On the night of Tuesday, May 3, Winter Park residents spoke to the Planning & Zoning (P&Z) Board to successfully defend the single family scale and character of the Hannibal neighborhood in west Winter Park against another expensive, speculative development of high-density, multi-family units.
Developer Asks to Build Three-Story Duplexes
Attorney Becky Wilson, representing the developer, came before P&Z to request approval to develop the properties at 326 and 354 Hannibal Square East and at 465, 463 and 455 West Lyman Avenue with six three-story duplexes totaling twelve residential units.
City Planner Recommends Denial
City Planning Director Jeff Briggs, who presented the application to the P&Z, recommended P&Z deny the applicant’s request on the basis of the Comprehensive Plan, which “strongly discourages” out of scale development in neighborhoods with single family zoning.
Comp Plan: Land Use Bible?
Ensuing discussion centered more on the purpose of the Comprehensive Plan, to protect the village scale and character of Winter Park, than it did on the relative merits of the proposed development. In his recommendation for denial, Briggs referred to the Comprehensive Plan as our “land use Bible.”
That sparked a spirited response from attorney Becky Wilson, who countered that the Comp Plan was not “divinely created.”
No More Chipping Away
When the floor was opened for comment, one after another, the neighbors approached the podium, to decry the speculative development of multi-family projects that are “chipping away” at the character of the Hannibal neighborhood.
Several also displayed a detailed knowledge of the City’s Comprehensive Plan. Notable among them was Bob Cambric.
Talk of Social Justice
Citizens and P&Z members both spoke of social justice. Barry Greenstein, who had worked on the staff of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission in Washington, D.C., warned about discriminatory zoning practices.
P&Z Upholds the Comp Plan
The men and woman who make up the Planning & Zoning Board listened to the residents. They heard the voice of the people. They upheld the recommendation of City staff and the principals set forth in the Comprehensive Plan. They voted unanimously to deny the applicant’s request to further chip away at the essence of the Hannibal neighborhood.
Now that Winter Park voters are on board to pay for a brand new library, the city is cautiously considering moving city hall into the current library building.
After city staff recommended exploring the idea Monday, city commissioners called for more information about the site’s strengths and weaknesses. A staff report said the building was in “good” condition with a “fairly new” heat and air-conditioning system and energy-efficient lighting. City Manager Randy Knight also said some current city-hall functions could be moved to another site if they didn’t need to be in a prime location.
Not everyone was enthusiastic about the idea, however. Commissioner Sarah Sprinkel noted the city already knows about the existing library from the research done by the Library Facility Task Force. The task force nixed renovating the building after concluding it has too many challenges, including poor wi-fi connections and limited space and parking.
Commissioners Pete Weldon and Carolyn Cooper both stressed the importance of hearing from the public before making any decision about city hall or any other high-profile city properties valuable to residents. Cooper said it was “fiscally responsible to explore reuse of that [library] building,” but she would not support selling the property.
One staff option for city hall never made it into the discussion. Staff raised the possibility of another bond-issue to build a new city hall on the Park Avenue site, but Mayor Steve Leary said any discussion of that idea was “premature.”
Meanwhile, Winter Park’s new library seems destined to be built in Martin Luther King Jr. Park. The issue was never raised Monday except for a plea from former mayor Joe Terranova during the public-comment portion of the meeting. “You’re going to have to reconsider this,” he said, noting the close vote on the library bond issue. “You have a split community now.”
On February 23, ROC Seniors Housing Fund Manager, LLC, formally withdrew their offer to buy the Progress Point property to build a mixed use development consisting of an assisted living facility, a memory care unit and a restaurant.
Progress Point – that infamous piece of land the City acquired when they traded away the State Office Building property up the road at Morse and Denning. At the junction of Orange and Denning, right beside the railroad tracks, split down the middle by a road, contaminated by heavy metal, it has sat unwanted and unloved since 2011.
For Sale Sign Goes Up April 2015
In April 2015, the City put it up for sale. They advertised in the Sentinel and on Loop Net. Thirty packets containing the Notice of Disposal (NOD) were sent to potential buyers. After 90 days, there was one response.
