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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDepartment Report 05-04-236 Carmel Plan Commission COMMERCIAL COMMITTEE Thursday, May 4, 2023 Department Report 3. Docket No. PZ-2023-00072 V: UDO Sec. 5.21 Street trees required, No street trees requested. The applicant seeks a variance from the requirement to have streets for the development known as 1st on Main. The site is located at 41 N. Rangeline Rd. and is zoned C2/Mixed Use. Filed by Kevin Buchheit with Krieg DeVault LLP on behalf of the owner. Site Context: This site is bordered primarily by commercial properties zoned B-1/Business, B-2/Business, B-5/Business, and C-2/Mixed Use. East of the site are R-3/Residential zoned properties. The R-3 parcel immediately east is a parking lot owned by Carmel, and further east are residential homes. Please see the Petitioner’s Info Packet for additional information. Project Details: • DP/ADLS approved in 2022 for this site, which included a site plan and architecture for an office building, parking garage, condo building, and multi-family building. • Project received through review by the Carmel Redevelopment Commission, as well as City Departments during the DP/ADLS process. • Site is currently under construction. • 4 lots are proposed, one for each building, and a common area. • The common area includes a plaza at the corner of Rangeline Rd. and Main St. and a linear park in the middle of the site between the office building and parking garage. • The Commercial subdivision will clean up the lot lines for this site and allow separate ownership for each building/parcel. • The Plat vacation, Primary Plat, 2 waivers, and 2 variances were approved at the April Plan Commission meeting. • The variance for street trees was sent to the Commercial Committee for further discussion. Variances: • Street Trees: C-2 zoning requires shade trees to be planted along all streets within the rights-of-way. However, due to the design of this project, the site was maximized, and room was not available for street trees. • A 10 ft. wide sidewalk is still provided along Main St. and Rangeline Rd. which helps provide appropriate pedestrian circulation in this urban, walkable area. • Urban sidewalks require a larger width as they receive a higher volume of use than a residential sidewalk. The addition of street trees in the sidewalk area would reduce the area for pedestrians. • There will be shrubs and grasses planted in areas along the rights-of-way. • The Department is in support of this variance. • Please refer to the petitioner’s Findings of Facts included in their info packet. April 18, 2023 Plan Commission meeting recap: Petitioner presented the request to plat this site into 4 lots to coincide with the building layouts on the approved DP/ADLS. 3 remonstrators spoke in opposition, mostly to the variances. There was much discussion by the Plan Commission, and many members were concerned with the lack of street trees. Commission wanted the petitioner to look into ways of adding more landscaping and trees to the site; such as adding a tree pit in the 10 ft. sidewalk or adding container trees in the plaza. They also requested the CRC attend the committee and someone from the developer’s design team. PC voted to send this item to the Commercial Committee with final voting authority. DOCS Remaining Comments/Concerns: None. Recommendation: The Department of Community Services recommends the Commercial Committee votes to Approve this item.