Alviso Master Plan
General Commercial: On the sites within the existing residential core, only small scale retail and office uses are intended to occur with this designation. At the southwest corner of Gold Street and the Guadalupe River, the General Commercial designation allows freestandillg retail, professional business offices, and other commercial enterprises. Uses that have both commercial and industrial characteristics (e.g., mini-warehousing, automobile repair, etc.) are prohibited in this area.
River Commercial: This designation is applied to an area south of the Guadalupe River and west of the railroad tracks. The designation is intended to promote a positive relationship between the river and adjacent land uses by allowing a more limited range of activities than allowed in the commercial component of the Mixed Use designation. Allowed land uses are those retail, service and recreational uses which are primarily intended to serve persons who are using, visiting and/or viewing Alviso's river related amenities (e.g., the river itself; trails, the National Wildlife Refuge, the Alviso Yacht Club, historic sites and buildings, etc.).
Appropriate uses include restaurants; retail sales of specialty foods; gifts; sundries; boating, hiking and bicycle equipment and supplies; boat and bicycle services; museums and galleries; and small scale bed and breakfast visitor lodging. Development on this site should be designed to reflect and acknowledge the river environment by orienting seating areas, windows, decks, balconies, walkways, and open space to the river and orienting utility, storage and trash areas away from it.
Combined Industrial/Commercial: This designation allows commercial activities, industrial uses, or a compatible mixture. On the southwesterly side of North First Street from Liberty to Tony P. Santos Street, there is a preference for commercial uses which are more compatible with the village residential, school, and park uses.
Commercial uses could include retail, restaurant, office, hotel, or other commercial establishments. Under this designation in Alviso, a suburban type shopping center is appropriate, preferably located close to North First Street and Route 237. Other allowed non-industrial uses are primary/secondary schools, freestanding day care centers, churches, and sports, social, or arts centers. All proposed uses should be evaluated in terms of their potential impacts on nearby uses and in terms of nearby uses negatively affecting the proposed uses.
A wide range of industrial uses are also allowed under this designation as long as there are no unmitigated hazardous or nuisance effects to adjacent and nearby areas. These uses could be warehousing, office, light manufacturing, wholesaling, and service establishments.
Specifically, industrial activities that require the storage and handling of acutely hazardous materials are prohibited within a quarter mile of the George Mayne Elementary School and any future day care and school uses.
All development in this designation should be attractive and well landscaped. Uses that tend to be unattractive (e.g., auto repair, junk yards, open storage, etc.) must be well screened. Along Gold Street and at the corner of North First Street and Route 237, new development should contribute a "gateway feel" to these entrances to Alviso through landscaping, signage, building placement, or other features.
Industrial Park with Mixed Industrial Overlay: This designation allows a wide variety of industrial uses and some non-industrial uses. Industrial and office uses are the primary uses allowed under this designation. Appropriate non-industrial uses are limited retail sales and service establishments, schools, day care facilities, churches, large gymnasiums, sports or arts instruction facilities, and hospitals. Large scale, high volume, single entity commercial uses are not suitable under this designation in Alviso. Such uses are more appropriate under the Combined Industrial/Commercial designation.
An lndustrial Park development may be either a single use or a development containing several separate uses, which is zoned, planned and managed as a unit. All new construction should be attractive and well-landscaped, following more stringent performance and design standards than the Light Industrial designation.
Under this designation, allowed non-industrial uses are limited to primary and secondary schools, freestanding day care centers, churches, and sports, social, or arts centers. All proposed uses should be evaluated in terms of their potential impacts on nearby uses and in terms of nearby uses negatively affecting the proposed uses.
All conflicts between sensitive receptors and hazardous materials must be avoided. Specifically, industrial activities that require the storage and handling of acutely hazardous materials are prohibited within a quarter mile of the George Mayne Elementary School, day care, and other sensitive uses (e.g., housing).
Development under this designation on the Cargill Salt property is limited to two story buildings. The Cargill Salt property consists of an unengineered landfill with a tall mound. Structures should be placed in areas on this property where it can be demonstrated that appropriate construction techniques can be utilized to minimize any and all adverse geotechnical impacts. It is expected that development on this site would include significant amounts of open space and appropriate landscaping, given the configuration of the mound and its steep slopes. Development adjacent to the Summerset Mobilehome Park needs to provide a positive interface so as not to negatively impact the residential quality of life of the mobilehome park.
