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April 15, 1993
HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
Palo Alto, California
Appeal of Architectural Review Board Approval of
Constructi~n of New 7,2CO-Square-Foot Restaurant and
Related Pi!rling and landscapiflg at 4269 £1 Camt!lQ_Real
Members of the Counctl:
Report in Brief
12
This report forwar-ds to Cou.ncil an appeal by Annette G. Bialson, representing
Din-ah's Garden Hotel, of the Director cf Planning and CClII11unity [nviror.ment's
appro~il. based on the recommendations of the Architectural Review Board~ far
the demolition of an I!'x;stlng 11,417-square-foct resta ... rant bL..llding and
construction of new 7,200-square-foot restal,Jl"ant at 4269 fl Camino Real.
Background
On November 12, 1992, the applicant. Houston's Restaurant, submitted an
application for a major Architectural Review Board approval to demolish an
existing ll,417·square-foot restaurant building, D",nah's Shack Restaurant,
and construct a new 7,200-sQuare-foot restaurant with related parking and
hndscaping improvements. The application was subsequently recommend'E'd for
approv.l ty the ARB on March C, 1993"
The application was lnitial1y re .... ie"'ed by the AR8 at their January 2L 19"93
meeting. Public testimony was taken from Annette G. Bialson, representing
Dinah's Garder, .1otel, neighbor of the subject site, and one of the partners of
the hotel, ~ay Handley. They stated a desire to see an integ~ated plan
addressing site planning issues related to both the subject prop~rty and the
Dinah's Garden Hotel property to the rear. Two letters were presented frolr.
t~e Barron Park Associati~n. oppo5i~g the architectural design of the building
because of the inconSistency in elevation design and the multitude of
materiah. lised in the project. The Architectural Review Board reviewed the
prop6s.aT and continued the: application to allow the a.pplicant to addrE.-ss the
above l$sues and other Board comments related to bui7ding design_
Tne applicant revlsed the plans in response to the ARB's comments and at the
March 4, 19~3 Architectura1 Review Board meeting, public testimo~j was taken
from Annette G_ 81aT50n, repre.)enting Dinah's Garden Hotel, who presented an
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a1ternat~ site plan. One 1etter representing the Barrot! Park Association
stating a continuing lack of support for the proposal was received at the
meeting. The Arc~itectu'r~al Re .... iew Board voted S-O to rec'Jll1'!lend appr'CHl of
the-project as ~resented by the appl icant subjE!ct to conditions_ The Director
of Phnning and COrMlvnitj; fnvironment appro ... ed the app1ication on ~arch 9,
1993, as recommended by the ARB.
On March 19, 1993, the dec:i:iicil of the Director of Planning ar,d Ccmmur.ity
(n .... ·ironment was appealed by Annette G. Bialson representi:1g Dinah's Garden
Hotel (.ppeal application and letter attached),
Analysis
The appellant has based the appeal on severa.l issues. One: issue ;s that a
separate but related application, by Mid·Peninsula Housing Coa1ition. request~
a Planned Community Z~np Change, lot split, and variances to allow the sale
and reuse of the Tamarack Court apartments, 4273 E1 Camino Real. as 1011{ income
housing units. The two applicatior.s are s:paUally relatea to each ether, and
the appellant has requested that t~e City consider them concurrently. FJr
this reason, staff has agendized both ap?licatians for the same City Co~ncil
meeting to allow integrated consideration. The Houston's Restaurant proposal
;s consistent with the zoning ordinance and requires no variances or other
zonir.g approvals. Koustonrs has maintained a n~utril position on the related
Tamarack Court application and has €xpressed an intent to proceed with the ne~
restaurant, if appro .... ed. regardless of He outc~m€ of the low income housing
proposal.
The appeal defines three other issues. Tney are addre~sed belo~ in the order
they were raised i~ the letter of appeaT.
1. The plan dramatic.lTy reduc~s __ acce_~ __ ~n to II Camino by elimir,atin~_
multiple drille .. aY$ a dr.i,. .... er can now select to one drivewaY_nJhatmJooh
Jike it aQg!s on1y into HQuston's:
The existing aeee-5S and circt.llation to Dir.d~'s Restaurant and Dinah's
Garden Hot€:1 are in.terde~ender.t, and. halle a~~a.'1s been S~. As clJrrer.t1y
developed, Dinah's Garden Hotel buildings do not have dirHt frontage on
£1 Camino Real and the hott;1 lacks a well-defined entry. Potential for
improlling the entry is hi9h~ nowe!Jer. Part of the confusion of th.e site
is tt\e m.lrnb~r of choices. for entering it. Curn~l".tly the hotel car. be
~ntered by any of the following routes: 1) directly from Tamarack
COllrt. 2) tnrougn .either of two ingrE:ss and one egress drh-eways pass; ng
through the restaurant parking lot, or 3) via either of two 2-way
dri~eways on the north side of the re~taurarrt _ (Refer t~ b:hib.it A}
Encumbrances and easement,s across the site. bt!nefiting Dinah's Garden
Hotel t are numerous and compl icated_ Access. easements t<.l the Hotel from
£1 Camino Real i~clude: l} a Z(-foot-wide easement ?arallel a~rl
adjacent to Tamarack Court, 2) a lO~foot easement immediatp.ly north of
the existing restaurant buildl~g, 3) a 2S-foQt private encumbrance fer
access across t~e entire back of the 1ot. and 4) a l-foot, non-access
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strip along the length of Tam;r~ck Court. Thes~ e3sements and
encumbrances do not r:ecessarily !"aflect existing access and circulation
patt~rns. (Refer to Exhibit A)
The Houston's Restaurant proposal will consalldate t~e driveway
entrance-s tl) the parking lot south of the restaurar;t building into one
more centrally located driveway. This consolidation and relocation of
the driveway is supported by the r'fansportat1on and Pla1'tniflg Divisions
of the City, as well as the ARB. Consolidating access to a central
d~jveway on the slte prcvlaes safer ingress and egress than three
driveways in clos'! proximity to each other near an intersection all i
busy arterial.
Tne proposed clrculation plan does not lessen the visibility or identity
of Dinah's Garden Hotel as iI result of the Houston's Restaurant
proposal. To the (Cntrari. it simplifies and clarifies access and
c.irculatiol"j. While-two existing dr1v€ ... ays will be removed, access to
Dinah's ~ard~~ Hotel will not be reduced. Dinah's Garden Hotel will
continue to have direct access from El Cami~o Real from thr~e locations:
1) the existing driveway located on Tim~rack Court; 2) the pr~posed
imprO".(ed driveway from El Camino Real on the Houston's ~estaurilnt site;
and 3} two 2-way drivewa~s north of the restdurant.
2. The plan ignores co .... enants regarding _use of dr-i'lcways ar:d nulJ_lfi.~ __ ~_9ur
Z4·fQot easement:
The phn does not nullify the 24-foot ingress/e9ress easement, no,.. does
it restrict the use of driveways. Since the construction of Tamarack
Court, there has been no practicai access from the easement to the
hotel I other than to cross ?t from Tamarack Courti .and a drilJeWij' ha:;
not existed on the easement to E1 Camino Real, nor shOUld it. The
easement runs adjacent to and paral1e1 to Tamarack (ourt and, therefore.
is not i.lseful in its current configuratio:"l. It would be advisable to
relocate the ea~ement to rvn the len;th and width of the proposed new
driveway th!""ougf1 the parking lot. Staff has not required this logical
measure, althougt1 we recQrTJliended it ir1 the first .5taff report on the
subdivision appl icatior., bet.:)use we wal"1ted' tl!e City to avoid ir:vol vement
or indirect influence in the private agreements and ~egotjatiDns of the
tw,~ parties.
A private ctlvenant, wldch has b!erl brought to the City's attention,
reQulres that the 24-foot ~asement a10ng Tamarack Court remain free of
structures. The Houston's Restaurant project does not change the
current status ~f the 24-foot-wide easement. The r'::!stalrrant would 1 i ke
to use the w~stern portion of the easemeflt for 18 parking spaces, as the
requfred parking for its outdoor dining and patio area. Condition 2 of
the ARB approval assures that the parking spaces shown w~thin the
ease~nt ar~ optional. Therefore, should parking not be allowed on the
easement through mutual consent of the private parti2s involved,
Houston's Restaurant could continue to operate without the parking and
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t~e ARB i\ppl"o\lal wvuld remain valid, zHhougn tne o:Jtdoor dining are:!
~uld require further r€\liew of parking adequacy.
The phn fragments s1gnllg€ and re~_uces the D?te-ntial impact of lli_'Q_~_~~
T~ere is significant op~ortunjty to impro\le the iignage and ·sense af
e~try~ to Qinah's Garden Hotel. This application does not interfere
w;t~ that potential to negottate between the pri\late part1~s for bett~~
s;9nage or for Dinah' 5 to create a mCJre dramatic E1 Camino entry,
utilizing the portion of their site that fronts on El Camino R~al.
D1!"!ah's Garden Hot.el is permitted to continue navir.g a mon'Jment sign at
the corner of £1 C<i:nino Rea) and Tamarack. CourL located .... itt1in the 24·
foot ingr2ss~egress easelJlent. Houston's Restaurant is also propfJsing a
directior'lal Sign near the main entr, driveway, ilt the central parking
island, to indicate that Dinah's Garden H~tel is straight ahead. No
signs are proposed for removal with the application.
4. The plan impinges on the_\lie_~ __ c()rrid\lr and ti'1e cO\lena.DJ_...!.li~ring
maintenance of that corridor:
Staff does not belie'le that the plan impinges en the view corridor of
Dinah's Garden Hotel and may actually impro\le the \lieow torridor as seen
from El Camino Real. The Houston's ~estaurant ~rQject includ~s the
removal of two r:x;sting trees to the left of the main entr,)' driveway to
the site and no planting of trees at the end of the central parkin~
island. in addition, the Houston~s Restaurant building is set back 45
feet from the sidewalk at the $outn'ofest corner of t:'e building. TillS
relocation of the building and reduction of the building square footage
wl1l increase the visibility of the hotel property. Directional sii]nage
it the ce~tral parking island in the main entrance to the site would
promote direct visib11ity of Dtnah's Garden Hotel.
Recommended Con~itions
Stiff recommends that the City Council adopt the negative d€Claration. deny
the appeal, arid' uphold t~e Director of Plarmlng COrrllm.H;jty Environment and ~R8
decision to appro'r'e the proposed restaurant building af1d related site
improvements subject to the conditions listed below~
Conditions:
1, The applicant shall submit a revised bicycle parking p1an and
manuficturer's details and specifications of biCYCle parking facilities
to Transportatlon DiviSion and Pla~ning staff for review and appro\lal
prior to the submission fer building permit.
2. Should permission by priYate parties in\lo1'w"ed to utilize the eXisting
ingr!ss/egress easement for 18 parking spaces be de~ied and the
availab1e parking reduced to 69 parking spaces, the outdoor dining in
the patiO area would no longer be permitted ~ithout further review and
approval of parking adequacy_
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During const;uction~ i t~lr.pori1r)' construction fef'1ce shall be erected
arau!'ld each tree which is to be retain.;d and shown in th~ lan,1scape
plan. The trees to be saved shall be retained and maintajned 1M the
apP"I'opriate manner as Qualified in t~e consulting arborist report, -An
inspection of the trees at the proposed HouSt1~'S Restaura~t.· dated
October 23, 1992.
Samples of trellis and buil~ing co18rs to be review!d on site by the
ARB.
The proposed stucco roof screen r..i ttl stone <:ap £.naH be used instead of
metal.
6. The stone lintels over doors on the north elevation shall be eliminated,
and the app1icant has the option to return to staff with an alternate
, i nte 1 ,proposa 1 ,
Res;PrMlendatj 2n
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the negative declaration, deny
th9 appeal, and uphold the Director of Plannir.g Community Environment and ARB
decision to approve th! proposed restau~ant bUl1dlng and related site
improvements subject to the conditions listed above.
Respectfully submitted,
~ . W~ ~ ""'c
ORRAINE WEISS KENNETH R. SCHREIBER
Director of PTannin~ a~d
Corrmun ity Envi ronment
Planner
FLEMING
Manager
Attachments :
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location Map
Exhibit A. E~isting fntegrated Site Plan
fxhibit B. Proposed Site Plan
fx:cerpt ~erbatim minutes of ARB meeting. Janl.Jary 21, ]993
Excerpt verbatim mirlutes of ARB mt!eting. March 4. 1993
Appeal App1 icat ion and Letter dated 3/18/93
Negati~e Derlaration (92-EIA-36)
Appeal Application and Letter-dated 3/18/93
Public Correspondence
?roject ~lans (Ctty Council Members only)
4/15/93
Page 5
cc: Architectural Review BQard
Annette G. Bialsorl, 260Cl E1 Camino Rea1 .30'9, Pa1c Alto, CA 9430':;
Ray Handl.y, 2500 [1 Camino Rea', Palo Alto, CA 94306
lawrence Aufmuth, 314 Lytton Av~nue. Palo Alto, CA 94301
Allen Goode· Houston's Restaurant, Inc. 2525 E. Camelback Road, SUite
S10, Pnoe,,; x, Arizor:a 85016
Steven Langford, Ste,,'en Langford Architects, Inc., 1.8218 East r-tI::Ourmott.
S:Ji te D. lrv; ne, CA 92714
Bob Moss, 1410 Orme, Palo Alto 94306
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SITE LOCATION
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4283 El CAMiNO Ri::AL ., .. ....
HOUSTON'S RESTAURANT
L
GRAPHIC ATTACHMENT
TO STAFF P,[PORT
DATE: 4-"-.3
FILE NO. 92-ARB-Hi, 92-HA-35
PROJECT: HO~STON'S RESTAURANT. CU'OllTION OF EJr:ISTrNG .RESTAUC"':.,CN:-T'---,-_ .....
8UILDING ",NO COHSTStUCTrON 0.-= NEW 1,20CI-!\3UAAE-FOOT RlST,AL.'HANT AND
IRELATED PARKING ANO LANDSCAPING.
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Integrated Site Plan L C;C~
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4259 El Camino Real
Houston's Restaurant
AP.CHITECTURAL REVIE\f.' BOARD H(ARH~G
J.anuary 21, 19~3
92-ARB-129
92-EIA-35
Demolition of existing 11,417-square-foot resta'Jrant building and
construction of ~ew 7.Z00-square-foot restaurant and related parking and
hndscap1r.g.
Ms. Maser~ Are there any additional staff comm~~ts?
Ms. Weiss: None at this time.
Ms. Maser: Any questions of staff by board me:'T1bers?
Ms. DaRosa: I would 'i~e clarification. There is a note in here that
says that review of this project shou1d b2 done separdtely from relJiew of
Tamarack COllrt.
Ms. Weiss: That is correct.
~Maser: Cou1d you Explain, lorraine, what Condition '4 is that you
have included in here? "Revise the landscape to meet the site distance
~equirement$.~ What does that mean?
Ms. Weis:;:: Site distance rr::quiremer.ts are from the T~ansportation
Di'Jision t.~at anow visibility from automobilEs or pedestrians along the
street.
Ms. Mas.er: \h~ ap?licar1t has a ten-minute allotment of time-. flease
introduce YOIJi"s'E!i f.
Alan Goode:>...Design Coordinator LQ-L_H.oJ,1s:t'Jn's R€statJrants: I am here and
my .:srchitact is here and the landsca.pe architect is. here. I will be':}in by
telling you what our restau:--ant is all about, cf1.j how we operate from a
noor plan point ef 'Wie\ll, and ho .... the floor plan was applied to this sih,
specifically.
Mr. Lyzwa: Can we be looking at your model whiTe you are sp~aking?
Mr. Goode: CertainTy. ~e are
own 22 iestaurants natior:wide.
you care to take a look at it.
a fuTl ser .... i·:e dinner hOl.l5e restaurant. We
r broug~t a menu to give you an idea if
Ms. Maser: It's a little early in the morning for thfs!
Mr. Goode: Well, we are not cooking yet. we are a pri .... ately held
company, very much a hands·orl organization. YOLI ,,,dll fiM' that the oW'ner
and the people who are the corporate executilJes are ir, daily contact with
this restaurant. We are an 80 to 85 percent food business restaurant. We
are not a drinking establ~lshment. ~e are noted in the industr ..... for very
good sa:1es based on repeat Cl.J5.torPe-rs, and we are highly regarded
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thiOUgMcut the country. ~e do not advertis~. The only advertising .... e
e';eo. do ; S uSi.Hll11 .. hen "e fi rst oger"t a restaurant, t her'3 migMt be dn ad
or ho in the newspaper as to what Kind of restaurarlt we are. 8!Jt we
build our bU5i~€SS off of repeat customers. We feel that we do that "lth
a very efficient floor plan that is integral to the .... 'ay .... 'e operate.
The keys to the plan are basically t!'1at we want to be able to bri!'1g a
customer i-n and have that customer have immediate interaction with the
kitc.hen and the foed operaticns. lIhen he CQl;leS in the front doo~, he has
a visual connection with all .af the functions going on in the building.
