[3:26] Roll call, please.

[3:28] Let the record reflect that a quorum on members is present, commissioner Metzger and commissioner Stein absent.

[3:34] All right. Follow me again. Pledge of Allegiance, please.

[3:45] For which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

[3:52] Thank you.

[3:57] Oral communications. Are there any members of the public who wish to speak on non-agenda items today?

[4:03] Seeing

[4:06] none,

[4:09] can we get approval of the minutes of the regular meeting of June 9th, 2026?

[4:16] I'm

[4:20] sorry, I don't have my glasses.

[4:21] We'll put them on.

[4:23] We move through the minutes of the regular meeting of June 9th, 2026.

[4:29] I'll second that.

[4:34] And I neglected to mention today's date.

[4:37] I apologize.

[4:38] Today is Tuesday, July 14th, 2026.

[4:41] 6. Moving on, do we have any department reports?

[4:48] Oh, I'm sorry. Take a vote on the motion.

[4:56] You can still vote so long as you're comfortable voting if yes.

[5:05] Motion carries. All present voting aye.

[5:08] Thank you. The next item is department reports.

[5:14] Staff has no update today. Thank you.

[5:20] Check that general

[5:24] business review the three accessory dwelling unit floor plans and designs

[5:30] for the city's pre-approved accessory dwelling unit program.

[5:35] Is there a staff presentation please?

[5:37] There is.

[5:38] Thank you, Mr. Chair.

[5:40] So as part of the 2024 housing element update, the city set forth certain policies and

[5:45] goals that they're going to follow through within that element update cycle.

[5:50] So one of those is to create pre-approved ADU plans that can be used by any applicant

[5:55] in the city.

[5:56] The idea is to have the review process be more streamlined and more cost effective.

[6:00] So they'll have to look at certain site plan, things that are specific to the site obviously,

[6:05] but as far as engineering and construction, they'll all be standardized.

[6:10] So in early 2025, we put out an RFP to find a firm that can help us put together

[6:16] those designs.

[6:16] we ended up with our M design group who's been working with us since then which

[6:21] has been a great process creating three specific layouts that can be used and

[6:26] then also three architectural designs that can be mixed into those. So there's

[6:30] different combinations that can be used for those pre-approved designs. We went

[6:34] through and looked at a lot of different sites and Randy will walk you

[6:36] through sort of our thought process around both the designs and then

[6:41] and also the sizes that we landed on.

[6:44] So I'll kick it to him and we'll work through these.

[6:47] Happy to answer any questions as we go through this.

[6:51] Yeah, thank you.

[6:53] Thanks Randy.

[6:54] I'm

[7:01] Randy Bressen with our design group.

[7:03] You'll forgive my coughing and hopefully I had the pleasure

[7:05] of my granddaughter being out from Colorado last weekend

[7:08] and she passed along summer cold to me.

[7:11] So hopefully you can bear with me.

[7:14] Thank you for letting me make this presentation

[7:17] and sharing our program with you.

[7:22] Kurt, could we sort of start with our process document?

[7:24] Is that what we have up here?

[7:31] So we don't pull these things out of the air.

[7:34] We try to go through some process

[7:35] that customizes the solution to your city.

[7:39] I've done these in probably 40 jurisdictions

[7:41] throughout the state.

[7:43] And what we typically will do is working with staff,

[7:46] we're gonna take a look at your architectural styles.

[7:49] We're going to look at your, I would like to call them opportunities, basically your

[7:55] lot stock, see what we can fit in there because it's often an RFP may have three different

[8:00] sizes that have nothing to do with what really we can put on a site.

[8:03] So we like to back check that.

[8:05] And then we check things like what ADUs have already been permitted and built around

[8:11] here.

[8:12] Best example of what people want to build is what they've already done.

[8:14] So we sort of use this process.

[8:16] This is the document where we produce a context study.

[8:18] And, Kirk, if you just want to step through, I'll speak to it really briefly here.

[8:23] We picked out, we looked here, someone in Mac picked out different areas that had slightly

[8:32] different minimal lot sizes and configurations.

