Commission Meeting Agenda Item

On Tuesday, October 5, 2021, applicant Steven J. Longo filed a New Major Site Plan application on behalf of property owner Lady Lake Square, LLC for property located at the southwest corner of County Road 25 and Griffin Avenue, within the town limits of the Town of Lady Lake, Florida.

The proposal for the 288-unit Apartment Complex has been laid out on 24 acres of the 44-acre parent parcel. The site location is an older estate with an existing single-family residence dating back to 1940 and which has been vacant for several decades. The majority of the 44-acre parcel is upland forest, which is a heavily wooded mix of slash pine, long leaf pines, oak trees and cedar trees. The Tree Sampling Method was utilized for collecting Tree Survey information on existing plant material. The site has Candler Sand which consists of very deep, excessively drained, very rapidly to rapidly permeable soils on uplands, primarily with 0-5 percent slopes. There is a small portion of the parcel which has a wetland but is not required to do any special mitigation due to its size.

In order to be serviced by Town Utilities, the applicant is actively working on extending a 12-inch PVC Sewer Force Main from the Lady Lake Commons site into the proposed Lady Lake Square Apts. Complex. The applicant will be connecting to an existing manhole at the southwest corner of CR 25 and Fennell Blvd., then do a directional jack and bore of approximately 80 lineal feet with 12-inch HDPE. The applicant will be running the 12-inch PVC Sewer Force Main north along CR 25 within a proposed 15-foot utility easement for about 121 linear feet, then along the Lady Lake Post Office property, then the remaining 1,262 linear feet within a proposed 20-foot utility easement. The Developer will continue west with a 6-inch PVC Force Main facing Griffin Avenue for approximately 1,602 linear feet within a proposed 20-foot utility easement.

TRAFFIC

The apartment complex is projected to generate an average of 1,568 daily trips with 97 AM peak hour trips and 122 PM peak hour trips. Overall, the traffic impact analysis for the complex has been found to have an impact on two roadway segments: County Road 25 and Rolling Acres Road. Transportation deficiencies existing without the project traffic cannot require the project to provide proportionate share to correct deficiencies. Per Florida Statute 163.3180, the development’s proportionate share shall be calculated only for the needed transportation improvements that are greater than the identified deficiency.

STORMWATER

The applicant’s engineer of record, Robert Robb with Robb & Taylor Engineering, has submitted an Environmental Resource Permit application, civil plans, and drainage report to the St. John’s River Water Management District. The permit is pending as per plans received by the District on November 3, 2021. The stormwater system will be designed consisting of two ponds that will serve the entire 44-acre parcel. Pond #1 will be located along the northern part of the lot and Pond #2 will be along the southern boundary and adjacent to Building 8. The stormwater management system will be the operation and maintenance responsibility of the developer and will feature a maximum pool of 23.6 acre-feet in depth.

COMMERCIAL DESIGN STANDARDS

In accordance with the Land Development Regulations, Chapter 20, Section 20-3C).3).A)., new buildings should adopt and must closely follow one of the four recommended architectural styles: Frame Vernacular, Craftsman/Bungalow, Mediterranean, or Mission. The applicant will incorporate the Craftsman/Bungalow Architectural Style Design to the buildings of the apartment complex.

The elevations feature diverse exterior building materials including asphalt roofing shingle, fiber cement panel, fiber cement window trim, fiber cement lap siding shiplap pattern, decorative entry bracket, decorative brackets, cast stone veneer, glass windows, glass doors, tower design along balcony areas, decorative wall sconces by stair entrances, aluminum gutters and downspouts. Please see elevations enclosed.

LANDSCAPING WAIVERS

In accordance with Chapter 10-Landscape and Tree Protection, the site is required to provide approximately 3,840.0 tree caliper inches based on the 24.0-acre site development area (160”x 24.0).

The applicant is providing approximately 4,157 tree caliper inches, including 2,180.0 tree caliper inches of proposed canopy trees, 227.0 understory trees to be planted, and 1,750.0 tree caliper inches of palm trees.