In this diagram, the customer would come into the building, and enter a
bar/waiting uea. It;s a fairly small squar-e footage space, compared to
th~ rest of the building, The patio option is to the right, Straight
ahead is a co::king e>;hibition line, rTleanjng that the area where food is
prepar~ci and comes ave," the counter; s (,'pen to the side of the di ning
room, You ~a1k i~to the building and there is i wood·b~rning grill
directly in front of you so that }'OU see the ch€-f cooking the main
entrees, Another fellow is assembling sal!ds. The wait staff is working
rignt in front of everybody, so you are thrust right 1nto the activity of
th'i! kitchen. Al~o the 'flaf'1ager who watches that food coming over has an
interaction ~it~ the customer coming in. We find that because ~e do not
a:dvertise~ we build IIp repeat clients. We find Ha.t that manager will b~
able to recognize pp.ople when they come in the door. When people do come
in, there i~ a host station€d right ~ere. Someor.e will greet you, take
your name, take you to jo~r ssat, but directly behind him is the manager
who can recognize you and also greet you, People d;:> have reactions with
the guys who are actually cooking. So tMere is a real core point that
happens right nere between Our staff greeting people and also a very tight
dining room space that al1o'",:s for veri quick food circulat~on.
The customer comes in to a 'IIery open atmosphere :so that the front part,
the bar. the dining area and the porch area ;s one visually npen spa~e.
You will see that in the plan. The dining roam is one open space with no
strudural columns. The two side dining rooms are only separated by some
perimeter colurnns. so you can visua1.lj see everything that is going on in
the building.
When we go i!'~to a COITloT,UlIHy, w£. do net ru.bber sta:r,p these buildir1gs. When
~e came into Palo Alto, we looked around at the bungalow type houses with
sloping, shingl!o roofs, ~e~p~ng in mind t~at we are a commercial bUsiness
and we have a productfon kitchen that requires equipment space, equipment
on the rocf, things that r.eed to be there in order to function. But we
wanted to keep the front of the b'Jilding in a iow profile. For-instance,
in other cit'es, lik~ dow~town Chicago, t~e design was somewhat judicial
in style with panelliog on the walls. In Georgetown, D.C., it ..,.as an
historical building. ~e embellished the historlcal fa,ade, met all the
-criteria of the historica', distr~lct, and e .. eryone was pleased lIIith it. In
Phoenix, we are very near the AriZQ,la BiltrnJre Hotel, a Frank Lloyd Wright
project from the 1930s, We ",ere familiar J.iith that, and \tole did detailing
t~at was reminisc€nt of the Frank Lloyd Wrlght type of architect~re. So
here we tried to add a sloped roof, shingles, e~bellishments on the
bu11ding that we think fits in with the c~aracter of the neig~barhood.
The ba~ic instructions that we gave to the archltect were just that. We
were looking for mat€rials that we knelJi :}lJ.r floor plan needed to be to
operate prDperly. We ~ave some elements, like this mair. dinlng room, with
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the large truss expanse overhead that allo~s us to not have columns and b€
ab1e to see eve,ything. but we also lHe a boslrum truss which WE! found to
be somewhat indigeno~s to the western coast. ~a do not see that back in
the east. :,'e see a Tet of st:ingle roofs out here. We WOIJ~d like to use
stone on the C0rners of this b~i'ding to help ground it and along the base
of it. We are looking far good la~dscaping also. If there are any
~uestions about that, our landscape architect is available.
We did change the site out there as regards landscaping, primarily beCat.i5€
we needed to conform to the parking crtteria. We retained as many trees
as ~e ~ould. and the arborist'5 report is attac~ed.
ML Mas.er; Courd somebody address the materials on this and the cMl!nges?
Mr. Goode: That completes what 1 had to say, so 1 will turn this over to
Stave whc can ~p!ak to the exact material s en the bUilding.
Ste~en Langford. Architect: I will start with the south elevation, which
is our entry e1evation. We have an entry eJement Hat is cOlilpos-ed of
brick. It is an ovarsized brick, 8 inches by 16 inches. We use that and
we are going to paint t~at brick to a slate-color. MOiling on around to
the right, there is a p~t;Q area. There are a lot of tre11ises, as you
can see in the mode1. We are surrounding the entire patio with a lot of
trees. There is actually an orchard type of landscaping within the patto
area sa that it 15 very intimate. The rear warl is siucco and is painted
to match the brick color.
The corners of the buildir.g are a simulated limestone all around th~ nortn
side of the bui1<1ing. It ; s still st'JCCO around that side of the
building~ and what we are proPQsing to do on tnat Side of the building fs
to grow a lot of vines. lhat faces the hotel ~ ~o we wil 1 try and cover
the entire wall with vines and toliage.
In the north elevation, W~ introduc~ a rock which is a Tennessee limestone
and is called several nar.1es . alluvial, or Ashley stone. It is laid
horizontally. It is an ~ntegra1 part of the des',gn. We take that stone:
off the planters and bring it inside the building, whjch I will describe
'Tater wtH;~n we get into the plan. \rIe are trying to bring t~,e outsic'e
indooTS-, trying to break do~n the perimeter walls around the entire
porticn of the dining room. We ar-e trying to get rid of that ",all, break
it down and bring the stone from outside to the inside. The cohlm11s that
are repeated again inside that hold up the trusses.
The roofing material is a COJ'lcrete shake, with a sloping r~of out front.
The upper roof is caned Galv'AlulTi~ a m€tal roofing material. That is
gOln9 over the top of the main trusseS.
Ms. Mlser: What about the al~mjnum parapet around the mechanical
equipment?
Mr. langford: The same material.
~r. Langford: let me go very quickly over the site orlentation. ~e
looked at several options. 1his is where the existing restaurant is, and
it is actually HIe be~t location we found for s€~eral reasons. We feel
that it maintains the fxisting circulation that is in there now, and since
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Hlere ; s a ~otel, we tri ed to mak~ ourse-hoes very sensH iv~ to what our
neiqhDors are doing there. Dinah's Hotel has a lobby, and we are focusing
our entry in our patio back into ~he tlotel, so that it is more of a
courtyard bac~ing jnto the hotel.
fil!r. GogdE-: ~e 100ked at a11 kinds of options, but this seemed to be tne
best. It includes all the n8cessar.v parking as required by code.
Ms. PltlSer: Thank you. Are there ar.y board .qu-estions c-f the app1 ica;;t?
Mr. tYZWi: Wh3t about your calor scheme?
Mrs l.angferd: We have used HI(; stone in a cOuple of ways in other
r~staurants, inside outside, and we like the eart~ tone Qf the stone.
This brick sitting here is the ochre co l ,or that we have used in many
places. I would not call it a signature color. but the ochre cclor that
is on Ute brick. is something we have use<d for a long time. I¥e thir.k of it
as a~ earth tone. It looks good against our greEn accent color; it looks
good against hndscapii19. Frequently in the past we have used $te~l
doors. although we did not on this bunding~ which are-mostly fully glazed
so that when you lWaik up to the building. there is a very open feeling.
You can see what is gOlng on insid~. In the past we have used red on
those doors. In this case, it is dark green, but red and other accent
colors work. well with it. lrIe just see it as. a so1id earth tone. We come
from bUildings te-n years ago that ..... ·ere histcrical ~tructu(es, and the
entry and the trusses speak to the historical nature of those buildings.
like the oversized bricks and that COlor has an historical f13ir to it.
~t is "ot real loud, but it is loud enough to speak to the customer
corrmercially? too. sinCe we-ar-e a commE'rcial buiiding.
ML~: Why are there three signs on the bUllding?
Mr~ langford: According to the code h~re. when ~e first looked at the
building. as a matter of fact, there is a monument sign cut by the
turn-in. In the site plan, there is a monum~nt sign shown out fro"tj so
there are actu::any more than three. 'fie are C'lpen to commer'ts from the
board on that. The sign o~er the front door ~e feel is important, because
,,-,e see ths par-k.irl9 lot Slpproach, aTong .. lt~ the sign and tne domed awning
over the front door and the sca1i2 \:If the fro~t door element as being the
tig signature tnat says. ~This is the front door. C~me to it.~ The
monument Sign, as yOU turn in, is the f1ag and the key that wl11 clean up
a lot of driveway tur~-1n problems that ~e t~ink exist out there. The
monument sign wlll tell people ~here that drivewii cut is.
The sign on the nort~ s.ide was irtendf:'d to pick Lip 'IIisual traffiC coming
southbound on El C.ami~o Real. The o~e on the wes.t elevation at the top of
the ",indows there \oIas CE'rtain1y al"1 ernbell ishment for tr"affic right in
front of the bui1ding. We are ope-n, again, to ar.y comments iOU have on the
signs.
Mr. Hise: Is your monument s.igr. !il'1OJoj'n?
Mr. langford: The one on the model shows H "ell. On the site plan. it
is just a small ~ark rectangle.
Ms. M3ser: It is shollir. at a different location on Uie model than it is on
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tl1e site plan.
~.9.f.Q.d: The one you ~ee dawn or. the corner is the Dinah's Hatel
11gn.
ML~: see.
~rt tanqfo!"C: I am not exac.tly Sl.Jr~ ~ow that is oriented or how big it
is, but it is meant to represent a sign on the carner.
Mr. lYIwa: The aluminum me~hanjc31 equipm~nt screen. Is this thE correct
dimension for the ribs? ls th~s the size you are p~oposlng? It looks
slightly diffe~ent ;0 your rendering.
~ngfQrd: The roof is going to be red, and it ~ill probably be a
little .1der. The rDof, as far is what we would like to do, is a barrel
with ~ standing seam roof that goes over the top. The screen at the back
would be lap sidlng with somethlng on the order of a six-to se~en-inch
expcsure en thE boards.
JIlr. lYZWi: eecausE' JOU hii'.:e-given a vEery strol"1g 1 ine to ; t.
s~e1n9 it h!re. Therefore I rai~e the q~estion.
am not
Mr. l~ngford: It would certain1y be narrower, t~e way r would see it, and
the ret(Jr~ back. ..... hich y'Ju might r-efer to as a lap, would be enough to
create snadow lines that would give it that ho~izcntal 1ook. I believe
that is what you are seeing there.
Mr. lyzwa:: Is this ~ofng to b-e galvanized?
Mr. lanctford: It is going to be Galv-Alum.
Mr. LYZWa: And then, what happens struc~urally here? Do YJU have kickers
supporting this?
~j. lanuford: Yes.
Mr. lyz .... a: They UE: no! indicated in yCl.!r' roof plan.
~r. langford: Right. They are not seen in the front. One thing is that
with a restaurant, typlcally the tal1est thing Ire use, the e)(~aust far.s,
the refrigeration equi.tIlTlent. is on the order of five feet. That is the
smallest you can get these th;n9~. The discharge pOint, typically by
cod!, from the e~flaust fan is 40 inches above the roof. Typically ours
are much stronger and more durable than required. So the 5cre~n needs to
be en ti'1e order of fhe feet in order to hide everything. In a straight
elevation, it makes the rear snd of the building appear to be taller than
the pedestrian or car passenger driving by soaoes.
~wa: Your scr~en is inde.ed five feet?
Mr. langford: Frankly, I ~1l1 ha~e to put a tape on it and check it, but
I am going to say it is probabiy fi~~ feet high.
Ms. Haser: r was not here Ule dilY you first came. r see that you made a
presentation to the Barron Park .ssociation.
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~r. langford: y~s. ~r. Carrasco and I met with t~e 8drron Park
Assodation. \lie E:=:plair.ed what our pTans were. ~e took the rE!lidering
that yow have !;ere Oil the left side which we reduc£'d to 8-:H,d~a.-lia1f by 11
photcs and showed those te them. We met ~bout a mo~th-and-a-half igO.
Commissioner. CUras:co: May 1 exphin a httle about the meeting? What we
talKed to them about was the site orie.,taticn and the reaSO!"1 why the
restau.rant was plCiced where it WdS, ar,d the importaflce of Dir.<l.h's Shack
and the importance of using stone becdvse it is co~patib1e with the
building on tl!e other side of Tamarack Court. The reason why Hie .entry is
oriented in a courtyard klnd of fa~hion~ relating both to the Dir.ah~s
Shack entry and tnis restaurant, creating a U-shaped building_ At that
time, \ole did not hcH'e the model to show them. explain!ng tl1e, kinds of
pr{)gressicn of building 'Iolumes and materiaTs that you ha .... e here today_
think that was one of the Questions they had, i.e., haw did these
materials tie together?
Ms. paRosa: I ha .... e a question for the lar.ds~ape architect. Have you seen
th~ sf aff report? Would you cornme:'lt 0:1 5a'{ing the trees? Also~ thert:! is
a note in the arborist'S report about removing the elm because it might be
damaged in trre fl.Jture. Coul d you COilmlel1t on the logic of rerno .... i ng trees
that are in good condition?
Linn Winterbgtham . .Lan.dscap'i!: P.rchitect: r d~d read tn€! staff report.
There was a sl ight error. The two trees-af-heaven trees that were out
there are to remain. There are four cedars that are in the parking lot
and one elm that is in the drive .... ay. Those were all reconvnended to be
removed. One of those cedars c0u1d stay, and r gather that was what was
indicated in the staff report. But the elm is right in the middle of the
driveway. Snall I point that out?
Ms. Maser: \'es, 1 am confused'. could nut find these trees that yOll
are taiking about on your plans ..
Mr. Wint{!r-botn.a.~; There the twa trees;-cf·heavef1 here ..... hlch are showf1 to
remain. The elm here in the driY2~ay and th~se three cedars we are
remo~ing. Then there is one that is qUEstionable ~ere th~t we could
sa .... e. I did speak ~ith staff 9 and we wauld be happy to retain this one.
The problem with the elm is (1) it is in the driveway, and (2) there is a
net 21 inches plus a fe~ inches between that and the tree-of-heaven, so if
we were to try and keep bath, that .... irtually eliminates an) circulation at
the back of the property. So it is an either/or situation. I think that
the elm, because of Tts gEneral form --very 10!1g and 1eggy --wou1d best
be removed.
Ms. Maser: What abo~t this i~ea of disease?
Mr. Winterbotharn: They aTe highly susceptIble to disease. Realistically,
I cannot say Hat m;:!"intenance could be provided to return it to a normal,
hea1thy, f10llrishirrg tree.
~s. Wilson: You hear about Dutch el~ disease gaing arour.d and wiping
trees out, and there is nothing you can dQ to stop it. Ya~ are not
talking about that far this tree, are you?
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Mr .. : ... Jlinterboth.am: It is stJscpptib~e to Dwtch e1m diseasE".
susceptible to a lot of other th~ngs. It is susceptible to
infestat1on, for instance.
M~ wilspn: MQre than other trees?
It is not a swrvivor ..
It ; s
i flsect
~s MaSer: So if yOu were t-o rt'$pand to the staff report which says to
retain three of these trees. can you see that happening?
Mr. Winterhot~am: To respond to the staff report, I would agree with
everything, with the except\on of the elm tree. The three is actually
two, because those two we are keeping. If staff is asking us to keep this
one, we can do that.
Ms. Maser: It does intf:!J"'fere with your c1n;ul'ation pattel"n.
Mr. WinterbQtham: And also due to the ge~eral nature of the tree, I would
rather see it replaced with something that would perform better in that
area.
Ms. Mas~: The cedars that are bej ng remo'led, are those in good' health
and are being removed because the ;Jar-king wouldn't work if the)' ""ere
rEtained?
Mr. Wjnterbotham~ They are in good health. They are of falr-form and
configur.tion. having surviv~d in a parking lot for 30 years.. ] would not
say they ar~ ex~ellent specimens ..
Ms. Maser: They are a pretty fast growing tree, aren't they? (Yes)
Mr. Hjse: Jt 15 real clear on the ele.atiOl'l that there is a fireplac€ on
the ~est elevatiol1. Sut you also indicate a fireplace in the pat';Q that
is on the east elevation. I cannot see that in the eleva'tion. Does it
have a chimney?
ML .. J:..!.D9ford: No, it is a fire pit.
Mr. H1se: What is this enlargEd element here?
Mr. Langfor.,.g: That is not an elel'atiof1. That is the backdrop behind
wnere the flre pit would be located ..
Mr. Hise: How did you come by your data defining the prevailing winds as
coming from the south? I would be surprised. We get our stOI~S out cf
the south, but our prevailing winds are out of the north and northwest.
was rather surprised to see that on the drawings.. Jt doesn't seem to make
a difference here. In fact, if anything, it does you a fa .... or not blowing
into yo,:r entry.
Mr .. langford; lhe person who did that is not here.
~e got his information from.
am not sure where
Ms. Maser~ If there are no further questions, we will hear from the
public.
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I
Annett~ Bialson: 1 am here speaking on behalf of Dinah's Hotel, which is
located ir.lmedlately l.djacent to tile prop·osed project. I must apologize
for our Tack of cQlTCTlunicction, th~JS far, wi!.h Hcuston:s on same af the
issues I am raising today_ lhere has be-eo some confusion as to who, in
Houston's, to corrtact. Mr. Handley hes beef1 trying to contact Mr.
ledbetter. I found cut yesterday at one o'clock 1Tl)'sel f that Mr. Good~ was
the person to speak te. 1 am Jaoking forward to spedkin9 wlth Mr. Goode a
little 1ater today.
