HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.apz.20040810ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Minutes .AuguSt 10, 2004
COMMENTS .............................................................................................................................. 2
DECLARATIONS OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ..................................................... 2
RESIDENCES AT LITTLE NELL FINAL PUD ,..~.~ ............. ~ ............... ~ ............... ' ......... 2
ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Minutes August 10, 2004
Jasmine Tygre opened the special Aspen Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting
at 4:30 pm in the Council Chambers. Members Steve Skadron, Dylan Johns,
Brandon Marion, Roger Haneman, and Jasmine Tygre were present. John
'Rowland, Ruth Kruger and Jack Johnson were eXcused. Staff present: Chris
Bendon, Community Development; Jackie Lothian, Deputy City Clerk.
COMMENTS
Jasmine Tygre asked when the "wish list" for Council should be submitted. Jackie
Lothian replied that Joyce Allgaier was the staff person. Brandon Marion asked
for a meeting with council for general direction. Chris Bendon noted a Civic
Master Plan Meeting on August 18th; the plan was still a couple of months out from
making a recommendation to City Council. Roger Haneman agreed to stay on and
John Rowland will be the official P&Z representative but the committee could
handle another P&Z member.
DECLARATIONS OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
John Rowland, Ruth Kruger and Jack Johnson had conflicts of interest on the
Residences.
CONTINUED PUBLIC HEARING:
RESIDENCES AT LITTLE NELL FINAL PUD
Jasmine Tygre opened the continued public hearing for Residences at Little Nell
final PUD. Sunny Vann stated there were questions on the height and architecture.
Bill Poss, architect, utilized the models to explain the changes; the street elevations
were lowered and the other buildings. On the smaller site model Poss
demonstrated the corrected heights on the upper buildings; Poss said that all the
buildings were represented accurately.
poSs introduced Kim Weil, principal architect and Michael Hamberg, the designer
of the project. Poss mentioned the changes from the last reiteration a year ago
were the height, adding one more story (from 42 to 52 feet), which varies at all
different parts of the project. Poss said the architectural character materials were
changed from rusticated sandstone, rose colored brick, bronze/antique copper to
timber, steel and glass curtain wall elements incorporated into the design
vocabulary. Weil stated there Was less massing at the top of the property. Poss
said there were 2 residential units at the top that replaced the Hen House, from the
elevator shaft down to the hotel with flat roofs instead of pitched. Poss utilized
Exhibit 29 of October 25, 2002 for elevations of the last P&Z approval and the
Council approvals'were Sheet 16 dated June 30, 2003 and the new elevations dated
May 1, 2004. The new models were at 1/50th for the large model (city context) and
the new present design model was at 1/20th scale.
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ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Minutes August 10, 2004
Poss compared the footprint from the original approval including the' Andeman
residence. Vann stated that the mass moved further down toward the North of
Nell. Vann explained the purchase of the Hen (about 8,000 square feet) and
Andeman (being torn down and rebuilt) residences in order to satisfy owners from
parcel G and they cannot go any higher than the Hen residence as a condition from
the previous owner. The partnership decided to sell those 2 units as whole
ownership units but had to keep the underlying LTR zone district because whole
ownership units were not allowed in CL zone district. Vann said they asked for
permissiOn as part'of the approval that these 2 units could be sold as fractional at
their option so they would not have to come back for an amendment to the PUD.
Vann said the fractional units in the main building range fi.om 2300 square feet to
3800 square feet; the 2 Upper units were g560~d 3700 squar~ feet and Were n
taller than the Hen residence. Vann believed it was consistent with what was
requested by P&Z and works in the context of the neighborhood.. The parking for
those 3 residences was currently located on the Tipple Lodge property just south of
the Tippler nightclub; each home has the right to 2 parking spaces so the garage
was increased to accommodate these parking spaces then they have to get from the
garage up to the residences because of the funicular that is there today is going to
go away. Vann said an elevator, tower and stairs between the 2 buildings serves a
dual purpose, it provides additional access off of the lodge main building floors all
the way down to the garage to the roof andit provides access fi.om the garage up to
a series of walkways that connect from those residential units that they were
proposing to those remaining 3 house because they do not have vehicular access to
the lots. The access will be improved and parking all weather with the ability to
service them and take down the old funicular and there will be a secondary set of
stairs for additional egress or ingress to the site.
Vann said the original council approved FAR was 2.86 and it was now 2.88 with
the additional lot parcel D added in and slope reduction taken into account. The
commercial space was slightly redesigned with one restaurant instead of two.
