Title
Adoption of Resolution Approving a Tentative Map for Condominium Purposes (Tract No. 8524) Located at 2800 Fifth Street and Commonly Known as the Alameda Landing Waterfront Residential Project. (Planning, Building and Transportation)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On October 14, 2019, the Planning Board held a public hearing and unanimously approved resolutions approving a Development Plan and Density Bonus for a 357 unit residential project on a 17.2-acre site on the Alameda Landing Waterfront. The Planning Board also unanimously approved a resolution recommending that the City Council approve Tentative Map Tract No. 8524 for the project. There were no speakers in opposition to the project at the public hearing.
Staff and the Planning Board now recommend City Council approval of the Tentative Map for the project (Exhibit 1). Council approval will allow the Pulte Development Company to begin work on the infrastructure improvement plans for the project.
BACKGROUND
In 2017, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 3188 amending the Bayport/Alameda Landing Master Plan and approving an Addendum to the Catellus Mixed Use Development Supplemental Environmental Impact Report (Supplemental EIR) that allows for 364,000 square feet of existing waterfront warehouses, a 4.5-acre waterfront public park, and a new residential neighborhood with up to 400 residential units at the Alameda Landing waterfront. The 2006 Alameda Landing/Bayport Master Plan and 2017 Alameda Landing Master Plan amendment are available for review on the City of Alameda (City) website at https://www.alamedaca.gov/Departments/Planning-Building-and-Transportation/Planning-Division/Major-Planning-Projects.
Bay Ship and Yacht purchased 18.3-acres of maritime commercial property and 364,000 square feet of existing waterfront warehouses and began rehabilitating the structures for maritime commercial uses in late 2017.
On September 10, 2018, the Planning Board approved the final design for the 4.5 acre waterfront park. The public waterfront park will be constructed by the Catellus Development Company for the City. The park and public water shuttle and kayak dock is located directly across the estuary from Jack London Square and the Port of Oakland Howard Terminal, which is currently being considered by the Oakland A’s for a possible new waterfront stadium site.
On August 1, 2019, Pulte submitted Development Plan, Density Bonus, and Tentative Map applications for 357 residential units on the 17.2 acre site.
On October 14, 2019, the Planning Board approved Development Plan and Density Bonus No. PLN19-0368 to construct 357 residential units, 5,000-square-feet of commercial space, internal roadways and alleys, parks and open space on an approximately 17.2-acre site as part of the Alameda Landing Waterfront Mixed-Use Development. The Planning Board also recommended the City Council approve Tentative Map Tract No. 8524 to divide the 17.2-acre site into 35 parcels for condominium purposes and to support construction of the Development Plan. The Planning Board has not yet approved the final Design Review plans for the project.
DISCUSSION
The Tentative Map provides for the subdivision of the property to support the development of the site consistent with the Development Plan, Master Plan, General Plan, and Alameda Municipal Code (AMC). The design of the new neighborhood is consistent with the requirements and standards established by the Alameda Landing Bayport Master Plan, as amended in 2017 (Master Plan). The following discussion highlights how the project is designed to implement the Master Plan for the site.
Residential Development and Density: The Master Plan allows for a residential development with up to 400 housing units. The proposed development includes 357 dwelling units comprised of 327 townhomes and flats in multifamily buildings and 30 single family detached homes. The Master Plan limits the number of single family detached homes to 30% of the total. The single family detached homes in the proposed development comprise only 8% of the project.
The 327 units include:
• 82 three-story large townhomes with two and three bedroom floor plans ranging from 1,186 square-feet to 1,896 square-feet in size. Each home has a two-car garage in either a standard or tandem configuration. These units are similar in size and configuration to the townhomes on 5th Street in the adjacent TRI Pointe neighborhood. These units are located in buildings with 7 or 9 townhomes.
• 138 three-story “micro” townhomes. These “micro” townhomes are one and two bedroom townhomes ranging in size from 962 square-feet to 1,074 square-feet. Approximately 70% of the micro townhomes have a 1-car garage. The other 30% have 2-car garages.
