Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning Commission 2011-06-26 #4 CITY OF Community Development Department – Planning Division P. O. Box 151560, San Rafael, CA 94915-1560 PHONE: (415) 485-3085/FAX: (415) 485-3184 Meeting Date: June 28, 2011 Agenda Item: Case Numbers: ED11-017; UP11-024 Project Planner: Sarjit Dhaliwal–(415) 485-3397 REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION SUBJECT: 350 Los Ranchitos Road (Guide Dogs for the Blind) – Request for an Environmental and Design Review Permit and Use Permit to demolish an existing 22,560-sq. ft. residential hall and rebuild it as a 26,626-sq. ft. structure (this application if approved would amend a previously approved Environmental and Design Review Permit (ED10- 001) and Use Permit (UP10-002) for this facility); APN: 175-250-03; Public/Quasi-Public (P/QP) District; Phred Starkweather, applicant; Guide Dogs for the Blind, owner; ED11- 017; UP11-024. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In April 2010, the Planning Commission approved a project for demolition of 14,875 sq. ft. administration building, 22,560 sq. ft. residential hall, and 2,517 sq. ft. maintenance/training building and rebuild them as 34,196 sq. ft. administration building (Welcome Center) and 23,124 sq. ft. residential hall rebuilding. Due to the economic slowdown, the April 2010 approval has been scaled down to the current project. The project proposes the replacement of an existing residential hall for the Guide Dogs for the Blind campus, resulting in an increase of approximately 4,066 sq. ft. However, the proposed new structure would not change the intensity of the use, but provide a structure that would be in compliance with the current building and fire codes and would serve its function better. The Guide Dogs facility has been in operation at this site for over 60 years and has operated without any significant issues or complaints. Given that the existing facility is regulated by a Use Permit, the proposed replacement of the structure and increase in its size: 1) an amendment to the Use Permit for the facility to allow the new structure; and 2) Environmental and Design Review Permit for the design of the new structure, site improvements and landscaping. The revised project design was reviewed by the Design Review Board (DRB) in May 2011 and the DRB recommended some modifications to project design, materials and colors. The applicant has incorporated the recommended changes into the project plans. The DRB reviewed the amended design on June 7, 2011 and recommended approval. Given that the project complies with all applicable development standards and the design has been reviewed and recommended for approval, staff recommends that the Commission approve the project. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the Planning Commission adopt a resolution approving the proposed Use Permit and Environmental and Design Review Permit. PROPERTY FACTS Address/Location: 350 Los Ranchitos Road Parcel Number(s): 175-250-03 REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION - Case No: ED11-017; UP11-024 Page 2 Property Size: 496,148 sq. ft. (11.39 ac) Neighborhood: Rafael Meadows (Los Ranchitos) Neighborhood Site Characteristics General Plan Designation Zoning Designation Existing Land-Use Project Site: Public/Quasi-Public (P/QP) P/QP Guide Dogs for the Blind North: P/QP P/QP Cemetery South: Low Density Residential (LDR) LDR Single-family Residences East: Light Industrial/Office (LI/O) LI/O Storage warehouse and SMART rail line West: High Density Residential (HDR) PD1821, PD1537 Multifamily residential Site Description/Setting: The property is located at 350 Los Ranchitos Road and is almost flat, exhibiting a slight downsloping grade from the street to the rear of the property. The facility is accessed off Los Ranchitos Road and Merrydale Road extension, with primary access from the Los Ranchitos entrance. The Merrydale access is used generally by employees to access the parking lot and kennels. Delivery trucks use Los Ranchitos access and exit at the Merrydale access point. Both entrances have gates that are locked at night. The property is currently developed with a training facility for dogs for the blind (Guide Dogs for the Blind). The existing development is significantly screened by a large number of trees of varying types and sizes. The property is bounded by Mt. Olivet Cemetery to the north; single family residences to the south; Highway 101, a storage warehouse and SMART rail line to the east and multifamily residential development across Los Ranchitos Road to the west. BACKGROUND The existing use was originally approved by Marin County with a Use Permit in 1951. After the 1975 annexation of the property into the City, the development has been expanded/altered a several times for addition to office building, parking lot and landscape modification, expansion of veterinary clinic, rebuilding the visitor center, etc. Currently the development consists of an administration building, a volunteer center, residential hall for students, dog kennels (with associated office, veterinary clinic, breeding areas), parking and landscaping. The property has been consistently well