The site, just east of Almaden Expressway and near the intersection of Hummingbird Drive, currently houses a strip mall and is surrounded by a day care center, single-family homes and multi-family apartments.

Campbell-based JSM Enterprises plans to build six three-story buildings on the site. The podium buildings will stand 41 feet high and contain three-bedroom units ranging from 1,725- to 1,936-square feet. Parking will be provided in an underground garage.

Although District 6 Councilman Ken Yeager moved to approve the project, he did address the planning commission's concerns regarding the design.

Yeager requested JSM Enterprises work with city staff on a design that is compatible with the neighborhood. He asked the developer to increase the setback on the third floor of each building facing Skylark Drive and to create more open space and amenities for residences as a condition of approval. These changes should be reflected in a planned development permit presented at a San Jose Planning Director hearing next year.

The planning commission raised these issues at its Dec. 7 hearing, where half of the commissioners found the project to be poorly designed.

The developer presented the proposal to the commission invoking the city's discretionary alternate use policy, called the Two-Acre Rule, which allows high-density housing based on "exceptional design" on sites less than 2 acres.

Normally a maximum of 25 homes can be constructed on a site less than 2 acres.

"Applicants come in and want to use exceptional design for the Two- Acre Rule and I don't see it," Commissioner Xavier Campos said. "This project doesn't look very nice."

Commissioner Jim Zito labeled the project a "disappointment," and Commissioner Bob Levy took it a step further and said the design made the houses look "cluttered and unattractive." He also questioned whether the project's walkways would provide sufficient open space.

Several commissioners also pointed to the project's 41-foot height and how it would dwarf the 20-foot homes surrounding the development. Commissioner Jay James said the buildings facing the homes on Skylark Drive could be reduced to two stories, which would better blend with the neighborhood.

Not all the commissioners, however, opposed the design. Commissioner Christopher Platten said the project's interface on Skylark Drive was sufficiently compatible with the neighborhood. In the end, however, the commission reached a stalemate.

Zito, Levy and Campos voted to deny the application, claiming the project's design was unexceptional. Platten, Bob Dhillon and James opposed the motion.