HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-05-13 City Council (5)City of Palo Alto
City Manager’s Report
TO:
FROM:
HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING AND
COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT
DATE:
SUBJECT:
MAY 13, 2002 CMR:231:02
ANNUAL PUBLIC REVIEW OF COMPLIANCE OF
DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT WITH STANFORD UNIVERSITY
FOR THE SAND HILL CORRIDOR PROJECTS
REPORT IN BRIEF
The 1997 Sand Hill Corridor Development Agreement requires Stanford University to
provide an annual report to the City Council. A memorandum from Stanford
Management Company regarding 2000-01 activities is attached. This staff report reviews
the report and identifies additional activ.i_ties that have occurred since the report was
prepared on August 31, 2001. These additional activities include completion of the
Stanford West Apartments and child care center; completion of the roadways projects
including modifications to Arboretum, Quarry and Sand Hill Roads and E1 Camino Real;
completion of the new Shopping Center buildings as well as the upgraded parking lots
and access ways; and completion of design review of the Senior Housing project.
CMR:231:02 Page ~ of 4
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Find that Stanford University has complied in good faith with the terms and
conditions of the Development Agreement; and
2.Direct staff to issue a Certificate of Compliance to the University, according to the
provision of Section 10(a) of the Agreement, stating that:
a. The Agreement remains in effect, and
b. Stanford University is not in default.
BACKGROUND
In June 1997, the City Council approved Comprehensive Plan amendments, zoning
changes and design applications for the Sand Hill Corridor Projects. The projects include
the Stanford West Apartments, Senior Housing, Shopping Center modifications and a set
of roadway modifications, including the widening of Sand Hill Road to four lanes from
Santa Cruz Avenue to Arboretum Road and a two-lane extension from Arboretum Road
to E1 Camino Real. A development agreement vesting these approvals was entered into
between Stanford and the City and was effective on August 14, 1997. The development
agreement requires annual City Council review of Stanford’s compliance.
DISCUSSION
The attached August 31, 2001 memo from Diane Healey, staff member of the Stanford
Management Company, describes Stanford’s 2000-01 activities related to implementation
of the development agreement. Some of these activities included occupancy of about 60
percent of the Stanford West Apartment units; approval of the transfer of the Senior
Housing site’s ground lease to Classic Residence by Hyatt (i.e., CC-Palo Alto, Inc.); the
opening of Shopping Center Building P, the Wilkes Bashford store; completion of
numerous Shopping Center parking lot and access land upgrades; and the opening of
Sand Hill Road from Arboretum Road to E1 Camino Real.
Since the August 31 memo, the apartment, Shopping Center and roadways projects have
been essentially completed. Specifically:
0 The construction of the apartments was completed near the end of 2001. The
downturn in the economy has resulted in an increase in overall apartment vacancy
rates in the Bay Area. Apartment management has exhausted the list of Stanford
households on the waiting list and units are now available for non-Stanford
households. When vacancy rates decrease, it is anticipated that the approved
priority system will eventually result, over time and as part of normal occupancy
changes, in units currently occupied by non-Stanford households being occupied
by Stanford households. The apartment’s child care center has also been
completed and is in operation.
CMR:231:02 Page 2 of 4
Construction of the Shopping Center modifications has been completedl including:
o Building V (near Macy’s Men’s Store) with Talbots and Pottery Barn
occupying the larger store areas and other retailers located in adjacent
areas.
. o Building W (near the comer of Quarry Road and E1 Camino Real) with the
first of two tenants, P.F. Chang’s restaurant, scheduled to open in early
May.
o Reconstruction of all Shopping Center parking lots and access .roads that
were not reconstructed in 1999, 2000 and the first part of 2001.
All remaining roadway construction has been completed, including:
o Reconstruction of Arboretum Road from Quarry Road to Sand Hill Road;
~ Widening and reconstruction of Quarry Road from Arboretum Road to E1
Camino Real;
~ Completion of the final segment of Sand Hill Road near the San
Francisquito Creek bridge; and
o Substantial modifications to E1 Camino Real, including two new entries to
the Shopping Center, the intersection with the new Quarry Road and
median construction and planting.
The process of vacating existing easements was approved by the Council on April.
15, 2002 and recording of new roadway and utility easements will occur by mid-
May.
¯The annexation process will be completed with Council action on May 6, 2002
and subsequent filing of documents.
On December 6, 2001, the Architectural Review Board (ARB) approved the final design
of the Stanford Senior Housing project. Responses to various Conditions of approval
were reviewed and approved by the ARB on April 4, 2002. Classic Residence by Hyatt,
the operator of the Senior Housing project, is attempting to begin basement excavation in
July 2002 and subsequent construction in 2003 and 2004.
An outstanding issue for the apartment site as well as the open area between Sand Hill
Road and San Francisquito Creek across from the Shopping Center has been the effort to
establish a grassland environment as called for in the 1997 mitigation measures and
conditions of approval. At the end of the second planting season (2001-02), the level of
native plants is less than desired. This effort was anticipated to be a three- to five-year
undertaking and has a five-year monitoring program. City and Stanford staff will
continue working together to identify and resolve vegetation issues.
RESOURCE IMPACT
None.
CMR:231:02 Page 3 of 4
POLICY IMPLICATIONS
This report does not represent any changes to existing City policies.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Issuance of the Certificate of Compliance is not a project under
Environmental Quality Act, and no environmental assessment is required.
