A list of the business at The Globe

A List of Restaurants at The Globe

Approximately 20 to 25 different kinds of restaurants. Some would be freestanding
pads, some could be smaller. Restaurants that were expected to locate in this center
were:

Jackie’s Kitchen (from Honolulu)
Anamadera (a high-end Vietnamese restaurant)
Indian Chi Café (a small facility)
Vietnam Dim Sum
International Culinary Arts
Roy’s
Straits Café (currently in Santana Row)
Amber’s (an Indian restaurant also in Santana Row)
GONG DE LIN XIAO NAN GUO LLC ( 40525 Albrae, Fremont, CA 94538) ( A former “Home Depot”, now a furniture store, is located on one of the parcels)

In conversations with many community leaders and
consulates, they seemed very supportive of this concept.


Hotel Boutique/Franchise

Property Description:
Looking for a Hotel Operator or Hotel Franchise to fill and operate 83 - 90 rooms in the Globe. Building Size: 85,000 sq ft, 3 stories total (1st story =15,000 sq ft, 2nd and 3rd =35,000 sq ft each)

As the first internationally-themed lifestyle center in the United States, The Globe will serve as the premier retail and entertainment destination in the Bay Area. It will not only attract visitors and acclaim regionally but also from across the nation and around the world. The concept of the Globe is to create an environment that is inclusive of the different cultures of the world and to express them through the design of the architecture as well as the types of products and services offered. The Globe will be a place where the commonalities of cultures are highlighted and differences appreciated; food and fashion being two prime facets. The Globe will target the middle to upper income echelons as its primary target market. The tenant composition will also be vital.

Location Description:
Will be situated at the E-Building (European Village) across from the Heart area and in the center of the Globe Mall.

Located in Fremont, California, the site area covers 47.24 acres or over 2 million sq. ft. with over 700,000 sq. ft. of gross leasable area (GLA) planned. The Globe is located in Silicon Valley adjacent to and west of the 880 Freeway south of Stevenson Blvd. The 880 Freeway extends along the East Bay from San Jose to Oakland connecting to these other high-volume freeways and highways - 101, 280, 580, 80, 92, 84, 8 and 237 - and running through the following cities - Los Gatos, Campbell, Santa Clara, San Jose, Milpitas, Fremont, Newark, Hayward, Union City, San Leandro, Alameda, and Oakland. The Globe's convenient location near the Dumbarton Bridge (84) will allow for easy access from cities across the San Francisco bay such as Palo Alto, Foster City, Belmont, San Carlos, Redwood City, Menlo Park, Woodside, Mountain View, and Los Altos Hills. The City of Fremont is currently the last stop in the South Bay for BART and the Globe plans to Serve the public transit commuters with its own customized BART shuttle, whose schedule will be coordinated with the BART system.
Additional Types: Retail Pad No. Stories: 3
Anchor
Theme/Festival Center


Planning Commission Meetings 01/12/06 SAIGON VILLAGE ARCHITECTURE

What types of businesses, other than restaurants, were anticipated to locate within
the Village?
Fashion retailers would be located along Fashion Boulevard within the project. It was
hoped that some retailers would reflect the cultures expressed in the architecture,
which would cater to the local market. A cinema was envisioned that would show
independent foreign films, rather than the “usual blockbuster films.”

Were there any plans for office-type businesses?
Most would be retail. The only office spaces would be used by the Village
management company and his firm.

Would there be any other types of office businesses?
No more than a total of 5,000 square feet, if any.

Would office space be allowed in this area?
Associate Planner Ruhland replied that this parcel was already zoned for High
Volume Retail and Commercial. The General Plan amendment would change the
land behind this parcel from General Industrial to High Volume Retail and typical
office use was not anticipated within High Volume Retail. Some service businesses,
i.e., real estate, banks, accounting would be allowed.

Was an eating establishment previously approved for this site?
Associate Planner Ruhland replied that there was no specific use identified in the
previous design of the building.

