Write Emails!

Write to the City Council with your concerns. They are our representatives and they read our emails.

Pick your own subject or select one or more snippets from below.

Send your email to the Council: City.Council@cityofpaloalto.org

Please copy NFLS2, so we know the subjects that are covered: NFLS2.Alma@gmail.com

 

Here are some issues raised by residents in the neighborhood:

Parking in SOFA-2

A main concern for residents of SOFA 2 is parking in the neighborhood.

We need permit parking to minimize downtown parking out of the neighborhood.

Retail and businesses such as Whole Foods, IDEO and offices, garages will loose customers if they can not easily park for meetings.

The applicant says in the EIR that every unit will have one parking space in the Project garage. When the only 66 available spaces are filled, they will have to park on the streets as overspill.

People who work and teach in the Project will also need to park their cars!

A 20% parking reduction is applied for based on an approved TDM plan. The Planning Director should not approve a Municipal Code 18 maximum parking reduction of 40% on top of that. This is “double dipping.”

Parking Garage 801 Alma

A car wash located in the garage is planned. This will cause problems. Too close to other cars. What happens to the dirty water? Are there specially provisions to have the water filtered etc.

In the proposed plan, 6-8 parking spots are “wasted” for secured bicycle boxes or rooms. The Developers should promote bicycle use by parking the bicycles on the first floor and regain 6-8 lost parking (10% of total parking)

The developer should provide 1 hour fire rated opening protection at garage level property level.

The Developer should provide a security door/gate for the Alma garage.

Schools traffic and space

There will most likely be 70+ children in 50 units in the 108 bedrooms. This will impact already badly overloaded schools already short of classrooms. school?

The traffic for shuttling these kids will be enormous especially if they need to be bused to other schools.

Do the schools have space for an additional four more classrooms of kids?

SOFA-2 requires retail, alternatives

Homer is an “Entry Gate” to Palo Alto. SOFA 2 is losing retail/service with the closure of  Ole’s garage.

 

SOFA-2 highly encourages retail. The Project would better serve the community if it maintained some light retail on the ground floor.

 

801 Alma is s much better for Senior Affordable Housing

The power station site was initially planned for seniors. All the important elements in SOFA-2: traffic, parking and density, and schools are “pushed” less with senior housing. This site, so close to the PAMF medical facility, downtown and public transportation is so much better for seniors.

Kids Play Space

There is only 700 sq. ft. of children’s play space and including that space only 2800 sq. ft. of common open space total.

Inevitably, children will end up playing in the alley with all the attendant problems.

800 High Ramp Safety

With bicycle the storage of 801 Alma in the garage, the 70+ kids and adults who use bicycles will access their bikes by the ramp, sometimes multiple times per day.

When cars make the turn at the bottom of the ramp they need almost its whole width. Cars coming from High Street often back when that happen. The is an inconvenient and potentially dangerous situation.

The proposed 801 Alma garage should have a secured gate, otherwise parking in the public garage will mistakenly drive straight into the 8-1 Alma garage, make a full circle and be forced to turn left into the upper public garage.

Size of building

The SOFA 2, RT-50 standard for FAR is 1.3:1. With an approved TDM, it is increased to 1.5:1,  but it should never exceed 2.0:1

 

Living conditions for residents

Having your living room windows directly facing each other with a distance of only 17 feet would never be accepted by ARB for other houses or condo’s

No storage is provided for Project residents. Would you accept this where you live.

The bedrooms, with very small windows facing Alma St., are “designed” so the window would normally be kept closed due to the very high noise level caused by Alma. St. traffic. There is not much of a view from these small windows. They are unappealing from the outside as well. One resident described the effect as one of a “bunker with holes.”

There has been no mention of whether the air circulation system will have partly fresh air mixed with filtered warm air provided. Residents cannot afford to run the air conditioning.   

No Open Private Space

SOFA 2 provides in Section 5.030(j) Public and Private Open Space for Residences
All new residential or mixed-use projects shall provide usable private open space for each unit and significant usable shared open space.

 

This project should meet this requirement. It is a fundamentally important living condition and should be provided to all residents in Palo Alto, in affordable housing or not. So why should they ask for a concession? The answer is simple, they are trying to squeeze to many units on too small a site.

With so many residents, often with children, living in such small housing units, open space is needed for an occasional breath of fresh air, and to recharge in order to do the parenting job well.

Leed Points

In the LEED Alma Housing Draft of 8/21/09 under “infill sides”  they count 10 points, but it should have been calculated as 50 on 0.6 acres = 30/acre which gives 6 points

Under walking and bicycles, the Developer counted 1 point for sidewalks. But the Alley has no sidewalk.

Keep Alma Street pedestrian friendly

SOFA-2 states that Alma should remain a nice walking street. On Alma St., the project has NO setbacks and 4 story straight-up walls with only small gaps to “to barley see the light” through the “4 story high bamboo.”

Council should visit 800 High or any place that has bamboo and see how it blocks 1^st and 2^nd  story windows. Even so, it leaves the higher floors uncovered. Please visit 800 High and see how “low” the bamboo is after 4 years and yet how it darkens lower floor units.