One Potential Buyer
A proposal was submitted by ROC Seniors for an 82 unit assisted living center with a 32-bed memory care facility and a 6,000-square-foot restaurant. The developer, represented by former Winter Park City Commissioner Phil Anderson, offered $4.5 million which, according to City records, was in keeping with a 2011 appraisal of $4.4 million.
Staff and EDAB Recommend the Project
Both City staff and the Economic Development Advisory Board (EDAB) recommended approval, pointing out that the development would “activate the taxable value,” adding between $71,000 – $86,000 annually to the General Fund. “Staff feels that the project meets the character of Orange Avenue,” read the Agenda Item, “promotes new jobs and creates active redevelopment along Orange Avenue.”
ROC Seniors cited several important benefits their project would bring to the City. There would be no impact on schools. The facility would provide an under-served need for seniors. The project would create greater employment opportunities than other uses and would be an attractive presence consistent with existing Orange Avenue businesses.
Price Just Went Up
On the Friday before the September 14, 2015, Commission meeting, the City received a new appraisal, which had been ordered after the NODs went out. It came in at $5.69 million. As a result, ROC Seniors came before the Commission with an offer that was nearly $1.3 million below what was now the most recent appraisal.
Leary Opposed
A lengthy discussion among the commissioners about whether the proposed use was appropriate for the Orange Avenue corridor began with Mayor Steven Leary’s unequivocal opposition to ROC Seniors’ proposed use.
The NOD had contained no guidelines regarding what kind of project the City would like to see there. Public comment, mostly from business owners along Orange Avenue, was heavily in opposition to the project.
ROC Meets the Price
After an acknowledgement from Mr. Anderson that ROC Seniors would meet with City staff to discuss raising their offer to meet the new price, the Commission decided to table the issue and send the question to Planning and Zoning for their opinion on an appropriate use for the site.
How Did We Reach This Point?
How did such an unlovely site gain $1.3 million in value, you might ask. In a November 5, 2015, letter from ROC Seniors to the City, Anderson points out certain ‘assumptions’ the appraiser used in assigning the $5.69 million value.
The City would realign Palmetto Avenue so that it would no longer run through the middle of the property, creating one contiguous piece of land.
The City would deliver a “clean, clear site” by removing residual contamination.
The City would accommodate storm water offsite.
The City would approve a mixed use.
In his letter, Anderson requested the City definitively clarify the appraiser’s assumptions. He also highlighted the need of surrounding businesses, including the Jewett Clinic, for additional parking and suggested the City retain a portion of the Progress Point land for that purpose.
After six months of discussion between the City and ROC Seniors, the City failed to come to a clear decision. The City has not confirmed that it would complete the items on which the appraiser based his valuation, and it has not clarified what kind of use they believe would be appropriate for that site.
“No one has said they want an assisted living facility or a mixed use project on that site,” Anderson told the Voice. “And no one has said they don’t want that kind of project. It’s time for us to move on.”
A snug row of four large homes soon will occupy what is now a vacant, tree-shaded lot on Pennsylvania Avenue. Lot frontages will average 60 feet, instead of the 75- to 85-foot minimum called for in city laws.
A majority of city commissioners at the September 28 meeting had no problem with that tight squeeze. They ignored city planners’ recommendation to deny the request and snubbed a formula that staff has used for some 30 years to come up with such positions.
Instead, commissioners agreed with their planning and zoning board’s unanimous recommendation for approval. The site’s location at the edge of a neighborhood and enthusiastic support from four nearby homeowners appeared to have swayed the advisory board more than the city’s subdivision rules, its comprehensive plan and staff’s opinion. The homeowners, who earlier had written almost identical letters of support, told the city commission they were glad to see the lot finally developed. No one spoke in opposition.
The .87-acre lot north of Tantum Avenue, owned by the Morse Genius Foundation, is more than big enough for three residential lots, but the request sought several exceptions to the rules. The applicant wanted to create room for four homes, each about 3,500-square-feet in size, to be marketed to empty nesters. Besides the narrower lots, the applicant sought a rear setback of ten feet instead of the required 15 feet to allow rear access. Rebecca Wilson, an attorney representing the applicant, noted the mixed zoning south of the site, including an industrial building, denser residential lots and the city golf course. She argued that nearby homes on Beloit Avenue had rear access and frontages less than 60 feet.
