PRESENTER: Presenter
Garry Ford, Transportation and Capital Improvements Director
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SUBJECT: Title
Discuss and consider the postponement or other action of a resolution for removal of the proposed Minor Collector identified in the City of New Braunfels Regional Transportation Plan as the future extension of Seminole Drive from the dead end of Seminole Drive from 1400 feet northwest of Alves Lane to FM 1101.
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DEPARTMENT: Transportation & Capital Improvements, Planning and Development Services
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COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: 5
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
City Council postponed the decision to remove Seminole Drive from the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) to August 14, 2023. Additional planning initiatives and improvements to address the area mobility needs and residents’ concerns were requested. City staff needs more time to review and prepare options and recommendations for the City Council, including meeting with stakeholders. Additionally, the formal update to the RTP started August 8, 2023, and additional system planning efforts will assist with the recommendation to City Council. Staff is requesting postponement to October 16, 2023, for presentation, public input, and possible direction from City Council. The previous background information is provided below:
The City of New Braunfels received an application for a Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) Amendment, requesting removal of the proposed Minor Collector extending from existing Seminole Drive to FM 1101. Existing Seminole Drive is a Minor Collector between Alves Lane and its dead end 1400 feet northwest of Alves Lane. The proposed segment continues the connection to FM 1101.
This request is concurrent with the application for the SUP23-063 “Parc Haus” Special Use Permit (SUP) for a multifamily complex with two phases at 1450 FM 1101. The SUP site plan submitted with the application assumes the removal of the Seminole Drive Minor Collector RTP requirement and shows Seminole Drive terminating in a public cul-de-sac at the southern portion of the property. The SUP site plan also shows the connection of two existing public street stub outs, Apache Drive and Dunbar Drive, making a local public street connection between Alves Lane and FM 1101.
The removal of Seminole Drive allows for four apartment buildings and portions of other apartment buildings to be constructed in the right-of-way of the proposed thoroughfare. Emergency access for the proposed multifamily development is provided at Seminole Drive and Apache Drive/Dunbar Drive.
An application for a zoning change (PZ22-0429) from R-2A to R-3H for the subject property was submitted and ultimately withdrawn in late 2022. A traffic impact analysis (TIA) worksheet was also submitted in late 2022, and staff indicated that a full TIA report will be required prior to approval of a master plan, plat, or building permit. Residents on existing Seminole Drive and in the Northview subdivision have expressed opposition to the extension of Seminole Drive, citing the possibility of increased traffic through the neighborhood between FM 1101 and Alves Lane.
The RTP is the City's adopted plan for guiding thoroughfare system improvements, including the existing and planned extension of city streets and highways. The thoroughfare system is comprised of existing and planned interstates, expressways, parkways, arterials, and collectors which require wider or new rights-of-way. The primary objective of the RTP is to ensure the dedication of adequate right-of-way on appropriate alignments and of enough width to serve existing and future transportation needs. The Texas Local Government Code allows the City to require development plans and subdivision plats to conform to the general plan for current and future roadways.
A Minor Collector is defined in the City of New Braunfels Code of Ordinances as “a street that primarily carries traffic from local or residential streets to major thoroughfares and highways, including the principal entrance streets for circulation to schools, parks, and other community facilities within such a development.” A Minor Collector has a minimum right-of-way of 60 feet and pavement width of 40 feet. The proposed Minor Collector on Seminole Drive represents a connection between FM 1101 and Alves Lane that connect to State Highway 46, Barbarosa Road, and other collector and local streets. If extended, it would provide automobile as well as potential pedestrian and bicycle connections to Canyon High School, Canyon Middle School, and Freiheit Elementary School. Existing Seminole Drive runs adjacent to Alves Lane Park, which is being considered for park improvement planning. Similar Minor Collector thoroughfares include:
• Stone Gate Drive
• Dove Crossing Drive
• Orion Drive
• Sungate Drive
• Pahmeyer Road
It is important to note that the City’s development requirements allowed residential lots to have access on Minor Collector streets that require backing maneuvers onto the street. Despite opposition from the development community, City Council amended the Code of Ordinances in 2018 to not allow access to collectors or major thoroughfare streets that require backing maneuvers onto the street, or that other provisions be provided.
Seminole Drive has been on the City’s Thoroughfare Plan since 1964 and included in various thoroughfare plans up to the adopted 2012 RTP. The Northview Subdivision Master Plan was approved in 1980s and shows Northview Drive, which was renamed to Seminole Drive at platting, as a thoroughfare road with larger right-of-way. Northview Unit 2, which contains Seminole Drive from Alves Lane to Dakota Circle, was platted in 1986 and provided 60 feet of right-of-way for the Minor Collector. Northview Unit 3, which contains Seminole Drive from Dakota Circle to its current terminus, was platted in 1995 and provided 60 feet of right-of-way for the Minor Collector. The Planning Commission granted a sidewalk variance for the subdivision unit. The Seminole Drive extension subject to removal is also a project (6-AE) in Service Area 6 on the Roadway Impact Fee Capital Improvement Plan.
