Established in 1855, Paola has a high quality urban center, including the City Square and County Court House Square. The urban area is surrounded by residential areas containing a rich diversity of building styles, types, and sizes providing Paola with a high-quality historic charm. This heritage has been important to the City’s success in attracting residents, businesses, and tourists. Preserving that unique heritage as the City continues to grow is vital. The City also wants to establish its image and character at each entrance to the City from US 169. This Article provides regulations to control the quality of nonresidential uses that are entrances into the City. Controls over nonresidential building materials are provided to control the character of these areas. The character of new residential development is also regulated to ensure they are compatible with the diverse traditional character of the City’s existing residential areas.

Because they are out of character with the historic character of Paola, metal-sided or concrete-slab buildings are permitted only as indicated below:

A.    Metal-Sided Buildings. Permitted in the I District. Permitted in the BP and TA Districts provided that the street facades shall be constructed of decorative masonry materials, except when an overlay district has higher standards (e.g. the City Entrance Area Standards). The façade of any building in the BP and TA district, which is located within 200’ of any street right-of-way, including any highway right-of-way, shall be considered a street façade and constructed of decorative masonry materials (Ordinance 2799, 06/11/02). Metal buildings existing at the time of adoption of this ordinance may be expanded up to 15% of the original building footprint (Ordinance 2772, 03/21/01).

B.    Concrete-Slab Buildings. These buildings are permitted only in the I District. Permitted in the BP district provided that the street facades shall be constructed of decorative masonry materials. Prohibited in all other districts.

C.    Design Review. In all other locations, these materials shall be permitted only where the development submits architectural, landscaping, and sign reviews and receives Planning Commission approval.

D.    Exception. One (1) pre-designed storage building containing less than one hundred fifty (150) square feet is permitted per lot.

Design controls are essential to providing the desired character of land uses and buildings in the Downtown District and in areas at the entrance to the City from US 169.

The Downtown District contains the City Square, Court House Square, City Hall, and Library. The standards of this district are to maintain the historic image and character of the downtown area and to ensure that new buildings fit into that character. All buildings shall be reviewed during site plan approval by the planning commission for adherence to the following:

A.    Building Material. Red brick masonry is the preferred building fascia. Stone and other brick masonry may be approved, provided the building fits into the context of its neighbors and is not a sharp contrast to existing buildings.

B.    Building Height. All buildings shall be at least two stories in height. If the use proposed is such that two stories are impractical, then the architecture and street facade(s) should be such that the two-story character of the streets is maintained.

C.    Architectural Style. There is no single style that is mandated for the downtown area. However, building elevations should be sensitive to the scale and style of neighboring buildings. Overall window placement, window size, decorative trim or material, and colors should be consistent with the general street face.

D.    General. In looking at neighboring structures it should be understood that some older buildings have been degraded with applications of more modern materials over the original building facade. In these cases the Planning Commission may insist on a facade that more closely resembles the original styles, or is in keeping with buildings further down the same street that have preserved their historic character.

City entrances are shown on the Zoning Map. All buildings in these areas regardless of the zoning shall be subject to design review by the Planning Commission. Only one of the three entrances has important existing buildings; Baptiste Drive has the hospital and high school. Other entrances will develop in the future. The following building standards shall be applied to the design review of non-residential uses:

A.    Materials. Masonry materials including integrally colored textured block, brick and stone with unpainted finishes are required on all street exposures. The use of stucco or exterior insulated finish system may also be permitted. Metal is not a permitted exterior finish material. On Baptiste Drive, the materials should be selected to complement and blend with the high school and hospital. (Ordinance 2799, 06/11/02)

B.    Colors. The basic colors shall be earth tones or brick colors. The Baptiste Drive area shall use tones that are consistent with the hospital and high school. No important buildings existed as of the date of adoption of this Ordinance at the other two City entrances. The Planning Commission should review the first buildings in these areas and select a range of colors that can be extended to the rest of the corridor.

C.    Style. There is no single style that is mandated for the entrance area. However, building elevations should be sensitive to the scale and style of neighboring buildings. Design themes that reflect the city square band shell should be strongly considered. If a business park is the proposed use, an overall design guideline should be approved.

The City many require certain species of trees to be planted as the street trees.

In Paola’s traditional neighborhoods, buildings were built in small numbers so blocks developed over an extended period. The result is great diversity in scale, style, and detail. Modern development practices often results in large numbers of mass produced housing that is often monotonous and out of character with the City. This Division controls the building of similar buildings in residential subdivisions.

The following measures are used to evaluate developments and prevent monotony. Figure 15.310 illustrates the following points.

A.    Floor Plan. The floor plan defines the arrangement of the building’s form, arrangement of rooms, windows, and doors. Identical floor plans can lead to monotony.

B.    Orientation. This describes the orientation of building floor plan(s). A building rotated ninety (90) degrees will not appear identical even when the floor plans are identical. Similarly, flipping or reversing the floor plan creates a different look.

