2022.10.03 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Premier Bank – Site Plan, Zoning Amendment, CUP, and Variances 12 The Downtown Design Guidelines encourage pedestrian connection with development. The plans show a pedestrian connection to the existing trail along 147th Street that is landscaped. Architecture and Building Material According to the Comprehensive Plan and the downtown design guidelines adopted in 2007, the site falls within an area that shall follow downtown design guidelines. The downtown design guidelines encourage new buildings to be designed with elements of traditional main street design, Hugo’s French trading post roots, or mid-western prairie style architecture. Traditional main street style buildings usually have flat roofs with well-defined roof lines. The French trading post architectural elements include steeper or mansard roofs, open storefronts, and exterior plaster with stone and brick. Prairie style architecture has hipped roofs with low spreading deep overhangs. All of these styles are presented with more detail in the guidelines. The submitted architectural plans describe a 4,500 square foot building that is roughly 23 feet tall. Elevations for the building are given along with renderings of how the site will look once completed and in use. The exterior is articulated on all four sides, leaving no blank space. The walls are designed using a combination of brick masonry and stone to create aesthetically pleasing, yet contrasting tones to highlight entrances and windows. The low profile and hipped roof make the building consistent with prairie style architecture prescribed in the downtown guidelines. The roof’s style continues over the drive-through window to make the use otherwise not desired in the downtown more visually pleasing. The downtown design guidelines state that the buildings in downtown should be oriented towards the streets. A commercial business with a drive-through is difficult to have the building orient towards a street. The Hardwood Creek Trail property located between this property and Highway 61 further constrains how the building could orient towards the street. However, with the drive-through canopy along the east side of the building does start to create a building edge along Highway 61, and staff believes it is in a good location. The guidelines identify the intersection of 147th Street and Highway 61 as a key entry point into downtown and encourages this area to be designed as a gateway into downtown. Gateway elements could include open space, unique landscaping, walls or gates, water features, and City signage. It is in staff’s opinion that the architectural plans meet the downtown design guidelines and continue to work with the applicant to implement appropriate gateway elements, as a condition of approval. Signage The applicant is proposing a monument sign on the site at the corner of 147th Street North and Forest Boulevard North. The applicant will need to apply for a sign permit before