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101-Draft Minutes 8-13-2013.pdfCITY OF CUPERTINO 10300 Torre Avenue Cupertino, CA 95014 CITY OF CUPERTINO PLANNING COMMISSION DRAFT MINUTES 6:45 P.M. August 13, 2013 TUESDAY CUPERTINO COMMUNITY HALL The regular Planning Commission meeting of August 13, 2013 was called to order at 6:45 p.m. in the Cupertino Community Hall, 10350 Torre Avenue, Cupertino, CA. by Chair Don Sun. SALUTE TO THE FLAG . ROLL CALL Commissioners present: Chairperson: Don Sun Commissioner: Margaret Gong Commissioner: Winnie Lee Commissioner: Alan Takahashi Commissioners absent: Vice Chairperson: Paul Brophy Staff present City Planner: Gary Chao Assistant Planner: George Schroeder City Attorney: Melissa Tronquet APPROVAL OF MINUTES: 1. Minutes of the May 28, 2013 Planning Commission meeting: MOTION: Motion by Com. Gong, second by Com. Takahashi, and carried 4-0-0; Vice Chair Brophy absent; to approve the May 28, 2013 Planning Commission minutes as presented. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS: None POSTPONEMENTS/REMOVAL FROM CALENDAR: None ORAL COMMUNICATIONS: None CONSENT CALENDAR: None PUBLIC HEARING: 2. U-2013-07 Conditional Use Permit to convert a two-story office building into David Perng child care use. Planning Commission decision final unless appealed. Organization of Special Needs Families 21685 Granada Ave. Cupertino Planning Commission August 13, 2013 2 George Schroeder, Assistant Planner, presented the staff report: • Reviewed the application for a conditional use permit to convert a two-story office building into child care use, as outlined in the staff report. The applicant is the Organization of Special Needs Families (OSF) which was previously located at St. Jude’s Church on McClellan Road. The center offers after school enrichment program, an integrated social group and enrichment program and summer day camp. The child care center will operate with a maximum of 13 children and two onsite employees. He reviewed the existing site and surroundings; proposed improvements for the outdoor play area, which will be fenced off with a fence and protected from parking stalls with a walkway; addition of two parking stalls ADA compliant; and the addition of an ADA ramp. Parking, pick-up and drop-off were also reviewed as well as the outdoor play area, noise considerations and past use permit requirements. • The proposed child care use is not anticipated to have significant impacts to the neighborhood; staff recommends that the Planning Commission approve the project in accordance with the Resolution. Planning Commission’s decision is final. Staff answered Commissioners’ questions about the application. Sandy James, representing the applicant: • President of the Board of Directors for OSF. • Complimented staff on their cooperation with the project. • Explained that the facilities did not house a lot of playground equipment since the children come to the center in the afternoon after taking part in activities in the early part of the day; their schedule at the center comprises quiet time, crafts, painting and one-on-one time with staff. Noise or traffic is not an issue for the program. The summer program is held at other locations including Blackberry Farm, Library and YMCA; and while the building is used less during the summer months, the need for the program is critical and important to the community. David Wade, Co-Founder; Board Member; Designated Project Manager, OSF: • Said it was difficult finding a suitable location for the center in Cupertino. They worked diligently to ensure that the project adhered to the city ordinances and guidelines, and they conducted outreach to the neighbors and the community supported the project. David Perng, Project Architect: • Explained that there were two onsite and two offsite parking spaces, including the drop off spaces which are utilized for short periods of time. In response to Com. Gong’s question about move-in, Mr. Perng explained that temporary facilities will be needed as they are not able to move into the new location right away. Chair Sun opened the public hearing. Brock Carpenter, Member of St. Jude’s: • Supported project. • Commended the families of OSF for their dedication to the special needs children and providing a much needed facility to serve the needs of the children. He encouraged support of the project. Eric Seymour, Parent: • Supports project. Said he had two special needs children and OSF provided his family with unending support. He encouraged support of the project as it provided an exemplary service to the families and served the community as a whole. It also allowed the children to be out in the community and afforded them many opportunities. Cupertino Planning Commission August 13, 2013 3 Ming Lu: • Supports project. • Son Kevin has had autism for 10 years and is a member of the OSF foundation. He said his son has made tremendous progress in the last 10 years, and he has seen firsthand how much OSF has helped the families with special needs children. Having OSF in Cupertino can show the world they have an organization that provides the valuable asset to the City of Cupertino. He asked for the Commission’s support in moving the project forward as soon as possible. Michael Lashen, Owner, Hobies