Architectural Review Board - Regular Meeting

to order?

Roll call. Chair Rinaldo Borges? Present. Amanda Barton will be here shortly. Jose Gomez? Here. Brett Schlachter is not here yet. And Nathan Van Diemen? Here. But we do have quorum. Thank you.

Everybody seen the minutes? Any comments on the minutes?

No comments on the minutes.

Yeah, they shut all the mics off, so make sure they're on when he speaks.

Trustee? Yes. Okay, so we don't see any objections to the meeting minutes, so they are approved as presented from the motion to approve. On motion to approve the minutes. Okay. Second. And all those in favor of moving it forward? Aye. Okay. We got three members and three votes to move the meeting minutes forward. And we start the ARB hearing. Susan, please.

Yes, sir. Please be advised that the following items on the agenda are quasi-judicial in nature. If you wish to comment upon one of these items, please inform the chairman when he asks for public input on the item. An opportunity for persons to speak will be made available after the applicant and staff have made their presentations on each item. All testimony, including public testimony and evidence, will be made under oath or affirmation. Additionally, each person who gives testimony may be subject to cross-examination. If you refuse either to be cross-examined or to be sworn, your testimony will be given its due weight. The general public will not be permitted to cross-examine witnesses, but the public may request the Architectural Review Board to ask questions of staff or witnesses on their behalf. Persons representing organizations must present evidence of their authority to speak for the organization. Further details of the quasi-judicial procedures may be obtained from the clerk. At this time, I would ask for a disclosure of any ex parte communications concerning any of the items on today's agenda. Board Member Van Diemen?

No.

Mr. Chair?

No.

And Mr. Gonzalez? Okay. Mr. Clerk, if you could please swear in anyone who is going to be speaking today.

Yes, good afternoon. All those who will be providing testimony today, please raise your right hand and do swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Thank you.

Very well. The first item, I've been advised that we need to take the projects as per agenda. We have seven items on the agenda. So forget about the idea that summers are boring around here. We've got seven projects. So we're trying to go quickly through the projects as we can. The first project will be the Tiffany at Bell Harbor. You guys ready to present? Yes. Stand up to the podium, introduce yourself, and the presentation will be on the screen.

Hello, hello. My name is Cesar Soto. I am the engineer of record for the Facade Project, one of the engineer of records for the Facade Project at the Tifano Bell Harbor. And with me is Hector Lozado. the owner's rep representing the association, on behalf of the association here. So basically, we are going through a major, major, major hardening of the project, doing a lot of concrete restoration on the deck, major waterproofing, and redoing of the planters, and re-waterproofing of the planters, re-waterproofing of the... all the pool decks, all the water features and things of that nature. And the board, along with all the residents, thought that this was the best moment to basically take it up a notch and take the project to the next level, and then decided to also do a facade restoration. uh with that facade restoration basically um there's gonna be some concrete restoration involved but uh if you can keep going the uh the two items oh awesome the uh that's basically how the building is It's going to look at the end. See, sir, you have the control? Yes, I just found it.

Thank you.

That's how the building is going to look at the end. So this is basically part of the submittal.

Just to be clear, the main thing that changes is that you're changing the vertical picket rails to glass rails.

We're changing it to glass railings and we're changing the color of the paint of the building. Those are the two changes.

Okay.

Got it. So that's the building as it is today. And that's the elevation for the new paint and Basically, that's going to be the proposed building with the new paint and the new railings.

Cesar, could I ask you to hold right there for a second?

Yes.

I forgot to state that the building official has to read his report before we go into your presentation. This will be short. He's ready. Building official.

We received the confirmation that they acknowledge the eight conditions and they are in agreeance with it. It is my opinion that the proposed guardrail replacement and new paint on the entire building for the Tiffany Bar Harbor at 10175 Collins Avenue follows the village appearance code and zoning ordinance. The village planning and zoning consultant has concurred that the plans also comply with the code. Thank you.

Thank you.

As you can see, at the left is the existing building and the existing railings. To the right is going to be the new painted building, the new elevations, and how the railings are going to look. And I think we also brought a sample of the railings. So if you guys want to take a look at it. But the railings, you know, they're basically fully NOA. It's a tested assembly. It has an NOA hurricane. Do you have it here?

Yes, sir.

Yes, sir.

Let's see it.

That is the corner portion, the curved glass. But basically that's the most important part of the project is the most complicated, you know, even the fabrication, the most expensive part. So that's why we decided to bring the curved glass. And it's definitely going to add that element of finesse to the project that I think we're all looking for.

Okay.

And then the other part of the project is the actual paint.

So basically the brownish tone is being updated to this very crisp tone. That is correct.

That is correct.

All right. I think we have clarity. Let's open it for board discussion, questions.

The mullions and the windows, are those being affected by the – you're replacing the windows as well?

Yes.

So the railings, the windows are getting replaced, but it's like-for-like, the design, the aesthetic, the look is not changing.

Okay, correct. There are some windows that have been replaced already. They have been upgraded, and those we have reviewed, and they meet the impact codes. The other windows that do not meet the impact requirements will be replaced, literally like-for-like. Same height, same width, same color, same everything. And there's no shutters on the building? And there are no shutters on the building. It's laminated glass. Correct, yes, sir. Very well.

Any other questions? About the mullion. So the mullions on this photo are the same color as this, like bronze finish on the rail?

So there's obviously going to be a slight variation. There are building windows that were already replaced. So the new windows that are getting replaced will be as close to those existing windows that were replaced in color. As it relates to the railings, obviously all the railings will be the same color, but it's not the exact bronze tone.

But it is in that same family. It is in the same family. So, I mean, for what you guys will be looking for, it is basically a match. Yes, sir.

Won't be able to tell the difference pretty much.

You're not going to be able to tell the difference.

Okay. No further comments or questions? Okay. Any? Okay. Let's move it forward. Oh, public comments. Yes, indeed. Do we have public comments? You've got the written ones from our neighbor. Yes. Yes. Let's read it into the, you know, she has, you know, the patience to participate in the process, so let's read her statement. So I hope they like the bright white paint. Personally, I think they need to deepen the color and the ceiling of the balconies to tone down the glare that is going to be experienced. Again, this is from one of our neighbors here in the community, and we appreciate the... The comment, you know, I think she's pretty much okay with it, you know. But you've got to wear sunglasses around here. All right.

Mr. Chair, before you entertain the motion, I just want to acknowledge that Mr. Schlachter has joined the meeting and take the opportunity to ask him whether he's had any ex parte communications related to any of the items on the agenda.

Yes.

Okay, you may proceed.

Thank you. All right, so motion. I would motion to approve with the city's comments.

Okay, is there a second? Second. All right, all those in favor say aye.

Aye. Aye.

We have four members here, four votes.

Congratulations.

Got a good project. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, guys. Thank you. Next item is the 276 Ball Bay Trust. I guess that's the ownership, 276 Ball Bay. I believe it's a single family home. Just state your name for the record.

My name is Eric Chancellor. I'm the architect of record. And this is Slava Gorgoski. He's the project manager for the construction general contractor. We are seeking approval for a revision to a previously approved ARB set. All revisions include alterations to the previously approved automotive forecourt, widening the drive radius essentially for catering vehicles, things like that. Alteration of the southeast corner of the house for the generator enclosure. We're actually removing conditioned space and making that generator enclosure not fully exterior, but we didn't deem it necessary to enclose it fully. Alteration of the material on the exterior horizontal banding. Previously, there was a bronze band separating the two floor levels at the slab edge. We're now proposing to use the same stone that was already previously approved for the rest of the building. Alteration to the swimming pool layout and the hardscape in the rear were still below the threshold for impervious coverage and extension of the previously approved arbor over the living space in the rear elevation. That's it? You're done? Yes, I didn't know if Mr. Palacios needed.

You're a true minimalist, okay? All right. So just for the record, Hariri Pontarini is a design architect? Yes. And you're the local architect of record? Yes. Thank you.

We could just have the building officials report.

Yes. Yes. Keep on forgetting about that. I'm sorry, Mr. Building Official.

We also received confirmation and acknowledge of the original 17 conditions, and now the nine conditions, they're basically concurrent with the previous conditions that they were in agreement. And it's my opinion that the proposed revision to the single family and pool and facade and modifications of 276 Balbay Drive follows the Village Appearance Code and zoning ordinances. and also the planning and zoning consultant has reviewed and concurred that the plans also comply.

Thank you. Let's open it for board comments and questions. Mr. Gomez?

I'm a little confused. You came here just for a small wall to cover this equipment, that's it?

Essentially, yes. And there was an arbor addition in the back, and then there was the material change on the exterior, yes.

And it's a previously approved project? Correct. Yeah. Okay.

Like he explained, there was a band in the middle of the building, of the house, and now that band doesn't exist. It's a full... Right.

So here you can see the horizontal on the second floor. It's now stone. But it's the same stone that was previously approved in the field of the house. Yeah.

And then there was an enclosure that was in the front of the garage that now doesn't have no roof for them to be able to put in a standby generator.

Okay, so give us the whole thing because I'm saying a lot more than what you explained.

No, that's the extent. I'm actually reading the memorandum that we were provided with.

There is a before and after on page A200 that kind of shows the extensive modification. The more sculptural stair as well, right?

