Item 5 - Staff Report.15925 Quail Hill Rd
PREPARED BY: Jennifer Armer, AICP
Senior Planner
Reviewed by: Planning Manager and Community Development Director
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● (408) 354-6872
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
PLANNING COMMISSION
REPORT
MEETING DATE: 12/11/2019 ITEM NO: 5
DATE: December 6, 2019
TO: Planning Commission
FROM: Joel Paulson, Community Development Director
SUBJECT: Architecture and Site Application S-19-012. Project Location: 15925 Quail Hill
Drive. Applicant: Tom Sloan. Property Owner: John and Allison Diep. Project
Planner: Jennifer Armer.
Requesting approval for demolition of an existing single-family residence and
detached accessory dwelling unit, and construction of a two-story single-
family residence on property zoned HR-1. APN 527-02-007.
RECOMMENDATION:
Denial.
PROJECT DATA:
General Plan Designation: Hillside Residential
Zoning Designation: Hillside Residential, HR-1
Applicable Plans & Standards: General Plan; Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines
Parcel Size: 42,253 square feet
Surrounding Area:
CEQA:
The project is Categorically Exempt pursuant to the adopted Guidelines for the Implementation
of the California Environmental Quality Act, Section 15303: New Construction or Conversion of
Small Structures.
Existing Land Use General Plan Zoning
North Residential Hillside Residential HR-1
South Residential Hillside Residential HR-1
East Residential Hillside Residential HR-1
East Residential Hillside Residential HR-1
PAGE 2 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
FINDINGS:
The project is Categorically Exempt pursuant to the adopted Guidelines for the
Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act, Section 15303: New
Construction or Conversion of Small Structures.
As required by Section 29.10.09030 (e) of the Town Code for the demolition of an existing
structure.
As required by Section 29.10.330 of the Town Code for the demolition of existing accessory
dwelling unit.
As required by the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines that the project complies
with the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines.
The project is consistent with the Hillside Specific Plan.
CONSIDERATIONS:
As required by Section 29.20.150 of the Town Code for granting approval of an Architecture
and Site application.
ACTION:
The decision of the Planning Commission is final unless appealed within ten days.
BACKGROUND:
The project site is located on the south side of Shady Lane at the corner with Drysdale Drive
(Exhibit 1). The lot has an average slope of 25 percent. The existing house takes access from
Quail Hill Road at the top of the property, but the proposed house is at the bottom of the hill
property and proposes new access off of Drysdale Drive. The lot is approximately 42,253
square feet with an existing 2,766-square foot single-story residence, detached carport, and
accessory dwelling unit (ADU). The immediate neighborhood contains a mix of one- and two-
story residences.
The project is being considered by the Planning Commission to determine compliance with the
Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines (HDS&G) and because of the request for
exceptions to the HDS&G including overall building height (lowest-to-highest dimension),
retaining wall height, and depth of cut and fill. An exception for building height is considered a
major exception and can only be granted by Town Council or Planning Commission.
PAGE 3 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
A. Location and Surrounding Neighborhood
The project site is located on the south side of Shady Lane at the corner of Drysdale Drive
(Exhibit 1). The existing house takes access from Quail Hill Road, a private road, at the
upper end of the property, but the proposed house would be at the lower end of the
property, and includes new access from Drysdale Drive, with a new address. Properties
within the immediate neighborhood are developed with one- and two-story single-family
residences.
B. Project Summary
The applicant is proposing to demolish the existing 2,766-square foot single-story residence,
detached carport, and detached ADU, and construct a new 5,095-square foot two-story
single-family residence with a below grade attached garage. The proposed house would be
located at the lower end of the hillside property, adjacent to Drysdale Drive (Exhibit 4). The
proposed residence would have a maximum height of 25 feet. The project includes a
request for the following exceptions from the HDS&G standards:
• Though no portion of the house is proposed to be greater than 25 feet high, the north
facing elevation’s overall height would be 43 feet tall from the base of the below-grade
garage (exposed garage door) to the top of the highest roof. Per the HDS&G, the
maximum height of a building’s tallest elevation shall not exceed 35 feet measured from
the lowest part of the building to the highest; and
• Areas of the proposed sitework would exceed the maximum allowed heights for
retaining walls and depth of cut and fill, particularly adjacent to the exposed below-
grade garage.
C. Zoning Compliance
A single-family residence is a permitted use in the HR-1 zone.
