Mountain View council backs higher-density mixed-use option, prioritizes wider sidewalks and protected bike lanes on Moffett Boulevard

Mountain View — The City Council directed staff to study a higher-intensity mixed-use alternative for the Moffett Boulevard Precise Plan and to prioritize wider sidewalks with trees and pedestrian amenities and protected bike lanes when developing streetscape options, council members said Tuesday.

The direction came after a staff presentation that laid out three land-use alternatives and six streetscape approaches for the corridor between Central Expressway and Middlefield Road. Assistant Community Development Director Amber Blasinski and project planner Aki Snelling told the council the plan would implement the city’s general plan and housing element and that outreach so far included an in-person workshop with 85 attendees and 144 online survey responses.

Why it matters: The precise plan will create development and streetscape standards for the Moffett corridor. Council’s preferred scope will shape environmental review and later design standards, and could affect building heights, housing densities and how the city allocates limited right-of-way space for people and vehicles.

Staff summarized three land-use alternatives: “A” (medium-intensity mixed use) with a base housing density around 75 dwelling units per acre and building heights in the 4–5 story range; “B” (higher intensity mixed use) with a base density up to about 100 units per acre and building heights of roughly 5–7 stories and a requirement for…