The Zoning Adjustments Board denied local residents’ appeal to rescind the permits given to the new Starbucks on Telegraph and Ashby avenues on June 27, allowing Starbucks to proceed with construction under its current parking and store-hour permits.

The board denied the appeal by the Bateman Neighborhood Association and South Berkeley residents in a vote of 5 to 4. Much of the controversy behind the permit included Starbucks’ bypass of the Telegraph Gardens’ parking requirements and the possibility of increased traffic congestion in surrounding residential areas.

According to Andrew Zall, Starbucks’ development manager, the new Starbucks on Telegraph will boast a LEED-certified approval and create 25 new jobs as well as provide full medical and dental benefits, tuition reimbursement and more for workers who work a minimum of 20 hours a week.

One of the issues discussed during the board meeting was the possibility that Starbucks will generate increased traffic and ruin the tranquility of the neighborhood.

“I am told there are times when it is difficult to get through the intersection,” said Michael Iida, owner of Mokka, an independent coffee shop on Telegraph. “Increased complications from Starbucks would only make that situation worse.”

Iida says he is not worried about the competition that the new Starbucks will bring and says that Mokka stayed neutral in locals’ petition.

Jim Smith, a Berkeley resident who spoke at Thursday’s meeting, cited the lack of traffic impact analysis in consideration of issuing Starbucks its permits.

“The missing information is the number of customer car trips that would be generated by a Starbucks store and the frequency of these trips over a typical work day,” Smith told the Zoning Adjustments Board. “It’s a simple matter to collect and analyze the data.”

But Zall says that Starbucks evaluated the conditions of on-street parking on Telegraph and concluded that parking was “available at all times.”

According to Iida, commercial businesses are required to have one customer parking space for every 500 square feet, while quick-serve food places are required to have one customer parking space for every 300 square feet.

 “179 spaces are located within three blocks of the proposed store on Ashby, Telegraph and Webster,” Zall said. “There are always at least 52 spots available. There is more than enough parking to meet demand.”

According to Iida, the Telegraph Gardens project previously denied the permit for a Quizno’s and a laundromat to open — both because of parking issues.

“We found that many of our neighbors, the occupants of the medical building, agree and have signed petitions supporting our proposal for the new store,” Zall told the board at Thursday’s meeting. “More than 500 students and Berkeley residents have voiced support for the project.”