Agenda - City of Santa Monica

Planning Commission Action
The Planning Commission considered this development agreement on March 20, 2013
and April 3, 2013. The Commission recommended that the City Council approve the
proposed Development Agreement, and provided the following recommendations for
City Council’s consideration:
• Affordable Housing. The project shall provide 10 on-site affordable housing units
(20% on-site), consisting of five very-low income one-bedroom units, and five
moderate-income studio units defined as 80% of the area median income. As
discussed, staff believes that the 15% affordable units as proposed would be
appropriate for this particular project.
• Additional ADA Consideration for Ground Floor Residential Units. The project
should provide additional space for accessibility within residential units, soften
turns in courtyard, provide wider paths, etc. to improve the overall accessibility
for residents. Staff has included Condition No. 25 that recommends the
Architecture Review Board, in their review of the project design, pay particular
attention to the courtyard aesthetic design, ground floor unit layout and
entrances, and overall circulation and accessibility.
• LEED® Platinum Certification. Commission recommended that the project be
designed and constructed to achieve a minimum LEED® Platinum certification as
established by the LEED® Rating System. The applicant has agreed to design
the project to achieve a LEED® Gold certification as established by the LEED®
Rating System.
• Solar Panels. Commission recommended that the project provide an ad equate
amount of roof-mounted solar panels that would fully off-set the energy required
to operate the common areas (lighting for internal hallways, etc) of the project.
The applicant proposes to provide 24 solar panels on the roof, which may equate
to providing approximately half of the energy required to operate the common
areas.
• Floating Frame Design. Commission expressed concerns that the floating frame
on the front elevation adds to the overall building mass, and recommended that
the ARB reevaluate this design feature during their review of the project’s design.
Condition No. 26 has been added to reflect this recommendation.
• Historic Preservation Contribution. Commission recommended that $25,000 be
reallocated from the proposed Open Space Contribution to the creation of a
Historic Preservation Fund. The Open Space Contribution would be reduced to
from $250,000 to $225,000. Staff agrees with the Commission and this provision
has been added to the Development Agreement.
• Future Downtown Parking In-Lieu Fee Program. Commission supported staff’s
recommendation that the project shall be subject to any future downtown parking
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