HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - CC - 1963.05.0624If
Burlingame,
|'lay 5,
Callfornia
1963
CALL TO ORDER
A regular meeting of the Burlingame City Council was held on
Heeting cal led to order at 8:10 p.m., - l.layor Johnson in the
The Chair announced that the public hearing on the appl ication o
Shore Land Company for a reclassification of its property locate
Bayshore Access Road and Carolan Avenue, south of lndustrial Way
for continuance on this date.
the above given date.
Cha i r.
PLEDGE OF ALLEG IANCE
At word from the Chair, all in the Council Chamber arose and gave the Pledge of
Al legiance to the Fla9.
ROLL CALL
Present - Councilmen: Crosby, Johnson, llartin, Horgan.
Absent - Counci lmen: Lorenz.
Councilman Lorenz, absent because of illness, was excused on motion of Councilman
Crosby and seconded by Councilman l,lartin.
The minutes of the previous meeting of April 15, 1963, submitted to Council,
approved and adopted wi th an amendment that Councilman l.lorganrs appointment
Councilrs liaison to the Burlingame Chamber of Cormerce be recorded.
I. BURLINGA}IE SHORE LAND COHPANY PROPOSAL
we re
as
ft
db
he Burl ingame
etween the
as schedu I ed
The Chair referred to numerous comunications and reports on file as the result
of prior hearings before both the Planning Conmission and the City Council and
more particularly to the recent cormunication from Cyrus J. Hc illan, Attorney,
representing the Burl ingame Shore Land Company, dated l'lay 2, 1963, appeal ing the
latest action of the Planning Conmission on a variance requested by the appl icant.
l,layor Johnson outlined briefly, the referral of the issue back to the Planning
Cormission for a review of specific details with a request that its reconmendation
be submitted to Council for consideration with the request for a reclassification
of the subject property. The Planning Conmission was cormended for its thorough
rev i ew.
Action on the five variances submitted by the appl icant, recorded in the minutes
of an adjourned meeting of the Planning Conmission, dated APril 30, 1963, was
announced by the Chair as fol lows:
l. Heig ht to Permit l3 Stories:Denied by a four to two votei
Approved by a four to two vote;Height to Conforn to Code:
Ten Apartments on a Sinqle Parcel: Approved by all members Present, with
one abs t ent ion;
4. No Se a rat ion Between Bu i ld i n S (garage and principle building): Approved
bya our to one vote, with one abstention;
5. Less Than Required Covered Parki ng Spaces but
Not Less Than Required Number of Parkin g S paces :Approved by a three
to two vote, with one abstention.
Further reference was made to co[munications received and filed from l,lr. Russel I
L. Engle, lllT Sanchez Drive and from the Suburban Protective Association in
protest thereof, frqn the Broadway Development Association, the Burl ingame Chamber
of Cormerce, Hyatt House Hotel, Dorothy and Ed Orack, ll5l-1153 California Drive
and J. H. Roush Co., 1060 Broadway, approving said proposed development and reports
f rorn the Planning Consultant and the City Engineer.
2
3
I.l I NUTES
HEAR I NGS
BROADWAY- BAYS HORE BOULEVARD
244
2
Acting upon the advice of the City Attorney, with resPect to aPProPriate
procedure, motions were introduced and recorded as follows:
Councilman |lartin moved that the appeal to Council from the action taken by
the Planning Comnission at its adjourned meeting, April 30, 1953, be heard
on this occasion, seconded by Councilman llorgan and unanimously carried.
Councilman l,lartin further moved that the five variances requested be presented
to Council for review and considered concurrently with the public hearing on
the request for a reclassification of land from an l.l- I District to an R-4
District. The rnotion was seconded by Counci lman |lorgan and unanimously carried.
The Chair requested all speakers to announce their names, addresses and tolimit their corments to the presentation of new material or evidence.
Proponents were invited to speak first.
I'lr, l{clt{il lan, Attorney, representing the appl icant, stated that several questions
arose before the Planning Cormission hearing and at which time the members were
advi sed that:
lndustrial VJay shall be improved according to plans and specifications
of the City Engineer and dedicated to the City as a public way;
The ''cormonrr areas shall be installed with the start of the construction
of the first building;
l. The utilities shall be placed with the cofimencement of building;
4, A minor problem with respect to drainage on Broadway, westerly of Rollins
Road shall be satisfactori ly corrected; and
Bayshore Boulevard shall be widened ten feet at the frontage of the propertyto provide rrstack" lanes for egress and ingress as recormended by the City
Eng i nee r.
