Frequently Asked Questions
Where are you in the development application process?
Cannery Park has been "on-hold" since February of 2007 when the city council voted unanimously to defer processing the November of 2006 application until the selection of the "Preferred Alternative" within the context of the city's newly begun General Plan Housing Element Update process. The council appointed a citizen Steering Committee of 15 members to evaluate and prioritize appropriate sites for new housing in the 2006-2013 time period. The selection of the "Preferred Alternative" was originally identified as occurring in July-August 2007, but is now expected to occur in late spring of 2008. The "Preferred Alternative" is the identification, prioritization, and grouping of sites appropriate for new housing through June of 2013 and possibly beyond.
Lewis Planned Communities recently requested the city council re-visit the "on-hold" status of reviewing Cannery Park given the current status of the Housing Element Update process and the Steering Committee's initial identification of the cannery site as an appropriate location for new housing. In October, the city council voted to allow the processing of Cannery Park to begin through the commissioning of a non-residential viability study for the site, continued community outreach, and staff review of the application documents. Lewis is now working closely with city staff to begin the formal and detailed Cannery Park review process.
How does traffic circulate off Covell Boulevard?
It is anticipated that Cannery Park will have two main entrances from Covell Boulevard. First, Lewis has proposed enhanced improvements to the existing, signalized intersection of J Street and East Covell Boulevard. The J Street entrance will serve as Cannery Park's primary entry. Second, members of the Lewis engineering team have confirmed the ability to construct an additional entrance into Cannery Park that could be located halfway between the J Street intersection and the Covell Boulevard overpass of the existing railroad line. This new westerly entrance will enable cars to make a free right- turn into Cannery Park from East Covell Boulevard and a right-turn out from Cannery Park onto East Covell Boulevard. Additionally, the existing access near the eastern property edge that served as a truck entrance to the former plant will be retained and improved as an Emergency Vehicle Access (EVA) to Cannery Park.
During public outreach additional roadway and bicycle connections to Pole Line Road at Moore Boulevard were suggested by members of the community. As a result, Lewis initiated preliminary discussions with neighboring property owners and will continue to explore possible routes to the east. Any vehicular or pedestrian routes to the west continue to be severely encumbered by the existence of the railroad and the F Street drainage channel. Additionally, the existence of built-out residential neighborhoods on F Street presents a significant challenge to providing any overcrossing of the railroad and channel because there are no viable areas west of the channel to bring down an overpass.
Comprehensive traffic circulation studies will be conducted as part of the environmental review process and could be expected to occur in 2008.
What are the traffic impacts?
The average daily trip generation is projected to be 14,980 under the current Planned Development Industrial zoning and assuming all 'Business Park' land uses. The proposed Cannery Park master-planned neighborhood with a mix of uses including Residential and Business Park/Office is initially projected to generate fewer trips, estimated to be slightly over 11,000 daily trips with possible further reductions resulting from internalization, pass-by and linked-trips, as well as other possible traffic reducing design techniques.
What assumptions should be made about how the Cannery Park site connects to the bicycle circulation networks of Davis?
Improvements to the J Street intersection will provide enhanced pedestrian and bicycle safety design features for this primary entrance to Cannery Park. This effort will include provisions for appropriate and safe access to the existing community bicycle lanes and paths on the south side of East Covell Boulevard. Additionally, Lewis continues to explore ways to provide convenient access from Cannery Park’s internal pedestrian and bicycle networks to the surrounding city system. These include possible connections east to Pole Line Road, possibly at Moore Boulevard; lane realignments to allow construction of a separated bicycle/pedestrian route on the north side of the Covell Boulevard railroad overpass; and potential new routes under the existing Covell Boulevard railroad overpass south to the existing J Street bicycle tunnel that children and adults already use.
What impact will this project have on Davis schools?
The school district will supply ongoing estimates based on the number and type of housing as the project progresses. The initial projection based on the preliminary concept plan with 610 homes is an estimated student yield of 342 with about 200 students in the K-6 grades.
What's the phasing of the development?
Exact phasing of construction will depend on the peaks and valleys of the economy and the city council allocation system for new residential units. As of now, the 20-acre business park/office component could be a 5 - 7 year process. New homes would likely be constructed at 100 to 150 units per year over a 4 - 5 year build-out period.
How many new homes were built in Davis last year?
Of the 102 residential units that were issued building permits by the city of Davis in fiscal year 2006/2007, slightly more than half were designated affordable per the city's inclusionary program. The city’s existing inventory of vacant dedicated affordable parcels from prior development projects is now declining. There were 46 units produced "above moderate" affordability for middle income and above home buyers. Fewer units are expected this year as residential building lots decline and new land dedications are not made.