Design Review Subcommittee Regular Meeting Minutes May 29, 2024 Page 1
CITY OF SAN CLEMENTE
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE
DESIGN REVIEW SUBCOMMITTEE
MAY 29, 2024
Subcommittee Members Present: Chair M. Steven Camp; Vice Chair Cameron Cosgrove; Committee Member Bart Crandell
Subcommittee Members Absent: None
Staff Present: Adam Atamian, Community Development Director
MINUTES
A. Review and file minutes of the Design Review Subcommittee meeting April 24, 2024
ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW OF THE FOLLOWING ITEMS:
A. Public Hearing Project (PHP) 23-487, Shoreline Dental, 1409 South El Camino Real (Ciampa)
A request for a Discretionary Sign Permit to establish a Master Sign Program and exceed 25 square feet of signage for a business within the Architectural (A) Overlay District.
Contract Planner John Ciampa summarized the staff report and provided a presentation on the project.
Chair Camp opened the item for public comment.
Members of the public made the following comments or questions either individually or as a group:
• The Applicant, Laura Reilly with Starfish Signs expressed desire for sign #3 directed at the off-ramp because it provides wayfinding to the building and parking area.
Mrs. Reilly was agreeable to the use of tile around the monument sign or tying it in with the landscaping.
The Design Review Subcommittee (DRS) discussed the project, and made the following comments either individually or as a group:
• This is a gateway property at a prominent location.
The City's General Plan and Zoning Regulations do not allow for freeway- oriented signs. Concern was raised that sign #3 is only directed towards the offramp. There is past precedence for not allowing signs orientated towards Design Review Subcommittee Regular Meeting Minutes May 29, 2024 Page 2 the freeway or off-ramps and it was recommended removing the sign from the project.
• The location and vertical orientation of sign #3 is not compatible with the Spanish Colonial Revival design of the structure.
• Signs #1 and #2 on the tower element and the Monument Sign are an appropriate design and scale.
• The applicant should consider moving the monument sign closer to the building if it does not create line of sight issues.
• Consider modifying the design of the monument sign to incorporate architectural elements of the building like the tile around the arches or the adjacent landscaping to make more of a visual statement. • Consider the use of a plaque in place of the window vinyl lettering for the window sign #5.
The Subcommittee recommended the project move forward to the Planning Commission with the recommended design modifications.
B. Public Hearing Project (PHP) 24-246, Rasta Taco Mixed-Use, 424 N EI Camino Real (Atamian for Lightfoot)
A request to develop a new mixed-use building with two ground floor commercial spaces, including a restaurant with beer, wine, and alcohol sales for indoor and outdoor consumption, and a residential unit and an ADU on the second floor above.
The project includes a Development Permit (DP 24-247) and a Conditional Use Permit (CUP 22-246).
Community Development Director Adam Atamian summarized the staff report.
Chair Camp opened the item for public comment.
Members of the public made the following comments or questions either individually or as a group:
• Larry Culbertson, San Clemente Historical Society, commented that he was pleased to see a setback between the historic building at 420 N. El Camino Real and this proposed development. He asked questions about accessible access and the proposed lift.
The Design Review Subcommittee (DRS) discussed the project, and made the following comments either individually or as a group:
• The proposed building and project are complex. The composition is too complicated and could be simplified.
• The design does not anticipate leaving space for signage, which could result in crowding.
• The truncated arch on either side of the front elevation creates a mishmash of elements.
• The project needs more landscaping in front of the building.
Design Review Subcommittee Regular Meeting Minutes May 29, 2024 Page 3 • The primary entry through the patio looks directly at the bathroom.
Expressed concern that the small units may need storage and there is not space on site to accommodate that without impacting parking. • The trash areas are not an aesthetic issue, but frequent service may be an annoyance to both the residential and commercial units - which all share 6 total carts.
• The project should create a more defined sense of place and should simplify the design to draw eyes to specific focal points.
• The staff report referenced "indoor seating" but all seating is outdoors.
The Subcommittee recommended that the applicant make revisions to the plans incorporating the DRSC feedback. The applicant agreed to make changes and return to present their proposed modifications to the DRSC.
3. NEW BUSINESS
A. Administrative Development Permit (ADP) 24-179, San Clemente Villas by the Sea: Unit Count and Exterior Changes at 660 Camino De Los Mares (Carrillo)
A request to consider an increase to the original unit count at a senior care facility, San Clemente Villas by the Sea, in conjunction with exterior site and building changes.
Associate Planner David Carrillo summarized the staff report and requested feedback on the exterior changes and whether the changes are compatible with the existing building's architecture, to determine if discretionary review is required.
The Design Review Subcommittee (DRSC) determined the exterior changes are compatible with the existing building, and supported the project being reviewed and approved administratively.
OLD BUSINESS
None
CORAL AND WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
None
ADJOURNMENT
Adjourned to the June 12, 2024 DRSC meeting at 3:00 p.m., San Clemente City Hall, First Floor Community Room, 910 Calle Negocio, San Clemente, CA.
Respectfully submitted,
Design Review Subcommittee Regular Meeting Minutes May 29, 2024 Page 4 -
M. Steven camp, Chair
Attest:
thAt
Adam Atamian, Community Development Director