Poss stated the model made a better presentation utilizing it to illustrate the 80-foot
change in grade up Galena Street and making Dean Street almost a pedestrian mall;
vehicular access will arrive at Galena pulling into the porte cochere and access to
the parking garage 2 levels under the building. Poss said on the other side the
apres ski deck was expanded and create a restaurant to service the aprbs ski deck
with controlled alcohol sales; there will be a retail along the lower portions of the
lodge site and the rest of the building has 24 fractional units that are approximately
2400 to 3200 square feet. The 2 free-market units are up above. There was a 4-
story building of stone, wood and glass with a penthouse containing 3 plus units
with 15,000 square feet on the top portions pulled back from Galena to the ski
ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Minutes AuRust 10, 2004
hillside. Poss said there would be green space around ~he buildings and a sunken
court and with 8 hotel rooms around it. There will not be any air conditioning
units on the roof they will be located in the basement; the roof will probably be
some sort of gravel. Weil said there was a 2-story space in the lower level of the
garage for the mechanical. Poss said there is a small pool and separate little spas
that people can utilize as a roof deck; the elevator shafts were in the middle and
small restaurant ventilation at about 3 feet would be located on the roof. Vann
noted that this site could handle the height and by saving the C Conservation at the
upper end of the property, which maintains the existing ski run. Vann said the Ski
Company will make improvements to the gondola plaza also. Brandon Marion
asked about the heights. Vann said the elevation varies from 28 feet to 42 feet at
the highest point at Galena and Dean Street. The commissiOn requested a drawing
of the actual, proposed and existing buildings. Weil said that Dean would be
lowered 6 feet at one point.
Roger Haneman asked if the bar area was an issue for the North of Nell and the
roof of the bar. Vann replied there were several conditions at conceptual one was
,to guarantee that it would be open for service during the operation of the ski resort
so it would not be private and certain activities would be allowed on the deck (a
passive outdoor sundeck). Vann said the roof was lowered 9 to 10 feet from a
peak to the barr'el shape at one story.
Vann said parcels F and G (the 2 upper most single family lots) were being
expanded across the conservation parcel with the existing city trail easement.
Steve Skadron said that Dean Street would be shadowed from this and would not
be a welcomed environment. Vann replied that it was shadowed now. Poss said
that shadow mountain shadowed Dean Street now. Tygre requested a shadow
study for the next meeting.
Dylan Johns asked abOut the reversing of the traffic at the porte cochere so
headlights would not be hitting the North of Nell; he said that configuration
doesn't work. Vann replied there was a traffic analysis done, they would valet
park with the exception of the 3 single-family lots. Johns asked how the affordable
housing would be parked. Vann replied in the same sub-grade parking garage and
ideally they would leave their cars there and take public transportation. Vann said
the city engineer agreed with the adverse impact on Galena and the 'design
consideration of the garage door next to the frOnt of the building because of the
grade getting down to the garage and the garage circulation. Vann said the level of
traffic on Dean would not substantially adversely imPact Galena. Vann noted there
were2 or 3 temporary spaces under the porte cochere to handle people pulling in
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ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Minutes August 10, 2004
for valet parking along with several par'king'~P~&'eSl Qann Said'&il of the services
were being moved off of Dean Avenue making it more a pedestrian corridor.
Johns said during conceptual the southern end of the property was zoned LTR and
the front end'CL so that at least there was some degree of appropriateness of scale
of what those zone districts allow. Johns asked what was the current zoning. Vann
replied 'the concern was about bulk and the redesign would try to adhere to the
LTR zone district in terms of massing and the zoning was changed at council.
Vann said it wouldn't get any bigger because of the CL rezoning in fact they were
happy to leave it LTR but it doesn't change'the FAR. Johns asked if the CL/SPA
20 years down the road would allow for higher vested rights or a potential
misconception of how that space is to be scaled verses the LTR. Bendon replied
that he did not think so; the Zoning was invisible that controls the dimensions of
the building and location uses. Bendon stated that ideally the parcel should be one
zone with and open space area identified, single-family space identified and the
lodge space identified. Bendon said they understood about the concern about the
conservation parcel and wanting to have an extra hoop that someone might have to
go through to develop that upper portion in a different way to include a larger
building and additional use would require an amendment to the SPA. Tygre asked
if there were significant differences in the dimensional requirements allowed in
those two zone districts. Bendon replied there is but that assumes that they don't
have a PUD that guides those dimensions. Tygre said the PUD still refers to the
underlying zone district from the code. Bendon responded the PUD would guide
the dimensions on all areas of the property. The LTR was a 1:1 and CL was a 2:1.
Johns asked what was happening where the hotel rooms were located in the sunken
area. Poss replied the area would be public and lodge owners' locker rooms with
an elevator that comes up to the ski deck. Weil explained that it was a passive area
without planned activities.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
Joe Raczak, public, North of Nell manager, requested clarification of the table on
page 5. The conceptual PUD approved by City Council was a maximum height of
49 feet and the new proposal was 58 feet; that was a 19% increase fromwhat was
conceptually approved. Raczak asked what constitutes the significant variance
from conceptual to final. Bendon responded that staff felt this project at final was
significantly consistent with the original conceptual approval. The conceptual
went through many modifications at P&Z and Council and the final was a
reflection of that process with a very complex building with many different
heights. Vann said the plat requires the maximum height be specified, since the
building doesn't have the same heights and this table does not compare apples to
apples. Weil noted the Hen property had a 45% slope and the height.
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ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION Minutes August 10, 2004
Toni Kronberg, public, commended Bill on the presentation. Kronberg asked if the
walkway was heated. Vann replied that snowmelt was proposed as part of the
application. Kronberg asked how big and deep was the rooftop pool. Weil replied
that it was 4 to 5 feet deep andwas not a lap pool, more of a dipping pool.
