PLANNING AND DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR BLOCK C OF THE MT. DIABLO REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT AREA Adopted by Design Review Commission February 4, 2004 The Walnut Creek Redevelopment Agency has an adopted plan for the Mt. Diablo Redevelopment Project Area. The Plan identifies broad goals for development within the plan area as whole, and more specific goals on a block-by-block basis. Block C of the Plan Area, which is located between Main and Locust Streets and Mt. Diablo and Olympic Boulevards, has experienced the successful redevelopment of 3 of the original 7 parcels comprising the block creating the Barnes & Noble multistory building and The Corners commercial/office project. The design guidelines are intended to present a framework in which to successfully complete the redevelopment of the remaining four parcels (APNs 184-060-013, -014, -007, and 008) of Block C in a manner consistent: 1) with the Redevelopment Plan and 2) with the high-quality development that has already occurred on the block and on surrounding properties which are also within the (Plaza Escuela, Olympia Place, Talbot s). In order to complete the redevelopment of block, it is unlikely that the remaining four parcels can successfully develop individually without being in conflict with the Pedestrian Retail General Plan Land Use Category which states that the area is Intended to provide an array of retail and personal service uses that are accessed by people on foot. Generally occurs where central parking lots are available and on-street parking is limited. Currently, three of the four parcels have their own individual parking lots. However, only two of the parcels (the vacant Thrift store at the southwest corner of the block and Union Bank which is at the northwest corner of the block) meet the current parking requirement of 1 space per 300 square feet of net rentable floor area. The Traditions Furniture store site has no on-site parking and the Veteran s building site is under parked by about 18 spaces. Regardless, in order to provide a site large enough to support a centralized parking garage for the block, a consolidation of the parcels would be required. Most of the existing structures on the parcels that have not yet redeveloped are incongruent with the surrounding new development in terms of architecture and age. The Union Bank building was remodeled in the late 90 s, however the project site was originally designed as a destination oriented structure with an on-site surface parking lot and two driveways that interrupts pedestrian flow and creates a visual impediment for pedestrian movement. The entrance to the bank is recessed under a large overhang and there is no architectural treatment that provides visual interest to the pedestrian. The Veteran s building, on the adjacent site, is quite dilapidated and additions to the structure over time have destroyed its original architectural quality. Entrance to the building is via a short flight of stairs and in order to provide ADA access, a steep ramp has been added to the front of the building, which also reduces its architectural value. The vacant Thrift store at the corner of Locust and Olympic was originally designed as a office for a utility company with only one window at the front of the structure along Olympic Blvd. and a long blank wall on Locust Street. The site has two driveways, which again interrupts pedestrian flow. The configuration and size of the four individual parcels makes it difficult for them to be developed separately in a manner that creates central parking. In addition, the parcel sizes and configuration reduces the capacity for buildings to be designed in a manner that relates architecturally to the surrounding new development at Plaza Escuela, Olympia Place, Barnes and Noble and The Corners project.
Planning And Design Guidelines For Block C Page 2 Consequently, the Design Guidelines are intended to provide more specific goals for the development of the remainder parcels of Block C as follows: 1. Address the four sites comprehensively in terms of site layout, access, and project architecture. 2. Incorporate a public parking garage into the new development. 3. Incorporate pedestrian oriented retail on the ground floor and residential, office or additional retail above. 4. Create a project that carries forward the high quality architecture and strong pedestrian orientation of the surrounding new developments the Corners, Barnes & Noble, Olympia Place, Plaza Escuela and Century Theatres. The following standards and guidelines provide direction regarding parking and service access, building articulation, building placement, building height and landmark elements, pedestrian paths and open space. In addition the proposed Design Guidelines address the following objectives stated in the redevelopment plan: 1. Eliminate blighting influences, removes impediments to land development, remove obsolete and inappropriately designed buildings, and achieve changes in land use. 2. Provide the framework within which restoration of the economic and social health of the project and its environs will be accomplished by private actions. 3. Stimulate and attract private investment, thereby improving the City's economic health, employment opportunity, and tax base. PARKING SERVICE AND LOCATION The viability of development is improved by providing motorists with convenient parking access that does not detract from the pedestrian character. The intent of the guidelines is to provide for parking and service to the four sites while minimizing impacts to both vehicular traffic and pedestrian flow. Primary parking and service areas shall be from Locust Street or Olympic Blvd. rather than Mt. Diablo. Driveways shall be a minimum of 50 feet from street intersections, unless otherwise noted. Loading and service areas should be located behind buildings or designed as a joint use with appropriate architecture and landscaping. Any new parking garages should incorporate parking space countdown signs as utilized at the Olympia Place project. As a general rule, the number of entrances to parking garages and loading/service alleys should be kept to a minimum and should be located so as not to created conflicts with driveway locations on surrounding blocks. Where present, these entrances should be designed to contribute to the streetscape as architectural elements rather than simply as holes or interruptions. One way in which this may be accomplished is through continuity of sidewalk paving material at curb cut locations. This may require setting pavers over concrete. Parking Visibility To reduce their visual impact, parking should be located underground or in structures away from Mt. Diablo Boulevard, Locust Street, and Olympic Blvd. as much as possible. For parking structures along
