San Carlos is located on the San Francisco peninsula, in San Mateo County. It is approximately 25 miles south of San Francisco and 26 miles north of San Jose. The city is about 6 square miles and has a population of approximately 28,000 people. San Carlos is home to a thriving community, with an emphasis on families, recreation, and good quality of life. The 2008 median household income is $123,000 and median home value is $1,000,000. Highway 101 runs through the eastern portion of the city, near to an assortment of industrial and commercial uses, including a small airport, as well as some residential uses. The west side of town extends into the Santa Cruz Mountains and is largely residential with the exception of the El Camino Real corridor and the city’s quaint downtown where the Site is located.

San Carlos is experiencing redevelopment at several key sites:

• Along Industrial Road, approximately 1.2 miles southeast of the Site;
• The San Carlos Marketplace, which was redeveloped this past year into several new mid-scale pads, including TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, PetSmart, and Bassett furniture store;
• The Palo Alto Medical Foundation, which is constructing a new hospital less than a mile to the northeast of the Site on an 18 acre parcel located just north of the Holly Street and Highway 101 interchange.

Additionally, a new 281-unit transit-oriented development is planned along El Camino Real at the historic San Carlos Train Station, where Caltrain stops. Notably, the train station is only a few minutes walk from the Site, thus housing and commercial space developed as a result of this project would feature a transit-oriented location. Please see Exhibit D for reference.

The city’s downtown, centered on Laurel Street, is the heart of the community. Lined with restaurants, cafes, retail shops, and a market, residents and visitors frequent downtown for simple errands, an afternoon of shopping, or an evening out. Festivals are held along Laurel Street several times a year, as well as regular Farmer’s Markets during the summer.

Redevelopment of Wheeler Plaza has long been considered as an opportunity to infuse the downtown with fresh energy. Over the years, local universities’ planning and architecture programs have used the entire block as an academic exercise, envisioning comprehensive redevelopment strategies. Earlier in 2008, the Agency commissioned an analysis of the Site using architectural massing scenarios provided by Van Meter Williams and Pollack accompanied by a fiscal analysis of each scenario by Rosenow Spevacek Group. The analysis found that with a combination of retail, housing units, and parking, redevelopment was financially feasible.

Exibit D - Recent Development Projects: