[Council Communication]  [Attachments]

Council Communication

Title:	Appeal of Planning Action 2004-052, 904 Garden Way
Dept:	Community Development
Date:	July 16, 2004
Submitted By:	John McLaughlin, Director of Community Development Maria Harris, Associate Planner
Approved By:	Gino Grimaldi, City Administrator

Synopsis:	Planning Action 2004-052 is a request for a Conditional Use Permit and Site Review approval to convert 475 square feet of the existing residence into an accessory residential unit for the property located at 904 Garden Way. In April 2004, the application was administratively approved by Staff. Subsequently, a public hearing was requested by neighboring property owners. The Hearings Board held a public hearing at the June 8, 2004 meeting and approved the application with thirteen conditions. A timely appeal of the Hearings Board decision was filed and the action is now before the City Council.
Recommendation:	The Hearings Board received testimony regarding this action, and approved the request. Staff supports the decision of the Hearings Board, with the attached 13 conditions. While the neighborhood has provided numerous issues and comments regarding the request, Staff believes that this request is not dissimilar from the many other accessory residential units approved, and encouraged, throughout Ashland. These units provide a different housing option for residents, while maintaining the scale and appearance of existing neighborhoods. They have been a successful tool for housing and accommodating growth within the community.
Background:	Planning Action 2004-052 is a request for a Conditional Use Permit and Site Review approval to convert 475 square feet of the existing residence into an accessory residential unit for the property located at 904 Garden Way. The existing house contains 1,574 square feet of living area. The proposal is to modify the structure resulting in a 1,099 square foot primary residence and 475 square foot accessory unit. All residential uses are proposed to be within the existing building footprint. The following bulleted items are issues raised in the appeal request and subsequent information submitted by the appellant at the time of writing. Staff's comments follow each bulleted issue. • Increase traffic, parking and pedestrian safety concerns. The Institute of Transportation Engineers estimates that a residential unit of 500 square feet or less will generate 6.7 automobile trips per day. Given the proximity of the site to a park, shopping, and Siskiyou Boulevard, the applicant has argued that non-motorized trips are a viable option. Garden Way is classified as a Neighborhood Street with the latest street counts (July 1992) show average daily trips to be 520 per day. In general, Neighborhood Streets have relatively low automobile vehicle trips with up to 1,500 trips a day. Harmony Lane, Ross Lane and Clark Street are also classified as Neighborhood Streets with average daily trips of 643 (October 2001), 47 (July 1992), and 484 (June 2000) respectively. A recent survey of on-street parking on two weekdays at approximately 7:00 am counted a total of seven motor vehicles parked on Garden Way in the section from Sunset Avenue to Garden Way. There are 17 parcels fronting on Garden Way in this same section of street. Garden Way does not contain sidewalks. The street was built in the early 1950's, and sidewalks were not a typical element during this era. Installation of sidewalks is generally not required with a Conditional Use Permits for accessory residential units so these smaller projects are not discouraged and because of the issue of the level of improvement in relation to the actual impact of the additional unit. • Lack of "to and through" improved streets in the development. The Conditional Use Permit criteria require "adequate transportation can and will be provided to and through the subject property." This has been interpreted by the Planning Commission and City Council to be an improved street from the existing street system up to the property, and then if a new street is required to be built (i.e. subdivision) through the property that this improvement will be installed to city standards. In this case, all streets are in place and a new street is not required. Garden Way is a paved city street that is connected to an existing system of streets below it that eventually connect to the main arterial being Siskiyou Boulevard. • Inadequate off-street parking for the subject property. The Hearings Board felt the entire site should be brought up to date in meeting the current off-street parking space requirement of three spaces (1.75 spaces for the two-bedroom primary residence and one space for the one-bedroom accessory residential unit). A condition was added to the approval requiring the driveway approach to be shifted to the south so that an off-street parking credit could be obtained by providing 48 feet of adjacent uninterrupted curb adjacent to the property frontage (see condition 13 of the attached findings dated June 8, 2004). The applicant has submitted a plan titled "Parking Detail" (date stamped July 12, 2004) outlining the change in the driveway apron location so that an off-street parking credit can be obtained. Section 18.92.025, Credit for On-street Automobile Parking, of the Ashland Land Use Ordinance is as follows. 00 A. The amount of off-street parking required shall be reduced by the following credit provided for on-street parking: one off-street parking space credit for every two on-street spaces up to four credits, thereafter one space credit for each on-street parking space. • Diminished "livability" of the single-family residence characteristics of the neighborhood. The Conditional Use Permit criteria require that the proposal "will have no greater adverse material effect on the livability of the impact area when compared to the development of the subject lot with the target use of the zone" (18.104.050.C). Seven factors are to be considered when evaluating the effect of the proposed use on the impact area including: 1) Similarity in scale, bulk, and coverage, 2) Generation of traffic and effects on surrounding streets. Increases in pedestrian, bicycle, and mass transit use are considered beneficial regardless of capacity of facilities, 3) Architectural compatibility with the impact area, 4) Air quality, including the generation of dust, odors, or other environmental pollutants, 5) Generation of noise, light, and glare, 6) The development of adjacent properties as envisioned in the Comprehensive Plan, and 7) Other factors found to be relevant by the Hearing Authority for review of the proposed use. Since the exterior of the building will not be significantly altered, the general appearance of the residence will not change. In terms of the scale, bulk, lot coverage and architectural compatibility of the structure, Staff felt it was most appropriate to have the site and structure continue to appear as a single-family residence given the low profile of the Ranch Home architectural style as well as the general development pattern of the neighborhood. The parcel is within 1/3 of a mile from Siskiyou Boulevard and the bus route which makes walking, bicycling and transit viable options for residents of the accessory residential unit. It is not anticipated that the proposed use would create more dust, noise light and glare than the wide range of occupants that can reside in a larger single-family residence. In Staff's opinion, the proposed accessory residential unit will have no greater adverse affect on the livability of the neighborhood than the target use of the property. • Misreprestantion by the applicant's representative at the June 8th hearing of the procedural path followed by the applicant. Further explanation on this item has not been provided by the appellant. Staff understands there were concerns regarding interior remodeling, installation of an exterior door and installation of an electric subpanel prior receiving a Conditional Use Permit for the accessory residential unit. Two building permits were applied for and received. An electric permit was issued in February 2004, and a permit to add a small deck at the rear of the house was issued in June 2004. The installation of the exterior door may have required a building permit if a window or door was not already in place in this location. There is no record of a recent permit issued for the installation of the exterior door on the south side of the building. A number of residents submitted written and oral testimony for the Hearings Board review of the application. Comments not already addressed above included concern regarding the change in the character of the single-family neighborhood, number of rentals and multi-unit conversions in neighborhood, and the desire to have the primary residence required to be owner-occupied. Regarding the multi-unit conversions in the neighborhood, there is one approved accessory residential unit in the area at 869 Garden Way (PA 2002-073). There are no other approvals on record for Garden Way, Harmony Lane, Sunset Avenue or Ross Lane.
Attachments:	Record for Planning Action 2004-053     • Section 1     • Section 2     • Section 3 •  Exhibits Received at July 20, 2004 Council Meeting

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