REPORT TO THE ZONING ADMINISTRATOR
SUBJECT
Title
Proposed Project:
TENTATIVE PARCEL MAP to subdivide one parcel into two lots.
Location: 1027 W. El Camino Real (APN 161-41-009)
File #: PLNG-2025-0122
Zoning: ECR-MU42
Applicant / Owner: Tyler Whaley / Dubrovnik Properties, LLC
Environmental Review: Class 15 Categorical Exemption relieves this project from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) provisions.
Project Planner: Cindy Hom, 408-730-7411, chom@sunnyvale.ca.gov
Report
BACKGROUND
In September 2024, the Planning Commission approved a Special Development Permit (SDP) for the construction of a six-story mixed-use senior housing building and a three-story convalescent hospital on a 2.42-acre site. The senior housing building will feature 12,232 square feet of commercial space, 113 independent living units, and 36 assisted living units. The convalescent hospital is approximately 72,000 square feet in floor area and provides a capacity of 52 beds for patient care.
The SDP included a deviation from the required ground-floor commercial. The project provides 12,232 square feet, where a minimum of 20,000 square feet is required. The project also includes a parking adjustment for the commercial component of the senior living building to provide 49 parking spaces, where a minimum of 59 spaces is required.
The project provides 17 below-market rate units as required by the City’s Below Market Rate Inclusionary Zoning requirements specified in Chapter 19.77. Additionally, the project utilized the El Camino Real Specific Plan (ECRSP) Community Benefits and Incentives Program, which allows property owners to develop their properties beyond the base maximum density in exchange for providing community benefits that advance the goals of the ECRSP. The project obtained a density bonus of six additional dwelling units per acre, which brings the total allowable residential density to 48 units per acre.
Since the SDP approval in September 2024, the former auto sales/service use has been demolished. Construction of the rough framing for the convalescent hospital is currently under way.
The current application request is to allow a two-lot subdivision. The applicant is not proposing any changes to the approved SDP. The senior housing facility and convalescent hospital will be managed and operated by different entities. The lot split will allow each building to be financed separately by the development lenders and equity partners.
Description of Proposed Project
Site Location
The project site is located mid-block on the north side of W. El Camino Real between S. Bernardo Avenue and S. Mary Avenue. Surrounding uses include the Palo Alto Medical Foundation medical building and Naya Apartment complex to the west, single-family homes to the north, and commercial retail and service uses to the east and south.
See Attachment 1 for a map of the vicinity and mailing area for notices.
Zoning
The project is within the El Camino Real Specific Plan (ECRSP) area and in the El Camino Real - Mixed Use (ECR-MU42) zoning district, which allows for residential mixed-use development with a base maximum density of 42 dwelling units per acre (du/ac). The site is in the “Bernardo Gateway Node” within the ECRSP, intended for high-density, multi-use community focal points where residents and visitors can shop, dine, and access transit.
Site Layout
Lot 1 is proposed to be 56,219 sq. ft. (1.29 acres) in area with a width of +/- 91.5 feet at the El Camino Real frontage and depth of 381 feet. The lot will be developed with a six-story senior housing development with an underground parking garage with 172 parking spaces. The lot will include landscaping and 19,350 square feet of usable open space.
Lot 2 proposes a lot area of 49,283 sq. ft (1.13 acres). The width of the lot at the El Camino Real frontage is 166 feet, with a lot depth of 297.52 feet. The lot will be developed with a 72,000 square foot convalescent hospital, an underground parking garage providing 78 parking spaces, and landscaping on the ground level.
See Attachment 2 for the Project Data Table, Attachment 5 for the Site and Architectural Plans, and Attachment 6 for the applicant’s Project Description Letter.
Site Access
The vehicular access to both facilities will be from the shared driveway easement from W. El Camino Real, which leads to a one-way roundabout in-between the two proposed buildings and provides direct access to each building’s below-grade parking. There is also a resident and patient drop-off area in front of each building on the internal drive aisle. An emergency vehicle access is provided from Olive Avenue to the north. This access is only intended for emergency vehicles, service trucks for loading/unloading, solid waste/recycling trucks, and bus shuttle parking for the senior living building.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
A Class 15 Categorical Exemption (Existing Facilities) relieves this project from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) provisions. The project entails a two-lot subdivision with no new improvements or change in use.