What we a:'"e here to try and accompl isn is the a,,'oidance of the problems
that we ar-e now dealing with Oli the site. \lje did not aiJpear when tne
Tamarack Apartments 'IIi're being considHed by th~ CitYl and have .... 'ued that
day for a long time. What we l\io'Jld like to see at this meEting and in
future dealings with Houston's and the city is some attempt to create and
integrat! th~ sit~, We are Y~ry conc~rned that the DinaM'S Hotei not
become known as "that mot!! behind Hcu~ton's,· ".s we look: at the plan as
presently pr~sertted, t~at is a great fe,lr of ours, I have here a chart or
map that indicates where the curb cuts presently existing are. When this
Site was created, there-was an attempt to coordinate a hotel/motel usage
..,ith a restaurant. That is why we have an those wor,derful covenants that
we have been dealing ~1th i~ tMe past, We are delighted to have Houston's
come in. Having an abandoned Dinah1s Shack in front does not work for
us. What we have, at this po~nt, is a situation in which we have access
to Dlr.ah's Hotel fror.l [l Cam1r:o Real. It is very important for us to
maintain that access. The majority of our 9uests~ the majority of people
who know Dinah's Hotel. think. of it -as being on E1 Camino Rea1. All of
our publicity, all of our advertising deal ~jt~ our being O~ [1 Camino.
It is a street that is known throughoi..=t the country u the road that goes
up and down all of California. To be known as the hotel r:r motel behind
Houston's that comes off T~marack Court would rei:'l11y be \'ery destructive
to us.
We are in a situation where the plan, as Houston's has created ,t, has one
curb cut going only intc Houston's. We are losing what is a clear shot to
th-e reception ay-ea of Din::h's Hotel. If you I00k at Hoe reception are2,
it is the diagonal building, the office right here. It was situated there
in o:"der for there to be this access; frJm £1 Camino. while we have hJd
some words from Cal Trans 'With regard to not having the ability to create
curb cuts ~ereJ we ha .... e a curb cut. That crJrb cut allows direct access
into our-~otei.
We have another issue besides the access off El Cam; no Real and
Circulation in the parking 1et. ~e would like to see improved
circulation. We would like to s~e tw~ driveways, perhaps, coming in as
well is going out, an..j scrre identificatior. of this as being an ir.tegrated
site, That takes me to the next issue, which is signage.
At one point in the past ;.'hen another restaurant II/as leaking at this site.
ther~ was a proposal te haye a monument sign which would designate this
site as Dinah's Square. There would be an identification of the
restaurar.t, the hotel and this Poolside Restaurant tnat we have. It would
reduce the number of signs we need to have and ~ould also soTv~ a problem
that Dinah's Hotel has. ~e now have our sig~ here at the corner of
Tamarack Court and n Camino. People d"'iving by have looked at that sign.
taken a straight shot down visually, and have seen the Tamarack Executive
01/21/93
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$y'tes. lh's has not l~proved our busIness whatsoever. I m~st
ad:.nowlecge that befo'-e I represented D;~ahJs Hotel (and I hil~'e been a
residerlt o-f Palo Alto for 20 years). I assumed tnat iamarQck was Dinah's
Hotel be~ause of that visual con~ectjon.
If ~e co~ld have signage which would allDw us to identify this whole site
someho'N as being an i~tegrated hotel-restaurant site (ai'ld I don't want to
refer to private cov;:na.["l·~s ar.d easemel'1ts I as they are .... ery confusing).
th~j have caus2d problems in the past, a~d I am trying to come ~p ~ith a
business solution here. Hie covenants req' .. dre mutual agreem~nt on any
signage, but I am not bringing that up beca~se I thi~k the city's benefit,
Housto~/s benefit and the not~l's be~efit all lie in ~aving some uniform
signage which wouTd allow people to C01!ie 4nto this area, knowing all the
di ff!:rent servic-es that -are pro .... ided U,ere.
The park.ing situation --there was an alternate plan preserlted. There "'as
one --Kcuston's proposal with the pat·io, one without the patio, and that
is affe'Cted by the number of parking spaces they can have. If we couid
somehow coordinate our parklf1g. I think we could incr2a:;;e the number of
parking spaces available to Houston's. As 1 was just explaining in a
ff~e-minute conversation I had with Mr. Goode, Palo Altans aTl love
outdQor dining. If we could' actually ~ave that patio dining .:!nd increase
;t, I think it would be to the benefit of Houston's Palo Alto and Dinah's
Hotel because we fore~ee a great number of our guests USing Houston's.
There has got to be a ~ore be~eficial way ~f setting ~p th~ parking so
that the Circulation is benefited and the nu~ber of spaces is increased.
We halle forty feet aiong the back of this site wTlich giVes us access tn
Wilkie Way. One of t~e proposals t~at we would like to discuss ~;th
Houston's is. all{!wing some parking on WiH:.ie ",'ay, whelher that be va1et
parkin~ or employee parking, somet~;ng of that sort. Again, I am not
saying use Wilkie, but I am saying, use tne 40 ~eet we have along here to
have some of the emplQyees park th~re. just as an example. I don't know
if that is going to work for HDusto~'s. ! have not had an opportunity to
talk to them, but that 1s a poss~b'lity we would like to explore.
The air contiitioning and furnace exhausts an~ fireplace exh&u~ts are
another issue for us. I hal,le not had the opportunity to lO'JK at the staff
report, but we are conce-I'ned that they not put any noise-producing
ex~austs towards the reJr of the b'Jilding, which wouid impact the hote1.
If ~nii.t is something the Architectural Re\,o'iew Board could also address, we
WQuld appreciate it.
To sum up, essentially wliat we are l{loldng fer is some integrated way of
handling this entire site to benefit both partre-s. We have been somewhat
distracted in dealing ~ith the lot split. We have not paid enough
attentiDn to what has been going on here. We would like to remedy that.
Obliiously we would like to ha',Ie €'~'er.Ything res.olved at the same time, but
we do not thinK that is fair. \l.!e feel that Hou5tM's deserves to have our
athntion directed to this plan and resolve that. It certainly wou1d take
care of things by not having that lot split and having some more open
space and lots of parking there. So what we would like to s~~ is a
harmonious resolution of both relationships, restaurant to ~otel and hotel
to restaurant, and not be "that motel behind Houston's." Thank you.
Ray Handley;
of the same.
Good morning. We are familiar wlth edcn other at this stage
r just w~nt to say that we are here in the spirit of
cooper~tion> unlike on th~ last item. We really think that Houston's
seems to be an operation as beneficial to the area as Dinah's Shack has
been for many, many years. I hope that we: can di-;.cuss this prob1em of
identity and new we can biend it so Hat th2 Dubl ic 1S best served, as
well as owrse1vi!!i and Houston's. That's it. ir,ank you very mud.
One quest1or'l, Tom. Where drJ you sail?
Mr. Hise: don't.
Mr. Hand'.U: 'Well, JOU shoL1ld because you pay attent,'on to where the ... i;'1d
comes from.
larrv_nAl!fmuth: i am ~ trustee of a trust, the John H. Itickey Tn:st. The
property is own~d by a partnersniJ: called the Oinah1s Tamarack Partners.
They own all of this land, and we are familiar writh each other as we have
been here many times. ! nave cnly one co~ment to make. This is Mr.
Halidley's map. Their access is Ilia this easement and ilia this easement
and this drive cut. Tney have no 1egal access across our ~roperty. As
you can tel"i ~.Y their (J"~l'1 map of this, the"~ is no legal access, To the
p.xter.t that Annette suggested they have legal access here, requiring you
to maintain these curb cuts, I would take ~ssue ~ith th2t. I don't th'nk
it is a ieg21 issue we need to debate here, but this fs their easement,
that is their easement~ and thfs was a proposal that we had made to the
hotel, trying to tie trlese togeth<2r. Untii today, we have nat been ab1e
to get their attention on this project. There are other covenants and
agreements that mayor may nDt bi! enforceabl€ dealing with the t1oustOI'!'S
restaurant site. What \lie CQuid build or not build he!'"e. We are complying
with these, even though OinahTs Tamarack Partners does not belleve they
are enforceable. But they do not 1fwolve any actess.
Mr. Hise: On this site pl~n, now is this easeme~t recognized?
Mr. AufmtJih: It rer..ains in place. The prob',em witi'. this easement is that
th€re is no curb cut here. We have no intention of interfering with
that. Jle are certainly not going to stand out there and poHce p€ople who
COffie in this parking lot and say, if yew <Ire going to Dinah's Hotel, you
must go out and CQme in via T~marack Court. ke ~ave rlever done that. and
as a practical matter, an of these drive~ays have been used by Tamarack
Court Apartment people and by the hotel people and by t~e restaurant
pe~ple. There may be all sorts of prescriptive e~sements that exist and
do not exist that somebody couid enforce hll/. I am nGt making a statement
on that. 1 am saying that in terms of the doc~mented cover-,ants or
recorded easements, they are r€corded on this map, except for this one,
which is a proposal from us.
Mr. Hi __ ~: what J was looking fol'" was your legal opinion. What is the
nature of that easement that runs along Tarr.aratk Court?
Mr. Aufm~..1h: That is a nonexclusive easement for ingress/egress. But as
a practical matter? lt is difficult to ingress or egress, since ther~ are
signs th€re, and there ;s nO curb cut. It is my i.mdersti!!'lding from the
tity and from CalTr3ns that you cDuld never get apprc~a' of a curb cut at
t~e corner of Tamarack Court.
&.:.... Hise: So you have a legal easement, but as a practical matter, it ~s
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probably not very f~nctional.
Mr" Aufmuth: We have never intr:.;rfered ""Hh t~eir ~Iotel guests entering
throug~ here, eve~ though technIcally there is ~o easement here. Purely
le~a'ly, there is nD access to that property. That,s one of the reaso~s
we had proposed this easement as a solution !o try and tie this stuff
together so there would be c1 ear ac.:ess.
~r. Hise: So i~ fact, the vertical easement that is shown on that map
d{les not e)(ist?
Mr. Aufmuth: No, that one dnes not ex; st. From here to here, it does not
2xist. This "as a Pl'opcsa1 that llie have made to Ods property owner,
Ms. Maser: Does Houston's recognize that in a ~ra~tical sense, people
~ill be coming in via the one curb cut that is proposed in order to get to
the nffic:e?
Mr. Goode: Yes. Houston's has discussed this ad nauseum, We-recognize
that there w411 always be cross traffic nere.
~s, ~a5er: You are willing to accept that?
Mr. Goode: ,'es~ we understand that historical1,yl it 11".5 aha:ys been that
way. We have watched the lot and ...... e ~aye Seen n.ow it is being used. The
restaurant business at the hotel is largely mornir,g breakfast business.
People parking o~ that lot for our operation in the mor~ipg is no
problem. We do not open until 11:30 a.m and we ha ..... e no problem with
that. Any other tlme~ ..... e are not going to be {Jut there po1icing the lot,
Hot to dwell on easements~ but for clarification, is the easement along
Tamarack Court existing? (Yes) The vertical one is not there at all. and
the horizontal one at the top of the p~ge~ the ten feet north of the
property line is Here. South of the pr{lperty line is aha existing. The
idea was to create a 20-foot easement that wou',d enci rcl e OL:t restaurant
and give complete c1rculation iroun~ it. None of that has come to
fruition yet, but yes. Hu'.JstoJ'1i S is ('open to maif1taining the status qLIe in
the parking let.
M~. Lyzwa~ Is that parking easement being used?
tlr. Goode; Yes. !t goes al.?ng witn the curb c\.Jt tnat is existing.
~lyz\ola: C(l,"ld you tell me ~hat per~entage of your ingress/egress
occurs here 'w'ersus <lown her-e?
Ms. Bia]~: The iT'lgress/egress of hotel re5id€nts en the other-side {If
Dinah's Shack? rt is hard tc tell, but prob~bly less than 10 Dercent is
my guess.
Mr. lyzwa; Could you take me tilrough a path that 90 percent of your
guests use?
Ms. Bialson: I would say that 90 percent come in across this driveway.
There; s a drive"ay here that; s t~e most adjacent to Tamarack Court.
That is the access that most hotel people use. r will ask Jerry Matters,
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the hotel manager, to correct me if 1 am wrong .
.ML._~: Please exphirl further. r"'ey come trlrough here. they go up to
your office, they get a rocn; issigr;rnerlt, and t~el1 w~at ha,e.pens?
fu4 Sialson; They 3.re generally pad:; .. ~d near their room. You can see tha.t
we have parking along the sfde here. They m~y take this drive~ay here and
park or anywhere along this area. 'We have some additional paril.ing a.long
the back.
Mr. lyzwa: And where do the" ',eave?
Ms. Billson: 1 assume that they ledve tne. same way. Jerry, plea~e
correct me if 1 am wrong. Some people rray leave up here, but my guess is
that they probably c{Jme down here. One commeni:., if I <:Duld_ I do T1{)t
want to get lntc a discussion of legalities, as I am not a ljtigation
ccuns~l, and there is litigation going an about these covenants. The
agreements that were created to pro'Jide fol'" a right-or-way bought Dinah~s
Hotel four cverall driveways. These are driveways right here that we
have.
Mr_ ,A,ufmuth: Nobody has measured traffic. but I thin,\:, .You need to look. at
thls. as twa different stages of eX,istence. When Dinah's Shack. was a
restaurant, it was a r!lativeJy popular restaurant. We did not
necessarily make money, but it was a popvlar restaurant. At 1unch lnd
dlnner, this parking lot was full. Many of you have been there, and 1 am
not telling you somethj~g you don't know. When this parking lot is full,
the normal traffic flow and the natural flo~, particularly since the
si9~age is here, a$ Annette has pointed Dut, is to '~me up Tawarack Court
and go ~,n here. 1 suspect that Ray Han,jle,), would agree that when Dinah's
was an operating restaurant. the majority of traffic flow came up Tamarack.
COurt and went into ~ere. Dir.a~·s is ~ow closed] and Mr. Handley has
restrfped the parking lot and has painted two huge white arrows in our
driveway~ both pointing in this direction:. r have no question, at this
stage. that that is something of an enticement 7 since there is nothing
here. There is nGbody parked here, and now the r!iajority of traffic. floills
here. I suspect th~t if you unpainted those areas and parkea cars thel'e,
the major1ty of the traffic would go here. I think the bottom line is
that (1) we have offered to try and tie t!<ese tcget!l~r; (2) Mr. Handley's
business 7 g::lud or bad> has not mater; a1 :.)' changed when we were an
operating restaurant and the majority of the traffic came in her~ versus
comlng in here. '(au will get your custoMers. I bel ie .... e, that 90 percent
of them drive in off the street because they see they can get into the
building Quicker.
Ms. Biaison: We find that ",cst people who see the mOl1umer.t
it and do turn in even before we hact the arrows here. Most
do not come in during the busy dinner hour anj lunch hcur.
havrng lunch and dinner the~selY2s.
sign here pass
hotel guests
They are
Mr. Hise;
easements
according
work?
have some Questions for the applicant not related to
~r the site plan, pei se. Regarding the trash a~d service yard,
to your schematic p'ran, COL:ld you show me how you intend that to
Mr. la_~gford: 1he trash and service yard is back here. Ld me say one
01/11/93
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thing before I show it to you. OiJT'" star1dard procedure for trash
enc10sures is inside the building with a met~1, rclllJP doo!". YOL: tan see
it ill the model mucn b2tter. Here is the nort~ e~eifation ifiitn the metel
rollup door. I WD'J1d say the wall is II or 13 feet high, so it 'w'irtually
looks like it is an enclosed part of th~ building, ~itn the sam~ building
materials.
Hr. Hise: And ~cc€ss to that 15 ~ctually to the north?
Mr. Lancford: Yes. Presum&bly the ~ra5h collectors ~ould come in throu~h
this easement, and tUrn into this drlveway where t~ere is turnaround
space. The trucks Simply pull in, get the cans, and back out. ~e are
currently massaging this floor plan, because we new understand t~e f~11
scope of recycling. etc. in the .:ity. we are enlarging this ramp to
accorm1'Odate all of the recycling requiremeI1ts,
Mr. ~ise: Thank you. Is there a patio cover, or is it open area?
Mr-. langfo~d; 1t is Opi!T1 area. There is a box. a canopy of trees:. We
are proposH',g six trees for the uea, a type of tree that will be free of
lfmbs up to at least six or six-and-a-half feet, and hopefullYt lIrfith i
horizontal limb structure. B~t yes, it is open air.
Mr. H1se: Okay. And then what is the glazing material on yovr typical
windcw?
~r. langford: Clear, 1/4-inch or 3/8-inch being a. Yiind loading, tempered
g1 ass.
Mr. Hise: A11 windows are clear glass?
Mr. langford: Yes.
Ms. Maser: If th::re are no IflOie speakers or questions~ we w1il return
this item to the board for board comments.
Ms. DaR.9.ll: I think that cTear1y, t~;:.re are so~e legal iSSues t~at need
to be clarified. lhere are also some practiciil iS5:ues_ 1he operation
between the two sites tn:.at one does not see in a lot of COrM'rercial
proj~cts where sites are tied together with easements and past histories.
I hope that the applicant and the hot~l can work together on those
isSUeS.
Tn~ owners of the hotel had had a chance to talk to the apPllcant about
this project, s~ 1 am gO'jng to f,~cus my comments on the architecture and
site planning that tn~o1ves the ARB at this point.
