SUBJECT: TEXT AMENDMENT FOR OPEN SPACE REQUIREMENTS AMENDING CHAPTERS 17.12, 17.14, 17.16 & 17.22 REGARDING OPEN SPACE IN THE R-2, R-2B AND R-3 ZONES AND FOR CONDOMINIUMS AND AMENDING CHAPTER 17.04 TO ADD A DEFINITION OF ROOF DECK.

 

Recommendation:

That the City Council direct staff to proceed with the subject text amendments.

 

Background:

On May 2, 2000 the City Council reviewed proposed changes to multi-family parking standards and the maximum percentage of open space allowable on roof decks. The Council directed staff to more clearly and concisely define the term roof deck and the amount of open space allowable on a roof deck and throughout a project.

 

Analysis:

Proposed Roof Deck Definition:

A deck is a walkable surface used for sitting or passive recreational purposes. A roof is understood in construction terms, to mean that area above the wall plate level, consisting of ceiling joists and other roof-framing members and finished roofing. For purposes of defining open space requirements, the Council also discussed that roof decks are distinguished by access only from the floor below, as opposed to a standard building deck which is accessed directly from the living area. Based upon the above, staff is recommending the following definition of roof deck:

The walkable and useable open space located above the roof framing of a building which has access only from the floor below.

This definition includes any decked roof area and would not necessarily be limited to the highest portion of the building, as a building may have multi-level roofs. The definition also does not include all decked roof areas, as some of these areas may be directly accessible to an adjacent living space and should not be held to any proposed roof deck limitation. (There is currently no limitation on the amount of open space that can be provided on decks in the multifamily zones.)

 

Current Open Space Definition:

Open space is currently defined as:

…areas which are from ground to sky free and clear of any obstructions or obstacles unless otherwise specified within each zone classification..

The Zone Code establishes minimum requirements for usable open space in the R-2 and R-3 zones, and distinguishes private from common open space . Private open space is required for a specified unit as a percentage of total usable open space. The R-2 and R-3 zones have a minimum open space requirement of 200 square feet per dwelling unit with 100 square feet private (50% of the required open space). Condominium units have an additional 100 square feet of "recreational" space required per unit. Single-family, multi-family, and condominium units may provide 100% of required open space and "recreational" space on decks in the R2 and R-3 Zones. These open space requirements are found in several areas of the Zone Code (by zoning category and in the condominium section.).

In order to simplify the Zone Code, staff is recommending that open space requirements for condominiums and multifamily units in the R-2 and R-3 zones be the same and that private open space requirements not be distinguished. The more restrictive standards for roof decks proposed by Council would apply to single, multifamily apartment and condominium development. Staff believes that it is unnecessary to distinguish between condominium development and other R-2 and R-3 projects relative to open space.

Pursuant to Council’s discussion, staff also recommends codifying the standard condominium condition requiring that 100 square feet of open space be directly accessible to primary living areas ¹ , and applying this standard to all projects in R-2 and R-3 zones.

The Council also discussed options to allow some percentage of the open space, which is currently required to have a 7’X 7’ minimum dimension, to have minimum 3’X 3’ dimension. Staff suggests that the new minimum dimension be limited to 100 square feet of open space or that the minimum 7’dimension be maintained so that the open space has some utility rather than just providing relief to the building volume.

Open space would be allocated in the following manner on a typical project:

• 100 sq. ft. on roof deck with minimum dimension of 7’.
• 100 sq. ft. on a deck adjacent to the living room/kitchen area with minimum 7’ dimension.
• 100 sq. ft in varying locations, 3’ minimum dimension (decks at bedrooms, the ground, etc.).
• 300 sq. ft. total

This would comply with the minimum 100 square feet adjacent to primary living area, and provide the minimum 200 square feet with 7-foot dimensions.

 

The table below reflects these proposed changes:

Zone/Use	Open Space Requirement	Typ. Project	Change
R-1(Single family)	400 sq. ft. total (min. dimension 10’) 25% on decks permitted / 75% on grade.	400 Sq. Ft.	None
R-2, R2B and R-3 (Single, Two or 3+)/Condo	300 sq. ft. total per d.u .. 100 sq. ft. on roof decks (Max.). 100 sq. ft. directly accessible to living area (Min.) . 200 sq. ft. (Min.) 7’X 7’ includes roof deck areas. 100 sq. ft. (Max.) 3’X 3’ dimension. 5 + d.u’s, 100 sq. ft. common open space per d.u.	600 Sq. Ft. for two unit project	Combination of condo requirements with R-2/R-3 requirements plus Council discussed changes

The proposed changes will have little effect on a typical condominium project. For some projects which maximize the use of roof decks under current requirements it will slightly increase the amount of open space required in decks adjacent to a living area or on the ground (by up to 100 sq. ft.) with a negligible effect on interior floor area. For others it may only have the impact of allowing smaller decks to count towards open space, allowing more flexibility and possibly more total interior floor area. For a small percentage of single-family projects on especially small R-2 and R-3 lots, which typically provide all required 200 square feet of open space on a roof deck, the changes will have a more significant impact as they will be required to locate open space on decks adjacent to living areas instead of roof areas.

Staff believes that the proposed change from seven-foot to three-foot minimum open space dimension will result in less utility for open space as a sitting or lounge area. In addition, working with varying minimum widths complicates project open space requirements and use of the Zone Code which is not consistent with the Council’s goal of simplifying the Zoning Ordinance.

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