Professional Documents
Culture Documents
DRAFT
11/08/02
and variety and avoid the effect of a single, long or massive wall with no relation to
human size, the following additional standards shall apply:
1. No wall that faces a street or connecting walkway shall have a blank,
uninterrupted length exceeding thirty (30) feet without including at least two (2)
of the following: change in plane, change in texture or masonry pattern,
windows, treillage with vines, or an equivalent element that subdivides the wall
into human scale proportions.
2. Side or rear walls that face walkways may include false windows and door
openings defined by frames, sills and lintels, or similarly proportioned
modulations of the wall, only when actual doors and windows are not feasible
because of the nature of the use of the building.
3. All sides of the building shall include materials and design characteristics
consistent with those on the front. Use of inferior or lesser quality materials for
side or rear facades shall be prohibited.
(b) Facades that face streets or connecting pedestrian frontage shall be subdivided and
proportioned using features such as windows, entrances, arcades, arbors, awnings,
treillage with vines, along no less than fifty (50) percent of the facade.
Variation in Massing
A single, large, dominant building mass shall be avoided in new buildings and, to the extent
reasonably feasible, in development projects involving changes to the mass of existing
buildings.
(1) Horizontal masses shall not exceed a height:width ratio of 1:3 without substantial
variation in massing that includes a change in height and projecting or recessed
elements.
(2) Changes in mass shall be related to entrances, the integral structure and/or the
organization of interior spaces and activities and not merely for cosmetic effect.
Building Base, Body, and Cap
All architectural elevations of principal buildings shall consist of a base, a body, and a cap.
1) The base shall occupy the lowest portion of the elevation, and shall have a height no
less than eight percent (8%) of the average wall height.
2) The body shall occupy the middle portion of the elevation, and shall have a height
no less than sixty percent (60%) of the average wall height.
3) The cap shall occupy the highest portion of the elevation, excluding the roof, and
shall have a height no less than eight percent (8%) of the average wall height, not to
exceed the height of the base.
4) The cap shall consist of at least one of the following architectural features: a
cornice, parapet, awning, canopy, or eaves.
5) The base and cap shall be clearly distinguishable from the body through changes in
color, material, pattern, profile, or texture. A cap and base shall incorporate at least
three of these design elements.
4
Materials
The materials used on building facades play a large part in determining the appearance of a
building. In order to ensure that a building is aesthetically pleasing, it is important to ensure
that the materials and colors used on the exterior of a building are pleasing to the eye and are
compatible with the surroundings. As a general rule, the use of high quality natural building
materials such as brick and native stone, and tinted/ textured concrete masonry units contribute
to aesthetically pleasing facades. The following is a list of permitted materials for the building
base, body, and cap. Other materials not specifically mentioned may be appropriate permitted,
but would need to be reviewed by Planning Commission on a case-by-case basis.
1) Building Base: Brick, native stone, manufactured stone, or textured concrete
masonry units shall be permitted as base siding materials.
2) Building Body: Wood, brick, and native stone, manufactured stone, or other applied
materials such as exterior insulated finish system (E.I.F.S.) shall be permitted as
siding materials for the body of the building. The following body materials are
considered inappropriate, however, may be permitted with the specific approval by
the Planning Commission on a case-by-case basis:
a) Siding that imitates wood lap siding such as aluminum or vinyl siding or siding
that imitates brick or stone,
b) Ceramic tile or ceramic block,
c) Sheet metal, corrugated metal, or other similar metal panels,
d) Poured concrete, concrete block, textured concrete block, concrete panels,
panels with an aggregate surface, or other similar concrete siding, or
e) Applied materials such as stucco or exterior insulated finish system (E.I.F.S.).
3) Building Cap: Brick, native stone, manufactured stone, textured concrete masonry units
block, wood, or applied materials such as exterior insulation finish system (E.I.F.S.)
or other synthetic materials are examples of materials permitted for the building cap.
