Revitalization Commission Agenda and Packet 2017 11 13

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Page 2 of 3 pages To accommodate the required square footage for the project, the majority of the mass of the building is located 50 feet back from the sidewalk, allowing a one and two story facade at the street. Of particular importance to this project is the proximity to the historic building to the south, currently housing the Huckleberry Restaurant, formerly Louisville's bank at the turn of the last century. To respect this one-story historic structure, the southern half of the Main Street facade is designed at one-story, actually lower than the historic parapet. The building facade at Main Street is envisioned as a composition of three parts: a pair of 2 -story storefront facades, patterned after typical western false front buildings in scale and pattern; and a low, one-story retail storefront replacing the mid-century modern building in that location, with similar form and simple detail. The three storefronts divide the 95 feet of facade into modules that were historically used and that are prevalent today in Downtown. The rhythm of the buildings on the east side of the 700 block cycles from one story to two story, with alternating horizontal and vertical emphasis, with paired buildings such as the Singing Cook/Book Cellar, and Huckleberry buildings. These varying elements form the context for the new building at 712/722 Main. As the buildings being replaced are mid-century, it is appropriate to take cues from the simple, straight -lined architecture of that era. The materials for the Main Street facade are primarily wood and metal. A natural IPE hardwood siding is proposed for the major elements at pedestrian level, with a combination of black anodized and wood storefront detailing. Natural finish metals such as patina copper and dark mill finish steel provide accents. Storefront windows are generous to promote commerce and provide interest at the pedestrian level. The southern half of the facade retains a significant setback from the property line, similar to the existing condition. This allows for outdoor seating, sheltered by an overhang, extending the season beyond that of the temporary patios. This relief from the street begins with a smaller area of setback at the northern part of the facade, then a minimum of 36" additional sidewalk width is maintained to a maximum of 7.5 feet at the southern end. The third story is set back 50 feet from the front of the property to minimize it's impact when viewed from Main Street. This is the design standard specified in the Downtown Design Handbook and Framework Plan. The Framework Plan states "In general, no more than 50 percent of the building footprint should be a third story". Although the building does not fill the entire footprint, based on the allowable building footprint, the proposed third story is 55% of the building footprint. We feel that this is justifiable based on the fact that the second floor is also set back 50' on the south side to respect the historic property to the south. If the second story was built out to the lot line in front, this suggestion of Tess than 50% would be met, as well as providing the suggested alley setback of the third level. However we felt that it was more important to provide a significant setback to the historic property. These items are not specific codes or standards, but they are guidelines. Waiver Request Where a 20' rear setback at the alley is required, and provided for the majority of the building mass, we are requesting to project a stair tower and balconies into the setback to break down the scale and mass of the building, instead of providing a monolithic rear wall. 8