[3:00 P.M. – Call to Order]
[00:00:06]
MAY I HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE? GIBBS HERE.
UM, BEFORE WE GET STARTED, WE HAVE A BRIEF ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING INTERPRETIVE SERVICES FOR THE MEETING.
IF I COULD PLEASE HAVE ONE OF OUR TRANSLATORS COME UP TO THE PODIUM.
JUST, UH, MAKING NOTE TO ANYBODY WHO WANTS TO LISTEN TO THE TRANSLATION DIRECTLY.
THE, UM, APPARATUS IS RIGHT THERE AT THAT DOOR WHEN YOU'RE GOING OUT ON THE LEFT SIDE, AND IT CAN BE HEARD ONLINE.
THE HISTORIC AND DESIGN REVIEW COMMISSION IS AN ADVISORY BOARD APPOINTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL.
I'M JEFFREY CHAIR JEFFREY FETZER, CHAIRMAN AND VICE-CHAIR SCOTT CARPENTER.
IT IS THE FUNCTION OF THE COMMISSION TO ADVISE THE CITY MANAGER IN ALL RELEVANT CITY DEPARTMENTS CONCERNING ALL APPLICATIONS FOR PERMITS FOR PROPERTIES IN HISTORIC DISTRICTS FOR LANDMARKS ON CITY PROPERTY, IN THE RIVER IMPROVEMENT OVERLAY, AND FOR DEMOLITIONS.
AND CONSIDERING WHETHER TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL OF AN APPLICATION FOR A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS, THE COMMISSION SHALL BE GUIDED BY THE CITY'S UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE AND DESIGN GUIDELINES AND STANDARDS THAT HAVE BEEN ADOPTED BY CITY COUNCIL.
AN APPEAL OF A DECISION BY AN ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICIAL CAN BE FILED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CITY'S UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE.
IF ANYONE PRESENT WISHES TO SPEAK IN FAVOR OR IN OPPOSITION TO ANY ITEM ON TODAY'S AGENDA, PLEASE SIGN UP ON THE PUBLIC COMMENT SHEET.
IT IS NOT NECESSARY TO SIGN UP.
IF YOU ARE THE OWNER OF OR REPRESENTATIVE FOR A PROJECT ON THE AGENDA, YOU'LL BE CALLED ON AS THE CASE IS CALLED.
CASE REPRESENTATIVES WILL BE GIVEN NO MORE THAN 15 MINUTES TO PRESENT THEIR CASE WITH AN ADDITIONAL TWO MINUTES TO RESPOND TO PUBLIC COMMENTS.
SPEAKERS FOR, OR OPPOSED TO A CASE WILL BE LIMITED TO TWO MINUTES.
EACH SPEAKERS MAY ALSO SIGN UP TO YIELD THEIR TWO MINUTES TO ANOTHER SPEAKER WHO HAS SIGNED UP.
ANYONE WHO IS YIELDING THEIR TIME MUST BE PRESENT AT THE TIME THE SPEAKER IS CALLED UPON.
SPEAKERS WILL BE CALLED UPON IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY ARE SIGNED UP FOLLOWING PUBLIC TESTIMONY.
ANY COMMISSIONER MAY CALL UPON ANY SPEAKER TO RESPOND TO FURTHER QUESTIONS.
APPROVAL BY THE COMMISSION DOES NOT TAKE THE PLACE OF ANY TYPE OF PERMIT.
PERMITS MUST BE OBTAINED FOR ALL WORK.
CERTIFICATES OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR WORK APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION WILL BE EMAILED TO YOU WITHIN 10 DAYS.
NO WORK OF ANY T IS TO BE STARTED WITHOUT OBTAINING THE APPROPRIATE CITY PERMITS.
AFTER A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS HAS BEEN ISSUED BY THE OFFICE OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION.
AT THIS TIME, PLEASE SILENCE YOUR CELL PHONES.
UM, WE HAVE A FEW ANNOUNCEMENTS.
UM, THE FIRST IS TO OUR VIRTUAL ATTENDEES.
WE HAVE A FEW OF YOU THAT WILL BE PRESENTING YOUR CASES VIRTUALLY.
UM, SO RIGHT NOW YOU'VE JOINED US IN SORT OF A, A WAITING ROOM.
UM, JUST KEEPING AN AN EYE ON THE AGENDA AS WE GET TO YOUR CASE, I WILL REQUEST THAT YOU BECOME A, A PANELIST FOR THE WEBINAR.
UM, AT THAT POINT, YOU'LL NEED TO UNMUTE AND WE CAN SEE IN HEAR FROM YOU AT THAT TIME.
UM, IN MAY WE HAVE, UH, IS MAY IS NATIONAL HISTORIC PRESERVATION MONTH.
UM, AND WE CELEBRATE HERE LOCALLY EVERY YEAR.
UM, OUR, OUR MAIN EVENT THIS YEAR IS THE RETURN OF THE AMAZING PRESERVATION RACE ON MAY 12TH.
AND SO A LOT OF YOU THAT HAVE BEEN, UM, FAMILIAR WITH THE O H P, UM, IN OUR, IN OUR EVENTS IN THE PAST DECADE OR SO, ARE FAMILIAR WITH THIS EVENT AND KNOW IT'S A LOT OF FUN.
UM, SO RIGHT NOW FOR THE NEXT WEEK WE HAVE EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION FOR A TEAM OF FOUR.
UM, MORE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ON SA SPEAK UP.COM.
UM, AND JUST LOOK FOR PRESERVATION MONTH, UM, IF YOU SEARCH EVENTS AND YOU'LL BE ABLE TO FIND THAT.
UM, BUT AGAIN, THIS IS A, A REALLY FUN EVENT, UM, ON A FRIDAY EVENING ON MAY 12TH.
UM, AND AGAIN, WE INVITE ANYONE TO PARTICIPATE.
UM, AND THEN I THINK BEFORE WE GET INTO ITEMS ON OUR AGENDA, UM, WE HAVE, UH, ONE CITIZEN TO BE HEARD, UM, THAT SIGNED UP FOR GENERAL ITEMS. SO AT THIS TIME I'LL ASK BIANCA MALDONADO TO COME UP TO THE PODIUM.
UM, MS. MALDONADO RECEIVE SIX MINUTES, OH, EXCUSE ME, FOUR MINUTES OF SPEAKING TIME.
UM, TOM SIMMONS IS HERE WITH HER AND HAS YIELDED TIME TO HER.
[00:05:01]
TO SPEAK.THIS IS REGARDING 5 26 DONALDSON AVENUE, WHICH IS A WITHDRAWN CASE FROM YOUR AGENDA.
I CHAIR THE MONTICELLO PARK ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE OFFERING COMMENTS ON BEHALF OF DREA GARZA, PRESIDENT OF THE MONTICELLO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, AND ITS NINE MEMBER BOARD M P N A P O BOX 1 0 0 3 1 5 7 8 2 0 1.
OUR COMMENTS TODAY ARE FOCUSED ON THE HISTORY OF INVESTMENTS MADE BY THE RESIDENTS OF MONTICELLO PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION AND THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO TO DONALDSON AVENUE, AS IS IT AMA, AS IT IS A MAJOR THOROUGHFARE THROUGH THE COMMUNITY.
AND IT IS THE ENTRANCE LEADING TO THOMAS JEFFERSON HIGH SCHOOL, A LOCAL LANDMARK.
THE PROPOSED CHANGES FOR THE PROPERTY AT 5 26 DONALDSON CONTRIBUTE TO THE OVERALL SITE AND SETTING OF DONALDSON AVENUE.
IN THE EARLY 1990S WHEN YOLANDA VETO WAS THE COUNCILWOMAN FOR DISTRICT SEVEN, THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO MADE CAPITAL INVESTMENTS TO WIDEN THE STREET FROM THE TWO TO 600 BLOCKS, REPLACING HOLISTICALLY ALL THE INFRASTRUCTURE, BUT THEY RETAINED THE LANDSCAPE BERMS AND ADDED TREES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE STREET IN THE EASEMENT, ALSO ADDING A COMPREHENSIVE STREET LIGHTING ON BOTH SIDES.
SINCE THEN, MORE THAN 30 TREES HAVE BEEN ADDED ON DONALDSON AVENUE TO FRONT YARDS AND EASEMENTS THROUGH THE MP'S UTILIZATION OF THE CITY CITY'S TREE CHALLENGE PROGRAM AND THE CITY'S EFFORTS TO RESTORE TREES THAT WERE DAMAGED IN THE 2019 STORM.
IN 2021 THROUGH THE 2017 BOND IMPROVEMENT MONIES, DONALDSON AVENUE AGAIN RECEIVED REINVESTMENTS TO ADDRESS THE MORE THAN $700,000 IN INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS ON THE TWO TO 600 BLOCKS, SPECIFICALLY ADDING MOBILITY AND STREET IMPROVEMENTS.
THE 2017 BOND ALSO COMPLETED THE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE THESPIAN ISLAND LOCATED AT DONALDSON ENCAMPMENT BOULEVARD.
ALL OF THESE BOND PROJECTS AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS ARE A DIRECT RESULT OF THE ADVOCACY OF M P N A FOR DONALDSON AVENUE FOR MULTIPLE DECADES.
AS WE CELEBRATE OUR 40TH YEAR IN 2023, WE BELIEVE IT'S IMPORTANT TO CELEBRATE OUR HISTORY.
AS NOTICED THE CASE APPROVED MATERIAL AND REMOVAL OF THE FRONT YARD LANDSCAPING AT 5 26 DONALDSON IS NOT APPROPRIATE, NOT IN KEEPING WITH THE HISTORIC DISTRICT GUIDELINES.
WE SUPPORT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS TO REQUEST THE APPLICANT TO PROVIDE 50% OF THE FRONT YARD TO BE DEDICATED TO LANDSCAPING, NOT HARDSCAPING, AND ALSO THAT A MORE APPROPRIATE HARDSCAPING MATERIAL BE USED OR MULCHED TO SOFTEN THE GARISHNESS OF CRUSH GRANITE.
WE ALSO REQUEST THAT ANY USE OF SMALL HARDSCAPE MATERIAL BE CONTAINED SO THAT IT DOES NOT WASH OUT INTO THE PUBLIC SIDEWALK.
WE ALSO ASK THE EASEMENT BE, REMAIN AS LANDSCAPING AND SUGGEST THE OWNER PARTNER WITH M P N A AS WE SEEK TO PLANT 40 TREES CELEBRATING OUR 40TH YEAR.
LASTLY, WE ASK FOR CONSIDERATION OF OUR COMMENTS AS WE'VE BEEN CONSISTENT IN OUR INVOLVEMENT IN THE H D R C PROCESS AND PROVIDING RESOURCES, EDUCATING OUR RESIDENTS THROUGH OUR NEWSLETTER, WHICH EVERY PROPERTY OWNER RECEIVES REGARDLESS OF THE PAY DUES WITH INFORMATION REGARDING OUR HISTORIC DISTRICT GUIDELINES AND PROCESSES FOR CHANGE.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO M P N A THAT AS H D R C RECEIVES PUBLIC COMMENT THAT THE COMMISSION IS MINDFUL OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO DO NOT RESIDE IN OUR HISTORIC DISTRICT AND WHO MAY SEEK TO UNDERMINE O H P AND THE H D R C PROCESSES AS WE HAVE SEEN THIS OCCUR IN PRIOR CASES.
WE THANK YOU FOR CONSIDERATION OF OUR COMMENTS FOR THIS CASE.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
AND SO IF WE CAN DIRECT OUR ATTENTION TO THE SCREEN, UM, THAT WAS IN REFERENCE TO ITEM NUMBER SIX ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.
UM, WE'VE NOTED THAT THAT HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN.
UM, THIS WAS A VIOLATION OF FRONT YARD LANDSCAPING AND SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE APPLICANT.
ULTIMATELY, THEY'RE AGREEING WITH STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS TO COMPLY WITH THE GUIDELINES, AND SO WE'LL BE WORKING WITH THEM TO ACHIEVE THAT, UM, HERE IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.
UM, SO THERE'S REALLY NO ACTION THAT'S NEEDED TODAY.
UM, SO THE REMAINDER ITEMS ONE THROUGH SEVEN ARE ON THE AGENDA.
UM, FURTHER ON WE HAVE ITEM 13 THAT HAS BEEN POSTPONED BY THE APPLICANT AND WILL NOT BE HEARD TODAY.
AND THEN YOU'RE ALSO AWARE THAT WE HAVE ITEM 16 THAT WAS POSTED AS TIME CERTAIN FOLLOWING EITHER 5:00 PM OR FOLLOWING ALL OTHER AGENDA ITEMS. SO THAT'LL BE HEARD MUCH LATER.
UM, SO NOW LET'S HEAR PUBLIC COMMENTS THAT RECEIVED WE RECEIVED FOR ITEMS ON CONSENT.
UM, BEGINNING WITH ITEM NUMBER ONE, WE HAVE A VOICEMAIL.
HELLO, MY NAME IS VALERIE CORTEZ AND I RESIDE AT 5 0 8 LAMAR STREET WITH INDIGNITY HILL.
I'M CALLING ON BEHALF OF THE GROUP THE CONCERNED CITIZENS OF DIGNITY HILL WITH REGARD TO CASE NUMBER 2023 DASH 1 27 LOCATED AT 1 0 1 1 0 3 PASO, WE DO NOT AGREE WITH O P'S RECOMMENDATION FOR APPROVAL FIRST, AS PER THE INFILL DESIGN APPLICATION, SUPPLEMENT INSTRUCTIONS, THE CONTEXT AREA MUST BE ESTABLISHED USING PARCELS THAT ARE ADJACENT TO THE SUBJECT PROPERTY.
AND AS STATED IN THE LOT RATIO SECTION OF THE O H P GUIDELINES, NEW CONSTRUCTION SHOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH ADJACENT HISTORIC BUILDINGS.
IN TERMS OF THE BUILDING TO LOT RATIO, BUILDINGS SHOULD LIMIT THE BUILDING FOOTPRINT FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION TO NO MORE THAN 50% OF THE TOTAL LOT AREA UNLESS ADJACENT HISTORIC BUILDINGS ESTABLISH A PRECEDENT WITH A GREATER BUILDING TO LOT RATIO.
[00:10:01]
THESE TWO STRUCTURES MASSIVELY OVERWHELM ALL THE OTHER EXISTING SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES AND LOTS ON THIS BLOCK AND GREATLY EXCEEDS LOT COVERAGE STIPULATIONS.SECOND, THERE ARE TWO EXISTING OLD GROWTH TREES ON THESE LOTS.
IT SEEMS AS IF THE DEVELOPER MAY HAVE ADDRESSED ONE TREE, BUT WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE OTHER TREE? ARE THEY PLANNING ON CUTTING DOWN THE OTHER TREE? THIRD, LACK OF PARKING.
EVEN THOUGH THE APPLICANT HAS STATED HE IS CREATING FIVE PARKING SPACES ALONG THE ALLEY FOR ALL FOUR UNITS, THE SPACES WILL MORE THAN LIKELY BE TOTALLY UTILIZED BY JUST THE PROPERTY OWNERS OF THE TWO UNITS IN THE BACK.
THE FRONT UNITS WILL STILL BE LEFT WITH NO PARKING EXCEPT FOR ON THE STREET.
THE INSTALLATION OF BIKE RACKS AT THE REAR SIDE OF THE PROPERTY WILL NOT RESOLVE THIS PROBLEM.
IN FACT, HOW ARE THE OWNERS SUPPOSED TO POLICE THE BIKE RACKS THAT ARE INSTALLED BY THE SIDEWALK? WHAT HAPPENS IF SOMEONE ELSE USES THESE BIKE RACKS BECAUSE THEY THINK THEY'RE FOR GENERAL USE BY THE PUBLIC? LAST LACK OF YARD SPACE IS STILL BASICALLY NON-EXISTENT FOR OWNERS OF THESE PROPERTIES.
NEXT VOICEMAIL IS FOR ITEM NUMBER 2 6 0 1 NOLAN STREET.
HELLO, MY NAME IS ARI CORTES AND I RESIDE AT 5 0 8 LAMAR STREET WOOD INDIGNITY HILL.
I'M CALLING ON BEHALF OF THE GROUP THE CONCERNED CITIZENS OF DIGNITY WITTY HILL WITH REGARD TO CASE NUMBER 2023 DASH 1 21 LOCATED AT 6 0 1 NOLAN STREET.
WE AGREE WITH O P'S APPROVAL WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE WIDTH OF THE PROPOSED COMPOSITE PORCH MATERIAL, EXTERIOR PORCHES AND HISTORIC NEIGHBORHOODS SHOULD USE A ONE BY THREE TONGUE AND GROOVE MATERIAL THAT IS PLACED PERPENDICULAR TO THE HOUSE.
WHILE THIS IS DIFFICULT TO FIND, THE TIMBER TECH EC ONE BY THREE PORCH MATERIAL IS SOLD AT LOCAL MCCOY'S LOCATIONS.
THAT CONCLUDES OUR VOICEMAILS FOR THE CONSENT AGENDA.
COMMISSIONERS, PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE ARE LETTERS IN YOUR PACKETS FOR ITEMS ONE, TWO, AND THREE.
[CONSENT AGENDA Items are placed on the consent agenda when staff recommends approval or recommends approval with stipulations that the applicant agrees to. Any member of the public desiring to speak on a consent agenda item may sign up and be heard prior to voting on the consent agenda. Commissioners may request to remove any item from the consent agenda and have it placed on the individual consideration agenda. All items on the consent agenda will be considered for approval by one motion adopting the items with staff findings and recommendations. ]
COMMISSIONERS WISH TO PULL ANY OF THE ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION? COMMISSIONER SAVINO? YES, MR. CHAIR? THANK YOU.I WOULD LIKE TO POLL ITEM NUMBER TWO, WHICH IS 6 0 1 NOLAN STREET.
ANY OTHERS? IF NOT, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION FOR THE BALANCE.
UH, MR. CHAIR, I'D LIKE TO MOTION THAT WE APPROVE WITH ALL STAFF STIPULATIONS.
ITEM NUMBER ONE, NUMBER THREE, NUMBER FOUR, NUMBER FIVE, NUMBER SIX AND SEVEN, NOT NUMBER SIX, JUST NUMBER SIX.
NUMBER SIX WAS WITHDRAWN BY THE APPLICANT.
SCRATCH NUMBER SIX, ITEMS ONE, THREE THROUGH FIVE AND NUMBER SEVEN.
WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.
I MAY HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE.
IF YOU'RE ON THE CONSENT AGENDA AND YOUR ADDRESS IS 1 0 1 AND 1 0 3 PA HONDO ONE 15 SOUTH ST.
MARY'S FIVE 19 MISSION 2 0 6 WEST AGARITA AND 1 24 EAST ATCH.
YOUR CASE HAS BEEN APPROVED AND YOU DO NOT NEED TO STAY FOR THE REMAINDER OF THIS HEARING.
IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT A MEMBER OF STAFF.
YOUR COMMISSION ACTION LETTER OR CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS WILL BE PREPARED AND EMAILED TO YOU WITHIN 10 DAYS.
[INDIVIDUAL CONSIDERATION ]
ITEM NUMBER 2 6 0 1 NOLAN STREET.THE, UH, APPLICANT, MS. WENDY HANDLER IS HERE IN PERSON? YES.
MS. HANDLER, WILL YOU COME UP TO THE PODIUM? SORRY.
AND COMMISSIONER SAVINO HAS A QUESTION OR COMMENT? YES.
UM, MY COMMENT IS REALLY, UM, FOR THE COMMISSION AND FOR THE CHAIR.
UM, I, I THINK THE PROJECT IS FINE.
I THINK STAFF STIPULATIONS ARE FINE.
I DO HAVE A BIT OF CONCERN WITH THE PROFILE OF THE MATERIAL BEING USED.
UH, TYPICALLY ON A FRONT PORCH, WE USE PORCH MATERIAL, WHICH IS A TONGUE AND GROOVE, AND WE'VE BEEN APPROVING IT VERY CONSISTENTLY FOR OTHER REDOS OR REHABS, NEW CONSTRUCTION AND, UM, OVER CONCRETE PORCHES.
SO THAT WOULD BE THE ONLY CHANGE THAT I WOULD MAKE THAT, UM, AND SO I COULD EVEN FRAME THIS IN A MOTION TO, UM, APPROVE THE REQUEST FOR A C O A FOR TO CONSTRUCT A WOOD PORCH TO
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COVER THE EXISTING NON-ORIGINAL CONCRETE PORCH.AND YOUR PROPOSED PORCH WILL EXTEND TO THE SIDE EAST SIDE OF THE EXISTING CONCRETE PORCH WITH STAFF STIPULATIONS.
THE ONLY CHANGE THAT THE, UH, PROPOSED COMPOSITE DECKING BE INSTALLED PERPENDICULAR TO THE FRONT FACADE OF THE HISTORIC STRUCTURE AND FEATURE A WIDTH OF THREE INCHES AND WOULD BE A TONGUE AND GROOVE ONE BY THREE MATERIAL.
THAT'S THE ONLY CHANGE THAT I WOULD PROPOSE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE.
UM, MAY I RESPOND? YES, MA'AM.
UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS,
UM, WE EVALUATED A WHOLE HOST OF COMPOSITE MATERIALS, INCLUDING THE ONE THAT THE CONCERNED CITIZENS, OUR NEIGHBORS CALLED IN.
AND, UM, THE ONE THAT WE HAVE CHOSEN, WE CHOSE BECAUSE IT WAS THE ONLY ONE THAT WE COULD FIND THAT DIDN'T HAVE A DEEP, UM, INGRAINED FAUX WOOD PROFILE.
UH, THEY LOOKED THE ONE THAT WAS SUGGESTED BY THESE CALLERS.
IT JUST, FRANKLY, LOOKS COMPLETELY FAKE.
UM, IT'S ALSO THE SAME WIDTH AS THE COMPOSITE BOARDS THAT WE SUGGESTED.
I KNOW THEY SAID THEY'RE THREE INCHES, BUT THEY'RE ACTUALLY, WHEN YOU MEASURE THEM, THEY'RE THE SAME AS OURS, WHICH IS JUST UNDER THREE AND A HALF INCHES.
SO I THINK THE LOOK OF THAT WITH THE PERPENDICULAR TO THE HOUSE AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS GOING TO BE VERY SATISFACTORY.
UM, THIS HAS BEEN USED, THIS DECORATORS HAS BEEN APPROVED AND USED THROUGHOUT, UM, VARIOUS HOMES IN KING WILLIAM AND, UM, TOBIN HILL AND OTHER AREAS.
THAT'S WHY, UH, WHEN THE CONTRACTOR CAME TO US AND PRESENTED A BUNCH OF OPTIONS AND SAID, THIS IS A HOUSE YOU COULD GO VISIT, THIS IS ANOTHER ONE THAT ARE IN HISTORIC DISTRICTS AND HAVE USED THIS PRODUCT, WHICH HAS A GREAT WARRANTY AND A LOT OF A GOOD REPUTATION.
WE CHOSE IT, BUT MOSTLY WE CHOSE IT BECAUSE IT LOOKS THE MOST NATURAL AND IT FIT THE SPECIFICATIONS.
EDWARD HALL WAS NICE ENOUGH TO COME OUT TO OUR HOME AND REVIEW IT WITH US, AND ALSO, YOU KNOW, HAD AGREED THAT THAT WOULD BE SATISFACTORY.
SO, I, I MEAN, IS THIS YOUR OWN? CAN'T GET IT.
THE ONLY, WE CAN'T GET IT APPROVED WITH, UM, I CAN I ASK A QUESTION? I MEAN, I EVALUATED PROBABLY A DOZEN YES.
SO YOU'RE NOT DOING FIVE AND A HALF INCHES.
IT'S ACTUALLY THREE AND A HALF.
IT'S JUST THE APPLICATION SAYS IT'S ONE BY FIVE AND A HALF.
THIS BOARD COMES IN A VARIETY OF WIDTHS AND IT'S ONE BY JUST UNDER THREE AND A HALF.
IS THE ASIC PRODUCT, THE TONGUE AND GROOVE, ONE BY THREE ASIC PRODUCT APPROPRIATE IN YOUR ESTIMATION? I WOULD NEED TO REVIEW THE SPEC SPECIFICATIONS FOR THAT, UM, AZA.
SO, UH, WITHOUT GOING TOO DEEP, I'LL BACK UP A FEW YEARS.
THERE WERE TWO PRODUCTS THAT WERE COMPOSITE PORTRAIT MATERIALS.
UH, THERE WAS AN ERUS PRODUCT AND AN AZA PRODUCT.
THE ERUS PRODUCT CAME IN A SMOOTH FINISH, UH, CONSISTENT WITH HOW WE SPECIFY, UH, COMPOSITE, UH, SIDING.
THE AZAC AT THE TIME WAS ONLY MANUFACTURED WITH THE FAUX WOOD GRAIN FINISH.
UM, THE AERUS PRODUCT HAD A COMPOSITE MATERIAL IN GRAIN THAT PREVENTED SLIPPING, WHEREAS THE AZAC USED THE FAUX WOOD GRAIN FINISH TO ALLOW FOR GRIP ON THE FRONT PORCH OR WHATEVER APPLICATION IT WAS USED IN.
THAT'S THE EXTENT OF OF MY KNOWLEDGE TO THAT.
UM, THEY MAY, IT MAY HAVE THAT.
I I DO HAVE A COMPARISON CHART THAT, I MEAN, IT'S A LITTLE OVERKILL, BUT BETWEEN THE TWO PRODUCTS, THEY ARE SO SIMILAR.
BUT, UM, THE, THE ONE THAT WE HAVE SUGGESTED, UM, IS FAR MORE NATURAL LOOKING AND STILL HAS, IS, UH, SUPERIOR IN THE ANTI-SLIP CATEGORY.
THE, THE ONE THAT THE ASIC IS SUPERIOR AS FAR AS, YOU KNOW, 50 YEAR WARRANTY.
UM, OURS IS A 25 YEAR WARRANTY, BUT THOSE ARE IRRELEVANT TO THE LOOK AND FEEL.
UM, ONE OF THE REASONS THAT WE'RE REDOING THIS IS BECAUSE THE SETTLING HAS BEEN SO GREAT WITH THE CONCRETE THAT MY, UM, SENIOR MOTHER CANNOT NO LONGER ENTER OUR HOME.
THE, IT'S JUST SO WE DO WANNA GET THIS DONE AND THIS HAS SUPERIOR, EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS COMPLETELY LIKE A NATURAL WOOD, IT, UM, HAS SUPERIOR, A NON-SKID KIND OF NONS SLIPPING, UH, QUALITY TO IT.
I MEAN, THERE ARE SOME COST ISSUES.
THIS IS A VERY EXPENSIVE PROJECT JUST FOR A VERY SMALL SPACE.
SO THIS IS THE, FOR ALL THESE REASONS WE DID SETTLE ON THIS PRODUCT.
[00:20:01]
I DO WANNA ADD THAT IF WE DON'T HAVE AN APPROPRIATE SUBSTITUTE MATERIAL THAT IS A COMPOSITE OR A P V C MOVING FORWARD, DOES THAT MEAN ALL PORCHES GET A DECK FINISH RATHER THAN A PORCH FINISH IF THEY CHOOSE TO USE THE NON-WOOD? NOT NECESSARILY.I THINK ONE THING, UH, THAT'S IMPORTANT TO KEEP IN MIND IN THIS INSTANCE IS, UM, I'LL GO TO THE SANBORN MAP.
UM, ORIGINALLY THIS HOUSE FEATURED A WRAPAROUND PORCH.
THAT WRAPAROUND PORCH WAS REMOVED AND THE FRONT PORCH LOCATION OR AREA WAS ENCLOSED.
UM, THE PORCH THAT WE NOW SEE, THIS IS A PHOTO FROM 1994 THAT SHOWS THE ORIGINAL FRONT PORCH LOCATION BEING ENCLOSED.
THE CONCRETE PORCH BEING INSTALLED.
UM, THE ORIGINAL PORCH LOCATION IS NOT THERE ANYMORE, OBVIOUSLY.
UM, WE HAVE THE SUBSTITUTE MATERIALS DOCUMENT AND STAFF.
IT'S CONSISTENTLY RECOMMENDED, UH, FOR A ONE BY THREE TONGUE AND GROOVE DECKING.
SO STAFF WOULD, WOULD CONTINUE TO RECOMMEND THAT IN THE LOCATION OF WHERE AN ORIGINAL PORCH WAS OR IF THE APPLICANT WAS PROPOSING TO RE REHABILITATE OR RESTORE A PORCH IN ITS ORIGINAL LOCATION.
UM, WITH THIS NOT BEING THE PORT'S ORIGINAL LOCATION AND THE APPLICANT LOOKING TO INSTALL SOMETHING THAT, UH, REFERENCED THE PORT'S ORIGINAL LOCATION BUT WASN'T EXACTLY THERE, WE FIND THAT THE APPLICANT INSTALLING A DECKING THAT IS AN APPROXIMATE THREE AND A HALF WIT INCH INCH WIDTH, UH, WOULD BE APPROPRIATE.
UM, IF THE ORIGINAL WRAPAROUND PORCH WAS THERE, IF THE APPLICANT WAS LOOKING TO RESTORE THAT, WE WOULD RECOMMEND, UH, ONE BY THREE TONGUE AND GROOVE DECKING AS THAT WOULD BE IN THE PORCHES ORIGINAL LOCATION.
THANK YOU FOR THAT E EXPLANATION, THAT CLARIFICATION FROM THAT STANDPOINT, I CAN UNDERSTAND.
UM, I JUST ACTUALLY FINISHED A DECK USING THE SAME MATERIAL AND IT HAS WONDERFUL SLIP RESISTANCE ON IT.
YOU GET THE ONE WITH SOLID COLOR.
BUT, UM, IN LIGHT OF WHAT STAFF STAFF'S COMMENT AND, UM, PERSPECTIVE ON THE LOCATION OF THIS RECONSTRUCTION, I WOULD LIKE TO CHANGE MY, UM, MOTION TO ACCEPT THE PROPOSAL WITH ALL OF STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS.
ANY DISCUSSION? THANK YOU, MS. SAVINO.
MAY I HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE? GIBBS? AYE.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 8 5 0 1 EAST LOCUST.
UM, UH, ITEM EIGHT ON THE AGENDA.
H C R C, CASE NUMBER 20 23 1 0 6 5 0 1 EAST LOCUSTS.
THE APPLICANT REQUEST A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR APPROVAL TO REPLACE 18 1 1 WOOD WINDOWS WITH ALUMINUM CLAD WOOD WINDOWS.
STAFF DOES NOT RECOMMEND APPROVAL BASED ON FINDING C THROUGH F.
STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT ALL EXISTING WOOD WINDOWS ARE RETAINED AND REPAIRED.
UH, THE OWNER OF SHANE WOOL ROBB IS HERE IN PERSON.
UM, THERE ARE FOUR LETTERS ON FILE AND ONE VOICEMAIL.
WE ALSO HAVE AN IN-PERSON SPEAKER, SORRY, MR. RABI OR MS. MRS. RABI.
UM, YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND, OKAY.
UH, SHANE, WILL ROBBIE AND MY WIFE IRENE.
UH, WHEN DOES THE, UM, THE OTHER PRESENTER, THE IN SUPPORT OF THE PROJECT? AFTER, AFTER YOU GIVE YOUR PRESENTATION? YES.
UM, SO, SO THIS IS A, UM, ROUND TWO OR DO OVER, UM, WE, UH, PRESENTED TWO WEEKS AGO.
UM, THE, JUST TO KINDA GIVE A QUICK OVERVIEW, UM, THE STAFF'S OBJECTIONS WERE REALLY, UM, UH, PRIMARILY BASED ON THE, UH, THE HEAT GAIN, HEAT LOSS, UM, AND IMPROVING THE PROPERTY.
