TOWN STAFF REPORT RECCOMENDATIONS
title
Conduct a public hearing and consider adopting Ordinance 964 approving a zoning change request from O-Office Park District to Planned Development District Number 8 (PD8), including a concept plan, to allow for a hotel to be located on the portion of Lot 1, C.M. Throop No. 1510 Addition that is located within the Town of Westlake. The subject property is located at 3300 T.W. King Road at the northwest corner of T.W. King Road and State Highway 114; and take appropriate action (Continued from the March 27, 2023 Town Council meeting)
body
STAFF: Ron Ruthven, Director of Development and Planning
Update
This item was tabled by the Town Council at the April 24, 2023 meeting at the request of the applicant.
Executive Summary (Including Applicable Organizational History)
Hitesh Jariwala, Trophy Lodging, LTD, on behalf of property owners Varispace Southlake, LLC, is requesting approval of a zoning change for the property located at 3300 T.W. King Road in order to construct a limited-service hotel on the property with up to 130 rooms.
Existing Conditions, History and Site Development Constraints
The subject property is currently zoned “O-Office Park” district and currently developed as a parking lot. The lot is currently used as additional parking for the existing office complex located to the east in Southlake, which is part of the larger Solana development and is also owned by Varispace Southlake, LLC. The subject property also contains a sewer lift station that is owned and operated by the Trophy Club Municipal Utility District (TCMUD).
The approximate northern one-third of the subject property is located in the town of Trophy Club while the remainder of the property is located in Westlake. The proposed hotel building would be wholly located in Westlake.
Access to the State Highway 114 service is restricted by TxDOT leaving the only access to the subject property from T.W. King Road, which is located wholly within the city of Southlake.
According to the existing subdivision plat for the subject property, there are several large utility and drainage easements along with building setbacks along T.W. King Road and SH 114 that, currently, serve to limit any redevelopment of the site to only a small building given the constrained building area.
Historically, most of the subject property was located in the city of Southlake and was subsequently moved into Westlake’s corporate limits as a result of a legal ruling stemming from litigation between Southlake and Westlake in 1998. The current parking lot and plat were both approved by Southlake given that the subject property was part of Southlake at the time of initial development in early 1998.
In 2015 the existing multi-level parking garage located to the east of the subject property across T.W. King Road was built, negating the need for the parking located on the subject property, after which the property owner (first Blackstone, then Varispace Southlake) began seeking offers from potential developers to purchase the site. With the exception of a temporary use request for the “Journey Dome” on the property in 2022, staff has received little interest concerning the property from developers until the current developer.
The following are additional conditions specific to the subject property:
Plat status: Platted as Lot 1, C.M. Throop No. 1510 Addition (approved by Southlake in 1998)
Lot size: 2.5 acres
Existing Parking Lot: 108 parking spaces (approved by Southlake in 1998)
Other conditions: Existing TCMUD sanitary sewer lift station (built in the late 1980’s to serve The Solana development).
Developer’s Request
The developer is requesting a zoning change to “PD-Planned Development District” from “O-Office Park” district for the following reasons:
• A limited-service hotel is not a permitted use in the “O-Office Park” district;
• Deviation from the standard building setback, landscaping, building design and parking requirements required under the “O-Office Park” zoning in order to fit the hotel on the site given the limited area and other issues as noted.
• Flexibility within the zoning approval process to allow for, and accommodate, varied conditions in order to gain approval.
In the attached narrative, the developer states:
“We are proposing to construct a new hotel, either a Hilton, Marriott or Hyatt Flag. A portion of the site is covered with parking, that was formerly utilized by the existing property owner and the development to the East. The [existing] parking area is no longer needed due to the construction of a large parking garage within its parent property [to the east]. The proposed project will have the following design standards:
1) Maximum number of rooms = 130
2) Maximum building height = 75 feet
3) Estimated Maximum Elevation Above Sea Level = 682 feet
4) Estimated Floor Area = 80,612 sf
5) Estimated Floor Area Ratio = 75%
6) Amenities to include a swimming pool (680 sf +/-), meeting space (520 sf +/-) and hotel offices
(393 sf +/-).
