Title
Conduct a Public Hearing to Consider/Discuss/Act on a Façade Plan for a Retail/Office/Hotel and Parking Garage Building, Located at 205 W. Louisiana Street
Summary
COUNCIL GOAL: Direction for Strategic and Economic Growth
(1C: Provide a strong city economy by facilitating a balance between industrial, commercial, residential, and open space)
MEETING DATE: July 24, 2018
DEPARTMENT: Planning
CONTACT: Matt Robinson, AICP, Planning Manager
Jennifer Arnold, AICP, Interim Director of Planning
APPROVAL PROCESS: The action of the Planning and Zoning Commission for the proposed facade plan may be appealed to the City Council.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends approval of the proposed facade plan with the following condition:
1. The applicant receive a design exception to the required store front transparency along Church Street.
APPLICATION SUBMITTAL DATE: June 28, 2017 (Original Application)
July 11, 2017 (Revised Submittal)
July 6, 2018 (Revised Submittal)
ITEM SUMMARY: The applicant is constructing an approximately 44,000 square foot retail/office/hotel building with underground parking garage on approximately 0.348 acres, located at the southeast corner of Louisiana Street and Church Street. Façade plans within the “MTC” - McKinney Town Center Zoning District can be approved administratively by Staff; however the applicant is requesting a design exception to deviate from the required 65% ground floor transparent storefront along Church Street. Design exceptions must be considered by the Planning and Zoning Commission. The requested design exception is detailed further below.
PLATTING STATUS: The subject property is currently part of McKinney Original Donation Lots 100A, 101A, 101B, 102B, 103C, 103D and 104C, Block 15. An associated amending plat has been submitted for the property.
ZONING:
|
Location |
Zoning District (Permitted Land Uses) |
Existing Land Use |
|
Subject Property |
“MTC” - McKinney Town Center (Downtown Core - Residential, Commercial and Office Uses) |
Office, Retail, Hotel |
|
North |
“MTC” - McKinney Town Center (Downtown Core - Residential, Commercial and Office Uses) |
City of McKinney Parking Lot 2 |
|
South |
“MTC” - McKinney Town Center (Downtown Core - Residential, Commercial and Office Uses) |
Day 6, Young Life |
|
East |
“MTC” - McKinney Town Center (Downtown Core - Residential, Commercial and Office Uses) |
City of McKinney - HR Office |
|
West |
“MTC” - McKinney Town Center (Downtown Edge - Residential, Commercial and Office Uses) |
Office |
ACCESS/CIRCULATION:
|
Adjacent Streets: |
Louisiana Street, 60’ Right-of-Way, Pedestrian Priority “A” Street Church Street, 40’ Right-of-Way, Pedestrian Priority “B” Street |
LIGHTING AND GLARE REGULATIONS: The applicant will be responsible for complying with Chapter 58 (Lighting and Glare Regulations) of the City of McKinney Code of Ordinances.
BUILDING DESIGN STANDARDS: Within the “MTC” - McKinney Town Center Zoning District, the Architectural and Site Standards (Section 146-139) of the Zoning Ordinance do not apply. The applicant is instead responsible for meeting the requirements of the Building Design Standards of the MTC. With the submission of a site plan, the MTC requires that elevations are provided and approved with the site plan. The proposed elevations are in conformance with the Building Design Standards of the MTC; with exception to one of the requirements for storefront transparency. Section 8.3 (Façade Composition) of the MTC states that all ground floor facades along all Pedestrian Priority “A” and “B” streets shall have transparent storefront windows covering no less than 65% of said façade area. The applicant has requested a Design Exception to this requirement, discussed further below.
DESIGN EXCEPTION: A Design Exception is a requested deviation from any Building Form and Site Development Standards, Building Design Standards, or Open Space Standards, beyond minor deviations specified in the Minor Modifications section of the “MTC” - McKinney Town Center Zoning District. All requests for a Design Exception are forwarded to the Planning and Zoning Commission for discretionary approval.
In reviewing any site plan applications or Design Exception requests, the Planning and Zoning Commission shall use the following criteria:
1) The goals, intent, and vision of the adopted McKinney Town Center Master Plan;
2) The extent to which the proposal fits the adjoining design context by providing appropriate building scale and use transitions;
3) The extent to which the proposal provides public benefits such as usable civic and open spaces, livable streets, structured and/or shared parking, and linkages to transit;
4) The extent to which the proposal hinders future opportunities for higher intensity Town Center development; and
5) Considerations of health and welfare of the general public.
The applicant has stated that they were unable to meet the transparency storefront requirement along Church Street due to the inclusion of several elements related to fire protection, specifically the inclusion of a fire riser room, staircase and protected corridor along the facade. In Staff’s opinion, the applicant has attempted to meet the requirement, however given the design challenges were unable to do so. As such, Staff recommends approval of the requested design exception to the required minimum storefront transparency.
OPPOSITION TO OR SUPPORT OF REQUEST: Staff has received no comments in support of or in opposition to this request.