DISCUSSION:
A. Architecture and Site Analysis
The applicant proposes construction of a two-story residence with flat roofs, smooth plaster
finish, aluminum clad wood windows and doors, and a carriage style garage door (Exhibits 4,
5, and 14). A color and materials board is available as Exhibit 5, and will be available at the
hearing. The proposed house would be located on the lower end of the property, adjacent
to Drysdale Drive, and would be constructed on three levels, with the below-grade garage
only exposed at the garage door location. Portions of the main and upper floors would
PAGE 4 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
DISCUSSION (continued):
meet the definition of below grade square footage. The maximum height of the proposed
residence would be 25 feet, however, the maximum overall height of the building would be
43 feet, where 35 feet is allowed. Story poles have been installed and certified to show the
massing of the proposed residence. In addition, the applicant has placed stakes to outline
the location (but not height of cut/fill) of the proposed driveway and onsite parking.
Floor Area Summary
Floor Above Grade
Square Footage
Excluded from Countable Floor Area Total
Below-grade
Square Footage
Up to 400 Square
Footage of Garage
Upper Floor 2,880 60 0 2,940
Main Floor 2,215 2,428 0 4,643
Lower Floor
(Garage)
0 2,688 211 2,899
Total 5,095 5,176 211 10,482
The applicant has designed the residence to be set into the hillside to reduce the mass of
the home. The proposed residence would appear as a single-story along the south (rear)
elevation and as two stories from the west (side), east (street side), and north (front)
elevations. The north elevation includes the face of the garage, which is located below
grade but daylights to provide access. Three levels of the residence would be visible from
the north elevation, including the exposed the below-grade garage.
The residence would take access from the west side of Drysdale Drive via a new driveway
leading to the garage. The new driveway would require retaining walls as it approaches the
exposed below-grade garage (Exhibit 14, Sheet C.4). Due to the constraints of the hillside
site, the applicant is requesting several exceptions to the HDS&G for the project. The
applicant has included a Letter of Justification addressing the exceptions, with the following
analysis in italic font (Exhibit 6):
• HDS&G guideline that low-to-high building height shall not exceed 35 feet (Section V.E)
The garage is proposed to be completely below-grade, except for the 13-foot wide
driveway access. Because the measurement from the bottom of this exposed garage
door to the top of the highest north-facing roof form is 43 feet, the proposed design
requires an exception for height. In addition to the discussion in Exhibit 6, the applicant
has provided additional justification for the proposed height in Exhibit 8.
PAGE 5 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
DISCUSSION (continued):
• HDS&G guideline that retaining walls should not be taller than five feet (Section VI.C).
The retaining walls on either side of the driveway as it approaches the below-grade
garage would cut into the hillside resulting in heights ranging up to 10 feet. The
applicant has designed the driveway to curve before approaching the garage doors,
which, in combination with proposed landscaping, would substantially screen the
retaining walls and garage door from view. In addition, because of the manner in which
the proposed building daylights as it progresses down the hill, there are portions of the
proposed lightwells and below-grade patios that are considered retaining walls (rather
than lightwell walls) when they cut adjacent to portions of the building that are not
considered below-grade square footage. These retaining walls are up to 10 feet high in
some locations and would also require an exception.
• HDS&G standards for maximum cut and fill depths (Section III.A).
The intent of the HDS&G standard for grading depths is to ensure construction retains
the existing landform and follows the natural contours of the site. Due to the physical
characteristics of the hillside lot, the project requests an exception to these standards to
allow for cut and fill exceeding the limitations of the HDS&G for the construction of the
retaining walls that would support the driveway. As previously discussed, the applicant
has sited the driveway to reduce its visual impact. A grading exception would also be
required for site work for the proposed entry patio. Grading exceptions are summarized
in the table below.
Maximum Graded Cuts and Fills – HDS&G
Maximum Cut Depths (feet) Maximum Fill Depths
(feet)
Allowed Proposed Allowed Proposed
House Footprint (areas with no
below-grade square footage)*
8* NA 3 NA
House Footprint (areas with
below-grade square footage)
No
Limit
29.7 3 0
Driveway 4 9.3 3 3.4
Site Work 4 8.1 3 1
* – Excludes below-grade square footage
Bold – requires exception to the HDS&G
PAGE 6 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
DISCUSSION (continued):
B. Building Design
The Town’s Consulting Architect reviewed the project to provide recommendations
regarding the building design (Exhibit 7) and provided a follow-up review (Exhibit 10) of the
revised plans (Exhibit 14). In the Issues and Concerns background section of the report, the
Consulting Architect noted that the proposed house has an identifiable architectural style
with authentic details executed in high quality materials. The specific concerns listed
included the extent to which the architectural design blends with the natural environment,
building height, bulk and mass, roofs, the general building form of three stacked boxes, and
the grand scale of the front portion of the house.
