15 Mr. LaRossa informed the members that he is from upstate New York and purchased this home which was built in 1928. He stated that home is in bad condition and needs a lot of work.

Mr. LaRossa began a PowerPoint presentation. The first slide depicted a photo of the front elevation of the home; the second slide provided an explanation of the scope of work. Subsequent slides depicted the existing porta cochere and site plan.

*Note: Ron Reim left the meeting (7:25 p.m.)

Samples of the proposed window and Hardie Board fiber cement siding were presented.

Sally Cohn asked if they will remain within the coverage limits.

Mr. LaRossa indicated that after the improvements, coverage will be at about 42%.

Chairman Lichtenfeld stated that it looks nice. He stated that the siding is okay with him as it won’t be seen from the street.

Mr. LaRossa confirmed.

Chairman Lichtenfeld commented that there is no site plan review required for this project.

Louis Clayton confirmed, noting that the size is below the threshold.

Chairman Lichtenfeld asked about the brick.

Mr. LaRossa stated that they are still searching for a match.

Sally Cohn asked if he checked Richards Brick.

Mr. LaRossa replied “yes”, noting that they didn’t have any.

Sally Cohn commented that she will miss the front entry, but that it’s not that big of a deal.

Mr. LaRossa stated that he didn’t think the curve was right.

Chairman Lichtenfeld suggested staff look at and approve the brick.

Being no further questions or comments, Craig Owens made a motion to approve as submitted with the condition that staff review and approve the brick. The motion was seconded by Sally Cohn and unanimously approved by the Board.

Being no further questions or comments, Craig Owens made a motion to approve as submitted with the condition that staff review and approve the brick. The motion was seconded by Sally Cohn and unanimously approved by the Board.

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*Note: the Chairman called for a 10 minute recess at 7:35 p.m.

At 7:43 p.m. the meeting re-convened.

ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW – SIGNAGE – 8300 MARYLAND AVENUE

Adrien Allen, representing Brown Shoe, was in attendance at the meeting.

Louis Clayton indicated that the subject building is located on the south side of Maryland Avenue between Gay Avenue and Topton Way and contains a large two-story brick and concrete building. In 1999, the Architectural Review Board approved a sign modification to permit the installation of the 86-square-foot wall sign on the front façade of the building facing the corner of Maryland Avenue and Topton Way. The applicant proposes to remove the existing “Brown Shoe” sign located at the corner of the building and replace it with a new 30-square-foot sign with the company’s new name, “Caleres” in 3-foot tall limestone letters. A 3.5-square-foot wall sign reading “*5*” will be located underneath the primary sign and will be constructed of stainless steel. The signs will back lit with LED lights. The Sign Regulations permit a 25-square-foot wall sign on each building elevation with street frontage for single tenant office buildings. The proposed sign exceeds the allowable size and therefore a sign modification is requested. The proposed sign is made of high quality materials and is consistent with the location, design, and materials of the existing signs on site; however, it does not meet the requirements of the Sign Ordinance. According to the Sign Ordinance, modifications should only be granted due to unusual conditions of the building or site. This building is permitted a 25 square foot sign on both the Maryland Avenue and Topton Way elevations. The modification will result in a larger sign than permitted; however, the proposed sign is less than the 50 square foot combined signage permitted. The proposed sign is smaller than the existing sign and appropriately sized given the large size of the building. Staff is of the opinion that the proposed placement, size, design and materials of the sign is appropriate in consideration of the characteristics of the building and site, and staff supports granting the requested sign modification and recommends approval with the condition that the applicant apply for and receive a sign permit prior to installation.

Mr. Allen indicated that the letters are 2-feet tall (not 3-feet as indicated in the staff report).

Chairman Lichtenfeld noted that the plans show 2-foot tall letters.

Mr. Allen stated that the polyester/resin letters will have the texture and color of limestone and that they will be back-lit with LED lights.

Chairman Lichtenfeld asked how the old sign will be eliminated.

Mr. Allen stated that the Brown Shoe sign is already gone.

The 0.28-acre property has a zoning designation of R-3: One and Two-Family Dwelling District. The property is improved with a two level parking structure (one level below, and one level at grade) and is surrounded by parking lots, and institutional uses.

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PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The proposed project consists of the demolition of the existing structures at 25 North Central Avenue, and the construction of a 123,806-square-foot, 6-story (+/- 69 feet) building located on top of a 2 level below grade parking structure. The building will contain 13,297 square feet of ground floor retail, 121 residential units (9 studio units, 30 alcove units, 38 one-bedroom units, 43 two- bedroom units, and 1 guest suite), and 145 parking spaces. The existing parking structure at 111 North Central Avenue will be demolished and replaced with a 30-space surface parking lot.

One access point is proposed along the southern alley to serve the below grade parking structure, visitor parking lot, and loading/service spaces. City streetscape will be installed along the project limits on Maryland Avenue and South Central Avenue. To accommodate the streetscape along Maryland Avenue, the applicant proposes the removal of three on-street parking spaces. This project will implement the first phase of a “road diet” on North Central Avenue between Maryland Avenue and Bonhomme Avenue. The road will be reduced from two lanes in each direction to one lane in each direction and a center turn lane will be installed. The cost of streetscape at 111 North Central Avenue will be escrowed and installed at a later date. 111 North Central has a zoning designation of R-3 One and Two Family Dwelling District and is improved with a two level parking structure (one level below, and one at grade) constructed in 1962. The applicant proposes to demolish the parking structure and replace it with a 30-space parking lot to be used by future residents of 25 North Central Avenue. Two 14-foot deep landscape beds with new trees, shrubs and ground cover are proposed between the parking lot and the public sidewalk. Parking lots and parking structures are not permitted uses in the R-3 zoning district and therefore the applicant requests to rezone the property to C-2 General Commercial District. The subject lot was rezoned to C-2 in 2008 as part of a larger redevelopment project that included the properties at 25 and 119 North Central Avenue; however, the project’s approvals expired in 2012 and the property reverted back to its original zoning designation. The decision to rezone property is a legislative judgment of the Board of Aldermen, taking into consideration the recommendations of the Plan Commission and the general guidance of the city's comprehensive plan. There are no pre-established criteria which the Board or the Plan Commission when rendering a recommendation, must utilize in assessing a proposed rezoning. The site is located in the North Central District as identified in the Downtown Master Plan. The vision of the district is to “grow at a human scale along key pedestrian streets, with fine-grained development, active streets and walkable commercial areas.” North Central Avenue is identified in the plan as a pedestrian priority corridor. The Plan notes that service areas and parking lots should be located to minimize their impact on the street edge.

The vision of the district is to “grow at a human scale along key pedestrian streets, with fine-grained development, active streets and walkable commercial areas.” North Central Avenue is identified in the plan as a pedestrian priority corridor. The Plan notes that service areas and parking lots should be located to minimize their impact on the street edge.

19 Staff is of the opinion that the C-2 zoning designation is more appropriate for this property than R-3 due to the historic use of the property as a parking lot, the site’s proximity to Downtown, and compatibility with the zoning designations of adjacent properties. Approval of the rezoning will allow the property to continue being used for parking as it has since 1962, and will allow the property owner to make necessary site improvements. While the construction of a parking lot in itself does not realize the vision of the Downtown Master Plan, rezoning the property to C-2 may facilitate the future redevelopment of the site as envisioned in the Plan.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION - 111 N CENTRAL

To recommend approval of the rezoning of 111 North Central Avenue to the Board of Aldermen with the following conditions: