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PL CV Yelm LLC SR507 City of Yelm Community Development Department 105 Yelm Avenue West P.O. Box 479 Yelm, WA 98597   Pre-Application Meeting August 23, 2006 These comments are preliminary in nature and are not intended to represent final comments and or requirements for the City of Yelm. Until a complete application is made, the Community Development Department can only attempt to inform the applicant of general requirements as they appear in the form presented by the applicant at the time of pre-submission. Proponent: Yelm LLC Project Proposal: Commercial/ Retail/Office Development Project Location: HWY 507 East, Tax parcel number 64303200501 Zoning and Setbacks The property is zoned Heavy Commercial (C-2) which is codified at Chapter 17.27 YMC. The C-2 district is intended to permit, in designated areas, commercial uses and activities which depend more heavily on convenient vehicular access than pedestrian access, and which do not require locations in other commercial districts, or which may be inappropriate in other commercial districts. The C-2 district allows mini storage/retail/office service as permitted uses subject to site plan review approval in accordance with Chapter 17.84 YMC. Building setbacks are 15 feet from the front, 20 feet from the rear and 10 feet from the side property lines The maximum building height is forty (40) feet. Critical Areas All of Yelm is considered a critical aquifer recharge area. Existing development regulations address the potential impacts to this critical area. The City wetland maps indicate that the property is located outside of wetlands and flood zones. It appears that the southwest corner of the property falls within a high ground water buffer area. Hydrologic and hydrogeologic studies are necessary to delineate the high ground water flood hazard area and the base flood elevation. No development shall locate within fifty feet, measured on a horizontal plane, from the outer edge of the high ground water hazard area or extending to a ground elevation two feet above the base flood elevation, whichever is less. The bottom of any infiltration facility for stormwater discharge shall be located at least 6 feet above the base flood elevation. State Environmental Policy Act Process A SEPA threshold determination will be required before action is taken on the Site Plan Review application. Because of the size of the project, an expanded environmental checklist will be required initially. The expanded checklist should include the following environmental documents: Traffic Impact Analysis. Preliminary Stormwater Plan. The SEPA threshold determination is appealable to the Hearing Examiner, who would hold an open record hearing on the issue. The Examiner’s decision may be appealed to City Council, which would conduct a closed record hearing and determine if the Examiner’s decision was contrary to law and supported by substantial evidence. Land Use Process A Site Plan Review application as established by Chapter 17.84 YMC is an administrative review process. The minimum application requirements can be found at Section 17.84.060 YMC and are listed on the application form. A notice of application is mailed to all property owners within 300 feet of the site. The site plan review committee’s decision on a site plan review application may be appealed to the Hearing Examiner, who would hold an open record hearing on the issue. The Examiner’s decision can be appealed to the City Council, which would hold a closed record hearing and determine if the decision was supported by substantial evidence or contrary to law. If a SEPA appeal is filed, the site plan review would be combined with that appeal and the Hearing Examiner would become the decision maker with a recommendation from the SPR Committee. An open record hearing would be held by the examiner on the site plan review application, if combined with a SEPA appeal. A conceptual landscaping plan is required with the application for site plan review. The final landscaping and irrigation plan is required as an element of civil plans, with installation and approval prior to occupancy of the business. Land use approval typically contains conditions of approval that the applicant must complete prior to receiving a building permit. Upon satisfactory completion of all conditions of land use approval, the applicant can submit building plans for approval. 1 Applicable Land Use Fees including but not limited to: Site Plan Review = $350.00 +$50.00 per 1000 square feet of gross floor area. Environmental Checklist (SEPA) = $150.00 Traffic Impact Analysis (Actual Charges Incurred) Water = $1500.00 per ERU Sewer = $5, 569.00 per ERU Transportation Facility Charge (TFC) = $750.00 per new PM Peak Hour Trip Civil Plan Review Fees = $54.00 per hr. Building Permit Fees based on valuation`` Civil Plan Review Process Civil Plan review generally takes place after a land use approval. The Yelm Development Guidelines contain standard details for all infrastructure requirements, including parking lot layout, sewer and water lines, STEP tank design, and stormwater control. Building Permit Process Building Plan review, permitting and inspections will be based on Title 15 Yelm Municipal Code, adopting the 2003 IBC, IMC, UPC, IFC and the 2001 Washington State Energy Code. By resolution, the City of Yelm re-adopted the 1997 UBC, UMC and UPC Fee schedules. Building Plans may be submitted after Site Plan Review approval. Five(5) sets of plans, one of which may be half scale, two (2) sets of engineering calculations, energy calculations and specifications will be required. Due to the size of the occupancy, an integrated sprinkler and fire alarm system will be required. These plans may be submitted at a later date along with any required kitchen suppression systems. All fire related items 5’ outside the building will be subject to civil review along with