Historic Preservation Commission Minutes 2021 10 18

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Historic Preservation Commission Meeting Minutes 18 October 2021 Page 2 of 8 The draft Diagnostic Report was presented by Korkut Onaran and Peter Park from the consultant team. The consultants described the three themes from what they heard and observed in the first phase of their project: community character; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and preservation. They described the main types of buildings and the lot sizes and features in Old Town. Hoefner asked for clarification about the table showing median total building floor areas. The consultants stated that the Code prevented creation of new smaller lots with narrower frontages due to the underlying zoning, meaning the zoning didn't allow small houses on small lots even though that was what was historically developed. They added that the underlying Code and its incentives also encouraged larger buildings, and noted that the market was not building to the maximum allowed developed on the largest lot sizes in the city. Diehl asked how many of that lot size had been maximized and asked why the redevelopments had not been maximizing the allowance. The consultants replied that they did not know the percentage but stated that they had observed that the really large buildings, in the 2400-2500 square -foot range, tried to fit in well. However, as consultants they looked at the Code in terms of what was possible within it for the future, especially considering the trend toward larger buildings in the region. They had also observed that people did not like the larger buildings. The consultants presented their findings on preservation, which was a topic with varied opinions. They had heard issues with the preservation and landmark bonuses, in particular, and confusion around and dissatisfaction with the demolition stays. They had also observed stylistic differences in the structures being built as compared to the simpler, historical architecture. The consultants summarized that the different types of existing buildings needed to be addressed differently in the Code; there was a need to have the underlying zoning encourage smaller lots and to allow smaller buildings; and there as a demand for small structures, which the Code did not allow. Brauneis asked if there would be an unintended consequence of incentivizing teardowns if smaller lots were allowed. Onaran replied that providing solutions and weighing costs was for the next phase, but there were opportunities to address that issue. Right now, the goal was to acknowledge that this could be a good direction, addressing the creation of smaller lots. Diehl thanked the consultants and asked if the creation of smaller lots would realistically be picked up by the development community for smaller buildings on smaller lots. His view was that the highest dollar price lay in maximizing sizes. Ritchie replied that from a staff perspective, they would see requests for both. The market trend was for larger properties within Old Town and they did not know how much demand there would be for smaller lots. Anecdotally, people do ask if they can divide their lots frequently for multi - generational families. 2