[8:36] These are essentially, we're calling them typical examples.

[8:40] I don't know if anything here is typical, to be honest with you, but it was our

[8:43] best shot at this.

[8:44] From this, we started identifying these, you know, here's your lot configurations

[8:49] And the areas that might be available for putting ADUs on, which starts speaking to

[8:54] length and width of them or configuration, sometimes we might find ones that really need

[9:00] a very skinny design that's only 40 feet wide for a 50-foot lot.

[9:06] Sometimes L-shaped ones, it can vary with different cities.

[9:09] This is a process we used with yours.

[9:11] We went through and test fit those along with parking, I think.

[9:14] Did we have some of those on here?

[9:16] I'm not sure if we have that in this selection.

[9:19] Parking.

[9:19] Yeah, we did.

[9:20] It's kind of hard to see on here, but we also even tried to identify how we're going to

[9:24] deal with parking because you do have a requirement for that here, which is kind of unique for

[9:28] your city.

[9:30] From that, we also kind of go around the community and identify styles, which is

[9:35] what the next section is here.

[9:37] You live here.

[9:38] I don't have to belabor this, but this is our process we go through to say what

[9:42] would be appropriate.

[9:44] A lot of this comes out of the RFP, but also we test this sometimes.

[9:46] I've had communities that didn't know that they had about 15-20% of their buildings were

[9:52] tutor style and they were all surprised by it.

[9:55] We didn't do it but they were surprised at how prevalent that was.

[9:58] Anyway, we want to go through that so we make a good fit.

[10:01] Now we can bring up the, this is my clicker here, bring up the other presentation.

[10:05] So from that process we end up, we started probably with 12 different examples to identify

[10:15] by what the values were, what the characteristics were for your ADUs that would be right for

[10:22] your city. I have communities where bedrooms are everything. How many bedrooms can we squeeze

[10:28] in this? And I'll tell you, I have a three-bedroom, 750 square foot design. As tight as that seems

[10:33] that is valuable in certain communities. That is not what your communities look like.

[10:37] It was exactly the opposite of that. It was these things are used, are going to be

[10:41] used not only as ADUs, but they're going to be used as granites. They're going

[10:44] uses guest houses for people and so we need to build flexibility into him and build a level

[10:50] of character like volume ceilings and things like that are consistent with the community.

[10:59] Nobody really cared that we had lots of washer and dryer space, that was not what this was

[11:03] going to be about.

[11:04] So it was a little bit different for us but it was great to hear we talked to

[11:07] a few locals, a builder, maybe two builders, that's all that showed up for our attempt

[11:13] to talk to people but we do get some feedback and they had some great input on on some of this stuff.

[11:18] Anyway, we ended up with these three different plans. It was the smallest of them right around 400

[11:24] square feet.

[11:27] You'll notice that this has a very, this is what we call an efficiency kitchen. It's

[11:33] about a smaller kitchen as you can do in something. In fact, we even considered the

[11:37] washer and dryer being those single unit under cabinet styles. This could be configured as a

[11:43] one bedroom or as a studio so that whole space could be open. We put those walls in optionally

[11:50] as well as the closet there. The way we structure these things allows for a lot of flexibility.

[11:59] We do have engineered structure. It's not just right out of the code so it allows

[12:04] us to design for a lot of flexibility. Any of these openings could be changed into

[12:11] slider. If you had a five-foot opening for a bedroom window, you wanted to have it open

[12:16] to a patio, drop a slider in there if we don't have a problem with that. We'll do the title

[12:20] 24 energy compliance to account for worst case scenarios. So we try to build flexibility

[12:25] into these. I think it's something I really want to let you guys know that's what's

[12:30] going on here. We also generate these in the three different styles. Kind of a coastal

[12:37] cottage style,

[12:41] a Mediterranean influenced, fits in anywhere in California, and then a little more

[12:49] uniquely to you guys is a contemporary modern style. You'll notice as we go through each of these

[12:57] plans, they will all have those same styles replicated, and I want to

[13:04] to assure you these are intended to be representative of what can be done. Our goal

[13:08] is to have something that's wood-sided. If it's at a house, if it's a shingle house

[13:14] and a shingle and horizontal siding, you don't need to use our board and bat one, but you've

[13:19] used the mass in the form that matches that cottage style and then apply the colors and

[13:25] materials that would be in the primary residence. Same with the Mediterranean, that's representative.

