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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.1 The Well Christian Community Church PA08-042 CUPAGENDA STATEMENT PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING DATE: February 10, 2009 SUBJECT: PUBLIC HEARING: Adjudicatory - PA 08-042 The Well Christian Community Church Conditional Use Permit to expand an existing Place of Worship, minor modification of the hours of operation and a parking reduction for shared parking and off-site parking within the Light Industrial Zoning District. Report prepared by Laura Karaboghosian, Associate Planner ATTACHMENTS: 1) Resolution approving a Conditional Use Permit to expand an existing Place of Worship, minor modification of the hours of operation and a parking reduction for Shared Parking and Off- Site Parking within the Light Industrial Zoning District located at 6515 Sierra Lane. 2) Off-Site Parking Agreement titled "Parking License and Indemnity Agreement". 3) Planning Commission Staff Report dated September 9, 2003 without Attachments. 4) Planning Commission Staff Report dated June 28, 2005 with Attachments. 5) Project Plans. RECOMMENDATION: 1) Receive Staff presentation; 2) Open the public hearing; 3) Take testimony from the Applicant and the public; 4) Close the public hearing and deliberate; and 5) Adopt the Resolution approving a Conditional Use Permit to expand an existing Place of Worship, minor modification of the hours of operation and a parking reduction for Shared Parking and Off-Site Parking within the Light Industrial Zoning District located at 6515 Sierra Lane. PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Figure 1: Project Site The project site is located at 6515 Sierra Lane within the Sierra Business Center. The Sierra Business Center consists of three buildings, which total approximately 70,000 square feet of industrial/warehousing space. The property is zoned Light Industrial (M-1) and has a General Plan Land Use Designation of Business Park/Industrial. The surrounding land uses include Light Industrial (M-1) to the southwest and Planned Development (PD) to the north, east, west and southeast. COPIES TO: Applicant Property Owner 6515 Sierra Lane ITEM NO. 0 . 1 Page 1 of 8 G: TA912008TA 08-042 The Well ChurchlPC 02.10.091PCSR 2.10.09.doe The City of Dublin Zoning Ordinance classifies a church as a Community Facility (Chapter 8.08.020). Approval of a Conditional Use Permit by the Planning Commissioni is required in order to operate or expand a Community Facility withir_ the Light Industrial Zoning District (Chapter 8.12.050 - Civic Use Type). Existing Church Operations: On September 9, 2003, the Planning Commission approved a request for a Conditional Use Permit to allow The Well Christian Community Church (hereafter "The Well") to establish a new 10,800 square foot church at 6533 Sierra Lane (PA 03-047, Attachment 3) within an existing building in the Sierra Business Center. On June 28, 2005. the Planning Commission approved a request for a Conditional Use Permit to allow an 11,198 square foot expansion of the church into an adjacent suite and a parking reduction for shared parking and off-site parking (PA 05-022, Attachment 4). The Well currently operates within a 21,998 square foot facility. Church offices are open Monday through Friday from Sam to 4pm with 10-12 full and part-time employees. The church currently conducts two Sunday morning services and various mid-week meetings/activities in the evening and on Thursday mornings. Maximum occupancy for the existing church is limited to 600 persons. Table 1 provided below identifies e,.:isting church activities approved on June 28, 2005: Table 1- Existing Church Activit:_es Day Time Adivity Sunday Between 8 am & noon Two Sunday morning services 6 pm Prayer/Worship Tuesday 6 pm Mid-week services Wednesday 6 pm Mid-week services 9:30 am Women's Bible Study Thursday noon Women's Bible Study Friday 7 pm Periodic evening activities Saturday 6:30 am Prayer Current Proposal. The Applicant is currently requesting approval of a Conditional Us.- Permit to increase the size of the church by 4,584 square feet in order to move the Youth and Young Adult Ministries Program from the main church facility into their own space, allow for a minor expansion in the hours of operation on Saturday and Sunday, and a parking reduction for shared parking and )ff--site parking. ANALYSIS: A Conditional Use Permit is requirec in order to operate a Communit,? Facility within the Light Industrial Zoning District. The Conditional Use Permit process allows the City to place conditions on the project to ensure the operation is compatible w_th the surrounding uses. The proposed expansion of the use has been reviewed for issues related to operating characteristics, parking and General Plan conformance. Conditions of Approval have been proposed, where appropriate, to ensure compatibility with the surrounding uses. 2of8 Operating Characteristics: The Applicant proposes a 4,584 square foot expansion of the existing church facility to provide a dedicated location for the Youth and Young Adult Ministries. The Yung Adult Ministry would meet on Sunday mornings from 8:45am to t0:30am and the Youth Ministry (for high school and junior high school students) would meet on Wednesday evenings from 7pm to 8:30pm. These two groups currently meet within the existing church during the same hours. The purpose of the expansion is to reduce congestion within the main church facility. If approved, the church w )uld occupy a total of 26,583 square feet within the existing building. The Applicant also proposes to expand the hours of operation on Saturday and Sunday mornings. The church currently operates one prayer service on Saturday at 6:30am and the church has requested approval to allow periodic activities such as prayers and workshops to also cccur during the hours of 6:30am to noon. The Applicant would also like to extend the Sunday morning service hours by one hour to allow services to occur between 8:00am and 1:00pm. This would not inerc ase the number of worship services