HomeMy WebLinkAbout4/1/2025 Item 8a, Gutierrez
Thomas D. Gutierrez <
To:E-mail Council Website
Cc:Hanh, Hannah
Subject:Feedback on Broadstone Village Project at 12500/1 LOVR
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Dear SLO City Council,
I am Thomas Gutierrez, a resident of SLO at 18 Mariposa Dr. in the Meadows neighborhood off of S.
Higuera St. and Las Praderas Dr.
This is feedback for the April 1, 2025 hearing regarding the Broadstone Village Project at 12500/1 LOVR.
I am generally in favor of allowing the owner of this property to develop this otherwise dilapidated and
underutilized space so that it better serves the region and the local neighborhoods. Historically, the
categorically poor stewardship of this space has been alarming, particularly over the past 5-6 years. This
has included rampant transient encampments, fires, violent altercations, unregulated trespassing, and
all manner of unsavory business occurring at all hours. This has been amplified by its proximity to the
creek, The 101, and the LOVR Bob Jones Trailhead. This systematic mismanagement has caused
extreme stress to existing residence and actual damage to the local neighborhoods and businesses.
The proposed housing development in that space (senior+family housing units) makes sense and would
go toward stabilizing and improving the quality of that space and the local community.
However, I strongly encourage the city council to consider the scale and scope of the work and
objectively analyze the impact of this on the local quality of life: in particular on existing neighborhoods,
roads, and traffic conditions.
I’m concerned, for example, that the sheer volume of units proposed (over 400 units) will add substantial
traffic congestion in a region already highly impacted with a series of sensitive choke points along the
corridor from Prado Rd. to Tank Farm Rd. to S. Higuera along LOVR to Madonna.
This single narrow corridor already serves as a primary artery to many businesses, roads, and
neighborhoods in the area including, but not limited to:
Prado Rd. access (including the day center)
The Silver City Community
SLO Public Market
Tank Farm Rd. access
The Creekside Community
The Meadows Neighborhood
Higuera Plaza/Center (which includes Trader Joe’s)
San Luis Business Center and the businesses near Suburban/Vachell/S. Higuera/LOVR
The S. Higuera/LOVR/Vachell region (including access to the Avila Ranch community)
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Both Las Verdes I and II Communities
Major on/off-ramps for N/S 101
Calle Joaquin business access
The half dozen car dealerships along LOVR and Calle Joaquin
Irish Hills Plaza (which includes Costco)
Prefumo Creek Commons (which includes Target)
Laguna Village Shopping Center (includes CVS)
This narrow corridor along LOVR also serves Pacific Beach High School, CL Smith Elementary School,
Laguna Middle School (and the associated school bus routes), two major city bus routes, and so
on. Adding upwards of 200 families to the CL Smith neighborhood district could also have substantial
impact.
In my experience, fairly small perturbations on the traffic already causes major disruptions in this region:
just a single political protest at Calle Joaquin and LOVR, just a single accident at the 101 on/offramp, just
a single accident at Suburban and S. Higuera, just a single accident at S. Higuera and LOVR, or even just
one school bus loading kids on LOVR outside Las Verdes causes a backup down S. Higuera to
sometimes past Las Praderas to Tank Farm. Just one of those events currently creates substantial traffic
problems. Moreover, even under the current conditions, getting in and out of the housing neighborhoods
at The Meadows or Las Verdes during rush hour often involves other drivers along S. Higuera or LOVR
respecting the “keep clear” signage (which is rare) for those intersections during backups.
Given this situation, adding an additional 400+ units at the location of 12500/1 LOVR to this already
congested region without a very carefully planned traffic access/exit strategy, including substantial local
road upgrades, could lead to this part of town becoming essentially inaccessible by any mode of
transportation. This will not only harm the people living in this area, impacting quality of life, but all the
local businesses. The walking and biking quality of the area is already greatly minimized because of all
these existing traffic issues and the degraded state of the Bob Jones Trail. This is shameful for a region
that aspires to be family friendly, walking friendly, and bike friendly. A haphazard addition of hundreds
more housing units will only compound the problem.
In summary, I think some kind of housing development project is appropriate for 12500/1 LOVR, but it
needs to be done in a way that minimizes traffic problems along that corridor and does not disrupt the
quality of life of existing residents in the region. In fact, any development should include improvements
to the already congested road conditions along that corridor and the Bob Jones Trail.
Thank you for listening and best regards,
Thomas Gutierrez
18 Mariposa Dr.
SLO, CA, 93401
tdgutierrez@gmail.com
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