Exhibits:

1. Map of the Historic District
2. Exterior Paint Guidelines for Existing Buildings in the NAS Alameda Historic District
3. Draft Resolution

Public Hearing to Consider Amending the Guide to Preserving the Character of the Naval Air Station Alameda Historic District to Include Exterior Paint Guidelines For Existing Buildings in The NAS Alameda Historic District. The Environmental Impact Report Prepared for the Alameda Point Project, Certified on February 4, 2014, Satisfies Environmental Review for this Action Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)

CITY OF ALAMEDA
Memorandum

To: Honorable President and
Members of the Historical Advisory Board

From: Eric Fonstein
Development Manager

Date: May 7, 2015

Re: Public Hearing to Consider Amending the Guide to Preserving the Character of the Naval Air Station Alameda Historic District to Include Exterior Paint Guidelines For Existing Buildings in The NAS Alameda Historic District. The Environmental Impact Report Prepared for the Alameda Point Project, Certified on February 4, 2014, Satisfies Environmental Review for this Action Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)

BACKGROUND

In recent years, the land- and sea-plane hangars at the former Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) have been rejuvenated by a cluster of artisan distilleries, urban wineries, clean tech and advanced manufacturing companies, and an athletic club. With the success of these businesses, the hangars are increasingly becoming major regional visitor attractions and employment centers. However, while these companies have made significant capital improvements to the interior of their buildings to re-purpose them for contemporary uses, the exterior of the buildings have remained largely unaltered since the NAS Alameda was decommissioned in 1998. Their outside appearances have deteriorated with fading and peeling paint. Many of the tenants have expressed strong interest in painting the exterior of their buildings, at their own expense.

The buildings, located within the NAS Alameda Historic District (Historic District), are subject to historic preservation regulations and guidelines. In 1999, the City of Alameda (City) adopted the Guide to Preserving the Character of the Naval Air Station Alameda Historic District (Guide), which consists of design guidelines for alterations to historic properties at the former NAS Alameda. The Guide primarily focuses on structural elements, but gives no clear direction for repainting the buildings.

STAFF ANALYSIS

The City's goal for the Historic District is to attract high quality, long-term tenants and to encourage them to adapt underutilized buildings to the next phase of their use. As a 2005 historic preservation report by Page & Turnbull explained: "Occupancy brings not only life and purpose to the structure, but necessary care and maintenance."

In this context, staff recommends amending the Guide to include standards for painting the exterior of the buildings within the Historic District. The standards will give building occupants variation and flexibility in paint selection, while preserving the appearance of the Historic District. Having options in paint selection will support tenants investing in the appearance of their buildings.

City's Approach to Selecting Exterior Paint Colors. The City's objectives in creating a menu or palette of colors for exterior paint are three-fold:

1. Recognize the cohesive architectural design as the character-defining element of the Historic District and manage the buildings as a group;

2. Develop color options that are complementary to the architectural style of the Historic District; and

3. Develop a color scheme for the four sub-areas of the Historic District, as identified by the Guide, to strengthen the identity of each sub-area (Exhibit 1, Map of the Historic District).

The City's underlying approach is to keep the current color scheme in the Administrative Core (beige with blue highlight) and Residential Areas (white) and create a single color palette for refurbishing the exterior of the buildings in both the Operations and Shops Areas. The buildings in the Operations and Shop Areas were both designed for commercial and industrial uses and would be compatible with a single color motif.

Proposed Color Palette. The options outlined below were vetted through, and endorsed by, the major tenants in the Operations and Shops Areas. The tenants wanted the color palette to complement the copper patina above the hangar doors, with a strong preference for rust, orange, muted reds, and maroon colors. They also wanted a color palette that could be used to break up the massive volume of the exterior walls by distinguishing the pedestal, main body, and upper termination areas above the large hangar doors. Based on these comments, the following palette was developed (Exhibit 2, Exterior Paint Guidelines for Existing Buildings in the NAS Alameda Historic District).

A. Base color for main exterior walls of the buildings. Given the imposing, monolithic size of the hangars and some of the other buildings in the Operations and Shops Areas, the background or base color of the main walls should remain muted and accepting of more detail for the character-defining elements. Tenants will have only one option for the base color, which ensures continuity and cohesiveness within the Historic District:

"Nebulous White"-Sherwin-Williams 7063
RBG Value: R-222, G-224, B-220
Hexadecimal Value: #DEE0DC
LRV: 74

B. Hangar doors, window sash options. The colors can differentiate individual buildings and highlight some character-defining elements of the building, such as the large hangar doors, the steel personnel doors with transoms, and the steel industrial sash. Tenants will be able to choose one color from the following four options:

"Raucous Orange"-Sherwin-Williams 6883
RGB Value: R-198, G-84, B-41
Hexadecimal Value: #C65429
LRV: 18

"Ablaze"-Sherwin-Williams 6870
RGB Value: R-196, G-68, B-61
Hexadecimal Value: #C4443D
LRV: 16

"Rave Red"-Sherwin-Williams 6608
RGB Value: R-165, G-56, B-48
Hexadecimal Value: #A53830
LRV: 11

"Husky Orange"-Sherwin-Williams 6636
RGB Value: R-189, G-98, B-58
Hexadecimal Value: #BD623A
LRV: 20

C. The pedestal and indented termination. The palette will underscore Streamline Moderne characteristics of the buildings. The hangars have subtle striations, with a "pedestal" band at the bottom of the walls and an indented "termination" band above the hangar doors. Tenants may select one of the following two colors for both these striation elements; both elements must be painted the same color. The selected color may also be used for drain spouts and other metallic accents, which are particularly common in the Shops Area.

"Argos"-Sherwin-Williams 7065
RGB Value: R-185, G-187, B-182
Hexadecimal Value: #B9BBB6
LRV: 50

"Network Grey"-Sherwin-Williams 7073
RGB Value: R-161, G-167, B-168
Hexadecimal Value: #A1A7A8
LRV: 39

Next Steps:

1. With the Historical Advisory Board's comments and approval, the Exterior Paint Guidelines will be added as an addendum to the Guide to Preserving the Character of the Naval Air Station.
2. The City will prepare a final formatted version of the Exterior Paint Guidelines for distribution to the public and tenants in the Historic District.

Enforcement. The color palette will be enforced through the City's lease agreements with building tenants or in the Convenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) with any sale of property. A business may request special approval from the Historical Advisory Board for any deviation from the Exterior Paint Guidelines.

PUBLIC NOTICE
This agenda item was advertised in the Alameda Journal on April 17, 2015. Notices were mailed to Alameda Point commercial tenants.

RECOMMENDATION
Approve amending the Guide to Preserving the Character of the Naval Air Station Alameda Historic District to include Exterior Paint Guidelines for Existing Buildings in the NAS Alameda Historic District.

Respectfully submitted by:

Eric Fonstein
Development Manager
Community Development Department

Exhibits:

1. Map of the Historic District
2. Exterior Paint Guidelines for Existing Buildings in the NAS Alameda Historic District
3. Draft Resolution