Title
PLN22-0127 - 2015 Grand Street - Vesting Tentative Map, Design Review, Development Plan, & Density Bonus - Applicant: Garrett Hinds on behalf Trumark Homes. Public hearing to consider an application for Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 8654, Planned Development, Design Review, and Density Bonus to develop 90 townhomes units with 5 accessory dwelling units on a 4.14 acre parcel. The project will extend both Clement Avenue and the Cross Alameda Trail west of Grand Street to Hibbard Street. This project is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to the CEQA Guidelines Sections 15332, In-Fill Development and 15183, projects consistent with a General Plan
Body
To: Honorable President and
Members of the Planning Board
From: Andrew Thomas, Planning, Building and Transportation Director
BACKGROUND
The project site is a 4.14 acre vacant parcel directly west of the Clement Avenue and Grand Street intersection. Clement Avenue currently terminates at this intersection and restarts on west side of the project site at Hibbard Street. The site is bounded by Fortmann Way to the north, Grand Street to the east, Hibbard Street to the west, and Ellen Craig Avenue, which is a private road, to the south. There are single family homes to the south and north of the project site. The City’s Corp Yard and Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter are directly west of the site while Alameda Municipal Power’s administrative building and corp yard and several small light industrial buildings are directly east of the project site.
The property was originally developed in 1952 as a petroleum mixing and packaging facility, and then as a distribution facility until closing in 2020. That same year all buildings and improvements were demolished and removed from the property. In November 2020 remedial action was taken to remove any potentially contaminated soil to the satisfaction of the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB). The property’s underlying zoning designation is R-4-PD, Neighborhood Residential with Planned Development Combining District. In 2012 the site was rezoned to add the M-F, Multi-Family Combining Zone designation to the property.
The applicant has submitted a preliminary application under the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 (SB 330). Under SB 330 a developer can submit a preliminary application that freezes the existing regulations and development fees in place to those in effect when the preliminary application was submitted if the developer submits a final application within 180 days. The applicant submitted a final application on July 7, 2022, seeking to develop the site with 90 townhome units and 5 accessory dwelling units (ADUs) within 14 buildings along with private driveways and alleys. The project also includes the construction of Clement Avenue between Grand Street and Hibbard Street, the widening of Hibbard Street between Clement Avenue and Ellen Craig Avenue, and the construction of a portion of the Cross Alameda Trail between Grand Street and Paru Street.
On November 15, 2022 the City Council adopted the City’s 6th cycle Housing Element, which provides the City’s plan for meeting its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) of 5,353 residential units for the years 2023 through 2031. The project’s 90 townhome units are listed within the Housing Element as helping the City meet its RHNA. Staff recommends the Planning Board approve the proposed Development Plan, Density Bonus, and Design Review applications, and recommend the City Council approve Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 8654.
DISCUSSION
The proposed townhome project includes 14 multi-family buildings with between 4 and 9 townhome units in each building, for a total of 90 townhome units along with the extension of Clement Avenue and the Cross Alameda Trail between Grand Street and Hibbard Street (Exhibit 1). Five of the townhomes are designed to include an ADU on the ground floor; the five ADUs are not subject to discretionary approval and must be approved as part of the project under state law. This project is important for the City of Alameda not just for the housing units but also for providing physical access and connectivity in the Grand Street/Clement Ave. vicinity.
Because the project proposes to develop residential housing, the Housing Accountability Act applies to this project. Under the HAA, the City may not deny or reduce the density of a project, such as the proposed project, that complies with objective general plan, zoning, and subdivision standards unless the project presents a “specific, adverse impact” to public health and safety that can’t be mitigated in any other way. (See Gov. Code, § 65589.5(j); Honchariw v. County of Stanislaus (2011) 200 Cal.App.4th 1066.)
Development Plan & Vesting Tentative Map
The site’s R-4-PD-M-F zoning requires approval of a Development Plan and Design Review. The applicant has submitted a Development Plan for the property (Exhibit 1) that is consistent with the Tentative Map. The applicant has also submitted a Design Review application. Pursuant to AMC Section 30-4.13.e, the Planning Board may approve a Development Plan with setbacks, building heights, and parking standards that vary from the underlying R-4 zoning district.
The project area under the Development Plan involves 4.14 acres, and approximately 0.5 acres will be dedicated to the City for extending Clement Avenue and widening Hibbard Street. The Clement Avenue extension will split the project site into two developable areas on the north and south sides of Clement Avenue. The area north of Clement is approximately 2.68 acres and will have 63 townhome units in 10 buildings, the area south of Clement is approximately 0.96 acres and will have 27 townhome units in 4 buildings. The proposed Vesting Tentative Map will facilitate each individual townhome unit to be its own condominium unit, with buildings and common areas owned and maintained by the homeowners association (HOA). The northern parcel will have two driveways along Clement Avenue and one driveway on Fortmann Way, while the southern parcel will have one driveway on Clement Avenue and one driveway on Hibbard Street. The southern parcel will also have an Emergency Vehicle Access (EVA) driveway on Ellen Craig Avenue that will be blocked off for regular vehicle traffic by bollards. On both parcels the buildings are oriented toward Clement Avenue and Grand Street, with the main entrances facing these streets and private garages and drive aisles facing the interior of the site.
