HomeMy WebLinkAbout20250533 26 Finley St Site Plan Compliance Letter 07312025LANSINGENGINEERING.COM
2452 STATE ROUTE 9 SUITE 301 | MALTA, NY | 518-899-5243
July 31, 2025
Mr. Mark Pingel
Planning Board Chairman
City of Saratoga Springs
474 Broadway
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
RE: RISE – Multifamily Development
Finley Street
Dear Mr. Pingel:
The RISE – Finley Street Multifamily Residential project is located at 26 Finley Street. The project site
encompasses approximately 3.6-acres and is situated along the southern side of Finley Street. The parcel
is located within the UN – Urban Neighborhood district (T-4) as identified by the City of Saratoga Springs
zoning map and is currently occupied by an abandoned auto shop. The project is currently in the process
of planning review and has received approval from the DRB for architectural compliance. As such, the
purpose of this letter is to identify specific site design requirements in the Unified Development Ordinance
(UDO) and discuss how the proposed development complies with said requirements.
Per the City of Saratoga Springs Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), the UN Urban Neighborhood
District (T-4) is intended to accommodate development of neo-traditional neighborhoods with primarily
residential uses incorporating a mix of unit types and small-scale commercial uses where appropriate.
Table 8-A: Use Matrix (UDO) lists multifamily residential and office as permitted uses within the UN
District. The proposed project includes the new construction of a 3-story multifamily residential building
& a 1-story commercial building. Both buildings and uses are permitted within the UN zoning district.
The Design Review Board has reviewed the project and has issued a positive recommendation for the
project. The residential building, located in approximately the middle of the site, will be +/-68,945 sf total,
3-stories and consist of (71) studio, 1- & 2-bedroom affordable dwelling units. The building is +/- 39'-0"
tall with an asphalt shingle roof & metal roofing accents. The exterior facade will be a mixture or
cementitious ribbed siding, cementitious shake siding, manufactured stone veneer with metal accents.
The commercial building located along Finley Street is a +/-2,990 sf community building, consisting of
tenant recreational spaces & program offices. The building has a similar overall appearance at a smaller
scale. The building length meets the city requirement of minimum build-out of 50%, and the height is 24'-
7" exceeding the minimum height requirement. The facade materials are consistent to the residential
building listed above.
Section 4.3 of the UDO outlines residential mixed-use standards. As stated above, the site is zoned UN
Urban neighborhood district and shall comply with the standards set forth in section 4.3 of the UDO.
Section 4.3, table 4-A outlines dimensional standards for the residential mixed-use districts. The proposed
development meets all required dimension standards, the required and provided standards are as follows:
RISE - Finley Street Residential July 28, 2025
pg. 2
Bulk Standard Required Provided
Maximum Impervious Surface 75% 49.7%
Maximum Building Height 40’ 39’
Maximum cumulative area of
new and existing one-story
structures on any one lot.
3,000 sf 2,990 sf
Minimum Front Setback Build to zone
of 12’-18’
16’
Minimum Build Out Percentage 50% 55%
Minimum Interior Side Setback 12’ 14’
Minimum Rear Setback 24’ 129.8’
Section 4.3b of the UDO offers specific design standards for the UN zone. The proposed development
meets all applicable design standards outlined in table 4-B. The required design standards are as follows:
• All buildings must be oriented toward a primary public street.
➢ The proposed office/amenity building is oriented towards Finley Street, which also meets
the required 50% build-out percentage. The apartment building is oriented to best fit the
shape of the parcel. The proposed office/amenity building accounts for over 50% of the
frontage per frontage build out requirement.
• All public entrances must include direct pedestrian connections between street facing doors to
adjacent sidewalks. All buildings must have a public entrance from the sidewalk along the
primary building facade. Public entrances must be visually distinctive from the remaining
portions of the facade along which they are located.
➢ The proposed office/amenity building includes a direct sidewalk connection from the
primary entrance to the proposed sidewalk along Finley Street.
Article 9 of the UDO outlines general on-site development standards, all applicable site guidelines with
explanations as to how the proposed project is satisfactory are as follows:
• For all other uses, there may be more than one principal building on a lot, but all structures must
comply with the dimensional standards of the zoning district.
➢ As previously stated, the proposed project meets all bulk area requirements for the UN
zone outlined in table 4-A
Preservation of steep slopes
➢ The existing steep slopes on site are man-made slopes, the project proposes to reduce
the severity of the steep slopes over 35% down to 33% slope or less.
