The San Jose City Council approved a plan to build 14 homes plus a half-acre park on the Fleming Avenue property now occupied by The Lord's Baptist Church early Wednesday morning. The unanimous approval, led by East Side councilmember Nora Campos, came at the very end of an exhausting 5 hour meeting that went well past midnight. Once again, Fleming neighbors made a strong showing and voiced their concerns of over-development and unbearable traffic.
The 14 home/park proposal was clearly a compromise measure forged by Campos after numerous meetings with neighbors and the developer, Braddock and Logan. But considering the fact the original plan was to build 21 homes on the lot, it can be considered a major victory for neighbors.
Just before the meeting, Campos issued a four-page memo to the council stating her preference for the home/park idea, plus a long list of traffic calming measures that will begin to take shape this summer. The calming measures include:
-new speed limit signs by August 2006
-upgrade existing crosswalks at Fleming and Mahoney to school crosswalks by July 2006
-conduct a study looking at a possible four-way stop at Fleming and Neves Way
-deploy traffic radar trailer to various locations on Fleming
-work with SJ Police to increase speed enforcement on Fleming
-study appropriateness of the current speed limit by September 2006
-install wheelchair access ramps at Fleming/Story/Marchant court
-resurface pavement on Fleming near Fleming court
-continue work with Caltrans to address traffic back up on Fleming by improving signal timing at Alum Rock intersection
While some neighbors were disappointed that any homes were approved for the lot, the plan softens the blow that more traffic will bring. It does give Fleming some badly needed attention, and an open space that could serve as a neighborhood meeting place and break up what would have been wall-to wall homes on the narrow lot.
The proposed park will be located near the Fleming Avenue entrance to the new development. It will be built by the City and would be designed based on feedback from the community.
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