Staff recommends approval of Certificate 4-D-24-DT, subject to the following conditions:

1) Final site plan, pedestrian improvements, and parking garage to meet City Engineering standards;
2) Final landscaping plan to meet standards of City zoning code;
3) Any mechanical equipment or service utilities not shown on plans to be placed on secondary elevations and receive screening as necessary;
4) Signage to return to DRB as a separate application;
5) Final material specifications for parking garage screening to be submitted to staff for review.Case File

SUMMARY: Proposed new 18-story residential construction (9-14 stories of residential apartments above 5 stories of structured parking on the rear massing). The building is proposed for an L-shaped site at the intersections of W. Hill Ave., Locust Street, and Front Ave., located immediately north of Neyland Drive and the river. The site is significantly sloped towards the south and the river. The building is L-shaped, with a 6-story massing fronting W. Hill. Ave and extending south along Locust Street, and the larger massing facing Front Ave.

SITE LAYOUT AND ACCESS: The primary access point to the garage extends from W. Hill Ave via a two-way drive accessing the parking garage, along with ride-share spots, and short term spaces. A secondary access point is located to the west/southwest side of the garage, which will extend north off Front Ave and turn right into the parking garage. The primary pedestrian access fronts Hill Avenue at the northeast corner of the building.

DESIGN ELEMENTS:
The 7-story massing fronting Hill Avenue is clad in brick veneer, featuring vertical metal accents. As the building extends south along Locust Street, a central section (increasing in number of stories at grade, due to the slope) is clad in vertical-ribbed, prefinished metal panels. A flat-roof metal canopy extends around the first story at the corner of Hill Ave and Locust Street. On this section, the windows are evenly spaced and symmetrically arranged single-light storefront systems. Five full-light entry systems are spaced along the Locust Street elevation.

The massing towards the river features a cast-in-place concrete parking garage clad in metal vertical fin screening. The residential section above the garage is C-shaped, surrounding an amenity level with a pool immediately above the garage, fronting the river. The residential section is proposed to be clad in hard-coat stucco and features single-light storefront windows, aluminum and glass balconies on all elevations.

Floor plans show the mechanical, electrical, service, and trash functions located at the southwest corner.

1. SITE: the building is proposed for a series of adjacent vacant parcels, which have historically been cleared and used as occasional surface parking. Part of the building (the Hill Avenue massing) is zoned DK-G (Grid subdistrict), while the south massing is zoned DK-B (Boulevard subdistrict). The block on W. Hill Avenue contains an eclectic mix of significant historic houses, historic multi-family structures, and a contemporary multi-family building. The site is on the edge of downtown, fronting Neyland Drive and the riverfront, with the Maplehurst neighborhood to the west and the City-County Building to the east. The architectural context is varied in time period, detail, and scale.

2. PARKING: the application includes a 5-story structured parking garage, with access off Front Avenue and W. Hill Avenue. The primary garage access point is located on W. Hill Avenue, and will feature two separated lanes for vehicle ingress and egress. The revised application includes a secondary access point off Front Ave. The parking garage generate an increase in vehicle traffic for W. Hill Avenue and Front Ave. Guidelines recommend "consolidating curb-cuts and locating driveways near mid-block, when necessary," and prioritizing pedestrian safety. The access point on Hill Ave does meet the guidelines (consolidating the driveways into one curb cut) but additional information may be necessary for permitting related to mitigation of any potential sight distance issues for cars exiting the garage, pedestrian safety measures on the sidewalk on Hill Avenue, and any necessary safety measures for cars using Front Ave to access Locust or Neyland Drive. The final site plan and garage should meet City Engineering standards.

