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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06122008 ZPC Agenda Item 2 City of West University Place Harris County, Texas Ordinance No. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS REGARDING GARAGES AND MANEUVERING AREAS; AND CONTAINING FINDINGS AND PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE SUBJECT. WHEREAS, the City Council and the Zoning & Planning Commission ("Z&PC") of the City of West University Place, Texas ("City") have held a joint public hearing on a proposal to amend the Zoning Ordinance of the City, as last re-formatted and re- adopted by Ordinance No. 1672, adopted March 12, 2001 and as subsequently amended ("Zoning Ordinance"); WHEREAS, the Z&PC has made a final report to the City Council with respect to such proposal, which report is attached as Exhibit A and made a part of this ordinance; and WHEREAS, the City Council has considered the report of the Z&PC and now formally approves and adopts that report; and WHEREAS, all notices, hearings and procedures relating to amending the Zoning Ordinance, as may be required by law, the City Charter or the Zoning Ordinance, have been duly given, held and followed, and the City Council has jurisdiction to amend the Zoning Ordinance as provided herein; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE: Section 1. The City Council officially finds, determines, declares and adopts all of the matters set out in the preamble of this ordinance, and the Zoning Ordinance is hereby amended as recommended by the Z&PC, according to the Z&PC's final report in Exhibit A, which is attached and made a part of this ordinance for all purposes. Section 2. All ordinances and parts of ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed to the extent of the conflict only. Section 3. If any word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, section or other part of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, shall ever be held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, neither the remainder of this ordinance, nor the application of such word, phrase, s ~ clause, sentence, paragraph, section or other part of this ordinance to any other persons or circumstances, shall be affected thereby. Section 4. The City Council officially finds, determines and declares that a sufficient written notice of the date, hour, place and subject of each meeting at which this ordinance was discussed, considered or acted upon was given in the manner required by the Texas Open Meetings Act, as amended, and that each such meeting has been open to the public as required by law at all times during such discussion, consideration and action. The City Council ratifies, approves and confirms such notices and the contents and posting thereof. The City Council officially finds, determines and declares that sufficient notices of the joint public hearing were given, and the City Council ratifies, approves and confirms such notices, including the contents and the method in which they were given. Section 5. This ordinance shall become effective on the tenth day following its publication, as provided in the City Charter. CONSIDERED, PASSED AND APPROVED on first reading on Councilmembers Voting Aye: Councilmembers Voting No: Councilmembers Absent: CONSIDERED, PASSED AND APPROVED on second reading, AND SIGNED, on Councilmembers Voting Aye: Councilmembers Voting No: Councilmembers Absent: Attest: Signed: City Secretary (Seal) Mayor Recommended: City Manager Prepared by: James L. Dougherty, Jr. Approved as to legal form: City Attorney Exhibit A Zoning & Planning Commission City of West University Place, Texas 3800 University Boulevard West University Place, Texas 77005 April 10, 2008 Honorable Mayor & Members of the City Council City of West University Place 3808 University Boulevard Houston, Texas 77005 Subject: Final report on a proposal to amend the zoning ordinance of the City of West University Place, Texas ("City") relating to GARAGES AND MANEUVERING AREAS To the Honorable Mayor & Members of City Council: The Zoning & Planning Commission of the City submits this, its final report, on the subject proposal, for the assistance of the Council as well as other interested persons. Scope of Proposal. The proposal, as now recommended, would: (i) require at least two garage parking spaces per house (or one per house, for old stock housing) in single-family districts (SF Districts); (ii) require such garage parking spaces to be enclosed or semi-enclosed and adjoining a driveway; (iii) change the formula for the maximum number of garage parking spaces; (iv) specify minimum garage parking space dimensions in SF Districts; and (v) specify when structures above driveways must be cantilevered