SunnyvaleRTC

Existing Site Conditions	Industrial Office Building
Surrounding Land Uses
North	Industrial Office/Restaurant
South	Industrial
East	Industrial
West	Industrial
Issues	Parking, Compatibility with Surrounding Uses and Zoning District
Environmental Status	A Negative Declaration has been prepared in compliance with California Environmental Quality Act provisions and City Guidelines.
Planning Commission Recommendation	Deny
Staff Recommendation Click here for map.	Approve with Conditions

	EXISTING	PROPOSED	REQUIRED/ PERMITTED
General Plan	Industrial	Industrial	Industrial
Zoning District	M-S Industrial and Service	M-S Industrial and Service	M-S Industrial and Service
Lot Size (s.f.)	111,922	111,922	22,500 min.
Gross Floor Area (s.f.)	46,900	46,900	39,172 max. w/o a Use Permit
Lot Coverage (%)	28	28	45 max.
Floor Area Ratio (FAR)	41.9	41.9	35 max. w/o a Use Permit
No. of Buildings On-Site	1	1 (with 9 approved condominium units)	N/A
Distance Between Buildings	N/A	N/A	N/A
Building Height (ft.)	28	28	75 max.
No. of Stories	2	2	8 max.
Setbacks (Facing Property)
Front (Stewart Drive)	72	72	25 min.
Left Side	97	97	0 min./20 total
Right Side	66	66	0 min./20 total
Rear	67	67	0 min.
Landscaping (sq. ft.)
Total Landscaping	16,165	22,561*	22,384 min.
Frontage Width (ft.)	22	22	15 ft. min.
% Based on Floor Area	34	48	10 min.
% Based on Parking Lot	25	39	20 min.
% Based on Lot Area	14	20	20 min.
Parking
Total Spaces	179	192	187 min.
Standard Spaces	173	98	94 min.
Compact Spaces/ % of Total	0	45	50 max.
Accessible Spaces	6	6	6 min.
Aisle Width (ft.)	26	26	26 min.
Stormwater	N/A	N/A	N/A

* As required with previous approval of 2005-0497

ANALYSIS

The proposed project is for a new seminary to be located within the central one-story portion of the existing industrial building located 850 Stewart Drive. The site would be occupied by 5 employees during typical business hours during the week and up to 20 adult students would be present during seminars. The seminary use would operate on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from approximately 6:30pm to 10:00pm and on Saturdays from approximately 9:00am to 5:00pm.

Previous Actions on the Site: The following table summarizes previous planning applications related to the subject site.

File Number	Brief Description	Hearing/Decision	Date
2005-0497	A Tentative Map and Use Permit to subdivide the lot into 9 condominium units and 1 lot	Planning Commission/ Approved	07/11/05
1994-0228	Master Sign Program	Staff / Approved	5/2/1994
1992-0104	Miscellaneous Plan Permit for Landscaping Modifications	Staff / Approved	5/26/1992
1979-0001	Use Permit to allow a 3,200 gallon Liquid Nitrogen Tank	Planning Commission / Approved	10/24/1979
1975-0508	Use Permit to allow an addition to an existing tank farm	Planning Commission / Approved	6/18/1975

The previous approved tank farm and the liquid nitrogen tank are no longer at the site. In July of this year, the site was reviewed and approved by the Planning Commission to allow a subdivision of the site as noted above.

The proposed use is not considered a “Place of Assembly” or “Recreational Use” as defined by the moratorium ordinance that is currently in place. An exemption for seminaries, where a maximum 40 students is permitted, was approved by City Council at the October 25, 2005 meeting.

Planning Commission Hearing: On January 23, 2006, the proposed application was considered by the Planning Commission and denied by a 6-0 vote stating concerns with compatibility within the industrial area. The applicant initially requested an increase in the allowable number of students for the facility (under the current moratorium, 40 students may be permitted). He stated that the use is primarily educational and that visits to the site would be staggered throughout the day. One resident spoke against the proposal citing concerns with compatibility in an industrial area and the lack of tax dollars that would be generated from the proposed use. The minutes of this meeting can be reviewed in Attachment G. The applicant filed an appeal of the Planning Commission decision (Appeal Letter – Attachment F).

A Negative Declaration has been prepared in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act provisions and City Guidelines. An initial study has determined that the proposed project would not create any significant environmental impacts (see Attachment C, Initial Study).

Site Layout: The site is located at the southwest corner of Stewart Drive and De Guigne Drive. The building is situated at the center of the lot with parking located on all four sides. No changes to the layout are proposed. The tenant proposes to occupy the central one-story portion of the building.

Architecture: There are no proposed changes to the architecture of the existing building.

Landscaping: No modifications to the existing landscaping are proposed with this project. Periphery parking lot landscaping will be increased as required by the previous Use Permit and Tentative Map approvals (2005-0497 if exercised and recorded). These increases will allow the site to meet the minimum code requirement of 20% of the lot area. The following considerations will also be reviewed as part of the final map approval:

Where possible, additional trees will be incorporated into the landscape plan to increase parking lot shading to meet the 50% requirement. Protected trees in the street frontage areas will require approval of a tree protection plan in order to install required sidewalks.
A meandering sidewalk plan will be considered in order to protect trees.
The tree protection plan will also address protected trees that exist around the periphery of the building in areas where landscape construction will occur.

Sidewalks: Consistent with the previous approval of the Use Permit and Tentative Map application in July of 2005, the applicant will be required to install a sidewalk along Stewart Drive (Sidewalks already exist on DeGuigne Drive). A final sidewalk plan should indicate the preservation of any protected trees and street trees and any utilities that need to be adjusted to grade as a result of extending the sidewalk.

Parking/Circulation: When the previously approved Use Permit and Tentative Map application was initially approved, a mix of uses was permitted for the site. These uses included general industrial office, medical office and warehouse. Approved parking modifications along the rear of the site allowed the site to increase its capacity from 179 to 192 spaces. The proposed seminary use was not considered during the Tentative Map approval and, therefore parking allotment for various uses on site will need to be modified. According to Sunnyvale Municipal Code Section 19.46, a combination of parking ratios should be applied to the proposed use. The following chart indicates the proposed uses and the required parking for the project.