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Staff Response to Letter from Eugene Zakhareyev, dated April 2, 2017 RZC 21.60.020D Context, Circulation and Connections. The design standard above contains the following Intent statements: a. To promote the functional and visual compatibility between adjacent neighborhoods and different land uses; b. To encourage building designs which use natural, historical, traditional, or cultural context references to create elements which link the development to the neighborhood and community; c. To use building design to create a transition between development and natural features; and d. To promote a gradual transition between different uses. The Design Criteria contain the following items: a. Coordinate proposed development with surrounding site planning and development efforts on adjacent properties. b. The site's zoning and other relevant Comprehensive Plan policies shall be considered as indicators of the desired direction for the area and project. c. Properly link proposed development to existing and planned walkway, trail, street drainage, and utility systems, and assure efficient continuation of such systems. d. Consider the impact of building mass, color, lighting, and design upon adjacent open spaces, continuity of identified public view corridors, public open spaces or parks, and recreation areas. e. Designs shall minimize impacts to historic structures or sites, and mitigate impacts through such means as: i. Developments adjacent to historic landmarks should ensure that significant features of historic landmarks are not obscured from public view. In cases where this is not fully possible, developments shall mitigate with photo documentation, showing the significant features that will be obscured and the relationship of the structure to that adjacent site prior to construction of the obscuring structure. ii. Use of color on developments adjacent to historic landmark structures that allow the existing historic landmarks to remain prominent within the immediate area. iii. Use of materials or design that emulate existing historic landmarks but which can be differentiated in age from that of the landmark. iv. Views from the new development may include views of significant features of the historic landmark. ---PAGE BREAK--- Staff believes that this section is not applicable to this application. The Intent statements are the actual “design standards” and the focus of these items are to “encourage” and “promote”. Additionally, religious facilities are allowed within residential zones and the issues of adjacencies are addressed under RZC 21.08.280 Churches, Temples, Synagogues, and Other Places of Worship RZC 21.60.040B.2 Design Concepts, Building Scale The Intent portion of this code states: i. To ensure new development is compatible with the goals for the neighborhood and with the architectural scale [the scale of the building(s) in relation to surrounding development] and character of those surrounding developments that meet the intent of the City’s design review criteria; ii. To ensure buildings are based on human scale (the scale of the building and how it relates to the people that use it); iii. To ensure that large buildings reduce their apparent mass and bulk on the elevations visible from streets or pedestrian routes; iv. To create a skyline that is visually interesting. The “scale” of a building is not determined by the number of square feet of a structure but by its appearance. The first and second Design Criteria for this section speaks to this, stating: i. The apparent mass and scale of large buildings should be reduced through the use of modulation and articulation that provides a pedestrian scale and architectural interest. The building envelope shall be designed to maintain shoreline view corridors from the site and nearby properties. ii. Integration. Large buildings should integrate features along their facades visible from the public right-‐‑of-‐‑way, and pedestrian routes and entries, to reduce the apparent building mass and achieve an architectural scale consistent with other nearby structures Here the examples used are to provide modulation and articulation to the building façade. Additionally, the integration of features along the facades that are visible to the public right of way are mentioned. The height of the principle structure (minus the dome) from the street will be less than 30 feet in height, less than the typical single family home. Finally, RZC 21.08.280 Churches, Temples, Synagogues, and Other Places of Worship, also speak to code requirements for help address building scale within the residential neighborhoods. RZC 21.60.040B.3 Roofline This section of code states: a. Intent. To promote detailed roof expression to create a variable roofline throughout and to create a skyline that is visually interesting. ---PAGE BREAK--- b. Design Criteria. i. Building rooflines visible from a public street, open space, or public parking area shall incorporate features to create a varied and visually distinctive roof form through features, such as prominent cornice or fascia, stepped roofs, emphasized dormers, chimneys, gables, or an articulated roofline. ii. The width of any continuous flat roofline should not extend more than 100 feet without modulation. Modulation should consist of either one or a combination of the following treatments: A. For flat roofs or facades with a horizontal eave, fascia, or parapet