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DISCUSSION The Planning Commission staff report (Attachment 9) provides additional background information and a detailed discussion of the proposed project, including land use consistency; design, project development standards; parking; tree removal and replacement, common and private open space, and Valley Trails Park improvements. Key elements of the analysis section are summarized below. Land Use General Plan and Zoning Considerations The subject property currently has a General Plan land use designation of "Public and Institutional," which does not allow residential uses, and is currently zoned R-1-6,500, a residential district. The General Plan would override the underlying zoning district if the two land use designations are inconsistent. Therefore, a General Plan amendment is proposed to change the existing land use designation to "Medium Density Residential." The Medium Density Residential General Plan land use designation allows for 2 to 8 dwelling units per acre (du/ac) with a midpoint density of 5 du/ac. The General Plan indicates that residential projects which include densities greater than the midpoint should be zoned PUD and include sufficient public amenities. The proposed project would have a density of 4.0 du/ac (36 lots on a 9-acre site), which is below the midpoint density. Therefore, PUD zoning and public amenities are not required for the proposed project. The General Plan also encourages the use of PUDs for appropriate residential properties that have unique characteristics or to accommodate desirable development that does not fit under standard zoning classifications. In this case, staff and the Planning Commission believe the project is a desirable proposal that fits into the development pattern of the existing neighborhood, as the site is an in-fill parcel that is irregularly shaped and in the middle of an existing, established residential neighborhood. The applicant is proposing to rezone the site to PUD-MDR, which would conform to the proposed General Plan Medium Density Residential land use designation that exists for the majority of the Valley Trails Neighborhood, to allow for flexibility in the development standards. The proposed General Plan amendment would reduce the total acreage of privately-owned, potentially developable sites in the City with the Public and Institutional land use designation from approximately 60 acres to 51 acres. This change would effectively reduce the amount of land in the City available for public and institutional uses such as religious facilities, cemeteries, corporation yards, sewage treatment facilities, utility substations, hospitals, post offices, community centers, senior centers, libraries, and City administrative buildings. The General Plan also provides policies and programs that encourage the evaluation of land use changes and the provision of community facilities: General Plan - Land Use Element Policy 5: Evaluate land-use changes in the context of overall City welfare and goals, as well as the impacts on surrounding neighborhoods. Page 10 of 20