{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 1, "text": "APPROVED MEETING MINUTES\nSPECIAL MEETING OF THE\nCITY OF ALAMEDA PLANNING BOARD\nMONDAY, JUNE 21, 2010\n1.\nCONVENE:\n7:12 p.m.\n2.\nFLAG SALUTE:\nBoard Member Autorino\n3.\nROLL CALL:\nPresent: President Ezzy Ashcraft, Vice-President Autorino\nBoard members Kohlstrand, Lynch, and Zuppan.\nAbsent: None\nStaff Present: Jon Biggs, Planning Board Secretary, Andrew\nThomas, Planning Services Manager, Simone Wolter,\nRecording Secretary, Farimah Faiz, City Attorney's office\n4.\nMINUTES:\nMinutes from the meeting of June 14, 2010.\nBoard member Kohlstrand provided a correction to the meeting minutes. Motion to approve\nmeeting minutes as amended made by Board member Kohlstrand, seconded by Board\nMember Lynch. Approved as amended 4-0, Vice President Autorino abstained.\n5.\nAGENDA CHANGES AND DISCUSSION:\nNone\n6.\nSTAFF COMMUNICATIONS:\nWritten Report\n6-A\nFuture Agendas\nStaff presented an overview of future meetings.\n6-B\nZoning Administrator Report\nStaff noted the Zoning Administrator hearing of June 15, 2010 was canceled.\nOral Report\nNone\n7.\nORAL COMMUNICATIONS:\nNone\n8.\nCONSENT CALENDAR:\nPlanning Board\nPage 1 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 2, "text": "None\nBoard member Lynch excused himself from the meeting.\n9.\nREGULAR AGENDA ITEMS:\n9-A\nFinal Environmental Impact Report, General Plan Amendment, Zoning\nAmendment, Development Plan and Design Review-2229 Clement Street\n(Boatworks Project)- Applicant: Francis Collins. A Final Environmental Impact\nReport, a proposed general plan amendment, zoning amendment, development plan and\ndesign review application to construct 242 residential units, internal roadways and alleys\nand a waterfront path on a 9.48 acre property located at 2229 Clement Street at the corner\nof Clement Street and Oak Street. The Planning Board will also be considering an\nalternative zoning amendment for a reduced density alternative of approximately 179\nresidential units on the site. The site is zoned R-2/PD and M-2 Manufacturing.\nThe Planning Services Manager gave a power point presentation outlining the proposed\nproject and applications that were an element of the project.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked if any of the streets included bike lanes or paths.\nThe Planning Services Manager responded that none of the internal streets have bike lanes\nor paths and they need to share the road way with vehicles. He also mentioned that the\nproposed street extensions will not be as wide as Elm Street and Blanding Avenue.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked how wide the proposed alleys would be and if it provided\nsufficient access to the garages.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that the alleys are 22 feet wide.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked if the public safety entities, the Police and Fire Departments,\nhad reviewed the proposed plans to ensure accessibility in the event of an emergency.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that they have reviewed the plans. Although they\nhave not yet reviewed the most current plan, but the proposed road way system is similar\nto the previous plans.\nVice President Autorino asked where guests of those living in the residential units would\npark.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that all of the guest parking would be located on-\nstreet at Blanding Avenue and Elm Street and in the \"parking loop\" area of the plan. He\nadded there are a total of 44 guest parking spaces, about one space for every 4 homes.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked for a clarification of the tan area shown at the middle of the\npark area. She also asked that.\nPlanning Board\nPage 2 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 3, "text": "The Planning Services Manager stated that the area in question represents paved surfaces\nin the conceptual landscape plan. He added that the details for the park area have yet to\nbe fully developed; noting, this project is simply in the planning stages. He assured the\nBoard that extensive work on the design of the park areas will come later. He stated that\nthe area in question is not for vehicular traffic and it is approximately 12 feet from the edge\nof the water to the property line of the closest home.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft introduced Mr. Philip Banta, architect for the project.\nMr. Banta requested that he be allowed to present his report at the conclusion of the public\ncomment period.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft stated the Board would allow him to make his presentation at the\nend.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked for a motion to reduce the speaker time limit to 3 minutes\ndue to the number of speaker request slips that had been submitted.\nVice President Autorino made the motion and Board member Kohlstrand seconded. The\nmotion passed 4-0.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft opened the public comment period.