Council was further advised by l,lr, itcl,tillan that presently there is no planto develop the balance of the appl icantrs property north of lndustrial Way for
cormerc ia I usage.
Upon a request from Councilman llartin, Hr. llcHillan enumerated the variances
requested to develop the property as proposed:
l. Heiqht: to permit thirteen-storied structures at a rpximum height of 150 feet
(Ordinance provides six stories or 75 feet);
2. Hore than one buildin on a srn le lot : ten apartments proposed on one
parcel under one ownersh ip combining four to five parcels) lJ.2 acres
(Code stipulates only one residential building on one parcel);
J. Accessory Bqi ldings: (Parkin g structures) The garage portion to connect with
the principle building (Code stipulates minimum of four feet between
bu i ld ing and pccessory bui lding);
4. "!Ed_!e(flg_ ilger requested in excess of code Iimitations; plan proposes
l.l+l+4 spaces of which 797 shall be covered and 647 shal I be uncovered (Code
requirements, 1,46/ parking spaces, 978 covered, 48! uncovered);
5. Set Backs on Carolan Avenue and Bayshore Boulevard, five feet (Code required
?iEE6'Teet).
Citizens in the audience, in favor of the proposed development, were invited to
corment.
Hr. 0rrin Simpson, Hanager, General Electric Sales and l,/arehouse, Adrian Road,
stated that in his opinion "the developers are visionary and courageous', and
the proposed project would prove an asset to the City.
l'lr. Joseph Shay, l612 Ralston Avenue and or.rne r of the Burl ingame Stationers,l3l9 Burl ingame Avenue, stated that the increased grorJth of business in the
East lt{i I lsdale and industrial area will attract personnel employed by industry
to locate within the City of Burl ingame and that the location proposed wi ll not
affect the "old-time atrnosphere of Burl ingame."
245
Hr. Anthony Driscoll, Edgehill Drive, !tr. Z. A. Stickel, ll20 Oxford Road,
l,lrs. llargery Herrick, 45l Cumberland Road and Chairman of the Burlingame
Recreation Cormission, Hr. t/. E. Chambl iss, 518 Almer Road, member of the
Park Conmission each spoke individually and approvingly on the proposed
development as an asset to the City of Burlingame, lauding the plan of the
appl icant as 'rvisionary" and "progressive."
l'lr. Henry Bostwich, Executive Secretary, San l.{ateo County Development Association
with offices located at 1450 Chapin Avenue, stated that surveys indicate that some
marginal commercial areas are not logical properties for industrial usages becauseof the expense in their development; 'rthis particular development wi ll be a step in
a direction where Burl ingame will receive top notice, consol idating service areas
and I iv ing areas.'l
l.'lr. Carlton l/. Herrmann, Trustee, San r,lateo High School District, spoke on the
changes that have occurred in the City of Burlingame since lbrld Var ll wherein
the development of industrial area demands additional housing; the property in
question is "too expensive for conmercial use" and as far as education is concerned,
Burl ingame High School is in a position to accomodate more students.
Additional corrnunications in favor of the proposed project received on recent
dates, were acknowledged from Robert W. Gates, 1426 Burl ingame Avenue, Sterling
Roofing Company, 1050 Broadway and |lr. Ben L. Hechinger, lO2J Cabrillo Avenue.
The Chair invited those in opposition to the proposed plan to speak:
Hr. A. G. Westcott, President, Suburban Protective Association, reviewed briefly
his previously expressed objections, written and oral, stating that the proposed
height is'rtoo high" and the suburban atmosphere of Eurl ingame should be pre-
served; in addition to his objections, the four requi rements necessary to the
approval of a variance have not been establ ished.
l,lr. Russel I Engle, lllT Sanchez Avenue, spoke at some length on his objection
to the placement of structures on property within the industrial area of the
City and stated that in his opinion, the coflrnercial usage of the property has
not been solicited properly, the currently proposed project t"ould increase,
rather than decrease the tax burden of the property owners and the cornplex
problems surrounding the area should be explored more extensively.
Hr. Wi lliam Eeckett, 1420 }lontero Avenue, l,lr. Harry Stephens, ll4l Capuchino
Avenue, Hr. Robert [eyer, 44! Eloomfield Road, Hr. James Carroll, 848 Walnut
Avenue, l{r. E. L. Pierce, lSll Loyola Drive and Hrs. Clarence Rusch, 1384 Hillside
Circle spoke individually in opposition to the project, calling attent ion to the
increased traffic hazards, the precedent that may be establ ished and urging that
the Council uphold the recormendat ion of the Planning Conmission by denying the
variance permitting high-rise apartment construction.