[13:32] You don't have a tile band.

[13:34] You have another band on there.

[13:35] Your windows are, you know, I don't know.

[13:40] Maybe they're a brown versus a black iron window.

[13:45] That all works.

[13:46] These are intended to be flexible in that manner.

[13:49] But from a baseline, we have a contemporary form,

[13:54] a form that'll go well with the meta-training

[13:57] can be finished that way,

[13:58] a form that goes well with a cottage coastal cottage look. We'll take you

[14:03] through these last couple here. Again this is built-in flexibility a little bit

[14:07] bigger not a lot bigger we had you know small lots small opportunities this one

[14:12] has can be done as a one-bedroom or as a studio and again you start seeing these

[14:20] how they manifest themselves architecturally in the coastal cottage

[14:26] in Mediterranean and again the contemporary and finally got a little bit

[14:33] bigger one not huge under 700 square feet designed to be a one bedroom or a two

[14:39] bedroom really flexible space a little bit bigger kitchen a little more

[14:45] articulation a little more interesting in a backyard but also takes up a little

[14:49] more depth so it might not be a be applicable to too many lots but it but

[14:53] But you'll notice this one again.

[14:55] This is 42 feet long, fit in a 50-foot lock with the state-limited...

[15:00] Four foot side yard setbacks.

[15:02] Those are some of the parameters we try to design to when we do this.

[15:06] And then, again, this is how it starts to play itself out.

[15:10] If the primary house doesn't have stone base columns,

[15:14] I wouldn't expect someone to build it here.

[15:16] We try to build that flexibility in there.

[15:19] Our plans are not going to show every single option

[15:21] that these can be conceived as.

[15:23] We'll indicate that these are optional things

[15:26] and then they can build them out as needed.

[15:29] Some of that flexibility also comes from how your building department wants to deal with

[15:34] them.

[15:35] I will tell you that from my perspective, I don't care what order your appliances are

[15:42] in your kitchen.

[15:43] I don't really care that that's the kitchen wall, to be honest with you.

[15:46] That's not a big thing for my architectural integrity.

[15:51] And many jurisdictions, as long as you meet the code, you know, where the GFIs

[15:57] are what the spacing is, some of that, you know, that basic stuff, minimal amount of

[16:00] countertop, all these code minimums, they're perfectly fine with it. Other jurisdictions

[16:06] want to be very strict, so nope, what you see is what you get. That's up for you guys

[16:10] to deal with internally. For me, you're not stepping on my toes when people move those

[16:15] things around.

[16:17] Anyway, I think that really kind of covers the package we have here. I really came

[16:23] down to introduce you to this and answer your questions along the way.

[16:34] Can I jump in to clarify some of that real quick?

[16:37] Thanks.

[16:38] Yeah, thanks Randy for all of that and walking us through and then especially around the options.

[16:42] I think especially with external materials that will be really easy from talking to

[16:47] Damon our building official about you know what he's going to look for if it's what

[16:52] type of shingled siding versus a hardy plank siding it's not really going to be an

[16:56] issue and same on planning's end.

[16:58] As far as where appliances go and things like that,

[17:00] it may end up triggering more of a review, which then sort of

[17:03] puts in a different process, where it's not

[17:06] going to be as streamlined.

[17:07] But it is totally possible.

[17:09] So any changes can be made.

[17:10] They can use this as a template and make all sorts of

[17:13] changes if they want to.

[17:14] But then it is going to have to go through our review

[17:17] process, because we have to make sure that it meets

[17:20] code.

[17:21] The purpose of this would be to say, well, this already

[17:23] does meet code does not need that review so does that kind of make sense there's

[17:27] sort of two ways you can do it you can make the very simple changes of like

[17:33] exterior stuff but then once you start altering it it's possible but then we

[17:37] will have to review it to ensure that it does meet code since the changes

[17:40] were made. For our perspective you know our our relationship with the city and

[17:44] the project ends when we get these things approved and so all those types

[17:48] of variability I like to build in up front as much as possible so if

[17:52] There's input on what can you do.

