Planning Commission

Attachment 1 Area 2 Small Area Plan Fall Hill Avenue 400 Acres 1000 Households 125 Acres of Public Open Space 75 Acres of Private Open Space Public Engagement Placemat Exercise “Tons of potential. Not enough river access or focus should be made for more attractive overall neighborhood.” “I like the small town feel, but with the access to commercial development for shopping and play in a short distance. Concerned to get too overdeveloped to the point where housing becomes out of reach and not affordable.” “The River is nice and so are the trails but Fredericksburg needs affordable housing. I make $50,000 and can’t afford to move out of Central Park Townhomes.” Land Suitability Analysis Analysis Plan Goals • Protect the integrity of the natural areas. • Expand multi-modal access. • Improve the livability of neighborhoods in terms of housing and neighborhood quality. Plan Overview Land Use Neighborhood Center Access and Mobility Environment and Open Space Implementation Infrastructure Complete the street network on Bragg Hill Drive, Roffman Road, and Wicklow Drive with the addition of necessary pedestrian • infrastructure including sidewalks and lighting. • Vacate unused right-of-way from the realignment of Fall Hill Avenue to create a more development-friendly site with a useful pattern for circulation using the side streets. • Ensure the extension of Gateway Boulevard includes a multi-use path to safely cross Fall Hill Avenue connecting to the existing trail, and continuing to the riverfront. Regulations • Rezone Commercial Highway zoned land to a more appropriate mix to support and transition to nearby neighborhoods • Rezone publicly held land and preserved open space categorized as Civic or T-1 to a public, recreational, open space, and environmental zoning district (PROSE). • Protect environmentally sensitive land by clustering and future development in the area away from these features. Public Facilities • Implement the Chesapeake Total Maximum Total Daily Load Plan, identify and study possible locations for updated, create additional open spaces, create upgrade required best management practices, and reduce the amount of nutrients in storm water runoff. • Develop a Fall Hill Park that preserves the forested character of the area while allowing for experience based recreation for all ages. • Develop a “Wild Riverfront Park” accessible by all modes that links visitors with the scenic riverfront providing both historic interpretation and environmental interaction. • Continue to improve the Sunshine Ball Park and develop additional recreational amenities, as feasible at this facility and Snowden Park. Next Steps  Attachment 2 CITY OF FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA HON. MARY KATHERINE GREENLAW, MAYOR HON. CHARLIE L. FRYE, JR., VICE -MAYOR, WARD CITY COUNCIL FOUR HON. KERRY P. DEVINE, AT-LARGE HON. MATTHEW J. KELLY, AT-LARGE HON. JASON N. GRAHAM, WARD ONE HON. WILLIAM C. WITHERS, JR., WARD TWO HON. TIMOTHY P. DUFFY, PH.D., WARD THREE Council Chambers, 715 Princess Anne Street Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401 Joint Council-Planning Commission Work Session September 23, 2020 Small Area Plan, Fall Hill Avenue, Area 2 Small Area Plan, Central Park/Celebrate Virginia, Area 1 The Council of the City of Fredericksburg, Virginia held a special work session on Wednesday, September 23, 2020, beginning at 6:30 p.m. using electronic communication through GoToMeeting pursuant to and in compliance with the City Council Ordinance 20-05, an ordinance to address Continuity of City Government during the pendency of a pandemic disaster. Council Present. Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw, Presiding. Vice-Mayor Charlie L. Frye, Jr. Councilors Kerry P. Devine, Timothy P. Duffy, Jason N. Graham, Matthew J. Kelly and William C. Withers, Jr. Planning Commission Present. Chairman Rene Rodriguez. Planning Commissioners David Durham, Kenneth Gantt, Chris Hornung, James Pates, Thomas O’Toole and Steven Slominski. Also Present. City Manager Timothy J. Baroody, Community Planning and Building Services Director Charles Johnston, Senior Planner Mike Craig, Community Development Planner Susanna Finn and Clerk of Council Tonya B. Lacey. Also Present. City Manager Timothy J. Baroody, Community Planning and Building Services Director Charles Johnston, Senior Planner Michael Craig, Community Development Planner Susanna Finn, Planning Commission Recorder Cathy Eckles and Clerk of Council Tonya B. Lacey. Small Area Plan, Fall Hill Avenue, Area 2. Ms. Finn presented a PowerPoint and she talked about Fall Hill Avenue and the acres, number of households and public and private open spaces; public engagements – placement exercises, land suitability analysis – plan goals; plan overview – land use, neighborhood center, access and mobility, environment and open space, Implementation; next steps. See Attachment I for more information. 