This Tentative Map request is for an 86-lot townhome subdivision (Village 1A) located within the 5 Ridges development. 5 Ridges Village 1A is located on the north side of Highland Ranch Parkway and in the southeast corner of the greater 5 Ridges project site (Exhibit 1 – Vicinity Map). The subject site has a Comprehensive Plan land use designation of Multi-Family Residential (MF14) and is zoned MF-2 (Multi-Family Residential).

 

The site is subject to a development agreement (the Agreement) between the City of Sparks; QK, LLC; and 5 Ridges Development Company, Inc. The Agreement was originally approved on June 25, 2018, for a 386.87-acre property located at 555 Highland Ranch Parkway (PCN16-0050/DA18-0001). In conjunction with the Agreement, the City Council approved annexation, Comprehensive Plan land use amendment, and rezoning requests for the site (ANX16-0003/MPA17-0005/RZ17-0006). As the subject property was formerly the site of an aggregate mining operation, the 2018 development proposal was referred to as the Quarry. 

 

On February 24, 2020, the City Council approved Amendment Number 1 to the Agreement (PCN16-0050/DA18-0001). Modifications to the Agreement resulted from the Master Developer’s further analysis of the site and the land and infrastructure plans. Substantive changes approved in Amendment Number 1 addressed property ownership, clarified permitted residential uses, explicitly excluded previously disturbed slopes from the calculation of maximum disturbed area pursuant to SMC 20.04.011, and altered the timing and scope of required infrastructure improvements. Also, the name of the project changed to 5 Ridges. 

 

On May 26, 2020, the City Council approved a tentative map for a 460-lot single-family subdivision on an 88.83-acre portion of the 5 Ridges site (PCN19-0040/STM19-0005) and affirmed the Planning Commission’s approval of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for development on slopes, hilltops and ridges (PCN19-0040/CU20-0005). The approved CUP applies to a 138.13-acre portion of the 5 Ridges project site where naturally occurring slopes are present (Exhibit 2 – CU20-005 Disturbance Area Map). The Conditions of Approval for CU20-0005 are attached as Exhibit 3. 

 

On September 14, 2020, the City Council approved Comprehensive Plan land use amendment and rezoning requests for a 28.81-acre portion of the 5 Ridges project site (PCN19-0040/MPA20-0001/RZ20-0001). As approved, the Multi-Family Residential (MF14) Comprehensive Plan land use designation and the MF-2 (Multi-Family Residential) zoning district were applied to 15.00 acres located adjacent to the north side of Highland Ranch Parkway and 13.81 acres generally located within the center of the 5 Ridges project site.

 

On November 23, 2020, the City Council approved Amendment Number 2 to the Agreement (PCN19-0040/DA20-0001) (Exhibit 4 – Development Agreement). Modifications to the Agreement primarily related to the expansion of the 5 Ridges project site to include a 34.71-acre parcel adjacent to the northwest corner of the original 5 Ridges project site. Additional changes were made for clarification and update purposes and to adjust the allowed disturbance area based on a revised slope analysis identifying areas previously disturbed by roadway construction. In conjunction with Amendment Number 2 to the Agreement, the City Council approved annexation, Comprehensive Plan land use amendment, and rezoning requests for the 34.71-acre parcel added to the 5 Ridges project site (PCN19-0040/ANX20-0002/MPA20-0003/RZ20-0002). 

 

Pursuant to the approved Agreement, a minimum of 1,200 and a maximum of 1,800 residential units are permitted. Single family, duplex, and townhome units are identified as permitted residential uses consistent with the adopted zoning district. Non-residential uses are also permitted to the extent allowed by the adopted zoning district. The approved Agreement further requires that a minimum of 120 acres be reserved as open space and limits the area that may be disturbed due to grading and clearing activities to a total of 298 acres. 