DISCUSSION
Development Standards
Lot Area
The proposed two-lot subdivision meets the minimum lot area of 0.85 acres. Specifically, Lot 1 has an area of 1.29 acres, while Lot 2 has an area of 1.13 acres.
Lot Coverage
Applicable zoning and development standards for the site, which are located in Sunnyvale Municipal Code (SMC) Chapter 19.36, do not provide a maximum lot coverage for mixed-use developments, and as such there was no lot coverage requirement applicable to the September 2024 SDP application. Proposed Lot 1, which is where the senior housing building will be located, has a lot coverage of 68%. Lot 2, which includes the convalescent hospital, proposes a 45% lot coverage. This meets the maximum requirement of 60% that applies to commercial-only development.
Setbacks
The proposed lots comply with the setback requirements as demonstrated in Attachment 2 - Project Data Table.
Usable Open Space
The project complies with the requirements for usable open space area. Lot 1 is subject to the 150 square feet of usable open space per unit. Lot 1 provides a total of 19,350 square feet of usable open space (171 square feet per unit), which is comprised of multiple open space elements on the ground floor (entry court and outdoor dining space), a second-floor internal courtyard, third and sixth-floor amenity spaces along the Olive Avenue frontage, as well as private balconies for both the independent and assisted living units. The convalescent hospital is not subject to commercial development standards and therefore is not subject to usable open space requirements
Landscaping
The landscaping design for the site was developed as a unified plan and is averaged over the entire project area, meeting the minimum requirement of 20% landscaped area. The approved Site Development Permit (SDP) shows that 20.7% of the area, or 21,899 square feet, will be landscaped, exceeding the ECRSP requirement.
Landscaping is provided along both ground-floor street frontages and in amenity areas on the second, third, and sixth floors of the senior living building, as well as in the therapy courtyard and second-floor amenity roof area of the convalescent hospital. It includes ground cover, shrubs, decorative paving, native grasses, and trees, along with pedestrian-scale lighting throughout the site.
Residential Density
The applicable residential density requirement (“base maximum density”) is 42 dwelling units per acre, as prescribed by development standards in SMC Chapter 19.36 (El Camino Real Specific Plan). The ECRSP Community Benefits and Incentives Program allows property owners to develop their properties beyond the base maximum density in exchange for providing community benefits that advance the goals of the ECRSP. The approved SDP granted a density bonus of six additional dwelling units per acre and brings the total allowable residential density to 48 units per acre. The project doesn’t propose any additional units or intensification of use. As such, the project complies with the allowable density when averaged over the entire project site. Staff recommends a condition of approval AT-1 that restricts any new residential units from being added to the site.
NEIGHBORHOOD IMPACTS/COMPATIBILITY:
Staff finds that the layout and design of the subdivision are compatible with the surrounding mixed-use neighborhood. The project complies with the Goals and Policies of the General Plan for mixed-use districts, as was approved by the SDP. The proposed subdivision does not change the original SDP compliance with the guiding principles, policies, and goals of the El Camino Real Specific Plan.
PUBLIC CONTACT
423 notices were sent to surrounding property owners and residents adjacent to the subject site. In addition, the notice of the Public Hearing was published in the Sun newspaper on November 28, 2025.
Public contact was made by posting the meeting agenda on the City's official notice bulletin board at City Hall. In addition, the agenda and this report are available at the City Hall reception desk located on the first floor of City Hall at 456 W. Olive Avenue (during normal business hours), and on the City's website.
As of the date of publication of this staff report, staff has received no comments on the item.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve the Tentative Parcel Map Permit with the recommended Findings in Attachment 3 and recommended Conditions in Attachment 4.
2. Approve the Tentative Parcel Map Permit with modifications.
3. Deny the Tentative Parcel Map Permit.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Alternative 1. Approve the Tentative Parcel Map Permit with the recommended Findings in Attachment 3 and recommended Conditions of Approval in Attachment 4.
Staff
Prepared by: Cindy Hom, Associate Planner
Reviewed by: Jeffrey Cucinotta, Senior Planner
Approved by: Momoko Ishijima, Senior Planner
ATTACHMENTS
1. Vicinity and Noticing Maps
2. Project Data Table
3. Recommended Findings
4. Recommended Conditions of Approval
5. Tentative Parcel Map
6. Project Description Letter