or suspended. The proposal includes some clarifying changes and reorganization. The principal purposes are to facilitate and encourage off- street parking by requiring more garage spaces and making them readily usable. Proceedings After Preliminary Report. Pursuant to public notices, the Zoning & Planning Commission and the City Council held a joint public hearing on February 25, 2008. The hearing provided an opportunity for parties in interest and citizens to be heard in relation to the proposal. At the hearing, City staff explained the proposal, and several witnesses commented. The Commission has considered all of this information and the Comprehensive Plan. The Commission recommends the proposal with an amendment. The amendment deletes the originally-specified 20' x 10' minimum dimensions for maneuvering area outside each garage space (as well as the exception allowing the administrative official to approve smaller maneuvering areas in certain circumstances). Recommendation. Based on the review given this proposal, the Commission: (i) finds that the proposal would be in the public interest and consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, (ii) finds that the proposal reasonably addresses circumstances which have arisen since the last comprehensive revision of the zoning ordinance, (iii) makes its final recommendation favorable to the proposal, and (iv) recommends that the City Council adopt the proposal, with the amendment discussed above, as shown in the attachment to this report. The Vote. This report was authorized by the Commission at its meeting held on the date of this report. The vote was as follows: Commissioners Brown, Yehle and Clark voted "aye;" Commissioner Stafshede voted "no;" Commissioners Duncan, McManus and Elkowitz absent. Respectfully submitted: ZONING AND PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS By= - For the Commission Amendment relating to garages, maneuvering area, etc. As amended 4-10-08 Amend Table 7-4a as follows: General Rule Every building site, garage space and related structure must Table 7-4a: conform to the applicable regulations shown. by District, in this table. ("N/A" means the rule does not apply.) E,viceptlons/Spee al Rules (1) See special rules Garage space noted in table. (3) See Article 9 regarding Planned Development Districts. (3) See Note 1 regarding special exceptions. SF-1 SF-2 SF-3 TH GR- GR- C Item Regulation 1 2 Garage Garage Minimum". ".2.0 per DU (1.0 per Dl_T for old stock Minimum;.- 2.0 per D space, in parking housing): r ach imist be r-nclosed or semi- teach must be ill i"I'l general spaces. See (nclosed and idioin a driveway. enclose d-g++Fa-g-e,. Article 10. Maximum:-. 1.0 per 2~-a(1F~ '125s q. ft of building site area, not to exceed 4.0. Minimum -y_,' ]0 feet wide, 20 feet deep ifor each required 12 ft. wide. p-e garage g;irage parking ~uace) 25 ft. deep (for each 1>rzrlcii~ required garage dimen- sions Garage Maneuver- .R r ' 1 Sre .=1rticje 10. doors or ing area openings Door or Prohibited unless: (1) the garage door is set back ten (May affect eligibility opening feet or more from the front yard, and (.ii) there is as QMDS. See facing only open area above the driveway for at least definitions in Article 2.) front seven feet inward from the front yard. and (iii) any street line. structure above the driveway (and within 10 feet of t_he front ~-ard) must be cantilevered or suspended from the building (no special posts or vertical supports being allowed). Door or Prohibited unless: (i) the garage door is set back ten (May affect eligibility opening feet or more from the side street line, and (ii) there as QMDS. See facing side is only open area above the driveway for at least definitions in Article 2.) street line seven feet inward from the side street line. and (iii) any structure above the driveway Viand within 10 feet of the side street line must be cantilevered or suspended from the building (no special posts or vertical supports being allowed). Garage Limit on Max. 600 sq. ft. GFA in any accessory building N/A accessory non-garage containing garage space. buildings space Note 1. Special Exceptions. The ZBA may issue a special exception fora parking area, garage or driveway in another location or with a different design than prescribed by this table, if it finds that: (i) the other location or design will not unreasonably interfere with available light and air and will not significantly alter access for fire- fighting and similar needs: (ii) the other location or design will prevent the destruction of a qualified tree; (iii) in the case of the remodeling of a principal building, the location requested is the same location as an existing parking area, garage or driveway; or (iv) the location or design requested is necessary for safety considerations. _ r', racrrF~rirr:; rrr<4r- 1 k1gwii,3#E3r1 : ,#i# ° i , _+l ,t least •4 r, J,... ,t, 040 Amend the second page of Table 7-4a in the same manner as shown above, so that: (i) changes applicable to SF Districts apply to "PDD-SF" Districts and (ii) changes applicable to the TH District apply to "PDD-TH" Districts (but not PDD-C). Amend subsection (c) of Section 10-102 as follows: (c) .'