RESOLUTION NO. 22-____
Resolution Of The City Council Of The City Of Emeryville Approving A Conditional Use Permit And Design Review To Construct A New 300,000 Square Foot Research And Development Building And A Six Level Parking Structure Accommodating 496 Parking Spaces On An Approximately 113,325 Square Foot Site On The Block Bounded By Overland Avenue And 62nd, 63rd And Hollis Streets. (APN: 49-1488-1) (CEQA Status: Exempt Pursuant To State CEQA Guidelines Sections 15332 and 15061(b)(3))
WHEREAS, on March 1, 2021, Wareham Development submitted an application for a Conditional Use Permit and Design Review Permit to construct a new 300,000 square foot Research and Development building and a six level parking structure accommodating 496 parking spaces on an approximately 113,325 square foot site on the block bounded by Overland Avenue and 62nd, 63rd and Hollis Streets (“Project”).
The proposal includes preservation of the existing Hollis Street Building that accommodates Ruby’s Café and 41 live-work units, and demolition of all other structures on the western portion of the block. The proposal also includes a Tree Removal Permit to remove 18 street trees located on 62nd Street, Overland Avenue and 63rd Street; and
WHEREAS, the Emeryville Planning Commission reviewed the proposed Project at study sessions on April 22, 2021 and March 24, 2022; and WHEREAS, the Emeryville City Council reviewed the proposed Project at study sessions on July 20, 2021, November 16, 2021 and April 5, 2022; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission held a duly and properly noticed public hearing on June 8, 2022 and voted to recommend that the City Council approve the Use Permit and Design Review for the project, except for parking spaces more than the maximum, and approved a Tree Removal permit to accommodate construction of the project contingent on Council approval of the Use Permit and Design Review; and WHEREAS, the City Council held a duly and properly noticed public hearing on July 5, 2022, to solicit public comments and consider the Project; and WHEREAS, the Emeryville City Council has reviewed and considered the staff report and attachments thereto, the plans, all public comments and the Project, subject to the conditions and requirements set forth in Exhibit A attached to this Resolution and the applicable standards of the Emeryville Municipal Code (“the Record”); now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of Emeryville hereby finds that the project is exempt from environmental review under State CEQA Guidelines Section 15332, which applies to infill development projects, for the reasons generally set forth in the Record and specifically on pages 13 and 14 of the staff report; and that the project is further exempt from environmental review under the “common sense exemption” at Section 15061(b)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines because it can be seen with DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE Resolution No. 22-____
EmeryStation Overland (UPDR21-001)
City Council Meeting | July 5, 2022
certainty that there is no possibility that the proposal may have a significant effect on the environment; and be it further
RESOLVED, that in approving UPDR21-001 for the Project, the City Council makes the following findings required by the Emeryville Municipal Code:
Section 1. General Conditional Use Permit Findings Pursuant to Section 9-7.505:
(a) The proposed use is consistent with the General Plan.
The Land Use Diagram (Figure 2-2) classifies the Property for “Office/Technology” use, which is described as (Section 2.4):
“Administrative, financial, business, professional, medical and public offices, research and development, biotechnology, and media production facilities.”
The project is consistent with this description as the new building will house Research and Development and associated uses.
General Plan goals (G) and policies (P) that are particularly germane, and with which the Project is consistent, include:
Goal LU-G-2: A mixed use City;
Goal LU-G-11: A wide range of economic activity; and
Policy LU-P-27: A diversity of commercial uses to insulate the City’s fiscal base from downturns in particular markets shall be maintained. (b) The location, size, coverage, density, design and operating characteristics of the proposed use will be compatible with, and will not adversely affect, the surrounding area, including neighborhood character, street design and capacity, safety, noise, and lighting.
The location, size, design, and operating characteristics of the project will be compatible with the surrounding neighborhood. The scale, bulk and coverage of the project are similar to other mixed use projects that have been approved in the area. The project will not result in any significant impacts on the neighborhood.
In addition, the proposed project can adequately be served by the capacity and physical character of surrounding streets. The proposed heights and design features break up the massing and are compatible with varied heights of buildings along Hollis and Horton Streets. The project as designed will not adversely affect safety in DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE Resolution No. 22-____
EmeryStation Overland (UPDR21-001)
City Council Meeting | July 5, 2022
the immediate area; light which falls on adjacent buildings and open spaces will also not be impacted. The project can be served by existing public services and utilities.
(c) The proposed use is consistent with the capability of the water supply, wastewater disposal, fire, and police systems to operate adequately and cost effectively.
The proposed project can be adequately served by all required utilities and public services, and it is not foreseen that there will be an increased demand for such services with the new use.
Demand for public safety services may be slightly increased with the new uses but no deficiencies have been identified by the Police and Fire Departments.
(d) The proposed use at its proposed location will provide a service or facility that will contribute to the general well-being of the surrounding neighborhood or community.
The Project will add to the existing “Research and Development” uses in the vicinity and provide a large privately owned public open space (POPOS) along 62nd Street for the general public to use. In addition, the project will provide a mid-block bicycle and pedestrian path connecting 62
nd and 63rd Streets that will be open at all times,
and an Art Walk for the neighborhood to enjoy during daylight hours. (e) The proposed use complies with all applicable standards and requirements of these Planning Regulations.
The proposed use complies with the Planning Regulations.
Section 2. Conditional Use Permit Findings For Bonus Floor Area Ratio and Height Pursuant to Section 9-4.204(f)(2):
(a) That the proposed project will provide community benefits sufficient to earn the number of points required for the bonus amount requested, pursuant to subsections (c), (d) and (e) of this section.
