Title
Install 4 foot tall fencing on the front and side/rear yard of a single-family dwelling (B)
Petition HP-21-61. Michael Walker & Christina Kessler, owners. Certificate of Appropriateness for the installation of fencing made of a non-traditional material within a highly visible side and rear yard of a single-family dwelling. Located at 636 NE 7th Street. This building is a contributing structure to the Northeast Residential Historic District.
Project Description
The applicant is proposing to replace the chain link fence on the east and north sides with a 4 foot high fence, horizontally oriented with composite wood planks. The fencing proposed on the north side of the property will be shifted approximately 11 feet north from where the existing chain link fence is located towards NE 7th Avenue to allow the enclosure of the back door within the fenced back yard. The back door is the white door on the north elevation that faces west. The fence line will extend 5 feet into the front yard and beyond the front wall of the house. The applicants indicate that there will not be more than 50 feet of visible fence line from the street. The proposed fence will be a Trex Horizon Horizontal fence, a composite wood fence with the color being Saddle.
The property facing NE 7th Street is considered the front of the property and the front yard. The location of the proposed 4 foot tall fence on this side of the property is largely in compliance with the City of Gainesville’s Historic Preservation Rehabilitation and Design Guidelines for fencing because it will be no greater than 4 feet tall and it is setback a distance from 63 feet to 66.5 feet from NE 7th Street. This distance helps to mitigate the fact that the proposed fence is mostly closed (i.e. 50% or more opaque) but the fence does not extend beyond the front wall of the house.
The location of the proposed 4 foot tall fence in the side yard of the property (the north side) is generally in compliance with the guidelines for fencing because it will be no greater than 48 inches tall including the portion that would be considered the back yard, where the height of the fence would be no greater than 6 feet in height. The fence would be setback approximately 18 feet, 4 inches from the north property line, after the fence location is shifted approximately 11 feet north from where the existing chain link fence is located. This shift towards NE 7th Avenue is to allow for the enclosure of the back door within the fenced back yard.
Recommendation
Staff recommends approval of the application but with the board to deliberate on the Trex material for the proposed fencing to determine if it is appropriate for the historic district, as well as deliberate on the horizontal orientation of the fence planks.