~-~.;TNlaneuveringAreas. In addition to the minimum dimensions for parking spaces, there must be sufficient driveways and other maneuvering areas to allow ordinary, practical use of each required parking space. NLineuverin; tre,as must ~dso comi)[ with the fi~llrnvin : (1) See # ' To facilitate access to each required garage parkiny swice there must be •a IMtraeuvering area imniediately outside the gZln'lTe opening For SFD use, the urea may be loeated on the buildim ;site or in the idji, Bent street •area or partly in each For non-SFD uses, the minimum dirnen.sions are 24 ft long and 2 ft wider thin the -ara-e ##penin and the nrea #nrt~t he located entirely on the btlildint,, site. (2) Maneuvering areas may not be counted toward the required number of parking spaces (except on sites with SFD use only). (3) Maneuvering areas ir~xcept those servin; •>nlv one or two dwelling ttnit:~) must be provided, sized and arranged so that a large vehicle can leave the street driving forward, enter any required parking space driving forward, park in that space, and then re-enter the street area driving forward, all with no more than two stops to change directions. As used in this section, "large vehicle" means a truck IS feet long, with a turning radius of 24 feet (outside of bumper). !;E1-V-E' tT~JTC~ -CCT-ri'rLLZI _ _ I # } (4) reasonable. usahle "overhang" above ]~)w landscar#ing and similar areas mad be counted toward required 111micnverim-, area. r , • City of West University Place Harris County, Texas Ordinance No. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS REGARDING DRIVEWAYS AND PARKING; AND CONTAINING FINDINGS AND PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE SUBJECT. WHEREAS, the City Council and the Zoning & Planning Commission ("Z&PC") of the City of West University Place, Texas ("City") have held a joint public hearing on a proposal to amend the Zoning Ordinance of the City, as last re-formatted and re- adopted by Ordinance No. 1672, adopted March 12, 2001 and as subsequently amended ("Zoning Ordinance"); WHEREAS, the Z&PC has made a final report to the City Council with respect to such proposal, which report is attached as Exhibit A and made a part of this ordinance; and WHEREAS, the City Council has considered the report of the Z&PC and now formally approves and adopts that report; and WHEREAS, all notices, hearings and procedures relating to amending the Zoning Ordinance, as may be required by law, the City Charter or the Zoning Ordinance, have been duly given, held and followed, and the City Council has jurisdiction to amend the Zoning Ordinance as provided herein; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE: Section 1. The City Council officially finds, determines, declares and adopts all of the matters set out in the preamble of this ordinance, and the Zoning Ordinance is hereby amended as recommended by the Z&PC, according to the Z&PC's final report in Exhibit A, which is attached and made a part of this ordinance for all purposes. Section 2. All ordinances and parts of ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed to the extent of the conflict only. Section 3. If any word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, section or other part of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, shall ever be held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, neither the remainder of this ordinance, nor the application of such word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, section or other part of this ordinance to any other persons or circumstances, shall be affected thereby. Section 4. The City Council officially finds, determines and declares that a sufficient written notice of the date, hour, place and subject of each meeting at which this ordinance was discussed, considered or acted upon was given in the manner required by the Texas Open Meetings Act, as amended, and that each such meeting has been open to the public as required by law at all times during such discussion, consideration and action. The City Council ratifies, approves and confirms such notices and the contents and posting thereof. The City Council officially finds, determines and declares that sufficient notices of the joint public hearing were given, and the City Council ratifies, approves and confirms such