The Sunnyvale Sun

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Architectural designs approved for downtown

By Cody Kraatz

The Sunnyvale Planning Commission reviewed it, and said it was good.

By approving architectural designs for office, residential and retail buildings in blocks 1, 2 and 4 of the Sunnyvale Town Center development on Aug. 27, the commission satisfied community members who want something on the ground--and soon.

"We cannot delay the project to make sure that 100 percent of the project pleases 100 percent of the public," said Suzi Blackman, president of the Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce.

The developer, a partnership of Sand Hill Properties LLC and real estate investment firm RREEF, gave ground on designs to keep the ball rolling. Peter Pau, Sand Hill Properties owner, said his team did exactly what the commission asked during past reviews, whether it agreed or not.

"Sometimes when you're going through this you say, 'I can understand that, I can see their point,' " said Pau, adding that other aspects are more subjective.

Flashy graphics, vines, metal canopies and windows break up what were previously blank walls on two parking garages. The Mathilda Avenue office buildings boast striking glass curtain walls and dropped aluminum siding in favor of a more traditional stone veneer. Sidewalks are even wider now at Mathilda and McKinley avenues, and commissioners want to see prominent public art there.

"That artwork is like the exclamation point that says, 'Hello, here I am. Downtown, turn here,' " said Commissioner Laura Babcock, asking that the Sunnyvale Arts Commission maximize the size, scale and impact of the artwork it proposes.

The developer also accentuated the illusion of different buildings built over time, something commissioners Babcock and Harriet Rowe had demanded, by using varied materials from floor to roof, an approach the designers initially resisted as too contrived.

"Ideally they said they'd like it to look like it was built at different times, and clearly that's not the case, so it's kind of tricky," said Pau.

Blocks 3, 4 and 5, with Macy's, Target and a Century Theaters, were already approved, and only block 6, which will include a 200-room hotel, remains. It cannot be built until Macy's has a new garage open and a proposal is expected in six to nine months, Pau said.

Sunnyvale City Council members, developers, city staff and others attended an invitation-only groundbreaking ceremony on Aug. 28, looking out across the barren expanse and football field-size pits that will eventually form the foundations for residential buildings.

On the web, visit towncenter.insunnyvale.com for more information.