2026-10-19 - Planning Commission

00:06Good evening.

00:08And welcome to the October 19th, 2026

00:12meeting of the Menlo Park Planning

00:14Commission.

00:15I am Chair Ross Silverstein and I thank

00:17you for joining us this evening.

00:19Established according to state law, the

00:21Planning Commission reviews document

00:23proposals on public and private lands

00:25for compliance with the general plan and

00:27zoning ordinance.

00:28The Commission reviews all development

00:30proposals requiring a use permit,

00:31architectural control, variance, minor

00:33subdivision, and environmental review

00:35associated with these projects. The

00:37Commission is the final decision-making

00:39body for these applications unless

00:40appealed to the City Council.

00:42The Commission also serves as the

00:43recommend recommending body to the City

00:45Council for major subdivision,

00:47rezonings, conditional development

00:49permits, zoning ordinance amendments,

00:50general plan amendments, and the

00:51environmental reviews and below

00:53market-rate housing agreements

00:54associated with those projects.

00:56We encourage your active participation

00:58tonight, whether you're an applicant or

00:59interested member of the public, and

01:01there will be an opportunity to speak

01:03publicly for each specific agenda item,

01:05as well as for general public comment.

01:08With that, I will call the roll.

01:11Vice Chair Borus Lee.

01:12>> Here.

01:14>> Commissioner Hedley.

01:15>> Here.

01:15>> Commissioner Chandler.

01:17>> Here.

01:18>> Commissioner Sullen.

01:19>> Here.

01:20>> And I am present, so we have five

01:23Commissioners in chambers, which is a

01:25quorum with two Commissioners absent.

01:31The next item on our agenda is reports

01:33and announcements. Ms. Sandmeyer, are

01:35there any staff reports or announcements

01:36this evening?

01:38>> Uh yes, good evening, Chair Silverstein

01:40and Commissioners.

01:42Um earlier today I emailed a training

01:45opportunity that may be of interest. Um

01:48it's Planning Commissioners training on

01:50housing laws.

01:51The training is Thursday, October 29th,

01:54and the registration deadline is 1 week

01:56from today on October 26th.

02:00And that concludes my announcements.

02:04>> Do you know if that would be available

02:06as a recording or live stream or is it

02:09have to be in person?

02:13>> Um as far as I'm aware it's not being

02:16recorded. Um

02:18I believe the flyer I sent out has some

02:19contact information, so you may want to

02:22email the organizers, but

02:24as far as I'm aware there's not a

02:25recording.

02:26>> Okay.

02:27Do any commissioners have any questions

02:29for staff or reports or announcements of

02:31their own?

02:34With none, we can move to general public

02:37comment.

02:39Under public comment, the public may

02:40address the commission on any subject

02:42not listed on the agenda. Each speaker

02:44may address the commission once under

02:46public comment for a limit of 3 minutes.

02:48You are not required to provide your

02:49name or city of residence, but it is

02:51helpful. The commission cannot act on

02:53items not listed on the agenda,

02:55and therefore the commission cannot

02:56respond to non-agenda issues brought up

02:58under public comment other than to

02:59provide general information.

03:01Please note if you are here tonight to

03:03comment on one of our agenda items, you

03:06will have a chance to speak when we get

03:07to that item on the agenda.

03:09To learn how to participate, I'm going

03:10to turn to our clerk this evening,

03:12Matthew Ball, to begin our public

03:13comment period.

03:16>> Thank you, Chair Silverstein. Matthew

03:19Ball, assistant planner. If any member

03:21of the public in the council chambers

03:23wishes to provide a public comment,

03:25please provide me with a comment card

03:26from the back table.

03:29If you are joining via Zoom, please

03:30press the hand icon or if calling in,

03:32please press star nine on your keypad

03:34and staff will be notified of your

03:36desire to speak. If multiple people are

03:38speaking from the same account, please

03:40please let us know at the beginning of

03:41your time and we will make sure each

03:44person gets a chance to speak.

03:46This is the final call for public

03:48comment. I'm seeing none, so Chair,

03:51please continue.

03:54>> I will now close public comment

03:56and we'll move to the item E1,

04:00the consent calendar.

