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1998.04.30_CAB_Minutes_Regular TOWN OF HIGHLAND BEACH COMMUNITY APPEARANCE BOARD REGULAR MEETING - MINUTES Thursday, April 30, 1998 9 : 32 A.M. Chairman Eugene I . Behrman called the Regular Meeting to order in Town Hall at 9 : 30 A.M. Deputy Town Clerk Jane Dillon called the roll . Present were Chairman Eugene I . Behrman, Vice Chair Theresa M. Colarullo and Members Frank Savino, Beverly Barr Miriam S . Zwick and Jack Lanthier. Abraham Futernick was absent . Also present were Building Official Bob Dawson, Attorney Jeff Geller and members of the general public . APPROVAL OF MINUTES Upon MOTION by MRS. ZWICK/MRS . COLARULLO, the minutes of the March 26 , 1998 Regular Meeting were unanimously approved. NEW BUSINESS PRELIMINARY REVIEW FOR ALUMINUM FENCE INSTALLATION FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 3008 S . OCEAN BLVD. , APT C. LOT 106-107 (EDGEWATER) . r'1 APPLICANT: A&A FENCES; OWNER: FRANK RUBIN. Mr . Rubin was present to discuss fence installation and after the Board reviewed the plans, the following MOTION was made by MRS . ZWICK/MR. LANTHIER : THE COMMUNITY APPEARANCE BOARD GIVES FINAL APPROVAL FOR ALUMINUM FENCE INSTALLATION FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 3008 S . OCEAN BLVD. , APT C. LOT 106-107 (EDGEWATER) . APPLICANT: A&A FENCES; OWNER: FRANK RUBIN. Rollcall met with unanimous vote . PRELIMINARY REVIEW FOR ROOM ADDITION TO EXISTING HOUSE, FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 1116 HIGHLAND BEACH DRIVE; LOT 10 , BLOCK 2 . APPLICANT/OWNER: JEFFREY GOFFMAN. Mr . Dawson presented the plans to the Board, stating that the addition was within Code . After review of the plans, the following MOTION was made by MR. LANTHIER/MRS. BARR: THE COMMUNITY APPEARANCE BOARD GIVES FINAL APPROVAL FOR ROOM ADDITION TO EXISTING HOUSE, FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 1116 HIGHLAND BEACH DRIVE; LOT 10, BLOCK 2 . APPLICANT/OWNER: JEFFREY GOFFMAN. Rollcall met with unanimous vote . (Note : Letter from Concordia Investments to CAB Chairman attached hereto and made a part of these minutes . ) Community Appearance Board April 30, 1998 Page 2 of 4 PRELIMINARY REVIEW FOR JAPANESE GARDEN POOL; CHANGE IN COLOR AT BOTTOM OF POOL FROM BLACK TO BLUE; FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 3210 S . OCEAN BLVD. , LOT 101W, VILLA COSTA. APPLICANT: VILLA COSTA CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION. This is an after the fact situation, whereby the pond has already been painted blue . The association is coming before the board for approval , because of a complaint on it' s color. Robert Giaimo, owner #304 at Villa Costa, stated that the reason in painting the pond was to lighten it so it could reflect the light , and would be more appealing to look into, rather than maintaining its black color. It was painted last summer, and just now a complaint has arisen. Mr. Giaimo took a survey of the building residents, of which 24 were in favor of blue, 2 were opposed, and the remaining 10 were unavailable for comment, showing a majority vote in favor. The Board discussed the issue, and did indicate that while driving by Villa Costa, all that could be seen was bright blue band standing out against the landscaping. It was suggested that the sides of the pond be repainted a more natural color to blend in with the surrounding landscaping, while maintaining the light bottom in order that the pool reflect the sunlight and surrounding night lights, thereby making it more appealing to the residents . The Association President stated that this could be done easily. It was also noted that a situation as this does not need to come before the Board, and is the decision of the Association as to color changes . It was recommended that the application be withdrawn, with no motion being made . PRELIMINARY APPROVAL FOR COLOR CHANGE TO EXISTING SIGNAGE FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 3211 S. OCEAN BLVD. , LOT 101 , VILLA MARE . APPLICANT: VILLA MARE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION. This is an after the fact situation, whereby the sign has already been changed to a blue background with white lettering. The Association is coming before the Board for approval , because of a complaint on its color. Arthur Levine, President of Villa Mare Association, stated that the sign change came about due to many of the residents complaints that the original sign was not visible, especially at night, to them or guests