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Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Special Meeting
1:00 PM
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Pursuant to the provisions of California Governor’s Executive Order N-29-20,
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Call to Order
Oral Communications
Members of the public may speak to any item NOT on the agenda. Council reserves the right to limit the duration of
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Action Items
Include: Reports of Committees/Commissions, Ordinances and Resolutions, Public Hearings, Reports of Officials,
Unfinished Business and Council Matters.
1.City Manager's Fiscal Year 2021 Proposed Operating and Capital
Budget and Municipal Fee Schedule Wrap-up, and Adoption of an
Ordinance Amending Section 2.04.360 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code
to Allow Council Members a Salary Waiver Option
Adjournment
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Memo
Public
Comment
Presentation
2 May 26, 2020
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Additional Information
Informational Report
2019 Palo Alto Transportation Management Association Annual Report, 2019
Downtown Commute Survey, and 2020 Strategic Business Plan Summary
Update on Business Roundtables, Small Business Grant and Donation
Programs
Affordable Housing Month Proclamation
Public Letters to Council
Set 1
Set 2
Set 3
Set 4
Set 5
3 May 26, 2020
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City of Palo Alto (ID # 11376)
City Council Staff Report
Report Type: Action Items Meeting Date: 5/26/2020
City of Palo Alto Page 1
Council Priority: Fiscal Sustainability
Summary Title: FY 2021 Proposed Operating and Capital Budget Wrap-Up &
Municipal Code Change
Title: City Manager's Fiscal Year 2021 Proposed Operating and Capital Budget
and Municipal Fee Schedule Wrap-up, and Adoption of an Ordinance
Amending Section 2.04.360 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code to Allow Council
Members a Salary Waiver Option
From: City Manager
Lead Department: Administrative Services
Recommended Motion
1) The City Council review, discuss, and provide final direction to staff in regard to the City
Manager’s Fiscal Year 2021 Proposed Operating and Capital Budgets and Fiscal Years 2021
Municipal Fee Schedule including the following amendments detailed below for staff to
return on June 22, 2020 with the final FY 2021 budgets for City Council adoption.
a) Direction on use of remaining fund balance in the City’s General Fund of $839,000
including the resolution of outstanding items currently in the “short-term parking lot;”
b) Recommend staff return with the formal adoption of the City Manager’s FY 2021
Proposed Operating and Capital Budgets as amended by the actions outlined in
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 and Exhibit 2;
c) Recommend staff return with the formal adoption of the FY 2021 Municipal Fee
Schedule (CMR # 11190)
(https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/76562)
d) Recommend staff return with the formal adoption of the Table of Organization (Pages
339 – 356 in the FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget) as amended by the above actions;
e) Recommend staff return with the formal approval of the FY 2021 – FY 2025 Capital
Improvement Plan as revised through Attachment A, Exhibit 2;
2) The City Council adopt the Ordinance (Attachment C) Amending Section 2.04.360 of the
Palo Alto Municipal Code to Allow Council Members a Salary Waiver Option. A regular
City of Palo Alto Page 2
majority vote is required to approve this ordinance which becomes effective 30 days after
the second reading and final adoption.
Executive Summary
This memorandum summarizes changes to the City Manager’s Fiscal Year 2021 Proposed
Budget through Budget Hearings with the City Council, includes additional information
regarding the Fiscal Year 2021 Proposed budget, brings forth refined actions to revise the Fiscal
Year 2021 Proposed Budget (replacing actions described in CMR 11322), and responds to
questions raised by the City Council during the budget hearings.
The report is organized by the following sections:
1. Proposed Operating Budget Revisions (Attachment A, Exhibit 1)
2. Proposed Capital Budget revisions (Attachment A, Exhibit 2)
3. City Council Parking Lot Items including short term parking lot items for Council
consideration and direction and items recommended in the rebalancing strategy
4. Additional information about the proposed budgets including the public safety building,
public online survey results, and management contributions
5. Municipal Fee Schedule revisions
6. Recommended Ordinance: Councilmember Salary Waiver (Attachment C)
7. Summary of City Council Review of the FY 2020-2021 Proposed Budget (actions,
reference and future potential referrals)
On May 4, the City Council provided direction to staff to assume a more conservative revenue
estimate reflecting a loss of $39 million in General Fund tax revenues in FY 2021, reflecting on
the severity of the current public health emergency and its impacts on the City’s financial
situation. In a series of public hearings last week, the City Council reviewed the FY 2021
Proposed Operating Budget along with City Manager’s Report #11322 and other materials and
provided tentative approvals, changes, and areas for further follow up. Staff has compiled all
the feedback gained, and through this staff report has refined the City’s budget balancing
strategy including reduction proposals.
Overall, the City’s General Fund is recommended to have $196.8 million in revenues and $195.9
million in expenses, leaving a surplus of $839,000. These funding levels reflect a nearly 20
percent reduction from the FY 2021 Proposed Budget (released on April 20) and a 15 percent
reduction compared to the FY 2020 Adopted Operating Budget.
Through this recommended balancing strategy, the City has been forced to prioritize essential
services and pare back discretionary services. However, the recommended balancing strategy
ensures that the City continues to proactively pay for long term liabilities, continues capital
investments in our most critical infrastructure, provides resources for the City to successfully
adapt from ‘shelter in place’ to future service delivery models, and establishes funding to
ensure those service delivery transitions.
City of Palo Alto Page 3
Based on refined review, the City Council discussion and guidance, as well as additional time for
staff to solidify recommended actions, additional adjustments are included in this
recommended strategy. Most significantly, these recommendations include recognition of over
$3.0 million in expense savings because of recommended compensation reductions for
Management /Professional employees, review of cost-recovery and partial restorations of
services, additional costs for expected responses to the COVID-19 emergency and starting to
reserve funds for outstanding liabilities.
Specifically, the City Council directed certain service restorations including staffing in Planning
and Development Services, the Police Department, and Community Services Department. The
Council also placed several items in the short-term parking lot for review and further
information as part of this wrap-up. This recommended balancing strategy includes both
Council directed changes and some of the short-term parking lot items such as restoration of
hours at the College Terrace Library, increased cost recovery and restoration of teen services,
Arts Center, and Children's Theater activities, and staffing to align building inspections with the
business community needs. All restorations are focused on how to provide resources
economically and effectively to the community while observing the limitations of the current
COVID-19 pandemic imposes.
As a result, the City will focus on maintaining outdoor recreation and open space preserves
providing the highest value to the community for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic when
outdoor options are critical during this time. Sworn police officers will focus on patrol and
other collateral duties, while administrative procedures are completed through more cost
effectively civilian staffing. All five libraries will remain open on reduced schedules - three of the
five libraries will operate as “neighborhood” libraries (open 3 days a week) and two libraries will
operate as “full-service” libraries (open 6 days a week).
The revised proposed Capital Improvement Fund reflects a 56 percent reduction in General
Fund support or $18.4 million in FY 2021 alone. These reductions maximize the availability of
operating funds to retain services by reducing the General Fund Transfer and the General
Capital Infrastructure Fund has been balanced to $1.5 million in fund balance over the five-year
period. Since last week’s budget hearings, the City Manager and Director of Public Works have
reviewed all General Fund projects in the proposed CIP, and confirmed that with the reduced
Transfer, the remaining funding levels reflect investment in essential infrastructure. Based on
this review, the revised proposed CIP provides a minimal while responsible investment in the
City’s essential infrastructure.
Lastly, this report brings forward an ordinance for the City Council approval that would allow
Council Members to waive their salary. This requires two readings, and this item serves as the
first of those required readings.
City of Palo Alto Page 4
1) FY 2021 PROPOSED OPERATING BUDGET REVISIONS (ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1)
The City Council reviewed in detail the FY 2021 Operating Budget considering the May 4
direction from the City Council to assume a more conservative revenue estimate reflecting a
loss of $39 million in General Fund tax revenues in FY 2021. The City Council reviewed the FY
2021 Proposed Operating Budget along with City Manager’s Report #11322 and other at places
materials over the course of public budget hearings that took place May 11 through May 13 and
provided tentative approvals, changes, and areas for further follow up. Staff has compiled all
the feedback from these proceedings, refined costings for reduction proposals, and certain
additional revisions in this staff report. This report serves as the summary of all recommended
changes from the FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget as released on April 20, 2020 for Council
review on May 26, 2020. These adjustments are outlined in detail in Attachment A, Exhibit 1.
Recommended adjustments include aligning the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
Fund with anticipated CARES revenue, recognizing savings associated with proposed reductions
in compensation for the Management and Professional Group, and prioritized service
restorations as directed through the budget hearings. Each of these is discussed below and
organized by fund type.
Revenues Expenses FT FTEs PT FTEs Revenues Expenses FT FTEs PT FTEs
Citywide Proposed FY 2021 Budget, Released April 20, 2020 $241,509 $238,801 573.68 81.31 $755,846 $818,869 1,033.85 106.32
Adjustments to Proposed Budget as released
Revenue Adjustments
City Council Requested Major Tax Revenue
Realignment Scenario C (CC May 4, 2020)(38,793) (38,793) - - -
Other Economically Sensitive Departmental Revenue (5,000) (5,000) - - -
$197,716 238,801$ 573.68 81.31 712,053$ 818,869$ 1,033.85 106.32
Adjustments by Service Area
Neighborhood, Community & Library Services (297) (4,896) (16.10) (21.02) (297) (4,896) (16.10) (21.02)
Public Safety 1,482 (7,257) (32.27) (2.28) 1,482 (7,271) (32.40) (2.28)
Planning & Transportation (2,127) (3,267) (7.30) (1.44) (1,833) (2,973) (7.30) (1.44)
Infrastructure & Environment - (2,795) (0.20) - (26,120) (19,239) (8.05) (0.48)
Internal Services/Strategic Support - (2,875) (5.90) (0.96) (2,736) (5,472) (10.40) (0.96)
Citywide Balancing Solutions - (21,776) - - (63,997) (25,189) - -
(44,735) (42,866) (61.77) (25.70) (93,501) (65,040) (74.25) (26.18)
-18.5%-18.0%-10.8%-31.6%-12.4%-7.9%-7.2%-24.6%
196,774$ 195,935$ 511.91 55.61 $618,552 $753,829 959.60 80.14
Net Surplus/(Deficit)839$
General Fund All Funds (w/ Internal Service Funds)
SUBTOTAL CHANGES FROM FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Citywide Revenue and Expenses (as of May 26th CC Discussion)
Overall, this balancing strategy would reduce the City’s staffing by 74.3 full-time positions from
the FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget level of 1,033 and 26.2 FTE of part-time staffing. In the
General Fund, full-time staffing is recommended to be reduced by 61.8 positions and part-time
staffing by 25.7 FTE positions.
Across all funds, after the public budget hearings last week, staff has diligently worked to refine
the anticipated cost/savings estimates associated with the recommended balancing strategy
proposals. These have been revised and are included in Attachment A. All changes tentatively
approved by the City Council through the initial budget hearings as well as the refined costings
for reduction proposals to best inform conversations about service delivery impacts are
detailed in Attachment A. As such, Attachment A refines and replaces the actions described in
City of Palo Alto Page 5
Exhibits 1 and 2 of Attachment A to CMR 11322, which is now out-of-date based on the
additional activity and work of the past week.
General Fund
Overall, the City’s General Fund is recommended to have $196.8 million in revenues and $195.9
million in expenses, leaving a surplus of $839,000. These funding levels reflect a nearly 20
percent reduction from the FY 2021 Proposed Budget (released on April 20) and a 15 percent
reduction compared to the FY 2020 Adopted Operating Budget. The surplus of $839,000 may be
allocated as the Council sees fit; funding could be used to offset any recommended changes or
restorations of services not in the balancing strategy or could be allocated to assist in the
rebuilding of the Budget Stabilization Reserve (BSR).
The recommended balancing strategy ensures that the City continues to proactively pay for
both the current pension and Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) liabilities (assuming
lower discount rates of 6.2 percent for funding levels), continues capital investments into our
most critical infrastructure projects, provides resources for the City to successfully adapt from
‘shelter in place’ to future service delivery models, and establishes funding to ensure those
service delivery transitions.
There is no illusion that there are significant service impacts outlined in the balancing strategy.
We recognize that times are unprecedented, and the details contained in this staff report are
tough choices that we would prefer not to be outlining. The City has been forced to prioritize
essential services and pare back discretionary services. The City acknowledges that many of
these discretionary services have contributed to the unique character of the Palo Alto
community. From a citywide standpoint, these service level reduction options include creative
strategies, changes in how we approach City services and different staffing models, and
efficiencies, where possible. However, service impacts are unavoidable when more than 60% of
the City’s General Fund budget is attributed to the outstanding workforce delivering the City’s
services every day.
During Budget Hearings on May 12 and May 13, the City Council took tentative actions that
impacted the FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget by majority vote. They also moved by 3 votes
to place certain follow-up items in a “short-term” or “long-term” parking lot. Both are outlined
later in this memorandum. A brief discussion of those tentative actions that amended the
strategies outlined by staff are included here; detailed information on the transactions can be
found in Attachment A (Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Operating and Capital Budget). At the
beginning of the Budget Hearings, it was anticipated that there would be approximately
$930,000 in savings in the General Fund that the City Council could guide the allocation of. In
this revised strategy, there is $839,000 remaining for City Council deliberation and further
direction.
City of Palo Alto Page 6
Changes Tentatively Approved by the City Council
On May 12, 2020 the City Council voted to eliminate the remaining FY 2021 City Council
Contingency ($95,000) and the Innovation and Special Events Contingency ($50,000). These
yielded net savings of $145,000. (The City Council Contingency was adjusted from $125,000 to
$95,000 in CMR # 11322). The City Council also voted to reduce the General Fund Transfer to
the Capital Improvement Fund from $7.6 million to $6.0 million, and to contribute that saved
$1.6 million to the Section 115 Pension Trust (PARS) Fund. The actions taken in the Capital
Improvement Fund to generate these savings are shown below in Staff Recommended Changes
to the Capital Improvement Budget.
On May 13, 2020, the City Council voted to delay the opening of the Junior Museum and Zoo
from October 2020 to March 2021 and to charge an $18 entrance fee, expected to save
$224,000. They also voted to restore the Long-Range Planning and Housing Program, which
would cost $273,823.
The City Council directed staff to find another $1.0 million in one-time Capital Improvement
Program savings in FY 2021, with the intent to further lower the transfer from the General Fund
to the Capital Improvement Fund. On May 13, 2020 the City Council directed staff to explore
the restoration of $1.0 million in services for Police and CSD, using 60% and 40%, respectively,
of that $1.0 million. The actions taken in the Capital Improvement Fund to generate these
savings are shown below in Staff Recommended Changes to the Capital Improvement Budget.
At the end of the Budget Hearings, approximately $1.0 million in savings was anticipated in the
General Fund, which could be used to modify the service delivery levels contemplated in the FY
2021 Proposed Operating and Capital Budgets most likely to be addressed through the
outstanding items in the “short-term parking lot.” The transactions described above, including
some restoration of items in the “short-term parking lot,” are detailed in Attachment A –
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Operating and Capital Budgets, which replaces CMR 11322 as
the authoritative source of modifications to the Proposed Budgets. This reflects the overall
revised surplus of $839,000.
Additional Changes Recommended
Based on refined review, the City Council discussion and guidance, as well as additional time for
staff to solidify recommended actions, several additional adjustments are included in this
recommended FY 2021 balancing strategy. Most significantly, this strategy includes recognition
of over $3.0 million in expense savings because of recommended compensation reductions for
Management /Professional employees, review of cost-recovery and partial restorations for
various Community Services and Library Department programs, additional costs for expected
responses to the COVID-19 emergency and starting to reserve funds for outstanding liabilities.
The section below outlines the significant changes based on staff and City Council feedback.
City of Palo Alto Page 7
Compensation Reductions for Management/Professionals Group
This action recognizes savings associated with compensation reductions for the Management
and Professionals Group, an unrepresented bargaining unit with employees across the
organization. This 15 percent compensation reduction is anticipated to generate $3.5 million in
savings in the General Fund and approximately $5.4 million in all funds. The City continues to
work with its represented bargaining groups to proactively address and mitigate potential
service delivery impacts and adverse personnel impacts. Details on this proposed change are
provided in section 4, “Additional Information” later in this report.
Service/Funding Restorations
Through the City Council Budget Hearings, certain service restorations were directed by the City
Council either through action or through inclusion in the short-term parking lot. Some of these
(including Community Services and Library’s College Terrace as well as Building and Fire
Inspections) are discussed in the ‘short-term parking lot’ section elsewhere in this
memorandum. The City Council also directed that $1.0 million be spent on service restorations
in the Police Department ($600,000) and the Community Services Department ($400,000).
