Historic Zoning Commission

Individual Landmark:

12-G-03-HZ

Applicant Request

CERTIFICATE WAS DENIED AT 12/18/2003 MEETING OF KNOXVILLE HISTORIC ZONING COMMISSION, BUT APPROVED ON 1/5/2004.

DESCRIPTION OF WORK APPEARS BELOW.

Construct new office building; front façade to be brick on upper story (s) and stone or block on ground floor with brushed aluminum windows.

Site Info

Although the design and materials proposed for the "Knollwood Office Building" are respectful of Knollwood Mansion, the challenge for the Knoxville Historic Zoning Commission is to determine if the proposed building frames Knollwood or dominates it. The width of the building and its prominent forward position are inconsistent with past deliberations of the Knoxville Historic Zoning Commission.



Page Two - Staff Report
Certificate No. 120403GEN
Knoxville Historic Zoning Commission meeting of 12/18/2003
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If there is a need to reduce the apparent size of the proposed building, there are at least three possibilities - 1) the articulation of the front façade of the building could be enhanced through landscaping or through articulations in the roof/cornice line; 2) the building could be rotated apprxoimately 90 degrees, so that the narrowest façade (drive-through) faced Kingston Pike; or 3) the building could be moved north on the site plan so that southernmost portion of the proposed front elevation was at least 30' back of the front elevation of Knollwood.

The first option (turning the building) would result in the narrowest part of the building being most visible from Kingston Pike. The narrowest portion of the building is a drive-through with a roof garden, is fairly transparent, and is no wider than the front elevation of Knollwood, so the prominence of the new building would be reduced. The second option would also result in retaining prominent for Knollwood, since moving the new building back on the lot would allow it to act more as a frame for Knollwood, as recommended in the adopted design guidelines.