HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 6.1 Windstar PD Rezone
CITY CLERK
File # OITJ@JEJ.[!]rol
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AGENDA STATEMENT
CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: November 20,2007
SUBJECT:
ATTACHMENTS:
PUBLIC HEARING: P A 06-009 Windstar Mitigated Negative
Declaration, West Dublin BART Specific Plan Amendment, Stage 1
Development Plan Amendment and Stage 2 Planned Development Rezone
for a 309-unit residential community.
Report prepared by Erica Fraser, Senior Planner
1) Resolution approving a Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Windstar
Project with the Mitigation Monitoring Program attached as Exhibit A
and the Responses to Comment Received on the Mitigated Negative
Declaration attached as Exhibit B.
2) Resolution approving an amendment to the West Dublin BART Specific
Plan related to the Windstar Project.
3) Ordinance rezoning the Project area and approving an amendment to the
Stage 1 Development Plan and approving a related Stage 2
. Development Plan (with the amended Stage 1 Development Plan
attached as Exhibit A and the Stage 2 Rezone booklet attached as
Exhibit B).
4) 'City Council Resolution 30-04.
5) February 13,2007 Planning Commission Study Session Agenda
Statement (without Attachments).
6) Minutes from the February 13,2007 Planning Commission Study
Session.
7) Minutes from the June 5,12007 City Council meeting.
8) October 23,2007 Planning Commission Agenda Statement (without
Attachments) .
9) Draft Minutes from the October 23,2007 Planning Commission
meeting.
10) Mitigated Negative Declaration (City Council only).
11) Planning Commission Resolution recommending that the City Council
approve a Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Windstar Project.
12) Planning Commission Resolution recommending that the City Council
approve an amendment to the West Dublin BART Specific Plan related
to the Windstar Project.
13) Planning Commission Resolution recommending that the City Council
adopt an Ordinance rezoning the Project area and approving an
amendment to the Stage I Development Plan and approving a related
Stage 2 Development Plan.
COPIES TO: Property Owner/Applicant
File
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ITEM NO.
G:\PA#\2006\06-009 Windstar Condos - TMAP, SDR, PD\PD SDR Nov 2006\CC\CC Agenda Statement- continued.doc
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RECOMMENDATION:
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PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
.14) Planning Commission Resolution approving the Site Development
Review for the Windstar ResidentialCommunity.
1) Receive Staff presentation; ~
2) Open the public hearing;
3) Take testimony from the Applicant and the public;
4) Close the public hearing and deliberate;
5) Approve Resolution (Attachment 1) approving a Mitigated Negative
Declaration for the Windstar Project with the Mitigation Monitoring
Program attached as Exhibit A and the Responses to Comment
Received on the Mitigated Negative Declaration attached as Exhibit B;
6) Approve Resolution (Attachment 2) approving an amendment to the
West Dublin BART Specific Plan related to theWindstar Project; and
7) Waive reading and Introduce Ordinance (Attachment 3) rezoning the
Project area and approving an amendment to the Stage 1 Development
Plan and approving a related Stage 2 Development Plan (with the
amended Stage 1 Development Plan attached as Exhibit A and the Stage
2 Rezone booklet attached as Exhibit B).
The proposed Project is a 309-unit residential project located at 6600 Golden Gate Drive in the West Dublin
BART Specific Plan area. The property is zoned Planned Development and has a General Plan land use
designation of High Density Residential. The Project site is currently vacant.
The location of the Windstar Project site is shown below.
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BACKGROUND:
On December 19, 2000, the City Council adopted a Resolution approving the West Dublin BART
Specific Plan which rezoned the plan area to encourage high-intensity mixed-use development.
On March 2, 2004, the City Council approved Resolution 29-04 adopting an addendum to a Negative
Declaration to the Downtown Specific Plan and the Supplemental Environmental Impact Report for the
West DublinIPleasanton BART Station and Transit Village Project for the Stage 1 Development Plan for
this Project. At the same meeting, the City Council also approved Resolution 30-04 (Attachment 4) which
waived the requirements of the City's Inclusionary Zoning Regulations for the site.
On March 16,2004, the City Council adopted Ordinance 8-04 amending the West Dublin BART Specific
Plan to increase the density on the site to allow up to 210 dwelling units.