Based on this City Council guidance, as well as additional staff work in anticipation of the
recovery efforts because of COVID-19, the following service restorations are included in the
recommended balancing strategy:
• Police: Service restorations prioritize efficiently reinstating resources to ensure sworn
officers can be focused on patrol and other collateral duties while all administrative
procedures are completed more cost effectively by civilian staffing. As such, it is
recommended to reinstate staffing in the Information Management, Animal Services,
and Investigations divisions. With this funding, regular lobby hours and the processing of
requests for data or reports will resume, animal control services will comply with
contractual obligations to other jurisdictions, and property and evidence services
(including lost/found property follow-up) will be maintained by civilian staffing. These
potential gaps in service will no longer be filled by Police Officers on an ad hoc basis so
they can stay focused on emergency response. potential gaps in service will no longer be
filled by Police Officers on an ad hoc basis so they can stay focused on emergency
response.
• Community Services Department: Service restorations focus on resources that will
provide the highest value the community for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic,
outdoor recreation and open space preserves. These resources are immensely popular
with our community, hosting approximately 845,000 visits in FY 2019, and safe outdoor
recreation will remain in high demand as we continue to follow social distancing
protocols. Originally in CMR # 11322 staff proposed eliminating funding for contracted
rangers that patrol, empty trash receptacles, and close open spaces to the public at
night. In response to Council’s motion to restore services staff proposes retaining
approximately 25% of contracted ranger services, which will be leveraged to maintain
these services in part. Other service restorations include approximately $250,000 of the
City of Palo Alto Page 8
park maintenance contract, which represents a 25% reduction, as opposed to the 50%
originally brought forward in CMR # 11322. A 25% reduction in this contract will
moderately reduce aesthetic maintenance such as clearing of weeds, while continuing
to prioritize safety-focused maintenance.
• Library Department: Staff recommends all five (5) Library branches remain open,
however, with reduced operating hours at each location. This contrasts with the prior
proposal which reduced hours and operations at select libraries. This action
recommends three of the five libraries operate as “neighborhood” libraries (open 3 days
a week) and two of the five libraries operate as “full-service” libraries (open 6 days a
week). Staff is also prepared to discuss with the City Council an alternative method of
increasing neighborhood access to library materials beyond limited branch hours.
• Preparations for COVID-19 Recovery and Return: In light of the changing landscape of
this public health emergency and the guidelines set out by the State of California and
Santa Clara County, staff is recommending funding of $1.2 million in FY 2021 to support
continued responses to these efforts. Funding will assist in providing the continued
daily updates and coordination with residents and the business community; partial
funding for the current unfunded request for contact tracing employees; and workplace
alterations to address new social distancing and physical environment requirements.
Lastly, to ensure our teams are equipped to address the expected changes in services
delivery, it is recommended that we retain the current replacement cycle for computers,
since they are used by most employees daily, instead of extending it to 5+years and that
staffing be restored in the City Clerk’s Office, which remains critical to running virtual
public meetings for the organization. The virtual meetings are a key component to our
public work.
• Reserve for Liabilities: Establishment of a litigation reserve of $1.25 million is included in
keeping with the City's practice of proactively setting aside funds for dispute resolution.
Enterprise Funds
Changes Tentatively approved by the City Council
Through the City Council’s discussions of FY 2021 rate adjustments in the Enterprise Funds, the
City Council voted to approve the following rate adjustments
• 0% rate change for Wastewater (recommended by Utilities Advisory Commission (UAC)
and Finance Committee);
• 0% rate change for Water (recommended by UAC and Finance Committee);
• 2.5% CPI increase for Fiber (recommended by UAC and Finance Committee)
• 0% rate change for Electric (recommended by Finance Committee)
• 0% rate change for Refuse
• 2.5% CPI increase for Stormwater (recommended by Finance Committee)
City of Palo Alto Page 9
• 2.0% rate increase for Gas (a reduction from the Finance Committee recommendation
of 3%)
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Council aimed to provide economic relief for residential and
commercial customers by directing staff to keep rates flat without compromising the safety and
integrity of the utility systems. pandemic, Council aimed to provide economic relief for
residential and commercial customers by directing staff to keep rates flat without
compromising the safety and integrity of the utility systems.
Council approved of the 2.5% CPI increase for Fiber to enable the City to expand the dark fiber
network for new commercial and residential customers. Consistent with the 2017 Storm Water
Management Fee ballot measure, Council also approved the 2.5% CPI increase for Stormwater
to keep fund revenues consistent with inflationary cost increases and to provide sufficient
funds for planned Stormwater Management capital and operating expenditures. Council
approved a 2.0% increase for Gas to enable continuation of the cross-bore safety inspection
program and PVC gas main replacement project.
Other Funds
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Alignment (CARES Act Funding)
This action recognizes revenues associated with a grant received from the Coronavirus Aid,
Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) in the CDBG Fund, offset by a corresponding
increase in expenses. This funding will be used for rent relief, food assistance, and COVID
testing and equipment as outlined in the revised funding plan approved by the Finance
Committee on May 5, 2020 (CMR 11148).
2) FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL BUDGET REVISIONS (ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2)
General Capital Improvement Fund
Since last week’s budget hearings, the City Manager and Director of Public Works have
reviewed all General Fund projects in the proposed CIP, and confirmed that with the reduced
General Fund transfer, the remaining funding levels reflect investment in essential
infrastructure. Based on this review, the revised proposed CIP provides a minimal while
responsible investment in the City’s essential infrastructure with several specific objectives:
- Reduce carryover funding to “keep up” spending on essential infrastructure rather than
fall behind and require new funding sources or levels to “catch up” in upcoming years;
- Position shovel-ready projects to take advantage of the favorable construction market
pricing typical of a recession;
- Minimize near-term funding of discretionary projects; and,
- Ensure a steady flow of projects that minimizes peaks and valleys in project delivery
staffing needs, as this would reduce efficiency and introduce bottlenecks in productivity.
City of Palo Alto Page 10
In total, the City Council tentatively approved reducing the transfer from the General Fund to
the Capital Improvement Fund in Fiscal Year 2021 by $2.6 million. Of this amount, $1.6 million
was allocated for the Section 115 Pension Trust (PARS) Fund, and $1.0 million to restore
services for the Police and Community Services Departments, using a 60% and 40% allocation,
respectively. To generate these savings in the Capital Improvement Fund a number of projects
are recommended to be reduced as shown in the table below.
Project Fiscal
Year
Funding
Adjustment
Downtown Parking Garage (PE-15007) expense reduction
Cancellation of current design contract FY 2020 ($1.0 M)
Sidewalk Repairs (PO-89003) expense reduction
Current year estimated savings to reduce reappropriation to FY 2021 FY 2021 ($0.7 M)
Byxbee Park Completion (PE-18006) expense reduction
Current year estimated savings to reduce reappropriation to FY 2021 FY 2021 ($0.3 M)
Off-Road Pathway & Repairs (OS-09001) expense reduction
Current year estimated savings to reduce reappropriation to FY 2021 FY 2021 ($0.2 M)
Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance (PF-93009) expense reduction
Current year estimated savings to reduce reappropriation to FY 2021 FY 2021 ($0.2 M)
Dog Park Installation & Restoration (PG-18001) revenue increase
Recognize impact fees to align with project expenses FY 2021 ($0.2 M)
Total Adjustments ($2.6 M)
Various Capital Improvement Funds
Because of the October 2014 change to the Municipal Code, City Council authorization is now
required for reappropriation of funds for capital projects from one fiscal year to the next. The
FY 2021 budget process continues this procedure with the FY 2021 Proposed Capital Budget
including approximately $64.3 million in reappropriated funds for project expenditures across
all funds. In the time since the FY 2021 Proposed Budget figures were developed (early spring of
2020), departments have re-reviewed current year estimates and the reappropriation amounts
built into the proposed Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). Additional reappropriation adjustments
are recommended as part of this wrap-up memorandum to update the FY 2021 Capital Budget
with current, more refined estimated activity levels in Fiscal Year 2020.
Cumulatively, this re-review of projects has resulted in staff's recommendation to increase the
Fiscal Year 2021 Capital Budget by a net total of $23.7 million, from $288.7 million to $312.4
million, and are recommended in the following funds:
City of Palo Alto Page 11
Fund
Recommended Additional
Reappropriation from
FY 2020 to FY 2021
Capital Improvement Fund $1,118,216
Electric Fund $3,407,815
Fiber Fund $775,000
Gas Fund ($250,001)
Stormwater Management Fund $5,000
Technology Fund ($35,463)
Wastewater Collection Fund $1,057,424
Wastewater Treatment Fund $13,366,025
Water Fund $4,244,357
Total All Funds $23,688,373
In total, reappropriations of an estimated $88.0 million are above those assumed in the FY 2020
Adopted Capital Budget of $71.4 million. These adjustments, as outlined by project in
Attachment A, Exhibit 2, are combined with adjustments previously outlined to reprioritize
project funding and timelines in the Capital Budget and the five-year CIP as a result of
reductions in the transfer from the General Fund and lower overall Transient Occupancy Tax
(TOT) revenues dedicated by Council for infrastructure improvements. These adjustments
ensure that funds will available at the onset of Fiscal Year 2021 to continue infrastructure
improvement work across the City and address critical “keep up” work while minimizing the
increase to a “catch-up” backlog that would need to be addressed in future CIP planning. The
General Capital Improvement Fund Revised 2021-2025 CIP Source and Use is also included as
Attachment B to display all of the changes to the Capital Improvement Fund from the FY 2021
Proposed Capital Budget.
3) CITY COUNCIL BUDGET PROCESS ‘PARKING LOT’ SUMMARY
Throughout the Budget discussions, the City Council has requested certain items be placed in
the “short-term parking lot.” These are items for which the Council either wished to revisit
funding levels or asked for additional information. Several items were already responded to as
part of the budget deliberations and provided in various at places memorandum. The
remaining outstanding items have been outlined below. They are organized by the areas that
are already included in the overall balancing strategy discussed earlier in this report and by the
items that still need City Council review, deliberation, and potential action.
City of Palo Alto Page 12
Short Term Parking Lot Items for Council Consideration and Direction
During the City Council budget hearings, the City Council voted to place items in the “short-
term parking lot” for staff to return with additional information or to revisit as part of the final
balancing. Staff has outlined these items with additional information or a reminder of the
action the City Council took for further deliberation. Should the City Council wish to restore or
adjust the funding levels of any of these items, a majority vote from the Council would be
necessary.
Strategy to manage attrition in Police and Fire
The Police and Fire budgets reflect the elimination of 21 sworn positions necessary to balance
the budget (one of these position reductions is outlined in the FY 2021 Proposed Operating
Budget released on April 20,2020, the remaining 20 are outlined in Attachment A). Of the 21
sworn positions, 7 positions are currently vacant and the balance of 16 positions are filled and
would require the layoff of recently-hired police officers and firefighters. Sworn personnel are
required to be laid off in accordance with union rules, which means those with the least
seniority will be laid off based on hire date. It typically takes over one year to train for police
and fire sworn positions to be fully operational. As such, the City has invested a significant time
and hundreds of thousands of dollars to hire, equip and train the sworn personnel who would
be lost to layoffs. Police and Fire departments typically experience turnover from separations
and retirements, which result in vacant positions throughout the year. If the typical attrition in
Police and Fire could occur for an additional six-month period, the City would hope to avoid
layoffs for these recently-hired employees. Based on this six-month period, staff estimates that
managing separations through attrition could cost between $500,000 and $1.5 million,
depending on the timing of attrition in the six-month period. These costs are currently not
included in the recommended balancing strategy and would require a majority vote from the
City Council to be added.
Revisit funding for the Transportation Management Association (TMA)
On May 13, 2020 the City Council moved that the Transportation Management Association
(TMA) annual funding of $750,000, funded by the University Avenue Parking Fund, be revisited
as part of the “short-term parking lot.” Annually the City contracts with the TMA and this
budget continues current funding levels from FY 2020 to FY 2021. Regardless of the funding set
aside, the City manages funding of the TMA through the contract with the TMA which would
require an amendment, approved by the City Council, for this coming fiscal year. As part of the
contractual agreement with TMA, an annual report must be provided. The most recent annual
report has been released as an information item to the City Council in City Manager’s Report
11307 This funding was included in the FY 2021 Baseline Budget and remains included, subject
to further discussion and direction from the City Council. At the time of the printing of this
report, the TMA is reviewing its funding request and has indicated it will be reducing its
requested funding considering the current financial circumstances the City faces in the wake of
COVID-19.
City of Palo Alto Page 13
Revisit funding for City Council minutes transcription ($35,000)
On May 13, 2020 the City Council moved to revisit funding for City Council minutes
transcription to the “short-term parking lot.” This funding was reduced through the actions
detailed in City Manager’s Report #11322 as part of the overall balancing strategy and remains
included as a reduction in Attachment A pending further discussion and direction from the City
Council. It would require a majority vote from the City Council to be restored.
Revisit funding for cost of printing City Council materials ($35,000)
On May 13, 2020 the City Council moved to revisit funding for printing City Council materials to
the “short-term parking lot.” This funding was eliminated through the actions detailed in City
Manager’s Report #11322 as part of the overall balancing strategy and remains included as a
reduction in Attachment A pending further discussion and direction from the City Council. It
would require a majority vote from the City Council to be restored.
Revisit funding for YCS Youth Connectedness Initiative ($50,000)
On May 13, 2020 the City Council moved to revisit funding for the YCS Youth Connectedness
Initiative to the “short-term parking lot.” This funding was scheduled for elimination beginning
FY 2021 through the actions City Council approved in the FY 2020 Adopted Budget and actions
reviewed in City Manager’s Report #11322 as part of the overall balancing strategy but because
of Council’s interest in continuing to support this program, staff have brought back a proposal
to provide $25,000 in funding. It would require a majority vote from the City Council to be fully
restored at an additional cost of $25,000.
Short Term Parking Lot Items Included in the Recommended Balancing Strategy (outlined in
Attachment A)
During the City Council budget hearings, the City Council voted to place certain items in the
“short-term parking lot” for staff to return with revised strategies for reinstatement of some
services. Based on the City Council discussion and guidance as well as staff’s review of
resources and service delivery models, the below items were reviewed and restored as part of
the recommended balancing strategy and are included in Attachment A. Should the City Council
wish to adjust these service levels, a majority vote from the Council would be necessary,
however, if the City Council agrees with these changes in service, no action is necessary.
Revisit funding through additional cost recovery and/or partial funding for teen services
($400,000), Art Center ($400,000), College Terrace Library ($168,000), Baylands Interpretive
Center ($22,000), and Children’s Theater (includes restoration and/or rebalancing of library
hours)
On May 13, 2020 the City Council moved that staff revisit funding through additional cost
recovery and/or partial funding teen services, Art Center and Children’s Theater, College
Terrace Library and Baylands Interpretive Center as part of the “short-term parking lot”. Staff
have developed a plan to address each of the items included in this motion, which is briefly
discussed below. These program restorations have been included as part of the recommended
City of Palo Alto Page 14
balancing actions as detailed in Attachment A. The Council need not take specific action on
these items if in agreement, only if they wish to change the restorations outlined below.
• Teen Services: Staff proposes increasing cost recovery and recognize approximately
$43,000 in new revenue from participation and membership fees (such as a $10
monthly membership fee for The Drop teen center at Mitchell Park) and $30,000 in new
donations to support teen services, this is offset by adding $200,000 in programming
expenses. The services proposed to continue are: Teen Advisory Board, Palo Alto Youth
Council, Recreation Counselor in Training (CIT) Program, MakeX, Art Center Teen
Leadership Group, Teen Arts Council, Think Fund, and re-opening The Drop teen center
in January 2021. This action includes retaining programming funded by Bryant Street
Garage lease revenues.
• Art Center/Children’s Theater: Staff proposes to increase cost recovery at the Art Center
and recognize new revenue from participation fees for workshops and programs and
entry fees for an annual juried exhibition. This proposal maintains partial capacity for
exhibitions, school programming support, and visual arts, and still maintains classes and
camps for youth and adults and studio classes. Staff proposes limited expense
restorations for Children’s Theater that would allow two core productions and up to
nine smaller productions per year. This proposal continues to contemplate reduced
ticket sales, class, and camp revenue due to social distancing protocols limiting group
sizes. revenue due to social distancing protocols limiting group sizes.
• Baylands Interpretive Center: Staff proposes restoration of approximately 50% of public
open hours and $7,000 in commensurate expenses. Staff are also actively reaching out
to community and non-profit partners to leverage public support to fully restore
operating hours.
