Discussion:
Site Information:
Applicant: Roers Companies
Address: 1600 Windermere Way
Property Owner: DR Horton, Inc. MN
Lot Area: 5.54 acres
Current Zoning: B-1, Highway Business
2040 Comp. Plan: Mixed Use Commercial Center
Roers Companies has applied for a Planned Unit Development Amendment to the Windermere PUD to allow for the construction of a 230-unit market-rate apartment building called The Blakeley. The proposed building has four levels of dwelling units above a parking garage.
At the November 3rd Planning Commission meeting the public hearing for this application was continued to allow the applicant to revise the proposed building elevations, building materials, and provide more details for the on-site amenities. The applicant has provided additional perspective renderings from both Windermere Way and US Highway 169. This lot is currently an outlot, so final platting is required prior to development. The applicant intends to start construction in the spring of 2023, with an anticipated opening of November or December of 2024.
The proposed unit mix of the building and estimated rents are:
- Studio, $1,355-$1,415: 47 units
- One Bedroom, $1,590-$1,750: 68 units
- Two Bedroom: $2,055-$2,220: 96 units
- Three Bedroom: $2,725: 19 units
Land Use:
This site is zoned B-1, Highway Business. Multiple-family dwellings / apartments are a permitted use in this zoning district. The Arasan Apartments located across Marystown Road are also zoned B-1, Highway Business. In late 2018, the city council revised the listed permitted uses of several zoning districts, including B-1.
Previously, apartments that contained a commercial component were a permitted use in the B-1 zone. As part of the code revisions, city staff met with multiple area developers and the developers noted that outside of a Central Business District, or a major commercial and entertainment center, apartments with a retail or service commercial component was not feasible in a suburban setting. The city council removed the requirement for a commercial component as part of the revisions.
The Mixed-Use Commercial Center designation in the 2040 Comprehensive Plan allows for multi-family housing up to 60 units / acre. The proposed development is 41.5 units / acre, well below the maximum density. The Arasan Apartments across Marystown Road are 34.5 units / acre. The Omry Apartments near Canterbury Park (currently under construction) has a density is 42 units / acre.
Traffic:
The initial concept presented by DR Horton for the Windermere Development showed a gas station and three other retail buildings on this site, with a combined total square-footage of roughly 35,000 square-feet (drawing in attachments). The applicant has provided a Trip Generation Memorandum prepared by a licensed traffic engineer that compares the use of this site as 230 apartment units to a small grocery store, fast food restaurant and a gas station.
The anticipated number of daily trips generated by the apartment building is 1,058 versus 3,700 daily trips for the original proposed commercial uses. The apartments are estimated to generate approximately 29% of the daily trips of the potential commercial uses on the site.
During the A.M. Peak Hour, the estimated number of trips for the commercial uses is 290 trips, compared to 88 trips for the apartment building, or approximately 70% fewer trips during PM peak.
For the P.M. peak hour, the estimated number of trips generated for the commercial uses is 319 trips, compared to 91 trips for the apartments. The traffic engineer noted that the surrounding roadway network will continue to function well with the proposed addition apartments and that the estimated number of trips for an apartment building is 28-30% of the originally noted commercial uses depending on time of day.
The city's future roadway planning includes construction of a roundabout at the Windermere intersection and Marystown. The city was recently awarded funding to begin construction of these roundabouts in 2023/2024.
There is one commercially zoned site left in the Windermere commercial section directly across Windermere Way from this site. The initial Windermere concept shows a roughly 4,900 square-foot building with a drive-thru and 59 parking spaces on that site.
Building Design:
The proposed exterior building materials are:
- Two colors of brick.
- Two colors of color integral concrete block
- Woodtone cementboard
- Bronze colored metal panel
- Decorative corrugated metal
- Two colors of cementboard
The proposed building materials all meet the materials requirements of City Code and the percentage of window coverage at 40% is well above the typical amount of window coverage for apartments.
The applicant has recently adjusted their exterior building design, revising the following features:
- Adding an additional color / type of concrete block for the parking garage level facing Highway 169.
- Adding pergola / canopy features above the balconies of the top floor units.
- Extending brick up to the 2nd floor on the building corners.
- Additional variation in roof heights.
- Adjusted the woodtone portions on the facade to add additional variation.
