Architectural Review Committee sends back plans for eight-home development, votes for a restudy

A proposed eight-home development near the airport will undergo a significant redesign following a unanimous vote by the Palm Springs Architectural Review Committee (ARC) on Monday evening.

While the committee members praised the project’s intent to bring single-story single-family housing to the area, they ordered a restudy of the plans to address concerns over color, solar orientation, and architectural details.

The project, known as Pueo Palm Springs, is a request by Sister City Investments Inc. to construct detached single-family residences on a 2.53-acre site located at  2700 East Alejo Road on an empty lot east of Farrell Drive.

The development features contemporary designs with a strong horizontal profile and includes a detached accessory dwelling unit on each lot.

The committee’s decision comes after the Planning Commission, at its meeting on Jan. 27, conditionally approved the project with specific direction for the developer to include accent colors and for the ARC to review color selection and color contrast.

The revised plans took the project from a mostly monochromatic color palette to one with bright primary colors accenting the architecture.

“I don’t think that the direction, in terms of the planning commission, toward more vivid pigment, rich colors, is delivering a better looking elevation,” said Vice Chair John Walsh. “I think you had it right.”

Committee member Jacqueline Thomas echoed the preference for a more muted palette, expressing concern that the Planning Commission’s request for variety through color was a “pedestrian solve” for a high-quality design.

“I actually like the idea of the sophistication of whether it’s black or whether it’s tan or whatever it is,” Thomas said. “I’m not opposed to an accent color. I’m not opposed to differentiating it with color. I just don’t want it to be atomic ranch and kitschy.”

In addition to reverting to the original neutral color scheme, the committee told the developer to reorient the homes to better account for the desert environment.

Under the new conditions, the developer must flip several of the lots so that all swimming pools face south, maximizing winter sunlight and providing protection from prevailing northwest winds.

Chair Lance O’Donnell emphasized that these changes would ultimately improve the livability and marketability of the homes. “Every time a plane takes off down that runway and the sound is coming back into these courtyards, it’s going to be much more livable to flip all of these,” O’Donnell said.

Other technical conditions placed on the approval include narrowing the driveways at the curb to increase landscaping space, thinning the roof profiles to match the surrounding “Alexander-type” mid-century homes, and extending sun-shading devices over windows to reduce heat gain.

Developer Neil Curry of iD-SixtySeven, who is working with the Canadian-based Sister City Investments, was open to making changes on the project. He noted that the single-level, single-family concept has been a “huge success” in other markets like Las Vegas.

Despite the lengthy list of required changes, committee members expressed strong support for the core concept of the development.

“I would like to applaud you both for creating something that’s single family and single level, because we don’t often see this come before us,” Committee Member Thomas told the development team. “I think you’re gonna have an amazing product when you’re finished.”

The developers are expected to return to a future committee meeting with revised plans that incorporate the new architectural and site planning conditions.

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