If you see the corner on the bottom, the red, that means that was previously approved. And then the one that doesn't have the red, that's the proposed.

That's the proposed, yeah. Those panels, how are they fabricated? Is that like a metal panel that's cladded?

Which panel are you referring to?

The panels that are kind of floating on the facade.

Other stone, so there's stone, it's a rain screen stone system. We're using the exact same product and assembly for essentially the field of the home. Now they're just attaching those with steel girts on the slab edge as well. So there is like a structure of steel, galvanized steel? It's all concrete beneath, and then there's aluminum girts, and then there's the stone on top. We have the stone sample right here. It's a honeycomb system behind the stone rain screen. Can you pass that? Yes.

That bulkhead that you're showing on the facade on the roof, that's the AC?

Correct. That's the mechanical overrun.

Okay. Okay. Any more questions or comments? I know that it's not prescribed. It seems we're pretty easygoing. But is there like a rendering, a three-dimensional image that shows kind of like original design and new design? Is that what you have on LCVR page?

Well, on page A901 is where there is the original rendering, essentially without the hedge row, which is what's on the screen now. So you can see the previous band. We did not provide a newer... LCVR has a rendering... It's not the same rendering system, but it's a rendering of what the home...

Is a new proposed. I mean, so that stair element and all these elements, that's the way the architecture, even though this is more of a kind of like a sketch overlay.

It's more of a watercolor rendering. But yes, that is essentially, you know, we're utilizing the same stone throughout, except for bronze flashings and things like that.

Okay. It's a beautiful project. Any more comments from the board? No. I think with the modification, which I suppose was managed by the design architect, right? Correct. Everything seems to be consistent with the originally approved project, very elegant, very architecturally rich, and a great contribution to the neighborhood, in my opinion. So is there a motion here? Wait, we got a public comment. Yes, we have public comment over here. Two seconds.

I got it for you.

276 Ball Bay Drive, this home, okay. This is the neighbor, okay. This home is enormous with a beautiful large spacious view of the bay. The landscape architects are doing a great job at toning down the impact of the structure in a creative fashion. When you have a pie-shaped lot, you need to embrace the shape. I really don't understand why it's so hard to stay within the setbacks. I mean, right now, the project that's approved meets all of the zoning setback criteria as reported by the building official. Just for the record, when deciding the front setbacks are encroached and so on and so forth, I mean, as we see it, there's no setback encroachment. Everything is harmonized with the zoning. It is a large home, but it is permitted by code. So basically, that's the neighbor's input. Thank you for that.

And then, Mr. Chair, before we go to the motion, welcome to Board Member Barton. And let me take this opportunity to ask you if you've had any ex parte communications concerning any of the items on the agenda. No. Thank you. You may proceed, Mr. Chair.

Okay. Amanda, any comments on this project? No, I agree. It's beautiful. Okay. All right. So is there a motion?

Motion to approve.

Is there a second?

Second.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye. So we have five board members and five votes for the project. Thank you. Thank you for being here.

Thank you very much.

Enjoy. It's amazing.

Okay, 42 Camden Drive.

Good afternoon.

Yeah.

So this one also received the confirmation of acknowledgement of the 18 conditions. They are also in agreeance. And it's my opinion that the proposed revision of the exterior design and landscape for 42 Camden Drive follows the village appearance code and zoning ordinance. The village planning and zoning consultant also has concurred that the plans comply with the code.

Thank you. My name is Oscar Cabeza. I'm the architect of record with AD Architecture. So as you can see here, we have three major things here. One is the change of the materials in the facade. This was the original approved plans. We had a lot of cladding, wood cladding. But we decided to go with the stone that was previously approved and clad the entire facades with the same travertine. So you can see, obviously, this is the new renderer versus the old renderer.

Is it real travertine or porcelain?

No, real travertine.

Yeah, okay.

Yeah. Owner is very specific about using a... You got the sample there. Thank you. All natural materials through all the house. Mechanically fastened? Yes. On the surface, it's going to be mechanically fastened, and then the vertical walls are going to be cementitiously attached. We have another view. We also did some modifications to the landscaping. We provide more coverage towards the front of the property. You can see in this render of the landscaping that was added to the front. All this landscaping, all the way to the front, is behind the property line and behind the setbacks, so we're not encroaching into any outside the property. We also did small modifications. We already decided on the product approvals for the windows, so we did a change to the building permit for those product approvals, and we incorporated all that in the design and the renders of the house. So that's another part that we submitted that was what we have here. The facade, the materials, the landscaping, and the product approvals that was decided for the windows to the house. There's some changes as well on civil drawings. Basically, we changed out. Let me see if I can go there. Well, this is the back of the house. You can see the back of the house as well. We removed all the wood cladding and put all the travertine.

Is this the newly proposed? Yes. Make sure your drawings say that. It should say newly proposed because then the next image is... It says approved. I know, but it's not that obvious because then you flip to the next image, basically everything looks the same. Hard to say. But this is...

This is the new one, yeah. This is the new one. Yes, sir.

So basically you removed all that landscaping and cladding that it used to have?

Correct, correct. That one is real dark, but at the end on the right hand I had a fake grass on the wall, so that's removed. All the soffits were wood before, so now everything is going to be the travertine.

I see. The built-in planters are only in the front facade?

That is correct. This is as well, maybe this one is better. You see this is the one that was approved before. So you can see here all the landscaping that was against the wall that got removed. This is the new one that we're proposing. This one is a little more clear, I think. Thank you. We did have all the elevations for the windows as well. I mean, obviously, we adjust all the sizes for the windows and doors. There's minimum changes, but we did all the elevations just to make sure everything is up to the product approval that was selected. This is the old one. This is the new one. So you can see the difference as well in all the wood cladding that was there before. Let me see if I can get to the civil drawings, which I think we have here. Sorry, let me go really fast here so we can get there.

All right, here so you can see this is the proof.

plan for the civil drawings. We had a French drain on the back of the property behind the pool on the top of the plan and it was relocated to the right hand of the property. This was done because we have a retaining wall on the back and that was going to make very difficult to provide this French drain on the back between the pool and the retaining wall so we decided to move to the right hand of the property. It's not going to affect any, I mean, all this is going to be underground, so it's really not going to affect any visual design of the house, but it's one of the changes we submitted for this revision. And that's basically the scope of work that we have here.

Condensing units are in the rooftop?

The condensing units are on the balcony on the second floor. Let me go to the floor plan so you can see it. They are hidden from the view. And this elevation, on the bottom elevation, in the middle, you see that that wall is really high, almost to the middle of the windows. They are behind that wall. And let me show you in the plan where are they located. Hold on, let me go back really quick. Oh, you can see it here as well. Oh, one more. Right there. Yeah, in the bottom elevation, you see that that wall goes up 48 inches. The units are behind, and we're going to have a screen Anyways, a metal screen fencing to the unit so they're not visible for any point.

Doesn't seem to show well on the floor plan. Let me go back here.

The floor plan shows the terrace is all clean and no equipment on it. Right there. You can see it on the left. So we have four.

I see.

All the units there and all the screen around it. That balcony is 11 feet wide, so... After the screening and the units, we're going to still have six feet clear to walk around and work on them. And they're covered by the parapet plus the fencing that is inside. Make sure it's not visible from any point. Not only for the neighbors, but also for the people using the house because you want to use the terrace and don't see these units in your terrace.

They will generate some sound there for sure, but I guess that's what it is. Those are noisy machines. Very well. We have public comments. This is 42 Camden, right? Correct. We all know the sight of the facing the garage is a joke, and although they generously place two cars in the garage, it is impossible to achieve with any large vehicle, I guess, the movement into the garage. The additional landscaping is helping to offset the height of the building in comparison to the adjoining neighbors, like the balcony planters. That will be a wonderful addition to the homeowner, so it will soften the view and the two apartments and the proximity of the home. There should be some level of maintaining of these tremendous volumes of palms, bamboos, etc. They are all going to encroach on the neighboring property. I think the change in the window does not really affect the overall concept, does not Oh, not does the adding of the limestone. So, you know, I think. Nor. Nor. Nor. Oh, okay. It says not does. Okay. Okay, Susan. Very well. She seems to like the house. All right. So congratulations. And the board feedback?

Overall, I think it's an improvement. I like the additional landscape on the front. I think it fits more contextually in the neighborhood.

Okay.

I have a question. I know there is a move to try to allow forward-facing garages in the village. I think this house would be a great, I don't know about structurally if that's even possible, if there's a change, maybe preferred by you or the owner. But I know there are some talks about changing the garage locations so we can have them in the front. So I don't know if there's been any movement on that.

Last month, or Susan can... Last month, it went through council, and it passed. So basically, there's another house in this package that has a front-facing garage that was approved because of that. So if that's an option, then you need to bring it back with another rendering for it, but it's doable.

All right. At this point, I mean, we already completed all the shell of the house.

Yeah, we did it very fast. I just wanted to let you know it's an option for you guys if you wanted it.

I'll bring it up to the ownership and see what they say about it then.

You mainly came back for the cladding change and the planter integration? Correct. Pretty much. Okay. All right.

Is there a motion? Yeah, a motion to approve with the comments from the board, from staff.

All of the motions for approval incorporate the staff conditions. Thank you for saying that. Yes.

