Council postpones further action on West Berkeley Project to special meeting

http://www.dailycal.org/2012/05/16/council-postpones-further-action-on-west-berkeley-project-to-special-meeting/

The Berkeley City Council voted at its meeting Tuesday to postpone further discussion of the West Berkeley Project — a long-term plan that aims to expand the area’s retail and multi-use space — to a special meeting next week.

City residents and councilmembers voiced mixed opinions during the meeting’s public comment period and ensuing public hearing regarding the lack of community benefits and height limits of the project. The third and current phase of the project would provide for a new master use permit process for blocks of land as large as a full city block in West Berkeley, according to a report from the city’s Planning Commission.

Although most of West Berkeley currently limits buildings to be built up to 45 feet high, the third phase would raise the limit to 75 feet in certain areas.

According to the report from the commission, the project would also allow developers with master use permits to build up to 100 feet high for buildings that need the space for manufacturing or production, in exchange for community benefits such as creating affordable workspaces for artists, providing job-training programs and upgrading the transportation system.

The commission also included other modifications for the area’s Berkeley Aquatic Park West to prevent “unreasonable” shadows of buildings on any “sensitive area” and comply with environmental guidelines to reduce bird collisions.