Oakland Planning Commission STAFF REPORT

May 19, 2010

2. Location: Central Business District (CBD)

Proposal: As a continuation of the Central Business District rezoning process,
staff will present proposed view corridors to protect views of City Hall
and the Oakland Tribune Tower from four view points on the east side
of Lake Merritt, with five view corridors (two of the view corridors are
from the same view point). The proposal includes three views to the
Oakland Tribune Tower and two to City Hall, with analysis of height
maximums along the view corridors in order to retain the view
corridors.
Applicant: City Planning Commission
Case File Number: RZ10105, ZT10104
Planning Permits Required: Rezoning, Zoning Text Amendment
General Plan: Central Business District
Zoning: CBD-R, CBD-P, CBD-C, and CBD-X
Environmental Determination: The proposal relies on the previously certified Final Environmental
Impact Report (EIR) for the Land Use and Transportation Element of
the General Plan (1998); the Final Environmental Report for the 1998
Amendment to the Historic Preservation Element of the General Plan;
the Housing Element Update Initial Study/Mitigated Negative
Declaration (2004); and CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 Projects
Consistent with a Community Plan, General Plan or Zoning.
Historic Status: The Central Business District contains several Areas of Primary Importance
(APIs), Areas of Secondary Importance (ASIs), landmark properties, and
other historically rated properties.
Service Delivery District: Metro
City Council District: 2 and 3
Status: Recommended by Zoning Update Committee to be heard in front of the full
Planning Commission.
Action to be Taken: Recommendation to the City Council.
Finality of Decision: Recommendation forwarded to City Council for final decision.
For Further Information: Contact case planner Laura Kaminski at (510) 238-6809 or by email:
lkaminski@oaklandnet.com

SUMMARY

At the July 7, 2009 City Council meeting for rezoning the Central Business District, the City
Council directed a view corridor study to be completed. Five views have been studied to the
Oakland Tribune Tower and City Hall from the east side of Lake Merritt and ranked for priority.
The purpose of this meeting is to provide comments and recommendations to the City Council
regarding these views.

#2
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
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BACKGROUND

As part of the Central Business District rezoning process, the April 15, 2009 staff report to the
Planning Commission made the following recommendation regarding historic resources: Study
downtown view corridors to historic or important features. This study would take place in the
future and be separate from the current rezoning process.

At their June 8, 2009 LPAB meeting, the Board made a motion to support four view corridors
from the east side of Lake Merritt to downtown. These four included:
1.) 18th Street Pier on Lakeshore Avenue to City Hall
2.) 18th Street Pier on Lakeshore Avenue to the Oakland Tribune Tower,
3.) Intersection of Hanover Street and Lakeshore Avenue to City Hall, and
4.) Cleveland Cascade on Lakeshore Avenue to Oakland Tribune Tower.

As part of the meeting regarding the Central Business District rezoning, the City Council on July
7, 2009 directed staff to conduct a view corridor study to analyze which views should be
protected to City Hall and the Oakland Tribune Tower from the east side of the lake. The
Council placed a temporary 85-foot height limit placed along 13th and 14th Street from Harrison
Street to Madison Street. This was put in place until a view corridor study was conducted to
determine where lower heights are necessary to preserve views and where the previously
proposed height limits are appropriate.

On July 7, 2009, Council amended the Ordinance as follows:

In the area currently classified as the "Central Business District" - The area
from Madison Street to Harrison Street and from mid-block between 14th Street
and 15th Street to 13th Street shall be designated as Height Area 2 until the time
that a view corridor study is complete and consequent amendments to the
Oakland Planning Code are approved by the City Council - The area currently
designated Height Area 3 by the western shore of Lake Merritt, on Lakeside Drive
from 14th Street to 17th Street shall be designated Height Area 1- Maximum
analysis shall be required as a part of CEQA to determine if views to and from
the Tribune Tower and City Hall will be adversely impacted by proposals to
construct new buildings, and/or demolish or alter existing structures; Also, the
City Council expressly directs the Planning Commission to consider all
applications that are complete as the date of the final adoption of the Central
Business rezoning, including the applications for development projects at 222
19th Street and 1443 Alice Street, on their merits under the previous zoning
designations as stated in Section 6c of the Ordinance, and that the new zoning
height limits, and other requirements, must not be considered as part of the
Planning Commission's review and deliberations on these completed project
applications.
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
Page 3

Additionally, there is direction for the establishment of view corridors as a Mitigation Measure in
the Land Use and Transportation Element (LUTE) of the General Plan adopted March 1998, as
follows:

Define view corridors and based upon these views, designate appropriate height
limits and other requirements. Views of Lake Merritt, the Estuary and
architecturally or historic significant buildings should be considered.

