Willow Glen Resident
News
New 19-home project finally OK'd, breaks ground near Hervey Lane
By Laura Rheinheimer
Plans are under way to construct 19 single-family residences on a 3.34-acre property alongside the vacant railroad embankment behind Hervey Lane from W. Alma Avenue to the Guadalupe River.
Pinn Brothers will construct 2,100-square-foot homes on the development that will be known as Falcon Court. The homes will have several different colors, floor plans and elevations, in order to have a variety of outside appearances.
After a 1 1/2-year planning process, the project was finally approved for construction at a San Jose planning director's hearing Aug. 30.
"It's a complicated property," said John Moniz, project manager for Pinn Construction.
A new road, named Falcon Court, will be constructed through the property. Six lots will be allocated as open space for residential use, and as a condition of approval, the project includes a narrow strip of land, which will be designated as a public trail.
The trail will begin at W. Alma Avenue at the railroad track and go along Hervey Lane and cross Falcon Court. The trail will follow the south side of the street toward the Guadalupe River and end at the edge of the property.
The 19 residences are part of a subdivision project that will include a 1,000-foot cul-de-sac and street improvements to Hervey Lane. These improvements include the widening and repaving of Hervey Lane.
The trail, originally designed to be 10-feet wide, was pared down to 6 feet because the property is too narrow to fit the homes, a 26-foot-wide street and a 10-foot-wide trail.
"It's a very good thing when developers include public works in their projects," said city planner Rebekah Ross.
Residents were initially concerned the project was in the flood zone and that the development would have an adverse affect on flood conditions.
Pinn Brothers assured residents that project is out of the flood zone and wouldn't affect flood patterns, Moniz said. The developer has also been responsive to concerns about privacy.
One Padres Drive resident, Marty Chiechi, whose property will border the proposed development, attended the planning director's hearing to suggest keeping an existing grove of redwood trees and placing more evergreen trees instead of the standard deciduous trees that usually line public streets. Moniz said Pinn Brothers was happy to adjust the plan to keep the trees and will include any type of trees recommended by the city arborist.
Now that the project has been approved, Moniz said Pinn Brothers hopes to break ground within one month and, if Mother Nature permits, offer homes next spring priced in the mid-$900,000s.
