Item 1 - 02.28.18 Draft Minutes
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
PLANNING COMMISSION
REPORT
MEETING DATE: 03/14/2018 ITEM NO: 1
DRAFT
MINUTES OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
FEBRUARY 28, 2018
The Planning Commission of the Town of Los Gatos conducted a Regular Meeting on
Wednesday, February 28, 2018, at 7:00 p.m.
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER AT 7:00 P.M.
ROLL CALL
Present: Chair D. Michael Kane, Vice Chair Matthew Hudes, Commissioner Mary Badame,
Commissioner Melanie Hanssen, Commissioner Kathryn Janoff, and Commissioner Tom
O’Donnell
Absent: Commissioner Kendra Burch
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Vice Chair Hudes led the Pledge of Allegiance. The audience was invited to participate.
SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS/COMMISSION MATTERS
Historic Preservation Committee
Vice Chair Hudes
- HPC met 1/24/18 and considered seven items:
o 202 University Avenue
o 19 Hernandez Avenue
o 511 North Santa Cruz Avenue
o 16883 Spencer Avenue
o 236 Edelen Avenue
o 32 Walnut Avenue
o Nancy Durham was elected chair; Matthew Hudes was elected vice chair
VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS
None
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CONSENT ITEMS (TO BE ACTED UPON BY A SINGLE MOTION)
1. Approval of Minutes – February 14, 2018
MOTION: Motion by Commissioner Badame to approve adoption of the Consent
Calendar. Seconded by Commissioner O’Donnell.
VOTE: Motion passed unanimously
PUBLIC HEARINGS
2. Twin Oaks Drive/Surrey Farms
Planned Development Application PD-10-006
Environmental Impact Report EIR-12-001
General Plan Amendment GP-12-001
Williamson Act Contract WA-11 Cancellation
APN 532-16-006
Property Owner/Applicant: Tom Dodge, Surrey Farm States, LLC
Project Planner: Jennifer Armer
Requesting approval of a General Plan Amendment from Agriculture to Hillside
Residential, cancellation of the existing Williamson Act contract, and a Planned
Development to rezone property from RC to -1:PD to allow for subdivision of one lot
into 10 lots, construction of 10 new single-family residences, and removal of large
protected trees.
Jennifer Armer, Senior Planner, presented the staff report.
Commissioner Badame disclosed that she had incidental contact with Jill Fordyce at 191
Longmeadow while viewing the subject site from her location.
Commissioner O'Donnell disclosed that he had incidental contact with Jill Fordyce at 191
Longmeadow while viewing the subject site from her location.
Chair Kane disclosed that he had contact with some of the neighbors, but did not discuss the
merits of the project, and he toured the riparian corridor with Vice Chair Hudes.
Opened Public Comment.
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Rodger Griffin
- He speaks on behalf of the Dodge family. A 1959 Tentative Map prepared by Hunt
Engineering demonstrates that Bob Dodge always planned to subdivide the site and that it
was the last phase of Surrey Farm. Development has since taken place all around the
property. They are not using the Planned Development Ordinance to increase the density
allowed in the ordinance. This project as presented qualified for a Negative Declaration,
but EIR was voluntary prepared for by the project. The applicants have conducted three
neighbor outreach sessions. They are also providing space for a new water pump station off
Cerro Vista. The two-access alternative is the environmentally superior alternative.
Cindy Shanker
- She has lived at 15949 Cerro Vista Court for 27 years. The Planned Development is
incompatible with General Plan Goal LU-6 to, “Preserve and enhance the existing character
and sense of place in residential neighborhoods.” Both Cerro Vista and Twin Oaks
neighborhoods are long-established neighborhoods whose character and sense of place
would be adversely affected by the development. The two-access alternative is a huge
impact on the Cerro Vista neighborhood.
Maggie Li
- She speaks on behalf of the new owner of 15955 Cerro Vista Court, who was not notified of
this issue. The owner opposes the project and has engaged legal counsel to look into the
issue, because during the transaction they knew there was a utility easement, but they did
not realize the Town could use the easement to create an access road.
Lee Quintana
- She was surprised the EIR said it is not legally possible to not approve a lower density
alternative. Given what is in the documents, the two-access alternative is clearly a superior
alternative environmentally. She was also surprised there wasn’t a discussion of reduced
density or reduced number of lots to give a range of possibilities.
