RESOLUTION NO. __________
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA ADOPTING A GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENT TO (1) CHANGE THE LAND USE DESIGNATION FROM COMMUNITY MIXED USE AND REGIONAL MIXED USE TO REGIONAL COMMERCIAL MIXED USE, CORRIDOR MIXED USE, CORRIDOR RESIDENTIAL AND CORRIDOR RESIDENTIAL-LOW FOR THE AREA ON BOTH SIDES OF EL CAMINO REAL BETWEEN THE WESTERN CITY LIMITS AND LAFAYETTE STREET TO THE EAST; (2) ADD THE LAND USE DESIGNATIONS TO CHAPTER 5 OF THE GENERAL PLAN; AND (3) remove the El Camino Real Focus Area El Camino Real Specific Plan General Plan Amendment
WHEREAS, the City intends to adopt the El Camino Real Specific Plan, a Specific Plan for a transit-oriented, pedestrian-friendly corridor of up to 4,390 residential units with supportive commercial uses, located on approximately 240 acres along the 3.2 mile El Camino Real corridor between the western City limits and Lafayette Street in the east, which is currently largely developed with auto oriented uses; WHEREAS, the El Camino Real Specific Plan is intended to be a tree‐lined, pedestrian‐ and transit‐oriented corridor with a mix of residential and retail uses; and WHEREAS, the El Camino Real area will include a variety of forms of urban housing, including podium buildings, mid-rise residential mixed-use buildings, and medium density townhomes; WHEREAS, the proposed El Camino Real Specific Plan is consistent with the El Camino Real Focus Area Goals And Policies in the General Plan; WHEREAS, as a part of implementing the Specific Plan, the City intends to adopt a General Plan Amendment (“GPA”) to align the General Plan land use diagram by changing the existing land use designations of the Project Site from Community Mixed Use and Regional Mixed Use to Regional Commercial Mixed Use (55-100 dwelling units per acre; 0.20 FAR of commercial required), Corridor Mixed Use (45-65 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required), Corridor Residential (26-45 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required), Corridor Residential - Low (12-25 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required), and Ground Floor Commercial Overlay which requires commercial uses at specific sites; WHEREAS, the GPA includes the removal of the El Camino Real Focus Area from the General Pla with the adoption of the Specific Plan; WHEREAS, the City is also proposing to amend Title 18, the Zoning Code, to create the new El Camino Real zoning districts; WHEREAS, Santa Clara City Charter Section 1007 and Government Code Section 65353 require that the Planning Commission provide input to the City Council on any proposed General Plan Amendment; WHEREAS, on April 8, 2026 the Planning Commission conducted a duly noticed public hearing, at the conclusion of which the Commission voted to recommend that the Council approve the proposed General Plan Amendment; WHEREAS, Government Code Section 65355 requires the City Council to hold a public hearing prior to adopting an amendment of the General Plan; WHEREAS, notice of the public hearing on the proposed General Plan Amendment was published in the Santa Clara Weekly, a newspaper of general circulation for the City, on March 18, 2026; WHEREAS, notices of the public hearing on the General Plan Amendment were mailed to all property owners within 300 feet of the Project Site, according to the most recent assessor’s roll, on March 18, 2026; WHEREAS, notice of the hearing was mailed to each local agency expected to provide water, sewage, streets, roads, schools, or other essential facilities or services to the project, including the Santa Clara Unified School District, on March 18, 2026; WHEREAS, before considering the General Plan Amendment for the Project Site, the City of Santa Clara City Council reviewed and considered the potential environmental impacts of the Project, identified mitigation measures, and adopted and certified the Environmental Impact Report (“EIR”) for the Project (SCH #2025010508), as well as a set of CEQA Findings and a Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program, in accordance with the requirements of CEQA; and WHEREAS, on May 19, 2026, the City Council conducted a duly noticed public hearing to consider the proposed General Plan Amendment, at which time all interested persons were given an opportunity to give testimony and provide evidence in support of and in opposition to the proposed General Plan Amendment.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY OF SANTA CLARA AS FOLLOWS:
1. That the City Council hereby finds that the above Recitals are true and correct and by this reference makes them a part hereof.
2. General Plan Amendment Findings. That the City Council finds and determines that the General Plan Amendment is in the interest of the public good for the following reasons:
A. The proposed amendment is deemed to be in the public interest, in that:
The Project is located in an urbanized area served by existing municipal services and implements smart growth principles by redeveloping underutilized properties with higher intensity mixed-use, pedestrian- and transit-oriented development that will contribute to the City both socially and economically.
B. The proposed General Plan Amendment is consistent and compatible with the rest of the General Plan and any implementation programs that may be affected, in that:
The Project furthers and is consistent with the goals, policies and major strategies of the General Plan that enhance the City’s quality of life, preserve and cultivate neighborhoods, promote sustainability, enhance City identity, support Focus Areas and community vitality, maintain the City’s fiscal health and quality of services, and maximize health and safety benefits with the creation of the following new land use designations: Regional Commercial Mixed Use (55-100 dwelling units per acre; 0.20 FAR of commercial required), Corridor Mixed Use (45-65 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required), Corridor Residential (26-45 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required), Corridor Residential - Low (12-25 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required), and Ground Floor Commercial Overlay which requires commercial uses at specific sites.
