Architectural Review Commission Meeting Update
Regular Meeting

August 18, 2008                            Monday                                 5:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL:      Commrs. Jim Duffy, Steven Hopkins, Zeljka Howard, Anthony Palazzo, Chris Weber, Vice-Chair Greg Wilhelm, and Chairperson Allen Root 

Commrs. Hopkins and Howard were absent.

ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA:   

The agenda was accepted as submitted. 

PUBLIC COMMENT:   

Paul Nagy expressed concerns with the extent of City fees and improvements that applied to his condominium project at the corner of Laurel Lane and Southwood Drive.  He noted that he installed asphalt rather than colored, stamped concrete called for on his approved architectural and building permit plans because of cost concerns, and that he planned to return to the Commission at a future date for their consideration of a modification to the approved plans. 

PUBLIC HEARINGS: 

1.        1445 Santa Rosa Street.  ARC 166-07; Review of Mitchell Park Senior Center parking lot design; PF-H zone; City of San Luis Obispo – Public Works Dept., applicant.  (James David)

On a 5:0 vote (Commrs. Howard & Hopkins absent), the ARC recommended approval of the parking lot design to the City Council, provided that specific conditions of approval are met.  In addition to staff recommended conditions in the agenda report, the Commission added the following conditions after hearing testimony from the public: relocate the barbecue area out of the park’s grassy area, relocate the trash enclosure to less visually-obtrusive area, use an alternative to the proposed asphalt paving, eliminate the proposed cyclone fencing and use landscaping or a decorative type fencing such as wrought iron if screening is desired, and consider creating  a bio-swale instead of using river rock in the detention basin to address drainage needs.

Four members of the public spoke at the hearing.  Stefan Lamb suggested moving the barbeque area and screening parking with shrubs.  Dan Carpenter recommended eliminating the walkway across the exiting driveway for safety reasons.  Jim Kelleher expressed concern with the selection of Sycamore trees near the parking lot because they are messy.  Sherry Fonten questioned the ability of delivery trucks to access the proposed lot and the need for a loading zone. 

2.        City-wide.  ARC 49-06; Review form-based codes for the South Broad Street Corridor Plan; City of San Luis Obispo, applicant.  (Jeff Hook)

On a 4:0 vote (Commrs. Howard & Hopkins absent; Commr. Wilhelm recused), the ARC continued action to a date uncertain to allow Commission comments to be included in the final draft.  The Commission discussed using different public lighting standards and emphasized the need to provide many images or graphics showing the different architectural styles.  Commissioners supported the approach of having three basic architectural styles and felt these styles reflected the area’s character and sense of place and wanted to encourage a variety of exterior expressions and materials within each style.  They agreed that the architectural standards should call for “real” architectural materials and detailing and to avoid the use of “faux” materials like brick veneer.  Commissioners asked staff to restudy standards dealing with the window height not exceeding two stories, requirement for factory-based painting, and the use of cementitious exterior siding. 

COMMENT & DISCUSSION: 

1.           Staff: 

a.      Agenda Forecast – Pam Ricci noted that it was likely that the meeting scheduled for Tuesday, September 2, 2008, would be cancelled. 

b.      Communication from Community Development Director John Mandeville regarding the interpretation of “should” policies and guidelines – The Commission appreciated the input from the Director included in the memo and indicated that the background would be helpful for future project deliberations. 

2.           Commission: 

a.      Minutes:  August 4, 2008 – The minutes were approved as submitted. 

b.     Recent Project Review – Lessons Learned 

ADJOURNMENT 

Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the Architectural Review Commission regarding any item on this agenda will be made available for public inspection in the Community Development, 919 Palm Street, during normal business hours.