HomeMy WebLinkAbout05202010 ZBA Minutes City of West University Place
A Neighborhood City
C Recycled Paper ZONING BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT
MUNICIPAL BUILDING
3800 UNIVERSITY BOULEVARD
MEETING MINUTES
May 20, 2010
6:30 p.m.
I. MEMBERS PRESENT: Richard Wilson(voting),Jeann Howse(voting), Samantha Brantley
(voting), Carole Steen(voting), Glenn Roberts,Martha Bersch(voting),
Cliff Thuot and Andrew Zeve
MEMBERS ABSENT: Frank Vargas, Jr.
III. STAFF PRESENT: Debbie Scarcella, City Planner, Jolie Lenz, City Legal Counsel and
Sallye A. Clark,Planning Assistant
IV. CALL TO ORDER: 6:30 p.m.
Agenda Item Discussion Action
1 Call the meeting to Richard Wilson called the meeting to order at 6:34 Martha Bersch moved to accept that all
order and Protocol. p.m.Richard Wilson asked all members and staff to notices were properly posted and
Notices,Rules,Etc. introduce themselves. Sallye A. Clark, Planning distributed for this meeting. Motion
Assistant stated all notices were posted as required was 2nd by Jeann Howse.Ayes:Richard
by city and state law. Wilson, Jeann Howse, Samantha
Swearing in of witnesses. Brantley, Carole Steen and Martha
Bersch.Motion passed.Richard Wilson
administered the oath to all witnesses.
2 Docket No. 2010-02, Elizabeth Harris and Peter Cooper with Craves Jeann Howse made a motion to close
Property at 5600 Cupcakes gave a presentation for Docket 2010-02, the evidentiary portion of the appeal.
Kirby Dr,(Appeal) The property is a shopping center and the applicant Motion was 2nd by Martha Bersch.
Applicant requests an wants to open a cupcake bakery/store in about 1900 Richard Wilson, Jeann Howse,
Appeal from a decision square feet of the center. The applicant will bake Samantha Brantley,Martha Bersch and
of the Administrative and sell cupcakes in the store, and will have a Carole Steen voted aye. Motion
Official determining catering/delivery element to the business as well. passed.
the use of the space as a The applicant is not interested in having dine-in After deliberation, Jeann Howse made
restaurant versus a customers or customers who stay for long periods of a motion to reverse the decision of the
retail establishment and time. The goal is to serve the customers quickly so Administrative Official and for
the resulting parking that they will leave. The hours of operation during purposes of parking requirements,
requirements per the week are 8 am to 8 pm,9 am to 8pm on Saturday consider the establishment as a retail
Section 10-100, Off- and 10 am to 7 pm on Sunday. There will be operation. Motion was 2nd by Martha
Street Parking: between 5 and 7 employees at one time on the site. Bersch. Richard Wilson, Jeann
Deliberation, decisions, The applicant requests that the ZBA reverse the Howse, Samantha Brantley, Martha
other action, etc. Administrative Official's determination that the Bersch and Carole Steen voted aye.
regarding the preceding business is a restaurant, which requires more Motion passed.
matters. parking spaces than retail, which is essentially the The ZBA asked staff to consider
type of service they provide. Steve Hussman, with presenting the Zoning and Planning
Hussman Architects, discussed the detailed layout Commission with the opportunity to
and use of the lease space. study these types of establishments
and the parking spaces needed to
3800 University Boulevard • West University Place, Texas 77005-2899 • 713.668.4441 • www.westu.org
Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes
May 20, 2010 Meeting
2
Sallye Clark, Planning Assistant, stated that no adequately serve these types of food
correspondence was received in favor or opposition services.
to the request.
Larry Plotsky,representing Robert Deering, owner
of the shopping center,spoke in favor of the request.
Steve Visintine,2615 Nottingham,spoke against the
request based on current parking issues.
David Kulkarni, 2626 Nottingham, spoke against
the request due to the parking issues.
Judy Chang, 2616 Nottingham, spoke against the
request because of parking concerns.
Debbie Scarcella, City Planner gave the
background and staff response as follows:
The applicant's appeal concerns the status of a
proposed lease space planned at 5600 Kirby Drive.
The applicant proposes to modify a portion of a
lease space (1900) square feet to operate a "Crave
Cupcakes" business. The building site located at
5600 Kirby Drive is currently a shopping center
which houses Azuma's,Chipotle's,Cova,and other
assorted retail establishments. A variance
authorizing a reduction in minimum required
number of parking spaces was granted in 2001 and
established a minimum number of 119 parking
spaces to be maintained based on the current and
then proposed mix of retail and food service spaces.
The property owner is currently maintaining 121
spaces on-site and through an agreement with the
bank next door. The applicant applied for a building
permit to renovate and modify a portion of the
existing retail lease space in order to convert it into a
business which prepares,bakes and sells cupcakes.
