The City of San Jose held a community input meeting on Dec 11, 2017.
Public notice is posted here: http://www.sanjoseca.gov/documentcenter/view/73561
At the meeting, the developer announced changes to the plans - 168-178 rooms instead of 132 rooms, and 7 stories instead of 6 stories, plus 4 underground levels of parking. There will be 99 parking spaces, for 168 rooms, which implies many guests will be parking in the neighborhood streets.
Unfortunately, the community must remain vigilant even after a developer presents "plans", as they are frequently upsized, even though in private emails below Marriot and developer lobbyist Erik Schoennauer stated that 6 stories was financially feasible. We applaud the neighborhood and Cupertino Mayor Paul for representing the community at the meeting.
Scott Herhold (Mercury News) published a commentary about lobbyist Erik Schoennauer encouraging San Jose staff to not play nice with neighbors.
Previously we shared about Erik Schoennauer, the San Jose "hired-gun" developer lobbyist who is representing the hotel developer who is proposing to build a hotel on a tiny parcel at Stern and Stevens Creek Blvd. Take note of some choice quotes from an email exchange between lobbyist Schonennauer and city staff in justifying the setback changes:
The plans are posted here. (Note as of Dec 2017, these are now outdated, as the hotel is now 7 stories)
A new 6 7 story, 90 foot tall hotel is proposed at Stern and Stevens Creek Blvd, at the current Shell gas station, the "gateway" to the Stevens Creek Urban Village bordering Cupertino's Rancho Rinconada neighborhood. The property is only 0.4 acres at 5956 Stevens Creek Blvd - how can a 90 foot tall 7 story hotel be built without intruding on the privacy of the neighboring residences?
A Cupertino Planning Commissioner claims it has not been announced, so residents have no cause for concern. Evidently this planning commissioner either doesn't believe what residents have heard, or hasn't bothered to verify. Below is the information we have to date - we will continue to post as more information is released:
>>> good evening, Chair Abelite, members of the commission. I'm Erik Schoennauer. I represent the Oliver family at the corner of Stevens Creek and Stern, which is the e-mail that i sent you all about the commercial adjacency challenge. I strongly encourage the commission to adopt the two recommended changes by staff tonight. Those resolved the issues of concern that we had so we very much thank staff for listening and proposing a solution that will work and just briefly on the screen is the Oliver family's service station. And we want to take a gas station. Imagine this, getting rid of a gas station and building an A.C. Marriott Hotel at the gateway to the Stevens Creek Urban Village. With this plan and with the policies in it, we will be able to achieve that on the site and look forward to doing that later in the year. Thank you.
To make a hotel work on such a small parcel, they would like to build very tall, but that isn't possible if the original proposed setback standards were followed. So, they got staff to make it a guideline instead of a standard. That's why he thanked the city staff at the May 24th San Jose planning commission meeting. Below is a summary of the revisions presented by city staff to accommodate the hotel developer.
https://www.corporationwiki.com/California/La-Jolla/oliver-hotel-group-llc/47369485.aspx
https://www.yatedo.com/p/Hunter+Oliver/normal/b07fc58ed31e75152c2dacdddb0404b1
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hunter-oliver-4477555/
http://www.delmartimes.net/sddmt-carmel-valley-new-hotel-restaurants-planned-2015jan27-story.html
The developer's lobbyist Erik Schoennauer likely doesn't come cheap. Just look at his history:
In a regular Saturday morning phone call, Mayor Sam Liccardo seeks advice from two registered lobbyists, two former city councilmen and a San Francisco consultant — a “kitchen cabinet” he’s taken pains to hide from the public.
Liccardo’s private conference call ... includes ... land use lobbyist Erik Schoennauer...
Satisfying demand by supplanting low-density real estate with taller, more populated mixed-use developments casts existing tenants into a brutal market. Nowhere is that problem more pronounced right now than at The Reserve, where some 670 residents have less than a year to get out. By the city’s count, it appears to be the largest eviction in Silicon Valley history—possibly the state’s... only households making less than 80 percent of the region’s median income qualify [for assistance]. The 40 or so units that meet the threshold stand to gain three months’ rent, a refunded security deposit and help from a “relocation specialist” to scout out a new place. Tenants who are older than 62, disabled or have at least one child who lives with and depends on them get another $3,000. “This was voluntary on our part,” says Greystar lobbyist Erik Schoennauer. ... “I really don’t characterize this as a negotiation,” Schoennauer says. “I would characterize it as a dialogue. We’re volunteering to do this.”
Rocketship’s registered Lobbyist, Erik Schoennauer has two main clients: Bay 101 Casino and Rocketship Education. We at StopRocketship.com are concerned that he may not always have the best interests of the community at heart.