10-B-23-IH

Level III: New Primary Structure

Approved With Conditions

Recommendation

Staff recommends approval of Certificate 10-B-23-IH, subject to the following conditions: 1) final site plan to meet City Engineering standards; 2) foundation to be increased to at least 12" tall and clad in stucco; 3) revisions to front porch depth, with approval by staff; 4) revisions to façade and left side elevation window placement; 5) substituting brick veneer for stone veneer; and recognizing the reduced lot area as furthering principles associated with the Infill Housing guidelines.

Property Notes / Work to be Completed

- New primary residence fronting Cornelia Street. Two story residence with a front-gable roof (9/12 pitch), clad in asphalt shingles, and a projecting front gable mass (9/12 pitch) on the right of the façade. The house measures 40' long by 22' wide. The house is proposed to be set 18' from the front property line and 8' from the side property lines. Parking is proposed to be a 20' by 12' (240 sq. ft.) parking pad of an unspecified material in the rear and accessed via the alley. Siding material for the structure is proposed to be an unspecified horizontal siding, with board and batten siding on the gables. The house will be set on a 4" concrete slab foundation.
- The façade (west) elevation features a 4'-6" deep recessed front porch on the left side, supported by a single wooden 8x8 (wrapped 10x10) column with a 16x16 stone pedestal base. The façade also features a stone water table of an unspecified height. An entry door is located on the porch with s transom window above. There are no other windows on the first story. The second story will have one double-hung 6/6 window on the left and a pair of double hung 6/6 windows on the right projecting mass. A small shed roof projects from the right side of the façade's first story.
- The left elevation features one double-hung 6/6 window on the first story and two double-hung 6/6 windows on the second story. The first story of the right elevation features two double-hung 6/6 windows on the right side of the elevation and two double-hung 6/6 windows on the second story. The rear entry features a paired, multi-light secondary entry door.
- The new single-family house is proposed for a property measuring 40' wide by 111.15' deep, per the provided survey.

Applicable Guidelines

Heart of Knoxville Infill Housing Design Guidelines

- 1. Front Yards
  - Consistent front yard space should be created along the street with the setback of a new house matching the older houses on the block.
  - A walkway should be provided from the sidewalk or street to the front door. Along grid streets, the walk should be perpendicular to the street.
  - Healthy trees that are outside the building footprint should be preserved. The root area should be marked and protected during construction.
- 2. Housing Orientation
  - New housing should be proportional to the dimensions of the lot and other houses on the block.
  - On corner lots, side yard setbacks should be handled traditionally (that is, closer to the side street). The zoning requirement to treat corner lots as having two frontages should not apply in "Heart of Knoxville" neighborhoods.
  - Side yard setbacks should be similar to older houses on the block, keeping the rhythm of spacing between houses consistent.
- 3. Alleys, Parking, and Services
  - Parking should not be in front yards.
  - Alley access should be used for garage or parking pad locations. On level ground, pea gravel or similar material may be used as a parking pad off alleys.
  - Garages which are perpendicular to the alley should be about 18 feet from the center line of the alley pavement, allowing a comfortable turning radius for a driver to enter a garage.
  - Alley-oriented parking pads, garbage collection points, and utility boxes should be screened with a combination of landscaping and fencing.
  - On those streets which have alleys, driveways should not be permitted from the front of the house.
  - On corner lots, a driveway to the garage may be provided off the side street.
- 4. Scale, Mass, and Foundation Height
  - The front elevation should be designed to be similar in scale to other houses along the street.
  - The front façade of new houses should be about the same width as original houses on the block.
  - New foundations should be about the same height as the original houses in the neighborhood.
  - If greater height is to be created (with new construction or an addition), that portion of the house should be located toward the side or rear of the property.
    5. Porches and Stoops
  - Porches should be part of the housing design in those neighborhoods where porches were commonplace.
  - Porches should be proportional to original porches on the block, extending about 8-12 feet toward the street from the habitable portion of the house.
  - Porches should extend into the front yard setback, if necessary, to maintain consistency with similarly sited porches along the street.
  - Porch posts and railings should be like those used in the historic era of the neighborhood's development. Wrought iron columns and other materials that were not used in the early 1900's should not be used.
  - Small stoops centered on entry and no more than 5 feet deep are appropriate on blocks where porches were not traditional.
- 6. Windows and Doors
  - When constructing new houses, the window and door styles should be similar to the original or historic houses on the block.
  - To respect the privacy of adjacent properties, consider the placement of side windows and doors.
  - The windows and doors on the front façade of an infill house should be located in similar proportion and position as the original houses on the block.
  - Attention should be paid to window placement and the ratio of solid (the wall) to void (the window and door openings).
  - Contemporary windows such as "picture windows" should not be used in pre-World War II neighborhoods.
- 7. Roof Shapes and Materials
  - New roofs should be designed to have a similar pitch to original housing on the block
  - More complex roofs, such as hipped roofs and dormers, should be part of new housing designs when such forms were historically used on the block.
  - Darker shades of shingle were often used and should be chosen in roofing houses in Heart of Knoxville neighborhoods.
- 8. Siding Material
  - Clapboard-like materials (such as cement fiberboard) should be used in constructing new housing where painted wood siding was traditionally used.
  - Brick, wood shingle, and other less common material may be appropriate in some older neighborhoods, particularly those with a mix of architectural styles.
  - Faced stone, vertical siding, and other non-historic materials should not be used in building new houses. In 1930-1950 era neighborhoods, faced stone may be appropriate (see Section 12).
- 11. Landscape and Other Considerations
  - One native or naturalized shade tree should be planted in the front and rear yards of in fill lots with 25 feet or more in depth to front of house.