WE, UM, DISCUSSED THAT, THAT WE HAD DONE THE SUGGESTIONS WITH THE FOAM OF THE FLOOR WALLS AND ATTIC.
THE OTHER PART WAS THAT OVER, UM, 112 MILLION WINDOWS END UP IN LANDFILLS, UM, WE, UM, HAVE FOUND A, A LANDFILL THAT, OR NOT A LANDFILL, BUT A SERVICE THAT WILL TAKE CARE OF OUR WINDOWS, UH, PARADISE PICKERS.
[00:25:01]
OTHER FINDING WAS BASICALLY THE SAME THING.OH, THE, UM, THE WINDOWS AS OP, UH, O H P UH, STAFF AGREED THAT THEY, THEY MEET THE, AND CONFORM TO THE O O H P STANDARDS.
UM, WHERE I, I BELIEVE THAT THE ONLY OPEN ITEM IS THE, THE DISCREPANCY ABOUT THE NEED FOR REPLACEMENT REGARDING THE DEGREE OF DEGRADATION OF THE WINDOWS.
AND, UM, WE, UM, APPRECIATE HAVING, UH, HISTORIC COMMITTEE MEMBERS OUT TO VISIT OUR HOME, UH, TO LOOK AT IT.
THEY PROVIDED SOME SUGGESTIONS AS FAR AS TAKING CLASSES, BUYING A PAINT SCRAPER, AND KIND OF DOING OUR WORK OURSELVES.
UM, THE, FOR US, THAT'S REALLY NOT A, AN OPTION WE WERE LOOKING FOR.
'CAUSE WE HAVE THE SCOPE OF THE PROJECT AND WHAT WE WERE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH, UM, WITH REGARD TO THIS, UH, 50% DETERIORATION OF THE, UH, WINDOWS.
UM, AND IN TALKING WITH, UM, OTHER PEOPLE AND JUST REVIEWING IT, UM, IT'S REALLY A VERY SUBJECTIVE, UM, GOAL.
IT'S KINDA LIKE, UH, IN PEOPLE, IN TALKING TO PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD IT APPROVED AND DISAPPROVED, IT'S LIKE, WHAT IS THE 50% CHANCE OF RAIN TODAY? I MEAN, IT REALLY IS A DIFFICULT STANDARD.
AND I, AND I RESPECT THE CONSIDERATION THAT EVERYONE HAS PUT INTO THIS PROJECT.
BUT ULTIMATELY, UM, WHEN WE HAVE HAD VENDORS, QUALIFIED VENDORS OUT TO LOOK AT OUR WINDOWS, UM, THE RESTORATION TO RESTORE IT INTO THE ORIGINAL CONDITION, WHICH IS NOT WHERE WE WANT TO BE, EXCEEDS THE COST OF TO REPLACE THEM.
UM, AND THAT IS REALLY FROM AN ECONOMIC STANDPOINT AND OUR QUALITY OF LIFE AND LIVING IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND IN OUR RESIDENCE, UM, WE CAN DEBATE HOW MANY, YOU KNOW, THIS 50% GOAL IS VERY ELUSIVE.
AND I, I, UM, I'M VERY, UH, I'M HAPPY I DON'T HAVE TO MAKE THOSE DECISIONS.
BUT IT ONE SUGGESTION THROUGH THIS PROCESS THAT IF YOU HAVE FOR THE, UM, TO MAKE IT MORE CONSISTENT IN, IN SPEAKING WITH MY NEIGHBORS, TO MAKE IT MORE CONSISTENT AND, UH, LESS ARBITRARY.
UM, IF YOU HAVE A PRODUCT AND A, UH, A WINDOW THAT CONFORMS O H P, WHETHER IT'S, AND IT'S GOOD FOR, UH, THE NEW WINDOWS OR ADDITIONS, AND IT DOESN'T DETRACT FROM THE HISTORICAL APPEARANCE, THE EXTERIOR OF THE HOME, UM, WE'RE REALLY OVER, WE'RE FOR THE HOMEOWNER.
IT IS A, AN UN UNDUE, BURDENSOME, UNDULY BURDENSOME.
AND IT CAN'T BE, IT, IT MAKES IT SO THAT IT'S, UH, CREATES TOO MUCH CONTROVERSY.
'CAUSE I, I KNOW THAT YOU GUYS, UH, I'VE SAT ON BOARDS AND DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO, UM, UH, GO THROUGH THE NITPICKING PART OF IT.
BUT IF WE HAD, IF YOU HAVE WINDOWS THAT CONFORM AND TO SAY THAT IT'S GOOD IN TWO CONDITIONS, BUT NOT IN THE THIRD, BUT THEY'RE IDENTICAL WINDOWS UNDER CIRCUMSTANCES, AND YOU DO APPROVE 'EM AND OTHERS, UH, DEPENDING ON WHO YOU USE AND ALL THE OTHER STUFF, I'M THIS, THAT'S WHERE WE'VE STRUGGLED.
MY WIFE, UH, WILL GIVE HER PARTING COMMENTS.
UM, I JUST FIND THAT EVEN IF WE DID ALL THEES SUGGESTIONS YOU GIVE FOR HAVING THE WINDOWS RESTORED, IT'S NOT GONNA GIVE US WHAT WE WANT.
UM, I WANNA BE ABLE TO OPEN MY WINDOWS AND TO CLEAN THEM.
I WANT THE NOISE REDUCTION SHANE DIDN'T MENTION, WHICH USUALLY HE HARPS ON.
BUT THE, THE MUSIC COME FROM, UH, ST.
UM, IT'S, IT'S A REAL, UM, IT WILL REALLY ADD TO OUR QUALITY OF LIFE TO NOT BE HEARING THAT MUSIC AS LOUDLY EVERY NIGHT.
UM, AND AGAIN, I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND.
IT'S NOT GONNA CHANGE THE APPEARANCE OF OUR HOUSE AT ALL.
UM, SO I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THERE WOULD BE AN OBJECTION TO IT.
I KNOW IT, THAT'S WHAT'S IN YOUR, UM, YOUR CODE.
BUT THE CODE, BUT THE CODE, AS SHANE SAYS, DON'T, DOES NOT SEEM CONSISTENT.
IF YOU ALLOW IT FOR ADDITIONS, UM, WHY CAN'T WE DO IT IF IT'S NOT CHANGING THE OUTSIDE APPEARANCE OF OUR HOME? AND I THINK THE, UM, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THERE WILL BE ENERGY SAVINGS.
TALKING TO OUR NEIGHBORS TOO IS VERY INTERESTING.
[00:30:01]
THEM, WE'RE HEARING THAT SOLAR PANELS ARE BEING APPROVED NOW AND IN THE HISTORIC DISTRICT.AND I, IF THIS IS GONNA ADD, ALTHOUGH IT MAY COST US MORE MONEY THAN WE'RE GONNA GET BACK, IF IT IS GONNA ADD TO ENERGY SAVINGS, AGAIN, IT DOESN'T SEEM CONSISTENT.
IT JUST, AND IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE A GOOD IDEA TO, TO NOT APPROVE THEM.
SO IN, IN CONCLUSION THAT WE PRAY THAT, UM, IF YOU FIND THAT THE, THESE WINDOWS ARE O UH, APPROVED AND CONFORMING AND DO NOT DETRACT FROM THE EXTERIOR APPEARANCE OF THE HOUSE THAT YOU, UM, THAT YOU PLEASE APPROVE HIM.
UH, A SITTING TO BE HEARD AND THEN A VOICEMAIL.
IF WE COULD HAVE CURTIS KREER COME UP, PLEASE.
UM, I LIVE IN, UH, TOBIN HILL, AND I AM INTRODUCE YOURSELF FOR THE RECORD.
WHAT'S THAT? PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF FOR THE RECORD.
UH, I'M, THIS IS, UH, I'M CURTIS KREER.
I LIVE IN, UH, I LIVE IN TOBIN HILL.
UH, AND I AM REDOING MY WINDOWS.
UM, UH, I ATTEMPTED TO REPAIR THEM.
FIRST TURNS OUT THAT YOU CAN'T TAKE THE PAINT OFF VERY EASILY WITH A SCRAPER, UH, WITHOUT DAMAGING THE WOOD, BREAKING THE GLASS.
I TAKE IT OFF WITH A HEAT GUN, UH, STRIP IT ALL THE WAY TO WOOD AND PUT IT BACK.
AND THAT'S NOT JUST THE WINDOWS, THAT'S THE FRAMING.
UM, AND EVERYTHING YOU HAVE TO, YOU HAVE TO TAKE ALL THE, ALL THE PAINT OFF AND START FROM SCRATCH.
AND THEN IF ANYTHING'S DAMAGED, THEN YOU HAVE TO FIND THE WOOD TO REPLACE IT.
UM, WINDS UP TAKING ANYWHERE FROM 12 TO 15 HOURS OF LABOR, AND YOU HAVE TO FIND THE RIGHT, RIGHT MATERIALS.
UH, YOU HAVE TO CURE YOUR, CURE YOUR MATERIALS BEFORE YOU PUT 'EM BACK UP OR ELSE THEY STICK TOGETHER.
SO THAT'S JUST TO SUPPORT THE COST OF ACTUALLY REDOING THE WINDOW IN WHAT I CONSIDER, UH, A IN A GOOD ENOUGH MANNER THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY KEEP THE WIND OUT IN THE INFILTRATION FROM COME, YOU KNOW, COMING THROUGH THE WINDOW AND HAVE IT LOOK LIKE IT WAS LIKE IT DID WHEN IT WAS MANUFACTURED.
UH, ONE OTHER THING, UH, THAT DOESN'T HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH THAT PARTICULAR WINDOW, BUT THE, BUT THE HISTORIC DISTRICT, UH, SINCE I'VE LIVED THERE, IT SEEMS LIKE SOME OF THE THINGS HAVE STARTED, SOME OF THE, UM, REQUIREMENTS HAVE GOTTEN A LITTLE MORE RESTRICTIVE.
AND THAT COULD JUST BE BECAUSE WE'RE MORE AWARE OR BECAUSE THERE'S MORE, UM, MORE PEOPLE AWARE OF THE HISTORIC DISTRICTS AND THE NEED FOR THEM.
UM, THESE BUILDINGS ARE NOT HISTORIC BUILDINGS WHERE YOU SHOULD CONTROL HOW THE CONSTRUCTION IS DONE, INTERIOR, EXTERIOR, AND TRY TO KEEP THEM IN THE SAME METHOD AS THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURE.
UH, SAME DIMENSIONS OF WOOD AND THAT KIND OF STUFF.
THIS IS A HISTORIC DISTRICT WHERE THE AREA, THE DISTRICT IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE A HISTORIC DISTRICT, NOT NECESSARILY THAT YOU CONTROL HOW THOSE BUILDINGS ARE ACTUALLY CONSTRUCTED.
UM, YES, YOU WANT THEM TO BE SIMILARLY CONSTRUCTED AND LOOK SIMILAR, BUT WHEN I MOVED IN, I WASN'T AWARE THAT THEY WERE GONNA BE ABLE TO TELL, YOU KNOW, CONTROL HOW, HOW MUCH COMFORT I WANTED INSIDE MY HOUSE, UM, BY CONTROLLING THE TYPE OF WINDOWS AND THE TYPES OF THINGS.
AND I DIDN'T DISCOVER THAT UNTIL AFTER, AFTER, ACTUALLY, AFTER I HAD PURCHASED THE HOUSE AND MOVED IN, THIS, STARTED DOING THE WORK.
HI, THIS IS CANDACE LAUDERDALE.
UM, AND I LIVE AT FIVE 10 EAST LOCUST.
UM, I WAS INQUIRING ABOUT MY NEIGHBOR WHO, UM, WANTS TO GET THE NEW WINDOWS, THE CASE NUMBER 2 0 2 3 DASH 1 0 6, AND I SUPPORT IT.
AND, UM, AM IN FAVOR, FAVOR OF IT.
UM, I CAN SEE WHY HE WOULD WANNA DO THAT.
AND COMMISSIONERS, JUST FOR REFERENCE, THERE ARE, UM, AN ADDITIONAL FIVE LETTERS OF SUPPORT, I BELIEVE.
UM, AND THOSE ARE IN YOUR PACKETS.
WE HAD A SITE D R C LAST WEEK WITH SEVERAL COMMISSIONERS.
COMMISSIONER SAVINA, WOULD YOU LIKE TO MAKE A REPORT? UH, YES, MR. CHAIR.
UM, WE HAD A D R C SITE VISIT.
UM, THE APPLICANTS WERE VERY HOSPITABLE TO ALLOW US INTO THEIR HOME TO LOOK AT THE WINDOWS.
UH, IT WAS, UH, COMMISSIONER MOOKA AS WELL AS A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE CONSERVATION SOCIETY.
AND, UM, WE WERE INTERESTED IN LOOKING AT THE CONDITION OF THE RENT WINDOWS AND DETERMINE WHETHER THEY WERE ELIGIBLE FOR REPLACEMENT.
[00:35:01]
THE WINDOWS IN A, UM, ON THE EAST SIDE IN A BUILT IN FORMER PORCH AREA WERE NEW BECAUSE IT WAS A PORCH, UH, A PREVIOUSLY OPEN PORCH.UM, THERE WERE A COUPLE OF REPLACEMENTS IN A COUPLE OF THE ROOMS, BUT THE OTHERS WERE THE ORIGINAL FRAMES AND MOST OF THE ORIGINAL SASHES AND, UH, PULLEY, UH, SASH CORDS AND PULLEY.
AND WITH THE EXCEPTION OF TWO SASH MEETING RAILS, UM, EVERYTHING LOOKED FINE.
UH, THE, THE WINDOWS WERE IN VERY, VERY GOOD SHAPE.
THERE WERE TWO SASHES THAT DO REQUIRE A LOWER RAIL OR A MEETING RAIL REPLACEMENT, BUT, UM, THEY, THE, THE UNITS LOOKED REALLY GOOD.
SO, AND WE DID, DID DISCUSS A NUMBER OF METHODS AND MEANS FOR RESTORING RIGHT, REPAIRING, REHABBING, AND, UM, I THINK EVERYBODY HAD A CHANCE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THAT CONVERSATION.
DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION FOR EITHER STAFF OR THE APPLICANT? COMMISSIONER CERVANTES? YEAH, JUST A QUESTION FOR THE APPLICANT.
SO JUST WANT TO BE CLEAR, YOUR HOME, NOTHING FAMOUS HAPPENED THERE, A HISTORIC EVENT, HOME TO A HISTORIC PERSON OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, RIGHT? IT'S, NO, IT'S CORRECT.
CAN YOU COME SPEAK IN THE MICROPHONE PLEASE FOR THE RECORD? UM, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT.
IT'S A RUN OF THE MILL CRAFTSMAN STYLE HOUSE, UM, WITH STANDARD, IT HAS STANDARD CONSTRUCTION THROUGHOUT IT.
AND QUESTION FOR STAFF REAL QUICK.
SO OUR PURVIEW, DOES THAT COVER THE OPERATION OF THE WINDOW, LIKE THE MECHANISMS, THE WEIGHTS, THE PULLEYS AND ALL THAT STUFF? OR DOES THE PURVIEW ONLY COVER HOW IT LOOKS AND THE MATERIAL FROM THE OUTSIDE? CORRECT.
WE, WE DON'T HAVE ANY GUIDELINES THAT REQUIRES THE OPERABILITY OF THE WINDOWS AS LONG AS THE APPEARANCE IS THE SAME AND THE MEET SAFETY CODES.
WELL, EXISTING BUILDINGS DON'T HAVE TO COMPLY THE SAME WAY THAT A NEW CONSTRUCTION WOULD, BUT YES.
CODES OF THE ERA THAT WERE PUT IN PLACE FOR THAT HOUSE.
ANOTHER QUESTION FOR STAFF, UH, IS THIS HOUSE A CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURE IN THE DISTRICT? IT IS.
OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION OR DO WE HAVE A MOTION? I MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST.
SECOND, WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND DISCUSSION.
OH, IF YOU WANTED TO CLARIFY SOMETHING, OR, I'M SORRY.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO CLARIFY? I JUST WANNA CLARIFY THAT I, I THINK THAT THE, UM, APPLICANT UNDERSTANDS THE REQUIREMENT.
I THINK THAT THEY HAVE MADE A GOOD FAITH EFFORT TO COMPLY.
AND I BELIEVE THAT THIS INCREASES THE VALUE OF THEIR HOME, UM, AND MEETS THE INTENT OF THE GUIDELINES.
I MEAN, I, I KNOW THAT THE APPLICANT HAS, HAS PUT EFFORT IN OTHER, I'M SORRY.
I THINK HE'S PUT EFFORT INTO OTHER ASPECTS OF HIS HOUSE, UH, IN OTHER AREAS AND MADE AN EFFORT TO MAINTAIN THE HOUSE.
UH, THERE COMES A TIME WHEN, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO MOVE INTO THE NEXT CENTURY.
SO I WILL BE SUPPORTING THIS AMENDMENT.
YEAH, SO MY COMMENTS WERE GOOD.
LIKE, I, I REALLY FEEL LIKE, I MEAN, I FEEL FOR THE OWNERS, BUT I DON'T FEEL LIKE I CAN, OUR PURVIEW IS WHETHER OR NOT, UH, REPLACING WINDOWS, WHETHER THEY'RE UNREPAIRABLE OR NOT, YOU KNOW, IF THEY WERE NOT REPAIRABLE, THAT'S KIND OF OUR PURVIEW.
I THINK WE'VE BEEN VERY CONSISTENT ON THAT IN THIS BOARD.
AND I THINK THAT, UM, I DON'T DISAGREE THAT THE OWNERS WANT WHAT THEY WANNA DO, BUT I JUST FEEL LIKE ON, I CAN'T USE, IT'S IN A CASE BY CASE, BUT IT'S A FULL REPLACEMENT OF ALL WINDOWS IN THE HOUSE.
AND SO I'LL NOT BE SUPPORTING THE MOTION.
MR. CHAIR, I JUST WANNA POINT OUT THAT COMMISSIONER FISH HAS HIS HAND RAISED AS WELL.
UM, I WOULD, UH, CONCUR WITH MY FELLOW COMMISSIONER.
I THINK THERE ARE TWO, THERE ARE KIND OF TWO STEPS HERE.
THE FIRST STEP IS THE GUIDELINES DIRECT US THAT IF THE WINDOWS ARE GOING TO BE REPAIRABLE, THAT THEY'RE REPAIRABLE, THAT THEY'D BE REPAIRED.
IF THEY'RE BEYOND REPAIR, THEN THEY'D BE REPLACED IN COMMON.
UM, ANY WINDOWS THAT WOULD BE DOCUMENTED BEYOND REPAIR WOULD BE ELIGIBLE UNDER THE GUIDELINES FOR REPLACEMENT WITH WOOD WINDOWS.
AND I THINK THERE IS A BIT OF A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NEW, NEW CONSTRUCTION WHERE THE, THE HISTORIC MATERIAL, THE ASSET OF THE HISTORIC MATERIAL IS LESS OF A CONSEQUENCE, AND THAT'S WHERE THE GUIDELINES GENERALLY ALLOW US SOME FLEXIBILITY.
[00:40:01]
CASES.I'D LIKE TO JUST CONCUR WITH, UH, COMMISSIONER GROUP, COMMISSIONER FISH.
UM, AND, AND TO EMPHASIZE FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE MAYBE LISTENING TO THIS, UM, THAT JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE FAMOUS DIDN'T LIVE AT THE HOUSE DOESN'T MEAN IT'S NOT HISTORIC.
IT IS A CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURE WITHIN A HISTORIC DISTRICT, AND THEREFORE IT IS TREATED LIKE IT AS IF IT WERE AN INDIVI INDIVIDUAL LANDMARK BY THE, UM, BY THE STANDARDS.
AND, UM, I MIGHT ALSO, UH, JUST EMPHASIZE THAT THIS, THE SORT OF THE LOGIC FLOW THAT, UH, COMMISSIONER FIT MENTIONED WAS EXACTLY WHERE I LAND.
UM, YOU, YOU DETERMINE THE CONDITION OF THE FIRST AND THEN ONLY AFTERWARDS YOU, YOU CONSIDER ITS REPLACEMENT, ITS REPLACEMENT AND KIND.
THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND THE SOUND AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT THOSE ARE IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS, BUT THEY'RE SECONDARY TO THE WHAT WE'RE ASKED TO DO ON THIS COMMISSION.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS? I WOULD, UM, SAY THAT STAFF HAS HAD THIS RIGHT AND BASED ON THE, UH, SITE VISIT AND OBSERVATIONS THERE, THAT, UM, FOLLOWING THE GUIDELINES, WHICH, UH, HOPEFULLY WE HAVE BEEN CONSISTENT ON.
IF THEY ARE NOT, IF THEY ARE REPAIRABLE, THEY, THEY SHOULD BE REPAIRED.
SO I'LL NOT BE SUPPORTING THE MOTION.
UM, MAY I HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE? GIBBS NAYYY FISH, NAYYY SAVINO NAY MOOKA AYE.
CARPENTER, YE, CAN YOU REPEAT THAT PLEASE? NAYYY.
AYE THAT SIR NAY? MOTION FAILS.
MAY WE HAVE ANOTHER MOTION? MR. CHAIR? I'D LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION THAT WE, UH, ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE REQUEST FOR WINDOW REPLACEMENT.
DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SECOND, SECOND.
ANY DISCUSSION? CAN I JUST, JUST CLARIFY SOMETHING REAL QUICK THOUGH? YEAH.
IF WE DO A DENIAL THAT GIVES THE APPLICANT AN OPTION TO GO TO THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS.
ALSO, THE STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION IS FOR DENIAL.
JUST TO MAKE CLEAR, I THINK IT'S OH, OH, EXCUSE ME.
SO I WOULD LIKE TO, I MOTION THAT WE DENY THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST.
ANY DISCUSSION? HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER NINE, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER NINE, H D R C CASE 2022 DASH 5 77 3 0 5 LAVACCA.
THE APPLICANT IS REQUESTING DIRECT TWO TWO STORY STRUCTURES AND ONE TWO STORY DUPLEX STRUCTURE AT 3 0 5.
LAVACCA STAFF DOES NOT RECOMMEND CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL BASED ON FINDINGS.
A THROUGH DD STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT THE APPLICANT ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING ITEMS PRIOR TO RECEIVING A RECOMMENDATION FOR CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL.
ONE, THAT THE APPLICANT PROVIDES A SETBACK DIAGRAM SHOWING THAT THE PROPOSED STRUCTURES WILL NOT BE LOCATED IN FRONT OF THE FRONT FACADE, WALL PLAINS OF THE ADJACENT HISTORIC STRUCTURES.
THAT THE APPLICANT PROVIDES A SET, UH, DIAGRAM SHOWING THE HEIGHT OF THE PROPOSED STRUCTURES IN RELATION TO NEIGHBORING STRUCTURES, INCLUDING PROPOSED FOUNDATION AND FLOOR HEIGHTS.
THREE, THAT THE APPLICANT REDUCES THE MASSING OF UNIT THREE, THE TWO STORY DUPLEX STRUCTURE AND SEPARATES THE BUILDING MASSING INTO DISTINGUISHABLE ARCHITECTURAL BAYS THAT ARE MORE CONSISTENT WITH THE MASSING OF THE IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT HISTORIC BUILDINGS AND SUBMITS A LINE OF SIGHT STUDY FOUR THAT THE APPLICANT'S, UH, WINDOWS COMPLY WITH STAFF STANDARD WINDOW SPECIFICATIONS.
THAT THE APPLICANT PROPOSES WINDOW SIZES, PATTERNS, PROPORTIONS AND TRIM AND SILL DETAILING THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE GUIDELINES AND HISTORIC PRECEDENTS IN THE DISTRICT.
THAT THE APPLICANT ADDRESSES THE CANTILEVER
[00:45:01]
BALCONIES AT THE REAR OF UNITS ONE AND TWO SO THAT THE ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS ARE RESPECTFUL OF THE HISTORIC GOAL CONTEXT AND ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE GUIDELINES.THAT THE APPLICANT SUBMITS DETAILS FOR THE PRO PROPOSED FRONT PORCH COLUMNS AND RAILING BASED ON FINDINGS P AND Z.
UM, EIGHT THAT THE FRONT WALKWAYS MATCH THE FRONT WALKWAY MATERIALS FOUND HISTORICALLY WITHIN THE DISTRICT NINE THAT THE APPLICANT INSTALLS LANDSCAPE ELEMENTS THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH THOSE FOUND HISTORICALLY IN THE DISTRICT AND SUBMITS AN UPDATED LANDSCAPING PLAN TO STAFF FOR REVIEW PRIOR TO RETURNING TO THE H D R C AND 10 THAT THE APPLICANT MEETS ALL SETBACK STANDARDS AS REQUIRED BY CITY ZONING REQUIREMENTS AND OBTAINS A VARIANCE FROM THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT IF APPLICABLE.
AND THE APPLICANT, TIM ROGERS IS WITH US IN PERSON.
THE PROPERTY OWNER, ANTHONY PIRS PEARSON MAY BE WITH US VIRTUALLY, AND WE DO HAVE ONE VOICEMAIL TO BE HEARD AND ONE LETTER IN YOUR PACKETS.
WE'VE, UH, I'LL SHOW UNIT THREE HERE AND THE APPLICANT HAS ALSO SUBMITTED UPDATES THAT WE CAN SHARE AS WELL.
SIR, I THINK THAT MICROPHONE NEEDS TO BE TURNED ON.
IF YOU COULD HIT THE BUTTON ON THE MICROPHONE.
WE HAD TURNED IT OFF EARLIER BECAUSE THERE'S FEEDBACK, SO OKAY.
WE CAN, WE CAN HAVE IT ON NOW,
AFTER THE UH, D N R MEETING LAST WEEK, WE REDESIGNED UNIT THREE TO ADDRESS THE, UH, MASSING ISSUES.
UH, THE OTHER TWO UNITS I THINK WE WERE, HAD REACHED SOME SORT OF AGREEMENT ON ALREADY.
SO ALL I'VE CHANGED ON THOSE WAS THE WINDOWS.
UH, ALL OF THE ISSUES THAT WERE LIST WE'VE ADDRESSED IN THE NEW DESIGN.
UH, WE'VE GOT A STEP BACK MASSING THAT'S, THIS IS OFF OF GARFIELD ALLEY, SO THERE'S A SINGLE STORY NEXT DOOR.
UH, ACTUALLY A SINGLE STORY ON EITHER SIDE.
THE ADOBE HOUSE, I THINK Y'ALL JUST DID A VISIT LAST WEEK, UH, GOING DOWN GARFIELD ALLEY TOWARDS THE HOTEL.
IT'S ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE HOUSES DOWN BEFORE YOU GET A TWO STORY.
BUT GOING THE OTHER WAY, IT'S THE NEXT CORNER ARE TWO STORY HOUSES RIGHT UP TO THE SITE SETBACK.
SO, BUT WE HAVE MADE OURS, UH, ONE STORY ON THE CURB AND THEN IT STEPS UP AND STEPS UP AND STEPS UP.
SO REALLY JUST LIKE TO GET Y'ALL'S COMMENTS ON THE NEW DESIGN.
MY NAME IS KATHY VIC, 1 0 7 KING WILLIAM.
AND THIS IS IN REGARDS TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER NINE.
THE CONSERVATION SOCIETY OF SAN ANTONIO SUPPORTS STAFF RECOMMENDATION TO DENY CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL OF THE PROPOSED DESIGN.
THE MASS OF THE REAR DUPLEX STRUCTURE FACING GARFIELD ALLEY NEEDS TO BE REDUCED WHILE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN UNITS ONE AND TWO NEEDS TO BE INCREASED.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
QUESTIONS FOR THE APPLICANT? UH, MR. CHAIR? I HAVE A QUESTION.
UM, THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION LAVACCA MENTIONS, UH, PARKING YES.
EXCUSE ME, PARKING CONDITIONS.
UM, WAS THAT PART OF THE UPDATE OF YOUR PLAN? I THINK WE HAD ALREADY ADDRESSED THAT, BUT I CAN GO THROUGH IT'S PLEASE DO.
THERE'S, THERE'S SIX SPACES ON SITE.
WE'RE ONLY REQUIRED BY CODE TO HAVE FIVE.
THAT'S A TOTAL OF NINE THAT WE HAVE.
AND THAT DOESN'T INCLUDE, AND I WOULDN'T DO IT, BUT PEOPLE DO IT ALL THE TIME.
IS PARKING ON, UH, GARFIELD ALLEY? MM-HMM.
BUT LIKE I SAID, WE'VE GOT NINE SPACES ALREADY.
BUT THAT INCLUDES IT AS A TANDEM CONDITION, CORRECT.
AND IF THEY WERE NOT TANDEM, THESE ARE THREE SLOTS, RIGHT? THREE AISLES OF PARKING? YES.
THE, UM, RACHEL, THESE LATEST DRAWINGS HAS, UH, STAFF UPDATED THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS BASED ON THESE, THESE UPDATES THAT WERE SHOWING WERE NOT INCLUDED IN STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT THE PREVIOUS UPDATES WERE INCLUDED IN STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS.
'CAUSE IN THE PREVIOUS SUBMITTAL THERE WAS A DOCUMENT THAT SHOWED ADJACENT SETBACKS AND BUILDING HEIGHTS, AND THAT'S INCLUDED ON, WELL, IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ON THAT ON PAGE ONE
[00:50:01]
OF GO TO UNIT ONE AND UNIT TWO, THE FIRST PAGE.OTHER QUESTIONS, MR. CHAIR? YES.
SO SIR, UM, LISTENING TO YOUR COMMENTS AND THEN READING OVER THE CASE AND THEN ALSO THE LETTERS IN THE FILE.
UM, IT, IT SEEMS, AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, IT SEEMS THAT YOU ARE RELUCTANT TO DO TO, TO ADDRESS THE PARKING ISSUE THAT YOU, YOU BASICALLY STATED THAT, UM, WE'VE ADDRESSED THAT ALREADY.
AND, UM, THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, YOU KNOW, ALSO HAS A CONCERN ABOUT IT AND, YOU KNOW, THE CITIZENS.
SO HOW DO YOU, HOW DO YOU RECONCILE THAT? OR DO YOU EVEN REALLY EVEN CHOOSE TO ADDRESS? I DON'T EVEN UNDERSTAND THE OBJECTION.
I'VE GOT NINE SPACES AND I'M ONLY REQUIRED TO HAVE FIVE.
EVEN IF YOU COUNTED THE TWO, THE TANDEMS AS SINGLES, WHICH I DON'T, BUT THAT'S THREE THERE AND THREE IN FRONT.
AGAIN, I'M ONLY REQUIRED FIVE, SO I DON'T EVEN UNDERSTAND THE OBJECTION.
UH, THAT'S IT FOR RIGHT NOW, MR. CHAIR.
DOES SOMEBODY IN D R C WANNA GIVE A, I WOULD LIKE, I'M, I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE, THE SETBACK DIAGRAM THAT YOU SENT MM-HMM.
SO WHAT'S THE FRONT SETBACK OF YOURS? OURS IS THE SETBACK.
THE CITY SETBACK IS 15, WE'RE AT 20.
SAME AS THE LADY, THE LA BOTH ON EITHER SIDE OF US.
SO JUST I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND.
SO IF YOU WALK ME THROUGH IT, THAT'D BE GREAT.
AND THEN WHAT WERE THE MAJOR CHANGES FROM UNIT THREE THAT YOU DID? BASED ON WHAT'S THE FRONT FACADE? YEAH, SO THERE'S THE WHOLE STEP BACK GABLES.
SO INSTEAD WE'VE MOVED THE SECOND STORY MASSING AWAY FROM THE CURB.
