Hacienda: A business park or new housing development? Hacienda: A business park or new housing development? (October 21, 2005)

The City Council and Planning Commission will take their first serious look next Tuesday at bold new concepts being advanced to add more housing in Pleasanton's 22-year-old Hacienda Business Park. Economic cycles have shaped the park over the last two decades, with a recession in the late 1980s paving the way for the introduction of townhouses and apartments in vacant land. Today, Hacienda has 1,530 townhouses and apartments with more than 3,400 residents. About 30 percent or more of the job-holders in this population reportedly work in the business park.

Once again, in the midst of another downturn in the demand for office space and a continuing soft market for some companies in Hacienda, property owners have scaled back or canceled expansion plans. Some, like the Shaklee Corporation, is seeking approval to sell undeveloped adjacent land that it owns for a four-story apartment building. Other vacant Hacienda sites are also being eyed by city planners for high-density affordable housing that could help to meet the city's target of 1,700 more units to meet state guidelines for very-low-income, low-income and moderate-income housing units here. About 65 acres have been identified in Hacienda where property owners want to rezone vacant land they bought in anticipation of commercial development which they no longer need, enough to easily accommodate the 1,700 units needed.

But time is running out, which makes Tuesday's workshop critical. Principal Planner Janice Stern told planners and council members two weeks ago that as of last Jan. 1, homes and apartments already in the ground totaled 25,249. At that time, another 428 were under construction, most of them now finished and occupied. Another 559 had been approved, including houses now under construction in Ponderosa's Ironwood development, by Greenbriar west of I-680 and those being built or already authorized in the Vineyard Corridor. The only other sure number she had is the 29,000 housing cap that Pleasanton voters mandated as part of the 1996 General Plan. That should leave 2,554 homes and apartments left to build, but that number is fuzzy. Already under Environmental Impact Review are 98 new houses planned for Oak Grove, a development proposed for a site at the end of Hearst Drive above Kottinger Ranch, and 81 houses planned by Greenbriar Homes in Lund Ranch II, on Sycamore Creek Way off Sunol Boulevard. Greenbriar also wants to build 75 houses on the Spotorno Ranch east of Alisal Street. A new proposal to build a combined independent living and assisted living complex on Staples Ranch would add nearly 700 units, although it's unclear how many of these, if any, would count toward the housing cap. Added to the confusion are objections by some on the council and Planning Commission to most of the housing being proposed by developers and a plea by many in the community to stop all building after 27,500 units, which is close to where we are.

Our concern is that in this rush to satisfy a state housing department requirement for affordable housing that has yet to gain legislative support, we may rezone commercial acreage in Hacienda that could someday be prime property for new and growing businesses. After all, this is a premier business park located in one of the best locations in the Bay Area. Companies like Roche and Thoratec are already expanding. The city spends considerable dollars on its Economic Development Department and staff that is marketing Pleasanton and its business parks across the country. As for converting this commercial land for affordable housing, does that really make sense? Except for Hart Middle School, Hacienda has no elementary or high schools, few retail stores and no supermarkets. Its wide streets and few sidewalks make it best suited for office workers, and more business growth. Hacienda Business Park was originally well-planned for business. Let's be careful to ensure that good planning and not the temporary market pressures drive the future of the business park.

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