DRC Recap - July 17, 2013

Again, DRC had a fairly large agenda for their July 17 meeting.  Many of the items, while important, were fairly routine.  So without getting into all the minutia of the meeting, we’ll focus on some of the highlights. 

Building signs for Living Spaces at 407 West Huntington Drive are being replaced with very attractive, contemporary signs. 

Outdoor dining permit was approved for S’Links, a new restaurant specializing in gourmet hot dogs that will be opening soon at 630 South Myrtle Avenue.  

Façade remodel for the building at 720 East Huntington Drive for Lumber Liquidators.

Review of a new training facility at 2055 South Myrtle Avenue—that’s Monrovia Fire Station 102.

Support Monrovia businesses.  Shop local!

Planning Commission Update - July 10, 2013

The summer lull has hit.  The one and only public hearing was for a new beer and wine license for a new restaurant in Old Town.  Still, there was a whole lot of change going on…beginning with the annual reorganization of the Commission.  At the start of each year, fiscal year that is, the Commission elects a chair and vice chair for the upcoming year.  Following tradition, the Commission elected Vice Chair Carlos Parrague as the Chair of the Planning Commission and Commissioner Anne McIntosh as the new Vice Chair.  Additionally, the Commission welcomed the City’s two newly appointed Planning Commissioners, Robert McClellan and Karen Suarez.

With Commissioner Parrague assuming the chair, the meeting continued to the public hearing: review of a request for a conditional use permit (CUP) for a new restaurant to serve beer and wine.  The restaurant, which will be called Meridian, will serve Mediterranean fare…kabobs, fattoush, hummus, gyros…our mouths are watering already. Meridian will be located at 342 South Myrtle Avenue.  The CUP was approved. 

An Illustrative Example of Typical Mediterranean Food

The Commission then moved to the topic of stormwater regulations.  OK, so it’s not the most glamorous of topics, but making sure that stormwater, which eventually makes its way down to the ocean, has minimal pollutants is important—and mandatory under the Clean Water Act.  There are more acronyms than letters in the alphabet related to this topic: NPDES – National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System; MS4 – Municipal Separate Storm Water System; SUSMP – Standard Urban Stormwater Mitigation Plan…and the list keeps on going.

So what does this all mean?  Well, we’re still working on that, but luckily we’ve got some really smart, dedicated staff members over in the Environmental Services Section that are figuring it out for the City. Bottom line, most new development will need to capture the majority of rainwater on site and either for reuse (think rain barrels) or allowed to percolate down to the water table which will help to recharge the aquifers that supply most of our water.  The presentation was for information only and no action was required at this time.

DRC Recap - July 3, 2013

Hi Readers!  We hope you had a good 4th of July.  Below is an update from the Development Review Committee's (DRC) July 3, 2013 meeting.  (If you're asking "What's DRC?," check out some of our prior posts for an overview.)  

Unless stated otherwise, the following items were reviewed and approved by DRC at the July 3rd meeting:

Residential Properties

• 122 N. Alta Vista Ave. – Review of 3,250 sq. ft. home.
• 123 McKinley Pl. – Minor exception to encroach into minimum side yard setback for an addition.
• 732 Bonita St. – Review of window removal and replacement.  DRC did not approve this application.
• 239 E. Hillcrest Blvd. – Review of new 2,992 sq. ft. home.
• 873 Ridgeside Dr. – Minor exception, 5 ft. fence in lieu of 4 ft. in front yard setback and a patio cover setback 21.5 ft. in lieu of 25 ft.
• 946 W. Colorado Blvd. – Review of 100 sq. ft. addition to west side of house.

Commercial Properties

• 241 W. Huntington Dr. – Advisory review of Conditional Use Permit (C.U.P.) for a second-hand store with façade removal and Zoning Code Amendment.  DRC did not recommend approval.
• 1451 S. Mountain Ave. – Review of architectural addition of a car on the building wall.
• 925 W. Foothill Blvd. – Advisory review of C.U.P. for second-hand store.  Forwarded to Planning Commission with recommendation of approval with conditions.

Sign Review

• 702 E. Huntington Dr. – Advisory review for Code Amendment to allow LED (Electric) price sign at service (gas) stations.  Forwarded to Planning Commission with a recommendation for approval.
• 702 E. Huntington Dr. – Review of modification to canopy and sign face change for Shell Service station.
• 720 E. Huntington Dr. – Review of wall sign for Lumber Liquidator.  

If you'd like to know more about Business Signage in the City of Monrovia, click here.

