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Home My WebLink About222 Jackson Street Staff ReportsSTAFF REPORT BOARD OF APPEALS DECEMBER 8TH, 2021 ITEM I: 222 JACKSON STREET GENERAL DESCRIPTION AND BACKGROUND Neenah Minimart-applicant/owner, requests the following variance to permit exterior lighting to exceed the maximum illumination level allowable at the property line: Description Code Reference Maximum Proposed Intensity of Illumination @ P/L 30-190 (E)(3)(a) .50 foot-candles Varies The subject .347 acre (approximately 15,115 square feet) property is zoned Urban Mixed Use (UMU) and is currently developed with a vacant auto service garage and associated off-street parking facilities. The irregular-shaped parcel is located at the southeast corner of Jackson Street and High Avenue. Adjacent land uses include commercial to the east and south; government to the north; as well as vacant to the west. ANALYSIS In reviewing a variance request, the following questions should be addressed When considering an area variance, the question of whether unnecessary hardship or practical difficulty exists is best explained as "whether compliance with the strict letter of the restrictions governing area, set backs, frontage, height, bulk or density would unreasonably prevent the owner from using the property for a permitted purpose or would render conformity with such restrictions unnecessarily burdensome." Are there any unusual or unique physical limitations of the property which create a hardship? Will granting of a variance result in harm to the public interest? The petitioners are proposing to redevelop the site with an in-vehicle sales land use featuring six fueling stations and a convenience store (see attached site plan). The plan includes a traditional freestanding canopy with lighting over the proposed fueling stations. A variance is needed to permit the site’s lighting to exceed the .50 foot-candle (fc) allowance at the property line (see attached photometric plan). The submitted photometric plan shows the proposed placement of the canopy fixtures along with the associated illumination levels throughout the site and the property lines. While the east and south lot lines abutting private property are compliant the illumination levels at High Avenue and Jackson Street both exceed .50 fc due to the close proximity of the proposed canopy. This practical difficulty is preventing the owners from developing the site and unnecessarily burdensome. The unique parcel configuration and limited geographic area in general are creating justifiable hardship in this instance. Granting the variance will not result in any harm to the public interest as the parcel is located on a principal arterial street within a commercial corridor. Furthermore, the Page 1 of 14 STAFF REPORT BOARD OF APPEALS ITEM I -2- DECEMBER 8TH, 2021 specific areas exceeding the .50 fc’s are adjacent to public right-of-way and not private property. It should be noted city staff will be proposing a code text amendment in the future to allow private property development to exceed the .50 fc threshold as the increased illumination levels in the public right-of-way are seen as a public safety enhancement for navigation and way-finding purposes in general for motorists and pedestrians. Finally, the Department of Public Works, Inspection Services, and Transportation all have reviewed the proposal and have no objections or further recommendations. RECOMMENDATION Based on the information provided within this report, approval of the variance as requested is recommended. Page 2 of 14 View of subject parcel looking south across High Avenue View from subject parcel looking west across Jackson Street Page 3 of 14 View of subject parcel looking north along Jackson Street View from subject parcel looking west down High Avenue Page 4 of 14 View from subject parcel looking east along High Avenue Page 5 of 14 GUIDELINES USED BY THE BOARD OF APPEALS TO DETERMINE WHETHER A VARIANCE SHOULD BE GRANTED Although the statutes contain a number of qualifying phrases, the main statutory test of whether a variance may be properly granted is whether an “unnecessary hardship exists”. The leading Wisconsin case on variances is SNYDER v WAUKESHA COUNTY (1976), 74 Wis. (2nd) 468, 247 NW (2nd) 468. In this case, the court set forth the following guidelines for granting variances: 1) An unnecessary hardship means that the property cannot yield a reasonable return when used for the permitted purposes or where no feasible use can be made of the land without a variance. 2) The changes in the character of the neighborhood that would be caused by the variance are important. 