[17:54] And maybe you have suggestions of what you'd like to see

[17:56] that then we then run past the building official

[17:58] is how do we approach this?

[18:00] This is something you can manage.

[18:02] And we build those into the plan.

[18:03] So there isn't another loop for anybody

[18:06] going through the process.

[18:08] There are whatever it be, 10 different options

[18:11] that they can work with and create some flexibility under.

[18:15] That's our goal, anyway.

[18:20] Any questions?

[18:22] I have many.

[18:24] Excellent presentation, thank you. When you said we can do, you know, whatever you want

[18:32] to do you can do, specifically let's just use electrical as an example. So as this goes

[18:39] forward I'm assuming that your firm is going to do the engineering, do the structural engineering

[18:45] on these prototypes, correct, whereupon you would also be doing an electrical base,

[18:53] you know, electrical plan that passes through code, exactly. So if somebody

[18:59] wanted to add something, you know, some more lights or some fans or more outlets

[19:06] or something like that, how, how do you see, and this question may be directed

[19:11] for Coronado Planning Department,

[19:16] how would someone move forward

[19:19] if they wanted to add some of the electrical?

[19:24] Yeah, a lot of it will depend.

[19:26] So as they prepare those, we're going to work,

[19:29] obviously we're gonna have them approved

[19:31] through ESGIL and then also through

[19:34] the building department here.

[19:36] And so I think we're gonna learn those limits

[19:37] a little bit more as we go through that process,

[19:40] like it doesn't outlet trigger more review does anything I mean at some point it does require at

[19:47] least a little bit more review because we have to determine whether it needs review or not you know

[19:51] what I mean so it does add one layer how far does that go I think it really does just depend on

[19:57] how big of a change it is so we're going to sort of learn those limits and Randy probably

[20:01] has experience working with other cities and knows those a bit but for us as we get those

[20:06] construction drawings, we'll know more about what's going to trigger that. I know

[20:11] that's kind of a bogus answer, but... No, that's a good answer. Well, to your

[20:15] question, Dana, then something like an EV charger or something would throw that

[20:23] off. I'm sorry. Like an EV charger, like for a Tesla or a charger, so it needs

[20:30] a particular outlet and everything to do that with that. Well, there are no

[20:35] garages for you know for you could still know but it doesn't have to have a

[20:39] garage yeah that's a great that's a great example how would you manage that

[20:46] well something like probably it's laid out in infrastructure it's not a

[20:50] requirement you're not required to supply as you would on a new home you're

[20:56] required to provide those you know PV for for a car so there I mean that

[21:03] would be, when you said be flexible, I build houses. There are just so many factors that

[21:13] could play in. I'm just curious how this falls into, or is this meeting, is this unimportant

[21:21] for this meeting to okay these design, these prototypes too? Am I going further than I

[21:30] need to be going by asking these questions?

[21:32] staff here but I will speak for where I'm coming from. We are on our way to putting the permit sets

[21:38] together and at this point I'm looking for feedback from the city for these types of things. We want

[21:46] to see this and maybe not everything can be flexible. That's obvious and we'll go through a

[21:52] process with your building official or your building department to try to find their boundaries

[21:57] of comfort on some of these things and that's really what drives most of that flexibility.

[22:01] When you start talking about outlets, you know, like I've said, I've also been building for

[22:07] 30 years, do my own stuff, and I've never had anyone raise a finger when I added an outlet

[22:13] in a wall somewhere.

[22:15] Well, you don't have the corn out of building inspectors coming to your job, just letting

[22:20] you know.

[22:22] That's another factor.

