Methodology for calculating projected demand for certificates of concurrency.

(a)

Purpose. The purpose of this regulation is to set forth the methodology for calculating the projected demand of a proposed project described in an application for a development approval on public facilities and services, in order to determine whether a certificate of concurrency should be issued so as to implement article IV, section IV-203 of the Zoning Code.

(b)

Facility/service demand calculations. The following calculations shall be used to determine the projected demand of the proposed project described in an application for a development approval on the public facilities and services. The calculations are listed by public facility and service type. Whenever the term city shall appear herein, it shall mean the city manager or his designee authorized to review calculations for the concurrency management system. The information necessary to enable the city to perform the facility/service demand calculations in paragraphs (b)(1) through (b)(7) shall be provided by the applicant to the city.

(1)

Potable water.

Adopted LOS = 200 gal/day of treatment capacity per equivalent residential unit (ERU), see utilities chapter of the Sarasota City Plan. (non-residential uses are included in the adopted LOS).

91 gal × 2.2 persons/household × _______ units = demand.

(2)

Wastewater.

Adopted LOS = 200 gal/day of treatement capacity per equivalent residential unit (ERU), see utilities chapter of the Sarasota City Plan. (non-residential uses are included in the adopted LOS).

91 gal × 2.2 persons/household × _______ units = demand.

(3)

Stormwater management (drainage).

Adopted LOS = 25-year, 24-hour storm event, see utilities chapter of the Sarasota City Plan.

Drainage calculations shall meet the standards adopted in the City of Sarasota Engineering Design Criteria Manual and the Sarasota City Plan.

(4)

Solid waste.

Adopted LOS = 6.9 lbs/day/capita, see utilities chapter of the Sarasota City Plan. (non-residential uses are included in the adopted LOS).

3.14 lbs × 2.2 persons/household × _______ units = demand.

(5)

Recreation and open space. Adopted LOS = a minimum of 10 acres per 1,000 resident population. Refers to the recreation and open space chapter of the Sarasota City Plan.

Project population = _______ units × 2.2 persons/household.

Project population/LOS = demand

(6)

Public school facilities. Refers to the Sarasota City Plan, public school facilities chapter, objective 6, and action strategies 6.1 through 6.7 and to the amended interlocal agreement for public school facilities planning for the County of Sarasota, Florida, for implementation of public school concurrency. The adopted level of service standards are:

All new residential development shall be reviewed for and found to have available public school capacity consistent with the adopted level of service standards at time of subdivision final plat or final site plan approval. If it is determined that no available public school capacity exists to serve a proposed residential development, a proportionate share mitigation agreement may be approved in order to meet the public school concurrency requirement. A finding of available public school capacity is not required for the nonresidential component of any development proposal.

Staff from the school board of Sarasota County shall perform the review for public school concurrency and shall issue a finding of public school capacity. A finding of available public school capacity shall be valid for a period not to exceed two years from final site plan approval. For a finding of available public school capacity to remain valid for a period longer than two years from final site plan approval, a building permit for the development must have been issued prior to the expiration date of final site plan approval and the building permit must remain valid. The expiration of an approved site plan shall require a new review of public school capacity for a proposed development.

(7)

Transportation. Refer to the transportation chapter of the Sarasota City Plan, for the adopted level of service standards.

a.

Determine the number of net new external trips generated by the proposed project during the p.m. or a.m. peak hour, using the output from the computer generated version of the most recent edition of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) trip generation or any other methods approved by the city engineer to be generally recognized and accepted in the field of transportation engineering. The analysis will be based on the most intense traffic generation use of the proposed land uses proffered by the applicant. Credit for existing or recently demolished uses shall be assigned as follows to calculate net peak hour trips for site access safety and circulation and off-site impacts respectively:

1.

Site access safety and circulation: Site access and circulation addresses driveway friction/turning conflicts and site circulation/queuing for all projects and impacts to adjacent thoroughfare intersections for larger-scale developments. For evaluating a development's site access and on-site circulation, the total trips of the proposed development shall be used to determine whether on-site queuing is adequate and to evaluate warrants for auxiliary lanes (where appropriate) and signalization (or roundabout alternatives). For evaluation of impacts to adjacent intersections (if required) trips shall be calculated as:

Total trips of the proposed development less pass-by capture trips less driveway trips of the existing site reduced by the proportion of the pass-by trips calculated for existing use(s)

2.

