D6 Items of Interest Week of October 30, 2023

There will be two community sessions on the 2024 city budget held on Monday, October 30, and Wednesday, November 1. City Finance staff will provide background information on the City’s capital and operating budget process, including highlights of the 2024 executive budget. Both meetings will start at 5:30 PM and end at 6:30 PM.  These meetings will cover the same content and will be recorded. Registrants will be invited to participate in a question-and-answer session at the end of the meeting. Electronic copies of budget information can be found at https://www.cityofmadison.com/finance/budget/2024-budget. The City’s budget for 2024 will be debated and adopted by the Common Council in November. See below for registration links.

There will be a hybrid in-person neighborhood meeting about the proposed Brayton Lot map amendment on November 6 at 6:30p at St. John’s Lutheran Church, Gathering Center, 322 E Washington in advance of the Plan Commission meeting November 13. The city is poised to issue a Request for Proposal for a master developer for the Brayton Lot, which the city owns. The alder sponsors are proposing to change the height of the block to inform the RFP. I am not a sponsor of the amendment, but I am open to hearing ideas. I am very interested in having some portion of the Brayton Lot site provide housing with deep affordability (30-50% area median income) and creating a human scale transition between 10 story buildings and the adjacent residential neighborhood. I will resend the meeting announcement and zoom link later this week and include my thoughts on how to best achieve that goal based on my understanding of how affordable housing projects get funded and built.

The zoning map amendment proposes to change the height map for Block 113 from its current 10/4 split to allow 10 stories on the entire block, see 80307. Currently almost ¾ of the block is 10 stories facing E Washington and S Butler. The rest of the block which faces 2-3 story residential buildings along S Hancock and E Main is 4 stories for all of E Main and part of S Hancock. The Brayton Lot block is included in the Downtown Plan height map adopted in 2012. Right next to the Brayton lot is the State owned GEF I and II buildings on S Butler St. The state will sell these buildings next year. I understand their policy will be to accept the highest bid so it is likely that the two GEF parcels will end up as high-end market rate rental apartments that can go up to the Capitol View limit. We will be adding more neighbors and housing units in the next 5 years.

Check out the link to the Brayton Lot Redevelopment update that staff prepared with results of the community survey that was conducted Block 113 Redevelopment Update. And here is the project website with links to the public meetings, height maps and plans, and an option to sign up for email alerts Brayton Lot (Block 113). The survey clearly shows that maximizing affordability is the highest priority of respondents.

Monday October 30 - Public Information Session on the 2024 Budget - Registration for 10/30 Virtual Budget Meeting 5:30p

If you need an interpreter, translator, materials in alternate formats or other accommodations to access this meeting, please call the phone number or email at least three business days prior to the meeting: financecommittee@cityofmadison.com or 608-266-4671

Monday October 30 – Plan Commission – 5:30p PC Agenda 10.30.23

2. 78428 1609 S Park Street; District 13: Consideration of a conditional use in the Commercial Corridor-Transitional (CC-T) District for a vehicle access sales and service window to allow a restaurant to be converted into a coffee shop with vehicle access sales and service window in Urban Design Dist. 7

Per the recent Staff Report addendum, “the applicant is now proposing a full service coffee shop. The site plan shows raised pedestrian crossing and signage that directs drivers not to stop on the crossings. The building addition was revised to add wall returns to the structure”. The latest staff report believes that the conditional use standards “can be found to be met” which is not the same as saying they are met.

I’ve been following this proposal for a new Starbucks drive-thru coffee shop since it came to the Urban Design Commission (on which I serve) and because the location is subject to the new Transit Oriented Development Overlay zoning district (MGO 28.104). All of District 6 is in the TOD Overlay. Related to this proposal, the TOD Overlay ordinance explicitly disallows a drive aisle between the building and the sidewalk. The TOD Overlay ordinance also states vehicle access sales and service windows are to be “located under the building in which they are located.” (Think Cargo Coffee’s drive through on E Washington, it is literally under the building).  

The bottom line is that according to zoning and legal staff, since the applicant proposes to re-use an existing building (the old Arby’s) and will not modify more than 50% of the floor area of the building, the new TOD Overlay ordinance will not be triggered.

The PC staff report of August 28 indicated the TOD overlay standards do not apply to this proposal but “As determined by the Zoning Administrator, the proposed vehicle sales and service window, as designed, is consistent with both the TOD Overlay requirements in that it is within the existing building structure as a result of the canopy roof addition, and the Supplemental Regulations because the vehicle sales and service window is screened from view by a wall.”

