SUBJECT: 730 HILARY DRIVE; FILE # 20307

The applicant is requesting Design Review approval to construct additions to an existing two-story single-family dwelling located at 730 Hilary Drive. The original request was to add 1,000 square feet of floor area to the existing house, with additions to both the ground floor and the second floor of the house. The application included requests for a variance for reduced side yard setback; a variance for excess lot coverage; and a floor area exception.

This application was first reviewed at the April 17, 2003 Design Review Board meeting. At that time, the Board raised concerns regarding the overall size of the house that would result from the proposed additions. The Board noted that few homes in Tiburon have been granted both a floor area exception and a variance for excess lot coverage for a home with a two-story design. The Board also noted that the proposed project would result in the second largest house in the neighborhood on the second smallest lot in the vicinity. The Board generally indicated no objections to the request for a reduced side yard setback to continue the line of the existing house.

The Board directed the applicant to revise the design of the proposed additions, and attempt to eliminate the need for the lot coverage variance and/or the floor area exception. The hearing was continued to the May 15, 2003 meeting to allow the applicant time to prepare revised plans for the project.

The applicant submitted revised plans for this application. The size of the proposed addition was reduced from 1,000 square feet to 657 square feet, resulting in a total floor area of 2,780 square feet. The additional lot coverage that would be created by the proposed project was decreased from 1,245 square feet to 1,038 square feet, resulting in a total lot coverage of 2,667 square feet (36.1%). A floor area exception and a variance for excess lot coverage were still requested, as well as a variance for reduced side yard setback.

The Design Review Board reviewed these revised plans at the May 15, 2003 meeting. The majority of the Board could make the findings for the side yard setback variance, but could not make the findings for the floor area exception in combination with the lot coverage variance. The application was continued to the June 5, 2003 Board meeting, with the applicant encouraged to eliminate the need for either the floor area exception and/or the lot overage variance.

As noted in the previous Staff reports for this project, the subject property is located on a relatively level site that is situated, like most others along this side of Hilary Drive, below the level of the street. The revised additions would not appear to intrude into any significant views for the homes located across Hilary Drive.

Staff has reviewed the proposal and finds it to be in conformance with the development standards for the R-1 zone with the exception of the previously noted variances for reduced side yard setback and excess lot coverage, and the requested floor area exception.

Variances

As the revised applications still result in the same variances requested for the previous iterations of the project (albeit with a slightly smaller requested lot coverage), the analysis of the findings required to approve these variances remains the same as described in the previous Staff reports for this application. In summary, the Design Review Board has approved a number of variances (primarily in the Bel Aire neighborhood) for excess lot coverage on smaller single-family lots as a tradeoff for maintaining a single-story building profile, but not for applications that involve excess lot coverage created, in part, by a two-story addition to a two-story house, as in this application. In addition, the strict application of the maximum allowable lot coverage would still allow the property owner to construct additional floor area on the site without exceeding the floor area ratio for this property, and therefore would not result in a practical difficulty or unnecessary hardship on the applicant. Staff still believes that there is sufficient evidence to support the findings for the requested variance for reduced side yard setback, but there appears to be insufficient evidence to support the findings for the requested variance for excess lot coverage.

Floor Area Exception

As noted in prior Staff reports for this application, it appears that the Design Review Board may make the required findings to grant the requested exception to the required floor area ratio requirements. The construction of additions to the front of the house in line with the existing structure would not significantly alter the visual size and scale of the house when viewed from other homes in the vicinity. The proposed additions would also not alter the relationship of the structure with the physical layout of the site.

The currently requested 2,601 square foot floor area for the house would be only 17 square feet (0.7%) above the maximum floor area permitted for a lot of this size. A table was previously prepared that compared the lot size, floor area ratio and proposed floor area of the proposed project with other properties in the vicinity. Despite the reduction in size from the previous applications, the currently proposed design would still result in the second largest house in the neighborhood on the second smallest lot in the vicinity.

1. Conditions of approval

2. Table Comparing Lot Sizes, Floor Area Ratios and Floor Areas in the Vicinity of 730 Hilary Drive

3. Design Review Board Staff Report dated April 17, 2003

4. Design Review Board Staff Report dated May 15, 2003

5. Minutes of the April 17, 2003 Design Review Board meeting

6. Draft Minutes of the May 15, 2003 Design Review Board meeting

7. Revised supplemental materials

8. Revised plans

FILE #20307 

1. This approval shall be used within three (3) years of the approval date, and shall become null and void unless a building permit has been issued.

2. The development of this project shall conform with the application dated by the Town of Tiburon on February 18, 2003, or as amended by these conditions of approval. Any modifications to the plans of May 27, 2003, must be reviewed and approved by the Design Review Board.

3.    Plans submitted to the Building Division for plan check shall be identical to those approved by the Design Review Board. If any changes are made to the approved Design Review plans, the permit holder is responsible for clearly identifying all such changes when submitted to the Building Division for plan check. Such changes must be clearly highlighted (with a "bubble" or "cloud") on the submitted plans. A list describing in detail all such changes shall be submitted and attached to the building plans, with a signature block to be signed by the Planning Division Staff member indicating that these changes have been reviewed and are approved, or require additional Design Review. All changes that have not been explicitly approved by Staff as part of the Building Plan Check process are not approved. Construction that does not have Planning Division approval is not valid and shall be subject to stop work orders and may require removal.

4.    The applicant must meet all requirements of other agencies prior to the issuance of a building permit for this project.

5.    All skylights shall be bronzed or tinted and no lights shall be placed in the wells.

6.    All exterior lighting fixtures must be down light type fixtures.

FLOOR AREAS IN THE VICINITY OF 730 HILARY DRIVE

Lot Floor Area Floor

 730 Hilary Drive 7,382 2,584 2,601