San Jose Planning Director Hearing - July 8, 2026
San Jose Planning Director Hearing - July 8, 2026
The hearing, presided over by hearing officer David Keon, covered a deferral, a consent calendar item, and two public hearing items. The meeting addressed a mixed-use development in Japantown and a data center use in an existing R&D building.
Consent Calendar
- Item 3A (SP24-031 / ER24-206): A special use permit to expand an existing legal nonconforming religious assembly use and allow a post-secondary boarding school at 1228 Redman Avenue, with no new construction or tree removals. The item was approved without comment after no public speaker requested removal from the consent calendar.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Item 4A (653 N 7th Street mixed-use project):
- Eileen Hunter (resident of 568 N 9th Street) expressed support for the project but submitted a petition signed by over 200 local residents, families, and workers requesting public restroom access at Heinlandville Park, noting the lack of restrooms in the park and that current access is limited.
- Jordan Moldow (neighborhood resident) expressed support for the project and requested short-term bike parking (at least three spaces) at street level for visitors, citing compliance with the California Green Building Standards Code.
- Item 4B (300 Vulgar Way data center):
- Khalila Fetterman (Citizens for Responsible Industry) argued that the project is part of a larger 20-megawatt data center and that the city's reliance on a Class 32 CEQA exemption is improper because substantial evidence shows significant air quality, noise, greenhouse gas, and burrowing owl habitat impacts. She requested postponement and preparation of an EIR.
- A nearby resident from Los Encinos Court mobile home park asked how the city would ensure that the data center's water and electrical usage does not negatively affect low-income housing water costs, citing new individual water meters in the park.
Discussion Items
- Deferral (Item H25039 / ER25225): A site development permit for an eight-story residential building with 276 dwelling units (5% very-low-income affordable), underground parking, and extended construction hours at 470 West San Carlos Street was deferred to the July 15, 2026 director's hearing per staff request. No public comment was made.
- Item 4A (PD20-004 / ER22-112): Plan development permit for a mixed-use building at 653 N 7th Street. Staff (Laura Miners) presented the project: up to six stories, 65 residential units, 14,070 sq ft of commercial space including a Tyco performance building and gallery, one level of below-grade parking, removal of one ordinance-size tree, and extended Saturday construction hours. The project is the final piece of the Japantown Corporation Yard redevelopment. Community meeting in December 2025 had 14 attendees, all in support. The project is subject to 1999 residential design guidelines and was analyzed under the 2008 Final EIR with a CEQA addendum. Applicant Sean McCarron (Shea Properties) emphasized the partnership with Silicon Valley Creates and San Jose Tyco to provide a permanent home for Tyco, and that the 65 larger units are family-friendly. Hearing officer discussed restroom access: staff noted that a restroom already exists in the South Building for events per previous parkland agreement, but applicant declined to open new building restrooms to the public citing safety and maintenance concerns. Hearing officer found no nexus to require public restroom access but encouraged continued community cooperation. On bike parking, applicant acknowledged ability to add short-term spaces. Approved with a change to condition 44C (removing City Council approval requirement for encroachment; now subject to encroachment agreement under Chapter 13.37).
- Item 4B (SP25-029 / ER25-243): Special use permit to allow data center use within an existing 97,800 sq ft R&D building at 300 Vulgar Way, with no exterior changes or site improvements. Staff (Angela Wong and Charlotte Ewan) explained the project qualifies for Class 32 infill exemption: site under 5 acres, urbanized, served by utilities, no habitat value, no construction, and less-than-significant VMT. Applicant Eric Schaenauer (Menlo Equities) stated the SUP is proactive to secure zoning conformance due to the city's ambiguous data center definition; no new equipment or construction is proposed. Hearing officer clarified that any future installation of backup generators or exterior equipment would require separate review (SUP amendment or building permits) including air quality and noise analysis. Staff confirmed no ground disturbance, no burrowing owl habitat due to paved existing site. Approved the CEQA exemption and special use permit.
Key Outcomes
- Deferred: Item H25039 / ER25225 (470 W San Carlos Street) renoticed to July 15, 2026 director's hearing.
- Approved consent calendar: Item 3A (1228 Redman Avenue).
