MEMBERS: Mike Ready, Chair; Jonathan Eady, Vice-Chair,
Penny England, and Ron Manson. Shawn
Gaither and Vivian Harris were absent.
STAFF:
Bob Schwartz, city manager and zoning administrator.
GUESTS:
Kendra Mayfield and James Johnson with Oxford College; and Debbie Fritz,
architect with Lord, Aeck and Sargent. Marguerite
Abd El-Shahid joined the meeting during the discussion of the dining hall via
speaker phone.
OPENING:
Mr. Ready called the meeting to order and welcomed the guests.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Upon motion of Mr. Manson, seconded
by Mr. Eady, the minutes for the meeting of September 9, 2014 were approved. [There was no meeting in October.]
OXFORD
COLLEGE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT PLAN AMENDMENTS: Oxford
College requests the approval of several amendments to the future development
plan. Kendra Mayfield outlined the
proposed amendments as follows:
4a Existing and Proposed Land Use
4. Proposed Future Campus Life Center
5. Proposed
Future Campus Life Addition of approximately 10,000 square feet.
31. Proposed Dining Hall
approximately 20,600 square feet.
4c. Existing and proposed vehicular
circulation patterns, including deliveries
1.
West Moore Street will be the primary Campus entrance for
delivery traffic. The delivery traffic will then turn right onto the service
road to the west of Campus.
2.
Pierce Street will be the primary
Campus entrance for vehicular traffic.
3.
Pierce Street will be the entrance for
new dining delivery vehicles only.
4d. Existing and proposed pedestrian
circulation patterns
1.
Proposed Hamill Street closure to vehicular traffic to
become a pedestrian corridor with a pedestrian cross walk to the east across
Highway 81.
2.
Pedestrian traffic will approach new dining facility
crossing Pierce Street at Asbury Street and Wesley Street and will cross Wesley
Street at Pierce Street.
The planning commission members
discussed the proposed amendments with the representatives of the college. They reviewed the pedestrian traffic for the
proposed dining hall. Mr. Eady
questioned whether the college had future plans to ask for the closing of
Pierce and Wesley in the neighborhood of the proposed dining hall. James Johnson and Kendra Mayfield said this
was not in the future plans.
After further discussion the planning
commission determined to delay a vote on these amendments until after a
decision had been made on the development application for the dining hall –
likely at the December meeting.
OXFORD
COLLEGE DINING HALL PRE-APPLICATION MEETING: [Marguerite
Abd El-Shahid joined the discussion at this point.] Kendra Mayfield explained that the planning
commission had a pre-application discussion about the dining hall at its August
12 meeting. Now that the college had
selected an architect for the project they wanted to have a more detailed
discussion.
The members of the planning
commission and the representatives of the college held a detailed discussion of
the setback requirement, the build to line, and the buffer requirement on each
of the four sides of the property. It
would appear that some variances would be necessary to build the size dining
hall the college has determined is necessary to serve its students.
At the conclusion of the discussion
the members of the planning commission asked that when the variance request was
submitted it should include at least: a schematic for the proposed building and
how it will fit on the property, a separate variance request for each street
involved, and an exhibit of other construction in the area and its relation to
the setback and build to requirements.
ADJOURNMENT: Mr. Ready wished everyone a “Happy
Thanksgiving” and adjourned the meeting at 8:18 PM.
Submitted
by:
Bob Schwartz,
zoning administrator and city manager