LAMORINDA WEEKLY | Chambers Approved by Council


Artist's rendering of the proposed design for 331 Rheem Blvd. Image provided

It is a personal victory for Jill Keimach, Moraga's town manager. In a town where everything has to be done on a shoestring budget, she was able to put together a team that proposed a plan to renovate 331 Rheem Blvd., creating a town meeting space that residents can be proud of and is sufficiently cost effective to meet with the Town Council's approval. For approximately $280,000 the building will clean up nicely, with a new tile roof and some charming details.

In order to turn what was once a 2,500 square foot fire station - with two large apparatus bays and a wide concrete driveway in the front - into an attractive public building, Keimach hired local architect Steve Forster for the interior concept and a new fasade; and landscape architect Tara Bhuthimethee to work on the front landscape and hardscape. The third member of the team is Rob Kalkbrenner of Common Goal Consulting, who previously managed the remodel of 329 Rheem Blvd. and can find ways to create a beautiful space for less, according to Keimach.

In articulating its vision to the Town Council on April 9, the team reflected on Moraga, its character, its charm, and presented a concept for the building that will fit in and enhance the character of the town.

The front public patio and garden, conceived by Bhuthimethee, will be particularly attractive. She explained that she picked up elements of the hills behind the building, oak trees and local boulders, to enhance the nestling of the building in the hill. The patio will be covered in terra cotta pavers, wood trellises will create shade, and pots will be planted with succulents and native plants. The front of the patio, along the boulevard, will be planted with agrostis pallens, a perennial native grass that requires little water and only needs to be mowed a few times during the growing season. "It will be a very naturalistic look,' said the landscape architect. "The gem will be this ribbon of plants that for most of the year will stay green like the grass, but then at certain times will flower and create a purple ribbon meandering through the oak trees and the boulders.'

There was some back and forth among the council members about the possibility of adding more green elements to the plan. Chew asked about water catchment and solar panels. Metcalf said that even if solar panels made sense, it was his opinion that going green costs too much. Wykle pointed out that elements of a remodel geared at saving energy and water are investments that pay off in the long term. The Town Council agreed only to add a feasibility study and cost-benefit analysis of solar panels.

Councilmember Michael Metcalf expressed concern about where the money to fund the project would come from. After Keimach said it would come from the General Fund, or the reserve if necessary, Metcalf asked Stephanie Hom, administrative services director, to project that the 2014 fiscal year would end with a surplus commensurate with the planned expense for the property. Unwilling to make such a statement before the accounts are closed, she told him he would have to wait until August; but she added, "We have a very healthy reserve."

"In addition to that reserve, we have Palos ($2 million in developer fees for the Palos Colorados project)," added Keimach, "and we are also working with that developer toward the grading permit that will trigger another $5.75 million for the town."

Although those funds won't arrive before 2015, staff's confident statements won the Town Council's approval of the project. The Design Review Board subsequently approved the project on April 14.