| REQUEST |
Approval of an Amendment to Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 for Downtown District Uses and Mixed Uses.
Approval of a Specific Use Provision to allow a Drive-Through Service on a property zoned Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 for fifteen (15) years.
Approval of a Detail Plan for Downtown District Uses and Mixed Uses on a property zoned Planned Development (PD) District 14-23.
LOCATION
111 and 217 South Garland Avenue; 1413 West Avenue B; and 1412 and 1413 Rodando Drive |
| OWNER |
| The Draper Garland LLC |
| PLAN COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION |
On February 22, 2021 the Plan Commission, by a vote of nine (9) to zero (0), recommended approval of an Amendment to Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 for Downtown District Uses and Mixed Uses. Further, the Plan Commission recommended parking on Rodando Drive to be 90-degree angled parking, and a parking study submitted 5 years after the completion of project construction.
The Plan Commission, by a vote of nine (9) to zero (0), recommended approval of a Specific Use Provision to allow a Drive-Through Service on a property zoned Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 for fifteen (15) years.
The Plan Commission, by a vote of nine (9) to zero (0), recommended approval of a Detail Plan for Downtown District Uses and Mixed Uses on a property zoned Planned Development (PD) District 14-23.
The applicant has submitted a revised plan showing 90-degree angled parking and proposes signage on Rodando Drive indicating “not a through street”. The applicant concurs with the time period of fifteen (15) years. |
| STAFF RECOMMENDATION |
Approval of an Amendment to Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 for Downtown District Uses and Mixed Uses.
Approval of a Specific Use Provision to allow a Drive-Through Service on a property zoned Planned Development (PD) District 14-23.
Approval of a Detail Plan for Downtown District Uses and Mixed Uses on a property zoned Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 |
| BACKGROUND |
The subject property consists of five (5) separate tracts of land and approximately 3,250 square feet of public right-of-way. It should be noted that any current public right-of-way reflected as part of the proposed site must be abandoned and acquired from the City of Garland through the established process before approval of a plat. The site is developed with a 5-story building known as the Chase Bank building, a vacant building formerly used as a restaurant, and an abandoned drive-through structure.
The applicant proposes development of the site in two phases:
Phase 1. The former restaurant building, bank drive-through structure, and other site improvements on the west and south halves of the site would be demolished to make way for the construction of three (3) urban-style multi-family residential buildings.
Phase 2. The Chase Bank building would be repurposed with the first floor to remain with bank, drive-through windows (including one teller window), and retail/flex use. The upper floors would be repurposed with multi-family uses. Amenities constructed in Phase 1 will be available for use by residents living in Phase 2. The existing parking would be reconfigured for future use with bank, retail, and multi-family uses. Additionally, parking in Phase 1 would be available for Phase 2 residents.
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| SITE DATA |
| The subject property contains 4.65 acres and has approximately 400 feet of frontage along Wilson Street, 430 feet along South Garland Avenue, 460 feet along Avenue B, and 320 feet along Rodando Drive. Vehicular and non-motorized (pedestrian, bicycles) access to the site would be accomplished from each of the abutting streets. The site grade slopes from north to south, and there is an existing approximate five (5) foot high retaining wall on the east portion of the site along the boundary of Phase 1 and Phase 2. |
| USE OF PROPERTY UNDER CURRENT ZONING |
In 2014 the City Council approved Planned Development (PD) District 14-23 for Downtown (DT) District Uses. PD-14-23 included two development alternatives to allow mixed use development with a multi-family residential and nonresidential uses. The approval specifically included 325 units of multi-family residential dwellings as the predominant use in the upper floors (2nd through 5th) and in either new 3-story residential buildings with surface parking or new 4-story residential buildings with structured garage parking; and the Chase Bank use remaining on the ground floor along with flex space for retail uses on the ground floor of the Chase Bank building. The approval allowed a maximum density of seventy (70) units per acre (325 dwelling units), structured or surface parking, and variable nonresidential floor area ranging from zero square feet to 25,000 square feet.
This proposal closely follows PD 14-23 as it also proposes multi-family residential as the predominant use and nonresidential uses. Further, the PD 14-23 was conceptual in nature; the applicant brings forward a more refined project with a site plan and deviations from standards that result from existing site conditions including the Bank building, topographic grade that slopes from the northeast towards the southwest, established Bank building access points, and high power lines along Avenue B. |
| CONSIDERATIONS |
| Use and Phasing
1. The proposal would repurpose this site for multi-family, bank, and retail uses. The development would occur in two (2) phases. Phase 1 includes a multi-family apartment development consisting of 155 units in three (3) separate three (3)-story buildings with surface parking and amenities placed on the south and west halves of the overall site. The proposal for Phase 2, located on the northeast quadrant of the site, would include renovation and continued use of the Chase Bank building for bank use, and add thirty (30) multi-family apartments as well as retail use to the building. The resulting residential density would be forty (40) units per acre.