04:02Uh tonight item E1 is the approval of

04:04minutes from the October 5th Planning

04:06Commission meeting.

04:08Mr. Ball, can you please open public

04:11comment for item E1?

04:14>> We are now taking public comment for

04:16item E1 and as a reminder for those

04:19participating in person, please provide

04:20me with the speaker card located at the

04:22back table. For those attending

04:25virtually, please press the hand icon

04:27and for those that are dialing in to

04:29tonight's meeting, please click star

04:31nine on your keypad.

04:33And this will be the final call.

04:36We don't have any comment cards, so

04:38please continue.

04:40>> Do any commissioners wish to pull E1

04:42from the consent calendar?

04:45Seeing none, I will call for a show of

04:48hands vote. All in favor?

04:51Passes unanimously.

04:54Now we can move to item F1

04:57regarding a variance at 950 Sherman

05:00Avenue.

05:01At this public hearing, the commission

05:03may consider and adopt a resolution to

05:06to approve four variances to reconstruct

05:08a single-story, single-family residence

05:11with one, a reduction in the required

05:13front setback from 20 ft to

05:14approximately 10.2 ft,

05:17two, a reduction in the required rear

05:19setback from 20 ft to approximately 17.9

05:22ft,

05:23three, a reduction in the required

05:25number of off-street parking spaces from

05:27two

05:28to one uncovered parking space, and

05:31four, placement of the required parking

05:33space

05:34within the front setback

05:36in the R-1U residential zoning district

05:40at 950 Sherman Avenue.

05:42The proposal includes an attached

05:44accessory dwelling unit, which is a

05:45permitted use and not subject to

05:47discretionary review.

05:49We may also determine this action is

05:50categorically exempt under

05:53California Environmental Quality Act

05:55guidelines section 15301's class one

05:58exemption for existing facilities, and

06:0115303's class three exemption for new

06:03construction or conversion of small

06:05structures.

06:06Mr. Chan, are there any updates to the

06:08staff report on this item?

06:11>> Thank you, Chair Silverstein. There are

06:13no updates to the staff report. Staff

06:15would like to note that we have Jeffrey

06:17who is the homeowner here to provide

06:19some opening remarks, as well as

06:20Ashutosh Gupta, who is the architect and

06:23design director with OR Homes, the

06:25applicant, also available for questions.

06:27Thank you.

06:29>> Do you wish to make remarks?

06:37>> Yes, please. And thank you.

06:40Uh

06:41Chair Silverstein, uh commissioners, and

06:44city staff. I am Jeffrey Fenton, the

06:47homeowner at 950 Sherman Avenue.

06:50And I want to thank you for your

06:52consideration of this request, and do

06:55thank the staff for the diligent work

06:57that they have done to prepare for this.

07:01During uh remodeling of my home, I

07:04discovered a significant damage to the

07:07foundation from the 1989 Loma Prieta

07:11earthquake.

07:12The foundation has had to be removed,

07:15and it will have to be replaced in order

07:17to provide a safe foundation for the

07:20home.

07:21Uh in order to uh

07:23be able to restore the home to its

07:26original footprint as a single-story

07:29single-family home, uh

07:31I am requesting the variances that you

07:34have before you.

07:37Uh this uh the new proposed new home

07:40would look better than the original and

07:43be an asset to the community.

07:46And in addition, all of my trees,

07:49including several heritage trees, would

07:52be preserved.

07:54I respectfully request your

07:56consideration and appreciate the

07:59diligence and and work that has been put

08:01into this. Thank you.

08:04>> Thank you.

08:06Do any commissioners have any clarifying

08:08questions for either the applicant or

08:09staff?

08:11Vice Chair Bruzzi.

08:13>> Just a quick one because I was just I

08:14just heard this referred to as a

08:16single-family home, and I'm curious

08:18about the ADU component of it.

08:21>> Yes, it would be considered a

08:23single-family home with an attached ADU.

08:26>> Okay. All right, thank you.

08:31>> Commissioner Saling.

