Architectural Review Board - August 20, 2026

Board seeks Fabian Way changes before director’s decision

The Architectural Review Board asked the applicant to study changes to the proposed seven-story, 273-unit rental project at 3997 Fabian Way, focusing on massing, daylight, access and the building’s relationship to neighboring Moldaw Residences. The Aug. 20 study session ended without a motion, vote or formal recommendation. City staff will complete environmental analysis before the streamlined application receives a Director’s decision.

The proposal would combine six parcels and include 12 very-low-income below-market-rate units; staff said nine additional units are associated with the housing impact fee. It calls for a 3.0 floor-area ratio, 78% lot coverage, 332 vehicle stalls, 273 long-term bicycle stalls and 28 short-term bicycle stalls. Estimated development impact fees are about $11.73 million, with an estimated housing impact fee of about $2.65 million.

The applicant requested eight waivers under State Density Bonus Law, including waivers involving height, the daylight plane, upper-story stepbacks, façade breaks and loading and parking requirements. Staff said conformity with the daylight-plane standard would reduce the project by 30 units, based on the applicant’s materials. Staff described a maximum proposed height of 95 feet, while the applicant said that figure applies only to the highest corner parapet and that the parapet facing Moldaw is approximately 89 feet 6 inches.

Board members focused on reducing daylight, shadow and privacy effects on Moldaw while preserving housing on the site. Chair Mousam Adcock urged alternatives involving massing, setbacks and stepbacks and raised concerns about vehicle access, trash staging, ride-hail loading and potential conflicts with Fabian Way bicycle improvements. David Hirsch requested closer study of building separation and garage screening, while Marton Jojarth suggested shifting more mass toward Fabian Way to reduce impacts along the Moldaw edge.

Commenters from Moldaw Residences and the neighboring Jewish Community Center campus generally supported housing at the site but strongly criticized the current design. They raised concerns about shadows, privacy and security, traffic, emergency access, and pedestrian and bicycle safety. Some asserted that the project could add about 1,240 daily vehicle trips, but that figure was not independently resolved during the session.

The applicant said it would continue working with city staff on an on-site trash-staging solution. A disagreement over prior outreach also remained unresolved: campus representatives said they had no record of the meeting described in the staff report, while the applicant said an online meeting occurred April 3, 2024, and identified attendees. Staff also said a separate 350-unit, 88-foot builder’s-remedy application remains on hold under a tolling agreement while the city considers the current application.

Board seeks code-compliant Skyline field office plans

In a separate preliminary review, the board urged the applicant to avoid variances and design exceptions where code-compliant options are feasible for the Skyline Field Office Rebuild Project at 1185 Skyline Boulevard. No formal action was taken, and the applicant is expected to return with a major site and design review application.

The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District proposal includes about 36,500 square feet of buildings and structures for ranger, maintenance, restoration and wildfire-resiliency work in the Monte Bello Open Space Preserve. A two-story administration building would account for about 13,400 square feet. Long-term staffing is expected to reach about 75 to 80 employees, compared with approximately 50 at the existing field office, and operations are anticipated between 6:30 a.m. and 11 p.m.

Staff flagged preliminary zoning questions involving the proposed 10-foot-5-inch interior side setback, compared with a 30-foot requirement, and the administration building’s approximately 27-foot height, compared with the Open Space district’s 25-foot limit. Whether the building exceeds the height limit remains unresolved. Impervious coverage on the main parcel was stated as 10.25% before zoning-code weighting, compared with a 3.5% standard. The relationship between two legal parcels and the Palo Alto-San Mateo County boundary also requires further verification.

Vice Chair Kendra Rosenberg opposed treating common ownership of the parcels as a reason to avoid setback requirements and called for a clear lot-line-adjustment plan. Marton Jojarth questioned the justification for the proposed building height and asked the applicant to examine lower structural or roof alternatives. Chair Adcock summarized the board’s position that exceptions should be avoided where compliant solutions are available, while recognizing the proposed field office’s public purpose.

The formal submission is expected to include complete floor plans, accurate height and grade measurements, materials and reflectivity information, visual simulations, screening and landscaping plans, lighting and egress analysis, parking-shading analysis and fire-break details. Staff and the applicant will also evaluate a lot line adjustment or parcel merger and coordination with San Mateo County. The formal review sequence described by staff calls for recommendations from the Planning and Transportation Commission and Architectural Review Board before final City Council action.

Two-member panel assigned to 74 townhomes at 340 Portage

The board assigned Yingxi Chen and Vice Chair Kendra Rosenberg to an ad hoc committee for the 74 market-rate townhomes included in the Sabra development agreement at 340 Portage. Staff said brief documentation would be published in the meeting packet before the committee’s review. The action was limited to assigning reviewers; the record contains no decision on the townhome proposal itself.

Primary sources

Watch the meeting on YouTube · Read the official meeting packet