Specific Use Provision
2. Only one of the existing drive-through windows would be retained on the south side of the Chase Bank building; this is shown as an existing drive-through teller window and proposed ATM location on the site plan. A Specific Use Provision is required for a drive-through service. The DT District is structured to create a more walkable, urban environment. Drive-through uses provide services to customers who are in vehicles. This site is located in an area of transition at the periphery of the Downtown area. Also, the site is one of the first reinvestments with new construction on Garland Avenue in the DT District. The bank building already contains the drive-through, thus it demonstrates the capacity to continue functioning.
The applicant previously requested a ten (10) year time period for the Specific Use Provision. Upon recommendation of the Plan Commission for a fifteen (15) year time period, the applicant agrees with fifteen (15) years.
Detail Plan – Amendments and Deviations
3. The applicant requests to amend the existing PD 14-23 and proposes a Detail Plan to accommodate the desired development. The Detail Plan is generally consistent with the existing PD 14-23 layout, amended standards, and conditions with three multi-family buildings and a repurposed Chase Bank building. Street edges, setbacks, building placement, parking arrangements, and other development elements of the site are carried forward in this proposal. An overlay of the previously approved plan and the proposed Detail Plan indicate limited changes to the original layout. The requested deviations are intended to formally recognize and support conformity with the intent of PD 14-23. The following considerations describe the development and related deviations.
4. Site Plan. The proposed site plan reflects the DT District goals of buildings placed close to the street with on-street parking, an amenity zone including street trees, sidewalks, landscaping at the base of residential buildings, and access to dwelling units from the street sides of the buildings including stoops or patios. The proposal includes open space in the form of an informal pocket park at the corner of South Garland Avenue and Avenue B. This area is designed with a small cluster of trees, benches, and a lighted wall providing an identity and special feature on the building.
5. Amenities. Amenities for the residential uses are proposed within Phase 1, will serve the units in Phase 2, and satisfy the GDC requirements. The amenities include a fitness center, pool within a courtyard, barbeque with ramada and seating area. Additionally, the proposed pocket park area at the southeast corner of the site contributes to the open space and amenity areas.
6. Efficiency Units. The residential uses are allowed with the exception that the GDC prescribes a maximum ten (10) percent of units as Efficiency Units. The applicant proposes twenty-one (21) efficiency units whereas nineteen (19) are allowed, resulting in two (2) excess efficiency units. Efficiency Unit is defined by the GDC as a type of multi-family dwelling unit that consists of not more than one habitable room separated by no more than a half-wall partition, and kitchen and bathroom facilities. These types of units offer a more affordable dwelling compared to a unit with separate rooms for living spaces. In recent years there has been interest in efficiency units by professional workers who frequently travel or by residents who don’t consider a larger living space a high priority.
Meanwhile, eight-five (85) one-bedroom units are proposed (in addition to the 21 efficiency units) and forty-nine (49) two-bedroom units are proposed.
7. Residential Units and Entries At Grade Level. The proposed development meets the intent of the GDC Downtown Standards and PD 14-23 by having the majority of street-facing residential units, accessible from the sidewalk where the site grading allows.
8. Primary Building Entrance. The goal of the Downtown (DT) District is to create a walkable, pedestrian friendly, community with store fronts and the business entrances along the sidewalks of streets oriented to pedestrian traffic. The location of the proposed leasing office front door faces onto an internal circulation drive due to site constraints including a power line easement, and site layout limitations for building size and placement due to grade change. Further, in this development proposal, ground floor unit entries are included with doors oriented to the street frontage. The bank building has its existing primary entrance oriented to its existing parking lot. Future redevelopment could result in reorientation of the main entrance to the street facing side of the building.
9. Parking. PD 14-23 was approved with a required parking ratio of 1.3 parking spaces per dwelling unit. The applicant has submitted a parking study supporting a further reduction in residential parking, which proposes 1.1 parking spaces per dwelling unit in Phase 1 with its 155 dwelling units which results in 171 parking spaces, all of which would be located in Phase 1. In addition, the application proposes to use shared parking with Phase 2 allowing the residents of Phase 2 to park in Phase 1; shared parking is typical in Downtown areas. After the Plan Commission Meeting and in response to the recommendation for 90-degree angled parking on Rodando Drive, the applicant redesigned the angled parking resulting in an additional three (3) parking spaces along Rodando Drive. Thus the total parking provided in Phase 1 is 174 parking spaces.
Residential Phase 2 parking is proposed with the parking ratio of 1.1 parking space per dwelling unit. There are thirty (30) residential units proposed in Phase 2 which results in thirty-three (33) residential parking spaces required, and as indicated above the residential units would be allowed shared parking with Phase 1. The non-residential uses require twenty-seven (27) parking spaces. Phase 2 provides a total of forty-three (43) parking spaces, including its abutting five (5) parking spaces proposed on Wilson Street.
Offsetting the reduction of parking, a total of twenty-three (23) bicycle parking spaces are provided for both phases. The reduction in parking is justified due to the site’s location in a more urbanized and walkable area with multi-modal transportation options including bus and rail.
Additionally, the proposal seeks a reduction of the number of covered parking spaces. Fifty (50) percent, or 102 parking spaces, of the required 204 residential parking is required as covered parking [garages or carports]. The provided covered parking is forty-three (43) percent, or 88 parking spaces. Phase 1 is proposed with eighty-eight (88) covered parking spaces. Phase 2 contains no covered parking spaces although residents of Phase 2 may park in Phase 1. The Downtown (DT) District encourages development with on-street parking as a means of achieving an urban development. On-street parking is not allowed as covered parking. Further limiting the development of covered parking is an overhead power line easement along the south side of the site, where on-site surface parking is proposed although the easement precludes any structures including carports. Where feasible, the development is providing covered parking.
10. Parking Landscaping. Where a parking lot is abutting a street, a landscape planter with a low fence up to three and one-half feet high is required along with ground cover, trees, and street furnishings. Neither the parking lot at the northwest quadrant nor at the south side of the site include a low fence. However, the applicant is proposing ground cover, trees, and street furnishing in accordance with the requirements. A low fence can serve to enhance pedestrian safety by separating pedestrian and vehicular and encouraging pedestrian traffic to flow in an urban fashion along the sidewalk edges along street towards building fronts. The site location is in a Suburban Corridor Subdistrict where some development features may be less urban as compared to the inner core of a downtown area. Additionally, the northwest quadrant parking lot will be renovated from its current condition. Upgrades to that parking lot include on-street parking, street furnishings, and parking reconfiguration along with tree plantings.
Additionally, one parking lot landscape planter island is required per each run of eight (8) parking spaces. The plan proposes a landscape island per each run at a minimum of nine (9) parking spaces for the new parking areas. The existing Chase Bank parking lot is proposed to retain a run of parking along Wilson Street containing a proposed thirteen (13) parking spaces without a landscape island. Also, the planters are required to be a minimum nine (9) feet wide while most of the planters meet this dimension; others are less than the required standard and the smallest are five feet, six inches (5’ 6”) wide where located between parking canopies.
11. Streetscaping. The applicant proposes streetscaping along Garland Avenue, Avenue B, Rodando Drive and Wilson Avenue. The proposed Garland Avenue frontage meets Downtown streetscape standards. Existing physical challenges necessitate some deviations from full Downtown streetscape standards for Avenue B, Rodando Drive and Wilson Avenue. For example, ornamental trees must be substituted for large canopy trees underneath overhead utilities. However, improvements will be made to these street edges including street trees and improved sidewalks. In addition, the abutting existing parking lot along Wilson Avenue will be renovated with an improved parking layout and landscaping.
12. Parking lot trees. One large canopy tree is required per six parking spaces. Due to the compactness of the site the applicant proposes one large canopy tree at the end of all except one parking row. The applicant proposes covered parking canopies to provide further shade.
13. Carport columns. Carports are to have support columns that are architecturally integrated and have similar colors to the building. The carport elevations show columns cladded with masonry at the ends of the carports, although the middle carport support columns are metal columns without masonry cladding.
14. Elevations. The elevations conform to the requirements of the PD 14-23 and GDC.
15. Summary of Deviations:
| Development Standards |
Summarized Required |
Proposed |
Analysis |
| Efficiency Units |
Maximum 10 percent (10%) of all units may be efficiency units. |
Maximum 19 are allowed.
