PC 110911 - Laserfiche WebLink

Mr. Van Cleave confirmed that was correct. Pratap Poddatoori, property owner, thanked the Commission for giving him this opportunity and stated that there have been suggestions and issues that they have been working on for over a year and a half. He indicated that he is very excited about the house and would like build it and move forward with the approval process promptly. Don Errigo, adjacent neighbor, stated that he has lived at this location for ten years. He indicated that he purchased this property because of its privacy; it is a great sanctuary, and he and his wife love Pleasanton and are very involved in the area. He stated that he has been working with staff and the applicant regarding resolving some of their concerns, and they have worked through some of them. He expressed concern about the preservation of the oak trees in his property, noting that a construction on Bethel Lane adjacent to their property resulted in water draining from that property onto theirs, and they lost a 150-year old heritage oak tree which was positioned quite well and screened that house and another house. He indicated that they are very sensitive to the fact that any sort of building can have adverse consequences to the heritage oak trees on their property or other properties, and they want to make sure that drainage goes towards Foothill and not the other way. Mr. Errigo stated that his other concern is privacy and thanked Commissioner Olson for bringing up the matter of story poles. He indicated that he is also speaking on behalf of the Weiners, neighbors who could not be present tonight. He noted that anyone could Photoshop these perspectives , but story poles would resolve everything. He stated that the Weiners are hoping that story poles be required on that side of the property so they can have an accurate understanding about where the line of sight will be and what viewsheds will need to be mitigated by planting. He indicated that one of his big concerns about privacy is the balcony, which had been reduced from three or four feet deep to a foot deep so it still retains the aesthetics of the house without allowing someone to look down upon their property. He noted that the view shed looks directly into their master bathroom, which has a big glass atrium, and this has been resolved. Mr. Errigo stated that it is important that planting happens before construction. He indicated that he has had an experience with this in connection with the construction of another house on Bethel Lane, which was required to have some planting that never occurred after the construction of the house, and then the property was sold. He reiterated that it is important that the planting occurs, that it has trees that are mature, and that it is dense. Mr. Van Cleave stated that privacy is a two-way street and that the Poddatooris are conscious of that. He indicated that they respect that and want to provide that, and they have done nothing to try to create a privacy issue with any of the neighbors. He stated that from their observations, there are some minor privacy issues that can be effectively PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, November 9, 2011 Page 6 of 29