SO NOW WE'VE GOT LAYERED STEP UP TO KIND OF SOFTEN THAT TWO STORY ELEMENT.
AND WHAT IS YOUR HEIGHT ON THE SECOND STORY? ON THE 27 FEET, WHICH THE HIGHEST ONE IN THE NEIGHBORING AREAS IS 32, BUT THE NEIGHBORING PROPERTIES ARE ONE STORY.
AND THE ONE ON THE CORNER THAT YOU SAID WAS A TWO STORY, THE ONE ACROSS THE STREET IS AT 30, I BELIEVE THE ONE STORY ACTUALLY NEXT DOOR IS THE HIGHEST ONE ON THE, BECAUSE THEY HAVE A REALLY PITCHED ROOF.
AND THEN, UM, DID, DID THAT THE TWO, I DON'T KNOW, PITCHES, ROOF PITCHES FOR THE, UH, ABOVE THE FRONT DOORS, WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT WAS DISCUSSED AT D R C? YOU WANTED TO SEPARATE IT INSTEAD OF DOING ONE OR WHAT WAS THE REASON BEHIND THAT? YEAH, IT WAS, IT'S ALWAYS BEEN DISCUSSED TO, TO MAKE THE, THE BIG BUILDING LOOK LIKE SMALLER BUILDINGS.
SO THAT'S WHAT THE, THE ROOF LINES WERE DESIGNED TO DO WAS FROM THE CURB MAKE IT LOOK LIKE IT'S TWO SMALLER BUILDINGS INSTEAD OF ONE BIG ONE.
I MEAN, I, I DON'T THINK YOU'RE THERE YET ON THAT, BUT I DON'T, THAT SHOULD NOT BE AN ISSUE FOR NOT CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL FOR SURE.
UM, I'M LOOKING AT THE OTHER STIPULATIONS THAT STAFF, SO I'M JUST GONNA SEE IF I HAVE, UM, I'LL, I'LL SEE IF THERE'S MORE QUESTIONS.
I DO WANNA FOLLOW UP ON THE PARKING.
I'M A BIG, UM, BIG FAN OF FOLLOWING UP ON PARKING AND MAKING SURE THAT EACH UNIT HAS ONE SPOT.
YOU'RE SAYING THAT ON YOUR PROPERTY YOU HAVE SIX UNITS, SIX PARKING SPOTS, SIX PARKING SPOTS, CORRECT.
SIX PARKING SPOTS ON YOUR PROPERTY.
WHO'S THE SUCKER WHO GETS BLOCKED IN WHOEVER DOESN'T WANNA PARK ON THE CURB ON THE FRONT SIDE.
SO WHAT IS THE MEANS BY WHICH YOU WOULD MANAGE THAT? IT'S, IT'S ALL FAMILY.
AND SO THE PARKING SPACES ON THE FRONT ARE IN THE PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY? CORRECT.
SO THOSE ARE NOT INSURED OR EVEN A INSURED FOR THESE PARTICULAR UNITS.
SO I THINK WE ARE LOOKING AT THREE SLOTS HOLDING TWO CARS EACH, ESSENTIALLY.
WHICH IS WHY WE DESIGNED IT THAT WAY.
SO THAT ACTUAL ONSITE COVERS WHAT'S REQUIRED.
EVEN THOUGH THOSE OTHERS, THEY EXIST, PEOPLE PARK THERE ALL THE TIME MM-HMM.
UM, I DO WANT TO COMMENT ABOUT THE, THE D R C AND SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THE MASSING AND, UH, THE, THE FRONTAGES.
I, I WAS PART OF THIS LAST ONE AND MY CONCERNS HAVE BEEN THE DEVELOPMENT PATTERN.
AND, UM, SO, UH, YOU KNOW, I I DO THINK THAT THE MASSING IS, IS A BIT MUCH ON GARFIELD, ESPECIALLY FOR THE CHARACTER OF GARFIELD.
BUT I DO THINK THAT THE, WHAT DO YOU SAY, THE, THE EXCHANGE OR THE UNDULATION BETWEEN ONE FACADE, UH, TWO, TWO ENTRIES ON ONE BUILDING, TWO SEPARATE BUILDINGS, ALL THAT GOING BACK AND FORTH.
[00:55:01]
MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IS D C'S ATTEMPT TO HELP YOU FIND THE RIGHT ANSWER.IT'S NOT A, IT'S NOT A TACIT APPROVAL THAT THIS IS THE WAY TO GO.
I THINK SOME OF THESE COMMENTS ARE PUT OUT THERE SO THAT YOU EXPLORE DIFFERENT MEANS TO ALLOW THAT DEVELOPMENT PATTERN TO BE MORE COMPATIBLE WITH THE EXISTING BLOCK PHASE OF GARFIELD.
SO THAT MIGHT EXPLAIN WHY THERE'S SOME CONFUSION OF, ONCE YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU MENTIONED THIS, THAT, YOU KNOW, LAST TIME YOU WANTED THIS AND THIS TIME WE'RE DOING THIS.
I THINK THAT MIGHT BE PART OF THE, PART OF THE, UM, I DON'T KNOW, THE, UH, COMMUNICATION, UM, AND WHY YOU'RE SEEMINGLY GETTING SOME DIFFERENT COMMENTS.
AS INDIVIDUALS WITH GOOD FAITH ARE TRYING TO HELP YOU NAVIGATE THIS MASSING ISSUE.
AND AGAIN, DRIVING UP AND DOWN GARFIELD TWO HOUSES, OVER TWO, TWO TOY STORY BUILDINGS RIGHT UP ON THE CURB.
THERE'S, THEY'RE JUST STRAIGHT TWO STORY BUILDINGS.
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF INDIANOLA.
I, I DO HAVE A QUESTION ALSO, UH, REGARDING THE, UH, D R C I HAD REQUESTED A LINE, SIMPLE LINE DRAWING SHOWING ELEVATIONS AND, UM, THE NEIGHBORS ON GARFIELD SO WE WOULD HAVE A BETTER IDEA OF WHAT YOU WERE REFERRING TO.
AND WAS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE IN THIS NEW PACKAGE? THIS NO, THAT'S COVERED BY THE, THE CHARTS.
I DIDN'T HAVE, I'M SPENDING SO MUCH REDRAWING EVERY TIME.
I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO INVEST IN THAT DRAWING.
BUT ALL THOSE ANSWERS ARE IN THE CHART AND THEY'RE SHOWN ON THE, YOU CAN SEE THE INDIVIDUAL HOUSES MARKED.
OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? DO WE HAVE A MOTION? UH, JUST MAYBE ONE LAST QUESTION.
SO, UH, WHEN YOU GAVE ME THE HEIGHTS, YOU'RE GIVING ALL THE LAVACCA, BUT UNIT THREE FACES GARFIELD, RIGHT? THIS UNIT THREE? YES.
AND THE HEIGHTS FOR THOSE ARE ON THE CHART ALSO.
'CAUSE ON THE CHART I JUST SEE LA VACA AND THEN ONE GARFIELD ADDRESS NUMBER 17, THAT'S ON THE SCREEN.
SO THERE'S ONLY ONE, OH, I'M SORRY.
THE, I JUST GAVE THE, THE MAX HEIGHT FOR THE SITE.
THERE IS LIKE EXISTING, THAT'S THE HIGHEST ONE ON GARFIELD ALLEY.
CAN YOU SHOW US RIGHT NOW WHERE, WHERE THAT WOULD BE? UH, 17.
SO LIKE CATTY CORNER FROM YOUR PROPERTY? NO, IT'S ACTUALLY TWO DOWN.
SO JUST ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE INTERSECTION? WE'RE RIGHT THERE.
MR. MR. CHAIRMAN, THIS IS COMMISSIONER FISH.
I HAVE A QUESTION BEFORE WE MOVE.
COMMISSIONER FISH, YOU HAVE A QUESTION? IF WE COULD LOOK AT THE, THE SITE PLAN THAT SHOWS THE PARKING.
I JUST HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT ADJACENCY AND IF IT WOULD BE POSSIBLE TO MUTE THE MIC AT THE PODIUM FOR JUST A MOMENT, IT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR ME.
SO THE, MY QUESTION IS RELATED TO THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE, UH, UPPERMOST PARKING SPACE AND THE BUILDING FACADE IN TERMS OF FEET.
I DIDN'T SEE A DIMENSION THERE OR, UM, IF THERE IS ANY REAR ACCESS TO WHAT'S LABELED UNIT THREE.
AND ALSO I BELIEVE THEY'RE CANTILEVERED BALCONIES OFF OF UNIT THREE THAT APPEAR TO OVERHANG THAT PARKING.
IF YOU COULD JUST ADD A LITTLE BIT OF DIMENSIONAL CLARITY THERE FOR ME, I'D APPRECIATE IT.
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE PARKING SPACE AND THE BUILDING IS ABOUT FOUR FEET.
THE CANTILEVER WOULD GO OUT, I SAY THE CANTILEVER IS FOUR FEET, SO IT WOULD COME A ABOVE IT, IT WOULD COME UP TO THE EDGE OF THE PARKING SPOT AND THE DRIVEWAY WIDTH THAT IS, UM, ONLY IT'S ON THE DRIVE.
THE ACCESS IS ONLY FROM GARFIELD ALLEY.
WHAT WAS THE DRIVEWAY WIDTH AND THE DISTANCE FROM THE DRIVEWAY BETWEEN THE PROPERTY LINE AND THE BUILDING EDGE, THE ALL THAT IS DECOMPOSED GRANITE.
SO IT GOES RIGHT UP TO THE EDGE OF THE BUILDING.
AND WHAT IS THAT CLEAR WIDTH BETWEEN THE EDGE OF THE BUILDING AND THE PROPERTY LINE? UH, 10 FEET.
10 FEET FIRE FOR DRIVEWAY IS NINE AND A HALF.
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YOU'RE MOVING, YOU KNOW, DOWN THAT DRIVEWAY AND YOU'RE TURNING INTO THAT FIRST SPOT THAT THERE'S, THERE REALLY ISN'T, YOU HAVE A FOUR FOOT, YOU HAVE A FOUR FOOT RADIUS MAX, IS THAT WHAT I'M UNDERSTANDING? YES.AND YOU COULD BACK IN THERE SO YOU COULD GO STRAIGHT AND THEN BACK IN.
THAT'D PROBABLY BE THE ONLY WAY TO UTILIZE THAT IS TO, TO PASS IT OR IF THERE'S A CLEAR SPACE ON THE OTHER SIDE THAT YOU CAN PASS OVER.
UM, ONE MORE QUESTION ACTUALLY.
HOW ARE THESE SPACES GONNA BE DELINEATED IN TERMS OF LANDSCAPE YOU'RE DESCRIBING DECOMPOSED GRANITE? IS THAT GONNA BE EDGED AND WHAT IS THE MATERIAL THAT DEFINES THOSE SPACES? I AM, I WAS THINKING WE'LL DO SOME KIND OF LIKE A, EITHER A RAILROAD TIE OR SOME KIND OF LANDSCAPING BETWEEN THE PARKING SPOTS, BUT IT'LL BE VERY NARROW.
A QUICK QUESTION FOR STAFF, SIR.
JUST OUTTA CURIOSITY REAL QUICK.
I KNOW I ASKED THIS THE LAST TIME LAST YEAR, BUT THAT BUILDING THAT EMPTY LOT NEXT TO IT, THERE'S A BUILDING OF STRUCTURE THERE THAT, DID YOU EVER FIND OUT WHAT THAT STRUCTURE WAS OR HOW OLD IT WAS? NO.
STAFF HAS NOT CONDUCTED RESEARCH, UM, ON THAT PROPERTY IN THE REVIEW OF THIS PROPERTY.
UH, COMMISSIONER SIMINO JUST INFORMED ME THAT IT'S PROBABLY AROUND THE 1870S OR 1880S BASED ON HER RESEARCH, BUT OKAY.
IF THERE'S NO MORE QUESTIONS, DO WE HAVE A MOTION? MR. COMMISSIONER? I MAKE A MOTION THAT WE CONCUR WITH THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION.
SECOND, WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.
ANY DISCUSSION? I JUST WANT TO BE CLEAR, IS THAT, IS THAT A MOTION FOR, UH, UH, DENIAL OF, UH, DENIAL OF CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL AT THIS TIME? OR IS IT A MOTION FOR APPROVAL OF CONCEPTUAL, CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL WITH ALL THE STAFF STIPULATION TO CLARIFY, THAT'S A MOTION TO OF DENIAL AS THE STAFF RECOMMENDED.
UH, ANY DISCUSSION MR. CHAIR? IF I MAY ADD JUST YES.
I, I UNDERSTAND THAT, THAT BY THE LETTER OF THE, OF THE CODE, THE, UH, THE DESIGNER HAS COMPLIED WITH THE PARKING, BUT I WOULD NOT WANT TO PARK IN ANY OF THOSE PARKING SPACES AND CERTAINLY NOT IF I OWNED A PICKUP TRUCK.
UH, I JUST THINK IT'D BE THE TURN RADIUS, THE, THE SPACES.
IF YOU HAD SOMEBODY WHO HAD TO ACTUALLY GET SOMETHING OUT OF THEIR CAR, UM, AND OPEN A DOOR OR PULL SOMETHING OUT.
AND YOU, YOU HAVE TO TRUST THAT ALL YOUR NEIGHBORS WERE GOOD PARKERS TOO.
AND THAT, AND SO I JUST THINK THAT THAT, THAT MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT.
UM, AND, AND I KNOW THERE MAY BE, THERE MAY BE OTHER FOLKS THAT HAVE, UH, DONE SIMILAR DEVELOPMENTS AND I CAN'T SAY THAT, UH, THAT'S A GREAT IDEA QUITE HONESTLY.
BUT I JUST THINK THAT SINCE WE'RE IN THE CONCEPTUAL PHASE, I, I WOULD RATHER, YOU KNOW, MAKE, HAVE SOME SMART INPUT NOW AND, AND MAKE THIS, UH, YOU KNOW, THE KIND OF DEVELOPMENT THAT WOULD, THAT WOULD BE, THAT WOULD ADD VALUE TO THE COMMUNITY AND BE A DESIRABLE PLACE TO LIVE.
'CAUSE IT'S IN A GREAT LOCATION.
OTHER DISCUSSION COMMISSIONER GROUP? I'M GONNA ADD SOMETHING.
UM, I THINK FROM THE LAST YEAR WE'VE APPROVED CONCEPTUALLY ABOUT ANOTHER TWO PROJECTS ON GARFIELD.
I THINK IT'S A, IT'S AN ALLEY THAT'S GONNA, YOU KNOW, BE MORE BUILT.
UH, THERE'S A LOT OF SMALL HOMES ON GARFIELD ALLEY AND, AND SOME AND THEN SOME EMPTY LOTS.
UM, AND IT'S VERY HARD TO BUILD SOME THINGS.
I THINK IT'S BASED ON WHAT WE HAVE APPROVED.
I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE IN CONSTRUCTION OR NOT YET.
UM, THEY DON'T REALLY, THEY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO COMPLY A LOT WITH WHAT WE ASK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, MAKING IT LOOK LIKE, YOU KNOW, SMALLER HOMES.
AND I FEEL LIKE YOU'RE NOT THERE YET WITH YOUR FRONT.
AND THE UNIT THREE, UM, UNIT THREE BECOMES IMPORTANT EVEN THOUGH YOUR ADDRESS IS LA VACA.
PARKING, I AGREE WITH MY FELLOW COMMISSIONERS.
I THINK THIS PARKING SITUATION IS IMPOSSIBLE.
I MEAN, WHETHER YOU REDUCE UNIT THREE, MAKE A DRIVEWAY THAT'S MORE, YOU KNOW, REDUCE IT MORE SO THERE'S MORE PARKING, SAFER PARKING, UM, MAYBE THAT'S A SOLUTION.
BUT I DO BELIEVE THAT YOU'RE, WE ARE NOT APPROVING CONCEPTUAL.
I DO AGREE WITH THAT BASED ON STILL, YOU KNOW, HAVE TO PRODUCE MASSING THREE.
AND THEN I ALSO HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, I, I ALWAYS APPRECIATE WHEN THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS HAVE, I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN IN
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COMMUNICATION WITH THEM, BUT THEY ARE, IT'S, LAVACCA IS ONE OF THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS THAT THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING, BUT THEY, I MEAN, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WHAT WE APPROVED AS A NEW BUILD IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD DOES ALSO BLEND IN WITH WHAT'S EXISTING AND THE HISTORIC PROPERTIES THAT ARE THERE.UH, I I WOULD LIKE, LIKE TO ADD ON TO MR. COMMISSIONER GRU'S POINT THERE IS BECAUSE YOU WANT IT TO BLEND IN.
I THINK THAT'S A LOT OF STRUCTURE, EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE WITHIN THE GUIDELINES, EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE WITHIN THE PERCENTAGE OF THE ALLOCATED AMOUNT YOU CAN PUT ON THAT LOT, UM, JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DOESN'T MEAN YOU SHOULD.
SO I WOULD RE-LOOK AT THE OVERALL IMPACT THAT, THAT THOSE STRUCTURES HAVE ON THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
I THINK IT'S JUST A LITTLE TOO MUCH.
AND THEN I WOULD ADD THAT, UH, WE APPRECIATE YOU WORKING WITH THE COMMISSION IN THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD UP TO NOW, AND HOPEFULLY WITH STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS HERE AND OTHER COMMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN STATED TODAY, YOU CAN CONTINUE TO REFINE THIS.
UH, I WOULD AGREE THAT THE, UH, YOU'VE WORKED HARD ON UNIT THREE, BUT, UH, MASS WISE IT'S STILL, UM, SOMEWHAT OVERWHELMING FOR THE ALLEY LOCATION.
AND SO, UH, I'LL BE SUPPORTING THE MOTION.
MAY I HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE? YIPS? AYE.
UM, IF YOU'D LIKE ANOTHER INFORMAL DESIGN REVIEW COMMITTEE.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 10 H D R C, CASE NUMBER 2023 DASH 0 9 9 3 27 EAST KINGS HIGHWAY.
THE APPLICANT IS REQUESTING CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL TO CONSTRUCT ONE TWO STORY SINGLE FAMILY STRUCTURE AND ONE ONE-STORY DETACHED GARAGE AT 3 27 EAST KINGS HIGHWAY.
STAFF DOES NOT RECOMMEND CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL BASED ON FINDINGS.
A THROUGH Y STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT THE APPLICANT ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING ITEMS PRIOR TO RECEIVING A RECOMMENDATION FOR CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL.
ONE, THAT THE APPLICANT PROPOSES A SETBACK THAT IS CONSISTENT WITH THE HISTORIC EXAMPLES FOUND ON THE BLOCK.
TWO, THAT THE APPLICANT PROVIDES A DIAGRAM SHOWING THE HEIGHT OF THE PROPOSED STRUCTURE IN RELATION TO THE NEIGHBORING TWO STORY STRUCTURE, INCLUDING PROPOSED FOUNDATION AND FLOOR HEIGHTS.
STAFF FINDS THAT THE APPLICANT SHOULD SIMPLIFY THE PROPOSED MATERIAL PALETTE AND INCORPORATE MATERIALS THAT ARE IN KEEPING WITH THE HISTORIC CHARACTER OF THE BLOCK.
FOUR, THAT THE APPLICANT PROPOSES WINDOWS THAT ARE THAT MEET STAFF STANDARD WINDOW STIPULATIONS.
FIVE, THAT THE APPLICANT PROPOSES WINDOW SIZES, PATTERNS, PROPORTIONS AND TRIM AND SEAL DETAILING THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE GUIDELINES AND HISTORIC PRECEDENTS IN THE DISTRICT.
THAT THE NEW CONSTRUCTION INCORPORATES ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS THAT ARE RESPECTFUL OF THE HISTORIC CONTEXT AND ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE GUIDELINES.
SEVEN, THAT THE APPLICANT PROPOSES A PORCH ENTRY AREA THAT IS MORE IN KEEPING WITH THE PORCHES OF THE HISTORIC STRUCTURES IN THE VICINITY.
EIGHT, THAT THE APPLICANT INSTALLS LANDSCAPE ELEMENTS THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH THOSE FOUND HISTORICALLY IN THE DISTRICT AND SUBMITS A COMPREHENSIVE LANDSCAPING PLAN TO STAFF PRIOR TO RETURNING TO THE H D R C AND NINE THAT THE APPLICANT PROPOSES A GARAGE DOOR PRODUCT THAT IS SIMILAR IN MATERIAL AND APPEARANCE TO GARAGE DOORS FOUND TRADITIONALLY IN THE DISTRICT PRIOR TO RETURNING TO THE H D R C AND THE APPLICANT.
RAUL SALDOVAR IS WITH US VIRTUALLY.
THERE IS ONE LETTER IN YOUR PACKETS.
RAUL, CAN YOU UNMUTE YOURSELF? THERE WE GO.
UM, MY NAME IS RAUL AND I AM HERE AND, UH, REPRESENTING THE CLIENT AND OWNER OF THE PROPERTY.
UM, AND WE'RE PRESENTING THIS NEW CONSTRUCTION, UH, SINGLE RESIDENCE FOR YOUR APPROVAL.
AND WE ARE SHOWING SOME OF THE, I KNOW ONE OF THE COMMENTS WAS TO PROVIDE A DIAGRAM SHOWING THE HEIGHTS OF THE, UM, IN REGARDS TO THE PROPORTION TO THE OTHER NEIGHBORING, UM, PROPERTIES.
AND YOU CAN SEE ON HERE THAT THAT'S WHAT WE DID AND WE SHOWED WHAT THE HIGHEST STRUCTURES IN IN THE, IN THAT BLOCK.
IF YOU'D LIKE TO ADDRESS STAFF'S COMMENTS.
AND THEN ONE OF THE OTHER ITEMS IS THAT, UH, TALKED ABOUT WINDOW SIZES AND, UH, THERE'S A PROPERTY RIGHT NEXT TO OURS, WHICH IS 3 55 AND IT'S
[01:10:01]
VERY SIMILAR TO THE ARCHITECTURAL, UH, DESIGN THAT WE HAVE.AND THAT ONE'S APPROVED AND IS LIKE MAYBE TWO HOUSES OVER TO THAT.
AND OUR WINDOWS ARE, UM, ALUMINUM CLAD, UH, WITH WINDOWS.
SO THEY ARE RECESSED ARE THE WIND, WHICH OF THE WINDOWS ARE OPERABLE? THE ONE THERE'S ON THE LEFT SIDE, UH, UH, ELEVATION, THERE'S TWO OF 'EM.
AND THEN IN ALL THE BEDROOM, UH, WINDOWS ARE OPERABLE.
AND I KNOW WE TALKED ABOUT A PORCH, UH, THAT IS CONSISTENT WITH, UH, THE NEIGHBORING HOUSES.
AND AS YOU CAN SEE ON, UH, 3 55, THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE A PORCH.
WE'RE ADDING A A PORCH TO THAT TO OUR DESIGN.
UH, QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION COMMISSIONER GROUP? SOMEBODY WANNA SAY SOMETHING ABOUT D R C? YES, I WAS ON A D R C ABOUT A MONTH AGO.
WE DISCUSSED, UM, WINDOWS ON, AT THE TIME THE ORIGINAL DESIGN HAD SOME LARGE EXPANSES OF EXTERIOR WALLS WITHOUT WINDOWS.
AND, UH, LOOKS LIKE, UH, THAT HAS, UH, BEEN ADDRESSED SOMEWHAT.
UH, THE RENDERING THAT WAS ORIGINALLY PROPOSED, UH, DID NOT MATCH THE CURRENT PLAN, AND THAT HAS BEEN UPDATED, UH, WITH WINDOWS ALONG THE EAST SIDE THERE ALONG THE DRIVE.
WE DID ASK ABOUT THE SETBACKS, WHICH, UH, INFORMATION HAS BEEN PROVIDED HERE THAT, UH, ON THE STREET IT SAYS THE AVERAGE SETBACK IS 26.4 FEET AND THE SETBACK FOR THIS PROPERTY IS, WELL, IT'S 15 FROM THE PROPERTY LINE, BUT, UH, CAN YOU CLARIFY WHAT THE SETBACK IS FROM THE CURB? YES, IT'S THE SETBACK FROM THE, FROM OUR PROPERTY LINE IS, IS 15, BUT LEMME SEE, I'M SORRY, HERE, 15 FEET, SEVEN INCHES TO THE PROPERTY LINE.
THEN SETBACKS THAT ARE YOU'VE LISTED HERE ON THIS, UM, IMAGE HERE.
IS THAT THE SETBACK FROM THEIR PROPERTY LINE OR FROM THE CURB? FROM THE CURB.
SO WHAT IS YOUR SETBACK FROM THE CURB? LET ME, UH, GET THAT REAL QUICK.
I GUESS MY QUESTION IS, I'M HAVING A HARD TIME, YOU KNOW, I DON'T, I THINK SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT STIPULATION AND CAN I ASK OTHER COMMISSIONERS TO NOT HAVE SIDE CONVERSATIONS WHILE WE'RE SPEAKING? PLEASE, MR. CHAIR, CAN WE KEEP THAT? UM, YES.
UM, SOME OF THE STIPULATIONS, UH, THAT I THINK STAFF HAVE A RIGHT AND I DON'T KNOW IF THEY WERE DISCUSSED.
I THINK THAT'S WHY WE PRESENT IT TO D R C IS ESPECIALLY, I MEAN, THE WINDOW
[01:15:01]
ADMINISTRATION STYLE IS NOT REALLY WHAT WE FIND NORMALLY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD.UM, AND THE KIND OF LIKE THE MATERIALS AND YOU KNOW, WHAT'S ON THAT BLOCK.
AND I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S ONE PROPERTY AS AN EXAMPLE, BUT I AM, I DON'T SEE THIS REALLY, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT WE USUALLY SEE BEING INTRODUCED IN A HISTORIC NEIGHBORHOOD.
AND LEMME GO BACK, I'M SORRY, LE ON REGARDING TO THAT SETBACK, IT'S, UH, 20 FEET, NINE INCHES TO THE CURB.
SO 20 FEET NINE AND THE AVERAGE IS 26? THAT'S CORRECT.
UM, AND IN REGARDS TO THE, UH, THE COMMENT THAT PREVIOUSLY MADE ON THE OTHER RESIDENCE THAT WAS APPROVED, YOU KNOW, IT JUST DOESN'T MAKE SENSE IF I, IF THEY HAVE ELEMENTS THAT WE HAVE, WHY ARE WE BEING KIND OF TAGGED ON THAT AND, AND IT WAS APPROVED ON, ON THEIRS? AND I AGREE WITH YOU
I'VE BEEN ON HERE FOR SEVEN YEARS.
IT'S, UH, IT'S PRETTY NEW RESIDENCE, UH, MR. CHAIR.
I, I STEP IN, UH, ON BEHALF OF STAFF.
UM, THE PROCESS WORKS THAT STAFF WILL GIVE THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS AND THEN IT GOES TO A COMMISSION.
UH, ULTIMATELY IT WILL BE THE COMMISSION THAT APPROVES THAT.
THE COMMISSION THAT EXISTED FOUR, SIX YEARS AGO, UH, WAS A VERY DIFFERENT ONE.
AND SO IT IS JUST AS WE LOOK AT THE INDIVIDUAL LOTS AND PROJECTS AND ON CASE BY CASE BASIS THERE, UM, OUTCOMES BASED ON COMMISSION FEEDBACK WILL ALSO BE ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS AS WELL.
UH, TYPICALLY WHAT I LOOK FOR IS, UH, NEW CONSTRUCTION, NEW DESIGN THAT MEETS THE GUIDELINES AS FAR AS RESPONDING TO THE HISTORIC HOUSES THAT, THAT EXIST IN THE DISTRICT.
UM, I DON'T ENCOURAGE NEW CONSTRUCTION APPLICANTS TO USE OTHER NEW CONSTRUCTION AS PRECEDENTS.
UM, BUT THAT'S MY, UM, PERSPECTIVE.
SO I GUESS MY QUESTION IS, WAS THAT DISCUSSED AT D R C? IT WAS NOT CHAIRMAN, THIS IS COMMISSIONER FISH.
COMMISSIONER FISH HAS HIS NAME, RIGHT? YES.
I JUST HAVE A VERY QUICK QUESTION FOR THE APPLICANT AND YES, SIR.
UM, I BELIEVE I HEARD THAT THE PROPOSED SETBACK IS 2020 0.9 FEET FROM THE CURB, AND I JUST WANT TO VERIFY THAT THAT IS GOING TO BE IN FRONT OF THE TWO ADJACENT STRUCTURES EITHER SIDE OF THE PROPERTY, WHICH ARE BOTH SHOWING, WHICH ARE SHOWING A 21.7 FOOT SETBACK AND A 21.9.
I'M JUST TRYING TO MAKE SURE I HAVE THE FACTS RIGHT ON THIS.
21, 21 0.1 AND 21.7 IS WHAT WE SEE THERE.
AND YOU'RE PROPOSING 20.9, IS THAT CORRECT? WELL, UM, THE, THE QUESTION WAS IF, IF THE SETBACK WAS FROM UP TO THE CURB, AND SO I GRABBED THE DISTANCE IN FRONT OF THE STAIRS, WHICH IS ALIGNED WITH THE, THE FRONT PORCH, AND FROM THAT POINT TO THE CURB IS WHERE I GOT THAT 2020 5.9 SETBACK.
THAT'S ALL I, THAT'S WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR CLARITY ON.
THE STAIR AND THE PORCH ARE, HAVE THE SAME SOUTH EDGE, WHICH YOU'RE SAYING IS 25.9 FEET FROM THE CURB, CORRECT? THAT'S, THAT'S CORRECT, SIR.
I CAN'T REMEMBER WHO ELSE WAS ON THE D R C WITH THIS, UH, CASE PREVIOUSLY.
UM, ONE SUGGESTION, IF THERE'S SOME RELUCTANCE TO APPROVE A CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL TO SEND IT BACK TO A D R C AND,
[01:20:01]
UH, GET A TWO OR THREE MORE COMMISSIONERS INVOLVED TO MAKE, UM, SUGGESTIONS.I GUESS I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION GROUP I CAN, UM, TO THE APPLICANT.
LIKE, I DON'T WANNA BE WASTING YOUR TIME OR OUR TIME, BUT IF, IF THE WHOLE DESIGN IS BASED IS YOUR WHOLE DESIGN BASED ON THAT PROPERTY DOWN THE STREET, WILL YOU BE WILLING TO CHANGE YOUR DESIGN TO COMPLY WITH MORE OF THE WHAT SOME OF THE STIPULATIONS THAT STAFF ARE PRESENTING? WELL, I MEAN, OUR, MY CLIENT IS, LIKES THE DESIGN AS IS.
UH, I CAN GO BACK AND ASK HIM HOW MUCH WE HE HE'S WILLING TO CHANGE, BUT I GUESS THAT GOES, I MEAN, I WOULD SAY YEAH.
I'LL, I'LL DO A MOTION TO, UH, SEND THIS TO A D R C.
DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SECOND MOTION? A SECOND.
ANY DISCUSSION? I MEAN, COMMISSIONER GROUP, I WOULD SAY, I DON'T WANNA WASTE THE APPLICANT'S TIME OR MY TIME, BUT I WOULD SAY THIS IS NOT A DESIGN THAT I WOULD BE SUPPORTIVE OF.
NOT EVEN, YOU KNOW, CHANGING A LITTLE BIT OF, YOU KNOW, I THINK THE SETBACKS BEEN CLARIFIED, BUT I THINK THE TWO IMPORTANT, UH, STIPULATIONS THAT WOULD PROBABLY CHANGE THE WHOLE DESIGN.
