Community Design Commission

Town Hall TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL 405 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard Community Design Commission Chapel Hill, NC 27514 Meeting Minutes Susana Dancy, Chair Susan Lyons Christine Berndt, Vice-Chair Megan Patnaik Edward Hoskins John Weis Monday, May 10, 2021 3:00 PM Virtual Meeting Virtual Meeting Notification Board members will attend and participate in this meeting remotely, through internet access, and will not physically attend. The Town will not provide a physical location for viewing the meeting. The public is invited to attend the Zoom webinar directly online or by phone. Register for this webinar: URL After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar in listen-only mode. Phone: 301-715-8592, Meeting ID: 889.5993.9325 Opening Roll Call Present 5 - Chair Susana Dancy, Vice-Chair Christine Berndt, Susan Lyons, Megan Patnaik, and John Weis Absent 1 - Edward Hoskins Approval of Agenda A motion was made by Lyons, seconded by Vice-Chair Berndt, to approve agenda with the addition of allowing time at the end of meeting to discuss vacant seat applications. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. Announcements Staff provided updates on the downtown design petition, noting that the Council Committee on Boards and Commission had heard the request and were going to move the conversation forward. Concept Plan Reviews (1.5hr Review Window) 1. Jay Street Affordable Housing [21-0398] Commission is asked to review applicant material and provide comments on concept plan proposal. Page 1 of 4 Community Design Commission Meeting Minutes May 10, 2021 The following commissioner comments were noted. · Multiple Commissioners expressed concern over the difficulties of the site. Those include constrained parcel layout, topographical concerns and the need for adjacent road improvements and adequate buffers. · Multiple commissioners shared w/ the applicant the need to do a lot more work to think creatively in a wider neighborhood context to solve the infrastructure, design, and environmental issues presented; and to engage the surrounding community in these efforts. · Multiple commissioners expressed concern over the adjacent road network and the improvements that would be needed to create a viable project, including considering the existing gravel portion of Jay Street. The project should also consider how the existing lots on Jay Street could be accessed. · Multiple commissioners expressed concern over the future residents of the site not having access to bus routes and public transportation, as well as concern over noise and vibration from the adjacent railroad tracks. · Multiple commissioners expressed concern over the proposed loss of vegetation on the site and clear cutting which would reduce tree canopy. Commissioners requested that the applicant look at the design and how it can work with the significant trees and topography on the site. · Multiple commissioners expressed concern over the vast increase in impervious surface and the stormwater measures that would be required to treat that area on a steep site. · Multiple commissioners suggested an enhanced landscape plan to help reduce the tree loss impact. · Multiple commissioners expressed support of the project as meeting goals of affordable housing. · Multiple commissioners expressed appreciate for using multiple buildings to work w/ the site topography. Commissioners shared that smaller, additional buildings or reducing the size of the current buildings may help work w/ the topographic challenges even better. Parking under the buildings would also help. · One commissioner thought integrating the community center into another building may help with building massing the site topography. · One commissioner supported created a permanent preservation easement or retention of Town ownership on the portion of the site not developed as part of this application in order to preserve land for the future extension of the Tanyard Branch greenway as shown on the Greenways Master Plan. · One commissioner expressed concern on the selection of this site and encouraged the applicant to select another site. Page 2 of 4 Community Design Commission Meeting Minutes May 10, 2021 Old Business (0.5hr Review Window) 2. 2200 Eubanks Road [21-0399] Putt Putt Fun Center Conditional Zoning Recommendation Commission is asked to provide a recommendation to Council for this conditional zoning application. Recommendations would include approval, approval w/ conditions (as agreed to b/w applicant and council) and denial. A motion was made by Lyons, seconded by Patnaik, that 2200 Eubanks Road, Putt Putt Fun Center be recommended for approval with the conditions noted below. The motion carried by the following vote: Enhancing the buffer adjacent to the future affordable housing site to the west and limiting the commercial re-zoning boundary to the footprint of the buildings and not the entire site. Reasons for nay votes include- Vice Chair Berndt-Does not support reducing buffers, stormwater proposed in the RCD, commercial zoning for entire site and long access drive. Weis-Proposed use is not a benefit to the site to the detriment of the adjacent development. Aye: 3 - Chair Susana Dancy, Susan Lyons, and Megan Patnaik Nay: 2 - Vice-Chair Christine Berndt, and John Weis Adjournment Next Meeting - Tuesday, May 25 Lyons moved and Weis seconded to reappoint Megan Patnaik to the CDC. Motion passed unanimously. Lyons moved and Patnaik seconded to recommend Scott Levitan to join the CDC. Motion passed unanimously. A motion was made by Weis, seconded by Vice-Chair Berndt, that the meeting be adjourned at 5:05. The motion carried by a unanimous vote. Page 3 of 4 Community Design Commission Meeting Minutes May 10, 2021 Order of Consideration of Agenda Items: 1. Staff Presentation 2. Applicant’s Presentation 3. Public Comment 4. Board Discussion 5. Motion 6. Restatement of Motion by Chair 7. Vote 8. Announcement of Vote by Chair Public Charge: The Advisory Body pledges its respect to the public. The Body asks the public to conduct themselves in a respectful, courteous manner, both with the Body and with fellow members of the public. Should any member of the Body or any member of the public fail to observe this charge at any time, the Chair will ask the offending person to leave the meeting until that individual regains personal control. Should decorum fail to be restored, the Chair will recess the meeting until a genuine commitment to this public charge is observed. Unless otherwise noted, please contact the Planning Department at 919-968-2728; planning@townofchapelhill.org for more information on the above referenced applications. See the Advisory Boards page http://www.townofchapelhill.org/boards for background information on this Board. Note Page 4 of 4