Vallco Site Gets Plan B Option From Cupertino

CUPERTINO, CA — In the home of the world's most valuable company and building, the Cupertino City Council has paved the way for a new mixed-use, multi-family development at the Vallco Shopping District site if the contentious SB 35 project fails to progress.

The majority of the City Council enacted two ordinances Tuesday establishing standards for residential and commercial development for the 50-acre, former Vallco location that's been the subject of consternation, debate and even a showdown with the state over meeting housing guidelines.

According to the city: "This is just the first step in an ongoing process to ensure much needed housing can be built at the site."

The City Council’s vote followed an Aug. 20 decision allowing residential development "by-right" on 13.1 acres of the Vallco Shopping District special area. These changes allow the property owner to build up to 620 residential units—including state density bonuses for affordable housing—without a specific plan. Previously, the general plan cities use as the blueprint for development required the approval of a specific proposal for the Vallco site before any housing could be built.

The city has been trying to expedite housing in the face of a growing crunch in the San Francisco Bay Area — and in particular the Silicon Valley — which has led to an alarming mass exodus among its residents. The median price for a single-family, stick-built house in Santa Clara County is $1.2 million, a rate affordable for households with some of the highest tech incomes in the South Bay.

The City Council’s decision to rezone a portion of the site is intended to appease a letter from the California Department of Housing and Community Development dictating the need for the city to do more to remain in compliance with state housing law. The fail-safe maneuver was meant as a back-up plan if the current and contemptuous SB 35 project for the Vallco Shopping District special area does not move forward because of court action.

"We appreciate this opportunity to communicate with you. As you are aware, all local
governments face the challenge of balancing competing interests when making land use
decisions," City Manager Deborah Feng wrote in a letter to the state.

The City Council also removed the general plan’s allocation of 2 million square feet of office for the site. While the general plan required a specific proposal before any office development could be built, the Vallco SB 35 project bypassed that community planning process.

The City Council has directed staff to initiate a process to produce a specific plan for the whole Vallco Shopping District region that would include up to 1,500 housing units and reduce the retail allocation to 400,000 square feet. The council also authorized Feng to begin negotiations with the property owner on alternative development plans for the site.