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Home My WebLink About22 - Code Amendment Initiation Height Regulations0 CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT Agenda Item No. 22 April 27, 2004 TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL FROM: Planning Department Patrick J. Alford, Senior Planner (949) 644 -3235 Palfo rd a city. newport- beach. ca. us SUBJECT: Code Amendment Initiation —Height Regulations (PA 2004 -022) ISSUES: Should the City Council initiate an amendment to Title 20 of the Municipal Code to revise regulations relating to the measurement of height of structures and height limits? • RECOMMENDATION: Adopt Resolution No. 200 -4 (Exhibit A) initiating the amendment to Title 20 of the Municipal Code. DISCUSSION: The implementation of the City's height limits have become an increasingly problematic due to ambiguities in the regulations dealing with the measurement of height. Specifically, the procedure prescribed by Section 20.65.030 of the Municipal Code requires that height be measured from the unaltered, natural grade, a condition that no longer exists in most areas of the City. Also, the measurement of a sloping roof has been expanded over time to a point that it does not reflect its original intent and it is not supported by the code. An amendment to the Chapter 20.65 (Height Limits) is necessary in order to correct these deficiencies. Environmental Review: None required for the initiation of amendments. Public Notice: 0 None required for the initiation of amendments. Code Amendment Initiation — Height Regulations April 27, 2004 Page 2 Prepared by: Submitted by: • Patrick J. Alford Patricia L. Temple Senior Planner Planning Director Exhibit: Draft resolution of intent. 0 • M RESOLUTION NO. • A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH INITIATING AN AMENDMENT TO TITLE 20 OF THE NEWPORT BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE TO REVISE REGULATIONS RELATING TO THE HEIGHT OF STRUCTURES (PA 2004 -022) WHEREAS, Title 20 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code authorizes the City Council to adopt a resolution initiating amendments to the Zoning Code of the City of Newport Beach. WHEREAS, the City Council intends to initiate an amendment to Title 20 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code to revise regulations relating to the measurement of height and the height of structures. WHEREAS, the City Council hereby initiates an amendment to Title 20 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code to revise regulations relating to the measurement of height and the height of structures. This resolution was adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Newport 10 Beach held on April 27, 2004, by the following vote, to wit: ATTEST: CITY CLERK • AYES, COUNCIL MEMBERS NOES, COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT COUNCIL MEMBERS MAYOR rte,< April 22, 2004 CRAIG S. HAMPTON I N C O R P O K A T E D DESIGNING QUALITY CUSTOM HOMES SINCE 1979 City of Newport Beach Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council 3300 Newport Boulevard Newport Beach, CA 92663 RE: City Council Meeting of April 27, 2004 Study Session Agenda Item No. 3 Agenda Item No. 22 Dear Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council: I have been designing custom homes throughout the City of Newport Beach for 25 years. I have very recently become aware of the Code Amendment Initiation — Height Regulations. I found out about this completely by chance as there was no public notification. The intent of this letter is to inform the City Council of the complex process involved in designing a custom home. As you may or may not be aware there is a lot of time and expense that goes into designing a custom home and preparing plans to be submitted to the City of Newport Beach Building, Planning and Public Works Departments for the plan check process. The homeowner must hire a designer /architect, a civil engineer /land surveyor, a soils engineer, energy engineer, and a structural engineer. Many months of work go into the design and preparation of the final construction plan documents before they are submitted to the city. The first step in the design process is prudent research by homeowners and design professionals of the existing building envelope requirements and existing building and planning codes. There is a certain level of trust by homeowners and professionals that the codes and requirements of the city will not be changed without their knowledge. After reading the Staff Report prepared by the Planning Department, it is of concern to me that the existing building height code and its existing interpretation may be changed without the knowledge of homeowners and the professionals they have hired. To change the building code in the middle of this process would create an undue hardship for the many homeowners that have begun the design of their home months ago. These homeowners and the professionals they have hired have based their design on the building and planning code parameters as they existed at the time they started their project. 