I think: e .... eryone ~grees, as far as 1 C~rl te'rl, that the restaurar1t is in
an appropriate place. It is pretty much where the old restaurant was. I
think the one issu~ raised by staff was the orientation of the entry. 1
fee' comfortable li'ith the orie-ntatian of the entry to the parKing lot.
People wnl come from tne parKing lot as long as it is sigf1a1~ed somentlw
from E1 Camino Real, if you choose to dQ that. If you choose to put it. at
the cor~er. that wo~1d be fine, tJO, but I accept your solution to the
entry. r ha .... e no problem with trlat.
01/21/93
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r ... ,
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.",.
.----""-"'"'-~-""""'~~,~-...... , " .... _--
1 do have a problem ~it~ the slgn O~ the biJild~~g and the maLttills used.
! think that IIj'hat has happened ..... ith this building is that it has t .. 'u 'lery
fin;::.hed signs. and two signs .... he-re the quality of the building tends to
~top and ther-e are blank 'wa1~s. it loo~.s. like a building that f1as been
remcde~led, lH:.e a box, 'fI/hich has hJd two fapd~s embellis.hed. YOll are
starting lrIith a brar:d nelfll structure, and Y0i,.; n-eed to 100k .1t the builcing
as a wf101e that e.."oh~s from these materials.
I think the use of stone coulc be ~'ery lovely. think t~ere are a lot of
different sty1es and things happening r~ere, and you could loJk. at
simplifying the sty1e 1Jf the building and the materials to ccordinate
that. Right rom'\!, t~ere is ar. awful iot goir:g on with the building that
doesn't pull it togeUer. Irfhen yt)u look at the tot.3.1 design of the
building, I would look at the slgnage, too, as being a part of that
des'gn. Right now, it is s~rt of a standard cabinet sign w't~ tne logo
and colors th~t you have used !n the past. It really is not a part of the
huilding desig:1 itself.
So ! won't b~ supporting this project today, end wOuld support a
continuance to come back with a simp'lified desigr] coordinated \\lith tne
design of the building so that it work:; all the way around the building,
and coordinate the signage. r hope that when this project returns, you
wlll have had a cha~ce to talk with the owners of the hotel, and settle
whatever legal questions ther~ are and whatever you can do ir. the spirit
of cooperatior:. The hcte1 can beneh.t frum the restaurant, anc the
restaurant can b~nefit fror.: the hobl.
Ms. Mas. .. err: Next is Tom Hise.
Mr4 Hise: I agree \II~th some of Aino' s comments. From a pcsit;lIe
standpoint, r am supportive of the conceptual site plan. I think. that the
b~ilding location and orientation on the site to me seems to be well
thou9ht out. The funct"ional hyouts seem to work well. The general
maSSing of the building, ~'th the exceptlon of the north ele~at'on, seems
to be fine. But r have very streng concerns ebout the color and materials
palett@ anj some of the detail'ng.
I looked at this Hting, and 1 cai;::e LEp 'With at lez:s:t 14 different e-x-terior
materials. I see alumin>Jm siding, plaster uf two different colors, two
kinds of brick. one of them pa;nted, flagstone, glass, concrete shake
roofing, aluminum roofing, ca5t stone cornice, co~crete fiberglass molded
painted~ brick. molding~ copper gutters and chimney cap, brass awning
supports t two different styles of awnings in t~o different cOlors. wood
trellis that is painted, wood shutters that are natural stained, and then
some wood siding.
Mr. ty?wa: rt is an advertisement for Home Depot.
Mr. Hise: And this bothers me a lot. I think. I would be tolerably
supportive of this project today, with o~lj minor conditions, if there
were four or five materials here, and everything else was almost exactly
ll~e it is proposed. But fer these reasons, I don't think it is
ap~ropr1ate detailing and fenestration of this building~ and I ~on't
support it today. But I would support a continuance for deSign revision
or refi nement.
01/11/93
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,;;Z'l:
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The other t~o things that (a~le up are some of the issues arDu~d Dinah's
Hote1 and the sig~age. I think the sign'ge, as proposed, is excessive.
The two monument signs j feel wo~ld not be acceptable, neither the sign on
the nort~ ele~atjon or on the west elevation. I don't think I could
support either of t~em. If an ;;!ppropriat~ mt}nument sign '*is in place plus
iii. sign over the entry, Hat is tr.e direction in which! \frjould like to !.ee
you go. I do not see an)' wa)' possibh tn incorporate t~e Dinah's Hotel
circulation and visibility pr-oblelr.s ~nto )'OlIr plan. I think the proposed
site layout is as good ilS it can be for Dinah's, although I do net think
that is something this board s~ould be overly concerned about. That is
something to take into consideration, and r would like it much better if
the applicant and Dioah's were in agreemeDt here, but I personally dQ net
feel th~t it ~s an issue that reeds to be fixed with this proposal.
I think that Dinah's Hote1 a~cess ",ill eventually come off of Tamarack
Court, and like you say, if that parking lot were full, that is probably
what would happen. I am a 1 itt1e bit concerned, (and I may be mistaken
about this) but there seems to be an easement for sfgnage for Dinah's at
E1 Camin~ Real. Am r correct abo~t that? I do not see anything in this
proposal that has Dinah's Hotel signage in H. 1 would net support or
feel comfortable lII'ith voting on signage fer Houston's unle~s there I>!afe a
(omplete sign package-which ir.cluded the easement rights for Dinah's
Hotel, and whatever Dinah's Hotel was going to do by way of signage came
fONard at the same time. The total impact of signage on £1 Cami no Real
for both Dinah's Hotel and Houston's needs to be looked at. I would not
want to appro .... !:! a mC'r.Uiil€nt sign for Houston's and th-en have another
monument sign cerne for~ard for Dinah's ~otel, and not know where that
would be iDeated and have to deal \!iith it after the fact. From my point
of ViEW, Dinan's sign and Houston's sign should be pre~ent.ed as a package,
and 1 hope the board goes this 'Way, too. I feel strongly about that,
because I de not see any other way to get it coordinated that will ma~e us
happy and will be to the benefit of the city unle~s lt is coordinated up
front. That would be sometnin9 I would like to see the rest of the beard
address a~d ~ould liKe to see it taken into considerat10n when this
project returns. That 1S the e~tent of my comments.
Mr. lYl\lo'a: I have a ltttle bH to add'. would '1ery much like to echo
Thomas' comments, as wen as Air>o's. lrlahout going into repetitiofl again,
J think there are teo many signs on the build~ng itself. 1 ha .... e been
concerned about the monument 5~gns. I think that overall, your b~ildin9
is nicaly detailed, and nas ver." nice proportions, other than the t\lo'O
eT~vat1o~s to the north and the east, whi(h 1 think are less well designed
and thought out at this stage.
I am very. very concerned' about the access. The e.asEment has to be
enforced for Dinah's Hcte1, and they win either enter tnL'5i way or tll-ey
will enter thiS way. Then I would feei .... Hy comfortable \IIIitn the site
pian. I do not feel comfortable with Hlis particular site plan. and an
agreement that people will be ingressing and egressing from the hotel
here, and tr.en this is goin3 to be a j:larking lot, and then people will be
pulling in and out~ and there wj11 be de1iveries made. I think it ~s a
total hodgepodge: and it do~s not work. That has to be resolved. I think
it is critical to the site pla~; I think it is critical to the usage of
the restaurant, and I would like to see that addressed up front.
01(21/93
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Ms. Maser: I hllfe a so1utio!"l. for us. l€t's call this Dinah Ho.us.ton's
~estaurant. I agree witrr ev€rytMing that hH been said. Actually. from a
sa.fety standpoit1t, I like the elimin.ation af the curb cut at ttiis point.
because the farther away you can get f~'~m a corner, obviously the safer a
situation is. I think it is a mOre pDsitive solution to that.
I like the entry to th~ restaurant wner€' it is. I think it senes the
p-arking lot wen. Getting it away fic-m E1 Camir;o is. from a pedestrian
standpo~nt, a better locatio~. Obviously, from yaur description of how
tne plan functions, that is wnere tD~ entrance wants to be. You do get a
clear shot of that entry as you -drive north on El Camino. Ycu dQ see
essentially t'ne whole front h~ade. "There is no qlles.tion that peDple
driving north are gOirlg to know where that entrance is aild where the
restaurant is. Headlng south from t,:p north, 1 f~L!nd that having that
entranCE at the corner wou1d not have done much for me. You are going by
rather quicklY. You are not really as aware of the building ~ver there as
you head south, so I ~tron91y support where you hav~ the entrance. I see
that as a good SclutiDn.
I agree that 1 find all of these materials ~er1 diffiCUlt to put together
;1' my own mind and resol\1t!. I think they are materia1s of different
contexts --but glat10g with stone. I think it (o~ld ~orK nicel~ if
somehow, it got down to m~re of the essentia1s, and you piCK the materia1s
th~t you really want to express. As Tom said, you could dwell on ~ttn
four or five or six materiaJs~ rather than fourteen. ! 'liould have a very
hard time supporting that ilurninu~ parapet around the mechanical
equipment, as you h.ave sholfrln it. rt ; s uncl~ar to me, just from 100ldng
at the model, how m~ch of that you would s.ee as you drj ..... e by. but I would
guess that coming down from the north, especially if it is a bright
aluminum, it is going to be picked up by somebody. I dDn't think tiie site
llnes are going to obscure that, e\lef] thQugh the lower Wiin comes out some
distance beyond tnat.
I have had a very hal"d time with the colol" palette, just the fact that
there are so many differe:1t col~rs. 1i1 particu1ar? 1 have a very
difficult time with the brick color and the awning C0 1 0t"" I find it in
combination 'with the oat'k green to be deadly. As 1 understand it, tile
signage that is shown here is not realTy the cclor, the two plastic
pHlus up there. I find that frvrn a ccler stanopOlT,t, those are 'll'orkin1~
at odds from the rest of the design. So 1 thin~ t~at most of the
materia.ls and ('olors need far more study.
But 1 do think that the drawir-gs are. exql..llsHe, and I compliment you {In a
wonderful presentation. It is very clear and beautlfu11y drawn. I
support the removal of that one tr!!!! that lyr,n taTked about.
Ur,fortunately. my p~otogr<!phs do not show that tree. It is hidden by
another tree 1 but I can see that it lYIakes it very difficult to work arol.lnd
that tree if it remains. B~t 1 would go along with staff's
recommendations with regard to the rest of the trees.
Did you want to talk about the monu~ent sjg~Sj and have it come back as a
complete package? If that would be possible, even though Dinan's may not
be anticipating doing arlyti"ling about signage on that corner, I just wonder
if we can impose that condltion on Houston's wh2n Dinah's Hotel may net be
in agreement with it.
-':-~.>. .... ---.
01/21/93
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Mr. Gilliland: I would r.ave to check into that fwrther.
Ms. E1a1sor): Ioie would be agr€eClble to l'iorkirlg on that and coirlg it
together.
Mr. G.illiian.~: An.ytill'le you He agreeable to talking .... ·Hh each other, 'irle
are a1so.
Ms. Maser: Then we can go ahead a!H.l make that a condltion.
Mr. His;; In that regal"d, are yo'..! proposing tn remove that sign i;'1 your
schemc:? 1s the diagonal sign show:'1 on the sit~ plan 'in the corner-the
Dinah~s sign?
Mr. Goode: Y~s.
Mr. Hise:: So I was mistaken \IItlef'l I said th~re were two monument signs.
YDU on1y ~ave one monument sign and it is in front of )'our bui1din9. So
that may be a decision to corne up with.
Ms. Maser: But "e really do not need to include that as a condition, if
that is goi~g to stay there.
Mr~~: Unless they can corn~ to an agreewent ~here ~ouston's and
Dinah's are going to have that corner for a monument sign.
Ms. Maser: So if it is anticipated that that sign is going to (~ange to
includp. beth names, we \IIould want to set:' all of that signa.ge coming back
in one package so that we can make a~ informed decision about s19nage. So
if you would consider tnat now, rather than later.
Ms. 81a1son: We will meet right after this meeting to discuss it.
Mr. Goode: If it were consolidated in one monument sign, I wo1.l1d' not have
a monument sign in front of my resta;jrant.
Ms. Maser: 'We are not saying that. lie want to see everything coming baCK :n your proposal as a total package, a~d we ~ill take it from there. We
are not saying that you eouid not ha~e botn signs.
Mr. Goode: If ~e don't agree with what they want to do, why tie it to our
restaurant?
Ms. Maser: Al1 we are saying is, if you CQl'!le to an egreement about th1s
monument sign. an.j you dtH: i de to go and ch ange it, by 'Work i ng witn them,
then we would .ant to see your building signage and both of these coming
back ill at once 50 we ca~ assess them. If you do not agree ~ith them
ab~ut this p1an, then just come back ~ith the signs on the building and
this one sign up here. We 'Wili take that into consideration, and the
other one won't change.
Mr. Hise: Also, my concern was that I thought ycu "ere proposing two
monurnerft signs of your own, and then there \lias this easement for another
sign from Dinah~s. I was mistaker: about that. so some of my concerns a.e
taken (are of through this clarification.
Ol/2I/93
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~.
'I
i
·'f
I , -. ML...Maser: J '",~11 make a ~oticn an,j then come back to you for COll111o;!:nt
befcre we take a 'lotIO'. Js t"-ere ar.". 0ther discU5SiiJn before we \lote?
to'r. Hise: Yeo;;. If the applicant is agreeable to a cor.tinuanc:e, IloIol,;ld
propose a contiruance. If they 'Would 1 i"/:;e to na"Je 'the pr.oject denied so
they can appeiil it to the City Council. I 'Woul d propose a mot jor, for
denial.
~~. Maser; 1h.el'l let me. ask you this. I,lould yC'J 11ke tQ coro..ent Ort that'?
00 you understand the process here?
Mr. Goode: Can yeu explain the process?
Commissioner Carrasco: WClild you like to ]lave a continuance? If you (an
separate the motion, what I nave heard is that all of you agr'2e with the
site pl an and with t.he. tree:; as proposed. So you ,an s.eparate that out
and say that that wouTd be o~ay. so you car: disc:Jss the materials.
~~. Maser: We ~ill just concentrate on those things that are disturbing
us, then.
Mr, GQode: Conc~ntrate on the buiiding exterior.
Mono"!: Mr, I "zwa: 1 wculd mo'..-e for a continuance of this project: with
the understanding tnat the sitE-plan is correctly deSigned and acceptab12,
and that we are 5ti I J concerned about the architecture and designs that we
have mentioned. On tne baSis Qf t/"lat, we 'W,'Ju1d like to move on wlth the
continuance. Also the coTor palette.
Ms. Maser: Do you want us to get any more specific that that,
Mr. Gi 11 i1 and?
Mr. Gilliland: Well, the more direction yOl..! cafl gi'~e toO them, the more
helpful it will be.
Mi......-~_li~r:: Michael. you might elaborate.
Mr. tYlwa: The resolution of the ingress/egress, 1 H1ink, is 'lIery
important. We would enco~rage you to work very cTosely with the hotel in
back and try to resolve that issue ~efnre you return tc us.
Also, Thomas' and ~irlo's cQ!!".mer.ts were very ,~parta:lt, and we 'HOL\d like
you to faces on those, without repeating all of them, 'With regards to the
materials and with regards to tne signag:2 and the colcrs.
Ms. Weiss: Julie, do you want to adopt the staff recoiTlmendation for a
continuance and e~cl~de those that nave to do with the trees?
Ms. Maser: We do not want to include Item tl, relocation of the ~uildjng
entrance, because we are in agreement tnat that is okay where it 15. ~e
do want to adopt Item t2, jevie~ of materia1s and colors far compatibility
and authenticity.
Mr. Gilliland: I would add a phrase to that to reduce the n~rnber and
variety of materials, however you would phrase it.
01/11/93
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•
Ms. Haser: ~'es, ~ii'TI~lify the use :Jf materials and the amo'Jnt of different
materials t>eing employed tmder the current design. I would like to add
that to also coordinate sign colors with b~ildi~g colDrs.
Ms. DaRosa: Also design of the sig~s tn coordinate with the bUilding.
Ms. Maser; Maybe the signage stuff shou;d come as a s~parate condition
that we add. Also, a. re"'is~d parking plan.
Mr. Gil111and: lie need that. Jle also need ftem N, having to do .... ith the
site distance requirements.
Hr4 Hise: i el im~n3.led Items 1 and 6.
Ms. Maser: for some reason, we nevel'" did discuss
as I am concerned, they are fine wnere they are.
the rest of you haw you feel about that?
ML_ln){.!: I am comfortable with tnat.
bicycle racKs. As far
Could I informally ask
Ms. DaRosa: If they are visible frum t~e patio, 1 ·jo not feel comfortab1e _it, that.
~. Maser: I thlr1k ttiey are tH:r.1:rtd a wall. Staff is suggesting that they
be moved around closer to the entrance. which would make them even more
... isible.
Ms. DaR!:t~£.; It is Class One bicycle storage. J don't know how )'QU are
screenlng that, but it is visible from the patio, it would seem.
Mr. ~i se: It is a Class Two and Three whi en th-ey are talki ng about
Tocatin9~ which I think are normal bicycle racks. To. me, p~rsonall'y, they
w{luid be fine to the rear of the building, farther away from the pati~.
