By Elizabeth Cloutman

Los Altos Hills

The Los Altos Hills City Council is set to hold a first reading and public hearing Thursday on a resolution to repeal the current design review guidelines, the exterior colors of structures and fences policy, and the site development policy statement.

The resolution, if adopted, would also direct the Planning Commission to review the design guidelines and policies for inclusion in the zoning and site development code, revising them when necessary, and to report its recommendations to the council.

The resolution is based on the recommendations of the Municipal Code and Review Committee, who spent several months reviewing municipal guidelines and policies.

In a presentation to the council Sept. 19, committee chairman Evan Wythe said the committee members had found most town guidelines are presented in ambiguous terms and are either somewhat or not at all consistent with the town zoning and site development code. The committee’s report recommended the current guidelines and policies be repealed and be replaced with quantifiable standards or otherwise concise limitations set by the zoning and site development code. Planning Director Carl Cahill said the town staff sometimes found it difficult to enforce some vaguely worded policies.

At the recommendation of the council, town staff developed a prioritized list for the Planning Commission’s review of guidelines and policies.

The staff assigned the highest priority to those guidelines and policies that generate the highest incidence of ambiguity for building permit applicants, neighbors and town staff.

Staff recommended the Planning Commission spend the coming months studying the 11 guidelines and policies. The top five, as prioritized by staff, are the exterior colors policy, conservation easements guideline, grading policy, driveway design guideline, and architectural features and neighborhood compatibility.

Others to be reviewed are siting and high site visibility; fences, walls, entry gates and columns; lighting policy; development area and pervious surface policy; landscaping and the site development policy statement.

In a staff report, Cahill wrote that setting aside the design guidelines and site development policies would not impact the site development review process. However, he recommended the current grading, lighting and development area policies be retained.

“They are necessary for the time being because they provide the staff and Planning Commission with measurable standards by which to review key aspects of incoming development,” he said.