May 05, 2004

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Palo Alto Online

Bright new day for Sunrise

by Bill D'Agostino

A controversial Palo Alto housing project for seniors gained approved Monday night, despite concerns from neighbors and City Council members that it would add traffic to already congested nearby streets.

The 81-unit complex received unanimous approval from an occasionally enthusiastic Palo Alto City Council. The elected officials did impose numerous requirements on the developer, attempting to allay some outspoken neighbors' fears.

During the discussion, some council members once again sharply criticized transportation officials for using a supposedly flawed process.

The 86,400 square-foot building will be located on El Camino Real and Sheridan Avenue, near Page Mill Road. The land is currently vacant.

The project showed again how contentious zoning known as "planned community" can be. That zoning designation allows a developer -- Sunrise Senior Living, in this case -- to build a larger building than it otherwise would be able to, in return for giving the community "public benefits."

Part of Sunrise's proposed public benefits is that it will allow 12 of its 97 residents to pay subsidized rates, both for the entrance fee and for the services the management will provide, such as laundry and three daily meals. That makes it extremely unique. Many local senior facilities have agreed to subsidize the building's entrance fee, but not the services.

Many council members and officials raved about that agreement, even as they expressed fears about the building's potential impacts on the neighborhood.

Councilwoman Judy Kleinberg was never fully satisfied with the conditions imposed on the project, but voted for it anyway.

"I guess I'm going to take a leap of faith here because I want to see this project go forward," she said.

The project is hoped to help fill a critical vacuum of homes for seniors requiring special care. A city study found there are currently no vacancies for such homes between in the Midpeninsula area, from Redwood City to Sunnyvale, and the need is expected to grow over time.

"I'm 63 and will need this kind of service very soon, and would like to continue to live in Palo Alto," said Roger Smith, a co-founder of the recently formed Friends of the Palo Alto Parks. "My mother is 91 years old and lives in the Forum in Cupertino, which Sunrise also runs. I am confident that she is going to live three to five years longer living in a facility like this."

Still, some neighbors worry the new building will add to already congested local roads. Sheridan Avenue, in particular, appears to suffer from a lack of parking spaces for cars. Residents complained that employees from the shops along California Avenue use the small street to park during the day.

Hearing that fear, the City Council agreed to require that some of the new building's parking spaces be required for employees' use.

Councilwoman Dena Mossar asked for that addition. She lives near downtown and has often watched businesses promise to provide parking for their employees, but never really do so.

"I know what it's like," she said. "Everyone means well and over time, the public infrastructure carries the burden for private projects."

The new complex will add approximately 175 new cars on Sheridan Avenue per day, according to a traffic analysis.

Six months after the project is completed, the city will also do an evaluation of the parking situation. If the city finds a problem, traffic officials could impose two-hour parking restrictions on Sheridan Avenue. Some neighbors spoke against that proposal.

Sunrise Senior Living's representative tried to assure the council there would be enough parking on site. Because seniors in such a facilities don't typically drive, there isn't a need for more parking than the 44 spaces being constructed, said Daniel Zemanek, Sunrise's senior vice president of development.

Zemanek also noted that cars traveling to the building would be much less than a restaurant, which could be built on the land and would not need special City Council approval.

After praising the special arrangement regarding the subsided units, Councilman Jack Morton and Councilwoman LaDoris Cordell attempted to increase the number of such units. Such a request would have to be renegotiated with the developer.

However, the other six council members (Councilwoman Hillary Freeman owns property nearby and couldn't vote) voted against the proposal. Mayor Bern Beecham said asking for that could place the original agreement with the city "at risk."

However, Cordell and Morton did get the full Council to agree to ask for Palo Alto residents to be given preferential treatment in the selection process for who lives in the units.

"It's our community that will pay the price," Morton said. "It's our residents who should get the benefit."

During discussion of the project, council members criticized the city's transportation officials, in barbs similar those thrown during intense debated about a controversial traffic-calming project near downtown Palo Alto.

In an initial assessment of the Sunrise project's traffic, engineers assumed that some drivers coming from Highway 101 would exit onto San Antonio Road. Councilwoman Yoriko Kishimoto, though, called that a mistake, since Page Mill Road is closer. She said that error "cast a shadow" over the entire project and city process.

Chief Transportation Official Joe Kott defended that choice. The engineer who did the study believed taking that exit would be quicker, and thus more attractive to drivers looking for the shortest travel route, Kott said in an interview.

During the public discussion, council members also asked the city to examine potential impacts of a nearby-polluted site. The groundwater in the site is contaminated with a chemical, known as trichloroethene, which has been known to seep into the air of buildings located aboveground.

City officials, including the fire chief, will study the building and nearby pollution to see if protection needs to be added.

-Bill D'Agostino can be e-mailed at bdagostino@paweekly.com

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