D. Applicant: Equity Residential, Aliso Viejo Parkway #250, Aliso Viejo, CA

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1 D E S I G N R E V I E W C O M M I T T E E S t a f f R e p o r t For Committee Discussion OCTOBER 18, 2012 Acheson Commons 1987 Shattuck Avenue, University Avenue, University Avenue & 1922 & 1930 Walnut Street, Alteration Permit # , Design Review # I. Application Basics A. Land Use Designations: Downtown Plan Zoning: C-DMU, Commercial, Downtown Mixed Use (C-DMU Zoning Adopted March 20, 2012) B. Permits Required: Landmarks Alteration Permit to rehabilitate and/or expand City of Berkeley Landmark buildings; Design Review to allow the construction of new floor area and buildings; Use Permit to demolish 2 residential buildings and to eliminate 8 dwelling units; Use Permit to construct more than 10,000 sq ft of new floor area; Use Permit to exceed the 60-foot height limit; and Use Permit to provide less than the minimum number of residential parking spaces. C. CEQA Determination: An Environmental Impact Report has been prepared which addresses potential impacts on historic resources (using Secretary of the Interior s Standards) project alternatives and various other potential impacts. The Draft EIR was released in May D. Applicant: Equity Residential, Aliso Viejo Parkway #250, Aliso Viejo, CA E. Application Materials Available: II. Background The LPC and the DRC last met together on July 19, 2012, continuing their respective design review processes in a collaborative manner. At that meeting, the LPC and DRC each designated three members to work together in a subcommittee process in order to continue reviewing the building massing and major design issues affecting the existing 2120 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA Tel: TDD: Fax: zab@ci.berkeley.ca.us

2 DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE Page 2 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 historic resources. Subcommittee members met on August 7 th, August 16 th and September 13 th to discuss outstanding massing, building detail and landscape design issues. Major design changes in response to recommendations at the Joint LPC/DRC meetings as well the subsequent three subcommittee meetings follow further on in this report in the Issues and Analysis section. Summaries of all three joint LPC/DRC meetings, March 29 th, June 7 th, and July 19 th, are included as an attachment for your reference. (Attachment 2)

3 LPC-DRC Page 3 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 Figure 1: Vicinity Map

4 DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE Page 4 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 Figure 2: Draft EIR Proposed Project Site Plan

5 LPC-DRC Page 5 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 Figure 3: Landmark Status and Design Review Responsibilities Parcel #11 McFarlane Building Landmark LPC Review of Alterations & Addition Parcel #10 Krishna Copy Bldg Potential Historical Resource DRC Review of Alterations & Addition LPC Referral Parcel #9 Bachenheimer Not Included Parcel #8-3 Acheson Physicians Building and Addition Landmark LPC Review of Alterations Parcel #8-2 Ace Hardware Building Landmark LPC Review of Alterations & Addition Parcel #8-2 Ace Hardware Building Landmark LPC review of Alterations & Addition Parcels #4, 5 & 6 Walnut Building (Baldwin/Acheson House) (Moore/Acheson House) Potential Historical Resources DRC Review of New Construction LPC Referral

6 DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE Page 6 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 Table 1: Special Characteristics Characteristic Applies? Explanation Alcohol Sales/Service Yes 1981 Shattuck Avenue - Zatar: Incidental Beer/Wine 2129 University Avenue - Long Life Vegi House: Incidental Beer/Wine Creeks No Strawberry Creek is 800-feet to the southeast. Density Bonus No None requested at this time. Downtown Plan Yes Outer Core Green Point Rating Inclusionary Housing Yes No Total Targeted Points: 136 (50 point minimum) The dwelling units would be rented. City Landmark? Yes The Site contains three designated landmarks: 1987 Shattuck Avenue (MacFarlane Building), 2131 University Avenue (Acheson Physicians Building), and 2145 University Avenue (Sills Grocery & Hardware Company) Oak Trees No Fully developed downtown commercial / residential properties. Seismic Hazards No Site is not within area mapped for liquefaction, landslide, or fault rupture zone. Soil/Groundwater Contamination Potentially Table 2: Project Chronology and tentative future schedule Date June 3, 2010 November 22, 2010 April 25, 2011 May 5, 2011 May 12, 2011 May 19, 2011 October 18, 2011 November 9, 2011 January 30, 2012 February 29, 2012 March 16, 2012 March 29, 2012 May 2012 June-July 2012 June 7, 2012 July 19, 2012 August 2012 August - September 2012 October December, 2012 Action This site is within the City s Environmental Management Area. Development in this area may encounter potential health and environmental concerns during construction involving underground excavation or dewatering. LPC Preview (of preliminary plan) Application submitted Public hearing notices mailed/posted for the LPC and ZAB meetings LPC Preview ZAB Preview DRC Preview EIR Notice of Preparation/ Scoping Meeting EIR Scoping Meeting Application Resubmittal Application deemed complete Public hearing notices mailed/posted for the LPC/DRC Joint Meeting LPC/DRC Joint Meeting Release of Draft EIR LPC & ZAB Hearings: Public Comment on Draft EIR LPC/DRC Joint Meeting LPC/DRC Joint Meeting Release of Draft Findings/ Conditions of Approval to DRC, LPC and ZAB LPC/DRC Subcommittee Meetings DRC and LPC final recommendations to ZAB; ZAB and LPC actions on the Project.

