In a city often described as "built out," one parcel along El Camino Real stands out precisely for what isn't there.

Located in south Palo Alto, just north of Maybell Avenue and the junction of El Camino Real and El Camino Way, the property at 4146 El Camino Real has been vacant for 20 years, ever since a single-family home on it was demolished. Su Juan, who owns the property, has made several attempts since then to redevelop the land. In 2011, she applied to have the site rezoned, though the proposal never advanced.

Now, she is hoping for a better outcome. On Monday, the City Council will consider the latest proposal to rezone the property from R-15, which allows 15 residential units per acre, to R-30, which allows 30. If the council approves the rezoning proposal, a site that in recent years housed only a billboard would accommodate 21 condominiums. The new zoning designation would also raise the height limit for the new development from 30 feet to 35 feet and decrease the amount of open space the builder would be required to provide.

The council's meeting is a "pre-screening," which means that there will be no formal decisions taken on the proposal. It will, however, give the new council a chance to indicate whether they believe the site is ripe for housing and, if so, how many units it should contain. Given the council's recent adoption of "housing" as one of its five formal 2017 priorities and the shifting political balance toward the pro-development cap, architect Ken Hayes should expect newfound interest among policymakers in a project that he has been working on since 2012.

So far, the response hasn't been all positive. In 2012, residents of the nearby Barron Square development expressed some concerns about the project's aesthetic and traffic impacts. In 2014, when the Architectural Review Board was considering the project, several residents submitted letters asking for more information and, in one case, criticizing the rezoning plan.

Ree Dufresne and Ruth Lowy, who live in the area, argued in a letter that the project should be built in compliance with the current zoning and noted that the plan doesn't make provisions for visitor parking. They also said they were concerned about "safety issues" associated with a driveway planned for El Camino. The curb cut, they noted, is too close to an existing bus stop and stop light. They also cited traffic that "already backs up to a 'stand still' at that intersection from the problems created by the Arastradero/Charleston Project, to say nothing about the thousand plus kids crossing that intersection from El Camino Way to Maybell going to school in the mornings."

But for the developer and architect, the vacant parcel is an ideal site for housing. Their submitted project plans show two three-story buildings with sloped roofs and wood siding, separated by a landscaped corridor. Between them, the two buildings would include 21 units, which would be a mix of one- and two-bedroom condominiums. To comply with the local laws, three of these units would be sold at below market rate.

In an Aug. 26 letter to the city, Hayes urged members to support the rezoning proposal, which he argued would help address the city's housing shortage.

Hayes pointed to the city's Housing Element, which lays out the city's vision for housing and identifies as a major challenge the "high cost of housing in our community for all income segments due to the shortage of housing opportunities."

"There is limited land available," Hayes wrote. "The Housing Element indicates that only 0.5 percent of land in the city is vacant and available for development. 4146 El Camino Real is included in this 0.5 percent and should be developed for housing in a responsible manner.

"The Housing Element promotes increased densities along El Camino Real, a major transportation corridor. Although it is a small project, increasing the density from 15 dua (dwelling-units allowed) to 30 dua through this zone change will be a step in the right direction for responsible land use."