HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-22-2009
C I TY O F_
DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT
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.~COMMITTEE
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WAS H I N G TO N September 22, 2009
MINUTES
1. CALL TO ORDER
Vice Chair Sue Singer called the meeting to order at 4:01 p.m. in the Council Chambers
located on the first floor of Auburn City Hall, 25 West Main Street, Auburn, WA.
- Committee Members present were: Vice Chair Sue Singer and Member Gene Cerino.
Chair Lynn Norman was excused.
Staff present included: Planning, Building & Community Director Cindy Baker, Principal
Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain, Public Works Director Dennis Dowdy, City Engineer
Dennis Selle, Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub, Economic Development Manager
Dave Baron, Cultural Arts Manager Laurie Rose, Visual/Public Arts Coordinator Maija
McKnight, and Planning Secretary Renee Tobias.
Audience Members present were: Jeff Kelm, Kathleen Keator, David Buckholtz, Jeffrey
Oliphant, and Spencer Alpert.
II. CONSENT AGENDA
A. Meeting Minutes - August 25, 2009
B. Meeting Minutes - September 9, 2009
Member Cerino moved to approve the consent agenda items as presented; Vice
Chair Singer concurred.
The consent agenda was approved as submitted unanimously 2-0.
III. ACTION
A. Downtown Urban Center (DUC) Design Standards
, Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain stated that the following three items are
from the current Downtown Urban Center Design Standards and not from the
Auburn Junction Design Standards. Staff asked the following questions of the
Committee and received the following responses.
1) Committee to provide direction to staff on compact parking within surface lots
in Downtown specifically on pedestrian streets (e.g. Main Street) which are
currently prohibited. Should compact space& at a certain ratio be allowed?
Committee discussed and concurred that compact parking should be
permitted. Committee discussed the ratio of compact spaces and agreed
using a 50% ratio for compact spaces in new surface lots is acceptable.
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Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes September 22, 2009
2) Committee to provide direction to staff on the intent of monument signage in
Downtown specifically on pedestrian streets (e.g. Main Street) which are
currently prohibited.
Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain stated that monument signage is
permitted within the downtown but not on a designated pedestrian street such
as Main Street. Staff asked the Committee what was the reasoning for not
allowing monument signage and should that be revisited? Staff further asked
what if the signage is more wayfinding in nature would the Committee support
monument signage. -
The Committee responded that at the time the Guidelines were approved,
they assumed the buildings would be built right up against the sidewalks and
not set back. Given this thought, the Committee did not want signs in the
streets or impeding pedestrian traffic.
Ms. Chamberlain reported that these questions were raised mainly due to a
current downtown project, One Main Building (Auburn Professional Plaza).
The proposed sign would be located within the entry plaza and would be a
wayfinding to businesses located within the building and to the parking
garage. Ms. Chamberlain noted that the project's sign designer was present
in'the audience should the Committee have project-specific questions.
Staff asked the Committee if the prohibition was against all monument
signage or could staff write in some flexibility that if it is set back a certain
_ distance it would be permissible. As stated above, the purpose was to
prevent interruption to pedestrian traffic. Committee agreed that wording that
a monument signage would be acceptable if it were placed in such a way that
it did not inhibit pedestrian traffic would be acceptable.
Staff confirmed for the Committee that the type of sign that piles the business
names on top of one another, such as a pole sign, would not be a monument
signage. Signs have to be creative so there are other regulations that would
protect a sign from being unattractive as it does have to be in character with
the building (Page 10, Downtown Design Standards). Staff did confirm for
the Committee that pole signs are prohibited and that monument signs have
a limit on size in the downtown area.
The Committee inquired about a business-specific sign that is on Main Street.
Staff responded that the standards apply to new signage and staff is working
with businesses on compliance. Re-facing an existing sign would not be
required to comply with the design standards.
The Committee supports monument signage on pedestrian streets if the
signs are wayfinding in nature and for pedestrians as long as the signs are
setback and do not impact pedestrian traffic. Staff will modify the Design
Standards and bring back to the next Committee meeting for approval.
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Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes September 22, 2009
3) Currently internally lit signage is not permitted unless on Auburn Way South
and part of an electronic sign. Would the Committee consider internally lit
signage if it is backlighting (LED lights) the sign and not a plastic cabinet
sign? For example backlighting (LED lights) a glass panel.
This has also come up as a result of other project reviews. Staff has been
receiving requests to permit backlit signs such as behind a glass panel. The
requests are not the unattractive cabinet signage which is most likely why this
regulation was originally paced in the guidelines. There is attractive back
lighting such as LED lights.
Staff recommends adding language to the Design Standards that cabinet
signage is prohibited but backlighting is allowed when it meets the other
criteria, integration with architecture, and is a creative sign. Committee
concurred with this recommendation.
The Committee invited the One Main Building (aka Auburn Professional
Plaza) design team to the table for discussion. Jeff Kehm with TubeArt Signs
distributed two examples of monument signs proposed for the One Main
Building. Mr. Kehm stated that the One Main Building logo is reminiscent of
Auburn's railroad history and linking with the train station.