At their March 8, 2010 LPAB meeting, the Board made a motion to recommend the five view
corridors with a vote of: 4 yes and 3 no. The major issues discussed at the meeting were:
Importance of view corridors downtown;
The number of view corridors;
The importance of City Hall and the Oakland Tribune Tower compared to the overall
skyline;
The impact on development potential;
Potential of other views from other areas; and
The ranking of the importance of the five proposed view corridors.

Staff presented the following five view corridors at the March 17, 2010 Zoning Update
Committee (ZUC) meeting (see Attachment A):

View Corridor #1: 18th Street Pier on Lakeshore Avenue to Oakland Tribune Tower,
View Corridor #2: 18th Street Pier on Lakeshore Avenue to the City Hall,
View Corridor #3: intersection of Hanover Street and Lakeshore Avenue to City Hall,
View Corridor #4: the 2000 block area of Lakeshore Avenue (specifically across from 421
Wayne Ave.) looking towards the Tribune Tower, and
View Corridor #5: Cleveland Cascade on Lakeshore Avenue to Oakland Tribune Tower.

These view corridors were determined after site visits with four community representatives on
January 10, 2010 (see Attachment B). The ZUC made a motion to have staff further study View
Corridors 1 and 2 for the full Planning Commission and requested the following information:
Impacted parcels;
Buildability of impact parcels;
Takings analysis;
Policy issue analysis;
Density analysis; and
Impact on Transit Oriented Development.

The Committee also requested to have staff further study View Corridors 3, 4, and 5 but to only
provide the total number of parcels that would be impacted within the corridors.
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
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PROCESS

Process of Determining View Corridors

As mentioned five proposed view corridors were identified by staff and community
representatives. Further analysis was conducted in the Planning Department office through GIS
(Geographic Information Systems) mapping by plotting all of the view points that the pictures
were taken from. Then five view corridors were drawn with the center of the corridors taken
from the four best viewing positions to either City Hall or the Oakland Tribune Tower (see
Attachments C and D). The view widths were based on constraints defined by existing buildings.
For example, from the 18th Street Pier, the Scottish Rite Temple and the apartment building to its
south limit the view corridor width. Similarly, the Essex tower and the apartment building to its
south limit the view corridor width from Hanover and Lakeshore to City Hall. These corridor
widths obviously preserve the existing views and were determined to be a good basis to be used
for the other corridor widths (see Attachment E).

Once the corridors were determined, the existing Height Area boundaries were mapped. Where
heights appeared to have the potential to block views of City Hall or the Oakland Tribune Tower
(Height Areas 3 7), a triangle ratio formula calculation was used to determine maximum
heights that would not block views.

The formula used to determine maximum heights was the same formula that Portland, Oregon and
Austin, Texas used for their view corridor regulations. (see Attachment F, G, and H for a
description of the triangle ratio formula calculation process, diagrams, and calculations used).

Heights were determined for each block within the 5 view corridors (see Attachment C for
proposed height maximums). When there was some overlap between two or more view
corridors, the lower height was used. Aerial maps, street maps, and birds eye view photographs
were all used to assist with the analysis.

FURTHER ANALYSIS

The following is the additional analysis requested by the Zoning Update Committee.

Parcels within view corridor

Further analysis was done in order to determine how many parcels are within each view corridor,
and the parcel size. More detailed analysis was done on View Corridors 1 and 2 that also
included whether the parcels were vacant and the existing number of stories if they are developed.
Attachment I, show where these parcels are located and also demonstrate that some of these
parcels, including the largest, only have a small portion that fall within the corridor. A study may
show that construction on these parcels will not block the view because they fall on the outside
edge of the corridor. The corridors were drawn generously to ensure that a project would not
block a view of City Hall or the Oakland Tribune Tower. It is, therefore, highly likely that
buildings taller than the listed proposed maximum heights could still be built if they are on the
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
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outside edges of the corridors. It is also possible to move the higher portion of a building on the
area of the parcel that would not block a view. Attachment J, shows pictures of the buildings and
parcels that fall within View Corridors #1 and #2.

View Corridors #1 and #2 (see Attachment I)

There are 51 parcels within View Corridors #1 and #2.

View Corridor #1:

29 parcels
Lot Size
o 11 parcels are 5,000 sq ft or less
o 10 parcels are > 5,000 sq ft and < 10,000 sq ft
o 8 parcels are more than 10,000 sq ft
Building Height
o 7 parcels are vacant
o 15 parcels have 1 3 stories
o 7 parcels have 5 8 stories

View Corridor #2:

22 parcels
Lot Size
o 8 parcels are 5,000 sq ft or less
o 3 parcels are > 5,000 sq ft and < 10,000 sq ft
o 11 parcels are more than 10,000 sq ft
Building Height
o 6 parcels are vacant (3 owned by Oakland Housing Authority, 1 by Alameda
County)
o 8 parcels have 1 3 stories
o 8 parcels have 4 15 stories

View Corridors #3, #4. and #5 (see Attachment K)

