HomeMy WebLinkAbout2. Design Review Guidelines Overall
Development Services Department
250 Madison, Suite 3
Port Townsend, WA 98368
360-379-5095 Fax 360-344-4619
HISTORIC DESIGN REVIEW GUIDELINES - OVERALL
In its review of development or municipal improvements occurring within the waterfront subdistrict of the historic overlay district, the HPC and the DSD director shall apply the following
design standards in addition to those set forth in PTMC 17.30.140, above.
GENERAL STANDARDS
A. City Form.
1. Designs should acknowledge the role of the shoreline and the bluff as the traditional determinants of the form of the city’s development by preserving and continuing the linear organization
of the city between the shoreline and the bluff.
2. Designs should assist the redirection of the city’s focus to the waterfront by enhancing public access to the waterfront, creating public open spaces oriented to the waterfront,
and encouraging waterfront uses and activities which are consistent with the carrying capacities of the aquatic environment.
3. New buildings or redeveloped buildings shall preserve and enhance the city’s pyramidal form through compliance with the special height overlay district regulations set forth in Chapter
17.28 PTMC.
4. New development or redevelopment shall follow and enhance the unique character of its environs through compliance with the design standards set forth for the specific waterfront
subdistricts set forth in subsection B, below.
5. New development should recognize the city’s historic architectural heritage through the use of building materials, construction methods, building proportions and architectural devices
compatible with those used in existing buildings, but should not attempt to replicate existing historical buildings.
6. In the development of streets and parking areas, functional requirements for vehicular movement and parking should not compromise the safety of or inhibit the movement of pedestrians.
Streets should have easy and well-marked pedestrian crossings. Parking lots should be small, incremental, well-lit and secure. Pedestrian movement should be enhanced through the location
of landscaping, lighting and signage.
B. City Connections.
1. Property owners are encouraged to make available areas within and around developments where monuments and markers can be established by the city to commemorate historic people and
events, mark places of urban celebration, and give visual orientation to users of the city.
2. Designs shall protect views of the water and the bluff through compliance with the shoreline master program, the special height overlay district regulations set forth in Chapter
17.28 PTMC, and other design standards established pursuant to this chapter.
3. Any new development or redevelopment of properties adjacent to the shoreline shall comply with the policies and performance standards of the shoreline master program and the Washington
State Department of Ecology Shorelands and Coastal Zone Management Program Shoreline Public Access Handbook, relating to visual and pedestrian access to and along the waterfront. In
furtherance of those policies, public access to and along the waterfront should be coordinated and linked with other public access to create a continuous public walkway along the waterfront
described in the plan as the “Waterwalk.”
4. Designs should include and incorporate visual and physical connections between pedestrian spaces and public access areas which encourage easy and inviting movement between adjoining
spaces. Designs should incorporate views through developments, where feasible.
5. Any redevelopment of existing public rights-of-way and public access connections along the bluff line should preserve, create and enhance vehicular and pedestrian connections between
the downtown and uptown areas of the city. Where these conflict, pedestrian considerations should prevail.
C. Civic Spaces.
1. Streets should be designed to function as public open spaces bordered by buildings, in addition to facilitating traffic movement. Buildings should be designed to enhance the pedestrian
experience through the use of such features as building articulation (i.e., variations in building materials, surface texture, windows, doors, porches and other facade features), landscaping,
lighting and signage without encumbering the efficient movement and parking of vehicles.
2. Development at street intersections should enhance intersections in ways that extend beyond functional needs through the location of building entries and the incorporation of building
details, street lighting, landscaping and signage which respect and conform to the character of existing structures at the intersection.
3. Designs are encouraged to make natural areas and open space accessible to the public in ways that do not destroy or endanger wildlife habitats or water quality. Designs should utilize
lighting, furniture and landscaping in a way that natural areas and open spaces can be used in a safe and secure manner. Where possible through public/private partnerships, vacant lots
within the city, until developed, should be made available as parks and courtyards which are accessible to citizens and visitors.
4. Open spaces and enclosed or sheltered public spaces should be designed to be flexible and to accommodate a variety of functions, including both organized use, such as outdoor concerts
and group gatherings, and casual use.
5. Public open spaces created within the urban waterfront area should incorporate appropriate landscape and hardscape elements in accordance with the character of the subdistrict and
the natural environment within which the development is being designed.
6. Street furniture, lighting and signage should be designed in accordance with the character and predominant theme of the subdistrict in which it is located.
D. New Buildings.
1. New construction should preserve and continue the traditional block development pattern of the city by creating buildings that follow in scale and proportion the traditional modularity
of existing block faces with buildings constructed to street property lines and main access from the street. In areas immediately adjacent to traditional blocks where the traditional
block pattern has not been followed, new development and redevelopment should be designed with the same scale and proportions as would be found within the traditional block pattern
with buildings constructed to the property line and main access from the street.
2. New structures built between or among existing structures should reflect the principles of design of the surrounding buildings in proportion, composition and detail. To accomplish
these goals, building designs should adhere to the following: proportions of the facade should be similar to those of adjacent buildings; existing cornice lines should be continued;
storefronts should be aligned; and windows, storefronts and other openings should be in the same proportions as those of adjacent buildings both on upper and ground floor levels.
3. Design facades for new buildings should build on the qualities of existing facades with predominant attention given to the design integrity of the vertical wall.