• College Terrace Library: Staff proposes keeping all five (5) Library branches open,
however, with reduced operating hours at each location. This is in contrast to the prior
proposal which reduced hours and opening at select libraries. This action reduces:
o Neighborhood Libraries – Children’s, College Terrace, Downtown –to operating three
(3) days per week; and
o Full-Service Libraries – Mitchell Park, Rinconada –to six (6) days per week, with
Rinconada Library closing at 6pm every day.
This will result in Children’s Library transitioning from a Full-Service library to providing
Neighborhood Libraries level of service, which includes fewer programs and special
events, such as service levels at the Downtown Library. Library staff will rotate through
branches ensuring adequate coverage and support.
City of Palo Alto Page 15
Revisit funding for Building Inspection and Fire Inspection Budget Adjustments
On May 13, 2020 the City Council moved to revisit adjustments to the Building and Fire
Inspection Budget proposal as part of the “short-term parking lot.” In City Manager’s Report
#11322, staff recommended a reduction in consultant inspection services by 50 percent and
staffing resources in the Fire Inspection division that would result in longer wait times and an
inability to provide next day inspection services. In this report, staff recommends
supplementing the existing proposal with the elimination of 1.0 Planning Manager and addition
of 2.0 Building Inspector Specialists (1.0 on a one-year limited term). The additional inspection
staff will reduce the impact to customer service and development progress. The duties of the
eliminated Planning Manager will be consolidated with existing management staff within the
department.
Short Term Parking Lot Items Already Addressed by the Council and/or Staff
During the City Council budget hearings, the City Council voted to place certain items in the
“short-term parking lot.” The list below is reflective of short-term parking lot items that have
already been addressed throughout the Budget Hearings. These materials have all been posted
on the City’s budget website and can be found at www.cityofpaloalto.org/budget
• Summary of Cubberley lease finances
• List of current City leases and the $/sq. ft
• Revised General Fund budget reconciliations
• Detailed funding for the new Public Safety Building (revenues and expenses)
• Updated Library Statistics
• Additional information regarding teen services
• Revisit CIP reductions (the City Council took an action to request staff find an additional
$1M in General Fund dollars as outlined above in this report)
4) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PERTAINING TO THE FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
During the City Council budget hearings, requests for additional information were made by the
City Council. This section addresses the City Council’s requests regarding the Fiscal Year 2021
Proposed Budget as well as additional information that may be of assistance to Council in their
decision-making process.
Public Safety Building Capital Project
The COVID-19 emergency informs the context of staff’s recommendation to proceed with the
Public Safety Building (PSB) project. This is a volatile time for the construction market, and staff
is positioning the PSB project to leverage the market conditions should it be advantageous. The
three principal variables to consider are shovel-readiness, bidding strategy, and financing
strategy.
City of Palo Alto Page 16
Shovel-readiness: It is important to complete the remaining pre-bid work on the project so that
it is “shovel-ready” and can be bid at the most opportune time. The design team is currently
addressing plan review comments from the second round of plan review and expects the bid
documents to be complete by mid-June. The design team is currently addressing plan review
comments from the second round of plan review and expects the bid documents to be
complete by mid-June.
Bidding strategy: Construction market impacts in the current economy may provide an
opportunity for lower bids on the PSB project. It is important that bids are received from
contractors who have the experience and capability to successfully deliver the project. A
prequalification process completed in early 2020 resulted in prequalification of two contractors.
Staff is considering reopening the prequalification with a goal of receiving additional
prequalification packages from other contractors who meet qualifications but were
uninterested in participating during the earlier process. These contractors may now have fewer
upcoming opportunities and decide to participate in the PSB bidding process.
Staff is monitoring the construction cost environment to determine when to bid the PSB
project. It is not possible to predict when costs will be at their lowest, but staff will monitor
regional trends and bid prices received on other projects. It is also possible to “test the market”
with bids and use the bids received as a decision point.
Financing strategy: PSB construction in the proposed FY 2021 capital budget is funded through
Certificates of Participation (COPs). Debt service on the PSB COPs is budgeted to begin in FY
2022, and to be funded by Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenues. Current TOT revenue
estimates in the proposed budget are sufficient to fully support the combined debt service for
the PSB and the California Avenue Parking Garage by FY 2023, but staff acknowledges the risk in
relying on future TOT revenues to support debt service at this time. Staff may also consider
capitalized interest as part of the debt issuance which would delay the start of debt service
payments to FY 2024 if necessary. Lower than forecasted TOT revenues could require future
reprioritizing of the CIP. Additionally, staff needs to do further evaluation of the current
economic climate on the market for COPs. This will include taking the proposed COPs to the
rating agencies to obtain updated information on financing costs that will inform the decision of
whether to proceed or to delay bidding, and the City Council will have the opportunity to
determine whether to proceed.
In summary, staff is aware of the factors involved in proceeding with the PSB and is developing
a strategy that involves bringing the project to the “shovel-ready” point very soon, while
analyzing the construction market and financing implications to determine the best timing for
bidding the project.
City of Palo Alto Page 17
Public Survey Results
The City launched an online survey to gain community feedback on the City’s budget
discussions underway. Open from May 5 to May 13, the online survey had several goals
including informing the community on the City’s budget discussions underway, gaining input on
City Service Area priorities as the Council weighed service level reductions and requesting
additional feedback on City services important to the community overall. Over that period, the
City received 1369 visits to the online survey portal with over 990 specific responses. The chart
below provides the input received, reflecting the top three City Service Areas as Public Safety,
Neighborhood, Community and Library Services and Infrastructure and Environment. Go here
for the full report including all community comments received.
Management Contributions
For unrepresented Management and Professional employees, the City Manager is
recommending a reduction equivalent to 15% compensation. The reduction includes 26
furlough closure days (one furlough closure day every two weeks), for a total of 208 furlough
hours for the year.1 Management and Professional salaries will also be frozen, which means
cost of living increases, merit awards, and in-range adjustments will not be granted.
Management and Professional employees will also contribute $1,250 (equivalent to
approximately 0.5% of salary) from their flexible management benefit, which is an IRS Section
125-complaint allowance. This benefit provides reimbursement for dependent care assistance
for children under age 13 or other dependents incapable of self-care, medical flex spending for
non-covered medical expenses, 457 savings accounts, job-related professional development
expenses or health and wellness activities.
1 Due to layoffs, the elimination of hourly support staff and service changes due to COVID-exposure adjustments, it will be
necessary to close non-emergency facilities for scheduled furlough closure days. Given the minimal staffing levels, it is not
feasible to absorb furlough hours in a manner that ensures the health and safety of services to the community, unless service
hours are reduced.
City of Palo Alto Page 18
As announced at the City Council meeting on May 18, City Manager Ed Shikada voluntarily
offered a reduction of 20% in his compensation as a contribution towards addressing the City’s
fiscal challenge for next fiscal year. The reduction includes 26 days of furlough, which is
equivalent to 10% compensation, a salary freeze (valued at 4.5% based on historical
adjustments of City Manager pay), and a contribution of $1,250 (equivalent to approximately
0.5% of salary) from his management flexible spending account. In addition to the furlough,
salary freeze and flex spending contribution, the City Manager is donating 100 hours from his
leave balance (equivalent to 5% of his salary). The City Manager’s leave will be converted to a
donation bank for employees who do not have leave hours. City Attorney Molly Stump has
voluntarily offered a reduction of 15% in compensation, including 26-days of furlough, a
voluntary salary freeze, and a reduction of $1,250 from her management flex spending account.
Restated Department Reconciliation Tables for General Fund
During the City Council’s May 13th hearing on the FY 2021 Budget, the City Council directed
staff to restate the General Fund department budget reconciliations as they appear in the FY
2021 Proposed Operating Budget book. That provided these at the May 13th Council meeting.
However, in the spirit of the request, staff has once again updated these tables and attached a
version current to the actions recommended in this memorandum. These revised ‘Budget
Reconciliations’ are Attachment D. It is anticipated that they will help clarify the additional
actions after the FY 2021 Proposed Budget. It is critical to note that these reconciliations
exclude certain central items, such as but not limited to reductions for Internal Service Funds,
contributions to the section 115 Pension Trust Fund, and lower OPEB costs, which will
ultimately be distributed across various departments through the budget process. Nonetheless,
the revised reconciliations attached are for presentation and information only and present the
information transmitted in the FY 2021 Proposed Budget and in this staff report in one place for
ease of reference as the Council continues conversations about the FY 2021 Budget.
5) FY 2021 MUNICIPAL FEE SCHEDULE REVISIONS
On May 12, 2020, the City Council reviewed the FY 2021 Proposed Municipal Fee Schedule and
tentatively approved it as outlined in City Manager’s Report #11190. In addition to that report,
the City Council reviewed the impacts of various proposed changes in the delivery of services
and most specifically, reviewed the plan for the reopening of the Junior Museum and Zoo (JMZ)
as outlined in City Manager’s Report #11222, and further amended by the At Places
memorandum released on May 12, 2020 which can be found here. As a result of the
recommended changes in cost recovery of various Community Service programs and discussed
as part of the City Council’s direction to explore funding through additional cost recovery
and/or partial funding for various Community Services programs, a new fee and a few fee
revisions are recommended. The changes outlined here are the summary of all changes
recommended in addition to those outlined in the FY 2021 Proposed Municipal Fee Schedule
presented in CMR #11190.
The additional fee revisions can be found in the Community Services Department as follows.
City of Palo Alto Page 19
NEW FEES:
Department Fee Title FY 2021 Proposed Fee Cost Recovery Level
Community Services Teen Center Monthly
Membership Fee $10.00 each Low
Community Services Ticketed Admission Fee (JMZ) $2.00 - $24.00
per person High (est. 85%)
Community Services Family Membership (JMZ) $150.00 - $430.00
each High (est. 76%)
To provide some cost recovery of teen programming, a new fee is recommended for
membership to the Teen Center, The Drop, at Mitchell Park: $10 monthly membership fee.
Note, The Drop is currently anticipated to be closed through December 2020 due to COVID-19.
The Drop is currently anticipated to be closed through December 2020 due to COVID-19.
In anticipation of the opening of the new Junior Museum and Zoo (JMZ) staff expects to
implement both admission fees as well as membership fees. The above new fees provide
ranges and articulate the estimated cost recovery level of the JMZ at these prices. It is
expected that these fee ranges will enable both a resident and a non-resident rate for these
charges as well as other rate offerings as outlined in the JMZ staff report and presentation
made on May 12, 2020. Currently the JMZ is not expected to reopen until March 2021.
CHANGED FEES:
To increase cost recovery levels and restore some programs most specifically at the Palo Alto
Art Center, administration fee per registration is recommended to be increased from $0-$29
each to $0-$50 each. This fee will be used for teen workshop and leadership program fees
(estimated at $50) and juried exhibition entry fee (estimated at $35) which is assessed when
participants enter a piece in an art competition hosted by the city. teen workshop and
leadership program fees (estimated at $50) and juried exhibition entry fee (estimated at $35)
which is assessed when participants enter a piece in an art competition hosted by the city.
Fee Title FY 2020 Adopted FY 2021 Proposed
%
Change Justification
Administration Fee Per
Registration
$0.00 - $29.00
each
$0.00 - $50.00
each
72.41
%
Staff
recommendation
City of Palo Alto Page 20
6) RECOMMENDED ORDINANCE: COUNCILMEMBER WAIVER OF COMPENSATION
In response to the significant budgetary impacts and resource constraints that the City is
currently facing, some Councilmembers have inquired if they could stop receiving their City
salary during the crisis. Currently, the Municipal Code section 2.04.360 mandates a salary of
$1,000 per month for Councilmembers. To address Councilmembers’ inquiries, staff
recommend the amendment provided as Attachment C to this report, which would add
language allowing Councilmembers to voluntarily waive part, or all, of their salary in line with
general state law. Since there are no changes proposed to the amount of Councilmember
salaries, this ordinance would take effect 30 days after the second reading and final adoption.
7) SUMMARY OF CITY COUNCIL REVIEW OF FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET (ACTIONS,
REFERENCE, AND FUTURE POTENTIAL REFERRALS)
City Council Tentative Motions and Materials Distributed (Actions and Reference Materials)
Action minutes to the City Council budget hearings are not yet available at the time of this
memorandum’s printing. It is anticipated that Action Minutes will be transmitted At Places for
the May 26th Wrap-Up Meeting. Through the City Council Budget Hearings, various
memoranda were distributed At Places to respond to inquiries made by the Council, provide
additional pertinent information at staff’s behest, or recommend amendments to the FY 2021
Proposed Budget. In addition, presentations were provided at each hearing providing high level
overviews of each item. Specific meetings and reference links to materials from those meetings
are outlined below.
May 11, 2020 City Council Meeting – Overview
Presentations:
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=72973.7&BlobID=76618
Video: https://youtu.be/_QHKjfshr08?t=11887
At Places and Other Relevant Memorandum:
− CMR 11322 https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/76585
− Procedural Guidelines for City Council Consideration
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/76600
May 12, 2020 City Council Budget Hearings – Overview, General Fund Capital Budget, Public Safety,
and Community Services
Presentations:
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=64205.87&BlobID=76664
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3ay8sryy2k
At Places Memorandum:
− Junior Museum and Zoo Adjustments for Municipal Fees
(https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=48356.58&BlobID=76623)
City of Palo Alto Page 21
May 13, 2020 City Council Budget Hearings – Continuation of May 12, Municipal Fee Amendments,
Planning and Transportation, Infrastructure and Environment, and Government and
Administration/Internal Service Departments
Presentations:
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=61002.64&BlobID=76659
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOfjH1sLreM
At Places and Other Relevant Memoranda:
− Additional Information: City’s List of Lease Information, Cubberley Information, Library Statistics
and Bryant Street Garage and Teen Programming
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=60199.74&BlobID=76655
− Municipal Fees CMR #11190
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=59261.4&BlobID=76562
− Office of Transportation, Residential Preferential Parking Program (RPP) Revisions
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=57732.97&BlobID=76652
− Public Safety Building Capital Project Funding and Revised General Fund Reconciliations
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?t=85277.09&BlobID=76680
Future Follow-Up (Potential Referrals)
During the City Council Budget hearings, the City Council voted to place certain items in the
“long-term parking lot.” The list below is reflective of potential referral items from the Budget
Hearings; if the City Council so chooses, these may be formalized as referrals for additional
work from staff throughout FY 2021, as approved by a majority vote. It should be noted that
these additional referrals will need to be prioritized in the context of diminished resources and
adverse impacts on service delivery necessitated by the FY 2021 budgetary constraints.
1. Explore changing delivery of services from a dominant fire-oriented model to a
dominant medical-oriented model
2. Add to prior Council referral to Finance Committee regarding the ROTH building;
evaluate the ability to fund the ROTH Building renovations through the General Fund
(not to exceed $1 million) or impact fees, with the preference for impact fees.
3. A report or item on the JMZ and what it would look like to eliminate the General Fund
Subsidy through a fully cost recoverable program.
4. Discussion of price changes and increases for employee permits in all garages and lots in
the California Ave. district to be consistent citywide.
Next Steps & Stakeholder Engagement
The City Council will review a final proposed balancing strategy, on May 26 with final adoption
of the FY 2021 Budget scheduled for June 22, 2020. The community is encouraged to continue
to engage with the budget process through the scheduled public meetings. Meeting materials
and other budget information can be found on our dedicated webpage at
www.cityofpaloalto.org/budget
City of Palo Alto Page 22
Environmental Review
This is not a project under Section 21065 for purposes of the California Environmental Quality
Act (CEQA).
Attachments:
• Attachment A: Exhibit 1 (FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget Recommended
Adjustments)
• Attachment A: Exhibit 2 (FY 2021 Proposed Capital Budget Recommended Adjustments)
• Attachment B: FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget Recommended General Capital
Improvement Fund Source and Use
• Attachment C: Ordinance Amending Section 2.04.360 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code to
Allow Council Members a Salary Waiver Option
• Attachment D: FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 Revised General Fund Dept
Reconciliations
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
Administrative
Services
Suspend City's Annual Performance Report
This action reduces 1.0 Performance Auditor II position recently
transferred from the City Auditor's Office to the Office of Management
and Budget. This will require that the production of City's annual
Performance Report be suspended.
Office of
Management
and Budget
- (169,343) (1.00) - - (169,343) (1.00) -
Administrative
Services
Staff Reorganization and Service Reduction
This action reduces resources in the procurement division by reducing
0.5 Administrative Associate and 0.4 Contract Administrator. This action
will require the review of purchasing policies and requirements to allow
for efficiencies in solicitation cycle time, such as changing levels for
competitive solicitations or partially decentralizing low dollar items to
departments. This may result in delays, decentralization, and increased
risk because of a loss in oversight of procurement processes and
adherence to the municipal code. This also recognizes savings associated
with reducing the Budget Director, which is anticipated to be underfilled
with a Budget Manager. This will somewhat diminish the ability of the
Office of Management and Budget to perform comprehensive analysis
and contribute to strategic initiatives for the organization.
