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HDC_10 08 20121 LITTLE ROCK HISTORIC DISTRICT COMMISSION MINUTES Monday, October 10, 2102, 5:00 p.m. Board Room, City Hall I. Roll Call Quorum was present being six (6) in number. Members Present: Julie Wiedower Randy Ripley Chris Vanlandingham Toni Johnson Mark Brown Kwadjo Boaitey Members Absent: BJ Bowen City Attorney: Debra Weldon Staff Present: Brian Minyard Citizens Present: Page Wilson Allison Vandever II. Approval of Minutes A motion was made by Commissioner Julie Wiedower to approve the minutes of September 10, 2012 as submitted. Commissioner Toni Johnson seconded and the minutes were approved with a vote of 6 ayes and 1 absent. Notice requirements were meet on the applications to be heard tonight. III. Deferred Certificates of Appropriateness None IV. Certificates of Appropriateness DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT 723 West Markham Street Little Rock, Arkansas 72201-1334 Phone: (501) 371-4790 Fax: (501) 399-3435 2 DATE: October 8, 2012 APPLICANT: Page Wilson, Paul Page Dwellings ADDRESS: 1418 Rock Street COA REQUEST: New Infill House PROJECT BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION: The subject property is located at 1418 Rock Street. The property’s legal description is “Lot 8R, Block 49, Original City of Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas." This is currently a vacant lot. The house was removed in 2000 as a result of the 1999 tornado. This application is for a New Infill House with detached garage. PREVIOUS ACTIONS ON THIS SITE: On July 9, 2012, A COA was issued to Page Wilson for construction of a house (which was never built). On May 9, 2011, a COA was issued to David Anderson & Allison Vandever for construction of a house (which was never built). On January 6, 2000, a COA was granted for demolition to Raymond Rogers. On August 5, 1999, a COA was filed for the repair of the roof after the tornado. The COA was not granted due to lack of information. STAFF REPORT ITEM NO. One. DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT 723 West Markham Street Little Rock, Arkansas 72201-1334 Phone: (501) 371-4790 Fax: (501) 399-3435 Location of Project Montage of street view 3 PROPOSAL AND WRITTEN ANALYSIS OF THE APPLICATION BASED OFF OF INTENT AND GUIDELINES: The Guidelines state on page 63: B. NEW CONSTRUCTION OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY BUILDINGS New construction of primary and secondary buildings should maintain, not disrupt, the existing pattern of surrounding historic buildings in the neighborhood. Although they should blend with adjacent buildings, they should not be too imitative of historic styles so that they may be distinguished from historic buildings. (Note: A new building becomes too imitative through application of historic architectural decoration, such as gingerbread, vergeboards, dentils, fish- scale shingles, etc. These kinds of details are rarely successful on a new building. They fail to be accurate, usually too small and disproportionate versions of authentic ones, and should be avoided.) New construction of secondary structures, such as garages or other outbuildings, should be smaller in scale than the primary building; should be simple in design but reflect the general character of the primary building; should be located as traditional for the neighborhood (near the alley instead of close to or attached to the primary structure); and should be compatible in design, form, materials, and roof shape. 1. Building Orientation: The façade of the new building should be aligned with the established setbacks of the area. Side and rear setbacks common to the neighborhood should be upheld. 2. Building Mass and Scale: New buildings should appear similar in mass and scale with historic structures in the area. This includes height and width. 3. Building Form Basic building forms and roof shapes, including pitch, which match those used historically in the area should be used. Location and proportions of entrances, windows, divisional bays, and porches are important. Also consider heights (foundation, floor-to-ceiling, porch height and depth.) 4. Building Materials Building materials that are similar to those used historically for major surfaces in the area should be used. Materials for roofs should be similar in appearance to those used historically. New materials may be used if their appearances are similar to those of the historic building materials. Examples of acceptable new building materials are cement fiber board, which has the crisp dimensions of wood and can be painted, and standing seam metal roofs, preferably finished with a red or dark color. Finishes similar to others in the district should be used. If brick, closely match mortar and brick colors. If frame, match lap dimensions with wood or composite materials, not vinyl or aluminum siding. 4 Details and textures should be similar to those in the neighborhood (trim around doors, windows and eaves; watercourses; corner boards; eave depths, etc.) The scale and mass of the new construction maintains, and does not disrupt, the existing pattern of surrounding historic buildings in the neighborhood. The proposed building materials are to be used in a non-traditional way for a principal structure. 