On February 21, 2006, the Community Development Director approved Tentative Parcel Map 8993 to
subdivide 6600 Golden Gate Drive into two properties. One parcel is for the Windstar Project and the
second parcel was created for the future hotel development.
On February 13, 2007, the Planning Commission held a Study Session to discuss the layout, design and
parking for the Windstar Project. The Agenda Statement (Attachment 5) and the minutes (Attachment 6)
from this Study Session are attached.
In May 2007, (following the Planning Commission Study Session) the Applicant submitted a revised
application requesting an increase in the allowable density on the site, from the 210 units currently
allowed by the Specific Plan, to 309 units on the Project site.
On June 5, 2007, the City Council (minutes included as Attachmement' 7) authorized the initiation of a
West Dublin BART Specific Plan amendment study to increase the total number of units allowed on the
Windstar site from 210 units to 309 units (an increase of99 units). .
On June 19, 2007 the City Council authorized a contract with RBF Consulting for the preparation of a
Comprehensive Downtown Specific Plan, which combines the Downtown Core, Dublin Downtown,
Village Parkway, West Dublin BART and San Ramon Specific Plans into one Specific Plan. Preparation
of the Comprehensive Specific Plan is underway and completion is anticipated in the Fall of2008.
On October 23, 2007, the Planning Commission reviewed the Windstar project during a Public Hearing.
At the Hearing, the Planning Commission discussed the Project's architecture, layout and parking
(Agenda Statement is included as Attachment 8 and the draft minutes are included as Attachment 9) and
approved the Site Development Review subject to the inclusion of five additional conditions included at
the Public Hearing (Conditions 27-31 in Attachment 14). During the Hearing, the Planning Commission
expressed some concerns regarding the architecture of the building and requested some minor changes be
made. The Planning Commission also expressed a concern regarding the provision of parking and guest
parking on the site. For a detailed discussion on the parking, please refer to pages 5-6 of this Agenda
Statement.
During the Hearing, the Planning Commission also adopted Resolutions recommending the City Council
adopt the Mitigated Negative Declaration (Attachment 11), approve the amendments to the West Dublin
BART Specific Plan (Attachment 12) and adopt an Ordinance rezoning the Project area and amending the
adopted Stage 1 Development Plan and approving a related Stage 2 Development Plan (Attachment 13).
On November 6, 2007, the City Council opened the Public Hearing for Windstarand continued the
hearing to the November 20,2007 City Council meeting at the request of the Applicant.
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ANALYSIS:
West Dublin BART Specific Plan Amendment
The project site is located within the West Dublin BART Specific Plan area,'a planning area in the City's
downtown. This Specific Plan was adopted by the CityofDublin on December 19,2000, for the purpose
of directing the land use, circulation, infrastructure and development for 71.40 acres of land located in the
central portion of Dublin, west of the 1-680 freeway and north of the 1-580 freeway. The West Dublin
BART Specific Plan area allows for the development of a range of residential, commercial office, retail,
employment and public/quasi-public uses.
Windstar has proposed a 309-unit residential project on a 3.66-acre vacant site at 6600 Golden Gate Drive
in the West Dublin BART Specific Plan area. The property has a General Plan land use designation of
High Density Residential (25.1 + dwelling units per acre), and a West Dublin BART Specific Plan land use
designation of Residential (which currently allows 30-58 dwelling units/acre). Because the West Dublin
BART Specific Plan currently limits the maximum number of units permitted on the site to 210 dwelling
units, the Applicant is requesting a Specific Plan Amendment to increase the maximum density range to
permit the proposed 309-unit Project (the applicable General Plan designation of High Density Residential
has no maximum range; therefore, the General Plan is not required to be amended).
The development of the site at 6600 Golden Gate Drive plays an integral part in financing the construction
of the West Dublin BART Transit Station. The parking garage for the future BART station is currently
under construction and construction of the station is anticipated to begin shortly. The Windstar Project is
anticipated to be the first private project under construction in the area and could act as a stimulus for
redevelopment in the Specific Plan area.
The West Dublin BART Specific Plan designates the Project site as Residential which permits a density
range of 30 to 58 residential units per acre. As proposed, the Applicant is requesting an amendment to the
Residential land use designation in the Specific Plan to increase the maximum permitted number of units'
in the Residential land use category from 58 to 84 units per acre to allow the construction of the proposed
Windstar Project with 309 dwelling units, which would constitute a maximum density of 84 units per acre.
