2012 2:00:00 PM

Monday, February 27, 2012 2:00 PM
Sparks Council Chambers

Planning and Zoning Public Hearings and Action Items: 8.5

Title: PCN11029, Sycamore Gardens, Public Hearing, Consideration and possible tentative approval of an amendment to Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development Handbook to revise the land uses by removing the senior housing and adding personal and RV storage as uses, also including but not limited to landscaping, parking, signage and other matters relating thereto on a site approximately 12.17 acres in size located south of North McCarran Boulevard, west of Pyramid Way, east of 11th Street and located on the north and south sides of Roberta Lane.

Petitioner/Presenter: Sycamore Gardens/Karen L. Melby, AICP

Recommendation: Planning Commission and Community Services Department recommends City Council approve Options 1 and 3 in the Planned Development Handbook; see suggested motion below.

Financial Impact: N/A

Business Impact (Per NRS 237):
A Business Impact Statement is not required because this is not a rule.

Agenda Item Brief: The applicant is requesting to amend the Planned Development Handbook for Crestgate Pyramid. The applicant is requesting to remove the option of senior housing while proposing personal storage in Area 3 and RV storage in Area 4.

Background: The City Council on May 8, 1995 approved a Master Plan Amendment, zone change and tentative subdivision map. The tentative subdivision map was for development of a 52 single family residential lots and created two office parcels. The tentative map expired. On December 8, 1997, the City Council approved a Master Amendment, zone change to Planned Development (PD) which tentatively adopted the Planned Development Design Standards Handbook and a tentative subdivision map for 11 parcels. The planned development, called Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development, included a 150-unit independent living facility for senior citizens, 100-unit assisted care living facility, seven office parcels and two restaurants with low-volume retail/office uses on the 2nd floor. The Planned Development Handbook was reviewed and approved under the old process prior to the recording of Handbooks therefore on December 9, 2002, the Sparks City Council approved the final handbook for Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development that included 250 senior housing units, seven office parcels and 2 low volume commercial pads. On September 13, 2004, the City Council approved the final handbook for another amendment to the Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development. The amendment was to allow the options on Parcels D and E (now Parcels 3 and 4) of either senior apartments or a maximum of 8 office buildings. The amendment also included some minor corrections throughout the handbook. The architecture section included the proposed architectural elevations for the possible offices on Parcels D and E. Constructed in Area 1 is an auto parts store. In Area 2, there are nine office buildings constructed. Both Area 1 and Area 2 are built out. The nine office buildings are one story designed to have a residential character. Approximately 60% of the Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development is developed. (Refer to Figure 1.5 – Development Areas on page 1-10). On February 2, 2012, the Planning Commission approved the Master Plan Amendment to change the land use designation from Office Professional (OP) to General Commercial (GC) and forwarded a recommendation, to City Council, approving only Options 1 and 3 in the Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development Handbook based on the Findings in the Planning Commission Staff Report.