By definition, in Section 34-51 of Code of
Ordinances governing Food and Food Handlers,the
proposed business is considered a food service
establishment. There is not a similar definition in
the zoning regulations. Under Section 10-100, the
minimum number of parking spaces required for a
shopping center is computed per a special category
for shopping centers. Four spaces per thousand
square feet are calculated for the entire center.
Additional spaces for office space in excess of 10%
of the gross floor area, theaters, auditoriums, and
food service are required per Note 2 of the table.
For food service, an additional 10 spaces per
thousand square feet must be provided. The
applicant believes that the nature of the proposed
business is more consistent with a retail operation
Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes
May 20, 2010 Meeting
3
than with a food service operation. A classification
of retail for this business would not create the
requirement for additional parking spaces.
The number of required parking spaces for
shopping centers(4 per 1,000 square feet)is based
upon the recognition that different types of
businesses will operate at different peak levels at
different times during the day and therefore are
able to"share"the parking spaces provided. The
additional parking space requirements for higher
density uses such as food service,therefore
acknowledges that these businesses will require a
higher ratio of parking spaces to accommodate the
increased usage at peak times. The tables were
created to help keep the parking load from
overflowing onto the adjacent residential side
streets,by installing and maintaining adequate
onsite parking to accommodate the customers.
Since there is not a definition of"food service"in
the zoning regulations, staff has historically gone
to other definitions in the Code of Ordinances to
assist in interpreting the regulations. Chapter 34
defines a food service establishment for the
purposes of requiring food handling licenses and
permits through the Harris County Health
Department. A food service establishment is one
in which any type of food is manufactured,
packaged,produced,processed,transported,
stored, sold, commercially prepared, or otherwise
handled. There is an exception for those
establishments that sell only pre-packaged or
commercially packaged foods. This definition, of
course, establishes those types of food services
that must meet health and safety regulations for
food handling through the county and state. It was
originally not intended for use to establish
minimum parking standards. The applicant
believes that it can establish that the business will
not generate the numbers of cars for extended
periods of time as a dine-in facility would
generate. The applicant's hours of operation are
also different than that of a normal restaurant.
Staff's basis for the determination is based on the
food service designation in Note 2 of the table,
versus the designation of a restaurant as listed in
the line classification in the regular table. The
parking requirement is the same at 10 per
thousand square feet. Staff believes that the
intention was to include all food services operating
in shopping centers therefore holding them to the
higher standard.
The ZBA has the authority to hear this appeal and
Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes
May 20, 2010 Meeting
4
to affirm,modify or reverse the decision of the
Administrative Official. The applicant has applied
for a permit to make alterations to the lease space
and is awaiting this decision in order to proceed
with construction.
3 Docket No. 2010-03, Lance Thompson, owner of T//H Landholdings, Jeann Howse made a motion to close
Commercial Business Inc. made a presentation of the request. The the evidentiary portion of the hearing.
at 3636 Rice Blvd., property was purchased in March 2010 for the Motion was 211d by Martha Bersch.
West University Place, purpose of renovating the spaces into a Richard Wilson,Jeann Howse,Martha
Texas 77005(Variance cafe/restaurant while retaining the current bank Bersch and Carole Steen voted aye.
and Special portion. The hope is that most patrons of the Motion passed.
Exception). restaurant will walk or bike to the restaurant. The After discussion,Jeann Howse moved
Deliberation,decisions, applicant has met with many of the adjoining that the hearing of this application,
other action, etc. property owners and intends to operate the docket 2010-03 be recessed and
regarding the restaurant with minimal impact to the continued until the meeting set for
following matters: neighborhood. The owner plans on installing June 17, 2010 so that the co-owner of
Public hearing visual and sound buffers, limiting hours of T/H Landholdings, Greg Thompson,
regarding the operation, including garbage disposal and limiting can be present.
following matters: hours for outdoor dining. The applicant requests a Martha Bersch seconded the motion.
Applicant requests a special exception to create an additional curb cut Ayes: Richard Wilson,Jeann Howse,
Special Exception to on the north end of the parking lot to aid in Samantha Brantley,Martha Bersch
allow an additional curb internal traffic circulation. The applicant also and Carole Steen. Motion passed.
cut in a SFD (Single requests a variance for the reduction in the
Family District) per required parking spaces.
Table 7-5a Parking, Sallye Clark, Planning Assistant, stated that no
driveways, etc. The correspondence was received in favor or opposition
applicant also requests a to the request.
variance to allow a No one spoke in favor of the request.
reduction in the
minimum number of David Aguilar, 3716 Georgetown, spoke against
required parking spaces the request due to concerns about safety.
per Section 10-100 Off-
street parking. Stan Smith, 3702 Georgetown, spoke against the
Deliberation, request due to many concerns about increased
decisions, other traffic,noise and parking.
action, etc.regarding
the preceding John Sieber, 3621 Georgetown, spoke against the
matters. request.
