4A Public Hearing 2014 0902 - Laserfiche WebLink

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File Number: 14-357 neighborhood was intended for it to be open and integrated with the southern part of the City. At the Planning Commission's November 9, 1995 meeting, the developer's consultant stated that the development would not be gated (see attached Planning Commission Meeting Minutes, specifically page 7 of 11). In addition, Tract Map 6810 specifies a Public Access Easement on Bayfront Drive from the Lewelling Boulevard circle to the western terminus of Bayfront Drive (see attached),to permit access to the Bay Trail west of the Heron Bay development (see attached excerpt of San Francisco Bay Trail Map). The intent of the Public Access Easement was to provide vehicle and pedestrian access on Bayfront Drive to the Bay Trail. In addition, City Engineer's Report and Conditions of Approval for Vesting Tentative Map Tract 6665 (an earlier Map to Tract 6810) requires that a public access easement shall be provided over Bayfront Drive to allow for public pedestrian and vehicular ingress, egress and parking for access to the Shoreline Trail and the Interpretive Center (see attached). Sometime between the completion of the Heron Bay development and present day, the Heron Bay Homeowners' Association posted the interior streets with 'No Parking' unless a visitor pass is obtained from the Association. The interior streets of the neighborhood are private and maintained by the Association. The Association vigorously enforces its No Parking signs and the policy. It is the City's practice to consider residential planned developments as part of the existing neighborhoods in which they are located, not as separate communities isolated from the immediate neighborhood and separated by gates. The proposal would establish an undesirable precedent in the City's efforts to plan residential neighborhoods. General Plan Policy 2.10 discourages the development of "gated" communities or the gating of already developed subdivisions, unless overriding public safety considerations exist. General Plan Policy 2.10 has no objective standards for public safety considerations; therefore it is left to the discretion of the hearing body. Although public testimony and application material cited violent and property crimes, staff and the Planning Commission used the available Police Department statistics that report violent and top property crimes by Council Districts; these are actual statistics reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Heron Bay is located in District 4. The data shows that District 4 has a low occurrence of violent and top property crimes. From January to July 2014, there were 2,699 violent and top property crimes City-wide; District 4's share of that total was 8 percent, compared to Districts 5 (13%), 1 (16%), 3 (16%), 2 (18%), and 6 (21%). In 2013 and 2012 there were 4,724 and 4,397 such crimes, respectively. In each of those years there were no changes in any of the districts except in District 5. District 4 had 9 percent, compared to Districts 3 (14%), 1 (17%), 2 (18%), and 6 (20%). The crime rate in District 5 declined from 15% in 2012 to 14% in 2013. In light of the crime data, Heron Bay, located in District 4, does not experience more crime than any other Council District in the City and therefore there are not "overriding public safety incidents" that support constructing gates and fences at the development's entry. The Planning Commission also cited the importance of neighborhood interconnectivity and public Bay Trail access in the context of the General Plan. There is more discussion later in this report about General Plan Goal 14 to promote and accommodate alternative, environmentally -friendly methods of transportation, such as walking and bicycling and General Plan Policy 14.01 to develop and maintain a Citywide bikeway system which effectively serves City of San Leandro Page 5 Printed on 8126/2014