 

On January 7, 2021, the Sparks Planning Commission voted to forward a recommendation of approval to the City Council for the 5 Ridges Village 1A Tentative Map request for an 86-lot townhome subdivision (Exhibit 10 - Planning Commission Report of Action). In conjunction with this Tentative Map request, on January 7, 2021, the Planning Commission approved a request for a Major Deviation to increase the height of Village 1A structures to 40 feet from the 30-foot height limit that applies to residential structures in the MF-2 zoning district. 

The applicant is requesting a Tentative Map for an 86-lot townhome subdivision on a site that is 6.14 acres in size (Exhibit 5 – Tentative Map). As proposed, the lots will range in size from approximately 699 square feet to 1,226 square feet. The lots are arranged to create a series of five-, six-, and seven-unit townhome buildings. A total of 5.62 acres of common area surround the townhome lots. The gross density of the project is 14.0 dwelling units per acre.

 

The subject site is designated Multi-Family Residential (MF14) pursuant to the Comprehensive Plan Land Use map and zoned MF-2 (Multi-Family Residential). The MF-14 Comprehensive Plan land use category specifies a density range between 10 and 14 dwelling units per acre. The MF-2 zoning district requires a minimum density of 12 dwelling units per acre and sets a maximum density of 14 dwelling units per acre. As proposed, the Tentative Map is consistent with both the MF-14 Comprehensive Plan land use category density range and the MF-2 zoning district residential density standards.

 

The site will be developed using the MF-2 zoning district standards provided in SMC 20.02.005. These standards allow sites with multiple lots and a common development plan to measure setbacks from the outer boundary of the project site. Within the project site, minimum setbacks between buildings are required. The proposed lots are designed to have a minimum separation of 19 feet between buildings and seven feet between end-unit covered porches. This design meets the 10-foot building separation standard for two-story main buildings (defined in Title 20 as a building devoted to the principal use of the lot on which it is situated) in the MF-2 zoning district. With end-unit porches that project 1.5 feet into the required building separation, this design also complies with SMC 20.04.008 (building projection standards) that allow projections up to two feet into required setbacks. Porches, balconies, or decks are designed to serve each lot as limited common elements located within a common area parcel. In other words, each porch is designed to be used by the occupants of an individual unit but will be part of the common area parcel.

 

As previously noted, pursuant to the Agreement, the 5 Ridges project will have between 1,200 and 1,800 residential units at full build-out. This Tentative Map request is the second in a series of tentative maps that, when combined, must comply with this requirement. Adding the lots proposed in this Tentative Map to the 460-lot single-family subdivision approved as part of STM19-0005 equals 546 lots.  

 

Access to the Village 1A subdivision proposed by this Tentative Map will be from the first roundabout on Five Ridges Parkway. Secondary access to the project site is not proposed. Dwelling units within this subdivision must therefore have fire suppression systems (Condition 15). 

 

Section 3.2 of the Agreement dictates when specific improvements to Highland Ranch Parkway and its intersection with Pyramid Way are required. These improvements are required when the first of the following events occurs: 1) a tentative map request is submitted that will bring the total number of dwelling units in the development to 650 or more; 2) the Level of Service (LOS) for Highland Ranch Parkway degrades below D; or 3) the LOS for the intersection with Pyramid Way degrades below E. This Tentative Map request does not exceed the 650-dwelling unit threshold. However, it is uncertain if vehicle trips related to the lots proposed in this subdivision will cause LOS to be degraded below the thresholds specified in the Agreement. A traffic analysis evaluating the impact of the Village 1A Tentative Map units on LOS thresholds must be submitted to the City prior to the recordation of a final map (Condition 16). 

 

The existing grade of the project site slopes downward from an elevation of 4,670 feet in the northwest corner to an elevation of 4,600 feet in the southeast corner. The Tentative Map grading plan (Exhibit 5 – Tentative Map) shows fill will be used to create a building pad that sits between 4,647 and 4,658 feet in elevation. This building pad will be at a similar elevation to the Five Ridges Parkway roundabout that provides access to the proposed subdivision. 

