Planning Commission
Regular MeetingLos Gatos, CA · July 28, 2021
Minutes
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
PLANNING COMMISSION
REPORT
MINUTES OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
JULY 28, 2021
The Planning Commission of the Town of Los Gatos conducted a Regular Meeting on
Wednesday, July 28, 2021, at 7:00 p.m.
This meeting was conducted utilizing teleconferencing and electronic means consistent with
State of California Executive Order N-29-20 dated March 17, 2020, regarding the COVID19
pandemic and was conducted via Zoom. All planning commissioners and staff participated
from remote locations and all voting was conducted via roll call vote.
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER AT 7:00 P.M.
ROLL CALL
Present: Chair Kathryn Janoff, Commissioner Jeffrey Barnett, Commissioner Melanie Hanssen,
Commissioner Jeffrey Suzuki, Commissioner Reza Tavana, and Commissioner Emily Thomas
Absent: Vice Chair Kendra Burch
VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS
None.
CONSENT ITEMS (TO BE ACTED UPON BY A SINGLE MOTION)
1. Approval of Minutes – July 14, 2021
MOTION: Motion by Commissioner Hanssen to approve adoption of the Consent
Calendar. Seconded by Commissioner Barnett.
VOTE: Motion passed unanimously.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
PAGE 2 OF 4
MINUTES OF PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING OF JULY 28, 2021
2. Wood Road
Architecture and Site Application S-21-003
APN 510-47-045
Applicant: Gary Kohlsaat, Architect
Property Owners: Omari and Kavita Bouknight
Project Planner: Sean Mullin
Consider approval for construction of a new single-family residence and site
improvements requiring a Grading Permit on vacant property zoned HR-5.
Sean Mullin, Associate Planner, presented the staff report.
Opened Public Comment.
Omari Bouknight
- Low-grade square footage is incorporated in their home design to reflect the rural and
natural character of Los Gatos. They have remained in compliance with the Town’s
regulations. Their site is relatively private and isolated, allowing for little impact to
surrounding neighbors and the community. They have tried to respect the natural
topography as set out in the Hillside Standards and Guidelines with the design running
along the contours of the hillside to reduce bulk, mass, and visibility and through the use of
subdued colors. They are within the limited LRDA. No trees would be removed. They have
conducted neighborhood outreach.
Justin Dray, Neighbor
- He lives across the street from the subject site. He appreciated the applicant’s
neighborhood outreach and had no objections to the project.
Gary Kohlsaat, Architect
- They arrived at their current design after several iterations. They acknowledge they are
exceeding the 28-foot limit imposed on houses visible bottom to top but that is the only
way this house would work and they are under the ultimate 35 feet. They have stepped the
house up the hill dramatically with over 20 feet from the garage to the master bedroom
floor and another 30 feet to the upper floor. They have put quite a bit of square footage
below grade and are under the allowed FAR. With the landscaping tucked in the back the
minor exceptions are not visible and provide a private space for the home’s occupants.
Closed Public Comment.
Commissioners discussed the matter.
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MINUTES OF PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING OF JULY 28, 2021
MOTION: Motion by Commissioner Hanssen to continue the public hearing for
Wood Road to a date certain of August 25, 2021. Seconded by
Commissioner Suzuki.
Commissioner Barnett requested the motion be amended to provide for Town Attorney
investigation of the right-of-way issue.
The Maker of the Motion accepted the amendment to the motion provided that would not be
the issue that would prevent the application from being approved should the applicant revise
the height appropriately.
The Seconder of the Motion accepted the amendment to the motion.
VOTE: Motion passed unanimously.
OTHER BUSINESS
REPORT FROM THE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Joel Paulson, Director of Community Development
The draft 2040 General Plan is circulating. A Planning Commission/Town Council
workshop on the General Plan is planned for September. The General Plan EIR will begin
circulation on July 30th with a 45-day public comment period and a Planning Commission
hearing to accept public comments. After all public comments have been received
responses will be published in a Final Environmental Impact Report. The EIR and General
Plan will be brought back to the Planning Commission for consideration and
recommendation to the Town Council in the late fall.
