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Third owner wins Belvedere's approval for hillside home project

It's the same design the commission approved nine years ago. The architect called it "the exact design that was approved in June of 2017," apart from an outdoor inclined lift.

DAVID KOTZEBUE ARCHITECTURE VIA CITY OF BELVEDEREA rendering shows the 11,223-square-foot home approved for 135 Belvedere Ave. The Belvedere Planning Commission voted 4-0 July 21 to approve architect David Kotzebue’s design, granting an exception that allows more than twice the floor area zoning permits on the site.
Tyler Callister
By TYLER CALLISTER · 1 min read

Three owners have won Belvedere’s approval to build a mansion at 135 Belvedere Ave. since 2017. The first two sold the lot instead, the second at a $1.7 million loss, leaving a derelict 1957 house and a hillside of collapsing Monterey pines.

On July 21, the Planning Commission approved the third try — an 11,223-square-foot contemporary home more than twice the size zoning allows, and the same design it approved nine years ago.

The commission voted 4-0 to grant design review, a demolition permit and an exception to the city’s floor-area cap for architect David Kotzebue’s design, and to recommend City Council approval of a revocable license for private improvements in the city’s right of way.

The new home would replace a 3,764-square-foot residence on a steeply sloped, 52,965-square-foot lot overlooking Richardson Bay.

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A version of this story appeared in the Aug. 5, 2026, print edition of The Ark. See something wrong? Request a correction.
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