2012-07-10 Kailua Village Design Commission Minutes

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Mr. Childs displayed some photographs of the subject building currently under construction. He described the proposed changes, which include elimination of the two four-foot diameter circular windows on the high walls each facing Henry Street and Kuakini Highway. He said that due to the proposed change being substantial, Planning staff had advised the owner that the Commission’s recommendation and the Planning Director’s approval would be necessary before a certificate of occupancy could be issued. He also said that approval of a building permit application for tenant improvements was being withheld pending the Commission’s review of the requested changes. He added that the tenant for this single-user building, which had not been disclosed at the August meeting, was later identified as Starbucks Coffee. Mr. Childs also described the sign variance application pertaining to the same building. He noted that if the elimination of the circular windows were to be denied, the applicant would not be able to proceed with the variance application since it included a proposal to place two large signs over the areas where the two circular windows had originally been proposed. He said that the other request was placement of a roof sign above the entrance, and noted that roof signs are prohibited throughout the Kailua Village design district. He brought to the Commissioners’ attention that although it was not made part of the application, the applicant was proposing to install an illuminated drive-through menu board, which would face Henry Street. He said that Department of Public Works (DPW) staff had advised that menu boards are considered to be directional signs, which are exempt from sign code regulation; he said, however, that since the board would be a visible structure from a public street, it was subject to review and recommendation by the Commission. He mentioned that other drive-through menu boards within the Kailua Village were not visible from streets. He also pointed out that the letter height for the words “DRIVE THRU,” specified as being twelve inches, was proportionally misrepresented in the elevation rendering where the letters were portrayed at approximately half the size of the 14-inch “STARBUCKS COFFEE” lettering directly above. He presented an illustration depicting the correct proportion of the 14-inch and twelve-inch lettering. Mr. Childs concluded his presentation by saying that a sign application reviewer at DPW had confirmed that the proposed sign above the entrance is in fact a roof sign prohibited in the district, contrary to DPW’s initial comments that refer to it as a marquee sign. He said that the reviewer had also offered his opinion that the sign would be just as visible if mounted at the allowable nine-foot maximum height, and that the building appearance would be much improved with the circular windows being installed according to the originally approved plan. Commissioner Andreae, who had not been a member when the Commission reviewed the original design, asked about the discussion leading to approval. The Chair responded that the circular windows on the otherwise block-like structure had been a focal point of the discussion at that time, and that the Commission’s approval of the building design had been a result of collaboration between the Commission and the then project architect. Ms. Tracy Burnham of Starbucks Coffee Company introduced herself, and stated that the business was moving from the current Kona Coast Shopping Center location to the subject property, that it was too difficult to achieve the visibility they wished for with the permitted nine-inch letter height and also with the company logo smaller than four feet, which was their company’s standard size, and that the proposed menu board was intended only for their drive-through customers and would be hidden with landscape from the general public view. She also acknowledged that they had originally talked about the windows, and added that in the course of the lease agreement discussion, they decided to replace them with the company logo. In response to Commissioner Andreae’s question as to whether or not the menu board could be relocated around the corner so that it would not be visible from the street, she 2