§ 106.31.050. Large-Scale Retail and Retail Center Design

A.

Purpose. The design guidelines in this Section are intended to produce large scale (i.e., "big box") retail stores and retail centers with more pedestrian orientation and scale than conventional projects of this type elsewhere.

B.

Applicability. The standards in this Section apply to large-scale commercial development (including buildings of 50,000 square feet or larger, and retail centers with five or more shops). These guidelines apply to large-scale retail projects in addition to those for commercial uses in Section 106.31.040.

C.

Site planning. Project site planning should emphasize pedestrian-oriented features, even though most customer trips to these facilities may be by auto.

1.

The layout of buildings and parking on the site should emphasize a strong relationship to adjoining streets, and encourage pedestrian circulation and access between the buildings and the street. Buildings should be placed near the street frontage on streets with slower traffic speeds and a pedestrian orientation, but may be located farther from a wide street with higher traffic speeds. The placement of buildings should also consider solar orientation, and the shading of outdoor pedestrian areas.

2.

Site planning should include an outdoor use area or focal point adjacent to major building entrances. The area should provide public amenities such as a water feature, benches, landscaped areas, public square, etc. A project with two or more structures should group the buildings to define this space.

D.

Parking areas. Parking lots should be designed to be equally pedestrian and vehicular oriented, as follows:

1.

Location and design of parking. Parking should not be the dominant visual element of a site. Large, expansive paved areas between the building and the street are to be avoided in favor of smaller multiple lots separated by landscaping or buildings, or located to the sides and rear of buildings.

2.

Landscaping. Parking areas should include substantial landscaping to soften the appearance of the adjacent large structures, and make walking around the site a more pleasant experience for pedestrians. Planting sites should provide adequate "uncompacted" soil area for root growth to support the mature size of the species/size of tree selected.

3.

Pedestrian routes. Safe and direct pedestrian routes should be provided through parking areas to primary entrances, and designed as noted under Subsection E.

4.

Shopping carts. Parking areas shall include an adequate number of shopping cart corrals where carts can be dropped-off without obstructing vehicle, bicycle, or pedestrian traffic movement, or being left in landscape planter areas. Cart corrals should be both attractive and durable, and their design will be a specific consideration in Design Review.

E.

Pedestrian circulation and amenities. It is the nature of large retail uses that most customers arrive by car and make purchases that could not be carried home by foot or bike. Nevertheless, the large parking lots in these projects cause much of the customer's experience to be as a pedestrian, often walking long distances from car, to entrance and back. Safe accommodation for pedestrians is essential and must be an integral part of site design.

1.

Sidewalks of at least five feet are required, and eight feet in width are encouraged along all sides of the lot that abut a public street.

2.

Sidewalks must be provided along the full length of the building along any facade with a customer entrance, and along any facade abutting a parking area.

a.

Sidewalks must be located at least six feet from the facade to provide area for landscaping, except where the facade incorporates pedestrian-oriented features such as pedestrian entrances or ground floor windows.

b.

Sidewalks should be eight feet wide, exclusive of any area planned for outdoor display or storage.

c.

The sidewalks should have wells for canopy trees at 30-foot intervals along the sidewalk edge adjacent to parking areas or vehicle access ways, so that the combination of building wall, sidewalk, and trees provide an enhanced pedestrian experience.

3.

Pedestrian walkways within the site should be provided covered for weather protection within 15 feet of all customer entrances, which should also cover nearby short-term bicycle parking.

4.

Pedestrian walkways within the site must be distinguished from driving surfaces through the use of special pavers, bricks, or colored/textured concrete to enhance pedestrian safety and the attractiveness of the walkways. Pedestrian circulation in parking areas should be parallel to traffic flow toward building entrances. Sidewalk landings should be provided and extended between parking spaces where needed to connect pedestrians to walkways.

5.

Wheel stops shall comply with the requirements in Section 106.36.080.I.3 (Wheel stops/curbing).

6.

Light or utility poles, guy wires, transformer or relay boxes, gate/door swing radii, bus benches or shelters, or permanent traffic or informational signs may be sited adjacent to, but shall not encroach upon, sidewalks or other marked pedestrian or bicycle pathways.

7.

Clearly demarcated and direct pedestrian routes should extend from peripheral public sidewalks and transit stops to the sidewalks that front commercial outlets, and along driveways. Pedestrian connections to commercial development on adjoining sites should also be provided.

F.

Building design. Building design shall be site-specific. Building details should relate to the scale of pedestrians as well as passing motorists. The tendency of many "big-box" retail chains is to replicate a corporate or generic aesthetic, often treating the building elevations much like large, scale-less billboards. The lack of human scale and absence of architectural character or local connection serve to emphasize a disconnection between the chain store and the community. The City discourages these conventional approaches to large-scale retail design.

1.

Entrances. Each side of a principal building facing a public street should have a customer entrance. Customer entrances must be clearly defined and highly visible, with features such as canopies or porticos, arcades, arches, wing walls, and integral planters.

2.

Exterior wall materials. Predominant exterior building materials must be of high quality. Examples include brick, wood, stone, tinted/textured stucco, and tile accents.

a.

Building walls should incorporate the same quality and level of detail of ornamentation on each elevation visible from a public right-of-way.

b.

Building facade details and materials should be authentic, and integrated into building design, and should not be or appear as artificial "glued/tacked-on" features, such as trellises that do not support plant materials, encouraging the perception of low quality.

3.

Wall design. All building walls should be designed to break up the appearance of a box-like structure, especially when visible from public roadways or residential areas. See Figures 3-27 and 3-28.

a.

