Council frustrated with slow-moving Firehouse Square

“I’m super frustrated we were told a year ago this would be the last extension,” Kim said, according to a video of the meeting. “We’ve gone back and forth between frustration and recognizing we have a good developer and good project, and that has been the conundrum for all of us.”

The mixed-use development would bring 4,000 square feet of commercial space and up to 81 townhomes and single-story flats, 20 of which would be sold or rented to families with moderate and lower incomes, according to a staff report.

The development has been in the works since 2009, and seems to have the support of many. Councilmembers have celebrated its potential to revitalize downtown and add much needed housing at a variety of income levels, but patience is wearing thin.

“I’m trying to think if there’s been another time in my four years and three months on this council that I’ve been more disappointed than I am now and I don’t think there is,” Stone said. “I think it’s criminal that this parcel has sat vacant since 1996. ... I think the project holds great promise, but at the same time I’m starting to question whether it’s ever going to happen.”

Stone also said both the developer and staff are trying their best, and that he understands some delays following the adoption of the Belmont Village Specific Plan.

“But at the end of the day what the public sees is a vacant patch of land, still,” he said.

Vice Mayor Davina Hurt said the general plan and the Belmont Village Specific Plan could no longer be an excuse now that they’re complete and “out of the way.”

“And I would even go as far as to say there are some things that could’ve been done on the developer’s side while we were going through that process so that when it was done, we could be further along,” she said.

Community Development Director Carlos de Melo said at this point staff is working on the project on two tracks: finalizing the development agreement and financial terms of the project while simultaneously evaluating its compliance with the recently adopted Belmont Village Specific Plan.

That plan established zoning rules for the reimagined downtown in an 80-acre area surrounding the intersection of Ralston Avenue and El Camino Real and including the city’s Caltrain station. By charting out housing, office and retail development that can be accommodated in the coming years, the plan accounts for proposed changes to the city’s streetscape and parking as well as new and updated infrastructure needed to accommodate the changes.

Despite his “protest vote” against an extension of the negotiating agreement, Kim said he’s still hopeful about the project.

“We’re in the red zone,” he said, using a football analogy. “We feel like we’re getting close but not quite there yet.”

Kim said the environmental review process is still ongoing and details including sidewalk width and tree placement still need to be worked out.

“When I’m looking at all the things that do need to get done, I am concerned that there’s a lot to do even in four months,” Councilwoman Julia Mates said. “I just want to reinforce that there’s a lot to do in a short amount of time.”

Councilman Warren Lieberman also said he wants the most recent extension to be the project’s last, but said he views the process somewhat differently than his fellow councilmembers.

“From everything I can gather, these delays are result of two parties trying to work well together and do things on a time frame that’s making sense with all our planning,” he said. “I hope we can see it through at this point.”

According to the staff report, the development is scheduled to be the topic of a neighborhood meeting in April and will be reviewed by the Planning Commission in June.

zachary@smdailyjournal.com

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