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sr-112409-3bc7® ~;~YO, City Council Report Santa Monica City Council Meeting: November 24, 2009 Agenda Item: ~~.-~ To: Mayor and City Council From: Barbara Stinchfield, Director Subject: Recommended Concept Design for Beach Public Restroom Facilities Replacement Project Recommended Action Staff recommends that the City Council review and comment on the proposed concept design for the replacement of eight beach restroom facilities and direct staff to proceed with design development drawings prior to scheduling a review by the Architectural Review Board and then final approval by the City Council. Executive Summary In accordance with a California Department of Parks and Recreation (State Parks) Consent Decree, the City of Santa Monica has committed to upgrading and bringing Santa Monica State Beach public restroom facilities into compliance with the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) by 2010. Following a competitive process, the City hired Roesling Nakamura Terada Architects to design the replacement of eight facilities along the beach. Based upon the proposed concept plan, seven buildings would be replaced with new structures and one building located at 2500 Ocean Front Walk would be renovated. Amenities for these new rest stops include restrooms with outdoor sinks, outdoor showers and foot washes, bike racks, surf board lean walls, drinking fountains and seating. Accessible walkways are provided to the rest stops from adjacent parking lots and the bike and pedestrian paths. The design concepts were presented at a community open house and to the Recreation and Parks Commission for input and recommendations. Following receipt of Council's comments, the plans will be refined and will be presented to the Architectural Review Board as required, prior to returning to the City Council for final approval of design development drawings and authorization to complete construction documents. The plans will also be submitted to the State Department of Parks and Recreation for review in accordance. with the Operating Agreement with the State for Santa Monica State Beach and to the Coastal Commission for a permit. Staff recommends that the project be constructed in a single phase beginning after Labor Day 2010 with completion anticipated by May 2011. 1 Background In December 2005, the City received notification from the California Department of Parks and Recreation (State Parks) that it had been defending a class action lawsuit filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by plaintiffs with mobility, vision and hearing disabilities. The parties to this litigation reached a comprehensive class- wide settlement and on March 23. 2006, City Council members received an Information Item providing background on the City's participation in the settlement Consent Decree. The City Attorney recommended that the City participate in the Decree and subsequently, the City Manager signed and forwarded a letter to State Parks acknowledging that the City would participate. In accordance with the Decree, the City of Santa Monica made the determination to replace eight non-compliant restroom facilities on Santa Monica State Beach. The restroom facilities are located both north and south of the Pier as follows: North of the Pier • 810 Palisades Beach Road • 1100 Palisades Beach Road • 1200 Palisades Beach Road South of Pier • 2000 Ocean Front Walk • 2400 Ocean Front Walk • 2500 Ocean Front Walk • 2600 Ocean Front Walk • 2800 Ocean Front Walk On November 13, 2007, City Council approved a professional services agreement with Roesling Nakamura Terada Architects for design services for the development of the replacement facilities in an amount not to exceed $289,516, including a 10% contingency. 2 Project Design The proposed Beach Restroom Replacement Project utilizes a prototype building design that has been developed based on the City's and architect's experience with comparable restrooms in a beachfront environment. The restrooms will replace the existing buildings at seven locations and will be accompanied by a series of related amenities for beach visitors including outdoor showers and foot washes, bike racks, surf board lean walls, drinking fountains and seating. These new public rest stops will be located and designed to be easily identifiable along the beach. The proposed prototype includes individual restroom stalls and outdoor sinks supported by a central building spine which creates a slender structure with an east-west orientation. r ?rtOpr,~ iE4V RESTR©G'~~n ~1,4SS +t MASSING COMPARISON DIAGRAM Separate men's .and women's stalls are proposed and the stalls are screened to enhance privacy for users. 