The Sunnyvale Sun

News

Town and Country is set for demolition

By Cody Kraatz

city grants a demolition permit in time, said developer Sand Hill Properties.

"We're trying to move as quickly as possible so nobody can fault the city for holding things up," said John Pilger, Sunnyvale spokesman.

Vacating tenants have recently remarked on the "ghost town" feel of the shopping area.

Sand Hill will harvest terra cotta tiles and redwood timbers from the buildings and use them in wood decking and tile roofs in the adjacent, ongoing Town Center redevelopment, part of an effort for certification from the LEED green building rating system.

Sand Hill has also applied to build temporary parking lots on three of those sites for holiday shoppers, but will do that only if necessary.

"Historically, there's been a parking crunch downtown," said Reed Moulds, Sand Hill project manager.

However, the developer hopes to quench the parking thirst during a Thanksgiving Day sale, a Macy's tradition, with shuttles from the underutilized four-story parking garage by Target.

"[Macy's] parking field has been greatly reduced. Right now we're trying to take certain precautions to improve a situation that might not be the best by the time Thanksgiving Day rolls around."

From Nov. 1-18, the shuttles are to run every 10 minutes, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays. From Nov. 19 through Jan. 7, they are to run every 10 minutes daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The demolition, divided into two phases, is expected to take a total of one month, with minimal impact outside Town and Country and only one road closure within the center, Moulds said, noting a flier and a possible meeting for downtown residents and businesses this week to help assuage concerns.

Definitive plans for the approximately 6-acre Town and Country site are still to come, but the city's 2003 plan calls for six-story buildings with 450 high-density residential units and 52,500 square feet of retail space.

For more information, call the Sand Hill Properties construction office at Town and Country at 408.774.0288.

The Sun periodically provides updates on the $400 million Town Center redevelopment project headed by Sand Hill Property Co.

*Road grading has begun within the redevelopment area.

*Sand Hill Property has begun shuttle services at Town Center. The shuttle runs between the main entrance of Macy's (closest to Murphy Avenue) and the parking garage next to Target. Currently, the shuttle is running during the midday, but hours could be increased as the holidays approach.

*The city, with the developer and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, held public outreach meetings last week to explain the environmental cleanup plan for the redevelopment site. The public comment period closes Nov. 19.

More information, along with agency contact information, is available at the Sunnyvale Library or online at GroundWaterFacts.inSunnyvale.com.