Final Segment of Clement Avenue Extension
This project will complete the final segment of the Clement Avenue extension. Clement Avenue is designated as a truck route in the General Plan. However, Clement Avenue currently stops at Grand Street, and then starts again west of the property at Hibbard Street. For this reason commercial truck traffic has to turn off of Clement Avenue and on to Buena Vista Avenue between Sherman Street and Grand Street. The extension of Clement will complete the truck route between Tilden Way and Sherman Street, where Clement Avenue merges into Atlantic Avenue. The new four-way intersection at Grand Street and Clement Avenue will initially be developed as a four-way stop for traffic control. Staff is recommending a condition of approval that requires that underground infrastructure for future traffic signal controls be provided by the applicant so that the City can install traffic signals in the future when conditions require them.
Neighborhood Connectivity
The Cross Alameda Trail stretches across the City from Tilden Way to the Seaplane Lagoon at Alameda Point. Between Tilden Way and Jean Sweeney Park the Trail runs along Clement Avenue. The Alameda Marina project to the east of the project site has constructed a class IV protected two-way bicycle track along that project’s frontage on Clement Avenue. The proposed project will construct the same type of protected bicycle lane along the new portion of Clement Avenue and extend the bike lane beyond Hibbard Street to Paru Street. The project will also provide a north-south public bicycle/pedestrian path through the site as a continuation of Hibbard Street to Fortmann Way and which is shown as a sixteen foot (16’) wide Public Access Easement on the Vesting Tentative Map.
Building Design
As a project filed under SB330, Design Review consists of ministerial review according to adopted objective standards, rather than discretionary review against design guidelines. The Planning Board first approved the City’s Objective Design Review Standards for Multi-Family and Mixed Use Buildings (ODRS) in February 2020, and adopted revisions in February 2021. The Planning Board and staff created the ODRS by using standards found in the Citywide Design Manual and other specific plans so that projects that are consistent with the ODRS will also be consistent with the Citywide Design Manual. Staff has reviewed the application against the ODRS and has deemed the project consistent (Exhibit 2). The project is only subject to sections 1 through 4 of the ODRS; section 5 only applies to mixed use buildings and section 6 only applies to properties within the Traditional Design Area which does not include the project site.
The project features two different design types, with all buildings north of Clement Avenue featuring the “A Style” design and all buildings south of Clement Avenue featuring the “B Style” Design. “A Style” buildings are mostly stucco-clad with a fine sand finish and accent panels of fiber cement tongue and groove siding. The buildings are three-stories and approximately thirty-six feet (36’) tall to the top of parapet, but rooftop penthouses raise the overall building height to forty-five feet (45’). The ground floor acts as a base for the building, and the two upper floors are integrated into their own cohesive design complimentary to the ground floor. These upper floors feature a “box” motif where articulation is provided by separating the building form into “boxes” with a projecting border around each “box” breaking up blank surfaces and providing for changes in materials.
“B Style” buildings have the same layout and height as “A-Style” buildings and also use the ground floor as a separate base from the upper floors. The ground floors are clad in stone veneer with stucco panels and accents. The upper floors are mostly clad in fiber cement tongue and groove siding with stucco accent panels. The upper floors are one main block where articulation is provided by a stucco border projecting from the building exterior between the areas with tongue and groove siding and areas with stucco siding.
Overall, the building designs are consistent with the adopted objective design standards, and they provide a contemporary architectural style using building materials that are found in the existing neighborhood. Staff believes the proposed project is consistent with past Planning Board approvals that achieve architectural diversity that is complementary to the existing neighborhood.
Affordable Units, Universal Design and Density Bonus Waiver
The project relies on certain waivers permitted under State Density Bonus Law and the Alameda Municipal Code to construct a 90-unit residential project, including attached multifamily townhomes with 5 accessory dwelling units. It is important to note that State Density Bonus Law prohibits the City from applying any development standards that have the effect of physically precluding the development at the permitted density. See Gov. Code § 65915(e)(1). The developer has the right to attorney’s fees and costs if a court rejects the City’s reason for any denial. Id.
As described in the Density Bonus application (Exhibit 3), the applicant proposes to deed restrict 4.5% (4 units) of the units for very low-income households, 5.5% (5 units) for low-income households, and 7% (6 units) for moderate-income households.
The proposed 15 units of affordable housing satisfies the City’s Inclusionary Housing Requirements (AMC Section 30-16.4). In addition, under state law, a unit restricted to very low-income households is also by definition a unit that qualifies as a low-income unit. Therefore, by providing a total of 9 very low- and low-income units, the project qualifies for the density bonus waiver requests described below. The project also qualifies for, but the applicant is not requesting, a 20% density bonus and one incentive or concession under State Density Bonus Law.