notices, including the contents and the method in which they were given. Section 5. This ordinance shall become effective on the tenth day following its publication, as provided in the City Charter. CONSIDERED, PASSED AND APPROVED on first reading on Councilmembers Voting Aye: Councilmembers Voting No: Councilmembers Absent: CONSIDERED, PASSED AND APPROVED on second reading, AND SIGNED, on Councilmembers Voting Aye: Councilmembers Voting No: Councilmembers Absent: Attest: Signed: City Secretary (Seal) Mayor Recommended: City Manager Prepared by: James L. Dougherty, Jr. Approved as to legal form: City Attorney Exhibit A Zoning & Planning Commission City of West University Place, Texas 3800 University Boulevard West University Place, Texas 77005 April 10, 2008 Honorable Mayor & Members of the City Council City of West University Place 3808 University Boulevard Houston, Texas 77005 Subject: Final report on a proposal to amend the zoning ordinance of the City of West University Place, Texas ("City") relating to DRIVEWAYS AND PARKING To the Honorable Mayor & Members of City Council: The Zoning & Planning Commission of the City submits this, its final report, on the subject proposal, for the assistance of the Council as well as other interested persons. Scope of Proposal. The proposal would: (i) specify a nine- foot minimum driveway width (for single-family houses, this would be "mirror-to-mirror" width; the actual paved area could be narrower); (ii) allow pervious pavement beneath required driveways and parking spaces as an alternative to hard-surfaced pavement; (iii) require, in addition to garage parking spaces, an extra parking space between the garage and the public roadway (and not atop a sidewalk). The proposal mainly applies to single-family detached houses (SFD use). It includes details for measurement and locations, some cross-referencing and a special rule for some prior non-conforming driveways. The principal purposes are to facilitate and encourage off- street parking by making driveways easier to use and requiring extra parking spaces that would not block sidewalks. Such an extra space could also be used as a loading or unloading area. Proceedings After Preliminary Report. Pursuant to public notices, the Zoning & Planning Commission and the City Council held a joint public hearing on February 25, 2008. The hearing s ~ provided an opportunity for parties in interest and citizens to be heard in relation to the proposal. At the hearing, City staff explained the proposal, and several witnesses commented. The Commission has considered all of this information and the Comprehensive Plan. The Commission recommends the proposal with two amendments. One amendment reduces the originally-proposed minimum driveway width from 101to 9' (for single-family houses, this would be "mirror-to-mirror" width; the actual paved area could be narrower). The other amendment would clarify that the proposed pavement specification (hard-surfaced or pervious) would apply to each required driveway and parking space. Recommendation. Based on the review given this proposal, the Commission: (i) finds that the proposal would be in the public interest and consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, (ii) finds that the proposal reasonably addresses circumstances which have arisen since the last comprehensive revision of the zoning ordinance, (iii) makes its final recommendation favorable to the proposal, and (iv) recommends that the City Council adopt the proposal, with the amendment discussed above, as shown in the attachment to this report. The Vote. This report was authorized by the Commission at its meeting held on the date of this report. The vote was as follows: Commissioners Brown, Yehle, Stafshede, McManus and Clark voted "aye;" no "noes;" Commissioners Duncan and Elkowitz absent. Respectfully submitted: ZONING AND PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS By. , For the Commission • • Amendment relating to driveways and parking As amended 4-10-08 Amend table 7-5a as follows: General Rule Every building site, vehicular area and related structure must Table 7.5a: conform to the applicable regulations shown, by District, in this table. ("N/A" means the rule does not apply.) E.rceptions/Special Rules (1) See special Parking, driveways, etc. rules noted in table. (3) See Article 9 regarding Planned Development Districts. (3) See Note 7 regarding special exceptions. (4) See Article 10. Item Regulation SF-1 SF-2 SF-3 TH GR•1 GR•2 C Off-street parking Number, Depends on land use, layout, etc. See this Table, Table 7-4a, and.