The Tree Farm project is officially under way. After a five-hour joint meeting of the Los Altos Planning Commission and City Council, the Tree Farm developers, with a 4-1 council vote Jan. 6, received a go-ahead of phase one final design review of their $44 million to $48 million project.
With approval of the project footprint - the basic building design and site layout for the 87 condominiums and 95,000-square-foot three-story office building - the developers may now "move ahead with the structural design work," said Jim Mackenzie, senior planner with Los Altos.
And they may apply for permits: for demolition of existing buildings, grading, excavation and tree work.
In addition to the site layout, council also OK'd a 10-foot concrete perimeter wall, a tree removal and protection plan. Council members put off to phase two design review the decisions about swimming pool location and pool noise mitigation.
Councilman Francis La Poll was the lone no vote for the project. He asked for more public benefit, than eight below-market-rate condos, for granting the variance to allow a third story on the office building.
"The average person receives no public benefit for a very significant variance," La Poll said.
He wanted the developer to dedicate a piece of the 4.7-acre project to a public park.
Others did not agree.
The developers "will pay our park fee, per our ordinance, for eight affordable units," said planning commissioner Jeff Warmoth. "That's enough."
Lengthy discussion at the meeting centered around how high to build the wall enclosing the Tree Farm.
Most of the neighbors who addressed council wanted a 12-foot wall.
One neighbor objected. "It's going to look like a fort," he told the council.
The developers requested a lower wall.
At 12 feet, "It makes the project into a walled compound," said developer Beverly Brockway. "It should be a part of Los Altos. It should have an openness.
"I hope the people who move into the condos aren't going to feel they're not a part of Los Altos," she said.
The council and commissioners agreed and scaled the wall back to 10 feet in some areas and lower in others.
Once the structural designs are complete, the developers can order the steel for the office building.
There's a 22- to 26-week wait on steel, said developer John Challas.
The condos will be "sticks and stucco," he said, and will be built after the office building.
Once excavation starts, 4,500 loads of dirt will need to come out for the 174 underground parking spaces.
This is the largest project ever to come before the Los Altos City Council and the first time the city has done a phased design review.
The second phase of review will include exterior details, building materials and colors, exterior lighting plans, decorative paving details.
The developers expect the project to be complete by June 1999.