Sunnyvale Mandates CEQA EIR for Butcher’s Corner

Butchers Corner Project Illustration submitted to City of Sunnyvale

Sunnyvale city planners are requiring an environmental impact report EIR for a large development project proposed by De Anza Properties for Butcher’s Corner  located at the confluence of El Camino Real, East Fremont Avenue and South Wolfe Road.

The applicant, De Anza Properties has submitted plans for Forty-one townhome units and 115 apartment units with surface and underground parking is proposed for the El Camino Real and Wolfe Road site. The proposed townhouse buildings are three stories, while the other two proposed buildings are seven stories.

Sunnyvale City staff raised several design concerns, ranging from adequate parking to building setbacks. Staff also recommended the building height along El Camino and Wolfe should be reduced to about four stories.

CLICK HERE for San Jose Mercury News coverage by Alia Wilson dated 9/10/2014.

CLICK HERE for the Butcher’s Corner Architectural Plans submitted to the City of Sunnyvale, CA.

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Open Letter from Candidate Steve Hoffman Sunnyvale City Council Seat #2

Open Letter from Candidate Steve Hoffman Sunnyvale City Council Seat #2:

Dear Sunnyvale residents – Following are some questions I was asked today by a Sunnyvale resident, together with my answers.  Please forward to your friends and neighbors.

1) What are your thoughts about what to do with Butcher’s Corner?

The new owner of Butcher’s Corner is a developer called John Vidovich.  He does not live in Sunnyvale.  He has spent thousands of dollars to support my opponent Glenn Hendricks ($3,000 so far).  To put this amount in perspective, it is about 50% more than my entire campaign has spent.  This assumes that the time of my supporters (all of whom are resident and not members of any special interest group) is worth nothing, which of course it is not.  Although Mr. Vidovich’s donation to Glenn Hendricks is not illegal in Sunnyvale, if this was a Federal Elections, then it would be illegal. 

Sunnyvale council postpones annexation of Butcher’s Corner

By Alia Wilson, Sunnyvale Sun

During a meeting this week regarding the annexation of Butcher’s Corner, Sunnyvale residents expressed a lack of trust in city council members when it comes to planning big development projects.

CLICK HERE for the full Sunnyvale Sun article.

Developer and unions big money slant _Sunnyvale City Council Election 2013

Open Letter from City of Sunnyvale Council Candidate Steve Hoffman:

Jeni, as you can see from the expensive glossy campaign mailers you are receiving in the mail, Sunnyvale’s Unions and out-of-town Developers are funding the election campaigns of their slate of Pro-Unions and Pro-Developer candidates (Griffith, Glenn, and Gustav – the 3 G’s).  

After elected, these candidates will vote on matters that will benefit their donors, as neither see any conflict of interest with this.  Every election, the same thing happens.  The Unions and Developers fund the candidate that will later support their financial interests – just like in Washington DC. 

Following are just a few examples of how this is costing you, and how low it has brought our City: ( click here for more info)

1. $250,000/yr is the average full compensation for public safety officers in Sunnyvale (according to Sunnyvale’s Finance Director Grace Leung).  This is the highest in the entire Bay Area and $50,000 higher than the second highest city (click here for more info).
2. Developers are regularly getting permits to build building that deviate from City codes and exceed the City’s General Plan for growth.  All this, without regard to neighbors’ concerns:  Forever, residents of the Pine/Beechnut area of the S.N.A.I.L. neighborhood will live under the shadow of the monstrous pair of five-story office buildings approved by Gustav Larsson and Glenn Hendricks as Planning Commissioners, and by Jim Griffith as a Council Member (click here for more info).
3. On 4/30/13 Sunnyvale’s city council effectively granted $1.5 million to the garbage company.  The City had no legal obligation to do so, and it got NOTHING in return. Several Council members took donations from the owner of the garbage company.  On July 1st, you got a garbage rate increase.  Almost 50% of the increase is to pay for this $1.5 million grant according to Sunnyvale’s Finance Director Grace Leung (click here for more info).
4. Priceless City lands are being sold (i.e. Raynor Park Activity Center, Murphy Park), while other lands are proposed to be sold (i.e. Civic Center); Playgrounds are been demolished (i.e. CMS), and the City Council refuses to consider purchasing new parklands when opportunities arise ( click here for more info).
5. Sunnyvale Burglaries have increased at a rate 50% higher than the entire Bay Area rate of increase according to the Mercury News (2011 to 2012).  Sunnyvale’s Police Force is smaller than it was 10 years ago because we cannot afford more police officers.  Today we pay almost twice as much for significantly less officers (14%) than we had 10 years ago, while our population has dramatically increased (18%).
6. Council Member Chris Moylan publicly claims that Tap Merrick, Andy Frazer and myself are “part of Council Member Dave Whittum’s hostile takeover of the city council” !?!?!
7. Sunnyvale Vice Mayor Jim Griffith is accused of identify theft (click here for more info).
8. Candidates Glenn and Gustav see no conflict of interest in taking $3,000 dollars each in campaign donations from Developer John Vidovich who is proposing a 10 story multi building very high density complex on Sunnyvale’s most congested intersection (Fremont/Wolfe/El Camino).  All this without regard to outraged residents, Schools been over capacity, traffic jams, scarce water supply, sewage at capacity, and shortages in police patrol officers (click here for more info).
9. John Vidovich plans to make a similar very high density development on Mary and Fremont.
10. Griffith, Glenn and Gustav’s (the 3 G’s) campaign yard signs are placed on John Vidovich’s commercial property with his personal permission.

Candidates Gustav Larsson and Glenn Hendricks controversial donation from Butcher’s Corner Developer

The Special Interest website, which keeps track of campaign donations, lists Butcher’s Corner developer John Vidovich, of DeAnza Building Maintenance, as the largest donor (second to the candidates) for Sunnyvale City Council Candidate Seat 1: Gustav Larsson and Seat 2: Glenn Hendricks.

While De Anza Building & Maintenance, Inc. has a relatively low profile, the Secretary of State’s website lists Vidovich as the owner. A former employee of the company says it specializes in land use and development deals involving everything from mobile home parks and large apartment complexes to wine vineyards and pistachio farms.

Sunnyvale Planning Commissioners Gustav Larsson and Glenn Hendricks, and Councilman Jim Griffith have been busy approving immense projects such as the LinkedIn Building and the Solstice and Carmel-Lofts(Formerly Town & Country) that have unhappy neighbors forming preservation groups. 

Butcher’s Corner annexation study session Sept 10th at 5:45PM in Council Chambers

Courtesy Steve Sarette

Butcher’s Corner is a roughly 5 acre property tucked away at the corner of El Camino Real, Wolfe, and Fremont in Sunnyvale that is currently a working orchard. This property has been sold to a developer who has publicly stated his plans to build an extremely large, high density development. However, that particular corner is already crowded with traffic, local schools are already jammed to the rafters, and traffic patterns in the immediate area do not appear to support the announced plans (195 residential units, 45,000 square feet of commercial space).