Memorandum
City of Lawrence
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TO: |
David L. Corliss, City Manager
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FROM: |
Scott McCullough, Planning and Development Services Ernie Shaw, Parks and Recreation
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Date: |
March 12, 2012
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RE: |
Tennis Court Lights at Centennial School
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This memo provides an update on the proposal to light 8 tennis courts located at the Centennial School at 2145 Louisiana Street.
The tennis courts were included in USD 497’s construction of athletic facilities at Lawrence High, Free State High, and Virtual School. These facilities received Special Use Permit (SUP) approval on September 16, 2008. The lighted tennis courts located at Lawrence High were planned to be replaced by the new ones at Centennial School. At the time of SUP consideration, a lighting plan was not provided that met the intent of the city’s Land Development Code; instead, the SUP was approved with a condition that a photometric plan be approved prior to lighting the tennis courts. The courts were constructed but do not currently include lights.
Since completion of the construction of the courts, city staff has reviewed several lighting designs and photometric plans for the tennis courts. All but the proposal presented with this memo have failed to meet the spirit and intent of the Land Development Code, in staff’s opinion, due to high light levels and the assumed amount of glare the lights will produce for adjacent properties.
Staff recently received several lighting plans and determined that one of the plans yields light levels at the property line on par with the levels of the Lawrence High field lights, but may still produce glare for nearby residents. (See page 2, Qualite plan) Mitigating the glare is discussed below.
The latest plans were provided to the School District on March 8, 2012 for review.
Development Code Issues
Section 20-1103 of the Land Development Code requires that, “Spillover light onto R-zoned property may not exceed 0.2 Foot-candles, measured at the residential Lot Line.”
Section 20-1103 of the Land Development Code also states the following relative to outdoor lighting. (Language in bold underline is highlighted to reflect relevant code standards)
(e) Special Standards for Outdoor Recreation Uses
Because of their unique requirements for nighttime visibility and their limited hours of operation, outdoor recreation uses are exempt from the preceding outdoor lighting standards of this section. Instead, outdoor recreation uses are subject to the following standards:
(1) Lights at outdoor recreation uses may not exceed a maximum permitted post height of 60 feet.
(2) No flickering or flashing lights are permitted.
(3) Lights may not be illuminated after 11:30 p.m.
(4) As-built lighting and photometric plans are required.
(5) Lighting shall be designed, to the maximum extent feasible, to minimize adverse impacts on traffic safety and nuisance impacts on R-zoned property. Mitigation can be required via extra landscaping, earlier shut-off times for the lights, cutoff fixtures (where feasible) and other techniques.
So while the standard related to not exceeding 0.2 foot-candles (fc) in R-zoned property is not applicable, it is a standard that city staff has used as a guide for the lights at the other outdoor facilities on other school district property – football fields, softball field and baseball fields, etc. – to ensure minimal adverse impacts on R-zoned property. Nuisance typically comes in the form of light intensity and glare from the light source. Standard (e)(5) above, which is applicable to outdoor lights, requires that, “Mitigation can be required via extra landscaping, earlier shut-off times for the lights, cutoff fixtures (where feasible) and other techniques.”
For comparison purposes, the highest level of light spillover onto neighboring properties for the west side of Lawrence High with the football and softball lights turned on was measured at 0.73 fc. The lowest level of light spillover that can be achieved on neighboring properties for the design deemed appropriate to light the 8 tennis courts had been approximately 11 fc prior to the most recent design effort, which produces approximately .3 fc at the west property line. The amount of light present at the property line will be less than that at the LHS fields and is very close to the level required for non-outdoor recreation lighting.
Even with low light levels at the property line, glare will still be present for nearby properties due to the close proximity of the courts to the residential lots. Mitigating glare from the light source presents a challenge given the short distance to neighbors and height of the tennis courts and lights relative to the adjacent properties. The latest design attempts to reduce this impact by using taller poles (70’) and shining the light down on the courts and space above. The taller poles are meant to place the fixture well above the surrounding residences that will have a view of them. The code limits pole height to 60’. The Lawrence High lights received a variance from the Board of Zoning Appeals to increase the height. If the City Commission directs staff to pursue lighting the courts with the current lighting design proposal, a request for a variance will need to be submitted to the Board of Zoning Appeals.