-lrticle 10 spaces and location, size, (including maneuvering areas, design requirements, "same site" rule, yards, parking areas design street areas, loading spaces, etc.). Grouping or Not allowed, except in a QMDS platted parking reserve serving two or more Other regulations sharing. DU's. But see Note 2. apply: see, e.g. rticle 10 Use of parking Parking spaces for non-SFD uses may only be used for motor vehicle parking. areas See Note 3. Maneuverint, -'+oe Article 10 a1YQi s Emergency Minimum 20 ft, via public or private street, to each principal building and each DU (or accessway width. to an adjacent open area accessible to firefighters and equipment). Other See Vote 1. regulations also apply, e.g, fire code. Driveways and Minimum For SFD use: 9 ft. private streets width. For non-SFD residential use: 10 feet, or 17 feet if two-way and serving three See .Vote 1. or more DU's. Other regulations apply: see, e.g. Maximum For SFD use: W Driveway serving any single-bay garage: 12 feet. (ii) Article 10. width..in front Driveway in a front yard serving rear garage or side-facing garage: 12 yard or street feet. (iii) Driveway in side street area of a corner site serving a side- area) facing garage with three or more bays: 30 feet. (iv) Any other drivewa See Note 1. 20 feet. For other residential uses: 24 ft. (or 35 feet if connecting to a major thoroughfare). For t1w. all other use,: :30 feet (or 35 feet if connecting to a major thoroughfare). Maximum For non-SFD uses: 160 feet, driving distance to the nearest street area, length measured along centerline from farthest end point. A longer driveway is allowed if there is an approved turnaround or second means of egress, or if the driveway is platted as part of the common area in a QMDS. Route, location See Note 6 N/A Spacing For non-SFD uses: There must be at least -10 feet between the "inside" apron edges (at their narrowest points) of driveways serving the same building site. Pavement Required type For SFD use: Hard-surfaced or pwrvL, ni.5 pavement required for each requi -ed See Note J. i parking space. Twin "ribbons" of pavement are permitte. For all other uses: Reinforced concrete, with curbs and drains required for all vehicular areas. Elveeptions: (O See Table 7-3 (pervious pavement) and Note d, below. (ii) See Article 10 re~<ardinu "overlia1w Markings; wheel Required type For non-SFD uses: Parking spaces must be clearly marked on the pavement, stops. and wheel stops are required. See Note 11 Curb cuts Number For SFD use: Maximum one per subdivided lot abutting the street. For non-SFD use-,: Maximum one per 50-ft. segment of street line. Other regulations See :Dote 5. apply: see, e.g. Article 10. Max. width per Four feet (for aprons) plus the maximum driveway width allowed. Each curb 50-ft. segment cut must be confined to the part of the street area that directly abuts the of street tine building site(s) served. See Note 1. Visibility triangles Forbidden The following are forbidden on parts of a building site within a visibility See definitions structures, triangle: structures, plants or other things taller than 2.0 ft. or shorter than in Article 2 plants and 8.0 ft. This does not require removal of trees in existence on July 1, 1992, if other things kept pruned. Note 1. Width measurement methods. Minimum driveway width refers to Lei 1; unobstructed vehicular access path and. for non-SFD use. -pavement. Maximum driveway width refers to maximum width of pavement in a front yard or street area, excluding complying curb cut aprons. Maximum curb cut width refers to the width of the driveway plus aprons, measured at the edge of the roadway. [Remaining notes not amended] Amend the second page of Table 7-5a in the same manner as shown above, so that each change also applies to each PDD. Amend the top two lines of the table in Section 10-100 (Off Street Parking) as follows; Use or tvpe of space Minimum number of parking spaces SFD use-+4n +il inn~ ° ite iii b - tom} The number of garaLe tp irkinLT . t _ ,paces required by x # trt e• Article 7 plus one additiogal ,pace located between the required garage space(s) rind the public roack~ay. The additional ,pace may be on the buildim> site or in the adjacent street area for partly in each). Nil rnay not encroach upon any part Of a public sidewalk (e\ktinR or proposed) or the roadwav.2.0 per NlildiRL '+k- Amend subsection (g) of Section 12-103 as follows: (g) Driveways. If the PNC item is non-compliance with driveway regulations in an SF District, PNC status is lost if: (i) a new driveway is constructed, (ii) an existing driveway is either replaced or expanded, or (iii) space is added to the principal building so that its gross floor area is increased to 200 percent or more of its gross floor area on the 1987 effective date. This "t.tb"ectiotl (toes riot apply to non-COrniance With rllitlinuttri dimensions fOr a driveway (or uiaueuvcrint> area) on a site with SFD use otriV.