Jeffrey Oliphant, Auburn Professional Plaza LLC, stated that the sign has a
specific purpose - to draw people who patronize the hospital, medical office
building and use the parking garage to the retail stores that front Main Street.
Discussion about the location of the proposed signs ensued and questions
about the height, size, and design of sign were asked of the design team. Mr.
Oliphant stated that the-most important element is to direct people to the
parking garage since parking is not on-site. The Committee also commented
on the proposed name for the new parking structure and provided staff with
some other alternatives. The Committee asked how far it is anticipated that
someone could read the monument sign on 1st Street /Division Street. Mr.
Oliphant stated the goal is for people leaving and walking out of the parking
garage to be able to read the signage. The signs will be placed in the plaza
setting on private property.
The Committee then inquired about the color and design of the signage and
how it will integrate with the architecture of the building. Mr. Kehm stated that
the color,matches the canopies as well as the window ledge. The intent of
the proposed signage is to compliment the building; not exactly match. If the
sign were in brick it would blend in with the building and not be visible. "
IV. INFORMATION
B. Update on Auburn Junction
Staff (Planning, Public Works, and Parks) met with Alpert design team to review
the conceptual Auburn Junction design and compare it to the development
agreement as well as the recommendations staff received from the Mayor's
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Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes September 22, 2009
Institute on City Design (MICD). At the staff level meeting, it was decided that
the Alpert design team would bring a preliminary design to staff, with the goal of
presenting this information at the October 13, 2009 Downtown Redevelopment
Committee meeting. Vice Chair Singer asked Spencer Alpert for any updates. Mr. Alpert stated that
they had met with First Western and from a real estate marketing perspective
developers would like the idea of a large gathering place such as a civic plaza.
The next step would be to provide an updated memo to the Committee. Mr. ,
Alpert felt that the ideas shared in the memo matched with MICD
recommendations.
At last meeting, it was determined that Auburn Junction design guidelines did not
need to revisited and revised as the Committee felt there was flexibility built into
the regulations.
Director Baker stated that the Committee spent a fair amount of time talking
about City Hall Plaza and Council approved the master plan concept. The Alpert
team reviewed the approved master plan and feels it does not fit into the
recommendation of the MICD team. From the meeting with Alpert International,
it was agreed that their design team would see if there were some adjustments
that could be made to the Auburn Junction Design to integrate the Plaza south.
Director Baker asked the Committee to be clear in what they were directing•staff
to do and that it may mean potentially undoing decisions made on the City Hall
Plaza. Does Committee want staff to redo the master plan concept drawing and
does the Committee want the plaza to continue across Main Street to Marvel or
Cavanaugh? Director Baker noted that from the Mayor's point of view, the City
Plaza was finished.
Member Cerino stated he wants the MICD's recommendation of continuing the
plaza directly south and remove the triangle of trees at the SE corner of the city
hall plaza. Member Signer stated that the paving pattern should be oriented
north/south and not on an,angle as currently constructed. It was noted that the
money that is currently set aside for the City Hall Plaza is for infrastructure only.
Discussion continued that regardless of what the final direction on the Gity Hall
Plaza will be come Spring 2010 the design for the Promenade will be started
(depending on the grant funding award timing). The Committee asked if the
scope of work changes for the Promenade what is the process. Economic
Development Manger Baron stated that any changes from the scope of work
submitted as part of the grant will need approval from the Economic
Development Administration (EDA). Staff reminded the Committee that a major
scope of the Promenade is infrastructure not the aesthetics. Staff also reminded
the Committee that at the September 9, 2009 meeting, the Committee made a
decision that the City Hall Plaza would continue directly south across Main
Street, if found to be economically feasible by the developer, and not to the NE
block of the Auburn Junction project.
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Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes September 22, 2009
Discussion continued about the timing of the Promenade project with the Auburn
Junction project. Director Baker asked Public Works how long does it take from
design to final construction. Assistant City Engineer Gaub stated about 18
months which was included in the EDA grant. Goal is to have the design
completed in 2010 and under construction Summer 2011. Director Baker asked
the Committee to commit to the width of the sidewalk and the location of curbs in
the Promenade.
Mr. Alpert stated that a revised memo on the Auburn Junction will be submitted
to staff for review and then brought back to the Committee. Mr. Alpert also
stated that the city should move forward and the developer will integrate the
City's plans into the Auburn Junction project.
Committee requested staff to work with the Alpert team and the City Hall Plaza
designer, to incorporate the Boulder, CO pictures into the Plaza design. It was
agreed that the review would identify the look and feel and not specific features.
Any changes to the City Hall Plaza design and how the plaza works with the
Promenade will be brought back to a future meeting.
V. ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the Downtown Redevelopment
Committee, Vice Chair Singer adjourned the meeting at 5:27 p.m.
APPROVED THIS DAY OF OCTOBER 2009.
ue Signer, Vic hair Renee S. Tobias, Planning Secretary
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