08:33>> Thank you. Um, I would just

08:36I don't

08:37Um,

08:38I might have missed it in the staff

08:39report, or is it the case that the

08:42reason that these variances are required

08:44for the existing building because it was

08:47built before certain zoning codes were

08:49put in place? Um, it's the staff report

08:52says it was built

08:53in 1948.

08:55Um,

08:56so could staff clarify why variances are

08:59required at this point?

09:01>> Yes, thank you for the question, uh,

09:03Commissioner Saling. So, the reason that

09:05this application, in short, is coming to

09:07you is because beginning in 2023, there

09:10was, um, a series of work being

09:12conducted at the property, and the scope

09:14of work from the contractor at the time

09:16exceeded the scope that was understood,

09:19and that led to foundation removal. And

09:22once you remove the foundation of a

09:24structure, essentially, you don't have

09:26that structure anymore in its permitted

09:28location. So, because of that, in order

09:31to restore the the structure to its

09:34original location, the variances are

09:36being requested at this time.

09:39>> Um thank you, but what um I guess

09:44wouldn't this

09:45um residents have required the variances

09:47to be built in the first place?

09:51>> Um we did not look into the variances

09:54from the original construction, but only

09:57to evaluate the project as it is today.

10:00>> Okay, thank you. And um can you also

10:03clarify

10:04why the stop order was issued at the

10:08time?

10:10>> The stop work order was issued because

10:12the original scope of work was for

10:14removal

10:16um of um some very select siding as well

10:19as some um minor structural upgrades,

10:22but what was found

10:24um by our building team at that time is

10:26that the entire foundation was removed

10:28and the house was placed on jacks, so it

10:29was an unsafe condition.

10:31>> Got it. Okay, thank you.

10:35>> Commissioner Schindler.

10:37>> Thank you, Chair. Um I have a general

10:40general question for staff here.

10:43Um

10:44so this this

10:47um

10:48home has unpermitted work according to

10:52the staff report. The

10:55um conversion of the original garage

10:58into two bedrooms happened sometime

11:00between 1948 and 1980. So that's the

11:04unpermitted work I'm referring to.

11:06Um

11:08today

11:10um who's

11:11in when a a home is sold

11:14um how is that information

11:18uh intended to be logged and disclo-

11:21disclosed to your knowledge?

11:25>> Do you mean for this particular home and

11:28project?

11:29>> Um

11:30I I think the answer is generally, but

11:32it would also apply to this home. So, if

11:34if it were sold today,

11:36um for example, is the the owner who's

11:40selling it, or real estate agent, or

11:43some other entity,

11:44um or the city,

11:47um how would the disclosure of

11:49unpermitted work be

11:52raised in the context of a real estate

11:54transaction?

11:56>> Yes, so the city does offer a zoning

11:59compliance service, where someone pays a

12:02small fee and staff researches the

12:03zoning history, and we provide written

12:05documentation of all the permits, and

12:08including code enforcement issues, if

12:10there are any. So, that is available to

12:12the public, and frequently as part of

12:14real estate transactions, we do see

12:15people request those, and we fulfill

12:17that.

12:18>> Got it.

12:19Um so, that's how a potential purchaser

12:21could become aware of um permits that

12:25had been pulled.

12:26Is there a way for a potential purchaser

12:28today to be aware of

12:30unpermitted work?

12:34>> Not unless it were logged somewhere or

12:37recorded. The city would have to be made

12:39aware of the violation, and then it

12:41would be pursued through the code

12:42enforcement process. In terms of any

12:45more current permits, we do have our

12:47online permit system now. So, anything

12:50from I I would say a few years ago to

12:52present to future, everything will be

12:55online.

12:55>> Okay.

12:56Um so, thank you. That's helpful in the

12:58context of today.

12:59Um

13:01to the best of your knowledge, what what

13:04what would have been the case the last

13:05time this property was sold, which was

13:091980, according to the staff report?

13:13>> Um I'm I believe we have our homeowner

13:15here. We can ask what type of

13:17information they received.

13:19>> Great. That would be helpful.

