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Neighbors press parking, traffic and retail‑location concerns at Santa Clara meeting on townhome proposal
Summary
At a community meeting on the Mariani project, residents questioned how 118 townhomes would affect on‑street parking, traffic on Buchanan and Los Palmas, street sweeping and retail placement; the developer said two‑car garages, guest parking and EV‑ready garages are planned and that traffic studies will be completed during CEQA review.
Neighbors at a Santa Clara community meeting raised repeated concerns about parking, traffic and the retail location proposed as part of a 118‑unit townhome project at 2490–2570 El Camino Real.
One attendee asked a core question early in the discussion: “How many new residents would this bring and how many new vehicles would this bring?” The applicant estimated roughly three people per unit (about 350 residents) and two cars per unit, producing about 236 private garage spaces for 118 units. “Each unit would have a two‑car garage,” the presenter said; he added that the design includes distributed guest parking but declined to guarantee there would be no overflow onto neighborhood streets.
Several residents described prior overflow parking related to earlier uses of Mariani properties and said unmanaged spillover prevents street sweeping and can leave vehicles parked for weeks. “When they park there at night … it wakes you up,” a resident who identified himself as Lewis said, describing nighttime engine starts and repeated vehicle presence that blocks street sweepers.
The applicant responded that the project will have CC&Rs and a homeowners association that would prohibit blocking driveways and require garages to remain available for two cars, and that the city’s code enforcement can respond to long‑term street parking. He also said “every garage will be equipped to charge an electrical vehicle” and that the project will include EV chargers per city requirements.
Residents proposed design changes to reduce neighborhood traffic impacts, including moving the retail closer to the creek to reduce cut‑through driving on Los Palmas and Buchanan and asking the city to require measures such as roundabouts or traffic calming and permit-only parking to prevent overflow. The project team said the city had already requested modest plan changes to smooth a jog in Los Palmas for safety and that traffic and public‑works departments will study trip generation during environmental review.
No formal decisions were made at the meeting; the applicant said staff comments on retail size, traffic and right‑of‑way options will be addressed during the CEQA and entitlement process and invited neighbors to appear at upcoming design‑review, planning‑commission and city‑council hearings.
