HomeMy WebLinkAboutComments on Council Item 20 -- Appeal of Reed Residential Variance for 1113 Kings Road (PA2019-060)_09-09-2019 2-05-47 PMFrom: Bruce Bartram <b.bartram@verizon.net>
Sent: Monday, September 09, 2019 2:07 PM
To: City Clerk's Office; Dept - City Council; Murillo, Jaime
Cc: jimmosher@yahoo.com; jwatt4@aol.com; pvpalmer@icloud.com
Subject: Comments on Council Item 20 -- Appeal of Reed Residential Variance
for 1113 Kings Road (PA2019-060)
Honorable Councilmembers:
Below is an email exchange between myself and Jaime Murillo Principal Planner at the Community
Development Department of the City of Newport Beach.
As you can see, it concerns the appeal of the Planning Commission’s May 23, 2019 decision to approve
Variance No. VA2019-002 for the property located at 1113 Kings Road. The project itself related to the
the construction of a new 10,803-square-foot, single-family residence and a 1,508-square-foot, four-car
garage located at 1113 Kings Road was filed. The variance authorized portions of the upper level roof
and deck, and portions of an office and covered patio on the main level of the proposed home to exceed
the allowed height limit due to the steep topography of site.
The variance(s) approved described below were as follows:
"The deviations from height limits for the various components of the structure are as follows:
Upper level roof eaves: 1.13 feet, 1.29 feet, and 1.85 feet above 29-foot sloped roof height limit
Upper level deck and rails: 4.47 feet and 2.32 feet above 24-foot flat roof height limit
Main level office eave: 1.74 feet above 29-foot sloped height limit
Main level covered patio eave: 3.07 feet above 29-foot sloped roof height limit"
I asked Mr. Murillo the following: "Can you provide the sum total of the variances -"deviations from height
limits for the components of the structure"- described above in square feet?"
His response was as follows in pertinent part:
"Hi Mr. Bartram,
The total area of roof that exceeds the 29-foot height limit is 327 square feet, plus an additional 26 square
feet of deck and rails that exceed the 24-foot flat roof height limit."
Thus, the total square footage of the variances; i.e., additional structure of the proposed home, is 353 sq.
ft. This out of a total of 10,803-square-feet proposed for the single-family residence. This represents
roughly 3.3% of the structure. Thus, should the variance be denied the property owners would still be left
with 96.7% (10,450 sq. ft.) of their proposed new home to construct,
On Page 11 of the May 23, 2019 Report for the Planning Commission City Staff stated the following as
the results of not granting the variance in pertinent part:
"Modifying the proposed design to eliminate the height variance for enclosed living area would require
eliminating an office on the main level, located behind a compliant garage, and eliminating or significantly
reducing the size of an upper level closet, bathroom, and teen room. Modifying the design to eliminate the
height variance for the outdoor living areas would require eliminating the roof cover over the deck behind
the garage and office on the main level and reducing the size of the upper level deck. The appearance of
structure as viewed from Kings Road would not change, but the functionality of the home design would be
impacted."
It is submitted that the loss of 353 sq. ft. of structure from a total of 10,803-square-feet cannot appreciably
impact the "functionality" of the proposed single-family home. As a result, there is no practical reason to
grant the variance. Thus, the City Council should reverse the Planning Commission’s grant of Variance
No. VA2019-002 because it is not necessary to construct the proposed single-family home at 1113 Kings
Road. The remaining 10,450 sq. ft is certainly enough to provide an ample single -family home.
Very truly yours,
Bruce Bartram
2 Seaside Circle
Newport Beach, CA 92663
-----Original Message-----
From: Murillo, Jaime <JMurillo@newportbeachca.gov>
To: 'Bruce Bartram' <b.bartram@verizon.net>
Sent: Mon, Sep 9, 2019 9:26 am
Subject: RE: 1113 KIngs Road Variance Appeal Question
Hi Mr. Bartram,
The total area of roof that exceeds the 29-foot height limit is 327 square feet, plus an additional
26 square feet of deck and rails that exceed the 24-foot flat roof height limit. See notes from
plans below:
From: Bruce Bartram <b.bartram@verizon.net>
Sent: Monday, September 09, 2019 7:22 AM
To: Murillo, Jaime <JMurillo@newportbeachca.gov>
Subject: 1113 KIngs Road Variance Appeal Question
Dear Mr. Murillo:
Attached is the Staff Report for the City Council September 10, 2019 Meeting concerning the Appeal of the
Variance granted by the Planning Commission to the property located at 1113 Kings Road . From the Staff Report:
"An appeal of the Planning Commission’s May 23, 2019, decision to approve Variance No. VA2019 -002 related to
the the construction of a new 10,803-square-foot, single-family residence and a 1,508-square-foot, four-car garage
located at 1113 Kings Road was filed. The variance authorized portions of the upper level roof and deck, and
portions of an office and covered patio on the main level of the proposed home to exceed the allowed height limit
due to the steep topography of site.
Page 3 of the Staff Report describes the project and variance sought as follows in pertinent part:
"The applicant desires to demolish the existing structure and construct a new 10,803square-foot, single-family
residence and 1,508-square-foot, four-car garage parking. The residence would consist of three levels: a 4,177-
square-foot partially below-grade lower level, a 3,361-square-foot main level, and a 3,265-square-foot upper level.
From the Kings Road street frontage, the residence would appear as two stories. The daylighting basement leve l
would generally only be visible from the property to the east and from West Coast Highway to the south due to the
topography of the site and adjacent lots.
The upper levels of the residence have been designed to step down to maintain a structure hei ght that follows the
natural slope of the lot. However, due to the topographical constraint of a gully feature (See Figure 1 below), the
applicant is requesting a variance to allow portions of the roof to exceed the 29 -foot height limit for sloped roofs and
a portion of a deck and associated railing to exceed the 24 -foot height limit applicable to decks and flat roofs. The
gully feature is located at the northeastern corner of the lot that extends to the south generally along the eastern
property line, and affects the siting and design of the proposed construction. The deviations from height limits for
the various components of the structure are as follows:
Upper level roof eaves: 1.13 feet, 1.29 feet, and 1.85 feet above 29 -foot sloped roof height limit
Upper level deck and rails: 4.47 feet and 2.32 feet above 24-foot flat roof height limit
Main level office eave: 1.74 feet above 29-foot sloped height limit
Main level covered patio eave: 3.07 feet above 29-foot sloped roof height limit"
Can you provide the sum total of the variances -"deviations from height limits for the components of the structure"-
described above in square feet?
Thank you for your expected cooperation in this matter.
Very truly yours,
Bruce Bartram
2 Seaside Circle
Newport Beach, CA 92663