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PC 11-25-91 CITY OF CUPERTINO, STATE OF CALIFORNIA 10300 Torre Avenue Cupertino, CA. 95014 (408) 252-4505 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION HELD ON NOVEMBER 25, 1991 SALUTE TO THE FLAG: ROLL CALL: Commissioners Present: Chairman Mackenzie Vice Chairman Fazekas Commissioner Mann Commissioner Mahoney Commissioner Austin staff Present: Robert Cowan, Director of Community Development Ciddy Wordell, city Planner Michele Bjurman, Planner II Bert viskovich, Director of Public Works Cheryl Kershner, Deputy City Attorney APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Chr. Mackenzie corrected the minutes of 11-12-91 as follows: Page '3, "Applicant Presentation" should be deleted and the words "The 'public hearing was opened" to be added; Page 4, delete the words "The public hearing was opened." MOTION: SECOND: VOTE: Com. Fazekas moved to approve the minutes, as amended. Com. Mahoney Passed 5-0 POSTPONEMENTS OR NEW AGENDA ITEMS: - None WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS: - Mr. Harley Mevits, regarding Grand Blvd. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: Mr. Darwin Thorne, 22958 Cricket Hill Rd., questioned if the City or Fire District are going to address the issue of fire retardant roofs. Planning Director Cowan noted he had met with Chief Moore of the Central Fire District to discuss the city's standards. The Fire Department feel that the standards are adequate. He noted this issue will eventually go to the Public Safety Commission. Mr. Phil Zei tman questioned if the seminary Property would be discussed at this hearing? PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 2 Chr. Mackenzie stated it will not. CONSENT CALENDAR: - None PUBLIC HEARINGS: This hearing was continued from the meeting of November 21, 1991 1. Application 3-GPA-90 - Land Use, Transportation, Housing, Air Quality, Noise, seminary Property. Chr. Mackenzie noted there is concern from Planning regarding meeting people outside of a formal hearing. the Deputy City Attorney explain the law as to this commissioners He requested issue. Deputy City Attorney Kershner stated the General Plan is legislative in nature, and legally there is no improprieties with having a meeting and no legal requirement for disclosure. She stated the City Attorney feels as the seminary property is such an important issue, Planning commissioners should disclose the meetings in a public context. She went on to explain the concept of Quasi-Judicial. Chr. Mackenzie noted it was suggested that he had lunch with Mr. Sobrato, but he attended a lunch given by the Chamber of Commerce at the Sobrato Building. He noted he has talked to Mr. Sobrato and other people about procedural matters. Com. Austin noted she has talked to CURB. She stated that any informal gatherings with people should be disclosed ~~ the other Commissioners and the public. Corn. Mahoney and Fazekas both noted they had talked to CURB. Com. Mann also noted she has talked to CURB. She noted that the Commissioners should check with the City Attorney as to the law. Chr. Mackenzie noted he talked to Fr. Bovle and discussed the FAIR aroup. He noted he has talked to staff. public. other Commissioners and the citv Attorney's Office reaardina procedural matters. Mr. Phil Zeitman. stated as Chairperson for CURB he reiterated the support from the aroup for fairness in aoina throuah the General Plan process. Item 1 was continued at this time. Staff Presentation: report. He noted Plannina Director Cowan presented the staff technical reports were presented to c·",~n PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 3 commissioner. He presented a diagram explaining the review process. The Parks and Recreation commission will meet on December 6, 1991 and the Commissioners will have a recommendation at that time. He stated staff will give an overview of the technical reports.. The basic issues are the amount of growth, traffic congestion and community character. Housing will also be discussed at this hearing. Mr. Cowan stated the demand for additional growth comes from 5 sources: the concept of the heart of the city; meeting state mandate for housing; request from major employers to expand; request for retail expansion; other commercial/office growth. Mr. Cowan reiterated comments from the traffic report regarding traffic congestion and solutions as outlined in the staff report. He noted there will be meetings with major employers to talk about TDM programs. Mr. Cowan commented on the housing imbalance noting the two issues are, can housing be intensified on stevens Creek? and to require housing mitigation from major employers and other non-residential development. Mr. Bert ViSkovich stated the city is using a computer model for transportation, which takes into consideration the Bay Area, MTC criteria, ABAG and the City's existing General Plan. It indicated that the current General Plan build out is the limit. Going beyond this result in service level E at certain intersections. The current level of service is in good shape and he discussed the intersections as outlined in the traffic map presented. He stated the improvements as outlined in the current General Plan will be completed on schedule. Mr. Viskovich gave an overview of the intermediate and increased scenarios regarding traffic. He stated the City is taking measures to discourage commuters from using residential roads which may make the level of service in other areas lower. He stated the City will have to look at the regional system as opposed to just the City. He presented a map of the regional arterials. A map submitted by the Congestion Management Agency to the state indicates level F on I-280. Mr. Viskovich stated the CMA, as mandated by Prop. 111, cannot have a level service lower than E. He noted some of the solutions to the traffic problems are: change criteria from a D and E level; create TDMprogram for the additional growth; deal with peak period as opposed to peak hour. In response to Com. Austin's question Mr. viskovich stated the peak period is 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and it will continue to expand as growth continues. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 4 Com. Mahoney stated the TDM programs should be implemented with the large corporations as opposed to small companies. Mr. Viskovich stated the city will join a commuter network, which requirès that Company's of 100 employees or more to implement TDM programs. In response to Corn. Austin's questions, Mr. viskovich stated if higher density is placed on stevens Creek it will increase the traffic going towards the freeway and De Anza. He stated some of the future solutions will be light rail corridors and transit corridors. Com. Fazekas stated the State wil.l not put in a transit lane unless the traffic is very congested and is a high density area. Mr. Viskovich explained the deficiency program. It is a master plan that accepts service level F because the deficiency plan will force the City into other types of improvements which will off-set the service level F. Com. Mann questioned why the transit district does not have a dedicated bus lane instead of spending money to put in a light rail system. Mr. Viskovich stated from studies done there are social barriers when using buses and people prefer using light rail. Corn. Mann stated there is an F-level on freeway 85 in the mornings and asked if there will be any change when the 85 is completed. Mr. viskovich feels this will always be a problem. He stated there will be a city wide Ordinance which will required companies with 100 employees or more to start TDM programs. In response to Chr. Mackenzie's question regarding passing an ordinance and interfering with a person's land use, Mr. Viskovich stated in order for the City to function, the City has the authority to reduce the trips generated. He stated the Clean Air Act will also mandate the reduction of trips. In response to Chr. Mackenzie's question, Mr. viskovich stated the city has the technical ability to estimate the waiting time at level service D intersections. city Planner Wordell presented the housing report. She presented maps outlined in the existing general plan build out and potential future development. She stated in the existing General Plan two thirds of the build out is in the Urban area and the remainder is in the hillside area. She noted existing General Plan build out includes the Mariani project. The intermediate and increased PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 5 alternative are hypothetical units. The basic concept behind the intermediate is to locate some additional units that would not significantly change the character of the city. The most significant areas of change would be in the Vallco area and addi tional development in city Center. In this scenario the jobs/housing ratio is 1.43. The increased alternative is high density only, mixed-use along stevens Creek. Also in urban areas and along major corridors. The jobs/housing ratio is 1.57. Ms. Wordell stated they will be dependant on the housing nexus study for how many housing units should be created for the increased growth and what income levels they should be. Com. Mahoney feels than jobs/housing should consider bordering communities. Mr. Cowan noted the state has mandated the City to provide a certain number of units. He stated Revenue Sharing is also being discussed by San Jose. Com. Mahoney stated he is glad to see the units proposed for the City are for different income levels. Planner Bjurman presented the Noise Report. Ms. Bjurman presented a map showing the 8 receptor locations that were conducted during 1991 to show existing noise impacts. The range of db is between 55 and 69. All are experiencing noise levels which are above the municipal code, but -Nithin the conditionally acceptable noise level within the General Plan. She stated under the intermediate scenario, it is anticipated that 4 of the 8 receptors would remain the same, while 4 would increase by 1- 2 decibels. She noted after talking with the noise consultant an additional 2 db would be a maximum under the increased General Plan. She explained the reasons for the same or increased level of noise. All uses adjoining highway 85 will experience an 8-9 db increase. The depressed freeway and soundwalls will off-set some of the noise. Ms. Bjurman went on to explain the policy options as outlined in the staff report. Com. Fazekas questioned how noise would be mitigated on mixed-use projects. Ms. Bjurman stated she visited a mixed-use project in Santa Clara and they had mounted the air conditioner units on first floor ceiling which was separated by 12" of concrete to the second floor apartment. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 6 Com. Mann stated that developers feel it is not financially feasible to develop mixed-use projects in this City. Ms. Bjurman stated the parking was on-grade and separated from retail. Planner Bjurman presented the Air Report. She stated after an emission test, existing carbon emission does not exceed state or Federal standards. Future development will increase the emission levels and under the increased and intermediate scenario the emission level will increase by 30 - 50 percent. This theoretically will be balanced with a 40 percent decrease in emission levels, because people are driving newer vehicles and when highway 85 opens, much of the traffic will go there. She stated the Cupertino General Plan and the alternatives do not contribute to the significant local air pollution, but do contribute to a regional problem. Ms. Bjurman presented charts comparing the ozone of California to the maximum level within San Jose, which has been exceeded. She reiterated comments on the Clean Air Plan adopted in 1988. Ms. Bjurman stated the City can look to the future for significant modifications as to how the city mitigates traffic and air quality impacts related to emissions. As part of the EIR an economic report was conducted outlining what local government impacts would be. Ms. Bjurman reiterated the policy options as outlined in the staff report. In response to Com. Fazekas' question, Ms. Bjurman stated the current General Plan does not indicate that density should not be