HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-24 PC Staff Report - JanuaryREZONING #11 -24
Route 7 Self Storage (Edward P. Browning IV)
Staff Report for the Planning Commission
Prepared: December 31, 2024
Staff Contact: Kayla Peloquin, AICP, Planner
Executive Summary:
Meeting Schedule
Planning Commission: January 15, 2025 Action: Pending
Board of Supervisors: February 12, 2025 Action: Pending
Property Information
Property Identification Number (PIN) 55-A-180
Address Berryville Pike (Route 7)
Magisterial District Red Bud
Acreage +/- 2.38 acres
Zoning & Present Land Use Zoning: B1 (Neighborhood Business)
Land Use: Vacant
Proposed Zoning B2 (General Business)
Adjoining Property Zoning & Present Land Use
North: Principal Arterial Land Use: Berryville Pike (Route 7)
South: RP (Residential Performance) District Land Use: Single Family Residential
East: RA (Rural Areas) District Land Use: Restaurant/Pub
West: RA (Rural Areas) District Land Use: Single Family Residential
Proposed Use
This is a request to rezone one (1) parcel of 2.38-acres from the B1 (Neighborhood Business)
Zoning District to the B2 (General Business) Zoning District with proffers to allow for a self
storage facility.
Positives Concerns
The proffer statement prohibits hotel and/or
motel uses, fast food restaurants, and gas
stations, which generate significantly more
trips than self-storage.
Additional business development in the
County could provide employment
opportunities and tax revenue to the County.
Although several uses have been restricted,
many B2 permitted remain including, but not
limited to, car washes, retail trade, and
personal care services that have the potential to
generate more trips than the stated desired use
of self-storage.
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Page 2 of 4
The proposed rezoning is not in conformance
with the Comprehensive Plan, which
designates the desired long-range land use as
residential.
The GDP shows 3 trailer parking spaces, which
may be able to accommodate RVs, campers,
and other types of trailers. Given the direct
access off Route 7 and the speed limit (45
MPH), this is not an ideal location for trailer
parking.
The transportation proffers do not address the
eastbound right turn lane VDOT stated the
developer should commit to building to access
the proposed development.
Review Agency Comments:
Review Agency Comment
Date
Comment Summary Status
Frederick
County (FC)
Fire Marshal
December 13,
2023
Fire apparatus access roads must be
shown on the site plan.
Applicant
acknowledged fire
access roads must
be shown on site
plan.
FC Attorney January 25,
2024
Proffer statement is “legally
sufficient” subject to several
comments. No method has been
identified for determining when
traffic generated would exceed 120
trips per day to trigger the
requirement for an updated TIA.
Partially
addressed. The
transportation
proffer language is
not abundantly
clear.
Frederick Water January 2,
2024
The submission included a
preliminary site plan and entrance
concept along Route 7, which will be
atop an existing 10-inch water main,
will require that the developer replace
the water main as construction atop
the main will certainly cause damage
to the main. We look to the design
phase of the project to review the
detailed entrance improvements and
water main replacement plans.
Applicant has
acknowledged the
comment.
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Page 3 of 4
FC Public
Works
December 19,
2023
No comment.
VDOT December 19,
2024
Given the location of this property on
a narrow section of Route 7 (without
adequate shoulders), we would
suggest a commitment by the
developer to provide a full right turn
lane into the project (100-feet
storage, 100-feet taper).
Not addressed.
The proffers and
the GDP do not
specifically
address the right
turn lane.
Planning & Zoning Staff Analysis:
Site History:
The property was part of a large rezoning from A2 (Agricultural General) to RP (Residential
Performance) in 1987 and was later subdivided and rezoned from RP to B1 (Neighborhood
Business) in 1989 with no proffers.
General Development Plan (GDP), Site Access, and Transportation:
The GDP depicts a new entrance south off Route 7 with a proposed bridge over a stream (Ash
Hollow Run) that runs largely parallel to Route 7. The GDP shows 8 vehicle parking spaces along
with 3 “trailer parking” spaces. There are existing entrances nearby, approximately 60’ west of the
western property boundary and approximately 20’ east of the eastern property boundary. The
posted speed limit is 45 MPH. The right turn lane requested by VDOT (100’ storage and
100’ taper) is not shown on the GDP.
The impact analysis states, “the business assumes five employees and possibly five customers
daily” (pg. 2) and later states “the estimated vehicle trips per weekday average is 58.6 trips per day
(TPD) per the ITE Trip Generation Manual, 7th edition” (pg. 2). The impact analysis does not
specify what proposed use was used to generate a weekday average of 58.6 TPD and does not
acknowledge the other potential B2 uses that have not been proffered out.
Comprehensive Plan Conformance:
The Comprehensive Plan and the Senseny/Eastern Frederick Area Plan provide guidance on the
future development of the subject property. The Plan identifies this property with a “residential”
land use designation of 4 dwelling units per acre (4 u/a) and is within the limits of the Sewer and
Water Service Area (SWSA) and the Urban Development Area (UDA). The Plan envisions this
area of the County and the Route 7 corridor to remain residential. Business uses are planned closer
to Interstate 81 and west of Greenwood Road. Therefore, the current and proposed zoning is
inconsistent with the Plan.
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Proffers & Staff Comments:
Proffers
(Revised 12/11/24)
Staff Comment
Permitted uses exclude “hotels and/or motels,
fast food restaurants, and gasoline service
stations,” however it does not exclude all B2
uses other than self-storage, which leave many
other uses such as car washes, retail trade, and
personal care services.
This proffer restricts some of the B2 permitted
uses but leaves many that could generate a
higher number of trips and higher water and
sewer demand. It would be clearer and more
straightforward to restrict all B2 uses other
than self-storage in the proffers as self-storage
is the stated desired use for this property.
“If the cumulative average weekday traffic
volume exceeds 120 TPD, then it is agreed that
the applicant shall not file an additional site
plan application until the County is satisfied
that adequate and manageable levels of
average weekday traffic volume will exist on
internal, and more importantly, state roadways.
The applicant shall perform an updated TIA of
the project when the proposed ITE traffic
projection exceeds 120 TPD (average weekday
volume).”
The transportation proffer language is not
clear. There are no internal roadways proposed
for this project, only the entrance and parking
lot. The sentence discussing not submitting an
additional site plan adds confusion on if the
TIA will be conducted for the initial site plan
submission or solely and future additional site
plans (expansions or changes of use). Staff
feels a TIA is not warranted given the size of
the property. The larger concerns for this site
are the safety of the corridor and entrance and
the high speeds travelled along Route 7, which
are not the main focus of a TIA.
Following a public hearing, staff is seeking a recommendation from the Planning
Commission to forward to the Board of Supervisors on this rezoning application.
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