3B Public Hearing 2011 1121 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Excerpt of the Draft Minutes from October 20, 2011 Planning Commission Meeting Item 7: Public Hearing a. PLN2009- 00006; Planned Development and Condominium [Vesting Tentative Tract] Map; General Plan Map Amendment from Office to High Density Residential; rezone from P(AU)- Professional with Assembly Use Overlay to RM- 1800(PD)- Residential Multi - Family with Planned Development Overlay; Development Agreement (DA); and an Initial Study, a Mitigated Negative Declaration and a Mitigation Monitoring Reporting Program; to build a new residential development consisting of 66 rental apartment units: 17 one - bedroom apartments, 48 two- bedroom apartments and one manager's unit in a Recreation Building with other site amenities at 2450 Washington Avenue. The project comprises seven apartment buildings with five units per building; five apartment buildings with six units; a Recreation building with manager's unit; and private roads, landscaping, surface and attached parking for 135 parking spaces. (Assessor's Parcel Numbers 77D- 1410 -25 and 77 -556 -104; W.M. Mathews, Inc. (Applicant and Property Owner); P- Professional Zoning District) ( Barros). Senior Planner Barros presented the staff report via (PowerPoint presentation). She indicated that the Planning Commission has twice discussed proposals for the subject property in work sessions, and after tonight's public hearing, the current proposal is tentatively scheduled to go to the City Council in November 2011. She said that following up on input from those work sessions, staff and the applicant have worked out a number of planning issues as well as legal matters, including a new Development Agreement (DA). The project site, once occupied by a Singer -Friden office building, now contains a medical office building of approximately 43,000 square feet and encompasses nearly three acres adjacent to the Sandpiper condominiums on the north and other residential properties on the east. Although some former Singer - Friden parcels left a legacy of soil contamination on proximate land, Senior Planner Barros explained, this parcel was never contaminated. The owner proposes tearing down the existing medical office building on the site and replacing it with a complex of 66 units. As Senior Planner Barros explained, the proposed design has evolved considerably from the one the Planning Commission first reviewed, particularly in terms of building massing and architectural detail, including more complex roof lines. The original design included only six buildings; split now into 12 buildings with paseos between them. A total of 135 parking spaces, in attached garages and open stalls, meet requirements for parking, Senior Planner Barros said. The extensively landscaped community building fronting Washington Avenue would be the site's primary architectural feature. As for open space, she said that the proposal exceeds by approximately double the amount of open space required of a multi - family project. In the emails about the project that the City received, neighbors raised questions about traffic and inclusionary housing. As regards traffic, Senior Planner Barros said, the analysis by the City's traffic engineers indicates that a 43,000- square -foot office building would produce more traffic than a 66 -unit residential development. The rate of occupancy is not something staff can consider, she added, noting that the analysis is based on the capacity of the built environment, whether offices or apartments. In terms of inclusionary housing, Senior Planner Barros stated that recent case law prohibits California cities from requiring inclusionary housing on residential rental units. Turning to the General Plan land -use map and zoning map, Senior Planner Barros indicated that the proposed residential multi - family designation is compatible with those along the east side of Washington Avenue. The condominium map the developer proposes as part of his estate planning would allow his