OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Redwood City Planning Commission Special Meeting - December 16, 2025

Planning Commission — Tuesday, December 16, 2025
BodyRedwood City, California
SessionPlanning Commission
DateTuesday, December 16, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:09:33
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

.

0:30

All right.

0:44

Good evening, and thank you for joining our December 16th, 2025 Special Planning Commission

0:49

meeting.

0:50

As a reminder, items will be taken in the order they're listed on the agenda.

0:54

Before we get started, I want to brief you over public common procedures for the meeting

0:58

for those of you who may be joining us for the first time.

1:01

Public comments on the approval of minutes,

1:03

consent items, matters of commission interest,

1:05

and items not on the agenda

1:06

will be taken during item number three.

1:09

Comments on the other agenda items

1:11

will be taken only when the item is called.

1:14

In-person speakers, please fill out

1:16

the speaker's card at the front of the council chamber

1:19

and bring to staff.

1:20

For those joining virtually,

1:22

you may use the raise hand feature on Zoom to speak.

1:26

If you're joining the teleconference by phone,

1:28

you may raise your hand by dialing 9, star 9, or star 6 to unmute your microphone when prompted.

1:34

Please only raise your hand at a time when the item in which you are speaking is called.

1:39

Each speaker is allotted three minutes, but that may be adjusted if there are many speakers.

1:44

Lastly, we want to note that we each bring different perspectives to the discussion,

1:47

and we want to be sure that everyone has a chance to be heard without interruption.

1:51

Planning Commission welcomes public comment on items within our purview.

1:53

Any speaker whose comments are on topics not under the Commission's purview will be warned and then removed if necessary in order to allow the Commission to conduct their business.

2:03

Thank you for your attention and consideration during this process.

2:05

I will now turn it over to staff for the roll call.

2:13

Commissioner Bond?

2:14

Here.

2:15

Commissioner Cronejo?

2:16

Here.

2:17

Commissioner Finch?

2:18

Here.

2:19

Commissioner Hunter is absent.

2:21

Commissioner Robinson?

2:23

Here.

2:23

Vice Chair Koch is absent, and Chair Sonogorovitz.

2:27

Here.

2:29

I'm Sue Exline, the Assistant Community Development Director and Staff Liaison to the Commission.

2:34

Other staff in attendance this evening, James Dodson.

2:37

He's our Assistant Planner.

2:38

He's on here joining us virtually.

2:40

Rick Jarvis is our Consultant Assistant City Attorney.

2:45

Christina Mateo is the Administrative Secretary and Meeting Host.

2:48

and we also have

2:51

Aline Lancaster

2:52

from Housing Online as well

2:55

if there's any questions on the

2:57

item.

3:00

Thank you.

3:01

Moving on, item number 2,

3:03

AB2449, notifications and

3:05

considerations, meaning participation by

3:07

teleconference. Do we have

3:09

any remote participation notification or

3:11

requests from the commission to consider?

3:16

We do not.

3:18

Okay.

3:18

Let's move on to the next agenda item, item number three, public comments.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████████████████████46%
Engineering And Infrastructure███████████████████████23%
Procedural█████████████████17%
Transportation Safety█████████9%
Parks and Recreation█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

Redwood City Planning Commission Special Meeting - December 16, 2025

This was a special meeting of the Redwood City Planning Commission held on December 16, 2025. The commission considered a single public hearing item: a 32-unit townhome development at 1320 Marshall Street, which included a request for a state density bonus with associated concessions and waivers. The meeting also included approval of previous meeting minutes and liaison updates on recent city council actions. The commission voted unanimously to approve the project.

Consent Calendar

  • No items were on the consent calendar.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public spoke on any agenda item.

