12 ATTACHMENT 6 - Laserfiche WebLink

Ms. Bowen stated that when they purchased their homes, they were told that the trail would never be opened up to the public, that it was a Zone 7 service road, and that there was water in the canal which seemed obvious was a hazard to children. She added that then the whole trail thing came up, and suddenly that was not a consideration any more. She noted that the middle school and the business park have also had their impact on the residents. She stated that she also went over to the middle school and talked to the principal about the loud speaker. She then read a quote from the Hart Middle School website: "Rush hour traffic in the city has nothing on the traffic around Hart before and after school. Wow, what a mess!But if we all follow the rules and treat each other nicely, we can make the situation much more bearable." She stated that she often drives down those streets, and there is a lot of traffic there with carpools all lined up down West Las Positas Boulevard to pick up children, driving in and out everybody in a hurry to get their child dropped off and get off work. She noted that the school itself is acknowledging that. She added that there are just over a thousand students at that school, and with the faculty, administration, and parent volunteers, the number of people on that campus every day would probably be well over 1200. Looking at the site plan, Ms. Bowen suggested that the proposed pool be moved farther forward and not close to the fence at the back of the project as that is a noise producer. She stated that she agrees with the suggestions of having lower-story buildings at the back if the project were to go forward and that she disagrees with the exception for setbacks, which are designed from experience to mitigate noise and congestion as well as for aesthetic reasons. She added that, as was mentioned earlier, there is already low-income housing on West Las Positas Boulevard, and it seems that a concentration of this type of housing is being put in this one area. She noted that there are already some down the street and that this lot and the lot adjacent to it have been rezoned. She expressed concerned that there may be an idea of putting two of these types of buildings right next to each other. She pointed out that as was already me ntioned, they are a residential neighborhood right behind this project, and a better consideration would be a kind of unique scenario where these projects could be put farther into the business park or one of the other areas that had already been rezoned for this type of a project in the City. She thanked Commission O'Connor for his suggestion of putting the lower stories in the back. She indicated that a six- to eight-foot tall hedge is not very tall, especially compared to the height of the buildings, and that bigger trees such as redwood trees would be a better idea. She added that they do appreciate the wildlife that is back there, the raptors, foxes, and coyotes; the geese, ducks, and red-winged black birds. Anthony Ghio stated that if anyone asks residents in the Parkside neighborhood if they want this, the answer would be "no." He stated that he bought his house in 2006, and if this proposed project had been there then, he would not have bought his house. He noted that he does not think those pictures of what the view is from the neighborhood looking at those buildings is accurate, as those buildings are much closer. He added that the noise carries and recalled how a few years back, there was an accident on EXCERPT: PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, September 11, 2013 Page 11 of 24