sign Ordinance. The City has in the past granted variances for Rainbow and Kowalski's to allow additional size and number of signs to address the lack of visibility of 3 the shopping center. The overpass of Highways 36 and 5 provide a significant visible barrier for businesses in this shopping center thus justifying a variance. Staff feels that a variance to add an additional sign from what is allowed can be justified. Moving two of the signs down as allowable window signage would lessen the overall variance. Design Standards Review. The Design Standards require that office and commercial buildings contain at least three Grade 1 materials and be at least 65 percent Grade 1 or Grade 11 materials. Glass must make up at least 20 percent of the building facade. The facade that had been installed last year had Grade 1 materials that consisted of brick and glass. The front entrance will also feature cast stone trim. The facade from both the Kowalski's and eq life will have Grade 1 materials totaling 60.7 percent of the facade. Glass will be 36 percent of the total facade. Staff finds the design in keeping with the overall standards. Seasonal planters will be placed at the front entrances. CONCLUSION/RECOMMENDAT1ON Based upon the preceding review, City staff recommends that the following requests be approved for the proposed eq life located at the Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center on 58 Street and Neal Avenue North: Site Plan Review Design Standards Compliance 0 Signage Variance for Number of Signs With the following conditions: 1. The variance for signage shall be approved to allow one additional wail sign over the two allowable wall signs. 2. The applicant shall provide additional details on the gate for the trash compactor enclosure and noise information for the compactor. 3. All lighting at the rear entrance/loading dock shall be required to be full cut off and compliant with Zoning Ordinance provisions. 4. The Planning Commission and City Council make a finding that the facade design and materials are in compliance with the Design Standards. 5. Any other comments of the Planning Commission, City Council or City staff. 4 A RECOMMENDING RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION CITY OF OAK PARK HEIGHTS WASHINGTON COUNTY, MI NNE S O TA A RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING FINDINGS OF FACT AND RECOMMENDING TO THE CITY COUNCIL THAT THE REQUEST BY EQ LIFE FOR A SITE PLAN REVIEW, DESIGN GUIDELINES REVIEW, AND A SIGN VARIANCE FOR A PORTION OF THE FORMER RAINBOW FOODS STORE LOCATED AT THE OAK PARK PONDS SHOPPING CENTER AT 58 STREET AND NEAL AVENUE NORTH SHOULD BE APPROVED WITH CONDITIONS WHEREAS, the City of Oak Park Heights has received a request from eq life for a site plan review, Design Guidelines review, and a sign variance for a portion of the former Rainbow Foods store located at the Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center at 58 Street and Neal Avenue North; and after having conducted a public hearing relative thereto, the Planning Commission of Oak Park Heights makes the following findings of fact: 1. The real property affected by said application is legally described as follows, to wit: SEE ATTACHMENT A and 2. The applicant has submitted an application and supporting documentation to the Community Development Department consisting of the following items: and SEE ATTACHMENT B 3. The subject property is zoned PUD, Planned Unit Development in which retail sales and services are a permitted use; and 4. The site plan review is required to consider changes to the front facade entrance and the rear loading dockltrash storage area. Design Guidelines review is required for the facade changes to the building; and 5. A sign variance is required to allow a total of five wall signs where two would be permitted; and 6. City staff prepared a planning report dated August 4, 2005 reviewing the request for the site plan review, Design Guideline review, and sign variance; and 7. The August 4, 2005 planning report recommended approval of the site plan review, Design Guideline review, and limited sign variance approval subject to the fulfillment of conditions; and 8. The Planning Commission held a public hearing at their August 11, 2005 meeting, took comments from the applicants and public, closed the public hearing, and made the following recommendation: NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR THE CITY OF OAK PARK HEIGHTS TEAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THE FOLLOWING: A. The application submitted by eq life for a site plan review, Design Guidelines review, and a sign variance for a portion of the former Rainbow Foods store located at the Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center at 58 Street and Neal Avenue North and affecting the real property as follows: SEE ATTACHMENT A Be and the same as hereby recommended to the City Council of the City of Oak Park Heights for approval with the following findings of fact for the sign variance: 1. The applicant proposes to increase the number of signs for eq life, Geek Squad, Caribou Coffee, and PrairieStone Pharmacy to five signs from the allowable two signs. 