July 31, 2024 Planning Board Special Meeting Transcript - WEHI

20 (Pages 74 to 77) Page 74 1 adequate power and distribution to permit all of 2 this, so we will provide the infrastructure for the 3 future growth in here just because it makes good 4 sense and it's appropriate for planning, but we 5 don't necessarily want to put them in, especially 6 because what was cutting edge today will be 7 antiquated a year from now. It's everything moving 8 very quickly. 9 So some of the questions that were 10 raised in here were with regard to questions of life 11 safety. This building is fully sprinklered. There 12 are requirements under NFPA for all of the sprinkler 13 systems in here. This building will be fully 14 sprinklered. In addition, one thing to note is all 15 of the building from the podium -- and the podium is 16 that garage level of the building, that lower level 17 of the building where you often will have a lobby 18 and a garage. It's called podium construction. 19 It's three-hour fire-rated. That's extraordinary. 20 And in addition, all of the upper floors are 21 one-hour fire-rated. There will be standpipes in 22 each building, you'll have a fully monitored alarm 23 system. That means when the alarm system goes off, 24 it's not a local alarm, it goes right to the fire 25 department or to the monitoring station. Page 75 1 We will be providing emergency 2 generators at each building to provide, at a minimum 3 right now, access controls, security lighting, 4 controls for the garage, getting in and out, so no 5 one would be stranded in case there's a power 6 failure. 7 We have not made a decision of whether 8 the emergency lighting will be on batteries or the 9 generator, that's a decision that we make a couple 10 of ticks down when we're closer to construction in 11 here, but again, all of this will meet all the 12 requisite building codes. 13 One of the other items that I believe 14 was brought up at one point was would there be an 15 area of refuge. Yes, there will be an area of 16 refuge in these buildings, so that's a protected 17 area that's built into the design of the building 18 that allows, in case of an emergency, someone can be 19 in a safe place and wait for the first responders to 20 come. 21 The building is going to be elevator 22 serviced. Some of the buildings have multiple 23 elevator cores so that they're more efficient for 24 the residents, and again, what we're trying to do is 25 we're designing

is going to be elevator 22 serviced. Some of the buildings have multiple 23 elevator cores so that they're more efficient for 24 the residents, and again, what we're trying to do is 25 we're designing this smart for the residents because Page 76 1 that's -- you know, residents and the renters are 2 smart now. They all look for amenities, they look 3 for all of these features and safety features and we 4 look to provide all of these items. So we provide 5 elevators that are oversized in height, so at least 6 one of the elevators will be oversized in height to 7 enhance movement, and all of the elevators will be 8 sized for stretchers as well. And again, we are 9 happy -- no, I have not seen a fire report, but I've 10 designed numerous buildings like this, so I am happy 11 to work with the local authorities on locating 12 Knox-Boxes and making sure that any of the issues 13 they have with truss plaque or signage or what have 14 you, that we accommodate and coordinate with that; 15 that's an easy process. 16 So one of the issues I was bringing up 17 was design features and amenities. Again, all of 18 the design was, the starting point for this was the 19 ordinance as well as the settlement agreement, which 20 also included provisions for green design, and these 21 are -- we have met or exceeded all of the standards 22 that were proposed in here, so I believe we're in a 23 very good place. Each building has its own defined 24 entries and are essentially independently occupied. 25 So they don't rely on a neighboring building. This Page 77 1 is something that Mr. Anderson was explaining, that 2 one building doesn't have a surplus of parking and 3 the other one have a shortage so you have to park at 4 one building and walk over; they're truly 5 independent structures. 6 Each building has an amenity space, as 7 shown on the drawings; however, as I mentioned, 8 Building D, which is the building on the ridgeline, 9 is a bit more unique. It has more amenity spaces as 10 well as we've included a rooftop deck for passive 11 amenities for residents. As well, up on the roof, 12 20 units will have private roof terraces above their 13 units. 14 Balconies are also provided for 15 residents and also to provide architectural 16 interests on the facade. So you can see on this 17 rendering in here that we have these wraparound 18 terraces as well as these balconies, and all of 19

residents and also to provide architectural 16 interests on the facade. So you can see on this 17 rendering in here that we have these wraparound 18 terraces as well as these balconies, and all of 19 these were carefully integrated with the design so 20 that it breaks up the building, provides a lot of 21 architectural interest, and we feel that this was a 22 very good response. 23 One of the things I want to know is, if 24 you look carefully at the rendering over here 25 (indicating), you will see down-lights on each of

