PC 051204 - Laserfiche WebLink

- Mr. Iserson summarized the staff report and described the history and scope of the project. He noted that the building would be transformed from the 1980s appeazance into a more layered, glass-enclosed design. He presented a materials board to the Commission and noted that the color scheme would be changed from the existing earth tone colors to a grayish-green and blue scheme. He noted that it would include unique architectural features such as two 18-foot high landscaped hedge portals in the parking lot and two freestanding 16-foot high aluminum sunscreens. The applicant would demolish the existing bus shelter and rebuild it, including a new canopy to protect pedestrians from inclement weather. Staff believed the design was attractive and unique and that it would update the appearance of the building to blend into the rest of the site. Staff suggested that the yellow elements be muted slightly. Mr. Iserson noted that new trees would be added to the site and that staff planned to work with the applicant during the landscaping design phase. Staff intended to ensure that the existing trees on the site would be protected during construction. The building in general would meet the site development standards of the Hacienda Design Guidelines. The Hacienda Owners Association recommended approval of this design. Mr. Iserson advised that with the addition of square footage to the building, a traffic mitigation report would normally be required. Staff suggested that the applicant take a similaz approach as that of the Carden West School application to allow for expansion of the building but to ensure that the traffic be made trip-neutral. Staff requested that the applicant provide a schedule of employee commuting and agree that there would be no more than 25 peak-hour trips in the morning and afternoon with no net increase in existing traffic. Staff strongly encouraged the applicant to set a goal of reducing the amount of trips below atrip-neutral baseline in the future by up to 50 percent. He noted that it was not identified as a requirement but was a goal to be encouraged. Mr. Iserson noted that a memo from staff was distributed to address a deficiency in the conditions in terms of enforcing the traffic mitigations into the future and how to achieve compliance. He noted that Carden West, unlike this application, was a conditional use. Staff's suggestions for future compliance would be based on Code enforcement if an audit did not demonstrate sufficient trip reduction. In addition, a condition of approval could be added that if the audits did not reveal sufficient trip reduction, a traffic report, traffic mitigations, and further TSM mitigations to achieve that reduction would be required. Finally, it might be appropriate to consider a PUD modification for Hacienda to require a conditional use permit for businesses which propose to use the "trip-neutral" approach to building expansions. Mr. Iserson noted that the applicant was willing to accept these conditions of approval. Staff believed the traffic situation had been addressed satisfactorily to be trip-neutral. In addition, staff believed the building was attractively designed, would be a positive addition to the business pazk, and would allow the Dahlin Group to have a local presence near the BART station and bus stop. Staff recommended approval of this design review subject to the conditions in the staff report and the two additional conditions in the staff memorandum. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES May 12, 2004 Page 3 of 14