5-E-21-HZ

Level III: Ft. Sanders NC

Recommendations will be available 1 week prior to the meeting.

Map Case File

Applicant Request

Other: New primary building

- JUNE 17, 2021 HZC MEETING:
- REAR ELEVATIONS: At the May 20, 2021 HZC meeting, application was approved with conditions identified by staff, with the additional condition that the rear elevation drawings be revised and return to the Commission for review. The applicant has provided revised rear elevation drawings. The L-shaped rear elevation features irregularly-spaced double-hung, aluminum-clad windows topped by anodized aluminum headers. Over each secondary entrance door is a flat roof, metal canopy, painted to match window frames and headers. Doors are 3' wide by 7' tall smooth-finished fiberglass doors with a single light. Metal roof coping extends around rear elevations, finished to match window frame colors.
- FAÇADE ELEVATION WINDOW PLACEMENT: At the May 20, 2021 HZC meeting, one condition of approval (#2) was "break up large massing with no transparency on rightmost side of S. 17th Street elevation (using three stories of double-hung windows to match, material change, or other visual element)." Neighborhood representative and architect Randall DeFord submitted, as part of the routine neighborhood comment, drawings illustrating where he thought additional windows should be placed. Members of the HZC mistook these suggestions for revised drawings submitted by the applicant, and included the neighborhood suggestions in the conditions of approval. The applicant is not required to adhere to drawings that they did not submit as part of the application.
- The applicant is submitting three options in response to staff condition #2: 1) no additional windows on rightmost section fronting S. 17th Street, designating the section as a secondary massing and including existing and new trees and vegetation in the site plan to obscure the massing; 2) the addition of two double-hung windows on the basement-level and upper-story; 3) the addition of three windows, with two double-hung windows on basement-level and upper-story and one smaller, single-light, fixed window on the ground level.
- ALL OTHER SCOPES OF WORK (building placement, massing, overall footprint, site plan, material elements) were approved at the May 2021 meeting. See May 2021 staff report, meeting minutes. And recording for prior phase of review.
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- MAY 20, 2021 HZC MEETING:
- Demolition of non-contributing carwash and billboard fixture. The existing structures on the site are non-contributing to the National Register Historic District and the NC overlay.
- Construction of new residential duplex on the corner of Forest Avenue and S. 17th Street. The three-story duplex will utilize an L-shape design, with frontage on both Forest Avenue and S. 17th Street. The massing fronting S. 17th Street measures 66'-8", with a secondary massing (the side of the Forest Avenue elevation) measuring 17'-4" wide. The section fronting Forest Avenue measures 66'-8" wide. The overall massing is 18'-8" deep, with two one-story, flat-roof massings projecting towards the street on both Forest Avenue and S. 17th St. elevations.
- The three-story building features a flat roof with metal coping (finished to match window headers and frames); an exterior of modular-sized brick veneer; and one-over-one, double-hung aluminum-clad windows topped by black anodized aluminum headers. The primary entries feature full-light, iron doors on recessed cedar-sided entry vestibules, with concrete steps and concrete on window wells.
- The Seventeenth Street (east) elevation features an a four-bay façade, with a two projecting, one-story, flat-roof massings flanking a recessed entry. The entry will feature paired, 74" wide by 96" tall, iron, full-light doors, covered by a flat-roof metal canopy and accessible by cast concrete steps. Both flat-roof massings feature three adjoining windows topped by a single aluminum header. The rooftop of the flat-roof massings will serve as a balcony, accessible by iron doors on the uppermost level. Four fenestrations are evenly spaced along the upper level, with two windows on the outside bays and two doors accessing the balconies. One lower-level window is visible, partially obscured by a window well. A secondary massing is slightly recessed from the east elevation; this structure is the side of the residential unit fronting Forest Avenue.
- Due to the site's topography, all three levels are visible on the Forest Avenue (north) elevation. Two, two story, flat-roof massings flank a recessed entry stoop. The flat-roof massings serve as balconies, accessible by iron doors on the upper level (third story). The identical massings feature two single-light picture windows on the first story and three adjoining one-over-one windows on the second story. On this elevation, the doors are set perpendicular to the façade, accessible from the concrete entry stoop clad in 6" wide vertical cedar ship-lap siding. The overall elevation features three levels of one-over-one, double-hung windows topped by metal headers.
- The rear (south) and rear (east) elevations feature two brick-clad chimneys topped by metal coping; irregularly spaced one-over-one, double-hung windows on two visible stories; and a series of window wells for lower-level windows. Corner elevation windows will feature aluminum headers to match façade windows. Secondary entries (3' by 7' fiberglass doors) are located on each elevation.
- A paved parking lot will be primarily accessible via the alley, with an exit off Forest Avenue. The site plan includes the preservation of several existing trees (elms, magnolia, etc) and the placement of several native shade trees on both facades and fronting the alley.