And I think, you know, the material palette is soft, it's tropical, it's more durable, it's less maintenance intensive, so it kind of makes sense. And then, of course, the increase of landscape never hurts, right? So that's wonderful. So is there a second to the motion? I second it. You second it? Okay. So all those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye. Okay. So you have five votes out of five board members. Thank you.

All right. Thank you very much.

9801 Collins Avenue is next.

I also received confirmation and acknowledgement of the eight conditions, and they are in agreeance. It is my opinion that the proposed renovation of the exterior of the 9801 Collins Avenue, the Balmoral, follows the village appearance code and zoning orders. The village planning and zoning consultant also concurs that it complies with the plans and the code.

All right. Introduce yourself, and you're ready to make your presentation.

Terrific. Great. Good afternoon. Let me see. There we go. Can you hear me now? My name is Mike Flaw, landscape architect. This is Pete Anderson. He's the lead on the project. And we're very excited about this, and we hope you are too. Just a note that this amenity deck hasn't been touched since 1978. So in looking at the plans, I hope it's evident that it will be remarkable. And I think an enormous benefit to the community and to the building itself, of course. I'm just going to hit a couple bullet points, and then we can scroll through, if you wish, and handle it any way you like. But basically, we're transforming the amenity deck and pool into a contemporary resort-inspired outdoor environment. I think we're going to be also advancing the health, safety, and welfare of the situation. If you look at the current photos as they are now. Aesthetically, it's painful, but it's also not to the current standards. The centerpiece of the renovation is the complete redesign of the pool environment, which will have better access and a much more attractive geometry to it. and functionality to it and serving all age groups, which will be very nice. It's also the new, the mini-deck is going to be redesigned to orient and maximize the Atlantic Ocean views. As I said, accommodating all residents and ages with new amenities that way. The planting design is important. As everyone who lives here and works here knows, it's a very difficult environment. So I've been very selective and painfully choosing plant materials that are going to not just be attractive day one, but be something that 20 years from now still is thriving. You'll notice that there is material to be removed in order for this project to take place, but we are actually increasing the canopy. So it is both environmental and aesthetic enhancement in addition to the change-downs. Environmentally responsible lighting will be done, of course turtle-friendly. and also attractive for adjacent properties. And the overall result is a refined, functional, and sustainable outdoor amenity experience that elevates the property's luxury character, strengthens its connection to the oceanfront setting, and is in keeping with the high-end design standards of Bell Harbor. With that, we'd like to scroll through if we can. Pete, do you want to handle details?

Good afternoon. My name is Pete Anderson. I worked with Mike to create the submittal that we're reviewing today. I'll just flip through a few of the presentation slides. This slide represents the scope of work for the project. The main focus, like Mike said, is the pool, the redesign of the pool. We are also proposing a full hardscape renovation of the amenity deck, removal of the concrete pavers and replacement with the samples that you see below. The main field will be a marble sandblasted paver in various shapes and sizes and patterns to define areas. And we will also use a tumbled marble paver to accent bands and borders around the property. There are a few planters that we are proposing to modify to create symmetry along the west side of the pool. And we are also proposing to remove some of the planters down the main view corridor from the main exit of the building onto the amenity deck to open up the view across the pool deck and across into the ocean as well. Another main scope of work is the railing revision. There's an existing concrete railing on the east side of the amenity deck that blocks many of the views. We are proposing to replace that concrete railing with a glass railing, and there's an example of that below as well. Another scope of work is the two beach access points on the east side of the facility. The north and south beach access will receive new marble treads on the stairs, a new marble landing, outdoor showers, and the south access stair will receive a new ADA accessible lift to create an accessible route from the amenity deck down to the stair landing. The other scope of work point is the landscape that Mike already mentioned, as well as the lighting and the new irrigation system for the amenity deck with bubblers on the trees and palms and drip lines for the shrubs and ground covers. So that's the scope of work. Briefly go through the plan set here. This is a very simple plan, but it really tells a story of the project. The existing conditions are on the right. The proposed conditions are on the left. You can see the existing pool and then the new pool configuration as well as the planters that are to remain to be modified and to be removed. Here are a few images of the existing amenity deck. You can see that concrete pavers and the existing railings that are to be removed. And in the lower left-hand corner, that's that main view out of the building towards the ocean. So those are the planters that we are proposing to remove to open up that corridor. The next four slides are all hardscape slides for the property. They go in direction from north, central, south, to east. You can see on the north end, we are incorporating the wood plank porcelain pavers. There's a sample in front of me as well. We're using that to define seating areas outside. And we are using the synthetic turf to create a flexible space on the north side of the building as well. You can see the rest of this image shows the marble pavers with the banding that we have proposed. This is the central portion of the amenity deck with that central corridor, and you catch a glimpse of the pool, but it's better on another slide. So here's the south side of the deck. We have a seating area defined by the plank porcelain pavers again. Here you get a good view of the renovated pool, which now has two entrance points on the west side of the pool that enter to the right. Some of the pool amenities include, there's a bench seating on the north, there's a sun shelf on the south, and then when you enter the pool down the stairs, there's two level standing areas, three foot six inch deep, and then the pool slopes to the deep part near the center due to the constraints of the existing structure. This last hardscape sheet shows the sun deck portion that is above the cabanas on the amenity deck. We will have synthetic turf as well as porcelain wood plank for seating areas. The two images on the left are rather important because the existing conditions photo shows that existing concrete railing in the background. And then the rendering below, that has been replaced with glass railings. So you have a better view of the ocean and also the vegetation just east of the amenity deck. This is our material schedule with samples of patterns, layouts, and installation details. The planters that are being modified, these are the construction details for the modified planters. This is an example of that ADA lift on the south stair to create that accessible route, as well as an example for the white aluminum fencing that will be around the stair landings at the beach access and the freestanding shower at each beach access point. These are the construction documents for the pool. This is the existing pool demolition plan, the proposed construction plan, and then an isometric of that new pool layout. Into the landscape, this is the existing tree survey with our limited work area, noting which trees are to be removed, and our mitigation table showing that we are providing roughly 2,000 more square feet of canopy coverage than we are removing. This is the same four-page breakdown, but this is landscape with a combination of green buttonwoods, Alexander palms, singles, doubles, and triples, as well as ligustrums down that center corridor. And then we are also proposing just a few plantings, thatch palms and some lower shrubs at the lower level of the beach access landings. Our plant material schedule and images, construction details, and then into lighting. We are proposing all new lighting for the amenity deck. It will be turtle nesting compliant. It will have the proper cutoffs to avoid any light pollution. And we will have bollards and under canopy lights as well. For the new landscape lighting, we'll have uplightings on the palms and trees, downlightings on the shrubs and ground covers, and we're incorporating a linear light under the cap of all the planters to create a glowing effect downward. The next two pages are proposed renderings of the amenity deck. Just a couple examples. The top left, you see that's the seating area on the south side of the amenity deck with the synthetic turf and the wood plank tiles. Going down one image is a view into that corridor that comes out of the building. And one image below that is the putting green and synthetic turf area on the north side of the building. There are three isometric views of that new pool layout on the top of this slide. And another one to point out is the bottom right. That's another aerial view of that main corridor that comes out of the building. We did include a stormwater pollution protection plan with the set. So those details can be incorporated during construction. And then finally, an up-to-date survey to finish out the set.

Thank you. Building official, have you read your report yet?

Yes, I do.

You already read it into the record. Okay. Okay, so comments from the board? Thank you.

This synthetic turf areas on the south and north side, the north when you have a small putting green, what is the function of the remainder of that area? On the north side? Yeah, on the north side.

That's simply flex space. There's no defined use for it. There are defined seating areas, but no defined use for the actual turf. And the area on the south side? The south side allows for, I believe, 20 of the lounge chairs to be installed on the turf.

On the turf, okay.

Otherwise, it creates a buffer between the proposed marble paver and the wood look paver.

And the band that surrounds that, is that a raised band or is that accurate? It's accurate. Okay. I'm going to give you the comment that I do for most of these. It's just about the synthetic turf and the heat that it creates. So the north one will be shaded in the winter, so it will be much more usable. The south one, I think it's going to get a lot of sun. One thing that we've done in the past was to put an irrigation system on it to cool it occasionally, which is kind of nice to be able to do. The other are the infills, the cooling infill, like the beads that absorb water and release it, brings down the temperature a lot. Okay.

We are calling for hydrochill in the synthetic, and there are quick connects on the irrigation system for watering the synthetic. Perfect.

Okay.

You've thought of it?

The only other comment I have, it's nitpicky, but all your... MacArthur palms throughout are specimen multis, and then you have one that's like three singles together. You call it out as three single MacArthur palms in one area. I would recommend changing that. They're going to cut down the root ball so much to fit them in that fixed planter size, you'd be better off doing another multi there. Those are my only comments. Is that aluminum, the wood material?

Porcelain.

It's porcelain. Got it. The only comment I have is slip resistance for the tile. They said it was sandblasted. So I've seen a few projects that had sandblasted but it was still very slippery with sand, water. Just make sure it passes coefficient of friction.

How are you setting the pavers? Are those on pedestals?

They will be mud set on concrete.