3) The hardship must be unique to the property in question and may not apply equally to similar lots. 4) The hardship must be unique to the lot, not personal to the owner of the lot. 5) A variance cannot be granted in the case of a self-created hardship. IN ADDITION, the courts have made it clear that a variance CANNOT be granted in the following situations: 1) Where there is a self-created hardship, that is, where the application is due to a problem created by the owner/applicant. 2) Where there is a personal hardship, and the variance would continue to affect the character of the neighborhood after title to the property has passed. 3) Where there is an economic hardship, a purely financial hardship, for example, restriction of the property to a less profitable use. IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS The City of Oshkosh Board of Appeals meets on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at 3:30 P.M. in Room 404 of City Hall, 215 Church Avenue, Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Application deadline is approximately 20 days prior to a meeting at 12:00 NOON. Please confirm the deadline with staff. The following must be submitted in order for your application to be accepted: Complete the attached application form. Both the owner and applicant must sign the application form. Answer all questions on the application form. A site plan drawn to scale showing all structures, lot lines, streets and distances from the structures to the lot lines and street. Any other supporting documentation you feel is necessary or as may be required by staff. It is recommended for the applicants and/or a representative for the applicant to attend the meeting to answer questions of the Board and present their variance request. If the applicant and/or representative fail to appear, the Board may choose to act on the item, or to postpone action until the next meeting. A meeting notice and staff report will be sent to the applicant and/or owner prior to the scheduled meeting. If for any reason the owner/applicant withdraws the application, it must be done so in writing. If the owner/applicant wishes to reapply they must file a new application form, site plan, supporting documentation, and filing fee. Filing fees are non-refundable. If you have any questions about the variance application form, or the process of obtaining a variance, please contact the Planning Services Division at (920) 236-5059. YOUR APPLICATION IS DUE BY: ________________________________________AT 12:00 NOON YOUR VARIANCE HEARING DATE: ________________________________________AT 3:30 P.M. 11/19/2021 12/08/2021 ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Page 6 of 14 Page 7 of 14 2. Describe how the variance would not have an adverse effect on surrounding properties: _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Describe the special conditions that apply to your lot or structure that do not apply to surrounding lots or structures: _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Describe the hardship that would result if your variance were not granted: _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________ The property is located in a commercial corridor and is not adjacent to any residential uses. The property is bordered by Jackson Street and High Ave to the west and northeast. These streets have existing lighting fixtures and are generally populated with vehicles during most hours. Where the property does border other commercial uses (to the south and southwest) the fc's range from 0.0 to 0.3 fc, less than the 0.5 fc maximum requirement. The property is uniquely bordered by High Avenue on a diagonal with Jackson Street. Therefore, the property has a unique "wedge" shape and is primarily bordered by streets on two of three sides, which is atypical for the area. The property is also only 0.35-acres, which is extremely constrained for commercial use, and does not grant adequate space for light diffusion. Due to the unique shape and size of the property, it is physically impossible to diffuse the internal lighting to 0.5 fc's at the property boundary while being able to place the canopy and meet minimum lighting requirements for parking spaces. The photometric designer has made an effort to drop the lighting as close to 0.5 fc's as possible (ranges from 0.0 to 1.9 fc max along Jackson Street right-of-way). If the Variance were not granted, the property would be undevelopable for similar land use types meeting the requirements of the Urban Mixed Use Zoning. Page 8 of 14 Page 9 of 14 SITE PLANCITY OF OSHKOSH, WINNEBAGO COUNTY, WISCONSINLEGAL DESCRIPTIONPROJECT ARCHITECT:SITE/PROJECT INFORMATIONOWNER/APPLICANT:ENGINEER:ZONING DATAPARKING CALCULATIONSBUILDING SIZEALLOWABLE AREAAPPLICABLE BUILDING CODECONSTRUCTION CLASSIFICATIONLANDSCAPING REQUIREMENTSNRCS SOILSSITE DATAC1.1EQUIPMENT DESIGNER:LAND USEDRAWING NO.NO. DATEDRAWN BYCHECKEDAPPROVEDCOMPUTER FILESCALE DATEMartenson & Eisele, Inc.PlanningEnvironmentalSurveyingEngineeringArchitecture1377 Midway RoadMenasha, WI 54952920.731.0381 1.800.236.0381www.martenson-eisele.cominfo@martenson-eisele.comFIELDWORKREFER TO COVER SHEET FOR REVISION DESCRIPTIONS** **NO. DATE NO. DATE1-1570-001de.dwgBAR SCALE 10-06-2021CRC ALM MJM1 10/28/20212 11/11/2021SITE PLANPRODUCTS SOLDHAZARDOUS MATERIALSWARNINGCONTAMINATED SOILS(SEE SHEET C2.1)Page 10 of 14 JAMES A GRALL 303 HIGH AVE OSHKOSH WI 54901 JANE M CHRISTL 103 W MAIN ST OMRO WI 54963 MINDALIN INVESTMENTS LLC 304 HIGH AVE OSHKOSH WI 54901 MURKEN PROPERTIES LLC 1729 KNAPP ST OSHKOSH WI 54902 NEENAH MINIMART LLC 1720 NORTH ST NEENAH WI 54956 REDEVELOPMENT AUTH CITY OF OSHKOSH PO BOX 1130 OSHKOSH WI 54903 ST PETERS CONG 449 HIGH AVE OSHKOSH WI 54901 WIS BELL INC 722 N BROADWAY ST MILWAUKEE WI 53202 DEVI & SHEKHAR ADIKARI 1720 NORTH STREET NEENAH WI 54956 Page 11 of 14 405 136325 319 303222338 309 303 322318 310 217 211 215250 315 304 226 227 240 438 435 449 90221 150155HIGH AV HIGH AV ALGOMA BLVD ALGOMA BLVD JACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STHIGH AV HIGH AV JACKSON STJACKSON STPEARL AV PEARL AV RIVERWAY DRRIVERWAY DRDIVISION STDIVISION STPEARL AV PEARL AV PEARL AV PEARL AV L:\GIS_Maps\Planning Base Map - For Windows 10.mxd User: rachela 222 Jackso n S treet City of Oshkosh maps and data are intended to be used for general identification purposes only, and theCity of Oshkosh assumes no liability for the accuracy of the information. Those using the information areresponsible for verifying accuracy. For full disclaimer please go to www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/GISdisclaimer Printing Date: 11/19/2021 1 in = 115 ft1 in = 0.02 mi¯ 1001020304050607080901001101201301401501601701801902002105 Feet Prepared by: City of Oshkosh, WIPage 12 of 14 405 136325 319 303222338 309 303 322318 310 217 211 215250 315 304 226 227 240 438 435 449 90221 150155HIGH AV HIGH AV ALGOMA BLVD ALGOMA BLVD JACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STHIGH AV HIGH AV JACKSON STJACKSON STPEARL AV PEARL AVRIVERWAY DRRIVERWAY DRDIVISION STDIVISION STPEARL AV PEARL AV PEARL AV PEARL AV L:\GIS_Maps\Planning Base Map - For Windows 10.mxd User: rachela 222 Jackso n S treet City of Oshkosh maps and data are intended to be used for general identification purposes only, and theCity of Oshkosh assumes no liability for the accuracy of the information. Those using the information areresponsible for verifying accuracy. For full disclaimer please go to www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/GISdisclaimer Printing Date: 11/19/2021 1 in = 115 ft1 in = 0.02 mi¯ 1001020304050607080901001101201301401501601701801902002105 Feet Prepared by: City of Oshkosh, WIPage 13 of 14 I UMU UMU-PD II-UTO I-PD I CMU-RFO CMU RMU-PD-RFO MR-36-UTO CMU CMU I-PD TR-10-PD UMU UMU-UTO UMU-PD-UTO HIGH AV HIGH AVJACKSON STJACKSON STALGOMA BLVD ALGOMA BLVD JACKSON STJACKSON STHIGH AV HIGH AV ALGOMA BLVD ALGOMA BLVD JACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STJACKSON STHIGH AV HIGH AV ALGOMA BLVD ALGOMA BLVD JACKSON STJACKSON STHIGH AV HIGH AV ALGOMA BLVD ALGOMA BLVD JJAACCKKSSOONNSSTTHIGH AV HIGH AV AALLGGOOMMAABBLLVVDD MMAARRIIOONNRRDD CHURCH AV CHURCH AV PEARL AV PEARL AVDAWES STDAWES STBROWN STBROWN STRIVERWAY DRRIVERWAY DRCITY CENTER CITY CENTERDIVISION STDIVISION STCHURCH AV CHURCH AV PPEEAARRLLAAVV PEARL AV PEARL AV DIVISION STDIVISION STPEARL AV PEARL AVDAWES STDAWES STCHURCH AV CHURCH AV DIVISION STDIVISION STDAWES STDAWES STPEARL AV PEARL AV PEARL AV PEARL AV L:\GIS_Maps\Planning Base Map - For Windows 10.mxd User: rachela 222 Jackso n S treet City of Oshkosh maps and data are intended to be used for general identification purposes only, and theCity of Oshkosh assumes no liability for the accuracy of the information. Those using the information areresponsible for verifying accuracy. For full disclaimer please go to www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/GISdisclaimer Printing Date: 11/19/2021 1 in = 250 ft1 in = 0.05 mi¯ 1001020304050607080901001101201301401501601701801902002102202302402502602702802903003103203303403503603703803904004104204304404504604705 Feet Prepared by: City of Oshkosh, WIPage 14 of 14