• 107 single story flats located in four-story buildings. Each unit is accessed from a common lobby and corridor served by a central elevator. These units are two and three bedroom flats and range in size from approximately 1,240 square-feet to 1,423 square-feet. The homes are designed to be 100% accessible. Private 1- or 2-car garages are located on the ground level of the building.
Affordable Housing and Density Bonus
The Master Plan requires the development plan meet the requirements of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance (AMC Section 30-16). The Inclusionary Housing Ordinance requires that 15% of the units be deed restricted for affordable households. The applicant is proposing to distribute the affordable units throughout the project among a variety of housing types and sizes.
The applicant has also provided a density bonus application which includes a base plan for the site, as required by the Density Bonus Ordinance (AMC Section 30-17). The base plan shows that the site can accommodate 298 housing units under the existing zoning and Master Plan designations.
Under AMC 30-16, a project with 298 units must provide 12 very low-income units (4%), 12 low-income units (4%), and 21 moderate-income units (7%), or a total of 45 deed restricted units. Since the applicant is proposing to provide 15 very low-income units (5%) instead of 12 very low-income units (4%), the project is eligible for a 20% density bonus for a total of 357 units, with 48 of those units being deed restricted for lower income and moderate income households.
The applicant must execute an Affordable Housing Agreement between the applicant and the City, which is a condition of approval. As part of this future agreement, the applicant is proposing to negotiate for a 9 unit “credit,” since the Housing Authority was able to construct an additional 4 very low-income units and an additional 5 low-income units at Stargell Commons. The “credit” would allow Pulte to provide only 39 new affordable homes instead of the 48 required for a project of this size.
Small “Middle Income” Market Rate Units: The Master Plan requires at least 10% of the market rate units to be 1,200 square feet in size or less (36 units minimum). The project provides 128 market rate units less than 1,200-square-feet in size (36%).
Universal Design: The Master Plan requires that 15% of the units be designed to provide living spaces suitable for a person with disabilities, including stairless access, stairless access within the unit, and a variety of design features. The applicant will return to the Planning Board at a later date to request Design Review approval for the proposed building designs on the site, at which time the interior designs will be reviewed for compliance with the Universal Design Requirements. However, as shown in the Design Review plans (Exhibit 4), the 96 flats are designed to meet these requirements, which would represent a total of 27% of the units.
Building Heights: The Master Plan requires a maximum of five stories for all buildings, except for buildings with ground floor commercial space, which may exceed five stories. The proposed development plan includes 61 three-story residential buildings, and 8 four-story residential buildings.
Setback from Water’s Edge: The Master Plan requires at least 100 feet of width from the edge of the wharf to the face of any new buildings. The approved promenade for the waterfront park is 90 feet wide and the residential buildings have a 10-foot minimum setback from the northern property line in order to meet the Master Plan requirement.
Commercial Development: The Master Plan requires at least 5,000 square feet of commercial space with 12 foot floor to ceiling heights. The project provides a 5,000 square foot pad for a future commercial or mixed use building located at the terminus of 5th Street adjacent to the Waterfront Park and water shuttle landing. A condition of approval requires that Pulte design and construct the commercial building prior to completion of the project.
Land Use Disclosures: As required by the Master Plan, a condition of approval for the project requires disclosures to all future residents of the residential area that the existing environment includes adjacent and nearby maritime manufacturing industries, the Port of Oakland, and heavy industrial uses such as Schnitzer Steel, which may operate 24 hours a day. Disclosures regarding the easements for future bicycle and pedestrian bridge are also required.
Western Land Use Buffer Area: The Master Plan requires a 50-wide buffer area between the residential development and the adjacent Bay Ship and Yacht facilities. The project maintains a 50-foot wide buffer area between the maritime commercial eastern property line and the western-most residential buildings to meet this requirement. The buffer area includes an extension of the Bette Street multi-use path to connect pedestrians and bicycles to the waterfront park. The buffer area also includes landscaped areas, a view corridor, and a public viewing area of San Francisco Bay.