AND THAT'S WHY I WAS LIKE, I DON'T WANT TO JUST GO DO A D R C AND NOT DISCUSS THAT IS, YOU KNOW, REALLY THE WINDOW FENESTRATION, THE STYLES AND THE, UM, ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS THAT, YOU KNOW, ARE RESPECTFUL TO THE HISTORIC CONTEXT.
AND I UNDERSTAND THERE'S A PROPERTY DOWN THE STREET, I DON'T KNOW, BUT AS COMMISSIONER SAVINA WOULD AGREE WITH HER, I'M NOT GONNA USE THAT AS A, AS A, WELL, I MEAN, AND SO I, I REALLY WANT, IT'S KIND HARD, IT'S KIND OF HARD AND I APOLOGIZE TO INTERRUPT.
NO, BUT IT'S JUST VERY HARD IF, IF, IF YOU HAVE 1, 2, 2 HOUSES OVER.
AND AND THAT'S BASICALLY WHY I, AND THAT IS, THIS IS JUST MY COMMENT HERE AND I DON'T WANNA BE WASTING ANYBODY'S TIME TO GO BACK AND FORTH ON D R C.
WE HAVE A MOTION A SECOND TO SEND THIS TO D R C.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? COMMISSIONER CARPENTER HAS HIS HAND RAISED? YES, MR. CHAIR.
I GUESS MY COMMENT IS THAT I, I THINK IF YOU WERE TO LOOK ACROSS THE MONTE VISTA DISTRICT, YOU WOULD FIND EXAMPLES OF ECLECTIC OR, OR DESIGNS THAT WOULD NOT SEEM TO BE CONSISTENT WITH THE MAJORITY OF THE HOMES IN THAT AREA.
I GUESS I LOOK AT IT FROM THE STANDPOINT OF THERE ARE SOME PHYSICAL STIPULATIONS THAT ARE PROVIDED HERE, SUCH AS THE SETBACK AND SOME OF THOSE THAT I THINK, UM, AS FAR AS THE, THE SHAPE AND THE MASS AND THE APPEARANCE OF THE HOUSE, THAT ABSOLUTELY MUST BE ADDRESSED.
BUT I WOULD HOPE THAT THE D R C WOULD, WOULD PROVIDE SOME LENIENCY IN TERMS OF LOOKING AT THE ACTUAL DESIGN OF THE HOUSE.
AND, UH, AND THAT MONTE VISTA, I THINK PRIDES ITSELF ON, UH, A LOT OF INDIVIDUALITY AND, UH, AND UNIQUENESS.
AND I THINK THAT THIS HOUSE AND, AND ITS DESIGN COULD CONTRIBUTE TO THAT OVERALL, UM, CONCEPT IN, IN MONTE VISTA.
UM, I, I AGREE WITH COMMISSIONER THAT I THINK THERE'S, YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T WANNA WASTE TIME THE, UM, WITH A D R C UNLESS IT'S REALLY GONNA BE PRODUCTIVE.
AND I THINK IN GENERAL, COMPARED TO THE, JUST THE PREVIOUS CASE THAT WE LOOKED AT, THE DEVELOPMENT PATTERN OF THE PROPOSED DESIGN IS VERY MUCH IN KEEPING WITH THE HISTORIC CONTEXT.
AND I THINK THE SCALE IS NICELY DONE BY LARGER CONCERNS ARE ABOUT THE FENESTRATION AND THE MATERIAL TREATMENT.
UM, BUT I THINK, UH, FURTHER DISCUSSION AT D R C COULD ADDRESS THOSE.
I THINK, UH, THIS ONE IS LIKE 80% THERE FOR ME AS FAR AS THE GENERAL MASSING SCALE DEVELOPMENT PATTERN.
UM, I THINK ALL THOSE ARE, ARE, UH, VERY, UH, HANDSOMELY DONE HERE.
BUT I, I THINK THERE ARE STILL SOME LONG, UH, A LONG LIST OF STIPULATIONS FROM STAFF THAT PREVENT ME FROM BEING ABLE TO, UH, REALLY SUPPORT A OUTRIGHT CONCEPTUAL FROM AT THIS POINT.
BUT I THINK YOU'RE GETTING THERE VERY QUICKLY.
COMMISSIONER SAVINO, I WOULD LIKE TO, UH, AGREE WITH MY FELLOW COMMISSIONERS ABOUT THE, UM, ELEMENTS THAT WILL HELP THIS PROJECT.
AND AGAIN, I AGREE THE DEVELOPMENT PATTERN IN THIS IS, UM, VERY COMPATIBLE WITH THE, UH, BLOCK FACE AND THAT PART OF MONTE VISTA.
IN ADDITION TO FENESTRATION, UM, MATERIALITY OF SKIN, UM, BUILDING SKIN AN
[01:25:01]
ENVELOPE, UM, I WOULD ALSO SUGGEST THAT FUTURE RENDERINGS AND DRAWINGS REALLY SHOW THE FINISHED FLOOR ELEVATION.MOST OF THE FOUNDATIONS ARRAYS.
AND AS WE SEE IN THE, THE PERSPECTIVE HERE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, AS YOU KNOW, LOVELY AS IT IS, IT SHOWS A VERY, UM, UH, SLAB ON GRADE LOOK ABOUT IT.
SO I WOULD GIVE ATTENTION TO THE FINISHED FLOOR HEIGHT RELATIVE TO ITS NEIGHBORS.
YEAH, MR. CHAIR, I DEFINITELY CONCUR WITH THE D R C OPTION.
I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE STAFF AND, AND THE COMMISSION TO ACTUALLY GET A GOOD SCHEDULE.
'CAUSE ONE THING IS LOOKING FOR D R C, ANOTHER THING IS GETTING TO IT AND ACTUALLY PARTICIPATING IN IT.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S INCUMBENT ON US AND STAFF TO MAKE SURE THAT THE TIME IS COORDINATED WHERE WE HAVE MAX PARTICIPATION OR, YOU KNOW, KEY PARTICIPATION, UH, IN THE D R C.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 11, H D R C, CASE NUMBER 2023.
THE APPLICANT IS REQUESTING A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR APPROVAL TO INSTALL OVERHEAD ROLLING SECURITY SHUTTERS TO THE STOREFRONT AT TWO 13 ALAMO PLAZA.
THE PROPOSED DOORS WILL FEATURE PERFORATED METAL MATERIALS.
THE STRUCTURE IS LOCATED WITHIN THE ALAMO PLAZA.
HISTORIC DISTRICT STAFF DOES NOT RECOMMEND APPROVAL BASED ON FINDINGS A AND B.
UH, THE APPLICANT, MR. OT IS HERE IN PERSON.
UM, THERE ARE NO COMMENTS OR VOICEMAILS FOR THIS CASE? YES SIR.
UH, MY NAME IS RE UM, WELL, ACTUALLY IT'S, UM, REALLY, UH, STRAIGHTFORWARD.
UM, I HAVE, UM, MULTIPLE BREAK-INS TO THE STORE.
UM, UH, I ATTACH SOME PICTURES.
UM, I THINK THIS IS THE, LIKE PUTTING SOME SECURITY SHUTTERS.
I THINK THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO PROTECT THE STORE, UH, INSTEAD OF, YOU KNOW, PUTTING TRASH CANS IN FRONT OF THE WINDOWS OR, OR, UH, PLYWOOD ON THE WINDOWS.
QUESTIONS FOR THE APPLICANT? I HAVE ONE QUESTION.
IS THERE A SYSTEM THAT EXISTS THAT CAN BE PUT FROM THE INSIDE BUT YOU CAN'T GET OUT? RIGHT.
SO I, I HAVE OTHER STORES AND, AND I ALSO HAVE SECURITY SHUTS AT MY OTHER STORES.
BUT ESPECIALLY THIS PARTICULAR STORE, THE, THE ENTRANCE TO THE HIGH IS, IS REALLY LOW, SO THERE IS NO WAY FOR THEM TO PUT THE POSTS.
SO I REALLY WANTED, WANTED THEM TO PUT IT INSIDE.
THE STORE IS SO NARROW AND IT'S, SO THE, THE HIGH IS SO LOW, SO THEY SAY IT'S THE BEST OPTION TO PUT IT OUTSIDE ON THE, ON THE, ON THE, UH, CONCRETE.
UM, I KNOW STAFF DIDN'T, UM, UH, RECOMMEND IT, BUT, UM, IT, IT'LL BE ONLY VISIBLE FROM, UM, 11:00 PM 12:00 AM TO TILL SEVEN, 8:00 AM YOU KNOW, SO, UM, WE, WE ARE OPEN FOR BUSINESS EVERY DAY, SO IT'S NOT REALLY, UM, VISIBLE, YOU KNOW, UM, FROM THE, OUR SIDE OF THE, THE AISLE OUTSIDE, EITHER ONLY AT NIGHTTIME.
CAN I DO A FOLLOW UP QUESTION? YES.
ARE ANY OF THE OTHER STORES ALSO AFFECTED? UH, LIKE YOUR, YOUR NEXT DOOR NEIGHBORS? HE HERE AND THERE, YOU KNOW, DEPENDS WHAT YOU CARRY AT YOUR STORES, YOU KNOW, UM, THEY, THEY BREAK INTO, I GUESS, YOU KNOW, I HAVE BIG WINDOWS, SO, UM, IT'S REALLY EASY FOR THEM JUST TO BREAK THE WINDOW AND GO INSIDE, TAKE WHATEVER THEY CAN TAKE.
UM, AND THEY USUALLY DO AT NIGHTTIME, UH, AROUND LIKE TWO, 3:00 AM SO IT'S, IT'S REALLY HARD TO FIND A GLASS COMPANY WHO'S GONNA GO AT NIGHTTIME.
UM, UH, IT'S A, IT'S, IT'S A HUSTLE, YOU KNOW.
MR. CHAIR BAKER, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR STAFF.
IS, ARE IN THE PAST HAVE ANY, UH, STORE OWNERS, UH, REQUESTED SECURITY, UH,
[01:30:01]
EQUIPMENT LIKE THIS? AND, AND IF SO, WHAT'S BEEN APPROVED IN THE PAST GATES OR, OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT? MAYBE I CAN'T THINK OF A SPECIFIC ADDRESS OR CASE IN THE PAST.I DO KNOW THAT WE'VE RECEIVED REQUESTS, UH, WHETHER THOSE HAVE BEEN AT THE STAFF LEVEL AND WE'VE COMMUNICATED WITH AN APPLICANT THAT THAT WOULDN'T BE SOMETHING THAT THE GUIDELINES WOULD SUPPORT OR THAT STAFF WOULDN'T SUPPORT.
UM, BUT I, I CANNOT THINK OF AN INSTANCE WHERE WE'VE HAD A LOCATION OR STOREFRONT DOWNTOWN TO WHERE WE'VE REVIEWED RECOMMENDED APPROVAL AND THE COMMISSIONS APPROVE THIS INSTALLATION.
UH, COMMISSIONER SAVINA, I HAVE A QUESTION FOR THE APPLICANT.
UM, SO AN OVERHEAD DOOR ON THE OUTBOARD SIDE, ON THE PLAZA SIDE, I THINK IS REALLY A BAD IDEA ON THE INSIDE.
YOU SAID YOU HAVE LOOKED AT IT AND STRUCTURALLY IT'S NOT POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF THE CEILING HEIGHT.
WHAT ABOUT A SLIDING SCISSOR MECHANISM, OPERATING DOOR THAT COMES ACROSS THAT USES A SIMPLE FRAME, BUT COMES ACROSS ON THE INSIDE? HAVE YOU LOOKED INTO THOSE PRODUCTS? UM, NO.
I MEAN, INSIDE THE STORE, RIGHT.
UM, THEN NO, I DIDN'T REALLY LOOK AT THAT ONE.
YEAH, THERE'S A, YEAH, THERE'S A WAY THAT YOU, IT WOULD BE, UM, POST ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE STEEL, AND IT IS, YOU PULL IT ACROSS AND YOU SECURE IT AND IT'S METAL WITH ALL DUE RESPECT.
I, I THINK THE, WHAT THIS LOOKS MORE PROFESSIONAL THAN, UM, THOSE, UM, IT'S ON THE INSIDE IN.
I WAS JUST WONDERING IF YOU HAD LOOKED TO SOME OF THE OTHER NO, I HAVEN'T.
I, TO BE HONEST, UH, IT'S THAT OPERATE FROM A DIFFERENT PLANE THAN FROM THE CEILING.
I, UM, I UNDERSTAND THE BREAK IN PROB THE BREAK-IN ISSUE IS A, A SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM, BUT IF WE LOOK AT THIS IMAGE ON HERE, AND I THINK IT KIND OF ILLUSTRATES WHY THIS IS, IS NOT ABLE TO BE DONE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE GUIDELINES, IT'S THE TWO, UH, COLUMNS, RIGHT? AND LEFT HAND SIDE ARE USUALLY GONNA BE A STEEL POST WHERE THAT ARE GOING INTO THE SIDEWALK, INTO THE PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY HERE, CARRYING A LARGE KIND OF CARRIAGE BOX OVERHEAD.
AND WITHIN THOSE COLUMNS, ALSO THE TRACKS.
SO THERE'S AN INTRODUCTION OF A WHOLE NEW LAYER OF MATERIAL ACROSS THE FACADE OF, UH, OF THIS STOREFRONT.
AND I GUESS A QUESTION TO THE APPLICANT IS, IS THAT WHAT IS INTENDED WITH THE VERTICAL YELLOW, VERTICAL YELLOW ELEMENTS REPRESENTED HERE? YES, MR. FARRA.
AND THAT IF YOU CAN GO TO THAT ELEVATION, THERE'S A, A YELLOW LINE DRAWN AROUND YOUR STOREFRONT? YES.
SO WHAT THEY, THE POSTS ARE PRETTY MUCH ARE GOING TO BE ON THAT CONCRETE, UM, AND THE, THE, SO BALL AND THE, AND THEN THEY ARE GONNA MOUNT THE ROLL, ROLL ON WINDOW TOP OF IT, YOU KNOW, SO THAT'S HOW IT'S GONNA LOOK LIKE WHERE THE, UH, YELLOW HIGHLIGHTED, UM, UM, UM, THE, THE, THE ON THE, ON THE PICTURE, YOU KNOW.
A QUESTION ON THE HOUSING FOR A ROLL DOWN UNIT LIKE THIS, HOW TALL WOULD THAT HOUSING BE? UM, ARE WE TALKING ABOUT THE, THE, THE, THE, THE BASE WHERE THE, THE, THE BOX THAT IT ROLLS UP INTO? HOW TALL WILL THAT BE? UM, YOU, YOU SHOULD HAVE THE, UM, I'M SO SORRY.
WHAT, UM, COMMISSIONERS, I'LL FLIP THROUGH THE PRODUCT INFORMATION.
UH, IF YOU LOOK AT YOUR SCREENS NOW.
UH, COMMISSIONER CARPENTER, WHILE HE IS LOOKING FOR THAT.
UH, YEAH, I JUST HAD A QUESTION FOR THE APPLICANT.
ARE YOU PROPOSING THE, THE PERFORATED PUNCHED OR THE SOLID AND, UM, THE CHAIRMAN ALSO ANTICIPATING BY QUESTION ABOUT THE SIZE OF THE BOX THAT THIS WOULD BE ROLLING UP INTO.
UM, AND, AND A THIRD QUESTION IS, ARE YOU GONNA BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH THIS WITH A SINGLE DOOR GIVEN THE WIDTH OF YOUR STOREFRONT, OR ARE YOU GONNA HAVE TO DO SEVERAL, LIKE THE DOMINO'S PIZZA ONE THERE, WHERE YOU'VE GOT THREE? IN THAT CASE, WOULD YOU HAVE TO DO TWO OR CAN YOU DO A SINGLE ONE? WELL, IT'S JUST GOING TO BE THE SINGLE ONE BECAUSE AS YOU SEE ON THE PICTURE, DOMINO'S HAS A REALLY BIG WINDOW.
SO, UM, THEY DID, UH, THREE PARTS LIKE THIS, BUT, UH, AT MY STORE IT'S GOING TO BE ONLY ONE SHUTTER, WHICH IS GONNA GO FROM UP TO, UM, UP TO BOTTOM.
UM, THE, ABOUT THE BOX, THE EXACT MEASUREMENT, I BELIEVE IT, UM, IT SHOULD BE, UH, ATTACHED WITH THE, UM, UH, THE EXACT MEASUREMENT.
UM, EDWARD SHOULD HAVE IT, UH, I BELIEVE, UM,
[01:35:02]
SO, UH, I CAN'T, I CAN'T REMEMBER TOP OF MY HEAD.ARE YOU LOOKING AT, UH, PERFORATED OR SOLID, UH, SHUTTERS? UH, CAN YOU ASK ME ONE MORE TIME? I'M SORRY.
YES, THE PRODUCT MATERIAL THAT YOU PROVIDE SHOWS A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT OPTIONS AND ONE SHOWS WHERE THEY'RE PERFORATED AND THE OTHER WHERE IT'S SOLID IN THE SHUTTER, I'M SORRY, IT'S GOING TO BE LIKE, UM, WHATEVER THE STUFF IS GOING TO RECOMMEND ME.
SO, UM, EITHER SOLID, EITHER, UM, UH, THE FIRST OPTION.
OTHER QUESTIONS? DO WE HAVE A MOTION? MR. CHAIRMAN? THIS IS COMMISSIONER FISH.
UH, IN SUPPORT OF STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION, I MOVE FOR, UH, DENIAL.
AND I ADD A COMMENT THAT THE PROPOSAL IS JUST REALLY INCOMPATIBLE WITH THE DESIGN GUIDELINES.
AND IF, UH, HE WANTS TO PURSUE THIS FURTHER, THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENTS WOULD BE THE PLACE TO DO SO.
I THINK SECOND, SECOND, SECOND.
ANY DISCUSSION? WHO WAS THE SECOND CARPENTER? WE'LL TAKE CARPENTER.
AND I THINK STAFF HAS IT, RIGHT? IT'S, IT'S UNFORTUNATE FOR YOUR STORE, BUT IT'S ALSO THE LOCATION OF YOUR STORE.
SO I DON'T THINK IT'S US NOT BEING COMPASSIONATE ON YOUR SECURITY ISSUE, BUT I THINK, UM, IT IS, IT'S AN HISTORIC BUILDING AND, AND THAT TYPE OF YOU, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IS YOU'RE ALTERING THE FRONT OF THE BUILDING.
IT'S YOU, IT'S GONNA BE VISIBLE ALL DAY.
AND IT'S NOT ABOUT VISIBILITY WHEN IT'S DOWN, IT'S ALSO ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE INTRODUCING TO THE BUILDING.
AND IT ALMOST LOOKS LIKE, YOU KNOW, IT'S PART OF THE BUILDING.
UM, SO, SORRY, UH, I, I, I RESPECT YOUR OPINION SO MUCH, BUT YOU KNOW, WHEN THEY BREAK INTO THE STORE, THERE ARE A LOT OF GLASS ON THE FLOOR, TOURISTS SEE IT, PEOPLE SEE IT.
WE CANNOT OPEN THE STORE TILL 3:00 PM 4:00 PM UM, THERE IS ALSO ANOTHER WAY OF LOOK, YOU KNOW, LIKE FROM OUTSIDE, UH, WHEN THEY BREAK INTO THE STORE INSTEAD OF THE SECURITY SHUTTERS.
YOU KNOW, IT'S A, IT'S A REALLY TOURISTIC AREA.
UM, YOU KNOW, I WILL FIND ANOTHER WAY, OF COURSE, IF YOU GUYS REJECT IT, UH, WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, BUT, UM, SOMETIMES I CANNOT OPEN MY STORE TILL 3:00 PM 4:00 PM THERE ARE GLOVES ON THE FLOOR AND, AND, AND TOURIST, UH,
UH, WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, MR. CHAIR.
SO, I, I GUESS I WOULD JUST ASK THAT, THAT AS FOR THE STAFF, IS THERE A POSSIBILITY TO WORK ACROSS THE CITY STAFF WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, COME UP WITH A SOLUTION FOR THE, THE OWNER, BECAUSE HE MAKES A VALID POINT THAT HE'S IN A VERY PROMINENT LOCATION.
PEOPLE THAT ARE COMING TO SAN ANTONIO, TOP TOURIST CITY IN THE UNITED OR IN, IN THE STATE, AND THEY COME, THEY COME VISIT THE ALAMO, THEY LOOK RIGHT ACROSS THE WAY, AND IF THEY SEE BROKEN GLASS, THAT PRESENTS A VERY POOR IMAGE FOR THE CITY.
SO I THINK THAT THE CITY WOULD WANT TO ENSURE THAT AT LEAST THERE'S AN AMENABLE SOLUTION TO, TO ALLOW THE STORE OWNER TO SECURE THEIR, THEIR CITY.
THAT ALSO MAINTAINS THE HISTORIC, I DON'T HAVE A SOLUTION FOR YOU, BUT I, I, I, I'D LIKE TO MAYBE CALL IN AN EX A SECURITY EXPERT TO HELP OUT.
IT, IT REALLY TAKES THEM FIVE MINUTES TO, TO, TO MAKE $10,000 DAMAGE.
YOU KNOW, LIKE IT'S, IT'S THE, WHEN THEY COME, THEY COME LIKE FIVE GUYS, SIX GUYS.
IT'S SO EASY FOR THEM TO MAKE UP TO $10,000 DAMAGE IN FIVE MINUTES.
SO, UM, THERE HAS TO BE, UH, SECURITY OR, OR, OR POLICE OFFICER, UM, IN FRONT OF THE STORE ALL NIGHT, YOU KNOW? UH, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT'S POSSIBLE.
NO, I'M NOT, I'M NOT SAYING WE SHOULD.
I HAVE A QUESTION FOR, I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO, UM, EITHER TAKE THIS TO THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT AS AN APPEAL IF THIS, UH, DENIAL PASSES OR LOOK FOR A ANOTHER SOLUTION THAT WOULD, UH, BE MORE ACCEPTABLE ON THE INSIDE OF THE, THE STORE.
COMMISSIONER CERVANTES OR, OH, COMMISSIONER GIBBS.
UM, SIR, I, I WANNA GO BACK TO SOMETHING THAT, UM, COMMISSIONER, UM, I'M SORRY, UM, HAD SOMETHING IN MY THROAT.
UM, ONE OF MY FAULT COMMISSIONER SAYS THAT WHEN IT COMES TO THE,
[01:40:01]
UM, SECURITY, AND I AM SYMPATHETIC OF WHAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR, UM, BUT HAVING SOMETHING ON THAT INSIDE, UM, TO SEE IF THAT WILL WORK BETTER FOR YOU, BECAUSE IT'S JUST INTRODUCING THAT TO THE OUTSIDE ELEMENT AND, AND, UM, IS REALLY A CONCERN.AND I, I THINK YOU UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT LIKE I SAID, WE ARE SYMPATHETIC AS YOUR SECURITY ISSUES AND YOUR CONCERNS, BUT THAT MIGHT BE EASIER FOR YOU BECAUSE IT DOESN'T, YOU KNOW, DETRACT, YOU KNOW, FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD, ON THE OUTSIDE OF THE BUILDING.
SO IF, IF I GET A DENIAL, OF COURSE, I'M GONNA FIND A WAY TO, TO, TO DO SOMETHING INSIDE THE STORE.
DO, DO I STILL NEED TO GO THROUGH THIS WHEN I DO SOMETHING INSIDE THE STORE? IF, IF YOUR INSTALLATION WAS INSIDE OF THE STORE WITHIN THE FOOTPRINT OF THE STORE, WITHIN THE STOREFRONT, YOU WOULD NOT NEED THE COMMISSION'S APPROVAL OR CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS PROVIDED THAT, THAT DID NOT INCLUDE SIGNAGE.
YEAH, AND THAT WAS SOMETHING I WANTED TO GET AT SINCE WE'RE STILL IN THE DISCUSSION.
PART IS, AND IT'S A QUESTION FOR STAFF, IS THAT LITTLE
SO THAT WOULD STILL BE THE EXTERIOR WITHIN THAT VESTIBULE, BUT, BUT I BELIEVE LIKE A KIND OF SLIDING GATE OPTION WAS DISCUSSED AS A POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVE, AND SO THE APPLICANT COULD STILL EXPLORE THAT.
AND THEN THE NEXT QUESTION, AND I DIDN'T SEE IT, MAYBE I MISSED IT HERE ON THE, ON THE WRITE-UP, BUT DOES STAFF HAVE A, A, A, A, I DON'T WANNA SAY A COOKIE CUTTER IDEA OR A COOKIE CUTTER METHOD FOR TRYING TO ADDRESS THIS, BECAUSE I SUSPECT THIS IS GONNA COME UP IN THIS AREA MORE THAN ONCE.
SO IS THAT SOMETHING THAT, UH, THAT CAN BE LOOKED AT AT THE STAFF LEVEL FOR RIDING GUIDELINES TO ALLOW NOT JUST HIS PROPERTY BUT THE REST OF THE PROPERTIES AT SOME POINT? YOU KNOW, AND KIND OF YOU SET THE FRAMEWORK AHEAD OF TIME SO THAT YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU'RE HEADED OFF AT THE CURVE, SO WE'RE NOT DOING INDIVIDUAL THINGS.
IT, IT REALLY WOULD HAVE TO BE LOOKED AT ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS.
THE ONE THING THAT THE GUIDELINES RECOMMEND IS TO NOT OBSCURE, UH, STOREFRONT SYSTEMS OR ORIGINAL ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS OR ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS IN GENERAL.
UM, I, I THINK ONE DIRECTION WOULD BE FOR STAFF TO, UM, WORK WITH APPLICANTS TO SUGGEST THE INSTALLATION OF SECURITY SCREENS WITHIN THE STOREFRONT SYSTEM, THEREFORE THEY WOULD BE INTERIOR TO THE PROPERTY.
UM, THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE THE, THE MOST DIRECT THING.
UM, OBVIOUSLY, UM, ARCHITECTURAL LIGHTING, UH, WOULD, WOULD DO A, A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF DETERRING, UH, VANDALISM.
UH, SO THAT COULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE COULD WORK WITH THE APPLICANT ON AS WELL.
NOW THAT SAID, A MORE DURABLE GLASS PLEXIGLASS, OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT, THAT, THAT WOULD FALL OUTSIDE OF THE REALM OF, UH, UH, OF THE, UH, HISTORIC PRESERVATION? UM, UH, THE GUIDELINES WOULD RECOMMEND THAT GLASS BE INSTALLED.
IT'S TRANSPARENT, UH, THAT'S CONSISTENT WITH, UH, GLASS THAT'S FOUND WITHIN THE DISTRICT.
UH, A PLEXI PRODUCT TYPICALLY IS JUST GONNA ALLOW, UM, UNLESS THERE'S A PROTECTIVE FILM ON IT, PEOPLE TO ETCH AND CARVE, UH, WHATEVER THEY WANT INTO IT AND THEN IT BECOMES FOGGY.
UM, THERE HAVE BEEN INSTANCES IN THE PAST WHERE PEOPLE HAVE INSTALLED PLEXI AS A, A TEMPORARY FIX AND IT'S, UM, IT'S NOT ATTRACTIVE, UH, BUT, UM, STAFF IS CERTAINLY, UH, CAN WORK WITH THE APPLICANT TO FIND AN INTERIOR SOLUTION.
UM, AND THEN, UM, THERE'S POTENTIALLY SOME OTHER AVENUES THAT THE APPLICANT COULD EXPLORE AS FAR AS WAYS THAT, UH, WOULD DETER VAGRANTS.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 12 H G R C.
CASE NUMBER 2023 DASH 0 9 3 3 0 1 ALAMO PLAZA.
THE APPLICANT'S REQUESTING A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR APPROVAL TO ONE INSTALL, ONE REVERSE ILLUMINATED ALUMINUM CHANNEL LETTER, ALUMINUM SIGN THAT READS RIPLEY'S MOVING THEATER.
INSTALL TWO SINGLE FACE SIX INCHES DEEP PURPLE ALUMINUM SIGN CABINET WITH BLACK SIDES WITH INDIVIDUAL REVERSE ILLUMINATED ALUMINUM
[01:45:01]
CHANNEL LETTERS THAT READS LEWIS TWOARDS WAX WORKS ON THE EAST SIDE AND THE SOUTHEAST CORNER.INSTALL ONE SINGLE FACE SIX INCHES DEEP WHITE ALUMINUM SIDE CABINET WITH INDIVIDUAL REVERSE ILLUMINATED ALUMINUM CHANNEL LETTERS THAT READS RIPLEY'S ILLUSION LAB ON THE SOUTHEAST CORNER.
INSTALL ONE ALUMINUM CHANNEL WHITE L E D LIT LETTER WITH DIGITALLY PRINTED VINYL OVERLAY SIGN THAT READS RIPLEY'S, BELIEVE IT OR NOT, ON THE EAST SIDE.
FIVE, INSTALL A NEW FRONT LIT ALUMINUM CHANNEL LETTER SIGN WITH AN ACRYLIC FACE THAT READS RIPLEY'S CARGO HOLD GIFT SHOP SIX.
REMOVE THE RED NEON DECORATIVE DETAIL ON THE CANOPIES AND REPLACE IT WITH THE RED NEON LOOK.
L E D STRIPS STAFF DOES NOT RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF ITEMS ONE THROUGH FIVE BASED ON FINDINGS A THROUGH H STAFF DOES RECOMMEND THE APPROVAL OF ITEM SIX BASED ON FINDINGS A AND I STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT THE APPLICANT EITHER REPAIR THE EXISTING SIGNS IN KIND OR PROPOSE SIGNAGE THAT INCORPORATES THE FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS.
ONE, THAT THE OVERALL SIGNAGE PLAN BE SIMPLIFIED AND INDIVIDUAL SIGNS REDESIGNED TO BETTER RESPOND TO THE ARCHITECTURAL STYLE OF THE BUILDING AND SURROUNDING ALAMO PLAZA.
THE EXISTING SIGNS ARE UNIFORM AND DESIGN AND DO NOT INTRODUCE VISUAL CLUTTER TO THE FACADE.
NEW SIGNAGE TO SIMILARLY HAVE VIS MINIMAL VISUAL IMPACT.
TWO, THAT THE TOTAL SQUARE FOOTAGE OF THE EXISTING SIGNAGE NOT BE EXCEEDED BY THE NEW SIGNAGE.
THREE, THAT ALL PLEXI FACES BE ELIMINATED IN FAVOR OF VERSE LIT ALUMINUM LETTERS OR EXTERNAL LIGHTING.
FOUR, THAT THE REMOVING THAT THE MOVING THEATER SIGNS SPECIFICALLY BE REDESIGNED TO BE LESS TALL, SO IT WILL BETTER FIT THE PROPOSED PLACEMENT AREA.
A SIGNAGE PLAN THAT MEETS THESE RECOMMENDATIONS MAY BE ELIGIBLE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVAL.
THE APPLICANT'S JD KELLER, GIANNA BINTI AND MELISSA MALDONADO ARE HERE IN PERSON? YES.
UH, MY NAME IS JD KELLER WITH KELLER SIGNS.
I'M THE GENERAL MANAGER FOR ALL THE RIPLEY'S ATTRACTIONS HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
AND YOUR RESPONSE TO, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS YOU WANNA TELL HIM? SO, YEAH.
UM, SO LOUIS TWO SOS AND RIPLEY'S HAS, UH, UPDATED BRANDING, UH, ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT REPRESENTS WHAT THEY'RE WANTING TO DO ON THE BUILDING DOWNTOWN.
UM, THE SIGNS THAT HAVE BEEN OUT THERE HAVE BEEN, I DON'T EVEN KNOW, BUT OVER 20 YEARS, I GUESS.
YEAH, PROBABLY 30 YEARS OR MORE.