Were quite a few eating establishments planned?
As many as four different restaurants were being considered.

Did the applicant know of any actual businesses that were planning to occupy the
buildings? No leases had been signed, but there was a waiting list of interested restaurants.

Was this particular project near the sign that stated an Asian buffet was coming?
Yes, but it would be on a different parcel, altogether.

Would East-West Bank actually be located on the smaller pad, or was that shown for
the purposes of illustration?
Discussion had been held with East-West Bank, along with other banks.

Was the Golden Theater one and the same that was referenced as the performing
arts stage?
No. However, it was hoped that the theater would be used as a multifunctional
performing stage, as well.
Mr. Horn clarified that the performing venue that she was referring to would be an
outdoor performing plaza in the public space area.

Would parking be adequate, as other local Asian shopping centers seemed to lack
enough space.
All parking requirements would be met and they were working with their consultants
and Associate Planner Ruhland to make sure adequate parking would be available.

Planning Commission Meetings 01/26/06 The Globe
Where might the parking structure be located, if deemed necessary, and how many
stories would it be?
The parking structure would be located at the upper rear portion of the site between
the buildings and Encyclopedia Circle. At this time, it was anticipated that two stories

Where might the parking structure be located, if deemed necessary, and how many
stories would it be?
The parking structure would be located at the upper rear portion of the site between
the buildings and Encyclopedia Circle. At this time, it was anticipated that two stories
would be adequate.

How would these separate types of businesses contribute to ethnic integration?
Would only the Vietnamese, for instance, visit only the Vietnamese shops and
restaurants?
It was hoped that the entire community (regardless of nationality or race) would be
interested in going to the center to shop and eat.

How many restaurants were anticipated to locate in this center?
Approximately 20 to 25 different kinds of restaurants. Some would be freestanding
pads, some could be smaller. Restaurants that were expected to locate in this center
were: Jackie’s Kitchen (from Honolulu), Anamadera (a high-end Vietnamese
restaurant), Indian Chi Café (a small facility), Vietnam Dim Sum, International
Culinary Arts, Roy’s, Straits Café (currently in Santana Row) and Amber’s (an Indian
restaurant also in Santana Row). In conversations with many community leaders and
consulates, they seemed very supportive of this concept.

Was it anticipated that the same number of shops would be located in the center?
They expected an international market and a Chinese market would open business in
the center. It was hoped that boutiques that would sell, for example, wedding
dresses from another country, thus, eliminating a trip by the bride to her home
country to chose an appropriate dress. Rather than these kinds of businesses being
located in the typical “older shopping center,” they would have a location that was a
part of the culture of Fremont.

Was the applicant talking with individuals with the various ethnic backgrounds that
were to be represented in this project?
Yes, they were.

Would the shops be upscale and, for example, sell artifacts indigenous to a particular
country? What kinds of shops were expected to locate in the project?
Fred Kim stated that they expected to create a project that was fiscally sound. Each
cultural district would be customized to cater to the demographics of the city. Retail
demand was expected to be from middle to upper middle household incomes within
the city. They hoped to create a project that would reach out to all cultures.
Architectural inspiration had been taken from the source cultures, and they were
modified and contemporized for each building. Everyone they had spoken with
“loved, loved the idea.”

Eugene Sum, Sum Architects, added that he and the applicant were “trying to create a fusion
of elements from different cultures. They planned to look at new ways of looking at cultural
elements from different countries and to collage it in a way that would create “inclusionary
principles into the design.” This architecture would be specific to Fremont, specific to
California and, at the same time, it would respect those elements that come
would be adequate.

Newswrap 9/27/2007

Now Open
Taiwan Food talk (Now Open) September 15-20, 2007

4 star rating

based on 2 reviews

Category: Asian Fusion

43755 Boscell Rd
Fremont, CA 94538

(510) 668-0818

www.foodtalkcafe.com

• Price Range: $
• Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
• Attire: Casual
• Good for Groups: Yes

They were having a 10% OFF promotion (until the 15th of next month).

