Agenda - Council Work Session - 11/16/2010

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CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION I it 07 AMSEY Topic Report: Architectural Standards in Residential Districts By: Tim Gladhill, Associate Planner Background: The City Council has asked that Staff explore options for enhancing architectural standards in the City's residential districts. The discussion is in regards to the architectural standards for new and existing dwelling units as well as for accessory structures. Observations: City Staff has been exploring a wide variety of options as it relates to architectural standards. Currently, the highest architectural control is found in The COR. The City's R -1 Residential District has the least stringent requirements. As the Council is aware, the City recently adopted the Housing Maintenance Code as part of the City's building regulations. These standards will assist the City is maintaining its housing stock and preventing blighted structures and neighborhoods. City Staff is seeking direction of which types of housing maintenance standards should remain in City Code. As it relates to new construction, a wide variety of affordable, high - quality materials have been developed that could be encouraged to be used in new construction. Pre- fabricated walls, higher durability siding, articulated roof lines, and new roofing technologies are just a few that the City could encourage using through the Zoning Code. The City could look at requiring such standards, or provide for certain credits, such as size of structure or setbacks, when certain standards are used. The City could use the Planned Unit Development (PUD) process, a process already within City Code, to encourage higher architectural standards. This was most recently used in the Village of Sunfish Lake development. In this case, as it relates to architectural standards, the City allowed smaller lot size in exchange for a higher architectural standards, including front porches, higher setback standards for garages, and higher quality materials. In addition, goals and strategies in the 2030 Comprehensive Plan call for review of some sort of form -based code, which is a more flexible zoning standard focused on how structures interact with the street, and would be much more flexible than the City's current Zoning Code. Perhaps the most effective tool of form -based zoning is the use of illustrations to assist readers in understanding the zoning regulations. City Staff is seeking direction as to whether the City should leave the residential architectural standards as is, revise so standards are closer to The COR Development Guidelines, or something in between. The second piece of this discussion is architectural standards. City Code has long stated that pole building construction with metal panels shall only be allowed on parcels of two (2) acres in size or larger. Subsequently, the City continues to hear requests for additional square footage beyond what is permitted `by -right' in City Code. The City has run into multiple issues with larger pole structures as it relates to the City's home