On Sept. 2, Santa Clara’s Planning Commission unanimously recommended City Council approval of a 408-unit residential project at 451-475 El Camino Real, a project that includes an annexation request for a sliver of San Jose land. A second rezoning proposal for the Agrihood project at 1816 Worthington Circle — near Winchester and Stevens Creek —was pulled from the agenda.

Agrihood Rezoning Discussion Delayed, Not Denied

CORE Companies withdrew a request for changing the zoning at 1816 Worthington Circle from Planned Development to Medium Density Residential. Staff said the item would be re-noticed for a future hearing. The proposal addresses an unbuilt part of the site known as Agrihood.

The new zoning “downzones” the parcel from 160 senior apartments to 44 townhomes. Planning department staff recommended denying the request, on the grounds that reducing housing units by almost by 75% would impede Santa Clara’s ability to meet its housing goals, and would be contrary to the goals of the Agrihood, which the city council approved in 2016.

Nonetheless, there was public comment about it. Agrihood champion Kirk Vartan said he supported staff’s recommendation to deny the rezoning and proposed map.

He asked the city to fulfill a public records request for project documents, due Sept. 15, well ahead of the new hearing. He also asked that revised project information be made public at least two weeks before that hearing, and that commissioners disclose any contact with the applicant in the interim.

“The community that has followed this project for many years will be here on October 7th,” he said.

The meeting was also an opportunity to vent longstanding Agrihood tenant complaints about maintenance and safety. A current resident, Kathleen Freed, told commissioners about pervasive Whirlpool appliance failures and unsafe electrical systems.

Commissioners suggested she and other tenants bring these concerns to the City Council, and staff advised her to contact the city about getting a safety inspection.

University Station: 408 Units, Unusual Annexation

The commission’s main business was four staff-recommended actions on the University Station project at 451-475 El Camino Real, presented by Senior Planner Steve Lee: certifying the EIR, approving a general plan pre-designation of a small San Jose parcel to be annexed as Regional Mixed Use, pre-zoning that parcel and approving a vesting tentative subdivision map for condominiums.

The developer is Bixby Capital Management, a Newport Beach-based real estate investment trust.

The 11.1-acre site, a 10.2-acre Santa Clara parcel plus a .94-acre wedge of San José, would replace four office buildings and two parking garages. The parcel is currently light industrial and is landlocked by Santa Clara. The EIR found Santa Clara’s utilities adequate for all 408 units.

The proposal includes a five-story building with 297 multifamily units and 111 three-story townhouses, for a total of 408 units. Sixty-four units would be affordable, including 47 rental units in the multifamily building. The developer is proposing 1.2 parking spaces per apartment and two-car garages for each townhouse. The ground floor retail initially in the plan has been dropped because there is already vacant retail space close by.

Because part of the parcel is San José land, the project involves a rarely seen annexation, Lee said. The process is lengthy and complicated, requiring the concurrence of several city and county agencies and could take four to six months. The annexation would add 13 units to Santa Clara’s housing count as well as additional property tax revenue.

The commission unanimously approved all four recommendations. The planning commission’s next meeting is Oct. 7.