Community Development Department
–
Planning Division
1600 First Street + P.O. Box 660
Napa, CA 94559
-
0660
(707) 257
-
9530
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
PLANNING
COMMISSION
STAFF REPORT
DECEM
BER
2 ,
20 21
AGENDA
ITEM
7.A
File No.
PL
21 -
0 133
–
EMBASSY SUITES ADDITION
PUBLIC
ART
I.
GENERAL
INFORMATION
PROJECT
SUMMARY:
Design Review
Permit
to
install public art at the
Embassy Suites
Hotel
LOCATION OF
PROPERTY:
1075 California Boulevard
APN
0 02
-
2 0
0 -
0 0
1 GENERAL PLAN:
T
ourist Commercial
(T
C
-
484
)
ZONING
:
Tourist Commercial (
CT
)
,
Floodplain Management Overlay
APPLICANT/
PROPERTY
OWNER:
Mani NVR Napa (DE)
9200 Sunset Boulevard, Suite 555
West Hollywood
, CA 9
0069
Phone: (
310
)
777
-
5000
STAFF
PLANNER:
Bond Mendez
,
Assistant
Plann
e
r
Phone: (707) 257
-
95 30
LOCATION MAP
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
2 II.
PROJECT
DESCRIPTION
The Applicant,
Mani NVR Napa (DE)
,
request
s
approval of a Design Review Permit for
the installation of a public art piece for the
Embassy Suites Hotel property
to satisfy the
public art requirement
for
the
previously approved
Embassy Suites H
otel
A
ddition
that
was approved in
202
0 (PL
16 -
0144)
,
consistent with the Public Art Ordinance (
Chapter
15.108)
.
The sculpture, titled
“
From
O
ur Vineyard
,
”
would be
located at the
southern
-
most
point
of the property and measures approximately
26 feet long,
17 feet wide
,
and
17 feet
tall.
Final dimensions will be determined upon final construction documents .
“
From Our
Vineyard
”
is constructed of
Corten
steel
stakes
that represent the anchoring end post in
a row of vines
.
The Corten steel is
a steel alloy that forms a stable rust
-
like
appearance
after several years' exposure to weather.
The Applicant is requesting the following applications:
1. Design Review Permit for a
public art installation
;
FIGURE
1 –
PROPOSED ART:
“
FROM OUR VINEYARD
”
III.
PROJECT CONTEXT
The Embassy Suites Hotel is on the northwest corner of California Boulevard and First Street adjacent to Highway 29 and First Street at the gateway to the downtown area.
Surrounding uses include Highway 29 to the west, a mix of residential, commercial and tourist commercial to the south, single family residential to the east. Napa Creek is located ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
3 directly north of the project site. Across the creek further to the north is a vacant parcel which has been approved for a residential condominium project and old er single
-
family
residences. In 1984, the existing hotel (then called the Granada Royale II) was approved by Use Permit UP83
-
172. The hotel contains 211 rooms, a 2,255
-
square foot restaurant,
and a 7,940 square feet conference facility.
A 4,045
-
square foot
addition to the conference
facility was approved by Administrative Permit (PL18
-
0013), however the conference
facility addition project is superseded by the most recent approved project approved by City Council, Embassy Suites Addition (PL16
-
0144) to cons
truct a detached 53,720
-
square
-
foot
addition to the Site
.
IV.
ANALYSIS
A.
GENERAL PLAN
& ZONING
The property is located within the
Tourist Commercial
(T
C
-
921
)
General Plan
d
esignation
.
This designation provides for commercial retail and service uses oriented toward tourists
and other visitors to the community
includ
ing
destination
-
resort hotels, motels, and their
recreational amenities, such as golf courses, tennis courts, and their related clubs and facilities.
Staff has determined that the proposal
may be found consistent with the General
Plan and in support of the General Plan Goal below.
Parks and Recreation Element Goal PR
-
7 seeks “[to] recognize the importance of
cultural activities as an integral factor in sustaining the community’s high quali ty of
life.” The installation of art pieces allows for the exhibition of art in a publicly accessible location consistent with this Goal.
The property is also located within the
Tourist Commercial (CT)
District
which
provides
for
uses oriented
toward tourists and other visitors to the community. The district encourages hotels and motels and their related amenities and recreational facilities. This district also includes community and visitor
-
serving retail commercial, entertainment,
restaurants,
service stations and similar compatible uses
. The existing hotel was approved
by a Use Permit (UP83
-
172) in 1984.
The recent hotel addition was approved by a Use
Permit (PL16
-
0144) in 2020, and also included the approval for a Planned Development Overlay
(PD
-
38)
to allow an increase in height.
As proposed, the Design Review does not
modify the site, therefore it will remain consistent with the Z
oning
O
rdinance
.
