10/18/1995 Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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?? He elaborated on several points. He wondered if they did a lot of sketching of proposed size and location of the addition. He believed that there is a drama and interest to the church at present with the crosses and the front area which is effective. With this proposal, the drive will go right through this front area and with the asphalt in front, it will loose the soul of the front yard. He made several comments which he clarified were only suggestions, not recommendations. There was no playground or play area for the school and he wondered if the addition could be rotated in order to keep more green area in frout and still include the needed parking. He believed that the existing building with the court yards was very elegant, but questioned if an addition that came straight out and parallel to Lorain Road would be the same. He thought that if they did something with an angle or rotation, it might enable them to have their parking, keep their green space, and possibly envelope more green area for the school. They did create some courtyards, but these are more area-ways than courtyards. He wondered why they needed two vestibules. He suggested that they could give more dimension to the addition in order to make it a feature or an architectural element. He again clarified that these were only some ideas, he was not actually making recommendations. He asked if they had examined all the site plan possibilities and feel comfortable that they have reached an operation that will serve this facility for the next 50 years. Mr. Robinson responded that, based on projected church growth, they have. He explained that they twisted the building every way they could and that several issues drove this project including the zoning codes. He clarified that the only reason they had to go to the zoning board was because the existing structure does not have a 75 foot setback: The addition meets all current zoning regulations and parking. He noted that some communities have a session with planning commission regarding the conceptual design, but since North Olmsted does not have that, they discussed the project with the Building Commissioner: Based on his input and the number of required parking spaces, this is the plan that evolved. He clarified that the North Olmsted codes stated that the bigger of the two operations would govern what parking was required, so it was the gymuasium, not the sanctuary, that determined the parking. Based on that, they needed a parking space for every 2.5 people. Mr. Brokaw clarified tliat the biggest use would be the banquet use at 15 square foot of area per person and based on that, they might require even more parking. 'd'hey have determined that the gym could seat 830 people. Mr. Yager considered that this would be about 277 spaces, but the developers advised that some were added for staff and they now show about 293 spaces. Mr. Yager then estimated that only 184 parking spaces were needed, but conceded that he might be wrong. Mr. Robinson stated that Mr. Conway had determined the parking required. Mr. Yager questioned the drive offLorain Road. He was given a copy of the memo from the traffic engineer approving the traffic flow. Mr. Robinson stated that if there is some kind of bavkiug of parking spaces, they should have been told that in the beguming, because that have already gone through planning commission and board of zoning appeals. Mr. Yager stated that he would like planning commission to know that he believed it was a little ridiculous for this board to view an arclutectural statement that seems to be complete so there is no way they can give their professional input prior to the plans being completed. He would like to be able to use their professional expertise to assist the owners of any building in the City of North Olmsted in the planning stages. N1r. Robinson stated that it bothered him that this project had been discussed for about a year with both N1r. Conway and the traffic engineer on various occasions in order not to waste planning commission's time. This plan is almost complete, other than making minor modifications and has cost about $25,000. Mr. Brokaw advised that some additional land had been obtained adjacent to the residents in order to have a larger buffer. Mr. Zergott asked if any of the neighbors had a problem with the hedges shown since they are not evergreen. Only one resident had attended a meeting and her main concern was about flooding. The developer had advised that they would work with the city on clearing the ditch, but there would be a problem since the property line runs down the center of the ditch, and legally they cannot go on other peoples' property. The city will have to get permission from the homeowuers. It was clarified that planning could approve landbanked parking spaces without going to 3