In 1995, the Village Master Plan and Design Manual was adopted by the Carlsbad City Council and Housing and Redevelopment Commission.
It was subsequently approved by the California Coastal Commission and serves as the local coastal program for the Village.
Since the adoption of the plan more than a decade ago, staff has discovered some of the approved policies and standards are incorrectly stated or inconsistent among the various implementing documents. As a result, some revisions are required for consistency purposes between various regulatory documents for the Village.
In addition, the Housing and Redevelopment Commission requested about a year ago that the development standards within the plan be studied and considered for revision to facilitate new desirable development, such as mixed-use and residential, within the Village area. Development standards frame the character of an area by establishing requirements for a building's physical design.
Development standards dictate how tall a building can be, how much of a site it can cover, the amount of parking required, as well as how many residential units could be built together with other physical parameters.
In order to continue the revitalization effort within the Village and ensure the creation of a sustainable neighborhood for the future, some development standard revisions were required to allow for the continued development of desirable mixed-use projects and additional residential opportunities to provide product diversity within the Village area.
Studies show that escalating land values and construction costs are outpacing sales income and lease revenue in the Village, demonstrating a need to allow larger floor area and additional residential units to provide more revenues to offset building construction costs. In studying other areas, it also was discovered that revisions could be made to the development standards while maintaining a village character in terms of design and intensity of development.
With some revisions, the future of the Village can be enhanced by allowing for new residential development that would benefit the downtown businesses and provide more diversity of housing product. The revisions also would allow for new development to accommodate desired companies that could include unique retail businesses and other services.
What are the proposed standards?
? Building Setbacks: zero feet for the first floor and a 10-foot average for all floors above the first (in the central Village).
? Elimination of roof pitch requirement.
? No requirement to build over parking to obtain height of 45 feet (in the central Village).
? Change in how parking is calculated (net versus gross) and parking credit for existing buildings.
? More creative parking solutions that include parking lifts, tandem parking and a 15 percent reduction in total parking for implementation of programs that support the use of public transportation, alternative vehicles or are located within 1,500 feet of public transit.
? Allowance for standards modifications and residential density increases above the maximums for silver or higher leadership in energy & environmental design project certification, affordable housing and other projects that meet the goals for the Village area.
? Increase permitted density from a maximum of 23 dwelling units per acre to 45 units per acre (in the central Village).
A comparison between the existing development standards and the proposed standards can be accessed on the city of Carlsbad's Web site at www.carlsbadca.gov/redevelopment/devstandpdf/summarychart.pdf.
The Design Review Board recommended approval Sept. 6 when it considered the proposed revisions to the Village Master Plan and Design Manual. The Housing and Redevelopment Commission and City Council will consider the revisions this month.
Anyone with questions or comments regarding the proposed revisions can call Debbie Fountain at (760) 434-2815.
It was subsequently approved by the California Coastal Commission and serves as the local coastal program for the Village.
Since the adoption of the plan more than a decade ago, staff has discovered some of the approved policies and standards are incorrectly stated or inconsistent among the various implementing documents. As a result, some revisions are required for consistency purposes between various regulatory documents for the Village.
In addition, the Housing and Redevelopment Commission requested about a year ago that the development standards within the plan be studied and considered for revision to facilitate new desirable development, such as mixed-use and residential, within the Village area. Development standards frame the character of an area by establishing requirements for a building's physical design.
Development standards dictate how tall a building can be, how much of a site it can cover, the amount of parking required, as well as how many residential units could be built together with other physical parameters.
In order to continue the revitalization effort within the Village and ensure the creation of a sustainable neighborhood for the future, some development standard revisions were required to allow for the continued development of desirable mixed-use projects and additional residential opportunities to provide product diversity within the Village area.
Studies show that escalating land values and construction costs are outpacing sales income and lease revenue in the Village, demonstrating a need to allow larger floor area and additional residential units to provide more revenues to offset building construction costs. In studying other areas, it also was discovered that revisions could be made to the development standards while maintaining a village character in terms of design and intensity of development.
With some revisions, the future of the Village can be enhanced by allowing for new residential development that would benefit the downtown businesses and provide more diversity of housing product. The revisions also would allow for new development to accommodate desired companies that could include unique retail businesses and other services.
What are the proposed standards?
? Building Setbacks: zero feet for the first floor and a 10-foot average for all floors above the first (in the central Village).
? Elimination of roof pitch requirement.
? No requirement to build over parking to obtain height of 45 feet (in the central Village).
? Change in how parking is calculated (net versus gross) and parking credit for existing buildings.
? More creative parking solutions that include parking lifts, tandem parking and a 15 percent reduction in total parking for implementation of programs that support the use of public transportation, alternative vehicles or are located within 1,500 feet of public transit.
? Allowance for standards modifications and residential density increases above the maximums for silver or higher leadership in energy & environmental design project certification, affordable housing and other projects that meet the goals for the Village area.
? Increase permitted density from a maximum of 23 dwelling units per acre to 45 units per acre (in the central Village).
A comparison between the existing development standards and the proposed standards can be accessed on the city of Carlsbad's Web site at www.carlsbadca.gov/redevelopment/devstandpdf/summarychart.pdf.
The Design Review Board recommended approval Sept. 6 when it considered the proposed revisions to the Village Master Plan and Design Manual. The Housing and Redevelopment Commission and City Council will consider the revisions this month.
Anyone with questions or comments regarding the proposed revisions can call Debbie Fountain at (760) 434-2815.