1. BUILDING ORIENTATION: The front setback of the proposed house is at the same setback as the other new structures on each side of it and is similar to the historic structures on the block face. Side setbacks are consistent to the historic and new structures on the block face. These are compatible with the district and within zoning parameters. 2. BUILDING MASS AND SCALE: From Rock Street, the proposed house appears smaller in mass and scale than the house to the south, the historic buildings at the north end of the block and all of the structures on the east side of the block. It is similar in mass and scale to the shotgun house immediately to the north. This includes both height and width. The width of the front façade is 18 feet wide and the height is approximately 21 feet. This is a similar height as the shotgun house to the north and less than the house to the south. 3. BUILDING FORM: Front (east) façade North façade West façade South façade The front entry door is to the left of the structure under a porch. It is accompanied with a small 36’ x 24” window that is mounted horizontally. The small porch area is slightly more than half of the width of the house and the porch floor will be less than three feet above grade. The steps extend past the side façade of the house. Handrails will not be installed. The porch and steps will be constructed of wood. 5 The front quarter (22’ of a total of 80’) of the house does not feature any windows on the north side of the structure. This is important because the house to the north sits to the north of its lot and will result in a space of 28 f eet between the two shotgun houses. This distance between houses is larger than the typical arrangement. The lack of windows on the north front quarter of the façade is not compatible with the district. A window will need to be installed on the north elevation on the eastern half of the wall at least 3’ x 5’ vertical in size. The fence, as discussed later, will exacerbate this problem, because the windows will not be visible from the street in their entirety. The foundation of the house will be 24” tall at the front and will be plain concrete block. The house will have 10’ ceilings. The windows will be Windsor windows, Pinnacle series. The cladding will be metal with color yet to be determined. The windows on the front of the house will be 24x36 inches horizontal. The windows on the north and south façade will be two ganged windows with a 24x36” and a 36” square window arranged in a vertical fashion. The rear (west) façade will feature 24” square windows. There are two doors off the front porch, one steel 36” door facing the street and one 36” door facing the south side yard. There is a 20x50” skylight on the south side of the roof about 16’ from the front of the house. 4. BUILDING MATERIALS: The siding on the house will be 26 gauge Galvalume used as siding installed in a horizontal pattern in a gray finish. This is the same material that has been used on the roofs of two adjacent structures. The trim boards on the corners and around the windows, “L” and “J” channels are out of the galvalume material. All but 13 linear feet (15%) of the exterior walls will be galvalume. The rest, which is a portion of the front façade and part of the front porch area, is to be 1x6” white oak siding in a flat, not overlapped, installation. There are two 18x42” cypress gable vents on both gable ends of the structure. The roof will be a metal standing roof in a grey finish. It will be 26 gauge screwdown standing seam metal roofing on a 12/12 pitch roof with 16” overhangs on the sides and 24” on the gable ends. There will be a 6” black vent pipe on the north elevation of the roof for an interior stove. Proposed windows 6 Galvalume siding Metal standing seam roof Exterior lighting will be as shown with a light gray finish. One will be placed by the front door and by the side door of the deck. No gutters are planned for this structure. White Oak Siding Proposed Light Fixture 5. SITE FIXTURES: Fencing will enclose the side yards and meet with adjacent properties fence. This “pallet fence’ will match the fences of adjacent properties. It will be constructed of 1x4’s mounted horizontally. Fence is to be a maximum of 6 feet in height or will be subject to a review by the Board of Adjustment. On the north side, it will match to the existing fence to the north, approximately one-quarter of the way down the house from the front facade. On the south side of the house, the fence will connect with the deck about 30 feet from the front façade. The mechanical units will be placed on the north side of the house near the rear. The deck will feature 1x5” wood decking with 4x4” post wand a 2x6” handrail cap. The railing will feature 4x4” opening welded wire fabric (hogwire) that will be affixed to the 4x4” posts with a piece of trim board. 7 A porous pea gravel walk to the structure from the city sidewalk will be installed. The parking pad in the rear will be out of pea gravel with horizontal 4x4’s as edging. NEIGHBORHOOD COMMENTS AND REACTION: At the time of distribution, there were no comments regarding this application. