pages: PlanningBoard/2021-07-12.pdf, 5
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PlanningBoard | 2021-07-12 | 5 | Zac Bowling echoed the comments made by Mike Henneberry, this was a mixed-use area on Park St and the permit was for something that had existed before. He felt bad for the neighbors but this was exactly what this area on Park Street was zoned for. He was in support of the staff's recommendation. Carmen Reid supported the Use Permit. She discussed how hard Corinna had worked and thought it was very important to support women-led businesses. She was very sad for the neighbors and hoped they could find some sort of compromise or other design change. She felt that Corinna truly cared about the community and both her and her husband's family had been in Alameda for some time. She urged the board to give her a chance and to support her. John Macaco discussed the many times he had been in the bar and that he had never seen anything that out of hand. He was amazed at the things he was hearing because he knew how much pride Coco (Corinna) was taking in the bar to keep it a decent establishment in the neighborhood. He talked about all the hard work she had done and how she gets rid of people when they are disrespectful. He felt sorry for the neighbors that they felt that this was such a bad idea. He saw the bar as good for the city and much improved from what it used to be. He was very much in favor of this Use Permit. President Teague closed the public comments and opened the board discussion and potential action. Board Member Rothenberg believed that the merits of supporting a vibrant business were consistent with the General Plan. She thought it was regrettable that she had not been to the bar. She thought they had to convince themselves that they had demonstrated the terms that were cited in the resolution (she paraphrased from the resolution) such as, it was an appropriate and approved use. She also cited the General Plan and also noted the importance of compromise. She also discussed ways they could improve things when this came for a review and how terms could be added or made stricter. Board Member Curtis stated this was an interesting issue and thought Board Member Rothenberg articulated it very well with the qualification of the issue of the Use Permit. Then on the other hand everyone has the right to a peaceful usage of their property. He wanted to know how long the patio had been in use. Director Thomas did not have an exact answer, he thought it had been used on and off over the years. He knew there was a history of neighbors calling and complaining. Board Member Curtis said that goes on with any bar in a neighborhood. Director Thomas said that was right, there were other areas of the city where there was constant friction between neighbors and commercial uses, that's the nature of a mixed- use area. Board Member Curtis thought it was unfortunate that these issues came up from time to time. He believed that the controls that were in place represented a reasonable compromise that would allow him to vote for this Use Permit. Approved Planning Board Minutes Page 5 of 18 July 12, 2021 | PlanningBoard/2021-07-12.pdf |