Title
Ordinance - Public Hearing and Consideration of a Request for a Specific Use Permit for Apartments on Approximately 12.918 Acres out of the Elizabeth McAnear Survey, Abstract No. 1005 and the Richard Bratton Survey, Abstract No. 114, City of Mansfield, Tarrant County, Texas, located on the South Side of E. Broad Street, a Quarter-mile East of Cannon Drive; Clay Roby of Stillwater Capital, on behalf of Stephen C.H. Lockwood of Lockwood Management Corporation (ZC#19-014)
Requested Action
To consider the subject Specific Use Permit request
Recommendation
The Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on September 16, 2019, and voted 3-4 (Bounds, Klenzendorf, Weydeck, and Chairman Wilshire voting no) to recommend approval, resulting in a denial. One person spoke in opposition to the request, citing too many existing and planned apartments in the city and stating that no more apartments should be approved until they are 90% occupied. There were some questions about the amenities to be provided, including a dog park, which the applicant stated they plan to accommodate in the courtyard of Building 2. There was also concern about whether the provided trash enclosures were adequate and the applicant responded that they plan to provide valet trash service as well. One of the commissioners asked why live-work units were not being provided, to which the applicant stated that this could potentially be accommodated. There were questions about what the planned rental rates would be, to which the applicant responded that they would be Class A rents on par with the Main Street Lofts and The Julian. There was concern about the impact on the school district and one of the commissioners asked if the school district was notified, and staff responded that the school district receives a notification with every zoning change and that the school district regularly conducts housing studies to plan for its growth and overall needs. Overall, several of the commissioners believed that the City has too many existing and approved apartments. There were several questions about The Reserve and how this development meets the design standards, the intent of The Reserve, and how many apartments are allowed in each of the sub districts. Staff answered the commissioners’ specific questions as it related to the development meeting the design standards and stated that the intent of The Reserve was to create a more urban development that included a mix of employment uses and high-density residential with supporting commercial services. The applicant has not made any changes to their plans.
Description/History
The subject property consists of 12.918 acres on the south and west side of E. Broad Street. The property is located in the Workplace Sub-District of The Reserve, which is intended to provide opportunities for employment-related land uses including commercial and office, as well as multi-family residential and supporting service-related uses.
The applicant is requesting a Specific Use Permit for 295 apartment units, which will be developed on 8.345 acres of the property; the balance of the property will be reserved for public right-of-way and future commercial/retail development. The Workplace Sub-District allows a maximum of 1,024 residential dwelling units. If approved, this development will comprise the first dwelling units in this sub-district and 28.8% of the maximum allowable dwelling units in this sub-district.
Site Plan
The applicant plans to develop an urban-style multi-family residential development called Urban Living Phase 1. The apartments will be developed on the northwesternmost 8.345 acres. In addition, 2.558 acres to the east (along Broad St.) will be reserved for future commercial/retail development and 2.015 acres will be dedicated for public right-of-way to allow access off of Broad Street and a public street to serve the development and future development to the south and east. The applicant has also indicated that land to the south is intended to be developed for future multi-family as well; this land is also controlled by the current owner of the subject property.
The multi-family portion of the development will include two three-story multi-family buildings with interior courtyards in each building. Building 1 (the easternmost building) will include 146 apartment units as well as the leasing office, mail center, and indoor resident amenity center. Building 2 (the westernmost building) will include 149 apartments. Combined, the buildings will include 295 apartments over 8.345 acres for a density of 35.35 dwelling units per acre. Building 1 has a 57,772 sq. ft. footprint and 173,995 sq. ft. total area, while Building 2 has a 60,283 sq. ft. footprint and 180,849 sq. ft. total area. The lot coverage is 32% and the floor area ratio is 0.98. Both buildings will include outdoor resident amenities in the interior courtyards.
