2A Public Hearing 2007 0709 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Marian Handa, City Clerk May 3, 2007 Page 2 terms of the Moratorium do not apply to Grocery Outlet's project to complete and use the interior tenant improvements necessary to commence operations on the Property I . Section 2.A of the Moratorium states that: "The moratorium will not preclude the issuance of business licenses or building permits for projects. . . for which planning entitlement is not required." As you know, the Property is located in the City's Commercial Downtown or "CD" District. Section 2-608 of the City of San Leandro zoning code provides the land use regulations for the CD District. Subsection (A) of section 2-608 states: "The following uses are allowed in the CD District, and a conditional use permit is not required." Included in that list of permitted uses is "neighborhood/specialty food markets." (San Leandro Zoning Code sec. 2-608(A)(16).) San Leandro Zoning Code sec. 1-304 contains the definitions applicable to the zoning code. "Neighborhood/specialty food markets" is defined as "neighborhood grocery stores, and stores specializing in particular or distinctive food items, including but not limited to retailers whose primary business maintains a wide inventory of gourmet, health, or ethnic food items not commonly found in area Supermarkets or Convenience Stores. . . ." It is beyond question that Grocery Outlet is proposing a "neighborhood grocery store" at the old Albertsons site. Due to its small size (25,000 sq. ft.) vis-a-vis the current industry standard for supermarkets (70,000 square feet), Grocery Outlet is only proposing a store whose vast majority of business will come from the surrounding residential area located within an approximately 2-mile radius of the site, making such a use consistent with the General Plan. Grocery Outlet previously provided to the City a market capture study Maplnfo Corporation2 prepared for the proposed store. MapInfo prepared a market study for the proposed site in 2006 using the 2000 census data, updated by the Maplnfo demographics. That study analyzes the origin of the proposed store's market shares (called "mature M.S." in the study). As can be seen from that study, over 90% of the stores customers will reside within the area located within 2.0 miles of the Property. The store will serve the needs of that neighborhood by providing a fresh meat, fish, and produce, as well as a litany of basic sundry items for the convenience of the neighborhood residents. Grocery Outlet will provide basic goods and services within easy access of neighborhood residents. In doing so, Grocery Outlet will enrich both the neighborhood and the City by reducing the drive time necessary for neighborhood residents to obtain both typical and specialty grocery items. This will reduce both the traffic and emissions generated by neighborhood residents who would otherwise have to drive farther to satisfy their grocery needs. We are awaiting the city decision before commencing the tenant improvement building plans given the substantial cost of plan preparation. We will prepare the necessary plans as soon as we hear from the City. 2 Maplnfo Corporation is a leader in site selection science for the business community and regularly prepares market analyses and capture studies based on proposed sites. 2