i. New buildings and developments.

i. New buildings and developments in an historic district or historic influence area of any urban village, unless occurring in a Bellingham local historic district, in which case all review shall be conducted according to Chapter 17.90 BMC; and

ii. Additions and exterior alterations to existing buildings and associated site improvements within an historic district or historic influence area of any urban village, unless found to be exempt under subsection (A) of this section. Modifications to buildings listed on the city of Bellingham local historic register shall be reviewed according to Chapter 17.90 BMC.

i. Additions or exterior alterations to existing buildings and their associated site improvements unless found to be exempt under subsection (A) of this section. Modifications to buildings listed in the city of Bellingham local historic register shall be reviewed according to Chapter 17.90 BMC.

ii. The director may refer any project subject to staff review to the design review board or design review subcommittee of the historic preservation commission for a recommendation if staff has identified potential inconsistencies with the design standards.

iii. An applicant may request an optional preapplication design guidance meeting with the applicable design review board or historic preservation commission.

i. New buildings and developments.

ii. Additions or exterior alterations to existing buildings and their associated site improvements unless the building is on the city of Bellingham register of historic places.

iii. The director may refer any project subject to staff review to the applicable design review board or historic preservation commission for a recommendation if staff has identified potential inconsistencies with the design standards.

i. Additions and exterior alterations to buildings and associated site improvements if they are on the city of Bellingham register of historic places. If a certificate of alteration is required under BMC 17.90.060, the commission’s decision regarding the certificate of alteration shall be incorporated into the design review decision by the director.

i. The applicant shall apply for an early design guidance meeting with the board. The applicant shall provide conceptual level information regarding the proposed project, including any potential concept alternatives.

ii. Public comment relevant to the application of the design criteria shall be considered, but the board may restrict the time allotted for comment in order to complete its meeting agenda.

iii. The board shall forward guidance and/or a recommendation to the applicant and director by motion. The board may recommend conditions of approval if it determines that the project design is sufficiently compliant with the applicable design guidelines and the recommendations provided are clear enough for the director to make a qualified decision. The director shall give substantial weight to the guidance and recommendation of the board.

i. The applicant shall apply for a design response meeting with the board. The applicant shall provide an analysis of the project’s consistency with the design criteria. Staff shall provide a report responding to the applicant’s analysis.

ii. Public comment relevant to the application of the design criteria shall be considered, but the board may restrict the time allotted for comment in order to complete its meeting agenda.

iii. The board shall review the plans for consistency with the applicable design guidelines, standards and regulations and forward a recommendation to the director by motion. The board may recommend conditions of approval. If the board does not recommend approval, the board shall specify which criteria were not satisfied and the elements of the project that were not in compliance. The director shall give substantial weight to the recommendation of the board.

i. Color change;

ii. Texture change;

iii. Material module change;

iv. An expression of architectural or structural bays through a change in plane no less than 12 inches in width, such as an offset, reveal or projecting rib. (See Figure 20.25.060(B).)

i. Predominant exterior building materials shall be high quality materials, including, but not limited to, brick, sandstone, other native stone and tinted and textured concrete masonry. Materials shall have a low level of reflectivity.

ii. Facade colors shall be low reflectance. The use of high-intensity colors, metallic colors, black or fluorescent colors shall be prohibited.

iii. Building trim and accent areas may feature brighter colors, including primary colors, but neon tubing shall not be an acceptable feature for building trim or accent areas.

iv. Exterior building materials shall not include smooth-faced concrete block, smooth-face tilt-up concrete panels or prefabricated steel panels.

i. Each large retail establishment on a site shall have clearly defined, highly visible customer entrances. All public entrances shall feature no less than three of the following:

ii. Where additional stores will be located in the large retail establishment, each such store shall have at least one exterior customer entrance, which shall confirm to the above requirements.

iii. All sides of a building that face an abutting street, customer parking or public park or plaza shall have at least one customer entrance providing ingress and egress with at least double width doors. Where a building faces two or more abutting streets, this requirement shall apply to a minimum of two such sides of the building, including the primary street. A corner entrance may count as serving two building sides.