These Class T"o and Three racks, the way Hie (ode reads. some of them nee-:l
t<:l be closer to the entry. just t':l ccnfor:t: t~ the ordlnali~e. I think tllat
is w~at staff was getting at.
Mr. EliHland: That is what we were gett'lng at. Chss Twa and 'Three,
which are for casual IJse, not fer employees, need to be as close to the
entrance as handic'lp parking spaces or as cOr1'11enief';t, io:cording to the
wording ~n the ordinance.
Ms. Maser: Can anyone make exceptions to t~at?
Ms. Weiss: This is what the Transport~tiDn Division is stra~g1y
recommending to the planning staff.
Mr. Gilliland: r would have to lock at that. For example, under the
handicap regulations, we cannot make exceptjo~s. I ~ould have to check
and see if we can with bicycle parking.
Ms. Maser: Because 1 t~ink that wo~ld take away a let from the ambience
of the entry.
Mr. Gilliland: It may not be t~at we have to ~ut 311 of them there. But
01/21;93
-19-
staff is going to 'very strongly re-:Gl"'1me~~j tnat a rH.H~:ber of them be located
'oIery close to the fro~t coo,_
Ms. Maser: So we ",~n just keep that in there fDr now. Any modifications
to the parking layout? [None) l!len we ~il' delete Item ~5_
1 guess the rest of them can $t~y In ." details of mD~ument signs. We can
elaborate on that to have all signage return for a comprEhe~sive review,
including tre monument sign at the corner of Ta!f.araCK Court and £1 Camino
Real~ if that is to change to include Houston's name. ~e ~ould also like
to ha~e the sign colors coordinated with thp building colors and return
with the sign design as a campl~te package.
Ms. Weiss: I halle one question. On Item k8, Furthu design development
and detans on the trash and rec)'cl ir.g area, is the board ccmfortabTe .... ith
the rollup door that has been prese~t~d, and the functioning of that area?
Mr. Hj.-s~: Personally, r am, I think it has been -.. ell thought out and is
very sensiti~'e to the hotel use.
MS,-__ Maser: I am not certain about the tllrniT1g radius and if there are
cars parked in the area, if thidr tr~cks can maneuver. But 1 belie'ole they
prQbably can de so.
I think that the rol1up docr is in an obscure enough 1ocation that it is
not going to be directly visible from El Camino, so it is probably a good
location fo"( it. r h~'{e no personal problems with it.
Ms. Weiss: Then maybe ~e should delete that one.
Ms. Maser: Is everYOr'1e on the board in agreement with that? (Yes) Then
de 1 ete Item 18.
Ms. DaRgsa: On staff condition '9, because of the monument sign, 1n
general, the ARB is not very supportive of cabinet signs whlch occur
externally. So whe1 you ar~ designing the ~jgnage. r think the cabinet
sign will need modff1tation.
Ms. Maser: ~e have lDoked favorably JPon indj~iduallj llluminated
letters, backlit, etc. But interna11j illuminated cabinet signs are not
something that we prefer.
Mrt Goode~ We will respond to that,
Ms.~: Do we ha'o-'e a clear motion, Jim?
t!.!::.:.....!::!i5,.g: I wOlJld 1 ike to add one t~ir.g. if Michael feeT 5 comfortab1e
with it. That is that the exterior, s!,;rfilce~moLlnted ligMing fixtures
aTso be inc1ud~d ir. the p~ckage. There se~m to be a number of pictures
that are on the elevations but not on the renderings. I 0'0 not find
anything in my packet about them, so I would like to see those.
Ms DaRosa: I feel that it is really important to look at this building
as a whole, not only as embellished fa<;ades, as there are blank watls tha.t
a.re just stucco. J don't thin~ tr,ey need to be .as embellished, but they
ne.c;.d to look. like they are part of the same buiTding, and they are quite
01/11/93
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visible from the t1otel. Those si:Je'S Cir;: ql..:i te exp:sed.
~~; By Homas His€'. Now 1 would like tc !':ave the motion read bad so
we can nave disclJssion.
)Ire G11Jilil.M.: We have a mcticn for (ontinIJance, 'ortith a .~tatement that
the slte p13n as proposed is generally acceptable; specifical1J~ you wa~t
additional review of colors and materials for cOD1patlbility and
autne-nticity. as .... ·ell as: to simplify the nu'":!ber and types; a revised
parking plan is required to be submitted for Transportation revj~w
regard]n,; the van accessmellt space; r€lI'lse ti1e lar.cfscape p1a~ to meet the
site distance requirements fDr landscaping; r€location of Class land 3
bicycle racks doser to the customer entr,H~ce to the buildj~9j desig~atian
of two additional trees of 24-ir.ch bo~es or Targerj all signage t~ return
for a compr~hensi\le review) inc1ud1i1g the corner r110nument 5i9n, if the
parties agree, as well as details of the proposed monument sign; th~ board
expressed a pr-eFerence fo\'" not using internally illuminated cabinet S;9n5;
an additional cond~tion for information on the external l~ghts, including
wa11-mounted and parkin,; lot ligHs.
~. paRosa: ~hen you said tr.2 site plan is acceptab1e, are you referring
to the building layout and the orientation of the entry? Or the whole
parking layout as well?
Mr. lyzwa: r was referring to the site plan as seen in the site plan
draw; n9.
Ms. OaRosa~ So it inc1udes all of the parking and entrances.
Mr. tyz~a: With the caveat that the resolution to the ingress/egress to
the hotel W'ill be addressed successfulT.y. I am not in support of it as
shown, if we are going to be funnelif1g H.e ingress/egress throu9h here.
Ms. Maser: Hew do you propose tD ~e~p that fro~ happenin9?
11r_-"_~: Tl'1l1t ts .something th.e <l_ppl icant needs to lIddress with the
owners of the hctel, (or thej need t~ come: bllck and t~ll liS thllt they made
an attempt and it cannot be done, and that here is an alternate
il'1gress/~9ress phn. But I feel ver.y tJncomforhble witt, coming out and
saying I sJ,Jpport this site plan and thl2!J'1 alTow the ingress/egress tc go
through that area. r just don't think. it is a good soTuti.on. So I
per~onally could not support it.
Mr. Hi~: My feelings o~ that are that if ir. fact, there is an occaSional
car pulling in through their pdridng lot, the, were allowing it and were
not going to monitor it, and the actual proposal for access to Dinah's
Hotel is off of Tamarack {oelrt.
Mr. lyzwa: 1 would just lik~ to leave It ~t that. Simply let them
address and resolve this issue. I tnink it is 'Very important that this be
reso1ved, because there ~s a good amount of traffic that could potentially
occur to the hotel. The easements, as we S13)1f to1ay, are numerous, and I
would THe to see a sohtion to this problem while we are add~'e$sin9 the
restaurant.
~s. Maser: There i5 a motion and conditions. NDW is the time for
01/11/93
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co,"flillen";.s frul!'o the appl i-:ant .on thi-s motion.
~JiQode: supper!. the motion. I woul<;1 u~rtainly like to see t~e site
p1an appro,'2d as. is. ~'e wiil work l\'it" Mr. Kandlej and his peopie to see
if there is some common ground to mi'lke SI..ire that e~'Eryone is happy with
the acce~s in there <if1d the signage situation. We wi 11 be talking 'With
them on that. We would like to s~e the site plan approved today, with the
conditions to de with the embellish~ents and th~ color palette and those
things ~ith regard to the building.
I want to say one U:ing about the materials and the quantity of them. You
c~unte6 14 items on the bulld!ng. We certainly had had dfscussions with
staff and talked abo:;t the ;'lumber cf e"lerTJertts her-e. ¥C!U mentioned things
like br~ss and wood ~~ding. Maybe our drawings are at fault, but I am not
aW',Hl!" of any \Io'ood siding on the br.!i1ding. There is \IoJc'Od trim on the
~indaws, but not wood siding. As for brass, there is a door handle on the
front door, so I guess the one thing I need to u~derstand is, whe~ you
talk about m~terials an the buildi~g, I ~ould assume t~at it would be a
i1lajor material 1 i ke the stO!'H! and the stucco and the brick. as being three
mat~rials. The cornIce I could see as a fcurt~; and the roofing would be
a fifth. The roofing cannot be what is on the sides of the building. 50
it is somet~ing else. We can certa1~ly revisit the screening of tMe
equipment on the roof and see if at least the color of that can be
changed. The reason this m~terial ~as chose~ was that I think you would
agr~e that you want the screen to just go a~ay. !t is difficult to pick a
color and' a mat~rial to hide that eqUipment. It is a mass that is up
there that does. i1Gt wish to g{l a""",ay. On a day like today, t.1at color
would take it away. On a blue sky day. it is going to sho\o\l up. What do
YOu do about the color? You have to pick a coTor that is go~ng to .... ork.
so we \IIill revisit that and -COIl1€ up with what we think will work.
If you start counting every item that is on the building, there are Jots
of materials, if you get down to door handles.
Mr. Hise: I actually w~sn't. Staff told m€ there is a material here that
is wood siding rigM here at your e:1try that is painted brOI<\"\\.
Mr. Goode: That is a planter ins~de t~e door. It may be clay and it rn~y
be ,,·ood. I am not sure.
Mr. Hise: J believe what r ~as g~tting ~t were the brass poles holding up
that frent awning. So you have copper, and you ha~e galvanized metal, and
you have brass. You h~"ve a number of different Kiilds of metal there. You
would have a stronger design if you could choose one ~etal that wo~ld do
all of those, for instance. The same way with accent materials. What 1
would like to have seen was, ,f you had a plaster building of two colors,
and then if you had an accent material, perhaps brick or stone, but not
two kinds of brick and stone. That bot~t?rs rile. So that is whElt I am
going for. You have probably eight or ten predominant materials there.
even if you don't look at some of the minor materials.
~ Goode; ~e will make sure we are prese~ting it more c1early too.
because as far as r know, there is only one kind of br1ck there, the
painted brick at the entry element, and a 1 ittTe bit of br-ick --
Ms. Maser: I think .... t"1at Term is saying is that two different types of
01/21/93
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masonry may be too much, using stone ;:~:j bricrc
~QQde: I under$tand that. ~'hen we present it again, 'Nt:': will make
sure it is exactly ~hat we hav~ there.
Mr. I-I'rS~: I think Hie fact thiit it is not
the number of materials you arf u~in9· It
understanding all that is going en there.
draw; ngs.
!1r:..=.....Good~: Thank yOl.'.
quite clear is an i~dication of
is a sense that we ar~ ~,ot
You ha\le made some very nice
On the £igl1age issu~, aga~n they arE' obviously not cl€ar enough. They are
not a box sign ~ith c~tout ietters backlit with plastic. Our signs are
typic~11y individual letters mounted on the front wall. In the case of
the west el evat ion~ there \oi(;~l d be a stucco panel or a stone panel, that
type of panel behind the sign with individual lett2rs mounted off the face
of that which are-fr:Jnt-faced in red and back-faced '.1'\ thE: amber co, or so
tnat you have a red gl'Jw 11'1 the front and an amber or. the sides. The
intensity of the ph.x;g:a~s is controlled with Hie shading of the ;.lex {lr
the possibility of buildir.g the tra~sform€r to not be a very bright red
but mnre of a rich red, since it is so row to the-ground here. But it is
not a box sign.
The color panel we \IIill certainly 2;d1ress. ~~sr, I hold some chrity on
that. Yau corrrnented that you did not like the Od~f color \IIIith the green.
Ms. Mase;: That was my comment. We are not trying to design the
building. We don't want to do that. \ij€ just feel there is too much going
on here in terms of color and materials usage, and it needs
simpl 'fication.
Mr. Goode: As regards bike racks, we would likE to sef them left wh€r~
they are. we wouid rather not see any nl..!mber of btcycies parked at the
front door as you walk t:p from the parking lot. "'Ie believe Uat they are
appr('JCi0l,ately 20 feet to the right. We lII'oLold be "pen to discussing
possible signage to the right of the door down lo~ to indicate bicycles.
Ms. Maser: Yau will ha~e to work with ~taff on that, because apparently
there are some <oncerns.
Mr. GQod€; As r~gards the lighting, a lighting packa9~ was in the package
we submitted 1 so 1 do not know why you have not seen it.
Ms. Maser: Thfn you may just
i~formatioM for us to digest.
come back.
want to include it again. Thjs is a lot of
Include it again in your conditions that
Mi'. Gil.l..1..l.in.Q: Madam Chairman, with regard tQ Condition II regarding the
site plan. r wou1d li~e to repeat the l'i.arding that I ~m going to use and
see if it is acceptabl~ to the board. "The site plan is generally
acceptable in terms of bunding orientation, parking laycut, landscaped
areas af'1d driveway location. A caveat is aaded that the appl icant and
adjacent property awner should address ingress/egress through the parking
lot to Dinah's Hote 1 .•
OJ/1J/93
-23 -
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Mr. Lyzw~: r WDltld ~ot U$e tile ",'ord "throl1gh,~ Th€1 !1€ed to addr€s! the
~r1gress/e9ress to the n<Jtel.
~t'. h')S_~: My (J111j concern is that I am not s.ure th~s:e twa parties are
gOing to work that out. I am asking myself, what if they d~ not work that
out?
Mr. J..:a.u; That is not for us to concern ounehes,
~1iaser: tet's see ~ow it progresses.
Mr. i):'zwa: I agree ~Hn you, but we need to l'2t these thirJgs stand'.
Ms. M.it~: it is an issue we ha~'e raised, and we need to have a. response to it.
MOTION PASSES: Ms. M.,.r:
That passes unaniMously.
All thDse in favor, say Aye?
Thaf1k you for coming.
01/21/93
-<4-
All opposed?
-,,;.
Houston's Restaurant
~269 £1 Camino Real
ARCH [1tCTU~~.L REV I [', BOARD HEAR ING
Ma:"ch 4, 1993
92-ARB-179
91-fIA-35
Ms. Mall: "The next item is 4259 £1 Camino Rea1. Houston's Rest~urant.
revised exterior fa~ade desi9n, rr:at€ria1 s ilnd color-s to addre:iS prev10us
ARB C\.lrmrents for a new resta'Jrant.
Ms. Weiss: We ha .... e it letter hom Bob HDSS since l'1e 'Was unab1e to remain
at the ... t;n9 today.
Ms. Maser: Are there additiona1 staff comments? (Ncn.e) Are there board
questions of the stllff? {~ofle) Is this a \ir\nor presentatic.n1
Mr. G,11iland: Actua11y. this is a returnir.g, maj~r project, so 1t '5
still considered to be major, y~u ha~e not approved the project, wMereas
~n the case of the one before thl). it waS an &pproved project.
Ms. Maser:
YOL!r name?
Whoever is presenting, would you please step forward and give
Vou nave tell minutes.
Allen Goooe. Houston R~presenta.t ive: There-ar.e reai 1,)1 two; ssues from thi!
prew1o~s meeting. You maj remember that there were certainly some things
that we ~id to the building. based on recommendations and suggestions that
you Rlide~ We ha\,/e ~hanged the buildil1g, and we .. ill get to that in a
minute.
1'he first thing I want to touch en. nO'l'lle\'er, are the tCrm1ents that were
made ~ith regard to circulatiQn in the parking lot. In generil, t~ere was
approwa1 of cur site plan, b~t there were CQmments from the owner of
Dinah's Hctel. whicn is behind the sit~. Tnere was i request frnm the
boa.rd trat 'Me meet t.lith. him and attempt to reach a compromise and try to
satisfy everybody's requirements. That meeting took place on Januarj 21. r met with Mr. Handley all that afternDor ~bout options that could be
don~. Over t~e next tWD-or three-day period, we developed some options.
a.nd I responded to Mr. Randley )ol'ith a letter o'.ltHning some things. t,hat we
co~ld dO f given the parameters of re~traints on the lot. in that the lot
in front Qf t~e hotel i~ not his prDperty and there were snme things. that
he wanted t.a do that we just cannot do, as we do not hav! the right to do
them. It is not our ~rcperti, either. we are the potential lessor of the
prop~rty .
1 have copies of tne letter we sent to Hr. Handley, outl ;rdng what we are
dOing. I will briefly describe them. What I sent to hinl w~~ a letter
tiescribifl9 'lfihat \tie are going to do, includ'ing photl)gra?h~ tak.en of street
visibility ~iewpo;nts from E1 Camino Real, 5ho~;ng that the existing vlew
torri~ors. from where you now turn ~nto driveways and from the cor~@r of
Tamarack and El Camino Real, we were actually loosening up those view
corridors, in my opinion. Th£re are existing trees in the parking lot, a
couple of which we will be removing.