increased. Planning Director Cowan presented a diagram explaining the Land Use Element. Com. Fazekas Commission. Scenario. involvement. submitted several land use alternative maps to the He noted this is his personal view of the Land Use He stated the overall theme is to get citizen He noted there are a lot of opportunities to explore. Chr. Mackenzie opened the hearing for public input. Mr. Herman Hijmans, Chamber of Commerce, noted he is pleased with Com. Fazekas' presentation and it is a very interesting project to work on. Ms. Nancy Hertert, San Juan Road, commended Com. Fazekas for his presentation. . PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 7 Ms. Patsy Luniewski, 7624 De Foe Dr., questioned if there is full support in the City for light rail and how many people will use it. She feels it is not a good idea. She spoke in support of stores in the front of the streets. There should be more trees in the city. She also spoke in support of citizen input. Mr. John Sobrato, Sobrato Development, stated he is pleased with the process. He noted, focusing on his joint venture with Apple, he is not happy with the concept of putting a strip commercial in front of the building. He stated the major companies in Cupertino are working on TDM programs. He noted the growth that is requested by these companies is on their existing campuses. He stated should additional housing be added in the areas pointed out by Com. Fazekas and staff it can look .good with the high density. He requested the Commissioners consider the plight of the shop keepers in Cupertino. He expressed concern regarding the proposed areas for commercial development. Mr. Steven Haze, San Juan Road, regarding air quality, the City should look at the possibility of converting the fleet vehicles to natural gas. He stated soundwalls put barriers between neighborhoods and alternatives should be looked at for sound mitigation. Regarding housing, mixed-use development is needed. The city should also meet housing needs in all categories. He commended Com. Fazekas on his presentation. Mr. Haze stated there is development potential within the current general plan. Regarding traffic, Mr. Haze's stated County level transit should be looked at in terms of buses as opposed to light rail. He stated the parkway concept and Grand Blvd. concept are feasible. He feels the city has to be careful about the infrastructure required and supported Com. Fazekas' approach. He noted citizen participation is very important. He commended the Planning commission for the process. Mr. Bob Cowan stated the next step is to have a workshop to discuss the land use and design issues and to put together some preliminary goals. Chr. Mackenzie questioned the Brown Act regarding workshops. Deputy city Attorney Kershner stated the workshop is a public meeting and the Commissioners should not make any final decisions or reach a consensus. She stated the public is allowed to speak. If a consensus is to be reached the Deputy City Attorney must be present. Chr. Mackenzie suggested that the Commissioners make their own drawings on the land use maps provided to the Commissioners and bring them to the next meeting. Chr. Fazekas suggested writing down what goal each map represents. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 8 Com. Mann expressed concern about being too specific in the General Plan discussions. She stated implementation does not belong in the General Plan process. Corn. Fazekas stated there is a need to be somewhat specific to make the goals realistic. Mr. Cowan noted in the past, major property owners have helped in the process and there is a need to have something concrete. Mr. Viskovich stated the General Plan needs to be quantifiable to deal with traffic. Com. Austin stated there is a need to look at hillside properties. It was agreed by acclamation that the Seminary property will be discussed on December 9, 1991 and the remainder of the General Plan will be continued to December 12, 1991 at 5:30 p.m. NEW BUSINESS: 2. Santa Clara County Trail Easement Dedication Policy. Staff Presentation: City Planner Wordell presented the staff report. She noted the County Planning commission proposed amendments which would limit the power of the County to request dedication of trial easements for minor subdivisions in rural areas, for any trail request not along or immediately adjacent to a public or private roadway having public access. Staff is recommending a request to the County Planning Commission not to amend their trail plan to eliminate dedication requirements on subdivisions. Chr. Mackenzie opened the public hearing. Ms. Nancy Hertert, San Juan Rd., stated the City should urge the County to adopt the policy as it was presented in August. She noted the De Anza trail has been declared an historic trail and needs to be protected. Mr. Steven Hayes, San Juan Rd., stated he has a letter which will be sent to Supervisor McKenna regarding this issue. He stated the ambitious program of the Richfield Council is to encircle the 9 Bay Area Counties with a 400 mile trail linkage along the ridge line. He urged the Planning commission to support this request. Chr. Mackenzie closed the public hearing. Corn. Mann stated she supports the Bay Area trails, and it is part of the General Plan. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Regular Meeting of November 25, 1991 Page 9 MOTION: Com. Mann moved to send a minute order to the city council pointing out the conformance of the General Plan and recommending they opposed the motion before the Board of Supervisors. Com. Austin Passed 5-0 SECOND: VOTE: REPORT OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION: - None REPORT OF DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: - None DISCUSSION OF NEWSPAPER CLIPPINGS: - None ADJOURNMENT : Having concluded business, the Planning commission adjourned at 10:10 P.M. to the next Regular Meeting of December 9, 1991 at 6:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ~l~~\J\.·~6sd Cat erlne M. Robillard, . Recording Secretary Approved by the Planning Commission at the Regular Meeting of December 9, 1991 ,-- alrman C er Amended 12-9-91