Overall, we're glad to have a more upscale (but not expensive) Chinese/Taiwanese restaurant like "Food Talk Cafe" in Fremont. We hope that the rest of that shopping center will develop so that there will be other good eats!

*Incidentally, the website doesn't seem to be up yet.

Fremont Water Park Update 09/08/07

August 30, 2007-August 31, 2007- I have Seen they added Temporary Power and the add power wires.
September 6, 2007- The old buildings at the old Swim Lagoon has Demolish.

The Globe
Projected Completion
Saigon Village: Winter 2007
China Village, JK Town, and Pacifica: Summer 2008
The Heart, Europa, and Taj India: Winter 2008
Additional Shopping Village to Come in Future Phases: Africa, Australia, Mexico

If you want more info just click The Globe on the top or bottom. They do have a Website and if you can't find the website you should have the to the website.

Saigon Village
Saigon Village is now complete on September 1-8, 2007. Now they have to do tenants improvement and they haven't even started. I don't know what stores are they having and it will be long time the finish the stores.

3-year Paseo Padre detour opens today

Major construction begins to eliminate railroad crossings





What do you call something that's yellow, 100 feet tall, and has been sleeping at the side of Paseo Padre Parkway the past month? City engineers don't seem to know exactly what it's called either. But they know it's about to wake up and make it possible to eliminate the railroad crossings that tie up traffic several times a day.

Starting this afternoon, cars traveling along Paseo Padre will be routed onto the detour road that construction workers have been building for the past few months. The paved detour - a single lane in each direction - will carry traffic between Hancock Drive and Shadow Brooke Common for the next three years as workers complete the Grade Separation Project.


Background

The hundred million dollar project - the biggest public works project in the city's history - will eliminate the railroad crossings both Paseo Padre and Washington Boulevard. The tracks will stay at ground level in both locations. Washington will be raised 25 ft to cross above the tracks, while Paseo Padre will dip 20 feet to pass under them. In addition to eliminating traffic delays from passing trains, the project will make it possible for BART to extend to the Warm Springs district.


The Big Yellow Thing

Once the detour opens, workers will be able to start digging out the section of Paseo Padre that will pass under the tracks. But sinking the road down 20 feet is not just a matter of digging. With the water table sitting less than 10 feet deep, the new road would flood.

That's where the big yellow thing comes in. Drilling far into the surface, it will pump in a mixture a soil and cement that will be used to construct two 50-foot deep walls to keep water from seeping onto the new road. The walls will run along either side of the lowered portion of Paseo Padre, outside of the separate retaining walls that drivers will see once the road is complete.

Though only about a mile away, the Washington crossing does not have the same water table problems as the Paseo Padre one. The reason is that it is on the other side of the Hayward Fault, which runs diagonally between the two crossings.

"That shows you just what type of impact the fault has," said Jim Pierson, the city's transportation and operations director.


The Trains

Before fabricating the 50-foot deep wall for the new road, the big yellow thing will be used to build a similar, temporary wall to protect the railroad tracks. The tracks will be shifted east as part of the project, but not for a couple of years. And since the trains need to keep running throughout the digging, they too need protection from the underground water.

The whole reason for this project, the tracks also are the main cause of its complexity. To save money, shifting trains to the new set of tracks will be done at the same time for both locations. That means the tracks crossing Paseo Padre will not be shifted until the ones that cross Washington also are ready. But because the reconstructed Washington Boulevard will pass over the tracks, those tracks can't be relocated until after the roadway is completed.

"It's dangerous to build over live tracks," Pierson said

Once both sets of tracks are shifted, section of Paseo Padre where the old tracks had been can be lowered.


A bridge to the future water park

When the new road is complete, pedestrians and bicyclists will be able to cross over it on a prefabricated bridge. The bridge is as much a necessity as an amenity, Pierson said. Utility cables that now run underneath Paseo Padre will no longer be able to do so, since they would need to pass under both of the deep walls that keep water from entering the depressed road. Those cables will run through the bridge.