The project will be developed by Pegasus Hospitality Group. Near the Westlake area, the developer has opened the following hotels:
Homewood Suites by Hilton - Trophy Club
Tru By Hilton - Coppell
Hilton Garden Inn by Hilton - Denton
They are also currently working on developing the following hotels in the Westlake area:
Homewood Suites - Coppell - 137 rooms - Construction to commence quarter 3 of 2022
Hilton Garden Inn - Coppell - Construction to commence quarter 1 of 2024”
In terms of economic development impacts on the Town, the developer states:
“For the Proposed Hotel in Westlake, the developer plans to develop a +/- 120 room hotel to be valued at approximately $20,000,000. Based on their analysis/research and underwriting, a stabilized full year is projected to yield the following statistics:
75% Occupancy
$165 Average Daily Rate (ADR)
$112 Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR)
Based on this performance, at an approximate 7.00% occupancy tax/city tax, the expected revenue to be generated for Westlake is approximately $379,500 per year.”
The developer states that, upon approval, construction would start between the 3rd quarter of 2024 and the 1st quarter of 2025.
Site Development Analysis
Redevelopment Feasibility - Existing Site Conditions and Zoning/Regulatory Requirements
As noted above, the site, in its current condition, allows for limited redevelopment given the following conditions:
• Existing site utility/drainage easements limiting building area.
• Existing platted building setbacks (50 feet from SH 114; 30 feet from T.W. King Road).
• Existing “O-Office Park” zoning setbacks (100 feet from SH 114; 100 feet from T.W. King; 75 feet from rear lot line).
• Building height restrictions (maximum 2 story; 35-foot height)
• Existing freeway landscape zone from SH 114 (100 feet from SH 114 ROW).
• Existing roadway landscape zone from T.W. King Road (100 feet from ROW).
• Vehicular access to the site limited to T.W. King Road.
• Unimproved state of T.W. King Road adjacent to the site.
• Existing TCMUD lift station on site (which cannot be relocated).
• Location of northern one-third of the site in Trophy Club.
The existing site zoning, “O-Office Park”, allows for the following principal permitted commercial uses:
• General Office
• Studio (undefined)
• Bank
• Information Processing
• Laundry/Dry Cleaning
• Personal Services
• Commercial Recreation (undefined)
Taking into consideration the zoning uses noted above, the Town’s minimum development requirements including setbacks/landscaping requirements, and the existing site conditions, based on a preliminary staff analysis, assuming no development waivers were granted, the maximum building size that could be built on the site is approximately 7,000 square feet containing one or more of the above listed land uses.
The following is an analysis of the proposed site plan in terms of compliance with applicable Town ordinances, the Comprehensive Plan, and staff’s review of the request:
Traffic Impact and Access
As part of their request, the developer submitted traffic impact analysis (TIA) for review. Based on the results of the analysis, which utilized industry accepted trip generation methodology from the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Trip Generation Manual, based on a 120-room hotel, the proposed hotel would generate 959 trips per day (or 1,039 trips per day for 130 rooms).
Access to the site would be solely from T.W. King Road with no access to SH 114. The developer has submitted plans and the TIA to the city of Southlake for review given the location of the road in Southlake and has not yet received approval. Access to T.W. King Road from the site will require final approval by the city of Southlake.
Building Design
The developer provided preliminary building elevations with their application. The elevations show a six-story building composed of a combination of EIFS, metal and resin panels. The proposed height of the building is 75 feet with maximum height above mean sea level of 682 feet.
There are no building design requirements specific to the “O-Office Park” zoning. However, there are minimum building articulation requirements for non-residential buildings contained in the Town’s zoning regulations as follows:
a. Horizontal articulation: No building wall shall extend for a distance equal to two times the wall's height without having an offset of 15 percent of the wall's height, and that new plane shall extend for a distance equal to at least 25 percent of the maximum length of the first plane.
b. Vertical articulation: No horizontal wall shall extend for a distance greater than two times the height of the wall without changing height by a minimum of 15 percent of the wall's height.
The Westlake Building Quality Manual recommends masonry, metal and glass as a primary cladding material for commercial buildings. EIFS is not an approved material.
