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Staff
Analysis:
The hospice house facility at this
location meets the provisions set forth for all
Special Exceptions in Chapter 5 of the Zoning Ordinance.
Section 5-001.1 states “There are certain uses which, by
their nature, can have an undue impact upon or be
incompatible with other uses of land within a given
district. These uses as described may be allowed to locate
within certain designated districts under the controls,
limitations and regulations of an administrative permit,
special permit, or special exception.” Further Section
5-006.1 says:
5-006 General Standards for
Special Permits and Special Exception Uses
In addition to the
special standards set forth hereinafter for specific uses,
all special permit and special exception uses shall also
satisfy the following general standards:
1. The proposed
use shall be such that it will not adversely affect the use
or development of neighboring properties. It shall be in
accordance with the applicable zoning district regulations
and the applicable provisions of the adopted Comprehensive
Plan. The location, size and height of buildings,
structures, walls and fences, and the nature and extent of
screening, buffering and landscaping shall be such that the
use will not hinder or discourage the appropriate
development and/or use of adjacent or nearby land and/or
buildings or impair the value thereof.
This
application is in accord with Section 5-006. The proposed
hospice house will not cause degradation of the surrounding
area or add significant traffic.
PART 6
5-600 CATEGORY 6
INSTITUTIONAL USES
In addition to the general standards set forth in Section
006 above, the following standards shall apply:
5-601 Standards for All
Category 6 Uses
No off-street parking or loading area shall be located
within any required yard or within 25 feet of any lot line
in or adjoining a Residential or Rural District.
The application meets this standard.
5-605 Additional Standards for
Medical Care Facilities, Minor or Major
(Nursing facilities with less than 20 beds shall for the
purpose of this Section be considered minor; others are
major.)
1.
No such use shall be
established except on a lot fronting on, and having direct
access to, a road designated as a major collector (or
higher) in the Comprehensive Plan unless the Board of
Supervisors or the Board of Zoning Appeals finds that the
type and amount of traffic generated by the facility is such
that it will not cause an undue impact on the neighbors or
adversely affect safety of road usage.
The Board of Supervisors will have to make a finding that
the traffic generated by the hospice facility, including the
proposed office use, does not have an impact on neighbors or
safety of road usage. The Planning Commission did make a
recommendation to support this finding and thus, it is
included in the Board’s resolution.
2.
No structure used for or in
conjunction with such use shall be located closer than 100
feet to any lot line in any Residential or Rural District.
The application meets this standard.
3.
All such uses shall be designed
to accommodate service vehicles with access to the building
at a side or rear entrance.
The application meets this standard.
4.
All off-street parking and
loading areas shall be effectively screened in any
Residential or Rural District.
Information for the applicant for the Site Plan phase.
5-1306
Additional Standards for Offices in Rural and Residential
Districts
1. Not more than
six (6) persons may be engaged in the operation of the
office, including part-time employees and/or professionals.
2. No retail or wholesale sales or storage shall be
conducted on the premises.
3. Buildings so used shall have the exterior appearance of
a residential structure of a type allowed in the zoning
district in which located.
4. There shall be no lighting of signs or parking areas on
the premises in general in any manner not usual in a
residential area.
5. Such uses in multi-family structures shall be located
in end units of townhouse structures or on the lowest floor
of other multi-family structures.
6. Office hours shall be limited to the period between
8:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Offices
may open at other times only for emergencies.
7. Off-street parking for the office shall be provided in
accordance with the provisions of Article 7 in addition to
that required for the dwelling units, unless the office
hours are limited to the period between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00
p.m.
8. In the V, R-1, R-2 and R-4 zoning districts, no
off-street parking space shall be located in any required
front yard, and all parking spaces accessory to the use
shall be screened so that they are not visible from the
first story window levels of adjoining property.
9. Any such office with more than three employees, shall
have direct access to a road designated as a major collector
(or higher) in the Comprehensive Plan unless the Board of
Zoning Appeals finds that the type and amount of traffic
generated by the facility is such that it will not cause an
undue impact on the neighbors or adversely affect safety of
road usage.
This application is in accord with Section 5-1300.
However, the Board of Supervisors will have to make a
finding that the traffic generated by the hospice facility,
including the proposed office use, does not have an impact
on neighbors or safety of road usage. The Planning
Commission did make a recommendation to support this finding
and thus, it is included in the Board’s resolution.