maintained. In April 2010, the Planning Commission approved demolition of several buildings, with relocation and reconstruction of the two main buildings: Administration Building and Residence Hall. The 14,875-sq. ft. Administration Building was approved to be rebuilt as a 34,196-sq. ft. structure and the 22,560-sq. ft. Residence Hall was approved to be reconstructed as a 23,124-sq. ft. structure. The approval included related landscaping and site improvement changes. Due to the current economic slowdown, the project has been downsized. The requested Use Permit would document the existing facility and the proposed project modifications. PROJECT DESCRIPTION Use: The project includes demolition of an existing 22,560 sq. ft. residential hall and rebuilding it as a 26,626 REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION - Case No: ED11-017; UP11-024 Page 3 sq. ft. building, modified walkways and landscaping adjacent to the residence hall and expansion of existing on-site loop road. The addition of a number of new parking spaces and the updating of 27 nonconforming parking spaces to meet current code standards, would result in number of parking spaces increase from the 181 to 183 spaces. Site Plan: The proposed Site Plan would improve emergency and passenger vehicular circulation and slightly expand parking capacity. Due to the location of the project site and the limited proposed building height, the proposed design would not impact views of the San Pablo Bay, wetlands, bay frontage, the Canal, Mt. Tamalpais and the hills from public streets and public vantage points. The rebuilt residential hall would be a U-shape building with the court containing a covered area along the building for dog relief. The central area of the court would be off-leash dog play area. Architecture: The rebuilt Residence Hall would be designed in a U-shaped configuration in order to orient all the guest rooms to a common centralized courtyard which contains the Dog Relieving Area. The Hall would contain 18 single-occupancy guest rooms as compared to 12 double-occupancy guest rooms in the existing Hall. The new building would be one-story modern design structure, incorporating elements of natural finished vertical wood siding, zinc gray colored standing seam metal roofing and fascia, and painted exterior plaster. The building includes deep overhangs and significant amount of glass surfaces. The modern design would be consistent with the existing character of the neighboring development in terms of the height, which would be appropriately setback and screened from the street and the neighboring single family-residential development to the south. The building would provide a flat floor, day lit Auditorium for graduation ceremonies and other assembly functions. The Auditorium would be linked to the outdoor pedestrian area. Landscaping: The project proposes the removal of 38 trees and replanting of 51 new trees resulting in a total of 261 trees. Eight of the new trees would be shade trees located in the new (modified) parking lot. Additionally, ground cover and shrubs would be planted. The project would result in a total of 110,038 sq. ft. (22.18%) landscape areas, including the existing landscape areas. Grading: The project would require grading of 713 cy cut and 171 cy fill. A total of 542 cy of fill would be exported. The required grading is necessary to obtain the finish floor level of the new buildings for the desired use. On average, grade cuts would be 1.0 foot in depth with a maximum cut of 1.25 feet and a maximum fill depth of 0.5 foot, over the project area. Parking: The proposed project would update 27 existing, non-conforming parking spaces and add additional parking spaces resulting in a total of 183 parking spaces from 181 existing parking spaces. ANALYSIS Listed below are the relevant General Plan 2020 policies, Zoning Ordinance design criteria and San Rafael Design Guideline policies that the Board should use when evaluating the project: REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION - Case No: ED11-017; UP11-024 Page 4 General Plan 2020 Consistency: The General Plan Land Use designation for the subject site is Public/Quasi Public. As detailed in Exhibit 3, the project is consistent with the applicable General Plan policies regarding intensity of development, use, building height, parking, nonresidential design visual compatibility, outdoor lighting and parking lot landscaping. Pertinent design criteria are also reflected in the Zoning Code and the San Rafael Design Guidelines. Although, the proposed project would increase the size of the existing residence hall from 22,560 sq. ft. to 26,626 sq. ft., the proposal would not increase the intensity of the use. Therefore, traffic mitigation fee that would have been required in the case of an increase in the use-intensity, would not be required. Zoning Ordinance Consistency: The project is consistent with all the applicable Zoning Ordinance regulations. This project would improve and continue to provide a unique and valuable use in the City through the provision of new upgraded facilities for the campus. The proposed new facility would not increase the intensity of use for the Public/Quasi Public