7 LPC-DRC Page 7 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 Table 3: Development Standards Standard Proposed Permitted/ BMC Sections 23E & 23E Existing Total Required Lot Area (sq. ft.) 52,110 52,110 N/A Floor Area, Parking (sq. ft.) 0 8,494 No Limit Residential (sq. ft.) 6, ,745 Office, per assessor (sq. ft.) 33,360 0 Floor Area, Retail (sq. ft.) 24,022 25,162 Live Work (sq. ft.) 0 0 Food Service (sq. ft.) 15,832 9,730 Floor Area total (sq. ft.) excludes parking 79, ,040 N/A Floor Area Ratio (excludes parking) N/A Dwelling Units 1-Bedroom Not available Bedroom Not available 74 Below Market Rate Not available 0 0 Total No Limit Building Height, Acheson (ft) 54-6 Max Stories 4 No change Ace (ft) Stories / 75 with Use McFarlane (ft) Permit Stories 1 6 Walnut (ft) Not available 73-2 Stories 3 6 Usable Open Total (sq. ft.) Space 0 19,297 16,160 Parking Required - Food Service N/A +4 4 Parking Required Retail N/A Parking Required - Live Work N/A +6 6 Parking Required Office 64 0 Parking Required Residential 7 67 Total Required 138 Parking Provided Garage N/A 50 Parking Provided Surface 37 0 N/A Parking Provided Total Bicycles N/A Not available tbd III. Project Setting/ Description A. Vicinity: The project site is surrounded by a mix of uses typical of an urban downtown environment, including: office; commercial; retail; restaurant; and, medium to high density residential uses. Institutional uses associated with the UC Berkeley campus are also located within the immediate vicinity. North. Land uses north of the project site at the corner of Shattuck Avenue and Berkeley Way include retail and restaurant uses and the University of California Press (UC Press) book and journal publisher. At the northeast corner of the project site, the site is bordered by Berkeley Way. Across Berkeley Way, construction of the University of California Helios Energy Research Facility is nearing completion. East. The project site is bordered immediately to the east by Walnut Street. Across Walnut Street land uses consist of commercial, residential and institutional uses (e.g., Osher Life Long Learning Institute).

8 DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE Page 8 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 South. The project site is bordered immediately to the south by University Avenue. Across University Avenue there is a mix of office, retail, and restaurant uses. West. The project site is bordered immediately to the west by Shattuck Avenue. Across Shattuck Avenue there is a mix of retail and restaurant uses. B. Site Conditions: The majority of the parcels on the block bounded by University Avenue on the south, Shattuck Avenue on the west, Walnut Street on the east and Berkeley Way on the north are in common ownership and include Shattuck Avenue, University Avenue, University Avenue & 1922 & 1930 Walnut Street. The property at 2119 University Avenue (Bachenheimer Building) is also included in the common ownership but is not part of the development plan. The site includes three designated City Landmarks and three additional potential historical resources. C. Project Description: Initially, the proposed project involved the construction of 202 new dwelling units and the rehabilitation of approximately 33,250 square feet of commercial space (9,730 square feet of restaurant use and 23,520 square feet of retail use). Approximately 16,820 square feet of office use would be removed from the project site. The historic buildings and façades along University Avenue would be retained and rehabilitated, including the 1925 Beaux Arts style landmark Acheson Physicians Building (James Mohr) and 1921 addition (James Plachek); new structures would be added on top of the 1925 Beaux Arts style landmark MacFarlane Building, the 1911 Beaux Arts style Krishna Copy Center Building, and the 1915 Beaux Arts style landmark Ace Hardware Building (James Plachek). The two brown-shingled First Bay Tradition style (c ) residential structures on Walnut Street would be demolished or relocated, and a new structure would be built. The ground floor of the Walnut Street Building would include a 50 stall parking garage. Changes to the proposed project include modifying the ground floor of the Walnut Building to include one bedroom residential units instead of live/work units. IV. Community Discussion A. Neighbor/Community Concerns: Prior to submitting the application to the City, a pre-application poster was erected by the applicant in November B. Landmarks Preservation Commission: The Landmarks Preservation Commission conducted project previews on June 3, 2010 and May 5, Summaries of those meetings were included in the previous attachments for the March 29 th meeting. Summaries of all three joint LPC/DRC meetings may be found in Attachment 2. C. Zoning Adjustments Board: The Zoning Adjustments Board conducted a project preview on May 12, A summary of that meeting was included in the previous attachments for the March 29 th meeting. D. Design Review Committee: The Design Review Committee conducted a preview of the project on May 19, The summary of that meeting was included in the previous attachments for the March 29th meeting. Summaries of all three joint LPC/DRC meetings may be found in Attachment 2.

