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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC85032 - 10/10/85 - 1341 BrookdaleNome- *.001 PLANNING COMNIISSION FILE CHECKLIST File Purge Date: FILE INFORMATION Planning Commission Application No. 85032 PROPERTY INFORMATION Zoning: ell? PLAN REFERENCE Note: If a plan was found in the file during the purge process, it was pulled for consolidation of all plans. Identified below are the types of plans, if any, that were consolidated. • Site Plans • Building Plans • Other: FILE REFERENCE Note: The following documents were purged when this project file became inactive. We have recorded the information necessary to retrieve the documents. Document Type Date Range Location Agenda Cover Sheet: Planning Commission Agenda Book Minutes: Planning Commission Minutes: City Council Resolutions: Planning Commission Resolutions: City Council Ordinances: City Council /1.01 8s, /-04//A5-- City Vault City Vault 3�o�BG �wifiidra�� City Vault City Vault 8�-0 (�a7l.M) City Vault Historical Photographs: Planning Commission City Archieve CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER PLANNING COMMISSION APPLICATION Street Location of Property Please Print Clearly or Type 1341 Brookdale Legal Description of Property Tract B, R.L.S. 1469 Owner Equitable Life Assurance Society Address Applicant Brookby Corporation Application No. 85032 Phone No. Address 5401 Gamble Drive Minneapolis, MN 55416 Phone No. 546=3391 Type of Request: Rezoning Subdivision Approval X Variance Site & Bldg. Plan Approval Special Use Permit Other: Description of Request: Variance from Section 34-140 3(a) lb of the City's.Sign Ordinance. The applicant requests processing of this application and agrees to pay to the City of Brooklyn Center, within fifteen (15) days after mailing or delivery of the billing state- ment, the actual costs incurred by the City for Engineering, Planning and Legal expenses reasonably and necessarily required by the City for the processing of the application. Such costs shall be in addition to the application fee described herein. Withdrawal of the application shall not relieve the applicant of the obligation to pay costs incurred prior to withdrawal. Fee $ 50.00 Receipt No. 68653 r- Date: 9-26-85 PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Dates of P.C. Consideration: piicant-s Signature Approved Denied this /o day of 19 St-_, subject to the following conditions: CITY COUNCIL ACTION Dates of Council Consideration: r D94i @d-- this &/ day of amendment: rman 19 , with the following L,ie P/I Form No. 18 (nvlor nlnn�-N CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER, MINNESOTA 6301 Shingle Creek Parkway 55430 PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS FOR FILING APPLICATION FOR SITE AND BUILDING PLAN APPROVAL Prior to submission of an application for plan review and approval, prospective applicants should arrange an informational meeting with the Planning Staff to discuss preliminary plans and to become familiarized with applicable ordinance and policy provisions. Three (3) copies of the following documents and information shall be submitted, at least 14 days prior to the date of the regular Commission meeting, concurrent with filing the application (required documents must be consistent with ordi- nance and policy provisions before an application may be accepted): 1. A certified site survey drawing by a registered engineer of land surveyor showing pertinent existing condition, accurately dimensioned. 2.* An accurately scaled and dimensioned site plan indicating: a) parking layouts including access provisions; b) designations and locations of accessory buildings; c) fences, walls or other screening, including heights and type of material; d) outside lighting provisions, type and location; e) curbing. 3.* A landscape plan showing areas to be sodded or seeded; location, size and species of trees and shrubbery. 4.* Building floor plans, elevations, sections and specifications, including materials proposed. 5.* Existing and proposed land elevations, drainage provisions, and utility provisions. 6. Additional drawings, plans or information deemed necessary by the Secretary. *Must be prepared by a registered architect or person registered with the State Board of Registration for Architects, Engineers and Land Surveyors, and said drawings/plans shall be so certified. NOTE: Upon approval of plans by the Council and prior to issuance of permits, a Performance Agreement as to approved site improvements and a supporting finan- cial guarantee, in an amount to be determined by the City, are required. Accept- able financial instruments include cash escrow; certificate of deposit; and performance bond. Copies of the Zoning Ordinance may be obtained from the Administrative Office. Questions should be directed to the Planning and Inspection Department. P/I Form No. 19 ,�, -•Pladning Commission Information Sheet Y3 Application No. 