Plans for a Cupertino assisted living facility are moving forward, but with significantly less retail than originally envisioned.
The Cupertino City Council voted 4-1 May 20 to approve modified plans for a 136-home, mixed-use assisted living facility for older adults along Stevens Creek Boulevard. Changes include eliminating 146 underground parking spaces and reducing ground floor retail from 17,600 square feet to 4,000 square feet — a key point of contention for residents. Councilmember Sheila Mohan voted no because she wanted more retail in the project.
Related California requested the changes due to difficulty financing the project. The developer was willing to increase space for shops and restaurants by 2,500 square feet, in exchange for a refund of more than $3 million for fees paid to the city’s parkland fund — but councilmembers did not approve the refund. It’s unclear when construction will start. The development also includes memory care homes and 12,250 square feet of public park space.
Councilmember J. R. Fruen wanted more retail space, but voted for the project because he wants housing built there after years of it being an empty lot. The city has 221 assisted living homes and needs more options for older adults who have trouble living in single-family houses.
“Being able to be in a location like what Related seeks to build at the site is important to keep you in your community. It gives you broad access to various amenities,” Fruen told San José Spotlight. “So I think that it’s a very useful public good.”
Balint Simsik, senior vice president of development for Related California, said the developer wanted to get this project off the ground for the past three years, but couldn’t with unprecedented inflation. Related California is working with Oakmont Senior Living to run services such as memory care.
“We intend to be a long-term member of this community in Cupertino,” Simsik said at the meeting.
The project is part of the larger Westport development that includes 179 apartments for older adults and 88 townhomes and rowhouses. The Planning Commission unanimously recommended approving the changes to the assisted living facility last month, but asked the developer to explore adding 4,000 more square feet of retail in exchange for a refund of the park fees.
Richard Adler, chair of Age Friendly Cupertino, said he’s glad the development is moving forward because it will increase housing options for the city’s growing older population. Age Friendly Cupertino anticipates older adults will outnumber youths over the next decade in the city, a trend in line with the rest of Santa Clara County.
“The composition of the population of Cupertino is changing dramatically. Housing hasn’t really responded,” Adler, who’s in his 80s, told San José Spotlight. “They’ve got a long way to go, and this is one piece of that puzzle. It’s the first really major senior housing development in (the city in) several decades.”
Contact Annalise Freimarck at [email protected] or follow @annalise_ellen on X.
