Architectural Review Commission Meeting Update
Regular Meeting

October 1, 2007                            Monday                                 5:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL:      Commrs. Jason Kambitsis, Zeljka Howard, Anthony Palazzo, Greg Wilhelm, Steven Hopkins, Vice-Chair Allen Root, and Chairperson Michael Boudreau 

Commr. Wilhelm was absent. 

ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA:  

The order of the agenda was not modified. 

PUBLIC COMMENT:   

There was no public comment other than on regular agenda items.

PUBLIC HEARINGS: 

1.        295 Los Cerros Drive. ARC 126-07; Review of a proposed single-family residence on a sensitive site; R-1-PD zone; Brian Rolph, applicant. (Phil Dunsmore) 

On a 6-0-1 vote, the Commission granted final approval to the project, based on findings and subject to conditions and code requirements.  The ARC concluded that the angled design of the house’s footprint and large building setbacks to property lines worked to limit privacy and overlook concerns.  They also found that the architectural style and scale of the house were compatible with other houses in the neighborhood.  The Commission added a condition to have details on property line screening with the property to the south (269 Los Cerros) and an updated colors and materials board showing a more subdued body color return to them. 

Several neighbors spoke at the hearing.  Dan Kingma, neighbor across the street (288 Los Cerros), was concerned with the scale of the house and thought that the stucco color should be more subdued.  Richard Dozier, immediate neighbor to the north (327 Los Cerros), had concerns with the proposed artist’s studio above the garage.  Ann Dozier wanted reassurance that drainage concerns would be addressed. Scott Potter, immediate neighbor to the south (269 Los Cerros), had concerns with the design of property line screening. 

2.        400 Prado Road. ARC 112-07; Conceptual review of an approx. 160,000 sq. ft. business park development on a 20 acre site; R-2-S zone; Prado Park LLC, applicant.  (Pam Ricci) 

On a 6-0-1 vote, the Commission continued action with 12 different directional items regarding modifications to plans and additional information to be addressed in revised plans submitted for final architectural review.  In general the ARC supported the project site plan including the placement of buildings and reusing the same footprint for all seven buildings.  They felt that the plan responded well to the numerous site constraints and created an attractive project identification statement at the intersection of Prado Road and the proposed Davis Street  The ARC discussed the eclectic style of the proposed building architecture, but other than asking for additional details of cornices and eaves and varying the color palette somewhat between buildings, did not require substantial changes to building design. Other directional items included enhanced pedestrian walkways, less reliance on diamond-shaped tree wells in parking lot areas, and the submittal of additional information related to various project details like landscaping, trash enclosures, signage, bike parking, and outdoor use areas.

 Linda Connor and Hank Carter, two neighbors of the project that lived at Rancho San Luis Mobile Estates, spoke at the hearing about drainage and flooding concerns in the area.  Beverly Joy, another resident of the same mobile home park, submitted a letter also noting issues with flooding. 

COMMENT & DISCUSSION: 

3.    Staff: 

A. Agenda Forecast - Pam Ricci provided an agenda forecast for the 10-15-07 meeting. 

4.    Commission: 

A.        Minutes: September 17, 2007 – The minutes were approved as submitted. 

       B.   Recent Project Review – Lessons Learned 

Commr.  Hopkins mentioned that he thought that the Quaglino Building on Court Street turned out well now that it was fully completed despite some earlier reservations with the heavy look of the plaster awnings. 

Commr.  Howard stated that she thought that the columns on the facades of some of the tenant spaces at Madonna Plaza appeared too heavy. 

ADJOURNMENT  

The meeting adjourned at 710: p.m.