Existing Seminole Drive contains 60 feet of right-of-way and accommodates single family driveway access and street parking on both sides. Sidewalks are absent on Seminole Drive and its cross streets, as Planning Commission granted waivers to the sidewalk requirements. Two more stub-outs connect to the proposed development on Apache Drive and Dunbar Drive. These were platted as part of separate subdivisions, also lacking sidewalks.
This RTP amendment request demonstrates a trade-off between the need for north-south connections between FM 1101 and Alves Lane, land use, development requirements, and the lack of thoroughfares and street connections in adjacent neighborhoods to support traffic in the area. Seminole Drive is the only designated street on the RTP connecting Alves Lane and FM 1101 between State Highway 46 and Barbarosa Road. The other local street connection is from Brook Avenue to Willowbrook Avenue through the August Fields Subdivision. The continuation of Brook Avenue as a Minor Collector from its current terminus to FM 1101 and ultimately IH 35 was recommended as an additional thoroughfare in the 2019 RTP update effort; however, the update was paused in 2020 and it planned to continue later in 2023.
Land use and development requirements are also an important factor in this case. The traditional development of single-family and two-family zoning districts typically provided the projection of streets, or street stub-outs, to undeveloped areas to continue the public street network. This is apparent in the Northview Subdivision master plan and subsequent plats with stub-outs for Seminole Drive, Salado Drive, Apache Drive, and Caddell Lane. Street projections are also provided for in adjacent single-family and two-family subdivisions in the area. The transition to multifamily development through rezoning or in the areas outside the city limit that don’t have zoning are resulting in the properties being developed as private and the streets connections providing emergency access only or becoming a dead-end street without the proper dead-end turn around. This results in few thoroughfares and street connections. This is evident by the delays on State Highway 46 and Barbarosa Drive and limited options for all transportation modes during peak periods.
Staff submitted the request to its third-party transportation planning professional, Freese & Nichols, to assist in the review. It is recommended to keep the Seminole Drive connection due to the projected traffic growth in the area, lack of transportation connections and routes to schools in the area, and fire/EMS access. It is noted that traffic will not deviate to State Highway 46 if the connection is removed but may instead shift to the August Fields neighborhood via Willowbrook Avenue and Brook Avenue. Additionally, the Seminole extension is consistent with the need for regional connections highlighted in the 2021 Southeast Sector thoroughfare plan analysis and the Roadway Impact Fee Capital Improvement Plan.
Staff agrees with the third-party review recommendations and does not recommend removal of the proposed Minor Collector identified in the RTP as the future extension of Seminole Drive. Staff reached out to property owners within 200 feet and received responses in support of the removal. Staff understands the concerns of increased traffic and safety concerns; however, the continuation of the thoroughfare meets the City’s development requirements and additional roadway improvements to the existing Seminole Drive may be considered. These improvements may include sidewalks, pavement markings, and traffic calming measures. Roadway capacity improvements to State Highway 46 and Barbarosa Road are not anticipated to be completed until 2030 at the earliest, and the need for additional thoroughfare connections is high.
Another option in lieu of removal is to maintain a public shared-use path corridor to allow for pedestrian and bicycle mobility between Alves Lane and FM 1101 connecting recent pedestrian improvements on Alves Lane and FM 1101, area schools, and Alves Lane Park.
ISSUE:
The Regional Transportation Plan designates existing Seminole Drive as a Minor Collector requiring 60 feet of right-of-way, and it further proposes the extension of the Minor Collector to FM 1101. The applicant has requested removal of the proposed segment to accommodate a site plan and SUP for multifamily development at 1450 FM 1101.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The RTP amendment will remove the requirement of, and costs associated with the right-of-way dedication and street construction of a Minor Collector facility. Though the exact costs and impact are unknown, the City will likely have to pick up the cost of area mobility improvements that will be lost with the removal.
Recommendation
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends postponement of this item to October 16, 2023, for presentation, public input, and possible direction on information requested by City Council. The staff recommendation below has not changed.
Staff does not recommend the removal of the proposed Minor Collector identified in the City of New Braunfels Regional Transportation Plan as the future extension of Seminole Drive from 1400 feet northwest of Alves Lane to FM 1101.
On May 2, 2023, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of this request.
At the same meeting, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Special Use Permit (SUP 22-063) with conditions.