Purchasing - (185,582) (0.90) - - (185,582) (0.90) -
Administrative
Services
Accounting and Revenue Collections Reorganization
This action reorganizes resources in revenue collections and accounting,
reduces customer service counter hours, increases wait times, and
reduces customer service overall. Staff will explore shifting revenue
collection functions to an electronic or online platform to achieve efficiencies where possible. Printing of checks will happen every two
weeks, and payment inquiries from vendors and city staff will take
longer to resolve. 2.0 Accounting Specialists will be reduced as a result
of this action.
Accounting and
Financial
Reporting &
Revenue
Collection
- (147,786) (1.50) - - (200,538) (2.00) -
Administrative
Services
Printing Services
This action restructures the City's printing services through a reduction
in costs by approximately $110,000. Staff is evaluating adjustments to
the City's copier leases. The General Fund portion of these savings is
anticipated to be approximately $88,000 based on the allocation of
printing costs across the City.
Printing and
Mailing Services
- (87,787) - - (110,000) (213,789) - -
Attorney Position Reductions
This action reduces 0.50 Legal Fellow in the City Attorney's Office. This
will curtail prosecution of municipal citations, code enforcement
support, and public records response, and lengthen response times to
new initiatives.
Consultation &
Advisory;
Litigation &
Dispute
Resolution
- (81,171) (0.50) - - (81,171) (0.50) -
Attorney Travel, Training, and Supply Expense Reductions
This action reduces the department's travel, training, and office supply
budget from $89,000. This will reduce the department's capacity to
maintain best practices, training, and pursue professional development
opportunities, limit flexibility to take on new administrative projects and
duties, and reduce resources available for office work.
Business
Operations
- (47,342) - - - (47,342) - -
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 1 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Auditor Reduction in the City Auditor's Office
This action reduces resources in the City Auditor's Office equal to similar
internal services reductions. At the direction of the City Council and in
coordination with the Council Appointed Officer Committee, staff is
currently evaluating the service delivery of the internal audit function
and final impacts are to be determined.
Performance
Audits
- (165,000) - - - (165,000) - -
Clerk Travel, Training, Supply and Event Expense Reductions
This action reduces the department's travel, training, office supply, and
special event budget from $103,000. This will reduce the department's
capacity to attend training and maintain best practices and professional
development opportunities, limit flexibility to take on new
administrative projects and duties, and eliminate all board and
commission special events. The reduction associated with printed
packet materials is still included pending action of that item after it was
placed in the 'short-term parking lot' by the City Council.
Business
Operations
- (45,000) - - - (45,000) - -
Clerk Contract Services Reductions
This action reduces the department's contracts budget from $254,346. Contracts being reduced include those for advertising board and
commission recruitments, public noticing, radio broadcasting of public
meetings, and administrative hearing officers. The reduction associated
with meeting minutes is still included pending action of that item after it
was placed in the 'short-term parking lot' by the City Council.
Various - (90,385) - - - (90,385) - -
Council Travel, Training, Supply and Event Expense Reductions
This action reduces the department's travel, training, office supply, and
special event budget from $55,000. This will reduce the City Council's
capacity to travel for City business and reduce the number of special
events that the Council can host.
City Council
Services
- (48,955) - - - (48,955) - -
City Manager's
Office
Position Reductions
This action reduces 1.0 FTE Assistant to the City Manager in the City
Manager's Office. This will adversely impact the department's ability to
implement, manage, or coordinate any new initiatives; work on cross-
departmental priorities; respond to Council and community requests; or
provide support for public outreach. This position is responsible for
special projects, community engagement, and related activities.
Various - (218,750) (1.00) - - (218,750) (1.00) -
City Manager's
Office
Travel, Training, and Supply Expense Reductions
This action reduces the department's travel, training, and office supply
budget from $98,000. This will reduce the department's capacity to
travel for city business such as regulatory and legislative advocacy and
interagency coordination, limit flexibility to take on new administrative
projects and duties, and reduce resources available for office work.
Business
Operations
- (32,000) - - - (32,000) - -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 2 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Community
Services
Position Reductions
This action reduces 1.0 Administrative Associate III, 1.0 Assistant
Director of Community Services, 1.0 Recreation Superintendent, and
0.48 FTE in part-time staff resources. This will adversely impact the
department's ability to support and respond to City Commissions and
public inquiries, reduce capacity for marketing and communications,
reduce CivicRec oversight and troubleshooting which could impact
customers' experience, limit managerial oversight, and delay development of a therapeutic recreation plan.
Various - (585,750) (3.00) (0.48) - (585,750) (3.00) (0.48)
Community
Services
Junior Museum and Zoo
This action adjusts budgeted revenue and expenses for the new Junior
Museum and Zoo (JMZ). Ticket prices are recommended to increase
from $10 to $18, and membership rates are recommended to increase
from a range of $110-$245 to $150-$430. Increased ticket and
membership pricing results in increased annual revenue, but in FY 2021
revenue and expenses are also decreased based on the JMZ opening
being delayed from October 2020 to March 2021. Expenses such as
hiring new JMZ staff and acquiring new animals are pro-rated
accordingly. With the increased ticket and membership fees, in a full
year of operations the JMZ would be budgeted at 85% cost recovery.
Corresponding adjustments in the Municipal Fee schedule are
recommended to reflect these changes.
(46,000) (224,990) - - (46,000) (224,990) - -
Community
Services
Reduce Theater Programming and Support
This action reduces programming at the Children's Theatre and reduces
support for community theater productions. This action also reduces 1.0
Producer Arts/Science Program and 5.09 FTE of part-time staff
resources. This reduces programming at the Palo Alto Children's Theatre
(PACT) by limiting to two core productions and several smaller
productions, and maintaining smaller groups for classes and camps to
allow for social distancing. This action also recognizes reduced revenue
for productions to reflect reduced audience sizes necessary for social
distancing. Children's Theatre productions serve roughly 100
participants and bring in over 50,000 audience members annually.
The Stern Community Theater is used by three local companies who
produce approximately 15 productions annually. This action reduces on-
site logistical support for community productions and administrative
support to other City theaters.
Community
Theater;
Children's
Theater
(283,643) (721,254) (1.00) (5.09) (283,643) (721,254) (1.00) (5.09)
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 3 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Community
Services
Teen Services Reduction
This action reduces some teen programs and services that are likely
infeasible due to continued social distancing requirements. Impacted
programs include some summer camps and a temporary closure of The
Drop (teen center at Mitchell Park) through December 2020. This action
also recognizes additional revenue from new donations from the Palo
Alto Parks & Recreation Foundation and new membership and
participation fees for teen programs. This action reduces 1.0 Program Assistant I and 1.44 FTE of part-time staff resources.
Corresponding adjustments in the Municipal Fee schedule are
recommended.
Teen Services (50,000) (201,590) (1.00) (1.44) (50,000) (201,590) (1.00) (1.44)
Community
Services
Art Center Programming Reductions
This action reduces programming at the Palo Alto Art Center such as the
scope of frequency of exhibitions, visual arts programming, and
educational outreach, while retaining studio programs and classes for
youth and adults. This action also recognizes additional revenue, which
will be generated in the form of additional donations from the Palo Alto
Art Center Foundation and implementation of fees to several
programs/services to improve cost recovery. The Palo Alto Art Center
serves approximately 120,000 people each year through programs like
free art exhibitions, educational outreach including school tours for Palo
Alto Unified School District, art classes and workshops, and art-based
summer camps. This action includes a reduction of 0.35 Junior Museum
and Zoo Educator, 0.75 Producer Arts/Science Program, 1.0 Program
Assistant, and 2.16 FTE of part-time staff resources.
Corresponding adjustments in the Municipal Fee schedule are
recommended.
Art Center (4,623) (452,084) (2.10) (2.16) (4,623) (452,084) (2.10) (2.16)
Community
Services
Community Center Reductions
This action reduces operating hours by one day per week at Mitchell
Park Community Center, Lucie Stern Community Center, Cubberley
Community Center, and the Palo Alto Art Center. This will result in
diminished services across a wide range of activities including
responding to customer inquiries, scheduling facility rentals, providing
class and camp programming, oversight of invoice payment, and
managing custodial needs. This action reduces 2.0 Program Assistant I
and 1.27 of part-time FTE staff resources.
Facility
Management/
Recreation
- (282,695) (2.00) (1.27) - (282,695) (2.00) (1.27)
Community
Services
Parks Maintenance Contract Services Reductions
This action reduces contracts for maintenance of parks, athletic fields,
courts, roadsides, medians, City buildings, community centers, and
other facilities by approximately 25%. This will moderately reduce
aesthetic maintenance such as clearing of weeds, turf mowing, and
playground washing, while still preserving and prioritizing safety-
focused maintenance.
Parks, Athletic
Fields, & Courts
Management;
Recreation
- (274,844) - - - (274,844) - -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 4 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Community
Services
Community Program and Event Reductions
This action will reduce funding for the Know Your Neighbors Grant
(KYNG) program and special events such as May Fete and Chili Cook-Off.
The KYNG provides grants up to $1,000 to dozens of community
members annually for events that support community connections, such
as block parties. Staff assigned to the management of these programs
will be reassigned to other critical work in the department.
Special Events (13,542) (154,404) - - (13,542) (154,404) - -
Community
Services
Open Space and Recreation Reductions
This action reduces ranger coverage in Palo Alto Open Space Preserves
and reduces public operating hours of the Lucy Evans Baylands Nature
Interpretive Center by 50% (schedule TBD). This includes a reduction of
1.0 Community Services Manager and 0.39 FTE of part-time staff
resources. The Interpretive Center is currently open four days per week,
houses an array of science and nature exhibits, and it's a feature of the
curriculum of Palo Alto Unified and Ravenswood School Districts. In FY
2019 Palo Alto's Open Space Preserves received approximately 845,000
visits. This action will result in fewer ranger patrols, delayed response to
maintenance such as trail and campsite repairs, decreased capacity for
litter removal and group rental site reservation support, and reduced
support for science educational opportunities.
Open Space;
Recreation
- (243,905) (1.00) (0.17) - (243,905) (1.00) (0.17)
Community
Services
Human Services Funding Reductions
This action eliminates the funding provided to the Santa Clara County
Reentry Resource Center and decreases funding provided to Youth
Community Services' Youth Connectedness Initiative by 50%. Human
services funding remains available through the Human Services
Resource Allocation Process (HSRAP) which is maintained at the funding level detailed in the FY 2021 Operating Budget.
Human Services - (100,000) - - - (100,000) - -
Community
Services
Middle School Athletics and Adult Sports Leagues Revenue
Adjustments
This action increases the participation fees for Middle School Athletics
and Adult Sports Leagues by approximately 25%, from $260 to $325 and
from $730 to $913, respectively. If participation remains steady, this
action will generate revenue approximately commensurate with City
expenses.
Corresponding adjustments in the Municipal Fee Schedule are not
required as both new values fall within FY 2020 adopted ranges and will remain consistent with levels in the FY 2021 Proposed Municipal Fee
Schedule.
Recreation 100,521 - - - 100,521 - - -
Fire Fire Inspection and Plan Review
This action reduces staffing resources in the Fire Prevention Bureau,
which will delay fire inspections, increase wait times and impact
customer service overall. This proposal reduces 0.40 FTE Fire Inspector
in the Fire Department with a corresponding reduction in the Planning
and Development Services Department.
Inspections
(PDS)
- (93,297) (0.40) - - (93,297) (0.40) -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 5 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Fire First Responder and Ambulance Subscriptions Fee
The First Responder Fee would be charged for all EMS calls regardless of
transport and would cover cost for initial response for first due engine.
This fee would be assessed on insurance companies.
The Ambulance Subscription Program is an optional fee for residents
and businesses to secure co-pay free ambulance transport.
Ambulance
Transport
Services &
Emergency First
Response
1,855,000 - - - 1,855,000 - - -
Fire Emergency Incident Response Services
This action temporarily reduces units when firefighters are on leave,
rather than staffing units with overtime; reduces incident response
resources and staffing and move towards a brownout flexible staffing
model. This action includes reducing 5.0 Fire Fighter EMT positions.
Response times and ability to handle concurrent calls will be reduced
evenings and weekends, resulting in some calls being handled by the
County mutual aid partners. This would require renegotiation of the Fire
Services contract with Stanford University.
Emergency First
Response
(202,100) (831,555) (5.00) - (202,100) (831,555) (5.00) -
Fire Fire Administrative and Support Services
This action reduces staffing resources where functions will be reassessed
and reassigned to increase efficiency and allow for more flexibility in
workload and responsibilities. This proposal assumes the elimination of
1.0 Administrative Associate II and freezes 1.0 Training Captain. In
addition 0.2 FTE Deputy Director Technical Services that is shared with
the Police Department will be frozen.
Business
Operations
- (412,030) (2.20) - - (412,030) (2.20) -
Human
Resources
Position Reductions
This action reduces the equivalent of 1.0 FTE staff resources from the
Human Resources Department. This will result in reduced administrative
and analytical support for assigned programs and functions in the
recruitment, employee relations and training, and information systems
divisions.
Business
Operations
- (236,001) (1.00) (0.96) - (236,001) (1.00) (0.96)
Information
Technology
Position Eliminations, Deferral of Hiring, and Reduction in Department
Training
This action reduces and defers the hiring of staff including 1.0 Director,
Information Technology, 2.0 Senior Technologists, and 1.0 Technologist.
This budget impact will result in decreased response time for internal
work orders and delays in projects support and management across the
organization.
Technology
Admin Services/
Software, Tech,
Equip
Maintenance
- (533,630) - - (952,902) (1,905,804) (4.00) -
Information
Technology
Reduction in Software and Equipment Support
This action reduces the Citywide allocation for software replacement
and may result in use of reserves or a resource impact to a department
where replacement costs have not fully amortized. This reduction also
contains costs that are no longer needed due to the City moving to an
alternative platform, equipment being taken out of service, or
alternative service delivery models being utilized.
Application
Maintenance
and
Replacement
- (265,060) - - (473,325) (946,650) - -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 6 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Information
Technology
Recognize Accumulated Savings in IT Fund Balance
This action recognizes anticipated savings resulting from FY 2020
Vacancy Savings and funding for equipment replacements that has
accumulated to subsidize payments from all funds to the Information
Technology Fund on a one-time basis in FY 2021. This will result in
savings in IT allocated charges in the General Fund and Other Funds and
decrease the fund balance in the Information Technology Fund. Since
this action does not decrease expenses in the IT Fund consistent with revenue decreases, the revenue and expense adjustments for all funds
are much closer aligned than other actions.
Technology
Admin Services/
Software,
Desktop
Replacement
- (521,244) - - (840,386) (885,986)
Library Position Reductions
This action reduces staffing for administrative support, information
technology, and customer service. This action will decrease availability
of Library staff and services such as reference services, readers advisory,
public programs, and book clubs; decrease administrative support;
increase time for re-circulating materials and responding to customer
service inquiries; decrease coverage at Service Desks from two to one staff member; and adversely impact the Library's ability to manage
special projects. This action reduces 1.0 Administrative Associate III, 1.0
Assistant Director of Library Services, 1.0 Library Specialist, and 4.14 FTE
of part-time staff resources.
Various - (718,410) (3.00) (4.14) - (718,410) (3.00) (4.14)
Library Reduced Library Hours & Services
This action reduces operating hours and/or days at all Library branches.
Neighborhood Libraries (Children's, Downtown and College Terrace) will
be open 3 days per week and full service libraries (Mitchell Park and
Rinconada) will be open 6 days per week. Evening hours will also be eliminated at Rinconada Library, which will close at 6pm every day as
opposed to remaining open until 9pm Monday - Thursday. Children's
Library will also transition to providing Neighborhood Branch level of
service, which includes fewer programs and special events, similar to
service levels at the Downtown Library. In FY 2019, the Libraries
conducted about 770 program events for Youth ages 0-12; this action is
anticipated to result in approximately 200 fewer annual youth
programs. The reduced hours of Rinconada Library are expected to
increase wait times for community meeting rooms and increase
utilization and crowds at Mitchell Park between 6pm - 9pm. This action
includes a reduction of 1.0 Library Associate, 2.0 Senior Librarian and
6.27 FTE of part-time staff resources.
Various - (694,616) (3.00) (6.27) - (694,616) (3.00) (6.27)
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 7 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Library Travel, Training, and Materials Expense Reductions
This action reduces the department's travel and training budget and
contracts from approximately $90,000 to $8,000 and reduces the
department's new material (books) acquisition budget from $700,000 to
$550,000 for two years. This will reduce the department's capacity to
attend conferences and pursue other professional development
opportunities, decrease the number of new books that can be purchased
in response to patron or commission requests, and increase wait time customers experience for new books. Physical book circulation has been
trending downward since 2018 while electronic resource utilization is
trending upward.