ATTACHMENTS
August 31, 2001 memo fromDiane Healey
the California
PREPARED BY:
KENNETH R. SCHREIBER
Contract Sand Hill Implementation Coordinator
DEPARTMENT HEAD REVIEW~,.~
Chief Planning Official
EMIL~HARRISON. "
Assistant City Manager
cc:Stanford Management Company (Jim Inglis, Diane Healey)
Stanford University (Larry Horton)
City of Menlo Park (David Boesch)
Countyof Santa Clara (Ann Draper)
County of San Mateo (Gaye Quinn)
Town of Portola Valley (George Mader)
Town of Woodside (Curtis Williams)
CMR:231:02 Page 4 of 4
STANFORD /x-IANAC;Et,.I E NT COIx.IPA N Y
To."Frank Benest
City Manager
Dated.
Subject.
Diane Heal~
Mana Real Estate
August 31, 2001
Sand Hill Road Projects Annual Report 2001
Pursuant to the Development Agreement, this report is being provided for the
period from August 1, 2000 to July .31., 2001. Development Agreement
compliance continues to be.strictly adhered to by Stanford and closely monitored
by the City.
The following highlights the significant activity for the above reporting period:
Stanford West Apartments
¯ October 12, 2000: The community building as well as the first three
buildings consisting of 60 apartment units in Block 1 received their
Certificate of Occupancy permits.
¯November 6, 2000: The Marguerite Shuttle commenced service to the
Apartments.
¯January 4, 2001: Knowledge Beginnings received ARB approval for their
7,414 s.f. day care center and subsequently commenced construction on
August 6, 2001. Completion is anticipated to be in early 2002.
¯Initial planting of the native grass/plants in the area between the
Apartments andthe Creek occurred in early 2001. Irrigation was needed
to maintain early growth. Additiona~ planting will occur this fall.
Establishing a viable native grass environment is anticipated to take from
three to five years.
¯As of July 31, 2001, a total of 384 units (61%) have obtained occupancy
permits. Stanford employees have occupied all of the completed units.
The remaining 244 units will be completed on a regular cadence of
approximately 40 or 60 units per month. All. of the 628 units will be
completed by early 2002.
~77() S.~D HILL Ro.~D IVlr-xL~ P.*~, C’,A c)4()25 PH bS0.I 926-0200
Sand Hill Road Projects Annual Report 2001
August 31,2001
Page 2 ~ -
Senior Housinq
¯August 1, 2000: The ground lease with CC-Palo Alto, Inc. was executed.
¯January 4, 2001: Classic Residence by Hyatt (CRbH) received approval
for a minor planned community zone change for site modifications
required to accommodate the Children’s Health Council.
¯The State authorized CRbH to commence marketing and collect initial
reservation deposits. The community has generated a significant level of
interest as over 700 deposits have been made to date.
¯Final ARB review will take place this fall.
Stanford Shoppin.q Center
¯ November 2000: Construction work was completed on the parking areas
near Nordstrom and on the Sand Hill Road side of the Shopping Center.
¯February 1,2001: Building W (the corner of Quarry Road and El Camino
Real) received ARB approva! for a one-story, approximately 10,000 s.f.
building. Ground breaking took place on March 6, 2001.
¯February 2001: Improvements began on the parking areas on the El
Camino Real side of the Shopping Center.
¯February 8, 2001: Wilkes Bashford opened at the corner of Orchard Lane
and Arboretum Road.
¯Anticipated completion dates:
October 2001: Completion of Building V (approximately 60,000 s.f.)
and Building W (approximately 10,000 s.f.). Leases with Pottery Barn,
Coldwater Creek, Talbots and Furla have been executed for Building
V. A lease with P.F. Chang’s China Bistro for the m.ajority of-the space
in Building W has been executed.
November 2001: Conclusion of the tree-planting program for 1,215
new trees.
November 2001: Completion of surface reconstruction of the Stanford
Shopping Center parking areas bordering El Camino Real.
Roads
¯October 5, 2000i The Sand Hill Road extension from Arboretum Road to
El Camino Real opened.
¯March 2001’ Pear Lane, an extension of Pale Road into the Stanford
Shopping Center, was completed.
¯April of 2001" Quarry Road construction began with the widening to four
lanes and the improvement of four intersections (El Camino Real, Pale
Road/Pear Lane, Sweet Olive Way and Arboretum Road).
¯Work along El Camino Real adjacent to the Stanford Shopping Center
consisted of a new storm sewer pipeline, as well as lane and median
widening to accommodate the new intersection at Quarry Road.
Sand Hill Road Projects Annual Report 2001
August 31, 2001
Page 3
The bicycle and pedestrian pathway along Sand Hill Road from El Camino
Real to Clark Way at Vineyard Lane was completed.
First year seeding of the area between Sand Hill Road and the Creek near
El Camino Real was unsuccessful. Replanting will occur in the fall.
Anticipated completion dates:
Mid-August 2001: Opening of Quarry Road/El Camino Real
intersection.
November 2001: Completion of entire Sand Hill Road widening (last
phase: from the San Francisquito Creek Bridge to the Oak Creek
Apartments).
November 2001: Completion of widening and improved intersections
along Quarry Road.
November 2001: Completion of Arboretum Road sidewalk and
landscaping upgrades.
It is anticipated that all work on three of the four Sand Hill Road Projects will be
completed in early 2002. The remaining work (senior facility) is anticipated to
commence construction in 2003 and be completed in 2005. The timeline for the
seniorfacility is subject to change.
cc:Ariel Calonne/CPA
Emily Harrison/CPA
Melissa Cavallo/CPA
Sandy Skaggs/McCutchen
Ken SchreibedLand Use Planning Services