View Corridors: The Master Plan requires a 50-foot wide view corridor from Mitchell to the waterfront along the western greenway buffer area and a 75-foot wide view corridor along 5th Street. The development meets both these requirements and provides two additional view corridors through the project to the water.
Bicycle Path Crossing: The Master Plan requires a safe and convenient bicycle path crossing from Bette Street across the Mitchell Avenue extension to the waterfront. The development plan provides the multi-use path design within the western buffer area and the connection to the Bette Street multi-use path.
Estuary Crossing: The Master Plan requires the residential development to provide access for a future bicycle and pedestrian bridge to Oakland. The project provides potential landings for three potential bicycle pedestrian bridge locations, in the event that the City is successful in its current efforts to work with the City of Oakland, the Alameda County Transportation Commission (ACTC), the Coast Guard, and other interest groups to design and fund the proposed bridge. An ACTC funded feasibility study with Oakland is currently underway, and Oakland’s recently released Downtown Specific Plan and recently adopted Bike Plan both recommend the bridge. Working with Oakland, the design team has identified two potential locations for the bridge: one of which would connect Alameda Landing to Jack London Square. If the Alameda Landing location is ultimately selected, the bridge would begin at Mitchell Avenue near the intersection of Mitchell Avenue and 5th Street, and slowly rise over the project site to and across the Estuary. At the point the bridge crosses the park, the bridge would be between 30 and 35 feet in the air above the park. After crossing the estuary, the bridge would descend to a landing between the Oakland Ferry Terminal and the foot of Broadway within a block or two of Howard Terminal and the proposed Oakland A’s ballpark. The proposed development plan is designed to ensure that it does not present any additional challenges to the City’s efforts to design, fund, and build a bicycle pedestrian bridge after the park is completed. In addition, conditions of approval require public easements and disclosures for the construction of a future bridge.
Vehicle and Bicycle Parking: The Master Plan allows a maximum of 2 spaces for each single family home and attached townhome and a maximum average of 1.5 spaces for the flats and affordable housing units. Staff and the Planning Board found that the parking plan is in compliance with the Master Plan parking requirements.
Bicycle parking for residents is provided in the garages for each unit, and 50 visitor bicycle racks are provided throughout the site. The 4-story flats buildings include bicycle storage rooms. (The Alameda Landing bicycle parking requirements predate the current AMC requirements.)
The project also provides an additional 18 parking spaces to be developed as part of the public parking lot for the Waterfront Park. These spaces have been located on a separate parcel on the Tentative Map, so that they can be dedicated to the City to be included with the Waterfront Park public parking upon completion. (To allow the Police Department to enforce parking limits in the parking lot, the parking lot must be a public facility.)
Transportation Demand Management Assessments: Consistent with Master Plan requirements, each unit shall be assessed annually for supplemental transportation services to reduce project related traffic. The annual assessments (in 2017 dollars) are $550 for each single family home, $450 for each townhome with a two car garage, and $350 for townhomes with a one car garage and flats. It is anticipated that the assessments will fund additional AC Transit service to Alameda Landing and future water shuttle services from Alameda Landing to Jack London Square.
In conclusion, the Planning Board and staff find that the recommended Tentative Map is in compliance with the General Plan, Alameda Municipal Code and the Alameda Landing Bayport Master Plan.
