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Planning & Design Meetings Meeting #6 1/21/2009 - MinutesGUNN HS MP MEETING No. 6 Palo Alto Unified School District 21 January 2009 P.1 GUNN HIGH SCHOOL MASTER PLAN Palo Alto Unified School District MASTER PLAN MEETING NO.6 DATE: 21 January 2009, 12:30–2:00 pm SUBJECT: Master Plan Meeting with Gunn HS Facilities Steering Committee ATTENDEES: See attached sign-in sheet The following are the highlights of the meeting: 1. As an introduction, architect Erwin Lee reviewed the previous site plan and discussed the current goals regarding the perimeter site improvements. The highlights of these goals were: • Public access to campus should be controlled from the west access road • A turnaround should be added to the access road for service vehicles and autos • Pedestrian walkways and bike paths should be implemented throughout site and separated from vehicular traffic • Trash functions should be moved from the front entrance to the back of the site along the access road with the turnaround providing the space for the dump trucks to maneuver • Vehicular exit queue should be extended to reduce the impact of the Arastadero traffic light on the drop-off functions • Pedestrian drop-off aisle should be extended and pulled away from the administration buildings • Vehicular crossing at the entry court should be eliminated • The Staff lounge should be relocated to AD-2, and administration functions should move to AD-1. This is the logical placement adjacent to the proposed, new entry court. • A new Performing Arts Building (music and choir) should be constructed adjacent to the Spangenberg Theater • Parking should be reconfigured so that it is more efficient and that drop-off and parking functions are separated 2. Mr. Lee reiterated that what is shown on the presentation drawings are diagrammatic and that it represents the design intent only. The actual design, configuration, and resolution will occur during other phases of the project development. He discussed the following parking requirements of the California Department of Education (CDE): • For the parking lot, cars are no longer allowed to back into the pedestrian drop- off aisle, as the current configuration allows GUNN HS MP MEETING No. 6 Palo Alto Unified School District 21 January 2009 P.2 • There needs to be a separate parking lane adjacent to the driving lane to allow parked cars to back out safely • Parking and drop-off functions should be separated from each other 3. A new site plan was presented that concentrated on the perimeter site improvements in lieu of the buildings. The main highlights of this plan were: • Parking divided into three lots, 1) accessible, protected visitor and staff parking lot with landscaping in front of the entry court with exit only into the vehicular exit queue, 2) reconfigured central lot with landscaped perimeter, 3) reconfigured north lot with protected bike lane at the perimeter that continues to the bike parking areas throughout the site • Provide accessible parking stalls directly adjacent to the buildings • Bike parking in front of the existing administration building where the current visitor and staff parking is located • Perpendicular parking with accessible stalls along the west access road with possible parallel parking as well • Turnaround at the access road that includes an automatic vehicle gate for controlled access through campus • Three bike parking areas that are at strategic locations throughout the site and sized to accommodate the approximate number of bikes entering the campus near the bike parking areas 4. Another site plan was shown that focused on the north side of the new track and football stadium. Lee stated that these proposed buildings would need to be constructed outside of the existing Hetch Hetchy easement on the property. This plan included the following new buildings: • Storage and classrooms for the Physical Education department • Snack bar with girls and boys restrooms attached • Track and Field structure • Soccer and lacrosse structure • Possible future athletic fields 5. For clarification of the single-story classroom building plan that was shown in the previous meeting, a revised, single-story site plan was presented. This site plan showed a single-loaded classroom configuration. It outlined the amount of space that would be required, and proposed a possible a two-story parking structure for offsetting the parking that would be lost by the footprints of multiple single-story buildings. 6. There were many comments from the facilities steering committee as Lee made the presentation. Highlights from these comments were: • Many teachers that need to haul heavy items to their classrooms will park on the access road. Is it possible to put vehicular gate closer to the west entrance? Lee suggested that that is not a good idea because cars would then cue up on the street before the approach and back up traffic. • Parents currently drop off students at the west access road. Is it possible to make the turnaround a safer place for parents to do this? Lee stated that the turnaround would be primarily for maintenance and emergency vehicles as well as provide access to staff parking; not for student drop off. Lee reiterated that the turnaround location is a suggestion, not a finalized design, and that the GUNN HS MP MEETING No. 6 Palo Alto Unified School District 21 January 2009 P.3 committee should focus on idea of a turnaround and parking rather than the specific configuration. • A car and parking survey should be done before finalizing any traffic flow layout. Lee stated that a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) report will need to be done which will probably include some form of a traffic study. 7. Goals for the next meeting were discussed. Lee said that at this point the committee needs to prioritize the new elements. Cost estimates will be assigned to the footprints of the proposed buildings, so that the prioritization efforts can be made. Additional teaching space for the Physical Education department (a new gym) and new classroom buildings to replace the portables in the Titan Village appear to be the first priority. Recommendations that are to be presented to the Board should be made in the next meeting. 8. The meeting was opened for public comment. The highlights of the comments and questions from the public audience were: • A full survey of the student pedestrian flow should be done. Students should be followed around so as to observe their habits. • To the credit of the architect, the process of considering a single-story plan has already begun. Elevators waste time for people with physical disabilities and are unsafe for students. Please do an earnest job of proposing a single-story plan. • DLM and the committee were thanked for looking into traffic flow about campus • A two-story building scheme should be implemented because multiple story buildings are more efficient and sustainably. Additionally, by reducing the footprint it would increase the permeable area reducing run off and drainage issues. Please consider permeable walking and driving surfaces throughout the site • A two-story parking structure will only add to the diminishing quality of life in the neighborhood and should not be considered. • A two-story parking garage is very offensive to the neighbors, and will cause light pollution to the neighboring backyards. 9. Highlights of the previous Facilities Steering Committee meetings are posted on the Gunn HS website. 10. The next meeting is scheduled for 04 February 2009 at 12:30pm END Prepared by Dean Schmitz of Deems Lewis McKinley. Please advise if you feel that any of the above items are inaccurate or need further clarification or detail. cc: Attendees File