Santa Clara opens EIR scoping for proposed housing at 451 El Camino Real

City staff held a scoping meeting June 4 to begin preparation of an Environmental Impact Report for a proposed redevelopment at 451 El Camino Real that would replace existing office buildings and two parking garages with multifamily housing and townhomes.

City staff member Steve opened the meeting and passed the presentation to consultant Nick Costasquia, who said the project’s Notice of Preparation began circulating May 23 and will remain open until June 23. "Comments submitted tonight should focus more on scoping content of the EIR as opposed to the actual merits of the project or specific project design details," Costasquia said. He said the draft EIR is expected to be circulated in the fall, with a final EIR and public hearings anticipated in early spring of the following year.

The presenters described the site as occupied by roughly 216,000 square feet of office space and two parking garages that would be demolished for the proposal. The plan presented at the meeting includes a five-story multifamily building with 297 units, 98 townhomes on the Santa Clara side and 13 townhomes on the San Jose side. The meeting record included an unclear reference to the site acreage (the transcript records "49 5 acre site"); the exact acreage was not specified in the meeting record.

Costasquia outlined the environmental review steps: the NOP circulation period (May 23–June 23), preparation of technical studies and the draft EIR (with a 45-calendar-day public comment period), and preparation of a final EIR with responses to comments. He said materials and technical appendices will be posted for public review and that comments received during the NOP will be compiled in an appendix of the draft EIR.

During public comment, several speakers raised potential impacts to nearby circulation and activities. An unnamed resident said existing intersection geometry near Campbell Avenue creates a hazardous situation for pedestrians and students, noting "we have over 5,000 students a day, making trips across street" and asking that traffic and pedestrian safety be evaluated. A speaker who said their building is at 455 El Camino Real — described at the meeting as a classroom building — asked for an assessment of construction noise and vibration; Costasquia confirmed a noise and vibration assessment will be prepared for both construction and operation and included in the EIR.

A commenter identified as Betsy said the proposal appeared to lock in relatively low density near the transit hub and asked whether a Transportation Demand Management plan had been prepared. Costasquia replied that a TDM plan will be prepared in conjunction with the transportation analysis and "will be available to the public at the same time the draft EIR is available."

Michael Stockwell, identified as chairman of the South Bay Historical Railroad Society, asked how the proposal relates to the station area plan. City staff said the site is within the station area plan boundary but that the project will be reviewed under the current zoning and general plan and is still going through the city approval process; it is not yet approved.

How to comment: Costasquia and staff said written comments may be submitted during the NOP circulation period to the address and email provided on the project webpage (the NOP comment period ends June 23). The consultants and city staff said the record of NOP comments will be included in the draft EIR and that agencies or individuals who comment on the draft EIR will be notified when the final EIR is available, at least 10 days before the public hearing.

The meeting concluded with staff noting the session was recorded and the presentation and recording will be posted on the project webpage.