21 (Pages 78 to 81) Page 78 1 the terraces or balconies, and the reason why we've 2 done that is, rather than provide a lantern on a 3 wall that shines and throws the light out 4 horizontally, these aim down and are very, very 5 controlled sources, so we believe that this will 6 provide and eliminate a glare. It provides a 7 cleaner illumination and eliminates clear from the 8 building to adjoining areas, and this was something 9 that was brought up as one of the comments last 10 night. 11 Another thing that I want to mention is 12 the handling of trash. So we have a trash compactor 13 in each building. We believe this is the gold 14 standard, it's the right way to do this. Trash is 15 collected, so you don't have to walk downstairs, out 16 the lobby or with a -- one of your neighbors in the 17 elevator carrying bags of trash or your recycling. 18 There's a room on each floor with a chute, trash is 19 dropped down and it goes down to a compactor, the 20 compactor compacts it into a container, it's brought 21 out for collection. This is really the best way to 22 do this. 23 The other issue, recycling is handled 24 just a little bit differently. We find that the 25 recycling tends to clog these, uh, these chutes, Page 79 1 because people will put a pizza box down there, they 2 unfold, they open up, so we find that it's more 3 efficient right now, until there's a better 4 technology, that we collect the recycling inside 5 each of these trash rooms in bins and the 6 superintendent brings these down, collects them, 7 brings them down to the garage; from the garage, 8 they go in containers often, sometimes large toter 9 cans, similar to larger versions of what you 10 probably have at your home, and they're brought out 11 for collection by a hauler. 12 So one of the other buildings that we 13 have designed, and I will go -- this is -- I'll -- 14 I'm passing one of the other renderings. This is an 15 end view of the building to show how the ends of the 16 buildings step down and are landscaped and this is 17 pulled back seven feet and giving more of an overall 18 view. You can kind of see how some of the elements 19 are working together. 20 This building over here is that central 21 clubhouse building, and this is -- as you drive up, 22 this is -- there's that rotunda that Mr. Klein was 23 asking about. This is just up the hill from that 24 area, so as you drive up,

at central 21 clubhouse building, and this is -- as you drive up, 22 this is -- there's that rotunda that Mr. Klein was 23 asking about. This is just up the hill from that 24 area, so as you drive up, you will see the back of 25 the building, which is exposed, and as you can Page 80 1 imagine, all of these buildings, and I'll -- all of 2 these buildings, because there's a lot of 3 topography, there's a lot of slope on the property, 4 we've designed all of the buildings to take 5 advantage of the slope, so they're often nestled in 6 with an accessible entrance, all of these buildings 7 are handicap accessible, and then the backs of the 8 building tend to be what I'll call "daylight" or a 9 walkout; some people are familiar with the term a 10 "walkout basement." That's essentially what we have 11 here. So this clubhouse is for tenants and their 12 guests, this is central to the job, and we have made 13 this building a little bit different so it has a 14 different special feel, but we've used many of the 15 same materials that are common to the residential 16 buildings. So there is an apartment that is shown 17 in the clubhouse. This was brought up on one of the 18 reports, I believe the planning report, and I want 19 to indicate there's nobody living in this building. 20 This is a part of a leasing office, so this is an 21 apartment so that when a renter is coming to look at 22 the property, he or she can see the layout of the 23 apartment with the finishes and basically without 24 having to navigate the site and find an empty 25 apartment to, uh, to look at. But we find that this Page 81 1 is a very good strategy and also nicer for the 2 residents as well. 3 We believe that this building will be 4 kind of the center point and it's a large amenity 5 structure, basically to provide a centralized hub 6 for the residents. It will include both interior 7 and exterior amenities. You can see there's some 8 roof decks and balconies and areas in here for 9 congregation. Again, there are outdoor spaces 10 adjoining this. Now, one of the things that -- on 11 the inside of the building, we've started labeling a 12 number of these clubhouse amenity -- amenities, but 13 a lot of these change over time because they need to 14 be responsive to the needs of the residents, so 15 while the building we're proposing is static, some 16 of these items will change over time. For