Faade Colors
The use of low reflectance, subtle, neutral, or earth tone colors as the predominant colors on the
faade usually results in an acceptable appearance. The use of high intensity colors, metallic
colors, black or fluorescent colors as the predominant faade color usually does not result in an
aesthetically appealing building and applications utilizing such would have to be reviewed by
Planning commission on a case by case basis. Building trim and accent areas may feature
brighter colors, including primary colors, but the use of neon tubing as a feature for building
trim or accent areas in not permitted. Applied paint over brick, stone, and concrete not part of a
building faade on any part of a building facade or other site elements is not permitted.
(1) Building Base: The base shall read as a single, subdued, earth-tone color.
(2) Building Body: The body shall read as a single, subdued, earth-tone color. A
maximum of three accent colors are also permitted that are compatible with the
body color.
(3) Building Cap: The cap shall consist of colors that are compatible with the building
body color, any accent color and to each other.
Roofs
In order to reduce the massive size of large structures, flat roofs should be avoided if at all
possible. The use of varied roof lines, through the utilization of parapets and or sloped roofs, is
encouraged. The roof treatment should harmonize with the character of the surrounding
neighborhoods. Building walls, parapets, and/or roof systems shall be designed to conceal all
roof-mounted mechanical equipment from view to adjacent properties and public rights-ofway.
1) Permitted roof styles shall include gable, mansard, and hip roofs. Flat roofs are permitted if
sufficiently disguised through the use of parapet walls. Other roof styles shall require
specific approval by the Planning Commission on a case-by-case basis.
2) The height of any pitched roof shall not exceed one-half (1/2) of the overall building height
the average wall height of the building.
3) Permitted materials for pitched roofs include wood, slate, fiberglass reinforced asphalt roof,
and standing seam or terned metal. Other roof materials shall require specific approval by
the Planning Commission on a case-by-case basis.
2) Ground floor facades that face public streets shall have arcades, display windows, entry
areas, awnings or other such features along no less than sixty (60) percent of their
horizontal length.
3) Building facades must also include a repeating pattern of no less than (3) of the following
elements:
a)
b)
c)
d)
color change;
texture change;
material module change;
an expression of architectural or structural bays through a change in plane no less than
twelve (12) inches in width, such as an offset, reveal or projecting rib.
Note: At least one (1) of elements (a), (b), (c),or (d) shall repeat horizontally. All elements
shall repeat at intervals of no more than thirty (30) feet, either horizontally or vertically.
4) Roofs shall have no less than two (2) of the following features:
a) Parapets concealing flat roofs and rooftop equipment such as HVAC units from public
view. The average height of such parapets shall not exceed fifteen (15) percent of the
height of the supporting wall and such parapets shall not at any point exceed one-third
(1/3) of the height of the supporting wall. Such parapets shall feature three-dimensional
cornice treatment;
b) Overhanging eaves, extending no less than three (3) feet past the supporting walls;
c) Sloping roofs that do not exceed the average height of the supporting walls, with an
average slope greater than or equal to one (1) foot of vertical rise for every three (3) feet
of horizontal run and less than or equal to one (1) foot of vertical rise for every one (1)
foot of horizontal run;
d) Three (3) or more roof slope planes.
5) Materials and colors - See Regulations Applicable to Non-Residential Buildings in Section
D.
6) Entryways- A coarse textured paver area shall be installed on the street adjacent to all
pedestrian entrances to encourage traffic calming and provide a distinct area for safe
pedestrian crossing. Smooth textured paver crosswalks shall be installed within this area
for handicap accessibility as appropriate.
Each large retail establishment on a site shall have clearly defined, highly visible customer
entrances featuring no less than three (3) of the following:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
canopies or porticos;
overhangs;
recesses/projections;
arcades;
raised corniced parapets over the door;
peaked roof forms;
arches
7
h) outdoor patios;
i) display windows;
j) architectural details such as tile work and moldings which are integrated into the
building structure and design;
k) integral planters or wing walls that incorporate landscaped areas and/or places for
sitting.