The City Clerk in reply to Council inquiry, advised that no additional written
protests have been rece i ved,
The City Attorney rerni nded Council that the matter of variances is before the
Council and advised that anyone ldishing to speak, or any material on file with
respect to the variances be so considered on this occasion.
RECESS
A recess was declared by the Chair at 9:00 p.m
CALL TO ORDER
The meet ing was
AGENDA ITE',I NO.
called to order at 9:10 p.m
3 ( Cor.$.ruN r cAT r oNs )
I'Uniform Rules for Teen-Age Dances"
Councilman l,lorgan moved that the hearing on the Burl ingame Shore Land Company's
proposal be suspended ,nomentarily and that lten No. J under cormunications be
referred to in the next order of business. The motion was seconded by Councilman
llart in and unanimously carried.
The Chair recognized a number of High School students in attendance and in replyto inquiries from representatives of the Student Recreation Council the group was
advised that councilman crosby, a member of the North county counci I of cities
24s.
Youth Advisory Cormission, accompanied by several department officials shall
attend a meeting in San Bruno on Hay 16, 1963, to evaluate the "Uniform Rules
for Teen-Age Dances" proposal.
Elaborating further, Councilman Crosby advised that the proposal was initiated
in one of the cities of North San l'lateo County as the result of teen-age occur-
rences in that area and a full report shall be rnade to the students and to
Counci I at the next regular meeting, Itay 20, 1963. Students were invited to
attend the next meeting of Counci l.
HEARING BURLINGAI'IE SHORE LAND CO.( Cont i nued )
Hayor Johnson declared the hearing reopened and announced that only two
letters on file from Russel I L. Engle, referred specifically to the requests
for variances submitted by the appl icants for the proposed construction and
each were read in full.
Hrs. Hughes, 1804 Castenada Way, spoke briefly on her objection to the project,
the traffic and school children hazard and also urged that the City of Burlingame
be allowed to retain its suburban symbol.
l{r. }lcHil lan, in rebuttal, pointed to the fol loring:
l. The Planning Cormission by a three to three vote on the issue of reclass-ification, was unable to submit a recormendat ion to Council; hovrever, only
one of the five variances requested was rejected;
2. The area is appropriate for the usage intended;
3. Additional industrial land shall be available with the development of the
Keyston properties and the subject property is not within "the heart of an
indust r ia I t ract; ' '
4. The proposed development wi ll not be a low-rental area; the type construction
proposes "luxury-type'r bui ldings;
5. Future plans for the surrounding area indicate the present dumping area
(dedicated a public park) shall be developed into a park and recreation
area and Hyatt House Hotel, contemplating the construction of an annex,
shall create an attractive entrance into the City of Burl ingame;
The development wi ll produce property and sales tax revenue and in addition
to the organizations indicating approval, a great number of Burl ingame
residents are also in favor.
llr. Oscar Person, the developer and appl icant, spoke in his own behalf, pointing
out that all the prel iminary plans have been prepared by experienced, professional
and reputable firms; problems that have been referred to during the hearings can
be resolved and the proposed development of the area will create a City of
Burl ingame 'rlandma rk.r'
A show of hands, requested by Council, indicated the greater majority in
attendance were in favor of the project.
The Chair invited Council corments.
Counci lman llorganrs inquiries to City staff members present indicated that
problems that have arisen during the hearings with respect to the proposed
development, in their opinion, have been resolved satisfactori ly.
Replying to Councilman Crosby's inquiries concerning whether the project shall
proceed as proposed under the current ownership or a new ownership should the
reclassification be granted, l.lr. l.lcl.lil lan advised that an agreement can be
prepared assuring the City that the project willbe constructed as specifical ly
planned, regard I ess of ownership.
The City Attorney advised that his review of the Statutes indicates that no
provision is made for "conditional zoning" although it is practiced in some
cities in this State; hovrever, in his opinion, there is a possibility that
an agreement of the fol lowing type would be considered valid:
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247
An agreement in which the DeveloPer would agree (l) to install "on and off tract"
improvements; (2) to furnish a bond stipulating that improvements shall be
completed and the initial imProvements that would be made Prior to building;
(3) an agreement that no permit shall be issued excePt that it was an implement
of the particular plan; (4) a bond that all the covenants shall run with the land
and recorded to include covenants and conditions.
