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Staff Report.pdf'1x C. Igq" 12 l 5"' Avenue North, Edmonds WA 98020 Phone: 425.771.0220 m Fax: 425.771.0221 - Web: DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT m PLANNING DIVISION PLANNING DIVISION REPORTO' Oar ^ TO THE HEARINGEXAMINER Project: Cascadia Art Museum Conditional Use Permit File Number: PLN20140074 Date of Report: February 5, 2015 Planner: Sean Comad, Associate Planner Public Hearing: February 12, 2015 at 3:00 P.M. Edmonds Public Safety Complex: Council Chambers 250 — 5"' Avenue North, Edmonds, WA 98020 This is a request for a Conditional Use Permit to locate a museum, Cascadia Art Museum, in an existing building located at 190 SLmset Ave. The building is located on a 4.3 acre property within the Community Business (BC) zone. The applicant has provided details of the proposal, which are included as Attachment 3. The museum will occupy approximately 8,700 square feet of the existing 22,000 square foot building. The majority of the 8,700 square foot space will be dedicated to six art galleries and one multi- purpose room. The remainder of the space will include storage areas for artwork, shipping and receiving room, lounge and lavatory for volunteers and employees, two offices and a small gift shop and reception area. The anticipated opening times are between Thursday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to possibly 7 p.m. however hours could vary slightly depending on the exhibits and other events occurring at the museum. Edmonds Community Development Code (ECDC) 16.50.010(C)(12) requires a Conditional Use Permit for a museum within the Community Business (BC) zone. The applicant has submitted the conditional use permit application in order to comply with this zoning code requirement. The subject application is for a Conditional Use Permit for the proposed use only, and does not include review of applicable building permit applications. All changes to the existing building, changes to the site layout, and landscaping will be reviewed under the applicable building permit and design review applications. The following is staff's analysis of the project. EXFIIBIT 1 — STIFF REPORT Page I of 8 Cascadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 IL GENERAL INFORMATION: A. Owner: Salish Crossing LLC (Attachment 1) B. Applicant: Salish Crossing LLC (Nick Echelbarger — Agent) C. Tax Parcel plumber: 27032300104500 D. Location: 190 Sunset Ave., Edmonds E. Zonin : Community Business (BC). Refer to Attachment 2 for a zoning map. F. Square Footage / Acreage: Approximately 4.28 acres (per Snohomish County Assessor's records). G. Proposed Use: The applicant is proposing a museum within an existing building (Attachment 3). H. Existing Use: The existing building on the site is currently vacant; however, it was originally constructed for a grocery store and more recently an antique mall occupied the space. According to Snohomish County Assessor's records, the existing building was constructed in 1966. III. APPLICATION SUBMITTAL: The subject application was submitted on December 17, 2014. The applicant's land use application form is included as Attachment 1, and the applicant's initial submittal materials are included as Attachments 3 through 7. Staff determined the application to be "complete" on January 12, 2015 (Attachment 8). Staff then proceeded to post the property, place the legal notice in the paper and notify surrounding property owners of the proposed project. IV. SEPA THRESHOLD DETERMINATION: None of the elements of the subject proposal trigger State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) review. Therefore, the Applicant and the City have complied with the requirements of ECDC 20.15A. A "Notice of Application and Public Hearing" and vicinity map were posted at the subject site as well as at the Public Safety Complex, Development Services Department, and Library on January 16, 2015. This notice and map were also mailed to residents within 300 feet of the subject site using a mailing list provided by the applicant with the initial application submittal. A legal notice was published in the Herald Newspaper on January 16, 2015. Refer to Attachment 9 for copies of the noticing materials, including the public notice, declarations of mailing and posting, and the adjacent property owners' list. The noticing provisions of ECDC 20.03 have been satisfied. To date, no comments have been received on the subject proposal. EXHIBIT 1— STAFF REPORT Page 2 of 8 Caseadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 This application was reviewed and evaluated by Snohomish County Fire District No. I as well as the Building Division and Engineering Division. Fire Marshal John Westfall with Snohomish County Fire District No. 1 did not have comments on the subject application; however, he stated that the Fire District is reserving comments for during their review of the building permit application (Attachment 10). The Engineering Division found the proposal consistent with Title 18 ECDC and the City's engineering standards (Attachment 11). Leif Bjorback with the Building Division stated that construction shall meet all applicable building codes. A building permit is required for the interior remodeling to accommodate the museum (Attachment 12). The requirement to obtain all necessary building permits has been added as a recommended condition of approval. As always, any affected divisions/departments may have comments related to the proposal as part of their respective reviews of any associated building permit applications. A. Critical Areas: A Critical Areas Checklist was reviewed in 2004 under File No. CRA20040023. It was determined that no critical areas were located on nor adjacent to the site, and a "Waiver" was issued. Due to the location of the property, a liquefaction hazard is present however, the proposal is to change the use of an existing building. No new buildings are proposed. Therefore, a critical areas report