On
May 7, 2002 the City Council approved a Planned Development rezoning (File No.
PDC00-086) for up to 400 attached residential units and 7,000 square feet of
commercial uses in four towers up to 150 feet in height, and an associated parking
garage, on a 2.80 gross acre site located on the block bounded by North First,
Taylor, Miller, and Asbury Streets. On
January 21, 2003 the City Council approved a Planned Development (File No.
PDC02-089) rezoning to allow for an increase of 11,000 square feet of ground
floor commercial space to the original project.
On
March 12, 2003 the Director of Planning approved permits for the first phase of
development in conformance with the subject property’s Planned Development
zoning. Planned Development Permit File
No. PD02-061 allows a mixed use project consisting of up to 67 attached dwelling units
and 6,600 sq.ft. of groundfloor commercial uses in the first of four towers to eventually be built on
the subject block. Tentative
Condominium Map File No. PT02-101 allows the consolidation
of 6 existing parcels into one condominium lot for residential
and commercial uses.
On
March 21 and March 24, respectively, Nina Boyd, an owner of property on the
east side of North First Street directly east of the subject block, appealed
PD02-061 and PT02-101. The Planning
Commission is scheduled to hear the appeal of PD Permit PD02-061 on April 23,
followed by the City Council’s consideration of the Tentative Condominium Map
PT02-101 on April 29. The appeal of the Director’s decision on Tentative Maps
is considered by the City council in accordance with Section 19.12.230 of the
San Jose Municipal Code (Subdivision Ordinance) and the Subdivision Map Act.
Section 19.40.070 of the SJMC requires that tentative maps based upon a Planned
Development zoning cannot be approved by the Director, or City Council on
appeal, until the associated Planned Development permit has been approved.
Title 20 of the SJMC requires appeals of PD permits to be considered by the
Planning Commission. A supplemental memo describing the Planning Commission’s
action on the PD Permit appeal will be sent to the City Council.
Existing
uses on the subject block include residential, office, and surface
parking. The subject site is surrounded
primarily by office uses to the north, south, east and west. The site is a block south of the Civic
Center and three blocks west of the Japantown Business District. The Vendome residential neighborhood is
located to the southwest of the project site.
The project
fronts onto the Guadalupe Transit-Oriented Development Corridor. The Guadalupe Corridor is the first light
rail transit line completed in the County.
It consists of 20 miles of rail and a series of stations extending from
Tasman Drive in the North San Jose/Santa Clara industrial area south along
North First Street to the Downtown transit mall. It continues south along Highways 87 and 85 to its southernmost
stations located at the intersection of Coleman Avenue and Winfield Boulevard. The Guadalupe Corridor is part of a
multi-modal transportation system that combines light rail with a freeway and
incorporates bicycle lanes along portions of its right-of-way. The project would be the first high-rise,
transit-oriented residential development since completion of the Guadalupe
Corridor light rail line.
The project is anticipated to be built in several phases, depending upon market demand. The first phase, as approved by the Director of Planning under PD02-061 and PT02-101 and now subject to an appeal, would construct a tower at the corner of Asbury and Miller Streets, supported by an existing parking lot at Taylor and Miller Streets.
The second phase would place a second tower at the corner of Taylor and Miller Streets. Parking would be provided in a multi-story-parking garage accessed from Asbury Street. The garage would be screened from First Street by live/work or retail uses, depending upon market demand.
The third phase would complete redevelopment of the site, extending the parking garage south to Taylor Street, and placing two 11 story towers facing North First Street. This extended garage would also be screened from First and Taylor Streets by live/work or retail uses, depending upon market demand. Landscaping and recreational uses would be placed on the roof of the garage to serve project residents. The impressive mature Bay tree will be retained and incorporated into the at-grade courtyard facing Miller Street.
An Initial Study was prepared for the original Planned Development zoning (PDC00-086) and the Director of Planning adopted a Mitigated Negative Declaration on November 14, 2001. Staff analyzed the impacts related to the additional 11,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space proposed with the subsequent rezoning (PDC02-089) and concluded there would be no significant impacts and the adopted findings from the Mitigated Negative Declaration remain valid. An Addendum to the Mitigated Negative Declaration was prepared for the project.
The
project is consistent with the San Jose 2020 General Plan Land
Use/Transportation Diagram designation of Urban Transit Oriented Development
Corridor. This designation, which was
initiated and approved on the site by City Council in 1991, is intended to
expand the potential for residential development in proximity to major public
transit. Development should be
high-density residential development of at least 45 DU/AC, with retail and office
uses permitted on the first two floors.
