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stores. A 20% loss in this economy may translate to lay -offs at those stores. Whether it results in stores closing will affect Pleasanton's fiscal state in a loss of sales and property tax. Councilmember Sullivan said he agrees this is a great opportunity, thinks the original office project approved 10 years ago is not the right project, and there are new realities the City is facing with the loss of its housing cap, a mandate to update the City's Housing Element over the next year, and the need look at locations in the City where high density housing can be located. He felt these types of projects need to be looked at from sound planning principles and sound economic development principles to meet these requirements. He thinks this site is a good possibility for some residential the City must put in the City. It is not as ideal as the Hacienda site where there is a BART station, but it is next to a transit corridor and freeway. He felt the City should be looking at this as a transit - oriented site where some neighborhood- serving retail, some residential, a walkable community, and concepts discussed by the Hacienda Task Force. Councilmember Sullivan felt the City just cannot build automobile- oriented, strip mall developments because it has caused a 33% increase in traffic for the project. He thinks the Council needs to take a step back to meet the needs of Pleasanton. The project has been approved for 10 years, it will not go away tomorrow, he feels more work needs to be done, and cannot support it as proposed. Regarding Safeway being a great green corporation, Councilmember Sullivan feels it is odd that Safeway is only proposing to meet the bare minimum green building ordinance in Pleasanton. If they were truly interested in sustainability and green energy, he thinks they should be far achieving the bare minimum. He asked that the Council revisit this as part of the Housing Element Task Force update. Councilmember McGovern said when we talk about leakage, and one area being a gas station, many people who shop at Safeway, as they are the leakage to Dublin because they use the gas station at Dublin, have asked her why there is not a gas station on the property. Mr. Fialho said staff does not support it from a planning perspective. Staff feels strongly that the location of a gas station at that intersection with an existing Shell station does not create the mix of diversity of uses they would like to see in the plan, and they have been consistent in terms of their recommendation to the City Council and Planning Commission. Councilmember McGovern said there are many locations in Pleasanton such as along Santa Rita where two gas stations are directly across the street from one another, and she felt more people will be pulled back in from Dublin if a gas station is located there. She questioned whether or not it is something that is completely ruled out or could there be a gas station there at some point. Mr. Fialho said ultimately, the Council makes this decision. The option is there, but staff's and the Planning Commission's recommendation is not to include it. Councilmember McGovern said like herself, she believes there is a large contingency in the community who do not understand it. Councilmember McGovern asked that Safeway look at finding ways to do a solar project on the supermarket because it is a flagship store. It stands for their corporate image of green building, and acknowledged they are going to be PV ready. The Council talked about this with Hendricks Motors and asked them to work with the City on grant funding rebates or incentives where they could become a solar project. Mr. Fialho said the City did this with Staples, and he confirmed it could be done with this project. A discussion was held this afternoon and they are willing to do that if federal, state and local utility incentives are made available. He confirmed that the project can be conditioned in this manner. City Council Minutes Page 9 of 13 October 19, 2010