Randy Hagerman, who lives on Pebble Beach Drive, is concerned that opening up a fenced-off area next to his property for a proposed 172-unit condominium development will increase vandalism and trash in his neighborhood.

His wife, Sandy, is also worried that removing the fence at the end of her street would increase the noise and parking problems.

These are some of the issues that drew Canoas Garden residents to a April 27 community meeting with the developer and San Jose city planners. The developer plans to go before the San Jose Planning Commission sometime in July to ask for a zoning change on the property—4.6-acre Scottish Rite Temple site. At April meeting residents were also updated on the project's status and given an chance to offer their input.

The developer's consultant Erik Schoennauer said the project is designed with pedestrian access from Masonic Drive to the light-rail station and onto Pebble Beach Drive in the direction of businesses. Pebble Beach Drive ends as a cul-de-sac and is fenced off from public access. The proposed project will eliminate the fencing and provide easy access into the development.

Architect Kurt Anderson said the developer also plans to soften the noise impact with landscaping where Pebble Beach Drive bumps up against the project.

But the Hagermans are asking for the construction of a sound wall instead.

Noise, however, was not the only impact residents feared.

Sandy expressed doubt that the 276 parking spaces provided for 172 units would be inadequate, but Schoennauer said the development met the requirements. He also said that the majority of parking spaces would be built underground.

Carlos Ketron, who also lives on Pebble Beach Drive, said he, too, was concerned about parking and the possible overflow from the development. Although new residents won't have driveway access to the condominiums from Pebble Beach Drive, they could still park their cars on Pebble Beach Drive and walk into the development.

"They need to seal Pebble Beach Drive off," Ketron said. "There's no ifs, ands or buts about it."

Residents also questioned how the site's development would affect preexisting flood conditions in the area.

"From the onset, flooding has been one of our key concerns," said Canoas Garden Neighborhood Association President Dick Dentino.

When the city installed a 54-inch storm drain near Redbird Avenue a year ago, the flow requirements were recalculated because the new drain increased the flow. Dentino added that he didn't want the new housing project to go forward without recalculating the drainage on Rinconada Drive to ensure it's adequate for the existing neighborhood and new development.

Schoennauer said the developer would not address the broader, preexisting flood conditions, but the project's proposed underground drainage channel would actually alleviate flood conditions.

With the new channel replacing the existing drainage ditch on Rinconada Avenue, the 6-foot level of floodwater that would accumulate on Pebble Beach Drive during a 100-year flood would be reduced by 2.2 feet, Schoennauer said. He added that the project's primary slope was toward Masonic Drive, which would not contribute to an increase in stormwater runoff for the residences on Pebble Beach and Rinconada drives.

Dentino said he was satisfied with the developer's and city's steps toward flooding precautions and was waiting to meet with a San Jose Public Works employee to review the city flood engineer's calculations.

Anderson, the project's architect, also said that the new units would be built 2 feet above the flood plain, and Schoennauer added that the half-underground parking would not be vulnerable to flooding because water would be diverted toward the channel on the development's south side.

The developer is also donating 1.3 acres of land for a proposed city park at the site.

Willow Glen Neighborhood Association board member Hugh Graham asked whether city budget constraints would make the park a distant reality after the housing is completed.

San Jose planner Erin Morris said the city was excited to accept the land for a future park, but could not say when designs for the park design would be drawn.

Willow Glen Neighborhood Association board member Ed Rast also asked the city planners if the planning department had considered the cumulative effect of future developments and their traffic impact in the area. Morris said that the San Jose Department of Public Works was reviewing a traffic study on the issue.

Schoennauer told the group that the Scottish Rite development would require an additional left-turn lane from Curtner Avenue to Almaden Road, which would reduce the wait at the light by 8 to 10 seconds.

The city approved a General Plan amendment in November 2002 changing the Masonic Drive site's land-use designation from high-density residential to transit-corridor residential, enabling more units per acre because mass transit is close by. The Curtner light-rail station lies approximately 2,000 feet from the proposed development, and the Willow Glen Plaza shopping center, which includes a Safeway, stands approximately 1,000 feet from the site.