3. MASSING AND SCALE: guidelines state "building form should be consistent with the character of downtown as an urban environment and should reinforce the pedestrian activity at street level." Previous submissions separated the building into two large massings, one fronting Hill Avenue and running south along Locust Street, and one U-shaped massing fronting the river. Revisions for the June meeting incorporate variations in height, including new penthouse levels, to vertically break the large massing into what resembles five separate adjoining buildings. The stepbacks required by the zoning code (incorporated along Henley Street, Front Ave, and Locust Street) further contribute to this effect. The massing alongside Henley Street has been reduced in height.

Viewing the massings horizontally, the south elevation was previously divided into two large sections of the parking garage and the residential massing. The parking garage has received substantial revisions since the initial application; revisions submitted for June incorporate vertical metal fins as screening for the parking garage. The vertical fins obscure the parking garage and are divided into two two-story sections, which further reduces the visual scale of the garage.

The guidelines recommend dividing buildings into "modules" similar in scale to traditional downtown buildings with a recognizable base, middle, and top. The north massing fronting Hill Ave is similar in scale to adjacent buildings and other historic buildings downtown, using a largely transparent ground level separated from the residential upper levels. The incorporation of recessed penthouse levels serve to further divide the massings on the north, east, and south elevations into top, middle, and bottom sections.

At previous meetings, the Board has extensively discussed the scale of the building's south massing in relation to the context of the area. The Boulevard District guidelines recommend "building forms that are complimentary to the mass of adjacent buildings." The building section along Hill Avenue is generally compatible in scale with the adjacent building, measuring one story taller. The buildings along Hill Avenue steps from six stories, to three stories, to two stories, to 1.5 stories. The broader context is varied in scale, including taller historic structures, surface parking lots, the Bank of America building, and the City-County Building. In the opinion of staff, the revised proposal is compatible with the context.

4. PEDESTRIAN EXPERIENCE: guidelines encourage maintaining a pedestrian-scaled environment from block to block, and encourage incorporating first-floor uses that are open to pedestrians and draw walk-in traffic. The project includes one café space on the first story of the Hill Avenue massing; there are no other public areas on the Locust St or Front Ave elevations. Revised drawings responding to the zoning code have incorporated five storefront entries along Locust Street. Guidelines also recommend using building materials and entries at a human scale to create an engaging pedestrian experience, avoiding blank walls along street-facing elevations, and using a "consistent rhythm of entrances and windows."

At the April meeting, the Board discussed potential additional pedestrian engagement on the building's south elevation (facing Front Avenue). The DK Design Standards in the zoning code require a minimum transparency of 30%, measured between 2' and 10' in height, on ground floor front facades. For the May meeting, the applicant incorporated an additional open level of parking along Front Avenue to open to the street and meet transparency requirements. Revisions for the June meeting show the rightmost (southeast) section of the ground level along Front Avenue incorporating a series of storefront windows enclosing interior amenity space.

The June revisions include additional landscaping detail, street trees, sidewalks, and information on a proposed crosswalk along Locust Street, along with a proposed multi-use path to connect to the existing pedestrian bridge. Coordination with the City of Knoxville will be necessary for additional off-site pedestrian improvements.

5. MATERIALS: guidelines recommend the use of building materials that "relate to the scale, durability, color, and texture of the predominate building materials in the area." The surrounding area is characterized by a wide array of exterior materials, including contemporary and historic brick masonry, stucco, and wood siding, along with contemporary office buildings and parking structures. Overall, the proposed hard-coat stucco as a primary exterior material is compatible with the context. The massings on Locust St. and Hill are broken up via different siding, with brick veneer fronting Hill Avenue. The parking garage design has been further revised to include vertical metal fins as screening, along with vertical concrete columns and a section of storefront glass.

6. MECHANICAL: the floor plans indicate mechanical and service utilities to be located on secondary elevations. Any rooftop mechanical fixtures not depicted on plans or elevations should be set back from the roof edge and receive screening to meet the City zoning code.

7. SIGNS: the signs depicted on the elevation drawings do not contain sufficient information for Board review at this time; a separate signage application should be submitted to the DRB for further review.