Mud set on concrete. Okay. We've had experience with this artificial turf in resorts where, you know, in certain conditions a lot of mold grows under this layer and you don't discover it until you, you know, I don't know, that's a consideration. Right now we're trying to separate, elevate it with a system that allows there to be, you know, a breathing area under the turf. I don't know if you considered that in your detail.

Yeah, our construction details do call for – it's not a geogrid, but it's a similar product from the supplier. It creates an airspace below for drainage and for that same – So a drainage mat, yeah.

Yes. Okay. Okay. Very attractive project. Great enhancement to the existing conditions. Any other comments? No? Okay. All right. So any motions? Public comments? Oh, public comments. Keep on forgetting. You're right.

No. That's the only one.

Let me see. It's 9801, 9801. Long overdue.

9801 is the one you're looking at.

The improvements to the amenity deck are long overdue. We can see the amenity deck from the beach. I know this project has been approved. The majority of the condo owners of the buildings, if there are enhancements that are helpful to choose one plant versus another for longevity, That's good advice. If you don't like the paint color on a sports court, the people that live there look down and ultimately make the selection. The ARB can often offer expertise on why one is best than the other. but don't expect a condo association to fall in line and accept your ideas without questioning the reasoning. All right. Thank you very much. So anybody has any concern about the coloration of the deck? No? Okay. All right. So any motions? I would motion to approve. Is there a second? Second. Second. All right. All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

You have five votes out of five board members. Very professionally presented. Thank you for that. And hopefully the execution is amazing.

Thank you all for your time. We appreciate it. Thank you.

9700 Collins Avenue. Ball Harbor Shops. Item 5.

Good afternoon. My name is Ben Mitchell. I'm an attorney that represents the Val Harbor Shops. Before we turn it over for the presentation today, just wanted to briefly address the procedural posture of this application. As we set forth in our July 14th, 2025 letter to the village manager, the Shops maintains that this temporary phasing plan is being implemented pursuant to the approved site plan and development agreement. And does not significantly affect the appearance of existing development as defined in the village code Therefore our position is this is not subject to aesthetic review by the ARB So we respectfully reserve all rights and objections as set forth in that correspondence nevertheless at the villages request We're here today to do the presentation and answer any questions that you all may have. As you will hear from the presentation from the people who really know this stuff, the application before you involves temporary parking garage connections, enhanced landscaping. architectural treatments associated with the deferred construction of Building Z. These temporary improvements are cohesive with the approved architectural character of the shops. They're compatible with the existing streetscape. They enhance the site. They utilize harmonious colors and durable materials. And they generally maintain the high quality design standards that are generally associated with the shops. Accordingly, assuming that the Board's review is appropriate, the application satisfies each of the architectural review criteria set forth in the Village Code, and we would respectfully request that the Board recommend approval of the application and adopt the staff recommendations without further conditions.

Thank you. Thank you for that.

he asked if I could just explain to you what's happening. The last time we've done an aesthetic review, which is a review procedure that exists in the business zoning district, was like seven years ago. So we're testing off, it was before this building official being here, and certainly before many of you sitting up there. So just to briefly frame and maybe help you to understand what Ben is referring to. So we have this application and it does not trigger a full site plan amendment, but what our code says is that certain things that are less than a site plan amendment trigger what's called aesthetic review. That's the name of the process in the business zoning district. And the village manager determined that this application will significantly affect the appearance of existing development because it is visible from the first three floors of surrounding residential properties. So that would be a trigger under section 21-323 of the code. The way that works is it is an administrative approval. And just to step back a moment. Everything in the B district is different. So you've just had several items where you've exercised your customary authority that leads to you being a final decision over the certificate of appropriateness for all of those residential projects. In the B district, it works differently. You are a review and recommend body. And because this aesthetic review is an administrative process, you are a review and recommend to the manager who looked at the submission, felt that he needed your guidance, and therefore that's the posture in which it is before you today. The code requires that you look at this and evaluate it for aesthetic consistency and compatibility pursuant to the criteria in the code We listed those in the memo. And if you go down to page, let's see, it's page 222 overall. It is the second page of Ellie's memo. You'll see the italicized A through H. Those are the actual criteria that apply to your decision making today. So with that posture so that you understand what's happening in procedural, in questions procedural.

Susan, is that the memorandum that's on the attachment to the application?

It's LA's memo, which is item 4.5, the first item. It's to the ARB members from LA Palacio. Do you see that?

But there are five attachments.

Right, so the first attachment.

That's the memorandum, okay.

You'll see Ellie's memo, and you go to the second page, you'll see the italicized. I mean, I'm happy to read them out loud if you'd like, but I thought it might help you have them in front of you as well.

Yes. Would members of the board like for Susan to read those or for me to read them? I have them in front of me. We don't have printed copies of those items, no? No, okay. Okay. Exterior building components and external architectural features shall have attractive and cohesive architectural character. The orientation and appearance and design of the external architectural features of the new existing building and structures in addition to the modifications of the existing building and structures shall indicate sensitivity and shall be compatible with the streetscape and adjacent buildings and structures enhance The appearance of the surrounding properties create and maintain important view corridors. Landscaping and paving materials shall ensure a cohesive relationship with the enhanced overall site plan. Buffering materials should ensure that headlights of the vehicles, noise and light from the structures are adequately shielded from public view, adjacent properties and pedestrian areas. Colors shall be subtle and harmonious with the landscaping of nearby buildings. Bright or brilliant colors shall be used for accent only. All rooftops of buildings with flat roof decks, including parking garages, roof decks, shall be designed to minimize negative appearance by screening mechanical equipment. utility hardware and by minimizing the ponding of water throughout the drains and scuppers. Rooftops shall be designed to allow for continued maintenance of the roof surface in an attractive manner in accordance with Section 21-324. These are conditions that basically outline the items that we should be...

There's two more on the next page. Oh, wait. I... We can read it aloud or not. I'm just letting you know that it was on.

No, I didn't flip the page. Mechanical equipment and utility hardware on the roofs. Ground and buildings shall be screened from public view. Materials harmonious with the buildings. Okay, that's kind of repetitive. Choice of materials and their use shall be conducive to regular maintenance and durability in accordance with Section 21-324. The ARB's comments and recommendations, if any, will be provided to the village manager or designee who shall review an application with any comments, recommendations from ARB. So basically, whatever we state here today is just a friendly recommendation. We're not taking any action. No final action. The village manager is to do that. Okay.

So any other procedural questions from the board members? If not, then I would recommend letting Ellie do his typical presentation. And one final comment. So Ben is the attorney for the shops. What he basically said to you is they disagree that they need to be here, but they're being here anyway. That's essentially what he said.

Got it. Thank you. Much more succinctly stated than I put it.

So basically, the Ball Harbor shops have submitted plans to modify the previously approved Building Z in the expansion project. The modification of Building Z has been described as temporary. Since Ball Harbor shops have not defined temporary due to the unknown time frame, the village is requiring that extensive landscaping and mature trees be planted. The objective is to minimize the view of the structural members of the garage that will have been hidden by the unmodified Building Z. Also, by planting mature trees and full landscaping, the village wants to avoid the situation that has gone unresolved in the vines of 96th Street Garage that have not grown to what was approved. The proposed changes to Building Z significantly modifies the appearance of the existing development. The manager has requested the input of this board, and that's why we're here.

Thank you. You may initiate your presentation. Introduce yourself for the record.

Thank you, everyone. Nice to meet everyone. Thank you for your time. My name is Louis Margitan. I'm the architect of record for JPRE Architects for the project. I'm not quite sure how to follow what I just heard. So as very succinctly stated by Susan and Ellie, this is a temporary improvement, albeit undefined in terms of duration. And so I think this deck has about 49 slides in it. Much of it is a bit... Repetitive, just for context and to keep everything moving throughout the set and understand it. Just an overall site plan, and obviously we're talking about the property that is just outside our window right here. Or your window, rather. The project location, I think there's a pointer here somewhere. I can't remember which button they said that was. Is it the light? Maybe not. Maybe not. No, that's okay. I'll just describe it. The project location in the cross-hatched area there is what Ellie referred to as former Building Z, which we're essentially reducing the size of in footprint and all the way up through the various levels of the building and replacing that with dense landscaping. Also here with me today is our landscape architect of record. He'll be up here in just a moment to explain in more detail what that landscaping design consists of. General site plans indicating, again, the area of work, which is kind of the upper left third of the plan there. Some site work details. We are running an additional storm line through there, which I think you'll see on this plan, to drain what is essentially this new lawn and landscaped area. More supporting civil drawings. I can go back through this in more detail, but I don't think our civil engineer is present here today. Overall contextual site plan. I sworn this was the pointer, but maybe not. So the triangular-shaped light pink shaded area is Bell Harbor Shops expansion. Thank you, Susan.

Just to explain, that still approves? That is what was previously approved. That's the approved version?

