RH’s modifications approved
The Los Gatos Town Council on Oct. 7 unanimously approved the exterior modifications and conditional use permit requested by Restoration Hardware .
Related Articles
UC investment unit buys big East Bay hotel for more than $170 million
Sutter Health preps patient visits at big new South Bay medical campus
Garbage and recycling company buys San Jose property near apartments
Dublin environmentalists win tentative repeal of ‘land grab’ open space measure
Report: South Bay office market healthier than struggling East Bay, San Francisco
The luxury home furnishing brand’s application moved forward to council after planning commissioners approved it on Aug. 27. This means that RH has been given the green light to homogenize the mismatched exteriors of Building E at 50 University Ave., which used to house Steamers restaurant and The Gap clothing store.
At the town council meeting, Alan Feinberg and Susan Burnett, members of the Historic Preservation Committee, voiced their opposition to RH’s request to alter the building’s exterior of to look like one building instead of two. Burnett reiterated previous comments that the facade proposed by RH lacked personality and used too many different materials
“From my perspective, our small town character is our brand, and we’re working very hard to approve that,” Feinberg said. “There has to be a way for us to compromise to give Restoration Hardware what they want and the beautiful design of the building that represents their brand while, at the same time, maintaining the small town character that the original developers of the planned development in Old Town envisioned in the 1990s.”
Business representatives and residents spoke mostly favorably of RH’s proposal for Old Town. Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce CEO Jennifer Lin again said that RH could function as an anchor business that could draw in visitors, enticing them to spend money in at surrounding small businesses.
Mayor Matthew Hudes expressed concern as to whether the changes to the exterior would be sustainable if RH left the town, but the applicants expressed their intention to stay put for a while.
Speaking in favor of RH, Pennant Properties Principal Jim Foley said, “Old Town has changed quite a bit over time, and if Old Town was meant to be treated as strictly historical, we wouldn’t be looking at the buildings we’re looking at today.”
Violin and piano concert
The Los Gatos Community Concert Association is presenting a violin and piano concert at the Los Gatos High School theater on Oct. 19.
Internationally known violist Stefan Milenkovich will be performing, accompanied by pianist Ilya Yakushev. Milenkovich performed for former President Ronald Reagan at age 10 and then for former Pope John Paul II at age 14. He also worked with Itzhak Perlman at the Juilliard School and was an associate professor of violin at the University of Illinois.
This is the last of four concerts in the association’s current season. Doors will open at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $30 for adults, $25 for seniors and $5 for students at https://lgcca.org.