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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDept Report 08-28-06 CARMEL BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS DEPARTMENT REPORT August 28, 2006 lO-14h. Renaissance Hotel The applicant seeks the following development standards variance approvals: Docket No. 06070014 V Chapter 27.08 reduced # parking spaces Docket No. 06070015 V Chapter 25.07.02-8(b) total # signs Docket No. 06070016 V Chapter 25.07.02-8(c) sign square footage Docket No. 06070017 V Chapter 25.07.02-8(d) ground sign height Docket No. 06070018 V Chapter 25.07.02-8(b) signs oriented north/south The site is located at 11911 N. Meridian St. and is zoned B-6/Business within the US Hwy 31 Corridor Overlay. Filed by Terry Dammeyer of Winegardner & Hammons, Inc. General Info: Renaissance Hotel will be a full service hotel with a conference center, office, and restaurant. The petitioner seeks variance approval for the number parking spaces (64-space reduction). The ordinance requires 464 sparking spaces, and the petitioner proposes to provide 400. The petitioner seeks variance approval for the numbers of signs: 3 are proposed (2 wall signs and 1 ground sign), and the sign ordinance only allows 2 signs, since the site has 2 road frontages. The petitioner seeks variance approval to allow the two wall signs to be oriented to the north and to the south; the sign ordinance requires signs to face road frontages, which are east and west for this site. The petitioner seeks variance approval for each sign's square footage. Each ofthe two wall signs are proposed to be 362 sq ft (6-ft tall by 60.21 ft wide), while the sign ordinance only allows the south wall sign to be 150 sq ft in area and the north wall sign to be 120 sq ft in area (due to different sign charts for a freeway and non-freeway). These are variances of212 sq ft and 242 sq ft, respectively. The ground sign is proposed to be 10-ft tall and 80 sq ft in area, while the sign ordinance only allows this sign to be 6-ft tall and 75 sq ft in area. Analysis: No sign along the US 31 corridor comes close to the proposed wall sign size of 362 sq ft. This proposed sign size is comparable to that of a billboard, which is 12' x 24' = 288 sq ft. Larger billboards are 14' x 48' = 672 s ft. Exam les of some of the larger signs in the US 31 Corridor are: Com an Si n dimensions Si n s uare foota e Clarian North Hos ital PUD) - wall si 3.42' x 58' 198.16 s ft Heart Center of Indiana - wall sign 2' x 50' 100 s ft Hilton Garden Inn - wall si 7.25' x 24' 173.52 s Thomson - wall sign 3.3' x 22' 97 s ft Large Signs on the Meridian Corridor Dimensions: 3.42' x 58' Area: 198.4 sq ft. Frontage Dimension: 215' R-O-W Setback: 225' Dimensions: 7.23' x 24' Area: 173.5 sq ft. Frontage Dimension: 63' R-O-W Setback: 115' Dimensions: 3.42' x 34.33' Area: 117.4 sq ft. Frontage Dimension: 215' R-O-W Setback: 225' Dimensions: 4' x 28.11' Area: 112.4 sq ft Frontage Dimension: 208' R-O- W Setback: 300' Dimensions: 3' x 33' Area: 99 sq ft. Frontage Dimension: 221' R-O-W Setback: 170' Findings of Fact: number of parking spaces 1.) The approval of this variance will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare of the community because: the parking lot requirement is short by 64 parking spaces. The petitioner knows his product because of several other similar projects in nearby states, and has proved to the Board that 400 parking spaces are adequate. 2.) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner because: the parking lot requirement is short by 64 spaces. The petitioner knows his product, and has proved to the Board that 400 parking spaces are adequate. 3.) The strict application of the terms of the Zoning Ordinance to the property will result in practical difficulties in the use of the property because: the petitioner will have to construct the additional 64 parking spaces, adding over 11,520 sq ft of pavement to the site, possibly negatively affecting the overall site plan, landscaping, drainage, and feasibility of the project on this site, possibly causing the project to not be able to be built. Findings of Fact: wall sign orientation 1.) The approval of this variance will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare of the community because: the wall signs are permitted on the east and west building facades, and will be re-Iocated to the north and south facades, still serving their purpose of site identification., possibly allowing for greater ease of site identification for travelers along US 31 and Pennsylvania St, both of which are north-south streets. 2.) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner because: the wall signs are permitted on the east and west building facades, and will be re-Iocated to the north and south facades, still serving their purpose of site identification., possibly allowing for greater ease of site identification for travelers along US 31 and Pennsylvania St, both of which are north-south streets. 3.) The strict application of the terms of the Zoning Ordinance to the property will result in practical difficulties in the use of the property because: the wall signs will have to be placed on the east and west building facades, possibly causing greater difficulty in site identification by potential driver/users of the site, while traveling on the north-south streets adjacent to the site. Findings of Fact: wall sign size 1.) The approval of this variance will be injurious to the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare of the community because: each of the two wall signs will be over the sign ordinance requirements by 212 sq ft or 242 sq ft. No other sign in the US 31Corridor, or even the City of Cannel, is even close to the proposed sign sizes. 2.) The use and value of the area adjacent to the property included in the variance will be affected in a substantially adverse manner because: each of the two wall signs will be over the sign ordinance requirements by 212 sq ft or 242 sq ft. No other sign in the US 31Corridor or even the City of Cannel, is even close to the proposed sign sizes. 3.) The strict application of the terms of the Zoning Ordinance to the property will not result in practical difficulties in the use of the property because: the signs can be sized to meet the requirements of the sign ordinance, just as the other businesses along US 31 have done. Findings of Fact: ground sign size & height 1.) The approval of this variance will not be injurious to the public health, safety, morals, and general welfare of the community because: the ground sign will fit into the Pennsylvania Street character with good design and landscaping at its base. The variance request is for 5 sq ft of sign area and 4-ft of height. 2.) The use and value ofthe area adjacent to the property included in the variance will not be affected in a substantially adverse manner because: the ground sign will fit into the Pennsylvania Street character with good design and landscaping at its base. The variance request is for 5 sq ft of sign area and 4-ft of height. 3.) The strict application of the terms of the Zoning Ordinance to the property will result in practical difficulties in the use of the property because: potential users of the site, traveling north or south on Pennsylvania Street, may not be able to adequately identify the site and its entry drive with a smaller sign. Recommendation: The Dept. of Community Services recommends negative consideration of Docket No. 06070016 V for wall sign square footage only; the Dept. supports the ground sign size request. The Dept. of Community Services recommends positive consideration of Docket Nos. 06070014 V, 06070015 V, 06070017 V, and 06070018 V.