1  Commissioner Durham said in the Area I plan there was a lot of discussion about riverfront portion and he said there should be language to connect the dots because anything done in Area 1 would have interactions with this area and similarly to Area 6. Commissioner Pates asked what the Franklin Property Park area would be and whether there was any development of the property in the near future. Mr. Johnston explained that it would be a passive park with trails but remain wild woodland for a wild and natural experience. Mr. Pates asked about River access from the property and Mr. Johnston said there would be some trail connections but that was it. Access to the river would be at the bottom of Gateway extended. Planning Chair Rodriguez said Friends of the Rappahnnock was planning a space not far from this location and he wanted to know how their plans would impact the City’s plans. He also wanted to know if there was any long term plans for safety with all the access to the river. Mr. Johnston said the implication of managing would need to be identified. He clarified that these were not immediate plans, but long term. Chair Rodriguez asked was there any thought of a pedestrian bridge over Fall Hill Avenue and Ms. Finn said no bridge but they have identified the issues of people crossing and they put in for an evaluation of the crosswalks and improvement of the intersections. Mr. Rodriguez also noted that on the Map there was a proposed fire station but he thought there was land on the corner of Cowan and Gateway. He asked if the City was proposing an additional fire station there. Mr. Johnston explained there were some options and they were going to keep the options open. Mr. Rodriquez stated that there was not a lot of open land for the City to do things and he said the City would not have affordable housing if it does not make an investment and if affordable housing fit in these large parcels they should be considered. Councilor Kelly said river access was a huge issue during negotiations of the river easement and everyone wanted access and if too much access is granted it creates safety issues and a degrading of the assets. He referred staff to the original easement documents regarding points of access. Councilor Duffy asked if there was a sense of whether the longer Riverside Trail would carry over as far up as Area 2 and Mr. Johnston said he would work on a bigger picture to show the area better. He said the Wild West Park would be more of a mountain bike and hiking trail that could eventually go out to Motts Run and possible from City Dock to Dixon Park area. Mr. Hornung said there needed to be some thought about the quarry, which can be far more dangerous than the river. He said whatever is done in this area would open up more access. Councilor Duffy said he would like to see the dangers of the different areas of the river and Mr. Johnston said there were identified skill levels along the river and he said they could include it. 2  Councilor Devine said Bill Micks had a lot of data and the information could be made available to give people better information. Chair Rodriguez suggested running the information by the River Steward so he could give better information on the safety. Small Area Plan, Central Park/Celebrate Virginia, Area 1. Senior Planner Craig said Area I’s first run through of the report was completed. He said this was an ongoing conversation they were trying to distill the report into the Comprehensive Plan. He noted that downtown and Central Park both play an essential role in the economy. Mr. Craig explained that Streetsense Consultants broke this area out in to three parts North, Central and South. He said they would like to break out the Riverfront as its own focal area. He said when they set up the regulatory plans it would be broken up into four areas. The land use plan has a lot of good things in it that they would like to continue, but there were also other things that would need to be talked through. Mr. Craig said some of the potential changes to the transect would be changing the 19 acres around Central Park Boulevard/Carl D. Silver Parkway intersection from T-5C to T-4. Second change, would be the 57 acres adjacent to Carl D. Silver Parkway, US Route 3 and Interstate 95 from T-5C to core transect and recalibrate the T-5max to maybe T-6. The consultants wanted to keep the core downtown to its highest number because it was irrevocable and this area was more similar to modern elements. Mr. Craig said their biggest question with land use is residential. The market analysis was clearly laid out and it captures retail use, a gradation of residential use, and the river. There has been dialog from property owners about suitability of residents in the north area. Mr. Craig said a PDR may be appropriate in the north generally six to eight units per acre. Currently, there is not more residential land available in the area and it may be something the City will want to consider. He said the City may need to evolve out of this the next land use regulatory policy of planned development use area. Mr. Craig said there was a potential to create another more intense form base code in this area. They would also need to determine what type of infrastructure was needed. The consultants have come up with more urban design goals. He said they are taking a close look at drive aisle, road diets and parking garages to gage their appropriateness. Two other improvements in the area they may want to think about publically: sidewalks/trails and lake area enhancements. The north end and the riverfront looking at the tree canopy and the contours that connect these areas should have a line on the map and mark them as preserved. Councilor Kelly asked how the City was looking at joint planning of the South section on the south side of Route 3. He said they are still having discussions at FAMPO at the Interstate 95 3 interchange and how it enters this section. Mr. Craig