domestic water, waste, and storm water. Concurrently with Site Plan Review two sets of building and accessory building elevations must be submitted for review of the building for consistency with the Design Guidelines. Allow at least 4 to 6 weeks for Building Plan Review and 2 weeks for design guideline review. Design Review Street Fronts (other than pedestrian-oriented street) All development for properties not on pedestrian oriented streets shall include site planning measures to create an attractive street edge, accommodate pedestrian access, and support downtown design objectives. Examples of requirements based on Downtown Goals and Policies are stated in the following: Define street edge with building landscaping or other features. Provide direct access to building fronts from the sidewalk. If parking is adjacent to street frontage, provide substantial landscaping to spatially define the street edge and create a distinctive perimeter along the street front. Side and Rear Yards/ Siting Service Areas The design guidelines indicate that service areas, and outdoor storage be located away from neighboring properties to reduce conflicts and requires screening of refuse containers located behind the building. No refuse container shall be permitted between a street and the front of a building. The refuse area must be large enough to accommodate a dumpster and recycle bin. Refuse areas must be screened with an enclosure of a material and design compatible with the overall architectural theme. A six foot wall or fence shall enclose any outdoor refuse collection point. The fence shall be a solid material such as wood or masonry. The following describes the intent in siting service areas based on the Design Guidelines: To “reduce the visibility of unsightly uses”. To minimize the visibility of “backs” of buildings where service areas are located. To “encourage more thoughtful siting of trash containers and siting areas by screening its negative aspects”. To reduce the noise impacts of service areas. Pedestrian Circulation The following elements must be provided as part of the site plan for new developments: All pedestrian paths must comply with the ADA. Adequate lighting must be provided for pedestrian access. Walkways should be integrated with the required parking lot landscaping. Provide pathways through parking lots Integrate transit stops into the planning of site improvements Provide weather protection such as a canopy to create a covered pedestrian open space. Provide at least 200 square feet of landscaping at or near the entry. Provide pedestrian facilities such as benches, kiosks, or bicycle racks. Provide pedestrian scaled lighting Adjacent window displays Provide artwork or special pedestrian scaled signs Parking The requirements for off-street parking and their design shall be regarded as the minimum; however, the owner, developer, or operator of the premises for which the parking facilities are intended shall be responsible for providing adequate amounts and arrangement of space for the particular premises even though such space is in excess of the minimum set forth. Chapter 17.72 YMC requires retail establishments to provide one parking space for every 250 feet of gross floor area. A restaurant requires one parking space for every 200 square feet of gross floor area. Business and professional offices require one (1) space per 300 square feet of gross floor area. Twenty five percent (25%) of the parking spaces may be compact. Mini storage is not listed in the standard parking tables, so the parking plan should include an analysis of required parking for this use. A parking plan shall be submitted to the Community Development Department for review and approval at the time of application for site plan review. A standard stall is 9 feet by 20 feet while a compact stall is 8 by 16. A loading space must accommodate a truck 45 feet in length, 12 feet in width, and 14 feet tall. All parking areas must be surfaced with asphalt or concrete, and shall be striped and landscaped to the standards of the development guidelines. The design details for parking lot construction can be found in the Yelm Development Guidelines. Building Design and Details To encourage buildings that are comfortable at a human scale, at least three of the following features must be incorporated into the building design: Balconies in upper stories Bay windows Pedestrian oriented space Individual windows Gable or hipped roof Porch or covered entry Spatially defining building elements that define an occupied space Upper story setbacks Composing smaller building elements near the entry or pedestrian oriented street fronts To ensure new development is compatible with Yelm’s architectural size and character, at least two of the following features must be incorporated into the building design: Upper story setback Horizontal building modulation Modulated roof line Building articulation To encourage unique, identifiable architectural features at intersections, at least one of the following features must be included on a façade facing a public street: Decorated roofline Decorative treatment of windows and doors Decorative railings, grill work, or landscape guards Landscape trellises Decorative light fixtures Decorative building materials (masonry, wood details or patterns) Concrete block walls must use textured blocks, colored mortar or a mix of other masonry types. Metal roofing must be of high quality with a standing seam and can not be brightly colored. Concrete must be architecturally treated. Blank walls must be treated through trellis and plantings, landscaping beds or other methods. Landscaping Types and Description The purpose of landscaping requirements is to preserve the aesthetic character of communities; to promote retention and protection of existing vegetation; and to reduce the impacts of development on drainage systems and natural habitats. Type I landscaping is intended to