3 Y PROTOTYPICAL FLOOR PLAN The building will be passively ventilated. Deep, slightly pitched roof over-hangs and semi-detached privacy screen walls will control heat gain by reduction of direct sunlight on wall surfaces while allowing indirect light to illuminate interior spaces. Passive ventilation will be achieved utilizing a combination of prevailing breezes and natural, gravity-induced convection as high vents located along the central building spine will allow the hottest air, located near the ceiling to escape while drawing cooler air in through lower mesh wall areas. 4 ~ 7 ei 5JI i ~ ~.,__.-. ~ t_- LIGHT AND VENTILATION DIAGRAM At each location, the building and amenities will be carefully sited in close proximity to where the existing buildings are currently located in order to protect existing views, trees and beach entry features. Allowing for future widening of the bike path north of the Pier was also considered in siting decisions. Preliminary site plans have been developed for each location for purposes of discussion. (Attachment A). These site plans will be refined following completion of a land survey which is currently underway. Unlike the seven restroom locations which tend to be located close to the bike path and sand, the 2500 Ocean Front Walk location is located in the plaza at the foot of Ocean Park Boulevard opposite the tot lot and Beach Park #1. The existing building is behind Perry's concession building. In addition to housing restrooms it also provides offices for the beach parking lot operator. 'Two options were initially considered for this location including either: 1) elimination of the restroom with replacement of a larger facility farther south at 2600 Ocean Front Walk or 2) renovation of the existing building to accommodate four unisex family restrooms with outdoor sinks. Based upon feedback 5 at the community open house to keep restrooms at this location, renovation of the existing building to accommodate four family restrooms is proposed. ~~ i m ,q. 5.. 2500 OCEAN FRONT WALK CONCEPTUAL FLOOR PLAN Building material options being considered include concrete and recycled synthetic wood walkways, cast-in-place and concrete block walls with interior the walls, perforated metal screen walls, and metal roofs with exposed wood beams and painted steel columns. Materials will be refined in terms of color, texture and finish during design development. Fixtures including plumbing and lighting will be selected based upon experience with other restroom facilities at the beach and in the parks. Public Process On September 27, 2009, a public open house was held at the Beach Green to unveil the project design concepts and gather. community input. Approximately 50 people stopped by to review plans, building material options and a study model. Generally the 6 comments were supportive of the overall direction as proposed. (Attachment B). Suggestions were made to consider the use of natural materials such as wood to the extent possible for the exteriors of the buildings to keep them in harmony with the natural beach environment while being mindful of durability issues, to explore the incorporation of shade trees or elements where seating occurs and to consider whether these restrooms could include self-flushing toilets. A suggestion was also made to name the rest stops for improved way finding. In addition to providing an opportunity for public input at the open house, the concept plans have also been posted on the City's website for public review and comment. The Recreation and Parks Commission reviewed the concept design at its October 15, 2009 meeting. The Commission recommended approval of the project in concept with recommendations to maximize ventilation and Tight in the restroom stalls, use durable building materials that are easily cleaned and maintained yet compatible with the beach environment in terms of their type, color and texture, incorporate shade trees where possible especially at seating areas, and examine ways that project design could incorporate references to beach history and culture. The Recreation and Parks Commission also recommended that the project be presented to the Architectural Review Board as a courtesy at the appropriate time (Attachment C). Next Steps Based upon input from the City Council, staff will continue to work with the designers to refine the project plans and materials. Once the plans have been refined staff will present plans for 2500 Ocean Front Walk