Memorandum
City of Lawrence
Planning and Development Services
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TO: |
Diane Stoddard, Interim City Manager |
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CC: FROM: |
Scott McCullough, Director, Planning & Development Services Sheila Stogsdill, Planning Administrator |
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DATE: |
August 20, 2015 |
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RE: |
Initiation of a text amendment to the Land Development Code to review the Personal Convenience Services and Personal Improvement Service uses and determine if amendments are necessary to permit salons as a use in the RSO zoning district. |
Background
A request for initiation of a text amendment to the Land Development Code has been submitted to the Planning Office to consider Beauty Salons & Spas as a Personal Improvement Service use rather than a Personal Convenience Services use. The Land Development Code defines land uses and assigns them to certain zoning district locations. Article 17, Terminology provides the following definitions of these land uses:
20-1748 Personal Convenience Services
Provision of small personal items or consumer-oriented, personal services. These include various general retail sales and personal services of a small, neighborhood-scale. Typical uses include neighborhood grocery stores, drugstores, laundromats/ dry cleaners and barbershops.
20-1749 Personal Improvement Service
Informational, instructional, personal improvement, and similar services of a nonprofessional nature. Excludes services classified as "Spectator Sports and Entertainment", "Sports and Recreation, Participant" or "Transient Habitation." Typical uses include fine arts studios, martial arts centers, yoga meditation or diet centers.
The Land Development Code permits Personal Improvement Service uses in a broader range of zoning districts, specifically RSO and RMO Residential-Office Districts, than Personal Convenience Services uses. The applicant owns property zoned RSO and has suggested that salon & spa uses are more closely aligned with uses permitted in the Personal Improvement Service category and has suggested that this classification is an error in the Code.
Prior to the adoption of the Land Development Code in 2006, the zoning ordinance listed both barber and beauty shop uses in Use Group 12 – Retail Stores-Personal Services. The Use Group included “certain types of retail stores and service establishments which: (a) provide for a wide variety of local consumer and transient needs, and (b) have a small service area and are, therefore, not distributed widely throughout the city.” These uses were only permitted in commercial districts, specifically C-2, C-3, C-4 & C-5 (these districts correspond to CN2, CD, CS, CC & CR in the current Code).
Next Steps
Staff has reviewed nearby community codes and found that the salon and spa use is typically classified as a commercial use. If initiated, Staff will continue to research the issue, identify existing establishments’ zoning district locations and determine whether changes will create any nonconforming uses. Staff will identify appropriate articles to be modified and draft a text amendment to be considered at a future Planning Commission hearing. A recommendation will then be forwarded to the City Commission for consideration and final action.
Action
Initiate a text amendment to the Land Development Code to review the Personal Convenience Services and Personal Improvement Service uses and determine if amendments are necessary to permit salons as a use in the RSO zoning district, if appropriate.