Planning And Design Guidelines For Block C Page 3 Mt. Diablo Boulevard, Locust Street, and Main Street, retail frontage shall be incorporated into the ground floor elevation to enhance the pedestrian environment. Highly visible and inviting signs and other graphic messages directing motorists to parking entrances should be provided. Service Visibility Truck loading facilities should be an integral part of the development and should be screened from public view or designed in a manner that allows joint use and disguises the loading aspect. All exterior garbage and refuse facilities, mechanical equipment, transformers and utility meters should be screened in a manner that is compatible with the overall building design and streetscape treatment. Wherever possible, transformers and other large pieces of utility equipment should be under grounded. Street Character Sidewalks are to be between 10 and 30 feet wide, with the plaza spaces at the intersections of Locust/Olympic and Locust/Mt. Diablo as wide as 40 feet. Per City regulations, trees should be planted at regular 40-foot intervals to provide shade and to help limit and define pedestrian space. Other plantings are strongly encouraged to soften the streetscape and provide visual interest, especially in plazas and other gathering places. These may include flowers and/or small shrubs in planters and flowering vines on trellises. Water is always a welcome presence creating soft white noise and a sense of refreshment in an urban environment. Water features may be incorporated in public plazas. BUILDING ARTICULATION A pedestrian-oriented retail district is enhanced when building materials and treatments offer visual interest to the pedestrian. Buildings provide visual interest when they have transparent storefronts, store awning, varied cornice lines, rhythmic vertical and horizontal elements, interplay with shade and shadow, and varied texture and materials. Appropriate building articulation can be established through the following guidelines for commercial street frontage and architectural treatment. Street Frontage Treatment To enhance the pedestrian experience, ground floor spaces should achieve maximum transparency. Clear, untinted glass should be used to provide maximum visual interactions between store interiors and exterior public areas. Awnings and signage should be incorporated into storefronts to provide shade and variation. Blank walls shall be prohibited on pedestrian-oriented retail streets; blank walls (i.e. those areas where there are no entries or windows) should extend no more than 5 feet along the street front. Where the use of glass is not feasible, facades should be designed with the highest quality materials, such as stone, tile, masonry, brick, and terra cotta, which offer color and variety and are of visual interest to the pedestrian. Storefronts should be indicative of the tenancy within; that is, a large retail tenant will have a single building treatment for its entirety, but will be modulated to respect the traditional store size of downtown Walnut Creek (40 to 50 feet). The development of a rhythm and scale of fenestration is of the utmost importance. Generally, the openings in the building façade should respond to the intended
Planning And Design Guidelines For Block C Page 4 use, as well as to the activity level at the adjacent street. Second story storefronts should incorporate balconies, overlooks, overviews, and windows that actually provide true views into the second story spaces. Architectural Treatment A building s architectural treatment should be varied and articulated to create interest and diversity along public streets. Multiple entrances to larger stores are encouraged. Buildings should avoid the appearance of monolithic projects. Buildings should employ the highest quality masonry, stucco, or precast concrete, and include materials such as stone, tile, brick, and terra cotta as accent features. To add complexity to the building elevation, they should incorporate architectural elements, such as moldings, cornices, and recessed and varied fenestration. Mechanical equipment should be screened from view through a roof design that is architecturally integrated with the rest of the building. To avoid long and monotonous facades, buildings should employ varied setbacks, horizontal and vertical elements, fenestration changes, multiple entrances and other architectural devices to break the massing. The facades should be further modulated every 50 feet or less, consistent with the typical 40-50 foot building module of the historic downtown. In general, buildings should complement the historic downtown s scale and fabric. BUILDING PLACEMENT Building placement can greatly enhance the character of a traditional downtown retail area. Placement strategies include setting minimum setbacks from the street, using buildings to form a strong street edge, orienting building and store entries to the street, and anchoring buildings at intersections, using distinctive architectural elements, plaza features and entries. The placement of buildings along the street is established through the guidelines and standards for building setbacks, orientation of building and store entrances, and building corner treatment. Building Setbacks Buildings with minimum setbacks define the street edge and provide a pedestrian scale along public right-of-ways. Buildings on Mt. Diablo Blvd., Locust Street and Olympic Blvd. should have a variety of setbacks that seek to satisfy the average setbacks required by the General Plan and zoning regulations, to maintain the Walnut Creek pattern of setback variety and to create opportunities for public plazas, especially where in context to surrounding developments. Orientation of Building and Store Entrances Street-oriented entrances and storefronts are enlivening; they increase visual interest and generate pedestrian activity. Continuous retail frontage improves the pedestrian environment. Buildings and commercial uses should orient their primary entrances to Locust Street, Olympic and Mt. Diablo Blvds. Buildings and commercial uses are encouraged to have secondary entrances
