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Washington Fyrst City of Yelm Site Plan Review Committee 105 Yelm Avenue West Yelm, WA 98597      March 29, 2017 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: Tim Fyrst Project Proposal: Construct 5 duplexes or other multi-family structures Project Location: XXX Washington Ave Parcel Numbers: 75300901200, 75600901400 Property Background and Characteristics The property is vacant. Although it has two parcel numbers, a lot determination could be made that there are 5 individual lots, each approximately .14 acres. Zoning The property is identified by the Yelm Comprehensive Plan Map as (CBD) Central Business District. Most all commercial uses, including mixed use retail and residential uses are allowed, subject to site plan review approval. Allowed residential density is 16 units per acre, subject to R-16 development standards. Based on approximately .94 gross acres, allowed density is 15 dwelling units. Building setbacks are 15 feet from the front, 10 from the side and 25 feet for the rear. Flanking yards are 20 feet. The maximum height of buildings is 35 feet or 3 stories, whichever is lesser. All acreage is subject to actual survey. Critical Areas The City critical area maps indicate that the property is located outside of wetlands, flood zones, and high ground water areas. All of Yelm is considered a critical aquifer recharge area. Protection measures for development within a critical aquifer recharge area are met through treating and disposing of stormwater through an approved stormwater system. Fish and Wildlife Habitat Conservation Areas The Critical Areas Code maps indicate the property contains soils possibly suitable as habitat for the Mazama Pocket Gopher, a protected species listed on the Washington Priority Species and Habitat List as well as the Federal Threatened Species List. If members of the species are found on the property, a critical areas report is required. Compliance with Yelm’s requirements under the Critical Areas Code does not ensure compliance with the provisions of the Endangered Species Act. The applicant should contact Tim Romanski of the US Fish and Wildlife Service at 360.753.5823 or tim.romanski@fws.gov with any questions about compliance with Federal standards for threatened species. Development Standards Water The proposed project is located in the City of Yelm’s water service area. There is a 10 inch water main located in the alley. Nearby fire hydrants are reuse water, a hydrant will most likey be required. All commercial buildings and irrigation systems are required to provide for cross-connection control through the provisions of a back flow prevention device (reduced pressure backflow assembly) installed on the water services. A list of approved devices can be found at Chapter 246-290-490 WAC. The backflow device is required to be installed after the meter and tested by a certified backflow tester. If a separate irrigation meter is installed, an approved backflow prevention device shall be provided. The Unified Development Code, Title 18 YMC, requires the Community Development Department to make a written finding of concurrency for any approval for a land division or site plan (including any development activity). For water, the finding must include the fact that “improvements necessary to provide city standard facilities and services are present or are in an approved and funding plan to assure availability in a time to meet the needs of the proposed development.” The State Subdivision Act, Chapter 58.17 RCW, requires that the City of Yelm make a written determination that appropriate provisions are made for potable water supplies as part of the preliminary land division process. The State Building Code at Section 19.27.097 RCW requires evidence of water availability and the issuance of a building permit by the City of Yelm is the City’s commitment to serve a proposal with potable water. If the City does not have sufficient approved water connections at the time a building permit for the proposed development is ready to issue, the permit will be denied until additional water resources are available. The City currently has sufficient water connections to serve some anticipated growth. A site plan review approval is good for 18 months. It is anticipated that the City will have adequate water at the time of development of this proposal. Sewer The site is within the City of Yelm sewer service area. There is a 4” C900 sewer main located in the alley. This line will need to be tapped by a tapping company. S.T.E.P. tanks are to be located in the front yard of the units. S.T.E.P. tank sizing is governed by the Criteria for Sewage Works Design (Orange Book) published by the Washington State Department of Ecology. A properly sized oil/water separator is required if there is any potential for oil to enter the sanitary sewer system. A properly sized grease interceptor will be required if there is any potential for the introduction of fats, oils, or greases from food preparation to enter the sanitary sewer system. Stormwater The City of Yelm has adopted the 2014 Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington published by the Washington Department of Ecology. Stormwater from new impervious surfaces is required to be treated and released. Roof runoff shall be distributed to individual dry wells. Transportation The City of Yelm Development Guidelines and the concurrency requirements of Chapter 18.16 YMC