In the Recommendations section of the report, the Consulting Architect made
recommendations to address consistency with the HDS&G. The applicant provided a
response (Exhibits 8 and 9) and revised the project to address the recommendations, with
the following applicant responses in italic font:
1. Increase the second floor setback, if possible.
The front façade on the second floor moved back an additional 3.5 feet resulting in a
greater offset between the lower floor and the upper floor levels. The greater portion
occurred within the two upper floor Bedrooms.
2. Add continuous railings and cast stone friezes in lieu of the currently proposed three
separated front elevation forms.
The project was redesigned to create a continuous Frieze element that separates the
upper and lower floor levels in lieu of breaking them into three distinctive elements. The
previous design included a distinctive entrance element that was four feet, eight inches
taller than the flanking elements that dominated the façade. The current design includes
a frieze that is constant in height and includes wide newel posts that visually diminish
and mask the upper floor level.
3. Increase the window sizes on the second floor over the entry.
One new window was added to the upper floor to increase the amount of glazing width.
Additionally, each of the windows on the primary façade and on the upper floor level are
identical in size and fundamentally floor to ceiling in height. This consistent rhythm now
accentuates a horizontal line parallel to the topographic contours of the site.
PAGE 7 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
DISCUSSION (continued):
4. Enhance the second floor cornice to add more visual substance.
The cornice design was modified to have taller and deeper dimensions. The height and
depth increased by approximately eight inches, providing an overall increase in mass by
25 percent. The added detail provides contrasting shadows and light and diminishes the
overall height and mass with less light casting on the walls.
5. Deep set all wall planes and windows.
The wall thickness along the front and side elevations was increased such that the
windows and doors could be setback deeper into the wall planes. The wall thickness
doubled from six-inch walls to be one foot thick. The deeper set doors and windows
create shadows that highlight contrasting planes and detailing in the façade.
6. Add additional landscape buffering along the street edge.
The Landscape Plan has been revised to include four additional 24-inch box California
Live Oak Trees to completely screen the proposed residence form creating a visual
impact from both Drysdale Drive and Shady Lane.
The Consulting Architect reviewed the revised plans (Exhibit 14) and provided a follow-up
review (Exhibit 10). Within this second review the Consulting Architect states that the
revised plans are responsive to the six recommendations from the first report, but states
that the primary concerns remain regarding whether the project meets the HDS&G
guidelines. Some mitigating circumstances mentioned in the follow-up review included, the
location of the structure at the bottom of the hill to limit visibility, lack of immediately
adjacent neighbors, and the proposed landscaping for screening.
C. Neighborhood Compatibility
Based on Town and County records, the residences in the immediate area range in size from
2,602 square feet to 6,302 square feet. The house FARs range from 0.05 to 0.14. The
proposed residence would be 5,095 square feet with an FAR of 0.12. Pursuant to Town
Code, the maximum allowable square footage for the 23,239 square-foot net lot size (after
reduction for 25 percent average lot slope) is 5,100 square feet. The immediate area
analysis provided in the table below reflects the current conditions.
PAGE 8 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
Immediate Area
Address Zoning House
SF
Garage
SF
Total
SF Site SF FAR Stories
15951 Quail Hill Road HR-1 4,405 470 4,875 49,910 0.09 1
15941 Quail Hill Road HR-1 4,550 557 5,107 43,565 0.11 2
15925 Quail Hill Road (E) HR-1 2,002 570 2,572 42,253 0.05 1
15925 Quail Hill Road (P) HR-1 5,095 0 5,095 42,253 0.12 2
15921 Quail Hill Road HR-1 4,241 583 4,824 42,422 0.10 2
15920 Quail Hill Road HR-1 2,784 517 3,301 39,895 0.07 1
15930 Quail Hill Road HR-1 2,074 528 2,602 45,626 0.05 1
15970 Quail Hill Road HR-1 5,107 811 5,918 67,061 0.08 2
15961 & 15971 Quail Hill
Road
HR-1
2,985 1,436 4,421 56,417 0.07 2
100 Drysdale Drive HR-1 2,472 816 3,288 40,654 0.07 1
110 Drysdale Drive HR-1 5,527 775 6,302 42,569 0.14 2
130 Drysdale Drive HR-1 4,483 666 5,149 58,318 0.08 2
101 Drysdale Dr/15820
Shady Lane
HR-1
4,628 770 5,398 61,230 0.08 2
107 Drysdale Drive HR-1 5,046 712 5,756 77,553 0.07 2
104 Angel Court HR-1 5,043 1200 6,243 105,370 0.06 2
The proposed residence would not be the first second story home, nor the largest home in
terms of square footage and FAR.
