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Commissioner Narum requested that a copy of the slide on the trees be provided to the Commission tonight as this would be one of the topics to be discussed. THE PUBLIC HEARING WAS OPENED. Jeff Schroeder, Ponderosa Homes, stated that he is pleased to be before the Commission tonight with this first look at a proposal for the two -acre site off of Stanley Boulevard. He noted that this site has been a mobile home park since the 1970s and is probably one of the most unsightly properties in and around Downtown Pleasanton. Mr. Schroeder stated that the 2.09 -acre site, which is actually 1.82 acres from a density calculation because of the wildland overlay, has 31 pads, plus an older single - family home on the site. He noted that including that portion of the property in the density calculation would result in 6.6 units per acre, which is a significant difference in the calculation. He indicated that an aerial picture of the site shows a pretty significant part of the Arroyo that is included in this property and will have to be owned by whoever buys this property. He added that a Homeowners Association will have to be established to maintain this common space. He noted, however, that he did look at some site plan alternatives and is open to having houses back up to the Arroyo, although that would be less desirable from a public planning perspective. He indicated that the current plan ends with a cul -de -sac, which would be a public street with public access to the open space and wildland area. He further noted that pretty much every other property along that section of the Arroyo is private property with no public access. Mr. Schroeder stated that the pedestrian pathway is really not something that Ponderosa would normally propose. He indicated that it was raised by staff as a possible way to provide circulation, but they would prefer not to provide it. He noted that they do not usually have a lot of success selling homes next to those types of pathways, and those homes would have to be discounted. He added that in this case, staff has agreed that it could be gated and locked so only those people who live in the community can use it, thereby preventing a cut - through space for people coming to or from the Downtown through the neighborhood in a small area like that instead of going down a block. He noted that it is not a shortcut that would shorten the distance as it is the same distance as getting around the corner. He indicated that it would not be a big deal to keep this wildland open space in the plan if it is important to the City. Mr. Schroeder then talked about the historic aspects of the property, which is the most controversial issue about this proposal. He stated that they are proposing to demolish the residence and the rest of the mobile home park. He indicated that early on, they hired a qualified historical arch itect/archaeologist to do a State -level survey on the property, and his report stated that there is nothing of significance about the property in terms of California requirements for historical registration. He added that he has gone through the entire historical context document which is currently being used by the Historic Preservation Task Force, looked at every category in the document, and found that this property does not qualify under any of the categories therein to make it worthy PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, November 28, 2012 Page 5 of 38