B
.
PUBLIC ART ORDINANCE
NMC Chapter 15.108 requires developers of a commercial development project with construction costs that exceed $250,000 to install public art on the project site in a public place or to pay an art fee, equal to one percent of the total construction costs, to be pooled
with other funds for commissioning artworks in public places. The proposed public art is considered by the reviewing body with final design review authority for the development (in this case the
City Council since it approved the Design Review
Permit for the hotel
project
). The City uses the criteria below to guide review of art on private
prope
rty
,
including
that
the designer of the public art should be an artist and the art should be original art displayed in a manner that will enhance its enjoyment by the general public.
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
4 The proposed artwork is associated with the
development of the
Embassy Suites Addition
(PL1
6 -
014
4 )
, which has an estimated valuation of $
25 million. The proposed art piece
ha
s
a
n
estimated valuation of $
250
,
00 0
which is
approximately
1% of the project’s
valuation. The proposed art piece
is
consistent
with and exceeds
the valuation
requirement of
the Public Art Ordinance.
NMC Subsection 15.108.040.B.2 establishes criteria for public art. The following is a listing of the criteria followed by Staff’s analysis of how the criteria have been satisfied.
1. The public art shall be designed by an
artist.
The proposed art piece
is
designed by
Gordon Huether, a
Napa Valley
-
based
artist
.
Gordon Huether’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States
and
internationally
.
2. The public art shall require a low level of maintenance and the proposed
maintenance provisions shall be adequate for the long
-
term integrity and
enjoyment of the work. The owner shall enter into a maintenance agreement with the City to be recorded against the property to ensure that proper maintenance is performed as determin
ed by the Community Development Director and in a form
acceptable to the City Attorney.
The Applicant has not provided a maintenance plan for the proposed art piece .
This information
will be required to be
provided later as part of the suite of
documents
necessary to complete the
construction
process
.
T
he materials chosen
for the sculpture will require
no maintenance. The steel posts support a singular,
stainless steel, mirror
-
finished sphere to represent a metaphorical grape, “the fruit of our labor”. The
stainless
-
steel
posts as well as the
sphere
requires minimal
maintenance
.
A condition of approval requires recordation of a maintenance agreement
prior to issuance of a building permit for the installation of the art piece.
3. The public art shall be related in terms of scale, material, form and content to immediate and adjacent buildings and architecture, landscaping or other setting so to compleme
nt the site and its surroundings and shall be consistent with any corresponding action of the reviewing body with final design review authority for the development project as it may relate to any development entitlements.
The Applicant is proposing
one
,
o
n
-
site art installation. The
installation of “
From
Our Vineyard
”
will be located
at the southern end of the property
and
will be
17 feet in height
,
26 feet in length
and
17 feet in width
(Figure
s
2 & 3
)
. The
steel
sculpture
’s material was selected for
its organic appearance and will
aesthetically
harmonize
the
sculpture with the natural surroundings of the site
.
The steel posts
support a singular, stainless steel, mirror
-
finished sphere to represent a
metaphorical grape,
“
the fruit of our labo
r
”
.
The ar
tist chose th
is
art piec
e
t
o
elicit
curiosity, engagement, and delight while honoring the local culture and landscape
that
is represent
ative of
the City of Napa
.
4. The public art shall be permanently affixed to the property.
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
5 The artwork will be
constructed and
permanently
affixed
to the property
.
5. The public art shall be maintained by the owner or his or her successor in interest in a manner acceptable to the City.
The artwork will be maintained and managed in accordance with the recorded
contract between the City and the property owner, as conditioned in the draft Resolution.
6. The public art shall meet all applicable Building Code requirements.
The artwork will be designed and installed to satisfy applicable California Building C
ode requirements.
FIGURE 2
–
PROPOSED ART DIMENSIONS
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
6 FIGURE
3 –
PROPOSED ART DIMENSIONS
FIGURE
4 –
SITE PLAN
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
7 C
.
DESIGN REVIEW
NMC Section 15.108.050 requires a Design Review Permit for public art pieces associated with a project that also underwent design review. Although intended to guide in the review of
publicly sited
art, the Public Art Master Plan includes criteria for selecting public art that Staff also considered as a guide when reviewing privately sited art installations, as provided below:
1. Public art shall be an original work in any variety of media produced by
an artist
which may include sculpture, murals, photography, and original works of graphic art, water features, neon, glass, mosaics, or any combination of forms of media, furnishings or fixtures permanently affixed to the building or its ground, or a comb
ination thereof, and may include architectural features of the buildings such as decorative handrails, stained glass, and other functional features which have been enhanced to be visually appealing.