[22:23] That's a layer that's going to have to follow this whole process, and the man in

[22:28] charges right here? Flexibility. Their operation is what's going to decide how

[22:32] that works. Yeah and as Randy's saying you know we're gonna work with them

[22:35] through this process and that's kind of the that is the next step is to see you

[22:39] are asking the right questions and that is what's coming next is we're going to

[22:43] hammer out those those limits and because we want to make it efficient to

[22:48] we want the process to be where you're not selecting from a menu of a

[22:51] million things it's sort of meant to be the point is to make it streamlined

[22:55] So to have that menu be very clear and concise and the process actually be quicker, I guess, is the point.

[23:03] I think the designs aren't great. I mean, they fit our community perfectly based on, you know, the research and the study that you've done.

[23:13] So I really appreciate that and the fact that someone doesn't have to use these.

[23:20] This only facilitates doing something a little quicker and our community is such

[23:28] that most building the individuals can afford to make their choices how they you

[23:38] know want to put in an ADU or granny flat or whatever so based on what I'm

[23:44] seeing it. I like it. Yeah that's a great point Sue. I thought as somebody that's

[23:52] actually lived in ADU for 10 years I really thought the designs were really

[23:57] very clever in terms of everything that you've been able to fit in a tight

[24:01] spot because some some ADUs are designed a little bit better than others so I

[24:06] thought the designs themselves are really nice. I agree. Another question the

[24:13] you mentioned volume ceilings.

[24:19] I've also noticed that the minimum building height

[24:23] for an ADU or a structure in the back 40% of our lots is 14 feet 4 inches I

[24:32] believe and some of these are quite a bit lower than that. You've got a 9 foot

[24:36] plate. If somebody wanted, so here's a great question,

[24:42] the engineering I know

[24:44] how much it costs to change engineering. Once you have an approved set of plans, you have

[24:50] to have your shear walls have to be right. I mean everything has to be such. And for

[24:55] these to go back to Intermark for another round is going to defeat the whole purpose

[25:02] of the affordability that these plans are providing for an honor. So would that mean

[25:12] And if somebody wanted a 10-foot plate so that they could get up to the, let's say they

[25:20] had 14 feet, 2 inches or something, and plan, I think plan 1 and 2, well, let's see, plan

[25:27] 3 is 14, 2, so that's pretty much it.

[25:31] But plan 1 and 2, they have a 9-foot plate, but are there going to be plans where it's

[25:40] The vaulted ceiling is, I mean, an affordable structure

[25:43] would typically be a truss roof.

[25:46] Is that gonna be part of the plan going forward?

[25:50] The structure would typically be a truss roof, yes.

[25:54] In our conversations previously,

[25:58] the desire to have an option for a volume ceiling

[26:01] was in there, so that is, we're building to that.

[26:04] I think we're doing, I haven't read the contract

[26:07] a little bit, I believe we're doing cut and stack

[26:09] and trust options so you have both going on there it may just be cut in stack the

[26:14] idea of being able to change plate height is suggesting that that is an option that

[26:18] would not be a realistic option that I mean like you said they're engineered at

[26:23] that point and yes thank you I agree that's that I just wanted to ask that

[26:28] question any

[26:32] other questions from commissioners the sorry

[26:45] just give me a

[26:45] moment oh

[26:49] here here was one this is this would be a simple change the if

[26:57] the

[26:58] hot water heater you know now that we're not putting on-demand gas hot water

[27:02] heaters on the side of a house. Now we're back to a closet for an electric hot water

[27:11] heater, large tank. To capture some closet space, let's say in plan 3, one of the bedrooms

[27:19] could have a larger closet if that water heater was an appendage.

[27:28] Well, the electric

[27:29] tankless are really not very efficient. It's gas is the way to go with the tankless. And

[27:36] gas is no longer, gas tankless are no longer permitted in California. That I believe I could

[27:44] be wrong. It's very recent. So just trying, California is trying to eliminate all gas

[27:50] appliances.

[27:52] We've been doing this for five or six years now and we used to do on demand gas water

[27:58] heaters in places that you know wanted that and we can't we can't get them to

[28:02] work anymore in title 24 it's they're gone so they have to be condensing

[28:07] electric which means they need to be in an enclosed

[28:14] environmentally you know a conditioned space they can't be just like in a little

[28:18] they could be in a lean tube but we got insulated we got to seal it we've

[28:22] got to do all that type of stuff it's not just like the old days where

[28:25] you'd have a little shed from Hope Depot

[28:27] and you stuck your water heater in.

