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Mr. Plemmons stated that for their development and units, their basic questions deal <br />with property value, parking, noise, and traffic, which are the same circumstances <br />everybody has no matter where these new units will be located. He noted that their <br />world will be changing if, for example, there is insufficient parking. He added that their <br />Homeowner Association has three major issues: parking, pets, and a pool. He <br />indicated that parking is an issue for them now, and if they wind up having to deal with <br />overflow parking from the residents across the street, that will increase their costs to try <br />and protect themselves. He stated that he sincerely hopes what is built there would <br />have a swimming pool because otherwise, they would have to increase their swimming <br />pool security as they already have a few issues with people showing up who do not live <br />there. With respect to traffic, he noted that on West Las Positas Boulevard, there is a <br />center down the street from their complex that have 300 parking spaces, and on Fridays <br />and some other times, they get really busy. He suggested that if any traffic study is <br />done on West Las Positas Boulevard, it should be done on a Friday to get accurate <br />results. He further suggested that if 300 cars across the street from their complex are <br />added to their 300 and the 300 down the street, and more from a new development <br />farther down, the Planning Commission should seriously look at putting in a traffic light <br />on Belleza Drive right across the street from the entrance because they now have <br />occasional accidents at that intersection, and the increased traffic flow may add to that. <br />Mr. Plemmons stated that the only other issue he has is personal. He indicated that; <br />500 years ago, the King of France wanted to build a building out on a swamp, and the <br />first thing his engineers did was go out and stabilize the ground; and 500 years after <br />that castle was built, it is still there: the ground is flat, there are no cracks in the walls, <br />and the floors look great. He stated that unfortunately, he did not discover until after he <br />had lived in Pleasanton for a while that a good percentage of the City is built on <br />swampland, and with building designs and building requirements, nothing is ever <br />mentioned about ground stabilization. He noted that this is a serious issue, especially <br />around West Las Positas Boulevard, where there is more settlement. He added that it <br />has been dug up and rebuilt at least three times since he has lived there, and he <br />strongly recommend that an investigation and a decision be made on any construction <br />in the future that should stipulate some type of ground stabilization. He indicated that a <br />lot of citizens in Pleasanton spend tens of thousands of dollars to stabilize their home <br />when it could have been so much cheaper if it would have been implemented on day <br />one when the building was constructed. <br />Ken Busch, Vice President of the Sares -Regis Group and Project Manager with E &S <br />Ring, stated that they have been working on the Auf der Maur /Rickenbach site for over <br />a year. He thanked the Planning Commission and staff for the way they processed the <br />Housing Element and the General Plan and indicated that they have done a great and <br />very expeditious job in a very difficult circumstance. <br />Mr. Busch stated that the Sares -Regis Group has developed over 10,000 units in <br />California, and many of these communities have been in a density range consistent with <br />the 30 units to the acre that is proposed in the Housing Element. He noted that they <br />have worked with their consultants on many of these communities, and those same <br />PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, July 11, 2012 Page 11 of 16 <br />