85032 Applicant: Arby's Location: 1341 Brookdale Center Request: Sign Variance The applicant requests a variance from Section 34-140, 3a, l.b of the Sign Ordinance (attached) to allow a tenant wall sign for Arby's restaurant on wall space not abut- ting the Arby's tenant space. Arby's is located in the northwest corner of Brookdale, near T. J. Applebees. Under the Sign Ordinance, individual establishments within Brookdale "may have such [wall] signs on each of its exterior walls, provided the aggregate area of such signs does not exceed 30% of the wall supporting the signs". Alternately, a clustered establishment such as Brookdale may have a collective identi- fication sign band for all tenants around the entire building. Brookdale has not sought such a collective identification sign and, therefore, only major tenants with exterior wall space have wall signs. The applicant proposes a 3' x 7' sign on the canopy above the northwest entrance to the center. A letter has been submitted by Mr. Doug Kennedy (attached) addressing the Standards for a Sign Variance (also attached). The letter argues that the Arby's space is unique because it is the only operation open before and after normal center hours without any visible exterior wall for signery. Mr. Kennedy asserts that a hardship would result without elaborating what it is. Finally, the letter argues that the granting of the variance will in no way be detrimental to the public welfare or injurious to other property or improvements in the neighborhood. Staff agree that the applicant's situation is somewhat unique. However, while the main argument for uniqueness rests on the supra -normal hours of operation, the .proposed identification sign makes no reference to hours. The Arby's space is certainly not unique in having no visible exterior wall. The adjacent Applebees restaurant also has supra -normal hours of operation, but it was granted a sign permit under the provisions of the Sign Ordinance because it has an exterior wall, not because of abnormal hours. No tenant in Brookdale, in fact, has received extraordinary signery because of the hours of its operation. Of course, that may be because the other tenants with supra -normal hours also have exterior wall space. We are concerned with the precedent that would be set by approval of this application if it is considered to apply to all tenants with no exterior wall space, or to allow identification signs on walls not abutting a tenant space. Such an action would seem to throw open the possibility that every exterior wall would become a signboard for any and every tenant within a multi -tenant building. This may actually be possible if pursued by the center itself on a coordinated basis. But the proposal is for a tenant sign unique in style to the tenant, not part of a center -wide effort at collective identification signery. One possibility not pursued until now would be an informational sign erected by the center at any wall entrance open before and/or after normal hours. Such a sign could specify the hours that entrance would be open and the tenants operating on the longer hours. For such a sign not to be construed as an identification sign, the names of the tenants would have to be fairly low-key and no larger in total area than the informational portion of the message. This might ultimately lead to a form of col- lective identification signery erected at mall entrances showing names of tenants and hours for the respective entrances. Such collective signery would be under the control of the center management.and could be allowed by the ordinance. 10-10-85 -1- 41 Application No. 85032 continued These alternatives within the parameters of the Sign Ordinance may have a greater visual impact than the proposed sign by itself. However, unless approval of the application were to cite hours of operation only as a basis for uniqueness, the potential effect of granting the variance would, in the long run, be quite uncon- trollable. The Commission is urged to discuss whether hours of operation is a proper basis for a variance. In genral, staff would recommend an alternate form of signery erected by the center management to make known the supra -normal hours at certain entrances and for certain businesses. A public hearing has been scheduled. 10-10-85 _2_ r �� • � .-- ovw�d�m � 3 1 FACT SHEET - ARBY' S SIGN VARIANCE I. FACTS f ao 0l pics Arby's seeks a variance to display a sign on an exterior wall of the I' Brookdale Shopping Center. Arby's will be open during hours when the Mall itself will be closed. Arby's location in the Mall is such that it can be open when the Mall is closed without security problems. Representatives of the Mall have stated before the Planning Commission that they will not permit other tenants to apply for a similar variance. The Planning Commission voted unanimously to allow this sign variance. II. STANDARD FOR VARIANCE A. Uniqueness 1. Arby's is the only Brookdale tenant with supernormal hours; Arby's will be open 30 percent more than the Mall itself. 