PC 041316 - Laserfiche WebLink

Commissioner Balch: That's the one we see looking like a snake on the plans here. Soo: Yes. Commissioner O'Connor: So it is no parking? Soo: Yes. Commissioner O'Connor: That was one of my concerns. Chair Ritter: The only parking is in the driveway. And how many cars can they fit in the driveway? Commissioner O'Connor: Well, that was my concern. If we shorten it, it's getting in and out. Soo: It's 50 feet across and 9 feet wide. Commissioner O'Connor: No, I'm saying certainly you can stack cars in there but they may have to move and since there's no street parking... Weinstein: Yes, I mean absolutely, it's certainly a trade -off in terms of providing parking on the site and reducing grading. Just to be completely frank of what this is, this is a compromise that we tried to strike between the desires of Mr. Reeves who for good reasons is very, very sensitive to changes in the topography and the desire of the applicant to have a really nice project that works well for people who live there in the future. So it's simply a compromise. I don't think there's a clear right answer or wrong answer in this case, but again, we're just trying to strike a balance between preserving the existing topography per the original approval but also allowing the project to be built as proposed. Commissioner O'Connor: Thank you for reminding me of my other question. When you were looking at landscaping, was there any discussion with the neighbors? And the reason I ask is, whether this retaining wall goes in or not, I think a retaining wall is great, but I'm more worried about large trees. Is there going to be a neighbor who now has blue sky who's going to be worried about 30 -, 40 -, or 50 -foot tall tree species blocking that? Could that compromise have been in the area of landscaping where we put shrubbery on those high walls where it won't necessarily block the sky, or trees that grow to a smaller height... was any of that discussed with any of the neighbors? Were they concerned about any of that? Soo: A second person contacted staff regarding this application. The other homeowner lives on the opposite side so he is basically just concerned about the elevation he's going to see from his backyard, but after conversation with Mr. Reeves, he indicated he didn't really want to see the retaining wall portion. So for that, staff had discussions with the landscape architect to pick a species which would have a proper height, nice spread, and then also be evergreen. So that's why the species is recommended. Commissioner O'Connor: So designed to cover the walls. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, April 13, 2016 Page 19 of 33