 

Separating the building pad and Highland Ranch Parkway is a 2:1, or 50 percent, graded slope. Retaining walls of 10 feet in height or less are proposed to stabilize the graded slope south of lots 29 through 41 and east of lots 19 through 28. The finished grade for the southwest corner of the building pad will be at an elevation of 4,654 feet, which is approximately 50 feet above the current grade of Highland Ranch Parkway. The finished grade for the southeast corner of the building pad will be at an elevation of 4,647 feet, which is approximately 65 feet above the current grade of Highland Ranch Parkway. Section 3.3 of the Agreement requires a CUP for development on slopes, hilltops, and ridges be obtained prior to approval of a tentative map. Grading and revegetation conditions (Exhibit 3 – CU20-0005 Conditions of Approval) approved with the CUP for 5 Ridges for development on slopes, hillsides, and ridges apply to these graded slopes and must be satisfied to the approval of the Administrator prior to the approval of a final map (Condition 19).

 

Most of the subdivision proposed by this Tentative Map is located within the disturbance area approved with the aforementioned CUP (CU20-0005). Grading outside the approved CUP disturbance area is, however, proposed for approximately 0.3 acres generally located north of lots 1 through 18 (Exhibit 6 – Village 1A Disturbance Area Map). Naturally occurring slopes with a gradient of 30 percent or greater are present in this 0.3-acre area outside the approved CUP disturbance area. The existing CUP (CU20-0005) must therefore be amended to include the area located outside the approved CUP disturbance area prior to the recordation of any final map (Condition 19).  If approved, compliance with any new or revised conditions applicable to the 0.3-acre area currently outside the CUP disturbance area will also be required prior to the recordation of any final map (Condition 19). 

 

Staff requested comments from public agencies in accordance with NRS 278.330 to 278.348, inclusive. Comments were submitted by the Washoe County School District, Regional Transportation Commission, and Washoe County Community Services Department (Exhibit 9 – Agency Comments). A plan review meeting was held on December 9, 2020, with the applicant’s representatives and City staff from planning, building, engineering, and the Fire Department. 

 

For the reasons discussed below, the Planning Commission determined that findings T1 through T12 can be made and recommends approval of the 5 Ridges Village 1A Tentative Map to the City Council.

 

 

The request conforms to the Master Plan and zoning ordinances.

 

The Land Use Plan Goals and Policies that are relevant to this proposal include:

 

GOALS

H2: Promote a strong, diverse housing market that supports economic growth and vitality while ensuring environmental and fiscal sustainability.

 

H3: Ensure that Sparks residential and mixed-use neighborhoods are desirable locations to live.

 

POLICIES

C4:  Require sidewalks for pedestrian on all street networks within the City.  

 

CF1: When reviewing new development, the City will not approve an application unless City services can be provided at acceptable service levels.

 

H1: Ensure there are sufficient appropriately zoned areas with the infrastructure, public facilities and services necessary for the production of new housing. 

 

H2: Promote a variety of housing types throughout Sparks, including within mixed-use settings, to expand the choices available to meet the financial and lifestyle needs of a diverse population and workforce.

 

This Tentative Map request is for an 86-lot townhome subdivision. As proposed, this subdivision would advance Goal H2, Policy H1, and Policy H2 by providing a townhome housing product in the Sparks housing market. Townhomes are commonly classified as “missing middle” housing that offers home ownership opportunities at lower price points than traditional detached single-family housing.

 

The Tentative Map plans show an internal sidewalk network consisting of paseo and perimeter sidewalks that connect to the Five Ridges Parkway sidewalk system, complying with Policy C4. Plans for the improvement of water, sewer, streets, and stormwater were contemplated with the approval of the Agreement.  Subject to these improvements, the City’s services can be provided at acceptable levels to serve the 86 lots proposed with this Tentative Map, complying with Policy CF1.

 

General conformity with the City's master plan of streets and highways has been considered.

