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allowed on the front of a house, then you would lose 20 ft. of the house width at the front portion of the house for a 20 ft. wide by 20 ft. deep two-car garage (the minimum dimensions allowed by Municipal Code). On a 50 ft. wide lot (a common residential lot width Downtown), that would result in a remaining width of 14 ft. for the living area of the house adjacent to the garage and a 34 ft. house width beyond the garage after the City setbacks are applied for the RM-4,000 Zoning District (which includes the homes on the east side of First St. and the west side of Second St.). Conversely, a 10-ft. wide driveway on the side of the house with one-ft.. wide landscape planters on either side (12-ft. total) results in a 31-ft. wide house after the City setbacks are applied, which is wider at the front of the house than if the garage is attached and only three feet less in width behind the attached garage option. A graphic example of this is shown on Exhibit I along with examples for the other residential zoning districts in the Downtown Specific Plan Area: the R-1-6,500 and RM-1,500 Districts. Staff notes that there are many examples of 50 ft. wide lots with driveways on the side of the house leading to a detached garage in the rear of the lot. For example, on the west side of Second St. between Kottinger Dr. and Arendt St., where most of the 13 lots are 50 ft. wide, there is a driveway on the side of all of the homes except for the corner lot at Kottinger Dr. (which has a driveway on Kottinger Dr. and no driveway on Second St.). Options for Consideration The following are a few options that the Commission may wish to consider and/or discuss: 1. Use the Task Force's recommendation without changes. 2. Change the Task Force's recommended greater than 60 ft. lot width for requiring a detached garage to 50 ft. (or another dimension the Commission believes is appropriate). 3. Use the Task Force's recommended greater than 60 ft. lot width for requiring a detached garage and add language to encourage detached garages be located at the rear of lots on lots 60 ft. or less when feasible. 4. Keep the existing Specific Plan and Guideline language which encourages, but doesn't require detached garages be located at the rear of lots. Other Items for Possible Future Consideration Based on the feedback from the City Council at the June check-in, the Task Force is not recommending that the Planning Commission or City Council require Design Review for modifications to the first floor (i.e., 10 ft. or below in height) of single-family homes or establish a Mills Act Program as part of this package of amendments. However, some Task Force members felt that expanding design review authority to the first floor of homes in the Downtown is critical to ensure that changes are consistent with the Downtown Specific Plan and Downtown Design Guidelines. In addition, some Task Force members believe that the Mills Act is a useful economic incentive to help property owners preserve historic buildings. The P13-2446/P13-4447/P13-4448 Page - 12 - November 13, 2013