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Denial. COMMISSION ACTION: October 8, 2012 Commissioner Randy Ripley recused himself from the item for a conflict of interest. Brian Minyard, Staff, made a presentation concerning the application. Commissioner Julie Wiedower made a comment on the lack of windows on the north front part of the building. Commissioner Mark Brown asked why the staff recommendation was denial. Mr. Minyard replied that it was the lack of windows and the metal siding. Page Wilson, the applicant, introduced Allison Vandever, an intern architect at Cromwell. Sheets of welded wire mesh (hogwire) Proposed Fence Pea Gravel walkway Proposed wood steps 8 Commissioner Wiedower asked where the tree went on the site. Mr. Wilson responded that the tree would be removed. He continued to talk concerning the lack of windows on the north side of the structure. He said that the building would be 7 feet away from the fence, and that the fence arrangement between the new house and the existing houses made sense and the window will not be necessary. He continued that the windows would contribute to a lack of privacy. Landscaping will block the lack of windows. The windows were designed to provide cross ventilation. He said that he has built four shotguns in the neighborhood and has been building for 8 years. He says that he has to build for bankers and the comps. The market materials reflect that. He stated that the Galvalume will be hidden by the other houses and that the new should be different. He has tried to update the shotgun for the time we live in. He related the hills and valleys of the galvalume to the scale of 4” lap siding. Commissioner Wiedower asked what the siding was on the house to the north. Mr. Wilson answered that it was hardie board. Mr. Wilson said that the galvalume was relatively affordable to buy, no paint and no painting contractor. He did say that it comes with corner trim pieces. Commissioner Wiedower asked why he chose flip windows on the north and south elevations. Mr. Wilson said they were chosen for air movement. The conversation went to the siding on the front porch which Mr. Wilson described as horizontal tongue and groove butt jointed siding. He said that the siding could be trimmed with the J channel or with a 2x2 corner piece. Commissioner Wiedower asked if the front porch was cantilevered. Mr. Wilson said that there is a post that matches the oak siding on the porch. Commissioner Wiedower is concerned that the area is an aberration because of the tornado path. She is concerned to how the street reads; the front dimension of the house. Could the house be flipped? Mr. Wilson said that it could not be flipped. He is balancing the street with the deck on the south. He spoke of the rhythm and shared an aerial photo of the proposed building and how it related to the other buildings. He stated that the neighborhoods context has been lost and the random is now the rhythm of the neighborhood. Commissioner Toni Johnson commented that the finishes on the new buildings should be similar and that this material is almost like aluminum. She asked if he has looked at anything else. Mr. Wilson responded that he was trying to give each of the shotguns a different look. Commissioner Wiedower asked if it was a matte finish. He replied that it turns matte soon after installation. Commissioner Kwadjo Boaitey appreciated the comment on the flow of the street and is leaning more to being okay with the siding; it is different but representational. He noted that he could see the adjustment for moving the fence to see window. Commissioner Mark Brown said the applicant has a similar building in Capitol Zoning and that it blended will with the area and that it has metal siding as well. He likes the idea of doing wood or something else instead of metal. He said that he was conflicted over the siding choice, but is leaning towards the metal. 9 Commissioner Johnson said that two things are pulling her on this application. One is the unique area and that the applicant actually thinks about design and process. On the other hand, the guidelines state no aluminum and galvalume is same family as metal. On the window, maybe something needs to be there. Just because metal is less expensive, is not a reason to vote for it. Commissioner Wiedower stated that the guidelines say no aluminum siding, but it does not say any metal (steel) siding. She is amenable to making a building more sellable, but that is not the commission’s issue. She wished to have seen a sample. Chairman Chris Vanlandingham thanked Mr. Wilson for bringing young people to the neighborhood. He commented that he would not be able to vote for the galvalume siding, it was too much metal. The hogwire and metal is too much. He could go for the house, if it was a different material. Commissioner Johnson asked if the house was unbuildable with a different material. Mr. Wilson stated he had to talk about materials. He stated he was more likely to compromise on windows than on siding. Commissioner Wiedower asked a question if you could make a motion to approve something and then vote against it. Attorney Debra Weldon responded yes. She continued that the lack of a motion is the same as a denial, but there is no vote on record. Commissioner Johnson made a motion to approve as submitted. Commissioner Boaitey seconded and the motion and the motion passed with 4 ayes, 1 no (Vanlandingham) 1 absent (Bowen) and one recusal (Ripley). VI. V. Other Matters Enforcement issues There were none to report to the Commission at this time. Citizen Communication There were no citizens at this time to speak to the commission. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned 6:15 p.m. Attest: Chair .&6�x Secretary/Staff 10 -Z ( (- I -; Date ,�,f� -,1 Date