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HomeMy WebLinkAboutP & Z Minutes 6-13-01City of Cape Canaveral Planning & Zoning Board June 13, 2001 Meeting Minutes A Regular meeting of the Planning & Zoning Board of the City of Cape Canaveral, Florida, was held on June 13, 2001 at the City Hall Annex, 111 Polk Avenue, Cape Canaveral, Florida. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 P.M. by Chairperson McNeely. The Secretary called the roll. MEMBERS PRESENT Beatrice McNeely Chairperson Lamar Russell Vice Chairperson John Fredrickson Andrea Shea-King Leo Nicholas OTHERS PRESENT Rocky Randels Mayor Burt Bruns Council Member Larry Weber Council Member Richard Treverton Council Member Bennett Boucher City Manager Morris Reid Building Official Todd Peetz City Planner Karl Bohne Acting City Attorney Susan Chapman Board Secretary NEW BUSINESS: 1. Approval of Meeting Minutes: April 11, 2001. Discussion was held regarding clarification of a comment by Mr. Russell that was noted in the minutes during discussion regarding collection of escrow funds from Villages of Seaport. Motion by Mr. Russell, seconded by Mr. Fredrickson to approve the meeting minutes of April 11, 2001 as amended for clarification that the statement made by Mr. Russell should read that it is not within the board's purview to investigate or enforce the collection of funds for the City. Motion carried unanimously. 2. Recommendation Re: Special Exception Request No. 01-01 to Allow Residential Use in the C-1 Zoning District - Lots 1-4 & 9-12, Block 7, Avon by the Sea Subdivision, Section 14, Township 24 South, Range 37 East - Thomas H. Quinn, Designated Agent. All persons giving testimony were sworn in by Attorney Bohne. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 2 Mr. Reid, Building Official, testified that he reviewed the request, the submittal appeared to be complete and the request for a special exception for residential use in the commercial zoning district met the intent of the city code. Mr. Quinn, designated agent, testified that he was requesting a special exception to construct townhouses on 1.13 acres, he was proposing to construct only 8 units on acreage that would allow for 13 units per city codes, the required 50 ft. setback would be landscaped and maintained to buffer noise from the traffic on A1A, the proposed townhouses would be one-story, adjacent property owners were favorable for the residential use, he clarified that the lots would need to be individually platted. Mr. Nicholas complimented Mr. Quinn for his previous residential projects and noted that this request is an asset to the City and was in conformity with the surrounding uses. Chairperson McNeely voiced concern regarding residential uses next to commercial traffic. Mr. Quinn reiterated that there would be a 50 ft. landscaped buffer along A1A. Ms. Shea-King commented that she was in favor of residential use instead of developing the property as commercial. Motion by Mr. Nicholas, seconded by Mr. Russell to recommend approval of Special Exception Request No. 01-01 with the stipulation that only eight townhouse units be constructed on the 1.13 acre tract. Motion carried unanimously. 3. Motion Re: Site Plan for Cape Caribe - Hotels and Timeshare Condominiums, Parcels 1, 6, 7, 8, 11, 15 & 47, Section 14, Township 24 South, Range 37 East - James Borris, Representative for Towne Realty, Inc., Property Owner. Mr. Reid, Building Official, advised that staff had reviewed the project. The city engineer, public works dept., and fire dept. recommended approval. He pointed out that there were a few items in regards to building setbacks, buffering between zoning districts and public beach access that this site plan did not comply with the adopted city code requirements. Mr. Reid explained that Section 110-388 of the city code required visual screening between C-1 and R-3 zoning districts. He clarified that the site plan met screening requirements on the south side of the project. He explained that this code section was difficult to enforce because of the building layouts however the screening was required as per the city code. He noted that the site plan showed a private roadway and paving along the zoning district lines. Mr. John Allen, Project Engineer advised that there was 150 ft. between the buildings from the zoning district lines and that screening would interfere with the parking and driveways. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 3 Mr. Russell suggested that the buffering requirements could be met with planting greenery along the boundary. Mr. Nicholas commented that even though this developer owned both properties, that properties do change hands. Mr. Nicholas noted that the County requires 6 ft. high block walls between zoning districts to buffer noise. Mr. Russell depicted that bldg. #5 to the west has a green shrubbery belt and asked the applicant if it could be extended and widened to meet the buffering requirement. Brief discussion followed. Mr. Reid advised that the parking garage located just south of bldgs. 