2. The total requested square footage of signage is significantly less than what is allowed by the Zoning Ordinance. 3. The overpass of Highway 26 and Highway 5 provides a significant visibility barrier for businesses in Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center, resulting in a hardship for advertising this location. 4. Geek Squad, Caribou Coffee, PrairieStone Pharmacy and eq life spa and salon are separate entities within the same retail space not resulting in a multi- tenant condition for calculating allowable signage. The motion for approval was recommended by the Planning Commission of the City of Oak Park Heights with the following conditions: 1. The variance for signage shall be approved to allow three additional wall signs over the two allowable wall signs for a total of five wall signs. 2 2. The applicant shall provide details on the gate for the trash compactor enclosure and noise information for the compactor for City Council review. 3. All lighting at the rear entrance /loading dock shall be required to be full cut off and compliant with Zoning ordinance provisions. 4. The Planning Commission makes a finding that the facade design and materials are in compliance with the Design Standards. 5. No window signage shall be allowed other than store identification, hours of operation and other informational signage at the front door to the business. 6. Any other comments of the City Council or City staff. Recommended by the Planning Commission of the City of Oak Park Heights this 11 day of August 2005. ATTEST: Eric A. Johnson, City Administrator Mike Runk, Chair 3 Attachment A Washington County GEO Code: 00- 029 -20-11 -0011 Legal Description: Lot 2, Block 1, Oak Park Ponds Addition (shared with 5801 Neal Ave. N) Physical Address: 5803 Neal Ave. N. Required Approvals: variance -- Lapse of Approval: ATTACHMENT B Site Plan Review, Design Guidelines Review & Signage Variance E.C. Life — 5803 Neal Ave. N. Application Materials • Application Form • Fees • Plan Sets (3 Large Scale Sets /20 11X17 Sets) • Written Narrative and Graphic Materials Explaining Proposal • Mailing List from Washington County (500' from subject property) • Proof of Ownership or Authorization to Proceed • Property Tax Statement(s)/Legal Description(s) Conference With City Staff Upon Application Submittal: July 27, 2005 Planning Commission Public Hearing & Recommendation: August 11, 2005 Planning Commission 3/5 City Council 4/5 Unless the City Council specifically approves a different time when action is officially taken on the request, the variance shall become null and void twelve (12) months after the date of approval, unless the property owner or applicant has substantially started the construction of any building structure, addition or alteration, or use requested as part of this variance. The property owner shall have the right to submit an application to extend the approval of a variance to the Zoning Administrator not less than thirty (30) days before the expiration of said approval. (401.4.0 .1 ----- 401.4.C.2) RESOLUTION NO. CITY COUNCIL CITY OF OAK PARK HEIGHTS WASHINGTON COUNTY, MINNESOTA A RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING FINDINGS OF FACT AND RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL THAT THE REQUEST BY EQ LIFE FOR A SITE PLAN REVIEW, DESIGN GUIDELINES REVIEW, AND A SIGN VARIANCE FOR A PORTION OF THE FORMER RAINBOW FOODS STORE LOCATED AT THE OAK PARK PONDS SHOPPING CENTER AT 58 STREET AND NEAL AVENUE NORTH BE APPROVED WITH CONDITIONS WHEREAS, the City of Oak Park Heights has received a request from eq life for a site plan review, Design Guidelines review, and a sign variance for a portion of the former Rainbow Foods store located at the Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center at 58 Street and Neal Avenue North; and after having conducted a public hearing relative thereto, the Planning Commission of Oak Park Heights recommended that the request be approved with conditions. The City Council makes the following findings of fact and resolution: 1. The real property affected by said application is legally described as SEE ATTACHMENT A 2. The applicant has submitted an application and supporting documentation to the Community Development Department consisting of the following items: follows, to wit: and and SEE ATTACHMENT B 3. The subject property is zoned PUD, Planned