as required to the ARB. Plans for the seven remaining sites will be presented to ARB as a courtesy for input and staff will return to the Council for final review of design development drawings including final site and building plans and final material selections and color palette. Staff will also submit the plans to State Parks for review pursuant to the Operating Agreement for Santa Monica State Beach and to the Coastal Commission for a permit. In order to be poised to start construction following Labor Day, 2010, it is anticipated that the City Council would 7 award a construction contract by mid-July, 2010. Initially, staff had proposed that a phased construction schedule over two fall/winter seasons be implemented where four buildings would be replaced over each season. Staff has since reconsidered the proposed two phase construction schedule and feels that it would be both more cost effective and less disruptive to beach users overall if construction were completed over a single fall/winter season whereby all the restrooms would be completed and opened to the public no later than Memorial Day, 2011. In order to meet the need for restrooms at the beach during the construction period, temporary public restroom facilities will be provided at key locations. Environmental Analysis The proposed project is categorically exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act as set forth in CEQA Guidelines Section 15032 Class 2, as it consists of the reconstruction of existing restroom facilities on Santa Monica State Beach which will have substantially the same purpose and capacity as the existing structures. Financial Impacts & Budget Actions Capital improvement funding from the General Fund, Beach Fund and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) totaling $3 million, is currently budgeted for the design and construction of the proposed improvements and up to an additional $600,000 in CDBG funding is anticipated to be included in the FY10-11 City Budget for this project. Prepared by: Karen Ginsberg, Assistant Director Approved: Forwarded d !Y-~ P Barbara Stinchfield, Director P`C Community and Cultural Services City 8 Attachment A: Concept Plans Attachment B: Summary of Community Input at September 27, 2009 Open House Attachment C: Letter from the Recreation and Parks Commission 9 SANTA MONICA CITY COUNCIL_eoNCePruA~ Revoew Attachment A ~. November 24, 2009 rt ~ ~ ~ s W 3 w 3 rt a Q Z ~ w a a ¢ O U ~ m ~ J ~ w 'a Z ~ Q ~ `~ w Y m 'a ~ ~ J ~ J m ¢ a w O > a z ~_ Q SIT~_e~~~gra€n ~ E~ 0 !. D ~ G_c m s~ c ~ p Ts ~®~~~®w~ EXISTING RESTROOM MASS ilJ RESTROOM ASS ~SfE~_~t€sd~ ~E~@L~3@h~G_~~nGep~s ~lOORF~LA_~ypie~l r sr~ntr: o: r~t_r ~1~6L~~~l~_~csa~~s~p~s ~ ~ a Sf.AL~ ttF FE=i ~~C~~~ e'G€">?:C~'.:'>wC4sV €~::f~€d Et G`in` ~E~~_eaatt~~~Ys ~® Eegerad: pedestrian access to site pedestrian path a „~ bicycle path viewshed ° • • beach activity °°°°°°"°°°'°"` restroom outdoor space S9TE_rtorth €~f p~~r island effect: no accessible connection to parking orientation blocks viewshed shower located off paved path shower, bike racks, bench \~„ . .,.. ..w ~ a ~ 1200 Rest Stop `. ~ -~ Santa Monica Pier e legend: pedestrian accessto site pedestrian path bicycle path viewshed ° s o -~ existing structure I _ ~ aQ7~_s€aetth ~f ~s~r D W J m F_ Q Y j .,. .k:61 LIL, ®.~~ ® ; to. b ~ f'-'-"•`~ J ~ /~\ ~ ~ ~ ~;' ~. e~6s~stig: located at "fiat edge' of city landscape two buildings buildings at City bauadary phone, shower, drinking fountain, beach closeto playground legend: pedestrian accesstosite _ ~ pedestrian path bicycle path viewshed • s existing structure __ I ~ --~ >tStop edx6~fing: legend: hidden behind Perry's pedestrian accessto site high use due to surrounding activities including playground, pedestrian path . . ,.~ paelcing & concessions bicycle path phone, drinking fountain, parking office viewshed ® .... .......................~ residences to east have view of s park existing structure _ I _ ~ ~' 5 FS v u n. ~1.'Gi ~!~~~~~5~~'st`t~ s,R,~.~~:,H~a~_z,a€::.,, ~YERE~L_c~€oc~~~s IE~~ER[OR E+~~PkF~E~IA.LS: SeaEed carnccete SE¢ars Paiater~ ~aEid eose w¢ad €€oors t~rsYii me6af sreslr ah€ave EbcEsrrscct cn€snrE rno-€ ~ifed sBa~I walEs ~~9eYaI roof Po€dearPsa€aa[e ~a¢sel Fer€e,eaEed i~reta6 e' paaeE €titeYa@ ccaE€ers€ns R~ey~6ed €Eee@<¢ny iTrvr ar s€r~ilar! CasE ias Pace cae~ereYe wra[B Re€ined caoTerete ~E€rcEc CQncrcte --,-~-~_ ~. ~ ~ ~~~ ~~ i/~ Beach Restrooms Replacement Project Open House 9/27/09 i>:~:a ~o~<<~° What We Heard attachment s Approximately 50 people stopped by to give input at an open house workshop on beach restroom design. Overall Placement & design should accommodate future expansion of pedestrian path north of Pier. Cleanliness is important Opinions varied on level of openness for facilities. Overall in favor of ample light and good air circulation: Multifunctional rest stops are a good idea. Rest stops should be named rather than numbered (suggested after surf breaks). Good opportunity to include public art. Ease of use is important. About time -much needed. Like new Pier restroom. Notes About Individual Sites 1200 PCH: Pull farther back from the beach. 