Business / Economy

SJB to consider new restaurant project

Applicants also propose three residential units on the building's second floor.
Old warehouse that is proposed to be demolished to make room for a two-story commercial/residential building. Photo by Noe Magaña.
Old warehouse that is proposed to be demolished to make room for a two-story commercial/residential building. Photo by Noe Magaña.
North side of the old warehouse building. Photo by Noe Magaña.

On Dec. 7, the San Juan Bautista Planning Commission is scheduled to discuss a development permit to build a restaurant and multi-family units. The new development would be the new site for JJ Burgers, which is currently located across the street from the proposed new location. 

According to the agenda packet, Jesus and Katherine Zavala are applying as part of the project to adjust two parcels on the corner of The Alameda and Pearce Street where an old warehouse is located and to build a two-story building. The structure includes a bar/restaurant on the ground floor, two 920-square-foot units and a 707-square-foot unit on the second floor. One of the larger units is a two-bedroom dwelling. The Restaurant is 1,367 square feet. 

The warehouse, located at 205 The Alameda, that was built around 1907 is scheduled to be reviewed by the Historic Resource Board (HRB) on Dec. 7 for a possible demolition. The HRB, which is composed of the same members of the Planning Commission, will review if the warehouse is historical based on a report conducted by Past Consultants, LLC.

According to the Planning Commission agenda packet, the project is exempt from California Environmental Quality Act review under sections 15303 and 15305 of the act. However, the staff report does not explain why the project is exempt.

“Staff reports and the full text of all items to be discussed will be available for public review at City Hall and on the City WEbsite on Dec. 3,” the agenda packet states. 

According to CEQA section 15303, projects are exempt from environmental review if they do not exceed 2,500 square feet in floor area, and that any multi-family residential building does not exceed four units.

Section 15305 states that an exemption exists for projects that are minor alterations in land use limitations and that do not result in any changes in land use or density such as minor lot adjustments. 

According to the agenda packet, the applicants are seeking to reduce the square footage of Parcel A from 7,105 to 6,550 square feet and increase the square footage of Parcel B from 6,005 to 6,550 square feet.

The Planning Commission is accepting public comments no later than Dec. 7 at 5 p.m. The public can also attend the meeting virtually via Zoom. The agenda can be found here. 

 

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Noe Magaña

Noe Magaña is BenitoLink Co-Editor and Content Manager. He joined BenitoLink as reporter intern and was soon brought on staff as a BenitoLink reporter. He also experiments with videography and photography. He is a San Benito High School alumnus with a bachelor's in journalism from San Jose State and a Liberal Arts Associate's Degree from Gavilan College. Noe also attended San Jose City College and was the managing editor for the City College Times, the school's newspaper. He was a reporter and later a copy editor for San Jose State's Spartan Daily. He is a USC Center for Health Journalism 2020 California Fellow.