4. Designs which incorporate artificial or synthetic decorative detail to replicate historic precedent are discouraged, while designs which utilize traditional materials and craftsmanship
to create the same quality and detail that is fundamental to the historic buildings of the district are encouraged.
5. In new development or redevelopment building materials should be limited to those predominant materials used in the existing structures within the particular subdistrict as defined
in PTMC 17.30.040. Synthetic or artificial materials are discouraged in exterior applications.
6. New Additions to Existing Buildings:
a. New additions to existing buildings should be designed first to fit the context of the existing building to which they are attached and secondly into the block within which they are
built.
b. New additions to existing buildings should be good "background" additions, which respect and support the existing structure, rather than an "image" addition, which would depart significantly
in architectural style.
c. New additions to existing buildings should preserve significant historic materials and features by avoiding construction on a primary or other character-defining elevation. The loss
of historic material comprising external walls, internal partitions and floor plans should be minimized.
d. New additions to historic buildings should be compatible with the size, scale, massing and proportion of the historic building to ensure that the historic form is not expanded or
changed to an unacceptable degree. Where possible, new additions should be placed on an inconspicuous side or rear elevation so that the new work does not result in a radical change
to the form and character of the historic building. New additions, including
additional stories, should be set back from the wall plane or roof line to preserve the historic building’s form and to allow the new work to be distinguished from the existing.
e. New additions to historic buildings should be designed in a manner that provides some differentiation in material, color, and detailing so that the new work does not appear to be
part of the historic building. The character of the historic resource should be identifiable after the addition is constructed.
SPECIFIC SUBDISTRICT STANDARDS
A. Ferry Retail Subdistrict.
1. New development should acknowledge and continue the continuity of the street facade and the predominance of ground level street-front retail bays along Water Street and enclose or
otherwise conceal parking facilities.
2. Street landscaping shall be similar to existing landscaping on other areas of Water Street, including the planting of trees. Landscaping shall be used along the waterfront to screen
utility structures, such as dumpsters, oil tanks, and service entrances, from public view.
3. Towers of no larger than 100 square feet in plan may exceed the building height limit by a maximum of 10 feet; provided, that no building shall exceed a total of 50 feet.
4. Brick and sheathing materials used in all new construction shall be compatible in color, texture and size with materials used in existing structures within the adjacent areas of
the historic overlay district.
5. Building color, signage, lighting and landscaping shall be compatible with, and similar to, those of existing structures within the historic overlay district.
6. Designs should encourage and facilitate public access on the water-side of the ferry retail district.
7. New development shall provide a similar block pattern as found in the adjacent historic areas of the historic overlay district. Buildings should be built to the property line along
the following view corridors: Water Street, Polk Street, Fillmore Street, Harrison Street, and Van Buren Street. Elements occurring in public rights-of-way, such as signs, fountains
and monuments, shall be low in form with vertical elements limited to slender obelisks.
B. Historic Commercial District.
1. Designs which provide water access, walkways and other water-side improvements are encouraged.
2. Designs should preserve and restore public art and historic signage and art on existing buildings.
3. Towers of up to 100 square feet in plan may exceed the height limit by 10 feet, excluding finials or other architectural features of not more than five feet; provided, that no building
shall exceed a total of 50 feet.
C. Civic District.
1. Streetscape design shall comply with the Streetscape Design/Main Street Project Manual adopted January 17, 1989, by Ordinance No. 2143, including any amendments.
2. Brick that is compatible in color, texture and size with brick used in existing structures in this subdistrict should be the dominant building material used in any future construction.
3. Designs should protect the view corridors along the Water Street axis to Point Hudson and the Madison Street axis from Memorial Field and to the City Dock through compliance with
the height restrictions set forth in Chapter 17.28 PTMC. Buildings framing these view corridors are encouraged to be built to the street property lines. Elements occurring in public
rights-of-way, such as signs, fountains and monuments, should be low in form with vertical elements limited to slender obelisks.
4. City Hall should remain the dominant feature of the cityscape in this subdistrict. No building shall be erected in this subdistrict that is greater in height than City Hall. Buildings
adjacent to or adjoining City Hall shall be of lower height and building facades shall be designed with less detail and ornamentation than City Hall to defer to the architectural significance
of City Hall. Buildings connected to City Hall shall not directly abut City Hall at the street property line, but shall be set back at least five feet from the property line for a length
of at least five feet.
D. Point Hudson Marina District.
1. New development or redevelopment should be compatible in style, height, size, proportions and material used with the former Coast Guard and shipyard buildings in this subdistrict.
However, new developments are also encouraged to provide a transition to the civic district and the historic commercial district by incorporating features of those subdistricts, such
as building materials and construction styles in the design.
2. Buildings more than 30 feet in length or width shall be designed to give the appearance of groups of small buildings by varying building height, massing, setbacks, and facade features,
such as windows and doors, every 30 feet along the length of the building.
3. Towers of up to 100 square feet may exceed the height limit by 10 feet; provided, that no building shall exceed a total of 50 feet.
4. Public access to and along the shoreline is encouraged in all new development in this subdistrict.
5. Mixed use projects incorporating both water-dependent and water-related uses as those terms are defined in the plan are strongly encouraged.
6. New parking facilities and additional roads should be minimized.
Adopted by Ordinance 2871 November 29, 2004
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