City Special Review #941 – 54^th St West at Trail Creek Drive – LDS Meetinghouse – A special review request to allow the construction of a new church in a Residential 9,600 (R-96) zone on a 4.03 acre portion of an 89.98 acre un-platted parcel of land described as the N1/2NE1/4, SWNE1/4 in Section 31, Township 1 North, Range 25 East. A concurrent annexation of the 4.03 acre parcel has been submitted. Presented by Nicole Cromwell, Zoning Coordinator.

The Planning Division recommends conditional approval and adoption of the findings of the 3 criteria for Special Review 941.

OWNER: Yellowstone Meadows Partners, LLC (Bruce Carlson)
AGENT: NBW Architects, P.A. (Scott Nielson)
LEGAL DESCRIPTION: A 4.03 acre parcel in the north east corner of the N1/2NE1/4, SWNE1/4 in Section 31, Township 1 North, Range 25 East
ADDRESS: None assigned
CURRENT ZONING: R-96
EXISTING LAND USE: Vacant - agricultural land
PROPOSED USE: LDS Meetinghouse
SIZE OF PARCEL: 4.03 acres

An annexation petition for the 4.03 acres has been submitted. The intent is to have this Special Review application come before the City Council after ,or at the same meeting, as the Annexation Petition.

A portion of this un-platted parcel received a zone change from the County in 1974 to change the zoning to Residential 15,000. This portion is located south and west of the subject property. The Yellowstone Meadows Subdivision to the north is in the County and zoned R-96. The first phase of the subdivision was filed in 1970, but no dwellings have been constructed. Mont Vista Subdivision to the east was granted a zone change in 2008 at the time of annexation to a Planned Development zone. Mont Vista started construction in 2014.

NORTH:	Zoning: R-96 Land Use: Vacant subdivision lots
SOUTH:	Zoning: R-96 Land Use: Agricultural land
EAST:	Zoning: R-96 and PD - Mont Vista Land Use: Subdivision under construction
WEST:	Zoning: R-96 Land Use: Agricultural land

This is a special review request to construct a new LDS meetinghouse on a 4 acre portion of an un-platted parcel of land west of 54th St West and south of Trail Creek Drive. The parcel is outside the city limits but a concurrent annexation petition has been submitted. The property is zoned R-9600 and churches and religious institutions are allowed by special review approval. In 2015, the LDS meetinghouse was proposed for several vacant lots in the Rim Point Subdivision north of Rimrock Road near the LDS Temple. This application was withdrawn.

The Church of Jesus Christ LDS is in need of additional meetinghouse space to accommodate a growing church membership. The meetinghouse is meant to accommodate everyday worship activities and will be similar in size and construction style as other meetinghouse sites in Billings (912 Wicks Lane, 2929 Belvedere, 3595 Monad Road, 1640 Broadmoor and 1711 6th Street West).

The proposed meetinghouse is a 16,558 square foot building with a future addition of 2,510 square feet. The building will be a single story structure with a maximum building height of approximately 28 feet. The church spire will be approximately 64 feet above finished grade. There is also a small 190 square foot storage shed on the west end of the parking lot next to an enclosure for a satellite dish. The dumpster enclosure and enclosure for a power transmission facility are located on the south edge of the proposed 191-stall parking lot that wraps around the church. The site plan shows 1 drive approach off 54th Street West and 1 drive approach off Trail Creek Drive to the north. Annexation of the property will require some improvements to Trail Creek Drive. The church is sited 80 feet west of the front property line and the area between the building and the street is scheduled to be landscaped with grass and trees. Storm water control of the run off from the roof and parking area will be handled on site since no city storm water system exists in this area of West Billings. The landscaping plan shows a total of 73 trees to be disbursed throughout the site. No freestanding sign is proposed - the building will have 1 un-lit stone engraved sign. The building is proposed as wood construction with a brick exterior. There is no building lighting. The proposed lighting is for the parking and sidewalk areas. Four mechanical pads for air handling units are shown on the site plan - two north of the building and two south of the building.The landscaping plan was designed by local landscape architects so species and plant material will be appropriate for this location. The parking lot lights (8 shown) are on the interior edge of the proposed parking and are full cut-off shield fixtures.