2000 Ocean Front Walk: Heavy use due to proximity to popular surf breaks. 2400 Ocean Front Walk: Concern that it would impact volleyball courts. Add lockers for day use. Also used heavily due to surf breaks: 2500 Ocean Front Walk: Majority in favor of renovation to accommodate restrooms (Option 2). Use is limited by distance from beach and parking. Option 1 would need to address .proximity to Ocean Park Blvd and connect with play area. 2600 Ocean Front Walk: -Heavy use due to popular surf breaks. Frequently has lines to showers -additional showers needed. Add lockers. More fixtures needed due to heavy use. Lots of bike racks needed. 2800 Ocean Front Walk: Close to busy surf camp. Specific Features Bike racks: Need lots more. Hold public art competition to design different types. Boardwalks: In favor of more boardwalks like the one at the Beach House. Drainage: In favor of interior. Drinking fountains: Need easy access from bike path. Fixtures: No-touch with manual override. Hooks: Needed for hanging personal items in order to keep them dry. Lean Wall: Purpose needs to be more clearly defined. Lockers: Add for day users. Attachment C Recreation & Parks Commission 1685 Main Street PO Box 2ZOC Santa Monica, California 90407-220C City of SBII$a 1~OII1C a"" November 3,.2009 Santa Monica City Council 1685 Main Street Santa Monica, CA 90401 Re: Beach Restrooms Project Dear Mayor Genser and Council Members: We are writing to express our concern for the current condition of the beach restrooms and our concern that beach restrooms meet all required accessibility standards. The "Beach Restrooms Project" is designed to meet both objectives. As this project is on acourt-mandated timeline we wanted to move it forward as expeditiously as possible. At our October 15, 2009 meeting, the Recreation and Parks Commission reviewed and unanimously approved, with the following recommendations, the concept plans for the Beach Restrooms Project. Light and Ventilation: It is recommended that particular attention be paid to maximizing light and air ventilation in the restroom stalls through passive means. Durable roof and screening materials that can withstand the harsh beach environmental and maximize user comfort should be selected for the project. Materials Palette: Building materials should allow for easy maintenance, long-term durability and be aesthetically pleasing to blend in with the coastal beach environment in terms of colors, textures and finishes. Incorporating the use of amenities such as surfboard lean walls with towel hooks adjacent to the outdoor showers is encouraged. It is also recommended that building security lighting be incorporated into the project. Consideration should be given to the design of playful or whimsical elements. Suggestions included design concepts in keeping with the history of the beach or expressive of the City's commitment to sustainability. tel: 310 458-8310 Attachment C Detailed Site Plans As the site plans are refined, it is recommended that existing view sheds be protected, Provide access from parking lots and the bike/pedestrian path without precluding future path widening Incorporate site-specific references to beach history where possible. Architectural Review Board: We recommend that the ARB review the project, as a courtesy, at an appropriate time in the design process. The conceptual plans that we reviewed incorporated many thoughtful design ideas, were site specific, showed the use of materials that were both welcoming to users and compatible with the beach environment. Additionally the design team expressed an understanding of the history and meaning of the beach and a goal of incorporating that understanding into the design work. We appreciate the work of the project team to date and appreciate that they will address these suggestions as they develop the design details of the project. Thank you for your consideration of these recommendations in the context of your review of the concept plans. Sincerely, t,~.s ~~ e.® Susan Cloke Chair cc: Recreation and Parks Commissioners