Unit Development in which retail sales and services are a permitted use; and 4. The site plan review is required to consider changes to the front facade entrance and the rear loading dockltr ash storage area. Design Guidelines review is required for the facade changes to the building; and 5. A sign variance is required to allow a total of five wall signs where two would be permitted; and 6. City staff prepared a planning report dated August 4, 2005 reviewing the request for the site plan review, Design Guideline review, and sign variance; and 7. The August 4, 2005 planning report recommended approval of the site plan review, Design Guideline review, and limited sign variance approval subject to the fulfillment of conditions; and 8. The Planning Commission held a public hearing at their August 11, 2005 meeting, took comments from the applicants and public, closed the public hearing, and recommended that the request be approved with conditions. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR THE CITY OF OAK PARK HEIGHTS THAT THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVES THE FOLLOWING: A. The application submitted by eq life for a site plan review, Design Guidelines review, and a sign variance for a portion of the former Rainbow Foods store located at the Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center at 58 Street and Neal Avenue North and affecting the real property as follows: SEE ATTACHMENT A Be and the same as hereby approved by the City Council of the City of Oak Park Heights with the following findings of fact for the sign variance: 1. The applicant proposes to increase the number of signs for eq life, Geek Squad, Caribou Coffee, and PrairieStone Pharmacy to five signs from the allowable two signs. 2. The total requested square footage of signage is significantly less than what is allowed by the Zoning Ordinance. 3. The overpass of Highway 26 and Highway 5 provides a significant visibility barrier for businesses in Oak Park Ponds Shopping Center, resulting in a hardship for advertising this location. 4. Geek Squad, Caribou Coffee, PrairieStone Pharmacy and eq life spa and salon are separate entities within the same retail space not resulting in a multi- tenant condition for calculating allowable signage. The application is approved by the City Council of the City of Oak Park Heights with the following conditions: 1. The variance for signage shall be approved to allow three additional wall signs over the two allowable wall signs for a total of five wall signs. 2 2. The applicant shall provide details on the gate for the trash compactor enclosure and noise information for the compactor for City Council review. 3. All lighting at the rear entrance /loading dock shall be required to be full cut off and compliant with Zoning Ordinance provisions. 4. The Planning Commission makes a finding that the facade design and materials are in compliance with the Design Standards. 5. No window signage shall be allowed other than store identification, hours of operation and other informational signage at the front door to the business. 6. Any other comments of the City Council or City staff. 2 005. ATTEST: Approved by the City Council of the City of Oak Park Heights this 23 day of August pP Y Eric A. Johnson, City Administrator David Beaudet, Mayor 3 Attachment A Washington County GEO Code: O6- O29 -20 -11 -0011 Legal Description: Lot 2, Block 1, Oak Park Ponds Addition (shared with 5801 Neal Ave. N.) Physical Address: 5803 Neat Ave. N. ATTACHMENT B Site Plan Review, Design Guidelines Review & Signage Variance E.C. Life — 5803. Neal Ave. N. Application Materials • Application Form • Fees • Plan Sets (3 Large Scale Sets /20 11X17 Sets) • Written Narrative and Graphic Materials Explaining Proposal • Mailin g List from Washington County (500' from subject property) • Proof of Ownership or Authorization to Proceed • Property Tax Statement(s)/Legal Description(s) Conference With City Staff Upon Application Submittal: July 27, 2005 Planning tannin Commission Public Hearing & Recommendation: August 11, 2005 Required Approvals: Planning Commission 3/5 City Council 4 / 5 Variance — Lapse of Approval: Unless the City Council specifically approves a different time when action is officially taken on the request, the variance shall become null and void twelve (12) months after the approval, date of a roval, unless the property owner or applicant has substantially started Y the construction of any building structure, addition or alteration, or use requested as part of this variance. The p roperty owner shall have the right to submit an application to extend the approval of a variance to the Zoning Administrator not less than thirty (30) days before the expiration of said approval. (401.4.0 .1 — 401 .4.0.2)