C. The proposed amendment has been processed in accordance with the applicable provisions of the California Government Code and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), in that:
A Draft Environmental Impact Report (“DEIR”) was prepared in accordance with CEQA and the City circulated copies of the DEIR and Notice of Availability to the public agencies which have jurisdiction by law with respect to the Project, as well as to other interested persons, organizations and agencies, and the City sought the comments of such persons, organizations and agencies. The City prepared and circulated written responses to the comments received during the Comment Period and included those responses in a Final Environmental Impact Report (“FEIR”), in accordance with CEQA. Additional comments were received from agencies, organizations and individuals following the distribution of the FEIR and the City prepared responses to the comments received for incorporation into an Appendix to the FEIR and made available for review.
D. The potential impacts of the proposed amendment have been assessed and have been determined not to be detrimental to the public health, safety, or welfare, in that:
A Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (MMRP) has been prepared for implementation with Project development to reduce potentially significant impacts identified in the DEIR, FEIR and Appendix to the FEIR, that combined constitute the EIR for the Project, to less than significant and a set of CEQA Findings has been prepared in accordance with CEQA; the Planning Commission recommended that the City Council adopt all of these documents; and the City Council adopted and certified the FEIR and adopted the CEQA Findings, Statement of Overriding Considerations, and MMRP.
3. That the City Council hereby amends the General Plan by adding the following text to Subsection 5.2.2 (“Land Use Classifications and Diagram”) of Section 5.2 (“Land Use Diagram”) of Chapter 5 (“Goals and Policies”), to be inserted in the mixed use land use designations section, after the existing definition of “Santa Clara Station Area” :
“Regional Commercial Mixed Use (55-100 dwelling units per acre; 0.20 FAR of commercial required) This classification is intended for high-intensity commercial or mixed-use residential and commercial development with open space that can serve as a center for community gathering and activity. A large variety of commercial uses are allowed including retail, restaurant, entertainment, offices, hotel, and service uses to meet local and regional needs. Auto-oriented uses and live/work uses are not appropriate in this designation. Residential uses are allowed in a vertical or horizontal mixed-use form. Development under this designation should have an urban feel and typically be composed of mid-rise buildings featuring pedestrian-oriented frontages and facades and structured or below-grade parking. All new development under this designation with a frontage along El Camino Real must include ground floor commercial uses along El Camino Real.” “Corridor Mixed Use (45-65 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required) This classification is intended to encourage a mix of commercial uses and medium-to-high density residential at smaller cross-streets along El Camino Real. This designation allows for standalone commercial or residential uses, and mixed-use development in a horizontal or vertical format. However, there are key locations along the El Camino Real corridor where ground floor commercial uses are required. Commercial uses under this designation are intended for local and neighborhood serving retail, office, and service uses. Auto-oriented uses are not appropriate in these areas.” “Corridor Residential (26-45 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required) This classification is intended for low- to mid-rise residential building types such as townhomes and garden apartments with garages or below-grade parking. These areas provide a moderate-intensity residential character and a transition to adjacent single-family residential neighborhoods. This designation is generally applied to small to moderate-sized parcels along the corridor.” “Corridor Residential - Low (12-25 dwelling units per acre; commercial allowed but not required) This classification is intended for townhome development. These areas provide a low-intensity residential character in keeping with adjacent single-family residential neighborhoods. This designation is generally applied to smaller parcels along the corridor that are constrained by shallow lot depths and parcel aggregation challenges.” “Ground Floor Commercial Overlay
This classification illustrates where ground floor commercial is required in selected parcels with the Corridor Mixed Use (CMU) land use designation; this classification also applies to all parcels designated Regional Commercial Mixed Use (RCMU). These concentrations of commercial uses will support pedestrian activity and create opportunities for vibrant public spaces. The Ground Floor Commercial Overlay does not cover any Corridor Residential areas, where ground floor commercial is encouraged but not required.
4. That the City Council, pursuant to Government Code § 65354, hereby amends the General Plan by changing the General Plan Land Use Designation for the Project Site by modifying Figures 5.2-2 and 5.2-3 of the General Plan to the land use designations described in the land use plan, Figure 3-1, of the El Camino Real Specific Plan, which is attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference.
5. That the City Council hereby amends the General Plan by removing references to the El Camino Real Focus Area in Section 5.4, Focus Areas, and Figure 5.4-1.
6. That based on the findings set forth in this Resolution, the EIR Resolution and the evidence in the City Staff Report and such other evidence as received at the public hearing on this matter, the City Council hereby approves the General Plan Amendment.
7. Effective date. This resolution shall become effective immediately.
I HEREBY CERTIFY THE FOREGOING TO BE A TRUE COPY OF A RESOLUTION PASSED AND ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, AT A SPECIAL MEETING THEREOF HELD ON THE 19TH DAY OF MAY, 2026, BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:
AYES: COUNCILORS:
NOES: COUNCILORS:
ABSENT: COUNCILORS:
ABSTAINED: COUNCILORS:
ATTEST:
NORA PIMENTEL, MMC
ASSISTANT CITY CLERK
CITY OF SANTA CLARA
Attachments Incorporated by Reference:
Land Use Plan
MMRP
Resolution/General Plan Amendment CC Resolution Page 6 of 7 Rev. Rev: