It’s no secret that most East Sacramento and Midtown residents dislike McKinley Village, the proposed 336 home development adjacent to their neighborhoods. Just drive down 40th Street in East Sac and see for yourself all the “Stop McVillage!” lawn signs.

Nevertheless, at tonight’s standing-room-only Planning and Design Commission meeting, commissioners voted unanimously to send the project to city council for final approval next month.

During the five-hour affair, eight neighborhood groups spoke out against the project.

Paul Noble, president of the East Sacramento Improvement Association, told the commission that a third access point at Alhambra Boulevard was a must for the neighborhood. As planned, cars will only access the homes at 40th Street in East Sac and A and 28th streets in Midtown.

Others were less conciliatory. City council candidate and East Sacramento Preservation Society president Ellen Cochrane argued that the plan for homes surrounded by Business 80 and railroad tracks was hopeless. “Have you visited the site and stood in the land between the freeway and the trains?” she asked the commission, implying that it’s not a place to live and raise a family.

A big focus was on whether or not to require a third vehicular access point to the new neighborhood at Alhambra Boulevard. Many opponents said they’d actually support the project if developer Angelides built a tunnel for cars, bikes and pedestrians at Alhambra Boulevard and B Street.

But Angelides told the commission that a passageway under the railroad might be a deal-breaker. “Quite frankly, it’s not something the project can bear,” he said.

Commissioners agreed. Now, it will be up to city council to decide whether a third access point will make or break “McVillage.”

Look for more on McKinley Village in next week’s SN&R.