Jill Fordyce
- She lives at 191 Longmeadow Drive. They purchased their home for the quiet, family-
friendly streets, and the rural setting, but this project would bring a fundamental change to
the aesthetics of her neighborhood, the natural habitat, and the overall inconsistency of
this development with the Town’s stated goals of sustainability and preservation. The
hillside is home to Ross Creek, which would also be adversely impacted by the
development. Cancellation of the Williamson Act is extremely unusual.
Scott Brown
- He lives at 15961 Cerro Vista Court. He is empathetic to the concerns of Twin Oaks. He is an
owner of five acres of Williamson Act land that is next door to the subject site and that he
is preserving, and four acres that his neighbor is preserving. He believes very strongly that
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one should not cancel Williamson Act land, that it is a convant that he and the applicant
should abide by. Turning onto Shannon Road is dangerous, adding traffic would not be
safe.
Craig Fordyce
- He lives at 191 Longmeadow Drive. The hillside does not contain any current unnatural
source of light, only moonlight. The development of a neighborhood on a hill would create
multiple new sources of unnatural light and glare from houses, cars, and streets that would
substantially impact scenic vistas. The hillside also does not contain any unnatural source of
noise. The project would cause a permanent increase in ambient noise levels. He is
concerned with construction impacts.
Sara Brown
- She lives at 15961 Cerro Vista Court, at the top of the hill. Her family loves Los Gatos for its
natural beauty, the mountains, parks, and trails. The subject site is on a beautiful hill with
deer and other wildlife, and it is a shock to her to think that the Town would approve
destroying that hill to put ten houses up. She requests the Commission does not cancel the
existing Williamson Act contract.
Jan Schwartz
- She lives at 15966 Cerro Vista Drive in a beautiful, rural area with wildlife that is already
being squeezed, and this project would do more; to put a road across that hill would be
devastating. She also questioned what the relationship of the homeowners association of
the new homes would be to existing homeowners, because they would be traveling down
their road.
David Greenfield
- He lives at 140 Longmeadow Drive. Unlike his neighbors, he is not opposed to some
building, but he thinks the number of proposed units should be reduced. His biggest
concerns are noise, safety, and construction truck traffic in particular. The project would
change the character of his street and his neighbors’ streets with the resulting loss of peace
and solitude.
Mark Weiner
- He lives on Twin Oaks Drive, two doors down and across the street from the potential entry
to the new neighborhood. He spent eight years on the General Plan Committee working on
the Hillside Plan, and has lived in the neighborhood for 18 years, and walked the subject
property many times with Mr. Dodge, Sr. He does not see the proposed project as the
vision that the General Plan Committee had for how a layout like that would be in some of
the Town’s remaining open hillsides. He does not believe it is the vision Mr. Dodge had for
the neighborhood.
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Rodger Griffin
- Either plan, single-access or two-access, is acceptable, but the alternate plan was
developed as a response to the mitigation issues raised in the EIR, and the two-access plan
does eliminate significant portions of the mitigation required. Cancellation of the
Williamson Act is not unusual, and the Town has cancelled it as recently as the North 40
project. The project would not disturb the wetlands near Hillbrook School. The applicants
would improve the trail, because the trail is a commitment to the county. They plan to
work with staff on a construction traffic plan. The four-acre open space preserves a
significant number of trees and provides shelter for animals on the property.
Jolie Houston
- Williamson Act cancellation is under 51282(b). Under CEQA Guidelines 51092 you cannot
reduce density for a housing project as CEQA mitigation, so the attorney’s letter and a
statement given at the hearing are incorrect. That section says, “With respect to a project
that includes housing development, the public agency shall not reduce the proposed
number of housing units as a mitigation measure if it determines there are other feasible
mitigations.”
Closed Public Comment.
Commissioners discussed the matter.
MOTION: Motion by Commissioner O’Donnell to recommend to Town Council
certification of the EIR, approval of a General Plan Amendment, Planned
Development for Twin Oaks Drive/Surrey Farms, and cancelation of the
existing Williamson Act contract, with approval of the two-access
alternative, a reduction of from ten to eight lots, and additional direction
from the Planning Commission given at the hearing. Seconded by Chair
Kane.
Commissioners discussed the matter.
VOTE: Motion passed unanimously.
OTHER BUSINESS
3. Report from the Director of Community Development
Joel Paulson, Director of Community Development
• Town Council met 2/20/18; approved the General Plan Update work plan.
• Next week the Council will consider potential North 40 Specific Plan amendments.
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ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 10:31 p.m.
TOWN OF LOS GATOS PLANNING COMMISSION
FEBRUARY 28, 2018
Prepared by
_____________________________
/s/ Vicki Blandin