Mountain View’s future development plans along Moffett Boulevard just got bigger

Moffett Boulevard, a busy thoroughfare in Mountain View, is poised to undergo some major changes, possibly on a much larger scale than originally anticipated.

The boundaries of a precise plan that will guide future development along the corridor are being expanded, after the City Council recommended adding three major properties at a study session on Nov. 19. The plan would revise development standards for the properties, including updated densities, with an eye towards revitalizing the corridor.

But it is not the large properties that likely will cause a stir in the community. Rather, it is the last-minute inclusion of a smaller tract of land, composed of single-family homes, duplexes and multifamily residences, that could catch the public by surprise.

When the Mountain View City Council first considered the precise plan boundaries last year, it was largely confined to the length of Moffett Boulevard, from Central Expressway to West Middlefield Road, omitting the Moffett Mobile Home Park and 555 W. Middlefield Road development.

At that time, the council expressed a desire to expand the boundaries to include 555 W. Middlefield Road as well as 500 W. Middlefield Road and 500 Moffett Blvd., a federally-owned site.

The City Council supported the inclusion of all three properties in the precise plan at the Nov. 19 meeting. Many public commenters expressed support for it as well, citing a desire to see an integrated and contiguous plan for the Moffett Boulevard area.

Taking it a step further, Mountain View YIMBY and the Mountain View Coalition for Sustainable Planning advocated for a wider coverage area, especially near the Downtown Transit Center to encourage more transit-oriented development.

Several council members backed the recommendation to extend the precise plan boundaries near the transit center, although stopped short of the full coverage mapped out by the advocacy groups.

Instead, Council member Alison Hicks proposed that the city consider a rectangular plot of land directly across from the transit center, bordered by Willowgate Street and Central Avenue as well as Santa Rosa Avenue and Horizon Avenue. “It’s a mix of small cottages, old apartments and a little commercial. It looks like one of the areas that might benefit the most,” Hicks said.

The proposal, in a 4-2 vote, received support from Mayor Pat Showalter and Council members Lucas Ramirez and Emily Ann Ramos.

But Council members Ellen Kamei and Lisa Matichak pushed back on it, citing concerns that community members living in the area had not been informed about the potential incorporation of their properties into the Moffett Boulevard precise plan.

“I don’t feel comfortable expanding a boundary map area for people who already live there in their single-family homes … those are planned communities, and if you walk in those areas, you will see that,” Kamei said.

The council also has plans to rezone parts of the city for multifamily residences, as part of its R3 updates, Kamei said, adding that she did not want to duplicate that work either.

Matichak expressed similar concerns about adding more properties to the precise plan without first notifying residents of this potential change. “I wouldn’t feel comfortable expanding it without community input. I don’t think that’s fair. I don’t think it’s transparent, and it just doesn’t feel good to me to do that,” she said.

For Showalter, it was preferable to start bigger with land use projects and then winnow down as needed. It can help with timelines, especially when it comes to regulatory clearance issues, she said.