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HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproved Minutes - 2021-07-07 PMCity of Lake Oswego Development Review Commission Minutes of July 7, 2021 Page 1 of 5 CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO Development Review Commission Minutes July 7, 2021 The Commissioners convened at 7:06 PM at City Hall, in the Council Chamber, 380 A Avenue, Lake Oswego, OR 97034. Members present: Chair Jeff Shearer, Craig Berardi, Kirk Smith, Mark Silen, and Randy Arthur Members absent: Jason Frankel Staff present: Jessica Numanoglu, Planning Manager; Evan Fransted, Senior Planner; Evan Boone, Deputy City Attorney; and Kat Kluge, Administrative Support MINUTES June 21, 2021: Commissioner Arthur requested that page 2, the 4th paragraph, and the 7th line, where it read "He stated that he had no financial interest...", be corrected to read, "He stated that, as an of-counsel attorney, he had no financial interest..." Commissioner Arthur moved to approve the Minutes of June 21, 2021, with the noted correction. Seconded by Commissioner Smith and passed 4:0, with 1 abstention. FINDINGS LU 21-0011, a request for approval of the following: • Development Review Permit for a new 15-unit multi-family building in the Downtown Redevelopment District; • Minor Variance to maximum retaining wall height; and • Removal of three trees. This site is located at 21 D Avenue. [Tax Map/Lot 21E03DA, Tax Lots 1801, 2000, 2001]. The Staff Coordinator is Evan Fransted, Senior Planner. Evan Boone, Deputy City Attorney, requested that all members declare any financial conflicts of interest (required for every stage of a public hearing). Commissioner Smith declared that as a senior counsel, rather than as a shareholder, he obtained no financial interest from Otak, who was represented by his firm for corporate matters. Commissioner Arthur declared that, as an of-counsel attorney, he was an employee of the firm and had no financial interest in the outcome of a matter where one of his firm's clients was adverse to Otak. He added that he was not working on that matter and knew nothing about it, and this did not dispose him or influence him to vote one way or the other on this application. He further declared that he had no financial conflicts of interest, no bias, and had not made a site visit, but was familiar with the site, as he drove by it daily. City of Lake Oswego Development Review Commission Minutes of July 7, 2021 Page 2 of 5 Commissioner Smith moved to approve the Findings for LU 21-0011, as submitted. Seconded by Commissioner Arthur and passed 4:0, with 1 abstention. PUBLIC HEARING LU 20-0034, a request for approval of a Development Permit to construct an office/flexible tenant space building and removal of 28 trees. This site is located at 5550 Rosewood Street (21E18BD00200). The Staff Coordinator is Evan Fransted, Senior Planner. This hearing was rescheduled from April 5, 2021. Mr. Boone gave an overview of the public hearing process. Mr. Boone asked DRC members to declare any ex parte contacts (including site visits), biases, or financial conflicts of interest and their business/employment. All DRC members declared they have no ex parte contacts, conflicts of interests, and no biases. There were no challenges to the Commissioners’ rights to hear the application. Staff Report Evan Fransted presented the staff report. The subject property is approximately 39,047 square feet in size, with frontage on Rosewood Street. It is zoned Industrial Park (IP) and is located within the Southwest Overlay District. Surrounding properties to the south, east, and west are also zoned IP and within the Southwest Overlay District and developed with commercial or industrial uses. The existing building on the site is 4,186 square feet (currently used as light manufacturing) and will be demolished as part of this application. There are 33 on site trees that are 6 inches or more in diameter, including the frontage trees, along the right-of-way (ROW). The application requests the removal of 23 trees to construct the project. Three additional trees will be removed as part of a separate Invasive Tree Removal permit (two sweet cherry trees and one English hawthorn tree). The application includes retaining 8 trees. Several photographs and renderings were shown during a slide presentation. The existing parking lot will be removed. The proposed building will be two-story and approximately 16,791 square feet and will have space for seven tenants. There will be 42 parking spaces. The mix of uses is unknown at this time, with several use types allowed in the Southwest Overlay District. Compliance with