New plans for key spot in downtown San Mateo

“What this project really does is enhances the public realm area [and] creates a destination for the community,” developer Preston O’Connell said at an April 11 community meeting. “It’s where development should be and helps reduce traffic. It expands retail offerings for the community.”

The four-story mixed-use building calls for a ground floor for commercial uses and office use for floors two through four. It also plans for several gathering and rooftop areas. The building would be around 42,000 square feet and be 55 feet high.

O’Connell said the development’s downtown location enhances the public realm area. The public realm is the pedestrian sidewalk, bike lane, and parking area that creates an interactive zone where people want to visit and engage daily. The current sidewalk does not provide enough space for pedestrian and bicyclist activities envisioned. The development proposes widening the sidewalk from the current 10 feet to 16 feet. O’Connell said the sidewalk widening would enhance the downtown experience and aligns with San Mateo’s pedestrian master plan priorities. The city is exploring creating more pedestrian-friendly areas and increasing pedestrian and bike safety. More landscape, open space areas and outdoor seating will also allow people to hang out while shopping and in the area.

The 16,413-square-foot site is at the start of downtown, with commercials buildings to the north, the San Mateo Caltrain station to the east, and First Avenue to the south. The property would be rezoned from neighborhood commercial and residential overlay to the central business district.

O’Connell suggested the ground floor could have retail sites like a farm-to-table restaurant, bakery, coffee store and a specialty grocery store. The demolition of the two existing commercial buildings will result in several retail stores being demolished, including Donut Delite, a popular doughnut store, and China Bee. O’Connell said it was too early to tell what would happen with Donut Delite, given the early stages of the development process.

“Obviously, the goal is to keep them there as long as possible and see where the project lands, and if that’s something they want to do, we are totally open to having that discussion,” O’Connell said.

No parking will be part of the development because of its proximity to transit. The developer will instead provide parking in-lieu fees. O’Connell said the project would not build affordable housing given its small size. Instead, it will look to pay a linkage fee or collaborate with others to provide affordable housing elsewhere. It would be responsible for two affordable housing units.

“We simply can’t build housing within a project of this scale. We don’t think it makes sense because just having two or three units, it gets lost within the project, and it wouldn’t have all the amenities and services folks would really benefit from,” O’Connell said.

The city has scheduled a Planning Commission study session for 7 p.m. May 10.

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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