HomeMy Public PortalAbout10 22 2020 MeetingMINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING AND PUBLIC HEARING HELD BY THE
ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW AND PLANNING BOARD OF THE TOWN OF GULF STREAM,
FLORIDA ON THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020 AT 8:30 A.M., IN THE WILLIAM F.
KOCH, JR. COMMISSION CHAMBERS OF THE TOWN HALL, 100 SEA ROAD, GULF
STREAM, FLORIDA.
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Smith called the meeting to order at 8:30 A.M.
II. ROLL CALL
Present and Thomas Smith Chairman
Participating: Malcolm Murphy Vice Chairman
Bob Dockerty Board Member
Amanda Jones Alternate Board Member
Also Present &
Participating:
Absent w/notice:
Gregory Dunham
Edward Nazzaro
Rita Taylor
Curtiss Roach
Jorgette Smith
Town Manager
Staff Attorney
Town Clerk
Board Member
Board Member
III. MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING AND PUBLIC HEARING 09-24-2020
Vice Chairman Murphy made a motion, and Board Member Dockerty
seconded the motion, to approve the minutes of September 24, 2020 and
all voted AYE at roll call.
IV. ADDITIONS, WITHDRAWALS, DEFERRALS, ARRANGEMENT OF AGENDA ITEMS
There were none.
V. ANNOUNCEMENTS
A. Meeting Dates
1. Regular Meeting & Public Hearing
a. November 19, 2020 at 8:30 A.M.
Vice Chairman Murphy and Alternate Board Member
Jones noted they would not be at this meeting.
b. December 17, 2020 at 8:30 A.M.
C. January 28, 2021 at 8:30 A.M.
d. February 25, 2021 at 8:30 A.M.
e. March 25, 2021 at 8:30 A.M.
VI. PUBLIC HEARING
A. Applications for Development Approval
1. 555 Old School Road
a. Declaration of Ex-Parte Communication
Chairman Smith stated he spoke to the Town Manager,
the Town Clerk and Assistant Town Attorney regarding this application.
b. Administer Oaths
Town Clerk Taylor administered the oath to Mark Marsh
and Keith Williams.
Minutes of ARPB Meeting & Public Hearing
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c. An application submitted by Mark Marsh of Bridges,
Marsh & Associates, as Agent for Mr. & Mrs. John
Smith, owners of property located at 555 Old School
Road, Gulf Stream, Florida, which is legally described
as Lot 2, H.V. Pope Subdivision.
(1) LEVEL 2 ARCHITECTURAL/SITE PLAN REVIEW to
permit 1,875 sq. ft. of additional living area to
existing single family dwelling with a 3-car garage.
Mr. Mark Marsh, Architect, gave a digital
presentation stating that the house was basically backwards, and the
owners would like to reverse some of the present dwelling space to make
a more pleasing view and living area. He added they would be adding a
new garage and a new entry off Old School Road and converting the
existing garage to a family room, kitchen, and everyday dining area with
a view of the golf course. Keith Williams, Landscape Architect, stated
the landscape design was responding to the addition to the house and how
it all functions by adding garden spaces that were visually appealing.
He added they were adding some spaces more conducive to entertaining and
they were going to make the parking area more symmetrical. Mr. Williams
added there were two trees in the parking area that would be relocated
on the property. The fountain is more of a visual effect to hide the
equipment and mitigate sound. Alternate Board Member Jones asked if the
fountain would be on a timer to which Mr. Williams stated it would in
all probability have a timer and be able to be turned on and off
manually. Board Member Dockerty asked Mr. Marsh if the hurricane
shutters were staying to which Mr. Marsh stated they hadn't crossed that
bridge yet, but obviously the new windows would be impact so they
wouldn't need the shutters. Vice Chairman Murphy asked if there had
been any feedback from the neighbors to which Town Clerk Taylor stated
there had been none.
Vice Chairman Murphy made a motion to approve a Level II
Architectural/Site Plan to permit the construction of 1,875 sq. ft. of
additional living area to an existing single-family dwelling with a
three -car garage. Board Member Dockerty seconded the motion with all
voting AYE at roll call.
