An ambitious infill development on West Broughton Street sailed through a key vote at the Historic District Board of Review on Wednesday, one of several new upscale developments reviewed for downtown.
The board voted 6-0 to approve the height and mass of a new six-story structure at 215 W. Broughton St. designed by architect Christian Sottile for local business owners Tak and Ourania Argentinis. The building will have retail, offices and a private residence for the owners on the top floors.
The petition had first been reviewed in November, attracting some scrutiny for its height in a four-story height zone. The building at its highest point is 79 feet high and is comparable in size to other buildings on the block.
Sottile received variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals in January for a one-story height variance to five floors — and as a result a sixth story observatory. They also received a variance for shorter floor-to-floor heights and for its two non-centered entrances.
The main point of discussion Wednesday related to the transparency of the ground floor. The current design includes a 57 percent transparent glass facade, 75 percent if doors are included, according to Sottile.
The local design ordinance currently sets a minimum of 55 percent transparency but no maximum, yet staff still felt the structure needed more grounding.
Sottile said the ordinance makes it clear there is no maximum for a transparent storefront and said glass as a percentage of facade had increasingly become more and more common for retail stores.
As part of its approval, Sottile said he would bring back more information regarding how the glass will meet the ground, incorporating some sort of sill.
“Gravity is at work here … the building is coming down to the ground,” he said.
The project will next be reviewed for design details, such as materials and colors.
Other petitions reviewed on Wednesday:
• The board approved design details for a new four-story mixed-use office and condo building at 501 E. Bay St. on the corner of Price Street. The building includes stacked parking with a car elevator for stowing cars beneath the building. The petitioner reduced the number of residential units from 10 to five in order to have enough parking.
Dawson Architects is handling the project.
• The board narrowly approved a complete rehabilitation of 207 W. Broughton St. located next to Sottile’s future six-story infill. The former Goodwill store will get a full facelift with a new facade and a restoration of the prismatic glass sidewalk in front. That project is conducted by Felder and Associates.