Facade articulation. Include extensive facade articulation in the form of horizontal and vertical design elements to provide variations in wall plane and surface relief, including providing a variety of surface textures, recesses and projections along wall planes. Facades greater than 100 feet in length should incorporate recesses or projections at least 20 feet deep along at least 30 percent of the length of the facade. Ideally, these recesses or projections should accommodate secondary uses/liner shops, and/or reflect the different internal functions of the store.

b.

Ground floor windows. Ground floor windows are highly encouraged. These should ideally provide pedestrians with views into the building, but even display windows can improve the pedestrian experience of the building at the street or sidewalk level.

c.

Design details. A variety of building and wall features should be used, in ways that avoid a cluttered appearance. These may include varying colors, reveals, an external wainscot or bulkhead at the building base to reduce apparent bulk, cornices and parapet details, and moldings. The features should employ a variety of materials as appropriate for the architectural style.

Bulkheads should be constructed of a durable material other than stucco, such as tile, brick, rock, or pre-cast concrete. Windows, awnings, and arcades must total at least 60 percent of the facade length facing a street.

4.

Vertical wall articulation. The height of building walls facing streets or on-site pedestrian areas should be varied so that the vertical mass is divided into distinct, human-scaled elements.

a.

Except on a pedestrian-oriented public street where buildings are at the back of the sidewalk, structures over 20 feet in height (typical for structures of two stories or more) should step-back the building mass at least five feet for the portions of the structure above 14 feet (or the height where an actual second story begins) to provide visual variation.

b.

The facade of the areas stepped-back above the actual or apparent first floor should include detailed building articulation with windows, eaves, and decorative details such as tiles, wood trim, etc. as appropriate. It is also important that the facade below the step-back have a substantial structural appearance, and not simply appear as an awning "tacked-on" to the building.

c.

Building facades that are tall for no functional reason, have little surface articulation or relief, and are simply intended to provide high, visible surfaces for tenant signage are not appropriate.

5.

Roof lines. The roof lines should also be varied to break up the mass of the building. Pitched roofs with roof overhangs proportional to the scale of the adjoining building wall are encouraged. Major roof- mounted equipment shall not be visible from off the site. Parapets and decorative cornices should be utilized to conceal flat roofs and to screen any roof-mounted mechanical equipment. The height of mechanical equipment shall not exceed that of the parapets or other roof features intended to screen the equipment. Enclosures, blinds, or other architectural treatment may be necessary to screen roof equipment visible from residences or public areas. Green roofs or vegetated rooftops are permitted.

6.

Location of secondary uses. Secondary uses or departments including pharmacies, photo finishing/development, snack bars, dry cleaning, offices, storage, etc., should be oriented to the outside of the building by projecting them outward or recessing them inward. This includes providing the individual uses with separate entrances and windows facing the outside of the building. The intent is to break up the appearance of the large, primary building with more human-scale elements. Food courts/bars should provide indoor and sheltered outdoor eating areas with tables, chairs, umbrellas, etc.

7.

Design continuity. Large-scale retail projects shall incorporate elements to visually unify the buildings and signage without creating monotony. Buildings on separate pads should maintain the overall architectural character of the site; at the same time architectural variety is encouraged.

G.

Loading areas. Loading docks, trash collection areas, outdoor storage, and similar facilities should be incorporated into the overall design of the building and landscaped, so that the visual and acoustic impacts of these functions are fully contained, and out of view from adjacent properties and streets. Any screening materials must be of the same quality and appearance as those used on the building itself, and shall be provided graffiti-resistant finishes.

H.

Landscaping. Landscaping that complements and is in scale with the building should be provided adjacent to structures. Landscaping should include evergreen trees, shrubs and ornamental landscaping (and berms where appropriate) with all landscape areas having a minimum width of six feet. Landscaping should be used to create a focal point near front building entrances. Sidewalks and other walkways should also be integrated with landscape areas around building base and in parking lot areas. Trees should be planted in notable clusters within larger planting areas, and not exclusively in lines along building facades.

I.

Outdoor lighting. The design, size, and placement of outdoor lighting fixtures on buildings and in parking lots should be in keeping with the architectural style of the buildings. More, smaller-scale parking lot lights instead of fewer, overly tall and large parking lot lights should be installed. Outdoor light fixtures mounted on building walls should relate to the height of pedestrians and not exceed eight to ten feet. All light fixtures should be directed downward and shielded so that the light source itself is not visible.

J.

Signs.

1.

Guidelines.

a.

The signs provided in conjunction with a large-scale retail project should comply with the following guidelines.

b.

Proposed large-scale retail projects shall include a comprehensive program that effectively integrates signage into the project design.

c.

Signs for these projects, and the buildings themselves, should not be designed to be freeway-oriented.

d.

Along with typical auto-oriented wall and freestanding signage, permanent, pedestrian-oriented window, awning, projecting, and suspended signs should also be provided, that do not obstruct or create a safety hazard for pedestrians or cyclists.

2.

Sign Permit requirements. Sign permits (see Chapter 106.38 (Signs) shall be required for color schemes, architectural features, and other design details that are:

a.

Primarily designed to advertise or to provide information in the nature of advertising, to direct or attract attention to a person, institution, business, product, or service;

b.

Used as the main or dominant feature of a building, building surface, or structure; and

c.

Determined by the Director to not demonstrate sensitivity to the design context of the building or surrounding area.

(Ord. No. 2015-010, § 1, 12-10-2015)