Board of Governors
News Items
 
February 7, 2009
   
GEPENC GENERAL DESIGN GUIDELINES - WORKING DRAFT
 
 
   
GEPENC Welcomes You:

Developers Are Stakeholders of the Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Council, and are entitled to the same access to, and respect from the Neighborhood Council and its members that any stakeholder is entitled to.

The purpose of the Neighborhood Council process is to help find a balance between development goals and the goals of other Neighborhood Council stakeholders, and produce the best projects possible.

GEPENC encourages developers to meet with us early and often to get input from us and our community’s vast experience and resources.

Background:

Development projects coming before GEPENC often request, and are more often given input, regarding architectural design. The architecture and scale of buildings in Echo Park is one of the features that so many of our stakeholders cherish. In reflecting on the value of what we have, GEPENC recognizes that:

• A significant component of the quality of life for a community is based on the perceived value of the investment made into buildings and the land where they are sited.

• Echo Park is an area that is architecturally rich. The beauty and scale of its structures is the result of historic development, and reflects styles that span more than a century. The styles and designs that are valued today reflect the styles that were, at the time they were built, contemporary styles.

• While some micro neighborhoods like the Angelino Heights Historic Preservation Overlay Zone have specific architectural styles, in general, there is no style that is specific to Echo Park. It is eclectic.

• Historic architecture that is perceived to be successful or “classic” today usually reflects the materials and craftsmanship that were “state of the art” when they were built.

Architectural Guidelines

GEPENC encourages design that incorporates:

1. Architectural “Vision” - with design that is fresh and contemporary, or design that reinterprets the historic with a fresh, contemporary approach.

While accurate reproduction of historic design is a wonderful concept, it is very expensive, and can fail the test of time if compromised by budgetary limitations.
 
Back