District. The existing use is an appropriate use for the P/QP District that has been in operation for numerous years without issues. This project would continue the existing use, but improve the facilities for the campus. A complete analysis of the project’s consistency with the applicable Zoning Ordinance regulations is in provided in Exhibit 4. The existing Use Permit allows a Guide Dogs facility for breeding and training the guide dogs. The use includes kennel office, veterinary clinic, breeding area, kennels and other associated uses. The number of employees or dogs is not specified. The permit also allows a volunteer center (out of which volunteers work), an administration office and a residence hall containing 12 double occupancy rooms. As described in detailed in the Project Description section of this report, the current Use Permit would allow expansion of the parking lot with the reconstructed parking lot containing 183 parking spaces, relocation and expansion of a residence hall from 22,560 sq. ft. to 26,626 sq. ft. and would contain 18 single occupancy rooms. The resident hall would include a 2,172 sq. ft. assembly room, kitchen and dining area, classroom and support services such as staff offices, nursing, student lounge, exercise area and laundry room. In order to grant a Use Permit and Environmental and Design Review Permit for the proposed project, the Planning Commission must make the findings required for each permit. Based on the analysis in this report and in the attached General Plan and Zoning Ordinance tables, staff recommends that the required findings can be made. San Rafael Design Guidelines: The San Rafael Residential Design Guidelines, adopted November 15, 2004, strive to improve the design of all residential and non-residential development. The project complies with all the applicable criteria from the San Rafael Design Guidelines. A complete analysis of the project’s consistency with the criteria is provided in Exhibit 5. DESIGN REVIEW BOARD RECOMMENDATION On May 17, 2011, the Design Review Board (DRB) favorably reviewed the project design (Commissioner Pick, Liaison). With a 5-0 vote (DRB Minutes, Exhibit 6), the DRB made the following recommendations: • The plaster color is too bright and needs to be toned down with a darker color • Assure that parking lot lighting along the south edge of the site is sensitive to neighbors with cutoff shields and landscaping (used to screen light sources and prevent spillover) • The main entry needs to be more pronounced. Recommendations were to modify the roof and or materials to enhance the entry REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION - Case No: ED11-017; UP11-024 Page 5 • Consider reintroducing more of the wood siding to break up the amount of plaster wall area and bring back the warmth of that material. The entry might be a good location to use more of this material to enhance/distinguish the entryway • Landscape diversity is good, however, note that redwood trees do not thrive with reclaimed water so an alternate water source of potable water will be needed. The above recommendations have been incorporated in the project plans. The DRB reviewed the amended plans on June 7, 2011 and unanimously recommended approval of the project with the provision that the applicant pursue the issue of watering the redwood tress with potable water to a higher level with Marin Municipal Water District (MMWD) to address the issue raised by Board member Kent. Environmental and Design Review Permit condition #13 (Exhibit 2-5) is recommended to address this provision. ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION The proposed project is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), pursuant to Section 15302 (replacement of an existing structure to provide earthquake resistant structure that would have substantially the same purpose and capacity as the existing structure). NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING / CORRESPONDENCE Notice of hearing for the project was conducted in accordance with noticing requirements contained in Chapter 29 of the Zoning Ordinance. A Notice of Public Hearing was mailed to all property owners and occupants within a 300-foot radius of the subject site, Marin Gardens Homeowners Association and Rafael Meadows Improvement Association, and all other interested parties, 15 calendar days prior to the date of all meetings, including this hearing. Public notice was also posted on the subject site 15 calendar days prior to the date of all meetings, including this hearing. OPTIONS The Planning Commission has the following options: 1. Approve the application as presented (Staff recommendation) 2. Approve the application with certain modifications, changes or additional conditions of approval. 3. Continue the applications to allow the applicant to address any of the Commission’s comments or concerns 4. Deny the project EXHIBITS 1. Vicinity/Location Map 2. Draft Resolution 3. General Plan 2020 Consistency Table 4. Zoning Ordinance Consistency Table 5. San Rafael Design Guidelines Consistency Table 6. Design Review Board Minutes, May 17, 2011 Full-sized and 11”x17” plans have been provided to the Planning Commission members only.