Publication Date: Wednesday, October 22, 2003
Why 800 High St. is so big
Why 800 High St. is so big
(October 22, 2003)Many residents feel the 800 High St. is too big. Developer Doug Ross, however, says the size of the four-story project is linked to a crying need of the area -- parking. .
The project has been designated a Planning Community (PC) zone, which meaning the developer is allowed exceed zoning regulations because the plan provides a public benefit. In this case, the perceived benefit is 63 spaces of public access parking in a two-story, underground garage.
Developer Doug Ross said he increased the size of the building to help pay for the public parking spaces.
If the project was not designated a PC, the size would not have been allowed.
The use of PCs throughout the city is growing more controversial. Some feel developers have taken advantage of the PC ordinance in the past to get larger buildings without providing any real benefit in return.
The No on Measure C campaign warns that PC zoning "will be utilized by other developers with the expectation that that they too can ignore zoning laws intended to protect residents from inappropriate construction."
City Councilwoman Yoriko Kishimoto, an opponent of Measure C, said the PC zone is being misused. "The original intent of the PC is being forgotten as an 'exceptional process' for a difficult property," she said.
Contrary to what critics of 800 High St. may think, Ross said "developers don't particularly relish PCs. The zoning ordinance needs to be updated (to reduce the use of PCs)."
--Don Kazak
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