Analysis: The applicant is requesting to amend the Planned Development Handbook for Crestgate Pyramid. With Areas 1 and 2 built out, the amendment only affects Areas 3 and 4. The applicant is requesting to remove the option of senior housing while proposing personal storage in Area 3 and RV storage in Area 4. The Handbook illustrates 3 options. Option 1 proposes approximately 75,000 square feet of offices in Area 3. Offices are proposed in Area 4. Option 2 allows 71,800 square feet of personal storage units with a 2,500 square foot office and caretaker unit. This option also permits one acre of RV storage only if the personal storage is constructed. The third option consists of three office buildings along Roberta Lane and two office buildings within Area 4. The balance of the property would be 38,700 square feet of personal storage and 2,500 square foot office/caretaker unit. To summarize the primary differences between Options 2 and 3 are that Option 2 allows the applicant to develop the remaining acreage with only storage. While Option 3 would reserve a portion of the remaining site for office uses and the personal storage placed off Roberta Lane behind the office buildings. This option would better maintain the professional office character of Roberta Lane. The other amendments to the Handbook include changes to signs, landscaping and architecture standards. The applicant is also proposing to install two freestanding signs with sign area for tenants. One sign, along McCarran Boulevard, would be 30 feet tall with six tenant panels. The second sign would be located on the corner of Roberta Lane and Pyramid Highway. The proposed height is 25 feet and would have six tenant spaces. The other changes to the handbook reflect the proposed amendment and establish standards for the landscaping and architecture of the personal and RV Storage. The applicant does not propose any changes to the standards for the office buildings. As will be discussed in the Planned Development Findings, Planning Commission and staff do not support Option 2 (Personal and RV Storage). The Planned Development Standards Handbook accompanying this staff report has yellow highlighted text which identifies the sections that Planning Commission and staff do not support. In order to make sure a complete handbook was presented the text is in the public hearing draft but highlighted to identify the standards not being supported. If the City Council approves of Option 2 then the handbook includes standards governing their development. Some of the sign, landscaping and architecture standards relating to the personal storage are not highlighted because with Option 3 (the office and personal storage mix) the personal storage could still be constructed so development standards are necessary. The staff presented to the Planning Commission an alternative motion to provide them with the option to forward a recommendation to tentatively approve the planned development handbook as requested by the applicant, permitting Options 1, 2 and 3. The Planning Commission decided to forward a recommendation to City Council that supports the staff’s recommendation of only allowing Options 1 and 3. The Planned Development Findings support the Planning Commission’s and staff’s recommendation. If the City Council wishes to tentatively approve the planned development handbook allowing Option 2, in addition to Options 1 and 3, then the City Council will need to make corresponding Planned Development Findings. Planned Development Findings: PD1 The plan is consistent with the objective of furthering the public health, safety, morals and general welfare by providing for housing of all types and design. This Planned Development Amendment is removing the senior housing as an option. The amendment makes this planned development entirely office or commercial uses. PD2 The plan is consistent with the objective of furthering the public health, safety, morals and general welfare by providing for necessary commercial and industrial facilities conveniently located to the housing. The construction mix of office buildings and personal storage will provide a transition between the intense activity of the adjacent shopping center and the surrounding neighborhood. Maintaining the office buildings along Roberta Lane and the personal storage behind (Option 3) would help to maintain the residential character of Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development. PD3 The plan is consistent with the objective of furthering the public health, safety, morals and general welfare by providing for the more efficient use of land and public or private services. Defining efficient use of land as the fiscal impact of land development on the City, the proposed self storage will generate lower general fund revenue, as discussed in the Fiscal Impact Analysis which assessed two options. Option 1 is to build out with office. Option 2 is to build out with personal storage. With the current vacancy rates for office space, it is assumed that office will not be constructed for a minimum of five years while the applicant plans to start construction of the personal storage in 2012. The analysis shows that the personal storage begins generating revenue for the City General Fund in FY 2012 while the build out of offices would not start generating increased revenue until FY 2017. Based on the analysis, the personal storage generates higher levels of General Fund revenue through FY 2022 but starting in FY 2023 revenue from the office option would exceed revenue from the self storage. The Fiscal Impact Analysis concluded that over the 20 year period the office would generate greater total revenues than the personal storage use. The main reason is due to construction costs. Office space construction is estimated to cost $160 per square foot, including tenant costs. Personal storage has an estimated construction cost of $75 per square foot. This results in lower property tax revenue over the analysis period. It is staff’s opinion that this makes the development of personal storage a less efficient land use with a reduced financial benefit to the City. The Fiscal Impact Analysis did not assess the impacts of a mix of office and personal storage though it could be assumed that the revenue generation would fall somewhere between the two scenarios. The fiscal analysis also did not provide a comparison based on development of senior housing, a use permitted by the current recorded handbook. PD4 The plan is consistent with the objective of furthering the public health, safety, morals and general welfare by providing for changes in technology of land development so that resulting economies may be available to those in need of homes. The proposed amendment to the Planned Development is to remove the option of building senior housing. The demand for senior living facilities is increasing rapidly while the supply is not increasing enough to keep up with the demand. Much of this demand is due to the aging of the Baby Boomer Generation but also includes the fact that seniors are living longer and are more active which makes traditional nursing homes a less popular choice. The Strategic Plan for Washoe