Off-site impacts:

•

Property with existing structures shall be credited the greater of:

○

Actual observed trips during periods germane to the traffic impact study (e.g. AM or PM peak hour or peak of use) or

○

One-half of the number of trips which the last ITE Trip Generation Report.

•

Property upon which a structure was demolished after June 4, 2018, shall be credited with one-half the number of trips which the last lawfully existing use would have generated utilizing the most recent edition of the ITE Trip Generation Report. Provided, however, commencing five years from the date the structure was demolished, the number of credited trips shall be reduced by 20 percent each year for the next five years. Therefore, after a period of ten years from the date the structure was demolished, the property would have no remaining credited trips.

•

Property upon which a structure was demolished after March 13, 1989, but before June 4, 2018, shall be credited with the greater the number of trips which the last lawfully existing use would have generated utilizing the most recent edition of the ITE Trip Generation Report. Provided, however, commencing five years from the date the structure was demolished, the number of credited trips shall be reduced by 20 percent each year for the next five years. Therefore, after a period of ten years from the date the structure was demolished, the property would have no remaining credited trips.

•

Property upon which no structure has been previously constructed or was demolished prior to March 13, 1989, is not eligible to be credited with any trips generated by the last lawfully existing use.

b.

De minimis and small-scale project impacts: A de minimis impact is an impact that would not affect more than one percent of the maximum volume at the adopted level of service of the affected transportation facilities as determined by the city, utilizing the 2012 generalized two-way peak hour volumes in the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), 2013 Level of Service Handbook. The city shall also consider impact from a change of use without demolition/reconstruction in the Downtown and Newtown districts de minimis provided that the project generates less than or equal to 100 net peak hour trips. Small-scale project are those projects that are not de minimum by the definition above not none-the-less have net traffic impacts that are unlikely to significantly impact the roadway network to the degree that an off-site traffic impact study is necessary. Small-scale projects are defined as follows:

Projects with "small-scale" impacts must comply with site access safety and circulation study requirements and other design requirements outlined in Section 9 of the transportation study requirements but are not required to conduct an off-site traffic impact analysis.

(c)

Performance of transportation study.

(1)

Consultant selection. If a transportation study is required, it shall be accomplished by one of the city's transportation engineering consultants, at the applicant's sole expense. The city manager, or his designee, shall select the consultant from a list of consultants retained by the city for this purpose and shall enter into an agreement with the consultant to perform the transportation study.

(2)

Applicant agreement. The applicant shall enter into an agreement with the city and prepay the city for the total fee charged by the consultant to perform the transportation study, along with any city administrative costs.

(3)

Pre-application meeting. A pre-application meeting between the city and the applicant is at the applicant's option. The purpose of this meeting will be to review the methodology, procedure, study area, and to determine the study period. This will usually be a p.m. peak hour analysis; however, other time periods way require analysis.

(4)

Traffic circulation plan. The applicant shall submit a traffic circulation plan, including ingress and egress from and to adjacent streets along with internal circulation, for automobiles, trucks and delivery vehicles, pedestrians, transit vehicles, and bicycles.

(d)

Requirements of transportation study. The transportation study shall be performed in accordance with the requirements set forth below. The transportation study data shall be provided in electronic format. All references to level of service (LOS) grades and capacities shall comply with the FDOT 2012 generalized capacity tables found in the 2013 Quality/Level of Service Handbook. The transportation study is a public record subject to disclosure pursuant to the Florida Public Records Laws by request made to the city engineer.

(1)

Study introduction. The introduction of the transportation study shall include:

a.

Summary of findings and impacts which is plainly worded without technical jargon, as determined by the city engineer;

b.

Detailed description of project;

c.

Study procedures and methodology;

d.

Site location map;

e.

Site plan;

f.

Location and description of access driveways;

g.

Date development will be fully occupied.

(2)

Define study area. The extent of the road network to be studied is defined as roadway segments impacted by the project traffic equaling at least 4.5 percent of level of service "D" peak-hour service capacity as determined by the 2012 generalized peak hour volumes, two-way tables of the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) 2013 Quality/Level of Service Handbook. The city may require a larger study area than defined above upon determining that the land uses of the proposed project or conditions to the road network warrant a larger study area.