3 & 4, the pool cabana, and pool deck as depicted on the submitted site plan was located within the required 25 ft. setback. He clarified that the pool cabana was actually a pool equipment building and the footprint of the building was located within the required setback. He pointed out that even though these structures were located within the required setback of a private road, the 25 ft. setback requirement still applied per Section 110-317 (5). Mr. John Allen, project engineer, responded that they came to an informal agreement that the developer would settle for 15 ft. and later on, Mr. Peetz, City Planner, found another code section that specifically stated that the required setback was 25 ft. He explained that the parking garage was not moved back because it was close to a hill. Mr. Allen agreed that the developer would relocate the parking garage, reposition the club house, pool deck, and equipment room and pool cabana to meet the 25 ft. required setback. Mr. Nicholas questioned why the parking requirements were different for Bldgs. 1 & 6 depicted as hotels. Mr. Reid responded that the parking for the hotels was all located in the C-1 zoning district. The buildings were individual structures. Building #6 is a 92 unit hotel building and Building #1 is a 150 unit hotel building. Code requires one parking space per hotel room and one additional space per every 12 hotel units. 320 parking spaces are provided in the C-1 zone for the hotels which meets the code requirement. Since Bldg. #6 only has 92 units, the parking is based on that building being classified as a hotel. If it was classified as a condominium, it would need 184 parking spaces and would not meet code. Therefore, Building #6 could not become a condominium. Mr. Allen verified that Bldg. #6 was a hotel. Mr. Reid advised that Mr. Peetz staff report advised that the submitted site plan did not provide public beach access as required. Mr. Peetz explained that in talking with the applicant, there concern was for the privacy of their residents. Mr. Peetz pointed out that Section 9.3 of the city's comprehensive plan stated that public beach access shall be provided. Mr. Peetz further explained that there was public access to the North of this project at Jetty Park and the next closest public beach access was located in the Harbor Heights subdivision, approximately 1/2 mile away. There were two other beach access points at Villages of Seaport and Solana Lake that were both private. He pointed out that there was no other vacant land and no other public beach access adjacent to this project. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 4 Mr. James Borris, Representative for Towne Realty, advised that the issue of beach access was discussed with the Board since they started the project, the developments are gated and privately owned, these are upscale private resort communities which Towne Realty never offered to open to the public for beach access, if they were open to the general public it would change the marketing of the product. He noted that the Port recently installed a public walkway to the beach, Towne Realty recently paid the Port $742,000 to connect to Jetty Road. He voiced his opinion that if Solana Lakes were going to bring in 292 people without giving beach access, then the development would be in violation however, private beach access has be provided. Mr. Reid advised that Solana Shores has a 6 ft. dedicated pedestrian easement and at the time the Board approved the Site Plan, they may have been under the assumption that it was public access. He noted that the approved Revised Site Plan for Solana Lakes did not show a 6 ft. pedestrian easement and pointed out that Cape Caribe was the last piece of land on the north end of the City. Mr. Borris questioned whether or not the City has adequate beach access for the public. He advised that the residents of Cape Caribe would have private beach access. Mr. Reid questioned if the beach access for Solana Lakes could be a public access for a pedestrian walkway since the project was not completed. Mr. Borris responded that 1/2 of the units were already sold at Solana Lakes. He advised that the easement was owned by Solana Shores and was an exclusive easement for Solana Lakes. Mr. Boucher, City Manager, advised that the easement for Solana Lakes had not been turned over to the owners. Mr. Borris showed an aerial map depicting that Royal Mansions, Harbor Heights and Jetty Park provided public beach access. He pointed out that every property between them had private property beach access, totaling eleven private beach access points. Mr. Nicholas commented that even though Jetty Park has an easement for public beach access, it was not located in the City of Cape Canaveral and this City had no control of it. Mr. Russell pointed out that the residents living on the west side of A1A had access to the beach from Eberwein Road prior to this development. Mr. Borris responded that before the property was developed, the city had problems with vagrants. He questioned if there was a code that required distance requirements between public beach access. He advised that the City had a total of (18) public beach accesses. It was questioned why the City did not apply this requirement for Villages of Seaport, Shorewood and the Solana developments. Mr. Peetz responded that any of the previous developments were not reviewed by either Mr. Reid or himself. He noted that Villages had recently submitted a preliminary revised site plan and that the city is talking with that developer about a public beach access for there revised site plan. Mr. Nicholas commented that Towne Realty did not present the Board with an overall site plan, that it has been presented in segments. Mr. Borris commented that the City was asking them to pay for something that the City should have bought property to provide access. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 5 Mr. Russell and Ms. Shea-King voiced there opinions that they were not convinced that the city needed to make this developer provide public access to the beach. Mr. Borris responded that opening his property to the public would de-value the project. He advised that he did agree to allow a pedway along the private roadway through the development which would not impede on the private gated communities because the developer has full control of the road which will be constructed to city specifications. Ms. Shea-King commented that the people living on the west side of A1A have (18) beach accesses, including Cherie Down Park. She voiced her opinion that the Board should have addressed this issue at the time Solana Lakes site plan was presented. Mr. Borris advised that the pedway is agreeable, but not public beach access. Mr. Tom Downs, developer and Mr. Mel Sawyer, Board Member, Villages of Seaport advised that they were revising there site plan to include public beach access on the northern part of the property for possibly a pedway between Shorewood and Villages. Mr. Sawyer advised that the owners of Villages were adamant about having a pedway through there community but would be willing to consider a public beach access in lieu of Ridgewood extension. Mr. Borris advised that they did not own part of Shorewood Drive. He depicted a small parcel owned by someone else. He clarified that Towne Realty had an easement to use the road for his properties. Mr. Sawyer suggested that Shorewood Drive be turned over to the City and the easement be connected to Villages of Seaport for a dedicated public beach access. Brief discussion followed. Mr. Reid voiced his opinion that the idea would meet the intent of the Comprehensive Plan however, neither the Building Official or Planning & Zoning Board had the authority to make such a decision, that only the City Council could consider the idea and negotiate with the developers. Mr. Bennett Boucher, City Manager, commented that this issue was complicated. He informed the Board that the City has a road reservation that goes through Villages of Seaport however, it was questionable if the City still had the rights to that land because it had been reserved since 1981. He advised that Villages has not paid taxes on it for the past 19 years and wants to use the road reservation to meet storm water requirements. The City Attorney is researching the matter. Mr. Boucher further advised that the Port was installing many pedways throughout the Port. Mr. Reid commented that the city renourishes its beaches at the publics expense and the city's intent was to allow the citizens to get to the beach. Mr. Richard Treverton, Council Member, commented that this project was the last chance the City has to provide for a public beach access along the 1/2 mile of beach. A 1/2 mile of beach that will be sealed off from the public. He would like to see the Board work it out with the developers to install a public access. He would like to see this installed between Solana Shores and Shorewood Condominiums. Discussion followed regarding options of how this could be accomplished. Mr. Russell pointed out two options: The Board not approve the site plan, approve the site plan and make a condition that they provide a public access, or table the site plan until the next meeting. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 6 Mr. Boucher advised that the Comprehensive Plan was updated in 1999. The Local Planning Agency was concerned of how the north east end of town was going to be developed. He understood the developers concern. The City has undeveloped property on the west side of the City. New developments will create additional pressure on the 18 existing public accesses. Eventually, the City will have a parking problem. He asked the Board members to put on their planning caps and find a way to help the community as a whole, being fair to the citizens and help these developers with there projects. Mr. Sawyer reiterated that the residents of Villages of Seaport do not want a bike pedway through there community. Mr. Borris advised that they would like to start construction on there project in July or August. If the site plan was approved, they would be moving forward. If there was a way to provide public access he would. But he did not know what he would be able to do. He agreed to help and facilitate to get people down Shorewood Drive near the Villages to get the public to the beach. Mr. Sawyer responded that he was waiting to hear