Orange County — Board of Zoning Adjustment

VA-01-05-031 — Hostcentric, Inc.

Request: Variances in I-3 zone as follows: 1. To provide off-site parking in lieu of on-site parking; 2. To provide unpaved parking in lieu of paved. (NOTE: Applicant proposes to expand his building but parking will be provided off-site to the northeast).

Decision: Denied

Hearing: The applicant has a computer website business at the corner lot on Edgewater Commerce Parkway. They wanted to add about 15-20 more employees and convert some of the storage space in the building to offices. There is no room left on the property to accommodate the extra parking required by code for the new offices. As to Variance #1, the applicant proposed to lease a site two parcels away to the east. They proposed to acquire an access easement from the owner of the property in the middle to allow pedestrian trespass from the office on the corner to the proposed new parking lot. Staff advised the proposed pedestrian access was not safety-minded. The property in the middle is an industrial warehouse, and the proposed pedestrian access is the driveway aisle servicing the trucks and forklifts using the warehouse. Furthermore, the owner of the warehouse submitted a letter stating he will not provide the applicant legal access due to the obvious safety issues. A copy of the letter is located on Page 30. The only alternative route to the proposed parking lot would be along Edgewater Commerce Parkway going north, then east along Edgewater Drive. Staff did not support this route because part of the route has no sidewalks and is almost 1/4 mile away between the office and the proposed parking lot. Staff pointed out the office site is already over capacity with respect to parking. The office parking lot is filled, and overflow employee parking is visible all along Edgewater Commerce Parkway, causing traffic safety concerns in the area. Staff's opinion is that the applicant has outgrown the site, and needs to move to a bigger location or establish adjunct office use elsewhere. As to the unpaved parking request Variance #2, neither staff nor the BZA could support this due to heavy usage. This is a 24 hour per day, 7-day a week operation. In response to the issues raised, the applicant suggested they could provide a shuttle service for the employees. Two *