Attachment B - VPC Recommendation - PHO-3-22_Z-129-05-4.pdf
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City of Phoenix • Planning & Development Department 200 West Washington Street, 3rd Floor • Phoenix, Arizona 85003-1611 • (602) 262-6882 Village Planning Committee Meeting Summary PHO-3-22— Z-129-05-4 Date of VPC Meeting March 7, 2022 Planning Hearing Officer Hearing Date March 16, 2023 Request 1) Request to delete Stipulation No. 5 regarding ingress/egress from Cambridge Street Location Southeast corner of 16th Street and Cambridge Avenue VPC Recommendation Deny VPC Vote 9-2 with Benjamin, Bryck, Coates, George, Jewett, Picos, Wagner, Vice Chair Rodriguez, and Chair Kleinman in support; Mahrle and Procaccini in dissent; and none in abstention. VPC DISCUSSION & RECOMMENDATION: At this time, Wagner and Coates arrived bringing the quorum to 11 members (8 being required for a quorum). STAFF BACKGROUND PRESENTATION Klimek, staff, provided a background presentation on the procedure for requests of this type which propose to modify stipulations of zoning approval. An applicant can request to modify stipulations of zoning approval through the Planning Hearing Officer and, at the discretion of the VPC Chair, the VPC may hear the request to provide a recommendation. Unlike a standard zoning case, staff does not provide a recommendation and the onus is on the applicant to provide the rationale for the request. He then provided a background presentation on the request including its location, zoning history, surrounding uses, and the proposed request to legalize access onto Cambridge Avenue which was explicitly prohibited through Stipulation No. 5. APPLICANT PRESENTATION Javier Verdugo and James Easton, applicants, introduced themselves, provided a brief overview of the use, and offered to answer any questions about the request. The access is presently used for trash and service access. They added that the zoning was approved a long time ago under a previous owner. The access onto Cambridge Avenue is not an inconvenience to anyone since Attachment B City of Phoenix • Planning & Development Department 200 West Washington Street, 3rd Floor • Phoenix, Arizona 85003-1611 • (602) 262-6882 there are no homes and therefore it won’t impact any traffic goals. The access is needed for deliveries due to its access to the S.R. 51. QUESTIONS FROM COMMITTEE Procaccini asked for clarification on the proposed changes to the site including the demolition of a building which is referenced in the application. Easton responded that the building that will be demolished was a former church in the southeast corner of the site. Procaccini asked when the building was constructed. Verdugo and Easton responded that it was built in the 70s or 80s. He added that the plan is to demolish the building for additional parking and the request is to eliminate the stipulation prohibiting access to/from Cambridge Avenue. Jewett noted that there are two residential homes east of the subject site on Cambridge Avenue. He asked for confirmation that there are two business operating on the site including a restaurant and an event venue. He asked if they were able to talk with the homeowners / residents regarding this request. Verdugo and Easton confirmed that there are two businesses on the site and stated that both homes are rentals, and both were sent letters but did not respond. Jewett asked how difficult it would be for visitors to turn around on the site if the 16th Street driveway were closed. Verdugo and Easton responded that it would make it more difficult, and that access would be easier through Cambridge which has very little traffic. Mahrle asked for confirmation that the stipulation had been in place for many years and was willfully ignored. Verdugo and Easton responded that they were not sure it was more out of necessity to have the secondary access. Mahrle expressed frustration that the access restriction was in effect and was ignored. Benjamin stated that the website states that the event venue can host 300+ attendees and asked where these visitors park. Verdugo responded that the website is out of date but that during events, they have an agreement to use the parking lot across Cambridge Avenue. Vice Chair Rodriguez stated that there is good reason for there not being much traffic on Cambridge Avenue, there are speed cushions which are incredibly difficult to get installed. The presence of speed cushions is indicative of a city and community desire to limit traffic and speed on Cambridge Avenue. Additionally, there is a prevalence of multifamily complexes in the vicinity of Cambridge Avenue, and it is therefore a neighborhood, and these residents deserve safe and low traffic streets. Visitors to the subject site would manage fine using 16th Street to the S.R. 51 and that allowing access would cheapen the value of the roadway and provide no benefit to the public. She then echoed Mahrle’ s frustration that the access restriction was in effect and was ignored. Wagner asked Klimek to confirm that Cambridge Avenue is classified as a local street. Klimek confirmed. Wager read the City of Phoenix description for local City of Phoenix • Planning & Development Department 200 West Washington Street, 3rd Floor • Phoenix, Arizona 85003-1611 • (602) 262-6882 streets, paraphrased as follows: “local streets are typically in residential areas and provide connectivity between the residential area, or people who live there with, um, you know, collectors, and then onto arterials for local traffic.” She concluded by stating that her community has worked very hard to preserve local streets to be truly local and that commercial traffic is opposed to the intended purpose of the street. Verdugo and Easton noted that there is an electrical substation on Cambridge Avenue and argued that the street is not truly residential. Vice Chair Rodriguez stated that while some communities can fight hard for character and quality of their streets and nearby development, others do not have the bandwidth to engage in public processes – such as low income, single- parent families, or households with a language barrier. Regarding the substation, those facilities are often dumped where they know residents won’t speak out but that doesn’t mean it is ok. PUBLIC COMMENTS None. APPLICANT RESPONSE Verdugo stated that he purchased the site 12 years ago and that the buildings were abandoned with homeless people and needle everywhere. He cleaned up the site and brought value to the neighborhood when no one would invest back in 2008. Easton echoed that the site was completely abandoned, and that Verdugo put every dollar toward this property to make something good for himself and this community. FLOOR/PUBLIC COMMENT CLOSED: MOTION, DISCUSSION, AND VOTE MOTION Benjamin motioned to recommend the request be denied. George seconded. DISCUSSION Jewett explained his “yes” vote by stating that he understands that small businesses are difficult but that doesn’t give the right to ignore a requirement. He added that, with additional context and information, the committee may have been able to consider a restricted access. Procaccini explained his “no” vote by stating that he’s lived in the area for 18 years and that the business and site improvements are good additions to the area. He stated that he hopes the motion to deny isn’t punitive for past actions and added that the committee may have considered no-right turn signage to limit eastbound traffic on Cambridge Avenue. Chair Kleinman stated that he appreciates comments regarding improving the property and that his “yes” vote is based heavily on a lack of information from the applicant. City of Phoenix • Planning & Development Department 200 West Washington Street, 3rd Floor • Phoenix, Arizona 85003-1611 • (602) 262-6882 VOTE 9-2-0; motion passed with Benjamin, Bryck, Coates, George, Jewett, Picos, Wagner, Vice Chair Rodriguez, and Chair Kleinman in support; Mahrle and Procaccini in dissent; and none in abstention. STAFF COMMENTS REGARDING VPC RECOMMENDATION: None.