PISMO BEACH CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
Agenda Item #12.B
Meeting Date: August 6, 2024
TITLE:
Discussion of Rooftop Deck Policies in the Shell Beach Design Guidelines RECOMMENDATION:
Receive a report on the application of roof deck policies in the Shell Beach Design Guidelines and incorporation into the Zoning Code Update and provide direction to staff on desired policy changes, if any.
DISCUSSION:
The Shell Beach Design Guidelines (SBDG) were adopted in 2017 and apply to properties located between Cliff and Vista Del Mar Avenues. The SBDG are intended to guide future residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments and to give clear direction for the renovation and redevelopment of built areas within the community. Included within these guidelines are required standards and guidelines for roof forms and roof decks. The SBDG are available online at pismobeach.org/sbdg, or by request from staff.
After adoption of the SBDG, previous discussion at Planning Commission meetings identified that there could be potential for expanding the SBDG to be used citywide with specific guidelines for various areas. At the February 2018 City Council special goal- setting workshop, the consensus among the Council was that the SBDG are intended to be applied to the Shell Beach area, and that further discussion should be undertaken to determine which of the guidelines may be appropriate for application in other neighborhoods.
Following this, at the April 24, 2018 joint City Council and Planning Commission meeting, discussion included that SBDG had been used previously to apply to projects both in Shell Beach as well as for some projects located outside Shell Beach because the guidelines provided a clear set of standards against which to measure projects. The following direction, identified in the meeting minutes, was given to staff at the April 2018 meeting:
1. Identify the components of the existing Shell Beach Development Standards and Design Guidelines that may be applicable to development citywide, and
2. Use the identified standards and guidelines to formulate a Citywide Development Standards and Design Guidelines document; and return the revised guidelines document to the Planning Commission for review and recommendation to Council.
3. Address at a future juncture a comprehensive update to the guidelines that include roof deck, definition of porches, and garages, carports and accessory structures.
In addition to reviewing the April 24, 2018 meeting minutes, staff also reviewed the video recording of the meeting and there appears to be additional Council discussion/direction that is not reflected in the direction above. There is additional discussion at the meeting providing direction to staff to incorporate citywide design guidelines for roof decks into the Council Agenda 8-6-2024 12.B-1
GP/LCP update. There also appears to be concurrence from Council that staff not utilize SBDG outside Shell Beach and this same direction was reiterated by the Community Development Director at the May 22, 2018 Planning Commission meeting. The direction to not utilize the SBDG outside Shell Beach appears to stem from the City Council goal setting workshop, held on February 12, 2018, where the following Council direction was recorded:
It appears that it was around this time that staff determined to discontinue use of the SBDG outside Shell Beach. Staff has continued to use just the roof deck standards from the SBDG to assist in review of roof deck designs outside of Shell Beach.
Zoning Code Update
Consistent with the direction given at the April 2018 joint meeting, staff did incorporate the Design Guidelines as part of the Zoning Code update. These incorporated draft standards are found in Section 17.140.040 Residential Design Standards. The draft Zoning Code is currently on hold while staff is working with Coastal Commission staff to remove the Safety Element and associated hazards policies from the draft update.
The incorporated SBDG standards are below, including specific standards for roof forms and roof decks.
17.40.040 Residential Design Standards.
Single Family Dwelling Design Standards:
Scale and Massing standards SM 5.1 – 5.5.
Roof Forms standards RF S.1- S.4 specified below:
Council Agenda 8-6-2024 12.B-2
Garages, Carports, and Accessory Structures GC S.1, GC S.3, GC S.4 Good Neighbor GN S.1
Multi-Family Design Standards:
Site Planning and Neighborhood Character SP G.3
Scale and Massing SM G.1, SM G.2, SM G.5, SM G.6, SM G.7 Roof Forms and Roof Decks RF G.1, RF G.8, RF G.9, RF S.4, RF G.11 o These standards are currently present in the Single-Family section noted above. Edits will be made to Section 17.40.040.E for them to apply to Multi-Family also.
Garages, Carports, and Accessory Structures GC S.1, GC S.2 Entries, Doorways and Windows ED G.1
Utilitarian and Trash Areas UT G.4, UT G.5 – partially incorporated into Draft
17.50.110, under screening standards for antennas and other locations.
The topic of application of roof deck policies in Shell Beach arose during the recent construction of a single-family home with roof deck on Terrace Avenue which is one block outside of the Shell Beach Design Guidelines area. This project was approved by Planning Commission in May 2021. Because of the proximity to the SBDG boundary area, the project evaluation by staff included review for consistency with those guidelines. The roof deck was approved with the required 10-foot setback from the edge of the roof and meets the maximum size allowance. During the course of construction, a safety railing was erected on the rooftop for fall protection along the roof perimeter, which is not part of the rooftop deck design, though it gave the appearance that the roof deck extended to the roof edge. The perimeter railing has since been removed, and the rooftop deck as constructed meets the rooftop deck requirements of the Shell Beach Design Guidelines.
No public view impacts are created because the rooftop deck is set back 10 feet from the edge of the roof and at pedestrian level is not visible from the street, consistent with the figure provided below. The roof deck is minimally visible from the sidewalk area at the top of the street where Terrace and Shell Beach Road intersect due to elevation of the street.
An illustration of the roof deck requirements included in the draft Zoning Code is shown below:
Council Agenda 8-6-2024 12.B-3
Conclusion and Recommendation
As directed by the Council, the policies in the Shell Beach Design Guidelines applicable to roof decks, porches, and garages have been incorporated into the draft Zoning Code update. Current policy is to utilize the SBDG only in Shell Beach, although staff does use the roof deck design guidelines when reviewing roof decks in other areas of the city. Staff recommends that the City Council review the staff report and provide direction to staff on desired policy changes, if any.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with staff’s recommendation.
ATTACHMENTS:
None
Prepared by:
Cindy Jacinth, Planning Manager
Submitted by: Scot Graham, Community Development Director City Manager Approval:
Council Agenda 8-6-2024 12.B-4