[28:28] And that doesn't work anymore either.

[28:29] Right.

[28:31] And what happens is it impacts your setbacks.

[28:35] So now you've got to set back from that.

[28:37] So instead of a four foot, now you've

[28:39] got four plus a water heater room of three feet.

[28:42] So right.

[28:44] No, it could not go.

[28:45] And if there's a four foot setback,

[28:49] it certainly could not go there.

[28:51] It's not an architectural projection.

[28:54] That's only 12 inches by eight feet.

[28:57] Correct, yeah. It would just be part of the structure.

[29:00] But, you know, maybe, I mean, if it could, I mean, the other thing too, this is a question I have for you guys.

[29:09] So there are, you know, FAR requirements, there's lot coverage.

[29:14] All of these structures still have to meet the same zoning that we have currently in our Title 86, right?

[29:21] and that's correct and that's what we'll be reviewing in the next steps when they

[29:26] go through building plan review and through ed skill they'll also go through

[29:29] planning also and then when they go on to the to a site we're going to review

[29:34] them for that as well so we will review the site plan you know where they

[29:37] gonna get their parking what's their lot coverage etc and there are

[29:41] exemptions from because of state codes there are where they are exempt from

[29:46] FAR requirement and I think structural coverage so those two won't matter as

[29:51] much but as far as setbacks and parking and everything distance from the main

[29:56] house we have to look for all those and height you know if it's

[30:00] You know, not that we have much grade change in the city, but we have to make sure it all

[30:06] works. Does that answer your question? Yes, thank you.

[30:12] Yeah, I was just, when I had a conversation

[30:14] with Jesse yesterday and I was just talking about specificity, you know, it's like these,

[30:21] there's, and particularly building in Coronado, it's, your point is well taken, Edry, that

[30:29] if somebody really wants to make a change, they're just going to go ahead and spend

[30:33] and the money to make the change.

[30:34] And this is great for people who say,

[30:37] okay, this is gonna be my budget,

[30:39] this is what I'm gonna build,

[30:40] this is what I'm allowed to build,

[30:41] otherwise I gotta go back to Intermark, Eskil,

[30:45] I don't know what it's called now,

[30:47] but that's very clear, so.

[30:58] Approve these, essentially, to a certain extent,

[31:00] like you talked about, the coverage,

[31:02] the setback, some of those things.

[31:03] So in places that an individual

[31:05] might not be able to do something

[31:07] because of your development standards or a neighborhood that's going to come out and

[31:13] raise cane about it or whatever the issue may be, the state's going to force this down

[31:18] people's throats.

[31:19] No, you have to, you don't get to have a say on this.

[31:23] This is, matter of fact, there are jurisdictions that don't even go before planning commission

[31:26] because it doesn't really matter.

[31:27] They don't really have a say.

[31:28] Anyway, the state said we have to do this.

[31:30] Thankfully, you guys don't do that.

[31:31] and the whole purpose of those types of programs is to bring forward designs that are incentivized

[31:39] through time and money that are designed to fit your community, hopefully, so that you

[31:45] don't get people just saying, yeah, I bought something off of Amazon and I'm training

[31:48] it into my backyard and you can't do a thing about it.

[31:50] And that happens.

[31:53] All

[31:59] right.

[32:00] Well, thank you very much.

[32:01] That was a terrific presentation.

[32:03] Appreciate it.

[32:09] We agree.

[32:20] any more comments commissioners any more discussion okay moving forward can we

[32:31] get a motion to to approve or not move

[32:42] to recommend City Council approve the

[32:45] three accessory dwelling unit floor plans and designs as presented by staff

[32:53] Seconded. Let's vote.

[32:59] Motion carries. All present voting aye.

[33:08] Appears we're at the

[33:09] end of our meeting. It is 3.30. Thank you.

[33:18] Thank you. Thanks Dana. Thank you.

Planning Commission Meeting

Transcript