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7A actions, staff typically schedules the item for consideration at a joint hearing of both Page 2 decision-making bodies. Thus, on June 19; 2007, the Planning Commission and the Zoning Administrator held a joint public hearing to first consider ErR certification and then the Use Permits. After public testimony was received on both items, the Planning Commission certified the Final EIR and made the required CEQA findings. The meeting extended into the early morning hours of June 20, at which time the Zoning Administrator approved the two Use Permits for the project based on findings and subject to conditions of approval; the conditions of approval incorporate all mitigation measures presented in the EIR and further documented in the MMRP. One Use Permit approved the retail warehouse with 160,000 square feet of floor area and a tire center on the north side of the building. The other Use Permit approved a gas station with 12 vehicle fueling positions.1 These actions, including findings and conditions of approval, are documented in a Notice of Official Action dated June 20, 2007 and included as Attachment 3 (also previously provided to Council under separate cover). Minutes from the June 19, 2007 joint hearing were also previously provided under separate cover. Planning Commission and Zoning Administrator actions can be appealed to the City Council. Appeal Members of the Redwood Village Neighborhood appealed the Planning Commission's certification of the EIR and the Zoning Administrator's Use Permit approvals pursuant to their letter dated and received by the City on June 26, 2007. The letter is provided in Attachment 1 (also previously provided under separate cover). Staff has reviewed the concerns cited in this appeal letter and has prepared a response to each (see Attachment 2). The appeal letter's issues have been numbered in the right margin to correlate to the staff responses to assist readers as they review these two documents concurrently. A summary of highlights included in the appeal response follows and is sequenced per the appellant's main topics of concern cited in their letter. . Process: The review process for the Costco project has included outreach efforts specifically designed to support public understanding of the proposed project and the revievl process. Two community meetings were scheduled prior to public hearings in an attempt to ensure that all interested parties had an opportunity to learn more about the project, the process, and how to make effective public comment. Staff believes that this was a success considering that 49 thoughtful comment letters on the Draft EIR were submitted to the City. . Proiect Description and Studies: The Costco traffic study was conducted in accordance with the standards of the profession. Beyond the standards, it also includes special, detailed analysis based on actual data from other Costco sites. The following list acknowledges and very briefly responds to the concerns about the traffic study (Attachment 2 includes detailed responses): o The Costco traffic study includes the traffic volumes that will be associated with other developments that are not yet constructed. The traffic from these developments was assigned to the near and long-term analyses as appropriate, including the Stanford Outpatient project in the long~term analysis as well as other "potential" projects identified by staff. More 1 After reviewing the project record and taking testimony, the Zoning Administrator made findings to approve a smaller gas station with 12 vehicle fueling positions instead of 16 vehicle fueling positions, as sought by Costeo.