Housing plan involving Hilltop Mall splits nearby Richmond residents

RICHMOND Major redevelopment is coming for a large portion of Richmond land which includes the former Hilltop Mall but certain segments of the population are split on how much housing should be incorporated into plans For about three years the city has been crafting its Hilltop Horizon Specific Plan a regulatory planning document meant to guide the advance of a -acre northern section of the city Related Articles New -unit housing improvement makes its way to Sunnyvale New California neighborhood is the first fire-resistant locality in the U S Los Gatos Planning Commission OKs housing growth despite traffic concerns Bay Area developer helps Valero assess vast Benicia refinery s future Combo of homes offices shops proposed near downtown San Jose The current vision presented during an advisory meeting Wednesday by the city and consultant Environmental Science Associates calls for building out the site with medium-density housing on the edges and then high-density housing and commercial spaces in the center Hilltop Horizon will be a vibrant mixed-use locality that blends innovation commerce and tradition incorporating sustainable design diverse housing and green infrastructure announced Richmond Senior Planner Michele Morris during the morning meeting The plan redefines it as a dynamic and welcoming place for all Four different zones are proposed The mid-density zone would be all housing featuring buildings up to -feet tall with to units per acre Those zones are meant to act as a transitional buffer between existing neighborhoods on the west and east sides of the lot The second transitional zone would be primarily residential with several light commercial uses allowed Buildings would be about - to -feet tall at to units per acre A third high-density intensity zone would focus more on commercial and employment uses with particular high-density residential also allowed Buildings would be - to -feet tall with to units per acre The final Gateway zone would act as the core hub of the plan with housing commercial retail and entertainment uses all envisioned Buildings are proposed to be - to -feet tall and density at to units per acre Open space walking and biking paths gardens paseos populace art and parks are also key elements incorporated into the vision along with a transit hub and improved forms of mobility This is still very much high-level What this does is create that framework for us to work on more detailed design as we get further along in that process reported Bev Choi Environmental Science Associates Northern California Population Planning venture manager Neighborhood feedback during Wednesday s advisory meeting was mixed Two neighborhood leaders opposed to the proposal are Bhavin Khatri president of the Hilltop District Neighborhood Council and Arto Rinteela chair of the Fairmede-Hilltop Neighborhood Council Both noted the city s vision calls for far more housing than selected surrounding residents would like to see built If built out Rinteela announced the city s plans would cause quality-of-life issues for existing residents Khatri shared doubt that the city s plan would even get built within the next years Instead they stated they d like to see lighter housing density proposed with more of a focus on retail and commercial increase The density you re showing here is disrespectful to the neighborhood Rinteela revealed You don t have to live here so you don t have to deal with the quality-of-life issues Prologis the owner of the Hilltop Mall property agreed stated company representative Cyrus Sanandaji Sanandaji implored staff to consider a lighter density vision that Prologis could feasibly meet asserting current plans are out of step with the neighborhood s wishes and are unrealistic of what could literally be built Alternatively Rauly Butler a former banker involved in the sale of the Hilltop Mall and current executive director of business advocacy group West Contra Costa Council of Industries declared the revisioning created a great opportunity for the city As a current board member of a nonprofit affordable housing agency Butler noted greater housing density is a key element that often enables a project to pencil out in California s expensive progress landscape And unlike Rinteela and Khatri other nearby residents announced they indeed supported the city s vision Coire Reilly a venture manager with the West Contra Costa Transportation Commission who lives in the area called the plan encouraging and noted staff s zoning ideas are indeed below the density called for in the city s general plan adopted years ago I want to see something cool in my neighborhood I want to see something that s a regional draw something the city can be proud of Reilly declared This site is a once-in-a-generation type of expansion Wasting it with lower densities would be a great loss for the city and for the region Morris and Choi noted the revisioning process still has a long way to go They declared they welcome all forms of feedback and plan to present their ideas and facilitate feedback during upcoming planning commission and city council meetings in May and June A technical analysis is slated to begin later this year with the specific plan expected to be adopted by according to the project timeline