2. Arby's has no exterior wall on which to place a sign. 3. Arby's location within the Mall is such that customer access during supernormal hours can be controlled. B. Hardship 1. Arby's must find a way to let the public know that they are open when the Mall is not. Fast food purchasers are impulse buyers and must have immediate notice of availability. Fast food purchasers do not normally look in a shopping center for fast food. 2. Practically, signage is the only way to inform customers that Arby's is open when the Mall is not. 3. During supernormal hours, the Mall will be closed so Arby's will benefit from no Mall traffic. 4. The space rented to Arby's has been vacant for a year and a half. It was formerly used by the Brothers. It is not prime space. 5. Arby's cannot operate effectively during supernormal hours without the sign. C. Public Welfare - No effect on neighbors. III. EFFECT ON ORDINANCE This exception would not gut the existing sign ordinance. Arby's situation is unique. Granting a variance to Arby's would not allow all tenants without exterior walls to claim a right for signage. Arby's situation is unique in that: 1. It is open supernormal hours; 2. It is a restaurant selling fast food to impulse buyers; 3. The Mall itself would not support informational signage; 4. The Mall has assured the Planning Commission that it would not bring other tenants to the Council for sign variance if those tenants lacked exterior walls; and 5. Westbrook Mall has already decided on a directory. Z s rs 7� C/ BROOKDALE HOURS Mon -Fri 10 a.m. - 9:30 p.m. Sat 9:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sun Noon - 5:00 p.m. TOTAL HOURS 71 OF OPERATION ARBY'S HOURS 8 a.m. - 11:00 p.m. 8:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. 11:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. 92.5 Arby's is proposed to be open 30% greater hours than the mall. Franchise Associates, Inc. Arbys 5401 GAMBLE DRIVE PARKDALE 1, SUITE 204 September 26, 1985 MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55416 612/546-3391 Ronald A. Warren Director of Planning & Inspection City of Brooklyn Center 6301 Shingle Creek Parkway Brookyn Center, MN 55430 RE: Sign Ordinance Variance for Arby's Restaurant, Brookdale Shopping Center Dear Mr. Warren: Please consider the following our application for a variance from your sign ordinance for the purpose of erecting a sign on the exterior of Brookdale Shopping Center identifying the Arby's Restaurant. Enclosed you will find two copies of a sketch illustrating our request. The sketches indicate the actual size but only conceptually the design. Also enclosed you will find a check in the amount of $50 made out to the City of Brooklyn Center as a filing fee. I ask that you schedule our request to be heard before the planning commission at its meeting on October 10, 1985. Our request for variance from your sign ordinance is based on the hardship we would suffer without said sign due to the unique circumstances related to the use of our property. These circumstances are a result of our operation being open for business before and after the normal hours of the shopping center. Our lease with the Center Companies permits us to operate accordingly. Due to the uniqueness of the location of our property (see attached Brookdale Center tenant location floor plan) we are able to provide customer access to our facility after and before the normal shopping center hours, but because our space does not abut an exterior wall of the center that is readily visible to the public, the public would not be aware that we operated on a schedule different than most all the other tenants. The center is able to erect a portable security gate in the hallway beyond our operation which would prevent the public from going further into the center's property. This arrangement is unique to our property and sets us apart from other properties in that we do not abut an exterior wall that is highly visible to the public nor are we located at a point in the center where customer access cannot be restricted after the normal center shopping hours. Therefore, these conditions are such that they are unique to our space and its use and are not common generally to other spaces or uses in the center. LICENSEE FOR ARBY'S ROAST BF -Li r., - t : �i m. ; `.. , Ronald A. Warren September 25, 1985 Finally, it is our position that the granting of this variance will in no way be detrimental to the public welfare or injurious to other property or improvements in the neighborhood. In summary, we plan to be open for business earlier and later than the center operating hours. Without an outdoor sign no one outside the center would know this. I will be available to attend any and all meetings at which this request needs to be heard. Thank you for your consideration of this matter. Sincerely, Doug Kennedy Vice President DK:mm