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CC RES 1997-015RESOLUTION NO. 97 -15 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES DENYING HEIGHT VARIATION NO. 750 - REVISION "B" FOR AN EXISTING 606.27 SQUARE FOOT UTILITY /STORAGE ROOM AND 170 SQUARE FOOT BALCONY ON THE SECOND FLOOR AND A PROPOSED 257 SQUARE FOOT STORAGE AREA OVER THE GARAGE AT 3558 BENDIGO DRIVE WHEREAS, on May 4, 1992, the landowners, Earl and Sharon Gantz, filed an application for Height Variation No. 750 with the City for a second story addition to the existing single story residence located at 3558 Bendigo Drive; and, WHEREAS, on September 8, 1992, the Director of the (then) Environmental Services Department approved an application for Height Variation No. 750 for a new 1,622 square foot second story addition, which would measure 26-0" in overall height and included a 167 square foot second story balcony; and, WHEREAS, on March 23, 1993, the Planning Commission adopted P.C. Resolution No. 93 -7, thereby approving an application for Variance No. 350 to allow a 210 square foot addition to the existing 462 square foot garage (total garage area 672 square feet) which involved the conversion of the indirect access garage to a direct access garage and a maximum 5' -9" encroachment into the required 20' -0" front yard setback area (resulting in a minimum front yard setback area of 14' -3 "). The plans which were approved by the Planning Commission included a roof height over the garage of 24' -0 "; and, WHEREAS, on September 13, 1993, the Director of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement approved an application for Height Variation No. 750 - Revision ( "A "). The revision application was submitted to the City after some unapproved construction over the garage area was discovered during a routine inspection of the property by the City's Building and Safety Division Staff. The Director's approval was for a 528 square foot storage room over the garage, which was conditioned with a maximum height of 24' -0 "; and, WHEREAS, on November 23, 1993, as the result of an appeal of the Director's decision by the adjacent neighbors, the Planning Commission determined that the proposed revision to Height Variation No. 750 would not be compatible with the character of the surrounding neighborhood due to its mass and two story appearance. Therefore, on December 14, 1993, the Planning Commission adopted P.C. Resolution No. 93 -43, upholding the appeal, denying the proposed revision to the project and requiring the landowners to construct the garage pursuant to the March 23, 1993 plans previously approved by the Commission; and, WHEREAS, on January 10, 1994, as the result of an appeal of the Planning Commission's decision by the landowners, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 94- 4, thereby denying the landowner's appeal, upholding the Planning Commission's denial of the proposed revision to the project and requiring the landowners to construct the garage pursuant to the March 23, 1993 plans previously approved by the Planning Commission; and, WHEREAS, on March 15, 1994, the landowners requested that the City Council clarify its previous January 10, 1994 action and determine whether or not revised plans submitted by the landowners were consistent with the prior action. The revised plans were submitted after the landowners indicated to Staff that the project could not be built to the March 23, 1993 plans, since the garage foundation slab had been constructed 2'- 0" higher than had been approved. As an alternative to demolishing the entire garage structure, including the foundation slab, the landowners were offered an opportunity to develop revised plan that satisfied the intent of the Council's action. The City Council passed a motion providing the landowners with direction to further modify the submitted plans to be consistent with the Council's prior action on January 10, 1994; and, WHEREAS, the landowners did not resubmit revised plans based on the Council's direction on March 15, 1994 and subsequently filed a lawsuit against the City in 1994, in which the City prevailed in 1996; and, WHEREAS, on September 18, 1996, the landowners submitted an application for Height Variation No. 750 - Revision "B" to the City to revise the approved March 23, 1993 plans; and, WHEREAS, after notice issued pursuant to the requirements of the Rancho Palos Verdes Municipal Code, the City Council held a public hearing on November 6, 1996, November 25, 1996, December 3, 1996, December 17, 1996, January 21, 1997 and February 18, 1997, at which time all interested parties were given an opportunity to be heard and to present evidence; NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES DOES HEREBY FIND, DETERMINE AND RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS: Section 1: The proposed structure is not compatible with the immediate neighborhood character. Neighborhood character is defined in the Height Variation Guidelines to consider the existing characteristics of an area, including 1) scale of surrounding residences, including square footage and lot coverage; 2) architectural styles, including facade treatments, structure height, open space between structures, roof design, the apparent bulk or mass of the structure, and building materials; and, 3) front yard setbacks. Resolution No. 97 -15 Page 2 of 5 With regards to scale, a field survey and permit record search of the 20 existing residences along Bendigo Drive (excluding the flag lots which are not visible from the street and the applicants' lot) indicates that the neighborhood is made up of single story, split