15 ATTACHMENT 9 - Laserfiche WebLink

were to be used as the basis of this project, it would be a unilateral de facto amendment of the Specific Plan. Mr. Pico noted that the blob was over an existing structure and that it was not graphically accurate. He believed that it did not reflect the one-acre building site, and he did not believe the Sarich family had the desire to give up the existing residence for a barn. He did not believe the City had the right to compel the applicants to relinquish an existing residence in order to build another residence. He believed the applicants had the right to retain the existing residence, as well as to build another hillside residential estate lot on their property in the general vicinity of the blob. He noted that the 19 estate lots approved for this property and the lots at an elevation of 540 feet and above had special restrictions. John McGinnis, project architect, provided a brief history of this application and described previous iterations of this project design. He noted that the overall square footage was reduced by about 4,000 square feet, and the majority of that was from removing the guest house and barn. They planned to use the existing home and the barn to become a working barn for the vineyard. The Sariches would like a very private site and did not plan to develop the six houses below at this time, although they would like the option to do so in the future. They planned to plant vineyards as shown in the portfolio. He noted that if they raised the house and the pads, they could save 18 trees. He displayed the site plan and described the features of this proposed project. Commissioner Blank noted that he would be in favor of atwo-story home if the aesthetic impact were favorable. He inquired whether that would create a precedent for another second-story add-on above 540 feet in the Vineyard Avenue Corridor. Ms. Decker noted that the question of precedence has come before the Commission on several occasions and emphasized that each project was acase-by-case. She noted that staff did not believe that would set any type of precedent, and future applications would be considered by staff and the Commission in the same kind of specific detail as this application. Mr. McGinnis noted that they had created interiors that were authentic to Italian villas and noted that he has collected over 2,000 books on European architecture. Greg Reznick, 1680 Vineyard Avenue, wished to discuss the Specific Plan, which he believed was well thought-out and respected the area. He noted that not every spot on the property was large enough for a house or a big house. He noted that he considered building a big house on his property and assumed that he would have to use several of the "blobs" on his property. He was unsure whether the Specific Plan guaranteed an estate home in each case, except that the lots themselves had to be large, as opposed to the building itself. Another expectation that he believed was established in the Specific Plan was the question of where the open space was, particularly the water tank. He noted that this project really involved the removal of a hill that was in the plan as open space. He believed this siting violated the intent of the Specific Plan with regard to the fundamental characteristics of the topography and character of the Vineyard Avenue Corridor. Therefore, the blob locations had moved to other sites that were environmentally superior. EXCERPTS: PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES, October 25, 2006 Page 2 of 6