is not necessary for the subject Conditional Use Permit application. B. Topography, Soils, Wildlife, and Vegetation: The subject site is relatively level and contains existing landscaping typical of commercial development. The majority of the site is covered by the existing building and pavement for the parking and access drives. As such, very minimal opportunity for wildlife habitat exists on the subject site. The subject site is located within the Community Business (BC) zone. Refer to Attachment 2 for a zoning and vicinity map. Properties to the south of the subject site are within the General Commercial (CG) zone and include office buildings. To the north the properties area zoned BC and Commercial Waterfront (CW). Uses include retail commercial and professional offices. Immediately west of the project site are rail lines with properties zoned CW west of the rail lines. These properties are developed with a mix of uses including retail businesses, professional offices and residential apartments. East of the project site, across Sunset Avenue, are the lanes for cars waiting for the ferry with residential apartments just east of the lanes. These properties are zoned Downtown Mixed Commercial (13132) and Downtown Mixed Residential (BD4). IX. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN: The Comprehensive Plan designation for the subject site is Downtown Master Plan and the project site and surrounding properties are all within the Downtown Waterfront Activity Center overlay district. Other nearby designations include Shoreline Commercial to the west and Downtown Mixed Residential to the east. EXHIBIT 1 —STAFF REPORT Page 3 of 8 Caseadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 The City of Edmonds 2013 Comprehensive Plan includes the following goal for development in the Downtown Waterfront Activity Center: 0 Explore alternative development opportunities in the waterfitont area, swch as specifically encouraging arts -related and arts -complementing uses. (2013 Comprehensive Plan, page 45) The following policies are applicable to the proposed art museum and are intended to help to achieve the above cited goal for the downtown waterfront area: E.IL Encow-age a more active and vital setting for, new retail, office, entertainment and associated businesses supported by nearby residents and the larger- Edmonds community, downtown commercial activity and visitors from throughout the r-egion. E.12.Support a mix of uses downtown which includes a variety of housing, commercial, and cultural activities. E.13.Support the development and retention of sign cant public investments in the downtown water f tont area, including gover°nnrent and cultural facilities that help draw residents and visitors to downtown. (2013 Comprehensive Plan, pages 52-53) The proposed location of the art museum will help to anchor an existing commercial mall that is starting to receive site upgrades and new retail businesses. The museum site is adjacent to rail service and less than 1/4 of a mile from the ferry terminal. This would permit easy access to the museum for persons living out of town through public transportation. The proposed art museum and complimentary multi-purpose room and retail shop will help to enhance the existing commercial retail aspects of this neighborhood. A. ECDC 16.50 (BC — Coinrnunity Business) The subject site is located within the Community Business (BC) zone (Attachment 2). Pursuant to ECDC 16.50.010(C)(12), a museum is a primary use requiring a Conditional Use Permit. This section of the code also notes the museum must be of primarily local concern that does not meet the criteria for regional public facilities as declined in ECDC 2, �, 85,0331 Regional public facilities is defined as the following: "Regional public facilities mean any comrmunity facilities primarily sited, designed, constructed, and operated for° the purpose of providing services or recreation to the general public on a regional or• national basis. Regional public facilities include, but are not limited to: airports, concert halls, museums, zoos, aquariums, univer-cities, colleges, tr-ade schools, cemeteries, central or primary government offices, sewage Ireatment facilities, solid waste facilities, commuter parking lots, regional transit centers, and stadiums. Facilities associated with and sited with schools are not intended to be regulated as separate regional public,facilities. " The proposed art museum will not be a museum focused on attracting muscu n patrons from the northwest region or nation-wide as the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C. are designed and operated to do. Based on the museum's focus, an educational museum exhibiting northwest regional art of the historic and modern eras, and discussions with the EXHIBIT I — STAFF REPORT' Page 4 of 8 Cascadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 applicant, the museum's intended audience would derive from the greater Seattle area. Therefore, the proposed art museum does not fall under the definition of Regional Public Facilities. As stated in ECDC 16.50.005.A, one purpose of the BC zone is, "To reserve areas for those retail stores, offices, service establishments and amusement establishments which offer goods and services to the entire community. " If approved, the art museum would be consistent with this purpose statement of the BC zone, as the proposed art museum would provide a place for the arts and cultural events for the entire community. Any changes that the applicant wishes to make to the building and/or site will be reviewed for compliance with applicable zoning and design review standards as necessary. B. ECDC 17.50 (Off Street Parking Regulations) The proposed art museum is located in an area the Edmonds Community Development Code defines as the "Downtown Business Area" This area is defined as follows. The downtown business area consists of all land zoned BC, BD or CW and located in the area east of Puget Sound, south of