Design Review Committee Anne Burns, Secretary Land Use Planning 1947 Center Street, 2nd Floor Berkeley, CA Bancroft Way.

Transcription

1 Page 1 of 5 Design Review Committee Anne Burns, Secretary Land Use Planning 1947 Center Street, 2nd Floor Berkeley, CA Bancroft Way Enclosed are revised plans for The Standard project located at 2580 Bancroft Way. The plans have been revised in response to advisory comments that were received at the November 16, 2017 DRC meeting. Additional imagery of the project and surrounding area has also been included. The basic project description, unit count, and massing are unchanged from the original submittal. The project is a proposed eight-story mixed-use development with ground level retail and 122 dwelling units. Dwelling units include a mix of studios and units with up to six bedrooms. The project is located across Bancroft Way from campus and will provide much needed student-oriented housing in this area. Although parking is not required in this zoning district, a use permit will be requested to reconstruct the basement level of parking to serve the development. The table below includes a summary of the advisory comments that were received during the November 16, 2017 DRC meeting and the design team s response to those comments. Comment Response DRC 1 Keep the scale and intimacy of the original courtyard on the landmark building, address concerns about lack of sunlight in courtyard; retain qualities of the existing courtyard. The design option of bringing the western building forward over the Turner building in order to provide more beds in the development as requested by ZAB is no longer being pursued. The building massing has been returned to what was originally proposed and is just located at the rear portion of the Turner building lot. The courtyard will be open above the Turner building on three sides. The area will be used as an entry to the residential portion of the There is not a feasible way in which to get additional sunlight to the courtyard yard area because it is surrounded by building (as it is now) on three sides and is north facing. The ±600 square foot courtyard area is intended to be a functional and informal space, not necessarily as an area where residents would spend any substantial amount of time where continued access to sunlight would be a concern. North facing or shaded courtyards should not be discounted relevant to sunlight concerns. They provide functional and important entry statements as architectural elements to buildings. DRC 2 Shift the massing so there is less The massing has been shifted, please see response to DRC

2 2850 Bancroft Page Way 2 of 5 Page 2 of 5 DRC 3 DRC 4 DRC 5 DRC 6 impact on the courtyard. comment 1. Follow Secretary of the Interior The project will comply with the Secretary of the Interior Standards and leave the Standards with respect to the character defining elements landmark alone as much as of the Fred Turner Building that is to be preserved. possible. Secretary of the Interior Standards are addressed in Section 5.4 of the Project Impact Analysis of The Standard Project that was prepared by LSA (dated April 2017). This report analyses the project against each of the nine applicable Secretary of the Interior standards. While the design team understands the desire by some to retain the entire Fred Turner structure as it is, it should be noted that the rear portion of the building that is proposed to be demolished has been previously altered over the years and is underutilized as commercial space in that its remote location from the street has made it difficult for tenants to say in business. Moreover, anyone in a wheelchair currently must use a lift to access this rear space. The project proposes to restore the Fred Turner Building s character defining street façade elements while redeveloping a completely underutilized portion of the rear part of the structure and providing for level ADA-accessible entry. The tall/short building juxtaposition in Berkeley is somewhat ubiquitous given the over 150 years that the land use and architectural character of the Southside Do not mimic the landmark especially directly over it. Reduce the size of the punched windows in the western portion for a quieter backdrop to the landmark. Consider removing the top two floors off the western portion behind the landmark. campus area and Berkeley in general, have evolved. Many of the design elements that were originally proposed to compliment the Fred Turner Building have been removed in an effort to insure that the architectural character of the new proposal not steal the spotlight of that historic resource. Some elements, such as the copper cladding, remain. However, the new development exhibits its own architectural character without competing with or diminishing the character of the Fred Turner Building. The windows in the western portion have been modified per the DRC recommendation. See plan sheet A6. Removing the top two floors of the western portion of the building would result in the loss of much needed beds near campus. In addition, this is a very costly building to construct with respect to both materials and more importantly, the rapid rise in labor costs. The floor area in question is necessary to help achieve project feasibility, which includes the preservation and restoration of the character defining elements of the Fred Turner Building. We are proposing to keep the top two floors but have provided design elements to mitigate the perceived mass and weight of the These elements are discussed