The project requires 100 development bonus points, of which 50 must come from affordable housing, and 50 must come from other community benefits. As detailed in the accompanying staff report, the project will earn 50 bonus points for affordable housing by paying an additional 100 percent of the affordable housing impact fee pursuant to Section 9-4.204(d), 20 community benefit bonus DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE Resolution No. 22-____
EmeryStation Overland (UPDR21-001)
City Council Meeting | July 5, 2022
points by providing 5% of the project site area as public open space pursuant to Section 9-4.204(e)(1), and 30 community benefit bonus points by converting 10 of the existing 41 live/work units in the adjacent Hollis Street Building into seven low-income and three very low-income housing units, calculated at a value of 3% of construction valuation, pursuant to Section 9-4.204(e)(7).. (b) That the proposed community benefits for the project are significant and clearly beyond what would otherwise be required for the project under applicable code provisions, conditions of approval, and/or environmental review mitigation measures.
The additional affordable housing impact fee will provide approximately $1.45 million beyond the base requirement for the City’s affordable housing programs. The additional public open space is in addition to the common open space and Privately Owned Public Open Space (POPOS) required for the project. The conversion of 10 existing live-work units in the adjacent Hollis Street Building to below market rate (BMR) units will add seven units reserved for lowincome households earning 51% to 80% of the Area Median Income (“AMI”), and three units reserved for very low-income households earning up to 50% of AMI, to the City’s BMR inventory. These benefits are clearly beyond what would otherwise be required for the project under applicable code provisions, conditions of approval, and/or environmental review mitigation measures.
(c) That the proposed community benefits for the project are acceptable and appropriate in this case, and will provide tangible benefits to the community.
The City Council finds that proposed community benefits are acceptable and appropriate in this case, and will provide tangible benefits to the community. Specifically, they will contribute to funding for the City’s affordable housing programs, will add muchneeded public open space for the community, and will provide housing for seven low-income and three very low-income
households.
Section 3. Conditional Use Permit Findings For Providing Parking Over the Maximum Pursuant to Section 9-4.404(h):
(a) That the applicant has convincingly demonstrated that the additional parking is required to meet the anticipated parking demand of the proposed uses.
DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE Resolution No. 22-____
EmeryStation Overland (UPDR21-001)
City Council Meeting | July 5, 2022
The project applicant retained CHS Consulting to conduct a parking demand study for the project. This study concluded that the project would generate more parking demand than the proposed parking supply and that the implementation of a transportation demand management (TDM) plan could reduce parking demand to the level of the proposed parking supply. Fehr & Peers conducted a peer review of the CHS study assessing the data sources, methodology, and findings of this analysis and concurred that parking demand would be greater than the proposed parking supply, with the potential for TDM measures to reduce parking demand. The need for a TDM plan to reduce parking demand demonstrates that the proposed parking is required to meet the anticipated parking demand.
(b) That the provision of the additional parking will not result in an overdependence on automobiles and will not adversely affect transit, bicycle, or pedestrian access to the site or other adjacent uses.
The applicant is proposing pedestrian and bicycle improvements that include construction of vertical barriers for bicycle lanes along both sides of Horton Street from Powell Street to 62nd Street; and creation of a two-way protected bicycle lane on 62nd Street west of Hollis Street that would extend up Overland Avenue to 63rd Street; and closing Overland Avenue between 63rd and 64th Streets to create a public linear park, with retractable bollards and a 20-foot wide asphalt surface for emergency vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. This proposed infrastructure will encourage use of bicycles and walking, and, therefore, the Project will not adversely impact transit, bicycle and pedestrian access to the site or to other uses.
Section 4. Design Review Findings Pursuant to Section 9-7.407:
(a) The design of the Project is consistent with the General Plan, including but not limited to its Urban Design goals and policies;
The Project meets Urban Design Policy UD-G3 that calls for a walkable and pedestrian scaled environment by providing a midblock path between 62nd and 63rd Streets. The Project complies with the North Hollis Urban Design Program design guidelines by ensuring that development is oriented to public streets and rights-ofway; by retaining the Hollis Building that has industrial character; by incorporating building design that reflects the industrial character of the area through strong horizontal expression and roof forms and use of metal finishes, canopies, and large expanses of glass; and by DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE Resolution No. 22-____
EmeryStation Overland (UPDR21-001)
City Council Meeting | July 5, 2022
selecting street trees based on soil and groundwater tests and the table on page 28 of the North Hollis Plan.
(b) The design of the Project conforms to the Emeryville Design Guidelines and any other applicable design guidelines or criteria. If strict compliance with the provisions of such design guidelines or criteria is not achieved, the applicant must convincingly demonstrate that the intent of the guidelines is met;
The Project complies with the City’s Design Guidelines by providing the following: Bay-Friendly street landscaping (Guidelines A-11 to A15); preservation and enhancement of the historic industrial warehouse character of Emeryville through the retention of architecturally significant structures (Hollis Building) (Guideline E-3); public entrances that are visible and accessible (E-12); and a color palette that reinforces building identity (Guideline F-13). (c) The Project is of a high design quality that is compatible with, and will not adversely affect, the surrounding area;
This Project will result in a visually attractive design that is consistent with designs of other buildings in the surrounding area. and be it further
RESOLVED, that the City Council approves UPDR21-001 for the EmeryStation Overland project located at 1580 62nd Street subject to the Conditions of Approval attached hereto and the applicable standards of the City of Emeryville Municipal Code.
DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE Resolution No. 22-____
EmeryStation Overland (UPDR21-001)
City Council Meeting | July 5, 2022
APPROVED by the City Council of the City of Emeryville at a regular meeting held on Tuesday, July 5, 2022, by the following votes:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSTAIN:
ABSENT:
MAYOR
ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM:
CITY CLERK CITY ATTORNEY
DocuSign Envelope ID: 2A94F50E-F632-4FD6-8647-0B248D5E67FE