9.3980 S-WS Walnut Station Special Area Zone Design Review.
(1) As an alternative to designing a development that complies with all of the development standards otherwise applicable in the S-WS Walnut Station Special Area Zone, an applicant may apply for city approval of a proposed development through the design review process beginning with EC 9.8110 Design Review – Purpose. Telecommunications facilities are not eligible for the design review option.
(2) The planning director shall approve, conditionally approve, or deny a design review application based on compliance with the following criteria:
(a) Consistency with design objectives listed at EC 9.3950 Purpose of the S-WS Walnut Station Special Area Zone.
(b) The project seeking design review approval will achieve an equivalent or higher quality design than would result from strict adherence to the otherwise applicable standards through:
1. A building orientation, massing, articulation, and façade that contributes positively to the surrounding urban environment and;
2. An overall site and building design that creates a safe and attractive pedestrian environment. Design elements for this purpose may include special architectural features, high quality materials, outdoor seating, pedestrian scaled lighting, prominent entries facing the street, multiple openings or windows, and a significant use of clear, un-tinted glass.
(c) Impacts to any adjacent residentially zoned properties are minimized. Design elements for this purpose may include treatment of building massing, setbacks, stepbacks, screening and landscaping.
(d) New buildings shall not increase the shadow cast more than 20% of the maximum shadow area that would be cast by a building that complied with applicable height, stepback, and setback requirements of this Chapter. Building shadow shall be measured at 3:00 p.m. on April 21 of any year.
(e) The adverse effects of motor vehicle movement shall be mitigated as much as possible. Primary vehicular access to the lands north of 15th Avenue and east of Walnut Street should minimize impact on nearby residences and Fairmount Park.
(f) Proposed development shall mitigate the storage effects of motor vehicle parking and parking impacts on the surrounding neighborhood shall be reasonably mitigated by minimizing off-street parking. This can be accomplished through the use of shared parking agreements, car sharing and bus pass programs, and other Transportation Demand Management Strategies.