Item 1 - Addendum with Attachments
PREPARED BY: JENNIFER ARMER, AICP
Senior Planner
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
MEETING DATE: 4/15/2021
ITEM: 1
ADDENDUM
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
GENERAL PLAN UPDATE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
REPORT
REPORT
DATE: April 14, 2021
TO: General Plan Update Advisory Committee
FROM: Joel Paulson, Community Development Director
SUBJECT: Review and Discussion of the Revised Initial Draft of the Land Use Element and
the Revised Initial Draft of the Community Design Element.
REMARKS:
Attachment 6 contains comments from Committee Members.
Attachment 7 contains public comment received after the completion of the Staff Report.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachments previously received with the April 15, 2021 Staff Report:
1. Revised Initial Draft of Land Use Element
2. Comment Response Summary Table – Land Use
3. Revised Initial Draft of Community Design Element
4. Comment Response Summary Table – Community Design
5. Committee Member Comments
Attachments received with this Addendum Report:
6. Committee Member Comments
7. Public Comment
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ATTACHMENT 6
Janoff Comments-Land Use
Questions:
Could staff comment on the safety of mid-block crossings?
Did we agree to incorporate bird-safe glazing? I didn’t see that in my read-through here or in
the CD element.
Did we agree to change Central Business District to Historic Downtown District?
Global search and replace:
Replace:
Abut, abuts, or abutting with border, borders, or bordering
Replace:
Auto-oriented with automobile-oriented
Throughout: Center figure titles (or use a black col or font) to more clearly distinguish them
from Policies
Edits on Land Use
Pg 3-6
Last sentence: replace “can be” with “are expected to be”
Pg. 3-8, first sentence (and generally throughout) replace the phrase constructions “verb+of”
with an active verb. In this sentence, replace “creation of” with “creating”
3.3, second paragraph: replace the comma with a semi-colon “city,” with “city;” and delete the
word “although”
Page 3-9
Section 3.4, first sentence:
End sentence after Town. Begin next sentence with “Corresponding . . . [and insert] are also
defined.” At the end of the sentence.
Page 3-17
Section 3.5, last sentence: consider deleting the word “additional”
Goal LU-3: replace “through the incorporation of” with “by incorporating”
LU-3.5: Shift in Housing [insert] Types
Consider adding “Types” to the title and adding to end of this policy “in favor of higher density
housing types.”
LU-4.1: insert comma after the e.g.
Page 3-18
LU-5.4
add “ . . . impacts, while ensuring that the . . .”
LU-8.2, hyphenate “locally-owed”
LU-8.7 awkward phrasing “the shifting in
Consider: a shift in, or the shifting of, or on-going shifts in
Pg. 3-23
LU-11.2
Change “Protect” to Prohibit or Prevent
11-3, Delete “The Town shall and begin sentence with “support”
Pg 3-24
LU-12.2: same question as before: compatible with Civic Center purpose or architecture? Or
both?
Section 3.6 intro: for clarity, reorder the last sentence to match the order of the subsequent
sub-sections: Specific Plans, Overlay Zones, Historic Districts.
Goal LU-13: insert “of” between use and specific
Overlay Zones section: do we need a map here, since there is one for the sub -sections?
Pg. 3-37
AHOZ Bullet: Before last sentence, begs the question of what this property is. Can you insert a
what or where?
LHP Bullet: Mid-paragraph: strictly restricted. Can you just say restricted or use “heavily
restricted”? And, move last sentence to follow first sentence. Delete second to last sentence
(it’s a repeat).
Almond Grove District, remove last semi-colon (before “are a few”)
Pg. 3-31
Downtown District, spell out CBD
Harwood, replace abuts with borders
and add commas: “. . . San Jose and, beyond the commercial center, it primarily . . .”
LGB District: it’s Louise Van Meter
North Santa Crux, last sentence, insert comma after North Santa Cruz Avenue and remove
comma after retail chains
Pollard Road district: replace abutting to bordering
Union Ave: replace abuts with borders
Winchester: replace abutting with bordering
Pg 3-35
LU-19.1, insert after General Plan: “every 5 years or” to convey there is a hard look periodically
Yellow box at bottom of page: Should Chapter 2 be Element 2?
Pg. 3-36
LU-20.4: do we want to keep “and in languages” given the language in LU-20.5
Janoff Comments
Final Edits Community Design
Global search and replace:
Replace:
Abut, abuts, or abutting with border, borders, or bordering
Replace:
Auto-oriented with automobile-oriented
Throughout: Center figure titles (or use a black color font) to more clearly distinguish them
from Policies
Figure 4-18, Question for staff:
At corner of Knowles and Capri, area is designated as public. But currently there is housing and
a vacant lot. Might be an area to rezone and had MD or HD housing on vacant corner.
General Edits Community Design
Pg 4-4
First paragraph, last sentence, change to read: “The Community Design Element will focus on
the categories shown in Figure 4-1, which will ultimately . . .”
