A rendering shows what some of the buildings would look like as part of a residential development project poised to replace an existing building at 4400 Black Ave. (Screenshot taken from the Nov. 12 Planning Commission staff report)
The Pleasanton Planning Commission approved an application and related items last week to allow the demolition of a commercial building at 4400 Black Ave. and the construction of 59 condominiums and seven accessory dwelling units on the property.
The site was one of the areas that the city rezoned for residential during its current Housing Element, which the city completed several years ago in order to meet the state’s mandate of nearly 6,000 new housing units identified by the state’s Regional Housing Needs Assessment.
Commissioners voted unanimously Nov. 12 to support the project, which aims to build 10, three-story buildings with a total of 59 townhome-style condominiums that span over 96,584 square feet located adjacent to the Amador Valley High School sports field. However, their vote didn’t come without contention as many on the dais had to explain their reasoning to residents concerned with the traffic impacts associated with the new development.
“What we are dealing with is a private party that (is) developing this piece or property using the rights that they are given by the state government,” Commissioner Brandon Pace said.
“The city, us, we are doing our best to try and make sure that we are able to impact that in a way that protects the city and helps the city as much as we can to preserve character, to maintain safety and order … but there are limits about what this group is able to do,” he added.
And while city staff and the commissioners noted how residents will be able to continue raising traffic concerns with the city in hopes of finding easy to improve and mitigate those issues in the future — should those issues arise after the project is complete — the overall consensus was that traffic will most likely get worse as more of these housing projects come online.
“If I just think about just the project itself, I support it from the standpoint that I think it was developed in a way that fit with what the city was asking folks to do,” Commission Chair Ken Morgan said. “The only regret I have is that we … will have more traffic in the city as we’re required to build more housing to satisfy the state laws.”
A Google Images shot shows where the project would be located as outlined by the red line. (Screenshot taken from the Nov. 12 Planning Commission staff report)
According to city associate planner Diego Mora, the project site is located right next to the high school with a church to one side, medical offices to the other and the Dolores Bengtson Aquatic Center and Amador Valley Community Park to the front.
The applicant behind the project is The True Life Companies, a real estate developer based in San Ramon.
The maximum height for each of the buildings would be 42 feet and 10 inches and would range in size from approximately 1,446 to 2,224 square feet. The condominiums would also range from either three or four bedrooms.
Nine of the units will be deed-restricted lower-income housing units — seven would be for low income families and two would be deed-restricted to very low income families.
In addition to the residential units, the project is also proposing on- and off-site improvements; 13,636 square feet of group open space; and surface parking. Each condominium will have a two-car private garage accessed via common access streets for a total of 127 residential parking spaces.
There will also be nine visitor parking spaces, according to the project details.
As many of the commissioners noted during the two-hour discussion, the city’s hands were tied regarding most of the overall design of the project as the city had already identified the site for residential during its last Housing Element cycle. Still, many on the dais also acknowledge how bad traffic can get on Black Avenue.
In addition to the commissioner’s concerns regarding traffic in the area, 10 residents who live in that area also spoke during public comment to voice their concerns about congestion and safety issues that could come up with the addition of the new units.
However, as the conversation continued, both staff and a representative for the developer noted how they wish to continue working with the surrounding community to ensure future safety mitigations are identified and addressed.
“We hope that we can work together with you guys on this project,” said Kelley Rutchena, director of entitlements for the project applicant. “We’re excited about it. It’s what the city is asking for and so we will continue to work with the city and you guys trying to make this as painless as possible.”
Commissioner Anurag Jain also noted how, given the project site’s proximity to surrounding amenities and schools, there’s a possibility that those who would live in the new units could choose to walk rather than drive.
“This is a location where people can walk to and from,” Jain said. “I think Black Avenue traffic is unsustainable — something needs to happen there irrespective of whether this project is there or not.”
Pleasanton’s traffic engineer Mike Tassano also reviewed some of the traffic analysis for the project and went over how, despite adding to the total amount of cars coming in and out of the future development, the project would actually see less traffic during peak evening hours.
And while many on the dais had additional concerns about parking, street safety and the architectural aesthetics of the buildings, they also recognized how the site is not surrounded by other residential houses and that housing needs to be identified in Pleasanton, even if they might not fully agree with the projects.
“A lot of us have to make this tough choice every time,” Commissioner Vivek Mohan said.