13:20>> And if I may respond to that question,

13:23at the time that I bought the house

13:25in 1980,

13:27uh there was no disclosure of the

13:29unpermitted work uh in the paperwork

13:32from the realtor. And as far as I know,

13:36and I'm I'm not completely certain of

13:39this, but I don't believe that prac- the

13:43typical practice was as careful and

13:46stringent back then as it is today about

13:50disclosing permits and unpermitted work

13:53in a real estate transaction. practices

13:56are much tighter today. It seems to me

13:58it just casually seems to me than they

14:00were used to be 45 years ago.

14:04>> Thank you very much. Um and Mr. Chen, I

14:06just a follow-up question. The process

14:08that you talked about where um

14:12permits could be pulled and and at the

14:15request of a potential purchaser in a

14:17real estate transaction, would that same

14:19process be available to potential

14:22purchaser to identify non-conforming

14:24attributes of um

14:27a parcel?

14:29>> Yes, if someone had that same interest,

14:31um you can apply for the zoning

14:33compliance letter at

14:34menlopark.gov/permitcenter.

14:37>> Okay.

14:38Thank you very much. Um and then my

14:40final If I may clarifying question, um

14:44I think for the applicant or the the

14:46homeowner is

14:47um was OR Homes

14:50um working on this home in December of

14:542023 when the stop work order was issued

14:57by the city.

14:58>> Uh no, a different contractor was

15:01working on the home at that time, and

15:04that contractor stopped the work and has

15:08since performed no significant work.

15:13>> Thank you for clarifying that. Um that's

15:15it for my clarifying questions.

15:17>> Commissioner Hedley.

15:19>> Uh thank Thank I was pleased to see that

15:22a heat pump will be installed and I'm

15:23curious if that one is for heating and

15:25cooling or for a water heater or

15:28or both.

15:29>> I expect it will be for both.

15:33>> Okay, and your architect is nodding. Um,

15:36will you be using gas for any of the

15:37other appliances like the oven and the

15:39cooktop and any fireplace?

15:42>> As I understand it, I am not allowed to

15:46replace the previous wood-burning

15:48fireplace because it's not would not

15:50conform with current

15:53air pollution control requirements. I

15:57don't have any real desire to have even

16:00a gas-burning fireplace. I could

16:03make do with the that Comcast cable

16:07company's

16:09television show of a of a fake log

16:11burning on a TV screen as far as I'm

16:14concerned if it's going to reduce

16:16pollution.

16:17The

16:18uh

16:20stove current cooktop in the kitchen is

16:24uh gas, but I'm I'm probably going to

16:26replace it with electric. The oven is

16:30electric. So, I think I can get to a

16:33point where there would be no gas in the

16:36house.

16:44>> Vice Chair Burzy.

16:47>> I just have a question for staff. Um, I

16:49noticed that the the city council had

16:51gotten some correspondence from a

16:52neighbor in June and

16:56you know, sort of complaining about the

16:57stop work order and sort of the

16:59unfinished state, but I know this had

17:01been y'all had been working with the

17:03applicant for a while during that phase

17:05and I'm just wanting to know if anybody

17:07from the planning department circle back

17:09with the next door neighbor and apprise

17:11them of the meeting this evening or

17:14um, did somebody close that loop?

17:17>> Yes, thank you for the question. As far

17:19as I'm aware, that neighbor or the

17:22concerned person that you're speaking

17:23of, they reached out directly to our

17:25building division, and our building

17:27division staff have been in

17:28communication to update them. Also, our

17:31our development director has as well.

17:36>> And may I add to that that I talked with

17:39the neighbor twice since that point and

17:42also emailed him a picture of the notice

17:46of tonight's meeting, the yellow card,

17:49about 2 weeks ago, and to let him know

17:51that this was definitely on the agenda.

17:54He's not here tonight, but I have kept

17:56him informed.

17:58>> Perfect, that's all. Thank you.

18:01>> Thank you. You may take a seat, Mr.

18:02Benton.

18:04Seeing no further clarifying questions,

18:06can we open up public comment for item

18:08F1, please?

18:11>> [clears throat]

18:12>> We are now taking public comment for

18:14item F1. As a reminder for those

18:16participating in person, please provide

18:18me with the speaker card located at the

18:20back table. And for those calling in to

18:22tonight's meeting, please click star

18:24nine on your keypad to notify staff you

18:27have a comment.

