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3 <br />5. The staff findings attempt to shine a positive light on the project on the basis that the city will have two <br />new affordable units and in-lieu fees for five others. However, there are two problems with this that staff <br />attempts to gloss over; first, under the conditions of approval, the two affordable units do not need to be <br />located at 1388 Bancroft. They can be at any two-bedroom units within the city. Mr. Silva can easily <br />select any inconvenient location he likes from the properties he already owns, or purchase a new one, <br />potentially low quality and/or far away from any public transportation, and designate it as his affordable <br />units. If 1388 Bancroft is so fantastic for multifamily living, staff should have insisted that the affordable <br />units be onsite. Moreover, since Mr. Silva is asking for a Planned Development rather than submitting a <br />zoning-compliant proposal, city staff had tremendous leverage to insist that Mr. Silva provide the full <br />required complement of affordable units (7 under applicable law). Instead, they accepted in-lieu fees for <br />five of them. The city is accepting money instead of actual, usable affordable housing that the Bay Area <br />so desperately needs. I am appalled that the city would agree to be paid off in this manner instead of <br />insisting on a tangible benefit for its residents. <br /> <br />Under the conditions necessary to approve such a project, there must be a finding that the proposal will provide <br />superior urban design in comparison with the development under the base district zoning regulations. For the <br />proposed development, notwithstanding staff’s assertions, this is simply not the case. Let’s please take a step <br />back and rethink the proposal. According to Mr. Silva himself, he supposedly won’t be constructing the <br />building for three years, so why the sudden rush? If the city is going to bend its recently-enacted and widely- <br />supported rules for Mr. Silva’s benefit, he needs to work on a compromise with the community that is going to <br />have to live with this development in its back yard for decades to come. There is nothing magic to the numbers: <br />45 units and 55 parking spaces. We can negotiate these numbers for the better. Bear in mind that the density <br />and parking problems go hand-in-hand. For each fewer unit in the development, space is freed up for more <br />parking and fewer parking spots are needed to accommodate the residents. Let’s all strive toward a workable <br />compromise. I know that, for our part, we in the neighborhood are ready to do that. I urge you to tell Mr. Silva <br />he needs to actually engage with the community before anything will be approved. If you speak with a unified <br />voice, he will have no choice but to listen. <br /> <br />Sincerely, <br />Aaron Bukofzer