The sculpture proposed by the Applicant
is an
original p
iece that will be permanently
installed within the
Embassy Suites Hotel
property.
2. Public art shall be designed by an artist.
The proposed art piec
e
is
by Gordon Huether who
is an
established artist.
3. Public art shall be located in a public place.
The artwork will be located
near the
hotel building addition
at the
hotel property
and
,
although
located on private property
,
will be
highly visible
from the intersection of
First Street and California Boulevard
.
4. Public art shall be designed to be site specific and complementary in terms of scale, material, form and content to the immediate and adjacent buildings, landscaping, or other
e
lements so as to complement the site and its surroundings.
The artwork also
sha
ll be consistent with any corresponding project entitlements.
The chosen material
s
of
Corten
steel
and stainless steel
,
will maintain their
appearance after several years' exposure to weather
. They were
selected
for
their
organic appearance and will aesthetically
harmonize
the sculpture with
the natural
surroundings of the site
, while requiring minimal maintenance
.
The art
will be
complementary in terms of scale, material, form and content to the
approved hotel
addition which incorporates similar
Corten steel accents
.
5. Public art shall be permanently affixed to the property.
The artwork will be permanently affixed to
the property
.
6. Public art shall be a work of the artist’s own creation and shall
not infringe copyright
held by any other creator.
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
8 The Applicant has indicated that the art piece
is an
original creation by Gordon
Huether
and would not be duplicated anywhere else
.
7. Public art shall be appropriate for placement in the public realm, including a diverse
audience of all ages.
The style, theme, and content of the proposed artwork is appropriate for placement in a public setting and for viewing by diverse audiences of all ages.
Its size and
scale are appropriate given the expansive open space of the Embassy Suites
hotel
property
and the open space adjacent to the street frontage and placement on the undeveloped
corner of the property
.
8. Public art shall add to the
diversity of the City’s public art program and diversity among the City’s public art program shall be encouraged.
The artwork is distinguished from other artworks commissioned by the City and by other private developers in the City
by its unique design
.
V.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Staff recommends that the Planning Commission determine that the project is
exempt from
the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act ( CEQA
)
in accordance with
the following:
1. Section 15303 (Categorical Exemptions; Class 3) of the CEQA Guidelines, which exempts
the construction and location of small
structures.
2. The exceptions to categorical exemptions identified in Section 15300.2 of the CEQA Guidelines are inapplicable because
the land is in an urbanized area with
no environmentally sensitive habitats or species of concern on the property, there has been no successive effort to intensify land uses in the area, and no unusual circumstances exist that would pose a reasonable poss
ibility of having a significant
effect on the environment, and the project does not involve or affect historic resources. Based on this analysis, no significant environmental effects would result from this project and the use of categorical exemptions is a ppropriate.
VI.
REQUIRED FINDINGS
The Planning Commission’s
recommendation
of
this project is subject to the requ
ired
findings in NMC Section 17.62.080 relating to Design Review Permits . These findings are
provided in the draft resolution attached to
the
Staff Report.
These findings relate to
consistency of the project with the General Pl
an, Zoning Ordinances
, and
guidelines
. Staff
believes that the proposed project complies with these f indings and the attached Resolution
(see Attachment 1) contains the basis for this recommendation.
VII
.
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice
of the scheduled public
hearing was provided on
November 1
7 ,
2021
, by US Postal
Service to all property owners within a 500
-
foot radius of the subject property. Notice of
ATTACHMENT 2
PL
21 -
01 33
–
Embassy Suites Addition Public
Art
9 the public hearing was also published in the Napa Valley Register on November 1
9 ,
2021
and pro
vided to people previously requesting notice on the matt er at the same time notice
was provided to the newspaper for publication. The Applicant was also provided a copy of this report and the associated attachments in advance of the public hearing on the project.
VIII
.
STAFF
RECOMMENDATION
Staff
recommends that the Planning Commission
forward a recommendation to the City
Council
: (a) determin
ing
that the project is exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15303 of the CEQA Guidelines; and (b)
approv
ing
a
Design Review
Permit based on a
determination that the application is consistent with the City’s General Plan, Zoning Ordinance
, Public Art Ordinance, and other applicable City requirements and policies .
I
X
.
ALTERNATIVES TO RECOMMENDATION
1. Continue the application wit
h direction for modifications and allow the Applicant an opportunity to prepare a revised
submittal
.
2. Direct Staff to return to the Planning Commission with a resolution documenting findings from the hearing record to support denial of the proposed project
.