Other city projects will pick up the cost of building paths to the bridge, which will make it easy to walk or bike from Irvington to Central Park, Pierson said.


Project could be completed ahead of schedule

Although the real construction is only just beginning, Pierson said the project - set to finish in 2010 - has kept on schedule. In fact, the contractor has told the city they would like to speed up the work. But the city also wants to limit construction hours so residents are not woken up too early from the noise. And some of the work requires closing intersections for short periods of time, which typically would be over a weekend, Pierson said.

"The city will gladly accommodate (a faster schedule) to the extent it doesn't impact residents," he said.


For more info...

The city maintains a Web site with up-to-date information, detailed project diagrams, frequently asked questions, and contact information at www.fremontgradesep.com.

Cisco Field will be on Irvington district and More update

A's complete field renovations at school
Fields at Washington High School in Fremont are redone

The A's and their partners, the Good Tidings Foundation, cut the ribbon on their latest field renovation on Tuesday, celebrating the completion of work on the baseball and softball fields at Washington High School in Fremont.A's owner Lew Wolff and club president Mike Crowley joined pitcher Huston Street and catcher Kurt Suzuki to lead the A's contingent attending the event. Alameda County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, Fremont Mayor Bob Wasserman, Fremont Unified School District Superintendent Doug Gephart and Washington High School student body president Tenaya Davis also participated in the ceremony.

The A's began the renovation process of both fields at the end of June. It included the replacement of the entire irrigation system, fresh sod and infield dirt. The renovations also included new concrete under the bleachers for both fields, a new wood backstop with fresh paint and fencing around the bullpen for the baseball field, and fresh paint on the backstop and fencing to enclose fan and bleacher areas behind the backstop for the softball field.

Last year, WHS renamed the baseball field in honor of alumnus Dennis Eckersley, the former A's right-hander who went on to reach the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Last season, the A's and Good Tidings Foundation renovated and renamed Rickey Henderson Baseball Field located at the Arroyo Viejo Recreation Center in East Oakland and renovated Bambino Field at the Greenman Field Baseball Complex in Oakland in 2005.

The Good Tidings Foundation is a 501-(c)-3 children's charity that looks to equally support education, athletics and the arts for youth from communities of need in the greater Bay Area. The Good Tidings Foundation received assistance from general contractor Robert A. Bothman, Inc., Calco Fence, Hunter Industries, Kelly-Moore Paints and West Coast Turf in the renovation of the Washington High School baseball and softball fields.

Concern

The new A's Stadium maybe will fall through. For Example: If Lew Wolff wants to build a overpass freeway. But Lew Wolff wants the City of Fremont to pay for the overpass freeway. The City of Fremont can't afford too build a overpass freeway. "Then the new A's Stadium deal is off."

September 18 City Council Work Session

The City Council held an additional work session on September 18 to hear an updated presentation from the Oakland A's on their proposed Ballpark Village land use plans. Keith Wolff, co-owner of the A's, and Marty Borko from Gensler Architects, discussed the following items with regard to the proposed Ballpark Village: residential density, land use variety/flexibility, school site and design, connectivity and walkability, parks, parking and transportation, and sustainable elements.

Watch the Work Session.

Below is the A's presentation. Please note: due to the size of the file, it is divided into 5 different PDFs.

Part 1,2	Part 3,4	Part 5

New A's ballpark in Fremont would be surrounded by upscale eateries

If approved by Fremont's City Council, the $450 million Cisco Field would open in 2011 in a now-vacant lot in the city's Irvington district. It would be surrounded by high-end retail stores, restaurants overlooking the outfield, and housing for at least 3,000 people, A's officials told Fremont Tuesday night.

"This is the biggest project Fremont will ever see," said Mayor Bob Wasserman. "If it's approved, it will create a pride here. It will make the city a whole place."

