62-66 Hurtle Square - Encroachment Policy Variation
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2 February 2021 City of Adelaide 25 Pirie Street ADELAIDE SA 5000 Attention: Edouard Pool Dear Edouard Re: 62-66 Hurtle Square - Encroachment Policy Variation Further to our written request on the 23 December 2021 for consideration of a variation to the Encroachment Policy, please find below further information as requested in your email of 23 January 2021. 1. Can the encroachments be eliminated by altering the building design such that the balconies are located within the property boundaries? The current approved design of the development incorporates balconies that currently comply with the most recent Encroachment Policy adopted by Council, limiting the width of the balconies to 30 per cent of the site frontage. The resultant architectural expression is one that presents vertically and a high proportion of solid to void in the northern façade with small sunshades over the fenestration in the punctuated precast panels. The wider balcony encroachments are in addition to the existing approved development that does not rely upon the wider balconies to meet the relevant Development Plan provisions and indeed to maintain the proposed revised and improved design expression would result in significant changes to the approved Floor Plans. The Encroachment Policy recognises that this location on the southern side of the square is an appropriate location to accommodate balcony encroachments. 2. Can the Encroachments be Reduced? The additional extent of encroachment beyond the 30 per cent width of the building façade is at its minimum to align with and provide sufficient shading to the fenestration in the north-east and north-western rooms in the dwellings fronting the square and accordingly is well proportioned in its architectural expression and balance of the façade elements. 50688LET10 Reducing the width of the encroachments would: • either not provide appropriate sun shading to the proposed fenestration in the northern façade; • result in unbalanced portions in the architectural expression across the northern façade; or • require a reduction in the width of the fenestration to the second living / study rooms. 3. What are the architectural benefits of the proposed amendments? The architectural benefits derived from allowing an increase in the width of the balconies beyond 30.0 per cent can be summarised as follows: • provides for an improved horizontal architectural expression of the northern elevation to align more closely with the horizontal expression expressed on the east, west and southern elevations; • provides the opportunity to accommodate floor to ceiling glazing to the second living area resulting in improved passive environmental benefits through access to northern light and increased natural cross ventilation through the hurtle square fronting apartments; • provides improved sun shading of the fenestration in the northern elevation; and • allows for safe and convenient cleaning of the windows across the northern elevation. 4. What are the public benefits of the proposed amendments? Clause 4.1 of the Encroachment Policy applies a Public Benefit test which states: “All new encroachments MUST: • maintain public safety; and • maintain and/or improve public amenity, including the appearance of development; or • facilitate anticipated development that would not otherwise be possible.” For the reasons expressed below, we consider that the proposed encroachments satisfy the public benefit test. The public benefits derived from the proposed increase in the width of the balconies principally result from the improved public amenity derived from the improvements to the appearance of the building through the revised architectural expression and the enhancements in the building’s architectural merit. 50688LET10 2 This is evident through the evolution of our client’s developments fronting Hurtle Square where both community sentiment and professional feedback has more widely accepted the architectural expression of the later development on the corner of Hurtle Square and Halifax Street in the projects Hurtle and Co.2 and Hurtle and Co.3. These developments incorporate the horizontally expressed balcony forms. The horizontal balconies encroach over the public realm and exceed the 30 per cent width of the site frontage. Coincidentally, the Council accepted the variation from the Encroachment Policy which existed at the time which included the same criteria relating to balcony encroachments to that which the proposed development is being assessed against. In addition to the improved architectural expression, the increased balcony width facilitates the opportunity to increase the size of the glazing in the northern elevation to the second living room increasing the opportunity for improved incidental passive surveillance over Hurtle Square from additional rooms within the apartments that front the square maintaining and enhancing public safety. 5. Please familiarise yourself with Section 2, Section 4.2.6 of the Policy and ensure that your submission complies with all the desired criteria. 4.2.6. BALCONIES 1.0 COMPLIANCE / COMMENT Balcony encroachments where the balcony is at first floor level provided that they: • are designed to be open in appearance and The balconies have a glass balustrade and do form rather than enclosed; not include any form of enclosure. • are setback a minimum of 600mm from the The balconies maintain a setback of 600mm kerb edge or 1.0 metre from a street tree, from the kerb edge and 1.0 metre from any traffic signal, light pole or street furniture street tree. element(or greater for traffic movement/safety requirements); • have a minimum vertical clearance between The balconies have a minimum vertical the top of the footpath and lowest clearance above the footpath of 4.5 metres. underside of the balcony of 3.0 metres or 5.0 metres above the level of the vehicular carriageway; • Incorporates lighting on the underside of Lighting to the underside of the balcony was the balcony at ground level where street approved as a condition in the original lighting is obscured; and approval. • are designed to incorporate CCTV cameras Opportunities exist to incorporate CCTV to the on the underside of the balcony at ground undersides of the canopy. level where existing CCTV coverage has been obscured by the balcony. 50688LET10 3 4.2.6. BALCONIES 1.0 COMPLIANCE / COMMENT Above first floor balcony encroachments will only be considered in the following instances: • On streets that are not listed as part of the Not Applicable as the following Clause applies. City grid on the National Heritage Listing detailed in Attachment C; or • Fronting the following portions of the The building is located on the southern side of Squares: Hurtle Square. - Eastern, northern, and western sides of Hindmarsh Square (excluding Grenfell Street, Pirie Street and Pulteney Street frontages); - Eastern, northern, and western sides of Light Square (excluding Currie Street, Waymouth Street and Morphett Street frontages); - Eastern, southern, and western sides of Whitmore Square (excluding Wright Street, Sturt Street and Morphett Street frontages); or - Eastern, southern, and western sides of Hurtle Square (excluding Carrington Street, Halifax Street and Pulteney Street frontages). If encroaching balconies satisfy one of the locational criteria above, they MUST also be carefully integrated into the building design and enhance the appearance of the development when viewed from the public realm, as well as satisfying the following: the proposed extent of the horizontal • being no greater than 30% of the street encroachment across the façade of the building frontage on every level of the building; and has increase to 67% of the site frontage. • having no more than 50% of each balcony the balconies maintain in excess of 50% of the area encroaching over the public realm; balcony depth behind the property boundary. and • having a maximum encroachment The encroachment does not project beyond projection of 1.0 metre; and 1.0 metre from the façade of the building. the proposed balcony encroachments are open • being designed to be open in form and in appearance and include glass balustrades for appearance rather than enclosed; and visual permeability 50688LET10 4 4.2.6. BALCONIES 1.0 COMPLIANCE / COMMENT air-conditioning units where located on the • being free of service infrastructure such as balconies are screened from view and located air conditioning units; and behind the property alignment and not on any portion of the encroachment. • having a minimum setback of 600mm from The balconies are set well behind a 600mm the kerb edge and 1.0 metre from a street clearance from the kerb alignment and above tree, traffic signal, light pole, or street any other street tree. There is no other street furniture element (or greater for traffic infrastructure requiring additional clearance. movement/safety requirements). Discussion point 4 above, addresses and demonstrates that additional public benefit derived from allowing a variation to the Encroachment Policy and allowing the width of the balconies to extend beyond the 30 per cent guidelines of the site frontage. When considering the encroachment variation, (and noting that the extent of variation to the site width guideline may be more than can be considered a minor variation) it must be considered in the context that the extended width of the balcony across the site frontage is the only guideline which the balcony encroachments do not comply. In all other respects the proposed balcony encroachments comply