PART 20 5-2000
CATEGORY 20 PUBLIC UTILITIES
5-2001 Additional Submission
Requirements
In addition to the submission requirements set forth in
Section 011 above, all applications for Category 20 uses
shall be accomplished by the following:
1. Four (4) copies of a map showing the utility system of
which the proposed use will be an integral part, together
with a written statement outlining the functional
relationship of the proposed use to the utility system.
2. Four (4) copies of a statement, prepared by a certified
engineer, giving the basic reasons for selecting the
particular site as the location for the proposed facility
and certifying that the proposed use will meet the
performance standards of the district in which located.
5-2002 Standards for All Category
20 Uses
In addition to the general standards set forth in Section
006 above, all Category 20 special permit and special
exception uses shall satisfy the following standards:
1. Category 20
special permit and special exception uses shall not be
required to comply with the lot size requirements or the
bulk regulations set forth for the zoning district in which
located in Part 4 of Article 3. However, such requirements
may be established in the conditions under which such a
special permit or special exception is granted.
2. No land or
building in any district other than the Industrial Districts
shall be used for the storage of materials or equipment, or
for the repair or servicing of vehicles or equipment or for
the parking of vehicles, except those needed by employees
connected with the operation of the immediate facility.
3. In all zoning
districts, other than the I-2 District, all equipment,
machinery and facilities not located within an enclosed
building shall be effectively screened.
This application is in accord with Section 5-2000. The
applicant requires a Category 20 Special Exception because
the estimated gallons per day (gpd) required to serve the
proposed use exceeds 1,000 gpd (approximately 3,000 gpd are
requested). Special Exception conditions for the sewage
treatment system have been drafted.
Staff
Review Agency Comments:
Staff and appropriate referral agencies have reviewed this
request for conformance with the Comprehensive Plan, the
Zoning Ordinance, and other relevant policies and
regulations. Findings, comments, and recommendations are
summarized below. Following each comment is a staff note in
italics stating how the comment has been addressed.
Zoning
1. The applicant proposes to construct a Hospice facility, with
non-accessory office facilities. The use is classified
under the Fauquier County Zoning Ordinance as a Minor
Medical Care Facility (Section 3-306.4), requiring special
exception approval. Because the proposed sewage system is
projected to handle more than 1200 gallons per day, it is
classified as a Sewage Treatment System under Section
3-320.7 under the Zoning Ordinance, requiring additional
special exception approval. In addition, as office
facilities are proposed to house regional hospice functions
(rather than accessory office functions related to the
operation of the hospice), a special permit is required for
“Business or Professional Office, less than 6 employees”
pursuant to Section 3-313.10.
The following Zoning Ordinance standards are applicable:
Minor Medical Care Facility
a. 5-006 General Standards for all Special Exceptions and Special
Permits;
b. 5-601 Standards for All Category 6 Uses;
c. 5-605 Additional Standards for Medical Care Facilities, Major or
Minor.
Business or Professional Office, less than 6 employees
a. 5-006 General Standards for all Special Exceptions and Special
Permits;
b. 5-1306 Additional Standards for Offices in Rural and Residential
Districts.
Sewage Treatment System
a. 5-006 General Standards for all Special Exceptions and Special
Permits;
b. 5-2001 Additional Submission Requirements for Category 20 Uses;
c. 5-2002 Standards for All Category 20 Uses.
The property satisfies the lot size requirements and bulk
regulations set forth in the Zoning Ordinance. See earlier
analysis for General Standards.
2. In addition to the proposed office use for up to 6 full-time
employees proposed with the use to house possible regional
facilities, the applicant requests approval to allow as many
as 30 home care staff associated with the Hospice to visit
the site once or twice a week to do paperwork or attend
briefings. These employees do not work with the actual
clients living in the Hospice facility, but are rather
providing care at client’s homes throughout the community.
As the Zoning Ordinance does not allow an office use in the
Rural Districts for more than 6 employees, these 30
additional employees cannot be approved as an office use.
They could, however, be approved as part of the Special
Exception for the Hospice use if they are considered to be
an accessory part of the Hospice itself. In evaluating
whether or not to allow these employees to utilize the
Hospice as a check-in point once or twice a week, the Board
should consider the impacts of these employees and whether
their potential impacts are in fact, reasonably considered
accessory or whether they are more akin to office use. The
Zoning Ordinance defines Accessory Use as follows:
ACCESSORY USE: Accessory uses as permitted by this
Ordinance are set forth in Part 1 of Article 6. An
accessory use is a use or building which:
1. is clearly subordinate to, customarily found in
association with, and serves a principal use; and
2. is subordinate in purpose, area or extent to the
principal use served; and
3. contributes to the comfort, convenience or necessity of
the occupants, business enterprise or industrial operation
within the principal use served; and
4. is located on the same lot as the principal use, except
any building that is customarily incidental to any
agricultural use shall be deemed to be an accessory use
whether or not it is situated on the same lot with the
principal building.
