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C~3'Y CDMIVIISS~GI~T
aTAFF RE~aR'~'
A~~r3DA x T ~M: Request for Use-by-Exception for Ragtime
DATA: August 5, 1999
SiTBT~"~TT~'33 ~ I: David E. Thompson, City Manager
~'' ~ ~" 7
Bt'~~~~~R•t~iTt'~: Ragtime Restaurant has requested permission to utilize the
- - sidewalk area outside of their restaurant for a sidewalk cafe type of
seating. They would like to serve food and beverages (including
alcoholic beverages) to customers who will be seated at tables on
the sidewalk. This expansion requires that the Ragtime Restaurant
identify additional parking to accommodate the increased seating,
or obtain aUse-by-Exception.
This issue was brought before the~Community Development Board
on July 20, 1999 to deal with the parking requirements of the code.
Ragtime requested aUse-by-Exception to waive the parking
requirement, and the Community Development Board voted to
deny it.
The draft minutes of that meeting are attached to this report for
Commission review. The notes articulate support and opposition
from various people relative to the idea of the cafe style seating.
From a staff perspective, staff recommends the acceptance of the
Community Development Board recommendation.
RF'.Cd3i~d1~17D~~T~~I'l: Staff recommends the denial of this request, consistent with the
Community Development Board's Recommendation.
ATTAC' .~~1~1'T: Agenda and Draft Minutes of the July 20, 1999 Community
Development Board Meeting
~'V~F~Jt~D I4~' C~'~'Y MAi~Atii;~t: -_
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER:
.. ~ . .:
A~~ND,~ ........
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BOARD '
CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH
. .July 20, 1999 ~ ,.
. ~ ~ 7:00 P.M: ~ ~ .
1. Call to Order
2. Approval of Minutes of Meeting on June 15, 1999
3. Recognition of Visitors
4. OLD BUSIRVESS
a. Application fior Use-by-Exception filed by Assad Halleak to operate a retail
file and stone business at property owned by Bobby and Pauline Boeneke known as Part
of the Castro Y. Ferrer Grant, Section 38, Township 2 south, Range 29 East and located
on Atlantic Boulevard;
b. Application for Use-by-Exception filed by Big River Breweries, Inc./Ragtime
Tavern to allow care stye sidewa{k seating at property located at 207 Atlantic Boulevard;
5. ~. DISCUSSION
a. Traffic Patterns in Old Atlantic Beach.
b. Continued Review of Zoning Ordinance.
6. ADJOURNi1llENT
lfi any person decides to appeal any decision made by the Community Development Board
at the above meeting, he will need a record of the proceedings, and~fior such purpose, may
need to ensw'e that a verbatim record of the proceedings be made, which record shall
include the testimony and evidence upon which appeal is-to be based.
'~ .
PRESENT
MINUTES OF MEETING OF THE
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BOARD •'
OF THE CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH, FLORIDA
July 20, 1999
.7:00 P.M. .
. ~ ~ CITY HALL
Don Wolfson
Robert Frohwein
Sharette Simpkins
Mary Walker
_ _ Pat Pillmore
Dezmond Waters
AND George Worley, 11, CD Director
Pat Harris
ABSENT Buzzy Grunthal
Chairman Don Wolfson called the meeting to order and asked for approval of the
minutes from the meeting!of June 1~, .1999. On motion made and seconded the minutes
were approved.
I. Application for Use-by-Exception filled by Assad Halleak to operate a retail
file and stone business at property owned by Bobby and Pauline Boeneke known as Part
of Castro Y. Ferrer Grant, Section 38, Township 2 South, Range 29 East and located on
Atlantic Boulevard.
Mr. Halleak introduced himself and explained that pursuant to concerns of the board
at the last meeting, he has submitted a revised site plan indicating parking spaces,
setbacks, outside storage and an on-site truck turn around at the location. He stated that
the tractor-trailer trucks delivering materials would be able to enter into the driveway along
the western edge of the property and back into the warehouse portion of the building.
After discussion, Mr. Frohwein moved to recommend approval of the Use-by-
Exception subject to outside storage being used only for raw materials and not discarded
materials, that tractor-trailer trucks only turn around within the property boundaries, and
that the exception be granted to the applicant only, for this location only. Mrs. Pillmore
seconded the motion and it passed unanimously
11. Application for Use-by-Exception filed by Big River Breweries, Inc.IRagtime
Tavern to a{low cafe style sidewalk seating at property located at 207 Atlantic Boulevard: -.- ~ .~ ~_
Tom Morton introduced himself and stated that at the last meeting the board was:_:.-:
._.
. • concerned with some legal issues that needed to be addressed before making a ~ ~ -• ~ .