- Approved Item 4A: Plan development permit for 653 N 7th Street mixed-use building with condition 44C modified. Extended construction hours Saturday 8 a.m.–5 p.m. approved.
- Approved Item 4B: Special use permit for data center at 300 Vulgar Way. Class 32 CEQA exemption granted. No exterior modifications authorized; future additions require separate discretionary review.
- Hearing adjourned at 10:00 a.m.
Meeting Transcript
Good morning. We are calling to order the planning director hearing of July 8th, 2026. My name is David Keon and I am filling in for Martina Davis as the hearing officer for today's agenda on behalf of and delegated by the Director of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement, Christopher Burton. This meeting is being held via Zoom conference call. Members of the public participate by following the instructions list on page two of the agenda. If you would like to provide public comment, you have two methods to do so. For participants who join electronically and audio input available on the computer or smartphone, they can use the raise hand feature in Zoom during the agenda item they would like to speak or click Star 9 on their phone. Remember to keep your raise hand feature on until planning support staff identifies your turn to speak. Or during the meeting, please call 408 535 8517 or email planning support staff at San Jose CA.gov and identify your name that is listed on Zoom, the phone number that you are calling into Zoom with, and what item or items you would like to comment on. All members of the public will remain on mute until individual identifies they would like to speak and they are unmuted. Planning support staff will identify you by name when it is your turn to speak. At that time, you'll be unmuted and you can provide comment for the allotted time. If you exceed your allotted time, you may be muted so we can move on to the next speaker. Please note the following. The hearing procedure and order of input will be as follows. I will identify each project as described on the agenda. For those items in the consent calendar, I will ask if anyone wishes to speak on this item. If a separate discussion is warranted, I will move the item to the public hearing portion of the agenda. If a separate discussion is not needed, the item will remain on the consent calendar for approval. For those items listed under public hearing, I will ask staff to provide a brief report. The applicant or the representative who wishes to speak on the item will have up to five minutes to speak and should identify themselves by stating their name for the record. After the applicant or the representative has spoken, any member of the public who wishes to speak on the item may provide testimony up to two minutes per speaker, either for or against the project. All members of the public should identify their name for the record, although it is not required. Following comments from the public, the applicant may make an additional remarks for up to five minutes. I will then close the public hearing and I may ask staff to answer questions, respond to comments made by the applicant or the public, or further discuss the item. I will then take action on the item. If you challenge these land use decisions in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues you or someone else raised at this public hearing or enrich a correspondence delivered to the city at or prior to the public hearing. The planning director's actions on agenda items will be final when the permit is signed and mailed unless the permit or environmental clearance determination is appealed. The planning director's actions or on the permits are appealable in accordance with the requirements of Title 20 of the municipal code. The planning director's actions on environmental review for permits under the California Environmental Quality Act are separately appealable in accordance with the requirements of Title 21 of the Municipal Code. Before we begin, I want to remind members of the public to follow our code of conduct at meetings. This includes commenting on specific agenda items only. Public speakers will not engage in a conversation with the hearing on officer or staff. The hearing officer, staff, and the public are expected to refrain from abusive language. Repeated failure to comply with the code of conduct which will disturb, disrupt, or impede the orderly conduct of this meeting may result in a removal from the meeting. This meeting of the director's hearing will now come to order. So the first item we have is the item of deferrals. So the item of deferrals for any items scheduled for this hearing for which deferral to a future meeting date is being requested will be moved to this portion of the agenda and considered as a matter of deferral. I will identify any items to be deferred and ask for comments from the audience. If you want to change any of the deferral dates or speak to the question of deferring these or any other items, please use your raise hand feature in Zoom or click star nine to speak. And I'll open the public hearing in regard to deferrals. So we have one item on the deferral agenda, and that is file number H25039 and ER25225. This is a site development permit to allow an eight-story residential building with 276 dwelling units with 5% affordable units restricted to very low income, subject to the state density bonus law, underground parking, and extended construction hour from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday on an approximate 0.89 gross acre vacant site at 470 West San Carlos Street. So the recommendation is that this be dropped and re-noticed to the July 15, 2026 director's hearing per staff request. Is there anybody who wants to speak on the item of deferring this item? Please raise your hand now or press star nine or contact support staff. Okay, see no raised hand support staff. Have you been contacted with regard to questions on this item?
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