Access to
Collections;
Business
Operations
- (241,500) - - - (241,500) - -
Office of
Emergency
Services
Position Reduction
This action reduces 1.0 Program Assistant II in the Office of Emergency
Services. This reduction will result in fewer resources to support the
critical infrastructure program, which includes establishing key
community contacts, conducting assessments, and maintaining an
essential database. Scaling back this program will impact the
preparedness of the community and will result in a shortage of trained
personnel to perform essential functions during an activation. Staff also
anticipates that without a dedicated resource to manage Intrusion
Detection Systems (IDS) that performance will decline over time.
Emergency
Services &
Project Safety
Net
- (98,204) (1.00) - - (98,204) (1.00) -
Office of
Emergency
Services
Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) Reduction
This action reduces funding for IDS camera systems along the Caltrain
corridor from $440,000 to $380,000; maintaining fiber and monitoring
services, and reducing maintenance to essential needs.
Emergency
Services &
Project Safety
Net
- (60,000) - - - (60,000) - -
Office of
Transportation
Position Reduction
This action reduces 0.48 FTE in part-time staff resources in the Office of
Transportation. The department's response times and capacity to review
and reconcile parking citation appears in the Residential Preferential
Parking program will be adversely impacted.
Business
Operations
- (29,678) - (0.48) - (29,678) - (0.48)
Office of
Transportation
Free Shuttle Service Elimination
This action eliminates the free Crosstown and Embarcadero Shuttles.
Staff previously assigned to the shuttle program will be reassigned to other key transportation projects. The shuttles connected the University
Avenue/Downtown to South Palo Alto at Charleston Road and provided
peak hour service between the University Avenue Caltrain Station and
the Baylands Business Parks east of Highway 101/Embarcadero. This
action will reduce free alternative transportation options to residents of
and visitors to Palo Alto, including senior citizens and local students. The
Crosstown and Embarcadero shuttles provided 104,929 rides in FY 2019.
Shuttle - (538,333) - - - (538,333) - -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 8 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Planning and
Development
Services
Administration and Program Assistance
This action reduces 1.0 Program Assistant I, 1.0 Senior Planner, a 0.48
FTE of part-time staffing resources, and $180,000 in consultant services
in the administrative divisions of Planning and Development Services.
Staff's ability to provide administrative, project management, and
customer support will be reduced and responses to public record
requests delayed. Reductions in other programs and strategic planning
are anticipated as workloads are assumed by existing staff.
Administration - (450,691) (2.00) (0.48) - (450,691) (2.00) (0.48)
Planning and
Development
Services
Current Planning and Development Services Front Counter
This action reduces 1.0 Principal Planner, 1.0 Building/Planning
Technician, and $436,000 in contract services that process applications
(including over the counter permit approval), provide customer service,
and schedule projects before the Planning and Transportation
Committee (PTC), Architectural Review Board (ARB), and Historic
Resources Board (HRB). Significant delays in application processing and
customer service response times are expected. Modification to local
zoning regulations may be required to streamline application review,
reducing the amount of time staff spends on each project and with
public engagement. A corresponding reduction is recommended for
Current
Planning
(486,607) (736,897) (2.00) - (486,607) (736,897) (2.00) -
Planning and
Development
Services
Code Enforcement
This action reduces 2.0 Code Enforcement Officer positions, resulting in
limited responses to the highest priority health and safety-related cases
and slower response times. Implementation of the Code Enforcement
Audit recommendations will be de-prioritized.
Code
Enforcement
- (264,546) (2.00) - - (264,546) (2.00) -
Planning and
Development
Services
Building Inspection and Plan Review
This action reduces 1.0 Planning Manager and consultant inspection
services by 50 percent, and adds 2.0 Building Inspector Specialists (1.0
for a one-year term). This will result in longer lead times for inspections,
delayed progress on the Energy Reach Code, and less participation in
collaborative efforts such as sustainability, waste reduction, and other
priorities. Next day inspections will no longer be an option for most
projects. A corresponding reduction is recommended for associated fee
revenue.
Building
Inspection and
Plan Review
(1,335,306) (401,295) 1.00 - (1,335,306) (401,295) 1.00 -
Planning and
Development
Services
Fire Inspection and Plan Review
This action reduces a total of 2.0 Fire Inspector positions in the Fire
Prevention Bureau (0.40 allocated to the Fire Department), which will
delay fire inspections, increase wait times and impact customer service
overall. A corresponding reduction is recommended for associated fee
revenue.
Fire Inspection
and Plan Review
(529,424) (531,561) (1.60) (0.48) (529,424) (531,561) (1.60) (0.48)
Planning and
Development
Services
Green Building
This action reduces consulting services for green building programs,
energy programs, and customer support. Progress towards these
programs are anticipated to slow as a result. A corresponding reduction
is recommended for associated fee revenue.
Green Building (68,985) (105,548) - - (68,985) (105,548) - -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 9 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Planning and
Development
Services
Development Services Public Works Alignment
This action reduces $74,000 in consultant services to process
applications and reallocates staff (equivalent to 0.70 FTE) from the
Public Works division to various funds citywide. This reallocation of staff
is recommended to better align with workloads anticipated in FY 2021. A
corresponding reduction is recommended for associated fee revenue.
Public Works -
Urban Forestry
and Engineering
(207,162) (208,853) (0.70) - (207,162) (208,853) (0.70) -
Planning and
Development
Services
Development Services Reserve Fund (DSRF)
This action reduces the DSRF from $1.1M to $0.6M to partially offset
operating costs in FY 2021. The DSRF was established in 2018 upon the
completion of the most recent fee study and recommended to build and
maintain unrestricted funds that could be used to cover unforeseen
shortfalls (CMR 8539).
Reserves 500,000 - - - 500,000 - - -
Planning and
Development
Services
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
This action adjusts CDBG allocations to align with the revised funding
plan approved by the Finance Committee at the May 5, 2020 hearing,
including a $294,909 grant received from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
and Economic Security act (CARES) (CMR 11148). An additional
adjustment of $757 is recommended to align expenditures that were
inadvertently misstated in the Proposed Budget.
Special Revenue
Funds
- - - - 294,909 294,152 - -
Police Reduction in Police Relations
This action reduces 1.0 Communications Manager in the Police
Department. This will result in the elimination of proactive news
releases (for all cases but those that present danger to public safety),
completion of the PAPD annual report, Basic and Advanced Citizens
Police Academy, and participation in National Night Out. Significant time
delays are anticipated for responses to routine press inquiries.
Administration/
Business
Operations
- (196,465) (1.00) - - (196,465) (1.00) -
Police Reallocate position from Police to City Manager's Office
This action reallocates 1.0 Police Lieutenant from the Police Department
to the City Manager's Office. This resource will be redeployed to
evaluate critical staffing gaps and potential recruitments of new
employees during the upcoming year.
Administration/
Business
Operations
- (296,190) - - - (296,190) - -
Police Patrol Operations This action reduces 6.0 Police Officer positions, 2.0 Community Service
Officers, 1.0 Administrative Associate II position, and reduces overtime
expense by $500,000 in Police patrol operations. Patrol’s ability to
positively impact crime rates, address traffic safety issues, and meet key
performance measures for proposed response times to urgent and
emergency calls for service will be reduced. Urgent and emergency calls
will remain the priority for timely police response to ensure safety
during potentially life threatening or higher danger crimes in progress.
Patrols response to non-emergency calls for service, directed patrol
checks, generalized traffic enforcement activities, and special
community engagement events will be eliminated or significantly
reduced. Other sworn police personnel will be re-assigned to backfill
patrol vacancies as they arise to cover staffing shortages.
Patrol Services - (1,822,497) (8.87) - - (1,836,528) (9.00) -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 10 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Police Technical Services Support
This action reduces 1.0 Deputy Director Technical Services (0.20
allocated to Fire Department) and 1.0 Communications Technician who
support technical functions. Administrative and personnel management
will be significantly delayed or not occur for this division. Resources that
manage radio repairs, inventories, and replacement schedules will no
longer be available and potentially need to be outsourced to an outside
consultant.
Technical
Services Support
- (391,139) (1.80) - - (391,139) (1.80) -
Police Dispatch Services
This action reduces 4.0 Public Safety Dispatcher positions, 1.0
Communications Manager, 0.49 FTE in part-time staffing (five positions),
and $500,0000 in overtime expenses for Police dispatch operations. This
is anticipated to reduce services to 80% of their current levels. This will
result in potential impacts to the span of control, longer answer times
for 911, and potential outsourcing of non-emergency calls. Time
constraints will reduce the ability to provide Emergency Medical
Dispatch (EMD) instructions and notifications to specialty teams.
Extended answer times for administrative, Utility, and Public Works
customers are anticipated and after hours callouts will be limited to
emergencies. A corresponding reduction to revenue is recommended for
dispatch services provided to Stanford.
Communication
s/
Dispatch
(131,000) (1,323,353) (5.00) (0.49) (131,000) (1,323,353) (5.00) (0.49)
Police Information Management and Records
This action reduces 0.29 FTE in part-time staffing resources in the
information and records management division related to reporting to
other agencies. It is anticipated that all other services will remain intact.
Information
Management
(Records)
- (24,129) - (0.29) - (24,129) - (0.29)
Police Reduce Police Investigations
This action reduces 2.0 Police Officer positions and 0.08 FTE part-time
staffing in the detective division. Staff's ability to follow-up on criminal
investigations, conduct surveillance and undercover crime suppression
operations, participate in region-wide investigative meetings, and
collaborate with other local police agencies will be suspended. Little to
no impact is anticipated to the property and evidence unit.
Investigations - (345,649) (2.00) (0.08) - (345,649) (2.00) (0.08)
Police Reduce Police Reserve Program
This action reduces 0.72 FTE of part-time staffing resources (six
positions) and suspends the Police reserve program provided at special
events throughout the City.
Special Events &
Reserves
- (75,449) - (0.72) - (75,449) - (0.72)
Police Suspend Traffic Program
This action reduces 3.0 Police Officer positions and suspends the
specialized traffic program.
Traffic - (539,134) (3.00) - - (539,134) (3.00) -
Police Suspend Parent Project
This action eliminates the Parent Project program. As a result, staff
anticipates increased calls for service at homes with domestic
disturbances and runaways as families will no longer be referred to the
program.
Investigations - (60,000) - - - (60,000) - -
Police Recruitment
This action reduces 1.0 Police Lieutenant position, 0.22 FTE in part-time
staffing (two positions) and $103,000 in other expenses in the
recruitment division. This will delay the 18-month recruiting and training
cycle.
Hiring and
Retention
- (443,819) (1.00) (0.22) - (443,819) (1.00) (0.22)
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 11 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Police Reduce Training
This action reduces training from the current 78 total designated hours
down to only the mandatory 32 hours of training. Firearm training and
qualification will be reduced by 50 percent.
Personnel
Training
- (103,901) - - - (103,901) - -
Police Animal Control Program
This action reduces 1.0 Animal Control Officer and 0.48 FTE in part-time
staffing resources in the Animal Care division. As a result, some overnight services may be reduced. Collection of fees and fines related
to enforcement will be impacted. A corresponding reduction in revenue
is recommended for these losses.
Animal Control (40,372) (139,863) (1.00) (0.48) (40,372) (139,863) (1.00) (0.48)
Public Works Streets & Sidewalks Program Reductions
This action reduces 1.0 Associate Engineer and 0.48 General Laborer -H,
resulting in a reduction to street maintenance work and scaling back
sidewalk work to only emergency repairs. The implications of this
deferred maintenance include, but are not limited to, increased cost and
scope for sidewalk replacement and repairs in the future and a possible
increase in emergency repair needs.
Sidewalks;
Capital Projects-
GF Streets and
Sidewalks
- (700,000) - - (700,000) (1,583,610) (1.00) (0.48)
Public Works San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority (SFJPA) Membership
This action includes a one-time increase of $86,000 to cover consultant
fees for an environmental assessment on an upstream project, and will
increase expenses for the City of Palo Alto's membership fee with the
San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority (SFJPA) which allows the
City to participate in the decision-making process for a series of projects
to provide flood protection for local residents. The SFJPA is an
independent regional government agency founded by three cities and
two countywide agencies divided by San Francisquito Creek and united
by its watershed and floodplain. This joint agency leads projects along
the creek and S.F. Bay to reduce flood threat, enhance ecosystems and
recreational opportunities, and connect communities.
Engineering
Services
- 118,750 - - - 118,750 - -
Public Works Public Works Development Services Alignment
This action recognizes the reallocation of staffing from the Planning and
Development Services Department's Public Works division to the Public
Works department. This reallocation of staff will align the position with
the anticipated workload for the position.
Engineering
Services
- 80,109 0.45 - - 134,853 0.70 -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 12 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Public Works Urban Forestry
This action will reduce contractual funding for tree trimming services
citywide by 50%. Although this reduction will significantly reduce the
number of trees trimmed in FY 2021 and FY 2022, it is not anticipated to
adversely impact the City's goal of a 7-year average tree trimming cycle.
This is because the City is currently ahead of schedule. If the reduction is
continued for more than two years, it would impact the cycle time over
the medium and long-terms. Management of the contract to maximize tree trimming may result in deferral of other activities such as stump
grindings and plantings of replacement trees.
Urban Forestry - (654,399) - - - (654,399) - -
Public Works Vehicle Maintenance & Replacement (VRM) Fund Reductions
This action will reduce vehicle replacements and resources, including 1.0
Motor Equipment Mechanic II, for FY 2021 & FY 2022. This will limit
vehicle replacements in FY21 & FY22 to only regulatory or serious
maintenance issues, resulting in an increase in backlog and the need to
catch up to the replacement schedule in the future. Impacts to the
Vehicle Replacement Capital Projects are detailed in expenses reported
in the Capital information of Attachment A, Exhibit 2.
Capital Projects-
Vehicle
Replacement &
Maintenance
(VRM) Vehicle &
Equipment
Replacement
- (1,275,492) - - (2,142,660) (4,055,727) (1.00) -
Public Works Buildings & Facilities Reductions
This action reduces 1.0 Project Manager for FY 2021 & FY 2022
commensurate with the funding reductions in capital projects. This will
realign work capacity to ensure management of the citywide Custodial
contract and sufficient staff time to manage the remaining CIPs.
Custodial;
Capital Projects-
GF Buildings &
Facilities
- (110,642) (0.65) - - (170,219) (1.00) -
Public Works Capital Projects General Fund Buildings & Facilities Reductions
This action reduces 1.0 Engineer and will result in reduced ability of the
department to implement capital projects.
Capital Projects-
GF Buildings and
Facilities
- - - - - (160,994) (1.00) -
Utilities Electric rates at 0% and staffing resource reduction for fiscal year 2021
This action will maintain a 0% rate change for FY 2021. In addition to
projected load loss, maintaining a zero electric rate change will result in
revenue losses of approximately $18 million and the reduction of the
Electric Fund's respective portion of the following positions which are
budgeted throughout the Utilities Funds: 1.0 Utilities Chief Operating
Officer; 1.0 Assistant Director, Utilities Engineering; 1.0 Business
Analyst; 1.0 Utilities Supervisor; 1.0 Substation Electrician. A portion of
the revenue loss will be offset by fewer commodity purchases due to
load loss. Additionally, this action reduces staffing, which are anticipated
to have minimal short-term impacts, however, may delay
implementation of advanced meter infrastructure and building
electrification. The City will also have to defer some underground rebuild capital improvement projects to maintain reserves at the target
level; these are detailed in expenses reported in the Capital information
of Attachment A, Exhibit 2.
