In the heart of downtown Mountain View, a transformative three-story commercial development has been approved at 705 West Dana St., formerly an auto repair shop. Despite the City Council’s unanimous approval of the project by Smith Development, a notable Mountain View real estate development firm, concerns surfaced regarding the transparency of the architectural plans available for public review – which were not fully disclosed for various reasons.  The Mountain View council expressed unease about the incomplete disclosure of renderings – plans are available at City Hall for viewing only.

This project approval is great news for commercial real estate developers, real estate investors, commercial property managers, and the commercial property market in general in Google City and surrounding communities.  The commercial real estate market has spent 2022 and 2023 fending off a tidal wave of bad news from vacancies to lending challenges to work-from-home trends.  But the tide seems to be receding and this is one more data point to a commercial real estate recovery.

The developer intends to revitalize the property into an 18,800 square-foot, three-story commercial edifice. The development’s vision encompasses a ground-floor restaurant, second-level offices, a small plaza, and an underground garage offering 13 parking spaces for public use during evenings, holidays, and weekends. This commercial property will help enhance and improve downtown Mountain View commercial real estate landscape.

While council members praised the design and shared garage concept, the accessibility or transparency of the project’s plans raised concerns. The recently enacted state law, SB 1214, mandates explicit consent from copyright owners, typically architects, before making plans publicly accessible. KSH Architects, responsible for the project drawings, provided a limited online package, necessitating an in-person visit to City Hall for the complete set.

In response to queries about the partial disclosure, KSH Principal Architect acknowledged the decision and expressed willingness to provide the full package to interested members of the public. The matter of transparency resurfaced in discussions about community notifications for development projects and the extent of staff awareness regarding developer interactions with neighborhood associations.

The city’s formal notification process for property owners and tenants within a 750-foot radius of developments, supplemented by an informal outreach to neighborhood associations is currently underway. Concerns arose over the lack of recorded deliberations in the council report from the four meetings between the developer and the Old Mountain View Neighborhood Association.

Parking logistics during construction also emerged as a point of contention. Despite reservations about transparency in project plans and parking concerns, the council overall endorsed the proposed development. Construction is slated to commence in 2025, with an anticipated duration of 18 to 24 months for completion.

Commercial landlords, commercial property managers, and developers are anxiously awaiting the real estate market to harness some good news.  This project will help other projects and commercial real estate developers make decisions to move forward with their proposals and developments that are currently just ideas. The improvement of the commercial real estate market in the San Francisco Bay area is just part of the typical real estate cycle and will play out over the next decade or so.  This is just one more piece in the commercial real estate puzzle in place and will be fun to wait and watch the gentrification.

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David Roberson
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