The applicant has provided a full traffic accessibility study for the site. The study concludes the new traffic would not have a significant impact on existing traffic on 54th St West.  The City Traffic Engineer, Terry Smith, has not yet approved the conclusions of the study. Any required mitigation will be determined by Mr. Smith including but not limited to contributions to future traffic management at 54th St West and Rimrock and 54th St West and Grand Avenue, and street frontage improvements on 54th St West and Trail Creek Drive.

The Planning Division has reviewed the application and is recommending conditional approval based on the findings of the 3 criteria. Before a recommendation of approval or conditional approval can be made, each special review request must demonstrate conformance with three primary criteria: 1) the application complies with all parts of the Unified Zoning Regulations, 2) the application is consistent with the objectives and purposes of the Unified Zoning Regulations, the 2008 Growth Policy including any neighborhood plans, and 3) the proposal is compatible with surrounding land uses and is otherwise screened and separated from adjacent land to minimize adverse impacts.

This application conforms to the first criteria in so far that it is in a zoning district, R-96, where churches and places of worship are allowed by special review approval. The City has conditionally approved similar churches and places of worship in West Billings in the past 10 years as the population in this area has increased. The form of the application is correct and the submitted site plan appears to be in conformance with site development and zoning regulations for the R-96 zoning district. The proposal is consistent with goals of the 2008 Growth Policy, and the West Billings Neighborhood Plan – specifically the goal of encouraging uses that are compatible with the character of the adjacent land use patterns. The property has direct access to a principal arterial street and is not directly adjacent to any existing dwellings. There is a platted but undeveloped residential subdivision to the north and Mont Vista Subdivision to the east across 54th St West is under construction. The bulk and height of the building are mitigated by the large setbacks from property lines. The proposed landscaping around the building and parking lot will soften the appearance of the building over time. There are some impacts from the proposed location that need to be mitigated by conditions of approval specifically concerning the parking lot lights and the mechanical units. Other recommended conditions are standard conditions applicable to all special review approvals.
PROPOSED CONDITIONS:

1. The special review approval is for the construction of an LDS Meetinghouse of 16,558 square feet with a future addition of 2,510 square feet and a 191-space parking lot.
2. The approval is limited to a 4.03 acre portion of an 89.98 acre un-platted parcel of land described as the N1/2NE1/4, SWNE1/4 in Section 31, Township 1 North, Range 25 East as shown on the submitted site plan.
3. Increases in the size of the meetinghouse and its future addition or the number of parking spaces by more than 10% of what is shown will require an additional special review.
4. The site will be developed in substantial conformance with the submitted site plan. Minor modification are acceptable.
5. The applicant will provide a screening wall around each mechanical pad as shown on the site plan to reduce noise and provide continuity with the adjacent building. The screening wall will be compatible in color and materials to the adjacent building.
6. All outdoor light fixtures shall be no taller than 15 feet from grade and have full cut-off shields so no part of the fixture or lens projects below the shielding. Entryway lights shall be recessed within the ceiling of the canopy so no part of the fixture or lens projects below the ceiling.
7. The landscaping including the enclosures for the dumpster, satellite dish and power transformer shall be installed as shown on the submitted site plan. The enclosures shall be constructed of similar or complementary materials as the church. No reflective building materials shall be used for the enclosures.
8. There shall be no construction activity after 8 pm or before 7 am daily.
9. These conditions of special review approval shall run with the land described in this authorization and shall apply to all current and subsequent owners, operators, managers, lease holders, heirs and assigns.
10. The proposed development shall comply with all other limitations of Section 27-613 of the Unified Zoning Regulations concerning special review uses, and all other City of Billings, regulations and ordinances that apply.

**NOTE** Approval of this Special Review does not constitute approval of a building permit, sign permit or fence permit. Compliance with all applicable local codes will be reviewed at the building permit or zoning compliance permit level. This application is for a Special Review as noted above and no other request is being considered with this application. The use and development of the property must be in accordance with the submitted site plan.







 

The Planning Division recommends conditional approval and adoption of the findings of the 3 review criteria for Special Review 941.