i. Intent. Ensure parking lots are not a dominant element within urban villages and minimize the impact of surface parking on the pedestrian environment.

ii. Standard. Parking shall be located to the rear or side of a building and shall not be located at intersections. (See Figure 20.25.070(A).) Access should be from an alley or local street where feasible.

iii. Standards.

i. Intent. Diminish the impact of automobiles on the pedestrian environment.

ii. Standard. Access and stacking lanes for drive-through services shall not be located between the street and the building or between the building and a residential zone. (See Figure 20.25.070(C).)

i. Intent. Reduce the impact and view of trash and recycling storage areas.

ii. Repealed by Ord. 2023-01-001.

iii. Standard. Refuse containment areas shall be placed in a building or enclosed in a structure that is of similar architectural character of the major structures on the site.

i. Intent. Mechanical equipment should not detract from the appearance of the building.

ii. Standard. Screen mechanical equipment in way that is integrated with the architecture of the building and obstructs the visibility of the equipment from the public realm.

i. Intent. Create a network of safe, convenient and attractive off-street linkages for pedestrians.

ii. Repealed by Ord. 2023-01-001.

iii. Repealed by Ord. 2023-01-001.

iv. Standard. Pedestrian through-block connections shall not be less than five feet wide and be clearly defined by use of material, elevation (six inches raised) or landscaping borders. The space between two buildings adjoining a through-block walkway shall be a minimum of 20 feet unless a narrower width is approved through design review.

v. Standard. Pedestrian access that is separated from vehicle access shall be provided between the building main entry and the public sidewalk. If walkways cross parking lots or driveways, the walkway shall be separated from parking by landscaping or by raised pavement, or when crossing driving lanes, by a change in texture or material.

i. Intent. Provide architectural character, safety and encourage evening activity while minimizing impacts to neighboring properties and the darkness of the night sky.

ii. Repealed by Ord. 2023-01-001.

iii. Standard. Parking lot lights should generally be no more than 18 feet in height and lower for pedestrian walkways.

iv. Standard. Lighting shall be directed away from the sky, dwellings and neighboring development. The use of LED or low energy use fixtures is strongly encouraged.

i. Intent. Enhance key intersections identified in the urban village design guidelines Appendix A – Urban Village Specific Design Character, Guidelines and Maps.

ii. Standard. Stylistically distinguish building corners at key intersections in a manner that highlights entryways and contributes to the identity of the urban village district. See Figure 20.25.070(D).

i. Intent. Reduce the visual impacts of structured parking on public streets, public open spaces and residential zones.

ii. Standard. Structured parking levels that are adjacent to a public street or open space or a residential zone shall be screened or treated architecturally by window openings, landscaping designed to screen the facade, decorative meter grills, and/or other approved devices that meet the intent.

i. Intent. Provide a visual link between nonresidential space and the public sidewalk to create visual interest at the pedestrian level.

ii. Standard. A minimum of 60 percent of the building wall between two feet and seven feet above the sidewalk and facing a street shall be transparent or lightly tinted glazing. Windows into parking garage space shall not qualify. If windows are not appropriate, glass display cases, decorative art (for example, murals or relief sculpture), significant architectural detailing or wall-covering landscaping may be used. (See Figure 20.25.070(H).)

i. Intent. Provide pedestrians rain protection, integrate individual buildings into the streetscape, and define the pedestrian zone.

ii. Standard. Weather protection shall be located between eight and 12 feet above the walkway but a higher placement may be considered if the width of the protection is increased.

iii. Standard. Where commercial uses are located at ground floor, buildings shall provide pedestrian weather protection covering at least a four-foot width of sidewalk along at least 75 percent of the street level frontage. Minimum adjustments needed to accommodate trees or other overhead objects may be allowed.

iv. Standard. Materials shall be limited to metal, glass, Plexiglas or equivalent “hard” durable materials.

i. Intent. Provide visual interest and avoid the negative impacts of blank walls.

ii. Standard. Blank walls shall be treated to create visual interest. A blank wall is a wall or a portion of wall that is either (A) at least 400 square feet in area with a length and width of at least 10 feet that does not include a window, door, building modulation or other architectural feature or (B) at the ground floor and over six feet in height with a horizontal length greater than 15 feet that does not include a window, pedestrian entry door, building modulation or other architectural feature.