BaSically, the discussion we had with Mr. Handley is that there are three
existing driveways ~ut there, One is very close to the intersection~ one
03/04/93
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....
is right in front of our building, and originally we w~re proposing a
drhtewaj that went straight out here. There is an eXisti:'lg dr;"'eway cut
right next to the big radio tower. If you look at the photographs J ha~e
taken, the!;! t\lo'O trees are €xistl!1g, and there are two nlOre here. Ti1is is
his office bunding, The ~iew back to the sigrFage on tn~ office buiidir"g
is a direct shot through here. When you turn into the driveway, that is
t.he way H e)',ists now. What we di.d was to f'T1o'~e the driveway o ... ·er
apprcximately ten feel as a directior.al r.~eanS. There .... as a corrcein about
traffic coming in, 1n f)'ont of our re~tal.Jnn:t tl) go back. to the ~otE'l.
although they c~rtainly have tne Tamarack Court ~ntrance to get in. We
propose putting the directional sign right there, indicating hot!l
registration ahead. \!lith an arrow. That \/fay. peop',e who do t.urn in here
could go eithe~ way to go back to the hotel office, I beli~ve Mr.
Handley's representatives are here ar.d will offer their opirdon as to how
they saw this . .My urfderstanding Df U'ds prl'sentaticf'l to Mr. l1ar:-dley \lias
that it WlS approved and he agreed that the view corridor was maintained.
One Qther point I made to him was that in the las.t meeting, he 'Wanted the
monument sign to be moved up to this drive~ay cut, The owner of t~is
property is not in agr~emen:t IWith that. This monumer,t s~gr. for the hotel
is currently considered to be th€ Tamarack COIJrt monument sign I and it is
in an ingre5s/egress easement that Mr. Handley has a right to, so it
remains there. One point I made to him \/lias tnat thE sign would not go
here. Th is 1 andscap ; ng \IIOU 1 d h a. ve to in fill on tfie corner, thereby los i ng
the view corridor that ~e now has through here, which 0.150 shows in the
photographs I took.
So I just said all of this to indicate that we did meet, we ha~e discussed
it, and this is the compromise ~e came up with. I ~ill defer to Mr.
Handley's representatiye~ to speak further on their opinions on it. This
is what we ha'v'E done.
Ms. Maser: Would you CiJntiroue for a few min\Jtes and review your building
modlficatlons?
Mr. boode: The main comments frorTl staff were adr,eflUc. The coT or
palette was not acceptable. ~hat we did was t~at the original drawing had
stucco, stone aM' brick at the entrj. The .ertry ele,Tlent 'Was here. \tie
snorten.cd the rmtr,)' elem':;r-.t. There alsc ' .... ere five signs on the bullding.
We IlOilo' have one monument sign and one wall sign faCing E1 Camino Real. We
l\Jwe-red theentry fa~ade and maintained the canopy for the identity of the
buildi~g. We put two trees on either side of the front door 2nd increased
aii of these trees to 48-inch-boxed size trees. ~e wanted an ill'Vrlediate
impact of nice trees in this pat1c area. W@ also added a couple of light
fixtures by Arroyo Craftsmen. There win be sconces on either side of the
front door, and lights of sjmila~ d~)ign to go around tne patio.
We revised the awning. It "'a'J. a mustard color \!With green stripes. The
comments were negative about having a two-tone striped ewning, so ~e
changed it to a solid green awning. n.e .. alTs of the stucco and brick
were aTso this mustard color, t~e sa~e as the stripe in the awning. what
Ife have come back witn in the paTette is actually three COlors. This is
the one we prefer. anamite. The staff r!!commendation was that they
preferred this, and t~at is ~ow eV~I·ything 1s an'anged. We submit these
other two colors as alternates,
03/C4/93
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Prohably the last main element is the roof scraen. We, Houston's and
arc~jtects. still believE t~at the roof screen is a mechanical part of the
~ack en~ cf t~e kitchen. T~ese elewations did not keep it as the gr3y
ITIetal, horizontal siding l'J'JK. My opinion is t~at it makes th~ back end
of the bui1ding seem fi"e feet taller th;m it would be if it were treated
more 1 ike a mechanical structure. Out 1\1".' are open to the conncilts from
the board on that.
Mr. lvzwa: Would )'ou repeat that again. about the roof screen?
Mr.......Goo~: This r'enderi~g ;s dra~~ as the metal scr€en, and there is til
sample of the met.al on the brJard. It is horizontal, la~·siding type to
gSve a horizontal line to ~elp lower the profile of the buildlng. ThiS is
the stucco and cast stone and concrete cap~tal.
There is some timber trellis ~ork around the building. The idea was to
give it the mahogany redw~od finish.
M.s.. Maser: 'W·nere does His go?
M.r..... .. Goode: There ~re tre 1,lises in. front of the patio area. There are
also trellis projections that oc~ur at th~ corner of the b~ilding. ~e
ha~e also added trellises. One of the last comments at the m~eting was
that this was a fairly blank wall wtth no landsc.aping or. it. We added a
trelliS there facing Dinah's Hotel. At ti'1e northern exposure. we he'll!
added the sh~tter detal1 to simujate windows as though they are shuttered
over and added this tr€lTis detail. This is where the siding was on the
previolis desig~. w~ added the 11'001 dela"tl. BasicaTlj this trellis 100k
circles the whol~ bui1ding, which it did not do before. This is a sample
of the cast c.oncrete coping at the top of the wall.
Ms. Ma.ser: Would it be the .same coping at the top of the parapet?
~r. Goode: If the para~et were stucc~, yes.
Mr. Hise: Is Hat tv be left natural, or painted?
Mr. -Goode: It is to be hit ni!tural. CUr" fceli'1g is that it It!i~rks well
~ith that anamite color and ~ith the stone. Here is the stone sample.
Also in the ele~ations, it may be mor'2 't'isib1e. We are .slill considering
mvre of a massing model, beca~se tht;' colors are still not q'Jite right.
The roof tile is a greener roof tile than that sample. It comes in a
sli9ht range. It generally blooms out to a green-tone roof.
~ .... Mast!r; Thank you for your presentation. Are there board questions?
Mr. !yz~."~: Just to make ~t dear, t!iis rencering is the rendition of the
latest scheme. Is that what you previously £howed?
Mr. Goo~: That is correct.
Mr. Lyzw3.: My question is, here )'ou arE showing a very interesting cornsr
detail Hat you have changed. (ar. you ~ell me ho'.ll that 'Works?
Mr. Goode: W~ wanted to get the profila of the building down lower. So
03/04/93
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.~,.;:
•
1 ,
i
I
~
I
we lowered the entry element. we just took the existing sh~pe the way it
was on the previou3 plan and squared it arcund. But it didn't look ~ery
good. We feH it needed a corner co1umn almost prOjection detail. I am
not s~re of the rignt terminology, but it was to make it look mare like a
corner co1umn. It looked Letter. We also beefed up tt'1e entry element.
It has about four mcr€ inches of cast sto~e than the re~t of the building
does. It just helped accentuate that it was more of a Major element, but
it was not is majer as it was b~fore.
~~lyzwa: About tne mechanic.al equipment screen~ one is thB slotted one
which is of metal, and t"e one to the Teft WOI..!'d be cement plaster?
Mr. Goode: Yes.
Hr. Lyzwa: And the~ that shows the same type of a cap t~at you are showing here on the building?
Mr. Goode: Yes, it does.
Mr. ~: And you ~ould repeat that on the mechanical equiplTl€'nt screen?
Mr. Goode: Yes.
Mr. lyzwa: Since it is stucco, I assume you would have some vertical
expansion joints in it, as well?
Mr~ Good~: Yes.
~r. lyzwa: Like tnree·quarters of an inch, or something?
Mr. GO:Jde: Yes.
Mr. Lyzwa: And you have not changed anyt~ing in reference to your
skylight? An of that still remains as described initially?
Mr. Goode: The metal on that curving piece of roof ~e are proposing to be
this finish here. It is a fairTy Jaw place here with a b{ll$tering t)"llSS
inside. That is: the gray metal. ~e stud "ith Hat as there were
com;ents at the last meeting and some discussion after we left about being
a metal roof IJerSU5 jUH a np sheet type of roof. We feH that from a
distance it is barely IJisible. The top crown of that is gOing to be out of metal.
Mr. Hise: 15 that the original color that you proposed?
.Mr...........G~ood~: Yes.
Mr. Hise: I thought it was an 21uminum anOdized.
Mr. Goode: It was galvanized aluminum. It was only for the screen.
Mr._Hise: I thought it 'Was for that, too.
f-Is. Ma~er: Po.ny Questicns of the ap~licant?
Ms. ~ilson: 00 they feel that thls metal rocf or skylight would be
Ol/04/9l
-4 -
~isible from t~e street or not? [t doesn't look like it is visible here
in the rende~ing.
Mr. Goode: In the direct elevation, it crowns up above the coping about a
foot-and-a-ha 1 f. From l~e El Ca~ino Real fro:it of the building, it sets
bac.k. neariy eight feet. Hie front bay, is a traditional bolstering. has ~
s10ped front bay to it, so the orofile is sloping towards E1 Camino Real.
In real ity. from approximately two blocks away .;s you apP1"'oacn the
huilding, you would see about the top one foot of the crown.
Ms. Wilson: S~ do you feel t~~t this color, what is the name of it?
Mr. Goode; Anamite.
Ms. Wilson: Is it 100king m~ch greener in thIs room than it really is1
Mr. GOQde: I think the fluorescent light does a lot to it. It certainly
has 2 green to~e. The orig1nal thinking on 't ~as that we wanted a
building that was beige with a littlE bit of a ~reen tint to it. This is
what W~ think this has.
Ms. Wilson; This is a r-ough rOom for colors.
Ms, Maser: I have no questior.s. Let me begin the public hearIng by
reading the 1 etter frem Bob Moss. "Dear ARB Members and Staff: I
attended the ARB meeting today to speak o~ the proposal for 4269 El Camino
Real. but the length of the meeting makes it impractical forme. Please
accept these comments on behalf of the Barren Park Association. T~e
original de~i9n was presented to the Sarron Park Assoclaticn Executive
Corrmittee an-d condemned by c,l,l of us. Vou have our letter detainn9 cur
object1ons, The revised design "as not submitted (lr discussed witI'! the
Barrorl Park. Association. Afte:r Tuoking at the drawings ar1d s.ketches, r
have these comments. It is an ~lTlpro'fernent, but net yet ful1y
satisfactory. In particular~ t;,~ roof treatment, colors and ma.terials
snould be uniform al1d match a~d blend with the fa~ade. In the alternate
north eleyat1on~ the corors and textures on the h·ft ilid rig~,t sides ar-e
too di fferent." Does that make sense tc anyone?
Mr. LyZwa; The right part of that flcrth ele·,'at~(ln., w~ere the number t·/fO
1S indicated, is too different from the left side.
Ms. Maser: Do you mean He stOi1-e work versus the stucco?
Mr. l'!lz'!rl.~: That is the comment Mr. Noss is makir,g.
Ms. Maser: ·T~e other north elevation roof is better. but the skylight on
the rigM side; s awkwar-d and out of seal e and concept. !n tr,e south
eleva.tion, the stone treatment o::t th-e right of the fire pit is weak."
What is he talking about there, lorraine?
Ms. 'Weiss: The fire pit 1S over tOltllards the light of the building.
Mr. His~: No the fire pit is over by the patiQ area.
Mr. Hise: It ~s not just a liltTe stont wall. It is a 10w stone wall
around the patiO with landscaping.
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Ms. Mas€(: He S~iS. ~rt should mirror the chimney treatment at the left
The flat lnd round awnings cTash. An awnings should be rOlj,lGed, with
those ov~r the ~jndows s~~l'er_ The landscaping plan is shown, but we
urge that an e:dsti~g mature and llealth)' treES be r2tained, ... ith ~arking
rp.desig;,ed to retain trees, if n2'(ess~ry_ Sorry I cannot stay fo:--this
item, but YOll ire all ha'Jing lets of fun, even liiithout my (orTnlents.'" That
is from Bob Moss_ le-t me pass it aro'.,md. \l,J e \ooIO\..:ld no .. lik~ to hear from
members of the public who may be pre-sent to spP'ak to this item_ You ha ... '~
fi ve mi Ilutes.
Annette 8idlson: I rep'!"'ese!'lt Dina~' s Hotel and the adjacent properly
owner. I want to begin by saying that we really appreci~te both the ARB
and Houston's sens'ti~itJ to our ccncerns and needs_ As Allen pointed
out, they do not own that IJarcel, and we don't want to be in a situation
where we hold hostage HQuston's restaurant ci~ring dis.putes. 'We are ha1'inl3
with the owner's property with regard to easements or with regard' to the
Tamarack subdivision. The main issues for us are three.
What Dinah's Hotel would ..... ant to ao:-complish for any development of this
parcel is threefo1d: Ha'{inJ a I,'tew corridor, which Allen address~d, and
has attempted to address in this p'~n: having reasonable access to the
hotel; and some identHication of the hotel, somethiilg other than the
hotel or motel behind th~ restauriant. Sit'lce ',ie a1i seem to be focused on
this, I will addres~ It.. 'lIIe had these two plans develcped by Royston
landscaping when we U.o'Jght W~ had an opportunity to possibT,v acquire this
parcel. Mr. A!Jfmuth does. not feel !Ie can entertain any offers at this
time until other matters are resol~ed. We had sort of a blank ch~ck 9i~en
to cur 1andsc~pe architect and asked him, what would ,)leu do t~ make a
restaurant and a hotel work well? He came up IJI'it" two p1ans. I think YoJt.i
.are all probably familiar with Roys.tor. ASSOCiates in Mill Valley. Both
plans essentia-Il), have one €ntry, wh'fch seemed to be ¥ery imporhnt to the
AR8 and to the city. What they accomplished addressing are three issues,
They also a110wed us to build an add~tional meeting rDDm and do a little
expansion. which, if we do ever get arou,1d to being able to negotiate lfIiitn
Mr _ Aufmt...th, we hope to accompl i sh those things.
BeC~~5e there are disputes (ontinui~g, and the Tamarack subdivision matter
stil1 contir.uLclg, ".2 ctir,r,at state here today that we agree lfIiith el,'srytr.ing
that Houston's has proposed_ fhere are p~ssibl~ claims that we are gotng
to have to make with reg~rd to our easement t.1at is being used a10ng
Tamar~ck Court and the loss of a curb cut close to that easement. But
what we 'want to acknowledge ;s that H01.Jston's has done everything that
they feel they car. possiblY do, the position of tlie landowner bei'lg 'What
it is. 'rUe fee1 that Houston's is goir,g to be a good r1eighbor. irI'e carlnot
express our agreement b~<;:aus:: of lega~t issues, but as far as we can go ;n
this arena. ~e are comfortable w1th what Houston's has done, a~d we hope
to be able som~day to do some of this. We ~ope that tne Tamarack fssue
gets resoll,'ed b~fore Houston"s plans get absolutely fixed, Either one of
these plans is more beneficlal to both of us, and one results in
substantially llIo';,e parking, in fact, than what we ..... ere allowed to do here,
and it also shifts the restaurant northward, which ever,yo:1e, ir,crudi:1g
Allen, agrees makes better use of the sjt~_ But I don't want to distract
you ~ith thls just to say that hopefully you might be able to USe this
plan, if we cannot acquire the entire front parcel. which we are tr~ing to
do.
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Ms. M~ser: If there are no ather ~embers of the pubT!c present to speak,
I will retur~ this item to tioe board for Cr:lmmenls. Michael, "ould Y(JU like to begin?
~.:a.!~.:~: I 'Would be happy to. r think ~iJuston's propo$al has ada'res~cd th~ concerns th~t we had ~oiced. I. at least, had somE concerns ~ith
reference to the bTank.n~ss of th2 re3.'r" fa~.a.de and the continuity of the
architectural e1ements fr~m the si~es a~d front over to the rear. r ~1s~
think they ha'ie addr25sed the loading area qi.J~~p' rdl::ely.
Whatever !s said, one thing I think is very important to point out here is
that Ulis is a., extremely .... ell scaled building. It is a single.storjl
buSlding; it is a human scale building; I think it is going to fit into
the El Cam~no ~cheme nicely. I think the solut!on, as far as vehicular
clrculat'on is concerned, is a better one than the initial o~e. Although
I don't thi~k it is ~n optimum ~olution, 1 think it ~ill functio~.
As far as cnar,ges in materials are concerned, I am delighted to see the
change in the awning colors. 1 also think that t~e corner detail that r
had inquired about at the entry works quite well. I am also very happy to
see tnat the large Houston's sign wnich was mcuntsd originally ()rj the fa~ade of the building and the high part ha~ been eliminated from tne
architecture. So a~l in all~ I thirlK that the progre-ss that has been made has been satisfactor.'r'.
r also want to compliment the applicant on an exceptional deSign
present.ation of colors and textures and finishes. I cannot recall the
last time such a thorough presentation of matp.rials and absolutely every
issue has been pres;ented to us. Tnat was superbTy done. I kn{Jw you also
had a neighborhood situation that you needed to address. Since the last
meeting you have apparently done all of your homework, so I compliment you or; that.
Ms. DaRosa: ] would like to hear Michaelis comment on the mechanical screen, too.
Mr. l~zw~: Although I bought your argu~ent on the horizontal element, r
have a preference in your architectural rendering of the cement plaster,
pfckir.g up on that cornice element and carrjing it thrN~9h. I think it
fits better, and from a distance, it looks better. 1 do u~derstand your
argument there, but r have a preference for tne cement plaster ~chani(a1 equipID€nt SC:een.