Restaurant: • Supports the project. • OSF fulfills a special need for the children. Said the new location fits the need in the commercial area, and he hoped they would be able to move to the new location as soon as possible. Rev. Wilma Jakobsen, St. Jude’s Church: • Supports the project. • Explained that OSF had to vacate the St. Jude’s facility as St. Jude’s needed the space for expansion of their own programs and growth. The noise is not a factor and there don’t appear to be any significant traffic impacts from the facility as parents are coming and going for pick-ups and drop-offs. • Said she supports the work done by OSF and was hopeful that the project would be approved. Om Talajia, resident: • Said there is a critical need for the type of facility since the church needs the entire facility for their use. Finding a suitable facility to meet the children’s needs has been difficult. He requested favorable input on the project. Chair Sun closed the public hearing. Com. Lee: • Asked staff to explain in terms of the parking code, the difference between a specialty school vs. daycare. George Schroeder: • The parking requirement for specialty schools is one space for every four students, plus one for each staff member; or one for every 250 square feet whichever is more restrictive or requires more parking. Specialized school is generally in increments under 1-1/2 hours. • Daycares usually have extended periods of care; parking requirement is one for every 6.5 students. Gary Chao: • Specialized schools such as karate, dance studios and certain language and education based have different sessions where parents are dropping off and picking up children throughout the day. In theory it is more intense as opposed to daycare which is a completely different category under the Community Licensing Care Department which is the agency that governs some things in terms of facility as well as licensing. He said relative to daycare, they do not differentiate between special needs children or regular daycare. Cupertino Planning Commission August 13, 2013 4 Chair Sun: • Thanked staff for their hard work and Sandy James for her leadership and support of the special needs children. He said it was evident that community support was high and some neighborhood outreach has been done. He said his only concern was the traffic, and dropping off of children; but he felt it had been addressed. • He urged approval of the project so that the children would have a new home to go to. Com. Takahashi: • After reviewing the staff report and a tremendous community support for the center, providing a key service for the community and keeping that service in Cupertino is a significant positive element. Staff did a good job of addressing the typical hot points that people are most concerned about. He did not feel that noise impact of the play area was an issue; and there will only be 13 children which would not create a parking impact. • The organization is engaged in the community which is a key step toward gaining acceptance. Said it was a good project and he supported the conditional use permit. Com. Gong: • Expressed concern that they were limiting the applicant’s ability to serve an important community need, going from 19 to 13 and potentially 30 at the other facility. She commended the applicant for their efforts and the program. Com. Lee: • Said it was an excellent organization and an integral part of the community that has done amazing work the last 10 years. In terms of planning they look to see if it is a good place, look at the surrounding uses to see if it compatible with surrounding uses. There is a specialty school close by, and there haven’t been many operational complaints; day care for 13 children is not an intensive use, which is a positive aspect. • Staff and the applicant have put in a lot of time and effort with neighborhood outreach, and did not receive any concerns or emails objecting to the project. Looking at it from a planning perspective she did not feel it was completely incompatible with the surrounding uses. She said she supported the project. Motion: Motion by Com. Takahashi, second by Com. Lee, and unanimously carried 4-0-0, Vice Chair Brophy absent; to agree with staff findings in terms of Items 1 and 2, and grant approval of the conditional use permit Application U-2013-07. OLD BUSINESS: None NEW BUSINESS: None REPORT OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION Environmental Review Committee: No report Housing Commission: No meeting Mayor’s Monthly Meeting: No report. Economic Development Committee: No meeting Cupertino Planning Commission August 13, 2013 5 REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: • Gary Chao reported that on July 18, the first of three community workshops was held facilitating conversations on General Plan amendment process. Staff will summarize and present materials, input and recommendations received from the community, and post on the city’s website. Next community meeting will take place in late October. • The Planning Commissioners’ dinner will take place August 28th. ADJOURNMENT: • The meeting was adjourned to the August 27, 2013 meeting at 6:45 p.m. Respectfully Submitted: ________________________________ Elizabeth Ellis, Recording Secretary