The staff planning division presented the Los Altos Planning Commission at its Aug. 6 meeting with a multi-story townhome development utilizing the provisions of state density bonus law, including one concession and several waivers, that was met with concern for the future of a popular dining establishment.
The three-story structure on Sherwood and Acacia avenues is expected to have 33 townhouse units – with one low-income unit and four moderate-income units – and two common lots on a roughly 1.4-acre triangular-shaped site on the northeastern part of the city. The land used is from six mixed-use parcels, including two vacant single-family homes, an office building and three surface parking areas.
Among the three stories, the staff report indicates that there will be ground-floor commercial use. The report also said that because of its proximity to major transit, there were no parking lot requirements, though there is a plan for a total of 64 spaces available, 62 to residents and two to guests, with ample street parking. Some trees will be removed in the construction process, but most of them will be replaced.
The planning commission unanimously agreed to move the project forward. Despite the approval, several members of the public spoke at the meeting, voicing concerns about the project, citing safety, privacy and traffic concerns. A popular restaurant that neighbors the project is Chef Chu’s restaurant. Christina Chu has worked at the restaurant for 25 years. While understanding the project would pass, she still expressed concern about the area.
“I walk down the street there all the time, it’s chaos already. It’s going to be more chaotic with this. It’s going to get crazier,” Chu said. “I don’t see Chef Chu’s working in the future if this project continues. It will not exist in the next 20 years. Something has to happen.”
When asked, Chu said her main concern is parking, stoplights and stop signs.
“The restaurant business is so tenuous,” Chu said. “Parking is so critical.”
According to the developer, Urbanscape Development, they weren’t required to reach out to neighbors to explain the project and get feedback. They did hang oversized signs in the area of the project about what was going to be done.
“I think it’s really important to speak to the neighbors and Chef Chu’s. I’m a little surprised that wasn’t done beforehand just because it’s an important neighbor to have,” said Planning Commission Chair Mehruss Jon Ahi. “Just because you’re not required to do something doesn’t mean you can’t do something. I think it’s going to be real important to speak to them and figure out what you can do to give them better peace of mind.”
Ahi said he believes in the project and hopes the developer takes more time to speak with the neighbors to make it the best version of what it could be.
The developer said it had an opportunity to construct the building differently based on what’s allowed. It is allowed to build a 45-foot building, but they opted for 36 feet, 6 inches; it was also allowed to build four stories but stuck with three; and it could have built three bonus units above base density because of the planned five affordable housing units, but opted for requesting two bonus units.
“We could have gone taller and denser within our rights,” the developer said in a presentation. “But we didn’t do this because this is one block off El Camino, it’s the proper transition from a commercial corridor to the existing residential neighborhood.”
One resident on Sherwood Avenue said there is a concern right now with squatting, hazardous waste, police intervention and the developer has “lots of neglect.” The developer plans to expedite demolition of the vacant homes that are causing squatting problems.
Another resident shared concerns with privacy, traffic, sunlight and shadow lines. He said parking is already a problem and will get worse. The project will have to comply with a construction management plan, traffic control and logistics plan which will need to be approved by the city.
The project attempts to revitalize this area of Los Altos and provide housing ownership and affordable units, while providing the proper transition from commercial to residential area. The developer report says that the typical market rate for a Los Altos single-family home is $3.5 million and said these townhomes are estimated to range in market value from $1.6 million to $2.4 million. The developer says they estimate the project should run a minimum of 18 months.