 

As discussed above, access to the proposed subdivision will be from the first roundabout on Five Ridges Parkway. Street improvements to widen the segment of Highland Ranch Parkway from Pyramid Way to Five Ridges Parkway and improve the intersection of Pyramid Way and Highland Ranch Parkway will be needed to serve the greater 5 Ridges project. These improvements must be installed upon reaching the dwelling unit or level of service (LOS) thresholds specified in Section 3.2 of the Agreement. 

 

This Tentative Map request does not exceed the dwelling unit threshold specified in the Agreement.  However, it is uncertain if the lots proposed in this subdivision will cause LOS to be degraded below the thresholds specified in the Agreement. A traffic analysis evaluating the impact of the Village 1A Tentative Map units on LOS thresholds must be provided prior to the recordation of a final map to determine if the street improvements identified in the Agreement will be required with this subdivision (Condition 16).

 

A traffic signal at the intersection Highland Ranch Parkway and Five Ridges Parkway will also be needed to serve the greater 5 Ridges project. Overhead safety lighting must be in place before the first certificate of occupancy is issued for a dwelling unit in this project and a traffic signal warrant analysis is required to identify the number of dwelling units that will dictate activation of the signal (Condition 17). 

 

As conditioned, the street network serving this site will be sufficient to meet the needs of this request.

 

Environmental and health laws and regulations concerning water and air pollution, the disposal of solid waste, facilities to supply water, community or public sewage disposal and, where applicable, individual systems for sewage disposal were considered.

 

This application was distributed to the agencies that provide basic services and administrate environmental and health laws. No written comments were provided by these agencies. The developer shall comply with all Washoe County Health District requirements (Condition 5).

 

The availability of water which meets applicable health standards and is sufficient in quantity for the reasonably foreseeable needs of the subdivision has been considered. 

 

The developer has estimated the domestic water requirement for the 86 townhome lots at 15.5 acre-feet per year. Municipal water service will be provided by Sun Valley General Improvement District (SVGID) and water rights must be in place or dedicated with final maps (Condition 6). City Council approved an agreement with SVGID allowing SVGID to locate its water utility infrastructure within City rights-of-way on June 22, 2020.

 

The availability and accessibility of utilities has been considered.

 

The developer estimates that 86 townhome lots will generate 51,600 gallons of sewage per day. The applicant is required to provide evidence that there is adequate sewer capacity to serve the project prior to the recordation of a final map. The final storm water and drainage plan for the development must be reviewed and approved prior to the recordation of a final map for the project (Condition 7). 

 

The availability of municipal water is addressed in Finding T4 above. NV Energy will provide electrical and natural gas services. Electric, telephone, and cable services will be extended underground within the roadway right-of-way to serve this development.

 

The availability and accessibility of public services such as schools, police protection, transportation, recreation and parks has been considered.

 

SCHOOLS

The site is zoned for Hall Elementary School, Shaw Middle School, and Spanish Springs High School. As stated in the email from the Washoe County School District dated December 7, 2020 (Exhibit 9 – Agency Comments), the project is anticipated to add two new students for each grade level. Current enrollment at both Hall Elementary School and Shaw Middle School is below base capacity with Hall Elementary School at 65% of base capacity and Shaw Middle School at 64% of base capacity. Each of these schools will remain under base capacity for at least 10 years based on Washoe County School District projections. Current enrollment at Spanish Springs High School is 111% of base capacity. However, enrollment relief at Spanish Springs High School is anticipated with the opening of the new Procter R. Hug High School in Fall 2022.

 

POLICE PROTECTION

Law enforcement services will be provided by the Sparks Police Department. Staff did not receive comments from the Police Department regarding the provision of police services to the proposed 86 townhome lots.  

 

TRANSPORTATION

The Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) provided a comment letter in response to this Tentative Map request (Exhibit 9 – Agency Comments). This letter requests a 10-space Park-n-Ride facility be provided for residents of the proposed subdivision. However, a transportation use such as a Park-n-Ride is not a permitted use in the MF-2 zoning district.  Park-n-ride lots are permitted in the Community Commercial and Arterial Commercial designations. Areas designated Arterial Commercial in Kiley Ranch North Planned Development Handbook are located in close proximity to the greater 5 Ridges project site.