The building's design is separated into two wings connected by a corridor area (the bronze colored metal panel area). The connecting corridor has windows on both sides allow for visibility through this portion of the building. The proposed design of the building does have slightly fewer roofline variations than required by City Code, but exceeds all other design requirements. A Planned Unit Development may allow for additional building design flexibility. Planning staff feels the most recent changes enhance the overall appearance of the building. The proposed building height is 46'-49' when measured at different parapets. The standard maximum height in the B-1 zone is 45'. The proposed height is consistent or lower than other 4-story apartment buildings in Shakopee because of the elevation of the parking garage and the building does not have a pitched roof.
Proposed Amenities:
There are two main outdoor amenity areas, the western courtyard and eastern (pool) area. Ground level units adjacent to the amenity areas have exterior doors to a 6' wide patio that has sidewalk access to the outdoor amenities and provides access to the surrounding trails / sidewalks (see site plan with amenities).
The western courtyard area has the following:
Two outdoor pickleball courts
A firepit / paver patio area
Outdoor movie area
675 square-foot dog run area
Multi-purpose building, anticipated to be used for storage / amenities.
Outdoor planters
Patios adjacent to units
The eastern (pool) area has the following amenities:
50' x 18' outdoor swimming pool
Outdoor grill station
Several outdoor seating areas / tables
Outdoor patios adjacent to ground level units
Indoor Amenities include a co-working space, club room, fitness center, dog wash and bike storage / maintenance area.
Vehicle Parking:
As proposed, the required number of parking stalls based on the different unit types is 413 spaces. The applicant is proposing to provide 313 spaces of garage parking and 91 spaces of surface parking, for a total of 404 spaces, which is 9 spaces below the requirement. The applicant does have the option to provide up to 10% of the required parking spaces as compact spaces (8' x 16' spaces vs 9' x 18') to increase the number of parking spaces.
As proposed, staff is comfortable with the number of spaces provided, as it is only 2.2% below the requirement, and the applicant is able to use compact spaces as a way to increase the number of stalls. The overall number of parking spaces /unit is 1.75 spaces / unit and 115 of the units are one bedroom or studio units.
A gas pipeline, owned by Rahr and managed by Xcel Energy, bisects this site north-south and crosses Highway 169. The applicant has been working closely with Xcel Energy on a relocation plan that would route the pipeline around the east side of the building to allow for this building design.
An Xcel Energy easement for the electrical transmission lines is located on the north side of this site. Landscape plantings within the easement area are limited to lower-level plantings, such as Lilac trees or other ornamental trees, like flowering crabapple trees and serviceberries. The applicant's landscape plan reflects these landscape restrictions.
The applicant has proposed planting overstory trees on the city owned parcel that is between their site and the single-family lots on Willow Circle to meet the landscaping requirement. Off-site landscaping is allowed by City Code and the plan is acceptable to the Public Works Department.
Neighborhood Comments:
Public hearing notices were sent to property owners within 500' of this site and a sign was posted on the site noting the proposed development. The specific comments received by e-mail are attached.
The majority of comments received relate to vehicle traffic, potential crime, expectation that this site was to be commercial uses and views being blocked by the proposed building. As noted in the Trip Generation Memorandum, the number of vehicle trips generated by an apartment building are significantly fewer than 35,000 square-feet of retail area, including a gas station. Scott County has recently completed the installation of a traffic signal at the intersection of 17th Avenue and Marystown Road and the city is working on a future roundabout at Windermere and Marystown.
The Police Department has reviewed the request and is not concerned about increased crime as a result of the development. The City Council recently approved the Rental Property License Ordinance and Property Maintenance Code, which has specific requirements and penalties related to building and site maintenance and crime.
The building has four levels above grade on the south elevation and five levels above grade on the north elevation due to the sloping topography of the site. The parking garage level is visible on the north elevation (highway 169).
The proposed building is roughly 147' from the south lot line of the site, which is between 270'-310' from the lots on Willow Circle and 350'-390' from the nearest houses on Willow Circle. (please see building footprint on location map)
The elevations of the yards on Willow Circle nearest to the site are between 875' and 878'. The entrances on the south side of the building would be 36'-39' lower than the yards of the closest lots on Willow Circle (See Page 5 / C3.1 of Civil Plans). The proposed roofline of the building on the south side is at roughly the 883' elevation. The upper level of the houses on Willow Circle would indeed be at a similar elevation to the roofline of the proposed building. Hotels and office buildings are also permitted uses in the B-1 Highway Business zone, so it is possible that other potential commercial uses would have a similar height to the applicant's proposal.
The proposed use of the site as apartments complies with both the zoning ordinance and the comprehensive plan. The applicant is proposing to build a quality development with a high number of amenities that is below the maximum density for dwelling units. Staff is recommending approval of the proposed request, subject to conditions.