Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Downtown Revival topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board approves downtown Lake Avenue storefront rehab, setback waiver and preconstruction tax exemption
Summary
The Historic Resources Preservation Board approved façade alterations, a front-setback waiver and preconstruction approval for an ad valorem tax exemption at 716 Lake Avenue, subject to conditions; board struck several staff-prescribed conditions relating to knee-wall configuration and door spacing and approved the applicant's proposed openable storefront doors to activate the sidewalk.
Staff presented archival blueprints and photos showing that the building at 716 Lake Avenue dates to 1946 and retains a number of original storefront features. The applicant — represented by Josh Robbins (Robbins Companies) and design consultant Juan Johnson — proposed splitting the large vacant storefront into four rental units, restoring decorative doors and reintroducing street-facing operable openings. "We really see a lot of, potential for Lake Avenue to be a vibrant, lively downtown hub," Robbins told the board, urging approval so renovation could proceed while the applicant's due-diligence period in their purchase contract remained short.
Staff supported a design that restored original storefront lines and recommended a 0-foot front-setback waiver to replicate the original configuration. The board debated staff's knee-wall compromise versus the applicant's proposal for recessed operable doors and potential awnings. After public testimony from downtown business owners and local property owners urging revitalization, the board moved to approve HRPB project 26-00100056 — including the preconstruction finding necessary for a 10-year ad valorem tax exemption on the increase in improvement value — but removed staff conditions related to the knee walls and specific door placement. The vote was unanimous.
Why it matters: the approval clears major discretionary historic-preservation steps for renovating a long-vacant downtown building and signals local support for retail-oriented reactivation of Lake Avenue. The ad valorem exemption, if the full construction and post-construction review steps are completed, would freeze the increase in taxable improvement value for the project for a period (the standard program is ten years), encouraging private investment in downtown storefront restoration.