The City Attorney continued by stating that if the
into effect and the variances were approved, there
an attachment of the conditions of the variance to
and va l id,
reclass i f i cat ion was placed
is a st rong I ikel ihood that
the agreement may be legal
The City Attorney further advised that Council may introduce an ordinance aPProving
the reclassification and on the same occasion may direct that the variances, with
its conditions, be written out and that an agreement be drafted in order that
action may be taken at the second reading and adoption of the Ordinance to
recl ass ify the property.
Councilman |lartin stated that the City Clerk has advised that the estimated
assessed valuation of an apartment building in the City of Burl ingame, similar
to one proposed for construction, approximates $297,000.00 and l'lr. llcltlillan in
reply to Councilman I'lartinrs inquiry, quoted figures comparing tax assessments
with a large local electronics firm and the proposed development, indicating a
property assessment of $4,500,000.00 for the latter 6nd a property assessment of
$3, 775, 000. 00 for the former.
Councilman Crosby, referring to statenents made during the course of the hearings,
and for purposes of clarification, stated that the tax revenues to be derived
will benefit the property owners of the City as well as the business men and
speaking on his participation in conmittee work to develop the shorel ine properties
of the City, stated that proposed plans wi ll create the area into an attractive
park in the futu re.
Councilman l,'lartin stated that the important issue at this time is a decision on
whether the proposed project is 'rgoing to be good for the City of Burl ingame"particularly in terms of the proposed "use of the land, and that he was interested
requi rements;
t raff ic ingress and
in five specific iterns: (l) density of the area; (2) parking
(3) recreational area available; (4) school problems and (5)
e9 ress,
Clarifying several points with respect to the school issue, Councilman l,lartin
stated that (l) the project is within a "one-mile radius't of schools, therefore,
transportation is not furnished and (2) the school Board has indicated that itwill supply school rooms for new students in Burl ingame (requi red by law);
however, the Board has not indicated that there are schools avai lable for an
additional 150 children estimated to be living in the proposed project.
quoting percentages with respect to tax assessment revenue, the anticipated
increase of approximately 2,000 persons in the population, in relation to the
additional fire, police and Library services that wi ll be necessary, Councilman
l,lartin stated that in his opinion, rrno particular gain to the City has been proven."
A discussion arose between the Architect for the project and Councilman l.lartin on
the subject of the recreational areas to be included within the development,
wherein Councilman }lartin expressed the opinion that the layout plan for recreational
areas was incomplete and indicated that there was insufficient recreational areas
for the estimated 150 children.
0n the subject of parking and in reply to Councilman |lartinrs inquiries, the
Architect advised that loading areas shalI be provided for service trucks andfurther service into the building may be provided from the parking areas; fifty
percent of the spaces included on-street and main entrance parking available forvisitor parking, An artistrs drawing was displayed illustrating the I,44{ parking spaces
proposed (98/ of Code requirements) and from inquiries made by Councilman l.lartin,
Council was advised that the spaces provided, included both tenant and guest parking.
The City Planner, in reply to Councilman Hartin, expressed doubt that there wi ll
be a one hundred percent occupancy of a building; hovlever, additional spaces may
be added by deleting some of the recreational area and Carolan Avenue, widened toits proposed width, tiould provide additional on-street parking.
ln further reply to Councilman llartin's inquiries, the City Planner advised that
based on a population of 2,000 persons on a thirteen acre development, the density
approximates l!4 persons per acre; the highest density area in the City of Burl ingame
24A
is 108 persons per acre; the proposed development is fifty percent greater indensity than any other area within the city and the nearest area to compare with
the proposed development insofar as density is concerned, is located within the
Ci ty of Daly City,
RECESS
The Chair declared a recess at ll:00 p,m.
CALL TO OROER
The meeting reconvened at ll:10 p.m.
HEARING BURLINGAI.IE SHORE LAND COMPANY ( Cont i nued )
Councilman Hartin referred to the points raised regarding the traffic problemswithin the area and in questioning the City PIanner, the latter advised that his
knowledge on traffic flow was limited to apartment house usage only, and ranged
from two to four movements per day. A brief discussion ensued on comparable
car movements per day between industrial areas and apartment house areas, with
Hr. HcHillan advising that a survey rnade available for his infornration indicated
there would be approximately thirty percent less traffic involved in the pro-
posed project than in an industrial usage of the property; industry creates
a more concentrated traffic problern than a residential area with its greater
"spread of t raff ic.'l
A series of questions with respect to the contemplated Broadway 0verpass
construction and the effect the traffic rnay have on the p roposed development
were answered by l,lr. oeUolff, the Architect, who advised that the type windoly
construction proposed will minimize the no;se of traffic and based on inform-
ation received by the Engineers for the project, from the State of California,
it vJas indicated that the generation of cars would be divided, with the Bayshore
Service Road assuming the greatest flow of traffic and lndustrial Way the lesser
amount of traffic flow.