➢ Project specific erosion and sediment control plans have been developed to ensure the
integrity of the slopes during construction until mature vegetation is established.
Lighting plan required & lighting standards
➢ A project specific lighting plan has been included in the civil design plans. All lighting
specifications adhere to the requirements of section 9C 1-7. All lights are proposed to
have a color temperature of 30K, the max mounting height on site is 12’. All lights are
adequately shielded and placed so that no light falls onto adjacent lots.
RISE - Finley Street Residential July 28, 2025
pg. 3
Parking Requirements
• Parking within the UN district cannot be located in front of the building line.
➢ All proposed parking Is located beyond the front building line.
• All required off street parking must have vehicular access from a street, driveway, alley or cross-
access connection.
➢ All proposed parking stalls are accessible via proposed drive aisles.
• Curbing is required when a parking space abuts a pedestrian walkway, landscape area,
structure, or fence. Inlets, or breaks in curbing may be provided to allow for drainage into
landscape areas that can absorb water. Curbing must be constructed of permanen t materials
such as concrete, stone, or masonry, a minimum height of four inches above ground level, and
permanently affixed to the paved parking area.
➢ Curbing is proposed around the apartment building and amenity space areas and amenity
office building as a buffer from the parking stalls and drive aisles.
• Parking Requirements – 1.5 spaces per 1 dwelling unit
➢ The project proposes 71 apartment units requiring 107 parking stalls. 107 parking stalls
are proposed, of which 70 are banked.
• Bicycle parking standards – 1 space per 4 dwelling units, 80% must be long term.
➢ The project proposes a minimum of 18 bicycle spaces inside the apartment building that
are designated as long-term parking. Additionally, 8 short-term bicycle stalls are proposed
on bike racks throughout the site.
Landscape requirements
• Buffer Yard Requirements – Where a multifamily use abuts a single-family residential use, a
buffer yard must be provided.
• The side or rear buffer yard must be a minimum of ten feet in width.
➢ The minimum proposed buffer yard is 33’ wide.
• A solid fence or wall a minimum of six feet and a maximum of eight feet in height must be
erected along 100% of the yard length.
➢ An 8-foot-tall privacy fence is proposed abutting the tree line shared with all residential
uses.
• One broadleaf tree is required for every 30 linear feet of buffer yard length. As part of the
landscape plan approval, trees may be spaced at various intervals based on specific site
requirements, but the total number of trees planted must be no less than one per 30 linear feet
of buffer yard length.
➢ To achieve adequate space for a broadleaf tree to survive after planting, an additional 6-
10 feet of clearing would need to take place along the fence line. As stated in section 11.3
C of the UDO, exceptions to the landscape standards can be made to preserve existing
trees.
RISE - Finley Street Residential July 28, 2025
pg. 4
• One shrub must be planted for every three linear feet of landscape area, spaced linearly. As
part of the landscape plan approval, shrubs may be spaced at various intervals based on specific
site requirements, but the total number of shrubs planted must be no less than one per three
linear feet of buffer yard length.
➢ To achieve adequate space for a shrub to survive after planting, an additional 2-3 feet of
clearing would need to take place along the fence line. As stated in section 11.3 C of the
UDO, exceptions to the landscape standards can be made to preserve existing trees.
• The remainder of the buffer yard must be planted in live groundcover, perennials, grass, or trees.
➢ The remainder of the buffer yard consists of existing trees.
• One parking lot island must be provided at a minimum between every ten parking spaces. As
part of the landscape plan approval, parking lot island locations may be varied based on specific
site requirements or design scheme, but the total number of islands must be no less than the
amount required of one island for every ten spaces.
➢ The objective of the proposed site layout was to limit the clearing of the existing wooded
areas to the greatest extent possible. As a result, a large portion of the proposed parking
has been banked, and the parking stalls required based on a similarly sized facility were
placed along the face of the building. The proposed parking lot does not meet the interior
landscaping requirements, meeting said requirements would result in a revised parking
lot layout with additional tree clearing. As stated in section 11.3 C of the UDO, exceptions
to the landscape standards can be made to preserve existing trees.
As outlined in this letter, the proposed RISE – Finley Street Residential Site Plan meets the general
guidelines and specifications outlined in the UDO, and guidelines specific to the UN (T-4) zone. The
applicant is looking forward to working with the planning board to provide a largely needed affordable
housing option in the City of Saratoga Springs.
Sincerely,
LANSING ENGINEERING, PC
Jason M. Dell, PE, CPESC
CC: file