HAYWARD — If all goes as planned, buildings up to seven stories high eventually may be allowed around the long vacant City Center Building near downtown Hayward.

The recommendation is among the more than at least 12 others offered by planning and engineering consultants that aim to breathe new life into three downtown areas, including the City Center Building and Hayward BART station.

The suggestions, outlined in a preliminary plan by Lisa Wise Consulting, of San Luis Obispo, include turning the Foothill Boulevard and City Center Drive intersection into a “walkable urban gateway,” converting underused city-owned parking areas into public spaces or parking structures and not requiring parking for new retail and residential projects near the Hayward BART station.

The plan and its recommendations were discussed at a joint July 11 City Council and planning commission meeting.

The area surrounding City Center Building, where City Hall was once housed, “is really prime for new investment” now that the old Mervyn’s headquarters across the street is being developed, Wise said. Plans for the mixed-use complex, called Lincoln Landing, include 476 apartments and 80,500 square feet of commercial space.

But the developer, Dollinger Properties, still must overcome a legal hurdle after the Hayward Smart Growth Coalition sued in May, alleging that a state-required environmental report was inadequate and the city improperly approved project plans.

The city can build on Lincoln Landing’s momentum by creating a new center of activity around the City Center Building and allowing five- to seven-story developments along City Center Drive behind the Plaza Center building, Wise said. Building height ranges were based on several factors, including “feasibility, site constraints and parking,” Wise said.

The plan also calls for a new crosswalk on Foothill between the City Center Drive and Hazel Avenue.

“What we’re really looking at here is really bringing recommendations to the forefront so, as projects come in, they really create a bigger whole,” Wise told city officials at the July 11 meeting.

“It’s not a project-by-project plan, but looking at how these projects connect with assets like the (San Lorenzo) creek, Japanese gardens, improvements to Foothill,” she said.

At least two city council members — Al Mendall and Sara Lamnin — said a hotel and banquet facility should be integrated into plans for the area.

“If housing and residential is part of the trade-off for getting a hotel on part of that site, fine, I’m willing to make that trade-off,” Mendall said.

“But if what comes back is just retail and housing, then I’m not likely to support that,” he said.

Within the core downtown stretch along A and B streets between Foothill and Main Street, the plan suggests that underused city-owned parking areas be converted to public spaces, such as open walkways and retail plazas, or parking structures. This allows stores to “open to the street and to the center of the block,” creating a visual presence on streets while expanding “the network of open spaces,” Wise said.

To that end, improving roads and sidewalks on Foothill also may encourage more businesses to open their doors there, Wise said.

Planning Commissioner Dianne McDermott said she would like to see more boutique stores and restaurants with al fresco dining, like those in downtown Livermore, open up in downtown Hayward.

“I think it would be nice if we could take that into consideration so we’re not really taking business away from Southland Mall, which has been struggling to get people into their mall,” McDermott said.

Though the plan seeks to create a business-friendly atmosphere in downtown Hayward, recommendations should also focus on building a family-friendly destination for people of all ages, integrating more art in public spaces, making room for affordable housing and attracting satellite campuses, Councilwoman Elisa Marquez said.

“I really want to focus on the person first and the other things secondary,” Marquez said.

“In my opinion, all of this effort is going to increase business activity and investment in downtown Hayward, but we need people to come in and take advantage of these services,” she said.

The city should also work with BART to relocate the bus stop area behind City Hill at the Hayward BART station to the open parking lot area at C and Grand streets, Wise said. Some bus stops also could be moved to Mission Boulevard and A Street, she said.

That would free up space for developers to build “new retail and residential buildings near BART” along B Street without adding parking, Wise said. The changes may also allow the city to build a pedestrian plaza by Hayward City Hall and create open spaces that “draw people into downtown,” she said.

Preliminary downtown plans also suggest that the city and BART redevelop the existing BART parking garage at C and Grand streets into “a mixed-use block.” BART administrators, according to the plan, also are interested in building an office building on a long-vacant parcel at C and Montgomery streets next to BART.

Councilman Francisco Zermeno said a cultural and education center also should be considered in downtown plans to attract Chabot College and Cal State East Bay students.