Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-19-2001 ARC Minutes SAN LUIS OBISPO ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMISSION MINUTES March 19, 2001 - 5:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Present: Commissioners Michael Boudreau, Jim Lopes, Rob Schultz, Mark Rawson, Chairperson Charles Stevenson and one vacancy Absent: Chairperson Charles Stevenson and Commr. Chandler Staff: Associate Planners Michael Codron MINUTES: Minutes of February 5, 2001. Amend or approve. PROJECTS: 1. 1795 McCollum Street. ARC 189-00; Review of house designs and site development plans for a new 9-unit subdivision; R-1 zone; Patrick & Allison Aurignac, applicants. Michael Codron Michael Codron, Associate Planner, presented the staff report recommending the Commission continue review of the project to a date uncertain, to give staff adequate time to evaluate recent changes to the project. COMMISSION COMMENTS On motion by Commr. Rawson, seconded by Commr. Boudreau, the ARC continued review of the project to a date uncertain, to give staff adequate time to evaluate recent changes to the project. AYES: Commrs. Boudreau, Rawson, Schultz and Lopes NOES: NONE ABSENT: Commrs. Stevenson and Chandler The motion passed. ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 2 2. 950 High Street. ARC 14-00; Review of the revised landscaping plan for the Railroad Transportation Center; 950 High Street; C-S-S-H zone; City of San Luis Obispo, applicant. Michael Codron Michael Codron, Associate Planner, presented the staff report recommending the Commission approve the proposed landscaping plan with direction on changes to return to the Community Development Director for final approval. The public hearing was opened. Jim Burrows, Landscape Architect, described the restraints of the site and why he chose the plant materials shown on the plan. He said that most of the plants selected would be in the 3-foot to 4-foot range. He chose vines that are very aggressive growers, per ARC direction, and tried to include a variety of species to create the feel of “something going on.” He said that the palette includes drought tolerant, ornamental species primarily, because natives don’t do as well in the constrained conditions of the site. Pierre Rademaker spoke regarding the project to express his disappointment with the process and the wall. The public hearing was closed. COMMISSION COMMENTS Commr. Schultz stated that he was concerned about the proposed planting in between the front and rear wall and said that planting in this area could enhance the height of the wall. He felt that street trees should be minimized so that they don’t block the view of the railroad corridor beyond. He said if the street trees were closer to the street, less of the view would be blocked. Commr. Lopes stated that the plant selection should be revised to include more evergreen species and less showy, colorful plants. He stated that the planting should match the industrial character of the site and surroundings. Commr. Lopes expressed several desired criteria for the landscape plan as follows: retain view corridors of the warehouse, bridge, and railroad as much as possible; soften views of the wall with partial plant coverage; accentuate the entry points to the project; include trees that are high branching canopy trees for coverage of the street and allowing views below; lower the planting area between the front and rear wall to improve drainage and reduce the overall height of landscaping in this area; reduce the amount of plant material shown on ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 3 the plan; include Pyrus calleyana (“Aristocrat”) in tree wells along Santa Barbara Street; use drip lines and bubblers instead of spray irrigation. Commr. Boudreau said that he agreed with the landscape architect and the recommendations in the staff report. He felt that focal points of color and variety should be eliminated so that they would not draw attention to the wall. He said that lowering the dirt in the wall should be up to the landscape architect as appropriate for a given plant species. Commr. Rawson said that the plan reflected a nice selection of plant materials. He said that the plan should be scaled back somewhat, but that he does not share the concern that a heavily landscaped wall would draw attention away from the railroad activities beyond. He said that the height of the dirt in between the wall should undulate or be reduced to lower the effective height of plants in this area. He said that the increased planter width is more of a benefit than an additional 6” of boardwalk area. He felt that the street trees should be pulled out to the street where possible. On a motion by Commr. Lopes, seconded by Commr. Schultz, the ARC approved the revised landscaping plan with the following conditions: Conditions 1. The boardwalk may be reduced to 1.83 meters (6 feet) to provide additional planter space. 2. A revision to building permit #14679 (RTC) shall be submitted to the Building Division to incorporate the revised landscaping plan into the approved set of building plans. 3. The revised landscaping plan shall include native plant species, where appropriate, to the approval of the Community Development Director, as directed by the ARC. 4. The quantities and sizes of plant materials included on the revised landscaping plan shall be scaled back to draw less attention to the wall and to reduce the potential for long-term maintenance problems, to the approval of the Community Development Director, as directed by the ARC. 5. Plant species proposed for the planter between the front and rear wall shall be selected to grow no higher than the rear wall. This shall be achieved by first lowering the dirt level in the planter and creating a flat planting surface, with reinforcement of the rear wall implemented as necessary. If this is not feasible, the second method to be used is a selection of low growing plants, such as Dwarf Rosemary. ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 4 6. Avoid highly colorful, showy plant materials such as trumpet vine. 7. Explore the use of tree wells in several locations in order to locate trees farther away from railroad activities, to allow for a canopy over Santa Barbara Street, and to provide separation between vehicles and pedestrians. 8. Revise the proposed tree selection and locate trees to maintain view corridors to the warehouse, bridge and railroad. Explore Pyrus calleryana (Aristocrat) as an alternative to Tristania. AYES: Commrs. Boudreau, Rawson, Schultz and Lopes NOES: None ABSENT: Commr. Stevenson and Chandler The motion passed. 3. 