level or two story homes. Research of the City's Building Permits indicates that the average size of these homes is 2,398 square feet in area. The largest homes in the surveyed area are 2,666 square feet in size. It is not possible to determine the lot coverage for the other homes along Bendigo Drive since the information contained in the Building Permit packets frequently does not contain complete calculations. The total area that has been constructed on the subject property thus far (including the utility room and two storage rooms on the upper level, but excluding the deck at the rear of the house and the garage area) is 4,758.63 square feet. This figure is almost twice the size of the average home in the area and more than 2,000 square feet larger than the largest homes surveyed, without including the proposed 257 square foot storage area over the garage. Therefore, the subject residence is much larger in scale than the other homes in the area and the addition of the utility and storage areas would increase the difference in scale such that the structure is not compatible with the surrounding neighborhood. With regards to architectural style, the apparent bulk and mass of the proposed structure is directly related to the overall scale and location of the structure as viewed from the street. It was the City's determination on the original Height Variation for the subject property that the resulting home would not appear too "bulky or massive" as a result of the placement of the second story addition over the rear portion of the house, even though the house would become the largest along the street. This initial determination based on the fact that additional square footage would not be apparent from the street, since it would have been screened by a large pitched roof. In addition, the garage would have had the appearance of a one story structure. With the addition of the second story utility /storage areas at the front of the structure and the proposed storage area over the garage, the residence would have the appearance of a full two story residence, as seen from Bendigo Drive. There are no other homes on Bendigo Drive which have the appearance of a full two story residence as seen from the street. In addition, there are no other combination of stepping roof pitches and styles throughout the neighborhood, which is created by the proposed area over the garage and the utility /storage room behind it. These characteristics of the proposed project would cause the overall appearance of the proposed project to be incompatible with the surrounding neighborhood. With regards to the front yard setback, although the existing utility /storage areas over the main residence and the proposed storage area over the garage would not encroach into the minimum 20' -0" front yard setback area, the lower level of the garage has been built 9" closer to the front property line than was approved by the Planning Commission through Variance No. 350. In addition, the garage has been built 6" wider and the Resolution No. 97 -15 Page 3 of 5 foundation is 2' -0" higher than shown on the originally approved plans. These unpermitted changes to the project, in combination with the proposed storage area over the garage, create a total structure that is too close to the front property line and gives the appearance of looming over the street, which is dissimilar from and therefore not compatible with the surrounding neighborhood. Section 2: The time within which the judicial review of the decision reflected in this Resolution, if available, must be sought is governed by Section 1094.6 of the California Code of Civil Procedure. Section 3: The adoption of this Resolution is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15303. Section 4: For the foregoing reasons, and based on the information and findings contained in the public record, including staff reports, minutes records of proceeding p � p 9 and evidence presented at the public hearing, the City Council of the City of Rancho Palos Verdes hereby denied Height Variation No. 750 - Revision "B" for a 606.27 square foot utility /storage room (consisting of the 403.9 square foot heater room and the two storage rooms of 94 and 108.37 square feet, respectively) and 170 square foot balcony that have already been constructed, and a proposed 257 square foot storage area over the garage, as depicted on the plans submitted to the City on February 4, 1997, on the property located at 3558 Bendigo Drive. The landowners are hereby directed to rebuild the residence in conformance with the plans approved by the Planning Commission on March 23, 1997. This action is without 1 re'udice and does p not preclude the landowners from submitting subsequent applications to revise Height Variation No. 750 less than a year from the date of adoption of this resolution. Any subsequent application to revise Height Variation No. 750 shall be reviewed by Staff, with possible appeal to the Planning Commission and City Council, pursuant to the provisions of Municipal Code Section 17.02.040. Resolution No. 97 -15 Page 4of5 PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED this 4th day of March 1997. IV ATTEST: f CLERIC STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES )ss CITY OR RANCHO PALOS VERDES ) I, Jo Purcell, City Clerk for the City of Rancho Palos Verdes, hereby certify that the above Resolution No. 97 -15 was duly and regularly passed and adopted by the said City Council at a regular meeting held on March 4, 1997. N:\ GROUP \PLANNING\RESOS \CCUW750RVA.DEN Jo cell, City Clerk Cit f Rancho Palos Verdes Resolution No. 97- 15 Page 5 of 5