Palm Desert's Architectural Review Commission approved design changes for three projects during a meeting Tuesday, including updated designs for two El Paseo stores and revised landscape plans for a Toll Brothers residential development.
The commission unanimously approved facade modifications and new signage for the new Restoration Hardware store to be located on the northeast block of the El Paseo and Octotillo Drive intersection, near Porta Via.
The changes include the addition of pilasters to the building's exterior, reducing the number of windows to three, and adding new entrance features including a skylight, sconces, and a chandelier.
The design also includes two unique illuminated signs on the north elevation reading "There are pieces that furnish a home, and those that define it," along with an illuminated "RH" sign on the west elevation.
David Fletcher, the building’s landlord, said he was impressed with Restoration Hardware’s new design.
“They came to us originally with a beautiful design for the storefront, they did a value engineering, brought it back,” Fletcher said. “It was okay, but it wasn’t as nice as the original one.”
That message, he said, filtered all the way up to the CEO, “...who came down and ended up deciding that RH [Restoration Hardware] wasn’t doing justice to the clientele in Palm Desert.”
Michael Avellone, senior director of architecture and Design Galleries at Restoration Hardware, said that when the CEO of Restoration Hardware made a visit to Palm Desert he looked at nearby storefronts including Ralph Lauren and the Porta Via restaurant.
“We sort of re-looked at the facade on both the front and back of the building as well as how we can provide a little more interest as you come into the space.”
That’s why, he explained, they’ve introduced “a little bit of an indoor, outdoor courtyard with some water features and a very dramatic, tall front entry procession. We’re also looking to incorporate a skylight…have some more natural light in this space.”
Construction is now on pause to introduce more articulation to the facade and bring the new store in line with a new brand standard that the company has installed in Palo Alto and Newport Beach.
Fletcher said he was happy with the new design that better fit the original proposal despite the delays caused by the design change, “We’re disappointed because this has cost them from opening for this season. They were going to be open by now, but they decided to take a stop and take a look and decide to do it right,” he said.
In a 5-1 vote, the commission also approved a request from White House Black Market to waive a condition requiring installation of flamed absolute black granite tile at the base of its storefront on El Paseo, meaning that the nearly identical slate gray paving stone that is already installed can remain in place.
The commission then deliberated about painting a couple of inches below an existing window black rather than white, with concerns about maintenance and the stucco eventually looking “dingy,” before voting to approve the request without changes.
The commission also voted 5-0 to approve revised landscape plans for Stella at University Park, a Toll Brothers development featuring new single-family homes ranging in size from about 2,500-square-feet to about 3,500-square-feet and priced starting at $959,000.
The project received initial landscape approval in May, but since then the developer has changed the plant layout, made some changes to hardscape design, and made adjustments to planned plant species.
There was a single adjustment to the front yard plants, the developer dropped the Mediterranean fan palm and the blue Mediterranean fan palm from the design. Staff suggested the developer use a different subspecies of Palo Verde tree to avoid a specific disease that those trees are getting.