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The San Ramon Planning Commission is scheduled to review an early conceptual plan for a five-story hotel near San Ramon Valley Boulevard in the north part of the city Tuesday.
The private development proposal, still in its initial planning stages, calls for bringing a 110-room Hampton Inn and Suites hotel to a 1.21-acre parcel on Omega Road that is owned by the city of San Ramon but on track to be sold, according to city senior planner Lauren Barr.
“The purpose of the concept review (Tuesday) is to provide the applicant initial feedback on their proposed development concept in advance of formal applications,” Barr wrote in a staff report to the commission.
“The project proposal raises questions regarding scale, height, parking, development standards and overall consistency with the Crow Canyon Specific Plan vision,” Barr added.
The proposal by Dhillon Goyal Development, LLC, aims to bring the 60-foot-tall hotel to 2231 Omega Road, located at the northwest corner of the intersection of Deerwood and Omega roads, parallel to San Ramon Valley Boulevard.
The parcel, originally purchased by the San Ramon Redevelopment Agency (RDA) for a possible affordable housing site, is now owned by the city as the successor agency to the now-dissolved RDA. Barr said the property is “currently under contract for purchase,” though he did not specify sale terms.
Fortune Architects, on behalf of Dhillon Goyal Development, has submitted an application for a development plan concept review for the proposed Hampton Inn and Suites building, but a formal development plan application and other related requests haven’t been filed.
“Although the city is involved in the sale process, like any other development proposal in the city, the project must go through the entitlement process and satisfy zoning requirements,” Barr said. “As such, the potential purchaser has initiated the concept review process for the proposed hotel as a means of obtaining additional information and feedback regarding the development potential for the site.”
The initial concept envisions a five-story building at 53 feet high to the roof and just over 60 feet tall when looking at the extension of the roof parapet, Barr said. The maximum height allowed in the area under city regulations is four stories or 50 feet, so a variance would be needed to achieve a taller structure.
As for parking, the project calls for 108 spots on site, but city rules would require a minimum of 132 parking spots. On-street parking on Deerwood Road could not be used to satisfy city requirements, but public parking could be considered there, according to Barr.
The property is located in the Village Center mixed-use district of the Crow Canyon Specific Plan, and hotel is among the principal allowable uses within the district, according to Barr.
When San Ramon’s RDA acquired the site, the goal was to use the property to develop an affordable housing mixed-use project that would serve as a catalyst project in the city. But officials had no idea that the state would later eliminate RDA programs in 2012, according to Barr.
“Development of the parcel for other uses such as a hotel can still serve as a catalyst for the area by improving the site and bringing additional people into the core of the VCMU district,” Barr said.
The hotel concept plan review is the main item for Tuesday’s Planning Commission meeting, scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. inside the council chamber at San Ramon City Hall, 7000 Bollinger Canyon Road.
This is a really ugly building, boxes side by side with a cornice on top in a failed attempt to hide the banality of the “architecture”. This just adds to the lack of character of buildings in San Ramon.
The gravel and aggregate business next door is grumbling: “There goes the neighborhood!”
It’s almost as ugly as the monster buildings around the danville hotel.
Does San Ramon really need another hotel? This will be located right next to the Hyatt Hotel on San Ramon Valley Blvd and the other Hotel by Costco. The plan already has issues with parking, just like every other business. I guess everybody can come spend the night in San Ramon and go to Danville and Walnut Creek to eat and find entertainment since you can’t do that in San Ramon!
There just has to be a better use for that location. Also, if we had to pick a hotel for that location, Hampton wouldn’t be on the list.
Please, let’s be discerning about what we finally plan to do with that prime land. Thank you.
Prime land? Architecture complaints? The hotel would bring in additional tax dollars for the city, and you guys are worried about land that can’t even be seen from either the highway or San Ramon Valley Blvd.
I for one am happy about any City decision that is making decisions today to increase their general fund responsibly. Hampton Inn is a quality brand, and before this it was am affordable housing site?! San Ramon should be thanking their lucky stars!!!!!!
I’m sure all those new homes that are currently being built along the hillside behind this planned hotel will be thrilled to be looking instead at the back of a 5 story hotel. And a two story parking garage along with it? Yes, I agree it will be good to have parking available, but why can’t it all be underground? What’s going to happen with all the traffic from 1) the new housing development right behind the hotel and 2) hotel traffic? Let’s just crowd the streets more!