• ~ recommendation. ~ ~ . ~ • -
Rona Brinley, owner of Book Mark, introduced herself and reiterated her concerns
~~ regarding the utilization of parking spaces Located in.front of her business. ~ ~ . ~ ~ ~ •
The Chairman expressed concern with the proposed door opening and railings. He
stated that his observation revealed potential problems and felt it would be unwise to
recommend approval of the use-by-exception as opposed• to drafting an ordinance
regarding sidewalk cafes.
Mr. Waters suggested that the applicant pursue the acquisition of adjacent property
for the purposes of additional parking.
Responding to questions from the board, Mr. Worley stated that Section 24-161
states that any deviation of parking requirements is to be handled as ause-by-exception.
After discussion, the Chairman moved that the board recommend denial of the use-
by-exception and Mrs. Walker seconded the motion.
Mr. Waters stated he did not favor sending a negative review to the City
Commission since conditions could be placed on the 'use such as parking and wider
walkways as well as putting an ordinance in place to deal with the concept which Atlantic
Beach is ideally suited for.
Mrs. Walker stated that she felt the street should be closed to traffic before granting
a use-by-exception. She stated that it would penalize the pedestrians. She suggested to
the applicant the idea of rooftop dining.
Mr. Morton stated that when they presented this idea they assumed there would be
issues to be addressed and felt confident they could make a valid attempt to come up with
solutions.
The C~iairman suggested moving toward an ordinance allowing outside seating for
special events with closed streets.. ~ -
Mr. Frohwein stated he wanted the board to send a favorable message to the City
Commission and submit to them a proposed ordinance regarding outside dining. He
expressed concern with the proper procedure to follow in this regard.
Mr. Worley stated that there should be an ordinance or formal agreement to allow
the use of public property similar to the Town Center Project. He stated that the
• agreement would follow the granting of ause-by-exception. ~ _
Mrs. Pil[more stated she would like to see a positive recommendation and ~~~ . ~-- -=
suggested the Chairman withdraw the motion and start over. ~ ~ -- ~ - -
Mrs Walker concurred with a presenting a positive recommendation to the City ~~~~
Commission but stated that there are some barriers that cannot be overcome until
someone builds the sidewalk out or the street is closed to traffic.
The Chairman stated he would be willing ~to stipulate concerns that the hoard has
and relate .to ~ the City Commission that they like the idea as a practical matter ~ buf
recommends denial of the request but at the same time to encourage proceeding with an
ordinance.
The Chairman withdrew his=motion with the preface that he likes the idea of cafe-
style sidewalk seating which would be compatible with the ambience of this particular
location but has concerns with the way the use-by-exception is designed and because of
certain constraints on this location. He moved that the application for use-by-exception
to the parking requirements at Ragtime Restaurant to allow cafe-style seating at the corner
of Atlantic Boulevard and Ocean Boulevard without providing additional parking spaces be
denied. Furthermore, his concerns raised by the neighboring business, specifically, Book
Mark, the design of the proposal regarding the hazards of limiting accessibility by
pedestrian and vehicular traffic, and the use of City property. Mrs. Walker seconded the
motion.
Mr. Waters stated that there is no private property in front of Ragtime and the City
needs to leave unimpeded the bricks with citizens names located on. the sidewalk.
~~ Mr. Jensen stated hat the last thing needed is another ordinance on the books. He
stated that the City does agreements with various entities for use of public property, city
rights-of--way, to-wit: gas companies, telephone companies and JEA. He stated that the
applicant is seeking a very limited, isolated instance. He stated that the resolution which
is basically an agreement between the city and the applicant. He stated that the matter on
the agenda for this meeting is strictly ause-by-exception for parking and additional tables.
He stated the applicant would have to go to the City Commission any way to seek
permission to use publicly owned property which would be accomplished by agreement or
resolution.
After discussion, Mr. Wolfson withdrew his motion and made a new motion to
recommend to the City Commission that the use-by-exception to the parking requirements
for Ragtime Restaurant to allow cafie-style seating at the corner of Atlantic Boulevard and
Ocean Boulevard without providing additional parking spaces be denied and Mrs. Walker
seconded the motion.
Mrs. Pillmore stated that she would like the information regarding possible planning
. and coordinating with Town Center attached to the recommendation to the City .
Commission. .:
. Mr. Waters voiced his objection with the way the recommendation ended up this ~ .-. = ..-
evening because the applicant would not be able to present the motion again for a period. =. ~. ~:::
. • of one year. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~---...
Responding to a question raised by Mr. Frohwein, Mr. Worley stated that the owner
could place 32 seats and some tables outside on his property and serve lunch and dinner
' without the use-by-exception.
Mr. Frohwein stated he opposed the motion as made.
