BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Agenda Item #29
Title
ULDC Text Amendment to amend the Outdoor Lighting requirements for Educational Facilities (Amended)
Amount
N/A
Description
A request by Causseaux, Hewett, and Walpole, Inc. to amend Alachua County Unified Land Development Code Chapter 407, Article 7, Educational Facilities, to revise the standards for Outdoor Lighting
Recommendation
Convene as the Land Development Regulation Commission and find the proposed text amendment as proposed by Staff consistent with the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan and reconvene as the Board of County Commissioners to adopt the proposed text amendement, as proposed by Staff
Alternative(s)
1. Convene as the Land Development Regulation Commission and find the text amendment as proposed by the applicant consistent with the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan and reconvene as the Board of County Commissioners Adopt the amendment as proposed by the applicant 2. Do not adopt the amendment and provide direction to Staff
Requested By
Chris Dawson, AICP, Planner
Originating Department
Growth Management
Attachment(s) Description
Staff Report, Staff Presentation, Current ULDC Chapter 404, Article 7, Ordinance
Documents Requiring Action
Ordinance 11-
Executive Summary
The subject application is a request to amend the Alachua County Unified Land Development Code to revise the Outdoor Lighting Requirements for Educational Facilities in Chapter 404, Article 7. The application was submitted concurrently with ZOS-07-11 which proposes removing the existing lighting requirements for the Oak Hall Private School so that the school need only meet the requirements of the ULDC. Changing the requirements in the ULDC would affect all Educational Facilities in unincorporated Alachua County, including both public and private educational facilities. Currently, the ULDC does not allow for an Educational Facility to provide for less restrictive standards for Outdoor Lighting than those that are in the ULDC.
Background
Section 404.34(b)3 currently reads as follows: Any lighting installed for sports facilities or parking areas shall utilize flat glass lenses and house side shields. Illumination levels at any point on the property line adjacent to a residential area shall not exceed 0.5 footcandles. A photometric lighting plan, including specifications for fixtures, shall be required as part of any development plan. In the justification report submitted with the application, the applicant notes that “many public and private schools are located adjacent to residential neighborhoods” and that “these institutions can no longer achieve the legacy illumination standard due to required safety standards for illuminating athletic and parking facilities.” Currently, Staff is in the process of evaluating the overall lighting standards in the ULDC. As part of the current update of the ULDC, Staff will be proposing to revise the ULDC to provide a single location for Outdoor Lighting standards, as well as revised standards for outdoor lighting. While the standards proposed by the applicant may produce some better lighting, Staff is not prepared to alter the requirements for all Educational Facilities. Instead, in order to allow for the intent of the proposed application to allow for different lighting standards for Oak Hall Private School, Staff proposes to amend the ULDC as follows.
Issues
Should the Unified Land Development Code allow existing lighted Educational Facilities to install new lighting that does not meet the standards for new facilities.
Fiscal Recommendation
N/A
Fiscal Alternative(s)
N/A
Funding Sources
N/A
Account Code(s)
N/A
Attachment: ULDC_EducationalFacilities.pdf
Attachment: ULDCOakHallLightingSRComplete.pdf
Attachment: ULDCEFOutdoorLighting.pptx
Attachment: ULDCEFOutdoorLighting.pdf
Attachment: ULDCLightingOrdinance.pdf