9 LPC-DRC Page 9 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 Issues and Analysis A. The general summary from the July 19th joint LPC/DRC meeting was that both the LPC and DRC were not yet comfortable with the final massing of the project and that there was more review needed. The overall summary follows and a detailed summary by building may be found in Attachment 2 along with the previous two joint meetings on June 7 th and March 29 th. Summary: Not yet comfortable with notches. Provide more massing exploration for a better resolution for the street wall, the residents, and future residents to the north. Recommend showing alternate massing schemes in model to advance discussion. Big massing decisions to be reviewed: Krishna notch by Bachenheimer; Courtyard on McFarlane look at different orientations; there may be a better alternative than Shattuck; Ace alternates on notches; Slot between Ace & Acheson; and North side slot on McFarlane. B. Design Review Responsibility and Commentary At this stage in the design review discussion, it is worth focusing LPC on review of additions to Landmark buildings and DRC review of new construction adjacent to and above non-landmark buildings. LPC can focus on the use of the Standards as guidance even where they are not strictly met, with DRC providing relative citywide mixed-use design commentary to the LPC for their consideration. At the same time, the DRC can focus on citywide mixed-use design commentary for new construction, with LPC providing relevant commentary on adjacent historic resources to the DRC for their consideration. Members can refer to Figure 3 above for design review responsibility clarification. C. Synopsis of recent design changes in subcommittee meetings: Since the July 19th meeting, the subcommittees have had three meetings. Significant changes to each building are listed below, but a general improvement for the overall project was the increase in the space between buildings (and residential units) allowing for more privacy, light, and air. The applicant also looked closely where units are in proximity across from other residential units to insure that they do not have windows that look directly into one another. BLOCK D / MacFarlane Building (LPC Review with DRC Advice) While the main light court for the MacFarlane Building was shown at the July 19 th joint LPC/DRC meeting, there was still some question as to whether this was the best orientation. In the subsequent subcommittee meetings, the applicant demonstrated where this was not only the best orientation for the project s University street façade, but for Shattuck s as well. Rooftop tower elements on the University and Shattuck corner, as well as further along the Shattuck elevation, mark the corner from east/west views on University as well as north/south views on Shattuck. Krishna Copy Building (DRC Review with LPC Advice) During the subcommittee process, the building wall at the upper stories of the Krishna Building moved back to visually give space to the existing Bachenheimer tower.

10 DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE Page 10 of 10 OCTOBER 18, 2012 BLOCK C / Walnut Building (DRC Review with LPC Advice) While significant changes have not been proposed for this building in the subcommittee meetings, there were several comments made early on in the joint LPC/DRC meetings about specific building details for the bays and ground floor openings located on Berkeley Way. Summaries from all three joint LPC/DRC meetings are located in Attachment 2. BLOCK B / Ace Hardware Building (LPC Review with DRC Advice) One of the main recommendations at the July 19 th joint LPC/DRC meeting was that the step backs (notches) on this building were not yet resolved. There was considerable effort and discussion on this issue at the subsequent subcommittee meetings. The LPC and DRC subcommittee members agreed with the current design proposal which uses a distinctive building design on the new addition to differentiate from the historic resource below in lieu of a more substantial step back so that a more cohesive street wall could be achieved for that corner and the whole block. V. Recommendation Staff recommends that the DRC review the revised project design and provide specific recommendations for further detailed refinement for the Walnut Building, the Krishna Building, and the landscape plans for the project s proposed open space. Recommendations for further detailed design refinement on the MacFarlane, Acheson, and Ace Hardware Buildings will be forwarded to the LPC to be included in their review. Attachments: 1. Revised Project Plans, received September 27, Summaries for Joint LPC/DRC Meetings, March 29, 2012, June 7, 2012, and July 19, 2012 Staff Planners: Anne Burns, Design Review, aburns@ci.berkeley.ca.us, (510) Sally Zarnowitz, Landmarks Preservation, szarnowitz@ci.berkeley.ca.us, (510) Greg Powell, Project Manager, gpowell@ci.berkeley.ca.us, (510)