require all new developments to improve street frontages to current City standards. Washington Avenue is classified as a local access residential street and requires an 11 foot drive lane, a 7 foot parking lane, concrete curb and gutter, 6’ planter strip and 5 foot sidewalk (on one side). Rice Street is considered a Local Access Commercial street, and includes an 11 foot travel lane, a 7 foot parking lane, a 6 foot planter strip and 5 foot sidewalk (both sides). While frontage improvements are required for all new development in the City, partial improvements are typically not encouraged. A deferral request would be considered. Parking Although the CBD allows minimum parking requirements to be waived where on street parking is available, the owner, developer or operator of the premises shall be responsible for providing adequate amounts of, and arrangement of parking space. Chapter 18.54 YMC requires residential dwelling units to have two parking spaces for each unit. A garage may be counted as a parking space. Shared parking area off the alley would also be allowed. Access from the alley requires the alley to be paved and signed one-way (east to west). Full size parking spaces in banks of 90 degrees are 9 feet in width by 20 feet in length and require a 23 foot drive aisle. 45 degree angled parking requires a 12 foot one-way drive aisle. Parking areas are required to be landscaped to provide visual relief and shade. At least 24 square feet of landscaping is required 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. Each planting area must contain at least one tree, and no parking stall shall be located more than 50 feet from a tree. Live groundcover shall be provided throughout each landscaping area. Building and Design Guidelines Design Standards Service areas, outdoor storage areas and other intrusive site features must be located at the rear of the lot to reduce conflicts with adjacent uses. All trash enclosures must incorporate the architectural features of the primary structures and landscaping to minimize visual impacts of the Enclosure. Trash enclosures will be reviewed by Pacific Disposal to ensure adequate service can be provided. Perimeter landscaping is required and is characterized by an 8 foot landscape strip along property lines of any combination of evergreen and deciduous trees (with no more than 50 percent being deciduous), and shrubs. The intent is to provide partial screening and buffering between uses and of softening the appearance of streets, parking and structures. A dense sight barrier landscaping is required between the site and the residential use to the south. A dense sight barrier is required to be 15 feet wide and include a combination of trees, shrubs, walls, earthen berms and related plant materials so that the resultant effect is sight-obscuring. This landscape is required on the northwest property line adjacent to the residential home. Parking lots must be lit to the standards of the design guidelines and include non glare, shielded fixtures no higher than 20 feet above grade. A lighting plan is required as part of civil construction plan review. Pedestrian circulation paths within the property require paved walkways from sidewalks to the building, should tie into neighboring properties when feasible, and provide pathways through parking lots. Within parking lots, the path material must be different than asphalt. Multi-family buildings over three stories or up to 5,000 square feet in gross building footprint shall include at least one of the following elements, and buildings over 5,000 square feet in gross building footprint shall include 2 or more of the following elements along their facades: A minimum 10 foot setback from the face of a building on an upper story. Building facades visible from a public right of way or park shall be modulated horizontally every 100 feet, with a minimum depth of 6 feet. Roof deck or balconies as part of the building modulation shall be a minimum of 60 square feet. Roof lines visible from a public Right-of-Way or park shall be modulated vertically every 100 feet. Gable, hipped or shed roofs shall have a slope of at least 3’ vertical to 12’ horizontal. Arched, vaulted, dormer or saw-toothed roof lines shall have a change in slope, within every 100 foot width. Building facades shall include repeating elements such as distinctive window patterns, porch, patio, alternate dormers, gables, or other roof elements, changing materials, lighting fixtures, trellis, substantial landscaping and/or pedestrian oriented open spaces along the building façade. Buildings facing a public street or park shall be enhanced with at least one of the following elements: Decorated rooflines, such as an ornamental molding, entablature, frieze or other roofline device visible from the ground level. Decorative window and door treatments such as a decorative molding or framing details around all ground floor windows and doors. Decorative railings, grill work or landscape guards. Landscape trellises. Decorative light fixtures with a diffuse visible light source. Decorative building materials. Blank walls visible from the street, parking or adjacent lot shall be treated in one or more of the following ways: Vertical trellis in front of the wall with climbing vines or plant materials. Landscaped planting bed at least 5’-0” wide or raised planter bed at least 2’-0” high and 3’ wide in front of the wall, and plant materials that obscure or screen at least 35% of