Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Discretionary Review topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission continues Cow Hollow rear‑deck discretionary review after neighbors and staff press for design changes
Summary
After heated public comment and conflicting plan revisions, the Planning Commission continued the discretionary review for 2735 Baker Street to Aug. 16, asking the sponsor to work with neighbors and produce clearer three‑dimensional design options and a Notice of Special Restrictions to lock in agreed concessions.
A contentious discretionary‑review hearing over a proposed rear addition and roof deck at 2735 Baker Street ended with the Planning Commission continuing the item to Aug. 16 and urging a negotiated redesign.
Neighbors and two DR requesters described repeated communication breakdowns with the sponsor and asserted the project would intrude on mid‑block open space, privacy and the Cow Hollow neighborhood guidelines. They sought an alignment of rear walls with adjacent buildings or a more sculpted addition to reduce visual impact. Several neighbors asked that any reductions be recorded via a Notice of Special Restrictions to prevent future over‑the‑counter changes to decks.
Project representatives presented revised plans (a reduced roof‑deck footprint and shifted railings) and agreed to some screening but, according to neighbors, not the broader creative changes the commission sought. Commissioner Moore and others said that small dimensional edits were insufficient, and asked for three‑dimensional massing or alternative scheme(s) that respond to earlier guidance.
The commission directed the sponsor to work with staff and neighbors, encouraged planting/screening and asked staff to prepare a Notice of Special Restrictions if parties agree to specific constraints. The item was continued to August 16 to allow the sponsor to return with clearer drawings and evidence of neighbor coordination.
