Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission approves 156‑bed Alcon senior living facility with delivery and signage conditions
Summary
The Planning Commission approved a 156‑bed assisted living and memory care facility for 1163 North 2nd Street, subject to conditions including limiting deliveries to 8 a.m.–5 p.m. and adding a speed‑limit/children‑at‑play sign to address neighborhood concerns about alley traffic and privacy.
The Alcon Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve a conditional use permit for a 156‑bed residential care facility proposed at 1163 North 2nd Street, concluding a public hearing that included residents’ concerns about privacy, alley safety and calls for emergency services.
Senior Planner Mike Villione described the proposal from Marshall Lots LLC as a three‑story, 87,000‑square‑foot assisted living and memory care building with an enclosed parking garage of 61 stalls. The project includes a separated memory care wing with delayed‑egress doors and an operations plan with staffing, telemedicine, ambulance contracts and monitoring measures. Staff said technical studies estimate that, with the operations plan in place, the facility could generate about 27 emergency‑service calls per year — a figure staff compared with call volumes for similar by‑right uses.
Developer representative Robert Garmo said the team had prepared extensive operational plans and EMS arrangements and stressed commitments to hire trained staff and to limit deliveries. "We've taken every single measure possible to reduce 9‑1‑1 calls," he said, noting multiple ambulance contracts and operational procedures the team had assembled.
Neighbors raised concerns about privacy from the rear viewing deck and the building’s three‑story presence across an alley. Staff and the applicant said the building had been recessed into the site and that screening, landscaping and possible glass treatments could be employed to reduce direct sightlines into backyards. The applicant and staff also discussed limiting delivery hours and designing the receiving area so that large trucks would rarely use the alley.
Commissioners asked whether the facility would have 24‑hour medical coverage; applicants and a representative from Flatiron operations (Paul Mullen) said memory care requires 24‑hour on‑call nursing coverage and the project would include on‑site and triage resources. The parking study cited a rate of roughly 0.39 spaces per bed and anticipated staffing levels of about 40 employees per shift window.
Commissioner Edison moved to adopt the staff resolution approving the CEQA exemption and the CUP, with added conditions to restrict delivery hours to 8 a.m.–5 p.m. and to implement signage to slow traffic in the adjacent alley; Commissioner Sotile seconded. The motion carried unanimously. Staff noted the item will not go to City Council unless appealed; appeals must be filed with the City Clerk by the required deadline.
Next steps: the applicant must implement conditions of approval, including the operations plan and delivery‑hour restrictions; staff will monitor compliance and the permit may be reviewed if calls for service exceed thresholds specified in the conditions.
