September 07, 2005

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Palo Alto Online

Campus for Jewish Life gearing up for city reviews

by Jocelyn Dong

The Campus for Jewish Life, an ambitious $200 million, 8.5-acre south Palo Alto development project that has been in the works for four years, is poised to bid for city approvals this month.

On Sept. 14, representatives of the nonprofit community center will approach the city's Planning and Transportation Commission with a request to reclassify the land as a "planned community" district. The next morning, the applicants will hold the first of three preliminary meetings with the city's Architectural Review Board to discuss the project's design.

The development at San Antonio and Charleston roads is expected to include 176 senior residences, including assisted-living facilities, and the Albert L. Schultz Jewish Community Center, which offers services ranging from a preschool to a fitness center to cultural and social activities. Services are open to JCC members, regardless of religious affiliation.

A companion project, the BUILD town homes and condominiums that will be located on an adjacent 4 acres, has already started moving through city review.

This week, representatives from the community center announced a final land purchase to complete the campus property: the 0.34-acre corner of San Antonio and Charleston, currently the site of a KFC. That transaction will be completed by 2006 at the latest, according to Shelly Hebert, the Campus for Jewish Life executive director.

Hebert's hope is that construction on the center could begin by late October 2006.

The first step in getting the large-scale development through the Palo Alto process is the planned-community district application. The category is an unusual one, and such applications have been controversial in the past, notably the 800 High St. project near downtown Palo Alto.

The district category was created for developments that would otherwise not fit under city zoning and allows for denser projects, a combination of different uses on the land, and for "unified, comprehensively planned developments which are of substantial public benefit," according to the city's municipal code.

Campus staff members are hoping they can convince the city that the project's plusses outweigh the zoning exceptions it will require.

"The (Campus for Jewish Life) project provides, perhaps, the greatest level of public benefits of any previous Palo Alto project," wrote developer Jim Baer, in the project's application letter.

Among the benefits listed: development of the senior residences, which will serve the most rapidly growing segment of the population in Palo Alto; preschool facilities for 240 children; after-school K-eighth grade programs; adult and senior cultural programs and services; a gym with two full-sized basketball courts; three swimming pools; a cultural center with seating for 400 for performances and 230 for events; and landscaping.

An additional benefit could be the sharing of recreation facilities with the city. According to Community Services Director Richard James, talks with the nonprofit have not commenced, but the city has expressed interest in working with the center. The nonprofit and the city talked years ago about sharing space, when the JCC was thinking of relocating to Page Mill Road and El Camino Real.

"I'm hoping we can work out some type of agreement -- the same type of agreement as (was planned before) -- that would have allowed the city to use gym space at times when the JCC doesn't use the facilities at all -- Friday night and all day Saturday and Saturday evening," James said.

In addition to the benefits, the development is consistent with goals of the city's comprehensive plan, Baer noted. It fosters public life in south Palo Alto, provides housing, and furthers business and economic goals, among other advantages.

The zoning comes with a price, however. In addition to denser development, the project planners are asking that the city's 50-foot height limit be waived for the project. The complex would exceed it by 8 feet, Baer said.

The surpassing height is necessary because of a few unusual factors, according to Baer. The land is in a flood plain, which requires first floors to be set at least 8 feet above sea level. In addition, toxic waste from former tenants prohibit an underground garage, thus requiring parking to be located at ground level.

An environmental study of the potential impacts of the project is in progress. It will analyze everything from traffic to noise, and land use to hazardous materials. The public will be able to comment on the document when it is completed, which is expected by early October.

One possible problem has already been solved, according to Hebert. When the center hosts special events, patrons will be able to park their cars at the nearby Jewish high school on Fabian Way, which has about 100 spaces, instead of along neighborhood streets.

Hebert, Baer and JCC CEO Alan Sataloff rolled out their updated plans to the press this week.

Hebert described the complex as a "village environment" and enthused about the integration of some of the senior homes along with the community center buildings. Rather than being segregated from the activities, some of the elderly will live above the arts and culture center, for example, while others will have their residences above the literacy or teen center.

"That's something not done anywhere else," she said, adding that the configuration is "light years ahead" of other developments.

She also said that noted landscape architect Lawrence Halprin will be designing the outdoor spaces on the campus. Halprin's portfolio includes Ghirardelli Square, Stern Grove, Levi's Plaza, Sea Ranch, and the Roosevelt Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Sataloff, hired to head the JCC last year, pointed to some of the unique recreational features of the center. A family recreational pool, located indoors for year-round use, begins at zero depth and includes a play structure in the middle of the pool. In addition, there will be a waterpark-like 15-foot spiraling slide that ends in the pool. The pool facility will also have retractable walls.

The project is the largest development in either San Mateo or Santa Clara counties ever undertaken by a nonprofit organization, according to Baer.

It will be funded by private donations and tax-exempt bonds. The organization has already raised half of its $122 million fundraising goal, Hebert said.

Senior Staff Writer Jocelyn Dong can be reached at jdong@paweekly.com.

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