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29 <br /> <br /> <br />The 2010 General Plan land use designation (Mixed Use – Downtown) allows for mixed <br />use, commercial, and residential uses. The General Plan also establishes programs to <br />implement the Grand Boulevard vision by encouraging mixed‐use urban development <br />along El Camino Real, in Downtown, and around the Caltrain station. New development <br />projects should emphasize pedestrian orientation in site and building design, promoting <br />a walkable environment with active street frontages, well‐scaled and designed buildings, <br />and engaging outdoor spaces. <br /> <br />The proposed project is consistent with the General Plan land use designation and El <br />Camino Real vision. The project provides 3-story massing along the El Camino Real <br />frontage, which is setback 18 feet from the roadway to allow an 11 ft. wide sidewalk with <br />a 5 ft. wide planting strip, 8 new street trees, and streetlights. To break-up the massing <br />and create an interesting ground floor experience, the central massing is setback an <br />additional 10 ft. to create a courtyard. This space is in front of the lobby/leasing area <br />and adjacent to the retail space. Should the adjacent retail space be leased to an eating <br />establishment, there is space to provide outdoor seating. The ground floor incorporates <br />active uses with large storefront windows and doors for an interesting pedestrian <br />environment. A secured bicycle room allows for storage of 95 bicycles and is accessible <br />from Diller Street. In addition, bike racks provide for short term storage within the <br />sidewalks. <br /> <br />The project is also consistent with the DTPP, advances numerous DTPP policies, meets <br />all applicable DTPP standards, and satisfies all but two guidelines, for which permitted <br />deviations may appropriately be approved, as they were recommended by the AAC and <br />approved by the Planning Commission. The two requested guideline deviations pertain <br />to the maximum length of ground floor establishment, and use of permeable pavers and <br />are discussed in detail below. <br /> <br />Maximum Establishment Length: In an effort to foster dynamic, interesting, and vibrant <br />pedestrian activity, the DTPP provides guidelines which encourage a mix of ground floor <br />uses so that large stretches of sidewalks are not dominated by one ground floor use. <br />This mix of uses also provides the range of busy hours and slow hours so that on any <br />given block, there is some level of activity. The guideline therefore suggests that ground <br />floor uses should change every 25 ft. of frontage. The project requested a deviation <br />from this guideline to allow the lobby/leasing use, retail uses, and activity room to <br />exceed the 25 ft. length for each establishment. The AAC and PC supported this <br />deviation, finding that the project provides a mix of active ground floor uses which are <br />architecturally and programmatically broken up into short modules to foster pedestrian <br />activity. The frontage is architecturally divided with columns spaced no greater than 25 <br />ft., in keeping with the aesthetic intent of the DTPP. Ground floor transparency allows <br />8.A. - Page 29