Zoning staff had some concerns with the original submission,
which showed additional parking at the rate of 1 space for
each of these 30 employees being provided on-site,
suggesting that the employees were far more than an
accessory function. The applicant, however, has agreed to
substantially reduce the amount of parking provided to fewer
than 10 spaces for the occasional employees, reducing the
physical impact on the site of this potential accessory use.
The Board of Supervisors will have to make a
determination on whether the home care staff workers are an
accessory use to the hospice house. The primary use is
clearly the minor medical facility. The applicant indicates
that the home health workers are a function of the continuum
of care that hospice provides. Based on discussions with
the applicant regarding the parking, the parking spaces are
not provided for the home health care workers but instead
for visitors, hospice house staff, visiting staff (such as
chaplains, social workers, ADA requirements, etc.) and are
thus, needed for the facility.
3. The Special Exception/Special Permit plat does not show required
landscaping, but sufficient space is shown to provide
required landscaping during site plan process and it may be
possible to utilize existing landscaping in many cases to
meet requirements.
Information for the applicant for Site Plan phase.
4. Site Plan approval is required.
Information for the applicant.
Environmental
Findings:
1.
The installation drainfield area shown on the plat
does not match that shown in the application by M&M Soil
Consultants. The area on the M&M application extends past
the corners shown on the plat. The discrepancy does not
need to be corrected on the Special Exception/Special Permit
plat. However, at the Major Site Plan phase, it should be
corrected on the plans in order to protect the drainfield
area. Before land disturbance begins, I recommend
surrounding the installation and reserve drainfield areas
with safety fence to protect the drainfields from
construction traffic.
Information for the applicant for Site Plan phase. A
Special Exception condition to protect the drainfields
during construction has been drafted.
2.
Based on the Fauquier County Soil Survey, a
jurisdictional wetland determination will not be required
unless disturbance occurs in the area mapped as 10A. If the
Preliminary Soil Report shows soil map units containing
hydric soils, then a jurisdictional determination may be
required at the Major Site Plan Phase.
Information for the applicant.
3.
Additional information (preliminary soil report,
geotechnical investigation, etc) may substantially change
comments.
Information for the applicant.
Future
Actions:
1.
Preliminary Soil Report with first submission of major site
plan
2.
Geotechnical Investigation for presence of shrink – swell
soils prior to issuance of building
permit.
Special
Exception conditions to this effect have been drafted.
Planning
Commission Summary and Action of September 24, 2009:
On September
24, 2009, the Planning Commission held a work session and
conducted a public hearing on the proposed Special
Exception. Two members of the public spoke in favor of the
project at the hearing; the applicant and the applicant’s
representative also provided comments.
Subsequent
to a meeting with Commissioner Meadows, Health Department,
staff and the applicant, an amended set of Special Exception
conditions was provided. The Planning Commission forwarded
a unanimous recommendation of approval, subject to a series
of Special Exception conditions, to the Board of
Supervisors.
Summary and Recommendations:
Staff asks
the Board of Supervisors to consider the Planning
Commission’s unanimous recommendation of approval for this
request: SPEX10-LE-001, SPEX10-LE-006, & SPPT10-LE-003: a
Category 6 Special Exception to allow for the operation of a
minor medical care facility; a Category 20 Special Exception
to allow for a private commercial sewage system; and a
Category 13 Special Permit to allow for a
business/professional office with six (6) or less employees.
The majority
of referral agency comments refer to the Site Plan phase for
this project.
The requested use requires road frontage on a major
collector, unless the Board of Supervisors finds that the
type and amount of traffic generated by the facility is such
that it will not cause an undue impact on the neighbors or
adversely affect safety of road usage. Since Royalls Mill
Road is not classified as a Major Collector in the
Comprehensive Plan, the Board of Supervisors must make such
a finding in order to approve this application. At
capacity, the proposal will add approximately 27.4 vehicles
per day (vpd) on Royalls Mill Road, compared to its current
360 vpd.
Requested Action of the Board of Supervisors:
Conduct a public hearing and consider adoption of the
attached resolution.
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