MOTION
Moved by Council Member _____________________________, seconded by Council Member _________________________, that upon review and consideration of all documents, materials, exhibits and testimony relative to the appeal of the Design Review Board approval with conditions of Design Review Case No. PDR 002532-2023, located at 1000 Sandringham Drive (the “Design Review Case”), and after having conducted a public hearing on the appeal on February 11, 2025, and a further continued hearing on March 11, 2025, pursuant to the Glendale Municipal Code, 1995, and receiving testimony, the City Council of the City of Glendale, California, based upon all of the evidence in the record, hereby SUSTAINS the Design Review Board’s decision to APPROVE the Design Review Case with conditions (the “Project”), based on the findings and conclusions set forth in the February 11, 2025 report to Council from the Director of Community Development (“February Report”), including any attachments thereto, and including additional findings and/or conditions presented and discussed at the March 11, 2025 continued hearing, as set forth below in this motion. Further, the Council hereby adopts, and incorporates herein by this reference, the analysis, findings, conclusions and conditions of the Design Review Board in its Record of Decision dated April 25, 2024 (Exhibit 3 to the February Report).
FINDINGS
In sustaining the Design Review Board’s decision and approving the Design Review Case, the Council hereby makes the following findings:
1.Site Planning: The proposed site planning is appropriate, as modified by any conditions, to the site and its surroundings for the following reasons:
2 •The residence does not have much presence from the adjacent streets, given the unusual shape of the lot.
•The residence will be located on a relatively flat portion of the subject site. •The attached garage proposed is typical of the neighborhood. The garage (as well as the residence) will be located within the main body and not the “flag” portion of the lot and, therefore, is not readily visible from the public right-of-way. •The landscape plans propose drought-tolerant plants, consistent with the Hillside Design Guidelines. As conditioned, vines or other hanging plants shall be installed to soften the appearance of the driveway adjacent retaining walls as well as the walls at the rear of the house.
2.Mass and Scale: The proposed mass and scale are appropriate, as modified by any conditions, to the site and its surroundings for the following reasons:
•The proposed residence is located on a flat portion of a relatively steep lot. •While the south elevation of the proposed residence does not follow the topography of the site, given the location of the proposed residence as well as existing topography and development in the greater neighborhood, this should not be problematic.
•While the proposed residence (including its entry) is large and appears monumental, it is set back significantly from adjacent streets. As conditioned, the entry shall be slightly reduced in scale, while maintaining the balance of the overall façade composition.
3 3.Building Design and Detailing: The proposed building design and detailing are appropriate, as modified by any conditions, to the site and its surroundings for the following reasons:
•The large balcony located off the primary bedroom should not pose privacy concerns given its location and orientation and distance from the adjacent property to the west.
•The various materials used, including smooth stucco, slate roofing and fiberglass windows, are of high quality and re-enforce the architectural design of the proposed residence.
•As conditioned, to visually minimize the rear retaining walls, the color and materials used shall blend with the adjacent earth.
CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
1. Native vines or other hanging native plants shall be planted adjacent to the driveway retaining walls to soften the appearance of these features, subject to Fire Department approval.
2. Only native landscaping shall be planted adjacent to the walkway leading to the front entrance and along the entire Wildlife Corridor (defined in Condition No. 5 below), subject to Fire Department approval.
3. Rescale the entry of the residence slightly to reduce its mass, while maintaining the balance of the overall façade composition.
4. To visually minimize the rear retaining walls, the color and materials used shall blend with the adjacent earth and substantial native landscaping shall be planted above and below them, subject to Fire Department approval.
4 5. All retaining walls located in the Wildlife Corridor, which is depicted in green on the site plan submitted by the parties at the continued hearing on March 11, 2025 and attached hereto as Exhibit A (“Wildlife Corridor”), shall be no more than 12 inches in height, with the exception of the retaining wall along the property line located within the Wildlife Corridor.
6. The back retaining walls, guardrails, and court, depicted in red (with the legend “removal of element”) on Exhibit A, which are all located on the northeast corner of the Project, shall be removed.
7. No wall-mounted lighting shall be installed, and only downward-facing and low- level lighting shall be installed, on the front facade (front main entry porch and entrance walkway), as depicted in the notes in red on Exhibit A; lighting timers shall be used to ensure darkness, and no motion-sensor lighting shall be installed affecting the Wildlife Corridor.
8. No lighting shall be installed that is oriented toward the Wildlife Corridor on the north end of the Project or toward the adjacent City-owned open space.
9. No impediments, including, but not limited to, fences, walls, barriers, or planted hedges, shall be constructed, installed or planted within the Wildlife Corridor.
10. Malekian and Associates, Garnik Hovsepyan and/or GTS Investment Group LLC (Applicant/Owner), and their respective successors; owners by deed, deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, foreclosure or otherwise; assigns; and/or any real party in interest with an interest in the property that is the subject of this approval, and/or with an interest in the Project site, that is named as a party in any suit (hereinafter collectively the “Developer”), agree to and shall defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the City of Glendale (the “City”), and each of its agents, officers, council members, commissioners, 5 attorneys, employees and representatives (the “Indemnitees”) from any claim, action or proceeding brought against the City and/or the Indemnities to attack, set aside, void or annul any City land use or California Environmental Quality Act approval for the Project.
The Developer agrees to use legal counsel reasonably acceptable to the City. The foregoing shall include, without limitation, payment of all damages awarded against the City and/or the Indemnitees, if any, costs of suit, attorney’s fees, and other costs and expenses incurred in connection with such action or proceeding. In the event that a claim, action or proceeding referenced herein is brought, the City shall promptly notify the Developer of the existence of the claim, action or proceeding and will cooperate fully in the defense of such claim, action or proceeding. As used herein, “land use approval” shall refer to decisions of the City approving requests of applicants for planning permits, including, but not limited to, general plan amendments, annexations, zone changes, zoning ordinance text amendments, tentative maps, vesting tentative maps, tentative parcel maps, reversions to acreage, final maps, final modifications or amendments, time extensions, parcel map waivers, lot line adjustments, boundary line adjustments, certificates of compliance, conditional certificates of compliance, design review approvals, development agreements, conditional use permits, conditional use permit modifications, conditional use permit extensions, variances, variance modifications, precise plan of design, specific plans, density bonus review/housing plan applications, sign permits, parking reduction permits, site plans, temporary use permits, any administrative or discretionary permit pertaining to a land use approval, and/or any 6 accompanying California Environmental Quality Act determination(s) pertaining to the type of approval referred to in this section, and any other similar approval.
Vote as follows:
Ayes:
Noes:
Absent:
Abstain: