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Consider public testimony regarding, and an ordinance rezoning 4.12 acres located at the northwest corner of Hesters Crossing Road and Rawhide Drive from the C-1 (General Commercial) zoning district to the PUD (Planned Unit Development) No. 144 zoning district. (First Reading)*
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The project owner, Hester's Crossings Apts Holdings LLC, proposes a rezoning from C-1 (General Commercial) to the Planned Unit Development (PUD) to include a multi-family urban residential building with ground level commercial spaces facing Rawhide Dr. and an attached structured parking garage.
Comprehensive Plan and Zoning: The 2030 Future Land Use Map (FLUM) designates the property for commercial uses. If adopted, the PUD will amend the FLUM for the subject area to mixed-use to accommodate the proposed residential development with ground floor commercial spaces.
The mixed-use land use designation is used for any parcel or tract of land that is appropriate for the combination of residential and complementary non-residential land uses. Mixed-use can be on a large site with the uses combined on the site or on a small site with the uses combined in a single building.
The site is situated between existing low density multi-family residential development to the west (The Crossings Condominiums) and a large commercial strip (Sky Ridge Plaza) located on the opposite side of Rawhide Dr. to the east. The mixed-use land use designation is appropriate for this parcel because it will provide a transition from the more intense shopping center to the neighborhood to the west. The ground floor commercial spaces will serve the building and the surrounding community with limited general commercial uses that are compatible with the adjacent residential development.
Location criteria: The Round Rock 2030 Comprehensive Plan provides location criteria for each land use category. Pertinent to the subject property, the Plan states that urban multifamily development should be located near employment centers or major transportation or commercial nodes. The proposed PUD complies with the above listed location criteria.
Traffic, Access, and Roads: The property has proposed access from Hester's Crossing Rd. and Rawhide Dr. as depicted on the Concept Plan (Exhibit B). The project will be subject to the City's roadway impact fee regulations. The location of driveways and potential deceleration lanes will be determined during site plan review, in accordance with City standards.
Proposed PUD (Planned Unit Development) zoning: The urban multifamily development will have a maximum of 276 residential units and a maximum building height of five (5) stories. Two (2) additional stories of parking will be located in the below grade portion of the parking garage. The PUD incorporates the requirements of the MF-3 (Multifamily - Urban) zoning district, which includes structured parking, balconies on at least 25% of all dwelling units, internal stairways, amenities and streetscape and landscape features. The development will provide five amenities, one more than is required by the MF-3 district.
At least 95% of the required residential parking will be provided in multi-level parking structure which will be directly attached to and integrated into the residential structure. The design elements of the building shall substantially comply with the depictions contained in Exhibits ‘C’ and ‘D’, including, but not limited to elevation variation, roof pitch, and orientation.
The commercial space is located on the ground level of the multi-family residential structure, instead of on a separate parcel area that would require separate development regulations. The permitted uses for the commercial space can be found in the C-1a (General Commercial - Limited) district standards.
Compatibility: All walls visible from the west property boundary shall consist of upgraded materials such as stone, brick, decorative CMU, or tile. Additionally, vegetative screening will be provided to mitigate views of the exposed portion of the parking garage and the parking garage entrance.
The PUD proposal was unanimously recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission at its November 2, 2022 meeting (9-0). There were 2 public speakers who voiced concerns about flooding, traffic, the size of the proposed building (massing) and general compatibility. The Commission asked staff questions regarding these concerns and the development requirements and oversight were explained at the hearing.
Subsequent to the November 2 Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, the applicant and staff revised the PUD to include the enhanced wall compatibility standards described above. Additionally, the base district zoning for commercial uses was changed from the C-1 (General Commercial) district to the C-1a (General Commercial -Limited) district to further limited commercial uses for this mixed-use proposal.