the IP Zone and parking standards will be reviewed at the time of business licensing for each prospective tenant. The second story will include a mezzanine and outdoor patio balcony and will be 28 feet in height. The entry will be covered by a painted metal canopy. The building will be constructed of painted concrete, simulated wood siding, and storefront glass windows. One requirement in the Southwest Overlay District is that any new building must be placed within 20 feet of the front property line. The proposed building will be located within 18 feet of the front property line. The proposed front-facing façade is 75 feet long and includes a change in materials every 50 feet. The proposed façade meets the standards for the Southwest Overlay District. The front yard includes landscaping, trees, shrubs, and a connecting pedestrian walkway as required. There will be no need for a loading dock and tractor trailers will not be allowed. The minimum City of Lake Oswego Development Review Commission Minutes of July 7, 2021 Page 3 of 5 parking space requirements are met, given the calculations based on office use. Staff recommends Condition of Approval (COA) B-3 that requires the property owner to submit a parking matrix that provides the use of each tenant and the required number of vehicle and bicycle parking spaces for each use to ensure ongoing compliance with the standard. Access to the site is provided by a 24-foot-wide commercial driveway approach onto Rosewood Street. The Engineering staff determined that the driveway has been designed in accordance with the sight distance requirements. The Applicant's narrative states that 6,127 square feet of the site will be landscaping, which is 0.6% over the required 15%. The utility plan shows that water and fire service will connect to the existing public main in Rosewood Street (near the northwest corner of the site). The plan also shows that the overflow vault will be located outside of the public ROW; therefore, a water line easement must be reported (noted at COA A-4). The Engineering staff finds that, overall, utilities are or can be made available. A preliminary stormwater report, completed by a registered engineer, was submitted by the Applicant. The City's contracted Stormwater Engineer finds that the proposed stormwater management system and stormwater holding facilities, as well as any connections to off-site facilities, can be provided with recommended COAs. Trees #1 through #6 along Rosewood Street will be retained, and four new trees will be planted in that area. Tree #10 and tree #28 will also be retained. Staff finds that the removal of the trees will not have a significant negative impact on erosion, soil stability, surface waters, protection of adjacent trees, or existing windbreaks. Staff finds that none of the trees meet the definition of a significant tree (when considering size, species, or distinctive character). Trees #39, #40, and #41 are Douglas fir trees approximately 100 to 125 feet tall and are visible from the skyline on Rosewood Street and to the surrounding properties to the south. These three trees, together, form a distinctive feature in the skyline. A review under Criterion 3 is required. The only alternative would be to locate the building on the east side of the lot and to redesign the parking lot to retain the trees. This would cause the parking lot to be reduced below the minimum number of required parking spaces. This would also require the removal of tree #10, a significant 31-inch Douglas fir. Staff finds that there is no reasonable alternative to the removal of Trees #39, #40, and #41, and so this Criterion is met. Overall, staff finds that the Tree Removal Criteria are met. Removal of 23 trees requires 23 mitigation trees, 21 of which must be native. A further COA is that the Applicant will be required to pay into the Tree Fund for the planting of 19 trees prior to issuance of the Building and Tree Removal permits due to lack of planting area on site. In conclusion, staff recommends approval, with conditions. Questions of Staff Commissioner Arthur requested a more thorough explanation of the criteria used to assess the minimum parking requirements and how those criteria were chosen. Mr. Fransted replied that it was a basic numerical standard, with office spaces and Industrial spaces having their own requirements, adding that this application called for a flex-use space, with the Applicant indicating that it will most likely be used for office spaces. Going forward, it would be up to the Applicant to monitor this to ensure compliance. Commissioner Arthur then asked if the criteria applied resulted in the maximum parking