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Dr. Steven Howard, member of the Architectural Advisory Commission, said it was a major step forward that the principals involved in this master plan were willing to sit down together and propose a plan that would so benefit the community. He commended the Planning Commission and the Council for making this a group effort. Dr. Howard expressed concern about the "massing effect", the automobile orientation rather than people orientation, and the lack of interior space. John Dempsey, Housing and Human Concems Committee, said he wanted to reinforce the plea for affordable housing. In response to Planning Commission questions regarding business relocation, Redevelopment Agency Director Church briefly described the extensive packages, and the policies under the law, required of Redevelopment Agencies in such cases. In response to Planning Commission questions regarding affordable housing units, Redevelopment Agency Director Church said that final policy decisions about affordable housing would be made by the Council acting in its role as the Redevelopment Agency. He said that generally speaking, neither the City nor the developers would want affordable units to be distinguishable from all other units. Don Warren provided background on the affordable housing component in the master plan in Redwood Shores and cited the several programs debated. He described Heron Court, and said that perhaps there was too much differentiation. Mr. Warren said there were many, many ways to deal with the subject of affordable housing, such as buy downs, second mortgage arrangements, and use of adjacent properties. He said this development team was interested in affordable housing and had already begun that dialogue with City staff. Redevelopment Agency Director Church said that if the Agency does enter into an agreement with a developer for this project, "there is an obligation under Redevelopment law to have at least 15% of the units in the project affordable to low and moderate income people." He said the Housing and Human Concerns Committee had expressed interest in a larger percentage of very low income affordable housing in this development, as that group was the core problem in this market area. In response to Planning Commission questions regarding acquisitions, Mr. Hansen said there were approximately 18 parcels exclusive of Lonestar, Pac Bell and Bekins. Redevelopment Agency Director Church said the concept plan presented at this meeting showed all 18 parcels included in the master plan, but did not address the issue of whether all could be acquired or not. He said the proposed development was a "blue sky concept" and there was a long way to go before "we know whether the economics make any sense.... It is better to think big, and then you may have to pare back from that." PLANNING COMMISSION STUDY SESSION WITH COUNCIL PARTICIPATION OCTOBER21,1997 STUDY SESSION MEETING MINUTES MINUTE BOOK NO. 55 PAGE 4 Page No. 606