Title
Study Session - 2390 Mariner Square Drive Co-Living, Co-Working zoning Amendment. Applicant: Todd Jersey Architecture and Open Door Development. A Planning Board study session to consider a proposed Zoning Amendment to allow residential use on a 1.4 acre site currently zoned M-2 General Industrial and designated in the General Plan for Mixed Use. The site is located at the corner of Mariner Square Drive and Marina Village Parkway. No final action or decision is being considered. The proposed Zoning Amendment is subject to the California Environmental Quality Act.
Body
To: Honorable President and
Members of the Planning Board
From: Andrew Thomas, Assistant Community Development Director
Date: September 25, 2016
BACKGROUND
In July, Todd Jersey Architecture and Open Door Development (“the applicants”) approached the City of Alameda to inquire whether the City of Alameda Planning Board and City Council would be willing to consider a Zoning Amendment for a unique co-working/co-living proposal on a 1.4 acre parcel located at the corner of Mariner Square Drive and Marina Village Parkway. Their co-working/co-living proposal for the Mariner Square Drive property is described and illustrated in Exhibits 1 and 2 to this report.
Based on initial staff review, the proposal would require a Zoning Amendment and environmental review. Amendments to the City’s zoning laws and map are legislative actions. Projects that require legislative actions are not subject to the Permit Streamlining Act, which sets timelines for City decisions on development applications that are consistent with the site zoning and General Plan designation. Because this request may have an effect staff's ability to handle other anticipated requests or other Council priorities, staff is seeking direction from the Planning Board on the priority of this application.
Based upon the Planning Board’s initial reaction to the proposal (Exhibit 1 and 2), the applicants will make the decision as to whether they will invest the significant time and resources necessary to pursue necessary entitlements for the project.
discussion
Site Description: The 1.4 acre site is triangular in shape and includes a 25 foot wide easement that runs diagonally through the property. The easement area can be used for surface parking or landscaping, but no structures can be built on the easement. The Posey Tube runs directly under the right of way easement. Historically, the property has been used for outdoor storage of construction and other machinery.
The site is located behind the portal to the Webster and Posey Tubes, adjacent to the Extended Stay America hotel in the Marina Village Master Plan area, and a two block walk from the new Target Store in the Alameda Landing Master Plan area. A small office park with four two story office buildings is located across the street from the site. The waterfront Oakmont Senior Living Facility constructed in 2002, the waterfront Oakmont Senior Living Facility constructed in 2013, the waterfront Pasta Pelican Restaurant, the Commodore Events Marina facilities, the Marina Square Dry Boat Storage facility and the Barnyard Marina are all located along the Estuary within a two block walk from the site.
Project Description: The applicants propose to construct four 15,000 square foot, three story buildings. The 5,000 square foot ground floor of each building would be designed for manufacturing, “maker” and/or studio spaces. The 5,000 square foot second and third floors of each building would accommodate a shared living use with private sleeping and bathroom quarters for each resident, and a single shared common kitchen, dining area, and living area for the residents.
Given the City Council's identification of "affordable housing" as one of the Council's highest priorities, it is important to note that co-living design is a more affordable residential model than a traditional rental unit. According to the applicant, a typical co-living resident pays 20% less rent than they would if they were living in a comparable studio apartment with private kitchen and eating facilities in their unit.
This particular proposal also includes roof gardens on each building and shared community gardens and greenhouses outside each building.
The applicants are interested in developing a “Net Zero” energy building design for all the residential portions of the structures and utilizing solar panels on all buildings.
As currently drawn, the residential units would not be accessible, unless elevators were added to each building.
General Plan Designation. The General Plan designates the property as part of the Mariner Square Mixed Use (MU-2) Area. The General Plan describes the MU2 Mariner Square area as follows:
“The combination of views of an active stretch of the Estuary and of Oakland, boat berths, boat sales and repair, houseboats, and restaurants, all in a not-too-planned cluster, make this Alameda's most interesting waterfront segment. The General Plan preserves this character from possible market pressures by limiting additions of office space.
General Plan Policy 2.6.b regarding the Mariner Square MU-2 area states:
Preserve the existing mix of water-related uses and add onshore live-work space. To avoid displacing water-related uses, office space additions are limited to 10,000 square feet, and elder assisted living facilities may be permitted provided they are compatible with the marine uses in the vicinity.
Zoning Designation The site is zoned M-2 General Industrial Manufacturing. As described in the Alameda Municipal Code (AMC), the M-2 zoning district is intended for lands appropriate for “the least restricted use of land within the City and that the restrictions applied shall be those necessary for the public health, safety and general welfare.” The M-2 General Industrial Manufacturing District designation on the subject property predates the General Plan MU-2 designation. The M-2 designation allows a large range of heavy industrial uses that may not be compatible with the immediate neighbors, but most importantly for the purposes of this application, the M-2 district does not allow for residential uses, does not allow shared living facilities, and does not allow construction of “work-live” studios on this property.
