Title
Report regarding the Design Review and Waivers and Modifications request for the Community Civic Campus Police Facility schematic design at 1 Chestnut Avenue. (Tony Rozzi, Principal Planner)
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Planning Commission, by motion, accept the Design Review and Waivers and Modifications request recommended by the Chief Planner for zoning standards, and provide schematic design comments for the City Council’s consideration, subject to the attached Findings of Approval per Title 20 of the South San Francisco Municipal Code.
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BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
The Community Civic Campus project (Project) proposes to build new Police, Fire, and Library and Parks and Recreation facilities, potentially on a phased approach due to timing and funding constraints. The Project will be built at the northeast corner of El Camino Real and Chestnut Avenue and southeast corner of Arroyo Drive and Camaritas Avenue. The current facilities are seismically unsafe and/or undersized/underequipped to meet the growing needs of our community and new facilities are needed. The focus of the Planning Commission’s review at this meeting will be the completed schematic design of Police Facility and comments for the City Council’s consideration, however, an overview of the entire Project is provided below with Project Plans included as Attachment 3:
Phase One
The new Police Station will be designed to the current Essential Services Code Requirement. It will be functional with efficient spaces to meet the operational needs of the public safety departments. The Police Facility will include a 911 Emergency Center, support police patrol and spaces for administrative records, communications, investigations, property and evidence, classrooms, physical training, and a firing range.
Phase Two
The new main community center will include a welcoming lobby and atrium area for multiple users, a large multipurpose room which will support public meetings as well as theatre performances, a new Library Hub, a new Parks and Recreation Hub, and outdoor space for passive and active recreation. Shared spaces between the Library and Parks and Recreation will allow both departments to maximize their programs for the community.
The new Library Hub will provide larger, quieter spaces that more fully support reading, studying and the use of technology. Teens will have their own “hang out” spot. Four adjacent study rooms of various sizes will help students complete their homework. The Children’s Library will increase in size. In the expanded space, families will enjoy story times among the books in an area comfortably furnished. Early literacy stations will be added to the expanded picture book room for preschoolers. Set apart from the children’s area, the Adult Library will become a quiet reading sanctuary with views, natural light, and comfortable seating. Finally, state-of-the-art, technology-based learning experiences will be offered in the Discovery Center. The new library and discovery center will feature programs covering a wide range of interests, from basic literacy and computer operation to writing code and building robots.
The new Parks and Recreation Hub will provide flexible, adaptable classrooms and meeting rooms, in addition to specialized activity spaces to allow customized programs. The largest activity space will be larger than the current Social Hall. The new Social Hall will have storage for tables and chairs, as well as dividers so that smaller activities can also be offered while maximizing space utilization. The dance studios will be larger with appropriate flooring and adjacent dressing rooms. Classrooms will be designed for young children with adjacent restrooms to expand programming and will provide safety and operational control for staff supervising the children. A teaching kitchen will allow for cooking classes that can accommodate more students. Classrooms equipped with sinks, floor drains, and durable furnishings and finishes will allow for “messy” art and other creative activities. The combination of adjacent classrooms and meeting rooms will accommodate small conferences and meetings that require a lecture area and break-out rooms. There will be several small music conferences and meetings that require a lecture area and break-out rooms. There will be several small music rooms for piano, guitar, voice, or other types of music instruction.
Phase Three
The Fire facility will include three apparatus bays, storage, living and dining areas, separate sleeping quarters for males and females, administrative offices, and 14 parking spaces for staff and public. These functional areas will provide the best environment for our fire employees and apparatus to efficiently and safely serve our community.
Recent Project Outreach
The SmithGroup is the project master architect, selected by City Council in early 2018. The master architect team has been working on understanding the project goals, conducting outreach to understand the desires of our community, and preparing Master Plan options for City consideration. Outreach focused on program validation, and obtaining public input regarding design preferences and user experiences. The following meetings were held with City Council, Commissions, Committees and at special events:
• City Council Study Sessions
• Parks and Recreation Commission (including Friends of Parks and Recreation)
• Library Commission (including Friends of Library)
• Planning Commission
• Cultural Arts Commission
• Bike and Pedestrian Committee
• Measure W Citizens’ Oversight Committee
• Design Review Board
• Neighborhood and Focus Group Meetings
• State of the City Address/Townhall Meeting
• Streets Alive! Parks Alive!
Outreach was supplemented with printed information, surveys, website information, social media and email blasts.
ZONING CONSISTENCY ANALYSIS
The proposed Police Facility is located in the El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue Mixed Use High Density zoning district (ECR/C-MXH), which was designed to promote new mixed use development and community support facilities. Standards governing height, floor area ratio, density, setbacks, and active frontage apply to the property and the applicant has provided an analysis of their project and the required zoning (Attachment 2). The security requirements of the new building have caused three zoning standards, listed below, to not be met. However, these requirements are eligible for approval of a Waiver and Modification by the Chief Planner pursuant to Chapter 20.510 of the Municipal Code:
1. Minimum Building Height of 40 feet along Chestnut Avenue.
(SSFMC Table 20.270.004-2)
The project would be 32 feet at the parapet, and the height has been constrained by the need for a low-level secure facility.
2. A minimum of 65% of the frontage along El Camino Real and Chestnut Avenue shall be devoted to active uses.
(SSFMC § 20.270.005(B)(1))
The project’s security needs preclude this requirement, and no active space is intended beyond entrances to the Police Station.
3. Building transparency and required openings of a minimum of 60% of building facades facing streets and comprised of clear, non-reflective windows that allow views of indoor space between 2 and 12 feet above the sidewalk.