Business
Operations -
Electric
- (124,557) - - (18,203,817) (9,684,171) (1.85) -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 13 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Utilities Electrification Deferments
This action will provide cost savings of $0.3M to the Electric Fund by
reducing efforts of building electrification. However, the City will
continue to support other Sustainability and Climate Action Plan (S/CAP)
initiatives. The electric vehicle programs will continue under an
alternative funding source from a state-funded low carbon fuel
standards (LCFS) program. The City is also re-evaluating the carbon
neutral plan including purchases and sales of Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) which can provide new funding for future local decarbonization
efforts
Business
Operations -
Electric
- - - - - (300,000) - -
Utilities Gas rate increase of 2% and staffing resource reduction for Fiscal Year
2021
This action will increase the gas rate by 2%, which enables the City to
continue the cross-bore safety inspection program and PVC gas main
replacement capital project. In order to maintain Gas fund reserves
within acceptable target levels, the City will reduce the scope of the gas
main replacement project GS-13001 by 30%, or approximately $3.0
million, detailed in expenses reported in the Capital information of
Attachment A, Exhibit 2. Additionally, this action reduces staffing
resources, which is anticipated to have minimal short-term impacts,
however this may delay implementation of advanced meter
infrastructure and gas meter replacements. The reduction of Gas Fund's
portion of the following positions throughout the Utilities Funds is a
result of this action: 1.0 Utilities Chief Operating Officer; 1.0 Assistant
Director, Utilities Engineering; 1.0 Business Analyst; 1.0 Utilities
Supervisor; 1.0 Substation Electrician.
Business
Operations - Gas
- (27,783) - - (2,173,363) (840,622) (1.15) -
Utilities Wastewater rates at 0% and staffing resource reduction for Fiscal Year
2021
This action will maintain wastewater rates at 0% and offset potential
revenue losses by reducing the linear footage of main replacement
projects and/or delay future construction of sewer main replacement
project WC-17001. This would decrease expenses, detailed in the Capital
Information of Attachment A, Exhibit 2, by approximately $700,000.
Additionally, this action reduces the Wastewater Collection Fund's
respective portions of the following positions which are allocated
throughout the Utilities Funds: 1.0 Utilities Chief Operating Officer; 1.0
Assistant Director, Utilities Engineering; 1.0 Business Analyst; 1.0
Utilities Supervisor; 1.0 Substation Electrician.
Business
Operations -
Wastewater
- (5,694) - - (878,106) (974,618) (0.60) -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 14 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Utilities Water rates at 0% and staffing resource reduction for Fiscal Year 2021
This action will maintain a 0% rate increase for FY 2021 and FY 2022, in
alignment with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC)
projection of 0% water supply rate increases until FY 2023. Due to past
capital improvement project deferrals, the City has adequate Water
Fund reserves to absorb the anticipated decrease in revenues, which
would be partially offset by projected load losses. Additionally, the City
would still be able to continue to complete the seismic water tank replacement and water main replacements in FY 2021. This action also
reduces the Water Fund's respective portions of the following staff
resources that are budgeted throughout the Utility Funds: 1.0 Utilities
Chief Operating Officer; 1.0 Assistant Director, Utilities Engineering; 1.0
Business Analyst; 1.0 Utilities Supervisor; 1.0 Substation Electrician.
These are anticipated to have minimal short-term impact, however this
may delay implementation of advanced meter infrastructure and water
meter replacements.
Business
Operations -
Water
- (95,683) - - (2,022,429) (1,067,810) (1.15) -
Non-
Departmental
Cubberley Lease Adjustment
The City leases 27 acres from the Palo Alto Unified School District
(PAUSD) and offers various services and resources through those
facilities including short term and long-term rentals, fields, gyms, and
theater, as well as an auditorium. This would require the City and
PAUSD to renegotiate the lease and reduce the City’s payments and
corresponding use of some of these facilities. The City has already
begun initial conversations with PAUSD. Currently the balancing
strategy is assuming a net savings of $2.5 million, however this is subject
to conversations and final agreement between the two parties.
Cubberley - (2,500,000) - - - (2,500,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
City Council Contingency
This action eliminates the City Council Contingency for one year.
Contingency - (125,000) - - - (125,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
Innovation & Special Event Contingency
This action reduces the Innovation & Special Event Contingency for one
year.
Contingency - (50,000) - - - (50,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
Human Resources Contingency
This action eliminates the Human Resources Contingency.
Contingency - (50,000) - - - (50,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
Reduce General Fund Base Transfer To Capital
This action reduces the General Fund Base transfer to Capital by
approximately 50% and includes the additional $2.6 M in reductions in
the General Fund Transfer to Capital directed by City Council during the
Budget Hearings.
General Fund
Transfer
- (9,950,000) - - (9,950,000) (9,950,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
Reduce TOT Transfer to Capital
Consistent with recommendations to Council on May 4, 2020, Transient
Occupancy Tax (TOT) Transfer to Capital will be reduced.
General Fund
Transfer
- (8,455,000) - - (8,455,000) (8,455,000) - -
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 15 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Non-
Departmental
RPP Parking Administrative Program Revisions
This action will require significant program changes phasing the
administration of this program to allow for License Plate Recognition
(LPR), virtual permits, and other modifications to allow for cost control.
Staff will provide greater detail on the program changes including
revised financial impacts through continued discussion of potential
parking program changes. This General Fund savings reflects the
elimination of the current General Fund subsidy to ensure the RPP Fund remains financially solvent.
General Fund
Transfer
- (185,000) - - (185,000) (185,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
Tax and Return on Investment Revenue Decreases
This action reflects the direction of the City Council on May 4, 2020 to
presume a significant decrease in revenues for Property Taxes, Sales
Taxes, Transient Occupancy Tax, Utility Users Tax, Documentary
Transfer Tax, and Return on Investments from the levels included in the
FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget. For more detailed information,
please refer to City Manager's Report 11315.
General Fund
Revenues
(38,793,700) - - - (38,793,700) - - -
Non-Departmental Economically Sensitive Department RevenueConsistent with the direction given by the City Council on May 4, 2020,
this action reflects a decrease in various departments' revenues
associated with economically sensitive cost-recovery activities for FY
2021 compared to the FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget.
General Fund Revenues (5,000,000) - - - (5,000,000) - - -
Non-
Departmental
Internal Service Fund Allocated Charges
This action reduces allocated charges throughout the organization to
Internal Services Funds, including the Workers' Compensation Fund and
the General Liability Fund. These reductions in allocated charges will
generate savings throughout the organization in FY 2021, offset by
corresponding decreases in accumulated fund balance in the Internal Service Funds. These uses of accumulated fund balance will increase the
associated risk in the respective Internal Service Funds. Staff will
continue to proactively analyze and monitor this risk throughout the
budget process and FY 2021 to ensure it remains within acceptable
levels.
Internal Service
Fund Allocated
Charges
- (486,322) - - (750,000) (750,000) - -
Non-
Departmental
Other Post-Employment Benefit (OPEB) Alignment
This action aligns charges allocated from the Retiree Healthcare Fund to
the organization with the most recent actuarial valuation performed by
Bartel Associates. Consistent with the direction approved by the Finance
Committee on May 5, 2020, the allocated charges are being aligned with funding contributions necessary using a 6.2 percent discount rate to
calculate the retiree healthcare liability. This results in savings of
$900,000 from the FY 2021 Proposed Operating Budget, which was
based on a prior valuation report.
Internal Service
Fund Allocated
Charges
- (527,112) (863,000) (1,689,000)
Non-
Departmental
Management and Professionals Unrepresented Group Compensation
This action recognizes the proposal of a 15% compensation 'give-back'
for the unrepresented Management and Professionals group, generating
$3.5 million in savings in the General Fund and $5.5 million in savings
across the organization. This is achieved through a wage freeze,
furlough, and a reduction in the flexible management benefit.
Salary and
Benefits
- (3,473,000) - - - (5,460,000)
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 16 of 17
CMR 11376 - ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 1
Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time Revenue Expense Full-Time Part-Time
Department Budget Adjustment Actions Program Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts Adjustments Adjustments FTE Impacts FTE Impacts
GENERAL FUND ALL FUNDS
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET
Non-
Departmental
COVID-19 Recovery: Contact Tracing
This action recognizes $450,000 in one-time funding to support efforts
in tracing the contacts of those who have been diagnosed with COVID-
19 as requested by the Santa Clara County. The County has requested
staffing assistance for these efforts as we move into the different phases
of recovery. This estimate for funding equates to 50% of the most
conservative cost estimate.
Business
Operations
- 450,000 - - - 450,000 - -
Non-
Departmental
COVID-19 Recovery: Business and Communications Support
This action appropriates funding for three to six months of business and
communications support to help navigate the expected near-term
impacts of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.
Business
Operations
- 150,000 - - - 150,000 - -
Non-
Departmental
COVID-19 Recovery: Workplace Restoration
This action appropriates funding for restoring the workplace to ensure it
is a safe environment for customers and employees. These funds will
ensure that the City can align with the directives of the County Health
Order, including social distancing, to address the COVID-19 public health
emergency.
Business
Operatoins
- 350,000 - - - 350,000 - -
Non-
Departmental
Litigation Reserve
This action establishes a litigation reserve of $1.0 million in keeping with
the City's practice of proactively setting aside funds for dispute
resolution.
Business
Operations
- 1,000,000 - - - 1,000,000 - -
Non-
Departmental
Implementation Costs Associated with Balancing Strategy
This action appropriates $2.1 million in FY 2021 since some actions
cannot be fully implemented immediately, especially it is expected that
employee separations will cotninue into the first quarter of FY 2021.
This funding represents the estimated cost of transition for non-sworn
staffing.
Business
Operations
- 2,075,000 - - - 2,075,000 - -
TOTAL ($44,736,943)($42,866,980)(61.77)(25.70)($93,142,022)($65,039,860)(74.25)(26.18)
Attachment A, Exhibit 1 Page 17 of 17
ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2
Project Project Revenue Expense Revenue Expense Revenue Expense
Number Title Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Funding Funding
PF-93009 Americans With Disabilities Act Compliance $ - $ (200,000) $ - $ (200,000) $ - $ 2,161,026
PG-06001 Athletic Courts Resurfacing $ - $ 91,535 $ - $ 37,375 $ - $ 1,457,975
PG-19001 Baylands Athletic Center 10.5 Acre Expansion Plan $ - $ (81,400) $ - $ (81,400) $ - $ -
PE-17006 Baylands Flood Protection Levee Improvements $ - $ (1,098,600) $ - $ (1,098,600) $ - $ -
PG-06003 Benches, Signage, Walkways, Perimeter
Landscaping, and Site Amenities
$ - $ 23,099 $ - $ 23,099 $ - $ 1,251,619
PL-04010 Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Plan
Implementation
$ - $ (1,000,000) $ - $ (4,000,000) $ 2,400,000 $ 7,323,595
PE-19003 Birch Street Improvements $ - $ - $ 1,500,000 $ 2,400,000 $ 1,500,000 $ 2,400,000
PF-01003 Building Systems Improvements $ - $ (300,000) $ - $ (300,000) $ - $ 1,433,637
PE-18006 Byxbee Park Completion $ - $ (300,000) $ - $ (300,000) $ 2,400,000 $ 2,881,146
PG-14002 Cameron Park Improvements $ - $ 20,000 $ - $ 20,000 $ - $ 217,800
AS-10000 Capital Improvement Fund Administration $ - $ (66,000) $ - $ (564,000) $ - $ 12,219,866
FD-20000 Cardiac Monitor Replacement $ 7,000 $ 42,000 $ 7,000 $ 42,000 $ 7,000 $ 42,000
PE-13011 Charleston/Arastradero Corridor Project $ - $ 5,800,000 $ - $ 5,800,000 $ 1,303,710 $ 5,800,000
PE-09003 City Facility Parking Lot Maintenance $ - $ (400,000) $ - $ (400,000) $ 100,000 $ 1,142,641
PG-18001 Dog Park Installation and Renovation $ 150,000 $ - $ 150,000 $ - $ 450,000 $ 590,400
PE-13017 El Camino Median Landscape Improvements $ - $ (108,300) $ - $ (1,009,800) $ - $ -
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
FY 2021 Funding 5-yr CIP Funding 5-Yr CIP Revised
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Attachment A, Exhibit 2 Page 1 of 6
ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2
Project Project Revenue Expense Revenue Expense Revenue Expense
Number Title Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Funding Funding
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
FY 2021 Funding 5-yr CIP Funding 5-Yr CIP Revised
PL-15001 Embarcadero Road at El Camino Improvements $ - $ - $ - $ (7,426,600) $ - $ -
PF-02022 Facility Interior Finishes Replacement $ - $ (400,000) $ - $ (400,000) $ 413,000 $ 1,773,217
FD-14002 Fire Ringdown System Replacement $ 5,000 $ 16,000 $ 5,000 $ 16,000 $ 5,000 $ 16,000
PE-18004 Fire Station 4 Replacement $ - $ (1,000,000) $ 8,150,000 $ - $ 8,900,000 $ 9,850,000
PG-17001 Foothills Park, Pearson Arastradero Preserve, and
Esther Clark Park Conservation Plan
$ - $ (319,200) $ - $ (489,600) $ - $ -
PG-13003 Golf Reconfiguration & Baylands Athletic Center
Improvements
$ - $ 200,000 $ - $ 200,000 $ - $ 200,000
LB-21000 Library Automated Material Handling $ 180,000 $ 220,900 $ - $ - $ 630,000 $ 803,900
PE-15007 New Downtown Parking Garage $ - $ (35,172) $ (9,072,000) $ (21,532,172) $ 5,541,000 $ 5,103,000
PE-15001 New Public Safety Building $ 900,000 $ - $ 900,000 $ - $ 103,150,000 $ 106,600,000
OS-09001 Off-Road Pathway Resurfacing And Repair $ - $ (200,000) $ - $ (200,000) $ - $ 738,300
PG-09002 Park and Open Space Emergency Repairs $ - $ 22,134 $ - $ 22,134 $ - $ 1,333,355
PG-19000 Park Restroom Installation $ 350,000 $ 350,000 $ 350,000 $ 350,000 $ 1,050,000 $ 1,285,300
PL-15003 Parking District Implementation $ - $ (173,674) $ - $ (375,574) $ - $ 712,300
PG-14000 Ramos Park Improvements $ - $ 209,000 $ - $ 209,000 $ - $ 209,000
PE-08001 Rinconada Park Improvements $ 1,999,529 $ 1,037,933 $ 1,999,529 $ 1,037,933 $ 2,399,529 $ 6,107,329
PF-00006 Roofing Replacement $ - $ (684,002) $ - $ (684,002) $ - $ 2,240,091
Attachment A, Exhibit 2 Page 2 of 6
ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2
Project Project Revenue Expense Revenue Expense Revenue Expense