Because the proposed co-living arrangement does not include private kitchens for each residential living space, the facilities are not “work-live studios” as defined by AMC Section 30-15.
In July, the City Council approved the Planning Board’s new zoning definition for “shared living”. The July zoning amendment allowed for a senior shared living project on Webster Street. The attached proposal for Mariner Square Drive is defined as “shared living” under the AMC. Currently, shared living is not permitted in the M-2 Zoning District.
Based upon a brief and initial analysis, staff does question whether the M-2 Zoning District accurately reflects or implements the General Plan Mariner Square Mixed Use Designation or the existing uses in the area. As mentioned above, the M-2 zoning designation predates the MU-2 Mixed Use General Plan designation and policies that were originally adopted in 1991 for the area.
Furthermore, staff would not recommend amending the M-2 zoning district to allow residential uses or shared living. The M-2 zoning district should be maintained as a zoning district that is applied in areas of the City that are appropriate for heavy industrial uses, and where those uses need to be protected from residential uses.
If the Planning Board wished to pursue a zoning amendment for this site or the large areas of M-2 Mixed Use Area, which are zoned M-2, staff would work to prepare a zoning amendment that would:
• Reflect the existing mixed use character of the area M-2 Mixed Use General Plan Area.
• Allow for shared living, assisted living, live-work, hotels, restaurants, live-aboard marinas, and similar uses, but not allow for traditional single family homes, townhomes, or apartment buildings,
• Preserve opportunities for maritime commercial and light manufacturing uses.
A potential solution might be to rezone this property and some of the adjacent properties from M-2 General Industrial to C-M Commercial Manufacturing. The C-M District is described in the AMC as a zoning district that should be “applied where general commercial facilities are necessary and desirable for public service and convenience, or where light manufacturing will be a compatible use because of the absence of noise, odor, dust, dirt, smoke, vibration, heat, glare, excessive vehicular and rail traffic, radiation, and other hazards incidental to certain industrial uses.”
In the C-M District, limited residential uses and shared living are permitted with use permit approval, if they are located on the second floor or above, and provided that the residential or shared living use “will not conflict with or inhibit attainment of General Plan land use designations or the operation of legitimate business uses within the commercial district”, and “that new structures devoted solely to residential use shall not be permitted”. The C-M zone would be more compatible with the MU2 General Plan designation than the existing M-2 District because the C-M District allows for a combination of commercial and marine type uses with certain residential uses above the ground floor.
City Resources and Priorities. Zoning amendments are legislative actions. Projects that require legislative actions are not subject to the Permit Streamlining Act, which sets timelines for City decisions on development applications that are consistent with the site zoning and general plan. Therefore, if the applicants do submit an application, staff will need to prioritize the work with the Planning Board's and City Council’s other legislative and planning priorities.
The Planning Division is currently staffed with five full-time planners. A recent request from the Planning Division to add a position to support the Permit Center was not approved as part of the City’s current budget. Therefore, the Planning Division’s strategy to accommodate the current work volume includes hiring contract planners and part-time planners funded by cost-recovery application fees.
The Planning staff is currently processing historically high number of development applications. In addition to the major projects on the Planning Board's agendas, the staff has served over 2,600 planning customers and handled over 470 minor Planning permits to-date in 2017.
When not helping planning customers or working on development applications subject to permit streamlining deadlines, planning staff works to process the City Council and Planning Board's legislative and long range planning priorities, which include the following initiatives which are awaiting City Council action and/or decision:
• Universal Design Ordinance code amendments,
• Public Art Ordinance amendments and Public Art Request for Proposals,
• Inclusionary Housing Ordinance review and potential amendments,
• Medical Marijuana Prohibition Ordinance amendments, and
• Call for review ordinance amendments.
The Council has also directed staff to prepare the following amendments, which will require Planning Board and City Council public hearings:
• Dark sky building lighting ordinance amendments;
• Bird safe building ordinance amendments,
• Assisted Living Zoning Text Amendments, and
• Tree preservation ordinance amendments
Finally, planning staff also plays an important role supporting other divisions on City priorities such:
• The Climate Action Plan update,
• Economic Development Strategic Plan update,
• Citywide Transit and TDM Plan,
• Facade Improvement Program and
• Other similar initiatives.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
Rezoning is a “project” under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). If the applicants choose to pursue a rezoning, the City will be required to prepare the necessary environmental review to determine if the proposal would result in environmental impacts.
RECOMMENDATION
Review and comment on the applicant’s request to change the site zoning to allow shared living.
Respectfully Submitted By:
Andrew Thomas
Assistant Community Development Director
Exhibits:
1. Mariner Square Coliving+Coworking Initial Proposal
2. Open Door Group Information.