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units. They aren't really three floors. Technically, we have a mezzanine because they are open to the lower floor. And that was one of the things we weighed when we looked at the residences; if we did a mezzanine kind of room on the upper floor, technically the building department looks at them as a mezzanine and not a full floor. I think working around the trees, in terms of the guest parking, we have some additional space there and I think we have some flexibility to make it work. Our hope was that we would provide a little variety of housing types that are so close to that transit, that's like three blocks away. The studios and the small 1,800-square-foot homes would offer a different kind of housing type to single people or single couples than we typically see in this neighborhood. It's sympathetic really to the houses, on the west side the houses are adjacent to another two-story house, two- story houses behind them, and they're all in the same range. We're 30 feet at the ridge and probably 27 feet at the eave line. So that's kind of where the thrust of where the architecture was coming from. If you have questions on that, I'd be glad to answer. Chair Ritter: Questions for either speaker? Commissioner Brown: So for the mixed use building with the studios up, is that considered per the City's Planning Division a three-story or two-story with a mezzanine? Ward: You know, I don't know. Planning looks at it differently than the building code. The California Building Code, I don't know Beaudin: A mezzanine level would be considered a third story. Ritter: All right, any other questions? Carey: You visited the whole height thing before and whether it's 30 feet, 50 feet, two or three stories, and everything's under interpretation. We're hoping that we evolved to a set height I think. Whatever you can get into it, I think height is the key element. Beaudin: And that's what we've been comfortable with as well and that's why we're recommending that the height be considered at 30 feet. You know, the difference between two stories and three stories when you're walking by on the street isn't perceptible, but height and massing are. So the idea here is to get a well-articulated architectural style that fits with the neighborhood. The street is interesting. It kind of narrows and widens as you go along Old Bernal, so whatever happens on this site will likely be newer, closer to the street, and I want to make sure what we put on the opposite side at this point in time is going to provide some balance for the street. Like I said, in some places it's wider than others, so I want to make sure we get a significant enough corner building and probably that residential building as well closer to the street if this is a site plan we stick with. Commissioner Brown: Yeah, I was just asking as it related to the Land Use Policy 15. That's why I was asking. So one final question and maybe it's not appropriate. The Alok Damireddy project and his email around of being denied at 32 feet; was his 32 feet to the top of the building or was it to the other dimension that you mentioned? And, any other comment around precedent-setting, fairness, etc. as it relates to this project. I would agree with Gerry's comments that at the end of the day when you're on the street, it's the mass of the building. EXCERPT: PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, May 25, 2016 Page 8 of 22