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Attachment 1 - Letter of JustificationPlanning Department February 26, 2024 Community Development Department, Town of Los Gatos 110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 Re: The Jellinek Residence, 323 Pennsylvania Avenue Project Description/ Letter of Justification To Whom it May Concern: On behalf of Megan Jellinek and her family, I am pleased to present this historic renovation and addition to the Town Of Los Gatos. The proposed project includes the remodel and addition of an historic single family residence. The project also includes the construction of a detached garage and swimming pool. This letter accompanies the submitted building plans and additional exhibits for the above referenced project, and contains descriptions of the property, it's history and the surrounding neighborhood. EXISTING PROPERTY DESCRIPTION The property is located in the Glen Ridge District on Pennsylvania Avenue just north of cross streets Fairview and Peralta. Although this property is not within an established historic district, the home is classified as historic due to the date of its construction and its obvious historic character. The Bloomfield survey describes the home as a Mediterranean Revival built in the 1930’s. The home can also be characterized as a Mediterranean bungalow which features a single predominant gable end that faces the street with a flat roofed porch just tucked back from it on the left. The front gable features a large picture window with 2 casements at either side with divided lites and an arched recess at the top. The porch is flanked with spiraling plaster columns with ionic capitals on the sides of the arched openings. Circular recesses adorn the walls above the arches. The eaves are very short with crown molding in plaster at the gable ends. The home once had a clay barrel tile roof, but it has since been removed. Some time after its construction a trellised porch was built at the rear. The home is elevated above grade by a 3 to 4 feet which allows for a few small windows in the underfloor cellar space. A detached accessory dwelling unit and carport are located at the rear accessed through a driveway to the left of the home, both of which are badly deteriorated. Behind them lies a 20 foot wide easement once slated to become a large section of Laurel Avenue. The first 3 homes on Pennsylvania and the home behind them on Fairview share access to the easement that was to be Laurel Avenue, but is now a shared driveway. This property is at the end of that shared drive with no through access over it. Laurel Avenue never came to be, but the easement remains on this property. An application for the abandonment of this easement by the Town for public utilities is being processed and due to be approved in August. Private ingress/egress easements still remain on the property at this point, and the owner is actively pursuing their removal with the neighbors. 51 University Avenue, Suite L • Los Gatos, CA 95030 • 408.395-2555 K O HLSAA T &ASSOCIATES A R C H I T E C T U R E ATTACHMENT 1 323 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, PAGE of 2 3 DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED RESIDENCE The proposed scope of work includes a main floor addition to the left and rear of the home. It also includes a fully finished basement. The front half of the roof will remain, and rear half will have taller ceilings with new roof framing. From the very start the owner fell in love with the historic style of the home and made it her chief goal to preserve and enhance its character. The front window will be replaced with another picture window of the same width that matches the shape of the arched top recess above it. The tiny existing window on the left will be duplicated on the right. Both of them will be enhanced with a wrought iron grill typical to the time period. A small wrought iron decorative grill will be added at the top of the gable end facade and on all gable ends to further enhance this historic style. The existing crown molding at the gable ends will be duplicated at the eaves with a new half round gutter. The existing gutters are not historic. And a new clay barrel tile roof will replace the current cap sheet roof. The front porch will be left alone entirely with its spiral plaster columns, arches, wrought iron railing and circular recesses, with the two exceptions. We propose adding a small cap and trim piece to the parapet top above the porch to create a more finished look. The front door currently faces the left side of the house, but it will be relocated to face the street. It will have glass lites much like it does now and sidelites will be added. At the rear, a new veranda is proposed that will also have spiral columns to match the front porch and the same parapet roof detail. A new basement is proposed that includes three bedroom suites and second living space. The existing cellar is about 7 feet deep and unfinished. Since the cellar is already mostly dug out, creating a new usable basement/foundation system is the logical solution. LANDSCAPING AND SITE WORK The property has a gentle slope uphill from front to back. A very large redwood is located just to the left of the existing gravel driveway. There are a few large oak trees and another redwood to the rear. In order to access the garage at the rear, a large oak tree and redwood will have to be removed. A pool is also proposed. The space between the house and new detached garage will be leveled out for usability. At the front, an existing stacked stone retaining wall will be replaced with a low stucco wall and pedestrian gate that leads to the front door. The driveway will be made of pavers and the new vehicular gate, as well as light well guardrails, will be made of wood and wrought iron. COMPLIANCE WITH THE RESIDENTIAL DESIGN GUIDELINES In addition to what was identified above, the proposed home specifically addresses the Residential Design Guidelines as follows: SITE/ PLANNING: §The existing home will remain and additions to the main floor have been kept to a minimum. §Perimeter trees have been kept to the fullest extent possible. §Grading has been minimized as little additional ground floor, floor area is proposed. §Existing vehicle entrance reused to minimize disruption. HARMONY/COMPATIBILITY: 323 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, PAGE of 3 3 §The style of the home will be preserved and enhanced. §The existing front facade will remain the same, with only minor enhancements. SCALE AND MASS: §The raised portion of the roof is at the rear and is not visible from the street. §The existing massing as viewed from the front will remain the same. EXTERIOR MATERIALS: §The stucco finish will be maintained and matched at the additions. §The new clay barrel tile roof will bring back some of the original design intent of this Mediterranean home. ENERGY CONSERVATION: §The house will employ high quality dual glazed, low E wood windows, ultra-high performance insulation packages and high efficiency mechanical systems for heating, cooling and domestic hot water. §The house is oriented to take full advantage of cross ventilation practices. §Substantial amount of roof areas provide plenty of space for solar collectors. PRIVACY: §The existing home sits about 9’-6” away from the right side property line and no additions are proposed to be any closer. The left side addition is more than 16’ from the property line. §New trees and tall shrubs are proposed at each side of the home. LANDSCAPING: §All proposed landscaping shall comply with the Town’s Landscaping Policies including the HDS&G section. §Proposed drought tolerant plants and landscape materials have been chosen to enhance both the architecture and the natural setting of the lot. GEOLOGICAL: §There are no significant geological hazards that exist to prevent a safe and secure structure to be constructed on this site. CONCLUSION The addition and remodel to this historic home has been conceived of from the beginning to respect the original architecture and preserve its character for generations to come. We hope this home will enhance the neighborhood and follows the intent of the Residential Design Guidelines. Sincerely, Gary Kohlsaat Architect C19245 This Page Intentionally Left Blank