3 DRC 7 DRC 8 DRC 9 DRC 10 DRC 11 DRC 12 DRC 13 Consider glass on top of the western portion and possibly a slice down to help lighten the building mass behind the landmark. Push building mass back so the landmark can have an open air courtyard. Set the new portion apart from the landmark building Address the south elevation in the context of the existing buildings on Durant. Consider modifying the horizontal bands to better break up the mass. Accentuate the glass arcade elements in the design to help lighten the historic look of the new portions and give the project more whimsy Base should have a stronger material with more weight, like stone 2850 Bancroft Page Way 3 of 5 Page 3 of 5 further in the response to DRC comments 7, 11, 14, and 16. Larger glass windows are now a more prominent feature on the 8 th story of the western portion per the DRC recommendation to help lighten the building mass. Adding a slice through this section has not been incorporated in the design. Such a radical change in program would result in very significant additional construction costs while eliminating space for much needed beds near campus. The courtyard is currently not a sun-filled space because, as noted previously, it is north facing and surrounded by structure on the other three sides. It is more of an architectural feature and place of respite. See response to DRC comments 1, 2, and 7. The intent is to construct the new building so that it appears as separate from the landmark structure. These details will be developed in the construction document phase of the project. See also DRC response 3, above. See plan sheets P2B, PH2, PH4, A9 for additional information on the south elevation of the building and it relationship to the existing buildings on Durant. The building massing on the south facing elevation is broken up through the use of cornices, façade articulation, windows, and other design elements. Although not shown on the plan sheets, additional screening of the building is provided by the landscaping, including mature trees near the rear property line, in the side yards of the buildings facing Durant. Modifications have been made to the cornice bands per the DRC recommendation. These are noted on plan sheet A6. The plan proposes to remove the rear portion of the Fred Turner building including the southern portion of the courtyard area. The entry to the new building will be located at the southern portion of the existing courtyard. The entry area is proposed to resemble the existing glass entry to the arcade from Bancroft Way. Refer to P6A for the concept plan for this area. The design team has embraced this comment and agrees. The previously proposed single story base did not carry the several stories above in an architecturally appropriate manner. As a result, the rusticated plaster with heavy score lines above the 3 tall black granite base has been raised an additional story (without increasing the overall height) per the DRC recommendation as noted on plan sheet A6. The design team now believes that the two-story base portion of the proposed building is much more elegant with

4 DRC 14 DRC 15 DRC 16 DRC 17 Reduce the weight and mass of the western portion of the False historicism not recommended Lighten up the western portion of the building and quiet it in relation to the landmark. Eastern portion should also be lightened. Recommend south-facing open space. respect to how it carries the upper story portions of the As noted in the response to DRC comment 8 - The building massing has been returned to what was originally proposed and is just located at the rear portion of the Turner building lot. Additional means of reducing the perceived weight and mass of this portion of the building are outlined below in the response to DRC comment 16. See response to DRC comment 3 and 4, above. The western portion of the building has been lightened through a new selection of colors, materials, and additional glass. These colors have been selected to compliment, but not mimic the Turner These modifications are noted on plan sheet A6. The site faces north and the design team feels that a north facing courtyard is the best option for development for the following reasons: The north facing courtyard breaks up the building massing along the Bancroft Way frontage. The parcels south of the site fronting on Durant Avenue could be redeveloped in the future and block the southfacing open space. Lighting and amenity design will make this an inviting location for residents to enjoy. Those who are specifically seeking full sunlight have the option of using the amenity deck on the 8 th floor of the Also see response to DRC comment 1 It was noted at the DRC meeting that the three structures located south of the project site may be historic. While the structures maybe more than 40 years old, they are not currently identified on the City of Berkeley Historic Resources map as of September 27, Additional discussion of design changes follows below: 2850 Bancroft Page Way 4 of 5 Page 4 of 5 Eastern portion of the building concerns that the building was too top heavy have been addressed as noted in the response table, above. The base has been raised to include the second floor, the cornice band has been raised, and the cornice cap at the top of Level 7 has been strengthened. The cornice at the 8 th floor has been lowered to reduce the overall height at the face of the building and to open up the deck on the upper levels. The building retains the general color scheme that was originally presented as well as several arched window and copper elements. These are designed to be complimentary to the Fred Turner Building while not detracting from or mimicking its character. Western portion of the building The massing of the building adjacent to the Fred Turner Building, a concern over false historicism, a general desire to lighten up the building, and to make it visually separate from the Fred Turner Building and new building at the Bancroft site were the main concerns for this portion of the building design. Windows have been better organized and are a more prominent feature to help lighten up the A different color scheme and materials are proposed to differentiate this portion of the building from the eastern portion and the Turner The arched

5 windows and copper elements have been removed from this portion of the building to address concerns about false historicism and too closely matching the architecture of the adjacent historic structure. Conclusion As noted in the response to comments and the summary of design changes above, several of the DRC recommendations from the 11/16/17 meeting have been incorporated into the project and have substantially improved the project s overall design. There are some recommendations, such as providing a south facing courtyard, or providing slices in the building that cannot be accommodated as they would impact the efficiency of the project design, compromise the project s financial feasibility, and significantly reduce the number of residents that can live in this ideal student location. The proposed revised design is architecturally handsome, helps address the City s student housing crisis, and is consistent with Berkeley s General Plan, Southside Area Plan, and Climate Action Plan goals as destination adjacent and transit-oriented density. There was also some concern noted regarding the height of the building relative to the Turner building and the surrounding area. We conducted a brief study in the Downtown and Southside areas and identified several examples of developments that are taller than an adjacent landmark structure. Photos and locations of some of these sites are included as an attachment to this submittal. We also noted that while buildings in the immediate area are typically 3-5 stories or lower, there are several examples in the Southside area that are 7-9 stories. We look forward to discussing the project with you at the 1/18/18 DRC meeting and finalizing your recommendation to the LPC Bancroft Page Way 5 of 5 Page 5 of 5