UM, AND SO THEY'RE, THEY'RE JUST DATED AND OLD NEON SIGNS THAT, THAT YOU CAN'T WORK ON EASILY.
AND, UM, AND THEY'RE WANTING TO USE THEIR NEW BRANDING LOGOS ON THE BUILDING, UH, TO REPRESENT THE, THE COMPANY.
AND YOU CAN SEE OUR LOUIS TOADS SPECIFICALLY.
IT HAS CURRENTLY AN REALLY OLD LOGO THAT WE DON'T EVEN OWN THAT TRADEMARKS FOR THE PLAZA WAX MUSEUM.
UM, OUR WAX MUSEUM IS LOUIS TO SODS, SO IT WOULD BASICALLY JUST BE BRANDING IT CORRECTLY, UM, AND LESS CONFUSIONS.
UH, THE ILLUSIONS LAB, THAT'S OUR NEWEST ATTRACTION THAT WE'VE ADDED.
UM, IT WAS INSTALLED LAST MARCH, SO IT WOULD JUST BE REPLACING THE RIPLEY SIGN ABOVE.
UM, BECAUSE OUR BUILDING NEXT DOOR IS ACTUALLY RIPLEY.
SO THIS BUILDING IS WHERE OUR WAX MUSEUM, THE ILLUSIONS LAB AND THE 40 THEATER ARE LOCATED.
AND, UM, THE 40 THEATER, THEY RESTRUCTURED IT NOW.
IT WAS STACKED BEFORE AND NOW IT'S, UM, MORE SPREAD OUT SO IT'S NOT RIGHT ON TOP OF EACH OTHER.
AND THEN THIS IS THOSE LAST TWO.
SO THESE ARE FOR THE RIPLEY'S BUILDING.
UM, THIS ONE RIGHT HERE IS ON ALAMO PLAZA.
UM, WE WOULD BE REMOVING A GIANT, UM, STEEL LIKE R LOGO THAT WOULD BE ABOVE IT.
UM, AND THIS IS OUR NEW RIPLEY'S LOGO, SO IT HAS DIFFERENT FONT FROM WHAT IS EXISTING RIGHT NOW.
UM, AND THEN THIS IS GOING TO BE OUR GIFT SHOP, WHICH IS ACTUALLY RIVER LEVEL.
UM, SO THAT IS KIND OF, IT'S AT THE BOTTOM OF, UH, WHERE THERE'S A WATERFALL.
SO THAT ONE IS NOT FACING ALAMO PLAZA.
UM, AND THAT WOULD JUST BE UPDATING THE CURRENT SIGNAGE TO HAVE OUR CURRENT LOGO AND, UM, TO HAVE L E D LIGHTS INSTEAD OF THE NEONS.
COMMISSIONER, I HAVE QUESTIONS FOR THE APPLICANT.
SO I'D LIKE TO GO THROUGH STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS AND GIVE YOU FOUR RECOMMENDATIONS.
I'LL SKIP THE FIRST ONE 'CAUSE IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE COMPLEX, BUT FOR STIPULATION NUMBER TWO, THE TOTAL SQUARE FOOTAGE OF THE EXISTING SIGNAGE NOT BE EXCEEDED BY THE NEW SIGNAGE.
IS THIS SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN COMPLY WITH? UM,
[01:50:02]
YES.THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S DOABLE.
UH, IT'S, IT'S PROBABLY NOT MUCH DIFFERENT THAN WHAT'S CURRENTLY THERE.
AND SO IF YOU WERE TO TAKE JUST A RECTANGLE AND CALCULATE THAT SQUARE FOOTAGE VERSUS, YOU KNOW, SAME THING WITH THE NEW LOUIS TOUS TUCSON LOGO MM-HMM.
UM, AND WE COULD PROVIDE A, AN EXACT MEASUREMENT OF WHAT THOSE EXISTING SIGNS ARE.
UM, YOU KNOW, IN COMPARISON TO THE NEW ONES, I DON'T HAVE THAT BECAUSE WE DIDN'T DO THAT ORIGINALLY, BUT I CAN, WE CAN GET THAT.
THE, THE THIRD ITEM THAT ALL PLEXI FACES BE ELIMINATED IN FAVOR OF REVERSE LIT ALUMINUM LETTERS OR EXTERNAL LIGHTING.
IS THIS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE DONE? YES, MA'AM.
AND WE EVEN ON THE NEW APPLICATION, ALL THIS EXCUSE IF YOU COULD LEAN INTO THE MICROPHONE FOR THE RECORD, PLEASE.
ON THE NEW APPLICATION, ALL THE SIGNAGE WOULD BE BACKLIT ON THE LOUIS TS AND ILLUSIONS AND UH, RIPLEY THEATER.
UM, THOSE WOULD ALL BE THE BACKLIT SIGNAGE AS PER RECOMMENDATION BY STAFF.
THE ONE ON RIPLEY'S SIDE OF THE BUILDING IS, IS A FACELIFT, WHICH IS WHAT'S CURRENTLY THERE.
WE'RE JUST RE REBRANDING IT AS WHAT'S CURRENTLY THERE.
SO IF YOU LOOK AT THAT SIGNAGE RIGHT THERE, THAT IS THE EXACT SAME THING THAT'S THERE.
IT'S JUST LAID OUT DIFFERENTLY, UM, AND REPLACING WHAT'S CURRENTLY THERE.
AND IT APPARENTLY THAT FALLS INTO NUMBER FOUR, THAT IT'S A LITTLE BIT TOO TALL.
OH, THAT'S NOT THE ONE I WAS LOOKING AT.
ON NUMBER FOUR, THEY'RE REFERRING TO THE RIPLEY'S MOVING THEATER FOUR D MM-HMM.
AND WE HAD IT AS MORE OF A STACKED LOGO, UM, LIKE WE'RE MOVING WAS ABOVE THEATER AND THEN RIPLEY'S WAS ABOVE THAT SO IT WAS MORE OF A SQUARE SHAPE AND SO WE TOOK IT AND MADE IT, UM, MORE ELONGATED OR, YOU KNOW, RECTANGULAR TO FIT ON THE, TO WHERE YOU HAD MORE BUILDING ABOVE AND BELOW THE, THE ACTUAL LOGO.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT CURRENTLY STILL NEEDS TO BE MOVED.
DOES IT, IS IT IS WHAT THEY DID SUFFICIENT DIMENSIONALLY AND PROPORTIONALLY STAFF WANTED TO BRING THAT TO, UH, THE COMMISSION TO MAKE THAT DECISION.
I JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY THE PARAMETERS THAT YOU WERE GOOD WITH.
AND SO TWO AND THREE DEFINITELY.
OTHER QUESTIONS? THOSE ARE THE TWO I GONNA ASK OTHER QUESTIONS? I MEAN, I GUESS MY QUESTION IS IF, IF WE GO WITH, YOU'RE SAYING THAT THEY'RE SIMILAR IN SIZE AND IF WE CAN WORK WITH THAT, 'CAUSE I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT FACTOR HERE.
NORMALLY WE'LL ONLY APPROVE 50 SQUARE FEET OF TOTAL SIGNAGE.
SO I FEEL, I JUST, YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, IF A MOTION GOES THAT WAY, THAT THERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S POSSIBLE FOR YOU, YOU'RE MINIMIZING.
I THINK IN THIS CASE, YOU KNOW, IT PROBABLY WOULD BE A LITTLE BIT SMALLER TO SCALE, CORRECT? PROBABLY, UM, MAYBE, YOU KNOW, GOING BY THE DOOR FRAME OR THE DOOR ENTRY, YOU KNOW, JUST KEEPING THAT.
BUT IF, IF, IF IT IS POSSIBLE, IT IS POSSIBLE.
COMMISSIONER GROUP AND, AND I GUESS, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF STIPULATION ONE REALLY APPLIES BECAUSE THIS IS KIND OF A TRADEMARK TO, I MEAN, YOU'RE NOT GONNA CHANGE YOUR LOGOS, YOU MIGHT MODIFY A LITTLE BIT.
SO I FEEL LIKE I'M GONNA KEEP, UM, YOU KNOW, STIPULATION ONE AWAY, BUT I WOULD SAY STIPULATION TWO IS THE ONE THAT BECOMES IMPORTANT, RIGHT? SO THAT THE TOTAL SQUARE FOOTAGE OF THE EXISTING SIGNAGE NOT TO EX BE EXCEEDED WITHIN YOUR SIGNAGE.
UM, I THINK BEFORE YOU EVEN GO AND, AND, YOU KNOW, PURCHASE THE SIGNAGE, MAYBE, YOU KNOW, GO WITH STAFF ABOUT THAT BECAUSE ONE OF THE LOGOS YOU SAID THE BIG R WILL BE NOW WRITTEN OUT RIPLEY'S.
SO YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO WORK AROUND THAT.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S CLEAR ENOUGH FOR STAFF.
WOULD THAT BE OKAY FOR STAFF? YES.
YOU CAN APPROVE PARAMETERS AND THEN WE CAN ENSURE THAT WHATEVER ENDS UP GETTING A PERMIT IS CONSISTENT WITH THOSE PARAMETERS.
SO, UM, APPROVE THE SIGNAGE PRESENTED TODAY WITH STIPULATION TWO, THREE.
I'M, I'M, I'M FINE WITH THE MOVING THEATER AS LONG AS THE SQUARE FOOTAGE IS KEPT.
SECOND, YOU HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND.
ANY DISCUSSION MAY HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE.
[01:55:01]
YES.SO WORK WITH STAFF ON MEETING THOSE, UH, REQUIREMENTS.
AGENDA ITEM 13 WAS POSTPONED BY THE APPLICANT.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 14, H D R C CASE NUMBER 2023 DASH 22 2 0 7 DIVINE STREET.
THE APPLICANT'S REQUESTING A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR APPROVAL TO REPLACE THE EXISTING METAL STAMP SHINGLE ROOF WITH A STANDING SEAM METAL ROOF.
STAFF DOES NOT RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THE REQUEST BASED ON FINDINGS.
A AND B STAFF RECOMMENDS THAT THE APPLICANT EITHER REPAIR THE EXISTING ROOF OR REPLACE IT IN KIND WITH A SIMILAR PRODUCT.
THE APPLICANT IS E CASTILLO, IS IT HERE IN PERSON AS WELL AS THE HOMEOWNER'S DAUGHTER? YES.
WOULD YOU INTRODUCE YOURSELF PLEASE? UH, MY NAME'S IZZY CASTILLO.
COULD YOU DESCRIBE THE PROJECT AND UM, BASICALLY YOUR REQUEST? UH, WE'RE REQUESTING TO CHANGE THE, UM, THE METAL STYLE ON, ON THE ROOF FROM A STAMPED METAL TO A STANDING SEAM METAL.
AND THE REASON FOR THAT IS, UM, WELL FIRST OF ALL THE COST IS, IS ALMOST DOUBLE AS A STANDING SEAM AND IT'S, UM, I CAN'T FIND THE, THE EXACT STYLE ROOF.
THERE'S SOMETHING SIMILAR TO IT, BUT IT COSTS A LOT MORE AND THE HOMEOWNERS JUST CAN'T AFFORD, YOU KNOW, PAYING ALMOST DOUBLE WHAT THEY'RE PAYING NOW FOR A STANDING SCENE.
I'D LIKE TO, I'D LIKE TO SAY A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, MY PARENTS ARE 78.
THEY'VE BEEN IN THE HOUSE SINCE, UH, 1989.
I LIVED TWO BLOCKS OVER FOR 30 YEARS THIS YEAR AND WE'VE DONE OUR BEST TO MAINTAIN THE, UM, INTEGRITY OF THE ARCHITECTURAL INTEGRITY OF THE HOUSES WE REPLACED.
MY DAD AND I SPECIFICALLY DID THE FENCE OURSELVES TO, TO MATCH THE FENCE THAT WAS ORIGINALLY ON THE HOME.
WE ALSO DID, I, HE AND I DID ALL THE WINDOWS OURSELVES.
WE KEPT THE GLASS, EVERYTHING.
UM, THEY DID THE STUCCO AROUND THE HOUSE, SO THEY'VE REALLY DONE THEIR BEST TO MAINTAIN THE ARCHITECTURAL INTEGRITY, BUT THEY DON'T REALLY HAVE THE MONEY.
THEY'VE BEEN SAVING UP TO DO A NEW ROOF AND UM, HE REALLY WANTED TO BE HERE TODAY, BUT HE'S ILL.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT I WANTED TO SAY.
AND ALSO, LET'S SEE, EVERYBODY ELSE ON THE BLOCK HAS STANDING SEAMS AND THERE'S AN OTHER HOUSES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT HAVE HAD THE SAME THING STYLE AND IT HAS BEEN REPLACED, APPROVED AND REPLACED WITH STANDING SEAT.
CAN, CAN YOU, MR. CHAIR? THANK YOU.
CAN YOU TELL ME HOW OLD THAT ROOF IS? THAT'S THE ORIGINAL ROOF THE HOUSE WAS BUILT IN, UM, 1912 I THINK.
IS THAT WHERE IN THIS, UH, CAN YOU GO TO PHOTO 10? THERE SEEMS TO BE A TEMPORARY PATCH.
IS THAT WHERE THE LEAK IS? YES.
AND WHAT IS THE CONDITION OF THE, THE REST OF THE ROOF? ARE THERE ANY OTHER LEAKS? THERE'S THERE ARE OTHER LEAKS.
YEAH, THERE'S A BUNCH OF, UH, THE METAL HAS A BUNCH OF LITTLE HOLES IN IT AND ALONG THE VALLEY IT'S LIFTING.
I MEAN, IT'S LIFTED UP AND IT'S CORRODED RIGHT THERE.
IT JUST DIDN'T REALLY BAD, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S OVER A HUNDRED YEARS OLD.
AND SO, UM, HAVE YOU TRIED REMOVING ANY OF THE, THESE METAL SHINGLES TO SEE IF THEY COULD BE, UH, IF THEY COULD BE RE REPURPOSED? UH, NO I HAVEN'T.
UM, I TRIED TO MOVE SOME, BUT LIKE I SAID, AT THE EDGE OF THEM THEY'RE ALREADY RUSTED AND CORRODED AND, UM, THEY JUST, I MEAN THEY'RE JUST IN BAD SHAPE.
I MEAN, AND IT'S HARD TO FIND THE EXACT, THE EXACT MATCH TO THEM.
AND WHEN YOU SAY REPURPOSED, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT USING THEM ON THE EXISTING ROOF? YES, BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO, I'D LIKE TO USE THEM, REPURPOSE THEM FOR SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL IN, IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, YOU KNOW, LIKE THEY ARE REALLY BEAUTIFUL AND IT REALLY IS A SHAME TO SAY WE WANNA CHANGE IT.
IT'S JUST THAT IT, IT'S NOT REALLY VERY POSSIBLE.
YES, THEY ARE VERY CHARACTER DEFINING FEATURE
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OF THE HOME AND IT WOULD BE UNFORTUNATE TO LOSE THEM.UM, COMMISSIONER GRU, I MEAN IT'S THE ORIGINAL ROOF
THAT'S AMAZING, RIGHT? I MEAN IT JUST SHOWS YOU HOW THE ORIGINAL MATERIALS REALLY ARE.
UM, THERE WAS MORE QUESTION MAYBE TO STAFF OR MAYBE, YOU KNOW, IS, IS THE NEIGHBOR HOMES, DO THEY HAVE THE METAL? UH, WERE THEY UH NO YOU MEAN ORIGINALLY WHEN WE MOVED IN? ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT WITH THE STAMPED? I THINK MY PARENTS' HOUSE WAS THE ONLY ONE IN THEIR LITTLE BLOCK THAT HAS THAT, BUT EVERYBODY HAS REPLACED THEIR ROOFS ALL SURROUNDING THEM WITH THE STANDING SEAM.
YEAH, I KNOW THAT THERE'S ONE HOUSE ON LAVACCA, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU REMEMBER THE NUMBER 2 32 OR SOMETHING TWO THAT HAD THIS AND THEY'VE REPLACED IT WITH STANDING SEAM ALSO.
I DON'T KNOW OF ANY OTHER HOUSES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT HAVE THAT
COMMISSIONER SAVI, DID YOU HAVE QUESTIONS? UH, NO, I WAS GOING TO MAKE A MOTION.
I WAS GOING TO MAKE, I WAS GOING TO MOTION THAT WE ACCEPT, UH, THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST AND TO INSTALL THAT STANDING SEAM ROOF WITH ALL OF STAFF STIPULATIONS THAT THEY USUALLY HAVE, WHICH INCLUDE A SITE VISIT TO CONFIRM MATERIAL, UM, SPECIFICATIONS AND ALSO TO, UM, YEAH THAT WOULD BE IT.
ANY DISCUSSION? HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE.
AND I WOULD UH, HOPEFULLY YOU'LL FIND A USE FOR THE SHINGLES.
I'M GONNA MAKE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL
AND IF YOU CAN'T, UH, USE ALL OF THEM, UH, REACH OUT TO O H P STAFF AND THEY MAY BE ABLE TO TAKE THEM INTO THEIR SALVAGE MATERIAL.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 15 H D R C CASE NUMBER 2023 DASH 1 24 4 10 FLORIDA STREET.
THE APPLICANT'S REQUESTING A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR APPROVAL TO CONSTRUCT A ONE STORY DETACHED GARAGE.
STAFF RECOMMENDS APPROVAL OF THE REQUEST BASED ON FINDINGS A THROUGH F BASED ON FINDINGS A THROUGH F WITH THE FOLLOWING STIPULATIONS.
ONE THAT THE PROPOSED WINDOWS ARE CONSTRUCTED OF WOOD OR ALUMINUM CLAD WOOD AND ADHERE TO GUIDELINES FOR WINDOWS CONCERNING THEIR PROFILE SIZE AND DEPTH.
TWO, THAT THE APPLICANT USE A MORE TRADITIONAL WINDOW CONFI CON CONFIGURATION SUCH AS ONE OVER ONE OR THE PROPOSED TWO CLAIRE STORY WINDOWS ON THE, FOR THE PROPOSED TWO CLAIRE STORY WINDOWS ON THE SOUTH ELEVATION.
THREE THAT THE APPLICANT ADD ADDITIONAL WINDOW OPENINGS TO THE EAST AND WEST ELEVATIONS, WHICH FEATURE TRADITIONAL SIZES AND DIMENSIONS.
FOUR THAT THE GARAGE DOOR USE WOOD AS THE PRIMARY MATERIAL OR HAVE THE APPEARANCE OF WOOD.
THE HOMEOWNER, CHRIS GOKEY AND APPLICANT LAWRENCE GARCIA ARE HERE IN PERSON.
NOTE THAT THERE ARE TWO DOCUMENTS FOR THIS CASE IN THE LATE SUBMITTAL FOLDER LABELED ASSESSMENT OF GARAGES AND RESPONSE TO H D R C STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS.
IF YOU'D INTRODUCE YOURSELVES.
LAWRENCE GARCIA ARCHITECT, UH, CHRIS GAULKE, HOMEOWNER.
I'LL JUST BRIEFLY SPEAK TO THE, UH, PROJECT.
DOES CRYSTAL HAVE MORE TO, UH, DISCUSS AS HE'S RESPONDED TO SOME OF THE STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, OF THE FOUR RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, FOR THIS DETACHED GARAGE? UM, RECOMMENDATION ONE AND FOUR, THERE IS NO, UM, OBJECTION TO MOVING TO THE WOOD, MORE APPROPRIATE WINDOW.
AND FOR SELECTING A GARAGE DOOR THAT EITHER HAD A WOOD OR WOOD-LIKE APPEARANCE, WE'RE HAPPY TO OBLIGE THAT.
UM, WE DID HAVE SOME MINOR CONCERNS WITH ITEMS TWO AND THREE.
UH, IF YOU COULD PULL UP THE FLOOR PLAN OR ELEVATIONS.
I ON THE SOUTH ELEVATION WE HAVE TWO UM, WINDOWS LOCATED.
THIS IS AT THE REAR OF THE PROPERTY AND ON THE EAST ELEVATION WE HAVE NO, UH, WINDOWS SHOWN.
THE REASON FOR THIS DESIGN APPROACH WAS THAT THESE ELEVATIONS ARE FACING AN ADJACENT LOT THAT'S EMPTY, UH, I BELIEVE ZONE COMMERCIAL AND THE REAR OF THE LOT.
SO THE HOMEOWNER DOESN'T HAVE ANY VIS, UH, ANY VISUAL DIRECT LINE OF SIGHT TO THESE WINDOWS.
AND THERE IS A SECURITY CONCERN JUST ON THE LOCATION OF HIS
[02:05:01]
HOUSE.AND MR. GKE HAS DONE A SURVEY OF JUST THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND SHOWING JUST WHAT THE CONDITION OF WHAT THESE KIND OF WINDOWS KIND OF LANDS IN, WHETHER IT'S BROKEN, BUSTED OUT, BOARDED UP.
SO I'LL LET, UH, MR. GOKEY SPEAK TO THAT AND THANK YOU.
UM, SO BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT, LIKE LAWRENCE SAID, UH, WE'RE FINE WITH STIPULATIONS ONE AND FOUR, BUT TWO AND THREE WE'RE WORRIED ABOUT, UH, FOR SECURITY.
SO KIND OF LIKE TO CHALLENGE THE ASSUMPTION THAT WHAT WE'VE PROPOSED IS IN CONFLICT WITH THE GUIDELINES AND WHAT'S IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
UM, WE'VE GOT EVIDENCE THAT THERE ARE OTHER GARAGES IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT HAVE SIDES WITHOUT WINDOWS OR HAVE THESE CRESS OR SMALLER WINDOWS.
UM, AND HAVE SOME PICTURES OF SEVERAL NEARBY.
IF YOU COULD GO TO NUMBER ONE, PLEASE STIPULATION ONE.
SO WE'RE OKAY WITH USING WOOD WINDOWS.
UH, WE WENT TO AN ARCHITECTURAL, ARCHITECTURAL SALVAGE STORE AND FOUND WINDOWS THAT WE COULD USE THAT MATCHED THE CURRENT HOUSE.
SO THE FIRST PICTURE THERE IS ONE OF THE WINDOWS ON MY HOUSE RIGHT NOW AND WE HAVE ONE JUST LIKE IT AND WE'RE WILLING TO MAKE THE TRIM UP ALL THE SAME AND SUCH ON THE, THE MAIN WINDOW THAT'S THERE ON THE EAST SIDE.
UH, WE ALSO FOUND THESE TWO, UH, NARROW LIKE THE TERRESTRIAL WINDOWS THAT WE COULD USE, UM, FOR THE REAR ELEVATION AND THOSE WILL BE UP AT THE TOP.
SO ESSENTIALLY EIGHT FOOT UP TO KEEP PEOPLE FROM CLIMBING IN 'EM.
SO IF YOU COULD GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
UM, THEN WE GOT A VACANT LOT NEXT TO US AND FOLKS HANG OUT IN IT KIND OF ALL TIMES OF THE DAY AND NIGHT.
WE'VE HAD TRESPASSERS IN OUR GARAGE, IN OUR YARD, EXCUSE ME, UM, EVIDENCE OF DRUG USE AND SUCH PEOPLE HANGING AROUND, UM, HAD TO CALL THE COPS A NUMBER OF TIMES.
AND SO WE'RE WORRIED THAT THESE TWO, HAVING THESE VERY LARGE BACK WINDOWS, UM, THEY'RE GONNA GET BROKEN INTO ESSENTIALLY SOON AFTER.
YOU KNOW, GARAGES ARE FAIRLY HIGH BREAK IN AND THERE'S VALUABLE STUFF INSIDE, WE CAN'T SEE 'EM.
UM, IF YOU GO TO THE NEXT, UH, YOU CAN SKIP THE NEXT ONE.
THIS JUST SOME CRIME STATISTICS SHOWING THAT, THAT THIS ISN'T JUST MY OPINION, BUT THAT THERE ARE PLENTY OF BREAK-INS AROUND HERE.
KIND OF RIGHT AFTER WE MOVED IN, I MET, UH, ONE OF OUR NEIGHBORS AT THREE 10 CAROLINA AND SHE ASKED IF WE'D HAD OUR WELCOME TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD BREAK-IN YET.
AND SO IT'S A THING THAT HAPPENS.
UM, IF YOU GO TO THE NEXT ONE, PLEASE.
IF THESE ARE OUR TWO IMMEDIATE NEIGHBORS, THEY HAVE GARAGES, UM, BEHIND US AND TO THE SIDE AT 4 0 6 FLORIDA AND I THINK IT'S 3 3 11 CAROLINA.
UM, THEY DO HAVE WINDOWS ON THE BACK OF THEIR GARAGES AND THEY'RE BOARDED UP.
UM, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S 'CAUSE THEY GOT BROKEN INTO ALREADY OR JUST TO KEEP YOU FROM DOING IT, BUT THAT'S THE STATE OF THE BEING.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE BOTTOM PICTURE THERE, UM, WE HAVE AN EXAMPLE HERE OF A WINDOW ON AN OLD GARAGE, VERY MUCH LIKE THE ONES WE PROPOSED FOR THE SOUTH SIDE AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO PULL IT UP, BUT IN THE OTHER DOCUMENT WHERE WE WALKED AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD TAKING PICTURES OF THE GARAGES, THERE ARE SIMILAR SMALL, UH, CRESTOR WINDOWS OR THESE SMALL WINDOWS TOWARD THE TOP OF THE ELEVATION AT 2 34 DELAWARE, 3 22 FLORIDA 2 0 9, CAROLINA THREE 19 DELAWARE, ONE 18 DELAWARE, AND ONE 30 DELAWARE, WHICH ARE ALL WITHIN ABOUT THREE OR FOUR BLOCKS OF MY HOUSE.
SO I DON'T THINK IT'S OUT OF PLACE.
UH, ALSO WALKING AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
SO WE TOOK PICTURES, WE LOOKED AT OVER 50 GARAGES, PUT 35 OF 'EM IN THIS ASSESSMENT, UH, REPORT.
AND 76% OF THOSE HAD A SIDE WITH ZERO VISIBLE WINDOWS VISIBLE FROM THE PUBLIC VIEW.
AND I WANNA POINT OUT THAT THE TWO SIDES THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE, UH, WILL NOT BE VISIBLE FROM THE PUBLIC VIEW.
THE REAR ELEVATION IS BLOCKED BY THE HOUSE BEHIND ME AND THEIR GARAGE AND SUCH AT THREE 11 CAROLINA AND THE ONE THAT'S ON THE LOT, UH, I HAVE A PICTURE ON THE NEXT SLIDE SHOWING WE GOT TREES THERE ON THE SIDE OF THEIR PROPERTY.
UH, YOU CAN'T SEE THAT SIDE FROM THE STREET AND SO THE FACT THAT THERE ARE NO WINDOWS, NO ONE'S GONNA SEE THAT THERE ARE OR AREN'T.
UM, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THE VEGETATION AND SUCH PROVIDES COVER FOR FOLKS TRYING TO BREAK IN.
UM, THE LAST ONE IS STIPULATION FOUR.
UH, LIKE WE MENTIONED, WE HAVE AN EXAMPLE OF 2 0 1 DELAWARE STREET THAT HAS, UH, METAL GARAGE DOORS THAT MATCH THE APPEARANCE OF WOOD AND WE'LL DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
SO, UH, WITH THAT, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSION? MR. CHAIRMAN? THIS IS COMMISSIONER FISH.
UM, I, I GENERALLY, I GUESS I DON'T HAVE A SPECIFIC QUESTION.
I GENERALLY CONCUR WITH THE APPLICANT'S ASSESSMENT ON STIPULATION THREE.
THERE ARE MANY, UH, GARAGES THAT ARE, I'D SAY LESS THAN SIGNIFICANT ACCESSORY STRUCTURES THAT DO HAVE WALLS WITHOUT WINDOWS.
SO, UH, I, I CONCUR WITH THE APPLICANT'S POSITION ON STIPULATION
[02:10:01]
THREE AND ON UM, STIPULATION TWO FOR SECURITY ISSUES.I'M GENERALLY SUPPORTIVE OF THAT.
SO, UH, IF THERE ARE, IF THERE ARE NO OTHER UH, OTHER QUESTIONS, UM, I'LL BE PREPARED TO MAKE UH, A MOTION TO THAT EFFECT.
OKAY, SO I MOVE FOR APPROVAL WITH STAFF STIPULATIONS ONE AND FOUR AND MODIFY STIPULATION TWO TO INCLUDE THE STANDARD UH, WINDOW SPECIFICATIONS STIPULATIONS.
SECOND, WE HAVE A MOTION A SECOND.
ANY DISCUSSION? CAN WE JUST MAKE SURE THAT UH, WE ARE ACCEPTING THE WINDOW CONFIGURATIONS THAT THE APPLICANT SHOWED THE, UH, WITH THE RECYCLE WINDOWS, THE 1 0 1 AND THE NARROW WINDOWS THAT WE PUT IN THE SLIDE ON STIPULATION ONE? YEAH.
UH, COMMISSIONER GROUP, THE INTENT OF MY MOTION IS TO ACCEPT THAT I BELIEVE THE WINDOWS ARE PROPOSED, UH, COMPLY WITH OUR STANDARD SPECIFICATIONS.
JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WAS CLEAR.
MAY I HAVE A ROLL CALL PLEASE? GIBBS? AYE FISH? AYE.
CARPENTER, UH, BEFORE I GET MY VOTE, I JUST WANNA LET THE APPLICANT KNOW, I THOUGHT THEY DID A FABULOUS JOB OF SURVEYING THE, UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND, AND, UH, YOU REALLY BUILT YOUR CASE VERY WELL.
AT THIS TIME WE ARE GOING TO TAKE A 10 MINUTE BREAK, UM, AND WE'LL COME BACK AND CONVENE WITH AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 16, UH, THE BRACKENRIDGE PARK PROJECT.
AND COMMISSIONERS, WE DO HAVE, UM, DINNER AVAILABLE NEXT DOOR.
YOU WANNA GRAB A BITE? I WANT CALL ON THAT.
I'D LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER HISTORIC AND DESIGN
[Time certain cases This item will be heard at the end of the agenda and will be heard no earlier than 5:00 pm. This item will be heard after all other cases are heard by the commission. ]
REVIEW COMMISSION FOR CASE AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 16 3700 NORTH ST.MARY STREET, BRACKENRIDGE PARK, LAMBERT BEACH.
UM, I'LL GO AHEAD AND READ THE CASE INTO THE RECORD AND WE'LL GET STARTED.
UM, AFTER I DO THAT, WE'LL INVITE THE, UM, DESIGN CONSULTANT FOR THE PROJECT TO COME UP AND GIVE A BRIEF PRESENTATION.
UM, AFTER THAT WE WILL MOVE FORWARD WITH PUBLIC COMMENTS THAT WE'VE RECEIVED FOR THE CASE.
UM, A NUMBER OF YOU HAVE SIGNED IN AND I'M KIND OF RECONCILING THAT AND SEEING WHO YIELDED TIME AND MAKING SURE WE'RE GONNA FOLLOW OUR ORDER CORRECTLY.
UM, IF YOU HAVE ARRIVED SINCE THE PAST 10 MINUTES AND YOU WANT TO SPEAK OR INTEND TO SPEAK, UM, FEEL FREE TO COME OVER HERE AND ADD YOUR NAME.
UM, AND THEN AFTER WE'VE DONE THAT, WE WILL PLAY VOICEMAILS RECEIVED.
WE HAVE A NUMBER OF VOICEMAILS AS WELL.
UM, JUST FOR, FOR CLARIFICATION, UM, IF YOU ARE IN PERSON AND YOU LEFT A VOICEMAIL, YOU CANNOT DO BOTH.
AND SO I THINK THAT THAT WAS INDICATED WHEN YOU SIGNED IN.
