SR 06:210 - Laserfiche WebLink

DRAFT midpoint of a hipped or slanted roof, in which case, the height of the turret would be 28 feet, which is two feet under the 30-foot height limit. In response to Commissioner Fox's inquiry if the height is not measured from the lowest to highest point, Ms, Mendez replied that that is done for accessory structures but not for primary structures, Commissioner Fox noted that she had not seen a remodel with a balcony in past applications and inquired about the appropriateness of a balcony as well as volume in relation to other remodels and other issues, Ms. Mendez replied that she would not address the appropriateness of a remodel with a balcony as that requires a judgment call. She explained that applications for second-floor balconies that meet site development standards and have no neighbor concerns are approved on the Zoning Administrator level. She stated that staff has received several of these applications in the past years and they were not brought before the Planning Commission because they were not appealed. Commissioner Fox inquired whether applications for balconies are more common in residential- zoned areas similar to this case or in low-density residential sites where there are larger distances between houses, Ms, Mendez replied that the two applications she had processed were located in an R-I-6,500 zoning district, which is a smaller lot size than the R-I-7,500 zoning district of this case, Mr, Stanton stated that the tower is unique in the whole tract and is out of place, He pointed out that it is higher than the normal roof and that the peak is directly in view from their backyard, He reiterated his concern regarding the location ofthe balcony, which would look directly into their "U"-shaped backyard and living area, and his suggestion that it be moved to the side, He added that the swimming pool next door would naturally generate noise, which would echo back off the two-story house and into the cove oftheir living area. THE PUBLIC HEARING WAS CLOSED. Commissioner Blank inquired if staff or another party independent of the applicant and appellant verified the floor area ratio and calculation and if this issue was brought up during the initial hearing, Ms. Mendez replied that it is difficult to get the official square footage of any building because the numbers on the building permit records do not always match those on the County Assessor's data. She explained that when an application is submitted, staff requires the numbers to be accurate and to scale and takes the applicant's word for it. She added that staff double-checks these numbers when a neighbor or interested party raises concerns about them, She noted that in this case, staff checked the County records, and the numbers were slightly bigger than what was indicated on the plan which were taken from the building records, She pointed out, however, that the project still meets the required 40-percent floor area ratio when based on the County records. DRAFT EXCERPTS: PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, July 26, 2006 Page 3 of 4