Category: CTRA Meetings

PA Weekly Article on Wellesley Project

The lead story in today’s Palo Alto Weekly – Housing plan stirs opposition in Palo Alto’s College Terrace – centers on the apartments proposed for the corner of Wellesley Street and College Avenue. The article quotes neighbors in opposition to the project, as well as a representative for the developer, Cato Investment Company, who says Cato is “undertaking a robust community outreach effort and will be holding a community meeting.” As of yet, no date has been set for that meeting, although it is supposed to happen prior to the City Council’s pre-screening of the project (tentatively scheduled for March 25).

The article also summarizes the “battle brewing over R-1 zoning” citywide. It describes Palo Alto’s planned-housing zone (PHZ) process, the projects that have been proposed under PHZ so far, and quotes a pair of city council members (Pat Burt and Mayor Tom DuBois) who believe the PHZ should not apply in single-family neighborhoods.

Teacher Housing Study Session at City Council Tonight

At our December meeting, the CTRA met with representatives working on the proposed teacher housing project at 231 Grant Avenue, located a couple of blocks off California Avenue across the street from the county courthouse. The project offers an exciting opportunity to create new high-quality, and much-needed, rental housing affordable for teachers, school employees, and their families. This new community will include 110 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments, amenity spaces, and landscaped gardens. You can learn more about the project at 231Grant.org.

The City Council will have a study session about this project tonight at 5pm. (Because the land belongs to the County, it won’t go through the City’s process for approval.) There will be additional study sessions to gather community feedback and the CTRA hopes to organize another community meeting in the coming months.

Wellesley Housing Project Plans Submitted

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Thanks to everyone who attended last week’s CTRA board meeting! We had over fifty neighbors in attendance, weighing in with their opinions on the proposed apartments at Wellesley and College. Three neighbors spoke in favor of the project, while 25-30 spoke in opposition.

The project developers, Cato Investment Company LLC, own at least nine properties in College Terrace (including the two on Wellesley) as well as a few others elsewhere in the city. This Monday, the developers submitted their request for a City Council pre-screening to consider their plan to change the zoning at 2239 and 2241 Wellesley from R-1 to PHZ (Planned Housing Zone) in order to accommodate a 24-unit apartment building. View their application and plans here. (Pro tip: visit paloalto.buildingeye.com to see all current planning and building applications in the city. You can also sign up for email alerts.)

We encourage neighbors to review the plans and send their feedback to the City Council at city.council@cityofpaloalto.org. We don’t yet know when the City Council will pre-screen this project (most likely in March or April), but we will notify the neighborhood as soon as we do so neighbors can attend and share their feedback in person.

Real Produce International Market is Open!

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Finally, some good news to end 2020: Real Produce International Market is now open at the corner of El Camino and Oxford Street. This is the market that replaces Khoury’s Market and the College Terrace Market.

Unlike those previous markets, this one has large, colorful signs in the windows and huge bins of beautiful produce out front. Inside you’ll find more produce (including organic), a deli, meat counter, and a wide variety of items you won’t find at other grocery stores in Palo Alto.

Celebrate the New Year by shopping and supporting our new local market!