Planning 2017-06-22 Item 4 - Foster High School Expansion and Birth to Kindergarten - Attachment J: Applicant Response to Variance Criteria

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Ms. Lindsay Brown ,i IN February 28, 2017 REVISED MAY 1, 2017 2160226.30 Ili Page 7 of 8�I��IIIIIIIIIIIIII�1111111111��V Special event parking will occur from time to time and visitors will have the use of 80 spaces available on the Birth -to- Kindergarten Center site, 122 spaces on the Showalter Middle School site, 33 spaces at the Foster Library Site (the proposed District Technology and Maintenance Building site), and 11 spaces in the Foster High School bus loop. All told, there will be 423420 spaces available for public events. The Performing Arts Center and Stadium have a capacity for 600 and 500 attendees, respectively. With a vehicle occupancy rate of 2.1, there is more than enough capacity for a single event and parking is not expected to spill over to adjacent properties or streets, The School District will coordinate special events to avoid schedule conflicts. 4. The authorization of such variance will not adversely affect the implementation of the Comprehensive Land Use Policy Plan; The school is within a residential area, and the authorization of the variance will not affect any of the goals stated in the residential element of the Comprehensive Plan. A reduction in parking will not negatively impact City goals, such as neighborhood quality (7.2 and 7.3), neighborhood sustainability (7.4), and neighborhood development (7.6).. The parking reduction will allow for improved site design and amenities that may actually assist with some of these goals. The Comprehensive Plan also encourages non - motorized access, and meeting the minimum parking requirements prescribed by code would create an excessive amount of parking compared to the actual demand on site. The variance is also consistent with the Capital Facilities Element of the Comprehensive Plan, by allowing for space to provide adequate school facilities to service growth in the City. Portions of the site are within the PRO, which is designated by the Comprehensive Plan as an area dedicated to passive and active public recreation uses, or public education uses. The variance is necessary to provide for adequate recreation facilities, such as ball fields, a stadium, and tennis courts. These facilities will be used by students, as well as the larger community. 5. The granting of such variance is necessary for the preservation and enjoyment of a substantial property right of the applicant possessed by the owners of other properties in the same zone or vicinity. Foster High School has occupied the site since 1992, and has not had a significant renovation since. Without a variance, the required modernizations for the current use would not be possible. The alternative to the variance would be to reduce the amount of recreation space and replace it with parking area. This alternative is rejected because parking studies have shown that the proposed amount of parking is more than adequate to sere demand, and that the proposed amount of recreation space is what is desired and necessary for the school campus. Therefore, granting of the variance is necessary for the enhancement, preservation, and enjoyment of Foster High School by students, staff, and the overall community. 018 