The applicant is proposing the following unit mix:
Efficiency (min. 600 sq. ft. floor area): 126 units (42.71%)
One-bedroom (min. 750 sq. ft. floor area): 75 units (25.42%)
Two-bedroom (min. 950 sq. ft. floor area): 94 units (31.86%)
The applicant has also provided a tabulation showing that Building 1 will include a higher proportion of efficiency and one-bedroom units, while Building 2 will include a more balanced mix; this is partly due to building design since Building 1 includes more angles to meet the site design requirements of the Workplace Sub-District of The Reserve.
In the design of the development, the applicant has maintained an 80’ build-to line adjacent to E. Broad St. with a slip road configuration with two rows of parking spaces and has also maintained a 10’ build-to line adjacent to the east-west collector street along the southern perimeter. There is some encroachment of the porches over the build-to line. This is all consistent with the standards of the Workplace Sub-District of The Reserve.
Access, Circulation, and Parking
Access into the development off Broad Street will be via a new major collector street (with 70’ R.O.W.) on the southeast end of the development adjacent to the future commercial. In the future, this collector street will extend south to serve future development to the south. From here, the major collector off Broad will intersect an east-west minor collector (with 60’ R.O.W.) with parallel parking arrangement that will travel east-west along the southern boundary of the development to serve the future commercial lots as well as the apartment development. Street stubs have been provided to allow for future connectivity to the west, south, and east. Separating the apartment development from the future commercial lots will be a 24’ travel lane with two rows of publicly accessible parking spaces and an additional direct access point to Broad Street. Both access points on Broad Street could include east-bound right-turn lanes; the requirements for these right-turn lanes will be determined at the time of permitting.
Much of the apartment development will be gated, aside from the southern facades of the building adjacent to the public street, the parallel parking spaces along this street, as well as the east-facing façade of Building 1 and adjacent parking area, which also includes the leasing office area. The primary gated entrance and call box will be at the northeastern corner adjacent to the leasing center. Two additional gated vehicular access points will be located on the southern end of the development off the new east-west public road.
Parking for the apartments will be entirely on surface parking lots or parallel parking spaces on the street. Four of the parallel parking spaces along the east-west collector street adjacent to the buildings will be designated as loading zones. The development will include a total of 413 parking spaces for a ratio of 1.06 spaces per bedroom, which slightly exceeds the minimum requirement of 1 space per bedroom. 129 of the parking spaces are proposed to be under carports. All of the carports are slated to be located in the northwestern portion of the development, north of Building 2. In a grassy area separating some of the carport spaces will be the development’s proposed water quality feature.
Storage, Equipment/Service Area Screening, and Lighting
The applicant notes that there will be no outside storage on the property, no parking of boats/trailers/recreational vehicles, all utilities will be underground, all services areas and mechanical equipment will be screened in accordance with the requirements of The Reserve, and that adequate lighting will be provided in accordance with the requirements of The Reserve. Two trash enclosures will be located on the north side of the property and will be adequately screened in accordance with zoning requirements.
Elevations and Perspectives
The applicant has provided elevations for all exterior-facing facades of each building; the carports and trash enclosure; details for the roof awnings, cornices, and articulated parapets; and perspectives of the development as seen from E. Broad St.
The building materials primarily include a mix of red and cream-colored brick, a black and cream-colored cementitious panel system, with black metal window framing, railings, canopies, and flashing. Building 1 will be 62% red brick, 21% cream brick, and 17% cementitious panel. Building 2 will be 36% red brick, 42% cream brick, and 22% cementitious panel. Each building will be 20-25% glass. The apartment buildings include carriageway features that face each other and allow resident access between the buildings and their amenities. Building 1 is more angular and includes five facades, which accommodates a parallel configuration adjacent to Broad (which runs at an angle at this location) as required by the design standards of The Reserve. Building 2 is more rectangular and the design of the development also provides for a parallel configuration of the buildings to each other. Both buildings are articulated with a series of wall plane recesses and projections and roof height variations. The buildings will feature a flat roof design with articulated parapet walls. Awnings will be located over some of the doors and windows and the base of Building 1 at the site of the leasing center will be designed in a storefront condition as required by The Reserve.