The proposed increase in the allowable density for the Residential land use designation will only affect the
Windstar property because the Windstar property is the only site with the Residential land use designation
in the West Dublin BART Specific Plan area at this time.
The Specific Plan is proposed to be amended as follows:
. On page 11, Objective 7.2, increase the maximum allowable density to 84 units per acre;
. On page 33, Table 5, change the Residential category to allow up to 84 units per acre and 309
units on 3.66 acres; and
. On page 41; under Section 5.2, change the Residential land use category to permit between 30
to 84 dwelling units per acre.
Stage 1 Development Plan Amendment
The Applicant has requested an amendment of the Stage 1 Development Plan for the site. The amendment
is necessary to allow the Applicant to increase the total number of permitted units on the site from 210
units to 309 units. The increase in the total number of units does nqt significantly impact the site layout of
the Project; rather the increase in the total number of units will result in one additional story on the site
(the height ofthe building will increase from five stories to six stories).
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Stage 2 Planned Development Rezone
The Applicant has proposed a PD Planned Development District rezoning for the site. The existing zoning
of the property is PD Planned Development Stage 1 Development Plan. Chapter 8.32 of the Dublin
Zoning Ordinance establishes the intent, purpose and requirements of the Planned Development District.
The intent of the Planned Development District is to create a more desirable use of the land, a more
coherent and coordinated development, and a better physical environment that would otherwise not be
achieved under a single zoning district or combination of zoning districts. A Development Plan is
required pursuant to the Zoning Ordinance, which establishes regulations for the use, development,
improvement and maintenance of the property within the Planned Development Zoning District. The
Zoning Ordinance also requires the adoption of both Stage 1 and Stage 2 Development Plans with the
reclassification of the property to the Planned Development Zoning District.
The Applicant is requesting approval of a Stage 2 Development Plan for the specific development of the
subject site at this time. The Stage 2 Development PlanlProject Plans for the Project can be found in
Exhibit B of Attachment 3.
The applicable regulations for the project can be, found in the Ordinance included as Attachment 3.
Applicable regulations adopted as part of this Ordinance include the parking ratio for the site, maximum
height and setbacks. These regulations can be found on pages 6-7 of Attachment 3.
The height, setbacks and general layout of the project are consistent with the West Dublin BART Specific
Plan.
Parking
Tpe Planned Development includes guest parking which is lower than what is required by the Zoning
Ordinance. At the October 23, 2007 Planning Commission meeting, the Commission discussed the
provision of parking on the project site. After considerable discussion about the adequacy of the parking
provided for the Project, the Planning Commission determined that due to the nature of the Project, a
transit-oriented development in close proximity to the BART Station and other transit opportunities as
well as services including retail, restaurants and the Safeway grocery store, that an overall parking ratio of
1.55 parking stalls per unit was acceptable. The Applicant originally proposed 24 additional parking
spaces for the resident stalls (over what is required by the Zoning Ordinance). At the meeting, the
Planning Commission requested that those stalls be designated for guests rather than residents.
The Planning Commission added a Condition of Approval to the project which required the Applicant to
lower the number of resident stalls and increase the number of guest parking stalls on the site. The
following table provides information on the proposed parking, as conditioned by the Planning
Commission, for the site:
Required No. of No. of Stalls as
Modified by the
Stall Type Stalls (Zoning Planning
Ordinance) Commission
Private 411 411
Guest 155 68
Total 566 479
Two other conditions were also included in the Site Development Review by the Planning Commission.
Condition of Approval No. 28 requires that the Applicant provide proof (in the form of a lease or other
document) which shows that the resident parking stalls will be assigned to residents. Condition of
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Approval No. 29 requires the Applicant to look into the feasibility of having a flex car on site. A flex car
is a car that can be used by the residents when transit is not a viable option. By offering a flex car on-site,
residents may opt not to have a car because one is available for use when they need it. Additionally,
resident parking (and 24 stalls of the guest parking) will be located behind a secured gate. The gate will
ensure that the parking stalls are open to the residents and invited guests only. Additionally, because this is
an open garage and the site will be managed by a management company, this will ensure that residents are
using their parking spaces to park their cars, rather than to store personal items.
