MINUTES City Council Chambers* PLANNING COMMISSION 1017 Middlefield Rd July 18, 2017 Redwood City, CA 94063 Regular Meeting Ph: 650-780-7234 7:00 p.m. Accessible to Disabled DRAFT COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Commissioner Guerrero, Commissioner Safdari, Commissioner Schmidt, Commissioner White, Vice Chair Bondonno and Chair Radcliffe COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Commissioner Hale STAFF PRESENT: Planning Manager Turner, Assistant City Attorney Rasiah, Contract Principal Planner Costa Sanders GUESTS: None PROCEEDINGS RECORDED: For further information not contained in this draft of the written minutes, a DVD recording of the entire meeting is available for listening or purchase at the Planning office, located in City Hall, Redwood City. AGENDA POSTED: Copies of the Agenda for this meeting are posted at City Hall on the Friday prior to the Planning Commission meeting. 1. ROLL CALL 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: A. DRAFT June 20, 2017 M/S (Bondonno/Schmidt) to approve the Draft minutes of June 20, 2017 as submitted Motion Passed 4. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None 5. CONSENT CALENDAR: No items 6. PUBLIC HEARING: A. ARCHITECTURAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS Chair Radcliffe stated they have one appointment and two applicants. Planning Manager Turner explained how the appointment process works. Commissioner Guerrero indicated a preference for John Stewart. Commissioner Safdari indicated a preference for Sally Roth. Page 1 of 6
Commissioner Schmidt indicated a preference for Sally Roth. Commissioner White indicated a preference for Sally Roth. Vice Chair Bondonno Bondonno indicated a preference for John Stewart. Chair Radcliffe indicated a preference for John Stewart. Planning Manager Turner stated that the vote resulted in a 3-3 tie and a second round of voting is required. Commissioner Guerrero indicated a preference for John Stewart. Commissioner Safdari indicated a preference for Sally Roth. Commissioner Schmidt indicated a preference for Sally Roth. Commissioner White indicated a preference for John Stewart. Vice Chair Bondonno Bondonno indicated a preference for John Stewart. Chair Radcliffe indicated a preference for John Stewart. Planning Manager Turner stated that the second round of voting yielded a vote of 4-3 in favor of John Stewart, thereby appointing him to the Architectural Advisory Committee. B. HISTORIC RESOURCES ADVISORY COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS Chair Radcliffe stated they have two open seats and one applicant. Planning Manager Turner stated that after conducting interviews, the committee is prepared to fill one of the open seats. Commissioner Guerrero indicated a preference for Ken Rolandelli. Commissioner Safdari indicated a preference for Ken Rolandelli. Commissioner Schmidt indicated a preference for Ken Rolandelli. Commissioner White indicated a preference for Ken Rolandelli. Vice Chair Bondonno indicated a preference for Ken Rolandelli. Chair Radcliffe indicated a preference for Ken Rolandelli. Planning Manager Turner stated that a vote of 6-0 in favor of Mr. Rolandelli, he is now reappointed to the Historic Resources Advisory Committee. Vice Chair Bondonno asked Staff to comment on the recruitment process to fill the open seat. Page 2 of 6
Mr. Turner stated they extended the previous recruitment process to find applicants for the HRAC. He stated that despite the extension, they only received the one applicant. He stated that the HRAC can operate as a quorum with four members. He stated the City Clerk s office would reopen the recruitment for the seat. C. Request by Stanford Health Care for a Planned Community Permit Amendment (PD2017-001) to allow off-hours construction and to remove a condition relating to elevator requirements for a three-story, 216,254 square foot parking garage and exterior improvements at 420-450 Broadway Commissioner Guerrero recused herself due to a potential conflict. Mr. Turner stated that Staff is recommending that the Planning Commission continue this item to August 1, 2017. He stated that prior to the meeting, it was discovered that there was a noticing error so not all the appropriate individuals were notified. He stated that the item can be heard in full at that time. He did state that any members of the public in attendance should still feel free to speak. PUBLIC HEARING M/S (Bondonno/White) to open the public hearing Barbara Bocca, representing the residents of the Redwood Mobile Estates, stated they are against the amendment to allow for off-hours construction. She stated that it is very disruptive. She submitted signatures from residents for the record. She stated they would be interested in negotiating for different hours. M/S (Schmidt/Safdi) to close the public hearing Vice Chair Bondonno motioned that the Planning Commission continue this item to the date certain of August 1, 2017 in light of the noticing error. M/S (Bondonno/Schmidt) 5-0 D. 1548 Maple Street Project Environmental Review Scoping Session Chair Radcliffe reminded the public that the Planning Commission is not making any decisions on this issue tonight and that they are just conducting a Scoping Session to do an Environmental Impact Report. Principal Planner Lisa Costa Sanders stated that the purpose of this agenda item tonight is to have a Scoping Session for the 1548 Maple Street Project. Ms. Costa Sanders provided background information about the project. She explained the requested Zoning Amendment for the project. Teresa Wallace, Project Manager for LSA, provided an overview of the CEQA process. She stated the CEQA process aims to inform and Page 3 of 6
