Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Developer revises Emerald Parkway concept plan with larger setbacks, fewer units and more landscaping
Summary
VanTrust presented a revised concept for a 16‑acre site at Emerald Parkway and Warner Temple Road proposing about 228 housing units and nearly 20,000 sq ft of commercial space; commissioners pressed the developer on height, parking and the loss of a previously shown north‑end park.
Anna Brown, director of development for VanTrust Real Estate, told the Dublin Planning and Zoning Commission she and her team returned with a reworked concept plan that aims to respond to prior commission feedback. "We are planning for 228 residential units made up of two 4‑story multifamily buildings as well as 8 3‑story townhomes," Brown said, and added the plan includes "just shy of 20,000 square feet of commercial space."
Brown said the latest iteration reduces density in the residential area, eliminates one previously proposed 4‑story structure, and increases perimeter screening and setbacks to address streetscape and neighborhood concerns. She described a 60‑foot setback on Parkwood Place and a 42‑foot setback along Emerald Parkway and said the team will engage an arborist to assess whether the on‑site trees can be preserved. "We are saving as many trees as we can while preserving all of them that we're allowed to on the perimeter," she said.
Staff framed the review as conceptual and nonbinding, reminding the commission that the site falls within the Emerald Corridor Special Area Plan and the Community Plan’s mixed‑use neighborhood designation. Staff noted the plan’s typical guidance of one to two stories along Emerald Parkway and said the signature trail concept must be accounted for in future design if it is routed through the frontage. Commissioners pressed the applicant on several points: why three‑story townhomes are proposed where the special area plan suggests one to two stories, whether parking is excessive, and why a formerly proposed north park was removed. Brown and her team responded that three stories help economic feasibility because tuck‑under parking reduces surface pavement and that the plan has added parking but remains close to code requirements (retail parked at 10 spaces per 1,000 sq ft).
Commissioners recommended clearer pedestrian connections, stronger internal open‑space programming and careful screening to avoid a continuous visible expanse of parking along the street. The applicant said she would explore additional ways to integrate townhome entries, small amenity clusters, and tree‑preservation measures in the next submittal. The commission took no formal vote; this was a request for nonbinding feedback.