860 Pacific Street. ARC 28-99; Review of signage for the addition to the Marsh Street Parking Structure; O zone; City of San Luis Obispo, applicant. John Shoals Michael Codron, Associate Planner, presented the staff report recommending the Commission approve the font type to be used for project signage. The public hearing was opened. Pierre Rademaker, representative for the City, explained the reasons why Helvetica and Trajan were chosen as the font types for the Marsh Street Parking Structure expansion project. Mr. Rademaker provided history and other background information to support the proposal. Reasons for the choice include that Helvetica is the international standard font for airport signage because of its clarity and is more legible, and thus safer, than Libra, which is the City standard font type. Mr. Rademaker explained that the City’s Libra font is actually a Celtic font, although it appears Spanish in nature. He said that the Libra font is not well suited for chiseled applications because of its thin lines and two-dimensional nature. The Trajan font, on the other hand, is well suited for chiseled applications because the font was created based on actual Roman engravings. He described the three-dimensional quality of the font and the effect of the shadow cast by the sun shining on the letters. The public hearing was closed. ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 5 COMMISSION COMMENTS On a motion by Commr. Boudreau, seconded by Commr. Schultz, the ARC approved Helvetica and Trajan font types for the Marsh Street Parking Garage signage as proposed. AYES: Commrs. Boudreau, Rawson, Schultz and Lopes NOES: None ABSENT: Commrs Stevenson and Chandler The motion passed. 4. 2333 Meadow Street. ARC 22-01; Review of replacement pathway lighting in Meadow Park; PF zone; City of San Luis Obispo (Public Works Department), applicant. Whitney McIlvaine Michael Codron, Associate Planner, presented the staff report recommending the Commission approve the lighting plan as submitted, based on findings. The public hearing was opened. City Engineer, Wayne Peterson, described the reasoning behind the project proposal. He said that staff had evaluated the existing lighting in the park and determined that many of the poles and fixtures were unsafe and needed to be removed as soon as possible. He described the areas in the park that were currently lit at night that are unused. He felt that lighting should be eliminated in these areas. He said that the lighting along South Street was being eliminated because the lights were not intended to be street lights and were oriented in towards the park. The lighting scheme is intended to focus light on the pathways that are used and to discourage people from moving onto the grass areas after dark. Frank Little, 2362 Meadow, spoke and said that he liked the current lighting levels. He felt that his concerns had been addressed by the staff presentation of the project. He appreciates the fact that the lights in the park are not too bright and hopes that the new lights will be similar in terms of lighting level. He said that the basketball court is used every night. He expressed concern over the direction of the lights and said that they should be pointed downwards instead of out. He described the lighting around the perimeter of the park and said that the intersection of Meadow Street and South Street is unlit at night. The public hearing was closed. ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 6 COMMISSION COMMENTS Commr. Lopes felt that removing the lighting at the edge of the park would create a darker space that is more forbidding. Commr. Boudreau felt that defining the boundary of the park with lights had validity. He said that he is concerned that the character of the new lights may differ from the old because of the different fixtures proposed. He felt that the City should consider replacing the lights adjacent to South Street and Meadow Street with pedestrians in mind. Commr. Rawson said that he is concerned that the proposed lights will be significantly brighter than the existing fixtures. He felt that metal halide fixtures may be a bad choice and that a 150-watt metal halide bulb can be too bright to look at. He suggested that a better approach would be to use more lights at a lower wattage. He said that foot- candles are not the defining characteristic for the quality of the light, because the proposed lights could still generate a significant amount of glare. On motion by Commr. Rawson, seconded by Commr. Boudreau, the Commission approved the proposed lighting plan based on findings and subject to the following conditions: Conditions: 1. Staff shall explore a plan for perimeter lighting of the park to return to the ARC for review and approval. Perimeter park lighting should define the park boundary and make the park more inviting to pedestrians. 2. Lighting levels from the new fixtures should be similar to existing lighting levels and shall comply with the City’s standards for illumination. 3. Prior to approval of the wattage to be used in the new fixtures, staff will insure compliance with Condition #2 through a demonstration installation or by calculation and photometrics. ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 7 AYES: Commrs. Commrs. Boudreau, Rawson, Schultz and Lopes NOES: None ABSENT: Commrs. Stevenson and Chandler The motion passed. 5. 956 Walnut Street. ARC 168-00; Demolition of an existing structure and construction of a 5,000 square foot office building with a proposed height of 35-feet; O zone; David Scarry, applicant. Whitney McIlvaine Michael Codron, Associate Planner, presented the staff report recommending that the Commission continue consideration of the project in order to give the applicant time to prepare a visual analysis of the project. COMMISSION COMMENTS Commr. Lopes said that he felt the visual analysis should include views of the project from Highway 101, which is adjacent to the project site. On motion by Commr. Schultz, seconded by Commr. Lopes, the Commission continued consideration of the project to a date uncertain. AYES: Commrs. Boudreau, Rawson, Schultz and Lopes NOES: None ABSENT: Commrs. Stevenson and Chandler The motion passed. COMMENT AND DISCUSSION The minutes from the February 5, 2001 ARC meeting were approved with minor changes. City Engineer, Wayne Peterson, provided an overview of the City’s efforts to comply with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). Staff provided an agenda forecast. The meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m. to a regular meeting of the Architectural Review ARC Minutes March 19, 2001 Page 8 Commission, scheduled for Monday, April 2, 2001 at 5:00 p.m. in the Council Hearing Room at City Hall, 990 Palm Street. Respectfully submitted, Michael Codron, Recording Secretary