Proposal is for 21. |
Efficiency units offer an affordable choice in housing. Recent years indicate a trend favoring efficiency units. |
| Primary Building Entrance |
Location of primary entrances (doors) to the building are to be located at the street frontage. |
The leasing lobby for Phase 1 is shown on the plans with its primary building entrance facing an interior drive; the Bank Building has an existing primary entry facing to the parking lot. |
The site design of Phase 1 results in too narrow of a sidewalk space for placement of a primary entry at the Avenue B frontage. The Bank Building is existing with its primary entrance facing the parking lot; storefront access is located facing Garland Avenue although that storefront is not considered a primary building entrance. |
| Parking |
PD 14-23 establishes a parking ratio of 1.3 parking spaces per dwelling unit. |
Reduction of parking ratio from 1.3 parking spaces per dwelling unit to 1.1 parking space per dwelling unit. |
The site is abutting two (2) street that have bus transit service; rail transit service is not far from the site. The DT District encourages a more urban development. |
| Streetscaping |
Streetscape includes the following from the curb: double row of trees in tree wells, sidewalk, planter and front door with patio. |
Avenue B, Wilson Street, Rodando Drive all have variations of deviations from the Streetscape standards. |
The site slope, high utility lines, underground utility easements, existing Bank building Improvement, all contribute to challenges in meeting the GDC requirements; the applicant has presented a site design that responds with alternative solutions to minimize the level of deviation. |
| Covered parking |
50% of required parking is to be covered. |
88 covered parking spaces are provided (43%) in garages and under carports whereas 102 covered parking spaces are required. |
The site is in the downtown area which encourages on-street parking where no covered parking is allowed, and overhead power lines on the site further limit the ability to place covered parking on the site. |
| Parking lot trees |
One large canopy tree is required per 6 parking spaces. |
One large canopy tree is provided at the end of all except one parking row. |
Trees are important in urban heat reduction; the applicant proposes parking canopies to further provide shade. |
| Carport column cladding |
Carport columns to be clad with masonry and a color similar to the building. |
Carports are proposed with cladding of columns only at the ends of the structures, the middle columns are not cladded. |
Although some cladding is provided the proposal does not meet the full spirit of column cladding. |
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| COMPREHENSIVE PLAN |
The Future Land Use Map of the Envision Garland Plan recommends Urban Neighborhoods for the subject property. Urban Neighborhoods are vibrant higher-density neighborhoods offering urban amenities and a concentration of activities. Urban Neighborhoods provide a variety of high density housing types, including single-family attached and multifamily, and may include compatible non-residential uses, such as shopping, restaurants, offices, entertainment and daily services, in a vertical mixed-use development. This type of neighborhood may be located along major transportation corridors and/or community amenities, such as parks, greenways, and major shopping or entertainment areas.
The proposed Planned Development (PD) District is consistent with the recommendation of the Envision Garland Plan in that it would allow for a high density residential development and the incorporation of non-residential uses on a site located along Garland Avenue, a highly capacity road that traverses the City from south to north and provides direct access to Downtown from SH 190 and IH-635. Additionally, DART bus service lines run along Avenue D and Garland Avenue; and the DART rail station is approximately one mile from the site, although the distance is generally more walkable in a downtown urban environment. |
| COMPATIBILITY OF REQUEST WITH SURROUNDING ZONING AND LAND USES |
The properties to the north are zoned Downtown (DT) District and Community Retail (CR) District and are developed with financial institutions, retail sales/personal services, an auto related use, a fast food restaurant, and single-family residences. The properties to the east are zoned Downtown (DT) District and Uptown (U) Subdistrict; these properties are developed with a variety of uses that include two school campuses, a government building, retail uses, office buildings, and single family residences. The properties to the south are in the Downtown (DT) District with Auto Overlay Subdistrict, and Industrial (IN) District; these properties are developed with an array of auto related uses, restaurants, and offices. The properties to the west are zoned Single Family-7 (SF-7) and are developed with single-family residences.
The subject property is located on the periphery of the Downtown area and immediately adjacent to properties already zoned Downtown (DT) District. The proposed development maintains the approved mix of uses and the proposed Detail Plan is generally consistent with the previous approval. The proposal would be both compatible and consistent with the zoning pattern established for that portion of Downtown. Furthermore, if developed as a mixed-used development, the subject property would add a vibrant urban character to the western edge of the Downtown area as well as patrons for the support of existing and future businesses within the surrounding area.
The proposal has the potential of impacting the adjacent residential properties to the west by introducing a high density residential development. However, reducing the number of stories from the approved four (4) to three (3) stories for the new residential buildings and the required 25-foot building line along the west side of the subject property (with the proposed development having a variable setback of 27- to 29-feet from the west property line) reduce potential impact. Furthermore, a high-density residential development can serve as a buffer between the single-family residences and Garland Avenue. |
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