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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEX32 _JustificationfortheStreetMod Western Washington Division Eastern Washington Division 165 NE Juniper St., Ste 201, Issaquah, WA 98027 407 Swiftwater Blvd., Cle Elum, WA 98922 Phone: (425) 392-0250 Phone: (509) 674-7433 www.EncompassES.net Date: August 14, 2023 To: City of Renton Department of Community and Economic Development From: Encompass Engineering & Surveying Re: Modification Request Justification for the Dreamliner Apartments (PRE18-000658) _____________________________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT: Lavina Wadhwani Dreamliner LLC 10655 NE 4th Street Bellevue, WA 98005 lavinaw@veerarchitecture.com SITE INFORMATION: Parcel Number: 722930-0580 Site Address: 463 Airport Way, Renton, WA Lot Size: 16,000 square feet (0.37 acres) Zoning: Commercial Arterial (CA) and Commercial Downtown (CD) Comprehensive Plan: Commercial Mixed Use JUSTIFICATION FOR THE MODIFICATION REQUEST: Please provide a written justification for the modification request. The Burden of proof as to the appropriateness of the application lies with the applicant. Whenever there are practical difficulties involved in carrying out the provisions of this Title, the Department Administrator may grant modifications for individual cases provided he/she shall first find that a specific reason makes the strict letter of this Code impractical, that the intent and purpose of the governing land use designation of the Comprehensive Plan is met and that the modification is in conformity with the intent and purpose of this Code, and that such modification. Please submit a written statement addressing and justifying how the modification request complies with each of the following issues to be considered by the Administrator: Renton Municipal Code Section 4-6-060 provides the applicable standards related to the development requirements for half-street frontage improvements. Airport Way is classified as a Principal Arterial. The City’s improvement requirements include a paved roadway width of 28-feet from the centerline, an 8-foot planter strip and an 8-foot sidewalk. The Dreamliner Apartments project proposes to maintain the current paved roadway width of 34-feet and 0.5-foot curb and install an 8-foot planter strip and an 8-foot sidewalk within the right-of-way dedication. Dreamliner Apartments Modification Request – Justification 08/14/2023 Page 2 of 4 A. Substantially implements the policy direction of the policies and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Element and the Community Design Element and the proposed modification is the minimum adjustment necessary to implement these policies and objectives; The proposal implements the policy direction of the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Element and Community Design Element and is the minimum adjustment necessary to implement these policies and objectives. Specifically, the proposed development is consistent with the following policies and goals: Policy L-2: Support compact urban development to improve health outcomes, support transit use, maximize land use efficiency, and maximize public investment in infrastructure and services. Goal L-I(b): Utilize multiple strategies to accommodate residential growth, including: Development of new multifamily and mixed-use in the City Center and in the Residential High Density and Commercial Mixed Use designations. Goal L-K: Provide an energetic business environment for commercial activity providing a range of service, office, commercial, and mixed-use residential uses that enhance the City’s employment and tax base along arterial streets and in Centers. Policy U-17: Commercial Mixed Use - Place areas with established commercial and office areas near principle arterials within the Commercial and Mixed Use (CMU) land use designation. Allow residential uses as part of mixed-use developments, and support new office and commercial development that is more intensive than what exists to create a vibrant district and increase employment opportunities. The intention of this designation is to transform strip commercial development into business districts through the intensification of uses and with cohesive site planning, landscaping, signage, circulation, parking, and the provision of public amenity features. · Commercial Arterial Zone – Zone lands Commercial Arterial (CA) where a historical strip pattern dominates, characterized by large surface parking in front of buildings, long blocks oriented to automobiles, and an incomplete street grid. CA zoning should be located within one-quarter mile of transit, provide employment, and allow mixed-use development. CA zoning implements the Commercial Mixed Use and Employment Area land use designations. · Center Downtown Zone – Zone Land Center Downtown (CD) within downtown Renton that is appropriate for the widest mix of uses, is served by transit, and is suitable for intensive urban use within a pedestrian environment. The Center Downtown zone is intended to revitalize the area by creating a vibrant, urban center in Renton’s historic downtown core. Surface parking is discouraged in this zone, except as a land bank. CD zoning implements the Commercial Mixed Use land use designation. B. Will meet the objectives and safety, function, appearance, environmental protection and maintainability intended by the Code requirements, based upon sound engineering judgment; Dreamliner Apartments Modification Request – Justification 08/14/2023 Page 3 of 4 The proposed frontage improvements are per the City Transportation section’s suggestions described in the pre-application summary for the Dreamliner Apartments project (PRE18-00658). The Transportation section has recommended that the existing curb location and pavement width on the south side of Airport Way is acceptable. The current pavement width is 34-feet from centerline. Additional improvements include an 8-foot planter strip and an 8-foot sidewalk. The proposed improvements ensures that Airport Way, which is a well-established street, is not altered, while still meeting the RMC’s standards for the planter strip and sidewalk. C. Will not be injurious to other property(ies) in the vicinity; The modification requested here allows Airport Way’s path of road to be left undisturbed, since the City’s Transportation section has recommended that no changes are needed for the pavement width and curb location on the south side of the street. Therefore, the surrounding properties in the vicinity will not be harmed by the requested alteration from code because no width changes to the street itself is presented with this proposal. D. Conforms to the intent and purpose of the Code; RMC 4-6-060 Street Standards purpose is: It is the purpose of this Section to establish design standards and development requirements for street improvements to ensure reasonable and safe access to public and private properties. These improvements include appropriately scaled sidewalks related to the urban context, a range of landscape buffers, curbs, gutters, street paving, monumentation, signage, and lighting, to be developed with complete streets principles. Complete streets principles are to plan, design, and operate streets to enable safe and convenient access and travel for all users including pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, and people of all ages and abilities, as well as freight and motor vehicle drivers, and to foster a sense of place in the public realm with attractive design amenities. The existing conditions all along the southern side of Airport Way include a 5-foot sidewalk and no planter strip. Pedestrian access, curbs, and paving are designed to enable safe, convenient access and travel for all users while maintaining a sense of place and attractive design within the project site and the area’s general vicinity that is designated, per the Comprehensive Plan, to be Commercial Mixed Use. The modification request conforms to the intent and purpose of the Renton Municipal Code and follows the recommendations made by the Transportation section presented in the City’s Pre-Application Meeting on November 8th, 2018. E. Can be shown to be justified and required for the use and situation intended; The modification request conforms to the intent and purpose of the Renton Municipal Code and follows the recommendations made by the Transportation section presented in the City’s Pre- Application Meeting on November 8th, 2018. F. Will not create adverse impacts to other property(ies) in the vicinity. The surrounding properties in the vicinity are well-established Commercial Mixed Use properties and therefore adhering to the half-street standards of RMC 4-6-060 completely would be Dreamliner Apartments Modification Request – Justification 08/14/2023 Page 4 of 4 inconsistent with existing conditions and would likely create adverse impacts on the surrounding businesses and residences. The requested modification is consistent with the City’s planning goals and policies.