Title
An Ordinance Of The City Of Hollywood, Florida, Amending The Approved Planned Development (PD) Master Development Plan (Plan) For The Property Located At 3514 And 3515 South Ocean Drive (Originally Approved By Ordinance No. O-92-31 And Amended Most Recently By Ordinance O-2000-31) To Reduce The Required Parking Ratios Set Forth In The Plan (Originally Established Pursuant To Ordinance O-99-23); And Amending The Parking Table Depicted On The Required Plan To Reflect Such Parking Ratios; Providing For A Severability Clause, A Repealer Clause And An Effective Date. (16-J-09)
Body
Staff Recommends: Approval of the attached Ordinance.
Explanation:
In 1998 the City Commission granted approval of the Diplomat Planned Development Master Plan for the Diplomat Resort and Country Club. The complex, which includes multifamily residential units, hotel rooms, convention center, retail, and associated parking, has now been in operation for well over 15 years. Parking for the entire complex is divided into multiple parking garages and distributed throughout the area of the Planned Development. This includes two parking garages located on the west side of Ocean Drive, “Landing Garages,” two levels of parking beneath the hotel, four levels of parking adjacent to the convention center. The proposed amendment does not include the Diplomat Oceanfront residential tower located east of Ocean Drive, due its’ allocation to residents only.
Diplomat Hotel Owner LLC and Diplomat Landings Owner LLC, is requesting to modify the parking calculation for the convention center ONLY; all other parking calculations will remain unchanged. This modification decreases the total required parking spaces from 2,791 to 1,847 depicted on the required PD Master Plan (Exhibit B).
a) By: reducing the parking space ratio from 1 space per 60 SF of area available for seating x 65 percent.
b) To: 3.5 spaces per 1000 SF gross floor area.
According to the Applicant, although the majority of the complex has been operating successfully for years, the parking is highly underutilized. A four year Parking Utilization Study was conducted, providing data to corroborate the request. According to the Study, “this analysis concluded that the adopted parking requirements for the existing land use associated with the Diplomat are higher than the actual demand generated for this site. The result is a large portion of the site designated for parking, under the existing code is underutilized, even during peak times of the year.”
The modification proposes to use a different ratio, comparable with a similar convention center in Orlando. This request requires a change to the previously approved Planned Development Master Development Plan. The Applicant worked with the City Engineer to ensure potential impacts as it relates to traffic circulation by the proposed change are mitigated and continue to function adequately.
Should this request be granted, the intent is to use the excess 944 parking spaces to expand the development threshold of the existing facility in the future without building additional parking.
Staff finds the proposed modification consistent with the Criteria set forth by the Zoning and Land Development Regulation, as well as the City-Wide Master Plan and therefore recommends approval, with the condition the Diplomat Hotel and Country Club in the event the required parking for future development, includes uses not previously approved, requires more than the 944 existing excess parking spaces, additional parking for such new development will be provided.
Attachment I: Application Package
Attachment II: Hollywood Diplomat Resort and Spa Parking Utilization Study
Recommended for inclusion on the agenda by:
Dr. Wazir Ishmael, City Manager
Gus Zambrano, Assistant City Manager/Sustainable Development
Jaye M. Epstein, AICP, Deputy Director, Department of Development Services, Division of Planning