HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/14/2006ROLL CALL:
Council Members
Present: Council Members John Ewan, Christine Mulholland, Vice Mayor Allen
Settle and Mayor Dave Romero were present at Roll Call. Council
Member Brown was seated at approximately 7:05 p.m.
City Staff:
Present: Ken Hampian, City Administrative Officer; Jonathan Lowell, City
Attorney; Audrey Hooper, City Clerk; Shelly Stanwyck, Assistant City
Administrative Officer; John Mandeville, Community Development
Director; Deborah Linden, Police Chief; John Moss, Utilities Director;
Mike Draze, Deputy Community Development Director; Doug
Davidson, Housing Programs Manager; Claire Clark, Economic
Development Manager; Pam Ricci, Senior Planner; Warren
Stephenson, Battalion Chief
1 CLOSED SESSION
City Atiomey Lowell announced the following Closed Session topic:
CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL REGARDING EXISTING LITIGATION
Pursuant to Government Code § 54956.9
Christina Brown v. City of San Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo Police Department, et al.
United States District Court, Central District of California, Case No. DCV06 -0048 MMM
City Attorney Lowell reported that Council met with the City Attorney and discussed the
above - referenced case. There was no further reportable action.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Dane Senser, San Luis Obispo, congratulated the City and SLO Film Festival for an
extraordinary event. He announced that a special event, "Dancing with the Hometown Celebs,
Red Hot Ballroom," will be held at the Alex Madonna Expo Center on September 16, 2006.
Funds from this event will be offered to children's charities.
Sara Home representing the League of Women Voters, discussed the League's activities and
invited the community to participate in "Sunshine Week," March 12 -18. She said the purpose
of "Sunshine Week" is to stimulate public discussion about open government.
STUDY SESSION
1 . BUILDING HEIGHT AND INTENSITY IN THE DOWNTOWN CORE
MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL
CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2006 - 7:00 P.M.
COUNCIL CHAMBER, 990 PALM STREET
SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA
ROLL CALL:
Council Members
Present: Council Members John Ewan, Christine Mulholland, Vice Mayor Allen
Settle and Mayor Dave Romero were present at Roll Call. Council
Member Brown was seated at approximately 7:05 p.m.
City Staff:
Present: Ken Hampian, City Administrative Officer; Jonathan Lowell, City
Attorney; Audrey Hooper, City Clerk; Shelly Stanwyck, Assistant City
Administrative Officer; John Mandeville, Community Development
Director; Deborah Linden, Police Chief; John Moss, Utilities Director;
Mike Draze, Deputy Community Development Director; Doug
Davidson, Housing Programs Manager; Claire Clark, Economic
Development Manager; Pam Ricci, Senior Planner; Warren
Stephenson, Battalion Chief
1 CLOSED SESSION
City Atiomey Lowell announced the following Closed Session topic:
CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL REGARDING EXISTING LITIGATION
Pursuant to Government Code § 54956.9
Christina Brown v. City of San Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo Police Department, et al.
United States District Court, Central District of California, Case No. DCV06 -0048 MMM
City Attorney Lowell reported that Council met with the City Attorney and discussed the
above - referenced case. There was no further reportable action.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Dane Senser, San Luis Obispo, congratulated the City and SLO Film Festival for an
extraordinary event. He announced that a special event, "Dancing with the Hometown Celebs,
Red Hot Ballroom," will be held at the Alex Madonna Expo Center on September 16, 2006.
Funds from this event will be offered to children's charities.
Sara Home representing the League of Women Voters, discussed the League's activities and
invited the community to participate in "Sunshine Week," March 12 -18. She said the purpose
of "Sunshine Week" is to stimulate public discussion about open government.
STUDY SESSION
1 . BUILDING HEIGHT AND INTENSITY IN THE DOWNTOWN CORE
City Council Meeting
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 - 7:00 p.m.
Page 2
Community Development Director Mandeville, Housing Programs Manager Davidson and
Economic Consultant Allen Kotin presented the staff report and responded to Council's
questions.
Public Comments
Mark Rawson. San Luis Obispo resident and architect, discussed his concepts for making
the downtown pedestrian friendly and encouraged Council to embrace the concept of taller
buildings in the downtown.
John Goodell. San Luis Obispo, opposed increasing the density in the downtown because
of potentially adverse impacts on the character of the City (blocking views, creating
canyons between tall buildings, increased traffic).
Andrew Carter, San Luis Obispo, suggested the focus should be on height rather than
density and floor area ratios (FARs). He thought "height" should be considered at the
street/sidewalk level, and that there should be different height standards based on the
width of streets. He also thought that there should be a standard limiting the use to
housing after a certain height.
Hamish Marshall, downtown property owner, displayed a photograph depicting and
discussed the height of existing buildings and historical buildings in the downtown. He
suggested that height in feet, not in stories, is what should be considered. He also
suggested that the FAR should not be changed and that each development should be
considered on a case -by -case basis.
