Meeting Information
- Convene
- Pledge of Allegiance
PROCLAMATION
- Proclaim the month of May as "Mental Health Month"
CONSENT AGENDA
(1) (a) Consider approval of Commission Orders
(b) Consider approval of resolution authorizing and providing for the sale, issuance and delivery of $8,115,000* principal amount of General Obligation Sales Tax Refunding Bonds, Series 2003-A of the Douglas County, Kansas, for the purpose of providing funds to refund a portion of the issuer's outstanding general obligation sales bonds and notes; providing for the levy and collection of an annual tax for the purpose of paying the principal of and interest on said bonds as they become due; making certain covenants and agreements to provide for the payment and security thereof and authorizing certain other documents and actions connected therewith. (Pam Madl)
(c) Consider approval of resolution authorizing and providing for the sale, issuance and delivery of $1,315,000* principal amount of General Obligation Refunding Bonds, Series 2003-B, of the Douglas County, Kansas, for the purpose of providing funds to refund a portion of the issuer's outstanding general obligation bonds; providing for the levy and collection of an annual tax for the purpose of paying the principal of and interest on said bonds as they become due; making certain covenants and agreements to provide for the payment and security thereof and authorizing certain other documents and actions connected therewith (Pam Madl)
REGULAR AGENDA
(2) Planning Item: SP-03-20-03: Site Plan for Steve's Place, a reception/meeting hall at 1388 1293 Road (Sandra Day)
(3) Receive report from Douglas County Extension on Rural Urban Issues Seminar (Trudy Rice)
(4) Discussion of county funding for school nursing services (Charles Jones)
(5) Other Business
(a) Consider approval of Accounts Payable (if necessary)
(b) Appointments
(c) Miscellaneous
(d) Public Comment
(6) Adjourn
Johnson called meeting to order at 6:37 P.M. on Wednesday, April 30, 2003. All members were present. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
PROCLAMATION 04-30-03
Johnson read a proclamation proclaiming the month of May as "Mental Health Month." Johnson then made a motion to adopt the proclamation as read, sec onded by Jones and carried unanimously.
CONSENT AGENDA 04-30-03
Jones moved approval of the following Consent Agenda:
- Approve Commissioners Order No. 5136. Order is on file in the office of the County Clerk;
- Resolution No. 03-13 authorizing and providing for the sale, issuance and delivery of $8,175,000 principal amount of General Obligation Sales Tax Refunding Bonds, Series 2003-A, of the Douglas County, Kansas, for the purpose of providing funds to refund a portion of the issuer's outstanding General Obligation Sales Bonds and Notes; providing for the levy and collection of an annual tax for the purpose of paying the principal of and interest on said bonds as they become due; making certain covenants and agreements to provide for the payment and security thereof and authorizing certain other documents and actions connected therewith; and
- Resolution No. 03-14 authorizing and providing for the sale, issuance and delivery of $1,325,000 principal amount of General Obligation Refunding Bonds, Series 2003-B, of the Douglas County, Kansas, for the purpose of providing funds to refund a portion of the issuer's outstanding General Obligation Bonds; providing for the levy and collection of an annual tax for the purpose of paying the principal of and interest on said bonds as they become due; making certain covenants and agreements to provide for the payment and security thereof and authorizing certain other documents and actions con nected therewith.
Motion was seconded by McElhaney and carried unanimously.