A Subcommittee of the Planning Commission has been created to help staff with
Objective Standards.
The Housing Element Update process has begun. A Housing Element Advisory Board will
be created and comprised of the General Plan Committee members and two at-large
community members who served on the GPAC through the General Plan Update effort.
SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS/COMMISSION MATTERS
None.
PAGE 4 OF 4
MINUTES OF PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING OF JULY 28, 2021
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 8:33 p.m.
This is to certify that the foregoing is a true
and correct copy of the minutes of the
July 28, 2021 meeting as approved by the
Planning Commission.
_____________________________
/s/ Vicki Blandin
Agenda
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
PLANNING COMMISSION AGENDA
JULY 28, 2021
110 EAST MAIN STREET
LOS GATOS, CA
Kathryn Janoff, Chair
Kendra Burch, Vice Chair
Jeffrey Barnett, Commissioner
Melanie Hanssen, Commissioner PARTICIPATION IN THE PUBLIC PROCESS
Jeffrey Suzuki, Commissioner
Reza Tavana, Commissioner
Emily Thomas, Commissioner
How to participate: The Town of Los Gatos strongly encourages your active participation in the
public process, which is the cornerstone of democracy. If you wish to speak to an item on the
agenda, please follow the participation instructions on page 2 of this agenda. If you wish to speak
to an item NOT on the agenda, you may do so during the “Verbal Communications” period, by
following the participation instructions on page 2 of this agenda. The time allocated to speakers
may change to better facilitate the Planning Commission meeting.
Effective Proceedings: The purpose of the Planning Commission meeting is to conduct the
business of the community in an effective and efficient manner. For the benefit of the
community, the Town of Los Gatos asks that you follow the Town’s meeting guidelines while
attending Planning Commission meetings and treat everyone with respect and dignity. This is
done by following meeting guidelines set forth in State law and in the Town Code. Disruptive
conduct is not tolerated, including but not limited to: addressing the Commissioners without first
being recognized; interrupting speakers, Commissioners or Town staff; continuing to speak after
the allotted time has expired; failing to relinquish the podium when directed to do so; and
repetitiously addressing the same subject.
Deadlines for Public Comment and Presentations are as follows:
Persons wishing to make an audio/visual presentation on any agenda item must submit the
presentation electronically, either in person or via email, to the Planning Department by 1
p.m. or the Clerk’s Office no later than 3:00 p.m. on the day of the Planning Commission
meeting.
Persons wishing to submit written comments to be included in the materials provided to the
Planning Commission must provide the comments to the Planning Department as follows:
o For inclusion in the regular packet: by 11:00 a.m. the Friday before the meeting
o For inclusion in any Addendum: by 11:00 a.m. the day before the meeting
o For inclusion in any Desk Item: by 11:00 a.m. on the day of the meeting
Planning Commission meetings are broadcast Live on KCAT, Channel 15 (on Comcast) on the 2 nd and 4th Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m.
Live and Archived Planning Commission meetings can be viewed by going to:
https://www.kcat.org/government-meetings
IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT, IF YOU NEED SPECIAL ASSISTANCE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS MEETING,
PLEASE CONTACT THE CLERK DEPARTMENT AT (408) 354-6834. NOTIFICATION 48 HOURS BEFORE THE MEETING WILL ENABLE THE TOWN
TO MAKE REASONABLE ARRANGEMENTS TO ENSURE ACCESSIBILITY TO THIS MEETING [28 CFR §35.102-35.104]
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IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
This meeting is being conducted utilizing teleconferencing and electronic means consistent
with State of California Executive Order N-29-20 dated March 17, 2020, regarding the COVID-
19 pandemic. The live stream of the meeting may be viewed on television and/or online at:
https://meetings.municode.com/PublishPage/index?cid=LOSGATOS&ppid=4bc370fb-3064-
458e-a11a-78e0c0e5d161&p=0. In accordance with Executive Order N-29-20, the public may
only view the meeting on television and/or online and not in the Council Chamber.
PARTICIPATION
If you are not interested in providing oral comments real-time during the meeting, you can
view the live stream of the meeting on television (Comcast Channel 15) and/or online at
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFh35XRBWer1DPx-F7vvhcg.