engage the public, disclose the potential impacts of the project, and avoid and/or reduce potential impacts of the proposed project. Ms. Costa Sanders provided an overview of next steps. She stated that comments can be submitted to her via mail, email or phone. COMMISSIONER QUESTIONS PUBLIC HEARING M/S (White/Guerrero) to open the public hearing Chris Witzer stated he thinks this is a great project. He stated he would like to see low- and mid-income homes mixed with high-income homes and residents. Bella Chu stated she was happy to see this project. She stated that the housing market is currently in two categories single family home or high-rise downtown. She stated there is a missing middle. She stated that she is excited to see this as a potential option for residents. Anne-Lise Hassenklover expressed concern regarding the location of the development due to climate change and sea-level rise. M/S (White/Guerrero) to close the public hearing COMMISSIONER COMMENTS Commissioner Safdari stated that he sees a certain number of areas excluded from the EIR. He asked Staff how that determination is made. Ms. Wallace stated that there are number of topics that are excluded from the EIR, but will be included in the initial analysis. Mr. Turner stated that the topics they excluded are ones they don t expect to rise to a significant level. Commissioner Safdari asked why the City Council will make the final decision as opposed to the Planning Commission. Ms. Costa-Sanders stated that because of the Zoning Map Amendment and since they are the final decision maker on that issue, they will also have a final decision on the EIR. Commissioner Guerrero stated she would like to see the study take into consideration some low-incoming housing. She stated she would like to get more about project alternatives and how they will be identified. She also stated she would like to see the study consider leaving the water tank where it is. Page 4 of 6
Commissioner White thanked Staff for the overview they provided. He stated he would like to learn more about the effect on public schools, traffic, and circulation. Assistant City Attorney Rasiah stated that a project cannot be denied based on its impact on schools. Commissioner White stated his concern was more related to traffic flow. Commissioner Schmidt stated that he wants to ensure they are looking at areas that do not take away access to the water from the community. Vice Chair Bondonno stated he is comfortable with the initial determination. He stated he has concerns about the location and potential impacts of flooding on the site. Commissioner Guerrero asked if this project will pay housing impact fees. Mr. Turner stated the project would pay impact fees. Chair Radcliffe stated she would like to see the water tank location studied. She stated she has concerns about the neighboring wetlands and how the project would impact it. She stated there are concerns about the sea-level rise and the impact of the king tides. Commissioner Safdari stated he would be interested in seeing options for varied parking options. 7. MATTERS OF COMMISSION INTEREST Planning Manager Turner stated that on July 24, 2017 the City Council will consider a request by Jay Paul Company for a General Plan initiation for the Harbor View Place properties. Mr. Turner stated that the City has received an appeal of the approved Conditional Use Permit for the Rocketship School and that is scheduled to be heard by the City Council on September 11, 2017. Mr. Turner stated that on August 1, 2017 they expect to have a joint meeting with the HRAC. Mr. Turner stated that the Council Chambers will undergo renovations and the next Planning Commission meeting will be held in the Main Library s Community Room. Chair Radcliffe stated that the community room on the third floor is accessible via elevator. Commissioner Schmidt thanked those that submitted an application for the open positions. He stated that Redwood City is a growing Page 5 of 6
community and he asked that those that are watching to get involved if they are interested. Vice Chair Bondonno officially welcomed Commissioner Safdari to the Planning Commission. Commissioner Safdari thanked Mr. Bondonno for the welcome. He thanked those who have helped him get up to speed. He stated he was looking forward to working with the Planning Commission. 8. MOTION TO ADJOURN M/S (Bondonno/Schmidt) to adjourn the meeting of the Planning Commission Motion Passed The meeting adjourned at 7:45PM to reconvene at the next Special Planning Commission Meeting scheduled for August 1, 2017 at 6:00PM in the Downtown Library Community Room, 1044 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, California. Page 6 of 6