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The V Development Company, Inc. 297 E Paces Ferry Rd NE, Unit 1701 Atlanta, GA 30305 Letter of Intent The V Development Company desires to redevelop the property located at 4970, 4974, 4976 and 4978 Buford Highway. The proposed development consists of three buildings. The building fronting Buford Highway contains approximately 17,500 square feet of office and retail/wholesale space. The two buildings to the rear of the parcel contains approximately 10,500 square feet of retail and restaurant space. The buildings architectural elements would be consistent with the neighboring development to the north of this project at 4994 Buford Highway. Proposed architectural renderings are attached. The proposed redevelopment will be a significant improvement to the existing visual appeal of the current property. It will eliminate a driveway on Buford Highway, a large parking field fronting Buford Highway and an existing pawn shop. It will also remove an outdated retail development in the rear of the property that has significant drainage issues. The proposed building fronting Buford Highway will meet the city s pedestrian zone requirements while bringing the building to the front of the property, providing a much more pleasing visual corridor for that portion of Buford Highway. The proposed buildings and their associated uses are suitable and consistent with the development of adjacent and nearby properties. The proposed development will positively impact the neighboring parcels, improving access and increasing neighboring property values. The proposed development does not expect to have adverse impacts to existing streets, transportation facilities, utilities or schools. The proposed development would be in conformance with the applicable zoning district. However, the following variances and waivers are requested. These variances are requested due to the unique shape of the property it is long and narrow with significant topographic fall from front to back. These variances, if granted, do not cause substantial detriment to the public good nor impair the purposes or intent of the zoning ordinance. The variances requested are not the result of any actions of the property owner and strict application of the UDO would create an unnecessary hardship. The permissible FAR for the project is 2.5, however, the proposed FAR is only 0.37. Despite being significantly lower than allowable amount of building allowed on the property and using most of the allowable impervious coverage, the following variances are requested: A reduction in the required parking is requested. (Sec 250-2) The proposed use of office and retail/wholesale does not generate significant traffic. The rear retail and restaurant space provide adequate parking considering access to public transportation within the Buford Highway corridor. A variance from the tree density requirements is requested. (Sec 320-39) The project is short of meeting the required tree inches. Although the applicant would plant 119 trees on the 38 of 40
property, several of those trees are in a required buffer and don t count towards the 150-inch requirement. The project would be 42 inches short of meeting the required tree planting. In conjunction with the above two variances, a variance is requested from the off-street surface parking lot planting requirements. (Sec 320-21) Compliance with the ordinance would result in the loss of approximately 12 additional parking spaces. The long, narrow character of the property necessitates the need for the variance. As previously indicated, we re planting 119 trees on the property, which is a significant improvement over the current condition. We have shown several tree islands in the proposed parking, however, some of those islands do not meet the minimum square footage. We re also showing more than 10 parking spaces without an island. While we ve done our best to place parking on top of existing sewer easements, there are locations where sanitary sewer easements on the property interfere with the ability to plant trees in the landscape islands. The property is providing inter-parcel access to most of the adjoining properties. However, a waiver is requested from providing vehicle and pedestrian access (350-2) to the apartments located on parcel 18 297 02 011. The apartments are existing and do not have any existing accessible route on their property. The apartments are also significantly lower in elevation that the subject parcel. We intend to meet the following requirements, although coordination with utility providers or neighboring property owners will need to be completed in order to meet the ordinance requirements: A pedestrian connection is shown to the adjacent retail center through handicap ramps, striped crossing and new sidewalk. In order to build the striped crossing and new sidewalk, permission from the adjacent owner is needed. We have made contact with the adjacent owner to determine their willingness to allow the improvements. At this time, we do not anticipate retaining walls that would exceed the allowable heights in Section 230-6(d). However, we will not know this with certainty until final engineering of the site is complete. At this time, we expect that the project will meet the city s outdoor lighting ordinance. (Sec. 230-31) We are proposing to place utilities underground, however, coordination with and permission from the utility owners will be required. (Sec. 350-25) Regarding pedestrian access to the front of the lot from the proposed parking, a sidewalk is shown connecting the rear property to the property s frontage. Final engineering will dictate who that connection is made and what, if any, steps are required to achieve that goal. The architect and engineer have reviewed the situation and their preliminary findings indicate that they can achieve the connection. Best Regards, Vinh Nguyen President The V Development Company, Inc. Vinh@thevdevelopment.com Ph: 646-577-6247 39 of 40
Narrative Description Applicant desires to redevelop the proposed property as outlined in this application. The four parcels would be developed into 3 buildings that would provide a mix of retail, restaurant and office space along Buford Highway. Details of the quantitative and qualitative are included in this application. 19 of 40
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