2. 3247 Polo Drive
a. Declaration of Ex-Parte Communication
Chairman Smith stated he spoke to the Town Manager,
the Town Clerk and Assistant Town Attorney regarding this application.
b. Administer Oaths
Town Clerk Taylor administered the oath to Fredy
Polania, John Zessin and Carol Perez, as well as Bill Boardman via
conference call.
c. An application submitted by Fredy Polania of Randall
Stofft Architects, as Agent for John Zessin, owner of
the property located at 3247 Polo Drive, Gulf Stream,
Florida which is legally described as Lot 3, Replat of
Part of Gulf Stream Properties.
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Minutes of ARPB Meeting & Public Hearing
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(1) DEMOLITION PERMIT to demolish the existing
buildings.
(2) LAND CLEARING PERMIT to prepare the property
for the new construction.
(3) SPECIAL EXCEPTION to permit roof projections
that exceed the maximum Floor Area Ratio.
(4) LEVEL 3 ARCHITECTURAL/SITE PLAN REVIEW to
permit construction of a 3,820 sq. ft. Gulf
Stream Bermuda style, 2 story single family
dwelling with 2-car garage, pool, and lanai.
Ms. Carol Perez, Landscape Architect, stated
the landscape plan was tropical and the owner wanted to do a grouping of
Gumbo Limbo in the driveway area. On the south, the neighbor has an
existing hedge that they would be matching on the north side, she added.
Ms. Perez stated they would be providing different levels of foliage for
screening purposes. Vice Chairman Murphy stated that the board liked to
see a color rendering of what the property was going to look like when
finished because in the past, architects have stated a tree was going to
be 20 ft. and it ended up being three feet tall. Ms. Perez stated they
were proposing larger materials and the property already had mature
vegetation. Town Manager Dunham asked if the tree disposition was still
the plan or if there had been any changes to which Ms. Perez answered
there had not been any changes. Chairman Smith agreed with Vice
Chairman Murphy that it was hard to tell from the presentation what the
property was going to look like and in the future, the Board would like
a color rendering and elevations showing exactly what the landscaping
would look like when complete. Town Manager Dunham explained that if
any changes were to happen, they needed to be brought to staff's
attention immediately. Ms. Perez stated she thought everyone would be
very happy with the outcome. Chairman Smith asked Mr. Boardman if he
had any questions on the landscaping to which he stated it looked like a
nice plan.
Mr. Fredy Polania, Architect, explained he was representing Mr.
Zessin, and they were proposing a single family, two-story residence in
the character of the Bermuda style. It would have a light gray slate
tile roof, bronze window frames, light white paint color with taupe -
charcoal for the doors, garage, columns, and shutters and added they met
all the setback and land coverage requirements. Mr. Polania stated
there would be a pool and trellis in the rear yard and a circular
driveway. He added they had kept the house in scale of the adjacent
property and were staying within all the height requirements. Vice
Chairman Murphy asked Mr. Polania to explain why they needed a special
exception. Mr. Polania stated they were allowed 4,816 sq. ft. for
coverage and based on the logia and the areas on the plan, they had one
covered terrace in the front and that, along with the covered entry and
the logia, they needed just a few more square feet to obtain approval
for the lot coverage and by doing so it brought them under the 4,816 to
4,755 sq. ft. Vice Chairman Murphy explained that in the past, special
Minutes of ARPB Meeting & Public Hearing
Held 10-22-2020 @ 8:30 A.M.
exceptions were designed for those with existing properties and Codes
came along which confined them, but, he added, this was a blank sheet of
paper, so for 128 sq. ft. they could redesign. Vice Chairman Murphy
went on to say that they had tried to stay away from giving special
exceptions to new builds. Mr. Polania stated they had tried not to go
in that direction, but if they didn't, the bedrooms would be too small
and unusable. Vice Chairman Murphy asked if there had been any feedback
from the neighbors, to which Town Clerk Taylor stated only one, which
was Mr. Boardman, who was on the conference call. Chairman Smith asked
Mr. Boardman if he would like to raise any questions or make any
comments. Mr. Boardman explained they owned the house just to the north
of this one being built and thought the actual planning of the house was
fine. His one concern was the ramp image of the front elevation. Mr.
Boardman stated there were 20 one -floor houses on Polo Drive between
Golfview and Old School and this house seemed to be modern,
contemporary, and Japanese -inspired when you looked at the front
elevation. He added that the contemporary nature had a lot to do with
the colors and it did not come across to him as Gulf Stream Bermuda.
