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Large Cedar Tree industrial site seeks variances, offers trail but asks to pay $302,208 instead of some sidewalks
Summary
Exeter 109 Lebanon LLC sought site-plan approval for a 326.4-acre industrial/commercial project; staff flagged multiple variances and opposed a developer request to pay $302,208 in lieu of building all required sidewalks, while supporting several other variances.
Exeter 109 Lebanon LLC asked the planning commission to approve a site plan for Cedar Tree, a nonresidential development on about 326.4 acres on Lebanon Road. Staff listed multiple variance requests and said a development agreement for a trail to Carabin Park—required as part of prior annexation and zoning approvals—must be approved before final site-plan approval.
The applicant requested payment in lieu of construction for 6,288 linear feet of sidewalks; staff said the fee, if accepted, would be $302,208. Staff opposed accepting payment in lieu for the majority of sidewalks because the sidewalks would connect to future residential development and to the trail network. “Providing some but not all doesn’t really seem to make sense in this case,” staff said, urging on-site connections to preserve a pedestrian network planned for the area.
Staff reviewed seven variance requests beyond five previously considered during a 2022 preliminary plat. The variances include driveway-width maximums (20 driveways exceed the 35-foot maximum—typical in industrial projects), foundation-planting and building-transparency standards for Buildings B and D, building articulation on multiple frontages, and a request to provide a single 15-foot trail in lieu of sidewalks on both sides of a main north–south road. Staff supported several of the variances—chiefly those tied to atypical frontage conditions—but said other requests could be solved by a different site design.
Engineer Evan Foster of Reagan Smith told the commission the project would relocate foundation plantings away from building faces and enhance glazing on building ends, saying, “We are enhancing the two ends of the building, going above and beyond the 20% minimum.” Foster said the 15-foot trail would connect into a broader trail network that will eventually reach Carabin Park and the train station.
Staff recommended that the development agreement for the Carabin Park trail be finalized and that new preliminary and final plats be submitted to dedicate the shown public service extensions before final site-plan approval. The commission left the item on the agenda for further action next week so staff and the applicant can resolve outstanding plan items and the trail agreement.
The sidewalk-in-lieu fee and several design variances will be key outstanding decisions before final approval.