PLANNING 04-30-03
The Board considered SP-03-20-03: Site Plan Review for Steve's Place Recep tion and Meeting Hall (Great Plains Printing), a site plan for the conversion of an existing structure (formerly a printing facility) for a reception hall generally located on the southwest corner of 31st and Louisiana Streets specifically located at 111 E 1400 Road. Submitted by BG Consultants for Steven and Helen Meseraull, property owners of record. Sandra Day, staff member of the Lawrence-Douglas County Metropolitan Planning Department, recommended denial of the Site Plan and provided the following Staff Review:
The subject property is located on the southwest corner of Louisiana and 31stStreet. The property is developed as a printing facility known as Meseraull Printing (now doing business as Great Plains Printing). A site plan was approved in September 2000 for a 4,320 SF building addition. It is the recent building addition that would be used for the meeting/reception hall. As part of the previ ous approval, an agreement to annex was executed that indicated annexation would occur upon water utility service being available. There are two significant issues associated with this proposed application; access to 31st Street and minimum potable water requirements to address the intensification of use. If approved the maximum occupancy of the reception hall could exceed 400 people according to both City and County building code requirements. This is a significant intensification of activity for the site.
Section 19A-5 of the County Zoning Resolution establishes the minimum requirements or conditions of approval to consider site plans in the county. The Resolution states:
"Before making a report to the Board of County Commissioners, the planning staff shall first find that the following conditions have been met;
1. That the proposed use is a permitted use in the district in which the property is located;
2. That the proposed arrangement of buildings, off-street parking, access, lighting, landscaping, and drainage is compatible with adjacent land uses;
3. That the vehicular ingress and egress to and from the site and circulation within the site provides for safe, efficient, and convenient movement of traffic not only within the site but on adjacent roadways as well;
4. That the site plan provides for the safe movement of pedestrians within the site;
5. That there is a sufficient mixture of grass, trees, and shrubs within the interior and perimeter (including public right-of-way) of the site so that the proposed development will be in harmony with adjacent land uses and will provide a pleasing appearance to the public. Any part of the site plan area not used for building, structures, parking or access ways shall be land scaped with a mixture of grass, trees, and shrubs; and
6. That all outdoor trash areas are screened."
This report provides a response to the above criterion as well as an overview comparison of the applicable county and city development requirements. Typi cally this section is not discussed in detail except in unique circumstances or to demonstrate non-compliance or inconsistency with this section. Section 20-1428 of the City Zoning Code provides comparable language but includes more detailed development standards.
Zoning and Existing Development
The subject property is zoned B-2 (General Business District) which permits a variety of commercial uses. Existing development includes the recent building addition in 2000, which is currently vacant as well as a printing business and a detached single-family residence. The area includes a parking lot and loading dock as well as a driveway around the buildings. The northern portion of the field area has included in the past a fireworks sales area during the summer. The following table provides a comparison of zoning requirements for the combina tion of existing land uses by City and County zoning regulations as well as minimum parking standards. The proposed site plan has been revised to include a parking schedule and impervious site summary for reference.
The site is accessed by an existing driveway to E 1400 Road (Louisiana ex tended south). Access to this site has been affected by access controls estab lished by KDOT for the South Lawrence Trafficway. Access to 31st Street is prohibited except for the far west 111' along the state owned right-of-way. Ultimately Louisiana will be offset to the west and access to the subject property will require a new orientation.
County Requirements
City Requirements
Use
Zoning District
Use
Zoning District
Residential/Printing/
Reception Hall Use
B-2 (General
Business District)
Printing operation
Reception Hall
C-3 (Central Commercial District)
or C-4 (General Commercial District)
C-2 (Neighborhood Shopping District), C-3, C-4 or C-5 (Limited
Commercial District)
Parking Requirement
1 space per 100 SF
Parking Requirements
1/100 or 1/3 occupancy whichever
is larger
The minimum zoning and parking standards are similar between the County and City zoning requirements. Upon annexation the existing land uses would not all be considered appropriate for the same zoning district. Single-family uses are not recommended in commercial districts. Additionally, the printing operation would require a more intensive city zoning designation than the reception hall use upon annexation.
The proposed use will not alter the current building arrangement, but will affect the current land use and parking configuration and especially the intensity of land use (emphasis added). For the majority of the time the reception hall use will not overlap with the printing operation. The allowable intensity based on building codes could result in large events that exceed 400 people (by City or County code).
