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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.2 PH PLPA-2011-00013/00014 MontessoriCUPSTAFF REPORT PLANNING COMMISSION DATE: September 27, 2011 TO: Planning Commission SUBJECT: PUBLIC HEARING: PLPA-2011-00013/00014 Montessori Plus Day Care Center Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review Prepared by Kristi Bascom, Principal Planner EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The Applicant is requesting approval of a Conditional Use Permit for the operation of Montessori Plus, a Day Care Center with up to 60 children and Site Development Review for the establishment of an outdoor play area. The proposed Day Care Center would be located in a former single-story office building located at 11900 Silvergate Drive, the northwest corner of Silvergate Drive and Dublin Green Drive. The application -originally approved by the Planning Commission on July 26, 2011 - is being reconsidered due to an error in noticing. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the Planning 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 a Resolution approving a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review for the Montessori Plus Day Care Center located at 11900 Silvergate Drive. Submitted By Principal Planner . C evie By Planning Manager COPIES TO: Applicant File ITEM NO.: O Page 1 of 8 G:1PA#120111PLPA-2011-00013 Montessori Plus CUP12nd PC hearing 09.27.20111PCSR 9.27.11.docx DESCRIPTION: The project site has a General Plan Land Use Designation of Retail/Office and is located within a C-O (Commercial Office) Zoning District. Montessori Plus has been located at 7234 San Ramon Valley Boulevard in Dublin for the last 15 years. They are vacating their current location and are purchasing the property at 11900 Silvergate Drive. Figure 1. Montessori Plus Day Care Center Site Montessori Plus provides child care services for pre-kindergarten children between the ages of 3 to under 6 years old. They are open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and will provide care for a maximum of 60 children. Children are dropped off between 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. and picked-up between 11:45 a.m. until they close at 6:30p.m., as noted in the Applicant's Written Statement (Attachment 1). According to the project plans, the subject building has a floor area of 7,082 square feet. The Montessori Plus Daycare Center floor plan consists of a lobby, the main indoor activity area for the children, rest room facilities, storage, and a room devoted to food preparation. There will be approximately 1,969 square feet of the building that will not be used for the Montessori Plus operations and will remain vacant. A play area for the children will be constructed along the east side of the project site (adjacent to Dublin Green Drive) and it will extend around the building to encompass a portion of the south side of the building adjacent to Silvergate Drive. The Project Plans are included as Exhibit A to Attachment 2 to this Staff Report. The Dublin Zoning Ordinance defines a Day Care Center as a child day care facility that accommodates 15 or more children. Day Care Centers are required to obtain a Conditional Use Permit in the C-O Zoning District. The Applicant is requesting approval of a Conditional Use Permit for the operation of a Day Care Center with up to 60 children, a Site Development Review for a fenced play area with new playground equipment, landscaping, and a trash enclosure in the parking lot. 2of8 Previous Planning Commission Action The Planning Commission first considered this application at its meeting on July 26, 2011. After the public hearing and subsequent discussion and deliberation, the Planning Commission approved Resolution 11-22 (vote 4-0-1, Cm. Schaub absent) to approve the Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review with several additional conditions of approval. The meeting minutes are included as Attachment 3. After the Planning Commission decision, several neighbors submitted a letter to the City appealing the approval over concerns related to traffic, noise, safety, and public notice procedures. The appeal letter is included as Attachment 4. It was subsequently discovered that the mailing list which was prepared and certified by Chicago Title Company, and spot-checked by the Planning Consultant that was Project Planner, was found to be incorrect. This resulted in an error in the distribution of the public notices. Therefore, it was determined that the item should be re-agendized for Planning Commission consideration instead of moving forward to the City Council on appeal. The draft approval Resolution (Attachment 2) contains the Conditions of Approval (Nos. 10-14) that were added by the Planning Commission at the public hearing on July 26, 2011. Staff is recommending that the Planning Commission again hold a public hearing on this application and approve the Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review with the additional Conditions of Approval included. ANALYSIS: Conditional Use Permit A Conditional Use Permit enables the City to place Conditions of Approval on the project to ensure that the operation of the proposed use is compatible with the surrounding uses. The proposed project has been reviewed for issues related to operating characteristics, noise, and parking. Conditions of Approval have been included where appropriate to ensure compatibility with the surrounding residential and commercial uses. Hours of Operation The hours of operation for Montessori Plus are Monday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. In order to ensure ongoing compatibility with the surrounding residential neighborhood, conditions of approval have been placed on the project which limits outdoor playground activities between the hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. A maximum of 30 children will be in the play area