provided at the church, but would allow for an extension in the length of the services. Table 2 provided below identifies church activities (changes from e:dsting activities are shown in bold) that would occur on the site with approval of this Conditional Use Permit: Table 2 -Proposed Church Activities Day Time Activity d Between Sam to 1 pm Two Sunday morning services and prayer Sun ay 8:45 am to 10:30 am Young Adult Ministry 6pm Prayer/'Xorship Tuesday 6 pm to 9 pm Mid-we ek services 6 pm to 9 pm Mid-we ek services Wednesday m to 8:30 m Youth Ministry 9:30 am Worrier's Bible Study Thursday 12 pm Worrier's Bible Study Friday 7 pm Periodic, evening activities Saturday 6:30 am to noon Prayer :end periodic activities Land Use Compatibility: The existing uses within the Sierra Business Center typically operate Monday through Friday from Sam to 5pm. The proposed church activities on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings will not conflict with the other uses located within the center because they occur during non-business hours. The proposed activities on Saturday mornings are small in nature and occur when only limited business activities are occurring in the Sierra Business Center. All activities will occur within the existing building and the Applicant is required to obtain Building Permits for any alterations to the building. The Well has operated at this location since 2003 and the City has not received any complaints regarding their operation. Parking Analysis: Existing Church Facility: In conjunction with the 2005 Conditional Use Permit, the City hirec. Omni Means to determine parking demand for the Sierra Business Center and demand for The Well. The City's Traffic Engineer, using the information prepared by Omni Means, used the average vehicle occupancy of 1.96 people per vehicle to determine the parking requirement for The Well. 3 of 8 Peak parking demand for the church occurs on Sunday mornings, due to the two worship services and a maximum occupancy of 600 people. The Traffic Engineer determined that the peak parking demand on Sunday would be 309 parking spaces (600 people/1.96 people per vehicle + 3 spaces for company vehicles = 309 parking spaces). For additional information on how the parking requirements were calculated for the existing church facility please refer to the June 28, 2005 Planning Commission Agenda Statement included as Attachment 4. The peak parking demand period occurs when the remaining tenants in the Sierra Business Center are closed and a total of 222 on-site parking spaces are located within the center and are available for use by the church. Although 222 spaces are located on site, these spaces are not enough to meet the parking demand for the church. Therefore, the Applicant obtained an off-site parking agreement (Attachment 2) that grants the use of 150 parking spaces at 6591 Sierra Lane, and at 6723 and 6761 Sierra Court, shown in Figure 2 below. These off-site parking spaces are located within 350 feet of the church and are ADA accessible. Figure 2. Designated Parking Agreement Area The Planning Commission approved a parking reduction for shared parking and off-site parking with the Conditional Use Permit approved by the Planning Commission on June 28, 2005 (PA05-022). With the provision of on-site and off-site parking spaces, as discussed above, a total of 372 are available for the church on Sundays. The available parking exceeds the current peak parking demand by 63 spaces (372 - 309 = 63). As of this date, the City has not received any complaints regarding the parking needs generated by The Well. Proposed Expansion: As previously discussed, the Applicant has proposed a 4,584 square foot expansion of the existing facility in order to move the Youth and Young Adult Ministries from the main church facility into their own location. The proposed expansion area would be located within a 4,584 square foot suite consisting of a 3,021 square foot multi-purpose area. With on and off-site parking, the Applicant is currently able to provide a total of 372 parking spaces to support the existing facility which exceeded the parking requirements on Sunday by 63 spaces. By 4of8 utilizing the same ratio of 1.96 people per vehicle used previously to determine the maximum number of parking stalls needed to support the church on Sundays when the peak demand occurs, the maximum occupancy of the expansion area would be limited to 123 people (12_, people/1.96 people per vehicle=63 parking spaces). Condition of Approval No. 6 (Attachment 1, page 4', has been included which limits the occupancy of the expansion area to 123 people to ensure that adequate parking is provided to support the church expansion The Applicant also proposes to extend the hours of operation on Sunday to 1:00pm. The increase in the hours of operation of the church on Sunday will not require additional parking spaces because the number of services will not be increased. Rather, the length of the services will be extended. The off-site parking agreement allows the church to utili2e the off-site parking spaces between the hours of 8:00am - 6:00pm on Sundays. Therefore, adequate parking is provided to support 6e proposed expansion in operating hours on Sundays. The proposal also includes a request to increase the church services on Wednesdays to allow the Youth Ministry to meet on Wednesdays from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. Midw,;ek services would also be held on Wednesday evenings as approved with the Conditional Use Permit In 2005. These meetings will occur when the tenants within the Sierra Business Center are closed. In 2005, the Traffic Engineer determined that the parking ratio generated by the Wednesday activities would be 1.90 persons per car. The existing Wednesday evening services generate a requirement to provide 87 parking spaces (please refer to Attachment 4 for additional information regarding this parking requirement). Using the same parking requirement for th_e Youth Ministry that was used for the existing Wc?dnesday services would require the provision of 65 additional