City planners said they had no choice but to recommend denial, even though by one measure the new lots exceed zoning requirements. (They will range from 9,191 to 9,985 square feet, compared to the code minimum of 8,500 square feet.) The frontages, however, would be too small by any measure, staff said. The zoning code requires 75-foot frontages in R1A areas and 85 feet for corner lots. Both the code and the comprehensive plan say a lot split should create lots consistent with homes within 500 feet.
Using a formula in practice since the mid-1980s, Planning Manager Jeff Briggs checked how well the proposal meshed with neighboring residential lots. He found a large majority of those frontages were at least 75 feet wide. The average was 69.7 feet; the median was 75 feet. Expanding the radius to include 91 homes produced similar results.
The only way for the city to approve such a deviation was through a zoning variance, said planning Director Dori Stone. “It’s not staff’s job to ask for approval of variances. It’s our job to recommend enforcement of code regulations.”
Mayor Steve Leary and Commissioners Sarah Sprinkel and Tom McMacken voted for the request, with the condition that the houses vary in appearance. Commissioners Carolyn Cooper and Greg Seidel opposed it. Concerned about large oaks on the site that might be specimen trees, Seidel asked for a tree survey, but staff said code didn’t require it. McMacken said he didn’t agree with those tree rules, “but it’s the code.”
On June 2, Unicorp’s request to the Planning & Zoning (P&Z) Board for a Comprehensive Plan change, unlike many of their previous efforts, sailed through. Unicorp was requesting permission to add 75 parking spaces at the Lakeside Crossing project on the site of the former Mt. Vernon Inn. The additional spaces will change the garage from two to three levels, amounting to a 3.4 percent increase in Floor-Area Ratio (FAR). According to developer Chuck Whittall, half the spaces will be for Lakeside Crossing use and the other half will be for public parking.
Comp Plan Change to Affect 17-92 Corridor
City Planner Jeff Briggs stated that the change in the Comp Plan would apply to all developments along the 17-92 planning area. Most unusual in this context was Briggs’ smiling countenance as he enthusiastically recommended that P&Z approve the Comp Plan change. P&Z approval was unanimous.
Applicant Seeks West SideUp-Zoning
In an all-too-familiar scenario, the next applicant, land planning consultant Javier Omana, requested a zoning change for a single-family lot on West Lyman Avenue in the Hannibal Square neighborhood. Omana and his partner, Chris Hite, plan to build a single-family dwelling and wanted the lot re-zoned from R-1 to R-2 to enable them to build a larger house. R-2 zoning would allow them to build a duplex on the property if they chose, and would allow greater square footage.
The subject property is in the middle of a block that is zoned R-1. The Comprehensive Plan specifically prohibits rezoning lots smaller than 50 by 150 feet, which this lot is. Granting the request would set the stage for other lots in that area to be up-zoned.
“No Multi-Family”
Omana assured city staff that he had no intention of building a duplex on the land, that he simply needed an additional 220 square feet in order to complete a two-car garage at the rear of the property. City staff and P&Z Board members suggested possible remedies for the 220-square-foot shortfall and offered to help the applicant obtain a variance, which would require no zoning change.
Omana and Hite insisted on their demand for up-zoning. As part of their justification, they presented an ‘Urban Design Plan’ for the entire neighborhood to show what the area could look like — if only the zoning were different. There was liberal use of buzz words like context, connectivity, place-making, new urbanism, and TOD (Transit Oriented Development). Omana regretted the City’s lack of “institutional and regulatory framework to allow us to do what we’re doing. However,” he said, “we appeal to the City’s sense of doing the right thing.”
Bellows Weighs In
Speaking on behalf of the applicant, developer Dan Bellows supported the application for R-2 zoning, insisting that the City “amends the Comp Plan all the time.” He failed to mention his own experience before this board, which repeatedly turned down his requests for up-zoning in the Hannibal Square neighborhood, finally resulting in a project that is compliant. The Orlando Business Journal reports that Omana has served as a consultant to Bellows on the Ravaudage project.
Neighbors Aren’t Buying
One Winter Park resident approached the podium, somewhat sheepishly admitting that this was “the most awkward way” he had ever found to meet a new neighbor. His back yard adjoins the back of the lot on which Omana plans to build. He stated that he and his wife had made a substantial investment in their home and hoped that the single-family, low-density character of the neighborhood would not be disrupted.
