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19730515 1973-13ORDINANCE NO. 1973-13 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE EXISTING ORDINANCE BY ADDING A NEW SECTION 18 CREATING AN ARCHITECTURAL CONTROL DISTRICT AND PROVIDING PROCEDURES FOR REVIEW OF THE DESIGN AND APPEARANCE OF STRUCTURES ERECTED THEREIN IT IS HEREBY ORDAINED by the City Council of the City of Fairfax, Virginia, that a new Section 18 be and the same hereby is added to the Zoning Ordinance of the City which will read in its entirety as follows: 18.1 Purposes of Chapter 18.2 Designations of architectural control districts 18.3 Approval of erections, reconstructions and alterations in architectural control districts--required; waiver of require- ments 18.4 Same--Same--Application 18.5 Same--Same--Hearing 18.6 Same--Same--Decisions; Certificate of Approval 18.7 Same--Same--Appeals 18.8 Hearing before City Council 18.9 Appeals to County Circuit Court 18.10 Design criteria 18.11 No specific architectural style to be required 18.12 Deviations from approved plans prohibited 1973-13 SECTION 18 ARCHITECTURAL CONTROL DISTRICT 18.1 Purposes of Chapter. In order to encourage the construction of attractive build- ings to protect and promote the general welfare and to prevent deterioration of the appearance of the City which would tend to create hazards to public health, safety and morals, destroy oppor- tunity for the development of business and industry, and thereby deteriorate taxable land values and commerce below levels necessary to finance acceptable levels of municipal services, it is the purpose of this chapter (1) to provide for the designation of architectural control districts within land areas zoned for commercial, industrial and public buildings use; (2) to charge the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) (Section 13.05) with the responsibility to regulate the exterior appearance of buildings, structures and improvements proposed for alteration or erection in such districts; and (3) to set standards and procedures to be followed by such board, and on appeal from its decision, by the City Council. 18.2 Designations of architectural control districts. All land areas in the City outside the "Old and Historic Fairfax District" which are zoned for other than single-family detached residences are designated as an architectural control district. In addition, any lot parcel or area of land within any area zoned for single-family detached residences outside the "Old and Historic Fairfax District" used for other than single-family detached residences or is the subject of an application for a use 1973-13 permit or building permit .involving any such other use is designated an architectural control district. The terms and strictures of this ordinance shall not apply to auxiliary and ancillary buildings in residential areas, nor shall such terms or strictures apply to parcels zoned for semi-detached residences or town houses after such semi-detached or town house residences shall have been initially erected. 18.3 Approval of erections, reconstructions and alterations in architectural control districts--required; waiver of require- ments. No structure, building or major improvement or major landscape features surrounding such building, structure or major improvement located on any land within the architectural control district shall be erected, reconstructed, altered or restored until the plans for such shall have been approved by the Board of Architectural Review; provided that the provisions of this chapter shall not apply to the regular maintenance of the same as opposed to the reconstruction, alteration or restoration. For the purposes.of this section the repain~ing of a structure or building which results in the complete change of color of the said structure or building or a substantial portion thereof shall be deemed an alteration and not regular main- tenance. The Board may, after hearing the evidence in any case properly before it involving reconstruction or alteration only, waive part or all of the requirements of this chapter upon a written finding ,-' 1973-13 that the application involves reconstruction or alteration only and will not materially affect the exterior appearance of the structure involved. Such decision of waiver shall constitute a final decision of the Board within the meaning of Section 18.6 and Section 18.7 of this chapter and shall be appealable. The Board of Architectural Review is hereby directed as soon as may be practicable after the effective date of this ordinance and from time to time thereafter as shall be necessary to formulate and publish a statement of guide lines for the edification of appli- cants designating the types and kinds of improvements which will be treated as "major" improvements for the purposes of this section. The statement of guide lines will contain such descriptive detail of physical features and will designate such number of categories of types of improvements as will best inform the public of the kind of improvement included within the scope of this section. 