Though finances weren't part of the discussion as the A's outlined the latest details of their 200-acre, $1.8 billion development plan to Fremont officials and residents at Fremont City Hall, the team has asserted that a new ballpark would raise millions of dollars a year in public and private revenue.

On Tuesday, the A's said they would comply with city officials' request to move a proposed elementary school closer to the stadium. It had been planned for several blocks away.

Cisco Field - which would be located 25 miles south of the the team's current stadium on Oakland- would seat 32,000 and be the smallest ballpark in Major League Baseball. Almost the entire outfield would be rimmed with elevated seated. That way, pedestrians, shoppers and diners walking in a mall area below could watch the game for free through windows beneath those elevated seats.

The team, tentatively to be called the Athletics at Fremont - at one time it had been the Silicon Valley Athletics at Fremont - would play in a classic ballpark with plenty of bricks reminiscent of Boston's Fenway Park or AT&T Park in San Francisco, said Keith Wolff, the A's co-owner.

"On game days, the ballpark will provide energy and excitement," Wolff said. "On nongame days, it will be like a sculpture or a park."

The public would also be able to watch games for free from a public park just beyond center field. That park would even have its own scoreboard.

The development would include 11,000 parking spaces cloaked by four- and five-story residential buildings, with more than 3,000 units in all.

Most of the 60 or so Fremont residents who attended Tuesday's meeting supported the project.

"Fremont, for many years, has needed something to keep people here," said Bill Rinetti, owner of Massimo's restaurant there. "People will stay here and spend their money here, and the whole city will prosper."

Not everyone was thrilled with the project. Some complained that the ballpark wouldn't be close enough to BART - it's five miles from the nearest station - and that the shopping area would attract too much traffic.

There were also environmental concerns.

"Everyone here seems to be intoxicated with the idea of bringing a professional ball team to Fremont," said Vinton Bacon of Fremont who works for the Sierra Club. "This project brings more suburban sprawl and is inherently environmentally unfriendly."

The A's plan to submit a formal development application to Fremont within four weeks, Wolff said. The A's have said they are leaving Oakland because they couldn't secure land for the expanded development the owners envisioned.

"We tried to do it in Oakland. That was our first choice," Wolff said. "The officials were great, our fans are amazing. We just couldn't get the land."

Athletics to submit project application by mid-October

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City Manager Fred Diaz announced at Tuesday's Fremont City Council work session that the Oakland Athletics are planning to submit a project application for the so-called Cisco Field ballpark village.

Diaz said the baseball team is expected to submit the application by the end of September, or in early October.

The announcement comes after A's co-owner Keith Wolff and architect Marty Borko laid out more detailed plans for the team's 143-acre site west of Interstate 880.

The city council work session comes after council members in July expressed ire that plans for the development were not as detailed as they hoped nearly a year after the A's had made plans to move the franchise from Oakland to Fremont.

"From our last meeting with you there was a lot of good discussion, so we'll walk with you tonight and touch on some ideas discussed last time," Borko said.

An architect with San Francisco-based Gensler Architects, Borko said the team now hopes to develop 517,000 square feet of retail space, and 3,150 total residential units on the site. A 110-room hotel would also be built.

A 41.35-acre commercial overlay district will be on the southwestern parcel of the site, with 5,500-parking spaces, seven acres of open space, and 850-residential units.

According to Borko, 300,000 square feet of commercial office space can be built in two stories on the parcel.

Parking, he added, would need to be underneath the residential and commercial units due to a higher density desired for the parcel. Parking on this parcel is a quarter-mile from the ballpark.

To the south of the ballpark would be higher density residential zones, with about 8 to 12 percent open space interspersed as 13 neighborhood parks.

"In a sense, within the overall residential development, we're trying to create different neighborhoods, and organized around different open space parcels," Borko said. "Some will be more active and centered around family, while some may be more passive."

Open space in the ballpark village, located to the northeast of the stadium, would be in the form of a plaza directly adjacent to Cisco Field, according to Borko.

To the south of the residential areas, and at the southernmost part of the property, is planned as an elementary school.