Historic Landmark Number 128

Like most departments within City Hall, the Planning staff wears many different hats.  In addition to land use approvals, zoning inquiries, and design review, the Planning Division also administers the City’s Historic Preservation Program.

The Historic Preservation Ordinance was adopted in 1995 and created a program to recognize structures that have historic or architectural significance by designating them as historic landmarks.  What makes Monrovia’s program unique and so successful is the fact that it is voluntary.  The property owner has to consent to the application.  The Historic Preservation Commission, a panel of Monrovia residents, was established to serve as an advisory body to the City Council on matters related to historic preservation.  

A couple of weeks ago, upon recommendation of the Historic Preservation Commission, the City Council approved the 128th historic landmark for the house at 201 Acacia Avenue.   This house was built in 1928 and is an example of the Tudor Revival style.  The house has been wonderfully maintained over the years and is substantially “intact”.  There are many typical elements incorporated into this house that are representative of the Tudor style including the steep gabled roof, half timbers, vertically oriented windows and an attractive arched entry trimmed with brick.  This house represents typical residential housing built in the late 1920s in Southern California reflecting the aesthetic of the Eclectic movement.

Eclectic movement?

As the California/Craftsman Bungalow craze of the teens and early 1920s began to fall out of favor, residential structures built during this period were a mix of architectural styles.  The Eclectic Revival styles took their cue from the Old World styles: Spanish, French, Mediterranean, Dutch and in the case of this house, English Tudor.  Name some architectural style from the past and there was probably a revival and it was probably in the Los Angeles area.  Here’s a few that come to mind:

Mayan Revival—Monrovia’s own Aztec Hotel
Pueblo Revival—338 Highland Place
Egyptian Revival—Egyptian Theater in Hollywood

While Eclecticism typically emphasized accurate copies drawn from the originals, Southern California examples from this period frequently took liberties by incorporating other architectural elements which often resulted in whimsical interpretations of established architectural styles, not unlike a Hollywood movie set.  Coincidence?  Some architectural historians think not.

For Monrovians, the Spanish Colonial Revival seemed to be the predominant style of choice during this period, but there are a fair number of Tudor, French and even a few Monterey and Colonial Revival sprinkled throughout our neighborhoods.

We hope we sparked your interest. 

Project Update: 212-216 West Olive Avenue

Picture this—collaborating for weeks on a new development with an architect, working out all the details to make sure that the project not only looks good, but also fits in with its surroundings.  The plans look great, project gets approved, and then during construction you realize something is not quite right…or sometimes just plain wrong.  Nightmare!  Ask almost any city planner and we can tell you about that one project that we ask ourselves, “What was I thinking?” (Luckily that doesn't happen often or we wouldn't have jobs).

On the other hand, there is nothing more satisfying than when a project exceeds our expectations and in our opinion, the recently completed Planned Unit Development at 212-216 West Olive Avenue fits that scenario to a "T."

Now, if you are a long time reader of this blog, and we mean back to post #1, you may recall we blogged about this last August.  The development incorporated three new houses around an 80-year old house which was fully rehabilitated in the process.  We were a fan of the project then and even more so now.   We hope you think so too.

View of Property from W. Olive Ave.

After: 80 Year-Old Home

Before: 80 Year-Old Home

Approval of 21-Unit Planned Unit Development (PUD)

At their June 4^th meeting, the City Council approved a new 21-unit Planned Unit Development (PUD) at 1323 South Magnolia Avenue.  The property is part of the First Lutheran Church.  The development will be on the southern portion of the property replacing the school buildings.  The staff report has all the details, but in a nutshell, here’s what was approved. 

The development has 21 two-story, detached houses ranging in size from 1,579 to 1,870 square feet, each with an attached 2-car garage and private yard.  The architecture is a modern Craftsman style with a combination of wood siding and stucco with stone veneer accents. 

A planned unit development or PUD (“P-U-D”) is sort of a hybrid between a single family subdivision and a condominium.  As opposed to a condominium where the owner has title to the “airspace”, a PUD owner holds title (legal-speak for “owns”) to the building as well as the ground and usually the surrounding yard area.  There is still a homeowners association that is responsible for maintaining the common areas like the driveway and common landscaped areas and the exteriors of the houses.

Artist Rendering of 21-Unit PUD at 1323 S. Magnolia Ave.

Bring On the Burgers and Burritos

The walls of the former Acapulco restaurant are tumbling down, making way for Smashburger and Chipotle.  Demo permits were issued and Caterpillar (CAT) machines are rumbling on site.  For an early glimpse of the demo, check out this picture from the Gem City Images Blog.

If you'd like a little more background about the construction.