said they have been working with Spotsylvania’s long range planners. He said this was a critical area and they will stay focused on it. Councilor Graham suggested that maybe roads like Carl D. Silver and Cowan Boulevard be considered as quadrants as they become less pedestrian friendly so that they are almost self- contained. Mr. Johnston agreed and said that it would almost happen incidentally. Commissioner Hornung said a lot of the design was based on the common perception that retail was waning out and it will change over the next few decades. He said the regulating plan does lay out a Claredon Town Center style (residential above commercial) development with internal street and on street parking. His main concern for this was if the City goes with the regulating plan and viable reuses of individual parcels and they are forced into this road plan it could limit development in this area that currently has 32 parcels. He wanted to know how the City would be able to enforce this. Mr. Craig said this is something that they would need to be aware of. Although, Mr. Hornung said the regulatory plan is a good way to go he discussed some of the problems with implementing the regulatory plan. Commissioner Slominski said it was easier to look at this in the three different sections. He also agreed with Commissioner Hornung on the retail and where it would end up. He also asked what the need was for the regulatory plan. Commissioner Pates said there was always a future for retail and he asked what the need was for a regulating plan for the front of Central Park. Mr. Craig said the regulating term is how each of the Streetsense reports have been organized. He said it was helpful to talk about it in that framework because there is also a land plan which will turn into the future land use map and the regulating plan which will inform capital improvements and other area improvements that may not be capital but necessary for the future growth. Mr. Durham said the model that makes sense to him in this area would be a significant entertainment complex with hotels, residential and retail, and the installation of parking decks. He said this would bring in a fair amount of taxes and it is right off of the interstate. He said in the Central Area if the City were to get selected for the VA Clinic the City would need to think about the type of development that would follow, such as facilities that would support the clinic. Councilor Withers asked for clarification on the by-right residential use in the Central Park area. Mr. Craig explained that between Central Park and Celebrate Virginia there were no residential units left. He said Central Park had a general development plan and the plan indicates retail use and non-residential. Mr. Craig said Celebrate Virginia’s residential had been completely built out. 4  Mr. Johnston stated that they see this area as an urban center similar to Clarendon Town Center and Reston Town Center. Mayor Greenlaw said she believes what everyone would like to see a smaller version of a good quality mix of residential and what commercial would be in the future. Adjournment. There being no further business to come before the Council at this time. Mayor Greenlaw declared the session officially adjourned at 8:02 p.m. ______________________ Tonya B. Lacey, MMC Clerk of Council City of Fredericksburg 5  Attachment 3 AREA 1 – CELEBRATE VIRGINIA AND CENTRAL PARK A Tale of Two Centers. What is the appropriate level and arrangement of residential use in Area 1? • Report indicates southern / central areas more appropriate for residential infill; • Property owners inquiring about suitability of residential development in the north; Potential regulatory land use changes --- evolution of Planned Development Zoning Districts: • Consider PD-R in the north; • Potentially create an urban residential / commercial form based code of other areas; Potential changes to transects: • 19 acres around Central Park Blvd / Carl D Silver intersection from T-5C to T-4; • 57 acres adjacent to Carl D. Silver Parkway, US Route 3 and Interstate 95 from T-5C to core transect; • Recalibrate “T-5max”; South End: • Agree with more urban design goals including the transition, overtime, of drive aisles to “complete streets”; • Delineate public versus private responsibilities for improvements: • Road diets and parking garages are very expensive for modest level of improvement; • Need for a 10 foot trail on the west side of Carl D. Silver Pkwy to complement existing sidewalk on the east side of the street; • Lake area enhancements and Re-Greening are good improvements; Central Area: • Agree with more urban design goals including the transition, overtime, of drive aisles to “complete streets”; • Enhance and emphasize the “Grid”. Foundations of a strong integrating street system started at the Hamptons projects. Continuation of the grid will continue evolution of this area. North End and Riverfront: • Agree with North End infrastructure requirements / land use plan; • Agree with Green Print concept; • Agree with the focus on access to the River and other natural areas and a wild west Riverfront Park; • Propose to focus on the Riverfront as its own section; Next Steps: • Continue process of distilling report into conceptual Comprehensive Plan amendments; • Work with the City Council and Planning Commission over the coming months to finalize those concepts; • Begin public hearings in late winter / early spring;