Title
Draft Meeting Minutes - January 10, 2022
Body
DRAFT MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING OF THE
CITY OF ALAMEDA PLANNING BOARD
MONDAY, JANUARY 10, 2022
1. CONVENE
President Asheshh Saheba convened the *meeting at 7:00 p.m.
*Pursuant to Assembly Bill 361, codified at Government Code Section 54953, Planning Board members can attend the meeting via teleconference.
2. FLAG SALUTE
Board Member Hanson Hom led the flag salute.
3. ROLL CALL
Present: President Saheba, Vice President Ruiz, and Board Members Curtis, Hom, Rothenberg, *Cisneros, and Teague.
Absent: None
*Board Member Cisneros arrived after the start of the meeting.
4. AGENDA CHANGES AND DISCUSSION
None.
5. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
None.
6. CONSENT CALENDAR
6-A 2022-1622
est Atlantic Avenue, Site A Block 11 - Design Review Amendment - Applicant: UDR, Inc. Public Hearing to consider an amendment to the Planning Board’s Design Review approval to allow a change in the ground floor windows on a portion of the western elevation of the proposed building on Block 11 at Alameda Point (APN 74-1378-2) General Plan: Alameda Point Mixed-Use. Zoning: Alameda Point Town Center Waterfront Subdistrict. CEQA Determination: The proposed window change would not result in a change to the environmental impacts of the project. No further environmental review is necessary. Per the applicant’s request, this item was continued to the Planning Board Meeting of January 24, 2022
7. REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS
7-A 2022-1629
1215 Park Street - Club House Bar Conditional Use Permit Renewal - Six Month Review. Public hearing to consider renewal of a conditional use permit for use of rear yard patio and lawn area by bar patrons. General Plan designation: Community Commercial. Zoning designation: C-C, Community Commercial District. CEQA Determination: Exempt per CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 Existing Facilities.
Brian McGuire a Planner, introduced the item. The staff report and attachments can be found at
<https://alameda.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=5371064&GUID=FEDE43DE-1282-4FA0-8D28-E61DA7B36E79&FullText=1>.
President Saheba opened the board clarifying questions.
Board Member Rona Rothenberg wanted to know more about an incident that had been noted and what the portion about landscaping in the Resolution entailed.
Staff Member McGuire discussed the landscaping options for the fenced area and why they were keeping this condition.
Andrew Thomas, Director of Planning, Building, and Transportation, discussed the noted complaint.
Board Member Hom asked about the condition to install a privacy wall and wanted to know the details.
Staff Member McGuire said that condition still stood but the back patio had not been used much due to the weather. The privacy screen had gone up but it was not 8 ft tall. For now, staff was leaving that condition since it might be useful going forward.
Vice President Ruiz wanted to know what was the process after this review for the Conditional Use Permit. She wanted to know what would need to happen to trigger another review.
Staff Member McGuire explained that this Resolution would remove any further automatic review and it would be treated like any other Use Permit.
Director Thomas added that this would be something that staff would be monitoring probably forever. He discussed the importance of how the bar was operated and how staff would handle situations if they occur.
Board Member Xiomara Cisneros wanted to know if there were any other similar situations like this one in Alameda.
Director Thomas did not think this was a unique situation since Alameda was a Mixed-Use Community. He discussed other places where residential areas were close to businesses with active outdoor spaces.
Staff Member Tai discussed some of the lessons learned and best practices. One was the posting of Notices so all of the staff and neighbors were aware of the situation and that it was being monitored. The Notices also have numbers so neighbors knew exactly who to call if they have a concern or a complaint.
President Saheba opened public comment.
There were no public speakers.
President Saheba close public comment and opened board discussion.
Board Member Alan Teague made a motion to approve the renewal of the Conditional Use Permit as recommended by the staff. Vice President Ruiz seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and the motion passed 7-0.
7-B 2022-1630
Public Workshop to Review and Comment on the Draft Housing Element Update Zoning Code Amendments for Shopping Center Sites to Accommodate the Regional Housing Needs Allocation for the Period 2023-2031 in Compliance with State Law
Director Thomas gave a presentation. The staff report and attachments can be found at <https://alameda.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=5371065&GUID=BCD74EB1-FFD8-4D6A-90C7-106CB45A7F99&FullText=1>.
President Saheba opened the board clarifying questions.
Board Member Teague asked for clarification on the difference between a site and a project on the list. He also wanted more detail on rehabbing existing buildings.
Director Thomas explained the difference of statuses on the list of projects. He discussed the concept behind reusing buildings in residential neighborhoods.
Board Member Rothenberg discussed the height limit concerns and comments brought up by the West Alameda Business Association (WABA) and the Alameda Architectural Preservation Society (AAPS).
Director Thomas explained the height limits and that they could be customized depending on the area.
Board Member Curtis wanted clarification on Permit Multi-Family Housing by Right. He also asked about ground floor usage and a developer having parking instead of commercial use space.
Director Thomas explained that it meant they would not debate if Multi-Family Housing was a good idea or not, he then went into detail. This board would still review though, for Design Review, he then discussed the change of roles for everyone concerning housing and zoning. He then explained how standards in the Draft Ordinance would address the use of commercial frontage.
