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06-23-21 Minutes - HPC 110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6874 www.losgatosca.gov TOWN OF LOS GATOS HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE REPORT MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING JUNE 23, 2021 The Historic Preservation Committee of the Town of Los Gatos conducted a Regular Meeting on June 23, 2021 at 4:00 p.m. This meeting was conducted utilizing teleconferencing and electronic means consistent with State of California Executive Order N-29-20 dated March 17, 2020, regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and was conducted via Zoom. All committee members and staff participated from remote locations and all voting was conducted via roll call vote. In accordance with Executive Order N-29-20, the public could only view the meeting online and not in the Council Chamber. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER AT 4:00 PM ROLL CALL Present: Chair Steve Raspe, Vice Chair Timothy Lundell, Planning Commissioner Jeffrey Suzuki (present at 4:19 p.m.), Committee Member Barry Cheskin Absent: Planning Commissioner Kendra Burch VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS Chair Steve Raspe - Sally Zarnowitz was Planning Manager for the Town of Los Gatos. She has recently retired. The Historical Preservation Committee wants to acknowledge her work for the Town and this Committee. She was gifted and passionate about preservation. She was a friend to all of us on the Committee. On behalf of the Committee, our fondest wishes for Sally. CONSENT ITEMS (TO BE ACTED UPON BY A SINGLE MOTION) 1. Approval of Minutes – May 26, 2021 MOTION: Motion by Vice Chair Timothy Lundell to approve the Consent Calendar. Seconded by Committee Member Barry Cheskin. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 3-0. PUBLIC HEARINGS PAGE 2 OF 4 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JUNE 23, 2021 2. 103 Tait Avenue Minor Residential Development in an Historic District Application HS-21-017 Requesting Approval for Construction of Exterior Alterations and an Addition to a Detached Garage on a Contributing Property in the Almond Grove Historic District on Property Zoned R-1D:LHP. APN 510-18-038. PROPERTY OWNER/APPLICANT: Michael and Kristi Ballou PROJECT PLANNER: Ryan Safty Ryan Safty, Associate Planner, presented the staff report. Opened Public Comment. Michael Ballou, Owner/Applicant - He and his wife have spent the last year remodeling the house and are now living there. They are now rebuilding the garage. When remodeling the house, they purchased enough siding to also cover the garage. Committee members asked questions of the applicant. Closed Public Comment. Committee members discussed the matter. • The proposed changes to the garage will be an improvement. The design is consistent with neighborhood and the existing architecture of the house. • The proposed design is simple. The pitched gable roof is an improvement over the original flat roof. It is more consistent with the architecture of the neighborhood. • Agree with rehabilitating the garage to match the remodeled home as long as there is no issue with shadowing or view problems with the neighbors. MOTION: Motion by Chair Steve Raspe to approve the request for Construction of Exterior Alterations and an Addition to a Detached Garage on a Contributing Property in the Almond Grove Historic District on Property Located at 103 Tait Avenue. Seconded by Committee Member Barry Cheskin. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 3-0. PAGE 3 OF 4 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JUNE 23, 2021 3. 445 Los Gatos Boulevard Architecture and Site Application S-21-016 Forward a Recommendation to the Community Development Director on a Request for Technical Demolition for Rehabilitation of an Historic Residence (Pre-1941) and Construction of Exterior Alterations and a Second-story Addition with Reduced Side Setbacks Located on a Nonconforming Property Zoned R-1:8. APN 529-20-006. PROPERTY OWNER/APPLICANT: Nam Nguyen PROJECT PLANNER: Sean Mullin Sean Mullin, Associate Planner, presented the staff report. Opened Public Comment. Don Schallock, Architect - It’s a difficult project because the lot is so small. It’s 50 feet wide by 187 feet long with an oak tree to work around. The tree is 40 feet from the rear property line. This is a technical demolition because a new standard concrete foundation needs to be laid. The existing house is not structurally sound. They will build a new structural skeleton and reuse the historical exterior surface elements. The footprint is the same; but moved forward. This increases the space of the first-floor addition. The plate height of the second story will be lowered by a foot. The roof slope has decreased from 8 and 12 to 6 and 12. The roof will be hipped instead of gabled. This diminishes the visual effect of the second floor from Los Gatos Boulevard. Keeping the oak tree will help balance the site plan. They were able to preserve the gable’s decorative spindles and shingles on the east and south sides. Nam and Nikki Nguyen, Owners - The design is smaller in scale. They changed the design to make the second story less pronounced. They want to keep the historical value of the property and uncovered many limitations and historical design guidelines. The technical challenges resulted in creative solutions by pushing the structure forward and adding a second story to fit their modern and growing family. Their plans were shared with near and far neighbors. The neighbors are supportive and ask for updates. The resulting proposal is a practical design to a problematic property. Closed Public Comment. Committee members discussed the matter. PAGE 4 OF 4 MINUTES OF THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMITTEE MEETING OF JUNE 23, 2021 • The design is an improvement. The street facing side now has a roofline that flows from the second to the first floor. The rear is in balance with the second floor. The new design preserves the historic nature of the property and creates a more balanced structure. • The Committee is very pleased and impressed by how their suggestions were implemented. The street view is much more balanced and like the original view. The side views are not as critical. • The massing looks much better from the front. MOTION: Motion by Chair Steve Raspe to Recommend Approval to the Community Development Director on a Request for Technical Demolition for Rehabilitation of an Historic Residence (Pre-1941) and Construction of Exterior Alterations and a Second-story Addition with Reduced Side Setbacks Located at 445 Los Gatos Boulevard. Incorporating by reference the Findings and Considerations contained in the staff report. Seconded by Vice Chair Timothy Lundell. VOTE: Motion passed unanimously, 3-0. Planning Commissioner Jeffrey Suzuki abstained. OTHER BUSINESS (Up to three minutes may be allotted to each speaker on any of the following items.) - None. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 4:31 p.m. This is to certify that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the June 23, 2021 meeting as approved by the Historic Preservation Committee. /s/Sean Mullin, AICP, Associate Planner