Housing project rejected by city panel

Developer, who hopes to build 13 homes near I-680, will appeal to the council

FREMONT >> A proposed housing development in Warm Springs that has drawn the ire of its neighbors has been shot down by the Fremont Planning Commission, and the developer group promises to appeal the rejection to the Fremont City Council.

Omaha Fremont, LLC, an investment group mainly backed by Gilroy-based Wanmei Properties, is proposing to build 13 homes on a long-vacant, 6.8-acre sloping piece of land off Omaha Way that backs up to Interstate 680. They all would be two-story, four-bedroom homes ranging in size from 2,181 square feet to 3,106 square feet, city reports said.

For approval, the project would require exceptions from the city because the average outdoor noise levels caused by the freeway nearby would exceed standard limits for development for all but one of the homes, and two of the homes would exceed the special exception noise limit of 65 decibels.

The plans also would require the property to be rezoned to account for some minor changes from the development standards such as lot width, city reports said.

The commission ultimately denied the project after a roughly

two-hour hearing and discussion earlier this month largely because of the noise and in part because of the needed zoning changes.

“I think this is a creative project,” Commissioner Robert Daulton said to developer during the Feb. 11 meeting. “I think in a lot of ways you guys have done commendable work in trying to take advantage of a very difficult site, but the noise alone is enough for me to recommend to … deny this project.”

The vote to deny the project was 6-1 in favor, with Commissioner Craig Steckler voting against the denial.

“I think this issue of how close it is to the freeway and the sound mitigation, I don’t doubt that it’s legitimate, but people that are buying these homes are going to be made aware of that,” Steckler said just before the vote. “So if they want to buy them, they can buy them. But this isn’t something that is out of the ordinary for us or any other city.”

Some commissioners also raised concerns during the meeting about the outdoor air pollution in the area, which would exceed regional and city thresholds for cancer risks. The developer proposed putting specialized air filtration systems in each home to help cut the risk, which city staffers said would be an acceptable plan, but it didn’t convince the commission.

“As a commission, we have to think, what are the long-term ramifications as to building these properties that are so close to the freeway where we somehow, I almost feel like we overlook these things in regard

to the sound and the air pollution,” Commission Chair Ben Yee said at the Feb. 11 meeting. “Because these residents, if these homes are built, are the ones who are going to have to live with it.”

One of the ways the developer tried to address outdoor noise on the two noisiest lots was by proposing that a “California room” be built, which city reports described as “a covered, indoor-outdoor space integrated into the primary floor of each home” that would reduce the sound by roughly 5 to 8 decibels, bringing it into acceptable levels.

Commissioner Kathryn McDonald said she wasn’t convinced by the various measures the developer proposed to approve putting homes up in the area.

“We know that the noise and air pollution issues are significant. I don’t know how we can say it’s OK for these 13 homes to be (built) knowing they have to put in positive air pressure into these homes with the filtration system to make sure that we don’t cause cancer or whatever it might be,” McDonald said. “And then we have to accept that the homeowners are going to be diligent and know enough to maintain the filters and filtration systems. That’s a big ask.”

She also took issue with the outdoor room to cut down on noise on two lots.

“To build a California room to invite these people to spend time outdoors where the air quality we know is so bad doesn’t seem like mitigation at all. It seems that we’re putting them into the worst possible scenario,” she said. “We’re putting people’s health at risk.”

Hayes Shair, who represents the development

group, said his group will appeal the decision because it feels the commissioners “abused their discretion” in their decision.

“Our team has provided a plethora of evidence to suggest that our project both complies with local zoning but also mitigates any potential impacts,” he said in an interview. “I believe that the Planning Commission acted inappropriately in handing down a decision that was based on personal opinion as opposed to objective fact.”

Residents who live across the street from the site and nearby also have raised a series of concerns, including that the development could increase the noise, odor and pollution they experience from the nearby freeway by removing some of the hill that buffers the area and putting homes there.

They formed a group called Save Omaha Way Hills and hired a law firm to push back against the project and to request that more environmental review be conducted before any building is allowed.

Some also said the new homes could block their views.

“I can stand out in my backyard … walk out from my French windows and I can actually see the hill at the back and I can see a wonderful sunrise,” one man said during the meeting.

“I might be still able to see the sunrise after it comes up a couple of feet,” he said, “but I think that’s going to be a major challenge.”

City staffers didn’t immediately say when the City Council will consider the appeal.