Last week Cupertino City Council’s first round of General Plan amendment “authorizations” saw two projects hit a wall. Now property owners might be taking matters into their own hands in a city that has seen a resident uprising against perceived over development.
KT Urban has filed its intention with the city on Feb. 9 to circulate a petition to try and get voters to bypass the city council and approve its ambitious mixed use project that would radically change The Oaks Shopping Center located across the street from De Anza College, near Memorial Park.
Last week, the council voted 4-1 to stop cold the project as well as a hotel project by De Anza Properties. Both projects would require General Plan amendments and the council’s Feb. 2 public hearing was the first time the council tried out its new system for reviewing General Plan-altering projects before developers begin working with city staff.
KT Urban is seeking to redevelop The Oaks Shopping Center into a mixed-use site with two 60-foot buildings and one 45-foot building, 280,000 square feet of office space, more than 47,500 square feet for commercial use, 200 residential units and a 200-room hotel. Of the housing units, 70 age-restricted senior units were proposed, with 30 of them classified as affordable/below market rate.
The other project, by De Anza Properties and John Vidovich, proposes to replace the Goodyear Tire retailer at 10931 N. De Anza Blvd. with a nine-story hotel with 270 rooms, a restaurant and 5,727 square feet of space for meetings, conferences and banquets.
After taking a week to digest the council decision, KT Urban submitted to the city clerk’s office a letter stating “the existing Oaks Shopping Center sits at the western gateway to the heart of downtown. Built in the 1970s, it has become an aged and obsolete retail center that no longer adequately serves the community.”
Proponents of the “Citizens Initiative to Revitalize the Oaks Shopping Center” will need to collect signatures from 10 percent of registered Cupertino voters in 180 days to qualify the initiative for the June or November ballot.
The Oaks initiative comes a week after the Cupertino Residents for Sensible Zoning Action Committee submitted more than 4,000 signatures to the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters. The group is hoping to get a measure of their own on the June ballot that, if approved by voters, would give residents a vote on General Plan amendments as well as restrict the Vallco Shopping District to just its retail, hotel, dining and entertainment commercial uses unless voters choose to modify those uses.
Mark Tersini, principal of KT Urban, responded to a request for comment from the Courier with a statement.
“Now that the ground rules have been established, we are proud to take our ballot initiative for smart, sustainable growth to the voters,” he said.
The Oaks notice of intent makes passing mention of the Cupertino Residents for Sensible Zoning Action Committee initiative and any conflicts the two may create.
“In the event that there is a competing measure on the same ballot that would prohibit, limit or restrict the development of the Oaks Gateway project approved by this measure, and both measures are approved by the voters, the voters hereby declare that they desire the provisions of this measure to prevail over the conflicting measure, regardless of the number of votes cast for either measure, as this measure is limited and specific to a single parcel of land and the competing measure is more broadly applicable to development in the entire city,” the notice of intent states. “The provisions of this initiative which are not in conflict with other competing measures, as approved by Cupertino voters, shall also prevail and shall be valid.”
The Oaks and Goodyear Tire projects received mixed reviews from residents and the council when it was presented Feb. 2. The council seemed interested in having tweaked versions of the project return in the future.
Developers can resubmit their projects during the next General Plan amendment consideration cycle, which is expected to be in six months.