Hayor: Johnson stated that she had no objection to the proposed reclassification
and would prefer to see the area attractively improved; that she was concerned
with the transportation of school children, anticipating, however, that the
p rob I ern can be resolved.
The Chair referred briefly to a paragraph in a conmunication from Hr. Russel I
Engle concerning the possibility of a fatal accident to a child that may occur
in the area inmediately adjacent to the proposed complex alongside the rai lroad
tracks and Sanchez Creek, colloquially referred to as 'rthe jungle" and requested
the City Hanager to investigate.
Hayor Johnson announced that an ordinance, reclassifying the subject property
has been prepared and before the Council for first reading.
Hr. Person, the developer, replying to Councilman l,lartinrs inquiries personal ly,
advised that he would be willing to contribute the sum of $10,000.00 towa rd the
purchase of an overhead pedestrian crosswalk across California Drive and the
rai lroad tracks and a fence along the westerly side of Carolan Avenue.
t/i th respect to the Carolan Avenue improvement, Ilr. Person expressed the desire
to cooperate with the City by contributing towa rd the sidening and improvement
of Carolan Avenue.
ln reply to Councilman Crosby, the City Planner advised that because of circum-
stance, expenditures to improve Carolan Avenue from Toyon orive to Oak Grove Avenue,
in addition to the farthest portion of Carolan Avenue (Roberts Co.) will have to be
assumed by the City.
The Chair thereafter declared the reclassification portion of the publ ic hearing
closed and the portion pertaining to variances continued to the next regular
meeting, Aay 20, lJ6).
ORDINANCE N0. 781 "An Ordinance Amending Section 1904, Article 50, Part x of the
Ordinance Code of the City of Burlingame Dividing the City lnto Districts by
From a Light
(R-4) District,'Reclassifying Certain Lands of the Burl ingame Shore Land Compan
lndustrial (H-l) District to a Fourth Residential (Hulti-Fami ly
was introduced for first reading by Counci lman |lorgan,
v
)
249
RIGHT-OF-WAY AGENTS EI4PLOYED
Councilman }lartin moved that the City Attorney and the City Hanager be instructed
to prepare a contract employing the firm of the Western Right-of-l./ay Contractors,
502! Hission Street, Daly City, as right-of-way agents for the Burl ingame Avenue
Area Off-Street Parking District. The motion was seconded by Councilman Crosby
and unanimously carried.
JOINT POI^/ER BUS STUDY COH}IITTEE
A special County study meeting,
scheduled Friday, Aay 17, 1963,
Conrnittee" report.
suggested by conmittee member, I'lr. Joseph Hunter,
8:00 p.m., to discuss therrJoint Power Bus Study
RECREATI ON COI.IhENDATI ONS
|lrs. Hargery Herrick, Chairman, Recreation Cormission, reported on a certificate
of appreciation presented to her in behalf of the City, from the Girl Scout Council
of San l,tateo County in recognition of the services rendered the Girl Scouts by the
Recreation Cormission and the Recreation Department and a conmendation received
from Hoover School P.T.A., for the assignment of a Recreation Playground Director
at the Hoover School. The conrnendations were acknowledged by the Chair.
COI.,I},I I SS I ON REAPPO INTI.IENTS
l,lr. Everett Kindig and Hr. D. A. Stivers were reappointed members of the Burlingame
Planning Conmission by unanimous confirmation of Council.
S IDEWALK PARK ING INVESTIGATION
The Chair referred to word received f rorn the Health, Safety a Traffic Conmission
with respect to the parking of cars on sidewalks and the subject was referred to
the City |lanager and to the Chief of Police for investigation.
FOR}IER HAYOR BYRD IN ATTENDANCE
Former Councilman and I'layor, Andrew C. Byrd, in attendance, was introduced and
wel corned as a Counci I visitor and in turn, responded with a few words.
COUNC ILHAN LORENZ COI4hENDED
A unanimous vote of appreciation for Ioyalty and cooperation to Council during
his term as l,layor of the City of Burl ingame was extended to Councilman Joseph H,
Lorenz.
ADJOURNHENT
The meeting was regularly adjourned at 12:00 midnight to meet Tuesday, nay 7, 1963,
8:00 p.m., to continue raraining subjects on the Council agenda.
Respectfu I ly submitted,
HERBERT K. WH ITE
Ci ty Clerk
APPROVED:
YOR
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