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Council reviews plan to finish Design Guidelines 1.5; members press for clearer redline and broader vetting
Summary
Staff outlined a four-cycle production plan targeting September 1 adoption of Residential Design Guidelines 1.5. Council members raised concerns about missing tracked changes, the need for greater planning‑staff and architect input, and fire‑resilience materials guidance.
City staff presented a proposed scope of work and strict timeline for finalizing the residential Design Guidelines 1.5 and asked the council to endorse the plan to reach adoption by Sept. 1.
Tom Ford, the project lead, described a four‑cycle approach that centers each month’s work around planning commission review, production edits, staff review and then production team meetings. “Our target council adoption deadline … is September 1,” Ford said.
Several council members welcomed the structure but pressed staff and the steering committee on substance and transparency. One council member said a red-line comparison showing what text changed between versions is essential: without it, reviewers cannot reliably tell what was added or removed. Another council member urged greater inclusion of “end users” — planning staff, planning commissioners and the architect community — while emphasizing the need for clear public-facing examples and illustrations.
Substantive concerns included fire‑resilience guidance, acceptable building and fence materials, and how the guidelines should balance preservation of Carmel’s character with home‑hardening for wildfire protection. Council sponsors for the ad‑hoc team were identified to steward the work, and staff said they will provide more targeted deliverables for the planning commission meetings and the production team.
Staff and council agreed to continue the item, produce the requested red‑line mapping or equivalent comparison tool where feasible, and return with updated draft language and public‑facing examples in the coming cycle.