(SSFMC § 20.270.005(D)(1))
The project’s security needs preclude this requirement, which otherwise may endanger Police Station staff.
Because this location has been identified and controlled by the City for the purposes of a community facility, the Chief Planner has made the findings that the Project’s security requirements support a Waiver of these three zoning standards . (SSFMC § 20.510.002(C)(3), (6)-(8).) The Police Station’s requirements for security and staff safety should be prioritized over zoning standards primarily intended for mixed use buildings with a retail or other active use on the ground floor.
Pursuant to the required findings for a waiver or modification in Section 20.510.003, the Chief Planner found the following as set forth in Draft Findings of Approval (Attachment 1):
1. The waiver or modification of the minimum building height, active use requirement on the ground floor, and building transparency and required openings is necessary due to the security needs of the Police Facility, which must balance operation and public access with safety for the Police staff and administration;
2. There are no alternatives to the requested waiver or modification of the minimum building height, active use requirement on the ground floor, and building transparency and required openings that could provide an equivalent level of benefit to the applicant with less potential detriment to surrounding owners and occupants or to the general public, given the unique operation needs of a Police Facility; and
3. The granting of the requested waiver or modification would not be detrimental to the health or safety of the public or the occupants of the property or result in a change in land use or density that would be inconsistent with the requirements of this title, and in fact, such waiver or modification will promote safety of occupants and users of the Police Facility.
With respect to parking, seventy-two secured surface parking spaces with cover will be provided. The parking spaces will allow for fleet parking and police employee parking. At times, when shift transitions are heavy, police employees will need to utilize parking in nearby areas. Retaining surface parking rather than a structure has reduced construction costs and provided land to develop the motorcycle, administrative, and impound storage building at the center of the site. The current facility has approximately 40 parking spaces and has had a similar arrangement; however, the new building should be better equipped for peak period parking demand. The Community Civic Campus’ overall parking strategy will share unsecured spaces, and given the proximity to the South San Francisco BART station and shift schedule of the Police Department, parking for the new station should be adequate. Parking will be managed by two automatic gates, and the exit from Chestnut Avenue will be for emergency vehicles only to provide two-way, east-west exits.
Architecturally, the building takes design and material cues from the under-design of the Civic Campus but incorporates the security and functional needs of the Police Department. There is appropriate plane change and articulation, and the corner of the property is anchored by a flag plaza that will be up-lit. Security lighting and landscaping have been designed to scale the building but also preserve view corridors for Police staff and users. To the maximum extent possible, the Police Station has included windows and transparency on the ground level to leverage a welcoming façade and still preserve safety requirements.
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY ANALYSIS
The El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue Area Plan envisioned a combination of new private development and public buildings on these parcels, and the General Plan was updated to incorporate this vision. The General Plan designates this parcel as El Camino Real Mixed Use North, High Intensity, a designation intended to accommodate high-intensity active uses and mixed-use development. The following uses are permitted in this zoning designation: retail and department stores; eating and drinking establishments; hotels; commercial recreation; financial, business, and personal services; residential; educational and social services; and office uses. Government offices are a permitted use under this designation.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The Environmental Impact Report (EIR) prepared for the Project (Community Civic Campus Phases I-III including the Police Station, Shared Parks and Recreation/Library/Council Chambers facility, and replacement Fire Station) was a Subsequent EIR (SEIR), which specifically considers whether the Project would result in new significant impacts not identified in the 2011 El Camino Real/Chestnut Avenue (ECR/C) Area Plan EIR, or if the Project would cause a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified significant impacts. The SEIR reviewed the Project and its potential environmental impacts, and otherwise relies on the analysis and conclusions of the previous 2011 ECR/C Area Plan EIR .
The Draft Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (DSEIR) for the Project was made available for public review and comment on July 12, 2017, for the mandatory 45-day review period. The comment period closed on August 28, 2017, and the City held a public hearing at the August 17, 2017 Planning Commission hearing, for verbal comments. Received comments and responses have were published in the Final Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (FSEIR) and both documents are available for review on the City’s website at the following link: <http://weblink.ssf.net/weblink/0/fol/341385/Row1.aspx>. The Planning Commission considered the DSEIR at a public hearing on November 16, 2017 and recommended approval to the City Council. The City Council considered and adopted the DSEIR on December 13, 2017. Together, the DSEIR and FSEIR constitute the SEIR for the Project.
As noted above, the purpose of the SEIR was to identify any new significant or more severe environmental impacts than those disclosed in the 2011 ECR/C EIR. There were no instances where the Project would result in a significant environmental impact. The proposed Project is expected to generate significantly fewer project trips in the morning and evening peak hours for vehicle use, and fewer daily vehicle trips than assumed in the analysis in the original 2011 ECR/C EIR. Existing mitigation measures in place for the 2011 ECR/C EIR will still apply and appropriate new mitigations were introduced to reduce likely impacts of the Project. As part of the overall Project evaluated under the 2017 SEIR, the Police Station has been fully analyzed and is consistent with CEQA requirements.
FISCAL IMPACT
This item has no impact on the City budget and relies on Measure W funding with a project budget of $210 million. Budget for design has already been approved by City Council through the annual budget approval process.
CONCLUSION
Staff recommends that the Planning Commission, by motion, accept the Design Review and Waivers and Modifications request recommended by the Chief Planner for zoning standards, and provide schematic design comments for the City Council’s consideration, subject to the attached Findings of Approval per Title 20 of the South San Francisco Municipal Code.
Attachments
1. Findings of Approval
2. Zoning Conformance Checklist
3. Project Plans