Planning commission approves bike shop development

The planning commission granted its conditional approval to a large scale development application for a Phat Tire Bike Shop location at 10 Riordan Road during its regular meeting Monday, April 12.

The commission voted unanimously in favor of the development and a required waiver, with commission chair Daniel Ellis recusing himself because he works for the applicant, Crafton Tull.

This approval is contingent on the development receiving all necessary variances from the Board of Zoning Adjustments.

The zoning board tabled a variance request to reduce the required parking spaces for this property during its March 16 regular meeting, citing a desire to hear from the planning commission before making a decision.

The development plan is for a three-story, roughly 14,900-square-foot multi-use building at 10 Riordan Road, with retail use planned for the lower level and residential spaces for the upper level. The 0.51-acre parcel is zoned C-4 commercial.

Barry Williams with Crafton Tull said this is a challenging project.

“This is a very small lot,” he said. “We’ve got a commercial project and we’re just very limited on space.”

While he did ultimately vote in favor of the application, vice chair Doug Farner said he wasn’t convinced the property has adequate parking.

“I’m very concerned about the parking,” he said.

The commission also voted in favor of three lot splits for reserve property owned by Cooper Communities, two rezoning requests off Oldham Drive and recommending city council pass ordinances to remove parking number requirements from nonresidential development projects and moving certain development standards from zoning to subdivision and development.