By Clarence Cromwell
A 5,996-square-foot two-story house proposed at 16095 Ridgecrest Ave. got a unanimous "no" from the Monte Sereno City Council on April 1; members said the house just wouldn't fit into the neighborhood.
About two dozen neighbors asked the council to stop construction of the huge house in their neighborhood of older one-story homes; those who didn't object to the size took umbrage at its cutting-edge design.
Although the house would have needed only an approval from the Site and Architecture Committee, the committee asked that the entire council vote on the project because of the opposition.
The matter required no public hearing, but Mayor Jack Lucas decided to hear neighbors' objections during the council meeting.
The house would be three times the size of anything else in the neighborhood, said Roger Goodfriend, a neighbor of the proposed project. He added that the applicants were incorrect to say the area has other two-story houses, because the houses indicated were split-level homes. Chris Flanagan said the design won't fit in among the smaller homes in the neighborhood.
The council received a dozen letters and a 41-signature petition before the meeting, all opposing construction of the house. Most of the letter-writers objected to the house because they believed the second story would block out views of the hills or because it was too modern, compared to other houses in the area.
The architect, Randall Cavanagh, defended the house, saying it will be situated so it doesn't block anyone's view. He said its design represents "the new architecture." But most councilmembers objected to the style of the house rather than its size.
"It seems to me fairly obvious that it doesn't tie into the style of the neighborhood," Councilmember Dorothea Bamford said.
Councilmember Gordon Knight said it was a tough decision, but he was finally swayed by concerns that the trendy house would invite residents to build more of its kind.
Joel Gambord agreed that the house would change the neighborhood. He has also said he objected to the massive size of the house.
The council rejected the design with a 5-0 vote, but asked the designer to return with toned-down plans. Gambord suggested meeting with neighbors before redesigning the house.
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, April 16, 1997.
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