Developer proposes 6-story building in downtown SLO. What will City Council say?
Plans for a large-scale downtown development that would blend three stories of residential use with three stories of commercial in a 75-foot building will come before the City Council on Tuesday night.
The proposal at 1144 Chorro St. calls for the demolition of the existing building, where Sports Authority and Copeland’s Sports used to exist, and replacement with a new six-story structure that would total more than 65,000 square feet, including 30,000 square feet of commercial commercial and office space and 50 residential homes on the upper floors.
The latest concept for the location — proposed by Jamestown, a multi-billion dollar real estate company based in Atlanta that owns several prominent properties throughout SLO’s downtown — includes a first floor of retail space with space for restaurant use, a residential lobby, a commercial office lobby and a small space for parking.
The second and third floor would be designed for commercial office uses.
The fourth, fifth and sixth floors are reserved for residential apartments, with 13 of the proposed 50 units designated as affordable housing in the moderate-income household range, meaning people whose incomes “exceed 80% percent but are less than or equal to 120% of the median income within the county.”
The units are a mix of studio, one-, and two-bedroom units of approximately 318 to 616 square feet in size, according to Mark Rawson, the project architect.
How parking in downtown SLO would work
The proposal, which includes seven parking spaces with three to four spaces used for car sharing, would pay in-lieu fees for parking programs elsewhere in the city.
And it would establish a transportation plan that encourages tenants of the building to walk, bike and use the bus — with the property situated in a prominent part of the downtown core.
“The project does not include any designated parking spaces off-site, however, residents and tenants would have access to programs downtown for overnight parking within the parking structures,” said Michael Codron, the city’s community development director. “Parking for commercial uses would have the same opportunities as all other commercial uses within downtown, including the same opportunities as the existing building on-site.”
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Therese Cron, vice president of West Coast Leasing of Jamestown, said the goal is not to have private garages fill up downtown.
“This would be a poor use of land downtown,” Cron said. “The city has consolidated parking into public parking garages and has plans to continue with an additional (incoming) city parking structure at Palm and Nipomo. This is a better parking solution since this provides parking for multiple users.”
SLO’s City Council has established housing and sustainable transportation — especially car-free transportation — as major city goals. It hopes to reach a transportation goal by 2035 in which 50% of people drive, 20% use bicycles, 18% walk and 12% use shared transit.
How tall can buildings be in SLO?
Under the city’s standards for downtown construction, buildings can be as tall as 50 feet with exceptions to allow heights of up 75 feet if the developer meets certain requirements for community benefits.
In this case, city officials said the developer is proposing seven community benefits that qualify for the 75-foot building height allowance (three are required). Those include:
▪ Affordable and workforce housing (the plan provides 25% of its housing for moderate-income households, greater than the required 10%).
▪ A transportation plan with measurable performance standards shifting to permanent uses of alternative transportation.
▪ Historic preservation of the Muzio Building at 868 and 870 Monterey St. (offsite).
▪ Permanent preservation of the Downtown Centre paseo as a public amenity.
▪ Continued pedestrian access between Higuera and Marsh Street (through the paseo).
Access through SLO paseo
The preservation of pedestrian access to the Downtown Centre paseo aims to formalize a public use beyond what was approved when that project was built in the 1990s.
“No plans have been discussed or considered to reduce or eliminate public access through the property; however, there are no protections in place that would guarantee public access in perpetuity for the Downtown Centre,” SLO officials wrote in a staff report.
The 1144 Chorro project proposal however enters into an agreement for the guaranteed long-term private maintenance of the Downtown Centre pedestrian paseo with public access.
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Community opinion on building
The project has garnered differing opinions from residents.
Allan Cooper, a representative of Save Our Downtown, said he believes the project is too dense and doesn’t fit with good community planning.
“Given the compelling scientific evidence that the adverse effects of population growth, combined with irreversible climate change, contribute to the increase in zoonotic diseases, we should plan for the probability that there may never be a ‘post pandemic world,’” Cooper said. “Did you know that a recent Harris Poll found that nearly a third of Americans are considering relocating to less crowded places?”
But Jack Gamboa wrote a letter to the city in support of the project, saying “The project is a great addition to the downtown core and will provide much-needed housing in our community.”
Asked about the prospect of adding retail and office space at a time when more people are working remotely and downtown businesses struggle as consumer habits change, Cron said the project would offer “top-quality office space. The ground floor is planned to provide dining opportunities with street-side patios, as well as facilities to support the residential and office uses.”
Past plans for space called for bowling alley
The 1144 Chorro St. site is best known recently as the proposed location for an entertainment venue that included a bowling alley and concert venue.
Jeremy Pemberton received approval for the project, but it was abandoned after a dispute between Pemberton and Jamestown Properties over Pemberton’s alleged failure to pay $750,000 in rent. The lawsuit was settled between the parties with undisclosed conditions.
Pemberton is now facing criminal accusations of fraud for allegedly scamming an investor out of $500,000 in connection with the abandoned project.
The SLO County DA’s Office further alleges Pemberton used fraud to embezzle $200,000 from a couple identified as elderly.
This story was originally published August 18, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
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