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Since it can be difficult to visualize how some of the regulations would work, you may want to • review chapter 5 of the Guiding Plan. A color version is available online at www.ci.arden- hills.mn.us/b2district. Purpose and Intent—As described earlier,the purpose and intent sets the stage for why the City would adopt design regulations. Application—While the purpose of these new design standards is to implement the vision in the "Guiding Plan for the B2 District,"it is also important to respect existing properties and to encourage upgrades to existing properties. However,requiring a property to conform to all design standards no matter what the scale for the proposed change could result in reluctance or refusal by property owners to do any type of upgrades due to the cost. This section allows some discretion on the part of the City to apply the design standards in accordance with the scale of a project. This would be evaluated on a case by case basis. Building Materials—The building materials section lists the types and minimum quantity of approved materials for primary and accent use. The prohibited materials are also listed. Building Design —Building design includes a great amount of flexibility;however,the substance of this section is based on the Guiding Plan. The primary purpose of this section is to prohibit long expanses of architecturally uninteresting walls and to require fagade treatments on all sides of a building visible to the public. This section promotes variety on a building. Fagade Transparency—This section focuses on requiring transparent windows on all buildings, • with a focus on the primary entrance and sides facing the street. The Plan called for 70 percent transparency on the sides with the primary entrance and facing the public street. However, there may also be a need for some windows on other sides that face public areas but are not public streets. In order to promote additional windows, the requirement was dropped from 70 percent to 50 percent but a standard of at least 20 percent windows(half of which could be simulated or spandrel glass) on the remaining sides was added. These requirements are not insignificant and adjustments may be needed in the future. Site Furnishings and Seating Areas—It is difficult for a city to require an open public gathering space on private property without a specific park dedication; however, a city can require outdoor furnishings and seating areas for restaurants for customers on the site. This section is intended to advance the civic and gathering space recommendations in the Guiding Plan. Parking—The parking regulations focus on moving parking to the rear of buildings and discouraging expansive parking lots. Specifically,parking between the street and buildings is discouraged as is parking in the side lots and between buildings. If a parking structure is constructed, the fagades visible from a public street must have similar treatments to the principal building. City of Arden Hills Planning Commission Meeting for November-5, 2008 llAhdocsllahlAHdatalPlanninglPlanning Cases12008W8-028 B2 Design Standards1l10508-PC report-B2 Design Standards.doc Page 6 of 8