Borko said the potential school has not been sited yet, but the team is conducting ongoing discussions with Fremont Unified School District.

He said discussions have centered on the types of programs the district would want at the school, the size, as well as urbanizing the campus.

Borko said the schools would sit on 4 acres and be a Kindergarten through sixth grade site.

In the northwest corner of the development would sit a 41.6-acre municipal parcel, which would include transit, more parking and public parks.

Wolff said over the entire site, there would be about 11,300-parking stalls for baseball fans. He said at McAfee Coliseum a stadium surrounded by parking lots there are only 8,300-parking stalls provided for spectators.

He added the goal during game days is to get motorists off I-880 and into parking areas as quickly as possible to prevent traffic congestion.

To do that, Wolff said, drivers will be directed to make as few left turns as possible to get to parking lots, so they don't cross traffic and cause traffic jams.

Wolff added that on day one of the first season at Cisco Field, there will be enough parking for all 32,000 fans the team hopes to attract.

However, Wolff said he hopes afterward more people will begin to use public transportation.

Currently, 82 percent of A's fans who attend games in Oakland drive to McAfee Coliseum, according to Wolff.

He said he believes that will be reduced at rush hour once the team moves because there will only be 42 mid-week, evening games.

With 6,000 to 7,000 people in the ballpark village, Wolff said he hopes more people will walk to games than drive.

He admitted, however, that public transit options are still a concern.

"On day one, we don't know if BART will be at Warm Springs, which is still 1.5 miles away (from the park)," he said. "So right now we're looking into if we can provide shuttle services."

According to Wolff, ACE and the Capital Corridor trains have expressed interest in stopping at the stadium, but only as long as there is demand to ride their systems. He added the team is currently discussing available services with AC Transit.

While speakers in favor of the project repeated how beneficial it would be to Fremont, others weren't so sure.

Vinny Bacon of the Sierra Club said the ball park project appears to be more auto-oriented, and goes against the "smart growth" the A's are allegedly trying to promote.

"Transit for the project is inadequate and they've even admitted that they have no transit plan on day one," he said.

Bill Spicer said the team's presentation was no different from ones he had seen over the last year.

"The slides I've seen tonight, I've seen before. I'd like to see a timetable of when we're going to get to the hard numbers and hard facts. I want to get to the data instead of the romance," he said.

Bill Renetti, Mossimo's restaurant owner and a supporter of the stadium, said the project would keep visitors in Fremont and frequenting business all over the city.

"This will be great for restaurants, not just restaurants by the park, but outside the park as well," he said.

Council members were pleased there was a little more detail presented at the work session, but still wanted more.

"I like to see visuals, like what three or four stories will look like in that spot, or what the park will look like from the freeway," Councilman Bill Harrison said. "We've seen a lot of numbers, but I'm a visuals kind of guy and I'd like to see more of that."

Mayor Bob Wasserman stated prior to Diaz's concluding announcement that he'd like to get the ball rolling on a formal application process.

"It's an extremely large project and takes a lot of time, and needs a lot of steps. But I think it's time to move to the next step, which is submitting an application and conducting studies," he said.

More information on the A's ballpark project can be found at www.ci.fremont.ca.us, or at oaklandas.com.

Council deadlocks on development ordinance

Fremont City Council at its Oct. 2 meeting is expected to discuss ideas for development use on lands within a half-mile of the future Warm Springs Bay Area Rapid Transit station.

City council voted 3-2 Tuesday to adopt a temporary ordinance to require zoning administrator permits for current, permitted land development within Fremont's Warm Springs Specific Plan, as well as retain conditional use permits for conditionally permitted uses in the plan.

However, state law requires a 4/5 vote approval on an interim emergency ordinance.

Ultimately, the ordinance would require that all developments in the plan meet transit-oriented development goals while the area is studied.

Council members Steve Cho and Bill Harrison dissented.

Jeff Schwob, Fremont planning director, said staff received an increasing number of inquiries and applications regarding development within a half-mile of the future Warm Springs BART station.

