Full Text
Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 1 of 8 BEFORE THE HEARING EXAMINER FOR THE CITY OF KENNEWICK In the Matter of the Application of ) PVA 13-01 ) PLN-2013-02039 ) ) Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration Hayden Homes LLC ) ) For Preliminary Plat Alteration ) FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, AND ) DECISION SUMMARY OF DECISION The requested plat alteration to reduce the total number of lots in Bridgewater Park from 148 to 143 single-family lots is APPROVED subject to conditions. SUMMARY OF RECORD Hayden Homes LLC (Applicant) requested approval of a preliminary plat alteration that would reduce the number of approved lots in the overall plat from 148 to 143. Phase 1 of the approved plat has been final platted, creating 22 lots. The requested alteration would reconfigure the remaining 23.89 acres into 121 lots rather than 126 lots and complete approved infrastructure. Request On August 12, 2013, the City of Kennewick Hearing Examiner conducted an open record public hearing on the request. Hearing Date At the open record hearing, the following individuals presented testimony under oath: Testimony Wes Romine, Kennewick Development Services Manager John Deskins, Kennewick Transportation Engineer Gregory McCormick, Director, Kennewick Community Planning Department Brian Thoreson, Applicant Representative, Hayden Homes LLC At the open record hearing, the following exhibits were offered in evidence: Exhibits 1. Staff Report to the Hearing Examiner, dated August 5, 2013 2. Application 3. Notice of Application/Mailing List 4. Vicinity Map 5. Preliminary Plat Alteration Drawing (3 Sheets) ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 2 of 8 6. Revised SEPA Determination, issued July 16, 2013, with environmental checklist 7. City Department Comments, including: a. Public Works consolidated comments, dated July 3, 2013 (one page) b. Public Works consolidated comments, dated November 8, 2012 (two pages) c. Traffic Engineer's Revisions to Traffic Calming and Mitigation fees, dated July 15, 2013, (4 pages) d. Traffic comments, undated (one page) e. Fire Department comment, dated August 2, 2013 (one page) 8. Outside Agency Comments, including: a. Kennewick School District comment, dated July 9, 2013 (one page) b. Kennewick Irrigation District comments, dated July 28, 2013 (three pages) c. Washington State Department of Ecology comment dated July 5, 2013 (two pages) d. Benton PUD comment, dated June 24, 2013 (one page) 9. Approved Bridgewater Park Preliminary Plat Site Plan, dated December 4, 2012 (3 sheets) 10. Approved Bridgewater Park Preliminary Plat Grading Plan, dated December 4, 2012 (1 sheet) 11. Preliminary Plat PP 12-06 Decision, issued January 17, 2013 12. Planning Staff's PowerPoint presentation (23 slides) Upon consideration of the testimony and exhibits submitted, the Hearing Examiner enters the following findings and conclusions in support of the decision: FINDINGS 1. The Applicant requested plat alteration to reduce the total number of lots in the subdivision known as Bridgewater Park from 148 to 143 single-family lots. The requested alteration would reconfigure the remaining undeveloped 23.89 acres into 121 lots, rather than 126 lots, and complete approved infrastructure.1 The changes proposed amount to five fewer residential lots and the removal of one approved cul-de-sac. Exhibit 1, page 1; Exhibit 2; Romine Testimony. 2. The Bridgewater Park preliminary plat (PP 12-06) was approved on January 17, 2013 as a re-plat of two-thirds of a subdivision originally approved by City Council in March 2004 (PP 03-11). The final plat for Bridgewater Park Phase 1 has been approved, creating 22 1 The legal description of the subject property is that portion of the Southeast Quarter of Section 1, Township 8 North, Range 28 East, W.M. Benton County, Washington: Benton County identifies the lots as parcel numbers #101884000001013 and 101884000001014. The lots were created by Boundary Line Adjustment #BLA 12-07 with Quit Claim Deeds recorded with the Benton County Auditor, Recording Nos. 2012-017929, 2012-017930, and 2012-017931. Exhibit 1, page 1. ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 3 of 8 lots. After approval of the preliminary plat the developer determined that some lots were too small to accommodate their typical house designs, and thus they've requested the proposed plat alteration. The Application for plat alteration was submitted June 19, 2013 and determined to be complete on the same day. Exhibit 1, page 2; Exhibit 11. 3. The site is zoned Residential Medium Density (RM) which allows between 4.1 and 13 units per acre and requires a minimum lot size of 4,000. For the purpose of density calculations, the remaining preliminary plat area to be developed consists of 16.76 net acres, resulting in a proposed density of 7.23 dwelling units per acre. With the proposed plat alteration, the overall project density including Phase I would be 5.9 dwelling units per acre. The smallest lot proposed would be 4,999 square feet. Conformance with setbacks and building height restrictions would be ensured at the time of building permit review. Exhibit 1, pages 2-3. 