Discussion Items

  • Approval of Minutes (November 18, 2025): The commission unanimously approved the draft minutes from the November 18, 2025 meeting (5-0, with two commissioners absent).
  • Public Hearing – 1320 Marshall Street (Redwood Square Project): The project is a 32-unit for-sale townhome development on a roughly one-acre site in the Broadway Streetcar zoning sub-district. The project proposes four buildings with a maximum height of 50 feet (four stories), including five moderate-income deed-restricted affordable units and four accessible units per California building code. Because 50% of the units are affordable, the project qualifies for a state density bonus, and the applicant requested one concession (reduction in square footage of affordable units from required comparable sizes to 1,392 sq. ft.) and two waivers: (1) a reduction in ground-floor transparency from 30% to 21.4% due to stair locations, and (2) a reduction in pedestrian entrance frequency from every 100 feet to 160 feet due to floor plan constraints that would place entrances into garages. Staff presented the project and noted that on September 4, 2025, the Architectural Advisory Committee unanimously recommended approval. The applicant, Darian Denler of City Ventures, presented the project, emphasizing its sustainable design (solar, all-electric, EV-ready), Spanish revival architecture, and focus on providing attainable for-sale housing for first-time homebuyers and young families. Commissioner questions covered tree replacement (36-inch box trident maples), landscaping on blank walls, open space (private passive areas with benches and trees), parking (two tandem spaces per unit), ADA accessibility (ground-floor adaptability with optional stair lifts for upper floors), and pedestrian connectivity (crosswalk gaps on Broadway). The applicant clarified that the affordable units would be ownership units with a 30-year resale restriction and that ADA and affordable units are typically not combined due to HOA complexity.
  • Commission Discussion: Commissioners praised the project's design, efficient use of space, pedestrian-oriented features (stoops on Broadway, paseo), and its role in providing missing middle housing and homeownership opportunities. Some commissioners raised the possibility of public access through the side paths, but others noted security concerns for residents. The general consensus was that the project conforms to the spirit of the zoning district and was well-designed.

Key Outcomes

  • Motion to Approve Resolution 25-12: Commissioner Bott moved to approve the architectural permit, tentative parcel map, condominium permit, affordable housing plan, state density bonus with concessions and waivers, and CEQA exemption, subject to conditions of approval. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Cornejo. The motion passed 5-0 (Commissioners Bond, Cornejo, Finch, Robinson, and Chair Sonogorovitz voting in favor; Vice Chair Koch and Commissioner Hunter absent).
  • Liaison Updates: Staff reported on recent city council actions, including approval of modifications to the Elk Hall Yards Affordable Housing Plan (November 24), discussion of Mills Act renewals (study session on December 8), approval of four Mills Act contracts and three historic designations, and extension of the 1540 Maple Development Agreement. The next regular Planning Commission meeting is scheduled for February 3, 2026 (the January 20 meeting was canceled).

Meeting Transcript

. All right. Good evening, and thank you for joining our December 16th, 2025 Special Planning Commission meeting. As a reminder, items will be taken in the order they're listed on the agenda. Before we get started, I want to brief you over public common procedures for the meeting for those of you who may be joining us for the first time. Public comments on the approval of minutes, consent items, matters of commission interest, and items not on the agenda will be taken during item number three. Comments on the other agenda items will be taken only when the item is called. In-person speakers, please fill out the speaker's card at the front of the council chamber and bring to staff. For those joining virtually, you may use the raise hand feature on Zoom to speak. If you're joining the teleconference by phone, you may raise your hand by dialing 9, star 9, or star 6 to unmute your microphone when prompted. Please only raise your hand at a time when the item in which you are speaking is called. Each speaker is allotted three minutes, but that may be adjusted if there are many speakers. Lastly, we want to note that we each bring different perspectives to the discussion, and we want to be sure that everyone has a chance to be heard without interruption. Planning Commission welcomes public comment on items within our purview. Any speaker whose comments are on topics not under the Commission's purview will be warned and then removed if necessary in order to allow the Commission to conduct their business. Thank you for your attention and consideration during this process. I will now turn it over to staff for the roll call. Commissioner Bond? Here. Commissioner Cronejo? Here. Commissioner Finch? Here. Commissioner Hunter is absent. Commissioner Robinson? Here. Vice Chair Koch is absent, and Chair Sonogorovitz. Here. I'm Sue Exline, the Assistant Community Development Director and Staff Liaison to the Commission. Other staff in attendance this evening, James Dodson. He's our Assistant Planner. He's on here joining us virtually. Rick Jarvis is our Consultant Assistant City Attorney. Christina Mateo is the Administrative Secretary and Meeting Host. and we also have Aline Lancaster from Housing Online as well if there's any questions on the item.

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