Many of the applications, he said, are for low-density buildings and uses with low employment potential.

He added that city staff believed any approval of such developments, such as mini storage facilities or parking lots, could hinder the city's long-term goal for the future station area.

Low density buildings and uses would provide low ridership numbers for any potential BART station in the area, as well as hinder the chances of receiving funding from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for the station, staff reports indicate.

Schwob said the purpose of the "emergency ordinance" was to pause development in the area while staff decided what the rules and regulations for development in the area would be.

But some Fremont businesses and landowners say the ordinance was an attempt to prevent them from building.

Paul Kosachenko, a representative of Brandmoor Co., urged the council not to approve the ordinance.

"From our view, what's the urgency? The fact that a few people asked about a specific piece of land? It seems odd that all of a sudden there is a sense of urgency when the city has had the last 16 years to do something," he said.

In 1991, the city established a special study area around the future BART station as part of the Fremont General Plan.

The city's 1991 general plan called for development of a specific plan for the area, which created a boundary of property within half a miles of the station.

This boundary was to be consistent with established transit-oriented development principles, city reports state.

David Beretta, Brandmoor Co. president, said the ordinance was not fair to developers.

"We believe this ordinance is a reaction to the submittal of several of our proposals," he said. "Our developments won't have any affect on the surrounding areas."

Beretta said many of his neighbors, such as a Walgreens, have been able to develop projects consistent current zoning, and the city approved them.

He added the city's fears about losing funding for any future BART station have been exaggerated.

Beretta said he spoke with BART representative Tom Blalock, who claimed the city should not fear losing funding, as a station in Warm Springs won't be fully realized until at least 2015.

Beretta added Blalock reported that any low-density development would not have an affect on the area.

Councilwoman Anu Natarajan said the city should not be forcing developers to follow transit-oriented development when there is no BART station in the area.

"I think this is a classic case of Catch-22, or which came first, the chicken or the egg," Natarajan said. "We wouldn't be talking about this if BART were already here."

Natarajan and Vice Mayor Bob Wieckowski suggested the ordinance be approved with the condition that city staff not develop an over-elaborate process of approving what can and cannot be proposed for the lands.

Additionally, the council members asked that condominiums be limited, and that a tiered approach to development be put in place. For example, developments with high-density occupancy could be proposed for lands within a quarter-mile of the future station, and lower-density developments be proposed for the next quarter-mile.

Councilmen Cho and Harrison disagreed with the ordinance, stating they weren't sure such a solution was warranted.

"This has been going on since 1991, and the urgency of it coming before us today I'm not sure it lends itself to an immediate response," Cho said. "We're placing all of our cards on the fact that BART's going to be there, and our best guess for that is that it won't be until 2015. Looking at that, I think 2020 is probably more realistic."

While Mayor Bob Wasserman voted in favor of a temporary ordinance, he said this was not the best way to find interim uses for the land while the city waits for a BART station.

"I think this is a very difficult issue and I don't have any doubt that eventually we will have BART there," he said. "We'll have to have the type of developments there that staff recommends, and I think the owners should be aware of that.

"What happens in the interim? I have difficulty requiring owners to freeze their land while the city waits for something to happen," he added.

Following the council's split vote, Vice Mayor Wieckowski suggested bringing the item back to council on Oct. 2, which the rest of the panel agreed to.

If the ordinance had been approved, it would have taken effect immediately for 45 days, city reports indicate.

The ordinance will most likely be extended for an additional period to allow time for preparing final zoning amendments and environmental documentation. Interim ordinances cannot be extended beyond two years from their initial adoption dates, city reports state.

Commission delays key development decision

Fremont Planning Commission has delayed voting on a development which riles 600 nearby residents, until a meeting next month.

The project that has many Fremont residents upset enough to sign petitions against it, is a residential and commercial project on a 12.2-acre parcel on the northeast corner of Sabercat and Grimmer roads in the Mission San Jose Planning Area, east of Interstate 680.