Ft. Sanders NC

- Style: N/A
  - Lot currently features a non-historic, non-contributing car wash building and a billboard.

Applicable Guidelines

Fort Sanders NC-1, adopted by the Knoxville City Council on September 13, 2000.

- A. Height, Scale, and Massing
- 1. Foundation heights should be consistent with other pre-1940 buildings in the neighborhood.
- 3. With redevelopment of two or more lots for apartment, office, commercial, or mixed-use development, street-facing facades of new buildings should be broken up with bays or porches that are consistent with the dimensions of historic buildings in the neighborhood.
- 4. Apartment buildings shall have porches with an outside entrance from the street for every 50 to 75 feet of street frontage. Porches should be proportional to pre-1940 housing.
- 5. The height of new apartment, office, and commercial buildings, including a mix of those uses within a building, shall be limited by the underlying zone. The front and side yard provisions shall be the same as those for single-family detached construction for the first three stories. Upper stories shall be set back further from the street.
- 6. For the first 35 feet, buildings should have similar setbacks, bays, and covered entrances that complement the historic architecture on the street.
- 7. Upper stories should be stepped back at least 8 feet. In addition to providing a pedestrian scale at street level, the landings should be used for balconies, providing open space to those who use the buildings.
- B. Roofs
- 1. Select a roof pitch that is in keeping with other pre-1940 houses of the neighborhood, not being less than an 8/12 pitch.
- 2. Use variations in the form of the roof above the second story such as gables at different angles, hipped roofs, and dormers.
- 3. Use roofing materials that are in keeping with the historic development styles. Asphalt, shingle, tile, pressed metal, and slate were used.
- C. Porches
- 1. Provide porches with proportion and materials that complement pre-1940 housing. For clapboard type construction, wood is the most appropriate primary material. Brick or cut stone are appropriate as foundations or in column supports.
- 2. Porches should be no less than 6 feet deep and no more than 10 feet deep.
- D. Wall Materials
- 1. Paint color is not regulated.
- 2. Clapboard (or clapboard-like materials such as aluminum or vinyl), shingle (or shingle like material), or brick should be used.
- 6. Materials that are not typical in pre-1940 construction should not be used. These include cinder block, T-111 siding, and stone facing.
- E. Windows and Entrances
- 1. Window proportions and symmetry should be similar to the pre-1940 styles in the neighborhood.
- 2. Windows should be double-hung sash windows. Vinyl or metal-clad windows may be used in place of wood frame windows.
- 2. [sic] Egress windows will have to be designed to comply with fire/building code provisions.
- 3. Accent windows are appropriate with new construction.
- 4. Double-hung sash windows are recommended for two to three-story new construction.
- 5. Variations of double-hung windows should be considered in relation to the design of new buildings. Inserts are acceptable to mimic traditional window forms.
- 6. The proportions of upper level windows should not exceed the proportion of the first level.
- 7. Upper-level windows should be provided and aligned with doors.
- 8. There should be at least 50% transparency, that is created by windows or French doors and balconies, on the recessed breaks between buildings, including buildings joined together.
- 9. Entrances to the building should be provided from the street, using door that have similar proportions and features to pre-1940 architecture.
- 10. When parking areas are provided behind buildings, rear entrances are also allowed.
- 11. Wrought iron balconies are appropriate accents on stucco or brick.
- F. Parking
- 1. In new building construction, the front yard space shall not be used for parking. Do not break up curbs or sidewalks to provide street access.
- 2. Provide parking access off the alley or off a side street.
- 3. Plant one native shade tree for every 50 feet of lot width, adjacent to or as islands within the parking area.
- 7. Surface parking area shall always be to the rear of the building.
- 8. Primary or secondary entrances to the building from parking areas are allowable.
- G. Landscaping, Fencing, and Retaining Walls
- 1. Plant one native shade tree and one ornamental tree in both the front and rear yards for every fifty feet of lot width.
- 2. Plant shrubs near new buildings to complement the foundation height, windows, and entries. Select species and a distance from the building that will not harm foundation materials.
- 5. Keeping with tradition, low, square-cut stone, poured concrete, or brick walls should be used in constructing retaining walls.
- Large Lot Development
- 3. Bays should extend up to five feet for fifty percento f the side façade on corner lots.
- 6. Multi-family or office development on Clinch Avenue between 17th and 20th Street should be designed to complement the brick, early 20th century revival styles along the street.
- Corner Lot Development (from Example of Corner Lot Development, p.18)
- 1. Setback established in line with other houses on the street
- 2. Bay extends beyond front yard setback
- 3. Porches create rhythm along the street
- 4. Bays add extra dimension and visual appeal on side street
- 6. Dormers, gables, and hipped roofs complement historic features
- 7. Foundation height is consistent
- 8. Yard trees add to the pleasant street scene