required that could be imposed in the IP Zone. Mr. Fransted indicated that there was a minimum number required, with modifiers, and the Applicant exceeded this by two spaces. Mr. Boone added that any approval of development assumes what the uses will be and recalculation for minimum parking would occur when business licenses were submitted and would be addressed during the permit approval process. City of Lake Oswego Development Review Commission Minutes of July 7, 2021 Page 4 of 5 Applicant Testimony Kevin Godwin, Owner/Architect with SGA Architecture, LLC, and representing the Applicant, thanked Mr. Fransted for his assistance through the process. He stated that the property owner/Applicant was using the existing building, which was set for demolition with the approval of this new project. He explained that it would not be advantageous to build onto the existing building. The proposed building will encompass approximately 43% of the total site square footage. They are providing a 4-foot setback on the west and south, a 4.5-foot to 5-foot setback on the east, and an 18-foot setback on the north. He indicated that there was a vacant property to the east and a parking lot to the south. The proposed building and the adjacent building would be approximately 90 feet apart. He noted that their main focus was on the frontage view and on the skyline view. The existing driveway was used in order to maintain the trees that currently exist on that side of the property. An outdoor seating area will be incorporated off of the bottom corner of the building for the primary tenant. He informed members that the primary tenant would close at 5:00 p.m., making available overflow parking, if needed. They will enhance the property through landscaping and planting the mitigation trees (four of the 23 required). They created their design with the intent to save as many trees as possible. He noted that their arborist found that the three large Douglas fir trees had been damaged during the recent storms. Questions of Applicant None Public Testimony None Deliberation Mr. Boone asked if the Applicant wished to submit additional evidence, which would result in a continuance, if requested, or if they wished to submit a final written argument. There were no such requests made. Mr. Boone then indicated that the Commission may proceed to deliberations. Commissioner Berardi opined that it was a great project, and that it was good to have monies added to the City for the Tree Fund. Commissioner Arthur stated that he appreciated the presentation given by the Applicant's representative. He stated that he found it to be an acceptable and good project, with adequate allowance made for landscaping and there being a sufficient separation with adjacent buildings. He acknowledged that it was a shame to lose trees; however, he was appreciative of the Applicant's consideration and protection given to the remaining trees. He stated that he also appreciated the design and how it appeared to have a notable front. He indicated that he would be voting in favor of approving the application with the conditions. Commissioner Arthur moved to approve LU 20-0034, with the conditions noted in the staff report. Seconded by Commissioner Berardi and passed 5:0. Mr. Boone instructed staff to return the Written Findings, Conclusion and Order on Monday, July 19, 2021 at 6:00pm (via Zoom). City of Lake Oswego Development Review Commission Minutes of July 7, 2021 Page 5 of 5 OTHER BUSINESS Schedule Review and Management Update Jessica Numanoglu, Planning Manager, informed members that Vice Chair Poulson was not reappointed to the Development Review Commission (DRC); however, he was assigned as an alternate, so if there were any vacancies in the next year, he would rejoin the Commission. She then announced that a new Commissioner, Bruce Poinsette, would be joining the DRC at the next meeting. Ms. Numanoglu updated DRC members on upcoming meetings: July 21, 2021 will have the findings from this meeting and the introduction of Bruce Poinsette. At this time, there are no items on the agenda for August. The North Anchor Project application may come before the DRC at September's first meeting, which would be on a Wednesday due to the Labor Day Holiday. Election of Chair and Vice Chair Commissioner Smith moved to elect Jeff Shearer as Chair of the DRC. Seconded by Commissioner Arthur and passed 4:0, with 1 abstention. Commissioner Silen moved to elect Randy Arthur as Vice Chair of the DRC. Seconded by Commissioner Berardi and passed 4:0, with 1 abstention. ADJOURNMENT Chair Shearer adjourned the meeting at 7:58 PM. Respectfully submitted, /s/ Kat Kluge, Administrative Support