 

Specific improvements to Highland Ranch Parkway and its intersection with Pyramid Way are described in Finding T2 above and Finding T7 below.

 

FIRE AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL RESPONSE  

Fire and emergency medical service will be provided by the Sparks Fire Department. The project site is located outside the 4-minute travel time standard for the Sparks Fire Department. 

 

As proposed, Village 1A will have a single point of access from the first roundabout of Five Ridges Parkway. Section D107 of the International Fire Code (IFC) requires single-family residential developments of more than 30 dwelling units to be served by two fire access roads unless all dwelling units are equipped with automatic sprinkler systems. Dwelling units within this Tentative Map will thus be required to have fire suppression systems (Condition 16).  This requirement shall remain in place regardless of whether the dwelling units proposed in this subdivision are located within the 4-minute travel time of a Sparks fire station, which may occur if the City constructs a sixth fire station. 

 

UTILITIES

NV Energy will provide electrical and natural gas services. Electric, telephone, and cable services will be extended underground within the roadway right-of-way to serve this development.  

 

The effect of the proposed subdivision on existing public streets and the need for new streets or highways to serve the subdivision has been considered.

 

Trip generation for this Tentative Map request is estimated at 500 average daily trips with 45 peak hour trips. These trips were included in an updated trip generation letter dated April 2020 (Exhibit 7 – Trip Generation Letter) that compared trips for 1,062 detached single-family units and 158 townhomes (1,220 total units) to trips associated with the 1,223 detached single-family units and 13 acres of mini-warehouse use analyzed in the 2017 traffic study. 

 

The April 2020 trip generation letter indicates the proposed land use changes will result in traffic impacts less than or similar to those identified in the 2017 traffic study. However, the letter does not evaluate whether construction of the Village 1A units will degrade the LOS on Highland Ranch Parkway or its intersection with Pyramid Way below the thresholds identified in the Agreement, which would trigger required improvements. A traffic analysis evaluating these LOS thresholds must be provided prior to the recordation of a final map to determine if the associated road and intersection improvements specified in the Agreement will be required with this subdivision (Condition 16).

 

The physical characteristics of the land such as flood plain, slope and soil has been considered.

 

FLOOD PLAIN

The site is located within Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Zone X, which indicates that the site is outside the 100-year flood hazard zone.

 

SLOPE

As described in the Analysis section above, the Tentative Map grading plan (Exhibit 5 – Tentative Map) shows fill will be used to create a building pad at a similar elevation to the Five Ridges Parkway roundabout that provides access to Village 1A. The building pad will be separated from the current grade of Highland Ranch Parkway by a 2:1, or 50 percent, graded slope. Grading and revegetation conditions in the approved CUP for development on slopes, hilltops and ridges apply to these graded slopes (Exhibit 3 – CU20-0005 Conditions of Approval).

 

While nearly all of this proposed subdivision is located within the disturbance area approved as part of CU20-0005, grading on a 0.3-acre area outside the approved disturbance area is proposed. The existing CUP (CU20-0005) must be amended to include this area prior to the recordation of any final map (Condition 18). If approved, compliance with any new or revised conditions applicable to the 0.3-acre area currently outside the CUP disturbance area will be required prior to the recordation of any final map (Condition 19).

 

SOILS

A final geotechnical report will be required prior to recordation of any final map (Condition 9).

 

The recommendations and comments of those entities reviewing the tentative map pursuant to NRS 278.330 to 278.348, inclusive, have been considered.

 

City staff received comments from the Washoe County School District and Regional Transportation Commission that are addressed in Finding T6 above. 

 

The Washoe County Community Services Department provided a letter identifying a conceptual alignment for the Sun Valley Rim Trail. The proposed alignment is intended to connect public parks and federal lands to form a trail that encircles Sun Valley (Exhibit 9 – Agency Comments). Sections of this proposed trail alignment cross private lands with a portion crossing through the western portion of the greater 5 Ridges project site. While the proposed trail alignment is located outside the area of this Tentative Map, the alignment should be considered with future tentative maps proposed in the western portion of the greater 5 Ridges project site. 