X.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED
ATCH 1
–
Draft City Council Resolution
ATCH 2
–
Project Description and Plans
ATTACHMENT 2
ATTACHMENT 2
Planning Commiss
ion Regular Meeting Minutes Excerpts for
December 2
, 202
1 Page
1 of
2 P
LANNING
C
OMMISSION
R
EGULAR
M
EETING
M
INUTES
D
RAFT
E
XCERPTS
December 2, 2021
6. PUBLIC
HEARINGS
/APPEALS
A. EMBASSY SUITES ADDITION PUBLIC ART
–
1075 CALIFORNIA BOULEVARD
(PL21
-
0133) Design
Review Permit application for a public art
installation at the Embassy Suites Hotel located at 1075 California Boulevard. The art installation is a single abstract piece comprised of multiple parts, measuring 26 feet long, 17 feet wide, and 17 feet in height. The site is within the (TC -
921) Tourist
Commercial General Plan
Designation and (TC) Tourist Commercial Zoning District. (APN: 002 -
200
-
001) (Mendez)
CEQA DETERMINATION:
The proposed project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 1530
3 which exempts accessory structures.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Forward a recommendation to the City Council to adopt a resolution approving a Design Review Permit for the Embassy Suites Addition Public Art and determining that the actions authorized by this
resolution is exempt from CEQA in accordance with CEQA Guidelines Section 15303.
Commissioner Huether recused himself as the Applicant is a source of income.
C
hair Kelley summarized the order of actions during public hearing and introduced the item.
C
ommissioners provided disclosures.
Assistant Planner Bond Mendez
presented the Staff Report, provided background information related to the application and provided a recommendation.
Chair
Kelley
invited the Applicant team to speak.
Darcy Tunt
and Bob Cahalan
, Applicant
s
, briefed the Commission on background relating to the application and offered to answer Commissioner questions.
The Commission had the following questions and comments for Staff
and the Applicant
:
•
How will the Applicant deter climbing of the structure?
•
What is the liability if a climber is hurt while climbing?
•
Are there concerns or has there been discussion on sun reflectivity effects on the drivers?
•
Are there proposed art pieces at the adjacent roundabouts? (Directed towards Staff)
•
Does the Applicant have experience dulling the stainless steel, if the reflecti vity becomes an issue?
Ms. Tunt
and Mr. Callahan
responded to Commissioner questions and comments on the following:
•
The structure will take considerable effort to climb
•
Because
an art piece, hopefully people would be discouraged to climb the structure
•
Sig
nage and hedging are options, pending Commissioner recommendations
•
Gordon Huether Studios has experience in producing large scale art in a variety of settings with stainless steel materials and has not had a challenge with the reflectivity of the material,
such that
it would an accident or problem to any extent that would be a safety issue
•
Stainless Steel would not be used for this piece if it posed a safety issue specific to sun reflections from the art piece
ATTACHMENT 2
Planning Commiss
ion Regular Meeting Minutes Excerpts for
December 2
, 202
1 Page
2 of
2 •
The structure will be built to code and evaluat
ed by a structural engineer for stability
Deputy City Attorney Sabrina Wolfson provided clarification regarding liability if someone is hurt while climbing the Public Art Piece. Since the structure is located on private property, the Property Owner would be responsible if someone is hurt. If someone were to try to hold the City of Napa liable, there is an indemnity provision in the application and entitlements that requires the Property Owner to indemnify the City.
Community Development Director Vin Smit
h responded to Commissioner questions regarding future art pieces proposed at the roundabouts.
Chair Kelley opened
the item for public hearing.
After receiving no requests to speak, public comment was closed.
Commissioners
Hurtado and Oñate
moved and seconded to close public hearing.
Motion carried:
AYES:
Kelley, Oñate,
Hurtado, Massaro
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
RECUSED:
Huether
The Commission discussed and began deliberation. They made the following final
questions and
comments
:
•
The
re was some
support
for
a planting hedge around the art piece
•
Bilingual signage
at a distance of the piece,
should be added to the conditions of approval
•
Will the Commission’s recommendation for approval automatically include the reduced setbacks to 15 feet?
Ms. Mendez confirmed that an additional action is not required to approve the reduced setback.
Jay Wallace, on behalf of the Property Owner, responded to the Commission’s safety concerns expressing confidence in the design, the artist and resp
ect from the public. He agreed to adding signage with direction from the artist.
Commissioners
Oñate and Hurtado
moved and seconded to
forward
a recommendation to the City
Council to adopt a resolution approving a Design Review Permit for the Embassy
Suites Addition Public Art
and determining that the actions authorized by this resolution is exempt from CEQA in accordance with CEQA Guidelines Se
ction 15303
with the condition that the Applicant add signage in English and Spanish to deter people from climbing the art piece
.
Motion carried:
AYES:
Kelley, Oñate, Hurtado, Massaro
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
RECUSED:
Huether
ATTACHMENT 2