18:28This will now be the final call for item

18:31F1.

18:33And I'm seeing no comments, so please

18:36continue, Chair.

18:39Thank you. Before we get to commission

18:42discussion, I just want to remind

18:44commissioners in the public on the

18:47process and findings for variances.

18:50All this information is in the packet,

18:54but I just want to establish what we

18:57need to find in terms of each of the

18:58four variances.

19:00And our variance ordinance states that

19:03the commission shall grant variances

19:05only when the following findings can be

19:06made. One, that a hardship particular

19:09peculiar to this property and not

19:10created by any act of the owner exists.

19:14Two, that such variance is necessary for

19:16the preservation and enjoyment of

19:18substantial property rights possessed by

19:20other conforming property in the same

19:22vicinity and that a variance if granted

19:24would not constitute a special privilege

19:25of the recipient not enjoyed by his or

19:27her neighbors.

19:28Three, that the granting of the variance

19:31will not materially

19:33will not be materially detrimental to

19:34the public health, safety, or welfare

19:36and will not impair or adequate

19:39or

19:40will not impair an adequate supply of

19:43light and air to adjacent property.

19:45Four, that the conditions upon which the

19:47requested variance is based would not be

19:49applicable generally to other property

19:51within the same zoning classification.

19:53And five, that the condition upon which

19:55the requested variance is based is an

19:58unusual factor that was not anticipated

19:59or discussed in detail during any

20:01specific any applicable specific plan

20:03process.

20:05With that, we can open this up to

20:07commission discussion.

20:14>> Um, I just want to say that it's always

20:16a little tricky when one has a property

20:18that's unusually shaped

20:20um or one has inherited some

20:23idiosyncrasies

20:25in a home and it sounds like this has

20:27been underway for a long time and

20:29there've been some bumps in the road and

20:31I appreciate the creativity of staff in

20:34helping the applicant come up with a way

20:38to maintain the livable space that

20:41um

20:42he's

20:44that he purchased. Um and I have no

20:47issues with this and I'm also

20:48appreciating that um

20:51the neighbors will probably be relieved.

20:54Um and I like some of the more

20:57climate-friendly HVAC updates that

20:59you're making. So, that's what I have to

21:01say and I appreciate the trees sticking

21:03around.

21:07>> Commissioner Chandler.

21:09>> Hey.

21:10>> you, Chair.

21:11Um I just wanted to ask a clarifying a

21:14question of staff.

21:15Not a clarifying question. Um just with

21:17regard to um the component of this

21:21project that is an ADU.

21:23Um in light of some of the

21:26um

21:27updates that were made to the city's ADU

21:29guidelines earlier this summer.

21:32Um

21:33which

21:35just talked the the new guidelines refer

21:37to having two doors between a a main

21:39house and an ADU.

21:41Um and my read of the plans as they

21:45stand currently, it looks like one door

21:49with lockable on both sides.

21:52Um

21:54and I had an opportunity to to ask Mr.

21:56Jan about this. So, I was just hoping

21:57you could clarify um

22:01what the process would be to ensure that

22:03the this ADU

22:06um complies with the the city's new

22:09guidelines, particularly as it relates

22:10to the the doors and the passage between

22:15the main house and the ADU.

22:17>> Yes, thank you for that question. So,

22:19the section of the municipal code that

22:21we're speaking of is um section

22:2416.79.070C,

22:27which talks about internal access for

22:29ADUs. So, the requirement is to have the

22:32two units separated by two fire-rated

22:35doors with independent locking

22:36mechanism. So, I do note that on sheet

22:39A18, the proposed floor plan, it seems

22:42to show a single door. Uh during the

22:44building permit application process,

22:46that would be um ensured to be the dual

22:49the two different doors with um fire

22:52rating and independent locking

22:53mechanisms.