\nRobb Ratto, Park Street Business Association (PSBA), spoke in favor of the project. Mr.\nRatto urged approval of the staff recommendations and stated that all of the concerns\nvoiced by PSBA have been addressed in the current plan. He was most pleased by the\nadditional guest parking on Oak Street just past Blanding Avenue.\nDebbie George, Park Street Business Association (PSBA), spoke in favor of the project.\nShe sees the project as having beneficial consequences for the Park Street business\ndistrict and for the Park Street area north Lincoln Avenue.\nJean Sweeney, Estuary Park Action Committee (EPAC), spoke in favor of the project. She\ncomplemented Mr. Banta on the design work and the changes incorporated in the\nalternative plan.\nJim Sweeney, spoke in favor of the project. He did, however, express concern about the\nBay Trail and emphasized the importance of including it in the project.\nThe Planning Services Manager reiterated that the design for the park has not been worked\nout yet, but it has always been staff's intention that there would be a continuation of the Bay\nTrail through the project site along the waterfront.\nPlanning Board\nPage 3 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 4, "text": "Lois Pryor, spoke in favor of the project. She stated that she was pleased to see multi-\nfamily housing in the plan and the steps being taken to protect the environment, such as\neliminating the wood burning fireplaces. She asked how many of the homes in the project\nwould provide affordable housing opportunities.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that the number of affordable housing units had not\nbeen finalized yet, but it would be somewhere between 20-25 properties.\nRebecca Redfield, Estuary Park Action Committee (EPAC), spoke in favor of the project.\nShe requested that the site have a kayak ramp instead of a full marina. She likes the\nextension of the streets and the positioning of the homes. She would like to see the\nNorthern Waterfront Plan revisited. She hopes that in the future more land could be\npurchased for an extension to the park. She questioned why Elm Street does not line up\nand whether the \"park loop\" goes through to Blanding Avenue.\nHadi Monsef, spoke in favor of the project and noted he would like to see approval of the\nstaff recommendation. He is always pleased to see areas of blight redeveloped especially\nalong the Northern Waterfront\nWilliam Smith, Renewed Hope, spoke in favor of the project. He added that he advocates\nfor affordable housing and wondered why the affordable housing is not 20% of the total\nnumber of dwelling units. He supports the pedestrian friendly aspects of the project. He\nalso felt there is a need for market rate multi-family units.\nLaura Thomas, Renewed Hope spoke in favor of the project. She feels that the project is a\nstep in the right direction and will help open up the waterfront to the community. She is\ndisappointed in the stated number of affordable housing units.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked staff to talk about the number of affordable units.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that the Density Bonus Application for the project\nhas not yet been submitted so the actual number has not been determined. The\nrequirement is 15% of the base number of dwelling units. It has always been expected that\nthe developer would be applying for a Density Bonus so the number of affordable units will\nmeet those required by the Density Bonus regulations.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft noted that was the last of the speakers and asked Mr. Banta if he\nwas ready to make his presentation.\nPlanning Board\nPage 4 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 5, "text": "Philip Banta, project architect, thanked the audience for their support. He began his\npresentation by answering some questions brought up during the public comment period.\nHe stated that there is guest parking on Blanding Avenue, Elm Street and along the loop.\nThere is also additional parking on Clement Avenue, which is currently available. The\ndeveloper will design the park to incorporate the Bay Trail. The waterfront plan does have\na staircase leading down to the water's edge, which could accommodate a kayak ramp.\nThe plan will also include market rate units available in the multi-family dwellings. He\nthanked the City of Alameda for their hard work on the project. Mr. Banta mentioned that\nthe two parties are on agreement on just about everything except for Item 7 on Exhibit B,\nConditions and Clarifications-Elm Street Extension Park Loop. The developer has planned\na tighter loop that goes behind the homes and not in the front. Mr. Banta asked that the\nPlanning Board adopt the resolution proposed by staff with an amendment to condition\nnumber 7.\nBoard member Kohlstand asked how wide the pedestrian walkway adjacent to the parking\nat the foot of Oak Street will be.\nMr. Banta replied that it is a 5' sidewalk next to the on-street parking locations.