1 of 2 11845 SW THELEN LANE PORTLAND, OREGON 97219 949.632.2585 503.246.2807 FAX' 503.293.4331 E-MAIL: craig@cshcustomhomeplans.com www.cshcustomholueplans.com r_ It is also of concern that there is not a clear direction as to what if any changes will be made to the code or how and when the changes would be implemented. There seem to be many unanswered questions. ➢ What is the "pipeline "? ➢ How can the existing code be phased out if there is not a new one to replace it? ➢ What will the new standards be and when exactly will they be implemented? > Until the new standards are established, how do homeowners and design professionals know how to proceed in the design of their current and future projects? �o How will homeowners and design professionals be notified of the changes? I would very much like to be kept informed regarding the proposed changes to the grade and structure height codes. My initial suggestion would be that the existing height interpretation (i.e., broken roof) that has been in effect since 1986 should remain in effect until the new standard is completed and adopted. This would allow a definite ending of the existing code and beginning of the new code with no gray area in between. Also important is the notification of homeowners and design professionals of the proposed changes. Without notification of a definite ending of the existing code and beginning of the new code homeowners and design professionals would not find out there has been a change until the completed plans are submitted to the city for plan check. At that point the homeowner would have spent thousands of dollars and months of time would have been wasted. Thank you for your time and attention to this very important matter. Sincer Iy, Crai . Ha on President 2of2 =0 RESOLUTION NO. 2004- 35 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH INITIATING AN AMENDMENT TO TITLE 20 OF THE NEWPORT BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE TO REVISE REGULATIONS RELATING TO THE HEIGHT OF STRUCTURES (PA 2004 -022) WHEREAS, Title 20 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code authorizes the City Council to adopt a resolution initiating amendments to the Zoning Code of the City of Newport Beach. WHEREAS, the City Council intends to initiate an amendment to Title 20 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code to revise regulations relating to the measurement of height and the height of structures. WHEREAS, the City Council hereby initiates an amendment to Title 20 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code to revise regulations relating to the measurement of height and the height of structures. This resolution was adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Newport Beach held on April 27, 2004, by the following vote, to wit: AYES, COUNCIL MEMBERS Heffernan, Rosansky, Adams, Bromberg, Webb, Nichols, Mayor Ridgeway NOES, COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT COUNCIL MEM MAYOR ATTEST: CITY CLERK STATE OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF ORANGE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH I, LaVonne M. Harkless. City Clerk of the City of Newport Beach, California, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council is seven: that the foregoing resolution, being Resolution No. 2004 -35 was duly and regularly introduced before and adopted by the City Council of said City at a regular meeting of said Council, duly and regularly held on the 27th day of April, 2004, and that the same was so passed and adopted by the following vote, to wit: Ayes: Heffernan, Rosansky, Adams, Bromberg, Webb, Nichols, Mayor Ridgeway Noes: None Absent: None Abstain: None IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed the official seal of said City this 27th day of April; 2004. (Seal) City Clerk Newport Beach, California RESIDENTIAL BROKERAGE GENDA rr r rn y� N1GEL BA1LEY REALTOR' 2121 E. COAST HIGHWAY, SUI V E 180 CORONA DFL MAR, CA 92625 BUS. (949) 718 -1504 FA \ ( 949) 640 -80OF PAGER / CELL ( 949 ) 500 -3250 LNLAIL nig 1W)att. net Dear Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council: I am Nigel Bailey, a Realtor associated with Coldwell Banker in Corona del Mar and a resident of, and homeowner in Corona del Mar for approx. 30 years. I can appreciate the dilemma that the Planning Department has had to deal with in establishing the point from which to measure building heights. And I'm sure there have been abuses or stretching of the limits by builders and owners over the years who have considered that the "rules" are for less creative souls. To get to the point, I am involved in a project that was commenced last year with the purchase of a specific site in Corona del Mar in which the purchaser developed plans for removal of an existing home that was constructed many years ago straddling two established building sites, and the development of two homes in it's place. A modification request was submitted to the Modification Committee to maximize the views from the proposed replacement dwellings and the modification was granted. The owner decided to sell the property with the plans and modifications, and my buyer acquired it. The seller acted in good faith in representing to the