Guidelines Proposed As Alternative
The Lexington Planning Commission is recommending that the city no longer allow mini-warehouses be built within city limits, but has proposed design standards for them if Council decides to continue to allow them.
The design standards were drafted across two meetings in March and a public hearing was held on them at the Commission’s most recent meeting on April 24. No one from the public spoke, and after a brief discussion, Krista Anderson made a motion to prohibit mini-warehouses in the city and to present City Council with the design standards as an alternative. Tori Bates seconded the motion, which passed in a unanimous vote.
Leslie Straughan, who serves as the City Council liaison to the Planning Commission, said before the vote that she didn’t feel “all that strongly” about continuing to allow the use, but did praise the design standards that are proposed.
“I think if we adopt these use and design standards, it would be a high-quality facility,” she said. “I know there’s an inclination to not allow them overall, but we’ve already been allowing them and we haven’t had any. Now that we’ve made the standard even higher, I think if someone were to do it, it would be a nice facility. I don’t think we’re going to get too many – or any at all, based on past history – but I really don’t see a problem with adopting the use and design standards.”
Mini-warehouses are currently only allowed as a conditional use in the city’s C-2 zoning districts, which cover the city’s entrance corridors on South Main and East Nelson streets, meaning that any proposed mini-warehouse would need to be reviewed by both the Planning Commission and City Council. The new standards would have them remain a conditional use only available in those parts of the city. To date, no mini-warehouse facilities have been constructed in the city.
The Planning Commission began discussing the use at its March 13 meeting and continued the discussion at its March 27 meeting.
Throughout both meetings, it was agreed to only allow multi-story developments and that the exteriors of the facilities would emulate a multifamily residential unit or multi-story office building and use materials that are consistent with the exteriors of the rest of the city.
To achieve this look, design materials such as brick or brick masonry veneer, stone and fiber cement panel siding are allowed, and other similar-looking materials may be considered through the conditional use process. The building must be oriented to the street and have a functional primary entrance on their facades. Blank or mirrored facades are not allowed and transparency on the facades was emphasized, with between 30 and 70 percent transparency required by the standards.
Such facilities will not be used to hold auctions of items from units or to store any flammable, highly combustible, or hazardous materials. Servicing, repairing, or fabricating of several types of equipment, including motor vehicles, boats, lawn mowers and appliances is prohibited, as is the use of power tools, table saws, compressors, welding equipment, kilns, and other similar types of equipment.
Loading areas and loading docks shall be located on either the rear or side of the building, but cannot face any property zoned residential or parks and open spaces, or any public street. Buildings must be completely enclosed and outdoor accessory storage of large items such as vehicles, trailers and recreational equipment on the same site is prohibited.
“Our purposes are to try to reduce the rate at which we might expect such units to be built and then to ensure that when they are, they’re built in the most efficient way that’s as harmonious with what’s around them in the neighborhood as possible,” Commission member Jon Eastwood noted during the March 13 meeting.
The planning Commission’s recommendation and the proposed design standards will go to City Council for consideration at a future meeting where a final decision will be made.