Edmonds Street, west of Seventh Avenue, and north of Pine Street. For the purposes of this chapter only, the downtown business area shall include all commercially zoned properties ivithin the specified boundaries. ECDC 17.50.010(C)(2) permits new uses in existing buildings within the Downtown Business Area without having to add off-street parking spaces on the property to meet the current parking ratios required by the code. The site plan submitted with the application (Attachment 4) identifies a parking ratio of 4.2 parking stalls per 1,000 square feet of retail, with the existing buildings, buildings A and B, having a total retail area of 42,088 square feet. ECDC 17.50.020(C)(7) requires museums to provide parking at a rate of one space per 250 square feet. With an existing parking ratio of slightly over 4 parking spaces per 1,000 square feet of building area or 1 parking space per 250 square feet of building area, the existing number of parking spaces meets the minimum required amount of off-street parking. However, the code allows for such changes of use within existing buildings when the parking is lower than the minimum amount. EXHIBIT 1 — STAFF REPORT Page 5 of 8 Caseadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 C. ECDC 20.05 (Conditional Use Permits) ECDC 20.05.0 10 contains the review and approval criteria for Conditional Use Permits. According to the aforementioned code section, "No Conditional Use Permit may be approved unless all of the findings in this section can be made. " The findings are as follows: A. That the proposed use is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. As discussed above, the Comprehensive Plan designation for the site is "Downtown Master Plan." The proposed museum will complement the mix of commercial and residential uses in the area. The museum will also further the city's policies found in the Comprehensive Plan by establishing an art museum to draw residents and people living outside the City to the downtown. B. That the proposed use, and its location, is consistent with the putposes of the zoning ordinance and the putposes of the zone district in which the use is to be located, and that the proposed use will meet all applicable requirements of the zoning ordinance. Pursuant to ECDC 16.50.010(0)(12), museums are primary uses requiring a Conditional Use Permit in the Community Business (BC) zone. Therefore, if the proposed Conditional Use Permit is approved, the museum will be consistent with the Zoning Ordinance (ECDC 16.50). C. That the use, as approved or conditionally approved, will not be significantly detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare, and to nearby private property or improvements unless the use is a public necessity. The proposed museum should not be significantly detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare and to nearby private property or improvements. Any proposed exterior changes to the existing building will be reviewed for compliance with the design review criteria of ECDC 20.10 and 20.11 and landscaping requirements of ECDC 20.13 during the associated building permit review. D. The hearing exatniner shall determine whether the conditional use permit shall run with the land or shall be personal. If it runs with the land and the hearing examiner finds it in the public interest, the hearing examiner tnay require that it be recorded in the form of a covenant with the Snohomish County auditor. The hearing examiner may also determine whether the conditional use permit may or may not be used by a subsequent user of the same property. The applicant has requested that the conditional use permit run with the land and be transferable to future property owners. Staff does not see any concerns with allowing the permit to transfer to future property owners. The applicant submitted a cover letter and criteria statement (Attachment 3) in support of the proposal. Staff generally agrees with the applicant's arguments. EXHIBIT I — STAFF REPORT Page 6 of 8 Cascadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 XI. CONCLUSIONS: A. The proposal is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Edmonds. Refer to Section IX of this report for further discussion. B. If the proposed Conditional Use Permit is approved, then the art museum will be consistent with the criteria of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Edmonds. Refer to Section X of this report for further discussion. C. As proposed, the art museum does not appear to be significantly detrimental to the public health, safety and welfare nor to nearby private property or improvements. D. The applicant has requested that this permit be transferable and run with the land. XII. RECOMMENDATIONS: Based on the analysis and attachments to this report, staff recommends APPROVAL of the Conditional Use Permit for the proposed art museum with the following conditions: A. The permit shall run with the land and shall be transferable to other future ownership at the property for a museum or similar use. B. The applicant shall obtain all necessary building permit approvals and inspections prior to opening the art museum. C. This application is subject to the applicable requirements contained in the Edmonds Community Development Code (ECDC) and it is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure compliance with the various provisions contained in these ordinances. XIII. PARTIES OF RECORD: City of Edmonds Salish Crossing LLC Attn: Nick Echelbarger PO BOX 1088 Edmonds, WA 98020 XIV. ATTACHMENTS: 1. Land Use Application 2. Zoning and Vicinity Map 3. Applicant's Cover Letter and Criteria Statement 4. Site Plan 5. Site Images 6. Floor Plan 7. Building Elevations 8. Letter of Complete Application EXHIBIT 1 — STAFF REPORT Page 7 of 8 9. Public Noticing Materials 10. Snohomish County Fire District No. 1 Comments 11. Engineering Division Comments 12. Building Division Comments Caseadia Art Museum File No. PLN20140074 EXHIBIT I — STAFF REPORT Page 8 of'8