Cupertino council hears contentious debate over Linda Vista Drive townhomes amid fire‑safety and CEQA disputes

The Cupertino City Council spent much of its March 31 meeting hearing a contested presentation and more than an hour of public comment on a proposed 51‑unit townhome development on Linda Vista Drive.

Austin Lin, development manager for Summerhill Homes, told the council the site — though inside a very‑high fire severity zone — meets the statutory criteria for the AB 130 CEQA exemption and that third‑party reviewers and the city’s consultant confirmed compliance. "This site . . . qualifies for the AB 130 CEQA exemption," Lin said, adding the developer retained Jensen Hughes for fire review and commissioned Hexagon Transportation to study evacuation impacts. He said Hexagon concluded the project would add about 3.6% of the corridor’s housing and roughly two minutes to estimated evacuation time.

The developer highlighted public benefits: 51 ownership townhomes, 10 below‑market‑rate units, roughly $2,209,000 in transportation impact fees and other school and park fees. Legal counsel Margo Bradish of Cox Castle & Nicholson told councilors the state Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) had sent guidance allowing the city to "assume compliance" with certain code elements for AB 130 determinations and warned that if the city wrongfully denied the project it could face attorney fees and statutory fines — minimums of $10,000 per unit under recent housing…