4. Properties to the west are zoned Residential Manufactured Home with similarly size lots to those proposed and developed with a mix of manufactured and stick built homes. To the north is property zoned Commercial Community with W. Clearwater Avenue beyond that. To the east is the Amon Wasteway, underlain by Industrial Light (IL) zoning, and Clodfelter Road further to the east. South of the site, there is a narrow strip of Industrial Light (IL) zoned property between the subject property and W. 10th Avenue. Exhibit 1, pages 5-6; Exhibit 4. 5. The City of Kennewick acted as lead agency in reviewing the proposed plat alteration for compliance with the requirements of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). After evaluating the complete application materials and environmental checklist, the City's Responsible Official issued a revised mitigated determination of non-significance (MDNS) for the plat on July 16, 2013. The revised MDNS reduced both traffic and parks impacts fees to reflect the five fewer lots. No appeal was filed and the revised MDNS became final. Exhibit 6; Romine Testimony. 6. By removing five lots, the proposed plat alteration would reduce traffic from that anticipated when Bridgewater Park was approved in January. The re-plat reviewed in January 2013 was anticipated to generate 1506 average weekday vehicle trips per day. The altered plat would reduce the number of vehicle trips to 1459 average weekday vehicle trips per day. Transportation impact fees and mitigation previously assessed pursuant to environmental review require more mitigation than is warranted by the proposed plat alteration, so the City revised and re-issued its environmental threshold determination reducing traffic impact fees from $56,196 to $53,501. Traffic mitigation required by the revised MDNS would mitigate for the project’s proportionate share of traffic trips impacting the intersections of Clodfelter & W. 10th Avenue, right and left turn lanes on W. 10th Avenue and W. Clearwater Avenue, and adding a right turn lane at W. Clearwater Avenue and Utah Street. The City’s traffic engineer has determined the proposed plat alteration would continue to meet transportation concurrency standards. Exhibit 1, pages 3-4; Exhibit 6; Exhibit 7. ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 4 of 8 7. The subject property is in the Five Corners - Park Planning Zone 7W. The revised MDNS reduced the park impact fees from $53,587.43 to $49,992.00, based on the City's park fee calculation form and the five fewer lots. Exhibit 6; Exhibit 1, page 5. 8. The proposed alteration would remove one of the two cul-de-sacs originally approved in the northern portion of the plat connecting to W. 5th Place. In removing the western cul- de-sac, the altered plat would provide access to proposed Phase 2 Lots 9, 10, 15, and 16 by shared access easement connecting to the S. Texas Street cul-de-sac. Phase 2 Lots 1 and 2 would take access directly from Utah Street. In order for Utah Street access to Lots 1 and 2 to meet City road standards, the City has recommended that the Applicant be required to remove the northern portion of the approved landscaped median at the plat entrance on Utah Street. At hearing, the Applicant representative requested permission to remove the landscaped median altogether from the plat entrance for the purpose of reducing maintenance. The City's Traffic Engineer testified that the landscaped median, with 50% living ground cover, serves as a traffic calming measure and is needed to satisfy City road standards. Exhibit 1, page 4; Deskins Testimony; Thoreson Testimony. 9. The City requires residential subdivisions to be designed to retain and dispose of a 25- year, 24-hour, developed state storm and the 10-year, 24-hour event for the natural pre- developed state. Typically, developers are required to submit detailed civil engineering drawings for review and approval by the City’s Public Works department prior to final plat approval and not before. Prior to approval of Phase I of this plat, the Applicant submitted a comprehensive storm drainage plan for the entire plat. Going forward, only detailed stormwater plans for each phase would be required. Exhibit 1, page 4; Exhibit 7b. 10. The Applicant is not proposing to create a new homeowners' association (HOA) for Bridgewater Park. There is an existing HOA with binding covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs) still in effect for the original Santiago Bridgewater Estates plat approved in 2004. There is also a maintenance agreement between the Santiago Bridgewater Estates HOA and the City to assure maintenance of common areas. The City does not regulate CC&Rs; however City Staff noted that if modifications are made to the existing Maintenance Agreement, any such modification must comply with Section 9 of that agreement, “Recordation, Modification, and Termination”. Staff also noted that recorded private maintenance agreements would be required for shared driveways if their maintenance is not otherwise provided for. Thoreson Testimony; Romine Testimony; Exhibit 1, page 5. 11. Municipal water and sewer remain available to the altered plat; fewer connections would be required as a result of the alteration. Exhibit 1, page 4; Exhibits 7a and 7b. 12. The Kennewick Fire Department had no concerns about the proposed alteration. Exhibit 7e. 13. Kennewick School District submitted comments indicating that there is capacity at all district schools to handle additional students from the plat. Exhibit 8a. ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 5 of 8 14. At the time of the application for Bridgewater Park re-plat, the City's critical areas maps identified the eastern portion of the site as known or suspected erosion hazard critical areas. However, per 18.62.040 “Mapping of Geologically Hazardous Areas”, 18.62.040(2) the City's map is to be used as a guide and may be updated as new information becomes available; it is a reference and is not intended to provide critical area designations. The Applicant commissioned an erosion hazard evaluation report by a geotechnical consultant who conducted a site visit and concluded that there are no erosion hazard critical areas on the site. The City has modified its critical areas map to show no hazard on-site. No critical areas report is required for the instant proposal. Exhibit 1, pages 4-5; Exhibit 11. 15. The Amon Wasteway abuts the subject property to the east. The City’s critical area maps show the Amon Wasteway as a fish and wildlife habitat conservation area. However, since 1955 when the right-of-way was acquired, the wasteway and its tributary drains have collected irrigation runoff from a network of drains in Benton County. Since 1975, the state of Washington has deemed the wasteway and its tributaries to be Yakima Project irrigation return flows subject to recovery and reuse by the Kennewick Irrigation district. Per Senate Bill 5292, effective date June 7, 2012, irrigation canals and drainage ditches are exempted from the definition of critical areas. Subsequent to the bill's adoption, the City of Kennewick has recognized the Amon Wasteway as irrigation return flows and not as a critical area. No critical areas studies were required for the plat alteration. However, Washington Department of Ecology considers the wasteway as a natural drainage feature and noted in its comments that such features should be provided with a 100-foot buffer, planted with native plants, and protected from untreated stormwater runoff. Exhibit 1, pages 5, 7; Exhibit 8c; Exhibit 11. 16. As noted in Finding number 20 from the January 2013 re-plat approval: Proposed Tract A is 100 feet wide, satisfying the DOE's requested setback. Initially the City recommended a condition of approval (see Exhibit 1, page 7, condition 5 ) requiring Tract A be planted with native plants. At hearing, the Applicant representative indicated that the existing wild, native vegetation would be retained and the 100-foot buffer would be kept as a natural area. Silt fencing would be installed prior to construction to control stormwater runoff, if any. Tract A would be deeded to the Kennewick Irrigation District upon final plat. Planning Staff revised condition number 5 to require native plantings only where development of the project disturbs the 100-foot buffer. Exhibit 11, page 6. In the instant staff report, Planning Staff included a recommended condition of approval that would have required the Applicant to plant Tract A with new native plantings. However, as the tract is already vegetated with native plants and no development is proposed within it, and because the proposed plat alteration would not result in additional impacts to the tract, there is nothing in the record to support a requirement for additional plantings throughout Tract A. If anything, five fewer homes adjacent to the tract would reduce impacts. Exhibit 1, pages 5, 7; Exhibit 8c; Exhibit 11. ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 6 of 8 CONCLUSIONS The Hearing Examiner has jurisdiction to hear and decide applications for preliminary plat alterations pursuant to KMC 4.02.080(b) and 17.10.080. Jurisdiction Applications for plat alteration must conform to City Code provisions regulating plat alterations and must show continued compliance with preliminary plat criteria for review. Plat Alteration Criteria for Review Pursuant to KMC 17.10.100, When any person desires the alteration of an approved subdivision, or portion thereof, except as provided in KMC 17.10.020(1), an application must be filed with the City on a form supplied by it. The application must include the signatures of a majority of the owners of the lots, tracts, parcels, sites or divisions in the division or portion to be altered and include a list of all owners within the division. If the division is subject to restrictive covenants, which were filed at the time of the approval of the division and the alteration would result in the violation of a covenant, the application must be signed by all parties subject to the covenants. (Ord. 5415 Sec. 12, 2012) Pursuant to KMC 17.10.080(1), an application for preliminary plat may be approved only when the record demonstrates conformance with the Comprehensive Plan, comprehensive water plan, utilities plan, the Comprehensive Park and Recreation Plan, and when the record demonstrates that appropriate provisions will be made for the public health, safety, and general welfare, for open spaces, drainage ways, streets or roads, alleys, public sidewalks, utility easements and other public ways, transit stops, potable water supplies, sanitary wastes, parks and recreation areas, playgrounds, schools and school grounds, and shall consider all other relevant facts and other planning features that assure safe walking conditions for students who only walk to and from school. 