Downtown Redwood City set for big changes

Changes would include requiring the projects to be approved by the council rather than the Planning Commission. Developers behind Gatekeeper projects could also have to enter into development agreements with the city, creating a legally binding promise to provide whatever community benefits they’ve proposed in exchange for receiving a General Plan and Downtown Precise Plan amendment.

“The intent here is to create more of a streamlined template for these Gatekeeper projects where the benefits that are already known to be proposed can be clearly identified and memorialized,” McGill said. “Those development agreements will help establish development milestones and ensure the projects deliver the promised community benefits in a timely manner.”

Additional changes include removing and reducing minimum parking requirements for residential, hotel and commercial developments in the downtown area, unlinking bike parking ratios to vehicle parking ratios by requiring at least one bike parking spot for every residential unit or every 2,000 square feet of office space, and expanding the types of rooftop uses that can be incorporated into a project to include restaurants, bars and other recreational spaces.

Staff is also interested in studying the impact of research and development laboratory uses downtown. Such uses have not been commonly found in downtown areas in Bay Area cities, McGill said, but one developer has requested the city study the issue and McGill said a consultant could help the staff better understand what hazard may be involved and how they could be safely addressed if permitted.

The city is currently studying the environmental impacts of increasing office capacity by more than a million square feet and residential development by 830 units in the downtown area to accommodate the incoming development while leaving some capacity for future development interests.

Housing caps will likely be eliminated in the city as part of an updated DTPP, titled the Central Redwood City Plan, the city’s Housing Element and in the Transportation District, which is also being studied currently.

No formal decision was made on the proposed amendments but commissioners did express support for many of the changes.

“There’s a lot to love about everything that was proposed. I’m especially relieved to hear that the new version of the Downtown Precise Plan will be removing caps on housing,” Commissioner Isabella Chu said. “That will really give the city the opportunity to add the housing that we need to balance out the office.”

Beyond housing, commissioners also shared strong support for enhancing rooftop amenities. Commissioner Kevin Bondonno emphasized the importance of making sure the rooftops were accessible to the public over weekends and after work hours. And Vice Chair Filip Crnogorac said, ensuring adequate public open space is “an equity issue” the city needs to address.

Reducing parking minimums was also a hit with commissioners with some calling for the city to consider going further by eliminating minimums completely, allowing developers to decide how much parking to offer based on market demand. Commissioner Elmer Martinez argued the state was already moving in that direction.

“We kind of see where the state is leading on this issue,” Martinez said. “I think we can also lead on that locally with the understanding that we’re allowing the developer to tell us exactly what will pencil out too.”

Some concerns were also shared. Commissioners supported staff’s suggestion to study the impacts of research and development laboratory uses while noting their apprehension to welcoming hazards from chemical materials or large and frequent vehicles to the area.

Chair Rick Hunter voiced concerns about a staff proposal to set aside 80,000 square feet of office space capacity that would only be used to move forward small project proposals. The initiative was proposed after staff noticed large projects quickly ate up what capacity was available but Hunter questioned whether the capacity would be used to turn retail spaces into office as was done during the last recession.

“I really very much like the idea of reducing administrative burdens for small projects,” Hunter said. “But I’d really like to make sure that’s not going to be a way to convert more current retail [spaces] to ground floor office.”

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