buyer that the plans conformed to city codes and that the modification which maximized the potential of the properties had been granted. The buyer purchased the property at a figure that was predicated on a two home development site that would have substantial views from second and third levels utilizing the design criteria that is now being challenged. All parties have acted in good faith but it appears there is a potential for major design changes necessitated by the proposed resolution. The outcome can mean hundreds of thousands of dollars loss for the builder due to extensive limitations being put on building heights and square footage of the top floor which had previously been agreed to by the Modification Committee. It should be mentioned that the site in question adjoins a city park and has no immediate neighbor within 100 feet or who would be affected if the homes were built to even 40 feet. What I ask of this body is that if the resolution is to be adopted that the 24 foot mid point be retained with 29 foot maximum height to discourage the development of unattractive flat roofed dwellings and that regardless of your decision on peaked roofs versus flat that a 6 month grace period for any change to the present code, or the current interpretation of same, be provided to enable homeowners and developers who have entered into site purchase agreements in good faith to submit their plans to planning for approval. To implement the resolution with a lesser grace period or to make any change to the current interpretation which has been in place for so many years and to which the design professionals have been accustomed, could cause substantial hardships to well intentioned people, developers and homeowners alike, who have operated within the system to help to upgrade our neighborhoods. Thanks for the opportunity to be �i Owned And Operated By NRT Inrorporated. "RECEIVED AFTER AGENDA PRINTED:" a- Lj April 26, 2004 City of Newport Beach Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council 3300 Newport Beach, CA 92663 RE: Grade and structural height Dear Honorable Mayor and Members of the City council: I sincerely hope that the proposed code amendment is not a "knee jerk reaction" to the recent Getz fiasco. As is, the code has worked for many years resulting in a community, which is both architecturally interesting and highly desirable. I sympathize with the planning staff in that the existing code requires time consuming, competent evaluation, however, the end results have warranted the effort. That said, if the council decides to pursue the planning department's proposal, as a minimum, the council should require extensive input from the architual /design community in evaluating all possible topographic conditions and define the "pipeline" to have minimal impact on land owners wishing to build their dream home. Please do not let the future of Newport Beach end up as a bunch of easy to evaluate, flat roofed boxes. Thank you for your service to the community and considering my thoughts. c rren H. James 2627 Cove St. Corona del Mar, CA 92625 "RECEIVED AFTER AGENDA PRINTED." L a D- y- a9-/c) �-] APRIL 26, 2004 CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL 3300 NEWPORT BOULEVARD NEWPORT BEACH. CA 92663 RE: PLANNING STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GRADE AND STRUCTURE HEIGHT DEAR HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL, AS AN OWNER/BUILDER OF A NUMBER OF RESIDENTIAL PROJECTS IN THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH OVER THE PAST TEN YEARS I TAKE EXCEPTION WITH THE PLANNING STAFFS PROPOSALS OUTLINED IN THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS. WHILE THE CURRENT SYSTEM IS SOMEWHAT CUMBERSOME AND CERTAINLY COULD BE REFINED, IT AT LEAST ADDRESSES ALL CASES ON AN EQUAL BASIS, THE PROPOSED CHANGES CREATE ANY NUMBER OF SUBJECTIVE DECISIONS TO BE CALLED OUT BY THE PLANNING STAFF ON PARCELS THAT HAVE SUBSTANTIAL GRADE CHANGES, A COMMON SITUATION IN THIS COASTAL CITY. TO SUGGEST THAT A PARCEL HAVING LESS THAN A 10% GRADE CHANGE IS BASICALLY FLAT, IS ILLOGICAL; 10% OF 100 FT. (A TYPICAL LOT DEPTH) IS 10 FT., A SUBTANTIAL GRADE CHANGE. EVEN MORE TROUBLING IS THE RECOMMENDATION OF A 60 DAY TRANSITION PERIOD TO A NEW POLICY. I CURRENTLY HAVE IN PLAN CHECK A PROJECT THAT HAS TAKEN WELL OVER SIX MONTHS TO DESIGN, A SIGNIFICANT PART OF THAT PERIOD SPENT ADDRESSING HEIGHT CONSIDERATIONS ALL BASED ON THE CITY'S CURRENT POLICIES. A 60 DAY PERIOD IS GROSSLY UNFAIR TO THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE CURRENTLY IN THAT SAME DESIGN PHASE. I WOULD THINK A MINIMUM 6 MONTH TRANSITION TO WHATEVER NEW POLICIES ARE ESTABLISHED WOULD BE MUCH FAIRER. LAST, I URGE ALL OF YOU TO FULLY COMPREHEND THE SUGGESTIONS THE PLANNING STAFF IS RECOMMENDING. BASICALLY THEY ARE RECOMMENDING YOU ADOPT HEIGHT RESTRICTIONS THAT NOT ONLY LIMIT HEIGHT BUT IMPOSE SEVERE ARCHITECTURAL RESTRICTIONS THAT FAVOR, AS THEY POINT OUT, STRUCTURES WITH VERY SIMPLE ROOF PLANES, PREFERABLY FLAT! I KNOW WE ALL AGREE THIS CITY IS NOT MEANT TO BE CHARACTERIZED BY SIMPLE FLAT ROOF STRUCTURES. SINCE N.D. MCNULTY 115 KINGS PLACE NEWPORT BEACH, CA 92663 (949)642 -0418