D. Tree Impacts
The subject property has thirteen trees in proximity to the proposed development, 11 of
which are protected trees (36-inch Coast Live Oak; 24-inch Monterey Pine; 20-inch Deodar
Cedar; 18-inch Incense Cedar; and Coast Live Oak trees ranging in size from six to 19 inches).
The applicant proposes removal of the Monterey Pine as it conflicts with the proposed
development. The Town’s Consulting Arborist visited the site to inspect the trees on the
subject property and on the adjacent properties in the vicinity of the proposed project, and
to evaluate potential impacts from the proposed construction (Exhibit 11). The Consulting
Arborist provided recommendations for tree protection during construction. Staff has
included conditions of approval that the project comply with the tree protection
requirements of the Town Code and the recommendations of the Consulting Arborist.
E. Neighbor Outreach
The applicant reached out to their neighbors and provided copies of the two responses they
received (Exhibit 12).
PAGE 9 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
F. CEQA Determination
The project is Categorically Exempt pursuant to the adopted Guidelines for the
Implementation of California Environmental Quality Act, Section 15303: New Construction
of Small Structures.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
Story poles and signage were installed on the site and written notice was sent to property
owners and tenants located within 300 feet of the subject property. Public comments received
by 11:00 a.m., Friday, December 6, 2019 are included as Exhibit 13.
CONCLUSION:
A. Summary
The applicant is requesting approval of an Architecture and Site application for demolition
of an existing single-family residence and detached ADU and construction of a new single-
family residence with exceptions for height, retaining walls, and cut and fill depths.
B. Recommendation
With consideration of the analysis above, staff recommends that the Planning Commission
deny the Architecture and Site application based on concerns related to the consistency
with the HDS&G.
C. Alternatives
Alternatively, the Commission can:
1. Approve the application by taking the following actions:
a. Find that the project is Categorically Exempt pursuant to the adopted Guidelines for
the Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act, Section 15303:
New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures (Exhibit 2);
b. Make the findings as required by Section 29.10.09030 (e) of the Town Code for the
demolition of an existing structure (Exhibit 2);
c. Make the findings as required by Section 29.10.330 of the Town Code for the
demolition of an existing accessory dwelling unit (Exhibit 2);
d. Make the required finding that the height, cut and fill depth, and retaining wall
height exception requests are appropriate and the project otherwise complies with
the Hillside Development Standards and Guidelines (Exhibit 2);
e. Make the finding that the project complies with the Hillside Specific Plan (Exhibit 2);
PAGE 10 OF 10 SUBJECT: 15925 Quail Hill Drive/S-19-012 DATE: December 6, 2019
CONCLUSION (continued):
f. Make the considerations as required by Section 29.20.150 of the Town Code for
granting approval of an Architecture and Site application (Exhibit 2); and
g. Approve Architecture and Site application S-19-012 with the conditions contained
in Exhibit 3 and development plans attached as Exhibit 14; or
2. Approve the application with additional and/or modified conditions; or
3. Continue the matter to a date certain with specific direction.
EXHIBITS:
1. Location Map
2. Required Findings and Considerations
3. Recommended Conditions of Approval
4. Project Description
5. Materials Board
6. Letter of Justification, dated November 21, 2019
7. Consulting Architect’s Report, received March 26, 2019
8. Applicant’s Response to Consulting Architect’s Report, dated May 22, 2019
9. Applicant’s Response to Consulting Architect’s Recommendations, dated November 20,
2019
10. Consulting Architect’s Second Report, received November 7, 2019
11. Consulting Arborist Report, dated April 18, 2019
12. Applicant’s neighbor outreach efforts
13. Public comments received by 11:00 a.m., Friday, December 6, 2019
14. Development Plans