The Planning Commission on March 16 unanimously approved a minor use permit for a covered roof access structure that exceeds the height limit. The property is in the Surfside Colony.
City staff recommended approving the permit.
No one spoke during the public hearing. No one representing the applicant was at the meeting. The only person in the audience was a reporter.
District Three Commissioner Susan Perrell asked if there was an alternative to what she called “the doghouse.”
Interim Community Development Director Shawn Temple said this had been the practice in Surfside for longer than anyone in the Chamber had been there. According to Temple, that’s how the Surfside Colony Architectural Review Board wants to access the structure.
Background
“The designer, Mark Wheeler, on behalf of the property owners, Hobart and Caren Bowers (‘the Applicant’) proposes to construct a three-story, single-family residence with a roof covered access structure,” according to the staff report prepared by Associate Planner Patricia Garcia.
According to the report, staff approved the single family residence itself, but the covered roof access requires Planning Commission approval because the roof access structure exceeds the height limit.
“As part of the project, the applicant is proposing the covered roof access structure to exceed the maximum roof height by 4 feet 6 inches. As measured from the roof deck level, the covered roof access structure measures 9 feet in height and is approximately 12 feet 10 inches in length by 9 feet 7 inches in width. The covered roof access structure is kept to a minimum required to enclose the cover the proposed staircase to the roof deck. The covered roof access structure measures approximately 123 square feet,” Garcia wrote.
“The height maximum for structures within Surfside Colony is 35 feet,” Garcia wrote.
However, according to her report, the city code allows non-habitable architectural features up to 7 feet if the commission grants a minor use permit.
“The maximum structural height of the proposed covered roof access is 4 feet 6 inches above the 35-foot height limit, a total of 2 feet 6 inches below the 7-foot maximum height increase. The total building height will be 39 feet 6 inches at the peak of the structure. With exception to the covered roof access structure, the single-family dwelling height is under the 35-foot maximum. Additionally, the Surfside Colony Architectural Review Board has reviewed and approved the new construction for community compatibility,” Garcia wrote.
“The covered stairwell will integrate materials consistent with the proposed new structure. The roof covered access structure is located along a peripheral exterior wall of the structure to minimize potential view impacts to the surrounding properties. The roof access structure occupies a minimal area necessary to cover the proposed staircase and a minimal proportion of the proposed roof deck. The structure will not significantly impair the primary view of surrounding properties located within 300 feet because it has been designed so the longer side of the structure is oriented perpendicular to the coastline. Staff finds that the design and location of the covered roof access structure, as proposed, meets the standards set forth in the Seal Beach Municipal Code, and is similar in size to previous Minor Use Permit approvals related to covered roof access structures,” Garcia wrote.
