On November 29, 2016, the City Council adopted the Lawrence Station Area Plan (a Specific Plan) for the 72-acre area bounded by Lawrence Expressway, Central Expressway, Calabazas Creek, and Kifer Road. The Plan envisions the redevelopment of the pre-existing industrial park area with a transit-oriented, higher density residential neighborhood.
At build-out, the Plan will create a lively neighborhood that accommodates up to 3,500 residential dwelling units, roughly 100,000 square feet of neighborhood-oriented and convenience retail, and approximately 6.3 acres of public open space in conjunction with various outdoor recreational facilities and landscape features, such as a community garden, a public plaza, pocket parks and paseos. The targeted residential density is 45 – 56 dwelling units per acre. An existing Santa Clara Fire Department Station will remain in place as a component of the Plan, potentially incorporating a Santa Clara Police Department Substation.
The goal is to take advantage of this location with its close proximity to major regional transit by incorporating higher-density residential and transit supportive uses that will maximize the project area’s development potential. The density in housing is intended to support transit usage with a commensurate reduction in reliance on the automobile, augmented by a bicycle and open space network.
Lawrence Station itself is a stop on Caltrain, a 32-stop heavy rail system, serving San Francisco and the Peninsula, traveling through the South Bay to San Jose and Gilroy. Strategically located between the Sunnyvale Station and the Santa Clara Station, it serves both the Cities of Sunnyvale and Santa Clara.
As regards housing affordability, the Plan states: “Given the great housing demand in the ‘very low’ income categories per the RHNA’s projection, the LSAP encourages new developments incorporating affordable housing with other market-rate products to address the potential needs.”
For an adjacent 319-acre area, the City of Sunnyvale adopted in 2016 a specific plan for up to 2,323 units (that city’s Lawrence Station Area Plan). As of this writing, the City of Sunnyvale is in the process of studying the addition of some more acreage to the Plan area and increasing allowed densities. These changes would add up to 3,612 units, or resulting in a total of up to 5,935 units at build-out.
For further information on the Plan as well as approved and proposed developments, visit the Lawrence Station page on the Santa Clara Community Development Department’s website.