Number Title Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Funding Funding
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
FY 2021 Funding 5-yr CIP Funding 5-Yr CIP Revised
PO-89003 Sidewalk Repairs $ - $ (1,747,619) $ - $ (2,547,619) $ - $ 5,261,863
PE-13014 Street Lights Condition Assessment $ - $ (241,778) $ - $ (241,778) $ - $ -
PO-05054 Street Lights Improvements $ - $ (300,000) $ - $ (500,000) $ - $ 868,987
PE-86070 Street Maintenance $ - $ 491,843 $ - $ (508,157) $ 16,378,450 $ 24,945,243
PL-05030 Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation Systems $ - $ (500,000) $ - $ (500,000) $ 3,480,000 $ 5,051,655
PL-12000 Transportation and Parking Improvements $ - $ - $ - $ (200,000) $ - $ 2,649,042
PG-18002 Turf Management Plan $ - $ (109,900) $ - $ (109,900) $ - $ -
PE-15011 Ventura Buildings Improvements $ - $ (2,034,197) $ - $ (2,034,197) $ - $ -
$ 3,591,529 $ (2,775,398) $ 3,989,529 $ (35,545,858) $ 150,107,689 $ 214,670,287
EL-16002 Capacitor Bank Installation $ - $ 300,000 $ - $ 300,000 $ - $ 600,000
EL-14000 Coleridge/Cowper/Tennyson 4/12kV Conversion $ - $ (830,000) $ - $ (830,000) $ - $ 50,000
EL-19002 Colorado Substation Site Improvements $ - $ 330,000 $ - $ 330,000 $ - $ 1,250,000
EL-17001 East Meadow Circles 4/12kV Conversion $ - $ (66,000) $ - $ (66,000) $ - $ 100,000
EL-02011 Electric Utility Geographic Information System $ - $ 220,000 $ - $ 220,000 $ - $ 1,049,950
EL-17007
Facility Relocation for Caltrain Modernization
Project $ - $ 2,723,631 $ - $ 2,723,631 $ - $ 2,723,631
ELECTRIC FUND
TOTAL CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
Attachment A, Exhibit 2 Page 3 of 6
ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2
Project Project Revenue Expense Revenue Expense Revenue Expense
Number Title Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Funding Funding
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
FY 2021 Funding 5-yr CIP Funding 5-Yr CIP Revised
EL-20000 Hopkins Substation 4/12kV Conversion $ - $ (50,000) $ - $ (50,000) $ - $ 4,110,000
EL-17005 Inter-substation Line Protection Relay $ - $ 110,429 $ - $ 110,429 $ - $ 490,429
EL-11003 Rebuild Underground District 15 $ - $ (1,119,609) $ - $ (1,119,609) $ - $ 50,000
EL-13003 Rebuild Underground District 16 $ - $ (340,667) $ - $ (340,667) $ - $ 359,000
EL-17000 Rebuild Underground District 23 $ - $ (214,000) $ - $ (214,000) $ - $ 1,100,000
EL-16000 Rebuild Underground District 26 $ - $ (1,545,500) $ - $ (1,545,500) $ - $ 300,000
EL-14005 Reconfigure Quarry Feeders $ - $ 50,000 $ - $ 50,000 $ - $ 50,000
EL-16003 Substation Physical Security $ - $ (303,000) $ - $ (303,000) $ - $ 2,695,852
EL-12001
Underground District 46 - Charleston/El Camino
Real $ - $ 1,021,531 $ - $ 1,021,531 $ - $ 1,021,531
EL-11010
Underground District 47-Middlefield, Homer,
Webster, Addison $ - $ 120,000 $ - $ 120,000 $ - $ 120,000
EL-16001 Underground System Rebuild $ - $ (50,000) $ - $ (50,000) $ - $ 1,760,500
EL-19004 Wood Pole Replacement $ - $ 1,475,000 $ - $ 1,475,000 $ 750,000 $ 9,020,000
TOTAL ELECTRIC FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS $ - $ 1,831,815 $ - $ 1,831,815 $ 750,000 $ 26,850,893
FO-16000 Fiber Optics Network - System Rebuild $ - $ 775,000 $ - $ 775,000 $ - $ 1,075,000
TOTAL FIBER FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS $ - $ 775,000 $ - $ 775,000 $ - $ 1,075,000
FIBER FUND
Attachment A, Exhibit 2 Page 4 of 6
ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2
Project Project Revenue Expense Revenue Expense Revenue Expense
Number Title Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Funding Funding
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
FY 2021 Funding 5-yr CIP Funding 5-Yr CIP Revised
GS-13001 Gas Main Replacement - Project 23 $ - $ (3,000,000) $ - $ (3,000,000) $ - $ 7,620,046
GS-80019 Gas Meters and Regulators $ - $ (850,001) $ - $ (850,001) $ - $ 3,000,000
TOTAL GAS FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS $ - $ (3,850,001) $ - $ (3,850,001) $ - $ 10,620,046
SD-23000 West Bayshore Road Trunk Line Improvements $ - $ 5,000 $ - $ 5,000 $ - $ 2,401,475
TOTAL STORMWATER MANAGEMENT FUND
PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
$ - $ 5,000 $ - $ 5,000 $ - $ 2,401,475
TE-19001 City Council Chambers Upgrade $ (46,000) $ (93,000) $ - $ - $ 46,000 $ 93,000
TE-12001
Development Center Blueprint Technology
Enhancements $ - $ (25,000) $ - $ (25,000) $ - $ 452,600
TE-19000 Enterprise Resource Planning Upgrade $ - $ (2,029,000) $ - $ - $ - $ 2,029,000
TE-13004 Infrastructure Management System $ - $ 25,000 $ - $ 25,000 $ - $ 46,800
TE-01012 IT Disaster Recovery Plan $ - $ (33,600) $ - $ (33,600) $ - $ -
TE-05000 Radio Infrastructure Replacement $ - $ (1,863) $ - $ (1,863) $ - $ 199,137
$ (46,000) $ (2,157,463) $ - $ (35,463) $ 46,000 $ 2,820,537
VR-21000
Scheduled Vehicle and Equipment Replacement -
Fiscal Year 2021 $ - $ (1,786,000) $ - $ (1,786,000) $ - $ 1,405,000
VR-22000
Scheduled Vehicle and Equipment Replacement -
Fiscal Year 2022 $ - $ - $ - $ (1,786,000) $ - $ 1,377,000
$ - $ (1,786,000) $ - $ (3,572,000) $ - $ 2,782,000 TOTAL VEHICLE REPLACEMENT FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
VEHICLE REPLACEMENT FUND
STORMWATER MANAGEMENT FUND
GAS FUND
TECHNOLOGY FUND
TOTAL TECHNOLOGY FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
Attachment A, Exhibit 2 Page 5 of 6
ATTACHMENT A, EXHIBIT 2
Project Project Revenue Expense Revenue Expense Revenue Expense
Number Title Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Adjustments Funding Funding
CITY OF PALO ALTO
AMENDMENTS TO THE CITY MANAGER'S FY 2021 PROPOSED CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
FY 2021 Funding 5-yr CIP Funding 5-Yr CIP Revised
WC-80020 Sewer System, Customer Connections $ 600,000 $ - $ 600,000 $ - $ 2,100,000 $ 2,220,000
WC-15001
Wastewater Collection System
Rehabilitation/Augmentation Project 28 $ - $ 500,000 $ - $ 500,000 $ - $ 500,000
WC-16001
Wastewater Collection System
Rehabilitation/Augmentation Project 29 $ - $ 557,424 $ - $ 557,424 $ - $ 2,195,424
WC-17001
Wastewater Collection System
Rehabilitation/Augmentation Project 30 $ - $ (741,000) $ - $ (741,000) $ - $ 5,980,000
$ 600,000 $ 316,424 $ 600,000 $ 316,424 $ 2,100,000 $ 10,895,424
WQ-19003 Advanced Water Purification Facility $ 3,000,000 $ 448,000 $ 3,000,000 $ 448,000 $ 23,900,000 $ 21,564,000
WQ-14002
New Laboratory And Environmental Services
Building $ 1,910,000 $ 434,168 $ 1,910,000 $ 434,168 $ 23,410,000 $ 23,167,460
WQ-19000 Outfall Line Construction $ 3,850,000 $ 3,850,000 $ 3,850,000 $ 3,850,000 $ 8,800,000 $ 8,886,000
WQ-19002 Plant Repair, Retrofit, and Equipment Replacement $ - $ 20,944 $ - $ 20,944 $ - $ 21,514,834
WQ-14003 Primary Sedimentation Tank Rehabilitation $ 8,148,000 $ 7,774,613 $ 8,148,000 $ 7,774,613 $ 17,632,000 $ 19,654,800
WQ-19001 Secondary Treatment Upgrades $ 2,300,000 $ 838,300 $ 2,300,000 $ 838,300 $ 32,430,000 $ 31,362,300
$ 19,208,000 $ 13,366,025 $ 19,208,000 $ 13,366,025 $ 106,172,000 $ 126,149,394
WS-19000 Mayfield Reservoir Subgrade and Venting Repair $ - $ 184,879 $ - $ 184,879 $ - $ 184,879
WS-14001 Water Main Replacement - Project 28 $ - $ 85,107 $ - $ 85,107 $ - $ 9,085,107
WS-80015 Water Meters $ - $ (1,000,000) $ - $ (1,000,000) $ - $ 2,819,207
WS-07001 Water Recycling Facilities $ - $ (4,629) $ - $ (4,629) $ - $ 391,020
WS-07000 Water Regulation Station Improvements $ - $ (550,000) $ - $ (550,000) $ - $ 209,000
WS-80013 Water System Customer Connections $ 575,000 $ - $ 575,000 $ - $ 7,558,154 $ 4,524,300
WS-09000 Water Tank Seismic Upgrade and Rehabilitation $ - $ 6,142,000 $ - $ 6,142,000 $ - $ 11,993,000
WS-02014 Water, Gas, Wastewater Utility GIS Data $ 290,666 $ 436,000 $ 290,666 $ 436,000 $ 1,953,687 $ 2,930,528
$ 865,666 $ 5,293,357 $ 865,666 $ 5,293,357 $ 9,511,841 $ 32,137,041
$ 24,219,195 $ 11,018,759 $ 24,663,195 $ (21,415,701) $ 268,687,530 $ 430,402,097
TOTAL WATER FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
TOTAL ALL FUNDS
WASTEWATER COLLECTION FUND
TOTAL WASTEWATER COLLECTION FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
WASTEWATER TREATMENT FUND
TOTAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT FUND PROJECT ADJUSTMENTS
WATER FUND
Attachment A, Exhibit 2 Page 6 of 6
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Summary of Capital Activity
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Source of Funds
Beginning Fund Balance
Infrastructure Reserve - Beginning Fund
Balance 51,533,218 51,456,186 46,798,098 14,823,152 8,464,857 3,639,597 2,205,730 46,798,098
Reserve: Roth Building & Sea Scout Building
TDRs 4,687,468 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782
Reserve: Library Bond Proceeds 638,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000
Reserve: Infrastructure Plan 25,537,577 58,812,390 0 0 0 0 0 0
Reserve: Debt Service 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,500,000 0
Total Beginning Fund Balance 82,396,263 115,776,358 52,305,880 20,330,934 13,972,639 9,147,379 10,213,512 52,305,880
General Fund Contributions
Annual General Fund Capital Transfer 16,958,000 15,323,000 5,048,500 7,840,500 12,604,750 16,875,000 17,288,000 59,656,750
Transfer from General Fund - TOT Funding 8,691,712 7,155,906 6,555,900 8,850,300 10,250,700 11,294,800 12,806,400 49,758,100
Interest Income 1,279,833 1,178,500 1,189,600 1,189,600 1,189,600 1,189,600 1,189,600 5,948,000
Total General Fund Contributions 26,929,545 23,657,406 12,794,000 17,880,400 24,045,050 29,359,400 31,284,000 115,362,850
Project Reimbursements & Fund Transfers
Transfer from California Avenue Parking District Fund
PL-16002 Parking Management and System
Implementation 0 138,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 0 138,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Transfer from Charleston/Arastradero Fund
PE-13011 Charleston/Arastradero Corridor Project 0 18,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 0 18,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Transfer from Community Center Impact Fee Fund
AC-18001 JMZ Renovation 1,025,717 1,671,860 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-08001 Rinconada Park Improvements 0 0 2,399,529 0 0 0 0 2,399,529
Total Transfer 1,025,717 1,671,860 2,399,529 0 0 0 0 2,399,529
Transfer from Gas Tax Fund
PE-13011 Charleston/Arastradero Corridor Project 1,170,237 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-00026 Safe Routes To School 100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 100,000 500,000
PE-86070 Street Maintenance 1,300,000 2,453,997 2,610,690 2,610,690 2,610,690 2,610,690 2,610,690 13,053,450
Total Transfer 2,570,237 2,553,997 2,710,690 2,710,690 2,710,690 2,710,690 2,710,690 13,553,450
Attachment B
1
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Transfer from Library Impact Fee Fund
LB-21000 Library Automated Material Handling 0 0 260,000 180,000 190,000 0 0 630,000
Total Transfer 0 0 260,000 180,000 190,000 0 0 630,000
Transfer from New Public Safety Facilities Impact Fee Fund
PE-15001 New Public Safety Building 0 0 350,000 0 0 0 0 350,000
Total Transfer 0 0 350,000 0 0 0 0 350,000
Transfer from Parks Dedication Fee Fund
PE-14018 Baylands Boardwalk Improvements 470,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-19003 Birch Street Improvements 0 0 0 1,100,000 0 0 0 1,100,000
PE-18006 Byxbee Park Completion 0 0 2,400,000 0 0 0 0 2,400,000
PG-18002 Turf Management Plan 100,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 570,000 0 2,400,000 1,100,000 0 0 0 3,500,000
Transfer from Parks Development Impact Fee Fund
PE-19003 Birch Street Improvements 0 2,720,000 0 400,000 0 0 0 400,000
PG-18001 Dog Park Installation and Renovation 0 0 150,000 0 150,000 0 150,000 450,000
PG-19001 Baylands Athletic Center 10.5 Acre Expansion
Plan 100,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PG-19000 Park Restroom Installation 0 0 350,000 350,000 0 350,000 0 1,050,000
Total Transfer 100,000 2,720,000 500,000 750,000 150,000 350,000 150,000 1,900,000
Transfer from Refuse Fund
PF-17000 Municipal Service Center A, B, & C Roof
Replacement 0 9,500 10,250 0 0 0 0 10,250
PF-16006 Municipal Service Center Lighting, Mechanical,
and Electrical Improvements 0 27,000 27,000 0 0 0 0 27,000
Total Transfer 0 36,500 37,250 0 0 0 0 37,250
Transfer from Residential Parking Permits Program Fund
PL-16002 Parking Management and System
Implementation 0 255,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 0 255,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Transfer from San Antonio/West Bayshore Fund
PL-05030 Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation
System Upgrades 0 1,283,400 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 0 1,283,400 0 0 0 0 0 0
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
2
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Transfer from Stanford University Medical Center Development Agreement Fund
PL-04010 Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan-Implementation
Project 0 0 1,200,000 1,200,000 0 0 0 2,400,000
PL-19000 Emergency Vehicle Traffic Signal Preemption
System Pilot 11,200 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-18004 Fire Station 4 Replacement 0 0 750,000 4,075,000 4,075,000 0 0 8,900,000
PE-15001 New Public Safety Building 0 900,000 800,000 0 0 0 0 800,000
PL-16000 Quarry Road Improvements 0 200,000 0 1,493,513 0 0 0 1,493,513
Pl-17001 Railroad Grade Separation 0 0 500,000 500,000 0 0 0 1,000,000
Total Transfer 11,200 1,100,000 3,250,000 7,268,513 4,075,000 0 0 14,593,513
Transfer from Storm Drainage Fund
PE-13011 Charleston/Arastradero Corrider Project 330,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 330,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Transfer from Traffic Impact Fee Fund
PL-05030 Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation
System Upgrades 506,475 0 400,000 395,000 395,000 395,000 395,000 1,980,000
Total Transfer 506,475 0 400,000 395,000 395,000 395,000 395,000 1,980,000
Transfer from University Avenue Parking District Fund
PL-15004 Downtown Parking Wayfinding 280,015 40,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-16002 Parking Management & System Implementation 0 752,220 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-18002 High and Bryant Street Garages Waterproofing
and Repairs 300,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PF-18000 Parking Lot J Elevator Modernization 50,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PF-14003 University Avenue Parking Improvements 63,517 343,000 100,000 115,000 75,000 65,000 0 355,000
Total Transfer 693,532 1,135,220 100,000 115,000 75,000 65,000 0 355,000
Transfer from University Avenue Parking In Lieu Fund
PE-15007 New Downtown Parking Garage 0 0 0 5,541,000 0 0 0 5,541,000
Total Transfer 0 0 0 5,541,000 0 0 0 5,541,000
Transfer from Utilities Administration Fund
PE-09003 City Facility Parking Lot Maintenance 0 0 0 0 100,000 0 0 100,000
PF-02022 Facility Interior Finishes Replacement 370,000 0 169,000 176,000 0 0 0 345,000
PF-17000 Municipal Service Center A, B, & C Roof
Replacement 0 342,000 369,000 0 0 0 0 369,000
PF-16006 Municipal Service Center Lighting, Mechanical,
and Electrical Improvements 0 972,000 972,000 0 0 0 0 972,000
PE-19001 Water, Gas, Wastewater Office Remodel 70,000 654,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfer 440,000 1,968,000 1,510,000 176,000 100,000 0 0 1,786,000
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
3
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Transfer from Vehicle Maintenance Fund
PF-02022 Facility Interior Finishes Replacement 0 0 0 0 68,000 0 0 68,000
PF-17000 Municipal Service Center A, B, & C Roof
Replacement 0 190,000 205,000 0 0 0 0 205,000
PF-16006 Municipal Service Center Lighting, Mechanical,
and Electrical Improvements 0 540,000 540,000 0 0 0 0 540,000
Total Transfer 0 730,000 745,000 0 68,000 0 0 813,000
Grants/Other Revenue