18.4 Same--Same--Application. (a) Application for approval by the Board for the construction, reconstruction, alteration or restoration of any building within an architectural control district shall be submitted to the City Planning Director (CPD) to determine whether the proposed alteration or improve- ment lies within the scope of this section in accordance with section 18.3. In the event of a disagreement between the applicant and the CPD, the applicant may request the CPD to schedule an informal hear- ing before the BAR at its next regular meeting. Such hearing shall be for the purpose of determining whether the applicant's proposal 1973-13 falls within the scope of this section and he shall not be required to present plans, renderings or maps at this time. The decision of the BAR shall not constitute a final decision within the meaning of Section 18.6 and 18.7 of the chapter and shall not be appealable. (b) If the CPD (or, on appeal, the BAR) determines that a proposed alteration or improvement lies within the scope of this section, the applicant shall submit, in addition to his application, such other of the following as the CPD (or the BAR) shall deem neces- sary for determination of the application: (1) an architectural ren- dering and plans of all buildings and structures showing style of architecture prepared by a registered architect; all colors, materials and finishes shall be shown by notation or by use of accepted archi- tectural symbols; (2) a site plan; and (3) a vicinity map and renderings or photographs of all development on immediately adjacent properties. The applicant may submit such additional material in writing, and graphically, as he desires. For purposes of this · section, no site plan shall be required where there is proposed no change in any external dimension or the location of any existing structure. Each application shall be assigned a docket number by the CPD. (c) Upon receipt of any application the CPD, after determining that the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this section have been satisfied, shall within fourteen (14) days forward the application together with his recommendations on the same to the chairman of the Board of Architectural Review. 4 1973-13 (d) Upon receipt of any such application, the chairman of the BAR shall thereupon place the application on the agenda for consideration at the first regular meeting of the BAR to be held not less than ten (10) days after such receipt by the chairman. 18.5 Same--Same--Hearinq. During the consideration of an application filed under this chapter, the Board of Architectural Review shall hear the testimony of any party desiring to be heard in support of or in opposition to the application. Such testimony shall be strictly confined to the ques- tion of whether the proposed construction, reconstruction, alteration or restoration satisfies or does not satisfy the criteria for the same set out in this chapter. The Board shall hear any oral testimony that the City Planning Director desires to present. 18.6 Same--Same--Decisions; Certificate of Approval. (a) The Board of Architectural Review shall vote in open hear- ing and publish its decision in writing on any matter properly before it not later than the next regular meeting after the conclusion of hearing evidence on the matter, unless time is extended by mutual agreement between the Board and the applicant. (b) In all final decisions rendered pursuant to this chapter, the Board shall briefly state its findings in writing, and in the case of disapproval, it may make recommendations to the applicant with re- spect to the design, texture, material, color, line, mass, dimension or lighting of the building involved. In case of disapproval, accompanied by such recommendations thereon, the applicant may again be heard before the Board, if within ninety (90) days he has accepted all such recommendations of the Board. 5 1973-13 (c) Approval by the Board of any application filed hereunder shall be evidenced by issuance of a certificate of appropriateness, signed by the chairman and attested by the secretary, designating the docket number, name of applicant, date of approval, identifica- tion of property involved and a brief description of the construction approved. The applicant shall be entitled to receive the original of the certificate, and the secretary shall forward a copy of the certificate to the Director of Public Works. 18.7 S~me--Same--Appeals. Whenever the Board of Architectural Review shall, in a final decision, approve or disapprove, or waive jurisdiction over any application filed pursuant to this chapter, the applicant, or any other person with justifiable cause, shall be entitled to appeal such decision and be heard thereon before the City Council; provided that there is filed with the City Clerk, on or before fourteen (14) days after the decision of the Board, by the appellant, a notice in writ- ing of such appeal and a fee of twenty-five dollars ($25) to cover the cost of advertising for the Council hearing; provided further that whenever such notice of appeal is filed by a party other than the applicant such notice shall be accompanied by a petition for such appeal in writing, signed by twenty (20) electors of the City. Upon the filing of notice of appeal as provided herein, the City Council shall thereupon schedule a public hearing before the City Council not more than thirty (30) days after the filing of such notice; provided that no such hearing shall be had unless and until the City 6 1973-13 Clerk has caused to be published at least once in a newspaper of general circulation with the City, at least seven (7) days before such proposed hearing, an advertisement stating the time, date and place of the hearing before the Council, the location of the prop- erty involved, the name of the applicant and the nature of the building for which approval is sought. 