For greater than a yr, the homeowners of City & Nation Village have been battling a proposal to construct a condominium growth on a car parking zone simply north of the El Camino Actual purchasing middle.
Over public conferences and in written correspondence, Ellis Companions has argued that the deliberate mission is incompatible with the realm and offers inadequate parking, which might hurt the purchasing middle. Dean Rubison, the corporate’s director of growth, reiterated the issues at a Wednesday assembly of the Planning and Transportation Fee, the place he described the 10-condominium mission as “architecturally incompatible” with the purchasing middle.
However with Ed Storm’s condominium mission at 70 Encina Ave. now nearing the end line in Palo Alto’s prolonged approval course of, Ellis Companions is making an attempt a special tact: negotiating with Storm on a a lot bigger housing mission that might occupy quite a few websites north of the purchasing middle.
Rubison mentioned his firm has just lately discovered from discussions with the town’s planning workers that housing is now thought-about a permitted use on the purchasing middle’s parking heaps. The dedication, he mentioned, is predicated on workers’s evolving interpretation of the town’s land-use bible, the Complete Plan.
Since discovering out that housing is an choice, Ellis Companions has additionally been speaking to architects, contractors and brokers to debate a possible housing growth, Rubison mentioned. The broader homeowners group of City & Nation can be supporting the exploration of a residential growth.
Rubinson mentioned he additionally met with Storm, together with shortly earlier than the Feb. 26 fee assembly. The tone, he mentioned, was optimistic. The longer term growth would hopefully end in greater than 100 housing models, with a variety of unit sizes and affordability ranges, he mentioned.
“We look ahead to additional exploring the potential of a mixed and master-planned mission that might guarantee operational compatibility with the prevailing and much-loved retail middle and any future housing growth,” Rubison mentioned.
Whereas Storm didn’t preclude the opportunity of a future collaboration with Ellis Companions, he urged the planning fee to approve the appliance at the moment on the desk: a three-story condominium constructing that earlier this month earned the endorsement of the Architectural Assessment Board. Storm mentioned he’ll proceed to debate a bigger housing growth with Ellis Companions.
“I believe it’s the correct factor to do finally and we hope we’re a part of that,” Storm mentioned. “However we’re paving the way in which right here and we don’t wish to be penalized for it.
“It is a good likelihood to not cease one thing however to maneuver one thing ahead to point out that the town actually does care about housing.”
The planning fee handed Storm a blended verdict. It voted 6-1, with Bart Hechtman dissenting, to maneuver the appliance to the Metropolis Council, whose vote will characterize the ultimate step in Palo Alto’s prolonged and extremely discretionary “deliberate residence zoning” course of.
However the fee additionally gave the mission a decidedly blended overview, voting 3-3 on a advice to approve the event. The three dissenting members, Chair Bryna Chang and commissioners Kevin Ji and Doria Summa, criticized the event’s visitors circulation plan and argued that the constructing has inadequate setbacks and landscaping.
“I perceive there’s a problem given the scale of the parcel, however I’m hopeful we’ll see one thing a lot greater, higher and grander,” Chang mentioned.
Vice Chair Allen Akin and commissioners Bart Hechtman and Forest Peterson all supported the mission, at the same time as they welcomed the opportunity of a bigger housing growth involving City & Nation someday sooner or later. Peterson rejected the concept of opposing a mission primarily based on a “what-if and a perhaps about how the lot is likely to be used, when it’s by no means been utilized in that approach.”
Akin agreed.
Hechtman strongly supported the proposal and advised that each Ellis Companions and Storm can profit from a partnership. He urged Ellis to provide Storm’s firm an “provide they’ll’t refuse.”
“I don’t know that you’ve as a lot background in growing housing, however if you happen to did some type of deal right here, a part of what you’d be getting isn’t just entry to this land, however you’ll be getting the experience of one of many extra skilled residential developments within the South Bay,” Hechtman mentioned. “There’s an actual alternative right here to have the present applicant fortunately sit on an approval whereas they work on one thing greater and higher from their perspective, in addition to yours.”
The Architectural Assessment Board has additionally been usually supportive of the mission, voting 4-1 to advance it at its Feb. 6 assembly. Whereas most board members lauded the mission, David Hirsch advocated for a extra complete rezoning course of that might permit extra housing to be constructed.
“It is a massive piece of property relative to different properties right here and it might permit for considerably higher density of housing than 10 models,” Hirsch mentioned on the November overview.
This story originally appeared in Palo Alto Weekly. Gennady Sheyner covers native and regional politics, housing, transportation and different matters for the Palo Alto Weekly, Palo Alto On-line and their sister publications.