22:59>> Um thank you for clarifying that. Uh and

23:02I think

23:03in the past this planning commission has

23:05just asked for clarifying questions

23:07about

23:09you know, the the boundaries between a

23:12main house and an ADU and what happens

23:15over time if those happened to be

23:17modified and I wanted to confirm my

23:20understanding which was that if per

23:23chance they were modified

23:26the the way that that would come up is

23:28if for the the city would become aware

23:30of that if there were

23:32permitting that were requested or if any

23:34additional modifications would come up

23:36as part of a review process. This the

23:39home would be evaluated for continued

23:40compliance.

23:42Is that correct?

23:43>> Yes, that is correct. Similar to the

23:45application you have before you staff

23:47would request existing as well as

23:49proposed conditions. So through that

23:50process we would be able to verify where

23:53the home stands and evaluate compliance

23:55with the zoning code.

23:57>> Okay.

23:58Thank you. That's good just to clarify

24:01since we're all

24:02working through our understanding of

24:04these recently modified ADU guidelines.

24:07Like Commissioner Beresey I I certainly

24:09acknowledge that this is a really tough

24:11piece of land on which to have built a

24:13house and to continue to maintain a

24:14house.

24:17I have no concerns about

24:20the variance regarding reduced parking

24:23requirements

24:25or essentially the the setbacks that are

24:29in my interpretation I'm sort of

24:31paraphrasing here but basically keeping

24:32the

24:33existing location of the walls and the

24:35foundations where they've been since

24:371980.

24:40So I don't have any significant concerns

24:42about this project and as it stands

24:45would support the

24:48the resolution that's been written in

24:50the staff report.

24:53>> Commissioner Hedley.

24:55>> Yeah, I'm really appreciating all the

24:56hard work, um, persistence, and

24:58creativity that went into this project

25:00over the years.

25:01Um, it seems like a reasonable

25:02compromise to return the building to its

25:04original, uh, footprint and to support

25:07the owners in getting all the permits

25:08they need to proceed. I'm also really

25:10pleased about the trees being retained.

25:11Thank you. And your commitment to go all

25:13electric over time. That's great. So, I

25:15also don't have any concerns with this

25:17and would be happy to support a motion.

25:21>> I also am fully in favor of this. One

25:24comment that I wanted to make is

25:26we on the commission saw a um

25:29application that had to come before the

25:31planning commission

25:33because of a violation of the front

25:34setback because it was

25:37essentially on a flagpole lot.

25:39And the spirit of front setback rules in

25:44theory are to create some distance

25:46between the street and the property or

25:50the the beginning of the house. Um

25:53and obviously if it's a flagpole lot and

25:55you're behind another house, that's not

25:58an issue. Uh, and and that that wouldn't

26:00come up, but we still have these

26:02specific rules in place.

26:05Um, and I think the same kind of applies

26:07here and and I don't know to what extent

26:09we could potentially

26:12be proactive about triangle lots or

26:14corner lots or different things there in

26:15order to eliminate these things in the

26:17first place, uh, systemically. Um, but

26:20obviously in [clears throat] this

26:21context, that that's not an option and

26:23variance seems very appropriate.

26:26>> With that, I'm happy to move to approve

26:28all four variances.

26:33>> With a motion and a second, I and no

26:36further commissioner discussion,

26:38I'll call the vote.

26:40Vice Chair Bruzy.

26:41>> Yes.

26:42>> Commissioner Hedley.

26:43>> Yes.

26:43>> Commissioner Schindler.

26:44>> Yes.

26:45>> Commissioner Sillin.

26:45>> Yes.

26:46>> And I vote yes.

26:48Motion passes unanimously.

26:51Thank you.

26:52Um, and now move to item G,

26:54informational items.

26:56Um Ms. Sanmeyer, do you or anyone from

26:59staff have any updates uh regarding

27:02upcoming planning commission meetings or

27:04agendas?

27:07>> Uh yes. So, the November 2nd uh planning

27:10commission meeting will be canceled. We

27:12don't have any items ready for that one.

27:15And then November 16th, we haven't yet

27:18finalized the agenda.

27:21And that concludes my updates. Thank

27:22you.

27:23>> Do any commissioners have any questions

27:26for staff or informational items of

27:28their own?

27:31Seeing none,

27:33I'm happy to adjourn this meeting at

27:347:29 p.m.

27:36Thank you.