trying to find the condo entrance, that street lights and overgrowth of trees in the area prevent clear visibility of the driveway. Out of 36 residents, 22 approved the color change, 4 opposed it . The Board discussed the fact that there are many blue signs in town, and is a standardized color to use . After discussion, the following MOTION was made by MR. LANTHIER/MRS . ZWICK: Community Appearance Board !1 April 30, 1998 Page 3 of 4 THE COMMUNITY APPEARANCE BOARD GRANTS FINAL APPROVAL TO MAINTAIN THE EXISTING COLOR CHANGE TO SIGNAGE FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 3211 S . OCEAN BLVD. , LOT 101, VILLA MARE. APPLICANT: VILLA MARE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION. Rollcall met with unanimous vote . Mr. Lanthier noted that he needs to be out of town for four or five months, due to a family issue. He was remind:dthat if a board member misses 3 meetings consecutively, they are removed from that board. Attorney Geller stated that the town ordinance regarding such states that as long as the Chairman reads into the record on the third consecutive absence that Mr. Lanthier is on an excused absence, he may remain a sitting member of the Board. Vice Chair Theresa Colarullo presented Chairman Behrman with a Certificate in recognition of his six year tenure on the Board. With no further business to come before the Board at this time, MOTION to adjourn was made by MRS. ZWICK/MR. LANTHIER at 11 : 00 A.M. APPROVE: n Eugene I . Behrman, Chairman Theresa M. Colarullo, Vice Chairman /(� A- �A--LCA t Miriam S. Z ck Abraham Futernick • 41 `"Frank Savino Community Appearance Board fl March 26 , 1998 Paae 4 of 4 Jack Lantheir t Beverlycli -A_ Bar ATTEST: J6:'i�e_ d ire, DATE: k 61 c,( c( CONCORDIA INVESTMENTS, INC. Developers of Villa Mare and Villa Costa April 13,1998 Eugene Behrman, Chair Community Appearance Board Town of Highland Beach 3614 South Ocean Blvd. Highland Beach, Florida 33487 Re: CAB meeting on April 30,1998 Dear Mr. Behrman: Due to my unavoidable absence, I would like to have this letter read by Mike Everett on my behalf. If Mike is unable to attend, I respectfully request that this letter be entered into the record and reviewed by the Board prior to mak- ing a decision regarding this matter. As you are now aware, both Villa Costa and Villa Mare have made material changes affecting the color of the Japanese style reflecting pond at Villa Costa and the illuminated signs at Villa Mare. These changes were made without our knowledge or that of the Town and are contrary to the original permit issued by the CAB. The color of Villa Mare's service and building signs is now different from other exterior signage and bears no relationship to the original complimentry background color. In fact,the signs are harder to read at night and may affect emergency veh- icle response time. As any knowledgeable designer will agree, dark lettering on a light background is the most recognizable and this was the basis of the original permitted design. These signs were designed by Schwab S Twitty Architects, Inc. and are in accordance with requirements of the Community Appearance Board. A few unit owners had complained that they missed the service entrance sign at night(only when driving from North to South) . There are numerous landmarks to assist any owner driving at a reasonable speed. Incidently, unit owners use the service entrance to access the garage. Visitors on the other hand use the main entry. During this last season when substantial numbers of visitors came to Villa Mare in response to our ads, not one person complained regarding the vis- ibility of the building sign. There was no logical reason for changing the main building sign. As for the service sign, prior to making this major color change, efforts should have been made to explore: increasing light wattage, adding land- scape spot-lights, or increasing the size of the lighted area of the sign. The color change at Villa Costa's pond has radically altered the appearance of this area. The original permitted design required the pond shell to be painted black. Our Landscape Architect and design consultants from the Morikami chose this color to give the shallow pond depth and create a feeling of tranquility. The dark color also effectively hides debris which consistently falls into the pond, giving it an "unkept" appearance. The present color(sky blue) destroys the original appearance and now looks unnatural and contrived. Hardly anyone using the walking path pauses to view the area since the change. As a matter rs• of fact, the chair of the Association landscape committee also opposes the change and is in agreement to return the pond to it's original color. t#903 3210 S. Ocean Boulevard • Highland Beach, Florida 33487 • 061 ) 272-1596 CONCORDIA INVESTMENTS, INC. Developers of Villa Mare and Villa Costa fl Page 2 (April 13,1998) As developer of this project, we find these changes to be illogical and bad design. As resident of Villa Mare(unit#903) and a unit owner of Villa Costa(unit#204) , I find these unauthorized deviations unacceptable and without merit. I respectfully urge that the Community Appearance Board compel each Association to return the signs and the reflecting pond to their original approved design appearance. SINCERELY, // ----21 ` / ówc #903 3210 S. Ocean Boulevard • Highland Beach, Florida 33487 • (561 ) 272-1596 CONCORDIA INVESTMENTS, INC. Developers of Villa Mare and Villa Costa April 13,1998 Eugene Behrman, Chair Community Appearance Board Town of Highland Beach 3614 South Ocean Blvd. Highland Beach, Florida 33487 Re: CAB meeting on April 30, 1998 Dear Mr. Behrman: Due to my unavoidable absence, I would like to have this letter read by Mike Everett on my behalf. If Mike is unable to attend, I respectfully request that this letter be entered into the record and reviewed by the Board prior to mak- ing a decision regarding this matter. As you are now aware, both Villa Costa and Villa Mare have made material changes affecting the color of the Japanese style reflecting pond at Villa Costa and the illuminated signs at Villa Mare. These changes were made without our knowledge or that of the Town and are contrary to the original permit issued by the CAB. The color of Villa Mare's service and building signs is now different from other ••� exterior signage and bears no relationship to the original complimentry background color. In fact,the signs are harder to read at night and may affect emergency veh- icle response time. As any knowledgeable designer will agree, dark lettering on a light background is the most recognizable and this was the basis of the original permitted design. These signs were designed by Schwab & Twitty Architects, Inc. and are in accordance with requirements of the Community Appearance Board. A few unit owners had complained that they missed the service entrance sign at night(only when driving from North to South) . There are numerous landmarks to assist any owner driving at a reasonable speed. Incidently, unit owners use the service entrance to access the garage. Visitors on the other hand use the main entry. During this last season when substantial numbers of visitors came to Villa Mare in response to our ads, not one person complained regarding the vis- ibility of the building sign. There was no logical reason for changing the main building sign. As for the service sign, prior to making this major color change, efforts should have been made to explore: increasing light wattage, adding land- scape spot-lights, or increasing the size of the lighted area of the sign. The color change at Villa Costa's pond has radically altered the appearance of this area. The original permitted design required the pond shell to be painted black. Our Landscape Architect and design consultants from the Morikami chose this color to give the shallow pond depth and create a feeling of tranquility. The dark color also effectively hides debris which consistently falls into the pond, giving it an "unkept" appearance. The present color(sky blue) destroys the original appearance and now looks unnatural and contrived. Hardly anyone using the walking path pauses to view the area since the change. As a matter �., of fact, the chair of the Association landscape committee also opposes the change and is in agreement to return the pond to it's original color. 4903 3210 S. Ocean Boulevard • Highland Beach, Florida 33487 • (,61 ) 272-1596 _ CONCORDIA INVESTMENTS, INC. Developers of Villa Mare and Villa Costa n Page 2 (April 13,1998) As developer of this project, we find these changes to be illogical and bad design. As resident of Villa Mare(unit#903) and a unit owner of Villa Costa(unit#204) , I find these unauthorized deviations unacceptable and without merit. I respectfully urge that the Community Appearance Board compel each Association to return the signs and the reflecting pond to their original approved design appearance. SINCERELY, oa(( on 7tialcas #903 3210 S. Ocean Boulevard • Highland Beach, Florida 33487 • (S61 ) 272-1596