In this case, the proposed guest parking reduction is warranted due to the design of the Project as a
Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) with a BART Station in close proximity. The typical parking ratio
for Transit-Oriented Developments in California is 1.41, which includes resident and visitor parking. East
Bay Transit-Oriented Developments tend to have much lower parking supply ratios. For example, the
Pleasant Hill BART TOD has a ratio which ranges from 1.08 to 1.5 parking spaces per unit (based on the
project) and the Alameda County BART TOD has a ratio of 1.31 parking spaces per unit. The Stage 1
Development Plan for Transit Center, located near the East Dublin BART Station, established the parking
ratio for residential parking at 1.5 parking spaces per unit. While many of the Transit Center projects are
still under construction, residents have begun moving into Transit Center and staff has not heard any
information that indicates any issues with parking.
A Triggering Analysis was prepared by TJKM and was included in the Mitigated Negative Declaration
for the Project. The Analysis includes a discussion of the proposed number of parking spaces. In the
Analysis, TJKM states that a parking ratio of 1.55 parking stalls would be adequate to serve the
residential development due to the close proximity of transit opportunities as well as services and jobs.
Due to the nature of this development and the close proximity to BART and office and retail uses, it is
likely that parking demand related to the Project will be lower than what is typically found in remote
residential developments. Additionally, a parking reduction was approved for the adjacent AMB Project
and parking reductions were approved for the approved residential developments that comprise the
Transit Center adjacent to the existing DublinIPleasanton Station based on the information regarding
parking demand for transit-oriented developments which was included in the Transit Center EIR.
Transit opportunities exist in the project area above what is found in a typical suburban development. The
new West Dublin BART Station is located in close proximity to the project site. Additionally, retail,
service, the Stoneridge Mall, restaurants and a Grocery Store are all located within walking distance (1/4
mile or less) of the project site. By locating the Project where these services can be easily accessible by
walking or by bicycle, the need for a vehicle is further reduced. Job opportunities are also located in the
surrounding areas which are easily accessible by bus, walking or by bicycle.
Mitigated Negative Declaration
In accordance with CEQA, the City prepared a Mitigated Negative Declaration to review any impacts
associated with the proposed increase in the total number of units allowed on the site. The Mitigated
Negative Declaration identified several potential impacts related to traffic and parking. Mitigation
measures were identified to reduce those impacts to a less than significant level and are included in the
Mitigated Negative Declaration.
The Mitigated Negative Declaration relies on the 1990 DublinIPleasanton Extension Project EIR
(SCH#1989011009), 2001 DublinIPleasanton BART Station and Transit Village SEIR
(SCH#2000042058), the 2000 West Dublin BART Specific Plan Negative Declaration and the 2004
Addendum to the Specific Plan Negative Declaration and the Transit Village SEIR.
The Mitigated Negative Declaration was circulated for Public Review from July 20, 2007 through August
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21, 2007. During the Public Review comment period, the City received one comment letter from the
California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). A response to the comment letter is included as
Exhibit B to Attachment 1.
A Resolution approving the Mitigated Negative Declaration and the Mitigation Monitoring Program
(Exhibit A) is included as Attachment 1 for the City Council's consideration. .
CONCLUSION:
The Applicant is requesting approval of a 309-unit residential project. The residential project is a high
intensity transit-oriented development which will take advantage of the future West DublinIPleasanton
BART Station and the proximity of services, in the area. The proposed development will have a modern
design with industrial influences which will be attractive, will promote a pedestrian friendly environment
and will be compatible with approved and future development in the area. The site layout and design of
the development is compatible with the West Dublin BART Specific Plan. Approval of this Project and
construction of the community will implement the City's goal of creating a transit-oriented development
in this area.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council: 1) Receive Staff presentation; 2) Open the public hearing; 3)
Take testimony from the Applicant and the public; 4) Close the public hearing and deliberate; 5) approve
Resolution (Attachment 1) approving a Mitigated Negative Declaration for the Windstar Project with the
Mitigation Monitoring Program attached as Exhibit A and the Responses to Comment Received on the
Mitigated Negative Declaration attached as Exhibit B; 6) Approve Resolution (Attachment 2) approving
an amendment to the West Dublin BART Specific Plan related to the Windstar Project; and 7) Waive
reading and Introduce Ordinance (Attachment '3) rezoning the Project area and approving an amendment
to the Stage 1 Development Plan and approving a related Stage 2 Development Plan (with the amended.
Stage 1 Development Plan attached as Exhibit A and the Stage 2 Rezone booklet attached as Exhibit B).
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