Sufficient parking in terms of amount can be provided on site. At the maximum allowable occupancy, additional parking would be required. This would require expansion of the parking lot area to a minimum standard. Parking lot design and signage are required to separate traffic from the printing/loading areas of the existing development. This issue of vehicular separation and on site signage must be addressed regardless of annexation of the property The internal circula tion pattern must be clearly defined. The site plan has been revised to show sign locations to accommodate this requirement. This issue is a prevailing concern since all access must come through the site from the east.
Access
Two access issues must be further clarified, the internal access pattern as previously discussed and the direct access to the adjacent street network. Currently, access is still taken from Louisiana Street via a gravel driveway. This driveway access is intended to remain until such time as adjacent street im provements are made. The Louisiana access driveway will then be removed and a new access point to 31st Street will be provided. As the access is reoriented to the west the reception hall traffic should not impact the printing activities. Long term, the applicant may wish to provide separate drives around the site and use specific signage to denote printing operation traffic/access routes from the other uses on site.
31st Street access: Much of the surrounding area of the subject property is right- of-way purchased by the Kansas Department of Transportation for the eastern leg of the South Lawrence Trafficway. Agreements between the property owner and KDOT were made stating access to the site would be from the SLT/31st Street and that the connection to Louisiana would be removed. The site plan shows graphically that portion of the periphery of the lot that is encumbered by access control restrictions.
Although a location for the eastern leg of the SLT alignment is uncertain at this time, the need for significant street improvements to 31st Street have been studied and are readily apparent. 31st Street is designated as a principal arterial street in the recently adopted Major Thoroughfares Map. Improvements to 31stStreet are needed before the redevelopment of this site to support a more intensive use. Staff d s not recommend the intensification of land use prior to the provision of adequate public facility improvements to the surrounding street network to accommodate anticipated traffic generated by the proposed use.
Access for this property to 31st Street was established by KDOT along the west property line and would result in a direct access point to an arterial street. Direct curb cuts to arterial streets are not recommended as a best planning practice. The site plan was revised following a meeting with the applicant and staff to discuss access options. The revised site plan now includes a proposed access easement along the far west property line. The dedication of the easement will be recorded by separate instrument if approved and will provide the basis for a shared access to 31st Street with the adjacent property to the west. The access easement is structured to provide a collector street type access option with the dedication of comparable easement or right-of-way upon development of the adjacent property. Any access to 31st Street should comply with minimum access management policies effective at the time and should also include a setback from the "intersection" of 350' if ultimately dedicated as a public street. The site plan anticipates that the parking lot will be reconfigured to utilize the access easement, but d s not include the exact point of intersection.
Louisiana Street Access: The possible/proposed realignment of Louisiana and 31st Street will result in the removal of the current driveway access to Louisiana. Staff d s not endorse direct access of individual properties to an arterial street (31st Street). The 2000 staff report suggested that ultimately a public street should be constructed along the west property line that would serve the subject property and the adjacent property to the west. The offset of Louisiana would be further to the west of the subject property, requiring additional east/west cross access easements. This issue will be further considered with the submission of a subdivision plat for this property and the surrounding area. Access to Louisiana may remain until such time as the SLT project progresses. The site plan has been revised to show a conceptual access to 31st Street including a public access easement to be dedicated. This easement is expected to serve the subject property and the adjacent property when it is developed.
The City Limits are located northeast of this site and development pressures are being experienced along 31st Street between Louisiana (E 1400) and Iowa. The subject property is located within the urban growth boundary of the City of Lawrence. The home improvement development application containing Home Depot was approved and is nearing completion west of this site and on the north side of 31st Street. With the development pressures along 31st Street and, the proximity of this site to the City Limit boundaries, this property should be an nexed into the City of Lawrence. Staff recommends that any new development or intensification of the site should be constructed to minimum City standards.
