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ASRB continues 385 Moore Road review, requires story poles and design revisions for scenic-corridor visibility
Summary
The ASRB continued conceptual review of a proposed two-story residence at 385 Moore Road, directing the applicants to reduce ornamentation, revise materials/colors, provide a detailed landscape screening plan and install story poles to assess visibility from I-280 (scenic corridor).
The Architectural and Site Review Board voted July 22 to continue conceptual review of a proposed two-story main residence and detached ADU at 385 Moore Road, citing concerns about the project’s visual formality, ornamentation and potential visibility from the Interstate 280 scenic corridor.
Staff outlined the site constraints: the 385 Moore Road parcel totals about 8.76 acres (7.99 acres net) with multiple recorded easements (50-foot ingress, 60-foot vehicle access, a 200-foot conservation/stream corridor easement and a 15-foot equestrian trail easement). Staff said the project falls within the town’s SCP zoning and that a prior land-division building-and-pool envelope limits above-ground improvements. The proposed main residence is measured at about 29 feet, 7 inches in height, under the 30-foot maximum.
Lead architect Malka Jened described a formal, French-provincial design and explained site decisions to step the house down the hillside to limit grading and preserve significant oaks. She asked for guidance on materials and massing and said the team purposely located the house low on the site to minimize visibility from Moore Road and I-280.
Board members voiced concern the project’s ornate detailing — cornerstones, columns, balustrade-like guardrails and a bright light color palette — is out of step with Woodside design guidelines that favor simplicity and muted palettes. Several members stressed the site’s visibility from I-280 and recommended story poles to test actual views. "Because of its placement, on a scenic corridor, story poles will be a requirement for passing conceptual review," the chair stated when making the motion to continue.
The board’s motion to continue required that the applicants return with a revised design that reduces ornamentation and formality, provides variation/darker tones in materials and a more detailed landscape plan showing screening from I-280 and Moore Road. The motion passed with a majority; one member recorded an abstention.
Staff will issue a written summary of the board’s recommendations and the applicant will prepare story-pole installations and revised materials/landscape details for the next hearing or the planning commission as required for entitlements involving grading.
