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Planning Commission Lands of Bowers June 10, 1998 Page 3 constrained by the human habitation setback, although there may be some room to rotate the house to more closely parallel to the contour lines. While the pad level of the house drops 8 feet over its length, the roofline only drops 3 feet, creating a more bulky appearance. Revising the design to more closely step the rooflines with the changes in the floor levels may reduce the visual impact to the downhill neighbors. The basement is proposed to be cut as much as 16 feet below the finished floor level on the uphill end, and as much as 18 feet below existing grade. To minimize grading and to reflect the steps in the house, the basement could be limited to the area under the 379.7 finished floor or could be stepped up to the next level (3 81.7), but not beyond that point. This would be similar to and consistent with the new homes approved on Moon Lane, where basement cut was reduced to 8 to 10 feet below the finished floor. Parking, Driveway, and Turnaround The applicant proposes to enter the site off the Hidden Springs Court cul de sac, between the 40 foot front setback off Altamont Road and the conservation easement around the heritage oak tree. The driveway would be partially located within the dripline of the oak although it would be out of the conservation easement. Three of the 4 required parking spaces would be located in the attached garage, with the 4th space to be located along the backup area. All of the pavement is proposed out of the required setbacks. The access to the detached garage and the extra back up area required for the emergency vehicle turnaround is proposed to be constructed with grasscrete, allowing for a 50 percent reduction of that area counted toward the development area. Lighting and Landscaping No skylights are proposed for the main residence. House lighting is shown on the floor plans, with generally one light at each exit. Standard lighting condition #8 includes language for low wattage and downlit fixtures. The landscape lighting is not included in plans at this time and will be reviewed at a Site Development Hearing, along with the proposed landscaping, after the residence is framed. The existing landscaping on the site includes heavy mature screening over much of the property that would screen the view of the residence from Altamont Road and from adjacent developedand undeveloped properties. Additional landscaping along the east side of the property would help to screen the new residence from the existing residence (see letter from neighbor, Attachment #7). The retaining wall and grading to the west of the residence would require the removal of several screening trees between this property and Lot 6 (the Vellequette residence, under construction). Staff recommends that the grading in this area be redesigned to maintain as many of these trees as is feasible (see condition#1). Geotechnical Review and Drainage The Town's geotechnical consultant notes that the garage is proposed within the Human Habitation Setback, and over the Altamont fault. The consultant notes that the applicant must be willing to accept the disclosure that the garage is located above the fault and that there is a potential for loss of the garage in the event of an earthquake. Staff has included condition #10 requiring the statement as well as condition #9, requiring geotechnical evaluation/update prior to preparation of detailed structural drawings or final grading plans.