As noted above, the Land Development Code does permit the use of lights for Outdoor Recreation Uses because of their unique nature and requires them to be mitigated, “via extra Landscaping, earlier shut-off times for the lights, cutoff fixtures (where feasible) and other techniques.” Staff analyzes each way to mitigate as follows:
The proposed mitigation of light impact is to use taller pole heights and early shut off times. Landscaping the north side of Greever Terrace may also be effective at reducing glare for these properties and should be pursued, if needed, after the lights are installed.
The stakeholders in this matter are USD 497, the City, the Lawrence Tennis Association, the Centennial Neighborhood Association, and the individual neighbors that are adjacent or in close proximity to the tennis courts. City staff agrees that lighting the new courts will be a benefit to the tennis playing community; however, the impact of the lights for adjacent and nearby neighbors should be weighed against this community benefit and the lights should be mitigated to the greatest extent possible.
Parks and Recreation Comments
During construction of the site a substantial drainage retention system was installed under the west half of the tennis courts. This system is a series of 48” drain pipes and gravel beds, designed to capture the storm water from the entire site. This system is less than 4 feet below the court surface, which restricts where new light poles could be installed. Most pole bases need to go in the ground 8-10 feet to carry the wind load on the pole and light fixtures. The current plan calls for six new pole bases to be installed around the courts, but outside of the drainage system. In order to get the structural support needed for the three eastern poles, these poles would need to be installed in the existing playing surface below the retaining wall. The combination of the drainage bed below the courts and the excavation needed for these new poles, on the courts, will create a high potential for future surface cracking issues on this tennis facility.
If the City installs lights on this School District owned property, a maintenance and use agreement will need to be crafted between the two entities. At the present time the City has no right to schedule the use of the facility by the general public, or responsibility to maintain the facility. By entering into this type of agreement, the City will be committing to the long term maintenance costs associated with the facility. From past experience these costs will increase annually as the courts age and begin to fail (some surface cracking has already been identified in the courts).
The engineer’s estimate for the proposed lighting project is $238,000, with proposed funding coming from the Sales Tax Reserve Fund. This estimate included sales tax, which, when eliminated, reduces the estimate to $219,000.
Restroom and storage facilities are not currently available on-site. The school district is currently working on adding these facilities, and may look to the City to share in the construction of costs.
Other Options
The City of Lawrence currently has 10 tennis courts throughout the community – 6 of these are lighted and 4 are unlighted. Parks and Recreation Department staff feels the 10 courts, along with the 8-unlighted courts at LHS (cooperative use agreement pending) serve the general recreational tennis population need in Lawrence. With the closing of the Lawrence Tennis Center in conjunction with the Lawrence High School site improvements, located off of 21st Street, on June 8, 2009, it took away from the community’s inventory a facility with more than two courts that were lit in a single location. A facility with multiple lit courts is important for hosting league play and tournaments, and the facility was heavily used by the Lawrence Tennis Association, U.S. Tennis Association and World Team Tennis for weekday, evening leagues and year-round tournaments.
Discussions have been ongoing with KU on the 8 Robinson tennis courts for the possibility of entering into a partnership. Staff was informed Monday March 5th, 2012 by KU that they are not able to make a long term commitment for the use of the Robinson courts at this time.
Parks and Recreation currently have a partnership with Jayhawk Tennis, which provides support for tennis lesson instruction. There has also been discussion and an initial proposal for the use of the Jayhawk Tennis facility, 5200 Clinton Parkway, for public use in exchange for the City lighting 6 outdoor courts at the Jayhawk Tennis facility. This option does not seem to be feasible at this time because the public would have to pay a fee to utilize the facility.
Parks and Recreation staff has also discussed the idea of lighting the 5 courts at Free State High School, but have not approached USD 497 with this as an option. While this would provide additional lit courts for the general public, it would not necessarily serve the needs of the associations coordinating league play or tournaments as more than 5 courts are generally necessary for these purposes.
Action Requested:
1. Direct staff to implement the proposed lighting plan for lighting the 8 tennis courts at Centennial School with the following conditions intended to mitigate the impacts of the light glare:
a) The pole height of 70’ will require a variance from the Board of Zoning Appeals, but is supported by the City Commission as a method of reducing glare and light spillover on nearby properties.
b) The lights shall be shut off at 10:00 p.m. during the months of March through November. The lights shall be shut off at 8:00 p.m. during the months of December through February.
c) If needed after the installation of the lights, the city shall work with nearby owners to install trees at appropriate locations to attempt to mitigate any nuisance light glare.
2. Authorize Parks and Recreation Staff to solicit bids for installation of proposed lighting plan.