Planning Commission Meeting – 1/13/2009
UPDATED: Please visit Dublin Townhall to read a summary of Tuesday night’s Planning Commission meeting.
The Planning Commission will be meeting on Tuesday night at 7pm in the City Council Chambers at 100 Civic Plaza. Tuesday night’s meeting will cover many key items and should have at least one heated discussion on a request to allow a homeowner to operate a 16-person boarding house in Dublin Ranch.
Boarding House in Dublin Ranch
Iroonet America, Inc. has been operating a 16-resident boarding house in Dublin Ranch on Oakhurst Court without the necessary Conditional Use Permit. The boarders living at the Iroonet home are exchange students from South Korea that are attending private schools in the area such as Quarry Lane and Valley Christian. Iroonet has now requested a Conditional Use Permit to operate the boarding house and a reduction in the requirement to provide 6 on-site parking spaces in support of a 7-bedroom boarding house. This is sure to be a controversial decision based on the many Oakhurst Court neighbors that have written letters and made phone calls in objection to Iroonet’s Conditional Use Permit request.
Edge Gymnastics Training Center
Edge Gymnastics has requested a Conditional Use Permit to operate their business at 6780 Sierra Court. Edge Gymnastics’ location is actually nestled in a light industrial park, so they need to receive the Planning Commission’s approval to operate an indoor recreational facility. In addition to providing gymnastics training for kids 1-18 years of age, Edge also hosts gymnastics meets and birthday parties on Saturdays and Sundays.
The City of Dublin has entered into an agreement to purchase the old 84 Lumber property on Scarlett Court (right along I-580 and next to the U-Haul and Dublin Volkswagen sites) for $11.5M less than what the Council initially expected to pay for a maintenance yard facility. The Planning Commission will decide on Tuesday night whether or not the City of Dublin’s nearly executed purchase is in conformity with Dublin’s General Plan requirements.
Please contact Dublin’s Planning Department at 925-833-6610 or planning.mgr@ci.dublin.ca.us if you have any related questions or feedback related to these items.
12:31 PM on January 12th, 2009
Wow, a boarding house? Once we allow one we must allow other similiar use that comes along. Nothing can devalue a home ro a neighborhood more than this type of use. Regardless of the intent and type of occupants, regardless if it was for a good cause or not. A soup kitchen is for a good cause but it too does not have any business in a residential neighborhood, much like this boarding house. I hope our Planning Commission for once protect our fellow homeowners and Dubliners on this issue. It could happen to any of us if the City starts to allow such uses. With all the forclosed homes on the market at bargain prices, you will see more of this as it is financially feasible for individuals to buy these properties for such use.
As a fellow Dubliner and Homeowner I will stand with these neighbors that are in opposition to the boarding house. We need to unite and protect the integrity of our neibhborhoods, otherwise these noncomforming uses will start to pop up all over town.
12:37 PM on January 12th, 2009
I’m glad the City will have the opportunity to save money on the acquisition of the maintenance yard.
Hopefully they will spend the money saved to make it a good looking first class facitily that does not look like a typical maintenance yard, also improvements to the area such as street lighting and utility undergrounding. This parcel is in a highly visible location. Ideally though a maintenance facility should be back further and out of sight, like on Gleason near Santa Rita. This plot may be too valuable for this use, maybe the City can temporarily use it and then sell it once the economy picks up and auto dealers are expanding again.
5:09 PM on January 12th, 2009
Re: “This parcel is in a highly visible location. Ideally though a maintenance facility should be back further and out of sight, like on Gleason near Santa Rita. This plot may be too valuable for this use, maybe the City can temporarily use it and then sell it once the economy picks up and auto dealers are expanding again.”
Thank you, Señor Anónimo — I agree with almost everything you said. This land is very close to the East Dublin Transit Center and should eventually comprise part of a pedestrian-friendly mixed-use TOD. The strategic plot should serve a purpose appropriate for the location, namely housing, lodging, office or retail, and not as a bargain maintenance yard. Just because the vicinity is ugly today doesn’t mean it should remain that way forever. And please — no more vehicle dealers, storage, rental equipment, etc.; this is the wrong place for such businesses.
Tim Hall
Dublin, CA
tiger650@comcast.net
10:33 AM on January 13th, 2009
Thanks Tim, you do have a point about any addition vehicle dealers. Dealers do bring in some needed tax revenue to the city as they are big ticket items, well not now with the economy the way it is but in normal time it does. Although I agree with the preference for other uses in the area instead of more dealers, I’d rather see auto dealers instead of maintenance yards, storage facilities, car service shops “mechanical/body”, U-haul, equipment rental, RV rentals etc…
Along with auto dealers, these are all CODs (Car Oriented Developments) right next to BART. It would be a shame to allow the area to remain and further develop as a COD instead of a TOD. I see Offices, Residential and small scale retail as best uses for the area to complement/add to the Transit Village being built just east of it. People can actually use BART/Mass Transit to get to their jobs and or homes at the Vilage. Unlike the high density developments built or planned on the Eastern side of Dublin.
I put auto dealers as an alternative only for that there are 3 there already, it would be nice to see the last two dealers downtown move out here to free up valuable redevelopable parcels in Downtown near the West Dublin BART. Also a few dealers clustered together will help the dealers already there with added visibility. Sort of a Dublin Auto Mall West (Scarlett) and a Dublin Auto Mall East (GM and Toyota). This way we’ll have dealers concentrated into two areas of the City instead of spread out all over, not to mention the old Toyota parcel as it may become another dealer which I prefer not.
12:49 PM on January 14th, 2009
I wasn’t able to go to the Planning Commission meeting last night. Anyone know of the result of the Boarding House conditional use permit request? I hope the Commission did the right thing for a change and denied it. Otherwise we’d would have set precedent for more of these in a house near you, maybe next door to you.
12:56 PM on January 14th, 2009
Hi Anonymous – the Planning Commission denied the CUP request without prejudice last night. I’ll be providing a summary of Boarding House item on Dublin Townhall later tonight.
Thx, John Z.
5:51 PM on January 15th, 2009
Great news, thank John!
1:05 PM on March 18th, 2009
This statement is inaccurate: “Iroonet America, Inc. has been operating a 16-resident boarding house in Dublin Ranch on Oakhurst Court without the necessary Conditional Use Permit.”. They applied for a permit – they have now received a conditional permit for 6 students + support staff. The house is not current operational.