Any blank wall within 50 feet of, and visible from, a public street, public park or trail, residential zone shall be treated with at least one of the following:

i. Intent. Provide adequate separation between private residential spaces, such as balconies, and the public walkway in order to make both the private and public spaces comfortable. Projections should not interfere with street amenities such as street trees, lighting or important public views. Projections shall be integrated into the architecture of the building. (User note: Street encroachments are also regulated by the building code and BMC Title 13.)

ii. Standards. No portion of a building may extend into the street right-of-way except:

iii. Standards. Private improvements within the public right-of-way, such as landscaping, seating, artwork and other public amenities, may be permitted within urban village areas upon review and approval by the public works director and establishment of a maintenance agreement.

i. Intent. Residential projects should have an active and direct link to the street pedestrian system while maintaining an appropriate transition from public to private space.

ii. Standards.

i. Standard. Buildings shall be oriented toward street frontages and located adjacent to the rights-of-way as closely as possible.

ii. Standard. Buildings may be set back from the edge of the right-of-way to allow for public open space such as plazas. Buildings shall not be set back from the edge of the right-of-way to allow for parking.

iii. Standard. The primary building entrance shall be located at street level facing a public street.

iv. Standard. Locate new structures to contribute to a strong building wall edge to the street such that they align at the front lot line and build out to the full width of the parcel, to the side lot lines or applicable setbacks. Although small gaps may occur between some structures, these are the exception. This should not preclude the provision of a wider sidewalk, public space, landscaping, art, or outdoor seating. (See Figure 20.25.090(A).)

v. Guideline. The primary entrance should be more articulated and highlighted (size, material, recessed, lighting) than secondary entrances.

i. Standard. Parking shall be located to the rear or side of buildings. Surface parking lots shall not be located at intersections and frontage along arterial streets shall be limited. (See Figure 20.25.090(B).)

ii. Standard. Parking areas shall contain landscaping to break up large expanses of hard surfacing. Scale of landscaping, location, spacing, and species shall be appropriate for the scale of the parking area and shall be designed to protect vegetation and pedestrians from vehicles. (See Figure 20.25.090(C).)

iii. Standard. Parking lots shall be screened from view from abutting residential zones through a landscape buffer or other buffer, as approved.

i. Standard. Ground floor commercial space shall comply with the commercial design standards in this section and be built with a minimum depth of 20 feet measured from the front face of the building and a minimum ceiling height of 12 feet.

ii. Standard. Residential uses shall be located on the second floor or behind at least 20 feet of an approved ground floor commercial use when within 60 feet of a front- or side-flanking property line with the exception of ground floor entrances or breezeways for residential uses located above or behind an approved ground floor commercial use. (See Figure 20.25.090(D).)

iii. Standard. No residential use shall be closer to a front- or side-flanking property line than an approved ground floor commercial use.

iv. Standard. The limitations on ground floor residential uses may be reduced or waived upon an approved departure application, provided development adjacent to the right-of-way promotes active use and a pedestrian-oriented environment.

i. Standard. Refuse and recycling storage areas shall be located so as to be screened from arterial streets, pedestrian walkways, and neighboring residential properties. (See Figure 20.25.090(E).)

ii. Standard. Refuse containment areas shall be either placed in a building or within a structure that is of similar architectural character to the major structures on the site.

i. Standard. Mechanical equipment should not detract from the appearance of the building and shall be designed with consideration of the appearance from surrounding properties and the right-of-way.

i. Guideline. Where commercial zones share property lines with residential zones, an appropriate landscape, fence or other buffer shall be established to minimize noise, odor, light or other impacts based on the intensity of the commercial use. Should the use change, an evaluation of additional or reduced buffer requirements shall be required.

ii. Standard. All fencing shall be designed to integrate into the architecture of the building and add visual interest in its detail, materials or color.