That was what was previously and currently approved, correct. It's a subtle change, but if you kind of concentrate on that lower left-hand corner area of that triangle, of that light pink triangle area, when I go to the next slide, you'll see the change. You see that it's been densified. The color's been changed to all green. So that is essentially the footprint of the area that we're modifying. And again, it's a temporary in nature. It was deemed necessary in order to construct the expansion just from a construction lay-down area. Same plan, just a little bit larger scale. Again, this is the approved version. You can see where it says Building Z a little more clearly in this slide. And then again, what we're doing, Building Z still exists just to the right there. Thank you, Susan. Just to the northeast of the green area is what is left of Building Z. So portions of Building Z will remain, and this is at grade. The next plan, again, existing approved set with Building Z intact. and then this goes up to Level 2, showing the portion of Building Z. There's a series of dashed lines there you can see from the 96th Street garage up to Building Z. Those represent new temporary ramps, which are above, starting at Level 3, to connect Building Z, previously connected the mall expansion to the garage. With that being gone, we have to construct these new temporary ramps now. At both this level, I'm sorry, the next level up, this is just level two with showing those ramps above. This is level three previously approved with Building Z intact.

Sorry.

Sure. Ah, there we go. Which one are you hitting? This one. Gotcha, gotcha, gotcha. Thank you, sir.

Okay, so here's our temporary ramps connecting the garage, and this is at level 3. Level 3.5, which is also a parking area for the majority of the expansion, this is what was previously approved. Again, 3.5 proposed, which just shows the addition of that ramp at this level as well. The new landscaped area down at grade is subdued in a gray shade just for reference. And then the originally approved roof plan, which is parking. and the proposed roof plan with those ramps connecting it, which is essentially level four. Next series of slides, we blow up just that area. I guess I could have gone right to this and been a little more clear. Building Z intact on the left was from the approved set and on the right, and that will follow suit in the next series of slides with the proposed transitional landscaping area. Level two, same concept previously proved on the left, proposed on the right. Level three. Level 3.5. And level four. You will see, starting at level three, I believe, Starting at level three, there is a green dashed line that follows the exterior skin of the building. This is in an effort to green up what would otherwise be just exposed concrete structure with the architectural finish that we have specified throughout the project. And you'll see that in some of the renderings here coming up. Again, that greenery carries up from level 3 to the 3.5, up through level 4 all the way to the top of parapet. This is a 2D, somewhat illustrative elevation, colored in black and white. The upper is the, I guess, park drive elevation. And the little portion to the right, whoops, wrong button. And the portion to the right where it says west elevation is Ball Bay Drive. Again, showing what you'll hear about in the landscape design in a moment, how that looks in elevation in terms of screening what's behind it. What would have previously been Building Z in its entirety. Okay. segueing into what the project would have looked like had it been built as originally approved. This is the existing screen wall and gate that is currently on Bell Bay Drive. And what you see in the background is Building Z as originally approved. This is a proposed revision. So much of Building Z has gone away. What you see in the background covered in greenery is the remaining portion of Building Z and the mall expansion with the proposed landscape vine system that you'll hear about in a moment. That first one was after one-year growth. Proposed three-year, five-year. A little bit closer up view if somebody were to be standing on the sidewalk just looking at that wall and what would have been behind it originally. And again, standing across the street looking at what the design will look like with the changes. Again, standing in front of the wall on the sidewalk after the proposed changes. Another view looking slightly southeast, I think. and proposed. You can see a bit of the remnants of Building Z in the background with those vines hanging off the structure. These are photographs relatively current of in-progress construction. At the bottom, the image there represents the architectural finish that's being used throughout the expansion, which has been previously approved again. It's a white synthetic acrylic stucco cold-glaze system. And this is where we get to our landscape architects portion.

Thank you. I'll figure this out. My name is Michael Pierce with Retroy Landscape Architecture. I'm a landscape architect. So just want to briefly kind of go through this, see if I can figure this one out and pull this over. Get that? Trying to get the arrow here.

Okay, for the arrow? The arrow. The arrow, okay.

All right, so generally speaking here, this is the pointer, yeah. I'm sorry.

Press and hold that.

All right, got it. Got it. All right. Perfect. Figured it out. All right. So this is the area that we're talking about in question. We've got essentially 25 coconut palms that are mature coconut palms that come from this D and E lot valley area. They're signature trees that have always really defined the entrance of Val Harbor. We're utilizing those coconut palms. They range in size from 37 to 52 feet overall. So we've got really mature trees as just the basis for what we're screening here. This edge condition represents the entire area that we're screening here, which is essentially 285 linear feet of screened vines on three levels. Those vines will be Thunbergia vines. I'll share with those in a moment. So I just wanted to give you an overview of that. This is the landscape plan showing the tree canopy. We have essentially about 59 total trees, which includes 25 coconut palms. The landscape design is 100% native in its understory plantings. The coconut palms are a Florida-friendly material that we're utilizing. So we're following standards for native criteria for this project. We call this a transitional landscape area, essentially open space with a lawn. The trees around here range in height from 18 to 16 foot in overall height in addition to the coconut palms. This is the coconut palm plan that just essentially shows the majority of the coconuts that are spread throughout the project. And then this is the shrub and ground cover plan, which is 100% native. Looking at each of the levels from the third floor all the way to the roof, we have fiberglass planters, which include the Thunbergia erecta, the sky vine. You may be familiar with this vine. It's very rapid growing. It grows up, grows down, grows everywhere it goes. So it's a really dense vine that has a beautiful violet-colored flower on it that's ever-blooming. And then this is the next few levels. I'll go through this fairly quickly here. This is our planting pallet. And then this is the elevations that Louis was mentioning before that shows a variety of views. This is the view looking southeast towards the buildings. And then the view looking northeast to the buildings. We're primarily and essentially screening views from neighboring properties. So from all levels, you'll have dense planting at all levels. And then this shows a diagram of the three- and five-year growth of the vines along the walls. Okay, and happy to answer any questions. Yes.

Another silly question. Are you including Jacob's ladders or anything like that to support them?

No. This is going to cascade over. So at each level, they'll cascade over so they will bind onto themselves. It's a very rapid-growing vine, and it really wraps itself around anything it can. So at this point, we're essentially cascading it over.

Do you have to worry about structure integrity then? No, not at all.

This is a very light vine. It's not a strong vine like some other vines that would get into stucco and pull that apart. This is pretty light.

Are you familiar with any projects in South Florida or Miami specifically that have this?

Yeah, so the Dolphins Stadium did the vine. If you go down the circular ramps there, there's a small planter at the base of each column, and then you see this one vine running all the way up. So that was done a number of years ago. And so it's pretty rapid in its growth. That's a pretty good example of a sky vine.

If you can turn on your mic, please.

Okay. So what's the anticipated timeline to accomplish this transition landscape job?

I can't speak to that here. I'll defer to my colleagues here.

Yeah, you're a landscape architect. Okay, so you're moving these beautiful palm trees from the east side to this side. Is there a strategy then on that front area that we're not seeing yet, right?

Not at this time, not that I have to present. Those trees are going to be moved temporarily off-site and be maintained and then brought back to the site when they're ready to be installed, those coconut palms.

Okay.

And the height, the tallest coconut palms you said were 50 feet. What's the height of the roof slab on this?

56, okay. 56. Yeah, so the palms are shown at 52 and 40 feet, so you get some movement that's sort of based on the inventory of these palms that are being relocated.

What are the dimensions of those planters? You happen to know?

Yeah, it sits on here, so we're about, you know, like 18 inches, yeah, in width. 18 wide? Yeah.

Okay, so I have other questions that are not related to landscape. Just understand the scheduling of this. When would this be initiated and completed as a landscape project?

Afternoon, everyone. Nick Massey with Bell Harbor Shops. I work for Whitman Family Development. The schedule as of right now is as soon as we achieve TCO on the project, there's probably about, I'd say, a month of punch work that happens with the construction. Because basically that site right now is our construction trailer site. As soon as we clear those construction trailers off, this work starts. We've planting the trees and getting the planters in for the vines. I was actually waiting for the end of this meeting to place the order for the planters because I can put those planters in now. That makes it a little easier to get the vines growing. But I have to wait until the trailers come out of there so I can put the trees in. So as soon as we get TCO on the project, we pull those trailers out of there. The trees go in. I think the longest piece of work is probably going to end up being the civil work that goes on underneath it. But the tree relocation is pretty quick. So we anticipate about a 90-day process to get most of the landscaping in on the ground level. The vines could be in actually probably before TCO. It just depends on how long they take to get here on lead time. I don't have that final information yet.

Just curious, when is the anticipated celebration of opening Building H, F, G, and so on?

The anticipated grand opening at Reno is September 15th. It's not anticipated. We're opening on September 15th. So you're going to be ready for the holidays?

Yes. Yes. Okay. Amazing. Any other questions, comments? Yes.

Yeah, I have a question, Nick, and I, you know, I guess I've never seen what's been going on here, so, you know, you might not be able to answer it, but personally, you know, the look of what you're planning, it's not great, but you guys are saying it's temporary. I'm almost, I'm asking the same question, but... When do you anticipate the approved portion to happen? Or is that going to change and something else is going to come in front of the board at some point?

At this point, we don't know. If anything does end up changing material from either this or from what was previously approved, we have to come back to this board and go through another aesthetic review process. If it's a significant change, then Susan can advise there are other processes we would have to go through with the planning commission and board before we would ever get to you.

Okay.

If I may, Mr. Chair, I think that what Nick says is correct, but to sort of give you the context that maybe you're missing. The shops is seeking to never build out the remainder of Building Z. Instead, they wish to build a housing tower there, and they're currently in multiple lawsuits against the village seeking to have that approved pursuant to the Live Local Act. So in the interim, they have these plans, and they have not defined how long the temporary condition will be in place, which is why your staff has recommended that attention to the appearance because it could be, I mean, even their own plans show through five years. So that's not necessarily as temporary as you might think. So you should consider it in that mindset. You know, Ellie was like temporary under the building code is six months. No, this is contemplated to be longer. They're being clear. And so you should look at it, not just as a very short term thing, but of an indeterminate period that might even go for several years.

