3B Public Hearing 2007 0904 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Planning Commission Meeting Minutes Agenda No. 07-16 August 23, 2007 Page 14 of 19 compelling and interesting comments that have been made, and she sees a "wonderful opportunity" to address them in the upcoming update of San Leandro's Housing Element. She said that the TOD Strategy has been a way of looking at how to increase transit ridership in the downtown area by modifying rules and regulations related to density and parking to encourage more housing. The Housing Element looks at how we address housing throughout the City, not just in the downtown area. There are many opportunities in the General Plan and the existing Housing Element for the City to encourage and work with the private sector and nonprofit housing groups to maximize the type of housing needed in the City. Thus, staff has been recommending that these issues come forth in the natural progression in the coming months as work begins on the Housing Element update. She said that she does not believe the TaD Strategy is the appropriate vehicle for this, but rather the imminent Housing Element update. Another issue is BART parking. The lot on the east side of San Leandro Boulevard lends itself most to residential development at this time; it contains approximately 325 parking spaces. The TOD Strategy includes a provi sion to consider - not require - replacement of BART parking on a less-than-I: 1 basis. Staff recommends retaining that language to maximize the opportunities in looking at different parking solutions with development applications that could come forward. If the parking on that 325-space lot were to be replaced on a 75% basis, it would lose a total of 81 parking spaces. She said that Reh- Lin Chen (Senior Transportation Engineer, Engineering and Transportation Department) puIled notes about the number of parking spaces San Leandro stands to gain via the TaD Strategy. Some of the lost parking would be picked up on the Westlake property on the other side of San Leandro Boulevard. On- street parking on a short segment of San Leandro Boulevard could replace 64 of the lost parking spaces. A three-block one-way segment of Hays Street could add another 9 parking places. She added that there are a lot of other opportunities for shared parking; existing employers may be amenable to increase their employees' use of public transit and free up some parking on their properties. Vice Chair DJugosh asked Commissioner Finberg if her question about SP-l was answered. Commissioner Finberg said that she is still unclear about the answer. Is it correct that with the current language, any form of development on that property must include second-story residential, but the owner could ask for an exception as a planned development? Secretary Livermore said that yes, if the owner just wanted to reuse the property as is, at a minimum it would require a use permit and a planned development to do anything other than what the TOD Strategy recommends. Vice Chair DJugosh said that if Red Mountain wants to use the building as is, at any time after the City Council accepts the EIR, they would be unable to do so. Secretary Livermore confirmed that they would be unable to do so without a use permit or a planned development application. Even the application that has been put on hold, with the Grocery Outlet, in any case would require a conditional use permit with or without the TOD Strategy's adoption because it is a supermarket greater than 10,000 square feet.