Dear WG Neighbors, 

Thank you for signing the petition against the 7-Story building being proposed at the corner of Kotenberg Avenue and Willow Street. This is a reminder that tonight, Monday June 6th, at 6:00 p.m via Zoom, is the SJ Planning Division Community meeting. We want a strong showing, so please join! 

• Read the SJ Planning Division Agenda for detailed meeting instructions by clicking here (summary below).
• Sign in to ZOOM early (information also below, if needed). It is scheduled to start at 6pm, and end at 7 or 7:30.
• During the open forum, we have organized speakers to ask specific questions and make planned comments about the project. If you would like to be part of making organized comments and have not signed up, please email us at stop7story@gmail.com.

Thank you for your advocacy! 

Stop7Story.com

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COMMUNITY MEETING AGENDA

940 WILLOW STREET MIXED-USE PROJECT COMMUNITY MEETING

File No(s). H23-030 & ER23-233

When: Monday, June 3, 2024

6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Planning Meeting Website with Project Managers and Applicant Contact info.

Join the Planning Dept Community Zoom June 3 @ 6pm

Zoom Meeting Link:  https://sanjoseca.zoom.us/j/92838911478

Meeting ID: 928 3891 1478

 

This live virtual community meeting will be recorded. Attendees are automatically placed on “mute” upon joining the meeting, and will be individually “unmuted” during the public comment part of the meeting, if they would like to speak (see further below) To ensure the meeting runs smoothly, please do not unmute yourself until the presenter has called on you to speak. If this is your first Zoom meeting, we encourage you to download the Zoom app to your phone, tablet, or computer and log in early to get familiar with how the app works.

Electronic device instructions:

For participants who would like to join electronically from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device, please click

this URL: https://sanjoseca.zoom.us/j/92838911478 Please ensure your device has audio input and output capabilities. During the session, if you would like to comment, please use the ‘raise hand’ feature in Zoom conference call or click *9 to raise a hand to speak. 

1. Use a current, up-to-date browser: Chrome 30+, Firefox 27+, Microsoft Edge 12+, Safari 7+. Certain functionality may be disabled in older browsers including Internet Explorer. Mute all other audio before speaking. Using multiple devices can cause an audio feedback.

2. Enter an email address and name. The name will be visible online and will be used to notify you that it is your turn to speak.

 

PROPOSED PROJECT

Meeting Purpose: To describe the proposed project, the City’s review process, and to obtain community input on

the residential project located at 940 Willow Street. Comments, concerns, and questions raised at this meeting will become part of the public record and will help inform the project’s design as it moves forward in the review process. There are continued opportunities throughout the permit process to publicly comment on the project as illustrated in the permit process chart below.

Proposed project: File No. H23-030, a Development Permit to allow the demolition of an existing approximately 5,500-square-foot commercial building and the removal of six trees (two ordinance-size and four non-ordinance-size) for the construction of a seven-story mixed-use building consisting of 126 multifamily residential units and approximately 1,626 square feet of commercial space on an approximately 0.80-gross-acre site. This project was submitted under the Housing Accountability Act (Builder’s Remedy).

AGENDA

I.                   Welcome, Introductions, Agenda Overview, and Background: The Project Manager for the Department of Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement will welcome participants, provide an overview of the agenda, and introduce presenters.

II.                 Project Overview

III.               Environmental Review Overview

IV.               Project Presentation : The Project Applicant will present the proposed project.

V.                 Open Forum: The Project Manager will facilitate questions and comments from members of the community via the Zoom Raise Hand function (at the bottom of your screen, click on the icon labeled “Raise Hand” to raise your hand). Each speaker will be limited to two minutes, and may be limited to speaking only once depending on the amount of time available. Comments may also be submitted to the project manager or environmental project manager in writing after the meeting.

VI.               VI. Meeting Adjournment, 7:00 PM: Please provide best contact information to receive project updates by submitting an email request to alec.atienza@sanjoseca.gov or jason.lee@sanjoseca.gov

 

COMMUNITY MEETING CODE OF CONDUCT

The City of San José is committed to providing the information and opportunities to encourage residents to follow development activity in their neighborhoods and to actively participate in the land use development process. The intent of this community meeting today is to inform property owners, residents, and other interested parties about the proposed development, answer questions, and receive public comments. Staff will take notes on the discussion, respect all input and opinions, and respond to policy and process questions. If you wish to speak, please refer to the following guidelines:

• Questions and comments will be taken during Open Forum

• Please use the Zoom Meeting “Raise Hand” function or press *9 on your phone to indicate you’d like to speak. Speakers will be called upon by staff and unmuted to speak.

• Depending on the number of speakers, each person will be called upon to speak only once. If time allows a speaker may be called upon more than once. Each speaker will be limited to two minutes of speaking time each time they are called.

• Persons on the Zoom Meeting call will refrain from behavior which disrupts the public meeting or which may intimidate others who wish to voice their opinions. This will include making loud noises, clapping, shouting, booing, hissing or engaging in any other activity in a manner that disrupts or impedes the orderly conduct of the meeting.

• Harassment of meeting participants including City staff will not be tolerated in any form. If a participant engages in harassing behavior City Staff will end the meeting or remove the participant from the Zoom call.

STEPS IN THE PLANNING PROCESS

Project review is an essential part of the land use and development process. The flow chart in the document gives a basic depiction of the steps involved.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA)

CEQA requires developers to disclose the potential environmental impacts resulting from the construction of a project. When the City reviews a project for CEQA compliance, it is determining if the project will or will not have significant environmental effects in the following subject areas: aesthetics, agricultural resources, air quality, biological resources, cultural resources, geology/soils, hazards and hazardous materials, hydrology/water quality, population/housing, public services, recreation, transportation/traffic, and utilities/service systems. This knowledge helps local officials to make informed decisions about whether to permit discretionary projects and, if so, with what conditions and or mitigation measures. A project can take one of three tracks:

(1) Exempt – no possibility of impacts; or

(2) An environmental initial study is conducted, and a negative declaration or mitigated negative declaration is adopted. This indicates that the initial study found no significant environmental impacts, or that the impacts can be reduced with mitigation measures, or

(3) An initial study is prepared and determines that the project may have a significant effect on the environment, and preparation of an environmental impact report (EIR) is required (This is the least common outcome, but is typically required for large-scale projects).