You're saying, let me understand, so Building Z partially is being built?

No, it's not, no.

No, let me answer that question. So if we can go to the picture that they showed very carefully, if you wouldn't mind finding that picture again and I can explain it. Building Z was going to be Barney's. And so that Barney's went under and the future of that building was not clear. What they have instead done is this long, thin rectangle. Do you see on the right-hand side?

Yeah.

The pink rectangle is Building Z. Right. And according to what Ellie told me, the first and second stories are retail space they will have permanently and intend to use. That's not... visible from the street but it's the context for trying to understand what's happening here and then those temporary ramps are above that's what they presented to you a moment ago and then instead of building the full building z that would have been barney's they're showing this green area for whatever the temporary condition will be whether it's a year longer who knows

Clearly they're trying to maintain flexibility on how they develop that site into the future. They're showing us like a five-year plan for the growth of the planter material. We've seen, you know, these planter garages on Collins Avenue, Miami Beach, and depending on the planting material and how well it does, you know, typically it's an aesthetic solution. I'm very intrigued by the photographs or the renderings actually that are prepared that kind of show us the palm trees and the significant scale of the palm trees. You know on page A603.4 there's an image that really shows that because of these palms the garage building And the planters don't even perceive it, right? The layering, you know, that's the image. So that looks like a botanical garden, you know, so it's quite nice. And, in fact, you know, when you see the approved building, which was kind of like a white box building, it seems like that palm tree condition is a lot more attractive than the approved building that is not to be built. But then again, the play here or the future is this becoming potentially a very attractive residential tower that is going to, you know, have a lot of feedback from the community, I suppose, and so on. Because as we all know, the main concern in the future, right, is not in this plan. It's sort of people losing their privacy or being overlooked at, you know, all the things that happen with residential development of larger scale in these kind of sensible locations. That's not something that we will have an opinion about because it's a future that is unknown at this point, right? So what we're being shown is a five-year illustration of what the planter will look like. Of course, you know, we've noted and personally as an architect I've had experience with these vines not really being happy in some context and requiring more maintenance in some locations than others. I'm sure that this landscape architect has specified something that is going to thrive here and It's going to be well irrigated and maintained. I guess we need to be optimistic and assume that that's what we're looking at here. But that layering of the palm trees is significant, I think, in the way that we look at this in the overall aesthetics. But yeah, there's uncertainty in the idea that this is a temporary transition space and what it will be in the future. But I don't think that it's our business right now to speculate too much about that. We do know it's in the public realm that the family developer really wants to bring residential to this site, but that's something that we're not involved with at this stage. So I think, you know, what they want from us is sort of feedback. The city manager wants feedback from the ARB in terms of how we see what's being presented to us today. And that's as simple as it is. So should we start with you, Amanda?

I had one other question. Sorry, Rinaldo. For the garden space. It looks like there's entrances for pedestrians. Is it like an open garden? Are there going to be benches and things like that? Or are you not envisioning people actually using this space?

At this point, it's somewhat up in the air. It's a conversation that we're having with the manager right now. He has expressed in the past that he would like us to find a way to activate that space. We're going to work with him on trying to figure out something that will be a little bit more compelling than just an open green space. But meanwhile, we wanted to make sure we're properly screening the building.

Okay. Yeah, I think it would be nice if you can get back to the committee.

I agree. It depends on how you activate it, right? You could have a rock concert and make a lot of noise and get the neighbors dancing. So, yeah, maybe it's more passive. More passive use is what is more appropriate, perhaps. But, you know, I think let's start with you, Amanda, in terms of comments, feedback that the city manager could use in his evaluation of our thoughts.

I really think it's just making sure those vines are kept up properly. I've also seen failures of the vines and projects getting not approved because of that, and just making sure that the car's lights are able to be covered. Other than that, I think it is a nice temporary adjustment. I did have a question about whether, what happens, I guess the timeline, what happens beyond temporary if it does become a permanent fixture?

I think the simple answer is no one knows. We're fighting.

I'm just wondering, I guess, will it come back to discussion if it does happen?

If it triggers aesthetic review or a site plan amendment, then the manager will be in a position to, and so far, I think he's taken everything to the ARB for their recommendation because he values it. So it is likely that you will be asked by the manager to provide that input.

Thank you, Susan.

My recommendation on the plants would just be to provide some simple wire lattice, just fastened to the structure. I know they are cascading, but they will climb if allowed the opportunity, if they have something to climb on. So I think anything that you can do, that's a simple change just to allow them another opportunity to grow where they will.

one comment on that just just so you know the um the places we have some planters at the ground level with with vines in them at the base of the columns particularly at the crossover bridges the reason i bring that up is they're covered in um cementitious fire proofing that is very rough in texture and the reason we put the vines at the base of those is we know that they're going to with capillary action connect to the building and go up it so that's that's part of the reason behind it

There's two types of vines, though. So some climb by attaching to a structure, and there's another type that climb by twining. So the twining vine, I think this is a twining vine, will do this over the course of the day following the sun, and it will just attach to whatever it can. It will not stick to a flat surface wall, even textured. Okay.

I think also just really quickly, the garage has a fairly large span, so you will have gaps in there. So I do think like a Jacob's ladder or something along those lines would help. It's very thin, unnoticeable usually, and it can help with the vines growth.

Very well. Okay, so I don't have much to add to that. I mean, I think success here is on those vines and how they're executed and how they're maintained. The good news is that you're not coming to us with an artificial vine system, right? You're thinking of something natural. So any further feedback here?

I agree with you guys. If you can put something where the vines will grow, I think that will go a long way. I've worked on two parking garages in Miami Beach. One has been a disaster from day one. They've never been able to make it to put the right planting. near City Hall. A well-known architectural firm designed it and we tried many times to fix that and never been successful. So I can tell you I'm not a landscape architect, but I always feel like these things are hit or miss. The other one is on Collins and Fifth. I think that's the one that you mentioned. Yeah. yeah i mean that one's been super successful that one is always they overgrown and they they trim it you know if you can get something like that i you know yeah i would support this thing but again if you don't get the right planting yeah i think overall the more you treat that as a vertical garden that is carefully managed you know the more success i think you're going to find and the happier uh the neighbors that overlook this site will be um

The palm trees and the maturity of the palm trees is fantastic. I mean, I'm a bit traumatized by thinking that they're being taken from one place and what happens in that place, because the front of this beautiful mall is beautiful as you see it now. But that's something in the future, so we have to trust that good decisions are going to be made. And the developers and owners of this are very proud of this beautiful property, so I hope that, you know, Everything is carefully thought through, and this presentation is very carefully presented to us, so I appreciate that. But I think, yeah, success is sort of in the combination, the layering, the scaling of all these elements, and how they transition to a very unattractive garage facade that we all know is functional and is very needed. Those of us that use the mall are always wishing for more parking capacity, so it seems like this is going in that direction. So those are my thoughts, and I think at this point we're not making any further judgment. We're just sort of for the record presenting our thoughts, and that's it.

That's correct, but you do have a public comment. This one is 9,700. You've been reading them if you would like to.

Yes, indeed. Thank you for reminding me because I had it targeted here. So the additional trees and planters will be very helpful in toning down the endless project. Little comment about the timeline. Based on the lack of draping plants on the 96th Street side, and I guess that's on the Siskovich Garage, I would not count on them actually executing the full plan, ensuring viability of the plants. And that's a statement by one of our neighbors here in the village. So with that, I suppose we could conclude this presentation, Susan.

That was Nika again, just so people know.

Yes. Nika Logan.

Nika Logan.

Nika Logan. She's famous now.

And there's nobody in the room, right? Nobody else here, no? And nothing online.

All right, nothing online. Very well, so we could bring this to a closure.

And the appropriate motion would be a motion to recommend to the manager to approve in accordance with the staff report and recommended conditions, if that's your belief.

Okay. Motion to approve with, could you repeat that again?

Recommend approval to the manager in accordance with the staff report and the recommended conditions, if that's the desire of the board.

Okay. Which are the recommended? Deactivation of the park is one of them?

Ellie can read that. He's provided a couple of conditions at the end of his report.

There's a recommendation page. Should I read it for the record?

Whoever can.

Or you want to read it? Go ahead.

Okay.

Okay.

is the opinion of the writer of this proposed installation of a smaller Building Z and of the temporary improvements of the related landscape in place of the remaining portion of Building Z follows the Village Appearance Code and zoning ordinance. The Village Planning and Zoning Consultant has reviewed the plans and concur that the plans concur with the Village zoning requirements. Since the application changes the facade of Building Z, I recommend that the ARB evaluates the Ball Bay Drive-facing facade of the skinny Z and temporarily Building Z improvements and make recommendations if the improvements of the facade-related landscape are to harmonize with the Ball Harbor Shops expansion project. I also recommend that the board reviews the submittal in compliance and concur with my recommendations. Recommend that whether the manager should approve or the aesthetic review. If approved, the following conditions should be added to this motion. All work performed must be in accordance with the development agreement. Second, landscape must be maintained as approved and replaced as needed. Third, applicant to apply for and obtain all necessary permits and approvals from the outside agencies. Basically, those are the three conditions to maintain basically what you guys are recommending, but that's our part.