Last paragraph: second sentence, replace semi-colon with comma
Pg 4-5
Second paragraph: insert “to relate to traditional styles”
Fourth paragraph, Second sentence, after “equally” remove the word “as”
Second to last sentence, reword sentence: “Creating lively furnishings, such as incorporating
upgraded landscaped areas and cohesive street furniture/furnishings, will enhance the
pedestrian environment.”
Pg 4-6
Section 4.1, last sentence, remove comma after development
Pg. 4-7
CD-2: Suggest revision to simplify:
Encourage all development in Town to be designed holistically and sustainably to create or
evolve welcoming and human-scaled neighborhood communities. Not sure I love the word
evolve. Do we use this anywhere else?
Pg. 4-9
CD-2.11, delete duplicate “that” (first line) and delete “which are”
Pg. 4-12
CD-2.25: Should this be “Require” since we have a code recommendation of 40sq ft?
CD-2.27: is this meant to be in the Hillsides? If not, does this conflict with 2.17 and 2.21?
Pg. 4-17
First paragraph, last sentence, remove comma after Ordinance and replace semi -colons with
commas:
“ . . . Historic Preservation Ordinance are Downtown Commercial, Almond Grove, Broadway,
Fairview Plaza and University-Edelen. . .”
CD-3.1: replace “ensure the preservation of” with “preserve”
CD-3.2: second sentence is similar in intent with CD-3.5. Suggest deleting from 3.2 and
rewording 3.5 if needed.
CD-3.3: insert “while” before the word “recognizing”
Pg. 4-20
CD-5.4: replace “adequate” (which sounds like “just enough”) with “thorough”
CD-5.5: consider deleting “significantly” as that is subjective.
CD-6.1: rephrase mid-sentence to:
“ensure minimal disturbance of the natural environment and to avoid hazards.
Pg. 4-21
CD-6.5: revise to remove second “shall be”
“Outdoor lighting shall be limited and shielded so as not . . .”
Pg. 4-23
CD-7.1: incorporate parenthetical list into paragraph without parentheses. “ . . . environment,
such as by siting . . .”
Throughout the district sections, make the district header Bold, black and non-italics (as you
have with North Los Gatos Districts and Neighborhood Districts
Pg. 4-26
Vision statement, second paragraph: insert “this” after the word through, and delete above first
floor retail/restaurants:
“It is through this mixed-use development above first floor retail/restaurants that residential
growth is accommodated.”
Pg. 4-29
LGB Vision, second paragraph: revise to read ”The numerous shopping centers border the
street with human-scale enhancements.” Remove parking phrase as it’s covered a few
sentences later.
hospitality? Did we decide to keep or remove?
Second to last sentence, “a place that where . . .” and remove the word “but”
CD-9.2: Use Los Gatos Boulevard (two places) instead of just Boulevard.
Suggested Revision:
“Support Los Gatos Boulevard as a complete street between Lark Avenue and Blossom Hill Road
by eliminating travel lanes in each direction, reducing the speed limit, increasing sidewalk
widths and adding bike lanes.”
Pg. 4-30
CD-9.9: change “ . . . hardscape, encourage the incorporating of incorporate . . .
CD-9.10: change to “automobile-centric”
From: Lee Quintana
Comments for the April 15, 2021 GPAC Meeting
COMMENTS AND EDITS ON REVISED April 2021 GPAC DRAFT :
●Land Use Element and April, 2021 Draft
●Community Design Element and April 2021 Draft
COMMENTS - LAND USE ELEMENT:
Key Terms:
Density.
Either delete the second paragraph or provide the standard for population density.
Mixed Use Development.
Modify the last sentence:A minimum of 16 and a maximum of up to 32 residential units would
be allowed within 87,120 square feet.
Multi-Family Residential.
Clarify:ADU’s do not count towards density. But given there will be since more than one unit
on a parcel why is the parcel considered to be multi-family?
Missing Middle Housing.
Modify for greater clarity:Missing Middle housing (or Middle Housing) is a term used to
describe a range of house-scale buildings with multiple units on a single parcel (whether
attached or detached)that are compatible in scale and form with detached single-family homes
(Figure 3-3).
Single Family Residential.
Clarify:This definition does not seem to make sense.First, aren’t townhouses by definition
attached? Second, given the definition of Multi-family Residential wouldn’t single family
residential refer to a parcel with only one dwelling unit.
3.1 General Plan Buildout Table 3-1
Clarify:
How does this table account for the potential for additional residential units under MU, NC, CC,
CBD OP, and SC?
What does MHP stand for?
3.2 Implementing Missing Middle Housing
Next to last sentence suggest the following modification:
1
1This housing, which lies between single family homes and multi-family apartments the low end
of Low Density Residential (LDR - 1-12 units/acre)and the high end of Medium Density
Residential (MDR- 14-24 units/acre)is often referred to as “ Missing Middle” housing…..
Figure 3-5
Commnet:This figure does not support discouraging the demolition of existing homes
(sustainability). It also lacks an example of converting detached a single family that has been
converted divided into two (smaller) units.
3.3 (last sentence), LU2.1, LU5.6, LU7.1 (and potentially other policies through out the GP).
does not use consistent terminology.