I remain concerned with the precedent of finding that the proposed drive-thru sales window under a canopy structure is consistent with the TOD Overlay requirements. As a policymaker, I disagree with that interpretation. As I wrote in my letter to the PC in August:  Allowing a drive through sales window under a canopy structure does not meet the standards in the ordinance and would set a precedent in other TOD overlay districts. Under the building is not the same as under a canopy roof extension. If policy makers think having a service window under a canopy with screening is sufficient then the TOD Overlay ordinance should be amended to make that clear, it does not say that and it was not the legislative intent, in my opinion.

MGO 28.104(8) prohibits drives, drive aisles, and vehicle access sales and service drives between the primary street-facing façades and the primary street. That is a straightforward requirement and according to the August staff report it still applies to this project even though other elements of the TOD Overlay ordinance do not apply. Plus, allowing a drive aisle between the building and the street violates principles of good urban and pedestrian design.

The health impacts from noxious vehicle emissions from an average 8-15 idling vehicles queuing at peak times raises whether the proposed use is detrimental to public health, safety and welfare per Conditional Use standard 1; the need for accessing the drive-thru use across three lots owned by the property owner raises questions whether the drive-thru use could impede the orderly development of the adjacent parcels per Conditional Use standard 4; adequate circulation across parcels and two egresses on secondary streets per Conditional Use standard 5; and the inconsistency with MGO 28.104(8) site standards for auto infrastructure and intent of TOD overlay district language that service windows be under the building does not conform to all applicable regulations of the district per Conditional Use standard 7. I don’t believe it meets the CU standards mentioned above.

While the change to include a full-service sit-down coffee shop adds a welcome neighborhood amenity, the auto-oriented focus of the business that requires a drive aisle circling in front of and around the building, circulation access between two adjacent lots and driveway entrances from Beld St to accommodate its business model seems counter to our goals to uplift Park St and remains disappointing.

I hope the Plan Commission places this on file.

3. 79962 112 S Hancock Street; First Settlement Historic District; District 6: Consideration of a conditional use in the Downtown Residential 1 (DR1) District for a multi-family dwelling (5-8 units) to allow a three-family dwelling to be converted into a five-unit multi-family dwelling.

Note: Item 3 should be referred to November 13, 2023, at the request of staff.

Upcoming Matters – November 13, 2023 - Zoning Text Amendment - Amending map in Section 28.071(2)(a) related to downtown height limits to update the Downtown Height Map in the Brayton Lot

Wednesday November 1 - Public Information Session on the 2024 Budget - Registration for 11/01 Virtual Budget Meeting 5:30p

If you need an interpreter, translator, materials in alternate formats or other accommodations to access this meeting, please call the phone number or email at least three business days prior to the meeting: financecommittee@cityofmadison.com or 608-266-4671

Wednesday November 1 -Listening Session on Stormwater Utility Vegetation Management Plan- 5p at Hawthorne Library, 2707 E Washington Ave

The City of Madison Engineering Division has a number of upcoming listening sessions scheduled to help inform and receive feedback from residents and the community regarding the new Stormwater Utility Vegetation Management Plan, a plan that will incorporate public input and technical expertise to inform vegetation goals and priorities.

Registration via Eventbrite

Thursday November 2 – Public Market Development Committee- 5p PMDC 11.02.23

2. 71776 Public Market Project Updates

3. 80517 Future Role of Public Market Development Committee

Thursday November 2 - POLICE CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT BOARD EXECUTIVE SUBCOMMITTEE – 5p PCOB Executive Subcommittee Agenda 11.02.23

ITEMS for CONSIDERATION 5. Independent Monitor update 6. Subcommittee updates 7. Community listening session updates 8. New board member onboarding timeline 9. Outreach to community organizations 10. Full Board meeting topics and location 11. Future agenda items

Thursday November 2- Planning for the North-South Bus Rapid Transit/BRT line- 5:30p Warner Park Community Center, 1625 Northport Dr

Proposed features of the North-South BRT line are expected to include:

• Thirty-three stations, which have raised platforms, shelters, seating and bus arrival information
• Buses arriving every 15 minutes throughout the day
• Battery electric, larger buses with more seating capacity

City staff hope to receive input from the community on the project, specifically regarding station locations, routing on the far north and far south end of the proposed route, the use of 'bus only' lanes and any related walking, biking or roadway improvements.

What is BRT?
The City of Madison is building a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system as part of an effort to provide better access to jobs, reduce travel times, and improve transit equity throughout the region. The BRT system will start with an east-west line, Metro Rapid Route A, from Junction Rd. to East Towne through the downtown and campus area. A second BRT line is proposed to run north-south, or Metro Rapid Route B.

Keep up-to-date on the BRT project by signing up for email and text alerts at mymetrobus.com/alerts