one hour in the morning and a half hour in the afternoon Noise The Dublin General Plan Noise Element includes policies regarding noise and the location of land uses. An Environmental Noise Impact Report was prepared by Rosen Goldberg Der and Lewitz, Inc. to evaluate the potential noise impacts from the day care center's outdoor play area (Attachment 5). To quantify the existing ambient noise levels at the site a series of noise measurements were made at locations around the project site near the adjacent homes. The major source of noise during the ambient measurements was distant traffic on I-680 and San Ramon Valley Boulevard as well as local traffic on Dublin Green Drive and Silvergate Drive. The Community Noise Level or CNEL was between 53 dBA and 60 dBA. The City's normally acceptable compatibility standard CNEL for a residential area is CNEL 60 dBA. 3 of 8 Noise measurements were also conducted of children in the play area at KinderCare Learning Center on Amador Valley Court, a similar facility to the proposed day care center. Proposed noise levels for the children at the proposed Montessori Plus play area were calculated based on the noise measurements at the Kinder Care Facility. Adjustments were made for the number of children and distance between the play area and property line. The predicted noise level from children using the proposed project's play yard is expected to be within the normally acceptable level of 60 dBA per the City's General Plan Noise Element. With the ambient traffic noise at the site, the play area noise is not expected to significantly increase the long-term average noise levels at the nearby residences. Safety Dublin Police Services Crime Prevention Staff reviewed the project and did not object to the proposed location of the day care. The Applicant incorporated a steel tube fence and mesh screen to reduce the ability to climb or reach through the fence at the request of Crime Prevention Staff. In addition, Crime Prevention Staff included several conditions of approval for the project (Conditions of Approval 48 through 61 of Attachment 2) to ensure that the business operates in a safe manner. Traffic The City's Transportation and Operations Manager reviewed anticipated traffic volumes, collision history, and sight distances at the project site. The following is a summary of this review. A memo with details regarding the results of this review is included as Attachment 6 to this Staff Report. Montessori Plus proposes to occupy an existing office building. The proposed change from an office use to day care is anticipated to result in a net increase of 191 daily vehicle trips to and from the site. The additional trips generated by this use will likely be noticeable to neighbors. However, the additional trips generated by this use are not expected to exceed the capacity of the roadway or create any safety hazards. Staff conducted a review of collision history on Silvergate Drive in the vicinity of the project over the last five years. The review focused on Silvergate Drive west of San Ramon Road to west of Dublin Green Drive. There have been six collisions over the five year period. However, the quantity and type of accidents do not indicate that there is a safety problem at this location. The sight distance for the driveway on Silvergate Drive and the driveway on Dublin Green Drive was also examined. The sight distance at the driveway on Silvergate Drive is currently limited. However, this will be improved with the proposed removal of the topiary bushes at the corner of Silvergate Drive and Dublin Green Drive. The sight distance at the egress driveway on Dublin Green Drive is limited due to the existing fence and vegetation. The circumstances at this location could be improved by installing a stop line, stop legend and stop sign at the driveway. Condition of Approval 71 has been included, which details traffic safety signage that will need to be installed prior to occupancy as a Day Care Center. Parking Chapter 8.76 (Off Street Parking and Loading Regulations) of the Dublin Zoning Ordinance sets forth the parking requirements for Day Care Centers as follows: • 1 parking space per employee; • 1 parking space per company vehicle; and • 1 loading space for every 5 children at the facility. 4of8 Montessori Plus will have a maximum of 8 employees including the two owners, no company vehicles and 60 children. Therefore, the total parking requirement is 20 spaces per the table below. A total of 24 parking spaces will be provided on the site including one handicap space. Table 1. Montessori Plus Parking Requirements Number Parking Ratio Required Parkin Emplo ees 8 1 per emplo ee 8 Com an Vehicles 0 1 per com an vehicle 0 Children 60 1 per 5 children 12 Total Parkin Re uired 20 Site Development Review The project includes the establishment of an outdoor playground enclosed with a tubular steel fence with mesh screening, and construction of a trash enclosure. Chapter 8.104 (Site Development Review) requires Site Development Review for any modifications to site layout specifically fencing for the play area and the trash enclosure. Fencing The play area for Montessori Plus is approximately 2,700 square feet in area and will be enclosed with a tubular steel fence with mesh screening (Attachment 2, Exhibit A, Sheets A2.1 & A3.1). The fence will be located on a low concrete retaining wall because of the difference in grade between the building and the street sidewalk. The height of the fence and wall as measured from the Dublin Green Drive and Silvergate Drive sidewalk will be approximately 6 feet (Attachment 2, Exhibit A, Sheet A3.1). The height of the fence will vary from four (4) to six (6) feet from the playground side. This type of fencing will withstand the use of the playground and is secure from intrusion from the surrounding area. The mesh screening also provides visual security of the playground area. Playground Equipment The playground will be divided up into the following areas as shown on the project plans (Attachment 2, Exhibit A, Sheet A2.1): A small sandbox area in the north corner of the playground. A concrete play area where children can use wheeled toys, balls and various pieces of equipment. An area covered with playground fiber containing three play structures. The structures will be of varying sizes depending on the age of the children using them. The largest structure will be approximately 3 feet to the main platform and 9 feet to the peak of the roof. Accessory Structures The Applicant will be constructing a ten foot by sixteen foot trash enclosure at the rear corner of the parking lot (Attachment 2, Exhibit A, Sheets A2.1 & A3.1 detail 16). The six foot high enclosure will be constructed of concrete block painted to match the building. It will have a composition shingle roof and solid metal gates. 