The project, at full build out of the entire block, provides high
density residential development at 143 DU/AC and commercial uses on the ground
floor, taking advantage of the numerous transit opportunities along North First
Street.
General
Plan Urban Design Height Policy allows a maximum building height of 150 feet
along the North First Street Transit Corridor, between West Julian and West
Hedding Streets, and the proposed building heights of 145 feet are consistent
with this policy.
The
project is also consistent with several General Plan Major Strategies, such as
Growth Management, Housing, and Sustainable City, in that the project makes
efficient use of an existing urban infill site by providing high density
housing near light rail transit, major transportation corridor and jobs. Additionally, high-density infill housing is
an integral component of the Downtown Revitalization Strategy.
Tentative
Condominium Map File No. PT02-101 (see attached Permit and Map) allows the
consolidation of six existing parcels at the southeast corner of Miller and
Asbury Streets into one condominium lot for residential and commercial uses to
facilitate development of the first phase of the Taylor Towers project. The
Director of Planning determined the tentative map to be in conformance with the
General Plan and the Planned Development zoning and permit. The first phase of
Taylor Towers would be built on the resulting new parcel, and under the
condominium map, commercial and residential unit air spaces could be sold to
individual interests.
The appellant’s
letter submitted with the appeal (attached) raises concerns related to the
project’s environmental review, and the findings Planning staff made with
regard to the PD Permit PD02-061 and Tentative Condominium Map PT02-101. The
issues related to PD Permit PD02-061 will be considered by the Planning
Commission on April 23, in accordance the Titles 19 and 20 of the SJMC.
With regard to
the project’s environmental review, a Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) was
adopted by the Director of Planning on November 21, 2001, following a 21-day
public review and comment period, in compliance with the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The public did not file a protest of the MND
during the public review period, including the appellant. The MND was reviewed and considered by the
Planning Commission and ultimately the City Council as part of the approval of
the Planned Development rezoning for the site.
The Planning Director read and considered the MND prior to approving PD
Permit PD02-061 and Tentative Condominium Map PT02-101, and concluded the
findings made in adopting the MND remain valid. All potentially significant environmental impacts have been
mitigated to a less than significant level.
With regard to
the Tentative Condominium Map PT02-101, the appellant argues the site is not
physically suitable for the type of development or for the proposed density,
yet no specific reasons are given. The
appellant also claims the project will conflict with easements, particularly
light easements, acquired by the public at large and neighboring property
owners. However, there are no legally
recorded easements, held either by the public or private property owners, for
light or other purposes that would be affected by the project.
The appellant
also argues that the development is incompatible with the surrounding patterns
and types of land use due to its scale and design. To the contrary, the City of San Jose has been anticipating this
type and scale of development on the subject block since 1991. The project is the right match of
construction type to site location because the project responds to the existing
scale of development in the Civic Center Area between Taylor and Hedding
Streets, and is isolated on its own block and separated from existing lower
scale neighborhoods by North First and Taylor Streets. The project presents an opportunity for a
model transit-oriented development project that will reduce traffic congestion
and air pollution. The proposed high
density housing takes advantage of the light rail line, and in turn reinforces
the viability and efficiency of the light rail line by placing residents in a
position to realistically use it. It
also a pioneering effort at high-rise residential construction, a new form of
development in San Jose that incorporates smart growth principles.
A
public hearing notice for the project was published in a local newspaper and
mailed to all property owners and tenants within 1000 feet of the subject
site.
Planning
staff recommends the City Council adopt a resolution upholding the Planning
Director’s decision to approve Tentative Condominium Map PT02-101 for the
following reasons:
1. The proposed development conforms to the
subject site’s General Plan Land Use Diagram Designation of Urban Transit
Oriented Development Corridor.
2.The proposed development will further the
goals and policies of the General Plan’s Housing Strategy by providing
high-density infill housing in close proximity to transit and commercial/retail
opportunities.
3.The proposed project conforms to the
subject site’s Planned Development zoning and permit.
4.The proposed project conforms to the
Subdivision Map Act.
5.The project conforms to Council Policy
6-24, Evaluation Criteria for High Density Housing near Rail Transit
6.The proposed project conforms to the
applicable Residential Design Guidelines.
ATTACHMENTS
PT02-101,
Tentative Condominium Map and Permit
Permit
Appeal by Nina Boyd and Letter dated 3/20/03 by Boyd’s attorney Christine
Griffith
C: Jessie
Hall, Barry Swenson Builder, 675 North First
Street, 5th Floor, San Jose, CA 95112
Appellant
Christine Griffith, Stoel Rives LLP, 111
Sutter Street, Ste 700, San Francisco, CA 94104
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