Debbie Scarcella, City Planner gave the staff
report as follows: The applicant's property is
located at 3636 Boulevard just west of Poor Farm
ditch and northeast of the intersection of Rice
Boulevard and Edloe Street. The site is partially
located in both a commercial and single family
(detached)(SF-3)zoning district,but the north
half of the site has prior nonconforming(PNC)
status as a business established by a special
exception issued on September 13, 2000. The
special exception was granted to reinstate and
extend PNC status for a parking lot in a single-
family district related to the business activity of
adjacent site to the south. (Copy of the decision
Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes
May 20, 2010 Meeting
5
is attached.) The special exception extended the
PNC status for 20 years, or until September 13,
2020. The site was established as a grocery store
around 1950 and currently houses only a bank
facility. The building contains 10,500 square feet
and until recently was home to JMH grocery and
Amegy bank. The property was recently sold to
the applicant who is proposing to expand the
banking facility and develop a restaurant/retail
space and an office space. This will not expand
(or increase)the non-conformity of the use since
the business uses are light commercial,but will
affect the minimum parking requirements. The
applicant currently provides 47 regular spaces on
the building site, 16 of which are pull-in spaces
contained within the property boundaries along
Rice Boulevard and Edloe Street. These spaces
likely have PNC status for maneuvering area.
The remainder of the spaces(31)are provided on
the rear adjacent building site. The required
number of spaces for the site is 53, or 6 spaces
less than required. It is likely that PNC status for
parking was acquired when updated parking
regulations were enacted. The minimum number
of required parking spaces will increase with the
addition of the restaurant/retail and office space
uses. By definition, a structure that contains more
than two businesses is then considered a shopping
center,which has a separate parking requirement
category. The minimum number of parking
spaces for a shopping center is 4 spaces per 1,000
square feet. If the shopping center contains either
food service, office or theater/auditorium space,
then additional parking spaces are required to be
added to the total. For office space exceeding
10% of the gross floor area of the center, 3 spaces
per thousand in excess of the 10%must be added.
For food service space, an additional 10 spaces
per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area must be
provided. Based on the applicant's proposed
modifications,the minimum required number of
parking spaces will increase to 87 (10,525 /1000
x 4=42 spaces; 4347/1000 x 10=44 spaces;
10%x 10,525 = 1052-1313 x 3/1000= 1. 42+
44+ 1 = 87). Including off-site parking spaces
within 300 feet of the site,the applicant is only
able to provide 67 parking spaces. Additionally,
there is one curb cut provided off Edloe Street on
the portion of the building site located within the
SF3 district. A second curb cut is being
requested on the north side of the building site,
just past the curve in Edloe Street. The applicant
believes this will help the traffic flow in and out
Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes
May 20, 2010 Meeting
6
of the parking lot and the configuration will
provide 4 additional parking spaces.
Section 10-103 of the zoning regulations
mandates that all required parking spaces be
located on the same building site as the building
space served. There is an exception for parking
spaces located within 300 feet of the building
served when an increase in the number of spaces
is required by a change or enlargement of use.
This section could authorize the use of existing
parking spaces along the east side of Edloe Street
and some spaces across the street at the Compass
bank to help alleviate parking issues during
certain peak hours of operation and off-time of
the bank. Perhaps the applicant will provide
evidence of an agreement authorizing use of the
spaces from a property owner within 300 feet of
the building site.
The Board may also consider attaching
conditions. A decision to grant a variance, for
example, could logically include conditions to
prevent"overflow"parking, e.g.: (1)restrictions
on the operations of the proposed business ; (2)
limits on the number of occupants in the building
at one time; and(3)limits on the hours of
operations of the businesses. Time limits may
also be attached, limiting the time allowed to
operate and/or requiring a new application for
time extension.
4 Rules of Procedure. Debbie Scarcella, City Planner, gave an overview Jeann Howse made a motion to approve
Matters related to of the changes in the rules of procedure. the changes in the rules of procedure as
Zoning Board of Applicants must apply for authorized work within presented. Martha Bersch 2nd the
Adjustment Rules of 90 days of the filing of the decision. Currently motion. Richard Wilson,Jeann Howse,
Procedure regarding only the ZBA can extend the time allotted to apply Samantha Brantley,Martha Bersch and
granting time for a permit. The proposed changes will change Carole Steen voted aye. Motion
extensions. the allotted time to 180 days from filing of the passed.
decision and will allow the Administrative Official
to authorize one extension of time for an
additional 180 day period.
5 Minutes. Minutes were not available for
presentation.
Adjournment. Jeann Howse made a motion to
adjourn the meeting. Motion was
2na by Martha Bersch. Ayes:
Richard Wilson, Jeann Howse,
Samantha Brantley,Martha Bersch and
Carole Steen. Motion passed. The
meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m.
PASSED THIS 02.A)61-
DAY OF 2011.
Zoning Board of Adjustment Minutes
May 20, 2010 Meeting
7
% z \
g, Ric P /,
J. Wilson, ', -ing Officer
ATTEST:
Sallye A. Clark, ' anning Assistant