Ross council approves design review and permits for 65 Wellington Avenue amid neighbor concerns

The Town of Ross council approved design review, a hillside-lot permit and a nonconformity permit for a renovation at 65 Wellington Avenue after hearing a presentation from the applicant’s designer and multiple neighborhood speakers concerned about construction impacts.

Designer Steven Sutro reviewed the project for the council: primarily an interior remodel with a garden-level junior ADU (JADU), a transferred 260-square-foot primary-suite addition on the second floor, a small 17-square-foot front porch overhang, and exterior color and trim changes. The applicant’s team said the project conforms to setbacks, FAR, lot coverage and height limits and that any minor increase in impervious surface would be offset by a 5-square-foot bioretention area. Sutro said podocarpus trees and some shrubbery along Baywood would be removed to improve intersection visibility and meet Ross Valley Fire Department recommendations.

The applicant proposed specific construction-management measures: a mandatory carpooling requirement for contractors and subcontractors, a preconstruction meeting with Ross Valley Fire Department and town staff before building-permit issuance, a 14-day limit on a street-facing dumpster subject to an encroachment permit, and staging/porta-potty placement behind the front fence when feasible to limit curb impacts.

Neighbor speakers urged the council to insist on enforceable details. Linda Brown of 7 Baywood said she had "almost been hit twice" by construction vehicles and thanked the council for making contractor carpooling mandatory; Eleanor Mann of 8 Baywood asked for clarity on enforcement and specific carpooling metrics. The designer and staff responded that the carpooling requirement and other construction conditions would be included in the project approvals and that neighbors could report violations to the town and the nonemergency police line cited in the staff report.

Council members said the design was broadly acceptable while recognizing neighborhood fatigue from prolonged construction in the area. Speaker 5 moved to approve the project with the conditions discussed and a colleague seconded. Roll call produced five Ayes: Council member McMillan, Council member Coole, Council member Robins, Mayor Brekus and Mayor Pro Tem Kircher. With that vote the council approved the project and its construction-management conditions.

The council noted that encroachment permits (for low historic walls or other features) are processed separately and that staff would coordinate with the fire department and neighbors about visibility and safety issues before permits are finalized.