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ATTACHMENT 4 P12-0042, City of Pleasanton Application to amend Chapter 18.44 (Commercial Districts) of the Pleasanton Municipal Code to designate financial institutions as conditionally permitted uses in the Central Commercial (C-C), Downtown Revitalization District. Commissioner Olson recused himself due to a conflict of interest. Shweta Bonn presented the staff report and described the scope and key elements of the proposal. Commissioner Narum inquired whether a bank would be permitted to open not on Main Street and not on a corner that intersected with Main Street, for example, on Division Street. Ms. Bonn said yes. Commissioner Narum indicated that she was trying to understand the language of the proposed changes in relation to giving the Planning Commission some discretion in terms of pedestrian interest and adding vitality to the Downtown. She inquired, assuming the Commission adopted this amendment, if a'bank that would like to build and operate where the Union Jack Pub used to be, which has been a vacant property for so long, be an example of bringing in vitality to the Downtown, and if this is what staff envisions as promoting and bringing in vitality. Commissioner O'Connor stated that he thinks it would be up to the Commission to determine if this was bringing in vitality. Chair Pentin stated that he is reading it differently, with the consideration being whether a proposed financial institution would not add to vitality and pedestrian interest. Commissioner Narum continued that, turning Chair Pentin's statement around, in this particular case, which is obviously not a space where people would like to run a restaurant, a bank could be said that it would add to vitality in the Downtown. Mr. Dolan stated that this is an interesting situation which staff did not really think of. He explained that staff put this together over a relatively short period of time in response to a specific concern. He indicated that, in terms of the change, staff was so definitive about never having a,financial institution on a corner and never more than one a block, that staff thought there may be circumstances, and Commissioner Narum's example may be one of those, where the Commission may want the flexibility; therefore, staff put in place the criteria for consideration that would give the Commission plenty of reason to not approve financial institutions at specific locations, but would also give the Commission the opportunity to approve them if the circumstances were right. Commissioner Narum inquired if staff had another example where they think discretion would come into play. EXCERPT: PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, 2/22/2012 Page 1 of 4