the wall’s surface within 3 years. The following materials are allowed as described below: Metal siding over 25% of a building’s façade must have a matted finish in a neutral or earth tone color, and must include visible window and door trim painted or finished in a complimentary color and corner and edge trim that cover exposed edges of the sheet metal panels. Pre-finished metal roofing must have standing seams & muted colors. Concrete block walls, or exposed concrete surfaces that are visible from a public street or park must be architecturally treated by split face or grooved surface, colored mortar, or other masonry types in conjunction with concrete blocks. Roof-mounted mechanical equipment shall be screened so as not to be visible from the street or from the ground-level of adjacent properties. Screening shall blend with the architecture of the building. Building shell colors shall be earth tones such as taupe, brown, red-brown, buff, gray, cream, white natural wood, brick or stone. Trim should be white, black, dark blue, dark green, or other deep saturated colors. Permit Process State Environmental Policy Act This project is exempt from a SEPA threshold determination as there are less than 24 dwelling units. Preservation of trees with new development All site plans shall include the location of all trees to be retained and removed exceeding 8 inches in diameter. Mitigation for tree removal is required. Critical Areas Report If a critical areas report is required, it must be prepared by a qualified professional using scientifically valid method and studies in the analysis of critical area data and field reconnaissance, and reference the source of science used. The report must evaluate the proposal and all probable impacts to critical areas in accordance with Chapter 18.21 YMC. Minimum report requirements may be found in Chapter 18.11 YMC. Compliance with Yelm’s requirements under the Critical Areas Code does not ensure compliance with the provisions of the Endangered Species Act. The applicant should contact Tim Romanski of the US Fish and Wildlife Service at 360.753.5823 or tim.romanski@fws.gov with any questions about compliance with Federal standards for threatened species Land Use Review Process A ministerial site plan review is required when new residential construction contains between 2 and 9 dwelling units. An administrative site plan review is required for the construction of 10 or more dwelling units. The Site Plan Review process is an administrative approval designed to ensure compliance with development regulations. The process is codified at Chapter 18.10 YMC. A notice of application is required for the administrative site plan review. A site plan review 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. Civil Plan Review 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, S.T.E.P. tank design, and stormwater control. The City uses a third party engineer for peer review of civil plans. Depending on the number of revisions, the process can take 2 to 4 weeks for each revision. Building Permit Process The City of Yelm has adopted the International Codes as amended by the State Building Code Council for Building, Fire, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Existing Building, the Uniform Plumbing Code and the Washington State Energy Code. Building elevations, site utility screening and refuse enclosure shall meet the design standards in the Unified Development Code, and shall be submitted with the site plan review application. Spaces used for food service shall be reviewed and approved by the Thurston County Health Department prior to building permit issuance. Building plans may be submitted after site plan review approval, along with civil engineering plans, although they will not be reviewed until the civil plans have undergone at least one review cycle. Prior to permit issuance two complete revised plan sets will be required for approval. Integrated sprinkler and fire alarm system permits may be deferred. Building permit review typically takes 8 to 12 weeks. Fees & Charges Site Plan Review Depends on project, fee schedule on city website Civil Plan Review Billed on a cost recovery basis Building Plan Review Based on 1997 UBC fee Schedule Building Permit Based on 1997 UBC fee Schedule Sewer Connection Fee $6,394.00 per ERU* Sewer Inspection Fee $145.00 per ERU* Water Connection Fee $6,289.35 per ERU* Water Meter Fee Based on meter size* Utility connection fees for multi-family (greater than 4 units) is 75% Transportation Facilities Charge $1,497.00 per peak PM trip* *Paid at the time of building permit Single family dwelling creates 1.01 trips $1,511.97 Multi family dwelling creates .60 trips per unit. $898.20 per unit “Allowable Density” When calculating the number of dwelling units allowed on a parcel, the gross area is used and the subsequent number of units is rounded to the first significant digit. Gross area includes all land within the exterior boundaries of the development, including, but not limited to all land allocated for open space, critical areas, buffers, streets, roads, and public and private rights-of-way. “Contiguous Land” means land touching other land at one or more points and having the same owner regardless of whether or not portions of the parcels have separate tax lot numbers, were purchased at different times, lie in different sections, are different government lots or are separated from each other by watercourses or private easements.