1. The Examiner notes that although the record does not contain the required list of all owners within the plat, Planning Staff issued a determination of application completeness on June 19, 2013, and presumably the Applicant owns all lots in the approved but undeveloped portion of the plat. The proposed reduction in lots and slight changes to road lay out would not conflict with any known existing covenants. Findings 2, 6, 8, and 10. Conclusions Based on Findings 2. As conditioned, the altered plat continues to make adequate provision for the public health, safety, and general welfare. The reduction in lots would reduce the plat's impacts to public services and infrastructure and would decrease the plat's effects on surrounding development and the Amon Wasteway. City water and sewer are able to serve the reduced number of connections. The proposed plat alteration was reviewed pursuant to the State Environmental Policy Act and a revised MDNS was issued. The overall project ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 7 of 8 density resulting from the instant plat alteration remains consistent with the minimum density of the underlying Residential Medium Density district. No deviations from development standards are proposed. Findings 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, and 13. 3. As conditioned, the altered plat would be consistent with applicable goals and policies of the City of Kennewick Comprehensive Plan as identified in the January 17, 2013 preliminary plat approval. The Applicant's request to remove the entire landscaped traffic median at the plat entrance is not accepted; only the portion necessary to provide access to Lots 1 and 2 shall be removed. The Applicant need only replant disturbed portions of Tract A with native plantings, so long as the existing native vegetation is retained and undisturbed. Conditions of approval would ensure that development of the altered preliminary plat would remain consistent with all applicable City utility, road, stormwater, and fire standards and that the project's reduced traffic and park impacts are mitigated. Findings 6, 8, 15, and 16. DECISION Based on the preceding findings and conclusions, the requested plat alteration to reduce the total number of lots in Bridgewater Park from 148 to 143 single-family lots is APPROVED subject to the following conditions: 1. All development shall comply with City of Kennewick regulatory controls, policies, and codes, including the Single-family Residential Design Standards. 2. All fees required by the City shall be paid prior to the approval of the final plat. 3. The developer shall construct residential streets per City of Kennewick Standard Detail 2- 1, sheet 2 of 4. Curb tight sidewalk option is allowed. 4. Development shall be in conformance with the plat drawing revised and submitted July 24, 2013 (Exhibit 5. Tract A shall remain undisturbed to the maximum extent possible. Any portion of Tract A that is disturbed during plat construction shall be revegetated with native plants prior to final plat of each adjacent phase. 6. A maintenance agreement to the satisfaction of the City Attorney is required for maintenance of private shared driveways and common landscape areas. 7. The developer shall alter the landscape island on South Utah Street to allow access from S. Utah Street to Lots 1 & 2 of Phase 2. Alteration of the landscape island shall be per approval of the City’s Traffic Engineer. Landscaping in the island may be replaced with low or no maintenance landscape or ground cover with the approval of the City Planning Department and Traffic Engineer. 8. A landscape plan must be submitted for approval for any common areas, including disturbed portions of Tract A and any alterations to the landscape in the island on South ---PAGE BREAK--- Findings, Conclusions, and Decision Kennewick Hearing Examiner Bridgewater Park Plat Alteration PVA13-01/PLN-2013-02039 page 8 of 8 Utah Street. The landscape plan shall be prepared by a licensed landscape architect or licensed landscape installer drawn to a legible scale. Landscaping, including residential street trees, is required to be installed or bonded for prior to final plat of the phase it is in. 9. All landscaped areas to be irrigated with an automatic sprinkler system or drip irrigation system. Xeriscape landscaping is encouraged. 10. All development shall comply with the Public Works memoranda dated July 3, 2013 and November 8, 2012 (Exhibits 7a and 7b). 11. All development shall comply with Traffic Engineer memoranda dated July 15, 2013 and June 26, 2013 (Exhibits 7c and 7d). In lieu of limited access to Lots 2 and 3 from South Utah Street the existing landscape island can be altered with approval from the City’s Traffic Engineer. 12. All development shall comply with Kennewick Irrigation District letter dated July 28, 2013 (Exhibit 8b). 13. A monument sign with addresses must be placed at the entrance to all shared driveways for address location by emergency vehicles. 14. The developer shall provide dust control method(s) such as hydroseeding for all areas of the site that are disturbed. Re-hydroseeding may be required. DECIDED August 19, 2013. By: Sharon A. Rice City of Kennewick Hearing Examiner