C.    Roof Lines. Rotating the orientation of the roof peak, or otherwise altering the roof line in a significant manner can alter the appearance completely.

D.    Materials. Brick; stone; natural-stained wood vertical siding; horizontal siding in wood, fiberglass, or metal; stucco or exterior insulated finish system; and shingles are all considered different exterior materials.

E.    Architectural Features. The addition of a front porch, tower, or balcony are architectural features that change the facade sufficiently to create a difference.

F.    Color. Color can be used to provide a unifying sense to a development; it can create monotony; or it can create conflicts.

The following standards shall be applied to all single-family dwellings or buildings containing more than one (1) dwelling unit to prevent monotony:

A.    A variety of building sizes or scales shall be provided. No more than three (3) buildings in a row shall have less than a thirty (30) percent difference in scale between the largest and smallest building as measured by building floor area. (See Figure 15.320.)

B.    No two (2) dwellings or buildings on a street face shall be identical in floor plan or color unless differing by at least two (2) of the following (See Figure 15.310.):

1.    Rotated or reversed lot orientation.

2.    Different roof configuration or orientation.

3.    Different materials or exterior walls. A mix of materials may be used on buildings. For example, stone and shingle or brick and horizontal siding.

4.    The addition of architectural features that alter the appearance.

5.    Identical color schemes shall require the addition of another differentiating feature (total of 3) from numbers 1 through 4 above to offset the similarity in color.

C.    Buildings having more than one (1) unit shall include different floor plans, staggered alignments with the street, roof line variation, architectural features, or rotated orientation to achieve interest in the building.

D.    Design Review. In some cases, as with attached units or subdivisions which seek to replicate a historic theme or themes, greater unity of design may actually enhance the character of the area. Such plans shall be permitted only where the developer submits architectural, landscaping, and sign reviews and receives Planning Commission approval.

The design review shall be applied to the use of certain building materials under Division 15.100, residential designs not meeting the monotony standards of Division 15.300, or the provision of larger signs in accordance with the provisions of Section 07.103. The Planning Commission shall conduct a design review as part of the plan approval process for a plat or site plan at the request of the developer.

In conducting the design review, the Planning Commission shall evaluate the plan against the following criteria. Approval requires that the criteria have been met or are inapplicable to the specific project, and that the development is significantly superior to one that simply met the Ordinance requirements.

1.    The project is compatible with surrounding uses in terms of scale and adherence to the traditional character of Paola.

2.    The architecture, project layout, landscaping, and signs contribute to a harmonious and diverse character that has a strong sense of unity.

3.    Monotony is avoided and the plan provides an environment that has interest and diversity without becoming chaotic or discordant.

4.    The buildings are designed to be part of Paola, rather than a plan or character that can be applied to similar uses across the nation. Formula buildings and color schemes are undesirable.

5.    The streetscape protects or enhances the entrances to Paola, making them distinct from similar land uses in other communities.

6.    The combination of architecture, signs, and landscaping creates a sense of place for those developments having many buildings, or which contribute to an overall sense of unity if the development is a single building.

7.    The streetscape and building design reduces apparent building mass of large buildings to match the City’s small town character.

A.    Minimum Dimension. The smaller dimension of a rectangular dwelling unit shall be at least 22 feet. If a dwelling unit is not rectangular, then the minimum dimension of a rectangle superimposed over and enclosing the entire footprint of the dwelling unit shall be at least 22 feet.

B.    Foundations. All buildings shall be placed on a permanent foundation that meets applicable building code requirements. The floor elevation of the proposed dwelling shall be reasonably compatible with the floor elevations of surrounding dwelling units.

C.    Garage or Carport. A single-family dwelling shall include a garage or carport constructed with the same materials as the dwelling with a concrete floor and concrete pad.

D.    Driveways. Driveways with access on public streets shall be hard surfaced.

E.    Roof Pitch Overhang. All main buildings shall have a pitched roof with a minimum 12-inch roof overhang on each of the dwelling’s perimeter walls such that the overhang is architecturally integrated into the design of the dwelling.

F.    Roofing Material. All main buildings and all detached garages or carports shall have a roof surface of wood shakes, asphalt, composition or wood shingles, clay or concrete tiles, or other material expressly designed for roofs.

G.    Siding Materials. All main buildings and all detached garages shall have exterior siding material consisting of wood, masonry, concrete, stucco, masonite, vinyl or metal lap. The exterior siding shall extend to ground level, except that when a solid concrete or masonry perimeter foundation is used, the siding material needs to extend below the top of the foundation.

Deviations. The Planning Commission may approve deviations from one or more of the design standards on the basis of a finding that the architectural style proposed provides compensating design features and that the proposed dwelling will be compatible and harmonious with existing structures in the vicinity.

(Ordinance #2772, 03/13/01)