17-7-10.11.6 Architectural standards.
All new development must present an attractive streetscape, incorporate architectural and site design elements appropriate to a pedestrian scale, and provide for the safety and convenience of pedestrians. All new development shall comply with the following architectural standards:
A. Height. For purposes of defining the maximum structure height allowed, refer to Figure 1 of this Chapter. The maximum height allowed for structures in “Area C” is four stories of living space and two stories of podium parking, not to exceed seventy-five feet measured to the top of the highest parapet or the midpoint of a sloped roof.
B. Building Orientation and Scale. Residential structures shall be oriented and scaled as follows:
1. Buildings required to be built at a build-to line shall be oriented to the street, with building entrances opening directly onto the public realm of the sidewalk along the corridor.
2. Buildings shall be serviced by a local street, an access drive or an alley, and shall not gain direct access from a collector or arterial street.
3. Ground floor pedestrian entrances shall be oriented toward adjacent streets, plazas, courtyards, sidewalks and walkways.
4. Buildings shall be designed to minimize pedestrian and automobile conflict and provide pedestrians direct access to a sidewalk or walkway.
5. Building planes shall incorporate varying heights, shifts, textures, shapes and colors to provide visual interest from public vantage points. Building plane shifts include recessed entrances or windows, balconies, cornices, columns, and other similar architectural features. The architectural feature must be either recessed or project a minimum of twenty-four inches.
6. Building design and orientation should consider exposure to sunlight to avoid energy inefficiencies.
C. Proximity. Minimum separation between all habitable structures shall be as follows provided all building code requirements are met: ten feet between one-story structures; fourteen feet between two-story structures; eighteen feet between three-story structures; and twenty feet between four-story structures. The building separation between structures of different heights shall be the distance required by the higher structure.
D. Residential Building Design and Exterior Materials. The following standards shall be applied to all residential structures:
1. Exterior Materials. A minimum of seventy-five percent of the exterior wall area, not to include window and door openings, shall be clad in durable materials. Durable materials include brick, masonry, stucco (not to include exterior insulation and finish system (EIFS)), cement siding, textured or patterned concrete, cultured stone, and cut stone, or other material the planning commission determines to be durable. Each building elevation shall include at least two types of durable materials. Other materials may be used as accent or trim provided they cover twenty-five percent or less of the exterior wall.
2. Prohibited Materials. Vinyl and aluminum siding products are prohibited as wall materials.
3. Color Scheme. The use of a single-color scheme, minimal detailing, or blank (or largely blank) walls is not permitted. The use of exterior staircases is discouraged.
4. Building Massing. Buildings that are uniformly three stories or more must step the roof form or interrupt it with other roof elements. The building mass of the elevation can be reduced by offsetting dwelling units, and varying building setbacks and heights.
5. Openings. Not less than twenty-five percent of any front or rear building face shall be made up of window or door areas. Not less than fifteen percent of any side building face shall be made up of windows or door areas unless an adjacent building within twenty feet of that side face obscures the majority of that side face from public view. The front building face is defined as the elevation which includes the primary entrance into the building.
6. Protruding Features. Bay windows and other architectural elements protruding from the facades may be clad in other materials.
7. Roof Form. Roof forms shall be designed in ways and/or used in combinations to break up large, continuous building forms, particularly for cluster and multiple-dwelling structures. Where flat roofs are used, other techniques to provide scale and interest shall be used to refine large, continuous building forms. Long unbroken ridge or parapet lines are prohibited.
8. Entry Feature. All dwelling units or residential buildings shall have an exterior entry that is a prominent, architectural focal point directing people into the unit or building. This feature shall relate to the architecture of the structure and may include porches, stoops, roofs, etc.
9. Garage Doors. Garage doors for individual dwelling units shall not face or directly access Main Street, Ivy Drive or an interior public or private road.
10. Podium Parking. Stand-alone parking structures are prohibited. Podium style parking structures are allowed with the following standards:
a. No more than two levels of podium style parking above grade are allowed.
b. Parking structures shall be designed with exterior wall treatments and architectural features similar to the residential portion of the building.
c. Elevations that face or can be seen from a public or private road shall include openings of similar size and shape to those found on the residential building.
E. Accessory Structures. The style, materials, colors and roofs used in the construction of accessory structures, including garages, carports, sheds and maintenance buildings, shall be architecturally compatible with the primary structures.
F. Screening. Trash collection and recycling areas, service areas, and mechanical equipment shall be screened on all sides so that no portion of such areas is visible from public streets and adjacent properties. Required screening may include new and existing plantings, walls, fences, screen panels, doors, topographic changes, buildings, horizontal separation, or any combination thereof.
1. All building equipment shall be sited to minimize its visibility and impact, or screened and enclosed as to appear to be an integral part of the architectural design of the building. Measures shall be taken to mitigate noise impacts on adjacent properties.
2. Refuse containers shall be screened from view on all sides. Required screening may include new and existing plantings, walls, fences, screen panels, doors, topographic changes, buildings, horizontal separation, or any combination thereof. Screening fences, walls and/or plantings shall be one foot higher than the object to be screened. An opaque gate shall be included where required to complete screening. (Ord. 2017-17 § 1 (Att. A (part)))