Lake Forest City Zoning Code
CHAPTER 9
60 MULTIFAMILY RESIDENTIAL OBJECTIVE DESIGN STANDARDS
§ 9.60.010 Purpose.
A.
Purpose. In accordance with State Law (California Government Code Section 65913.4), the purpose of Section 9.60.020 is to establish multifamily residential objective design standards which are intended to provide developers, builders, and architects with a clear standard of the desired site design characteristics for new multifamily residential development in Lake Forest. Consistent with existing State law, objective design standards are those that involve no personal or subjective judgment by a public official and are uniformly verifiable by reference to an external and uniform benchmark or criterion available and knowable by both the development applicant and the public official prior to submittal.
B.
Applicability and Review. The provisions of Section 9.60.020 apply to all multifamily residential projects, except those located in the MU 32, MU 43, UI 25, and UI 43 zones which are instead governed by Chapter 9.73 of this Code.
1.
Ministerial Review. Where California law requires that the design of a project be reviewed only against objective standards, the objective design standards will serve as the criteria for design review. Projects that qualify for streamlined housing in accordance with Senate Bill 35 (as codified in California Government Code Section 65913.4) may, upon applicant request and demonstration of eligibility, qualify for streamlined and ministerial processing.
2.
Discretionary Review. If a project is subject to design review and is not required by State law to be reviewed only against objective standards, it is subject to discretionary design review and findings, which are described in Chapter 9.184 of this Code. In such case, the project will be reviewed for conformance with these objective design standards, site development standards, and any other design guidelines that apply.
C.
Relationship to Other Regulations. All development must comply with the site development standards of Title 9 (the zoning ordinance). Projects subject to SB 35 streamlining must comply with these objective design standards and with objective development standards of the zoning ordinance.
(Ord. 351 § 4, 2022; Ord. 356 § 4, 2022)
§ 9.60.020 Objective design standards.
A.
Site Design and Parking.
1.
Primary building entrances (individual or shared) shall include at least two of the following building materials: stucco, brick, stone, or wood. Entrances that do not face a public street and sidewalk (such as within deep or large lots) shall face an internal pedestrian path that connects to a public sidewalk.
2.
At least two different building types shall be included in projects with multiple buildings. Building types shall be differentiated through variations to building materials, color, rooflines, and the use of architectural features such as awnings and light fixtures.
3.
Lighting shall be recessed or hooded and downward directed.
4.
All surface level parking areas, covered and uncovered, shall be screened from public streets. Screening shall be accomplished through building placement, landscaping, a planted berm, decorative fencing with vines, topography, or some combination of the above. Landscaping used for screening purposes must be no less than two feet wide (from the back of the sidewalk or street curb to the parking lot paving, whichever is greater) and no less than 42 inches in height.
5.
Structured parking shall be designed such that all lighting is fully shielded and automobile headlamps within the structure are not visible from adjacent buildings, parcels, or streets. The minimum height of screening for automobile headlights shall be 42 inches in height.
6.
Parking areas shall be separated from any building by a sidewalk or landscaping with a minimum width of five feet.
B.
Building Design.
1.
Blank walls (façades without doors, windows, landscaping treatments) shall be less than 30 feet in length.
2.
Buildings three stories and over must provide three distinctive materials, each a minimum of 10% of the total street-facing building façade, and a minimum of two different building colors. Distinctive building materials shall include a combination of stucco, brick, stone, and wood.
3.
Trim surrounds or recessed windows with a minimum depth of three inches shall be provided at all exterior windows and door openings.
4.
Exterior front doors shall be recessed a minimum of three feet or have a covered porch with a minimum depth of six feet.
5.
Exterior walls shall include one or more of the following: windows, trellises, arcades, roof overhangs, recessed or projected massing, columns, balconies, wainscots, or awnings.
6.
Exterior stairwells shall not be directly visible from the street. For safety and security, exterior stairwells shall be oriented to interior spaces, such as plazas and gathering areas, parking areas, and pedestrian pathways and shall not be separated from these areas by landscaping, fences, or walls taller than three feet.
C.
Massing and Articulation
1.
All building walls shall have at least one minor massing break every 50 lineal feet. A "minor massing break" means a variation in setback or a building entry, recess, or structural bay or other projection. A minor massing break that is a setback, recess, or projection must be at least 12 inches deep and four feet wide.
2.
Buildings over three stories tall shall have at least one major massing break every 100 lineal feet along all street frontages, adjacent public park, publicly accessible outdoor space, or open space area. A "major massing break" means a variation in setback or a building entry that is at least 30 inches deep and four wide and that extends the full height of the building.
3.
Rooflines, whether pitched or flat, shall be vertically articulated at least every 50 feet along the street frontage. "Vertically articulated" means one or more of the following: a parapet, a variation in cornice, a reveal, a clerestory window or windows, or a variation in roof height or form.
D.
Landscaping.
E.
Accessory Structures.
1.
Trash enclosures shall be constructed with the same exterior finish, materials, and colors as those of the associated main building. Climbing vines shall be installed along any trash enclosure side that is directly visible to a public street to further screen the enclosure.
2.
Above-ground utilities, such as fire sprinkler risers, transformers, control boxes, meters, and valves shall be placed within the building, or at the side of the building and painted to match the building, or screened by landscaping on three sides.
a.
Exposed piping or wires shall not be attached to the building exterior. Any piping or wires attached to the building exterior must be enclosed and finished to match the exterior building.
b.
Equipment and utility enclosures shall match the building exterior color, finish, and materials.
c.
Rooftop-mounted equipment shall be screened from public view either in an enclosure or behind a pitched roof or parapet wall. "Screened from public view" means not visible from the centerline of the closest public right-of-way, five feet above ground elevation. A line-of-sight detail shall be provided to demonstrate adequate screening of rooftop equipment.
(Ord. 351 § 4, 2022)