parking spaces to support the expanded facility (123 maximum occupancy/ 1.90 persons per car=65 parking spaces). The parking demand on Wednesdays is anticipated to be 152 parking spaces (87 parking spaces required to support existing church services + 65 required to support the expanded space=152). The 222 on-sii:e parking spaces are adequate to support the maximum occupancy of the expanded space, as conditioned. The Applicant has also requested approval to allow the church :o provide periodic church related activities on Saturday mornings. In 2005, the Traffic Engineer deterrr fined that the prayer services did not generate a significant amount of parking and that the parking provided on-site would be more than adequate to support the prayer service. The proposed modification includes the ability to provide periodic church activities on Saturday mornings between the hours of 6:30am and noon. Based on a tenant survey conducted as part of this Conditional Use Permit, only two businesses are open on Saturdays and require a maximum of 50 parking spaces. Because the church services are a lticipated to only be attended by a small number of people and the limited hours of operation of the businesses in the Sierra Business Center on Saturday, the existing on-site parking spaces are adequate to support the Saturday services. Table 3 provides a summary of the parking requirements needed to support both existing and proposed church activities during peak days and hours of operation: 5 of 8 Table 3 -Parking Requirements for Current and Proposed Church Activities Proposed Number of. Peak Existing Number of Parking Spaces Required Surplus Demand Parking Spaces (including all church Spaces Available Parking Days Required services) Spaces 372 parking 0 spaces (on and off- Sunda 309 parking spaces 372 parking spaces site parking) 222 parking 70 spaces (on site Wednesday 8.7 parking spaces 152 parking spaces parking only) As shown on the table above and ?.s discussed, adequate parking is available to support the proposed facility expansion and the increase in the hours of operation on Saturday and Sunday. Conditional Use Permit Required Findings: In order to approve a Conditional Use Permit, the following finding:, must be made: the proposed use is compatible with other land uses, transportation and service facilities in the vicinity; will not adversely affect the health or safety of persons residing or working in the vicinity, or be detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare; will not be injurious to property or improvements in the neighborhood; will have adequate provisions for public access, water, sanitation, and public utilities and services to ensure that it would not be detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare; and the site is physically suitable for the type, density and intensity of the use and related structures being proposed. Staff has prepared the draft findings included in the proposed Resolution (Attachment 1). Conformance with General Plan: The project site has a General Plan Land Use Designation of Business Park/Industrial which is consistent with the Light Industrial Zoning District. The proposed project meets the intent of this designation because Places of Worship are permitted in the Light Industrial Zoning District with the approval of a Conditional Use Permit. Review by City Departments: This Project was reviewed by other City Departments and interested agencies. Any special requirements have been incorporated as Conditions of Approval of the Resolution (Attachment 1). The Applicant has reviewed the draft Conditions of Approval and agreed to comply with the City's requirements. NOTICING: In accordance with State law, a public notice regarding this hearing was mailed to all property owners and occupants within 300 feet of the proposed project. A public notice was also published in the Valley Times and posted at several locations throughout the City. To date, the City has not received comments or objections from surrounding property owners or tenants regarding the current proposal. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The Project has been reviewed under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), State CEQA Guidelines and the Dublin Environmental Guidelines. Staff recomrr ends that the Planning Commission find the project to be Categorically Exempt from the CEQA, according to the CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 (Existing Facilities). 6of8 CONCLUSION: The proposed project, as conditioned, is consistent with the Dublin General Plan and the Zoning District in which the project site is located and represents an appropriate proje-t for the site. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Plannin,-; Commission: 1) Receive Staff presentation; 2) Open the public hearing; 3) Take testimony from the Applicant and the public; 4) Close the public hearing and deliberate; and 5) Adopt the Resolution approvi:ig a Conditional Use Permit to expand an existing Place of Worship, minor modification of the hours of operation and a parking reducti )n for Shared Parking and Off-Site Parking within the Light Industrial Zoning District located at 6515 Si(rra Lane. 7 of 8 GENERAL INFORMATION: APPLICANT: Evan L. Simmons The W.-II Christian Community 6533 Sierra Lane Dublin, CA 94568 PROPERTY OV INER: Pat Ro .ise, RPA Sleepy Hollow Investment Co. 18 Crow Canyon Court, Suite 100 San Ramon, CA 94583 LOCATION: ASSESSORS PARCEL NUMBER: GENERAL PLAN DESIGNATION: SPECIFIC PLAN DESIGNATION: EXISTING ZONING SURROUNDING USES: 6515 Sierra Lane 941-0205-020 Business Park/Industrial N/A M-1 (Light Industrial) LOCATION ZONINI? GENERAL PLAN CURRENT USE OF LAND USE PROPERTY North PD (Planned Business Park/ Industrial Development) Industrial South M-1(Light Industrial) Business Park/ Industrial Industrial West PD (Planned Business Park/ Industrial Development) Industrial East PD (Planned Retail/ Office and Retail and Automotive Development) Automotive Project Site M-1 (Light Industrial) Business Park/ Industrial and Church (The Industrial Well) 8 of 8