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Plan Commission approves North End Phase 2 waivers and variances for senior apartments and townhomes
Summary
The commission approved a set of design standards waivers and variances required for North End Phase 2, including parking in a mapped floodplain, a hammerhead turnaround, reduced stream easement widths, and multiple dimensional variances for a mixed apartment and townhome development.
The Carmel Plan Commission on May 20 approved multiple waivers and variances to advance North End Phase 2, a mixed housing phase that includes a 170‑unit apartment building for residents aged 55 and over and seven townhome‑type buildings with 72 units.
Charlie Maddox of Crossroad Engineers summarized three standards waivers sought for the Phase 2 site: permitting parking in a mapped floodplain area where final grades will be raised above base flood elevation; allowing a hammerhead turnaround (dead‑end configuration) where a hammerhead would replace a typical cul‑de‑sac; and reducing a standard 25‑foot stream/wetland easement to 10 feet in selected locations to preserve existing mature trees and accommodate sidewalks. Maddox said buildings and parking will be constructed above flood elevation and that the floodplain fill will be mitigated by providing equivalent compensatory volume elsewhere on the site.
Department staff supported the waivers and recommended approval, noting that water‑quality measures (including an AquaXxelerator unit and native plantings) would be installed and that the floodplain mitigation and arroyo/drainage review are coordinated with the county surveyor and the city’s engineering review. Staff also asked the applicant to show bike‑parking locations on the site plan for the townhome buildings so the requirement is clear on plan sets.
At the subsequent land‑use items for North End Phase 2 (primary plat amendment and ADLS approvals) commission members likewise approved the plan commission dockets and then took separate recorded votes on each variance. The variances approved included reduced front and side yard parking setbacks, a larger maximum building footprint (from 15,000 to 57,000 square feet), an exception to building‑stepback requirements for structures over three stories, façade length/design exceptions, allowance for a single principal building rather than multiple buildings across the lot width, and a parking ratio adjustment to 1.25 spaces per dwelling unit. Commissioners voted to suspend rules to allow action that evening and approved each waiver and variance by voice vote as presented.
