AgdaPkt 2019-02-11 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

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CLK-Pamela Aguilar prom: Georgianne Stephen went: Sunday, February 10, 2019 10:09 PM To: GRP -City Council Subject: Draft EIR - Harbor View Project - Comments Dear Mayor Bain and Redwood City Council Members: I am writing to give you my thoughts about the use of the land previously occupied by Malibu Grand Prix. First off let me say, as a person who grew up on the Peninsula, I was saddened to see the Malibu Grand Prix facility go. Growing up here in the 1970's and 1980's young people and families were able to go mini -golfing, bowling, and roller and ice skating without putting our parents in the poor house. Even going to the SF Giant's at Candlestick was an affordable family past time. With the closing of the Malibu Family Fun center the Peninsula residents have little if any affordable opportunities for family entertainment. That being said the one thing for certain that the Peninsula does not need is another high tech office park loading up 101 in Redwood City so that the average speed during commute hours goes from 10 mph to 1 mph. I have lived in Redwood City for thirty years and have seen the downtown go from the aptly named Deadwood City to a thriving, bustling downtown with housing, office buildings and restaurants and shops. For my taste it is sometimes too crowded and I would have thought with that much development approved there would have been some open space added but that is another discussion. My point is that, for the most part, the plan has been effective. There are apartments and high tech offices, Box for example, near public transit and services. That makes sense and I am sure that there are more office buildings proposed under the downtown Aan. The land where Malibu sat is designated for Light Industrial and Industrial Port Related for the most part. This is what it is zoned for and the new owner's knew this when they purchased the land. Based on these facts it is unclear to me why the Council would even be considering the proposal for a massive high tech office complex. The Peninsula is losing light industrial districts by the acre. Just look up and down El Camino and Industrial Boulevard in San Carlos. There are industrial parks being mowed down in favor of hotels which will employ people in low paying jobs and these people can't afford any of the new housing going up in the same areas. I worked in manufacturing in industrial parks along the Peninsula for years but my company moved to Hayward as industrial parks were demolished for high rise offices employing biotech and high tech workers leaving everyone else out in the cold. Remember the tech bust when these companies took over Burlingame's auto row and left buildings vacant for years until recently. A well rounded economy encompasses all types of employment including office, construction, services, retail, etc. We need to plan for everyone and I think that the intent of the original plan is the correct one. Use the old Malibu land for light industrial and support of the thriving economy at the Port of Redwood City. We are one of the lucky cities that have such an asset and the area around our Port should be dedicated to serving the needs of the Port and what may be needed in the future. Once you vote to take that away it is gone for good. The vision of Industrial Port Related zoning as part of the development designation was the right call. Don't reverse a smart decision and replace it with a foolhardy one. Last but not least I challenge you to actually talk to your constituents and see what they think. Tell them that he plan will result in 8,000 tech workers clogging up 101 and Woodside Road. What do you think they would say? Light industrial areas, like where my company started up, are the type of places that people can afford to