There are 45 parcels within View Corridors #3, #4, and #5 (17 are 5,000 sq ft or less and 14 are
greater than 10,000 sq ft). Some of the parcels are in more than one corridor:
View Corridor #3 contains 22 parcels (8 are 5,000 sq ft or less, and 6 are above 10.000 sq
ft);
View Corridor #4 contains 15 parcels (7 are 5,000 sq ft or less and 4 are greater than
10,000 sq ft); and
View Corridor #5 contains 15 parcels (4 are 5,000 sq ft or less and 7 are greater than
10,000 sq ft)

Takings
The creation of view corridors is not considered a taking because a taking only occurs when a
property is deprived of all economically viable use. The view corridors are only proposing to limit
the height of a building if a study shows that the proposed project will block the view of either
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
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City Hall or the Oakland Tribune Tower, the lowest potential height in any of the corridors is 70
feet (for only 3 parcels) and up to 140 feet. This still leaves the potential for these properties to
have an economically viable use.

Policy Issues, Density Issues, and Transit Oriented Development

There are several competing policy issues within the Central Business District (CBD). There are
policies within the General Plan for higher densities within the CBD, especially areas close to
transit. There also are policies that pertain to preservation of historic buildings, districts, as well
as view corridors. Sometimes these policies conflict; staff asks that the Planning Commission
form a decision as to which policy takes precedent and make their recommendation to the City
Council.

PROPOSAL

The view corridors with proposed maximum heights are shown on Attachment C. It is proposed
to have these maximum heights be a starting point. Projects within any view corridor must submit
calculations for their particular site along with a three dimentional modeling analysis that shows
the project will not block the view of either City Hall or the Tribune Tower. There may be
potential to build higher if the applicant can show that they will not block a view. This could be
done by strategically placing the taller portion of the building as a tower on the portion of the lot
that does not block one of the buildings. There should still be some open air space left on each
side of the Oakland Tribune Tower and City Hall in order to help frame these buildings and make
them still stand out and not blend into other buildings that are built in front of them (see picture of
existing example of view of City Hall in Attachment L).

Staff ranked the views as part of the analysis (see Attachment B, Column 3). The view which
staff ranks first is View Corridor #2, from the 18th Street Pier to City Hall. This is the classic,
quintessential view that terminates at the end of 18th Street with City Hall straight across the
Lake. From the 18th Street Pier, City Hall is clearly visible and the pier itself is a clear stopping
and viewing point with benches for people to sit. There also is a fountain that is directly in front
of the pier and also in line with City Hall. Staff ranks the View #1, the view of the the Oakland
Tribune Tower from the same 18th Street Pier, as the second most important view. Staff ranked
View Corridor #5 as the third most important since it is from the Landmark Cleveland Cascade
stairs to the Oakland Tribune Tower. View Corridor #4 was ranked as the fourth most important
because the Oakland Tribune Tower is actually visible for a good stretch while you are walking
along the path and is directly in front of you which makes it fairly prominent. The Tribune Tower
is visible from the newly refinished seating area from this view point location. View Corridor #3
was rated the lowest because City Hall is not as clearly defined and the location it is viewed from
does not have an area to sit and enjoy the view.
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
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RECOMMENDATION

Staff recommends that the Planning Commission choose one of the following options:

1.) Amend the Zoning Maps and Planning Code to create one or more of the proposed view
corridors; or
2.) Incorporate one or more of the view corridors into the Citys CEQA thresholds. This
would require a view study if a proposed building is within a view corridor and over a
specified height. A project would be considered a significant impact under CEQA if the
study shows that views of City Hall or the Tribune Building will be blocked. The map
would be included in the CEQA Thresholds; or
3.) Recommend no view corridors to the City Council. Existing general CEQA view
thresholds would remain.

With all three options, staff recommends that the Zoning Maps be amended to remove the
temporary 85-foot height limit placed along 13th and 14th Street from Harrison Street to Madison
Street and replaced with the original recommended height of Height Limit 5 (400 feet).

Prepared by:

LAURA KAMINSKI
Planner II

Approved for forwarding to the

Planning Commission:

ERIC ANGSTADT
Deputy Director of CEDA

Attachments
A: Aerial with Proposed View Corridors and Photograph View Point Locations
B: View Corridor Analysis
C: Existing CBD Height Areas, Proposed View Corridors and Proposed Height Maximums
D: Photos of Views Chosen
E: Photos that Show Existing View Widths
Oakland Planning Commission May 19, 2010
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F: Description of Calculation for View Corridor Formulas

G: View Corridor Diagrams, Formulas, and Calculations
H: Calculations for Each View Corridor to Determine Maximum Heights for Blocks Within the
View Corridors
I: View Corridors #1 and #2, Impacted Parcels Within
J: Photographs of Parcels Within View Corridors #1 and #2
K: View Corridors #3, #4, and #5, Impacted Parcels Within
L: Photo of Existing View of City Hall With Open Air Space on Each Side