Kronberg stated concern for the traffic on Durant and proposed her personal goal
of the larger picture connecting 3 of the mountains at Buttermilk by gondola and
getting rid of buses on Durant.
Haneman stated concern for the LTR verses CL zone district because of the zoning
creep moving up the mountain; he liked the LTR in place because it helped create a
barrier to help reduce mass as it goes higher and higher up the mountainside.
Haneman said theoretically in 20 years someone could come in and say they could
rezone to CL because the property next to it was CL and therefore it was adjacent
to it and claim greater density. Haneman didn't want it perceived that P&Z in
2004 thought that was okay. Tygre agreed that was a matter of concern. Tygre
voiced concern for the PUD amendments and the intent for Roger's concerns, to
explain the thinking by P&Z. JOhns stated that the final addressed most of his
concerns with the plat addressing specific concerns conveyed on it.
Johns felt there was more visual interest in the first iteration than this one but
overall it wasn't a big concern. Johns said the stepping back on the north end of
the site was very effective keeping the building from having the massive look from
the street as it could be.
Marion said he was impressed with the project team and assemblage and his
concerns were with the overall massing of the project, which may be made to look
like a building crawling up the side and the overall impact on the mountain.
Marion also voiced concern for the overall look of the rooftop from the mountain;
he complimented them on the amenity of the gondola plaza and Dean Street.
Skadron echoed the comments that have already been made and reiterated the
walling effect posed by that building was a concern of his. Skadron expressed the
question of what do we want to ultimately see at the base of the mountain and the
answer is some sort of vitality; he asked the question of the further exclusivity at
the base of Aspen Mountain. Skadron asked how we define vitality, is it simply
for those who can afford these two places or is there some opportunity in this
project to include people who are not able to afford a unit.
Tygre asked for clarification on the restaurant space, which the applicant said
would be open to the public so there will not be an attempt down the road to turn it
into a club where that area adjacent to the slope would be limited to people staying
· at the hotel. Tygre said there haVe been some big mistakes made at the base of
ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION MinUteS August 10? 2004,
Aspen MOuntain andpart of it is keeping the :ski si~e~ bChlhd.~ barrier, WhiCh
didn't use to exist even though there were private enterprises with the funky base
but there was never any official base house characteristic of N~w England Ski
Areas. Tygre said this could proVide that type of vitality but P&Z could not
regulate what businesses can charge and did not feel it was appropriate to tell
people what to charge. Tygre shared Brandon's concern for the roof and requested
the applicant p~ovide the number of vents or mechanical apparatus on the roof and
how far the vents would project. Tygre agreed with Dylan on the previous
materials used that had created the crummy ambience of the building that used to
be there but she did like the architecture even though it was a very large building.
Tygre said that Durant was already crowded was going to be faced with additiOnal
traffic because the cars, tracks or buses would eventually drive onto Durant; the
city may think about the overall effects of dealing With all the traffic on Durant that
would be an enhancement to everyone's eXPerience. Tygre said no one wanted to
sit in traffic on Durant and the burden was probably on P&Z and should be
discussed in the future work sessions.
Vann said that most of the background traffic was already on this property with the
multi-family units, lodge, restaurant, the Tippler and single-family homes above;
the net increase was nominal from the traffic analysis because of the reduction of
commercial space and the nature of the way this project will function. Vann said
the PM 10 issue was resolved with environmental health with an extensive program
of van service and walking distance to downtown.
Vann said the hours of operation for the apras ski and restaurant open to the public
is included in the PUD agreement. Bendon said that that language 'will be in the
resolution.
Haneman stated concern for late night activities on parcel H acquired from the
SkiCo affecting this project. Vann replied that the Ski Company was a part of the
operation since they would be the operator of this facility. Brooke Peterson said
the models don't show the Ski Company's proposed thoughts about shifting the
entrance to the gondola plaza down closer to this property and shifting the focus of
the mountain down there. Peterson said that as a parmership the bottom of the
facilities be Part and parcel of the town; they never thOUght this would be only
private and have made it clear that this Was part of the ski mountain and town.
Peterson said there would still be room for the "big air" contests and would made
better with the grading. Peterson said they have no problem with the'
recommendations about public access and was an important part of the facility to
them as well.
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ASPEN PLANNING & ZONING cOMMIsSION Minutes August 10, 2004
Marion asked about the commercial space and what was envisioned and' what
would the Dean Street experience be like.
Haneman asked how many cars could queue in the porte cochere. Well replied
there were 2 parking spaces with the ability t° queue 4 to 5 so 6 to 7cars and the
driveway was doublewide.
Tygre reiterated that the next meeting will address what the Dean Street experience
will be like and the shadowing and height.
MOTION: Roger Haneman moved to continue the public hearing to August 17,
2004; seconded by Steve Skadron. APPROVED 5-0.
Aclj our_n~tl_at 7:00~n. _
~t~ kie Lothian, D~eputy City Ci~rk
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