The Campbell Reporter
News
Council addresses issues with the industrial zone
By Cathy Weselby
Auto repair shops and gymnast camps don't mix. So say city leaders, who are concerned about the influx of recreational users to the city's industrial zone in recent years.
The Campbell City Council met in a study session on Feb. 5 to explore ways to discourage mixing crowds and recreational activities with potentially dangerous chemicals in light industrial areas, such as Dell Avenue and McGlincy Lane.
The proposal that had the council's unanimous support involved the creation of specific guidelines that would further restrict recreational and assembly uses in the industrial zone. These standards would be applied at the beginning of the permit application process. Some of the proposed guidelines include: restrictions on concentrations of uses within 300 feet of each other, allowing temporary permits that would be up for review in two years and capping the total number of assembly and recreational uses allowed in industrial zones.
Low rents and empty warehouse-style buildings are attracting more non-industrial businesses to the industrial areas of Campbell.
Since 2004, the planning commission has been asked to review five conditional-use permit applications for recreational uses in industrial zone locations.
Some tenants, such as West Valley Gymnastics, have been operating in the industrial area since 1987. Others, such has South Bay Elite, a cheerleading group, was denied a permit in 2006 to continue operating at its Dell Avenue location because the site was next to an auto-repair shop and hazardous materials were a concern.
"We've struggled in the past with the compatibility of these uses," Councilman Joe Hernandez said. "I like the option of establishing guidelines for the permitting process because it gives us flexibility for the short term with the option of revisiting for the long range."
Mayor Don Burr said the need for recreational spaces won't go away and said he also favored the guidelines and the idea of a conditional use permit with a two- or three-year limit.
Councilman Dan Furtado pointed out that many businesses use chemicals that are potentially hazardous, but not necessarily dangerous unless spilled.
"Let's not overreact," said Furtado, who favored leaving things as is or instituting conditional-use permits with three-year restrictions.
Both Furtado and Councilwoman Jane Kennedy expressed concerns about non-industrial uses diluting the viability of the industrial zone by making them less attractive to prospective tenants and property owners.
"When I was reviewing the General Plan, I thought it was important to preserve the industrial uses, especially along Dell Avenue and McGlincy Lane," Furtado said.
Kennedy said she was concerned about the potential loss of sales tax if industrial uses were pushed out.
Acting community development director Jackie Young Lind said city planners have researched what other cities have done with this issue. Santa Clara and Mountain View use the same case-by-case permitting process that Campbell currently uses, although Mountain View is in the process of amending its zoning code. Los Gatos also requires a conditional-use permit, but prohibits these uses in its heavy industrial zone. San Jose and Milpitas require risk assessment reports for all non-industrial uses proposed in an industrial zone.
As a next step, city officials will submit a policy proposal for the planning commission's review.