By Linda Taaffe

Los Altos

A Los Altos city law intended to quiet neighborhood construction squabbles seemed to hit its first snag last week, adding fuel to the fire on at least one Los Altos street.

Two residents on Solana Drive accused their neighbors of allegedly using the city’s single-story overlay zone as a tool to snuff their plans for second-story additions just days before a scheduled review with city staff.

Other residents said those supporting the overlay zone purposely excluded specific properties from the boundaries outlined in the application in order to get the 70 percent majority vote needed to pass the new zoning restriction.

The Solana/Verano area is the third neighborhood to apply for a ban on second-story addition since the city first passed the zoning law in May 2000.

The recent application raises questions about whether residents will abuse the process by knowingly trying to push applications with faulty boundaries containing a majority of overlay supporters in order to get an immediate freeze on pending neighborhood remodels.

Under the city’s guidelines, all two-story remodels in an area specified in a zoning application must be put on hold once the application if filed. Construction may only resume if the neighborhood fails to pass the zoning law with the needed 70 percent majority vote.

The council rejected the application boundaries saying they were inconsistent with the established zoning guidelines, but allowed the neighborhood to resubmit the application with new boundaries. Council members said the boundaries meandered in such a way as to exclude some of the homes in the 44-lot tract.

Boundary guidelines state that a district should follow roads, creeks or tract boundaries to create an identifiable neighborhood.

If the neighborhood wants to proceed, it must include both sides of Serana, including the two end homes previously excluded.

If the council had rejected the application, the neighborhood would have been ineligible to reapply for the second-story ban for a set amount of time.

Twenty four out of the 34 properties included in the Solana boundary, or 70.5 percent, supported the overlay.

Including the 10 excluded homes in the boundary could reduce the level of property owner support to less than the 70 percent needed for the final vote.

If neighbors approve the zoning, the construction of two-story homes or additions would be prohibited for the next seven years.

The ordinance was part of the council’s plan to revamp the city’s design guidelines and provide a more clear-cut solution that would eliminate some of the conflict between those who want to build two-story homes and those who want to preserve the rural character of their neighborhoods.