Vice President Ruiz clarified that work/live was a permitted use. She discussed the benefits of the classification of work/live. She also had questions about the Objective Design Standards.
Director Thomas agreed that work/live would be a permitted use and explained what it meant for Alameda. He further explained the Objective Design Standards and what that meant for the board.
Board Member Hom asked about the process and how the ordinance would be applied. He also had questions about how the parcels would work and the State Density Law.
Director Thomas discussed how the city was approaching this process. He discussed the South Shore Shopping Center and what the owners’ long-term goals were. He then explained in detail how the process would work for the proposed parcels and how State Density would apply.
Board Member Cisneros wanted to know the current height limit for Habor Bay and South Shore. She wanted to know what that meant in stories. She had specific questions about Neptune Plaza.
Staff Member Tai answered that the current height limits for Harbor Bay and South Shore were 100 ft.
Director Thomas said that would be about 8 stories. He discussed different heights for different shopping centers. He shared what the owner of Neptune Plaza had in mind, they were interested in building housing.
President Saheba discussed high-rise regulations and what other amenities could qualify as ground floor use. He wanted the staff to continue to think about those options. He also brought up concerns about new traffic patterns at these shopping locations.
Director Thomas discussed how the staff had been viewing and thinking about housing and transportation. He also went into detail about the new Parking Ordinance.
President Saheba opened public comment.
Betsy Mathieson discussed the benefits and possibilities of rezoning shopping centers for Residential Use. Doing so would put new residents in areas of existing services, amenities, and high walkability.
Daniel Hoy, a member of WABA, discussed some of the concerns about Neptune Plaza that WABA had. They had had no conversations with the owners and were very open to that. He also discussed the density strategy.
Zac Bowling gave his thoughts on height limits and how to make mixed-use spaces more viable. He also discussed Density Law.
Chris Buckley, a member of AAPS, discussed a letter the society had sent. The society hoped that this plan would take the pressure off of upzoning residential and historic areas.
Drew Dara Abrams spoke favorably in support of the proposed Mixed-Use Zoning and higher densities of the shopping centers.
President Saheba closed public comment and opened board discussion.
Board Member Teague wanted to see other projects change their zoning and plans to make room for housing and not just limit it to the shopping centers. He was concerned about shifting an unlimited number of housing from one side to another. He then discussed bringing up the general density in the residential areas.
Board Member Hom believed the shopping centers were an excellent opportunity for more housing. He felt that there needed to be more conversation around Neptune Plaza about increasing density and height. He also agreed that a “one size fits all” approach may not be the best approach so they needed to be flexible. He also wanted to see flexibility for the usage of the ground floor.
Vice President Ruiz discussed Density Bonus and how developers would still try and get waivers and exemptions. She also discussed her thoughts around height and materials, wanted to make sure developers had the tools they needed to get the density they wanted, she was leaning toward being less restrictive. She was in support of removing Neptune Plaza from this since the scale was different. She was in support of having one set of guidelines for the shopping centers.
President Saheba discussed how other cities were also looking into doing these same things to make room for more housing. He was looking forward to hearing from the property owners about the densities they wanted to achieve.
Director Thomas discussed the next steps for the Housing Element.
8. MINUTES
8-A 2022-1625
Draft Meeting Minutes - September 27, 2021
8-B 2022-1626
Draft Meeting Minutes - October 11, 2021
8-C 2022-1627
Draft Meeting Minutes - October 25, 2021
Board Member Rothenberg clarified a comment she made at the October 11th meeting.
President Saheba opened public comment for the minutes.
There were no comments.
President Saheba closed public comment for minutes.
Vice President Ruiz made a motion to approve the September 27th, 2021 meeting minutes as submitted. Board Member Rothenberg seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and the motion passed 6-0 with Board Member Teague abstaining due to his absence at the meeting.
Board Member Hom made a motion to approve the October 11th, 2021 meeting minutes with the adjustment. Board Member Curtis seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and the motion passed 5-0 with Vice President Ruiz and Board Member Cisneros abstaining due to their absence at the meeting.
Board Member Curtis made a motion to approve the October 25th, 2021 meeting minutes as submitted. Vice President Ruiz seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken and the motion passed 6-0 with President Saheba abstaining due to his absence at the meeting.
9. STAFF COMMUNICATIONS
9-A 2022-1623
Planning, Building and Transportation Department Recent Actions and Decisions
Recent actions and decisions can be found at
<https://alameda.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=5371059&GUID=3E631403-1664-4587-8445-32AA41007D81&FullText=1>.
Staff Member Tai clarified the status of each of the items.
No board members wanted to pull any item for review.
9-B 2022-1624
Oral Report - Future Public Meetings and Upcoming Planning, Building and Transportation Department Projects
Staff Member Tai said Director Thomas had already discussed the upcoming plans.
10. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS
None.
11. BOARD COMMUNICATIONS
Board Member Curtis praised the staff for how accurate and succinct the minutes had been.
12. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS
13. ADJOURNMENT
President Saheba adjourned the meeting at 9:50 p.m.