with at least an eight-‐‑foot return, the minimum vertical dimension of roofline modulation is the greater of two feet or one-‐‑tenth multiplied by the wall height (finish grade to top of wall) if the segment is 50 feet or less, or at least four feet if the segment is more than 50 feet in length. B. A sloped or gabled roofline segment of at least 20 feet in width and no less than three feet vertical in 12 feet horizontal. iii. Rooftops shall incorporate features which soften rectilinear forms and mechanical equipment, and rooftop penthouses shall be architecturally incorporated into the design of rooflines or into the overall building design. The Intent statement here requests that the roofline be a “variable roofline throughout and to create a skyline that is visually interesting.” The dome and decorative cornice meets the intent of this code section. RZC 21.60.020B Design Context The Intent statements for this section of code state: a. To provide contextual references that can be used to encourage creative and distinctive designs for new development and redevelopment projects while avoiding sameness in design. b. To create contexts that capture the community visions and values as reflected in the Comprehensive Plan, Redmond Zoning Code, and Design Review Handbook. Contextual elements could include the following: i. Context Defined by Natural Forms and Patterns. These are natural landforms found in the Sammamish River Valley and other parts of the City. Examples include river contour forms; river bench terraces; multiple silhouette ridgelines; and panoramic vistas with associated mountain, lake, river, and ravine forms. ii. Historic and Cultural Context. Historic landmarks and the section of Leary Way framed by older historic structures have been identified as contributing to the historic character of ---PAGE BREAK--- the City. In addition, Redmond’s native peoples and Redmond’s heritage as a logging and farming community, and as a historic urban crossroads, define the more general historic and cultural context of the City. iii. Architectural Context. This includes buildings with articulated facades, pedestrian-‐‑friendly scale and detailing, historic building features or character, and interesting rooflines. The Zoning Code and Comprehensive Plan allow for religious facilities within single family neighborhoods. The City has created a separate section of code, RZC 21.08.280, to address how to mitigate the construction of this use within these neighborhoods. This section does not appear to be relevant to the application. RZC 21.60.020D Relationship to Adjacent Properties The Intent statements for this section of code state: a. To promote the functional and visual compatibility between adjacent neighborhoods and different land uses; b. To encourage building designs which use natural, historical, traditional, or cultural context references to create elements which link the development to the neighborhood and community; c. To use building design to create a transition between development and natural features; and d. To promote a gradual transition between different uses. This section of code speaks to how a new project relates to adjacent properties and states that the design shall minimize impact to historic properties. This is the only “shall” statement listed within the Design Criteria. The Intent statements here speak to “promoting” and “encouraging” which the Board may do but the Code does not establish a standard for the Board to evaluate this project. The applicant has proposed landscape screening along the side and rear of the project as well as provided a building front façade that is less than 30 feet in height for the principle portion of the building, not including the dome. Building Setbacks RZC 21.08.280 (Churches, Temples, Synagogues, and Other Places of Worship) established the code requirements for such uses when they are located within a residential zone. RZC 21.08.280D1 speaks to when the seating capacity is less than 250 seats. In this case, the minimum setback is 20 feet from all property lines. The code goes on to state that “building setbacks shall be increased by five feet for every one foot in building height over 30 feet. Note, that this only applies when the structure is over 30 feet in height. The Code in RZC 21.08.280D1d goes on to state that the “maximum building height does not exceed 50 feet inclusive of steeples, bell towers, crosses, or other symbolic religious icons”. ---PAGE BREAK--- Building height is defined as “vertical distance measured from the average finished grade around the building to the highest point of the structure. The approved average finished grade shall be measured by taking the smallest rectangle around the building and averaging the elevations at the midpoint of each side”. The plans show the Average Grade (Average Finish Grade) and demonstrate that the structure is under the 30 foot height limit with the exception of the dome and mechanical room. The domed portion of the structure is considered a symbolic religious icon that would be commonly found on a mosque. This is separate and not part of the calculations for the building setback. Parking The issue that Mr. Zakhareyev addresses here is one of adequate parking within the site, the use of valet parking, and the location of the driveway entrance. These issues are code issues for the Technical Committee to address and not within the scope of the Design Review Board’s review.