(3)

Existing conditions. Existing traffic conditions shall be provided:

a.

Description of the existing land uses including the ITE land use classification.

b.

Description of the existing roadway and intersection conditions including the thoroughfare plan designation.

c.

Traffic data supplied by the city, county and/or FDOT, including:

1.

Existing directional peak hour traffic volumes and level(s) of service on all collector and arterial streets within the study area. The city engineer may include other streets as he deems appropriate.

2.

Existing turning movement volumes at the impacted intersection(s) and level(s) of service of those intersection(s).

Notes:

(i)

The above-required data shall be no older than the previous calendar year. Volumes shall be adjusted to reflect peak season conditions using current FDOT seasonal adjustment factors for the county or other adjustment factors approved by the city.

(ii)

The above-required level(s) of service for roadways shall be determined in accordance with 2012 FDOT generalized peak hour volumes, two-way tables, procedures.

(iii)

The above-required intersection capacity(s) shall be determined using the most recent update of computer software based on the most recent edition of the Highway Capacity Manual, (HCM, Transportation Research Board, Special Report 209).

(4)

Project traffic generation. Project traffic shall be the net new external trips. The following procedures and information to determine project traffic generated by the project shall be utilized:

a.

Daily and peak hour (a.m. and p.m., if required by the city engineer) traffic volumes generated by the project, using average rates or equations and land use classifications identified in the most recent edition of ITE trip generation or other agreed upon methodology.

b.

Trip rates may be obtained from studies of comparable sites in the city or using data from previous traffic generation studies, and are subject to the approval of the city.

c.

Reduction factors for internal capture of trips between land uses of a mixed-use project or for passby trips shall be justified and shall be in compliance with ITE's trip generation and FDOT's Site Impact Handbook. They shall not exceed the maximum allowable pass-by percentage of ten percent of the adjacent roadway volumes.

d.

Pass-by trips shall be removed from the through traffic stream, becoming turns into the site, and finally turns out of the site to their original destination.

(5)

Project traffic distribution. Distribution of project traffic shall be by one of the following:

a.

If the project generates fewer than 100 peak hour trips, the distribution can be developed based up on similar projects.

b.

For any project, the FDOT District 1 Regional Planning Model network and socio-economic data files can be edited and used. Project trip distribution can be estimated based on the FDOT District 1 Regional Planning Model select zone traffic assignment and observed travel patterns at the project site driveways.

c.

For any project, manual gravity model distribution can be developed as described in chapter 3 of ITE Transportation and Land Development shall be used.

d.

For any project, computerized distribution model, such as FSUTMS or QRSII, can be developed subject to approval of the city engineer and shall be generally recognized and accepted in the field of transportation engineering.

(6)

Projection of future background traffic. Future background traffic volumes shall be the sum of the existing 100th design hourly traffic volumes, the vested traffic volumes and an increase in existing traffic to account for annual growth. Existing (background) volume(s) shall be projected for the year of the project completion. Volumes can be determined using one of the following procedures:

a.

Multiply existing volumes by an annual growth factor provided by the city. Traffic generated by any major project approved since the traffic counts were conducted shall be included as background traffic.

b.

Multiply existing volumes by an annual growth factor developed by the applicant and approved by the city. This growth factor must be based on data collected on three roadways in the vicinity of the project over the last three years. The vested traffic volumes expected to be generated by any major project approved but not realized shall be included as background traffic on the street segment.

c.

Develop a computer model.

(7)

Future with project traffic. Future with project traffic volumes shall be the sum of the future background traffic and the project traffic volumes. The study shall add the net new traffic estimated to be generated by the project (project traffic) to the future background traffic volumes to estimate future peak hour traffic volumes with the project (future with project traffic).

(8)

Capacity analysis.

a.

An analysis of the peak hour(s) existing, future background traffic and future with project traffic shall be conducted at each of the selected study intersections and study roadway segments. The analysis for the intersections shall use the unsignalized and signalized intersection analysis methodology found in the HCM. The analysis for the roadway segments shall use the generalized service volumes as defined in the most recent county level of service tables or the analysis methodology found in the HCM, or any other software program as approved by the city engineer which shall be generally recognized and accepted in the field of transportation engineering. The analysis on FDOT roadways shall be the FDOT analysis methodology.

b.

