Design review commission studies 422‑unit Mitchell Townhomes; residents raise traffic and tree‑loss concerns

Design review commissioners received a study‑session briefing on the Mitchell Townhomes proposal, a 422‑unit townhouse development on a 22‑acre site at the Walnut Creek Shadelands Executive Park that would replace 11 existing office buildings.

Simmer Gill, senior planner with Walnut Creek City, told the commission the application (file no. Y24-026) is being processed under SB 330 and the Housing Accountability Act and that the city determined an environmental impact report is required. Gill said the developer’s preliminary SB 330 submittal preceded the city’s housing element certification by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD); the formal planning application was submitted April 9, found incomplete, then determined complete after subsequent submittals and revisions.

Jonathan Fern, senior vice president of development with Signature Development Group, and the project team described a multi‑phase, townhouse‑style development made up of eight floor plans across two neighborhoods. The proposal calls for 422 homes in roughly 83 buildings, heights of 38 to 40 feet, 955 parking spaces (111 spaces along…