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PLANNED DEVELOPMENT AMENDMENT - GAINESVILLE AUTO TOWN CENTER (B)
Ordinance No. 0-07-120, Petition No. 69PDV-07PB
An Ordinance of the City of Gainesville, Florida; rezoning certain lands in the City, as more specifically described in this Ordinance, from "BUS: general business district" to "Planned Development", commonly known as "Gainesville Auto Town Center", located in the vicinity of the 3900 block of N. Main Street, west side; adopting a development plan report and development plan maps; providing conditions and restrictions; providing for enforcement and penalties; providing a severability clause; providing a repealing clause; and providing an immediate effective date.
recommendation
The City Commission adopt the proposed ordinance.
explanation
STAFF REPORT
This petition is a request to change the zoning on the subject property from BUS (General Business District) to Planned Development for an automotive sales center and related accessory uses. The subject property is comprised of five tax parcels listed as 08159-002-000, 08159-002-001, 08159-002-002, 08159-002-006 and 08159-002-010, totaling 18.4 acres. The property is located at the northwest corner of North Main Street and Northwest 39th Avenue, having 229 feet of frontage on Northwest 39th Avenue and 1,238 feet along North Main Street. The south east corner of the subject property is developed with an office building, the round bar, a bank and other retail uses. The remaining northwest portion is undeveloped and contains four well defined wetlands areas. A north/south ditch runs along the west boundary of the subject property and traverses the southern portion.
The applicant wishes to develop the property with three, new and used car sales establishment, combined with a community/learning center and an alternative fuels, fueling station. The principal use is classified under SIC (Standard Industrial Classification) MG-55 Automotive dealers and gasoline service stations, which is not allowed in the BUS zoning district. In order to implement the proposed use, the property would have to be rezoned to BA or Planned Development. The applicant decided to request a rezoning to Planned Development in order to address intended unique aspects of the site, the operations of the proposed development and the adjacent residential development to the west.
The property is also located in the Secondary Zone of the city's Wellfield Protection Zone and may require a Wellfield Protection Special Use Permit due to the proposed underground storage of hazardous materials
Three issues of primary importance with this petition are avoidance and mitigation of impacts to the site's wetlands, staff's concerns regarding relocation/reorientation of buildings to the northwest corner of 39th Avenue and north Main Street and general neighborhood compatibility concerns.
The Plan Board heard the request and expressed concerns about the removal of wetland areas from the site, and the location of building on the site. Staff and some Plan Board members felt that the applicant did not do enough to avoid or minimize the development's impact on the northern wetland area. The Plan Board kept as part of their condition of approval that buildings should be removed from the wetlands and relocated to realize the least possible negative impacts to both the environmental aspects and the residential development to the west and north. At the Plan Board meeting the applicant offered to provide funding in the amount of $100,000 for the enhancement of +/- 49.0 acres at the Prairie Creek Basin property, including hydrologic restoration, re-establishing a historic connection, instituting a fire management regime, and vegetative restoration by removing planted pines and replanting with long-leaf pines and native ground-cover species. The Plan Board voted 4-0 to recommend approval of the petition with modified conditions to the City Commission.
On December 10, 2007, the city commission conducted a public hearing and voted to authorize the City Attorney's office to draft an ordinance for its consideration. Staff collaborated with the applicant to arrive at a mutual understanding and agreement on conditions included in the attached ordinance for First Reading. Some of the conditions presented to you at the public hearing have been modified to provide clarification of intent and to reflect what the city commission intended.
Public notice was published in the Gainesville Sun on August 1, 2007. Letters were mailed to surrounding property owners on October 3rd 2007. The Plan Board held a public hearing October 18, 2007 and continued the hearing to October 25, 2007.
CITY ATTORNEY MEMORANDUM
The City Commission, at its meeting of December 10, 2007 authorized the city attorney's office to prepare and advertise the necessary ordinance rezoning certain lands within the city to planned development commonly known as "Gainesville Auto Town Center" within the City of Gainesville.