Parking lot design and landscape requirements: The County zoning regulations require a minimum parking ratio of 1 off-street parking space per 100 SF as noted in the summary of the staff report, adequate parking is provided on site for all uses and could reasonably be expanded to accommodate an event in excess of 400 patrons. The site plan has been revised to incorporate additional notes to clarify parking drives throughout the site and to separate the loading dock access from the general internal circulation of the site. This will improve the safety and convenience of parking on site. It d s not appear that the loading area is intensively or frequently used but is not currently well signed to prohibit unautho rized access.
A service access to the proposed reception hall is shown on the site plan. The plan notes that parking stalls will be denoted by both paint and bumper blocks. Staff discussed the minimum city requirements with the applicant at some point in the future with regard to pavement, curbs and gutters, and landscape islands. The proposed parking lot design is intended to accommodate these future improvements. Staff recommends that prior to approval the site be annexed, rezoned and platted into the City of Lawrence and that the site is improved to minimum city standards.
Section 19A-4 of the County Zoning Resolution requires that a landscape schedule be shown and Section 19A-5 (5) requires that there be provided on site a "sufficient mixture of grass, trees and shrubs within the interior and perimeter of the site so that the proposed development will be in harmony with adjacent land uses and will provide a pleasing appearance to the public." City Zoning requires that in addition to the documentation requirements and the required ground cover of any unimproved portion of property that a site plan comply with specific landscape standards. These include interior landscape islands, shade trees, street trees, etc. Currently the surrounding character of the adjacent properties is agricultural and thus landscaping is not a significant issue at this time. Ultimately shade trees, interior and peripheral landscaping will be required within the parking lot and throughout the site to screen the use and the parking lot from public streets and future development.
Pedestrian access: The site is not designed with a significant pedestrian ele ment. Ultimately the 31st Street improvement project will include public sidewalks on both sides. The site is not immediately adjacent to any other existing develop ment. The plan d s not contemplate any outdoor patio areas that necessitate pedestrian access. There is no integration of the site with the adjacent roadway network that includes a pedestrian element.
Public Utilities
Sanitary Sewer: The site is currently developed and served by City sewer. According to the City's development policy, any property utilizing City services should be annexed into the City limits. An annexation agreement was executed with the approval of the building addition in 2000 that established the timing of annexation upon the availability of municipal water.
Existing Water Source: The property currently utilizes well water as the non- potable water sources for all buildings on the site. State law states that compli ance with state and local drinking water standards must be met when 25 or more customers/employees/residents are provided service for 60 or more days a year. Staff recommends that the use be annexed into the city and that a public supply of water be provided to this site. In staff's opinion, the proposed intensification of use will result in excess of this requirement.
Municipal Water: The Municipal Utilities Department has stated that the exten sion of water to this site would be difficult at this time because of the distance, lack of planning for the infrastructure extension, and that it would result in a dead-end line that poses water quality deterioration. According to the City's development policy, the developer would need to pay for the extension of the water lines. A line would need to be extended south along Louisiana and then extended to the west to provide a looped system. This improvement is not immediately planned.
Chapter Four of Horizon 2020 is entitled Growth Management. The opening paragraphs state "The growth management policies seek to ensure that ade quate facilities and services are provided, or are assured, in connection with development. The policies also continue to require new development to bear its share of the costs for the extension and improvement of required facilities and services; and, to assure that the residents of Lawrence and unincorporated Douglas County are not unreasonably burdened by these costs." The developer should therefore pay for the extension of the water and develop the site to City standards. The proposed intensification of the site d s not comply with the growth management policies of Horizon 2020.
The site plan includes a note that states potable water is supplied via bottled water for all uses on the site. Both the local and state health departments have commented on this concern. Staff d s not recommend this type of water source as a feasible or prudent alternative.