from the City Manager on the road reservation. Mr. Borris reiterated that he did not have control of Shorewood Drive but would help anyway he could. Discussion followed regarding possibly tabling the site plan. Attorney Bohne advised that the Board could not be held liable for tabling the site plan to research the city codes and legal position. Mr. Russell commented that if Towne Realty does not want to be creative then perhaps the City could find a solution to make the situation palatable to all concerned. Motion by Mr. Russell, seconded by Mr. Nicholas to table this site plan until the next scheduled meeting. Vote on the motion was as follows: Mr. Fredrickson, against; Ms. McNeely, for; Mr. Nicholas, for; Mr. Russell, for; and Ms. Shea-King, against. Motion carried. 4. Discussion Re: Proposed Bike and Trail Routes. Mr. Todd Peetz, City Planner advised that the County was preparing a bikeway pedestrian master plan. They asked for input from the City as to what the City may want to incorporate into their master plan. Mr. Peetz was directed from the City Manager to come up with some ideas for the City. He explained that four were suggested to him as follows: Ridgewood to Jetty Park - Ridgewood to Jetty Park beginning at the east entrance of Ocean Woods Subdivision on Ridgewood Avenue and meanders northward through existing right of way connecting to Shorewood Drive and terminating with the Jetty Park connector, approximately 3/4 of a mile. A portion of this connector is part of private construction associated with Shorewood Drive. No public funds are dedicated or available at this time, and there is no time line determined. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 7 Canal Path - The Canal Path is from the northern city limits following the eastside of the canal to the Banana River. There is an existing pedestrian bridge on the eastside of A1A and there is a proposed pedestrian bridge being recommended on the West side of A1A. It would be anticipated that this potential connector would connect with the Port's proposed trail. This is a potential wildlife corridor, approximately 1.25 miles. There are no public funds for the creation of this corridor. However, for the proposed bridge on the West side of A1A. There is funding available for that project scheduled to be completed in 2004, and there is no time line determined. Manatee & Banana Park Trail - This project begins at the new proposed bridge on the west side of A1A, trails northward to Tower Boulevard, then west meandering through Manatee Park and then Banana River Park and then through another area on City owned property before heading back east to A1A. This is a potential wildlife corridor, approximately 1.75 miles. There are no public funds for the trail at this time, and there is no time line determined. Banana River Blueway - The City encourages the dedication of both canoeing and kayaking use of the waterway. The waterway can be easily accessed from both Manatee and Banana River Parks. This would be approximately 2.5 miles, along the entire length of the City, funding is not applicable, and is ready to be enjoyed. Mr. Peetz advised that these were given to the County to incorporate into their master plan. He inquired if the City would like to incorporate them into the Comprehensive Plan. He explained that if they were incorporated into the Comprehensive Plan the City could apply for grant money from the State. Discussion followed regarding the routes of the proposed trails. Mr. Nicholas voiced his concern regarding a bike path going through the Harbor Heights single family residential subdivision. His concern was that it would invite additional public access to the beach in an area that was already heavily impacted. He noted that the City was applying for a grant to purchase additional property to extend the public beach access in that subdivision. Discussion followed regarding existing public beach accesses. Ms. Shea-King inquired if a boardwalk could be constructed parallel to the beach. Mayor Randels advised that the City was looking into the possibility. Discussion followed regarding the right of ways owned by the City. Following discussion, the Board directed the City Planner to include the proposed routes in the Comprehensive Plan the next time the City updates the Plan. Planning & Zoning Board Meeting Minutes June 13, 2001 Page 8 5. Discussion Re: Ongoing & Proposed New Construction Projects - Morris Reid, Building Official. Mr. Reid, Building Official advised that the City has various large projects that will be presented to the Board in the near future and inquired if the Board would like to be provided with some of the preliminary plans to allow them time to review the projects prior to the official agenda packets. The Board members were in favor of the suggestion. Mr. Reid advised that he would furnish the Board with preliminary site plans as they are received. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 10:34 P.M. Approved on this _________ day of _____________________________, 2001. ________________________________ Beatrice McNeely, Chairperson _________________________ Susan L. Chapman, Secretary