The remarks of Christina Hite’s son brought into sharp relief the difference in perspective between those who live in the Hannibal Square neighborhood now and those who would move in. He stated his belief that history should not be a concern, because there was really “not much there.” In his view, the block is largely empty and up-zoning would create an opportunity for others to move in to the area and improve it.
P&Z:“NO”
Once again, P&Z was unanimous in their decision, this time to deny. Tom Sacha argued for maintaining current zoning, citing previous attempts to change the zoning. In each case, the applicants eventually came back with plans that fit within current zoning requirements. While Sacha did not name the applicants, it was clear that at least one project he referred to had been proposed by Dan Bellows.
Pete Weldon summed up the board’s stance in the interest of the City. “The City should be patient,” he said. “It shouldn’t be stubborn and it shouldn’t be dogmatic, but it should be patient. I don’t see anything here that says we should become less patient than we are.”
In a move that has some asking, “What’s the rush?” on April 7 the Planning & Zoning Board unanimously approved Fifth Third Bank’s application to develop the northwest corner of Aloma and Lakemont– without having seen final plans for the new project.
The Bank requested P & Z to grant both preliminary and final conditional use approvals at the single April 7 meeting. Neighboring residents expressed concern that they had received notice of the meeting only 10 days prior.
P&Z Fast Tracks Fifth Third
The rationale for fast-tracking the project stems from the fact that Fifth Third Bank’s lease on their current Aloma location next to the Mellow Mushroom expires soon.
Bank + Office Building Slated for Aloma
Plans for the new Fifth Third branch on Aloma and Lakemont includea free-standing commercial office building in addition to the new bank branch with drive-through lanes. The combined square footage of the projects will be just over 9,200 square feet and will be built on five combined parcels, one of which is currently zoned R1-A (single-family residential).The others are all zoned commercial.Despite this, there never has been a significantcommercial presence at this location.
In order to build the project, the bank sought conditional use approval for the drive-through lanes plusa Comprehensive Plan amendment and rezoning of the single family lot from R-1A to parking lot (PL). A portion of the rezoned lot willprovide four additional parking spaces and the rest will serve as a retention pond. The R1-A lot abuts three single-family homes on Edwin Blvd.
17-92 Branch Stands Idle
Ironically, Fifth Third owns another Winter Park location in the old K-Mart Plaza across from Winter Park Village which has full signage and completed drive-through lanes – and which currently stands idle and empty. When one resident inquired of bank representatives when they planned to open that branch, the representativesavoided answering the question.
City Recommends Approval
According to the city staff report, all previous applications to develop this corner were denied as too intrusive on surrounding residents.In their report, staff recommended approval of Fifth Third’s application,acknowledging that while there was “no enthusiasm for a bank with drive-though lanes” at this location, the proposed development is significantly smaller than what might be permitted on the 1.25-acre site. Briggs said he thought families in the three homes bordering the residential lot might find a retention pond and parking lot preferable to another single family home.
Neighbors attending the meeting raised concerns about traffic, lighting (especially night time bleeding of light), noise and landscaping. Others opposed the necessity to amend the Comprehensive Plan and rezonethe residential lot. One neighbor who owns an adjoining commercial lot currently for sale supported the project. .
Resident Suggests Green Space
Ann Hicks Murrah suggested the property be developed as greenspace –perhaps bearing the name of her late husband, philanthropist Kenneth Murrah.
Fifth Third Goes to Commission April 27
The P&Z Board dismissed citizens’ reservations about increased traffic. Board member Peter Weldon said that any traffic concerns would have to be addressed by the City after the project is built, once the effects can be evaluated.
Fifth Third Bank had commissioned their own traffic study, which supported their contention that the project would produce almost no new traffic. Bank representatives explained that since Florida law governs lighting requirements for banks, citizens’ concerns about night time light-bleed were subordinate to the safety and security of the financial institution.
The P&Z Board instructed Fifth Third Bank to make several changes intended to address residents’ concerns, but granted final approval without the board or the residents seeing any final plans.The City Commission will take up the bank’s application at their April 27th meeting.
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