Annexation Requirements
In Chapter Four under the heading City of Lawrence Urban Growth Area, it is stated that land within the City of Lawrence Urban Growth Area (UGA) is encour aged to be annexed and developed in the City of Lawrence over the planning period, subject to the goals and policies for Growth Management. This property is located within the UGA and should be annexed prior to additional develop ment/intensification of land use. Horizon 2020 also states that non-contiguous parcels of land may be developed subject to the policies of the Comprehensive Plan and upon agreement by the property owner to annexation at the time the land becomes contiguous to the City. As a condition of approval, an agreement not to protest annexation was executed for the subject property per the approval of SP-06-44-00. It was noted in the 2000 staff report that the proposed use did not comply with the recommendations in Horizon 2020 regarding growth man agement and specifically stated:
Policy 1.2.3 (d) Nonresidential Land Uses in Chapter Four states that developments within the Urban Growth Area need to be platted. This is consistent with development requirements within the City Limits.
The Site Plan, as proposed, is not in conformance with the Goals and Policies established in Chapter Four -- Growth Management.
In Chapter Seven -- Industrial and Employment-Related Land Use, under the heading Unincorporated Douglas County, the Comprehensive Plan states "With the exception of the industrial area adjacent to North Law rence, all other industrial areas are within the City of Lawrence urban growth area illustrated in Figure 9 and should be annexed into the City in the future." This statement, in conjunction with the previous Horizon 2020 references, supports Staff's position that this site should be annexed into the City of Lawrence prior to any additional development or redevelop ment.
The Goals and Policies in Chapter Seven relate to development standards for industrial sites and are achieved generally when sites are developed to City standards.
Summary and Conclusion
The applicant has revised the site plan to provide additional detail regarding access and to clarify several elements regarding the existing and anticipated land use and site improvements. However, the critical issue is not site layout but one of timing of the use and balancing the intensity of the use with the ability to provide the minimum public infrastructure and service. The proposed use is premature as the allowable intensity exceeds the ability to provide adequate public facilities.
Steve Meseraull, property owner, made a brief presentation regarding his request.
After discussion, Johnson made a motion to approve SP-03-20-03 subject to the following condition:
Inspection and compliance with County building codes.
Motion was seconded by McElhaney and carried unanimously.
EXTENSION OFFICE 04-30-03
Trudy Rice, Director of the Extension Office, and Bill Wood, Agriculture Agent, presented a report on Rural Urban Issues. No action was taken.
MISCELLANEOUS 04-30-03
The Board discussed possible County funding for school nursing services. Jones made a brief presentation reflecting the current fiscal situations and recom mended that the Commission consider establishing a study group consisting of representatives from the schools in Douglas County; Kay Kent, Director of the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department; a member of the Health Board, and Craig Weinaug, County Administrator, to consider the following mecha nisms:
- simple pass-through (per student basis)
- all nursing through the Health Department
- "Public health" nursing through the Health Department
and to make a recommendation to the County Commission in a 6 month time frame. The Board then accepted public comment. Several members of the public submitted input. The Board then closed public comment. McElhaney stated that he would like to take some time to study the information presented. Johnson stated that he didn't have a problem with the study. It was the consensus of the Board to table further discussion until a later date. No action was taken.
AGREEMENTS & BYPASS 04-30-03
Johnson presented a Memorandum of Agreement among the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District; Kansas State Historic Preservation Officer; Kansas Department of Transportation; Baker University; Douglas County, Kansas; and Advisory Council on Historic Preservation regarding the Kansas Highway 10 Bypass (South Lawrence Trafficway) in Douglas County, Kansas. Johnson noted changes made in comparison with the Draft Memorandum of Agreement. McElhaney made a motion to authorize the Chair to execute the Memorandum of Agreement; Johnson seconded and the motion carried with Jones opposed.
Johnson moved for adjournment. McElhaney seconded and the motion carried.
____________________________ _____________________________
Bob Johnson, Chairman Jere McElhaney, Member
ATTEST:
_____________________________ _____________________________
Patty Jaimes, County Clerk Charles Jones, Member
Time and Date