Flora Square developer needs to act quickly with new plan.

The City Council has approved a developer and a project in concept for the two city-owned parcels on Oak Street that are now occupied by PERMCO Engineering and Clayton Mind and Body. Two retail/residential proposals were submitted for consideration at the Jan. 15 council meeting. They selected a proposal by Uzoma Nwakuche for a two-story building with retail on the ground floor and residential rental units upstairs. Nwakuche is the developer of Flora Square at the corner of Oak and Center Street.

His new plan beat out a three-story building with two-story condo units over ground floor retail submitted by Rick Angrisani, owner of PERMCO Engineering. Angrisani contracts with the city of Clayton to provide engineering services. Nwakuche has offered the city $675,000 for the two parcels, which run parallel to the creek along Oak Street across from Flora Square.

Timing is crucial

Nwakuche will be racing against the clock in obtaining building permits for the project. The Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) is proposing some new regulations that could require a setback from the creek bank of 100-200 feet. The width of the two parcels between the creek and the street range from 75 feet at the northern edge to 140 feet at the southern. A 100-foot setback requirement would essentially render the land useless for development, says City Manager Gary Napper. The city’s Storm Water Permit, issued by the RWQCB, comes up for renewal in July and it’s likely that a renewal of the permit would be subject to the new regulations, putting pressure on the developer to get the building permit for the project before July.

In evaluating the two proposals, the primary issue was the parking garage.

Angrisani’s proposed building included an underground parking garage, and all of the council members expressed concern that construction of a subterranean garage would slow down the permitting process.

“I am 100 percent confident that we can build the garage without endangering the creek bed,” Angrisani said. Despite his assurances, the council shied away from the proposal.

Nwakuche’s building will utilize hydraulic lifts to provide stacked parking. “It’s a very inexpensive way to double your parking. A lot of the lots in San Francisco have these, but it will be new to this area,” explained building architect Bob Staehle.

Clear design preference

The two buildings were similar in use – ground floor retail and residences upstairs – but the design was strikingly different. Nwakuche’s two-story building is designed in the Old West style favored by the council, with 15,380 sq. ft. of retail and eight rental units upstairs. The units may be converted to condominiums when the market is more favorable to residential sales.

Angrisani proposed a Victorian-style building with two-story condos over the ground floor retail. The three stories brought the building height to 46 feet, higher than the 40-foot height limit for Town Center buildings.

The council was also less than enthusiastic about the Victorian design. “It looks like downtown Concord,” said Councilmember Julie Pierce, “and I don’t want to look like Concord.”

Angrisani was disappointed with the decision. “It’s always frustrating when people don’t agree with your vision,” he said. “But I’m sure Uzoma will do a nice job with the building.” Angrisani has not given up on the idea of developing property in the Town Center. There is nothing definite on the table, but he is considering other options for downtown development. “The problem is getting people to decide to sell their land,” he said.

“It was a fun process,” he added with a laugh. In the interest of fast-tracking Nwakuche’s project, the council and Planning Commission will meet in a special joint session on Jan. 29 to discuss the finance and design specifics and reach a consensus on how to proceed with getting the building permits.

The buildings that are currently on the parcels are old and in poor repair and will be torn down to make way for the new development. There are only two tenants occupying the properties, PERMCO and Clayton Mind and Body. PERMCO plans to take 2,400 square feet in the new Flora Square building when it’s complete. David Godsoe, owner of Clayton Mind and Body, is uncertain where he will go, but plans to stay in Clayton.