The Westminster Planning Commission on Oct. 28 unanimously recommended that City Council approve the remanded Official Development Plan (ODP) for Uplands Filing 2, Block 2 (Uplands B2) using the applicants Option 2, also called Plan B, after the developer revised access, sightline and parking notes in response to a City Council remand.

The recommendation came after staff advised commissioners that, despite the applicants revisions, the ODP as submitted did not meet the review criteria in Section 11-5-15 of the Westminster Municipal Code and staffs packet analysis supported denial. "Staff recommends that you hold a public hearing and recommend that City Council deny the ODP," said Jacob Casa, principal planner with the citys planning division.

Plan B removes the proposed alley connection to West 80 Second Avenue, replaces the connection with a larger hammerhead turnaround sized for the citys largest fire apparatus, relocates one lot (Lot 25) to front Osceola Way, and restricts Lot 13 to a single-story ranch with a walkout basement to reduce impacts on the Lowell Boulevard view corridor. The applicant says the plan preserves the projects 26 lots and adds on-street and off-street guest parking adjacent to a pocket park.

Why it matters: City Council remanded the ODP to Planning Commission after an Aug. 11 hearing that identified five specific issues for additional review: (1) possible second access on Bradburn Drive; (2) gate maintenance and whether the gate should be locked for emergency access only; (3) ensuring access to West 80 Second Avenue would be for emergency vehicles only; (4) evaluating height on Lot 13 to protect the view corridor; and (5) addressing guest parking deficiencies. The commissions recommendation now returns the revised plan to City Council for a final decision.

What was discussed: City staff and the applicant presented two options to address the remand. Option 1 (Plan A) retains an alley connection but adds notes limiting HOA access and locking the gate for emergency use; staff said that approach still left an enforceability and long-term maintenance concern for a gated emergency-only connection. Option 2 (Plan B) severs the alley connection entirely and uses city property for a compliant fire-truck turnaround, an approach staff found more effective at eliminating the potential for cut-through traffic.

Kaylee Gillespie of Norris Design, presenting for the applicant, described the Lot 13 height restriction: "For both plans, Lot 13 will be restricted to a ranch with a walkout basement." Marcus Pockner, the applicants land-use consultant, said Plan B was developed with neighborhood input and would "remove all of the doubt that there will be no connection to West 80 Second Avenue."

Public comment and neighborhood outreach: The record shows the applicant and neighbors met on-site and held meetings on Oct. 7 and Oct. 22; the developer told staff every neighbor in attendance supported Plan B. Edward Brozalik, who identified himself as a resident at 3870 West 80 Second Avenue and said he was speaking for many neighbors, told the commission, "We wish to express our strong support for option b of the proposed Uplands B2 development... Option b clearly represents the best and most balanced solution." A second speaker who identified herself as Linda Gravio, president of a local historical society, spoke in favor of preserving the view corridor and said she supported the applicants height limitation for Lot 13.

Parking and streets: The applicant said the development meets the off-street parking requirement of 104 spaces ("2 per garage and 2 per driveway" per lot) and that Plan A and B provide the same baseline parking; the presentation showed 17 on-street spaces on Osceola Way and at least 2 on Newton Court in addition to internal spaces, yielding about 4.73 spaces per unit by the applicants count. The applicant and staff agreed they would continue to negotiate the final guest-parking count; the applicant committed to "put the max that we can that staff would support."

Public land and implementation conditions: Plan B relies on use of a small area of city-owned land (roughly 3,500 square feet as discussed in the hearing) to provide the larger turnaround or, alternatively, a council-authorized easement. Staff noted city policy generally does not allow dedication of city property for private development and recommended that, if Council approves Plan B, it consider authorizing the city manager to sell the city parcel back to the developer at current fair market value or otherwise grant an easement. Staff also recommended that any approved ODP be returned to technical review so the revised drawings and notes can be verified before recordation or permits.

Formal action: Commissioner Pegg moved that the Planning Commission recommend City Council approve the ODP for Uplands Filing 2, Block 2 using Option 2 (Plan B) and subject to a condition that, prior to ODP recordation and issuance of building permits, the applicant submit for staff review and approval the ODP with changes shown in Option 2. Commissioner Carpenter seconded the motion. The commission voted 6-0 (Commissioners Pegg, Kinnear, Mayo, Carpenter, Chair Bossert and Colling voting yes) to send the recommendation to City Council.

What remains unresolved: Staff continues to find other, non-remand-related approval criteria unmet by the application and therefore retained a denial recommendation in its packet; the commissions recommendation to Council was narrowly focused on the five remand issues and the revised Option 2. Final implementation depends on City Council action, any required sale or easement of the small city parcel for the turnaround, and a technical review to confirm fire, utility and grading compliance.

Next steps: City Council will reconsider the ODP at a future meeting; the staff packet and the applicants materials will be part of the public record.