If you are interested in providing oral comments in real-time during the meeting, you must
join the Zoom webinar at:
https://losgatosca-gov.zoom.us/j/88584299474?pwd=TzF6MFNWZkVUaGhHODhzOE5tL3c4Zz09
Passcode: 352802.
Please be sure you have the most up-to-date version of the Zoom application should you
choose to provide public comment during the meeting. Note that participants cannot turn
their cameras on during the entire duration of the meeting.
During the meeting:
When the Chair announces the item for which you wish to speak, click the “raise
hand” feature in Zoom. If you are participating by phone on the Zoom app, press *9
on your telephone keypad to raise your hand. If you are participating by calling in,
press #2 on your telephone keypad to raise your hand.
When called to speak, please limit your comments to three (3) minutes, or such
other time as the Chair may decide, consistent with the time limit for speakers at a
Council meeting.
If you are unable to participate in real-time, you may send an email to
PlanningComment@losgatosca.gov with the subject line “Public Comment Item # ” (insert
the item number relevant to your comment) or “Verbal Communications – Non Agenda
Item.” Comments will be reviewed and distributed before the meeting if received by 11:00
a.m. on the day of the meeting. All comments received will become part of the record.
The Chair has the option to modify this action on items based on comments received.
REMOTE LOCATION PARTICIPANTS
The following Planning Commissioners are listed to permit them to appear electronically
or telephonically at the Planning Commission meeting: CHAIR KATHRYN JANOFF, VICE
CHAIR BURCH, COMMISSIONER BARNETT, COMMISSIONER HANSSEN, COMMISSIONER
SUZUKI, COMMISSIONER TAVANA, AND COMMISSIONER THOMAS. All votes during the
teleconferencing session will be conducted by roll call vote.
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TOWN OF LOS GATOS
PLANNING COMMISSION AGENDA
JULY 28, 2021
7:00 PM
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
ROLL CALL
VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS (Members of the public may address the Commission on any matter
that is not listed on the agenda. Unless additional time is authorized by the Commission, remarks
shall be limited to three minutes.)
CONSENT ITEMS (TO BE ACTED UPON BY A SINGLE MOTION) (Before the Planning Commission
acts on the consent agenda, any member of the public or Commission may request that any item
be removed from the consent agenda. At the Chair’s discretion, items removed from the consent
calendar may be considered either before or after the Public Hearings portion of the agenda)
1. Draft Minutes of the July 14, 2021 Planning Commission Meeting
PUBLIC HEARINGS (Applicants/Appellants and their representatives may be allotted up to a total
of five minutes maximum for opening statements. Members of the public may be allotted up to
three minutes to comment on any public hearing item. Applicants/Appellants and their
representatives may be allotted up to a total of three minutes maximum for closing
statements. Items requested/recommended for continuance are subject to the Commission’s
consent at the meeting.)
2. Consider Approval for Construction of a New Single-family Residence and Site
Improvements Requiring a Grading Permit on Vacant Property Zoned HR-5 Located on
Wood Road. APN 510-47-045. Architecture and Site Application S-21-003. Property
Owners: Omari and Kavita Bouknight. Applicant: Gary Kohlsaat, Architect. Project
Planner: Sean Mullin.
REPORT FROM THE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS / COMMISSION MATTERS
ADJOURNMENT (Planning Commission policy is to adjourn no later than 11:30 p.m. unless a
majority of the Planning Commission votes for an extension of time)
Writings related to an item on the Planning Commission meeting agenda distributed to members of the Commission
within 72 hours of the meeting are available for public inspection at the reference desk of the Los Gatos Town Library,
located at 100 Villa Avenue; the Community Development Department and Clerk Department, both located at 110 E.
Main Street; and are also available for review on the official Town of Los Gatos website. Copies of desk items
distributed to members of the Commission at the meeting are available for review in the Town Council Chambers.
Note: The Town of Los Gatos has adopted the provisions of Code of Civil Procedure §1094.6; litigation challenging a
decision of the Town Council must be brought within 90 days after the decision is announced unless a shorter time is
required by State or Federal law.
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