Okay. Any comments on that recommendation from the building official?

No, I just have one comment. As a resident of Bell Harbor, I also live on Park Drive. It was mentioned previously, but if that area was open to the public, you know, it could be four or five years before something gets built there. It would be great for the community and I think appreciated. Also glad everyone's playing nice in the sandbox given the litigation and Everyone came to an agreement to beautify this area when everything gets figured out. So if it's open and safety is okay and it's accessible to the residents or anyone at Bell Harbor, I think that'd be very nice. But obviously it's private property.

I know there's a wall there that separates the mall from the community. There are doors that are only usable for residents. Is that the way that works?

Residents can enter the neighborhood but can't enter that private property area that's going to be landscaped.

Okay. So as a neighbor, how would you suggest and envision this transitional landscape area be used by the community?

If it's just open, I don't know if that's even feasible, but if it was open, because it's going to be, I guess, grass in the middle and then surrounded by trees. So right now there's a big sliding door. If maybe the wall's knocked down or it's accessible or some areas were accessible, just aesthetically it would look really nice.

Okay. All right. Any other further comments? The building officials' comments? Do we concur with those comments? Want to add? Suggest any editing? No? Okay. So motion then to basically agree with those building official recommendations to the city manager.

I motion to approve with the comments as noted by City Manager Ellie for the review of the city manager with the inclusion of the comments we had about the additional lattice for the climbing pine.

Okay. Is there a second to that motion? Second. Okay. All those in favor of moving this forward, say aye. Aye. Everybody said aye? Yes? Yeah. So we have five ayes, and we move this item forward. Thank you so much for being here today.

Thank you for your time.

Next item, 96 Ballcross Drive.

Yes.

As long as we have three, we'll be fine.

I think there's a game at 3, so just for the record. I don't know what kind of game, but it seems to be on. Welcome.

Introduce yourself. Hi. Hello, everyone, members of the board. My name is Boutros Bonara, the architect for this property at 96 Balcross.

Oh, yes, building official will read his report first. So we've received the written confirmation acknowledgement of the 18 conditions and their in agreeance It is my opinion that the new single-family home for the 96 power cross drive follows the village appearance code and zoning ordinance and the planning and zoning consultant also concurs that it they comply and

Thank you. Very well. You can make your presentation.

Great. Just walk you through this here. So it's located on an interesting site where there's, if you highlight it at the number seven, it has a little street island in front. And because of the curve, you can kind of see that it's not a rectangular lot. It has sort of this angular front property line, which we found interesting when we started designing this home. There is an existing single-family house that will be demolished. And as you can see here, sort of the main setback lines and the outline of what can be built, we wanted to use this angle of the front property line to add to the overall design of the project, particularly the main entry. As you can see, that main line creates a lot of dynamic space. moves of the project, primarily on the first level, the garage and the entry towards the left follows that angle. And as the building steps back, it becomes more rectilinear. And the main party of the design is we have this main protruding, this bold, we call it the C form that guides you through the main entry of the project. And further back as you go, the house has many different layers. And as you can see with the materials, which we'll touch on, this bold element is highlighted in one and all of the others start to break down with more ornate and a little bit more repeated patterns that allow the architecture to have this dynamic layout of the front facade. In terms of program and the accent of metric, you can see the bottom consists of the entry, the main hosting, living, kitchen, dining spaces, and bedrooms, master and guest bedrooms up top. We'll go through this later on. The site plan, you have a main walkway and a driveway leading to that front-facing garage, which we'll touch on later. later on, but the garage entry, we wanted to shift it off to the side to still allow a portion of it to be disguised by landscape, which you'll see in this image. So if you're facing the front of the property line and you're looking at the approach of the building, the landscape still disguises somewhat of that garage.

So just for the record, this is already utilizing the modified ordinance that allows for a frontal garage entry?

Yes. It was not approved until the ordinance got approved. So that's the reason that this one was coming in.

Very well. Correct. Thanks.

So moving forward, again, just to kind of highlight that you have the main entry. opening up to the hosting areas that then leads to a covered terrace to the pool. Again, on the second floor you have bedrooms, but it does have a landing area that it's open to a skylight above, which you can see in the roof plan.

And in terms of materials... Can we go back two slides really quickly?

Yes.

Sorry about that.

So the building steps back, which we'll show in the section, but there are terraces to each bedrooms. And towards the front, they are not terraces. They're planters. So just to kind of give that added layer of privacy to the house itself, which we'll see later on in the renderings. In terms of materiality, we have a few. Typically, the palette for this project is, we would say, more natural and warm materials. We have number one, which is the cladding of that bold sea feature, as we call it. Other than that, the second material is travertine. And then we have the third, I would say, is the highlighting element would just be that front door that in the rendering you'll see that the door kind of carries up that entire vertical element. And that's the only application of the wood. And then other than that, you'll have this bronze metal that allows the texture of the project on the upper areas. Throughout the elevation, we didn't just consider the front elevation, but on the side elevations as well, we wanted to make sure that some of the dynamic facade carries through on the side yards, which is important for us. You can see there's a mix of heights, balconies, planters as we go around through the left and right side of the project. And then finally, the bottom area, you can see where that top overhang creates a very grandiose entry, which our client was really happy about and excited about. And then towards the upper, you can see the section that shows the step back of the upper volumes, which allows you to have a terrace. And in this case, we show that we're having equipment up on the right side as well to kind of keep the site clean and have some of those equipment areas up there. Again, going back to the main entry, what we're proposing. And I really like the balance between such a bold statement of the entry as well as on the other side, you get like the texture and how we're making a little bit more elegance of these aluminum fins between the different areas that also softens it up with planters on top of these areas where the balconies are. Towards the rear, everything steps down to pool, jacuzzi, and a small barbecue area. And instead of making it just an enclosed area, as you can see in the lower left, we wanted to open up that area so on a hot, humid day, you can still have natural ventilation through the rear. And just this is the planting plan, which there wasn't much trees to begin with. So you can see with the planting plan, we definitely wanted to create a nice oasis for this project. And, yeah, we worked really hard with the client. They're super happy about it and excited to get this project approved. Happy to answer any questions you guys might have. Thanks.

Thank you, Butras. Thank you. Going back to that detailed perspective of the entry, I think it's the next slide. That one. So that element that goes up creates a nice protective canopy at the entrance. What's the materiality of that?

So we have this sample here, which it's – we have it specified as a light tile, but this is actually a – So it's a porcelain?

It's actually a porcelain and a marble hybrid. So it's interesting because you have –

The durability of the porcelain and it stands well to the exterior, but it has marble chips in it. So it gives you that brilliant look to it as well. So it's kind of the best of both worlds in a way.

Interesting. So are you mechanically fastening that or you're mud setting that?

We're still thinking about it. I think in the upper areas where it's horizontal mechanically and then in the vertical areas mud set. We usually do like every intermittent level, like let's say every six feet or so, we'll have a mechanically fastened and in-between mud set. Okay. Especially being that high, definitely the upper areas mechanically.

This is curious, something that I wrestle with, these built-in planters, long-term, have you seen them perform well?

Yeah, we've done a few, and so far, so good. We've liked them, yeah. Good.

And the vertical louvers are aluminum? Aluminum, yeah, powder-coated aluminum. Powder-coated, yeah, okay.

Mechanical is on the east side of the property or the west?

It is on the west.

And do you have any insulation? How is it currently fastened on the side of the building? Is there anything insulating it?

So there is a parapet wall at 42 inches high, which basically covers all the equipment on that area. And what's the height of the machine? About at least like around like 36 to 38 or so. The carrier just came out with a new system that we're excited about that actually is around like 32 inches. So we're planning on using that one. Yes.

And the front is the right?

Say it again?

The front of the property is on the right side, correct? That's correct, yep. So I think it's on the east side, no?

So if north is actually pointing right, if you can see it's, yeah, north isn't up in this case. Okay, got it. So the top of the property is actually west.

Are you able to pull that elevation up so that he can see that? Yes, absolutely.

Actually, it might be best shown in this section, top right, you can see.

Okay. Any questions? Any feedback for Buccio's?

I think it's a great house. Very nice. Thank you.

I had one question. You are calling off turf block. Are you imagining that extra cars will be parking on the lawn or...

So the turf block is only in the driveway area. Oh, okay. So it's not turf block on the entire front property. So I would imagine, of course, like in the driveway, there would still be parking as well, but nothing additional on the lawn itself.

Yeah, I mean, graphically, you're not identifying what that is on your site plan, I believe. It would be good, because this kind of becomes a record of what we approve and what we see, so... Yeah, it just says driveway and walkway. It just says driveway, yeah.

We do have a detail on the bottom right for, like, what that driveway is, so it shows that it is the turf block, lower right.

Okay. Let me ask you a question. What's the material over the garage door?

Right above the garage door, stucco, smooth stucco.

Oh, and over the main entrance door and over the windows, the same thing, just stucco? Where you have like the horizontal line? Yeah, the stucco, yeah.

It kind of matched the color of the frame of the window as well.