18.8 Hearinq before City Council. On any appeal to the City Council the final decision of the Board of Architectural Review shall be stayed pending the decision of the City Council. The Council shall conduct a full and impartial public hearing on the matter before rendering any decision. The same procedure and standards shall be applied by the Council as are estab- lished for the Board of Architectural Review. The Council may affirm, reverse or modify the decision of the Board, in whole or in part. The decision of the Council shall be final subject to the provisions of Section 18.9. 18.9 Appeals to County Circuit Court. Parties aggrieved by the decision of the City Council, rendered pursuant to Section 18.8, shall have the right to appeal to the Circuit Court of the County for review by filing a petition, at law, setting forth the alleged illegality of the City Council's action; provided that such petition is filed within thirty (30) days after the final decision is rendered by the City Council. The filing of the petition shall stay the Council's decision pending the outcome of the appeal to the court. 1973-13 18.10 Desiqn Criteria. The Board of Architectural Review and, on appeal, the City Council shall use the following standards and criteria in consid- ering applications filed under this chapter: (a) that the proposed architectural design is suitable for a good suburban community in terms of external architectural features, general design and arrangement, texture, color, line, mass, dimension, material and lighting. (b) that the proposed design, material, texture, color, light, landscaping, dimension, line, mass, roof line or height of the pro- posed structure, building or improvement harmonizes and blends pleasantly and aesthetically with surrounding and adjacent buildings and areas. (c) that, and to what extent, the proposed structure, build- ing or improvement would promote the general welfare and protect the public health, safety and morals by tending to maintain or augment the City tax base as a whole, generating business activity, maintain- ing and creating employment opportunity, preserving historical sites and structures, and making the City a more attractive and desirable place in which to live. (d) that proposed free-standing buildings use the same or architecturally harmonious materials, color, texture and treatment for all exterior walls; and in the case of partially free-standing buildings, whether or not the same or architecturally harmonious materials, color, texture and treatment are used on all portions of all exterior walls exposed to public view. 8 1973-13 (e) that the combination of architectural elements proposed for a structure, building or improvement, in terms of design, line, mass, dimension, color, material, texture, lighting, landscaping and roof line and height conform to accepted architectural principles for permanent buildings as contrasted with engineering standards designed to satisfy safety requirements only, and exhibit external characteristics of demonstrated architecture and aesthetic durability. (f) that, in terms of design, material, texture, color, light- ing, landscaping, dimension, line, mass or roof line and height, the proposed structure, building or improvement is not designed to serve primarily as an advertisement or commercial display, does not exhibit exterior characteristics likely to deteriorate rapidly, would not be of temporary or short-term architectural or aesthetic acceptabil- ity, would not be plainly offensive to human sensibilities or would not otherwise constitute a reasonable foreseeable detriment to the community. 18.11 No specific architectural style to be required. The Board of Architectural Review, and the City Council on appeal, shall not adopt or impose any specific architectural style in the administration of this chapter. 18.12 Deviations from approved plans prohibited. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed as auth- orizing the BAR to restrict or prohibit a use to which a parcel may be put if such use is permitted under existing zoning regulations or to restrict or limit an applicant from taking full advantage of max- 9 1973-13 imum permissible utilization of building specifications. 18.13 Compliance with Ordinance. Any persons failing to comply with the provisions of this ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon its passage. Passed: May 15, 1973. Attest: C it~--C 1/e rk 10