lot of these change over time because they need to 14 be responsive to the needs of the residents, so 15 while the building we're proposing is static, some 16 of these items will change over time. For instance, 17 a business center may have a conference room and 18 that may turn out a couple of years later to become 19 cubicles or something like that as a business 20 center. So these things tend, over time, to get 21 repurposed, but the idea of these spaces are they're 22 allowed for people to -- residents to congregate, 23 people who want to come who may be working out of 24 their house can come and utilize the clubhouse as 25 well.

22 (Pages 82 to 85) Page 82 1 So I'm going to go back to the starting 2 point in here that we were looking at and the color 3 and materials that are shown on the rendering, this 4 is an artistic conceptual view. This is Building D, 5 but it's really typical of all the residential 6 buildings. Color and materials are suggestions. 7 These are our best selection at this point. It is 8 possible that some of the colors and materials will 9 have to change slightly based on what is available 10 in the marketplace because sometimes colors get 11 discontinued, but this gives a close idea 12 conceptually of what we are trying to do and if an 13 alternate manufacturer came in, maybe the color will 14 be a little beiger or a little grayer or something 15 like that. 16 The materials include brick, illuminate 17 storefront at the entries, decorative architectural 18 railings, decorative panels, we have balconies. We 19 also have many openings that you will see along the 20 base of the building here and what we have done is, 21 these are openings that are screened with 22 architectural treatment that allows ventilation, but 23 it also hides the parring behind. All of the 24 buildings need, all the parking need to either be 25 mechanically ventilated or naturally ventilated. To Page 83 1 be more in the spirit of a green building, we have 2 tried to do these with natural ventilation where 3 grading permits. There are a couple of instances on 4 certain areas on buildings that we are not -- we 5 believe we will not be able to do that, so certain 6 portions of the garages will need to be mechanically 7 ventilated. 8 Windows are all large and well 9 proportioned for the contemporary feel of these 10 buildings and we've created architectural paneling, 11 which is either metal composite or fiber cement. 12 All of these are -- all of the materials used are 13 very, very low maintenance. The idea in here, their 14 high-quality materials, have very low maintenance, 15 and the idea is that the building will look good 16 with very little maintenance for years to come. 17 As we have discussed on here, the -- 18 the building as a whole is well broken up and, 19 again, these buildings were designed compliant with 20 the ordinance; however, there's one small caveat. 21 Due to the way the buildings are graded -- so the 22 buildings are always tucked into the hill. The 23 buildings all need