County Senior Citizens concluded that there is a need for a variety of housing options for senior citizens that are close to services. Crestgate Pyramid is located adjacent to a shopping center with a grocery store and several blocks from an existing RTC bus route. PD5 The plan is consistent with the objective of furthering the public health, safety, morals and general welfare by providing for flexibility of substantive regulations over land development so that proposals for land development are disposed of without undue delay. The applicant is seeking approval of Option 2 (all storage) because they desire to develop their remaining land now and do not want to wait for market recovery. PD6 The plan does not depart from zoning and subdivision regulations otherwise applicable to the property, and these departures are in the public interest for density. The amendment to the Development Standards for Crestgate Pyramid does change the density, in that eliminating the senior housing option substantially reduces the proposed density of the site that is within the McCarran loop and therefore within an area of the City where the Regional Plan and Sparks Master Plan call for increased densities. By placing the office along Roberta Lane and the personal storage behind the office buildings (Option 3), the proposed amendment would provide for some additional employment and better maintain the character of this planned development when compared to Option 2 (all storage). PD7 The plan does not depart from zoning and subdivision regulations otherwise applicable to the property, and these departures are in the public interest for bulk. Currently, the development within Crestgate Pyramid consists of single story structures. By eliminating the senior housing, which was to be multi-story buildings, the building heights will generally be one story throughout the property as the personal storage, excepting the caretaker residence, will be one story buildings. However, the personal and RV storage will be fortified developments in contrast to the office sites which are not enclosed by walls or fences. Option 3 places the fortified personal storage behind office buildings along Roberta Lane, maintaining the residential nature of Roberta Lane. PD8 The plan does depart from zoning and subdivision regulations otherwise applicable to the property and these departures are in the public interest for use. The development standards establish increased setbacks, height and lighting restrictions for the buildings placed abutting the single family homes. Option 3 maintains the office buildings along Roberta Lane, keeping its office-residential nature. It also puts the personal storage adjacent to the shopping center buffered by offices. There are 13 other personal storage facilities within the City of Sparks. Seven of the existing facilities are located in Industrial areas. Four self storage facilities are located within sizable commercial nodes. Only two self storage facilities are located near residential uses and are situated to be separated from the surrounding residential uses. In contrast, Option 2 (all storage) locates storage uses near single family residences. PD9 The ratio of residential to nonresidential use in the planned development is: The proposed amendment does not include any residential so there is no ratio of residential to nonresidential use. PD10 Common open space in the planned development exists for what purpose, is located where within the project, and comprises how many acres (or what percentage of the development site taken as a whole). The only common open space within Crestgate Pyramid is the landscaped areas. The standards within the Planned Development Handbook state that the landscape requirements are 22.5 % for office sites and 15% of site area for the personal storage. The development of the personal storage represents a substantial reduction in the amount of landscaping provided within Crestgate Pyramid. PD11 The plan does provide for the maintenance and conservation of the common open space by what method. The Crestgate Pyramid Development Standards Handbook does address the maintenance and conservation of the common open space through a property owners association and private ownership. PD12 Given the plan’s proposed density and type of residential development, the amount and/or purpose of the common open space is determined to be adequate. Option 3 places offices along Roberta Lane with the personal storage behind the office buildings which provides for more adequate open space/landscape than Option 2. PD13 The plan does provide for public services. If the plan provides for public services, then these provisions are adequate. The planned development does provide for public services to serve the existing offices buildings, proposed offices and personal storage as part of this planned development. PD14 The plan does provide control over vehicular traffic. The amendment does not change the pedestrian or vehicular circulation. The street design conforms to City of Sparks street standards. Roberta Lane was designed to accommodate fire trucks so RVs should be able maneuver it. Based on the traffic generation numbers provided in the Handbook (7th Edition of the ITE Trip Generation Manual), if Crestgate Pyramid is built out as office the estimated average daily trips would be 2,240 maximum trips on an average weekday. For the personal and RV storage (Option2), the average daily trips generated would be 1,280. The estimated average daily trips for the combination of office and personal storage would be 1,670 average daily trips. Both options with the personal storage provide a reduction in the trips generated. The trip generation estimated in the recorded handbook was 2,035 ADT. The personal storage will generate a different type of traffic from the vehicles frequenting the office buildings. Generally, the vehicles visiting the personal storage will be larger or pulling trailers full of the materials to be placed within the storage units. The RV storage area will place RVs on Roberta Lane. This will impose a bulkier and slower type of traffic within Crestgate Pyramid than exists now. PD15 The plan does provide for the furtherance of access to light, air, recreation and visual enjoyment. The development of the personal and RV storage will alter the nature of Crestgate Pyramid by creating two fortified developments. The office buildings, by comparison, are surrounded by landscaping and parking lots open to the general public. Both the personal storage and RV area will be enclosed areas with perimeter landscaping. Option 3 minimizes the area for the personal storage and maintains a semblance of a residential street. PD16 The relationship of the proposed planned development to the neighborhood in which it is proposed to be established is beneficial. Crestgate Pyramid has been developing as an office complex with a residential type appearance, providing office space for smaller offices. Option 3, which situates the personal storage between the adjacent shopping center and additional office buildings, provides for a good transition between uses. There are no changes proposed to the access to the surrounding