ALTERNATIVES
The Council may:
1. Approve the Tentative Map, as recommended.
2. Modify the conditions of approval and approve the Tentative Map.
3. Remand the project recommendation back to the Planning Board for further consideration on any specific aspect of the design.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
There is no impact on the General Fund to approve the tentative map. The residential project is subject to a Municipal Services District to ensure fiscal neutrality.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
As described above, the recommended tentative map for the Alameda Landing Residential development is consistent with the General Plan, the Zoning Ordinance, the Alameda Landing Master Plan, and the approved development plan.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
On December 5, 2006, the City Council certified the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report for the Alameda Landing Mixed Use Development Project (“2006 Supplemental EIR”, a Supplement to the 2000 Catellus Mixed Use Development Project EIR) in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (State Clearinghouse #2006012091). The City has prepared several addenda to the 2006 SEIR in 2007, 2008, 2012, and 2017 (collectively, Previous CEQA Documents).
On September 5, 2017, the City Council approved an Addendum to the Supplemental Environmental Impact Report for the amendment to the Bayport/Alameda Landing Master Plan. The Addendum concluded that the Master Plan Amendment (provided that the traffic trip cap established by the Master Plan is maintained) environmental effects associated with the Master Plan Amendment were within the scope of the analysis in the 2006 Supplemental EIR and no further environmental review was required. As described in this report, the subject development is consistent with the Master Plan Amendment.
To ensure that the proposed future residential development of the property would not result in any new or more severe traffic impacts than those anticipated in the 2006 Supplemental EIR, the 2017 Master Plan Amendment establishes a cap on the number of daily and peak hour automobile trips that may be generated by the residential project. The Master Plan Amendment “Trip Matrix” anticipated that the number of units that might be permissible under the automobile trip cap would depend on the types of units that are proposed. The Trip Matrix recognizes that single family units generate more trips than single story “flats” in multifamily buildings, and that rental units in multifamily buildings and deed restricted affordable units generate less trips than for-sale townhomes or for-sale condominium units in multifamily buildings. The matrix established four categories of residential units, each with its own Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) trip rate. The following four categories are listed in order of trip generation: Single family detached home (highest trip generation rate); For Sale Attached Townhome with 2-car garage (second highest trip generation); For Sale Flats (less than 1200 square feet) and for sale stacked flats in Multifamily Buildings (third highest); and Rental Flats in Multifamily Buildings and Deed Restricted Units (lowest)
As described above, the project includes all four types of housing anticipated in 2017, but the 2017 Matrix did not anticipate the 98 “micro-townhomes”. These units have one car garages and are less than 1,200 square feet (similar to category #3), but they have three floors and lots of stairs (similar to category #2). From a trip generation perspective, the one car garage “micro townhome” is much more analogous to category #3 (flats) than it is to category #2 (townhomes). Therefore, staff utilized the ITE rate for flats for the micro townhome with one car garage instead of the ITE rate that would be used for the larger townhomes with two car garages.
In conclusion, the proposed project does not violate the allocated trip budget and will not generate any new or more severe impacts than were identified in the Final EIR for Alameda Landing. The potential environmental impacts of the project have been evaluated and disclosed in the Previous CEQA Documents, and none of the circumstances necessitating further CEQA review are present.
CLIMATE IMPACTS
The project will contribute to the City’s Climate Action Plan goals to reduce the City’s greenhouse gas emissions, increase quality of life on the island, and adapt to climate change impacts. The project will be designed and constructed as 100% electric powered without any gas infrastructure serving the homes or the commercial development as recommended by the City’s Climate Action Plan. All residential units will include solar panels on the roof to minimize the use of energy. The project supports alternative transportation by providing BART shuttle service, water shuttle service across the estuary, and a number of bicycle path improvements. In addition, the new commercial building will provide local services within walking distance for the nearby park visitors and residents.
RECOMMENDATION
Approve Tentative Map Tract No. 8524 for a 357 residential unit, 5,000-square-foot commercial mixed use project on a 17.2-acre site on the Alameda Landing Waterfront.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
The City Manager concurs with staff recommendation to approve the tentative map tract No. 8524 for a 357 residential unit mixed use project on the 17.2 acre site on Alameda Landing Waterfront.
Respectfully submitted,
Andrew Thomas, Planning, Building, & Transportation Director
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Elena Adair, Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. Tentative Map
cc: Eric Levitt, City Manager