Planning And Design Guidelines For Block C Page 5 oriented to an internal courtyard or pedestrian paths. Entrances facing The Corners oak tree courtyard as well as pedestrian access to the courtyard are highly desired. Larger tenants should have multiple entrances, especially for stores located at corners, to encourage pedestrian use. Corner Treatment The most visible buildings are those at intersections. Their forms can create focal points. Angled (or rounded) corners on buildings at intersections enhance pedestrian flow around building corners, encouraging pedestrian activity along both building faces. Buildings at street intersections should use distinctive architectural elements and pronounced articulation. Both the Mt. Diablo/Locust Street and the Locust St./Olympic intersections should have buildings that incorporate strong architectural corner treatments. In addition, the Locust Street/Olympic Blvd corner needs to relate contextually to the plazas at the three other corners, which include the two fountains at Plaza Escuela and the covered courtyard at Century Theatres. BUILDING HEIGHT Guidelines for building heights establish a scale for a retail district and lend character to a street. Landmark elements, such as tower elements, distinguish an area and create focal points. They draw attention to an area and attract the street traveler. According to the Walnut Creek General Plan, the maximum building height for the block is 35 for those parcels fronting onto Mt. Diablo and 50 feet for the remaining parcels. Upper-story Setbacks Upper story setbacks assure that a building maintains a scale consistent with the low-rise buildings in the downtown area. The upper stories of buildings (above 35 feet) should step back a minimum of ten feet from the setback line or the building face. Any parking garage stories above ground floor uses should step back at least 15 feet along Locust Street to prevent the garages from becoming too strong a presence in a pedestrian environment. Setbacks should be accompanied by architectural expression.. Landmark Elements Landmark elements are suggested at important view corridors, at prominent intersections or mid-block, to create visual interest. They employ distinctive building forms, or other architectural or landscape devices. They can be incorporated into a building or be freestanding. The corners of either Locust Street and Olympic or Locust Street and Mt. Diablo offer prime locations for a landmark piece of artwork, a fountain, a plaza or/or landscaped element. Vertical circulation from the garages or midblock pedestrian pathways offers a second opportunity to create landmark elements. PEDESTRIAN/BIKE PATHS AND OPEN SPACE Continuous pathways on streets and into developments enhance the pedestrian environment. Active storefront uses along sidewalks and outdoor spaces that complement pathways and abutting uses add vitality. Sidewalk widths should be consistent with surrounding development, especially on Locust Street where an average 15 wide sidewalk should be incorporated to offset the large mass of building
Planning And Design Guidelines For Block C Page 6 on the west side of the street. If the sidewalks are too narrow, it will create a canyon appearance or effect. Pedestrian Linkages Prominent pedestrian linkages activate the site and connect it to adjacent uses. The heritage oak tree at the center of Block C (on The Corners project) was preserved and enhanced with a pedestrian walkway called Oak Lane and a patio underneath the tree. Oak Lane is accessed off Mt. Diablo. The tree and patio area could become an interior focal point for all of Block C, by providing another pedestrian pathway from Locust Street or Olympic Blvd., thereby creating a continuous walkway and view corridor for the tree. Open Spaces/Courtyards Open spaces, courtyards, and pedestrian respites offer relief from the bustle of the street and are gathering places for people. Active and safe open spaces, courtyards and pedestrian respites have distinct edges. They are integrated with surrounding uses and complement them. They offer attractions for pedestrians, such as fountains, seating, and shade. The fountain plazas at Broadway Plaza and Plaza Escuela are examples of successful open space/courtyards downtown. Open spaces, courtyards, and pedestrian respites should employ high-quality materials such as those used at the fountain plaza at Broadway Plaza and at Plaza Escuela. The materials should complement the mix of materials and street furniture already in use in Walnut Creek s downtown. IMPLEMENTATION The four parcels should be developed under one comprehensive plan or by a single developer in order to create central parking and massing and architecture similar to surrounding development in the Redevelopment Project area. Any application for design review required by the Walnut Creek Municipal Code shall be reviewed and approved, conditionally approved or denied by both the Design Review Commission and the Agency. No application for design review shall be approved unless the Design Review Commission and the Agency find either that (1) the application is consistent with these Guidelines, (2) the proposed deviation from these Guidelines would result in a superior implementation of the Redevelopment Plan or (3) strict application of these Guidelines would result in a taking of property without compensation in violation of the United States Constitution." H:\1-SM (Sandra Meyer)\Block C - Mt Diablo Redev Proj Area\DESIGN CRITERIA FOR BLOCK C Final.doc