Life science project hits snag in Redwood City

Project plans were submitted on July 29. By Aug. 11, the Plan Review Committee, a body of representatives from multiple city departments, looked over the proposal and deemed the application incomplete, according to a letter sent to IQHQ from Darryl Boyd, the contract principal planner on the project, on Monday, Aug. 29.

"Many projects are deemed incomplete upon first submittal, and we expected no different with 10 Twin Dolphin. The “incomplete” designation offers an opportunity for a municipality and project applicants to collaborate closely in advance of public hearings, and we look forward to working with the City and the Planning Department to address their questions as we guide 10 Twin Dolphin towards a successful culmination," read an email statement from IQHQ.

PRC members asked for more information about how IQHQ intends to operate a proposed 4,100-square-foot child care center — whether it will be for public or staff only use — after citing a number of concerns with where the developer has proposed to place the amenity.

“It is isolated on the outside project edge and some distance from the nearest office buildings without any clear pedestrian connections and paths of travel. From a crime prevention perspective, it is hidden behind a multistory parking garage and next to public vehicular access and trails,” Boyd wrote in the letter, also noting the group had operational concerns about whether there would be enough drop-off and pick-up space.

And the proposal was also unclear on whether the developer intends to pay an in-lieu fee to satisfy the city’s inclusionary housing ordinance rather than offering to build housing units themselves either on- or off-site. For years now, councilmembers have stressed the value of developers building units rather than paying in-lieu fees.

The developer could be asked to pay more than $5 million toward the city’s Parks Impact Fee and another roughly $22,000 for child care fees unless map adjustments are made. In the letter, Boyd notes building areas by square footage vary throughout the application but, according to the city’s estimates, should amount to 658,295 square feet.

“There are a variety of different numbers and inconsistencies within the plan sheets and between text documents. Accurate numbers are critical for regulatory consistency analysis, such as parking and transportation,” read the letter.

IQHQ has also been asked to justify why it appears to be asking to provide more parking than is requested, 1,638 stalls compared to the required 1,606. A Local Transportation Analysis Report and draft Transportation Demand Management plan will also need to be submitted.

Additional issues dealing with stormwater, groundwater, sewer system, demolition plans, trash pickup, General Plan compliance and an environmental review will need to be addressed before the proposal can be deemed complete but Boyd, in his letter, acknowledged that the developer may not be able to do so at this time.

“Further discussion on these topics may be needed and ongoing,” Boyd wrote.

The IQHQ project is one of three life science developments proposed in Redwood Shores. Just up the street at 1 Twin Dolphin Drive, Prince Street Partners is looking to build a five-story life science building but that project was also deemed incomplete.

The largest of the three is Redwood LIFE, a project proposed by Longfellow Real Estate Partners that looks to redevelop a 84-acre site between Belmont Slough and Marine Parkway from a 970,000-square-foot, 20 building office park into a life science campus with 15 larger buildings.

Longfellow submitted its plans in June and has also received pages of notes requesting additional information on their project. But the proposal is still in the early stage of its nearly two year review process and its application has not been deemed incomplete.

As for IQHQ, the developer will have to respond to the points raised by the PRC in writing. IQHQ did not respond to requests for comment.