State Density Bonus Law and Alameda’s density bonus ordinance (AMC Section 30-17) provide that the City shall not apply any development standard that will have the effect of physically precluding the construction of a development at the permitted density. See Gov. Code § 65915. The applicant is requesting waivers from the City’s Universal Residential Design Ordinance (UDO) (Exhibit 3). The UDO has two primary requirements: 1) Visitability, which refers to having an accessible entry for guests to the unit and interior access from the accessible entry to an accessible powder room, accessible common use room or bedroom, and adaptable internal stairs, as well as blocking within the walls to support future installation of grab bar/hand rails in all bathrooms. 2) Universal Design, which refers to accessible interior access from the accessible entry to an accessible bathroom, an accessible common use room, an accessible bedroom, accessible kitchen, accessible common or private open space; accessible laundry facility, and adaptable internal stairs to accommodate occupants with disabilities. Specifically, 100% of units must meet the visitability standards of Alameda Municipal Code (AMC) Section 30-18.4.a, and 30% of units must meet the accessible design standards of AMC Section 30-18.4.b.
In a townhome development, parking and nominal living space typically occupy the ground floor, and the main living space (i.e., common rooms, bedrooms and bathrooms) is often located on the upper floors. By design, townhome developments are unable to meet the City’s Universal Residential Design Ordinance requirements. Of the 90 townhome units, 37% (34 units) meet the visitability standards where 100% is required, and 5.5% (5 units) meet the universal design requirements where 30% (27 units) is required. The five units that meet the universal design requirements consist of the five ADUs located on the ground floor of five townhomes. Furthermore, despite the site being outside of the flood plain, the project will also raise the site to an elevation out of the 100-year floodplain, as called for the City’s Climate Action and Resiliency Plan (CARP). As a result, the finished floor height of most buildings will be several feet higher than the public right of way, necessitating at least one step to access the main entrance of the units. Due to the constrained nature of the site the buildings cannot be setback further from the public right of way to allow space for ADA compliant wheelchair ramps to each unit. Therefore, the project requires this waiver to the UDO requirements in order to be developed with the proposed affordable units.
TDM Program
The project proposes the following Transportation Demand Management (TDM) measures (Exhibit 4) consistent with the TDM requirements in Section 30-7 and other major residential developments approved by the Planning Board:
• Join Alameda Transportation Management Association (ATMA). Like other development projects in Alameda this project will be required to join the ATMA and purchasing transit passes for residents.
• Restrict on-site parking to a maximum of two parking spaces per unit. Forty (40) of the townhome units provide a one (1) car garage and fifty (50) units provide a two (2) car garage, and there is no other surface parking provided.
• Provide long-term (one (1) long-term space per unit, provided through each private garage) and short-term bicycle parking (two (2) short-term spaces per 10 units, 18 total spread throughout the site) in compliance with requirements of AMC Section 30-7.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, staff believes the Design Review and Development Plan application is consistent with the General Plan, Zoning Ordinance and the Objective Design Review Standards. The project facilitates the completion of the Clement Avenue extension and provides important access and connectivity in the neighborhood. Staff supports granting Density Bonus waivers from the City’s Universal Design Ordinance to accommodate the development of 15 affordable units. The proposed buildings use changes in materials and projections and recesses to create visually interesting yet orderly appearance and is consistent with the ODRS. The 90 residential units proposed by this project were identified in the 2023-2031 Housing Element as helping the City meet its 5,353 unit RHNA. Staff recommends the Planning Board approve Design Review and Development Plan and grant the requested Density Bonus waivers as discussed, and recommend the City Council approve the Vesting Tentative Map, subject to conditions of approval.
PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENTS
Property owners and residents within 300 feet of the project’s boundaries were notified of the public hearing and given the opportunity to review and comment on the proposal.
CLIMATE ACTION
The project is located within a Plan Bay Area 2050 Priority Development Area, which are areas identified as most suitable for effective transit oriented development. The project is in close proximity to public transit, shopping, and public parks, which reduces car use and greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, in accordance with Alameda’s Climate Action and Resiliency Plan, the proposed buildings will be all-electric and the buildings will be raised above the 100-year floodplain.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This project is determined to be Categorically Exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to the CEQA Guidelines Section 15332, In-fill Development projects because the project is consistent with the general plan designation policies and zoning designation regulations, the development occurs within city limits on a site of no more than five acres, the site has no value as habitat for endangered, rare or threatened species, the approval would not result in any significant effects on traffic, noise, air quality, or water quality, and the site is adequately served by all required utilities and public services. None of the exceptions in CEQA Guidelines Section 15300.2 apply. As a separate and independent basis, the project is also exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15183, projects consistent with General Plan for which an EIR has been certified.
RECOMMENDATION
Hold a public hearing and approve the project based on findings contained in the draft resolution (Exhibit 5).
Prepared By:
David Sablan, Planner II
Reviewed By,
Allen Tai, City Planner
Exhibits:
1. Project Plans - Development Plan, Design Review Plans, Vesting Tentative Map No. 8654
2. Objective Design Review Checklist
3. Density Bonus Request
4. TDM Plan
5. Draft Resolution