 

No comments were provided by other outside agencies regarding this application.

 

The availability and accessibility of fire protection, including but not limited to the availability and accessibility of water and services for the prevention and containment of fires, including fires in wild lands, has been considered. 

 

Fire protection service will be provided by the Sparks Fire Department. Municipal water service for the containment of fires will be provided by SVGID as described in Finding T4 above.

 

The application, as submitted and conditioned, will address identified impacts. 

 

This section identifies project-specific issues not discussed above such as:

 

Landscaping:

The preliminary landscape plan submitted with this request shows formal landscaped areas and revegetated slopes within common areas surrounding the proposed townhome lots (Exhibit 8 – Landscape Plan). Required formal landscaping for sites in the MF-2 zoning district is 20 percent of the site area.  The preliminary landscape plan exceeds this requirement by three percent, providing 61,944 square feet of formal landscaping on the 267,291 square-foot site. 

 

Sites located in the MF-2 zoning district also require one tree per 300 square feet of required landscape area plus one tree per seven parking spaces. The preliminary landscape plan shows 178 trees will be provided to meet the requirement of one tree per 300 square feet of required landscape area. However, eight additional trees are needed to meet parking area tree requirements based on the 53 surface parking spaces proposed. Required trees, which total 186, must be placed within the formal landscaping area.

 

Final landscape plans that conform with landscaping requirements in the Sparks Municipal Code must be approved by City staff prior to the recordation of a final map; common areas shall be maintained by a homeowners association or landscape maintenance association, as applicable (Condition 13).  

 

The landscaping and revegetation conditions associated with CUP (CU20-0005) for development on slopes, hilltops and ridges, as approved or as may be amended, apply to the project site and must be satisfied to the approval of the Administrator prior to the approval of a final map (Condition 19). 

 

Community Amenities:

The Tentative Map plans for Village 1A (Exhibit 5 – Tentative Map) show an internal sidewalk network consisting of paseo and perimeter sidewalks that connect to an amenity area and the Five Ridges Parkway sidewalk system. Attached townhomes in the MF-2 zoning district require useable community amenities for recreation and social activities. For developments with less than 100 dwelling units, three recreational facilities identified in SMC 20.02.005(C)(3)(b) must be provided. Community amenities and their associated operations must be approved by the Administrator prior to the recordation of a final map (Condition 20). 

 

Architecture:

This project consists of attached townhomes. Preliminary architectural elevations are included in the Application (at p. 423) for the Tentative Map. Final architectural elevations that comply with SMC 20.02.005(C)(4) must be approved by City staff prior to the recordation of a final map (Condition 12). 

 

Naturally occurring ridgelines are not present on the project site and thus the ridgeline sensitive design condition (Exhibit 3 - CU20-0005 Conditions of Approval) approved as part of the CUP for development on slopes, hillsides, and ridges is not applicable. 

 

Fencing:

A preliminary fencing plan was not provided with this Tentative Map request. However, supplemental information provided by the applicant indicates open-view fencing (e.g., decorative wrought iron or split rail) will be utilized at the project perimeter to preserve views from the proposed townhomes and prevent the project site from appearing walled off from adjoining streets and properties. Perimeter fencing associated with the proposed subdivision must be open view (Condition 21).

 

Public notice was given, and a public hearing held per the requirements of the Sparks Municipal Code and Nevada Revised Statutes.

 

Public notice for tentative maps is accomplished through posting the agenda for a public meeting. The Planning Commission agenda was posted on December 29, 2020; the City Council agenda was posted on or before February 3, 2021.  The Planning Commission and the City Council meetings function as the public meetings for this item.

1. The City Council can approve the tentative map as recommended by the Planning Commission.

2. The City Council can approve the tentative map with changes to the Conditions of Approval. 

3. The City Council can deny the tentative map.

4. The City Council can remand the tentative map to Planning Commission with direction.