The following number of trees are being provided:

• Six Red Maple trees at 3.5 tree caliper inches each minimum.
• 11 American Holly trees at 3.0 tree caliper inches each minimum.
• 67 Crape Myrtle trees at 2.0 tree caliper inches each minimum.
• 24 White Crape Myrtle trees at 2.0 tree caliper inches each minimum.
• Six Japanese Privet trees at 2.0 tree caliper inches each minimum
• 30 Southern Magnolias trees at an average of 3.0 tree caliper inches each minimum
• 311 Slash Pine trees at an average of 3.0 tree caliper inches each minimum
• 208 Live Oak trees at an average of 4.0 tree caliper inches each minimum
• 76 Bald Cypress trees at an average of 4.0 tree caliper inches each minimum
• 175 Sabal Palm trees at an average of 4.0 tree caliper inches each minimum
• Sweet & Sandankwa Viburnum shrubs at a minimum of 36” with three feet over center

Due to the complexity of the site, the applicant will be designing the Irrigation Plans after commencing work to avoid many after-the-fact changes due to existing field conditions and will be providing the plan to Town Staff as an as-built survey.

It was found that the applicant has designed the location and planting of landscaping in accordance with the Town’s landscaping code as it refers to spacing, native vegetation, water use requirements, while taking into consideration site visibility and overcrowding of plant material.

The site meets Open Space FLU Policies, as well as on-site storm water retention for storm runoff needs. The proposal is consistent with how the Town would like to see infill development take place to promote economic development of annexed properties.

REVIEWS CONDUCTED

The site plan was reviewed to determine if it is in compliance with the Land Development Regulations (LDRs) including drainage, grading and erosion control. The application was determined to be in compliance with the Land Development Regulations (LDRs) and the Comprehensive Plan; with the exception of granted variances.

The civil engineering plans, consisting of 42 sheets, have been submitted on 24" x 36"sheets and certified by Robert Robb, Professional Engineer with Robb & Taylor Engineering Solutions, Inc., drawn on November 30, 2021, with final revisions drawn on January 7, 2022. Landscaping and Irrigation plans consisting of 12 sheets have been submitted on 24" x 36"sheets and certified by James D. Brown with KPMFranklin drawn on September 23, 2021, with final revised plans dated November 17, 2021. Sight Lighting and Photometric Plan consisting of one sheet are drawn by FK Architecture dated October 14, 2021. Architectural Elevation Plans consisting of 13 sheets are drawn by FK Architecture dated October 27, 2021.

Town staff, Neel-Schaffer Engineering, and the Fire Inspector completed reviews. The following items are included in the packet:

Review No. 3 for the general site development completed by Neel-Schaffer Engineering, dated January 5, 2022 (Satisfied).

Review by Fire Inspector Kerry Barnett dated December 21, 2021 (Satisfied).

Review by Lady Lake Building Official dated December 9, 2021 (Satisfied).

Review by Lady Lake Public Works Utility Supervisor Butch Goodman dated November 1, 2021 (Satisfied).

Lake-Sumter MPO last comments dated January 17, 2021 (Satisfied).

Lake County Public Works Comments dated December 8, 2021 (In process).

Lake County School Board District School Concurrency Capacity Reservation Letter dated September 15, 2021 (Satisfied).

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Permit No. GTT-21-02348 dated December 18, 2021, to capture and relocate up to 10 gopher tortoises within the site until a recipient site becomes available for final relocation.

St. John’s River Water Management District Storm Water Permit Project No. 177141-1 (under review by the State).

While Town staff reviewed the database for the National Register of Historic Places and found no registration, the State’s Division of Historical Resources and State Historic Preservation will be requiring that the applicant performs a Cultural Resources Assessment Survey to determine if the site has any archeological properties.

PAST ACTIONS

On Monday, August 17, 2020, applicant Marty Dellebovi on behalf of Lady Lake Square, LLC came before the Town Commission to present the proposal of a 288-unit Apartment Complex, reaching consensus with a 5-0 vote.

On October 19, 2020, Lady Lake Square LLC was granted Resolution 2020-108 to allow for the placement of a Freestanding Pylon Sign along Old Vineyard Road for the Apartment Complex and other outparcels that will have access via Old Vineyard Road.

No landscaping waivers are being requested; therefore, no Parks, Recreation, and Tree Advisory Committee Meeting took place for this application.

On October 19, 2020, the Town Commission approved Resolutions 2020-109 and 2020-110 to allow one apartment building (Building F) to be four stories and up to 50 feet in height.