Setbacks
The proposed hotel building would be setback according to the platted setbacks of 30 feet from T.W. King Road and 50 feet from SH 114. The “O-Office Park” zoning requires 100 feet from both roadways.
Parking
According to the parking regulations in the Code of Ordinances, a minimum of 130 parking spaces are required for the proposed use based on the total number of hotel rooms. The developer proposes 117 spaces given site constraints.
Landscaping, Screening, Buffering and Open Space
Although landscaping will be provided, among other deviations, the developer proposes that the 100-foot roadway landscape buffers along SH 114 and T.W. King be reduced per the concept plan. The developer also proposes that the parking lot landscaping requirement of a minimum 60 square feet of landscaping per each parking space be reduced given site constraints.
The “O-Office Park” zoning requires a minimum of 20% open space on site. Per the proposal, open space would be confined to site landscaped areas and would be minimal.
Outdoor Lighting
Outdoor lighting is proposed to meet Town code requirements.
Signage
No signage proposals have been submitted to date and will depend on the final hotel flag.
Interjurisdictional approval required
The town of Trophy Club, city of Southlake and the TCMUD were all sent copies of the request and all of these entities participated in the development review process along with Town staff. Although some comments have been addressed, many comments remain unaddressed given the additional level of detail needed in order to gain final approval, which will be required before construction may start.
Comprehensive Plan Compliance
The 2015 Comprehensive Plan does not address the subject property.
Staff Recommendations and Summary
There are limited options for redevelopment of the site given the factors noted herein. In order to maximize the redevelopment potential of the site, staff agrees that rezoning the property to “PD” from “O” is a viable option. However, there are several steps that must be taken to reach a point where a building permit may be issued including:
• Final approval from Trophy Club and Southlake;
• Addressing comments from the TCMUD concerning the lift station;
• Additional details regarding the building, site and hotel itself.
Therefore, staff recommends approval subject to the following conditions, which are contained in the proposed ordinance:
Approving Ordinance Conditions (Ordinance 964):
A. The purpose of the PD8 district is the development of a hotel. Any principal use other than a hotel is hereby prohibited. Approved accessory uses shall include a fitness center, conferencing facility, swimming pool, spa, restaurant, general retail sales typical with a hotel and the sale of alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption.
B. Development of the site shall be generally consistent with the concept plan, attached as Exhibit “B”, and the development description, attached as Exhibit “C”.
C. The hotel building shall be generally consistent with the concept building elevations, attached as Exhibit “D”.
D. A site plan, meeting the requirements for PD site plans in the Code of Ordinances, shall be submitted for final consideration. No building permit may be issued without an approved site plan. The site plan shall be considered as an amendment to this ordinance;
E. Prior to the final consideration of the site plan, any required extra-jurisdictional approvals pertinent to the subject property including, but not limited to, zoning, roadway and utility access shall be obtained and provided directly from the pertinent entity to the Town.
F. Given the redevelopment of the site, approval and recording of a replat of the subject property is hereby required prior to the issuance of a building permit;
G. A situs development agreement between the developer and the town shall require approval prior to the issuance of the building permit.
H. It is hereby acknowledged that certain waivers to Town ordinances are required in order to reasonably develop the site as depicted on the concept plan. However, final approval of any development waivers, including any modifications or additions to the conditions contained herein, shall be at the discretion of the Town Council upon the recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission as part of the approval of the required site plan.
COUNCIL ACTION/OPTIONS
• Approve the proposed Ordinance;
• Approve the Ordinance with conditions/modifications;
• Deny the proposed Ordinance;
• Table the item(s).
PLANNING AND ZONING RECOMMENDATION
The Planning and Zoning considered this item on February 13, 2023. The Commission voted to recommend approval of the item subject to staff’s recommendations by a (4-0) vote.
FISCAL/SERVICE LEVEL IMPACT TO COMMUNITY
Project Cost/Funding Amount: $0.00 Funding Source: N/A
Contract: No Forms: N/A
Attachments
1. Location Map
2. Existing site conditions and plat
3. Information provided by developer
4. Ordinance 964