Opposition to a Big House

My concern is a home being built on the lower Riviera. The project is going up for the third time in front of the single family design board, Tuesday, January 17 at 4:30 p.m.

The proposed development will demolish the current home of 2,000 square feet and proposes to build a modern box structure of over 4,000 sq ft. They are requesting to add a third story that will impede the view of the uphill neighbors and tower over the houses next to and below. The houses adjacent to the project are historic homes. 1277 Ferrelo is in the English vernacular style built by the Moody sisters. On the other side, 1265 Ferrelo, is a D’Alfonso home. The homes at 1277 and 1265 are under 2,000 sq ft and will lose all of their privacy if this home is approved.

The meeting is a continuation from the two prior meetings. The neighborhood has been united against this project since the first day. We have submitted a petition and letters to the board. We have attended and spoken at each of the meetings. If allowed to go forward, it will completely change the character and charm of this historic neighborhood.

In the first two meetings, the board recommended the architect to go back to the drawing board and submit a more compatible design. This will be our third meeting. It appears from the submitted plans, he has made no significant changes.

My question is, if the stated purpose of the board is to ensure projects are compatible with the surrounding neighborhood, why is the architect not mandated to follow the guidelines and recommendations?

What is the purpose of the single family design board?