UM, IF YOU LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS IN PERSON, THEN WE WON'T PLAY YOUR VOICEMAIL.
UM, SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE THAT CLEAR BEFORE WE STARTED.
IT'S H D R Z, CASE NUMBER 20 22 0 9 1, UM, 3,700 NORTH ST.
MARY'S, BRACKENRIDGE PARK, LAMBERT BEACH AREA.
UM, THE APPLICANT IS REQUESTING A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR APPROVAL TO CONSTRUCT IMPROVEMENTS TO THE LAMBER BEACH AREA IN BRACKENRIDGE PARK AS PHASE ONE OF THE F Y 17 BOND PROJECT.
REQUEST ITEMS INCLUDE ONE STABILIZATION AND RESTORATION OF THE HISTORIC STONE WALLS.
OKAY, I'LL SPEAK CLOSER TO THE MIC AND THEN I'LL ASK OUR AV TECH TO RAISE THE VOLUME IF HE CAN.
UM, ITEM ONE IS STABILIZATION AND RESTORATION OF THE HISTORIC STONE WALLS THAT HAVE NOT YET FAILED.
ITEM TWO IS REC RECONSTRUCTION OF WALLS THAT HAVE ALREADY FAILED TO MATCH EXISTING.
ITEM THREE IS STABILIZATION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF THE GRAND STAIRCASE TO IMPROVE SAFETY AND ACCESSIBILITY.
ITEM FOUR IS UNDERPINNING OF THE 1877 PUMP HOUSE FOR FOUNDATION STABILIZATION AND PREPARATION FOR PHASE TWO IMPROVEMENTS.
AND ITEM FIVE IS SELECTIVE REMOVAL OF TREES LOCATED WITHIN THE PROJECT AREA.
IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE U D C H C R C.
APPROVAL IS REQUIRED FOR REMOVAL FOR REMOVAL OF MATURE TREES ON THE BANKS OF THE SAN ANTONIO RIVER.
UM, STAFF IS RECOMMENDING APPROVAL OF ITEMS ONE THROUGH FIVE BASED ON THE FINDINGS.
AN ARCHEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION IS REQUIRED FOR THE PROJECT, AND THE PROJECT SHALL COMPLY WITH ALL FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL LAWS, RULES AND REGULATIONS REGARDING ARCHEOLOGY AS APPLICABLE.
UM, SO AT THIS TIME, WE CAN HAVE THE DESIGN TEAM COME UP AND JUST TELL EDWARD WHEN YOU'D LIKE HIM TO ADVANCE THE SLIDES.
UH, SO MY NAME'S KENDRA BAUMGARTNER, UH, WITH SS W A.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS PROJECT FOR FIVE YEARS AT LEAST.
UH, SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, WE HAD BROUGHT SOME INFORMATION PREVIOUSLY.
I THINK YOU GUYS WERE VERY DIRECT AND LIKE YOU WANT MORE PUBLIC INPUT INTO THIS PROCESS.
YOU'RE GONNA SEE THAT THE RESULTS OF THAT INPUT, UH, IN THIS PRESENTATION.
[02:15:02]
SO WHY DON'T WE MOVE TO THE NEXT SLIDE.SO, UH, I MEAN, I THINK AT THE HEART OF THE PRESENTATION, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, I GUESS WHAT IS THE PROJECT JUST TO MAKE SURE EVERYBODY'S FOLLOWING HOW IT'S DEFINED.
UH, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT WHAT WAS THERE OR WHAT, I GUESS WHAT'S, YEAH, WHAT HISTORICALLY WAS BUILT THERE, UH, KIND OF AT THE CONDITION OF IT TODAY.
UM, THE ENGAGEMENT PROCESS, AND THEN OUR RECOMMENDATIONS THAT, UH, FOR HOW TO PROCEED.
SO THIS IS THE PARK, UH, IN BLUE.
IT'S A BIG PARK, ONE OF THE LARGEST SORT OF URBAN PARKS IN AMERICA.
THE RED PIECE UP TOP IS PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO OF THIS PROJECT THAT THIS HAS BEEN THE THING THAT WE'VE BEEN, YOU KNOW, WORKING ON FOR THE LAST, UH, FEW YEARS.
SHOULD WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE? SO HERE YOU HAVE PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO.
UH, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT PHASE ONE AND PHASE ONE ONLY.
UH, PHASE TWO, WE'LL GO THROUGH, UH, YOU KNOW, IT COME BACK TO YOU GUYS WITH THAT INFORMATION.
SO PHASE ONE IS LAMBERT BEACH.
JUST AS A REMINDER, IT DOES NOT INCLUDE THE, UM, UH, THE HISTORIC BATHHOUSE.
IT DOES NOT REALLY INCLUDE THE PUMPHOUSE, BUT IT DOES, AS WAS NOTED EARLIER, INCLUDE UNDERPINNINGS RIGHT TO KELP, MAKE SURE THAT IT STAYS IN PLACE.
UH, IT DEALS WITH WHAT WAS AT ONE TIME IN THE PAST, THE, THE, THE SWIMMING HOLE HERE AT LAMBERT BEACH.
THAT'S WHY IT'S CALLED LAMBERT BEACH.
UH, AND WHAT TO DO WITH SORT OF WALLS AND VEGETATION AND HOW ALL THESE THINGS KIND OF ARE NESTED TOGETHER, UH, THROUGHOUT THAT, UM, HISTORIC, UH, AREA OF THE PARK.
SO, LET'S LOOK AT EXISTING CONDITIONS.
SO THIS IS THE PARK, UH, AS IT STANDS TODAY.
AND YOU WILL HAVE ANOTHER SLIDE OF THIS IN A MOMENT, UH, THAT KIND OF CAPTURES SOME OTHER FINE POINTS OF IT.
BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE'S A LOT OF DEFERRED MAINTENANCE.
WHERE THEY BUILT TO LAST A HUNDRED YEARS, I DON'T KNOW, RIGHT? UH, PEOPLE HAVE DONE ALL KINDS OF THINGS IN THIS PARK FOR MANY YEARS.
THE MANIPULATION OF WATER AND HOW WATER WORKS HAS BEEN A HUGE PART OF THIS PARK.
UH, AND THAT'S WHY THESE WALLS ARE HERE, RIGHT? I MEAN, SOME OF IT WAS DONE.
UH, SO AS WATER HISTORICALLY MOVED ALONG THE RIVER, IT PUSHED AGAINST THAT BANK.
WE BUILT WALLS SO THAT PEOPLE COULD GET DOWN TO IT AND THEY COULD SWIM, HANG OUT ON THE EDGES, DO ALL THE THINGS THEY WANTED TO DO OVER TIME.
TREES GREW UP, AND YOU CAN START TO SEE THAT WALLS SAY SORT OF IN THE MID FOREGROUND HAVE FALLEN OVER OTHER PLACES, SORT OF IN THE BACKGROUND IN THE RIGHT WALL.
UH, HUGE CRACKS HAVE COME UP, YOU CAN SEE IN THE VERY, VERY FAR LEFT, BUT IT'S FULL OF THESE KINDS OF, UM, UH, CONCERNS, RIGHT? ABOUT THE HEALTH AND HISTORY OF THAT, UH, VERY IMPORTANT CULTURAL RESOURCE.
SO YOU COULD GET DOWN TO THE WATER'S EDGE THIS WAY.
YOU CAN SEE THEY'RE UNDERMINED THERE.
THEY HAVE TO BE, UM, WELL, THESE HAVE BEEN REPAIRED IN THE PAST, RIGHT? THEIR PAYERS DID NOT WORK, UH, BECAUSE OF THAT UNDERMINING.
WE'VE COME BACK WITH A DIFFERENT TECHNIQUE NOW THAT WE THINK WILL LAST MUCH LONGER.
THERE ARE OTHER KINDS OF WALLS YOU CAN SEE HERE, WALLS THAT ARE STANDING IN PLACE, BUT TREES THAT ARE EITHER BEHIND THEM, PUSHING VERY HARD AGAINST THEM, OR TREES BETWEEN THE BOTTOM PART OF THAT WALL AND THE WALL IN FRONT OF IT.
AND THEN WE HAVE THE PUMP HOUSE.
UH, AND WE ARE JUST DEALING WITH, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT IT STAYS IN PLACE AS A PART OF THIS PROJECT TODAY.
SO, AS A REMINDER, THIS IS THE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT PROCESS THAT WE WENT THROUGH, UH, AND THAT WE WERE ASKED TO DO.
AND THAT WE, UM, I THINK THE CITY AND EVERYBODY INVOLVED REALLY DUG INTO IT TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT, OKAY, WE'RE GETTING A LOT OF COMMENTS, WE'RE GETTING A LOT OF PUSHBACK.
HOW DO WE RESOLVE THOSE THINGS? AND HOW DO WE MOVE THIS FORWARD? SO, UH, PROJECT INTRODUCTION WAS FIRST WE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, LET EVERYONE KNOW WHAT IS THIS THING? AND, YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE FRAMING THIS PROJECT? UH, WE DID PLACE, WE DID PRO I THINK ON THAT ONE.
WE ACTUALLY HAD PEOPLE COME AND TALK TO THE DESIGNERS, YOU KNOW, IN A VERY INFORMAL WAY.
WE LEARNED A LOT, UH, THROUGH THAT PROCESS.
AND THEN WE WENT THROUGH, YOU KNOW, PART TWO, WHICH WAS ANOTHER PUBLIC INPUT INPUT SECTION.
UH, WE DID ONE, UH, WHERE WE HAD PANELISTS AND EXPERTS THAT WERE, YOU KNOW, QUESTIONS WERE ASKED OF, AND, AND ANSWERED.
UH, AND THEN WE KIND OF DID A FINAL ONE THAT WAS AN OVERVIEW OF ALL THIS.
UH, AND AS A PART OF THE OTHER PROJECT, THERE'S PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT HAP THAT HAS HAPPENED ON THAT PROJECT AS WELL.
BUT THIS IS SPECIFIC TO PHASE ONE.
SO, COMING OUT OF THE PUBLIC MEETINGS, WE WERE GIVEN A NUMBER OF, UM, RECOMMENDATIONS, IDEAS.
IT WAS SORT OF THAT IDEA, THERE ARE NO BAD IDEAS.
LET'S BRAINSTORM THIS THING AND FIGURE OUT WHERE DO WE GO WITH IT.
SO A FEW OF THOSE THINGS THAT SORT OF FLOATED TO THE TOP, THIS WAS ONE OF THEM.
UH, AND THIS IDEA WAS THAT, HEY, THERE'S THESE TWO WALLS.
THERE'S ONE THAT'S SORT OF IN THE WATER AND ONE THAT'S ABOVE, RIGHT? AND
[02:20:01]
THE TREES ARE DOING ALL THESE THINGS WITH IT.UH, THE, THE, THE CONCERN WAS THAT TO RESTORE THESE WALLS TO THEIR, UM, TO A MORE ROBUST CONDITION, UH, THAT ALSO MET ALL OF THE GUIDELINES AND LAWS AND REQUIREMENTS AND AGREEMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE.
UH, THOSE TREES WOULD HAVE TO BE TAKEN OUT.
SO HOW, WHAT DO WE DO? UH, SO ONE IDEA WAS MAYBE THAT UPPER WALL, 'CAUSE THERE'S A TREE HERE, COULD BE PUSHED FORWARD, RIGHT? AND THEN WE DON'T HAVE TO LOSE THAT TREE.
UH, IF WE GO TO, AND THAT, AND THAT'S WHAT THAT IS INDICATING, TAKING THAT UPPER WALL AND SLIDING IT FORWARD ON TOP OF THE LOWER WALL SO THAT TREES ARE NOT AFFECTED, AT LEAST NOT AS MUCH.
UH, THAT'S KIND OF THE SPACE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
YOU CAN SEE THAT UPPER WALL HERE, IT'S SHORED UP.
UH, THERE'S A LOT OF HOARDING IN FRONT OF IT.
OTHER PLACES YOU CAN SEE IT'S STILL INTACT.
UH, BUT THAT WOULD MOVE FORWARD TO THE LOWER WALL.
THAT IS, UM, ALONG THE, UH, WIDER SET.
SO THE ISSUES WITH THAT YOU CAN SEE AT THE TOP IS THE EXISTING CONDITION.
UH, BELOW IT WOULD BE THAT NEW CONDITION WITH THAT WALL BEING SLID FORWARD.
ONE, IT'S NOT HISTORICALLY, UH, ACCURATE, RIGHT TO THE, UH, HISTORIC VIEW SHED THAT WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO MAINTAIN.
ALSO, JUST WITH THE CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES OF THAT ARE REQUIRED BY LAW.
UM, IT DOES NOT MEET THOSE REQUIREMENTS.
FURTHER, IT CONSTRICTS THE RIVER, RIGHT? AND IF YOU SEE THE TOP RIGHT AS YOU MOVE THAT WALL IN THE RIVER GETS NARROWER.
THINGS ALREADY FLOOD UPSTAIRS.
AT U UPSTREAM AT U I W AS IT GETS SMALLER, THERE'S OTHER FLOODING CONCERNS.
SO WE HAD SARAH RUN HYDROLOGY STUDIES AND TELL US, HEY, IS THIS EVEN POSSIBLE? THE ANSWER WAS NO, UNLESS NEXT SLIDE, UNLESS YOU DID THIS.
IF YOU WENT UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM AND YOU FOUND PLACES ALONG THE RIVER TO MAKE IT MUCH WIDER, RIGHT? THEN YOU COULD OFFSET THAT.
THE RESULT, OF COURSE, IS THAT THERE ARE TREES NOW THAT ARE LOST THROUGH THAT PROCESS.
UH, AND IT ALSO DOESN'T MEET, UH, SOME OF THE OTHER AGREEMENTS THAT WERE SET IN PLACE EARLY IN THE, UM, HISTORY OF THIS PROJECT.
SO THIS WAS DECIDED THAT THIS WAS NOT A VIABLE OPTION.
WE, WE WOULD, UH, PRESERVE EIGHT TREES THAT WE WOULD NOT OTHERWISE HAVE TO CUT DOWN.
UH, SO THAT WAS A GOOD THING ON THAT SIDE, RIGHT? THINKING, TRYING TO FIGURE THIS THING OUT.
UM, THERE'S EXISTING ECOSYSTEM THAT WOULD RAIN.
ON THE NEGATIVE SIDE, THOUGH, THE CONS, RIGHT? A LOT OF MITIGATION WOULD BE REQUIRED UPSTREAM, PROBABLY DOWNSTREAM AS WELL.
UH, WE WOULD HAVE TO REMOVE A LOT OF TREES UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM, RIGHT? TO MAINTAIN THE VOLUMES OF WATER THAT NEED TO MOVE THROUGH THIS RIVER WHEN IT'S ACTUALLY, UH, MOVING.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WOULD VOID THE PROGRAMMATIC AGREEMENT WITH U SS A C E, WHICH WE'LL TALK ABOUT IN A MOMENT.
UH, BECAUSE ALL THE STAKEHOLDERS INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT, THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS BEING A MAJOR ONE, EVERYONE AGREED, HEY, YOU GUYS COULD DO A LOT OF THINGS WITHOUT A PERMIT OR A SIMPLIFIED PERMIT PROCESS IF YOU JUST STICK BY THIS AGREEMENT, THIS WOULD NOT STICK BY THAT AGREEMENT.
UM, AND I THINK MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE LAST ONE, IT WOULD DRAMATICALLY ALTER THE APPEARANCE AND FUNCTION OF THE BEACH.
AND I THINK THAT'S A BIG PART OF WHAT YOU GUYS ARE ABOUT, IS MAKING SURE THAT THAT HISTORIC, UH, CULTURAL FUNCTION IS MAINTAINED.
SO THIS IS THAT, UH, AGREEMENT.
I MEAN, JUST, YOU KNOW, A FEW, UH, THINGS TO PULL OUT OF IT.
ANY PROPOSED PROJECT THAT OCCURS AT OR BELOW THE WATER LEVEL OF SAN ANTONIO RIVER WILL TRIGGER REVIEW UNDER SECTION 4 0 4.
THAT'S A BIG COMPLICATED ISSUE.
UM, IT WAS AGREED THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT.
UH, IN AN EFFORT TO STREAMLINE THE FEDERAL PERMIT REVIEW PROCESS, ENVIRONMENTAL PROCESS, AND OVERALL PROJECT BUDGET SCHEDULE, THIS AGREEMENT STANDARDIZES THE REVIEW PROCESS BY PROVIDING PROCEDURES.
IT SATISFACTORILY TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE EFFECTS OF BRACKET RIDGE PARK, MAINTENANCE, REPAIR, STABILIZATION PROJECT, HISTORIC PROPERTIES.
BASICALLY, THERE'S A FRAMEWORK ALREADY AGREED TO OF HOW TO RESOLVE THESE ISSUES, HOW TO SIMPLIFY PERMITTING, HOW TO GET, UH, HISTORIC ELEMENTS LIKE THIS, UM, RECONSTRUCTED, RESTORED, REBUILT AS NEEDED.
UM, AND THEN LASTLY, YEAH, THERE'S A PROCESS FOR HAVING PROCEDURES IN PLACE THAT ALREADY HAVE THE CONSENT OF STAKEHOLDERS.
SO PEOPLE WERE ASKED, HOW DO YOU GUYS WANNA DEAL WITH THIS? THE RESULTS RESULTED IN THIS.
SO THAT WAS ANOTHER HUGE SORT OF ENGAGE STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT PROCESS THAT RESULTED IN THIS NEXT SLIDE.
SO, UH, THESE ARE SOME GRAPHICS THAT KIND OF ILLUSTRATE THE, THE CONCERNS THAT I KNOW THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE TODAY HAVE.
I MEAN, WE SHOULD ALL BE CONCERNED ABOUT THIS STUFF.
UH, UNFORTUNATELY, THERE ARE CERTAIN LAWS AND REGULATIONS THAT TELL US WHAT WE CAN AND CANNOT DO.
SO, TOP LEFT, YOU CAN SEE THERE IS A, YOU SEE, WELL, I'LL TAKE THE, THE, EACH OF THESE APART.
[02:25:01]
ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE IS THE RIVER.YOU SEE THIS SORT OF TRIANGULAR SHAPE THING THAT'S A BIG CONCRETE AND STONE WALL THAT'S IN THE RIVER.
YOU CAN SEE IT IN THE IMAGES ABOVE THAT IS A WALKWAY.
A LOT OF TIMES IT'S LIFTED AND BROKEN.
NOW, OTHER TIMES IT'S IN PLACE.
AND THEN THERE'S THE UPPER WALL, RIGHT? UH, AND THAT'S KIND OF CREATING THAT CUT BANK.
IN SOME CASES, IN THE TOP LEFT ONE, THERE IS A TREE JUST ABOVE THAT WALL, AND IT'S PUSHING ON IT.
AND ITS ROOTS ARE GROWING, LOOKING FOR OXYGEN AND WATER AND EVERYTHING.
AND IT STARTS TO, UH, DISMANTLE THE LOWER PARTS OF THAT WALL STUFF DOWN BELOW THAT YOU CAN'T EVEN SEE NECESSARILY TO THE RIGHT.
THERE ARE OTHER PLACES WHERE THAT TREE HAS ALREADY DONE THAT, RIGHT? SO NOW THE TREE IS LEANING, THE WALL IS LEANING.
YOU CAN START TO SEE MORE AND MORE, UH, DAMAGE THAT HAS BEEN DONE, BOTTOM LEFT.
UH, NOW THAT'S, THAT'S A SITUATION WHERE THE TREE IS, IT'S WINNING IN A BIG WAY.
THE, UM, HISTORIC FABRIC OF THAT WALL IS SOMETIMES JUST RUBBLE AT THE BASE OF THE TREE.
OTHER TIMES IT'S DIFFICULT TO FIND IT 'CAUSE IT'S FALLEN INTO THE RIVER.
UH, AND THEN LASTLY, THERE ARE PLACES WHERE TREES HAVE VOLUNTEERED.
THEY'VE DECIDED TO GROW IN THAT CRACK BETWEEN THE UPPER WALL.
AND THAT, THAT SIDEWALK, A LITTLE ACORN FELL IN THERE.
YOU KNOW, 30 YEARS LATER, THERE'S A PRETTY BIG TREE THAT'S DOING ITS WORK, RIGHT? TRYING TO BE A TREE.
UH, AND SO IT IS UNDERMINING THE UPPER WALL, RIGHT? AND IT IS ALSO BEGINNING TO UNDERMINE THE LOWER WALL.
THAT'S THE CONDITIONS THAT WE HAVE, AND THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO DEAL THE REALITIES WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO WE PUT THESE WALLS BACK TOGETHER, WHICH IS NO SIMPLE FEAT.
THIS KIND OF TIES BACK INTO STRUCTURAL APPROACHES TO THE WALLS.
THE FIRST WE LOOKED AT WAS LET'S LOOK AT WHERE WE COULD MOVE THE WALL.
THIS WAS ANOTHER APPROACH TO SAY, IS THERE ANOTHER WAY TO DO THIS PROJECT? WITH THIS ONE, THERE ARE DRILL PI.
SO YOU SEE KIND OF IN THE MIDDLE TOP DETAIL.
THIS IS ALL ENGINEERING KIND OF CRAZY STUFF THAT SEAN DRAWS.
UH, BUT YOU SEE THIS SORT OF ROUND LOOKING THING WITH THIS SORT OF ZIGZAG ON THE BOTTOM.
ANYWAY, THAT'S A DRILLED PIER, RIGHT? SO YOU GET THIS BIG PIECE OF EQUIPMENT, IT COMES IN, IT DRILLS A GIANT HOLE, YOU BACKFILL IT FULL OF CONCRETE, AND THEN IT'S TO HOLD THE WALL IN PLACE.
AND IT, IT'S, IT'S DRILLED VERY CLOSE TO THE WALL.
YOU, UM, HAVE TO NOW ATTACH THE WALL TO THAT CONCRETE TUBE.
UM, THE ISSUES WITH THAT IS THAT YOU CAN'T GET NOW BETWEEN THAT TUBE AND THE WALL, RIGHT? BECAUSE THEY TOUCH.
SO I CAN'T, IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO GET IN THERE AND TIE THEM UP.
UH, SO YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE WALL, RIGHT? SO IF THE WALL IS IN PRETTY GOOD SHAPE, I'D HAVE TO GO IN AND DRILL A HOLE THROUGH IT.
PROBABLY PUT A, UM, A RETAINING, UM, A WASHER, BUT A, A PIECE THERE THAT HOLDS IT IN PLACE.
UM, SO THAT BEGINS TO, UH, AFFECT THE HISTORIC, UM, UH, LOOK OF THE WALL, RIGHT? EVEN THOUGH IT DOES, IT IS A GREAT APPROACH TO HOLDING IT UP.
IT'S NOT A GREAT APPROACH TO MEETING THE RULES AND REGULATIONS THAT GOVERN A PROJECT LIKE THIS.
THIS HAS BEEN DONE ON ANOTHER PROJECT NEARBY, THOUGH.
UH, IT'S THE CANAL, WHICH IS THE, WHAT'S THE NAME OF IT? CARNAHAN.
UH, THAT WAS A VERY DIFFERENT KIND OF A PROJECT WITH VERY DIFFERENT, UH, PARAMETERS AND DIFFERENT ACCESS ISSUES.
THE OTHER HERE ISSUE HERE TOO, IS THAT THAT UPPER WALL, WHICH IS NOT REALLY SHOWN HERE, WHAT YOU KIND OF SEE ON THE TOP, BUT IT'S ON A PRETTY STEEP SLOPE.
SO THERE'S A BIG PIECE OF EQUIPMENT THAT YOU HAVE TO GET DOWN TO IT TO DO THAT, THAT EQUIPMENT DOESN'T WANT TO BE ON A STEEP SLOPE LIKE THAT.
SO THERE'S A VARIETY OF CONCERNS WITH THIS.
HOWEVER, THIS WAS OUR ORIGINAL IDEA IN DESIGN DEVELOPMENT.
WE TOOK THIS DRAWING, NOT THIS DRAWING, BUT OUR VERSION OF THIS DRAWING, WHICH IS VERY SIMILAR TO, UH, UH, THE TEXAS HISTORIC COMMISSION, UH, TO, TO GET EARLY FEEDBACK FROM THEM.
AND THE RESULT CAME BACK THAT, UH, AND THEY DON'T SAY YES AND NO DURING EARLY FEEDBACK, UH, BUT THEY WILL GIVE YOU HINTS.
AND THE HINT WAS THAT THIS WAS PROBABLY NOT GOING TO RESOLVE THEIR ISSUES.
WE WERE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS.
SO WE TOOK THAT COMMENTS AND WE CAME UP WITH A DIFFERENT APPROACH.
SO IT'S BEEN TRIED, IT'S BEEN STUDIED BY TWO DIFFERENT STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS ON OUR TEAM.
UH, IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE CAN MOVE FORWARD WITH.
UH, THAT'S THE DETAILS, JUST A LITTLE MORE DETAIL.
YOU CAN SEE HOW THAT, UM, THAT IDEA WOULD WORK.
SO THE PROS, YEAH, I MEAN, IT'S VERY ROBUST, RIGHT? 'CAUSE YOU'RE, YOU'RE PUTTING, UM, UH, PINS THROUGH THE WALL.
YOU'RE HOLDING IT IN PLACE AGAINST THIS OTHER THING THAT'S REALLY DEEPLY DRIVEN INTO THE SOIL.
IT'S JUST THAT YOU CAN'T GET TO IT, UH, IN A NON-INTRUSIVE WAY.
SO IT'S BECOMES DAMAGING TO THE WALL.
UH, YOU WOULD STILL HAVE TO DO EXCAVATION, MAYBE
[02:30:01]
NOT AS MUCH OR IN THE SAME WAYS, BUT THERE'D BE PLENTY OF, UH, CONCERN ABOUT ROOT SYSTEMS, UH, AND THE INTEGRITY OF THESE TREES BEING LOST, UH, THROUGH THAT PROCESS.AND IN A LOT OF CASES YOU HAVE TO DISMANTLE, UH, THESE WALLS, WHICH ACTUALLY, I THINK THE, MAYBE WAS THAT THE OTHER STRUCTURAL SYSTEM? YEAH.
THERE WAS A THIRD SYSTEM OR THAT WE LOOKED AT OTHER THAN THE ONE WE'RE DOING.
IF YOU GO BACK, ONE SLIDE, UH, JUST TO MAKE SURE WE'RE CLEAR HERE, THE OTHER ONE WAS, UH, DEALT WITH TAKING THE WALL APART AND PUTTING IT BACK TOGETHER.
SO IN THAT SITUATION, AND I SAY WALL WALLS, THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT ONES, AND THEY'RE ALL IN DIFFERENT CONDITIONS.
IN THAT SITUATION, THERE IS NOT AS MUCH EXCAVATION.
THAT'S GREAT, RIGHT? THE PROBLEM IS YOU HAVE TO TAKE THE WALL APART.
UH, YOU BUILD THE WALL, THE, THE CONCRETE BACKING WALL, AND THEN YOU BUILD A NEW WALL IN FRONT OF IT, MADE OUT OF OLD STONE.
THAT'S NOT, DOES NOT MEET THE INTENT OF THE LAW OR THE SECRETARY INTERIOR'S GUIDELINES FOR THIS KIND OF WORK.
UH, IF THE WALL IS THERE, WE NEED TO KEEP IT THERE.
IF IT'S JUST FALLING OVER, WE NEED TO TILT IT UP AND KEEP IT THERE.
WE CAN'T COMPLETELY DISMANTLE ALL THE WALLS AND REBUILD THEM.
IT DOESN'T MEET, UM, IT DOESN'T MEET THE RULES.
THE OTHER THING THAT CAME OUT OF, UM, PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT WAS TREES.
AND WHAT ARE WE DOING WITH THOSE? SO WHEN WE, YOU KNOW, THE PROCESS, THESE, THESE PROJECTS HAVE A LIFE AND THEY HAVE A PROCESS THAT YOU GO THROUGH AND YOU START WITH CERTAIN ASSUMPTIONS AND YOU TRY NEW THINGS AND YOU THINK YOU'VE GOT ALL THE ANSWERS, AND THEN PEOPLE POINT THINGS OUT, RIGHT? AND YOU TRY NEW THINGS.
THAT WAS A BIG DEAL WITH THE TREE, UH, SURVEY AND THE TREE RELOCATION.
AND THE TREE, UM, DEMOLITION PLANTS.
SO WHEN WE FIRST TOOK A PASS AT THIS, IT LOOKED LIKE 83 TREES.
WE NEED TO BE CUT IN ORDER TO DO THIS PROJECT.
AND REMOVED FROM THE SITE, 83, UH, BECAUSE OF A LOT OF IDEAS THAT PEOPLE BROUGHT TO THE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT MEETINGS, A LOT OF EDUCATION THAT THEY KIND OF GAVE TO US THEIR OWN SURVEYS, THEIR OWN THINKING, AND TALKING ABOUT THIS PROJECT, UH, SORRY, I SAID 83.
WE WERE GOING TO REMOVE 70 OF THEM.
SO INSTEAD OF 70 BEING REMOVED, IT IS NOW 48 BEING REMOVED.
IN ADDITION, WE ALSO HAVE 21 TREES THAT ARE BEING RELOCATED.
YOU'LL SEE A PICTURE OF IT A MOMENT.
UH, AND THERE'S 14 TREES THAT ARE PRESERVED IN PLACE.
AND GENERALLY THOSE ARE NICE TREES.
UH, BUT YOU CAN SEE SORT OF THE TALLY.
EIGHT OF THESE, OR SIX OF THESE ARE HERITAGE TREES.
10 OF THEM ARE PRETTY SMALL, SIX INCHES OR LESS.
24 KIND OF MEDIUM SIZE, YOU KNOW, SIX TO 24 INCH.
UH, THERE'S SOME, UH, DEAD TREES.
THEY'RE IN THAT COUNT OF THE 48 THAT WE'RE CUTTING DOWN DEAD TREES.
UH, AND ALSO INVASIVE SPECIES THAT WE'RE TRYING TO GET RID OF ARE IN THAT COUNT.
SO EIGHT OF THOSE, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T REALLY WANT ANY WEIGHT.
SO THIS IS THE PLAN THAT'S IN THE CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS BEING BID AND WILL BE BUILT TO, YOU CAN SEE IN GREEN TREES THAT ARE BEING PRESERVED IN PURPLE.
TREES THAT ARE BEING, UH, MOVED, REMOVED, UH, DUG AND MOVED.
UM, AND IN RED ARE TREES THAT ARE, UM, THAT ARE GOING AWAY.
YOU CAN SEE THAT IT IS, THERE'S SORT OF WOODEN SCAFFOLDING IN FRONT OF IT BETWEEN IT AND THE RIVER.
THAT'S BECAUSE IT HAS ALREADY PUSHED OVER THE WALL.
SO IN THIS SITUATION, WE HAVE A BIG TREE MOVER WHO'S COME ON SITE.
HE'S LOOKED AT THIS AND THIS GUY HAS MOVED ENORMOUS TREES AROUND THE WORLD.
UH, SO HE HAS A PLAN FOR TAKING THIS ONE AND SLIDING IT BACK SO THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY KEEP IT, ITS INTEGRITY, KEEP ITS ROOT SYSTEM, UH, AND THEN WE CAN REBUILD THAT WALL, UM, WHERE IT SITS TODAY.
UH, SO YOU CAN SEE IT'S TIED BACK TO THE PREVIOUS PLAN, UH, YOU KNOW, TREE PLAN.
BUT THIS ACTUALLY SPECIFIES THE PLANTS THAT WE'RE USING, UH, WHICH TREES WE'RE PUTTING IN.
BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, I THINK, YOU KNOW, THE GROUND PLANE NOW IS ALL GOING TO BE NATIVE PLANTS, UH, THAT WORKS WITH THE ECOLOGY OF THE RIVER AND THAT SORT OF HISTORIC, UH, LANDSCAPE OF THE RIVER.
OKAY, SO WHERE ARE WE TODAY? THAT'S WHERE THIS IS.
UH, SO THIS IS, UH, THE SCOPE OF WORK.
YOU CAN SEE THAT KINDA REDDISH COLORED LINE GOING AROUND THIS.
THAT IS WHERE WE ARE WORKING ON THE SOUTH SIDE.
UH, EVEN THOUGH THE LIMIT OF WORK LINE IS THERE, YOU WILL SEE THAT WE ARE, THAT'S NOT REALLY PART OF THE CONSTRUCTION.
SO THOSE BIG, UM, HISTORIC, UM, CYPRESS TREES, THEY ARE STAYING.
THEY'RE NOT, THEY'RE NOT PART OF ANY OF THIS.
IT'S REALLY ABOUT THE OTHER SIDE, THE CUT BANKS.
[02:35:01]
SO THIS IS ONE OF THOSE PHOTOGRAPHS WE LOOKED AT EARLIER.AND YOU CAN START TO SEE THE KINDS OF WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE.
EVERY LITTLE PIECE OF THE WALL NEEDS A DIFFERENT KIND OF A TREATMENT.
SO WE TRIED TO BE AS NON-INVASIVE AS POSSIBLE SO THAT IT'S NOT A ONE SIZE FITS ALL APPROACH.
EACH ONE FITS THE UNIQUE NEEDS OF THAT WALL.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THAT WALL, HOW IT WAS BUILT, WHEN IT WAS BUILT, WHY IT WAS BUILT.
SO FROM THE LEFT, YOU CAN SEE THERE'S SOME STAIRS AND THE WALLS ON THE EDGES THAT ARE CRACKED, THAT'S STARTING TO FALL APART.
UM, NEXT TO THAT, YOU CAN SEE THE WALL THAT HAS FALLEN OVER AND YOU'RE GONNA SEE A DETAIL IN A MINUTE THAT'S GONNA BE LIFTED.
AND, UM, WATER, UM, DOLED INTO PLACE, BUT FROM BEHIND, NOT FROM THE FRONT.
UH, THERE IS THEN IN BLUE THE, UH, ZONES WHERE WE NEED TO STABILIZE AND REHABILITATE AN EXISTING WALL.
YOU CAN SEE IN RED, THERE'S A WALL THAT'S MISSING, RIGHT? IT'S FALLEN INTO THE RIVER.
WE'RE GONNA COLLECT ALL THE PIECES THAT WE CAN AND MAKE THAT THING, UH, COME BACK TO AS, AS APPROXIMATE AS MUCH AS WE CAN.
AND THEN DOWN BELOW, THERE ARE SOME AREAS ALONG THE RIVER FRONT WHERE IT'S KIND OF STONE AND CONCRETE ALL KIND OF MIXED TOGETHER.
SO WE WANT TO KEEP THAT IN PLACE.
'CAUSE AGAIN, IT GETS A LOT OF PRESSURE FROM THE RIVER WHEN THE WATER IS FLOWING.
SO WE'RE GONNA NEED TO STABILIZE THAT WALL AS WELL.
AND YOU CAN SEE THAT WE TALKED ABOUT THAT EROSION AND UNDERMINING THAT'S HAPPENED.
SO HERE, WE'RE GONNA TAKE, AND, AND A LOT OF THIS WORK WAS DONE IN THE TWO THOUSANDS, I BELIEVE WAS REDONE.
SO WE'RE COMING BACK NOW WITH A BETTER APPROACH.
SO WE WON'T HAVE TO DO THIS AGAIN IN 23 YEARS.
UH, SO WITH THIS, WE'RE GONNA LIFT, TAKE ALL THAT STONE UP.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO BUILD A CONCRETE UNDERPINNING, UM, A, A A A SUBBASE OR SUB SLAB FOR IT.
AND THEN WE'RE GONNA PUT IT BACK ON.
IT IS NOT GOING TO A HUNDRED PERCENT MEET, UH, ACCESSIBILITY CODES.
IT'S GOING TO WHERE WE CAN MAKE IT DO THAT AND MAINTAIN THE HISTORICAL INTEGRITY OF IT.
BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WITH THIS IS MAINTAIN THE HISTORICAL INTEGRITY OF THE STEPS.
UM, NOT MEETING NECESSARILY TODAY'S, UH, UM, UH, ACCESSIBILITY CODES, ALTHOUGH THERE'S SOME AREAS THAT WE ARE GONNA DO THAT.
UM, AND THEN THERE'S SOME OTHER LITTLE WALL IN THE DISTANCE THERE YOU CAN SEE, UM, OTHER KINDS OF CORRECTIVE, UH, INTERVENTIONS WE NEED TO DO.
THIS IS, YOU KNOW, THE WALL'S STILL STANDING, UM, BUT IN THIS LOCATION AND IT'S, IT'S SEEMS LIKE IT'S KIND OF DOING OKAY, RIGHT? BUT AS THOSE VOLUNTEER TREES THAT I DON'T KNOW GREW UP IN THE LAST 25, 30 YEARS, ARE THERE, UH, THOSE NEED TO BE PULLED OUT.
WE HAVE TO DEAL STUFF WITH THE ROOTS.
AND THEN WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THAT WALL DOES NOT BECOME LIKE THE OTHERS IN THE FUTURE.
SO IT WILL HAVE THIS CONCRETE, UH, SHADOW WALL BUILT BEHIND IT.
AND THEN UNDERNEATH THE PUMP HOUSE, TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT THESE PIECES ALSO, UM, THE INTEGRITY OF THIS IS MAINTAINED.
OKAY, SO WHAT ARE THE STRUCTURAL DETAILS WE'RE GETTING THERE? UH, OKAY, SO THIS JUST SHOWS YOU, IT'S BASICALLY THE PLAN WE JUST LOOKED ARE THE PHOTOGRAPHS WE LOOKED AT.
THIS IS THAT SAME INFORMATION ON A PLAN.
IT'S COLOR CODED SO YOU CAN SEE EACH INTERVENTION, EACH TYPE OF WALL THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, AND THE KIND OF WORK THAT WE HAVE TO DO TO GET IT BACK, UM, IN, INTO, ITS, UH, INTO PLACE.
THERE'S A COUPLE, SORRY, I SHOULD JUST SAY ON THE SOUTH SIDE, THERE IS ONE SMALL AREA, RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE DRAWING THERE, UM, WHERE WE HAVE SOME WALL INTERVENTIONS THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH.
BUT THAT'S THE ONLY THING ON THE SOUTH SIDE.
SO SERIES OF SLIDES HERE THAT SHOW THE CONSTRUCTION DETAILS THAT WE ARE USING.
ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE IS THE DETAIL.
ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE IS A PHOTOGRAPH OF THAT PARTICULAR PIECE OF WALL.
AND THEN ABOVE THAT IS A PLAN SHOWING WHERE THAT DETAIL WILL BE, UH, IMPLEMENTED.
SO THIS IS A PLACE WHERE WE HAVE AN EXISTING STONE WALL.
UH, IT MAY BE IN WHAT LOOKS LIKE PRETTY GOOD SHAPE.
THE IDEA IS TO MAKE SURE IT DOESN'T GET INTO ANY WORSE SHAPE.
SO BEHIND THAT WALL, WE WILL EXCAVATE AND WE WILL BUILD A CONCRETE, UM, BACKING WALL, AND WE WILL DOW IT INTO PLACE.
THE DOWELS DO NOT GO THROUGH THE WALL.
THEY'RE ONLY ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE WALL.
SO WE'RE KIND OF GLUING THIS THING TOGETHER, ALMOST WITH THESE DOLLS THAT WILL GO THROUGH IT.
IT'S COMPLICATED, UH, BUT WE KNOW WE CAN DO IT.
AND YOU CAN SEE IN PINK ON THE PLAN, THIS IS WHERE THE WALL'S GONE.
WE WILL EXCAVATE, WE WILL BUILD A, UH, CONCRETE BACKING WALL AND THEN USING MORE TRADITIONAL, UM, TECH, WELL HISTORIC TECHNIQUES.
UH, BUT, AND THAT'S, THAT'S THE PLACES WHERE WE WILL REBUILD THE WALL WITH THE HISTORIC MATERIAL THAT WE WILL SALVAGE FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER.
AND, YOU KNOW, THESE HEAPS LIKE THIS, IF WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH STONE, AND THAT'S ENTIRELY POSSIBLE,
[02:40:01]
UH, WE WILL QUARRY NEW STONE.THAT STONE WILL BE INTENTIONALLY QUARRIED SO THAT IT IS NOT TRYING TO MIMIC EXACTLY THE OLD STONE.
SO THAT, I DON'T KNOW, A HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW SOMEONE'S LOOKING AT THIS PROJECT, IT WILL BE CLEAR WHY THEY DID WHAT AND THE, UH, THE TIME PERIODS THAT WERE INVOLVED IN THIS.
UM, BUT WE THINK THERE'S A FAIR AMOUNT OF STONE THAT WE CAN KEEP.
BUT THERE'S JUST A FEW SPOTS WHERE THIS HAPPENS.
ON THE PHOTOGRAPH, YOU SEE, THIS IS AN AREA WHERE WE NO LONGER HAVE TWO WALLS, ONE IN THE RIVER, A WALKWAY, AND ONE ABOVE.
THIS IS WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN PUT TOGETHER.
UH, HISTORICALLY THAT'S THE WAY IT WAS BUILT.
THIS IS JUST KIND OF WHERE THE SWIMMING ZONE WOULD'VE, YOU KNOW, WOULD'VE ENDED.
SO IN THAT SITUATION, SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT DETAIL, BECAUSE WE NEED TO BUILD, OUR BACKING WALL NEEDS TO GO BELOW THE RIVER.
UH, SO IT'S A LITTLE DEEPER, BUT WE'RE USING THAT SAME TECHNIQUE WHERE WE'RE GOING TO DIAL IT INTO PLACE FROM THE BACK AND THEN HAVE TO, OR WORKERS HAVE TO GET IN THERE TO DO THAT.
UH, SO YOU HAVE TO HAVE A SAFE EXCAVATION SPACE FOR THEM TO WORK, TO PUT ALL THAT STUFF TOGETHER SO IT CAN, UH, THEY CAN, UM, IT CAN BE BUILT THIS WAY.
NEXT SLIDE WHERE IT, THE WALL HAS FALLEN OVER, THERE IS ANOTHER TECHNIQUE WHERE WE ACTUALLY TAKE IT AND PUSH IT BACK UP.
SAME THING, THERE WILL BE DOLLS BEHIND IT THAT WILL RECEIVE IT AS IT COMES UP.
PEOPLE HAVE TO GET IN THERE TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
BUT AGAIN, YOU WON'T SEE EVIDENCE OF THIS WORK ON THE FACE OF THE WALL.
AND THEN THIS IS A KIND OF UNIQUE ONE.
IT'S CLOSE TO THE PUMP HOUSE WHERE WE HAVE THE LOWER WALL, AND YOU CAN SEE IT'S, UH, KIND OF BIG SLABS OF STONE AND THERE'S A WALKWAY ABOVE IT.
SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT TECHNIQUE, BUT AGAIN, BUILDING, UH, THE BACKING WALL TO MAKE SURE IT STAYS IN PLACE.
AND THEN ABOVE IT, REBUILDING THAT HISTORIC, UM, WALKWAY.
AND WE DON'T HAVE TO DO MUCH WITH THE EXISTING WALLS IN THIS LOCATION THAT ARE ABOVE, UH, AT THE TOP NEXT SLIDE.
AND THEN AT THE STEPS, WE'RE ALMOST DONE, UH, AT THE STEPS.
YOU CAN SEE ON THE LEFT THE DETAIL.
THE EXISTING STONE WILL BE LIFTED, STOCKPILED.
WE HAVE TO BUILD THIS CONCRETE, UM, SUBBASE THAT WILL RECEIVE THE FUTURE, RECEIVE THAT STONE AS WE PUT IT BACK IN PLACE.
THIS WILL KEEP IT FROM FURTHER ERODING.
UH, AND THIS STUFF'S STARTING TO, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SEE IT'S KIND OF DELAMINATING.
SO THAT'S THE, IN A NUTSHELL, UM, A BIG NUTSHELL, UH, THE KIND OF HISTORY OF HOW WE GOT TO WHERE WE ARE, THE CONSTRUCTION DETAILS THAT WE'LL BE USING, UH, TO IMPLEMENT ON THE PROJECT.
AND HOPEFULLY EVERYONE UNDERSTANDS, YEAH, WE WOULD LOVE TO MAINTAIN EVERY TREE ON THIS PROJECT.
THERE ARE SOME THAT'S JUST NOT GONNA HAPPEN.
THERE'S A BALANCE BETWEEN THESE TWO COMPETING FACTORS, OLD TREES AND OLD CULTURAL, UH, REL UH, RELICS.
I THINK I GOT IN TROUBLE FOR SAYING RELIC ONE TIME, UH,
ANYWAY, BUT, UH, BUT NO, IT'S, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE SAVE BOTH AS, AS MUCH OF BOTH OF THESE THINGS AS POSSIBLE.
OKAY, SO, UH, I'M NOT SURE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.
DO I SIT DOWN OR DO YOU START THROWING QUESTIONS AT ME? NO, NEXT OR THESE GUYS GO NEXT.
NEXT WE WILL HAVE CITIZEN COMMENTS.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE YOU BACK UP HERE.
OKAY, SO I'M GONNA DO MY BEST TO KIND OF KEEP US IN AN ORDERLY FASHION HERE.
UM, WHAT I'M GONNA DO IS I'M GONNA CALL THE NEXT SPEAKER, AND THEN I'LL ALSO CALL THE SPEAKER AFTER THEM.
UM, SO ONCE YOU HEAR YOUR NAME, GO AHEAD AND MAKE YOUR WAY UP TO TOWARDS THE PODIUM.
UM, MANY OF YOU HAVE SIGNED IN TO YIELD YOUR TIME.
UM, SO I ASK THAT, UM, WHEN I INDICATE THAT YOU'VE YIELDED YOUR TIME, YOU EITHER STAND OR RAISE YOUR HAND SO THAT WE CAN ACCOUNT FOR YOUR PRESENCE.
UM, SO FIRST LET'S HAVE JEROME MARTIN, FOLLOWED BY BLAKE KEITA, SULLIVAN, AND EDWARD.
THERE'S A POWERFUL POINT FOR THIS ONE, IF YOU WANNA PULL THAT UP, IF I CAN GET ANOTHER MEMBER OF STAFF TO HELP PASS THOSE LETTERS OUT.
AND JUST A REMINDER THAT, UH, ALL CITIZENS TO BE HEARD, WE'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES UNLESS SOMEONE HAS YIELDED YOUR TIME.
AND WE DO HAVE A FEW EMPTY SEATS UP HERE.
SO I GUESS IF YOU'RE PREPARING TO HEAD UP TO THE PODIUM, GO AHEAD AND TAKE ONE OF THOSE EMPTY SEATS SO THAT YOU'RE READY TO GO.
I JUST HAVE MY TWO, THAT'S TWO MINUTES.
I'M THE CHAIRMAN OF THE RIVER ROAD NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, THE RIVER.
OUR ASSOCIATION OBJECTS TO THE PROPOSED PRESERVATION PROJECT AT LAMBERT BEACH IN BRACKEN RIDGE PARK AND ITS CURRENT DESIGN.
[02:45:02]
WHILE WE STRONGLY SUPPORT THE RESTORATION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF THE HISTORIC MANMADE STRUCTURES, WE DO NOT SUPPORT DOING SO AT THE EXPENSE OF THE HISTORIC NATURAL LANDSCAPE.WE ASK THE COMMISSION TO DENY THE PERMIT UNTIL THE CITY AND THE COMMISSION CONSIDERS DESIGNS THAT WILL PRESERVE THE EXISTING TREES AND ALLOW THE PLANTING OF NEW CANOPIES ALONG THE RIVERBANK.
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION IS WITHIN RIO DISTRICT ONE.
WE ARE RIGHT SOUTH AND A LITTLE BIT WEST RIGHT OF BRACKENRIDGE.
WE ARE, WE'RE REALLY THE LAST NATURAL STRETCH OF THE SAN ANTONIO RIVER WITHIN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT THE TREES ARE NOT SIMPLY A REPLACEABLE COMMODITY.
THEY ARE DEF A DEFINING NATURAL ELEMENT THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE NATURAL HISTORIC CONTINUITY.
CREATING THE ICONIC VIEWS OF THE, THE VIEW SHED OF THE PARK, DETERMINING THAT THE CITY'S PERMIT MET THE REQUIREMENT OF THE ANTIQUITIES ACT.
THE T H C LAST WEEK MADE IT CLEAR THAT THE FINDING THESE FIND THEIR FINDINGS DID NOT MEAN THAT ALTERNATIVE, THAT OTHER ALTERNATIVES WERE NOT AVAILABLE.
THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR STATED IF A PERMIT MEETS THE STANDARDS, IT SHOULD BE ISSUED, QUOTE, EVEN IF THERE MIGHT BE OTHER OPTIONS THAT WOULD PROVIDE MORE PROTECTION TO THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.
HOWEVER, THE T H C CLOSED BY URGING THE CITY TO HEAR FROM PROFESSIONALS IN OTHER FIELDS WHOSE EXPERTISE MIGHT HELP INFORM THE CITY'S DECISION MAKING PROCESS.
THE T H C HAS CONFIRMED THAT THE CITY WAS NOT ASKED TO CONSIDER OTHER OPTIONS THAT WOULD SAVE THE TREES.
THIS BODY IS CHARGED WITH ENFORCING THE UD C'S PROHIBITION OF DEMOLISHING HERITAGE AND SIGNIFICANT TREES ON THE RIVER.
OTHER ORGANIZATIONS HAVE POINTED OUT THAT THE VOTERS APPROVED THE 2017 BOND.
VOTERS ALSO APPROVED THE TREE ORDINANCE A MUCH MORE SPECIFIC EXPRESSION OF THE CITIZEN'S PRIORITIES.
AND WE URGE THE COMMISSIONER TO ENFORCE IT.
OKAY? SO WE URGE THE COMMISSION TO STRIKE A BALANCE THAT PRESERVES THE WALLS AND THE TREES AS OUR FOREFATHERS DESIGNED THEM TO COEXIST.
OKAY, BLAKE, YOU TO SULLIVAN, FOLLOWED BY PATRICIA PATRICK, UH, NIKITA WILL RECEIVE FOUR MINUTES.
SIDNEY MARTIN HAS YIELDED THEIR TIME.
SIDNEY, CAN I GET OKAY, THANK YOU.
UM, CAN I SEE SLIDES, UM, TWO THROUGH FIVE, PLEASE? IS THAT POSSIBLE? OKAY.
UM, PRESENTATION OR THE RIVER ROAD PACKET FROM RIVER ROAD.
UM, SO MY NAME'S BLANC KEITH, THE SULLIVAN.
UM, I LIVE AT ONE 20 ANASTASIA PLACE.
AND, UM, I'D LIKE TO TALK TO YOU BRIEFLY ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE TREES IN THE PARK AND THE RELATIONSHIP TO THE RETAINING WALLS THAT WE'RE DISCUSSING.
UM, IF YOU COULD GO TO, I THINK THE NEXT SLIDE AND THEN, UH, CONTINUE PLEASE.
AND, AND THEN I THINK ONE MORE.
SO YOU'LL SEE IN THOSE IMAGES THAT WE JUST SCROLLED THROUGH, UM, IMAGES OF, UH, LAMBERT BEACH FROM THE 1910S THROUGH THE 1940S.
AND, UH, THAT'S A LANDSCAPE THAT IS FILLED WITH TREES.
UM, FROM THE EARLIEST DAYS IN THE PARK, THE PARKS COMMISSIONER TOOK GREAT PANES TO PROTECT THE TREES.
UH, THE FIRST COMMISSIONER WAS LUDWIG MANKEY, AND HE NOTED THAT NOT A SINGLE QUOTE MONARCH OF THE FOREST HAD BEEN CUT DOWN, UH, TO CREATE ROADS THROUGH THE PARK.
UM, I'D LIKE TO DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS ARTICLE FROM THE SAN ANTONIO LIGHT.
THIS IS FROM NOVEMBER OF 1940.
IT SAYS, RIVER SPARE THOSE TREES A ROCK WALL BUILT TO PROTECT TREES.
AND A ROCK RETAINING WALL IS BEING CONSTRUCTED ALONG A SECTION OF THE SAN ANTONIO RIVER IN BRACKENRIDGE PARK TO HALT EROSION, WHICH THREATENS THE LIFE OF THE TREES, AND IT CONTINUES ON.
SO THIS HIGHLIGHTS SOMETHING I'D LIKE TO BE VERY, VERY CLEAR ABOUT TODAY.
UM, ONE POINT THAT I THINK MUST BE RECOGNIZED AND CORRECTED.
UM, THE RETAINING WALLS WERE SPECIFICALLY BUILT BY THE CITY PARKS DEPARTMENT AND THE W P A TO PROTECT THE TREES IN BRACKENRIDGE PARK.
AND, UM, AND I, I DO WANNA CORRECT SOMETHING THAT WE HEARD, UM, EARLIER THIS EVENING IN THE PRESENTATION, UM, WHERE I THINK IT WAS STATED THAT THE TREES GREW UP AROUND THE WALLS.
UM, BUT THAT IS REALLY NOT THE CASE.
AND WE CAN SEE THAT IN PHOTOS.
WE CAN SEE THAT IN AT LEAST TWO ARTICLES FROM THIS TIME, THAT THE WALLS WERE VERY CLEARLY BUILT TO PROTECT THE TREES, AND THAT'S WHY THEY EXIST TODAY.
UM, AND I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THE SECRETARY OF INTERIOR GUIDELINES FOR CULTURAL LANDSCAPES TONIGHT.
UM, THESE OUTLINE CLEAR REQUIREMENTS FOR HISTORY AND UNDERSTANDING OF NATURAL FEATURES.
SO THEY STATE NATURAL SYSTEMS ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE AND
[02:50:01]
MUST BE CONSIDERED WHEN SELECTING AN APPROPRIATE TREATMENT.AND CAREFUL PLANNING PRIOR TO TREATMENT CAN HELP PREVENT IRREVOCABLE DAMAGE TO A CULTURAL LANDSCAPE BEFORE UNDERTAKING PROJECT WORK.
RESEARCH OF CULTURAL LANDSCAPE IS ESSENTIAL.
UM, AT THIS POINT, NO PRESERVATION PLANNING HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY THE CITY TO THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION OR, UH, TO TO ANY OF YOU.
UM, WE HAVE ONLY SEEN AN ENVIRONMENTAL CULTURAL RESOURCES STUDY FOR THE BUILT FEATURES.
UM, BUT WE HAVE NOT BEEN PROVIDED WITH A STUDY OF THE NATURAL FEATURES.
THE SAN ANTONIO RIVER LANDSCAPE IS PARTICULARLY BEAUTIFUL, IN PART DUE TO THE EXTRAORDINARY CREATIVITY OF THOSE WHO DESIGNED A BUILT ENVIRONMENT THAT WOVE SEAMLESSLY IN WITH THE MAJESTIC NATURAL SETTING.
IT IS NOW UP TO US AND TO YOU TO CONTINUE THIS LEGACY OF CREATIVITY AND PRESERVATION.
THIS PARK IS OUR MOST BELOVED AND OUR MOST SACRED.
WE ASK YOU TODAY TO PLEASE INSIST ON A SOLUTION THAT EXPLORES DESIGN ALTERNATIVES THAT CAN PRESERVE THE HISTORIC WALLS WITHOUT IRREVOCABLY DAMAGING OUR CULTURAL LANDSCAPE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR WORK HERE TONIGHT.
YES, FOLKS, IT IS DIFFICULT FOR ME TO CALL THE NEXT PERSON, UM, THROUGH THE APPLAUSE.
UM, SO FOLLOWING PATRICIA WILL BE ARLENE FISHER.
UH, PATRICIA WILL RECEIVE FOUR MINUTES.
JOSIAH BARRIOS HAS YIELDED THIS TIME.
UM, GOOD EVENING, COMMISSIONERS.
I LIVE AT 7 33 EAST WOODLAWN AVENUE.
I CALL YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS SLIDE.
THE SITE PLAN ON THE LEFT DIAGRAMS THE EXISTING TREES WITH RED, INDICATING THE ONES TO BE REMOVED AND GREEN, INDICATING THE ONES TO BE PRESERVED, ACCEPTING FOR THE LARGE, FOR THE LARGEST AND MOST PROMINENT TREE AT THE UPPER LEFT CORNER, A HERITAGE SIZE OAK TREE.
INSTEAD OF PRESERVING IT IN PLACE, THIS LARGE TREE IS SCHEDULED TO BE TRANSPLANTED.
YOU WERE JUST TOLD THAT AWAY FROM THE UPPER RIVER BANK, AT GREAT RISK TO THIS TREE AS VIEWED IN THIS DIAGRAM, THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE TREES ON THE RIVER'S UPPER BANK ARE TO BE REMOVED OR TRANSPLANTED, RESULTING IN AN ENTIRELY UNRECOGNIZABLE REORDERING OF THIS LANDSCAPE.
NOW, FAST FORWARD 10 YEARS, THE DIAGRAM ON THE RIGHT SIDE ILLUSTRATES THIS CHANGED AND INAPPROPRIATE NEW LANDSCAPE DEVOID ALMOST COMPLETELY OF SHADE CANOPY TREES.
INSTEAD, THE REPLACEMENT LANDSCAPE USES EXCLUSIVELY SMALL UNDERSTORY PLANTINGS ALONG THE BANK DIAGRAMMED IN RED.
WITH, WITHOUT THE CHARACTER DEFINING NATURAL HISTORIC LARGE CANOPY TREES, THE LAMBERT BEACH LANDSCAPE HAS LOST ITS HISTORICAL INTEGRITY.
THIS IS A CURRENT VIEW OF LAMBERT BEACH, A CULTURAL VERNACULAR LANDSCAPE THAT HAS CHANGED OVER TIME BY NATURAL PROCESSES PER THE SECRETARY OF INTERIOR STANDARDS.
UNLIKE OTHER HISTORIC CULTURAL RESOURCES, CULTURAL LANDSCAPES ARE INHERENTLY DYNAMIC DUE TO THEIR LIVING SYSTEMS AND COMPONENTS.
INDEED, MUCH OF THE WALLS IN THE PROJECT AREA HAVE ALREADY COLLAPSED AND WILL NEED TO BE REBUILT.
TO DATE, THE CITY WON'T INCLUDE VIABLE ALTERNATIVE DESIGNS IN THEIR PLANS, BOTH TO THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION, NOR TO THE, TO YOU, TO YOURSELVES.
THESE ALTERNATIVES WOULD ALLOW REHABILITATED EXISTING WALLS AND EXISTING CANOPY TREES TO BE PRESERVED IN PLACE AS A SURE RESULT OF THE CITY'S PROPOSED PLANS.
WE WILL LOSE IRREPLACEABLE TREES, A TRAGIC AND UNNECESSARY CONSEQUENCE OF PUTTING FORM OVER SUBSTANCE, LITERALLY FOR GENERATIONS.
SAN ANTONIO'S AND VI VISITORS HAVE ENJOYED THE NATURAL BEAUTY AND COOLING SHADE OF THIS HISTORIC LANDSCAPE.
IT DEFIES LOGIC THAT WE WOULD DO THAT WE WOULD NOT DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PRESERVE THESE TREES FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS AS WE HAVE ENJOYED THEM.
I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND FOR YOUR SERVICE.
ARLENE FISHER, FOLLOWED BY A ZIGGY.
UM, IF I DON'T HAVE A LAST NAME, JUST MAKE SURE TO SAY YOUR FULL NAME, UM, WHEN YOU APPROACH THE PODIUM.
UM, ARLENE WILL HAVE FOUR MINUTES.
UH, JANE HENRY HAS YIELDED THEIR TIME.
FELLOW OR COMMITTEE MEMBERS? UH,
[02:55:01]
MY NAME IS ARLENE FISHER.I LIVE AT 7 1 7 EAST WOODLAWN AVENUE WITHIN RIVER ROAD.
OH, CAN YOU PLEASE MOVE TO SLIDE NINE AND 10? SLIDE NINE REPRESENTS AN EARLY DESIGN FOR LAMBERT BEACH BY THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
THIS DOCUMENT, ALTHOUGH NOT FINAL SHOWS THAT THE CITY DID NOT INSTRUCT ITS DESIGN TEAM TO PRIORITI PRIORITIZE PRESERVING THE TREES, THE CITY PLAN TO CUT DOWN THE TREES FROM THE PLAN INCEPTION.
AND THIS INFORMATION WAS WITHHELD FROM THE PUBLIC.
AND CAN YOU ADVANCE TO SLIDE 10? THANK YOU.
ON THE LEFT REPRESENTS CITY'S PROPOSED DESIGN PLAN FOR THE WALL.
THE DESIGN WAS CREATED ON AN ERRONEOUS ASSUMPTION THAT THE ORIGINAL ROCK WALL HAD TO BE PRESERVED.
THE CITY'S CANTILEVER DESIGN PROPOSES CREATING A SHADOW WALL ALONG THE ORIGINAL ROCK WALL.
THIS METHOD REQUIRES A FOUR FOOT LONG FOOTER TO BE CONSTRUCTED AT THE BOTTOM OF THE RETAINING WALL AND EXTEND INTO THE RIVERBANK.
UH, IN THE, UH, THIS METHOD REQUIRES A, YEAH, EXCUSE ME.
UH, THIS WAS PROVIDED BY A LETTER BY CF S IN MARCH, 2023.
ACCORDINGLY, THIS REQUIRES SIGNIFICANT EXCAVATION ALONG THE BANK OF APPROXIMATELY EIGHT FEET IN DEPTH AND FIVE FEET ACROSS.
THE PLAN REQUIRES THE REMOVER OF ALL TREES WITHIN THE RIVER BANK WITHIN A DISTANCE OF APPROXIMATELY FIVE FEET FROM THE RIVER AND WALLS.
THIS TECHNIQUE IS NOT DESIGNED TO SUPPORT EXISTING ROOT SYSTEMS OF ESTABLISHED LARGE CANOPY TREES OR FUTURE LARGE CANOPY TREES PLANTED ALONG THE BANK.
AND A REVIEW OF THIS TECHNIQUE BY REGISTERED CIVIL AND STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS INDICATE THE DESIGN HAS INHERENT FLAWS.
ON THE RIGHT IS A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE, A SCHEMATIC DESIGN INVOLVING PEER AND SPANDREL WALL.
THE DESIGN REQUIRES PIERCE DRILLED AT ABOUT 12 FOOT INTERVALS WITH A SPANDREL WALL BETWEEN THE PIERS.
THE DESIGN OFFERS MORE FLEXIBILITY IN PURE PLACEMENT AND MINIMIZES THE DISRUPTION OF THE TREE'S ROOT SYSTEM.
IN ADDITION, THE DESIGN REQUIRES AN ENCROACHMENT OF ONLY EIGHT TO 12 INCHES INTO THE RIVER BANK AREA OF THE WALL LOCATED BETWEEN THE TREES.
IN CONTRAST THAT THE CITY'S CAN DELIVER CONSTRUCTION METHOD, DIS DESIGN MINIMIZES POTENTIAL, UH, INJURY TO THE TREES.
IN COMPARISON, ACCORDING TO THE ENGINEER'S REPORT, THE DESIGN IS STRONGER AND MORE DURABLE THAN CANDLE LIVER DESIGN FOR MAINTAINING RIVERBANK STABILIZATION AND ALLOWING TREES TO BE PLANTED AND THRIVE.