~aRosa: To !'lake this fast, I agree with J'1ichael's cOJrarnents. do
have onE picky comment to throw out tc yew as an option. Their use of
what appears to be a stone decorative elt!ment o~'er the twa doors on that
north Elevation just seems like such an odd use of that stone. All the
rest of the sto~e is horil~ntal and heavy and varied. That is over the
rollup d~or and Over that man door n€xt to the rol1~p door. It is not
somethjng to hold up the project, but to consider.
~s. Wilso~: I, too, am pleased with the progress that you have made.
Would you feel better with a coping material over the doors instead of the stone?
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Ms. DaRosa: Yes.
Ms. wilson: I can support the stucco CQP1~g a150. because of the scale of
El Camino. That little added scale will pro~!bTy sit al' right. ! am
still struggling with the co1ors, however. The two colors I am having the
most problem "ith is the stain on th~ wood. I dOr\'t mind its bein~ brow,,"j
but I would love to 5~e it a litt1e cooler, a more sophisticated brown
than that real redwood cclor. Also, the greenness of the paint color Is
just oil little too gr€er. for I!l€. I am just a little guarded abvut that.
like wnat ! see on the re~jerings.
Mr. Coode: The renderings are coming off a little lighter.
Ms. Wilson: ihey are more brown Han tr"11S, but this: is a personal
opinion. I am just a litt1e afr~jd of that color. r am a great believer
'n field sampl€s. If you get it up and you don't 1 ike it. you can tone it
down. We know what the range is, but I would be a 1ittle cautious of tr·at
much green~ especially \\lith tnat redwood tre1lis. Those colors n~ea'
adjustirig.
1 want to comment that I think these are wonderful plans. and there is
some possibility of holding ourselves open ano' going to that.
Ms. Maser: Are you talking about the Royston site plans?
Ms. Wilsor1: Yes.
Mr. Hise: concur wjth Michael and the other com~ents that have been
made. I want to commend the applicant for what r feel is a very good job
of paying concern t{l the comments nat this board has made earlier and
slmplif,)'ing tn'!.:!ir design and material palette, and for an (lu!standing
presentation. I feel that the sim~lification basically did not change
your building. It brought out the strength of the arOdtectu,e that ·..,as
ther~ all along. which was my co~tention in the beginning. That was that
this building had good strength and i~tegrity as a building, and it just
needed to be simp1ified. So I commend yO!j 0'1 that.
You haile made what I conside~' to be a "ery good fait~. attempt tG work out
the parking access and visibilitj is!><J.e:s ifro'Hh yOIJT neig'nbo:'"s here. I
cC!mlend you on that, and I think you have done a very sensitive scheme.
and I would support it. I was. supportive of the prelliou5 scheme, and 1
think th:s one actually hiS gone further in that regard. If this is never
resolved, [ thil1k this would be a very s.ensitive soluUori tD the hotelrs
concerns~ and I commend you on that.
r have a preference for the anamite ~olor. I agree with Shirley t~at I am
a little concerned about the red stain. I had imagined these shutters as
being surface-sanded-smooth finishes, and I could see that stain is
working a little mere elegantly there than on the rOIJgher trellis
e1ements. I would encourage you to consjder a similar transparent stain
but with a greener hue to it. Not green, but a greener-gray hue that
might pick up on your greens. That is just something for your
consideration.
I personally would support the metal roof scteen. I like tile horizontal
lines in it~ I think it iets the rest of the architecture read b€tter,
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but I ~ill go along with the r~~t of the beard in that r~9ard.
I would almost make it a condition of approval thdt you remove the stone
over tnose doors, as was rc-entionl?d. 1 thifiK it 'fiQuld be nne if they life':"'"e
just plain. I don't thjnk anything needs to be added over those doors.
I wOLl1d also throw it O;Jt that I tiiink that if the metal, · ... aulted roof
wer~ a green metal to match t~e green of your awnings, ~hich I think you
have really improved the look.s of th'2 buih:!ing 'by simplifYlng the awning
color, but that might actualiy read as si~ilar to the barre1 a~ning color+
I am not opposed to its being g~een. Especially if the board nas a
preference one way or the other on this mer::hanical screen. I \:fould tiiink.
a green ther~ might pick up on your awning colors. That same ewning co1or
might be a good colar to do It. But agaj~, ! thank you for your
sensiti-vity to the concerns of Ulis board, and 1 thi:1k. the comunity 'Will
be ~ery~ very happy with this building as it 1S designed.
Ms. Maser: Thank you, Thomas. I crmcl.!r wjt~ the-positiVe cOlTl'rlents that
have beer. made. I realTy appreciate Uie fact that YOti have reduced the
"umber of materials and have responded tQ .some of our concerns mentiot1t!d
last time through. This is a rn'Jch lmpl'oved blJilding in every way.
1 am concerned abJwt the colors . .(yen looking at the rendered elevations,
I am concerned about the heaviness of it. I would like to be able to ~ork.
with you, on site, at tne time of construction to be su~e that those
c'Olors are gOlng to wurk it that site. It is impossible fer us to really
assess these color!i in this light. Dftel'1times, 'file ·."ili take a bQard 1ik!
this outsidE t~ look at them in tne daylight. We are running behind
schedule today, but I would like to have the trellis and the building
.color. the ar,amite color, painted as a samp1e on the sHe and anow us to
go out and look at it b~fore the e~tire building is painted.
The ether thing that bothered me a Tittle was the sign color. Jim, I ai71
not sure, are we appraving signs today, as well, incllJding the culor of
the signage?
Mr. Gilliland: That is correct.
fils. ~aser:
to ask. yO'~
briefly.
I do not recall SEeing the colors of the sig~s. r would like
if you wO'Jld m~nd giv!lng us a I"e .... iew of YOl.!r signage very
~_~GQode: In th,=, pre'w'iol,.;s meeting. there was a misconception due to lack
of detailing. The signs were boxes with cutcuts with plexi-glass
letters. They are individual letters. These photos are a bit over
exposed, but the letters are j~dividual letters. surface mounted on the
stOM panel er. the 11l0nllmi?nt side. ihey ate also backlit. They are open
on tnc bad<., as well as faced en ne front with plex:. The plex in the
photos ;s basic slick ol€-x"iglass. The rp.asOf1 this picture is dm.m at the
bottom here is that we ~a\'e just done a: sign where we sar.dblasted the fac.e
of the plex to take away that plastic look. It works very well. It makes
it glow much more e~enly at n'ght and does not have that shiny plast1c
100J::. It is a very nice look. Th~ idea of the letter's is to have a red
face with an amber halo on the stone wan in the hack. The sto~e wall
will be in the color range of thE' background.
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~_lUJf: Are those ltg~t fixtures, tne little roofs on t~at sign?
Mr. Goode: Those are the Arro.vo type of l'-g"'t fixtlJre5. ~e are trying to
get that theme going r:g~t at the street.
Ks.l'4aser: I think that 100h very good, tn.an. My mind is at rest about
t~at situation. I lo~e your choice of the Arroyo fixtures. 1 think that
is going to add a lot of richness to yeur b~jldjng.
I a.'!l ambiva1ent about the roof screen. I cO!J1d 1 i'~e with ei lhr:r the metal
or the !tucco. r think we neE:d to simply make a motion and see wnere it
goes on that issue, ~s it sounds 'jk~ ~e are divided.
MOT!..P1!: Ms. Maser; I make a motion for approval of this project wHh the
metal ruof scr€p.n and tile JTletal barrel roof, as sho~'n in the model. and
with the staff conditions and wjt~ the ability of the ARB t~ go out to the
Site at the time of car.struction and work. \l/ith the applic.ant on the calors.
of the building and en the trellis, a~d to elim~nate the sto~e 1;r.tels
over the door shown jn the north elevation.
SECOND: By Mr. Hi,..
~s. Wil~on: Are you oppos:-ed to any Und of lintel expressior, over those
doors? I don't think we 'Sl';oul d tie He; r hands. They might want to do
some stucco, or th€y might want to PlJt timber there.
Ms. Maser; We are just saying, eliminate the stone. 1 would ass~me from
that that you can come back ~ith this little detail oyer those doors. with
what YOiJ want. That;s something you couid get appro .... ed by staff. We
just don't feel that sto,ie is appropriate there .
. Ms. Maser: I am very much on the fence about the parapet. Michael seems
to prefer tile stucco; "'ina seems to prefer the stucco. Since I am on the
fence, and my original thought was that I preferred the stucco, I am going
to ... ·ote for that.
Mr. Hise: F~ne. I will g0 alcng wit~ t,1e board.
Mr. lyzwa: 1 was changing my mind' (Laughter) I cat: go wHh either
ene. That is fil1e. I feel very comfortable with H.E: stucco. I feel that
tliey are very sensitive to the roof screen, ar1d I feel comfortable with
either solut;nn.
Mr. Hise: In that case, if it does b~come a stUc.co screen, ho~ does the
rest of the board feel about that metal roof being a green one? Instead
of intrOducing another caTer. does anyone agree with t~at id~a?
Ms. Mase~: I don't like th2 1dea because I think it will draw too much
attentlon to it.
Mr. Mise: All right. It actually would show dirt more easily.
Ms. Maser: It 'is a fairly neutral COlor, and it is not going to be t~at
visible. I don't feel we shou~d draw attention to it.
03/04/93
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MQHON PASSES: An those il"l favor of tne motion? Oppose::!? Mation passes
unii!ni'Nl.Is1y.
Did the applicant want to say something?
Mr. {;oode: I do not I.Indentand L~e on-sHe paintiflg condition.
Ms. MaSEr: Only that in sClile cas~s wh~re 'tie are a l1ttle wncomfortabi.e
with the colors that have been pr~sented, we ~ould llke to be able to go
out at tn! time th~t you begin to apply the colors and h~ve a~ opportunity
to 1001t at them on site before y.ou cor.tint.:e with the job. In other words,
a test panel of those two colors to be put out it the site just befo;'"e you
are ready to raint the building. We would come out as indivijual board
members and approve those. We would get wDrd back to staff as to .... hether
or not we approved the colors. It is difficult for uS to assess the
colors in th:s room under the circumstances. Very cofter1, we ..,111 90 out
to the site and see them there.
Mr. bDode:
about just
darke:-?
Mi'~ Hise:
at it.
I think it ca~ be ~ little difflcult to do. Are we talking
subtle hue dtfferences? just slightly lighter or sligntly
Or slightly less green.
Or just llke it is, if that is what you like, and we can look
Ms. M~ser: It may change completely once it lS out on the site. We !!lay
see It out there and say, gee, that looks fine. We want to reserve that
<lpportunity before you p~int the whole building.
Mr. Goode: The texture of the stucco is goIng tD change it a bit, tOD.
Ms. Maser: We just f~el that .... ·e need to see that. Just take a little
portion of the bUilding somewh~re.
Mr. Hise: I don't know what t~ d0 about the stain. You may ~ant to
presta in that ~aod before you pl~t it 'up, at some point early on. That
do.es c.ompl icate it somewhat.
Mr. Goode: Inaudible comments. We were doing some testing in Arizona
trying to get the right stain colors. As we do them, can we just get back
to staff on this?
~Maser: Yes. We just feel a "little uncomfortable about what I
perceive to be a slight garishness wHI'1 this brown. We wOiJld like to see
it a slight1y subdued brown. Of course, that will happen by itself as it
weathers, but even to begin with, we ar~ a 1ittle uncomfortable with what
you have presented today, so we would like you to work with staff on that.
~_':Lill: fs it a red cedar you are using, Dr is it redwooJ?
Mr. Goode: The sample I brought ';n was actually a fir. TIle fenow who 1S
doing same further staining for us to test out some things I think is
trying it out 011 fir. we ..... ,mted the trellis worK to be more timber
03/04/93
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looking.
Mr. Mise; I would encourage you to put Douglas fir out t~ere. and put
stain on it, especially a tran~parent stain. I think it is going to
weather \lery badly. You 5;hould us~ a weathering wood. That would be my
recomerdation, I don't kr'lOW hCl~ othei$ on the: b.nrc feel about red .... ood
{Jr red c€dar. It ioiolJloj not weat:,-er well th::re, especially with 3
transparent stain, I t10pe you wculd look at Hlat. The underiying wood is
not a wcod that WOUle: we-ather well. The rain wauTa go right through that
transparent stain, and it also won't stay stabie l eit~Er.
~r. Goo~: The sample on that bNrd ;s r~d cedar.
Mr~ Hise: That is what I thought you 'ooIere using,
Mr. Goode; May I ask one other question? There was another staff comreent
about the locatlon of t.he bicycle rack. which has l'1Ot bEen brou~ht up. If
you pass this, J wou1d lik€ to de this with staff's reivew. I would like
to hear your opir.ion on that.
Ms. Maser: We did not bring it up, and we CJncur with the staff
recommendations on that.
Mr. GO<lde: ! don't know what they are. It just says to relocate it.
Mr. Gilliland: We will be more tha~ happy to work with y~u on the
relocation of them,
M.s. Wilson: Don't put an the bike racks out front.
Mr. Gilliland: No, we won't do that. tlut \Ole are a very bicycle-or-iented
corMumity. and some of them /la'Ji! to be out front.
~MaS~L; We appreciate your rEsponse to our cu~~ent~.
,
03/Q4/93
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Envir~nmental Documents· City of Palo Alta
rN¥lRONMENTAL ASS[SSHfNT
Project Description/Titl!; Houston's Resta'Jrant
location/Address: ~J(L Camino Real. Palo ~1to
Sponsoring AgeDc.y/Applica.nt: Houston's Restaurdnt
Address and Tel.p;o,e of Appl ie,n!: 2425 Cam.:lback, Suite 1080. Ph~
Arizona 8SQl§ (714) 833-9066
Application fer: Architectural f(eview
(e.g., zGning change, subdivision of propE'rty, arcnitectural r-ev;e· .... , use
permit)
ZDn1ng at Project location: CS-!Hl Fee Receipt No.: 92-592
NOTIcr Qf DETERMINATION
Ba.sed upon review of the project fiTes, the undersigned member cf th2 Planning
Department has cDncluded:
I~I NegatSve pec~iratio!1: The prvject has no significant environmental
impact, No Environmental Impact Report is required,
u The project may have a significant environmental impact.
r~lct Report will be prepared. .
Planning O~partment Cfficia1: ~c..tU..)~
Planning Director: ~Sc.lt....",+l...
The project nas been approved.
The project ~as been je~ied.
Fo: \(OJ\4269ecr-.nod
D .. te:
Date:
Q",te:
file No.:
--------
9Z-EIA-36
" .
crT'!' OF PALO ALTO ~" I'; 1i;7 !,;~ '33 OIfoceolt~.CJtyCIeri<
APPEAL FR{)N THE OECISIO" OF DIRECTOR OF PlMlIllNG
AtllFCOIMIO'UNITY ENV\F!9NMENT (MCHITECnJRAL REVIEW APPUCAT10NSI
To be moo in duplicale
ApprIC3.T!oO No. 92 ARB 110 i 92-JIA-35
Name of Appellant Di:!ah' 5 Hotel Phone (41 51493-28 < 4
Address 4261 E' camino Real
Stre-at
Pa 10
ZlF
LOCATION OF PROPERTY: "a.ss.sso<'. Parcel No 14 7 -4 7 -0 33 Zone Dis~rlct _____ f~
Street Address ~ El Camino Real
Name of Property Owner ("If ot~er Ulai1 appeflant) Lawrence AufCJuti'l I 'I'Iuste~
ProperryQl.vner'sAddress 314 I,yttoo Ave., t20q Palo p'ltQ
Street C;tv
943 01
ZIP
The decision of the Oir-ector of Planning and Com,niJl1tty Environment dated ~3>J1,-9,-____ __
19 93 whereby the application of --B.o!ls.s:;;t.cailln-:·-,s,~.~e~s~tS''':)~J~r~"!,!n",t:;-_______ _
(original applicant}
for architedural rev!evi was -" ... " ... ""r"p"y""",d~~"'7 ___ ~' ~ heOllby ap~ed for Ihe reasons stated
(approved/de~ied)
in tile ana~hed le"e' ~, d"p!ica'.). if0: C <:?: /
Dale 2Ll !OJ I~_ SignaM. of Appel1anr., . ..,JK;I:k::~g~C;;:~;-"C;;.~:J" ..,..#~_~=:=:::=-__
Attorney fo= Appellant
CITY COUNCIL DECISION,
~.---------------ApprO'led _____ Denied ____ _
Rema;ks and/cr Conditlons:
SUBMITIAl REQUIREMENTS SI<TISFIEO,
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Plans
Labels
Appeai Application Forms
Letter
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Appellant:
Decision:
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CITY OF PAW ALTO
APPEAL flWM THE DECISION OF DIRECTOR OF PLAIIoNING
AND COMMUNITY Er,'VIRO:-''ME1'o'f
(ARCHffECTL'RAL REVIEW APPLICATIONS!
Re:
M.n,h 18, 1993
Din2.h', Hotel
4261 El Camino Real
ralo Alto, California 94306
(415) 493-2844
Houston, Res\2urant (Original Applicant)
Nmea! of ARBJ:;~,IDgn Re Houston's Restaurant
The decision of the Architectural Review Board with respect [0 the appJ ication
of Houston', Restaurant is being appealed with reluctanc< Dinah', Hotel is happy to have
Houston's replace the 'dbandoned restaurant whkh has become an eyesore. However,
Dinah's Hotel has iearned that past acqLlie~n..:c in government land U.'iC: decisions and
changes in use by neighbors can lead to great harm for itse!f, its ne~ghbors. aod the City.