5 of 8 Landscaping Existing landscaping consisting of ivy and two trees will be removed from the play area. New landscaping will be provided between the tubular steel fence and the back of the sidewalk along both street frontages (Attachment 2, Exhibit A, Sheet 2.1). The new landscaping will consist of trees, shrubs and groundcover. New landscaping will also be provided between the parking lot and the west side of the building. Conditions of Approval No. 10-14 require that landscape and hardscape treatment beyond that which is shown in the project plans be incorporated into the final site installations. CONSISTENCY WITH THE GENERAL PLAN AND ZONING ORDINANCE: The project site is designated Retail Office in the General Plan and is located in a C-O (Commercial Office) Zoning District. The C-O Zoning District allows the operation of a Day Care Center subject to approval of a Conditional Use Permit by the Planning Commission. An environmental noise assessment was prepared and concluded that the noise generated by the project playground activity would not exceed the standards set forth in the Noise Element of the Dublin General Plan. Conditions of Approval have been applied to the project to ensure on- going compatibility between the Day Care Center and surrounding single-family residences. The project meets the parking requirements set forth in Chapter 8.76 (Off-street Parking and Loading Regulations). REVIEW BY APPLICABLE DEPARTMENT AND AGENCIES: The Building Division, Fire Prevention Bureau, Public Works Department, Dublin Police Services and Dublin San Ramon Services District reviewed the project and provided Conditions of Approval where appropriate to ensure that the Project is established in compliance with all local Ordinances and Regulations. Conditions of Approval from these departments and agencies have been included in the attached Resolution (Attachment 2). NOTICING REQUIREMENTS/PUBLIC OUTREACH: State law requires that the City provide notice of public hearings to all property owners within 300-feet of the subject property. For the previous Planning Commission hearing on July 26, 2011, the mailing list was prepared and certified by Chicago Title Company and submitted to the City by the Applicant as is standard practice. The mailing list was then spot checked by the Planning Consultant who was the Project Planner. However, it appears that some residents in the multi-family housing development located across Silvergate Drive from the project site were not included on the mailing list. For this public hearing, Staff prepared an accurate, comprehensive mailing list that was used for the re-noticing of this application to all property owners and tenants with 300 feet of the subject property. Public notices were also sent to all speakers at the July 26, 2011 Planning Commission hearing and all residents who signed the appeal letter. A Public Notice was also published in the Valley Times and posted at several locations throughout the City. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), together with the State Guidelines and City Environmental Regulations require that certain projects be reviewed for environmental impacts and when applicable, environmental documents prepared. Staff is recommending that the Project be found Categorically Exempt from CEQA, pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301, Existing Facilities and Section 15303, New Construction or conversion of Small 6of8 Structures. The project consists of a Conditional Use Permit for the operation of a Day Care Center for up to 60 children and Site Development Review for establishment of minor accessory structures related to an outdoor playground including wrought iron fencing with a wire mesh and a refuse enclosure. ATTACHMENTS: 1) Applicant's Written Statement 2) Resolution approving a Conditional Use Permit and Site Development Review for the Montessori Plus Day Care Center located at 11900 Silvergate Drive, with the Project Plans attached as Exhibit A 3) July 26, 2011 Planning Commission Meeting Minutes 4) Appeal letter date August 5, 2011 5) Environmental Noise Assessment for Montessori Plus Day Care Center prepared by Rosen Goldberg Der and Lewitz dated July 15, 2011 6) Traffic Memo from Jaimee Bourgeois, Transportation and Operations Manager dated August 25, 2011 7of8 GENERAL INFORMATION: APPLICANT Ada Wong & Rupa Norain Montessori Plus 7238 San Ramon Road Dublin, CA 94568 PROPERTY OWNER: LOCATION: ASSESSORS PARCEL NUMBER: GENERAL PLAN LAND USE DESIGNATION: SPECIFIC PLAN LAND USE DESIGNATION: SURROUNDING USES: Dwight W. Stump & Margaret L. Blair 1007 McCauley Road Danville, CA 94526-1971 11900 Silvergate Drive 941-0103-011-01 Retail Office N/A LOCATION ZONING GENERAL PLAN LAND USE CURRENT USE OF PROPERTY North Single Family Single Family Residential Residential Multi-Family Residential & South Planned Multi-Family Residential Residential Development Residential East Neighborhood Retail/Office Commercial Commercial West Single Family Single Family Residential Residential Residential REFERENCE: General Plan Zoning Ordinance 8 of 8