Deborah Cash. Downtown Association, discussed the importance of promoting balance in 1
the downtown and encouraged a diverse mix of uses. She expressed concern that
adopting strict policies may be counter - productive to the City's goals.
Lynn Landwher, San Luis Obispo, urged Council to take into consideration the scale of the
valley in which the City sits. She expressed concern that the sense of setting might be lost
with too much height, mass and density in the downtown.
Michael Sullivan. San Luis Obispo, reviewed the recommendations contained in his letter to
Council (on file in the City Clerk's office) and discussed the need for affordable housing in
the downtown.
Tom Jones, Dean of Cal Poly College of Architecture and Environmental Design, supported
increased height and discussed principles he thought should be considered.
Dane Senser, San Luis Obispo, spoke in support of the staff recommendation, of permitting
an extra story based on the design, and of making decisions on a case -by -case basis.
Chuck Crotser. San Luis Obispo, discussed his letter to Council (on file in the City Clerk's
office). He said there is a need to continue considering acquiring and preserving open
space, and to provide alternatives for moderately increasing heights.
Ken Schwartz, San Luis Obispo, referenced his letter to Council (on file in the City Clerk's
office) and said he is in favor of modifying the height limitations to accommodate needs for
the downtown. He explained that while there has been discussion regarding profitability for
the private sector, consideration must also be given to the public sector. He said there is a ,
need for a careful balance between the permitted land use and revenues generated.
City Council Meeting Page 3
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 - 7:00 p.m.
Pierre Rademaker, San Luis Obispo, pointed out that in the past, the City had a much more
' urban downtown than today and said that this is an opportunity to replace some of the
building mass lost. He also said he thinks the FAR needs to be adjusted to encourage more
creative solutions to upper level designs.
—end of public comments -
CAO Hampian explained why he believes there is a need to balance or clarify existing
policies.
Council discussion ensued, during which staff responded to questions.
Vice Mayor Settle supported flexibility in height, a FAR of 4:0, flexibility related to and an
underground component for parking, residential components and mixed use downtown,
and pursuing stories instead of feet. He also supported staff's recommendation.
Council Member Brown concurred with Vice Mayor Settle's comments.
Council Member Ewan also concurred with Vice Mayor Settle's comments. He added that
there is a need to discuss what percent of a building should be housing. He also concurred
with prior comments that it will be important to consider the perceptual framework of
buildings and to keep in mind the need to obtain public amenities as a trade off. He
suggested that there is a need to move forward within the 5 -story, 70 -foot range and that
more workable policies need to be put into place.
Council Member Mulholland discussed her opposition to the proposal. Her concerns
included, in part, that housing that has been developed in the downtown is not affordable;
that there should be a modal shift in transportation and that the downtown should not be
auto - dependent, but auto free; that urban life should be redefined to meet the challenge of
the growing energy scarcity; that as increased housing is discussed, how to discourage the
use of automobiles in the downtown and how not to add the costs of parking them onto the
housing must also be discussed; that residents of the City have expressed their opposition
to a taller downtown; that taller buildings are likely to create dark alleys; and that what
draws tourists is that the City is pedestrian - scaled old, small downtown. She also
expressed concern about the projects referenced in the staff report.
Mayor Romero said he thinks parking on some basis will need to be provided and that the
FAR is too restrictive. He favored a FAR of 4:0, eliminating basements and parking from the
FAR, and permitting buildings to exceed two or three stores. He said he would like to
consider building heights at 70 to 75 feet and pointed out that this would impact only a few
selected sites. He said he didn't object to transfer development credits (TDCs) and that
there should be a very careful review of each project greater than three or four stories in
height. He supported staff's recommendations.
In response to Council Member Mulholland, a brief discussion ensued regarding how the
City will maintain equilibrium between the higher and lower buildings (i.e., maintaining light
and the view shed) while still incorporating more housing in the downtown.
Staff will include the concept of utilizing transfer development credits in the follow up.
ACTION: Moved by Brown/Ewan to: 1. Revise the City's floor area ratio (FAR)
definition to exclude basements and parking. 2. Confirm policy inconsistencies
among General Plan policies and development standards for the downtown. 3.
Direct staff to bring back alternatives for moderately increasing the downtown
City Council Meeting
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 - 7:00 p.m.
Page 4
building height and intensity limits, in order to achieve other General Plan goals and
objectives, including design amenities, housing, and retail land uses. 4. Review
recommendations with the Cultural Heritage Committee, Architectural Review
Commission, Planning Commission, and Downtown Association before returning to
the Council; motion passed 4:1 (Mulholland opposed).
Vice Mavor Settle inquired whether Council would support asking for a report from staff on
the future of the Dalidio project and its impact on the City's land use policies. There was no
consensus give staff this direction at this time.
There being no further business to come before the City Council, Mayor Romero adjourned
the meeting at 9:40 p.m. to a special meeting on Wednesday, March 15, 2006, in the Council
Hearing Room, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo. A
Audrey He
City Clerk
APPROVED BY COUNCIL: 04/04/06
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