esigned compliant with 20 the ordinance; however, there's one small caveat. 21 Due to the way the buildings are graded -- so the 22 buildings are always tucked into the hill. The 23 buildings all need to be handicapped accessible, 24 there's no option there. So what we've done is 25 worked with the existing grading and worked with Mr. Page 84 1 Anderson closely so that what we can do is create a 2 situation where we get the roads to have the right 3 pitch, the sidewalks to have the right pitch, and 4 usually what happens is, at the garage level, is -- 5 that was the equalizer, so we've had to make the 6 garage taller in some instances than is necessary, 7 and what that has done is there's a portion of the 8 ordinance called Section 25-19(b)10 which has to do 9 with exposure of the ground floor, and we have a 10 provision where we need to hold to 50 percent, but 11 because of these conditions in here, we are over 50 12 percent. Now, what does that mean? Well, we've 13 mentioned that the buildings are built into grade 14 where we can, but rather than drastically alter 15 grade, put in retaining walls and other elements in 16 here, we believe that it's far better to create more 17 interesting architecture, create architectural 18 treatment of the ground floor and provide more 19 landscaping and in a couple of places where we have 20 more exposed wall -- and these are the walls of the 21 garage level in all cases, is those walls in there, 22 we've created a -- where we have one of those 23 ventilation holes, we've created a green wall and 24 that green wall will take the place where we have a 25 larger opening, where we have on certain buildings Page 85 1 where it is dropped down much lower, that we will -- 2 that it will -- we will have basically green 3 vegetation growing on the kind of louvered frame 4 system, protecting the garage. 5 So I believe Mr. Anderson had the 6 metrics in here for Building A, Building B, Building 7 C and Building D for where the proposed design was 8 in excess of the 50 percent. 9 Now, one of the things just to -- all 10 other provisions of the IH-1 ordinance and all of 11 the building heights and other provisions are all 12 conforming, so this was the only item that we're 13 looking for relief on. 14 One other item that I wanted to bring 15 up, and this is something that Mr. Anderson had 16 discussed, is that we had cut two sections

so this was the only item that we're 13 looking for relief on. 14 One other item that I wanted to bring 15 up, and this is something that Mr. Anderson had 16 discussed, is that we had cut two sections through 17 the building -- through the site, so we took one 18 going over this side to Howell and down over here -- 19 can you pan to the -- to the right? So -- down to 20 Rosemont. So I will show you these two section 21 views, and what is very hard to understand, we have 22 a building here that's placed on the site and there 23 are all of these lines and topo, but you can see, 24 this is a relatively flat area over here, and you 25 can see, in the fenced area, how steep it gets.

23 (Pages 86 to 89) Page 86 1 Steepness, you would see because the topography 2 lines are much closer together. So I'm going to go 3 and show respective -- this is that first 4 diagrammatic Section AA, which shows over here going 5 toward Howell, and you can see, respectively, where 6 the house is, the existing vegetative tree line, and 7 actually, how it kind of flattens out here. Now, 8 there was discussion that was brought up about -- 9 and I'll actually show the other -- the other view 10 because I think that's even -- is a lot more 11 telling, is now you see it's at a completely 12 different scale, here's the cross-section of the 13 building, you see the flat portion of the ridge. 14 This is at section BB. And the house and scale is 15 back down over here (indicating). So you can kind 16 of get a sense of it's very hard to understand when 17 you look at the site from an adjoining area or look 18 at a floor plan, you don't quite get a sense of 19 scale. I think this does give you a good sense of 20 scale here. 21 Now, one of the things that we were 22 discussing, and Mr. Anderson -- we talked a little 23 bit about this because he was asking questions and 24 he had shared the geotechnical reports with us and 25 what is very interesting is the best -- Page 87 1 (Noise disturbance) 2 MR. APPEL: The best -- the best way 3 to support a building is on bedrock. We have an 4 opportunity here to be at bedrock or close to 5 bedrock. Do I design these things? Well, to a 6 degree, yes, but we hire, we read the geotechnical 7 reports, we provide them to a structural engineer 8 who designs the foundation systems for the building, 9 and in collaboration with each other, they decide 10 how deep and what type of foundation needs to be 11 used for the building. The conditions here for me 12 are not scary but almost bordering on ideal. The 13 negative to this is that there may be some rock that 14 has to be moved away from certain areas to construct 15 the buildings. There was little room to change a 16 lot of the roadway elevations, so Mr. Anderson kind 17 of gave us whatever leeway we had, but there was not 18 a lot of leeway there, but what is -- what will 19 happen in here is, when rock is encountered, and 20 there is shallow rock in portions of the site, per 21 the geotechnical reports, they're indicating that 22 top portions of this may be able to be ripped and 23