During the March 4, 1993 meetL'g, the ARB was told by Dinah', Horel
coui1Sel thzt we did no\: approve or disapprove the Houston's plans presented at that mee!ing
~garding landscaping and driveways because of the need to preserve our rlgnrs vis-a-,ds the
landowner. However, in their presentation, HoustoD's representative.~ seemed to L"tlply
agrecmem by Dinah's Hote!, and while we appreciate their efforts to accommodate Qur
concem~. total agreement was not achjeved largely as a result of refusaJ by the landowner,
Mr. Aufmuth. to givt his approval to a few matters. Unfortunately, Houston's 'i~:i11ingness
to create an attractive and appropriate entrance for both businesses was severely limiterl. by
such refusal of tile lando~ner 10 allow items such as appropriate .\ignage and agreements
assuring continued availability to Dinah's Hotel of signage and access.
Dinah's Hote! fmds h~ business being affected by changes on almost ati its
land borders. Its ali-importani frontage on El Camino is belng affected by Houston's, while
i[S zero setback, "prio;;.on,like\ neighboring building immediately to the south (Tamarack
EJtecutive Suites) is the 3Ubject of a Planned Conununity Zone Change. Dinah's ftcls caught
in the middJe of a CWo front as~ult. H would be best to ha .... e boLf! issues, Houston ~s and
Tamarack, resolved simultaneously by the City so lhal a coordinated land use decisio[} could
be made. Funhennore, recogniiing that t..~se cwo issues are inex.t...-xably tied to one another
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Re: ~~Q[ARB ~_t,;i$ion Re Hous-ton's Restaur.:m!
Marth 18, 1993
Page 1
would allOv." the Crt) to understand the cum:Jlatlve affect of these land llse decisions 00 the
operations of Dinah's Hotel. It IS boped sucb cooralnated land use analysis can occur.
In the meanwhile, due te statutory time restrictiIJ1'1S and the nee.d (8 avoid
legally waiving our rights, foUowing is .a list of some of our concerns with respect to the
Houston's site plans approve,j by the .I\RB.
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The plan:
L Dramatically reduces our access to El Camino by eluninating tl"te mUltiple
driveways a driver can now ~Iect down to one driveway that looks like it orti),
goes into Hov&ton's;
2.
3.
4.
Ignores our coverumlS regardL"lg use cf driveways and nullifies our 24 foot
easement;
Fragments signage and reduces the potential impact of signage; a,"1d
Impinges on the view -:orridor and the covenant assuring rna incenanc~ 0 f rhat
corridor.
Dinah's Hotel business needs and uses an EI Camino address and must have EI
Cami.no access, visibility. and signage l!l order to maintain its business. Co venanto; and
easements were reached with previous landowners of the Houston's site to preserve such
access, v!sibility, and signage. Jt seems that Dinah's rights are being ignored 'because tIl,!!
City md 1andc\!.'UCr are taking the position th&t those rights no longer exist, Trois is most
clearly seea in ti:te way the City is 'Io';ewing the exisren.:.e of the 24 foor easement \Vhile our
24 foot easemem was negatively hnpa.:ted ty lacK of a curb cut, that does not ellrninale its
existence. The immediately paralIe! driveway acted to provide the sa..-ne henefit. Eliminating
all but one driveway and moving that driveway north without some accommodation to our
needs substantially impact'ii the totalicy of the rights granted to Dtnab's.
At the March 4, 1993 ARB meeting. Dillah's Hptel presented alternate site
plans with a single driveway, as Houston's seemed to prefer. The two alternate site plans
were done at wm;: expen...o;e by Dinah's Hotel in order to gi .... e a sense of alternate designs
v'hich could be more attrdctive 10 the public, Houston's, and Dinah's Hotel. Signage and
other acco;nmodation.o; were made to compensate for the one driveway. Unfortunately, the
landowner, Mr. Aufmuth. refustd to give pennission regan.lin,g signage changes or to give llS
assurance thal the one driveway would ~ontinue to be available for use by Dinah's Hotel.
We feel strongly that oru::e Houston's can negotiate without the concern of alienating Mr.
Aufmuth and hls attempt to split off Tamarack Suites as a s.eparate prcel, we will he able [0
Re: Appea] of ARB Decision Re Hrmstcn' s Ren<tu..rant
Man:h 18, 1993
Page 3
able to re.ach an amicable and more desirable site plan for all concerned
Dinah's Hotel fmds itself in the midst (If changes which make it fed like a
pawn in a chess game involving Houston's and Tamaracic, We feel that resoIution could be
reached with Hewton's in the normaJ manner one business d~!s with another in order to
benefit both. Until such time as Hou..o;,[ur.':s is able to negotiate without restIiction, or our
rights are recog:n.ized oow and in the fucure, we cannot .. gree to or allow changes to our
rights, covenants and easements without knowing all impacts on our s!~, We certainly
cannot give up any rights. covenants. and easements without the 'binding agreement cf the
City and landowner to allow us conti.nued use of alternate access, view, and signag:: rights to
replace those we ha ye today.
TIv:.. necessity for this appeal is forced on us by crrcUIT"IStanceS and a<:tions
which we wc.wld have preferred to a'loid, Our acquiescence in the past to land use decisions
by other5 and the City was !Jot rewarded, but rather has proven very harmful to us. We are
appeal ing to the City Council to cOIlSider the full impact of ali the changes being proposed
around Dinah's Hotel and the need to consider the burderls and losses thereby being imposed
aD Dinah's Hotel.
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AIchi=w.U Rev iew BYard
City of Palo Alto
December 2, 1992
250 Hamilton Avcnuo
PuoAllO,CA
AIIn' Ms. Lorraine Weiss FAX: 329-2240
Membors of the Bo.l."1t
J am wrh!ng in regards 10 Lhc proposed Homct~ss Sheller at the Tamarack Cou.'"t
Hotel, 4269-4273 El Camino Rea~ Palo Alro. I, my family IIJ\d all of the neighbor! I ha .. ,
spoke!! [0 are veh~mE'Dtil opposed to lrus proposed sflelter. The reasoni for our
opposition are numerous and inc] ude iucb concerns as:
!.
2.
s,
~VlfctX pf Oil[ clJ ils:lrul. The represen tati ... e of tb e Mid-Peni:1SWa Housing
'don has stated that tile ""alidon will accept == with • crlminal his",,>
and no proof of prior midern:e for up to 3-4 ye ..... Wo. .... yet is the lendenC)'
for loitering by othot Wl·"~ =!dents .,..<1 the promuigAlioo cf associated
criminalllC1:ivity.
Severe djsnmtjon of. olose family neighborhood.
~ oC Ihi. neighbomood from the TO,t of Palo Alto. Our neighborhood
is c'.lrrenUy surroonded on three sides by: the rail road ""oks to the east; low.
income .panment romplexe, 10 the SO\Jth alan, Del Media (Mountain View);
a..,d Ei Camino to the west. By placement of the Homeless SheTter to our
north we become =urm.l on fO'.lt wes and isolated fro", tlle ~st of the
communi!)'.
4. The proposed ~ and the resulting ercu:r.brance on our
propmy value'.
This last issue is me one to whioh 1 will address you the member> of the
Architectural Review Board is it is in your power to disallow me proposed variances. !>Iy
wire and I have lived in Palo Alto for 10 years now. W. bot~ worked very hard '0 pm lie a home in Mo Alto so that we could raise our future. children in I .safe family
oriCD!C.d neighborhood. Because of the accepted high cost of housing in this: a..-ea we
bough. a small S64 f.' house on I subslandanllOl in Borron Parle. When "'e foond our to.,
we were ex~ting a thUd we .investigaled the ~ibilil)' of adding oc a room 10 ou: house.
W. "ere W"""e.:l by the Planning Depanmen' rhat due to required sc,·backs and dayligb.
plane requiremenu: an addition was impossible. Becaus.e-of the Palo Alto zonin,
requirr-mems as applied to us we W'eTC forced to move. We purchased & home of sufficient
size this year in Monroe Puk. This purcha!'c came It !he expen se of C"l(trerne flnaneiaJ
furrdship. but ute wanted to raise OUT thUd in! safe familj'--oricmed neighborhood in Palo
Aho.
Now we fil'lod out from our neighbors (wlth no nGtificaoon from th~ Planning
Depanment) that ther< i, • pian 10 build a hom,l,,, ,helter on. street nv"Jl of OUT new
hOlDe. To do this the Planning Oep1C'tment is con .. iderir.g: allowing several varian~es, among ';I.'h!ch sr.::
I. A zero from ,etback. where 20 feet is 'tandard.
2. A uro first floor 5ldt set.back. where 10 feet is stAndard.
3. A 7.5 (oot "'M>nd iloor side setbock, whtte 17 feet is standard.
4. A daylight plane protrusion 6 feet hiih for 32 (eeL
If we bad been allowed SUd1 variances, after workiI!g hard and contributing to the
community for 10 years. we would have added on to our pre"lOlJS l10me and nO!. moved..
Thus avoidi.'8 the extreme financial hardship we are eurrendy in. Worse yet everything we
moved tQ Palo Alto for". safe famjly-<).";e.~ted .eighborltood" would be destroyed by the
JIlOPOsed shelter. Is this rait'l
P1= find it in your wisdom'" be fair Ie those famille. tbat have worked hard Ie
afford' to live Palo Alto. Vote DO 00 these prO""zlOsed var..ances.
Eric D. Wachsman
112 Monroe Dr.
Palo Alto, CA 94306
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BARRON
PARK
ASSOCIA IrON
PALO AL TO, CALfFORNfA
ArChitectu:al P€!,.-jEi.-Board
C'ity of PC3Io Alto
25D ~amilton ,!we.
Palo Alto. Ca. 9~301
:>ea r . .;RB .'1embe r s:
OJ} J'a!luan-21, i':l93 ~-C'J are SC:h",,:uled ta revie-,.; an ':'fPl iC.:f::-:Ol1 fer
Ho'Ust-:ln's Restaura;-~t5 t~ rep!ac-:! ]jnsh's SnaCI\ with a rn: ... · resta:j:ram
::.t U69 E] Ca.ll~no Real. Th~ fil~ "w.iJb",r_s are 92-. .1 ... F;:B-l7'9 3:-:d S'2 El..1.~35.
l)n December 8, 1992. a replesentatli;€ Dj Houston's. dlong .. lt1'1 Te",' ..
Carr·.ls,;:o. present<?d the Plans and elevations :Or t"r:Ie PlopcseC
f€:staurant to the Barren Fark AS$I)cia.t::icJl f}:ecuti,,: COJ'tIllittea. -\
that tlDle tne Es.ecuti';e Commi!t:::e unantso'Jsly expressed o?PC.sitiDC1 ::0
t)",e proposed desig.'1. ....'e r-equesti?'d t;1at signitic.:mt changes b~ wcice to
the Sice, rear end (ront el.;?vBtians i!1 order to :![lake tbe appearan,:-;;!llor~ cons'stent and attractive, lie .also as};ed th,st these-C:-18ngeS be sub!ll~tte'l back to the SPA for comment. A copy ot the pertinent pag.=.
at minutes of the D.eC€4::b~r 15, 1992 BPA Board me>?ting is .Jtt<i'_~!le.j,
j.:~ J..;Me.l-St311r1 th<3t r,o c.hanges tlave bt;l':n ma,je to the O:rigina.l pla:13,
ala tl:at the proposal ';l'tic.h YCJjl ...-ill r~ ... 'ie .. ' _january' 21 15 triO' same C;"~,~
\,;hic11 ~e so stror.g.ly OP~-oSf':C:, Tb'€!r'efon: '",e (:I-sk that Y':)U rej~ct ti".,,",
plans as propo:sed and request a majol' redesig.n to meet at lea.st
IDlnimal standards of d€si~' quality,
Please intorm us formally Df your a...:ticns, If YOLl approve tne plans
ana design as it ""3S sho1."1] to us, •• e r~quln sU!ficient rioti,:"e So t:-:at
t;,-e can file app-=als to tl"d:: Plarmirlg C'JIl!:lliSSion a.nd Ci ty C:)'-Ulcil,
Thls 3pplicaUon .. "ill be discussed ag.<.'lin at thoe Janud1·y 1'), 1993 BP.-\.
Boa,::! lJle.::ting., It is POSSi ~l-e th,3.t furt!',er sctiOt'S and resolutic,ns
...-ill be tak~n rh",;, If so you ;,:ill be in!onJI;?'],
Yours very sinrere-i~',
Dri~
Bob .\i05$
c,:l-rhair. Zonj~l!<. ;. Land U5~ ('ommilte~
;..-_;c
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; 2. f.,<ecutiv~ (:QJTIJJ.1iJ~ r~QQn..!. ..\ prl'~~p.u:ion V,',l.)' rr:.tde U} the
E'(ecutlve C0r~l.mj!1e(' at [hl~ 03-r\_"( r:nt't:'Ung, ct-:')].1',-1'; fll[ " He',':
restaura.nt pr'.,;po'>cJ for the Dinah's Shack ~;ite. ,\n .v(!Jitcct
representing a Phoenix. Al (ompmy, ~.u~d "I c'ny Carasc'), th:
company·s local representauve. rn;_~(~,':: the rr!2sC"ntiiti()D .. '~' '.i r(' l.,1
landscaping •• 'U1d el('va.tion dra'A;ngs ()f rr.e propf~~ed ;est'l'J!·c.~t
building v .. '€re sho\'~n and discuss.,::"d. The Execu:1\€ Cr)mrn.it':-~ L,t ."
objections to the lot coverage, buUcUng size ,md plaCel1'.2nT.. ;;Mki: ;
spaces, arId traffic flov,,'. The proposed hours of business, r:lt'nl~, _ ..:-,~~
;Jrices looked good. HCN .. ·'ever, u'1e COmInlnCe "'vas crincz..l of cj:r.;
exterior appearance cf the restauran.t building as being to~ V3r;.en :,:
texture, materials, and color of\'"alls and roof; and was of t112 CI~:::;: ';",
that the facade of (,'1e rear wall of the buildbg was too high. 1h"
,-,isitors took notes ('11 tJ-1.e COrnrn.ittee.'s statemenLS.
It \vas moved/2nded (Sparck/Sharpress) to \-\Tite a letter U.I e,_:-'-,',.
thanking him for, the presentation, and requesting tha~ [he 61' " ,.
kept informed of the progress of this project ar.d any chJ.nge~ '" '.
architectural plans.
" Next B. P.A. M~ting Dates.
hecutive Committee Meeting: Tue·12·Jan at 7:00 AI"! at Den;l\ '"
Board Meeting: Tue·19·jan at 7:30 P~! at Creekside Inn, •
14, Adjoununen~ l-Ieeting adjourned by unanimous declaration o.t 'l:c>[:
PM. lbe early-,adjournment was com.rnented on apprmingly by "1,
Board members.' HoWever, several members then remained f,x ;c.
minu.!~S andcc~,~on a ... '1 L.~ormal diSCussion. }.~o ~xpiana'JCln ' ... ·,;5
given fOi;.~incohSfsten. t behavior.
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A."t:hftecrural Revn' Board
City 01 Palo AlIa
250 Hamilton Av&.
Palo AlIo, CA 94301
BARRON
PARK
ASSOCIA liON
PALO ALTO, CALIfORNIA
•
HANO DELiVERED
Januaf"i 20, 1993
CK1 January 21. 1993 :,"'OU are scheduled to review an app.fica1jon from Houston-s Restaurants to roplace Dinatol's Snack
with a new restaurant a! 4269 E! camino .Real. The me nurTDers arl3 92-ARS-179 and 92·EIA<"S.
On Deoerrber a, 1992, a representath/e of Hoos'fon'S, along wtth Tony Carrasco, Pfesent~ tM plans and elevafions
lor the proposed restaurant to the 8arron Pam. AssocIation Executr .. e Committee . .Ai that time the Execulive Committee
JJnallimousiy Etxpressed opposlliai"l to the proposed design. We raqJeSlad!hat ~nfficarrl changes be made 10 the side,
rear, and 1rt:lnt .vafions in oroerto make the appearance more u!'1iform (not added <In) and cor,sistent between elevations.
We asked at that time thai these changes be submtrted back to the ePA SOard' for comment, but as of this date we have nat
seen any changes,
We underStand thai no changes have been made to the original plans. a nd !hal the proposal ..... hich you wiD re-"';8'N on
Janu8l)' 21, 1993 is the same one thai: we so strongly opposed. Therefcre. the Barron Part< Association Board of Directors
asks 1hat you reled the plans a$ proposed and request a majO( redesign in Ofder Ie make t~ building uniform and
consL'itent.
Please inform us formatl-j 0( your actions. If you do approve the plans and designs as ~ was showr-Ie us, we require
suffICient notice so t'1a1 we can file appeais to 111& Pianning ComrnisS!Qo1 ar.d City Councn.
Yoors Veri Sincerer,.-,
The Barron Par1c; As5Oci3t)on Board' of Directors
/Nd~
Dave ChaIton, President
3875 EI Cenl'D SI. Palo Me> CA 94306
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