The project would consist of 158 dwelling units, and approximately 55,334 square feet of commercial and retail space in four main structures. Resting on a two-level garage podium, the buildings will be four to six stories tall. Unit sizes would range from 800-square-foot studios, to 1,700-square-foot units with as many as three bedrooms. The project would feature a 6,200-square-foot community recreation and health club, and about 85,600 square feet of common open space and 19,656 square feet of private open space. There would be 415 at-grade surface parking spaces for customers and guests, and 168 secured garage parking spaces for tenants.

Applicant Sabercat Holdings Inc., and its Davis-based architectural firm, YHLA Architects, asserted at the Aug. 9 planning commission meeting that the project will serve as a gateway into Mission San Jose.

"We know it's newer, but we feel it will be a building the city of Fremont can take pride in, and maybe one day can be a landmark and gateway for the city," architect Bob Lindley said.

The commission's decision to continue the item did not sit well with many opponents in attendance. The commission cited the fact that by the time the public comment on the item had closed, the meeting would have run into the early morning hours of Aug. 10.

The proposal, along with the Mission Home project discussed by Fremont City Council on July 24, has raised concern from residents who believe the projects will only bring in families with more children.

Residents fear those children will be enrolled into already crowded Fremont Unified School District classrooms.

Lindley said at the meeting that the proposal is not one that would be suitable for people with children.

"That's not to say there won't be families with children here, and not to say that we haven't accounted for them in our design," he said. "We think this type of development, by and large, is more attractive to individuals who might be entrepreneurs, or do business in their homes."

Mission San Jose residents were not convinced.

About 25 residents spoke against the project at the meeting, all citing concerns with the residential areas being altered, overcrowded schools, open space and green areas slowly disappearing, and commutes becoming worse.

Sita Ghatala said she leaves Fremont for work in San Jose before 9:30 a.m., and sits through at least five traffic signals at two intersections, before reaching southbound Interstate 680.

"I'm concerned about the huge impact adding 158 homes and a shopping complex to traffic would bring," she said. "It's horrendous to say the least, not to mention the mood of the drivers."

Ghatala added that with only two entryway/exits out of the Sabercat Estates on Pine Street, in the event of an emergency, traffic would be even worse.

Suzette Swanson was concerned that much of the open space in Mission San Jose would soon disappear.

"One thing many of us liked about Fremont was the amount of wide open space it had," she said. "Over the last 10 years I've seen that slowly shrinking and shrinking. It really breaks my heart that we're going to rubberstamp and approve a project that changes the neighborhood."

Lindley told the commission that the applicants had held some neighborhood meetings with the residents to discuss the project.

But the majority of the 25 speakers said they never received notice of a meeting, nor did they know anyone else in Mission San Jose who had.

After hearing that, planning commission Chair Dan Lydon was angered, stating he hoped he didn't hear something like that again, after being led to believe the applicant had indeed sent notices to neighbors.

By the time all speakers expressed their opposition, the time was close to 12:30 a.m.

Commissioners elected to hear the rest of the item until September, stating that further discussion on the project could take as much as two additional hours.

But the residents in attendance urged the commission to make a decision that night. The meeting had gone into the next day due to another item that raised concern among residents: an approved T-Mobile cellular phone tower in the Niles District.

"This is a complicated issue," Commissioner Rakesh Sharma said. "You want us to ask a lot of questions about all your input, and I can see some of you think it's going to be done real soon. It's not going to be done real soon. We want to address the issue with as much attention as we can give it."

Lydon said when the item is continued to September, commissioners will be rested and have fresh minds to make a fair decision on the project.

"My opinion is that greater good can be served with time," he said. "I don't think the messages we've heard this evening are going to be forgotten or discarded. But I think we're playing jeopardy as a commission to continue into the night with a long and laborious conversation as we try to get to the root of these issues."

The Sept. 27 commission meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the Fremont City Council Chambers at 3300 Capitol Ave.