Viacom Cable leased Site 12A at Hacienda Business Park from The Prudential Insurance Company of America. As the landowner, Prudential is bound by certain restrictions governing development of the parcel. These restrictions are known as the Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&R's). CC&R's are private deed restrictions regulating the development, operation and maintenance of the property, and are permanent restrictions on all land contained within the park. In order to insure that the CC&R's are adhered to by property owners which are developing land within Hacienda Business Park, a governing body was established to enforce the restrictions. This governing body is the Hacienda Business Park Owners Association.

The Owners Association has established a Design Review Committee which works with all new owners and tenants to assist them in conforming to the CC&R's and to insure that a high quality of development will be maintained. The Design Review Committee also uses the Design Guidelines as a decision making tool when reviewing all proposed plans to provide visual interpretation of the CC&R's regarding site development, landscaping plans, and signing and lighting requirements.

For instance, site development guidelines include building coverage; how much of a given site can be covered by a building. Strict adherence to building coverage guidelines means that when the park is completely developed, on an average no more than 38% of all developable land will be covered by buildings. In reviewing Prudential's plans for Viacom Cable's 45,000 square foot building, they were found to conform, as only 34% of the land would be devoted to building coverage. Site development also includes the assurance that the use intended for the building conforms to zoning requirements and is appropriate for the area of the park where the building is to be located. The committee also reviewed the plans to make sure that appropriate utilities were provided, that the material and colors chosen for the building were compatible with other development in the park, and that the building conformed to height requirements established for Site 12A.

In addition, Viacom Cable's plans had to provide for appropriate setbacks from the street and adequate parking and access to the building. They had proposed a two story office building with grey tinted glass curtain walls providing the exterior finish.

These materials and the method of construction were more than adequate, and the committee was especially pleased with the design by architects Fee & Munson, which used a central atrium and large skylight enclosure as the building's focal point.

The landscape plan for Viacom's building was also reviewed. The committee needed to determine if it met the park's landscape requirements. Depending upon each building's location in the park, the CC&R's and Design Guidelines require a minimum of 20-25% of the land on each developable site to be landscaped. Landscaping plans must include the use of appropriate plants and trees which will blend with the landscaping along the streets, and other common areas, and create the overall park like atmosphere which is the goal of Hacienda's designers. The plans for Viacom Cable included extensive landscaping, with green belts extending a minimum of 20 feet from each building wall.

In order to avoid the cluttered appearance of many commercial areas, the Design Review Committee also reviewed the plans for Viacom Cable to see if they adhered to signing and lighting requirements. Identification and directional signs and graphics must all conform to size and location guidelines. Lighting must be of a standard to conform to criteria which have been established for all areas or the park, and contribute to safety, security and energy saving guidelines.

The plans submitted by Prudential for the Viacom Cable building were subjected to rigorous scrutiny by the Design Review Committee of the Owners Association, and were found to conform to all of the requirements of the CC&R's and Design Guidelines.

Viacom Cable had completed the first step: review by the Hacienda Business Park Owners Association, in the long process required for each new building's approval at Hacienda Business Park. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on October 6, 1983. The building is expected to be completed and occupied by late 1984.

To see a reproduction of the original article and edition of Pleasanton Pathways, visit: February 6, 1984 Pathways.