The carports will include masonry columns with red brick to match the building and a metal roof with a symmetrical sloped design. The trash enclosure includes red brick to match the building, cast stone cap, and wood slats on steel gates.
The perspectives of the development from E. Broad St. include a perspective of Building 1 at dusk to illustrate the planned lighting of the development, as well as a daytime perspective of Building 2 and the carports.
Landscaping and Screening
The applicant has provided a Landscape Plan showing the overall landscaping to be provided throughout the multi-family portion of the development, as well as tables noting how they are meeting the requirements, a materials plan, and details for each screening device, gate, and the tree grates. Along the north and west sides of the property, the applicant has provided a 10’ landscape buffer with one tree every 25 linear feet. Along E. Broad St., a double row of trees has been provided with one tree every 25 linear feet along Broad and one tree every four parking spaces. Along the connector drive between Broad and the east-west collector street, the applicant plans trees adjacent to Building 1 and in the buffer yard between the apartment development and the commercial/retail lot. Along the east-west collector street, the applicant will plant 1 tree every 30 linear feet in tree wells located in the sidewalk adjacent to Buildings 1 and 2. Each parking lot island will also include trees while shrubs and groundcover will be planted along the foundations of each building. The parking lot will be screened by a dense evergreen shrub treatment as required by the standards of The Reserve. The development’s perimeter fence will be a 6’ black decorative metal fence with railing color to match the building railing. The pool fence will be 4’ in height and the patio fence will be 3’-6” tall; both will also be decorative metal fences painted to match the building railing.
Benches, trash receptacles, and bicycle racks will be provided throughout the development, as required by the design standards of The Reserve, particularly adjacent to the east-west collector street and along the north and east facades of Building 1.
Amenities
Resident amenity centers will be provided in the courtyards of each building. The amenity area in the courtyard of Building 1 will include a resort-style pool with sunshelf and bubblers, covered grilling station, synthetic turf lawn, shaded hammock grove, and the interior club and fitness spaces will spill into the courtyard. The amenity area in the courtyard of Building 2 will include a beer garden with outdoor tables and seating, opportunities for dining, lounge areas, large private yards facing the courtyard, and lush landscaping. The details for these amenities have not been graphically represented in the plans, but the applicant has provided the written description of the elements to be provided and will provide graphical details with the construction plans.
Signage
The development signage has been identified on the Landscape Plan and the Materials Plan. The applicant plans a primary entrance at the intersection of Broad Street and the connector drive adjacent to Building 1. A secondary entrance sign will be provided at the intersection of the connector drive and the east-west collector road. Each sign will be setback 10’ from the property line as required by the Zoning Ordinance. While detailed renderings for the signage have not been provided, the applicant notes that all signage will comply with Section 11 of the Workplace Sub-District of The Reserve and all setbacks will comply with Section 7100 of the Zoning Ordinance.
Summary
The subject property is located in the Workplace Sub-District of The Reserve. This sub-district is intended to accommodate employment-related uses, multi-family residential, and supporting commercial service uses. This sub-district is largely undeveloped at this time. This development will bring the initial multi-family units to this sub-district, as well as supporting commercial/retail uses, and will set the standard for the continued development of this area. The applicant has endeavored and worked cooperatively with staff to provide a quality multi-family development that meets the standards of The Workplace Sub-District of the Reserve, particularly as it relates to architecture, landscaping, screening, building placement and orientation, site design, parking, lighting, signage, amenities, and design of the surrounding driveways and street network. The apartments will also provide for convenient living options near the continued expansion of employment and commercial uses in this area, including Methodist Mansfield Hospital, The Shops at Broad, Texas Health Mansfield Hospital, the Heritage Parkway corridor, commercial offices and services along Regency and Mitchell, and will support and help attract additional employment-related uses in the future. The dense urban-style design in combination with the limits on the number of dwelling units established in The Reserve also allows for the continued careful stewardship of land resources in the City, including preservation of land for commercial uses in the Workplace Sub-District.
Prepared By
Lisa Sudbury, AICP
Interim Director of Planning
817-276-4227