HomeMy WebLinkAboutMS-24-01 - Supplemental - 0870 Williston Road (5)SMITH BUCKLEY ARCHITECTS
Marla Keene, PE
Development Review Planner
City of South Burlington
180 Market Street
South Burlington, VT 05403
April 24, 2024
Re: DoubleTree by Hilton – New Addition – 870 Williston Road – Alternate Compliance for Entrances
Dear Marla,
We seek review and approval of “Alternate Compliance for Entrances in T4,” for the above referenced project.
The proposed construction entails a new guestroom wing for the existing hotel, which contains an open-to-the-public
main entrance and porte-cochere within the existing structure. Although classified as a new building by zoning, it's
crucial to recognize that programmatically, this new wing is connected to, and constitutes an extension of, the existing
hotel. It exclusively houses guestrooms without any public or semi-public spaces, such as lobbies, restaurants, or
conference rooms. Therefore, it cannot have a “public” entrance as defined in the zoning ordinance. Instead, the
entrances are “operable” entrances. Similar to the ordinance requirement for operable residential entrances, they are
open to guests of the hotel for their use in accessing the portion of the building that is available to them.
Guests staying in the new wing check in at the main public entrance and lobby in the adjacent existing building. After
check-in, the new wing is accessed via a skybridge from the lobby elevator or directly across the entry drive, where
Guests may use the most convenient ground level entrance to the new wing using their keycard.
•The design of the new building and the surrounding site supports the viability of the main hotel public entrance
by creating a direct pedestrian link to Williston Road that invites pedestrians to walk the length of the West
facade of the new building, leading to the arrival point at the hotel’s existing main entrance.
•Users along the street are presented with an inviting building presence and are engaged throughout the length
of the frontage that helps frame the pedestrian promenade linking the hotel’s public entrance to Williston Road.
•The design of the building and the site establishes a regular, consistently pedestrian-friendly environment.
•The inclusion of regular, operable entrances in the design creates a pattern of attractive, engaging and interactive
building and site forms.
Therefore we believe that our design meets or exceeds the entrance standard intent given in Section 8.06, H.(2) in every
respect. We hope that the Development Review Board will agree and find for approval of this design that differs from
the strict requirements of Section 8.13(C)(6), but nonetheless provides for an urban environment entirely consistent with
the intent of the Section.
Best regards,
Israel D. Smith, RA
www.sbavt.com 431 Pine Street Suite 210 Burlington VT 05401 802.540.0323