neighborhood. PD17 To the extent the plan proposed development over a number of years, the terms and conditions intended to protect the interests of the public, residents and owners of the planned development in the integrity of the plan are sufficient. Approvals for development plans of Crestgate Pyramid started in 1995. The original plan was to develop a single family subdivision. Later the plans were changed to a mix of senior housing and offices. The latest amendment is to eliminate any housing component and replace it with personal and RV storage. The standards in the Handbook are written to minimize the impacts on the surrounding area. However Option 2 (all storage) changes the integrity of the plan by allowing a land use that is entirely different than previously proposed. The personal and RV storage will alter the professional office character of the area. In past plans, this property was viewed as a transitional use between the shopping center at the southwest corner of the intersection of Pyramid Highway / McCarran Boulevard and single family residential to the west and south. Maintaining offices along Roberta Lane, placing the personal storage behind the office buildings and precluding RV storage will sustain the transitional function of the Crestgate Pyramid development. PD18 The project, as submitted and conditioned, is consistent with the City of Sparks Master Plan. At the corner of Pyramid Highway and McCarran Boulevard are commercial land uses. Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development is situated between the commercial shopping center at the intersection of Pyramid and McCarran and the residential land uses to the south and west. The proposed land uses will provide for less intense land uses of offices adjacent to the adjoining residential homes. PD19 The project is consistent with the surrounding existing land uses. The Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development is designed to be a transitional land use between the shopping center and traffic on Pyramid Highway and the single family homes to the south and west. Maintaining offices along Roberta Lane, placing the personal storage behind the office buildings precluding RV storage (Option 3), will help sustain the transitional role of the area. PD20 Public notice was given and a public hearing held per the requirements of the Sparks Municipal Code. Public notice was given. The Planning Commission and City Council meetings function as the public hearing per the requirements of SMC and NRS. PD21 Modification of Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development furthers the interest for the City and the residents and preserves the integrity of the plan. When considering rezoning a Planned Development, the City must be able to identify that the “modification” is to “further the mutual interest of the residents and owners of the planned unit development and of the public in the preservation of the integrity of the plan as finally approved,” NRS 278A.380 (2). The proposed Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development amendment affects the integrity of the plan in five ways: ? As stated in PD Finding 3, developing the remaining acreage with only storage uses will, in comparison to office and /or senior housing use (as discussed in the Fiscal Impact Analysis), results in lower property tax revenues over the period of analysis. It is staff’s opinion and Planning Commission supports by their recommendation that this makes the development of personal storage a less efficient land use with reduced financial benefit to the City. The Fiscal Impact Analysis did not assess the impacts of a mix of office and personal storage though it could be assumed that the revenue generation would fall somewhere between the two scenarios. ? Currently, Crestgate Pyramid resembles a residential street with small professional office buildings fronting on Roberta Lane. Option 2 changes the streetscape by placing the storage (fortified developments) along Roberta Lane. Option 3 would maintain the streetscape while permitting the construction of the personal storage behind the office buildings. ? The third factor that will change the integrity of the plan and the streetscape or appearance of Crestgate is the development of two secured areas. Currently Roberta Lane is a street lined with trees and small office buildings that are residential in character. The areas surrounding the office buildings are open and accessible to the public. Option 3 maintains the office along Roberta Lane, Option 2 does not. ? As discussed in PD Finding 14, the personal storage will generate a different type of traffic from the vehicles frequenting the office buildings. Generally, the vehicles visiting the personal storage will be larger or pulling trailers full of the materials to be placed within the storage units. The RV storage area will place RVs on Roberta Lane. This will impose a bulkier and slower type of traffic within Crestgate Pyramid than exists now. ? Option 2 would reduce the amount of open space or landscaping compared to Option 3. As discussed in PD Finding 10, the only common open space within Crestgate Pyramid is the landscaped areas. The proposed standards within the Planned Development Handbook states for landscaping requirements are 22.5 % for office site and 15% of site area for the personal storage. The more storage, the less landscaping, representing a reduction in the amount of landscaping provided within Crestgate Pyramid. ? In staff’s opinion and Planning Commission supports by their recommendation, PD Finding 21 can be made with Option 3 but not for Option 2.

Alternatives: 1. The City Council can deny the request to amend the Crestgate Pyramid Planned Development Handbook. 2. The City Council can remand the request back to Planning Commission with direction, if the applicant consents in writing to an extension of the time which the public hearings shall be concluded as permitted in Nevada Revised Statues (NRS) 278A.480(2). 3. The City Council can tentatively approve the Crestgate Planned Development Handbook as submitted by the applicant, allowing Options 1, 2 and 3. In order to approve this alternative, the City Council needs to make corresponding Planned Development Findings.

Recommended Motion: I move to tentatively approve the Planned Development Handbook for Crestgate Pyramid associated with PCN11029 as recommended by Planning Commission and staff, adopting Findings PD1 through PD21 and the facts supporting these Findings as set forth in the staff report. The tentative approval includes that the applicant shall file the application for the final approval of the planned development within one (1) year from the date of the City Council granting tentative approval of the planned development handbook. Due to the nature of the tentative planned development, the Planning Commission does not recommend that the City Council require a bond at this point in time as stated in NRS 278A.490.

Attached Files:

Crestgate PD Handbook.pdf

PCN11029 Crestgate Pyramid-Report of Action.pdf

Crestgate public comments1-12.pdf

ROBERTA LN PICS.pdf

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