The level of service analysis shall be summarized in a table.

(9)

Site access safety and circulation. The study shall include a review of the traffic circulation plan, including ingress and egress from and to adjacent streets along with internal circulation, for automobiles, trucks and delivery vehicles, pedestrians, transit vehicles, and bicycles. The study shall recommend mitigation strategies for solving any circulation issues as follows:

a.

Motor vehicle access/circulation:

1.

Scope of site access study: The scope of the development's site access study requirements shall be determined as follows based on the development's trip generation:

(i)

All development shall construct driveways consistent with the EDCM.

(ii)

Development shall evaluate the need for or modification of auxiliary lanes, access point traffic signals (or alternatives), and/or modification of medians at thoroughfare street access points as follows:

For a development that has more than one access point on a given thoroughfare street, the driveway movements will be considered cumulatively.

(iii)

Improvements necessary to safely provide for development site access shall be made by the developer. The cost of these safety improvements and associated right-of-way dedication (if any) shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

2.

For a development that does not directly access a thoroughfare street, the intersection of the local street(s) onto which the development has driveway access and relevant (as determined in the study methodology) thoroughfare street shall be considered for the purpose of evaluating thoroughfare access needs.

3.

Evaluation of adjacent thoroughfare intersections:

(i)

A development shall be required to evaluate operational and safety issues at adjacent thoroughfare intersections when the trips generated by the development pursuant to [subsections] (b)(7)a.1., and (b)(7)a.2. approaching the intersection in the peak hour exceed:

•

Ten percent of the peak hour, peak direction LOS "D" capacity of the roadway for roadways operating at LOS "D" or better.

•

Five percent of the peak hour, peak direction LOS "D" capacity of the roadway for roadways operating at LOS "E" or worse.

Note that while in most cases this requirement will apply to trips exiting a development and approaching a downstream thoroughfare intersection, in some cases trips entering a development may meet a downstream thoroughfare intersection, in some cases trips entering a development may meet the adjacent intersection study threshold as those trips pass through an adjacent intersection to reach the subject development.

(ii)

Elements that shall be considered include:

•

Need for new auxiliary lanes at adjacent thoroughfare intersections or modifications to existing auxiliary lanes.

•

Need for modifications to signal phasing (e.g. protected left turn lanes, lagging vs leading left turn phasing (and potential re-timing of upstream and downstream signals).

•

New signalization or construction of a roundabout for currently un-signalized thoroughfare intersections.

(iii)

The focus of the adjacent intersection operational analysis shall be traffic safety and operational concerns—not level of service/delay. If, based on the development's site access and circulation analysis, improvements are necessary to mitigate safety and operational issues caused or exacerbated by the proposed development's traffic, the development shall be responsible for making improvements to the intersection that have a positive benefit/cost outcome based on proven safety countermeasures.

(iv)

The cost of these safety improvements and associated right-of-way dedication (if any) shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

4.

Local street impacts:

(i)

Development which accesses a local street shall be required to evaluate the need for traffic calming and/or non-motorized user safety improvements between the development site and the nearest adjacent thoroughfare intersection of the local street if both of the following conditions are met:

•

The local street volume plus projected development trips exceed 1,000 ADT.

•

The development generates at least 500 total daily trips or 250 net daily trips.

(ii)

Traffic calming improvements required by the development shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

b.

Multimodal access.

1.

Pedestrian.

(i)

The development shall provide an accessible, convenient pedestrian pathway from the entrance of their site to the public sidewalk.

(ii)

The development shall provide a sidewalk along the frontage of the development site and the public street right-of-way consistent with the city's land development code and EDCM. If a right-of-way easement is necessary to construct the necessary sidewalk(s) the developer shall grant said easement unless it can be demonstrated that doing so would create a hardship on the development site. Construction of the required pedestrian facilities and right-of-way easement shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

(iii)

If the locational criteria included in the FDOT Traffic Engineering Manual (TEM) Chapter 3.8 are met for a pedestrian mid-block crosswalk adjacent to the development site and the development generates in excess of 1,000 daily total trips, at the request of the city and the roadway owner, the development shall provide an appropriate mid-block crosswalk including necessary supplemental warning/traffic control devices.

