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<br />Zoning Ordinance Amendment No. 2004-07 <br />March 27, 2006 <br />Page 3 <br /> <br />of buildings while still allowing for the construction of economically <br />viable, competitively sized and architecturally varied homes. Staff is <br />proposing the following: <br /> <br />· Reduce the lot coverage from 50 percent to 35 percent. This would <br />result in a maximum building ground coverage of 2,100 square feet <br />on a 6,000 square foot lot. A lot coverage of 50 percent is <br />necessary on small lots to allow viable homes, but not typical on <br />6,000 square foot lots. A 50 percent lot coverage inevitably will <br />change the uniqueness of existing neighborhoods in Santa Ana and <br />result in communities where buildings are close to each other, such <br />as is seen on newer communities in South County area where lots are <br />generally smaller. <br />· Change the definition of lot coverage to regulate the size of the <br />building footprint and not the roof proj ection. This would allow <br />patio covers and gazebos, as well as eaves and other similar <br />projections, to be excluded from the lot coverage calculations. <br />For reference, the average lot coverage of the homes surveyed in <br />the study was 32 percent. <br />· Implement design standards to address the size and location of a <br />new second story. This would allow the construction of a variety <br />of architectural styles, which provides the richness in the <br />architectural fabric of the city's established neighborhoods and to <br />reduce the impact of second stories on the existing streetscape, <br />especially when surrounding properties are single story. <br /> <br />To address <br />recreation, <br /> <br />concerns about the lack of <br />staff is recommending to: <br /> <br />usable private <br /> <br />open <br /> <br />space <br /> <br />for <br /> <br />· Eliminate the allowable reduction of rear yards when 1,200 square <br />feet of open space is provided. <br />· Clarify that the rear yards are intended to be used for recreation <br />purposes and not for parking or driveways. <br />· Reduce the maximum size of accessory structures from 66 percent to <br />50 percent of the main structure. <br /> <br />Extensive modifications to nonconforming buildings can extend their <br />economic life, while the zoning code encourages their recycling or <br />coming into closer compliance with the current code. To address this <br />concern, staff is proposing modifications to the nonconforming code. <br />While nonconforming dwellings will continue to have the ability to <br /> <br />758-4 <br />