i. Guideline. Provide adequate lighting and windows near all parking areas, pedestrian walkways, open spaces, transit stops, and building entrances to encourage natural surveillance.

ii. Guideline. Provide regular maintenance of exterior spaces to indicate ownership and attention to property and activities occurring on property.

iii. Guideline. Control access to areas that cannot be easily surveyed through use of locks, fences, and gates.

iv. Standard. CPTED review shall be conducted on each project as necessary to identify techniques to guide the appropriate use of the space.

i. Guideline. The selection and design of the public amenity is encouraged, though not mandated, to include a public process with neighborhood input to determine which amenity is of greatest public benefit.

ii. Guideline. While the public amenity may provide a creative way to help meet departure standards or reduce parking requirements, the inclusion of a public amenity in a site design in no way guarantees the approval of a departure or parking reduction.

iii. Standard. When using the optional public amenity to help achieve a departure or parking reduction request, the applicant must demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the director, how the proposed amenity will be adequate and proportionate to the requested departure or parking reduction.

iv. Standard. The optional public amenity shall meet the applicable building and land use codes for the property, promote safety and functional use, and shall not pose a risk to the public health or welfare.

v. Guideline. Public amenities can include, but are not limited to:

i. Standard. Public sidewalks shall be provided along all public streets abutting the project.

ii. Standard. Site design shall include pedestrian walkways that provide pedestrian routes, at a minimum, from streets, parking areas, open spaces, and transit stops to building entrances and between buildings. (See Figure 20.25.090(F).)

iii. Standard. All pedestrian walkways shall be designed for pedestrian safety and shall avoid or mitigate vehicle and pedestrian route conflicts.

iv. Standard. All pedestrian walkways shall conform to minimum ADA requirements.

v. Standard. All internal pedestrian walkways shall be distinguished from driving surfaces through a difference in grade, curbing, and/or materials. (See Figure 20.25.090(G).)

vi. Guideline. Pedestrian walkways should feature an adjoining landscaped area of trees, shrubs, benches, flowerbeds, ground cover or other such materials for at least 50 percent of the length of the walkway.

i. Standard. Affixed bicycle racks shall be located in a well-lighted area close to building entrances.

ii. Guideline. Covered bicycle racks with accompanying bicycle service stations are encouraged.

i. Standard. Direct vehicular access shall be provided between developments whenever feasible to allow traffic to move between businesses without using arterial streets.

ii. Standard. Curb cuts on streets shall be consolidated.

i. Standard. Public open space shall be incorporated into site design in a manner that promotes safety, and functional use.

ii. Guideline. Provide ground level features such as entries, windows, decks, patios or similar features on buildings that interface with public open space.

iii. Guideline. When public open space is adjacent to the property, pedestrian access between properties should be encouraged. (See Figure 20.25.090(H).)

i. Standard. Shielded, low intensity lighting shall be provided for entries, walkways, parking garage entrances, parking lots, alleys and refuse enclosures.

ii. Standard. Lighting shall be shielded and directed away from the sky, dwellings and neighboring development. The use of LED or low energy use fixtures is strongly encouraged.

iii. Guideline. Light fixtures should contribute to the overall design of the building and may be used to highlight special architectural features. (See Figure 20.25.090(I).)

i. Guideline. Building design should be sensitive to the context of the surrounding development and intended use of the property.

ii. Standard. The primary building facade shall be similar in scale to surrounding buildings.

iii. Standard. The primary entryway of the building shall be along the street edge.

i. Standard. Building facades shall contain glazing (windows) and architectural details that avoid large, blank walls along pedestrian walkways, arterial streets and neighboring residential properties. (See Figure 20.25.090(J).)

i. Standard. Blank walls are not permitted when visible from a public street, public park, trail or a shared property line with residentially zoned property.

ii. Standard. A minimum of 60 percent of the building wall facing a public street, park, trail or plaza shall be transparent at a height between two feet and seven feet above grade. (See Figure 20.25.090(K).)

iii. Guideline. Murals, green walls, and adequate lighting are encouraged where blank walls occur. [Ord. 2018-06-011 § 5 (Exh. B)].