•

Construction of the required mid-block crossing facilities and right-of-way shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

•

If a crosswalk is required, the developer may request to bond the cost of the crosswalk and conduct a pedestrian mid-block warranting study to establish a final determination as to whether the crosswalk is required pursuant to TEM 3.8 once the site has been active for one year.

(iv)

At the request of the city, the developer shall construct a sidewalk adjacent to the development site to connect with an existing sidewalk or to the nearest thoroughfare intersection. If the city requests the connecting sidewalk to be constructed, the city shall be responsible for providing or acquiring the necessary right-of-way or easement.

2.

Bicycle.

(i)

Consistent with the city's land development code, the developer shall provide sufficient publicly accessible bicycle racks and/or other bike storage facilities to meet the demands of their site.

(ii)

If, as part of the city's pedestrian/bicycle connectivity plan, a multiuse recreational trail (MURT) or other bicycle facility is shown adjacent to the development site, the developer shall construct that portion of the planned facility that abuts their site. If a right-of-way easement is necessary to construct the necessary bicycle facilities, the developer shall grant said easement unless it can be demonstrated that doing so would create a hardship on the development site. The necessary bicycle facilities and right-of-way easement shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

(iii)

At the request of the city, the developer shall construct a bicycle facility adjacent to the development site to connect with an existing bicycle facility or to the nearest thoroughfare intersection. If the city requests a connecting bicycle facility to be constructed, the city shall be responsible for providing or acquiring necessary right-of-way.

3.

Transit.

(i)

If the development is situated along an existing transit route, the development may be required to provide bus stop facilities based on the development's total trip generation as follows:

All development: Provide an ADA accessible pad for any existing bus stops situated along the development site.

Development over 500 daily trips: If requested by SCAT, provide a basic bus stop shelter for a bus stop situated along the development site.

Development over 1,000 daily trips: If requested by SCAT and the roadway owner, provide a bus bay with bus stop shelter for a bus stop situated along the development site.

(ii)

If provision of an ADA accessible pad, shelter, or shelter and bus bay requires right-of-way, the developer shall grant necessary right-of-way easement(s) except in cases where going so would constitute a hardship upon the development. Construction of the required transit facilities and right-of-way easement shall not be creditable against the developer's multimodal transportation impact fee or proportionate share obligations (if any).

(10)

Conclusions. The conclusions of the transportation study shall be shown including a statement as to whether or not the project meets city transportation concurrency requirements. If it does not, the study shall recommend methods of mitigation. The recommendations shall be presented in bullet format. Pursuant to F.S. § 163.3180(5)(h)1.c, a development project shall be found to satisfy the city's transportation concurrency requirements if:

•

The applicant in good faith offers to enter into a binding agreement to pay for or construct its proportionate share of required improvements in a manner consistent with this subsection; and

•

The proportionate share contribution or construction is sufficient to accomplish one or more mobility improvements that will benefit a regionally significant transportation facility. A local government may accept contributions from multiple applicants for a planned improvement if it maintains contributions in a separate account designated for that purpose.

Furthermore, if the property owner can provide evidence that a transportation impact fee has been paid pursuant to prior development on the property (whether that development currently exists or has been subsequently demolished) or that mitigation (e.g. payment of proportionate share or construction of improvements) has been made in order to obtain a concurrency certificate in the past, then the value of these past contributions shall off-set the proportionate share obligation resulting from the current traffic impact study on a dollar-for-dollar basis.

(11)

Appendix. The appendix of the study shall include:

a.

Sketches showing distribution of trips for the project only and for the project with background traffic.

b.

Highway capacity software and pertinent calculation worksheets.

(e)

Alternative demand calculations. If the applicant claims the standards provided in the demand calculations are not applicable to the proposed project, the applicant shall submit appropriate documentation supporting the proposed alternative demand calculation to the city. Any alternative calculation standard shall be subject to the approval of the city manager.

(Ord. No. 02-4357, 4-29-02; Ord. No. 08-4819, § 2(Att. 1), 7-21-08; Ord. No. 18-5243, § 2(Exh. A), 6-4-18)