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HomeMy WebLinkAbout3-20-18 Final Minutes (2)DESIGN REVIEW BOARD MINUTES CITY OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO DATE: March 20, 2018 TIME: 4:00 PM MEMBERS PRESENT: Harris, Nelson, Williams & Vieira MEMBERS ABSENT: Nilmeyer STAFF PRESENT: Tony Rozzi, Principal Planner Ryan Wassum, Associate Planner Justin Shiu, Consultant Planner Patricia Cotla, Planning Technician 1. OWNER San Mateo Diversified LLC APPLICANT North East Medical Services ADDRESS 225 Spruce Avenue PROJECT NUMBER P18-0008: UP18-0002, PE18-0001, Signs18-0002 & DR18-0004 PROJECT NAME New 3-Story Medical Office Building (Case Planner: Justin Shiu) DESCRIPTION Use Permit, Design Review and Parking Exemption to construct a new 3- story medical office building at 225 Spruce Avenue in the Grand Avenue Core (GAC) Zoning District in accordance with South San Francisco Muncipal Code and determination that the project is exempt from CEQA, per Class 1, Section 15303. The Board had the following comments: 1. The design of the proposed project is incompatible and inconsistent with the historic character of the downtown and the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan (DSASP).The project should be redesigned to complemement the unique and historic fabric of the downtown core, and should incorporate compatible massing, articulation, and visually compelling architecture. As proposed, the elevations lack articulation and should utilize complementary materials to existing buildings on historic Grand Avenue. Recommend using traditional materials such as brick, brick veneer, slate/ stone, and metal(s). 2. Accessibility and Circulation comments: a. Check with the Building Division on the requirments and location of the ADA stalls, as the proposed ADA stalls may not meet code or current regulations. b. The parking stalls may need to be relocated to accommodate an accessible path of travel to the building. c. Revise the proposed site plan to include an external access to the public right-of-way from the stairwell exiting onto Spruce Avenue. d. Consider the impacts of removing the existing vehicle access from Spruce Avenue on parking lot circulation and on parking lot access from 3rd Lane. e. Check with the Building Department on the requirements for the existing commercial building. f. Check with the Engineering Department, as the slope of the parking lot may not meet code requirements or the turning radius into new proposed driveway off the lane. g. The Board is concerned with the traffic circulation off of the lane. The limited ingress and egress from this location could create potential traffic issues; because of this, it is recommended that the applicant conduct a traffic study. h. The plans are lacking a trash enclosure area and a pick up area for SSF Scavengers; please update the plans to reflect a trash plan. 3. Landscape Plan comments: a. Review the landscaping plan, as the selected tree species will not survive the SSF wind elements. b. Consider tall Oval Evergreen trees that will scale the height of the building. c. Check the landscaping requirements to determine if the site meets all the development requirements. d. The design appears to have reduced the total SF of landscaping, which was already limited. The design should improve the total area of landscape and not reduce it. e. As the building is redesigned, consider landscaping on the upper floor deck. f. Review C3 requirements and the impact it may have on bio-retention/landscape design. 4. Signage comments: a. The proposed wall signs are too tall and out of scale with the building. The DRB recommends using just the name of the business with individual channel letters, which is more consistent and compatible with downtown signage. b. Reduce redundant or excessive signage. c. Reduce the overall sign area to be more proportional with the building facade. d. Review the Sign Regulation requirements, Zoning Ordinance 20.360, to determine if more than one wall sign is permitted. 5. Consider incorporating Solar Panels into the project to meet the California Green Building requirements. Resubmittal required. 2. OWNER Shree Hospitality LP APPLICANT Kunal Patel ADDRESS 915 Airport Blvd PROJECT NUMBER P17-0104: UP18-0003, DR18-0005 & TDM18-0002 PROJECT NAME New Proposed Hotel (Case Planner: Ryan Wassum) DESCRIPTION Use Permit, Design Review and TDM Plan to construct a new 5-story hotel with podium parking at 915 Airport Blvd in the Business Commercial (BC) Zoning District in accordance with Title 20 of the South San Francisco Municipal Code. The Board had the following comments: 1. The Board liked the overall design concept. 2. Accessibility and Circulation comments: a. Review all ADA accessibility stalls to make sure they are compliant with all requirements and regulations. b. Relocate the ADA parking stalls to have an accessible access to the front of the building. c. The proposed ADA ramp needs to have a connection to the public right-of-way (ROW) from the building. d. Create a wider accessible walkway from the vestibule to the public ROW area off Airport Blvd. 3. Landscape Plan comments: a. Front area: replace the trees with a species that will grow taller and scale with the building; consider selecting an Evergreen species. b. Rear area: replace the trees with a species that will grow tall and slender (due to area constraints); consider selecting an Evergreen species that will retain a pleasant look in the winter. 4. The board strongly recommends adding a retaining wall to the rear of the property to catch rocks and debris from falling off the hillside; also consider adding some sort of safety net that can catch any falling elements from the hillside (prior to hitting the retaining wall). For development standards pertaining to retaining walls, please view Section 20.300.005 of the SSFMC. Recommend Approval with Conditions. 3. OWNER Ares Commercial Properties APPLICANT GTE Mobilent of California LP ADDRESS 370 Shaw Road PROJECT NUMBER P17-0105: UP17-0020 & DR17-0068 PROJECT NAME Wirelesss Antenna Facility (Case Planner: Justin Shiu) DESCRIPTION Use Permit and Design Review to install a wireless communications facility at 370 Shaw Road in the Mixed Industrial (MI) Zoning District in accordance with Title 20 of the South San Francisco Municipal Code and determination that the project is categorically exempt from CEQA, per Class 3, Section 15303(e). The Board had the following comments: 1. The Board preferred the monopole structure over the alternative monopine and water tank designs. The monopole creates less visual mass. 2. Paint the wireless facilities to complement the building – a gray color may be appropriate for the monopole. Recommend Approval with Conditions. 4. OWNER Juan & Ivette Gomez APPLICANT Andrea Costanzo ADDRESS 770 Commercial Avenue PROJECT NUMBER P18-0004: DR18-0002 PROJECT NAME 2nd Story Addition (Case Planner: Justin Shiu) DESCRIPTION Design Review to construct a 2nd story addition to an existing dwelling at 770 Commercial Avenue in the Downtown Residential Low (DRL) Zoning District in accordance with Title 20 of the South San Francisco Municipal Code and determination that the project is exempt from CEQA, per Class 1, Section 15301. The Board had the following comments: 1. The Board liked the design concept. 2. Consider double doors for the proposed elevators. 3. Provide detail information in how the windows will be trimmed. All windows should match. 4. Add a street tree in the front yard and select a tree species that will survive the SSF elements. Recommend Approval with Conditions.