\nBoardmember Autorino stated that he liked the developer's idea for the Elm Street\nExtension Loop and agreed that the loop should be behind the homes. Regarding the\nparking on Oak Street he requested that the area be made aesthetically pleasing.\nMr. Banta stated that the area will be part of the entrance experience and will be treated in\na special way.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft asked if any of the board members had any questions or\ncomments regarding the proposed resolution.\nBoardmember Kohlstrand asked whether mitigation measure 4.B-? (top of Exhibit B, p.12)\nwas stating that queue-jumper lanes would be installed or not. In reference to queue-\njumper lanes, she asked why the queue-jumper lanes at the new Webster Street\nintersection had not been installed.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that the traffic consultant had re-evaluated the lower\ndensity alternative and had found that the traffic impact from the lower density alternative\nwould be less than the 242 unit. However, the impact on the speed of public transit on Park\nStreet would not significantly changed with the lower density alternative. As a result queue-\njumper lanes would not be installed in the short-term, but would be required in the future,\nas Park Street would have to be redesigned within the 20-year timeframe. He also pointed\nout that Public Works was working on improving the streetscape and increasing transit\nspeed as needed pending the full build-out of Alameda Point and other large-scale\ndevelopments come online.\nPlanning Board\nPage 5 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 6, "text": "Board Member Kohlstrand asked what traffic control measure would be used at Blanding\nAvenue and Oak Street.\nThe Planning Services Manager stated that the traffic would likely be controlled by a four-\nway stop sign intersection, but that staff was still working on that aspect of the project with\nthe applicant.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft reiterated her concern for the safety of pedestrians and\nencouraged installation of well-marked cross-walks.\nBoard Member Kohlstrand motioned to adopt the resolution recommending certification of\nthe EIR, seconded by Vice-President Autorino. Motion passes 4-0.\nVice-President Autorino motioned to recommend adoption of the General Plan Amendment\nto the City Council, seconded by Board Member Zuppan. Motion passes 4-0.\nBoard Member Zuppan motioned to recommend adoption of the Zoning Amendment to the\nCity Council, seconded by Board Member Kohlstrand. Motion passes 4-0.\nVice-President Autorino preferred that the loop of the road accessing the waterfront be\nredirected.\nBoard Member Kohlstrand preferred that parking be retained along Oak Street. She\nrecommended that condition numbers 4 and 7 in the proposed resolution be eliminated.\nShe also recommended that the developer include some housing units that have a single\nfloor, as opposed to all the units being town houses with multiple floors of living space.\nBoard Member Zuppan emphasized that the open space needs to be attractively\nlandscaped and that the Bay Trail needs to be extended.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft prefers the pedestrian walkway along Oak Street instead of\nadditional parking at that location. She supports the multi-family concept and would like to\nsee a diversity in the height of buildings throughout this development.\nBoard Member Kohlstrand commended the new design and the applicant's ability to work\nwith the Board's and the publics' comments.\nThe Planning Services Manager summarized the amendments to the conditions of approval\ncontained in the resolution.\nBoard Member Kohlstrand motioned adopt the resolution endorsing the reduced density\nalternative subject to the amendments to the conditions summarized by the Planning\nServices Manager, seconded by Board Member Zuppan. Motion passes 4-0.\nPlanning Board\nPage 6 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}
{"body": "PlanningBoard", "date": "2010-06-21", "page": 7, "text": "9-B\nRezoning and General Plan Amendment - PLN10-0041 - 709 Lincoln Avenue.\nThe 3,712 square foot parcel would be rezoned from C-C (Community Commercial)\nto R-5 (General Residential District) and change the General Plan designation from\nCommunity Commercial to Medium\nDensity Residential. The current residential\nuse of the site is nonconforming, which prohibits the expansion of the structure.\nThese proposed changes will allow the applicant an opportunity to add to the\ndwelling.\nThe Planning Services Manager presented the project.\nPresident Ezzy Ashcraft supports the Zoning Amendment.\nThe applicant's agent stated his desire to have the project approved.\nBoard Member Kohlstrand motioned to adopt the proposed resolution, seconded by Vice-\nPresident Autorino. Motion passes 4-0.\n10.\nWRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS:\nStaff reported there were no written communications for the Board.\n11.\nBOARD COMMUNICATIONS:\nThe Board had nothing further to communicate.\n12.\nADJOURNMENT: 9:28 p.m.\nPlanning Board\nPage 7 of 7\nApproved Meeting Minutes 6/21/2010", "path": "PlanningBoard/2010-06-21.pdf"}