Office, R&D Proposed for Winchester Boulevard and Albright Way

With only four members of the Los Gatos Planning Commission present, a large parcel of land where the Los Gatos Business Park is located and where could possibly expand in the future, was recommended for only office space and research and development uses. 

The recommendation on what to do with the 21.6-acre site at the intersection of Albright Way and Winchester Boulevard passed by a 2-1 vote, with Planning Commission Chairwoman Marico Sayoc and Commissioner Joanne Talesfore  voting in favor and Commissioner Charles Erekson voting against. Commissioner Marcia Jensen abstained. 

The rest of the commissioners: Thomas O'Donnell, Jane Ogle and John Bourgeois were absent Tuesday evening.

The recommendation will now be considered by the Los Gatos Town Council on June 20.

A motion made by Erekson recommending office/R&D uses and senior housing on the land failed due to lack of support.

Opinions came from every end of the spectrum on what to do with the land which has 10 parcels, including eight one-story and two two-story research and development buildings and office buildings. The buildings were constructed in the mid 1970s and would be razed to make way for developer John R. Shenk and landowner  Mike White, Huetigg & Schromm Inc. to develop it into offices and research and development uses.

Los Gatos-based Netflix, one of the leading movies-by-mail businesses in the world, has expressed an interest in expanding its buildings on the property and the company is already leasing some space at the Los Gatos Business Park, 141 Albright Way.

Other proposals on the table Tuesday evening included multi-family and senior housing.

The public expressed concern over the height of the proposed office buildings, traffic on Winchester Boulevard and the effect on schools if housing was built on the site.

The original 85 feet building height proposed extended over the 35 feet limit enforced by the town, with few exceptions such as Netflix's current headquarters.

Netflix General Counsel David Hyman and Shenk asked for the future buildings located on the property to be at least five stories high at roughly 85 feet tall.

“For us it is very important to have that. It is a significant consideration for us in what's available and how we can operate,” Hyman said.

But the public saw things differently. Though they generally appreciated the business that Netflix has brought to the town, five stories was too high of a departure from the town's aesthetics, they said.

Town engineer and Parks and Public Works Assistant Director Kevin Rohani said the traffic situation is workable and studies show that congestion on Winchester Boulevard would still be above the operating minimum.

By the end of the meeting, Sayoc made a motion to use the roughly 550,000 square feet of land for office and research and development use only, leaving out multi-family and senior housing. She also limited any building height on the property to 55 feet.

“If I'm looking strictly at deciding what's the best land use, I believe it's office use," Sayoc said.

Community Development Department Director Wendie Rooney believes such use is the driving force behind the deal in the first place.

“I think the best use of the land is definitely office and research and development, however, the town understands the property owner's desire to maximize their flexibility and uses," Rooney said.