Mr. Boardman stated that if you drove around the Core area, you are not
going to find another two-story house that is going to look like this
house because this house is different. He added that in the design
manual it stated that complex fagade treatment and excessive multi -
layered setbacks were prohibited, and he didn't find any examples in the
manual that even remotely looked like this rendering. Mr. Boardman
stated that Gulf Stream had a spectacular Construction Site Management
Handbook that he thought Town Clerk Taylor was going to give to Mr.
Zessin. He stated it was fair to the builders and to the neighborhood
and hoped Mr. Zessin would be supportive of the terms of that document.
Mr. Polania stated that the window frames were more of a light bronze
coloring and not the gray tones seen in the rendering.
Chairman Smith agreed with Mr. Boardman in that it didn't look
like any of the other homes in and around the area. He added it didn't
look Bermuda -style and the brown and gray didn't work in a neighborhood
that was pastels. Chairman Smith asked if there was a way to tone down
the dark look and if it was the shadowing on the rendering then he
agreed with the Town Manager that a 3-D rendering may be better because
everything looked very dark. Mr. Polania apologized and stated the
printer printed dark, but they could explore a three-dimensional
rendering. Chairman Smith asked Mr. Zessin if he was opposed to a more
Bermuda color style or pastels because this was a more modern look to a
Bermuda home. Mr. Zessin stated they tried to respect the Bermuda
style, but they did want to modernize the typical Bermuda home. He
added that he looked at the neighborhood and respected the fact there
had been traditions, but although this might be a little bit different
than the homes in the neighborhood, he thought it might be one others
want to emulate because it was a beautiful home. Alternate Board Member
Jones agreed it was a beautiful home but found it to be Japanese. She
added she was partial to the Japanese style, but it wasn't Gulf Stream
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Minutes of ARPB Meeting & Public Hearing
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and she would like to see another rendering with the colors toned down.
Chairman Smith stated the preamble to the Code speaks about anything
built is supposed to be in keeping with the neighborhood and the setting
that it sits in. He agreed with Mr. Zessin that it didn't look like
most everything else and maybe other people would eventually like it and
build more like it, but for now, for the Board to represent the Town and
the community, they would like to see the colors toned down more and
also see a 3-D rendering. Town Manager Dunham pointed out that when
they have asked others for 3-D renderings, it totally changed the look.
Vice Chairman Murphy pointed out that Mr. Polania stated the printer
didn't represent the colors well, but that is what the Board must go on,
so they were doing themselves a disservice. He added that maybe they
could bring in a shutter with the actual colors on it so they could see
the real coloring. Board Member Dockerty agreed with the 3-D as well
and stated on this rendering all he saw was blue skies and a lot of
brown and black. Chairman Smith noted that the glass even looked dark
gray or brown in the rendering presented. He added that they loved the
design of the home and it sat beautifully on the property, but they were
down to the view from the street and what they were looking at was not
acceptable. Mr. Polania asked if it was the design or just the colors
to which the Board agreed they were fine with the design but not with
the color scheme. Vice Chairman Murphy asked that along with the 3-D
rendering to please have color swatches, an example of the roof tile
they would be using and color renderings of the landscape elevations.
Vice Chairman Murphy made a motion to defer the application to be
presented at the November 19, 2020 ARPB meeting complete with 3-D
rendering, paint color swatches, example of roof tile, and landscape
elevations showing what the property will look like upon completion.
The motion was seconded by Board Member Dockerty with all voting AYE at
roll call. Chairman Smith stated to Mr. Polania that the Board would be
fine with the special exception and it was just down to color scheme and
landscape elevations.
VII. Items by Staff
There was none.
VIII. Items by Board Members
There was none.
IX. Public
Mr. Boardman stated there should be discussion on donating a new
sound system to which Chairman Smith told him to get with the Civic
Association and do something about it. Mr. Boardman stated he would
like to speak with the Town Manager about it to get them a better
system. Town Manager Dunham stated that the staff had been exploring
the needs with the audio visual. Chairman Smith then told Mr. Boardman
to put on his calendar the November 19th meeting for the follow-up
discussion on 3247 Polo Dr.
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Minutes of ARPB Meeting & Public Hearing
Held 10-22-2020 @ 8:30 A.M.
X. Adjournment
Chairman Smith adjourned the meeting at 9:25 A.M.
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Renee Basel
Assistant Town Clerk
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