No 'Big Box Development' for North Forty

What would residents like to see built on Los Gatos' last piece of open land planned for development?

Grant you, the roughly 42 acres of land along Los Gatos Boulevard is privately owned, but town officials still want the public to have a say as to what’s developed on the property.

The question was posed to about 60 residents who attended a meeting Saturday morning at  to discuss what the town calls the —open land mostly occupied by walnut trees—bounded roughly by Los Gatos Boulevard to the east, Highway 85 to the north, Lark Avenue to the south and Highway 17 to the west.

The Yuki family owns about 85 percent of the land, or about 32 acres. But now, orchardist Tom Yuki is in negotiations with London-based Grosvenor Americas to purchase the property and develop it into an ambitious multimillion-dollar mixed-use project.

The answers from longtime residents were no tall buildings to obstruct the views of the Santa Cruz Mountains, no urban development, low density housing, preservation of the town's historic character, pedestrian and bicycle-friendly access to trails and bike ways and underground parking. The residents prioritized their preferences with three green dots and their dislikes with two red dots.

Los Gatos Community Development director Wendie Rooney said the Yuki family has an agreement with Grosvenor to sell the property. The Santa Clara County Assessor’s Office has the land valued at $14.4 million. It’s anticipated, however, the developer could pay upwards of $70 million for the land.

Rooney projected construction on the land would start, at the earliest, in 2013. She said the planning process would take about 14 months.

Dave Bohn, 41, who lives near the project by Lark Avenue, said that although he’s worried about traffic and noise impacts, he's encouraged that a mixed-used development could improve the look of Los Gatos Boulevard, which has several empty car dealerships and bring more sales tax revenue to the town.

Doug Carlson, who has lived on Overlook Road for 47 years, said he didn't want "big-box development.”

Others, like Jennifer Kretschmer, were worried about the project’s impact on schools.

Whatever plan the town eventually adopts for the land will have retail, commercial and housing uses with a minimum of 20 percent of affordable housing and cause no adverse traffic impacts, Rooney said. The town’s 2020 General Plan allows up to 750 mixed residential units and 580,000 square feet of retail and offices uses.

Debbie Rudd, with project consultant RRM Design Group, explained the developer will have to take into consideration that the land drops between 10 and 15 feet from Los Gatos Boulevard into the orchard and should have buffers to highways 85 and 17.

Los Gatos Mayor Joe Pirzynski explained the town has formed a special committee to also guide the project.

The North Forty Advisory Committee met for the first time last week at the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Operations Center. The committee is comprised of members of the Los Gatos Town Council, Los Gatos Planning Commission and members of the General Plan Update Committee.

"We want to allow everyone who's interested in the development of the North Forty to come forward and express their views," Pirzynski said. "It's a major project. It's the most important piece of land we have left in town to develop. We want to definitely get it right."

One thing the mayor said he doesn't want the project to do is compete with the downtown. He would also like it to provide missing commercial opportunities and be complementary with Los Gatos Boulevard business owners.

To help them, Pirzynski noted, the committee is reviewing three plans—the Los Gatos Boulevard Plan developed in 1996, a partially completed North Forty Specific Plan developed in 1999 and the 2020 General Plan.

The town is also in the process of preparing an economic study that will look at what services it's lacking and define the characteristics of the town's commercial districts, such as the downtown, the Los Gatos Boulevard area and other shopping centers, Rooney explained.

Don Capobres, vice president for Grosvenor, said his company has designers and architects already working on the project. "Through the Yuki family, we have a significant interest in the North Forty," he said. "We can probably make something really special here and work within the guidelines that are set."

Capobres said Grosvenor has filed an application to move forward with the development.

"We're a long-term hold company. We've been in real estate for 334 years ... We're into longevity. We're into doing things that are timeless," Capobres said, adding that worldwide, the company has $17 billion of real estate assets. 

Capobres said that because of the land's location, within a 10-minute drive time, 400,000-500,000 people could get to the project once it's developed. "It's a great piece of property," he said.

Woody Nedom, 72, who lives on Azalea Way, complained that the town had a plan for the land in 1999, but nothing happened with it. He said a survey given to the residents 11 years ago showed those who live near the project don’t want it developed.

"I didn't know whether attitudes had changed, but it sounds like the town is totally ignoring what the people want and is just plowing along with a plan to develop the North Forty.

"People want it to remain an orchard or these other rural-oriented settings," Nedom said.

Lee Quintana, who's lived in town for 37 years, said that officials may be seeking the public's input to develop the land, but it's going to be developed regardless, because it's private property. "I just hope that the developer will listen carefully to all the ideas presented and actually try to incorporate them."

The next North Forty Advisory Committee meeting will be at 6 p.m. Thursday at Council Chambers. Another public meeting about the project is planned for 6 p.m. May 18.