Mr. Jensen stated that he thought it advisable for the City Commission to consider
the use-by-exception and resolution or agreement at the same time.
The applicant expressed his concern that the City Commission would not hear the
positive suggestions made at this meeting. He stated he would feel more comfortable
having a positive recommendation from this board an not just a recommendation for denial
of the requested use-by-exception.
Mr. Waters stated that he did not understand why the applicant could not go straight
to the City Commission requesting an ordinance establishing the concept in the city.
On request from Mr. Frohwein the chairman polled the members and the result was
4-2 in favor of recommending denial of the use-be-exception with Mr. Frohwein and Mr.
Waters opposed. .
` The Chairman explained to the applicant that he could withdraw his application at
this meeting or at the City Comm~sston meeting. He further explained that even with the
vote for denial the applicant can still work toward the resolution with the City and present
the whole concept at that meeting.
Mr. Waters questioned whether the board could grant an exception for parking for
one year only.
The Chairman read Section 24-63(6) which states that the City Commission may
as a condition to the granting of an application for permit impose such conditions,
restrictions or limitations in the use of the premises or upon the use of the premises as
requested in the application as the City Commission may deem appropriate.
After discussion, Mrs. Pillmore moved to call the vote of the motion. Thereupon, the
board voted to pass the motion to recommend denial and the motion carried by a vote of
4 - 2 with Mr. Frohwein and Mr. Waters dissenting.
The Chairman requested each member complete their findings of fact worksheets
and turn them in to the Recording Secretary.
a. Traffic Patterns in Old Atlantic Beach ~Q.~,~ ~~~
Mr. Worley stated that the board was furnished copies of the strafific study by the
City which addressed traffic flow and parking and which was intended to address .parking
~. problems. He stated that the study branched out to include traffic patterns and offered
some possible solutions. including re-routing of traffic by creating one-way streets acid
certain traffic calming techniques. As a result of a one-way street questions from a City
Commissioner last month, the City Manager has provided them a written response and a
copy of that response was also furnished to the board members. He stated he also had
color photographs from the traffic study if anyone needed to see them.
Mrs. Pillmore stated she felt that the study was not presented to the board from a
neutral position but that the report had been conducted without interaction to change., She
stated she would rather have seen the report suggest possible changes and solutions that
the City needs to work out. She stated she felt that there are solutions and they should be
tested, specifiically, one-way streets.
Mr. Frohwein suggested that slowing down the speed with regulatory signs might
divert traffic in a different direction to roads that have a higher speed limit such as East
Coast Drive and Ocean Boulevard. He requested feedback from staff and other board
members. He stated that this is the third time this board has discussed traffic filow and no
recommendations have been made.
Mr. Worley stated that he did not believe that a significant traffic reduction could be
achieved by reducing the speed limit. He stated that half of speeding complaints he has
heard involve Beach Avenue because there are so many pedestrians.
Mr. Wolfson requested staff submit the matter to the Public Safety Department for
recommendations and weighted solution.
Mrs. Walker stated she could not make a recommendation until she has seen the
numbers on the matter.
Mrs. Pillmore stated that the angle parking at Adele Grage Community Center was
an excellent idea. .
Mr. Wolfson suggested that Town Center designate angle parking between Ahern
and First Street and paint and stripe it accordingly.
After discussion regarding suggestions and solutions the consensus of the board
was to conduct a survey to ascertain various problems and possible solutions
Mr. Frohwein stated that the survey should address which areas want traffic ~ ,
calming. ~ :......
~~ a. Continued Review of Zoning Ordinance ~~~ ~?~~~~ :. _ :..._... _ _
. • ' The board agreed to meet at 6:00 p.m., August '(7,1999 to continue their discussion
of the zoning ordinance. ~ •'
Mr. Worley reported that the new zoning maps were being prepared and would be
furnished to the board upon their receipt. ~ ~ . ~ ~.
Mr. Worley stated he would prepare a draft fetter to the City Commission
recommending a meeting of Neptune and Atiantic Beaches regarding parking ,and
transportation to and from Town Center.
The Chairman reported that Mr. Grunthai has asked that he be replaced and asked
the members for any recommendations they may have.
The Chairman requested staff place on the agenda for the next meeting a
discussion of a special zoning district which addresses cafie style seating, parking etc. .
The Chairman reported that due to a lack of communication with ,lTA ruled out
potential designs for the Mayport Flyover including a clover leaf design. He stated that the
City was not involved with any'meetings or discussions,
The Chairman also shared with the members an account or various meetings and
discussions with JTA and their proposals regarding mass transit, bus station location and
a trolley for Town Center, Mayport and the Beaches.
I
There being no fiurther business to come before the board the meeting was
adjourned.
SIGNED
ATTEST