THESE WOULD REPLACE OVER TIME THE HERITAGE TREES PRESERVING THE AMBIEN AND RE INTEGRITY OF LAMBERT BEACH.
UM, ZIGGY FOLLOWED BY ROY SCHWEERS.
UM, ZIGGY WILL RECEIVE FOUR MINUTES.
SETH TEAL HAS YIELDED HIS TIME.
AND I FORGET WHAT SLIDE IT'S GOING TO BE.
UH, CAN YOU GO BACK TO SLIDE 11, PLEASE? YOU'RE ON POINT.
UH, MY NAME IS GERON ZIG ZIGGY NIRI.
AND, UH, I'VE BEEN CLIMBING IN PRUNING TREES SINCE, UH, 2006 AND HAVE BEEN A CERTIFIED ARBORIST FOR, UH, UH, OVER 13 YEARS.
I'M THE OWNER OF NAUGHTY BY NATURE TREE CARE, AND I WORK TO PRESERVE TREES FOR RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL CLIENTS.
UM, I'M VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE LIVE OAKS AND OTHER TREE SPECIES AT LAMBERT BEACH.
I VISITED THESE, UH, THE SITE OFTEN AND HAVE WORKED ON MANY OF THE LIVE OAKS PROPOSED FOR DIS UH, DESTRUCTION, INCLUDING THE HERITAGE OAK, UM, FROM TREES 95 TO 1 0 1, WHICH ARE SOME OF MY FAVORITES.
UH, MY LAST CLIMB THESE TREES IN 2022 AND VISITED THIS SITE AS RECENTLY AS LAST WEEK.
THE LARGE BALD CYPRESS BETWEEN THE PUMPHOUSE AND BATHHOUSE IS ALSO TO BE CONSIDERED A HERITAGE TREE.
UM, ALL OF THESE TREES, ALONG WITH A VARIETY OF OTHER SPECIES SLATED FOR REMOVAL OR HIGHLY VALUABLE TREES THAT CONTRIBUTE, UH, CONTRIBUTE TO THE INTEGRITY OF OUR LANDSCAPE.
UM, THE U D C CODE, UH, PROHIBITS
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REMOVAL OF OR DAMAGE TO HERITAGE TREES SUCH AS LARGE CYPRUS AND OTHER OLD SIGNIFICANT TREES FROM THE TOP BANK OR ALONG THE RIVERWALK IN ALL, UH, RIVER IMPROVEMENT OVERLAY DISTRICTS, EXCEPT FOR THE TREE IS DAMAGED DUE TO DISEASE, AGE OR PHYSICAL CONDITION, AND MUST BE REMOVED FOR SAFETY REASONS, THEN WITH A RECOMMENDATION FROM THE CITY ARBORIST OR THE OFFICIAL URBAN FORESTER.THE HISTORIC AND, UH, DESIGN AND UH, REVIEW COMMISSION MAY, UH, GRANT APPROVAL FOR DEMOLITION IN ORDER FOR, UH, IN ORDER TO DETERMINE THAT TREES MEET THIS CRITERIA BEING DAMAGED, UH, UH, OR, OR PRESENTING HAZARDS.
UH, AS A REQUIREMENT OF OF REMOVAL FOR SAFETY REASONS, UM, AN ARBORIST MUST PERFORM A BASIC RISK RISK ASSESSMENT OF EACH TREE.
THIS INVOLVES MEASURING AND ESTIMATING NUMEROUS FACTORS THAT GO INTO A MATRIX, DETERMINING RISK ASSOCIATED WITH A SPECIFIC TREE.
THIS WAS NOT DONE BY THE DEVELOPER NOR PARKS DEPARTMENT PRIOR TO THE INITIAL DESIGN AND TREE MASTER PLAN.
UM, THE CITY DID PROVIDE AN ASSESSMENT DONE BY FOUR INDEPENDENT CERTIFIED ARBORISTS, DAVID VAUGHN, MICHAEL TWICH, MARK ROZI, AND, UH, MARK DUFF, UH, B C M A BOARD, BOARD CERTIFIED MASTER ARBORIST.
THESE ARBORISTS DID NOT CONCLUDE THAT ANY OF THESE TREES IN THIS PHASE ARE DAMAGED, DISEASED, OR OTHERWISE MUST BE REMOVED FOR SAFETY.
UM, IN FACT, WITH RESPECT TO TREE 1 0 1, THE TREE THAT THE CITY HAS PROPOSED FOR TRANSPLANTING, THE ARBOR HAS CONCLUDED THAT TREE 1 0 1 HAS AN ABUNDANCE OF STRUCTURAL ROOTS.
AND WE FEEL THAT IS UNLIKELY THAT IT WILL BE DESTABILIZED OR KILLED BY REMOVING ROOTS CLOSE TO THE TRUNK OR THE RIVERSIDE TO RESTORE THE WALL AND SUPPORT FEATURES, MEANING ESSENTIALLY THIS TREE DOES NOT NEED TO BE TRANSPLANTED FOR A THOUGHTFUL PROJECT TO PROCEED.
AND THIS POTENTIAL WORK COULD GO TO TREE 100 AND THAT TREE IN LIEU COULD BE MOVED.
ALL OF THAT MONEY AND POTENTIAL INTEREST COULD BE PUT INTO THAT, SAVING MORE TREES IN THE PROCESS.
UM, THIS ASSESSMENT CLEARLY SHOWS THE ARBORIST CONCLUSION THAT THE TREE THE LARGEST AND OLDEST IS HEALTHY AND DOES NOT MEET THE STANDARDS FOR REMOVAL.
I'VE ALSO REVIEWED THE PROVO, THE PROPOSED CONSTRUCTION METHOD USING A PURE AND SPAN WALL PROPOSED BY MR. CRUZ AND MR. GUTIERREZ.
THE CITY'S INDEPENDENT ARBORISTS WERE NOT PROVIDED WITH THIS PLAN TO BE ABLE TO CONSIDER THE IMPACT ON THE TREES FROM THIS CONSTRUCTION METHOD.
IT IS MY OPINION THAT THE METHOD PROPOSED BY THESE ENGINEERS WOULD HAVE A HIGHER SUCCESS RATE OF TREE SURVIVABILITY.
AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE PECANS WHERE THE WALLS HAVE FALLEN AWAY, THE TREES CAN SURVIVE FOR YEARS WITH EXPOSED ROOTS, EVEN WITH NO MAINTENANCE PERFORMED BY THE CITY.
UNDER THE PRO, UNDER THE PROPOSED CONSTRUCTION, THE WALLS WOULD BE REMOVED, EXPOSING THE ROOTS.
THE ROOTS WOULD THEN BE PRUNED AS NECESSARY AND SEALED.
UH, SPECIFICALLY FOR OAK TREES.
IF THIS TYPE OF WORK IS TO BE DONE, THE PIERS WOULD BE ALIGNED TO AVOID ANY MAJOR ROOTS AND THE SHALLOW WALL INSTALLED BECAUSE THAT REQUIRES ONLY EIGHT TO 12 INCH INCURSION.
THE TREES HAVE PROPERLY MAINTAINED WOULD LIKELY SURVIVE.
AND TO QUOTE DIRECTLY FROM THE TREE ASSESSMENT COMPLETED AFTER PUBLIC REQUESTS FROM THESE A ARBORISTS THAT I MENTIONED EARLIER.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
ROY SCHWEERS, FOLLOWED BY HILLARY SAUNDERS.
UH, ROYAL WILL RECEIVE SIX MINUTES.
LEAH BROGAN AND ROBIN BAINE HAVE YIELDED THEIR TIME.
AND I ONLY NEED FOUR MINUTES, SO I'LL YIELD MY TIME TO SUSAN AT THE END OF OUR PRESENTATION, IF THAT'S ALL RIGHT.
WELL, LET'S, LET'S SAY THAT ROBIN WILL YIELD HER TIME TO SUSAN.
OKAY, HILLARY, I'LL YIELD IT TO HILLARY.
UM, I, IF YOU COULD ADVANCE TO THE NEXT, UH, LET'S HOLD THIS SLIDE FOR JUST A SECOND.
'CAUSE THIS IS IMPORTANT TO SEE.
TREE 1 0 6, THE CYPRESS TREE, UM, IS A TREE OF GREAT CONCERN.
IT WAS NOT LISTED EARLIER, UH, IN THE APPLICATION AS A TREE OF GREAT CONCERN.
BUT AFTER A YEAR OF GROWTH, IT'S A HERITAGE TREE.
AND SO JUST RECOGNIZE THAT CYPRESS TREE AT THE UPPER BANK IS, IS AN IMPORTANT TREE.
UM, IT IS A SPECIMEN BEAUTIFUL CYPRESS TREE THAT'S WORTHY OF SAVING.
SO THE U D C I I, I WANNA TALK ABOUT IT.
AND, UH, AND WE JUST HEARD THE LANGUAGE FROM THE ARBORS ABOUT THE U D C, UH, BUT WITHIN THE U D C, THERE'S ALL THESE LIKE RULES AND, UH, VERY SPECIFIC, AND SOMETIMES THEY'RE GUIDELINES AND SOMETIMES THEY'RE SHALL AND PROHIBITED.
AND THIS IS ONE OF THOSE WHERE IT'S PROHIBITED AND THERE, AND THERE'S ALSO LANGUAGES OF ANDS AND ORS.
AND I HIGHLIGHTED AN AND, AND I GOT IT WRONG, THAT ONE SHOULD BE AN OR
AND THEN IN, IN THE, UH, FINDINGS FROM THE CITY, THEY HAVE AN OR AT THE END, UH, DAMAGE DUE TO DISEASE, AGE OR PHYSICAL CONDITION, AND MUST BE REMOVED FOR THE SAFETY REASONS.
THE, AND SO IT'S EITHER DAMAGED
[03:05:01]
OR REMOVED FOR SAFETY REASONS, IS WHAT IT SAYS IN THE FINDINGS.BUT THIS IS WHAT THE TRUE U D C SAYS.
AND SO IT HAS, SO THE TREES HAVE TO BE, HAVE TO BE DISEASED OR THEY HAVE TO BE A SAFETY REASON.
AND WE JUST HEARD THAT NONE OF THE TREES THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MEET THAT CONDITION.
THE SAFETY CONCERNS ARE FROM THE WALLS, AND IN FACT, IT'S THE CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE THAT WE'RE CONSIDERING THAT IT'S TAKING THE TREES OUT, WHICH IS SPECIFICALLY PROHIBITED, PROHIBITED BY THE U D C FROM DOING.
AND SO PLEASE, PLEASE CONSIDER WHAT THE U D C SAYS WHEN YOU MAKE YOUR DECISIONS ON THIS.
AND, UM, IF YOU GO ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
SO ANOTHER SECTION IS ABOUT DEMOLITION REQUIREMENTS AND NORMALLY DEMOLITION REQUIREMENTS FROM LANDMARKS OR BUILDINGS.
AND SO IT'S, SO STAFF IS NOT CONSIDERED THIS AS A LANDMARK, BUT IT IS A LANDMARK.
AND THESE ARE NATURAL FEATURES NOT AND BUILT FEATURES.
AND SHANNON, OUR O H P OFFICER, SAID IN THE 2017 MASTER PLAN THAT, UH, SUCH TREES, EVEN PLANT MASSES, ARE CONSIDERED IN THE CONTEXT OF THE HISTORIC PLACE.
THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE HISTORICAL COMMISSION WOULD BE ENTITLED TO REVIEW CHANGES IN THE PARK THAT ARE NORMALLY ATTRIBUTED TO BUILT ELEMENTS, WALLS, BUILDINGS, ET CETERA, TO ANY ELEMENT IN THE PARK, INCLUDING THE TREES.
AND THE EVIDENCE THAT WE'VE SEEN, THEY'VE BEEN BROUGHT TO T H C, THEY'VE BEEN BROUGHT TO YOU.
WE HAVEN'T INCLUDED THE TREES IN CONSIDERING WHAT IS IN THE GUIDELINES FOR THE, THE SECRETARY OF INTERIORS.
UM, TREATMENT OF CULTURAL, UH, UH, TREES, UM, FEATURES THE NATURAL FEATURES.
AND, UH, YOU'LL HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT.
BUT I, I WANTED TO BRING THOSE TWO ASPECTS TO YOUR ATTENTION BECAUSE IF IT IS A LANDMARK, THEN YOU HAVE 60 DAYS TO STOP AND LOOK AT ALTERNATIVES.
SIMILAR TO WHAT THE DIRECTOR OF THE T H C RECOMMENDED YOU DO, WHEN HE MADE HIS OPENING STATEMENTS LAST TUESDAY THAT THEIR HANDS WERE TIED BECAUSE THEY DID NOT RECEIVE ANY INFORMATION THAT LOOKED AT THE HISTORIC ELEMENTS, UH, THAT WERE NATURAL AT THIS LANDSCAPE.
NEXT WE HAVE HILLARY SAUNDERS, FOLLOWED BY BECKY GALVAN.
HILLARY WILL RECEIVE SIX MINUTES.
ACTUALLY, THERE'S A KAYLA P KAYLA, CAN YOU RAISE YOUR, OKAY.
DID ANYONE ELSE YIELD TIME TO HILLARY THAT I'M MISSING? I, I'M, I'M MINUTES, SO WE'LL TAKE ROBIN'S TIME FOR HILLARY.
MAY I START SPEAKING INTO THE MIC WITH, OKAY.
MY NAME'S HILLARY SAUNDERS AND I LIVE IN THE RIVER ROAD NEIGHBORHOOD.
I APOLOGIZE FOR READING, BUT I'VE GOTTA GALLOP THROUGH THIS SO IT'S EASIER.
I'M HERE TO SUPPORT THE PRESERVATION OF THE TREES IN QUESTION AS THEY CONTRIBUTE TOWARDS THE PRECIOUS CULTURAL LANDSCAPE.
I'M AN ARCHITECT AND HAVE 35 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN WORKING IN THE AREA OF HERITAGE AND CULTURAL LANDSCAPE PLANNING.
IN MY FORMER PRACTICE IN SAN ANTONIO, MY CLIENTS INCLUDED THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, THE SAN ANTONIO DEVELOPMENT AGENCY VIA TRA METROPOLITAN TRANSIT CONSERVATION SOCIETY.
AND I HAVE SERVED ON THE RIVERWALK COMMISSION, ALBEIT A LONG TIME AGO.
MY VIEW IS THAT THIS PROJECT'S SUCCESS LIES IN SATISFYING BOTH THE PEOPLE OF SAN ANTONIO AND THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IN A MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL DESIGN RESPONSE.
I BELIEVE THIS IS POSSIBLE THROUGH TAKING A FINER GRAINED APPROACH TO THE DESIGN OPTIONS AVAILABLE IN CONFORMITY WITH THE SECRETARY OF THE STATE'S GUIDELINES.
THE APPROACH ALREADY TAKEN IS A COMBINATION OF REHABILITATION AND RECONSTRUCTION.
THERE ARE EXPLICIT GUIDELINES FOR THESE APPROACHES THAT I WON'T BELABOR HERE, BUT ASTA SULLIVAN POINTED OUT RECONSTRUCTION REQUIRES THAT RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION OF PROPO OF ALL PROPOSED INTERVENTIONS INTO ELEMENTS OF HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE BE DONE AND SUBMITTED FOR REVIEW.
THIS RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION PROVIDES THE FOUNDATION FROM WHICH TO MAKE EDUCATED DECISIONS FOR PROJECT TREATMENT.
THESE REQUIREMENTS WERE LAID OUT IN A LETTER FROM THE T H C TO THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO ON FEBRUARY THE NINTH, 2022.
TO MY KNOWLEDGE, THE REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION HAS NOT BEEN FORTHCOMING FOR, FORTHCOMING FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE PLAN COMMISSIONED BY THE CONSERVANCY IS AN
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EXCELLENT DOCUMENT AND HAS MARVELOUS RESOURCES.CULTURAL LANDSCAPES ARE A CONTINUUM THROUGH HISTORY AND INCORPORATE THE STORY OF PLACE FROM EARLY TIMES INTO THE DISTANT FUTURE.
WHEN WORKING WITHIN A CULTURAL LANDSCAPE SUCH AS BRACKENRIDGE PARK, WE WORK WITH THE INHERENT VALUES THAT ARE EMBEDDED IN THE HUMAN RESPONSE TO THE PARK'S, NATURAL FEATURES AND SYSTEMS SIMULTANEOUSLY.
ONE IS TALKING ABOUT THE NATURAL SYSTEMS RESPONSE TO THREATS SUCH AS CLIMATE IMPACTS AND ENCROACHING HUMAN SETTLEMENTS.
THERE ARE THUS TWO SETS OF VALUES INTERTWINED.
IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT THE UNDERLYING VALUES REPRESENTED BY BRACKENRIDGE PARK'S, SOCIAL AND NATURAL HISTORY PROVIDE THE FRAMEWORK FOR INTERVENTIONS IN THE FUTURE.
IT IS A PLACE OF WATER AND HAS HAD VARIOUS HUMAN SETTLEMENT PATTERNS OVER ITS HISTORY.
CULTURAL LANDSCAPES DO NOT PERMIT THE SO-CALLED FREEZE FRAME APPROACH TO CULTURE, BUT RATHER A MORE EVOLVING AND NUANCED STORYLINE.
I WILL ILLUSTRATE MY APPROACH TO THIS PROJECT THROUGH AN EXAMPLE.
IN THE 1990S, I DESIGNED THE MASTER PLAN FOR AN EXTREMELY SENSITIVE HISTORIC LANDSCAPE.
THE MODIFICATION OF SAN ANTONIO'S RIVERWALK TO COMPLY WITH A D A LAWS.
THIS PROJECT WAS COMPLEX, POTENTIALLY CONTENTIOUS, REQUIRING INTERVENTIONS INTO HAGMAN'S HISTORICAL FABRIC, WHILE PROVIDING ACCESS TO HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL SITES ALONG THE WAY, THUS ENABLING ACCESS TO THE FULL STORY OF SAN ANTONIO'S RIVERWALK.
AS AMERICANS, OUR UNDERLYING VALUES HAD EVOLVED AND WERE ENSHRINED IN THE A D A LEGISLATION.
I BRING THIS UP BECAUSE WE INCORPORATED MANY WAYS TO TELL THE RIVERWALK STORY THROUGH INTERPRETIVE DISPLAYS OF TANGIBLE AND INTANGIBLE HERITAGE AUDIO OPPORTUNITIES.
AND SENSITIVE DESIGN MODIFICATIONS.
OUR TEAM'S FINE-GRAINED APPROACH WAS UNDERPINNED BY RESEARCH AND INTERPRETATION.
I SUGGEST THAT THIS APPROACH CAN BE USED IN THE CASE OF LAMBERT BEACH'S REHABILITATION AND RECONSTRUCTION DESIGN, AND, UH, INTERROGATE WHETHER THE PREVAILING VALUE DRIVING THE PROJECT SHOULD BE ONLY RETURNING ALL WALLS TO CONDITION.
BRECKENRIDGE PARK WILL SERVE AS A GREEN LUNG FOR THE GROWING SAN ANTONIO.
THE FUTURE IS CLEAR AND WE NEED TO PRESERVE OUR NATURAL CANOPY AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, AND I HOPE THIS CONTRIBUTION HELPS PROVIDE A FRAMEWORK THROUGH WHICH THE PROJECT CAN PROCEED IN SERVICE TO THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE AND ALL WHO ENJOY IT.
BECKY GALVAN, FOLLOWED BY LUCY WILSON.
COULD I HAVE SLIDE NUMBER 18, PLEASE? MM-HMM.
I THINK YOU GUYS PROBABLY FEEL LIKE YOU'RE DRINKING FROM A FIRE HOSE WHEN YOU HEAR US TALK ABOUT THIS BECAUSE WE ARE VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT IT.
UM, MY ROLE HERE TODAY IS TO CLARIFY THAT THE CITY'S TREE COUNT DOESN'T HOLD UP.
AND, UH, AS PART OF OUR ANALYSIS AND OF WHICH HAS BEEN QUITE, UH, LENGTHY AND DEEP, AS YOU MIGHT KNOW, UH, WE LOOKED AT THE, UM, O H P FINDINGS IN THE POSTED APPLICATION PACKET, AND THE CITY WRONGLY CLAIMS TO PRESERVE 35 ADDITIONAL TREES AS A RESULT OF THE PUBLIC PROCESS.
UH, WHEN WE COMPARED THE CITY'S CURRENT SUBMISSION TO THE H D R C PAGE 21 OF THE PACKET.
UH, WITH THE ORIGINAL DRAWINGS SUBMITTED LAST YEAR TO H D R C, BEFORE THE PUBLIC INPUT PROCESS, WE FOUND, UM, ONLY ONE ADDITIONAL TREE HAS BEEN CHANGED TO BE REMOVED, TO BE PRESERVED IN PLACE.
UH, AND THAT IS A SIX INCH PECAN TREE ON THE NORTH UPPER BANK.
NOW, UH, THE OTHER 13 TREES THAT WERE LISTED BY THE CITY AS WILL BE PRESERVED, UM, ALREADY WERE SCHEDULED TO BE PRESERVED BEFORE THE PUBLIC MEETINGS.
SO THIS WASN'T DONE AS A RESULT OF PUBLIC INPUT.
UM, YOU ALL WERE HERE LAST YEAR, MOST OF YOU, SO YOU KIND OF KNOW WHERE WE STARTED LAST YEAR, UH, WHEN EVERYBODY WAS SURPRISED BY THE TREE MASSACRE PLAN.
IN ANY EVENT, UM, THESE 13 TREES ARE NOT ADDITIONAL TREES PRESERVED IN RESPONSE TO PUBLIC INPUT.
UH, THEY ALWAYS WERE PRESERVED IN THE PROJECT.
UH, WE ALSO WILL NOTE THAT ONLY ONE OF THE 21 TREES TO BE TRANSPLANTED TREE NUMBER 101, WHICH IS A 45 INCH HERITAGE OAK, IS SCHEDULED BY THE CITY TO BE
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LOCATED WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE WORK OF THE PROJECT AT LAMBERT BEACH.IF I MAY JUST FINISH THIS ONE SENTENCE, AND THAT IS TO SAY THAT CONTEMPORANEOUS WITH THIS PARK, ADINA DE ZAVALA WAS SAVING THE ALAMO IN 1908, RIGHT ABOUT THE SAME TIME THIS PARK WAS BEING PLANNED AND BUILT.
AND EVERYBODY PROBABLY LAUGHED AT ADINA DE ZAVALA FOR SAVING THAT PILE OF ROCKS DOWNTOWN THAT WE CALL THE ALAMO.
WE SUBSEQUENTLY FOUND THAT IT WAS AN IRREPLACEABLE RESOURCE FOR THE CITY, FOR THE COUNTRY, FOR OUR HEARTS.
AND I WANT ALL OF US TO KEEP THAT IMAGE OF THE ALAMO.
REMEMBER THE ALAMO, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THESE TREES.
LUCY WILSON, FOLLOWED BY SUSAN STR.
LUCY WILL RECEIVE FOUR MINUTES.
CHRIS COLLUM HAS YIELDED HIS TIME.
I LIVE AT ONE 30 MAGNOLIA DRIVE.
WHEN WE WERE HERE LAST YEAR, IT WAS EVIDENT THAT THE PARKS AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENTS HAD PLANNED TO MOVE THIS PROJECT FORWARD BEFORE THE PUBLIC COULD PROVIDE INPUT, BUT THINGS CHANGED AFTER THAT MEETING.
UH, AFTER HEARING CONCERNS FROM THEIR CONSTITUENTS, COUNCILMAN BRAVO AND MCKEE RODRIGUEZ REQUESTED A GUIDED TOUR OF THE AREA TO EXPLAIN TO THE PUBLIC THE PLANS INCLUDING THE TREE REMOVAL.
SEVERAL OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAD SERVED ON THE 2017 BOND COMMITTEE WERE CONCERNED THAT THEY HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED OF THE MASSIVE TREE MOVEMENT REMOVAL AS PART OF THE PROJECT.
THE REPRESENTATION TO THIS BODY THAT A FULSOME PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT OCCURRED AND THAT SIGNIFICANT DESIGN CHANGES OCCURRED AS A RESULT IS A VAST OVERSTATEMENT.
JUST BEFORE THE PARKS DEPARTMENT INITIATED A SERIES OF PUBLIC MEETINGS AT THE WITTY MUSEUM TO RECEIVE PUBLIC INPUT, THEY FORMED THE BRACKENRIDGE PARK STAKEHOLDER ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
AT THE FIRST MEETING, WHICH I ATTENDED AS REPRESENTATIVE OF RIVER ROAD.
IT WAS EVIDENT THAT THE GROUP HAD BEEN HASTILY HASTILY SUMMONED TO SERVE AS A PUBLIC INPUT MECHANISM FOR DECISIONS REGARDING PARK PROJECTS.
FIVE NEARBY NEIGHBORHOOD LEADERS WERE INCLUDED ALONG WITH ORGANIZATIONS CONNECTED TO THE PARK AND RIVER.
NO FUTURE MEETINGS HAD BEEN PLANNED UNTIL A NEIGHBORHOOD PRESIDENT REQUESTED THAT THE GROUP MEET TO CRITIQUE THE FIRST PUBLIC MEETING.
AT THAT MEETING, THE GROUP REC CRITICIZED THE PROCESS THAT LIMITED PUBLIC DISCUSSION.
THUS ADDITIONAL PUBLIC MEETING WAS ADDED TO THE SCHEDULE AT THE WITTY.
THE GROUP RECENTLY WAS SUMMED AGAIN TO RECEIVE THE INFORMATION THAT WAS PRESENTED AT THE FINAL PUBLIC MEETING.
THE STATEMENT THAT SIGNIFICANT DESIGN CHANGES OCCURRED IS INCORRECT.
THE REDUCTION IN TREES BEING REMOVED IS MISLEADING AS FAR AS THE IMPACT TREE REMOVAL WILL HAVE ON THE LAMBERT BEACH AREA.
ONLY ONE ADDITIONAL TREE IS BEING SAVED AT THE SITE.
THE ORIGINAL RECOMMENDATION TO REMOVE 70 TREES IS REDUCED DOWN TO 48.
BY MOVING 21 OF THE TREES TO ANOTHER LOCATION AT EVERY PUBLIC MEETING, THE PUBLIC ASKS TO SEE THE DESIGN PLANS THAT MADE SO MUCH DESTRUCTION NECESSARY.
AT EVERY MEETING, THE CITY REFUSED TO PRODUCE THE CONSTRUCTION PLANS.
THESE WERE THE PLANS ON WHICH THE CITY'S INDEPENDENT ARBORISTS HAD RELIED.
BUT AS MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, WE WERE UNABLE TO SEE THEM ONLY ON JANUARY THE 14TH WEEKS AFTER FILING THEM WITH THE T H C DID THE CITY PUBLISH ITS CONSTRUCTION PLANS? ONLY THAT DID IT BECOME APPARENT WHY THE CITY NEEDED TO DESTROY SO MANY TREES? SIMPLE AND THE REASON SIMPLE EASE OF CONSTRUCTION AND LAST OF CREATIVITY.
THIS WAS FAR TOO LATE TO HAVE MEANINGFUL DISCUSSION OF ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS.
WHEN 69 TREES, SIX BEING HERITAGE TREES ARE REMOVED FROM LAMBERT BEACH, THE LANDSCAPE WILL CHANGE DRAMATICALLY.
NO LONGER WILL THE PUBLIC RECOGNIZE IT AS THE PARK THAT THEY HAVE KNOWN MOST OF THEIR LIVES.
AS THESE TREES DISAPPEAR, PEOPLE WILL ASK, HOW COULD THIS HAVE HAPPENED? THANK YOU.
SUSAN STR FOLLOWED BY VINCE MICHAEL.
BOTH JIM SMITH AND BARBARA WOOD HOWELL HAVE YIELDED THEIR TIME.
HI, MY NAME IS SUSAN STR AND I'M ALSO A RESIDENT OF RIVER ROAD IN SAN ANTONIO.
I AM A BATTING CLEANUP HERE FOR
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OUR RIVER ROAD COMMITTEE.AND I JUST WANNA SAY THAT WE KNOW YOU'RE TIRED.
WE KNOW WE'VE BEEN AT THIS FOR A YEAR, AND WE'RE TIRED TOO.
WE, WE HAVE ALL BEEN AT THIS FOR A YEAR AND I HAVE MANY NEW FRIENDS.
AS A RESULT OF THIS, THIS PROCESS, NOT ONLY AMONG MY NEIGHBORS, BUT ALSO ACROSS THE CITY.
IN OPPOSING THIS PROJECT, WE'VE SPENT NIGHTS POURING OVER HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS, DAYS, WORKING WITH OUR VOLUNTEER ENGINEERS AND ARBORISTS.
WE'VE WALKED THE SITE, WE'VE STUDIED THE CODES, WE'VE MADE POWERPOINTS.
WE'VE TAKEN TIME OFF OF WORK TO GO TO AUSTIN AND MEET WITH THE CITY.
UH, AND WE KNOW THAT YOU'VE ALSO SPENT HOURS LOOKING AT THE CITY'S PROPOSAL AND VISITING THE SITE, REVIEWING THE U D C AND SECTION 1 0 6 AND LIKE US, YOU'RE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY, THE CITY WANTS TO DO, WHY THEY WANNA DO IT, AND WHY THEY HAVE TO TAKE SO MANY TREES OUT TO GET THEIR PLAN ACCOMPLISHED.
OVER A YEAR AGO, THIS COMMISSION MADE SPECIFIC REQUESTS AND THE CITY MADE PROMISES, PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT THAT THEY WOULD CONSIDER ALTERNATIVES AND THEY WOULD CONSIDER EVERY TREE AS REQUIRED BY THE U D C.
INSTEAD, WE GOT DEMOLITION OF OUR SOULS BY ENDLESS AND USELESS PUBLIC MEETINGS.
THEY DEMURRED, WE PROVIDED ALTERNATIVES.
THEY CAME UP WITH EVER MORE FARFETCHED REASONS AS TO WHY OUR ALTERNATIVES WOULDN'T WORK.
AT THE END OF THE DAY, DESPITE THE CITY'S CLAIMS, THESE PUBLIC MEETINGS, AS YOU'VE HEARD, RESULTED IN NO CHANGE TO THE NUMBER OF HERITAGE AND SIGNIFICANT TREES THAT ARE BEING PRESERVED IN PLACE ON THE KEY AREA OF LAMBERT BEACH.
SO YES, WE ARE ALL TIRED, BUT WE CANNOT GIVE UP THIS FIGHT.
WE ARE TIRED, BUT WE'RE REALLY TIRED OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
SLIDE INTO MEDIOCRITY FOR SHORTCUTS, EASE OF CONSTRUCTION.
WE'RE TIRED OF THEIR CONCLUSORY STATEMENTS THAT THEY MAKE WITHOUT EVIDENCE LIKE THE T H C WON'T LET US DO IT, OR IT'S TOO EXPENSIVE OR WE DON'T THINK IT WILL WORK, OR OSHA WON'T PERMIT IT.
AND BELIEVE ME, I AM TIRED OF TALKING TO OSHA ABOUT TRENCH WIDTH, WHICH I DID LAST NIGHT AND THIS MORNING.
UM, OSHA KNOWS NOTHING ABOUT A FOUR FOOT MINIMUM TRENCH WIDTH THAT I THINK YOU'VE HEARD ABOUT.
UH, OUR DESIGN DOES NOT EVEN REQUIRE A TRENCH TO BE BUILT.
IF IT DID, IT WOULD BE NARROW AND YOU WOULD DROP IN A SLAB OF A SPANDREL WALL.
SO, AND IRONICALLY, THE ONE THING THAT I THINK THAT WE'VE HEARD THE MOST