provide a very dense sight barrier and physical buffer to significantly separate conflicting uses and land use districts. A minimum of 15 feet of width shall be required when Type I landscaping design is utilized. Type I landscaping is required between this project and the adjacent residential uses. Type II landscaping is intended to provide visual separation of uses from streets, and visual separation of compatible uses so as to soften the appearance of streets, parking areas and building elevation. It is used around the perimeter of a site with a minimum planting area of eight-feet in width. When used adjacent to a building, a minimum five-foot planting area shall be provided. Type III landscaping is intended to provide visual relief where clear sight is desired. This type is utilized along pedestrian corridors and walks for separation of pedestrians from streets and parking areas. This includes planter strips with grass and street trees. Type IV landscaping is intended to provide visual relief and shade in parking areas. Parking shall have at least 24 square feet of landscape development for each parking stall proposed. Each area of landscaping must contain at least 100 square feet of area and must be at least six feet in any direction. Type V landscaping is to provide visual relief in stormwater retention/detention areas with vegetation that is suitable and will thrive in hydric soils. Transportation Ingress and egress at the site shall be consistent with the Yelm Development Guidelines, Section 4B.140. A traffic impact analysis should review the required access points into the site, storage for left turns, and the possible need for acceleration or deceleration lanes. The Traffic Impact Analysis required as part of the environmental review will indicate the impacts that the development will have on the transportation system and suggest mitigation measures that may be required. The City of Yelm has adopted a Transportation Facility Charge (TFC) of $750.00 per PM peak trip generated by new development. The code provides a default table that the applicant can use to determine the number of new PM trips generated by a proposal. The TFC charges are based on the type of use proposed. Each use may be significantly different. For example, the traffic generated from a fast food restaurant is much greater than a “sit-down” restaurant. Retail sales are also determined by different factors. ((Peak PM Trip Rate * Gross Floor Area)/1,000) * $750.00 = TFC Examples: Warehouse/Storage: 0.74 x 50,000 = 37,000 ÷1,000 = 37 x $750.00 = $27,750.00 Misc. Retail: 2.4 x 20,000 = 48,000 ÷1,000 = 48 x $750.00 = $36,000.00 Traffic Facilities Charges may be applied to off-site improvements required to mitigate potential significant impacts attributed to the proposed development if the required improvements are capacity related. Water The site is currently not connected to the City of Yelm water system. There is an existing 10” water line located on Yelm Avenue East on the opposite side of the roadway from your project (SR 507). There is a water latecomers fee associated with the site in the amount of $16,379.78. This project will be required to extend the water line along the frontage of the proposed site. It will also be required to extend the water lines into the project and provide domestic water and fire protection for this proposal. Water connections are based on a consumption rate of 900 cubic feet a month and are charged at a rate of $1,500 per connection (fee subject to change) inside the city limits. An engineers estimate for water usage will be required as part of the civil plan submission. Water connection fees are payable at building permit issuance. An irrigation meter shall be installed, provided an approved backflow prevention device is provided. As sewer use fees are calculated based on water usage, an irrigation meter will lower monthly sewer bills. All commercial buildings and irrigation systems are required to provide for cross-connection control through the provisions of a back flow prevention device installed on the water services. A list of approved devices can be found at Chapter 246-290-490 WAC. Sewer The proposed site is currently not connected to the City of Yelm’s STEP sewer system. To connect to the sewer system a sewer line will have to be installed from the project site, along Grove Road and up to the corner of 100th Way/Middle Road. (This sewer line is expected to be installed by Wal-Mart as soon as 1 month.) This project will be required to install a City of Yelm STEP sewer tank(s) assembly. Also a grease interceptor will be required before the STEP tank in uses the City deems necessary. The size of both the STEP tank and grease interceptor will be based on peak flows as calculated by the developer’s engineer, which must be submitted as part of the civil plan review. Sewer connections are based on a consumption rate of 900 cubic feet a month and are charged at a rate of $5,569.00 per a connection (fee subject to change) inside city limits. An inspection fee of $145.00 per a connection will also be required. Fire Protection All projects need to have fire protection for the buildings. It is likely that fire flow may be an issue at this location, which will be addressed through building official review of the proposed building uses and construction material used for the buildings. Stormwater Developments with additional impervious surface are required to provide stormwater facilities pursuant to the 1992 DOE Stormwater Manual. The size and design would be reviewed as part of the site plan review and further review at civil plan submittal. An operations and maintenance agreement will be required. ADA Requirements The American Disabilities Act required that facilities are ADA accessible. Facility improvements will have to meet current code. Review of these improvements will be determined upon further review of the civil and architectural plans.