Second bullet at the top of page 3-10, second to last sentence
Delete:For non-residential designations a maximum FAR is provided for the non-residential
components.
Modify to be consistent with FAR as defined in Key Terms, which applies to both residential and
non-residential components of mixed use developments.
Land Use Designations and Standards
Suggested modification for clarity:
Table 3-2 divides the land use designations identified on the Land Use Diagram (Fig 3-6) into six
designation groups and provides guidance on types of uses appropriate for each land use
designation, as well general plan standards applicable to each land use designation.All
standards listed in Table 3-2 must be applied to all projects.A project must comply with all
standards applicable to its General Plan Designation.
Delete the last paragraph on page 3-10:
For non-residential land uses, the specific uses mentioned are illustrative, and other compatible
uses, including those authorized in any other zoning district within the Town, may be permitted
where authorized by ba Conditional Use Permit or Planned Development Overlay zone.
Comment:It is my understanding that this statement is not consistent with the amended PD
ordinance.
Table 3-2 Land Use Designations
Add:Include all the HR and R-1 zones in the Compatible Zoning Column
Move the statements for ADU’s to the end of the descriptions for HR, LDR and MDR and clarify
they are not counted towards density.
Delete:Duplicate use of lodging under the MU designation
Suggest:Delete reference to vertical or horizontal mixed use. Leave that determination to the
zoning code.
HR Hillside Residential
Delete:Maximum height: 30 feet to
1 Page 2 Comments on April GPAC Draft on Land Use and Community Design - Lee Quintana
2
2Replace with:Maximum height 25 feet, which is consistent with the Hillside Development
Standards and Guidelines (HDS&G).This change was made in a previous draft but was not
carried forward to the April Draft. Why?
Residential uses are allowed in the NC, CC, CBD, OP,SC, NF-SP and MU land use
designations.
Please clarify:It is not clear whether new development with a Mixed Use Designation is allowed
to include residential or it is required to include residential.
Neighborhood Commercial and Community Commercial
Clarify:How can the same zoning district apply to both?
Comment:There is not a strong distinction between the CC and the CBD
CBD Central Business District
Clarify:Does “Downtown” as used here mean the Downtown Area as shown on Figure 3-7?
Delete “archeological”and replace it with architectural.
Replace “the District”with the CBD to help distinguish “the CBD” from the ” Downtown Area” or
the “Downtown Community Place District.”
LU-9.1
Add to the 2nd bullet:between Andrews :::Stree and Blossom Hill Road
Delete from the 4th bullet:between Andrews Street and Blossom Hill Road.
Figure 3-6: Land Use Diagram:
Suggest:Group the land use designations in the legend in the same order as in Table 3.2. Add
the abbreviations used in Table 3-2 to the Land Use Diagram.
LU17.2
Clarify:What does “all applicable criteria” mean?
Modify:Delete will,and add shall
COMMENTS - COMMUNITY DESIGN ELEMENT
4.4 Hillside Development
Add:Refer to the HDS&G for specific standards and guidelines applicable to hillside areas.
Comment:Consider adding a map of the area covered by the HDS&G.
CD-5.6
Delete or rephrase:I believe this refers to a policy from the Hillside Specific Plan - When was
the last time there was the Town and the County coordinated on Hillside issues?
2 Page 3 Comments on April Draft Land Use and Community Design Elements - Lee Quintana
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34.5 Community Place Districts
Comment:Thanks, the revisions made significantly improved this section.
Page 4-24
Modify third sentence:To many, the Downtown in generalities is larger , but covers a larger
area as shown in Figure 4-13 (Downtown Area).for the Downtown District.However,for the
purposes of this General Plan, this area the Downtown Community Place District has been
provided with specific boundaries as shown in Figure 4-12.
Page 4-38
Delete/modity?At the end of the last sentence under the vision for the Winchester District
delete “...supported by access to the Vasona and Winchester Light Rail Stations
Comment:Within the entire section on Community Place Districts there are only two mandatory
policies.
3 Page Comments on April GPAC Draft Land Use and Community Design Element - Lee Quintana
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ATTACHMENT 7
From: Bruce Preville
Sent: Sunday, April 11, 2021 6:00 PM
To: GP2040 <GP2040@losgatosca.gov>
Cc:
Subject: Addressing Urgency of Wildfire Prevention and Methane Mitigation in General Plan
Hope there will some direction in the Gen Plan for the urgent need of the entire community to be
proactive in taking action related to climate change impacts, both (1) in prevention mode thru
facilitating the shift away from using methane by households (Menlo Park is an example of such action)
and
(2) in remediation mode in the hillside parts of the community in extreme risk of wildfire to mandate
removal of trees and other flammable materials so the inevitable south winds, drought, and hot
weather May-Oct do not wipe out half our town and residents as happened all over CA last year.
With my best wishes for the health and well-being of you and our community,
Bruce
Bruce Preville
CERT Projects Lead, Los Gatos, CA
Emergency Preparedness requires a certain kind of enterprise to make it widely available. If it's going to
be successful, it won't be through the traditional kind of enterprise to which individuals belong. It'll be
through the kind of individuals to which this enterprise belongs.
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