You got travertine and transitions to the smooth stucco painted. Correct. Okay, and then, of course, you're matching the garage door, the same color, and your front door is, is it a wood door?

Yes.

Yeah?

Yeah, and that vertical element goes all the way up top, too, so it reads as grand entry.

Very nice. Okay. Okay. So, should I read at this point the neighbor's comments before we get a motion on this? So, the neighbor, remember there's the neighbor, a very sensitive, caring neighbor, and she says, great, another travertine, woodclad sugar cube with sparse landscaping other than hedges. Has all inspiration gone out of the architectural world? Question.

For the record, we appreciate her comments and we like the neighbors to comment, but I do not believe it looks like a sugar cube and I think it's a great house.

Thank you. Spoken from another neighbor, you see.

Another neighbor.

So six-bedroom house with two-car garage, nowhere else to park on the property. Where does that put the housekeeper, nanny, and all the kids who drive in the parking? Driveways must get bigger to accommodate a larger family. Families tend to have stuff, bikes, scooters, baby carriages, toys. There is virtually no room in the backyard for any of this stuff. Where is it going? Happy to see trash receptacles in mailbox, acknowledge and planned. However, one of the board members thinks that there's no screening for those, so perhaps you should consider some screening for the trash receptacles. They're just sitting there in the garden. It's a constant, you know, from local neighbors, you know, sort of the concern of where do you put these trash bins in the front yard. So that's the neighbors' comments for you. I will make one comment that really is not on the front of the house. The front of the house, I think, is speaking a very nice, consistent modern language that you perform very well. I'm concerned about the functionality of the rear terrace. And as a local architect here, we're designing these homes for outdoor living as we are for indoor living. If you see the floor plan of your pool deck, your upper level of the deck, must be about six feet or seven feet or something like that. It doesn't really allow for there to be adequate seating or dining or anything like that in that protected canopy area. I think that's a missed opportunity. You should have probably considered raising the pool. and not having to step down and lose a lot of usable terrace that is not continuous for the functionality of it, right? You got a very narrow pool that comes up to it and then you got to step down to a deck that is not fully protected by the overhang that you have. I mean, you have a beautiful overhang, it's splendid, but because of the steps and the pool encroaching and all that, you know, you're not really being able to utilize it. for an outdoor event, you know, Thanksgivings, you know, whatever, festivities, right? So that's just a comment, architect to architect, but it's just an observation.

It's an excellent comment and very interesting. We went back and forth and there's two strategies technically where It's one that you recommended where you have sort of an elevated terrace as soon as you walk out, and it does exactly what you're saying. But then the tradeoff is there's the idea of less usable yard. So where do you step down? Do you step down at the end of the deck to a smaller yard, or do you step down right out of the house, and then you have a perceivably larger yard? And in this case, we presented both options, and they went with this one for their lifestyle, so...

Yeah, I mean, I think that what we learned through time in the tropics here is that being under the shade is so important, right, in this hot and humid environment. So maximizing the usable shaded area with good capacity, right, because if you have 15, 20, 30 people there, then, you know, somehow some will be under shade some may not be and so on but yeah transitioning to the garden and Not having to bring more fill or elevate things. I mean it keeps it simple, right? But that's just a minor comment. I mean your your plan is very Very open and I'm sure they love that it's easy to furnish and enjoy that beautiful space So motion from the board I mean, no further comments, right? So we could entertain a motion. Motion to approve. Is there a second? Second. Second by Amanda. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. You have five votes out of five architects here, so thank you so much. Thank you guys so much. Appreciate it. Are you an architect? No, I'm not. Okay. Four architects.

I'm in good company.

Thank you so much, Boutros. All right. Okay, so the next project.

I have to excuse myself. I have eight minutes, actually, so. Eight minutes. I'll get to hear the presentation.

All right. So 101 Ball Bay Drive.

I'll try to make it quick so you can get out. My name is Naftali Deutsch, I'm architect on the project. Today I'm presenting a new home at 101 Balbaie. It's similar in style and massing to the one that was recently demolished. It's in a contemporary Mediterranean style home with stucco and natural limestone facade, slate roof and contrasting dark olive color framed windows. and dark metal railings. Since we have a corner lot with two street facing facades, we wanted to treat each facade meticulously and we paid close attention to the massing articulation and proportions between the windows and stucco limestone like the void and the glass, in order to create a composition that is pleasing to the eye and is harmony with a general architectural vocabulary of the other homes in Bell Harbor. So the front entry, as you see, is detailed with a stone archway to serve as a focal point within the facade and establish a clear sense of arrival. The materials selected are all high quality selections with real limestone, real slate and high quality windows and bronze colored metal door in the front. The pool area, which I will switch to. We can go back to the... These are the neighbours, obviously. The front facade showing with the trees and without, so you can have a view of the house itself. And the... back, which is really the second side because it is a corner lot. The pool area and the landscape garden, they're integrated into the overall design and screened through a combination of architectural elements, fencing and layered landscaping to enhance the privacy and minimize visibility from the public realm from the street. In terms of the requirements from the city in terms of zoning, etc., we're in compliance. We're not asking for variances in terms of setbacks, coverage, heights, etc. And overall, the goal is to create a home for my wonderful clients. That's harmonious with the neighborhood and one that positively contributes to the overall character of the community while presenting, while providing timeless, in theory, and well-executed residence. Thank you.

Thank you for that.

And if you want, I can move on to the plan, which is interior, pretty straightforward. Living area down below, bedrooms above. on the second floor and there's a slate roof and here are the elevations without the rendering and the materials are in the in between light and dark limestone which is a brighter whiter limestone than the creamier limestone and the dark olive color for the window and um and uh black elements for the railings um on the uh terraces overhanging um section through and not sure that is um and the uh landscaping uh which also is going over and above what the requirements are for landscaping this area. And we are in keeping with the previous and impervious calculations and the selections. Quite a bit of detail here, which I'm sure you guys already went through. And that is it in terms of the landscaping. I'll go back to the facade. If you have any questions, I'm happy to respond.

Building official?

I received the written confirmation that they acknowledge the 18 conditions and they're in agreeance. And it's my opinion that the proposed new single-family home for the 101 Ball Bay Drive follows the village appearance code and zoning ordinance. The village planning and zoning consultant has reviewed the plans and concur that they comply.

Okay. Full compliance. No conditions. No conditions. Okay. 18 conditions. There's the 18 conditions. The 18 conditions. Okay. Standard 18. You've read the conditions? No problem. All clear. Okay. All right. Just trying to understand. The challenge that we always have in these homes is where do we put mechanical equipment when you have such an elegant facade?

So we have their hidden screen behind hedges and fencing on the side of the house. We do have an easement, so we are respecting that. And they are on the side and on the front on a concrete pad that is also concealed and screened.

I see. So they're in the yard, and you were able to raise the pad so it meets the building code.

Yes.

You have a generator also detached in the back, right? Or on the side? On the side. Yeah, the side and the rear. So utility easement. I see. So you're putting the mechanical equipment adjacent to where you have the generator?

The generator has some mechanical equipment on it. The rest of it is on the side. It's a little hard to see, but it's on the front right between the easement and the driveway, and there's some additional equipment on the side. Oh, it's on the front. Sorry.

So the style, of course, you know, I'm sure we're going to have some comments about the selection of the style. I think it's very nicely executed. The garage door, right? So you've got like a symmetrical garage door configuration, but only one side is active. The other one is a utility room.

Correct. So we wanted to keep with the previous house layout and style in general terms. They had a double garage before, so we're having visually a double garage, but this is going to be a garage in the same color as the house, and the two panels are going to be coplanar. One of them is a false facade in front of the utility room, and the other one is a working lift-up flush, as it's called, garage by a company called Schweiss, if I'm not mistaken, that lifts up and is... So it looks like a double garage, and only one is operable.

Yes. Yes. Very well, so we heard the official's report. Any Board comments? Questions? Nothing? Jose?

No, no, I think you master the style of what you're doing. You know what you're doing. I think if you chose that style, you've done it pretty well. Thank you. Very well, very well. Beautiful project.

Yeah, I would second that for sure. Thank you. Very elegant and very tasteful, very well composed and nice material palette. So landscape seems to be very well done as well. I mean, very important to the project. And I will present the neighbors' comments for you, for your consideration. Finally, something new, amazing, how similar footprint is to the one that was knocked down. One garage does not feel like enough. Maybe the utility room will house the family's bikes and scooters. This home has no place for swing sets, etc. That should be something that is very clearly stated because a future buyer may have that need. Circular driveway remains excellent. Where are the trash bins going to live? On a corner lot like this, the site is crucial for planting and need to achieve the line of sight and privacy for the resident. I envision the pool hedge will be much higher than illustrated in the presentation. Very well. So that's the neighbor's comments. There's no other public comment. Nothing online. No one present. Motion from the board on this? Motion to approve. Motion to approve. Is there a second?

It's second.

It's been second. All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Okay. I guess meeting is adjourned, no?

Other business? Any other business?

No new business?

Or general public comments?

Talk about the game last night? No?

I don't think we have members of the public seeking to speak, but we can certainly ask. Not seeing any. And just for the record, that last vote was 4-0 because Mr. Schlachter needed to leave.

4-0. Thank you for that. Very well. So, thank you, sir.