AC-86017 Art in Public Spaces: Federal Grant and Private
Donations 175,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
FD-21000 Automated External Defibrillator Replacement:
Stanford 0 0 38,000 0 0 0 0 38,000
FD-20000 Cardiac Monitor Replacement: Stanford 0 135,000 7,000 0 0 0 0 7,000
PE-13011 Charleston/Arastradero Corridor Project: VTA
Grant 315,929 206,290 1,303,710 0 0 0 0 1,303,710
PL-20000 Churchill Avenue/Alma Street Railroad Crossing
Safety Improvements: CalTrans Section 130 0 500,000 4,000,000 0 0 0 0 4,000,000
PE-17010 Civic Center Electrical Upgrade & EV Charger
Installation: BAAQMD Grant 0 243,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-18000 El Camino Real Pedestrian Safety and
Streetscape Project: VTA Grant 0 0 2,000,000 2,000,000 1,138,750 0 0 5,138,750
FD-22000 Extrication Tool Replacement: Stanford 0 0 0 42,700 0 0 0 42,700
FD-14002 Fire Ringdown System Replacement: Stanford 0 40,000 5,000 0 0 0 0 5,000
PE-19003 Birch Street Improvements 41,995,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PG-13003
Golf Reconfiguration & Baylands Athletic Center
Improvements: SF Creek Joint Powers and
Certificates of Participation
0 2,250,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-11011
Highway 101 Pedestrian/Bicycle Overpass
Project: Santa Clara County & OBAG Grants
and Google Reimbursement
0 9,350,000 1,500,000 0 0 0 0 1,500,000
AC-18001 JMZ Renovation: IMLS Grant 18,956 240,200 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-15001 New Public Safety Building: Certificates of
Participation 0 0 102,000,000 0 0 0 0 102,000,000
PE-12011 Newell Road/San Francisquito Creek Bridge
Replacement: Caltrans & Silicon Valley Water 56,797 1,949,600 5,075,000 5,775,000 0 0 0 10,850,000
PL-17001 Railroad Grade Separation: Measure B 0 2,000,000 500,000 500,000 1,000,000 1,000,000 1,000,000 4,000,000
PL-00026 Safe Routes To School: VTA Grant 0 0 459,677 459,677 0 0 0 919,354
FD-20001 Self-Contanied Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) Air
Compressor Replacement: Stanford 0 0 16,300 0 0 0 0 16,300
FD-18000 Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA)
Replacement: Stanford 5,958 3,700 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-86070 Street Maintenance: State Grant 505,463 2,172,200 965,000 965,000 465,000 465,000 465,000 3,325,000
PL-12000 Transportation and Parking Improvements 8,060 0 0 0 0 0 0
FD-20002 Thermal Imaging Cameras Replacement:
Stanford 0 8,500 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-05030 Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation
System Upgrades: Measure B 52,552 700,000 300,000 300,000 300,000 300,000 300,000 1,500,000
Total Grants/Other Revenue 43,133,715 19,798,490 118,169,687 10,042,377 2,903,750 1,765,000 1,765,000 134,645,814
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
4
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
Total Revenue 76,310,421 57,065,873 145,626,156 46,158,980 34,712,490 34,645,090 36,304,690 297,447,406
Total Sources 158,706,684 172,842,231 197,932,036 66,489,914 48,685,129 43,792,469 46,518,202 349,753,286
Use of Funds
Buildings & Facilities
PF-93009 Americans With Disabilities Act Compliance 227,637 200,000 471,826 342,800 369,000 447,400 530,000 2,161,026
PE-19002 Animal Shelter Renovation 270,962 2,939,971 582,657 0 0 0 0 582,657
PE-14018 Baylands Boardwalk Improvements 1,417,456 164,657 110,519 0 0 0 0 110,519
PE-17006 Baylands Flood Protection Levee Improvements 133,333 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
AC-14001 Baylands Nature Interpretive Center Exhibit
Improvements 15,200 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-15029 Baylands Nature Interpretive Center Facility
Improvements 0 2,008 0 0 0 0 0 0
PF-01003 Building Systems Improvements 26,223 250,008 415,883 239,954 237,400 258,200 282,200 1,433,637
PE-20001 City Bridge Improvements 0 0 94,400 137,900 348,600 185,200 198,600 964,700
PE-20002 City Facilities Assessment and Record Plan
Management System 0 150,000 164,800 0 0 0 0 164,800
PE-09003 City Facility Parking Lot Maintenance 27,831 319,725 419,941 233,500 489,200 0 0 1,142,641
PE-12017 City Hall First Floor Renovations 14,959 188,402 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-17002 City Hall Floor 3 Remodel 22,355 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-17008 City Hall Floor 4 Remodel 466,360 7,500 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-17009 City Hall Floor 5 Remodel 432,096 32,002 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-19000 City Hall Space Planning 0 0 631,700 0 0 0 0 631,700
PE-17010 Civic Center Electrical Upgrade & EV Charger
Installation 18,360 243,000 679,800 0 0 0 0 679,800
PE-18016 Civic Center Fire Life Safety and Electrical
Upgrades 14,088 269,104 356,956 0 0 0 0 356,956
PE-15020 Civic Center Waterproofing Study and Repairs 968 49,800 617,255 0 0 0 0 617,255
PF-15005 Emergency Facilities Improvement 0 14,370 0 0 0 0 0 0
PF-02022 Facility Interior Finishes Replacement 75,238 564,100 560,626 261,331 365,414 270,146 315,700 1,773,217
FD-14002 Fire Ringdown System Replacement 244,144 140,000 16,000 0 0 0 0 16,000
PF-14002 Fire Station 1 Improvements 15,242 84,800 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-15003 Fire Station 3 Replacement 3,878,007 2,423,274 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-18004 Fire Station 4 Replacement 0 350,000 700,000 4,575,000 4,575,000 0 0 9,850,000
PE-18002 High and Bryant Street Garages Waterproofing
and Repairs 26,472 213,454 210,446 0 0 0 0 210,446
PD-14000 Internal Alarm System Replacement 50,759 26,800 0 0 0 0 0 0
AC-18001 JMZ Renovation 474,155 1,202,060 2,231,551 0 0 0 0 2,231,551
LB-21000 Library Automated Material Handling 0 0 316,400 230,900 256,600 0 0 803,900
PE-14015 Lucie Stern Buildings Mechanical and Electrical
Upgrades 2,420,500 505,455 0 0 0 0 0 0
PF-17000 Municipal Service Center A, B, & C Roof
Replacement 0 0 2,169,800 0 0 0 0 2,169,800
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
5
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
PF-16006 Municipal Service Center Lighting, Mechanical,
and Electrical Improvements 69,649 257,000 6,038,732 0 0 0 0 6,038,732
PE-18000 New California Avenue Area Parking Garage 5,044,555 43,587,279 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-15007 New Downtown Parking Garage 510,437 73,121 0 5,103,000 0 0 0 5,103,000
PE-15001 New Public Safety Building 1,563,200 7,000,000 102,800,000 3,400,000 400,000 0 0 106,600,000
PF-18000 Parking Lot J Elevator Modernization 413,998 286,001 0 0 0 0 0 0
AC-18000 Performing Arts Venue Seat Replacement 0 0 439,400 0 0 0 0 439,400
PF-00006 Roofing Replacement 770,934 184,435 183,600 474,900 285,629 674,076 621,886 2,240,091
PF-07011 Roth Building Maintenance 1,420 10,000 31,973 0 0 0 0 31,973
PF-14003 University Avenue Parking Improvements 48,116 0 462,400 160,500 133,300 137,200 0 893,400
PE-15011 Ventura Buildings Improvements 143,871 25,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-19001 Water, Gas, Wastewater Office Remodel 5,996 90,765 692,035 0 0 0 0 692,035
Total Building & Facilities 18,844,521 61,854,091 121,398,700 15,159,785 7,460,143 1,972,222 1,948,386 147,939,236
Department Technology Upgrades and Improvements
FD-21000 Automated External Defibrillator Replacement 0 0 219,700 0 0 0 0 219,700
FD-20000 Cardiac Monitor Replacement 0 808,000 42,000 0 0 0 0 42,000
FD-22000 Extrication Tool Replacement 0 0 0 283,400 0 0 0 283,400
PD-20000 Police Video Recording Systems Replacement 0 48,000 114,400 182,700 0 0 0 297,100
FD-20001 Self-Contanied Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) Air
Compressor Replacement 0 0 94,500 0 0 0 0 94,500
FD-18000 Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA)
Replacement 31,356 20,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
FD-20002 Thermal Imaging Cameras Replacement 0 65,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Department Technology Upgrades
and Improvements 31,356 941,000 470,600 466,100 0 0 0 936,700
Parks & Open Space
AC-86017 Art In Public Spaces 208,945 1,239,055 1,738,194 280,700 190,800 225,372 245,900 2,680,966
PG-06001 Athletic Courts Resurfacing 55,378 811,225 327,735 216,640 286,600 303,700 323,300 1,457,975
PG-19001 Baylands Athletic Center 10.5 Acre Expansion
Plan 10,402 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PG-17000 Baylands Comprehensive Conservation Plan 205,089 90,000 7,100 0 0 0 0 7,100
OS-09002 Baylands Levee Repair for Public Safety Access 0 0 0 0 0 375,202 0 375,202
PG-06003 Benches, Signage, Walkways, Perimeter
Landscaping 420,374 126,901 271,019 223,300 236,900 251,700 268,700 1,251,619
PE-19003 Birch Park Improvements 0 2,720,000 0 2,400,000 0 0 0 2,400,000
PE-16000 Bol Park Improvements 0 0 0 0 0 685,100 0 685,100
PE-17005 Boulware Park Improvements 23,830 20,102 442,499 0 0 0 0 442,499
PE-18006 Byxbee Park Completion 187,251 16,074 2,881,146 0 0 0 0 2,881,146
PG-14002 Cameron Park Improvements 0 0 217,800 0 0 0 0 217,800
PG-18001 Dog Park Installation and Renovation 15,746 0 164,800 0 200,000 0 225,600 590,400
OS-18000 Foothills Park Boronda Lake Dock Replacement 0 0 230,700 0 0 0 0 230,700
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
6
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
PE-20000 Foothills Park Dam Seepage Investigation &
Repairs 0 30,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-21000 Foothills Park Improvement Project 0 0 0 0 83,300 397,200 0 480,500
PG-17001
Foothills Park, Pearson Arastradero Preserve,
and Esther Clark Park Comprehensive
Conservation Plan
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PG-18000 Golf Course Net and Artificial Turf Replacement 0 0 0 0 970,000 0 0 970,000
PG-13003 Golf Course Reconfiguration & Baylands Athletic
Center Improvements 2,455 10,000 200,000 0 0 0 0 200,000
PE-17000 Mitchell Park Adboe Creek Bridge Replacement 306,499 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PG-21000 Heritage Park Site Amenities Replacement 0 0 0 0 0 0 195,500 195,500
PE-18012 Hoover Park Improvements 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,255,700 1,255,700
PE-21002 Johnson Park Renovation 0 0 0 0 0 474,800 1,573,900 2,048,700
PE-21003 Magical Bridge Playground Rubber and
Synthetic Turf Resurfacing 0 0 404,050 463,250 0 0 0 867,300
PE-18010 Mitchell Park Improvements 0 0 0 0 374,000 1,059,895 0 1,433,895
OS-09001 Off-Road Pathway Resurfacing And Repair 0 173,000 124,000 136,900 147,300 158,600 171,500 738,300
OS-00002 Open Space Lakes And Pond Maintenance 14,406 71,350 113,350 59,900 64,200 68,700 74,000 380,150
OS-00001 Open Space Trails and Amenities 286,674 355,175 192,300 220,400 233,300 247,200 263,200 1,156,400
PG-09002 Parks and Open Space Emergency Repairs 177,434 17,866 233,855 201,500 266,100 306,900 325,000 1,333,355
PG-19000 Park Restroom Installation 0 0 350,000 440,900 0 494,400 0 1,285,300
PE-13003 Parks,Trails, Open Space, & Recreation Master
Plan 3,637 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-21001 Pearson Arastradero Improvement Project 0 0 0 0 70,800 306,700 0 377,500
OS-18001 Pearson Arastradero Preserve Parking Lot
Improvement 0 0 170,300 0 0 0 0 170,300
PG-14001 Peers Park Improvements 0 0 0 0 0 289,600 0 289,600
PG-14000 Ramos Park Improvements 0 20,000 209,000 0 0 0 0 209,000
PE-08001 Rinconada Park Improvements 232,671 365,000 2,495,229 0 538,300 0 3,073,800 6,107,329
PE-12003 Rinconada Park Master Plan and Design 8,938 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-18015 Robles Park Improvements 0 0 0 0 0 953,500 0 953,500
PG-14003 Seale Park Improvements 0 0 0 0 0 0 427,800 427,800
PG-22000 Werry Park Playground Improvements 0 0 0 0 0 126,000 0 126,000
Total Parks & Open Space 2,159,729 6,065,748 10,773,077 4,643,490 3,661,600 6,724,569 8,423,900 34,226,636
Streets and Sidewalks
PE-17004 California Ave District Gateway Signs 729 142,886 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-18001 CalTrain Corridor Video Management System
Installation 749,178 99,232 0 0 0 0 0 0
PO-12001 Curb and Gutter Repairs 450,166 744,397 123,853 126,700 134,200 142,400 151,800 678,953
PE-12011 Newell Road/San Francisquito Creek Bridge
Replacement 244,356 2,449,600 6,017,111 6,354,300 0 0 0 12,371,411
PO-89003 Sidewalk Repairs 1,658,872 1,541,417 448,363 595,500 1,400,900 1,406,500 1,410,600 5,261,863
PO-11000 Sign Reflectivity Upgrade 10,207 60,660 131,400 66,900 71,700 76,800 82,700 429,500
PE-13014 Street Lights Condition Assessment 0 0 0 0 242,000 0 0 242,000
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
7
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
PO-05054 Street Lights Improvements 100,374 38,306 156,287 103,800 119,000 235,500 254,400 868,987
PE-86070 Street Maintenance 5,353,373 11,894,696 5,545,543 4,074,200 5,091,900 5,110,200 5,123,400 24,945,243
PO-11001 Thermoplastic Lane Marking and Striping 13,006 98,328 133,400 97,100 103,300 110,100 117,800 561,700
Total Streets and Sidewalks 8,580,261 17,069,522 12,555,957 11,418,500 7,163,000 7,081,500 7,140,700 45,359,657
Traffic and Transportation
PL-04010 Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan-Implementation
Project 2,367,931 402,385 1,273,595 2,000,000 1,950,000 2,100,000 0 7,323,595
PE-13011 Charleston/Arastradero Corridor Project 4,589,736 6,500,000 5,800,000 0 0 0 0 5,800,000
PL-20000 Churchill Avenue/Alma Street Railroad Crossing
Safety Improvements 0 400,000 4,636,200 0 0 0 0 4,636,200
PL-14000 Churchill Avenue Enhanced Bikeway 113 181,534 3,159,466 0 0 0 0 3,159,466
PL-15002
Downtown Automated Parking Guidance
Systems, Access Controls, and Revenue
Collection Equipment
2,359 448 2,726,860 0 0 0 0 2,726,860
PL-16001 Downtown Mobility and Safety Improvements 1,803,034 100,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-15004 Downtown Parking Wayfinding 346,824 589,038 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-18000 El Camino Real Pedestrian Safety and
Streetscape Project 108,594 43,167 2,954,181 2,202,700 1,349,050 0 0 6,505,931
PL-15001 Embarcadero Road at El Camino Improvements 88,607 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-19000 Emergency Vehicle Traffic Signal Preemption
System Pilot 0 597,500 0 0 0 0 0 0
PE-11011 Highway 101 Pedestrian/Bicycle Overpass
Project 1,084,589 17,792,509 0 0 0 0 0 0
PL-15003 Parking District Implementation 32,760 307,257 0 0 218,800 236,700 256,800 712,300
PL-16002 Parking Management & System Implementation 248 627,000 563,600 0 0 0 0 563,600
PL-16000 Quarry Road Improvements 555,425 6,000 928,400 1,353,900 2,748,000 0 0 5,030,300
PL-17001 Railroad Grade Separation 1,232,373 1,706,421 4,260,625 1,233,600 1,271,900 1,311,400 1,190,700 9,268,225
PL-00026 Safe Routes To School 89,373 218,800 661,177 677,477 241,200 266,500 260,600 2,106,954
PL-05030 Traffic Signal and Intelligent Transportation
System 368,200 1,695,700 1,172,355 935,950 886,250 980,700 1,076,400 5,051,655
PL-12000 Transportation and Parking Improvements 290,303 330,811 471,342 487,000 518,600 552,900 619,200 2,649,042
Total Traffic and Transportation 12,960,469 31,498,570 28,607,801 8,890,627 9,183,800 5,448,200 3,403,700 55,534,128
Administration
AS-10000 Capital Improvement Fund Administration 169,401 587,420 1,414,967 2,272,773 2,408,207 2,696,466 3,933,422 12,725,835
Total Administration 169,401 587,420 1,414,967 2,272,773 2,408,207 2,696,466 3,933,422 12,725,835
Total Project Expenses 42,745,737 118,016,351 175,221,102 42,851,275 29,876,750 23,922,957 24,850,108 296,722,192
Transfers to Other Funds
Debt Service Fund (New California Avenue
Parking Garage)0 2,335,000 2,380,000 2,380,000 2,375,000 2,370,000 2,365,000 11,870,000
General Benefits Funds 53,757 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
8
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND
PG-19001
Parks Development Impact Fee Fund -
Baylands Athletic Center 10.5 Acre Expansion
Plan
0 85,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
PG-18002 Parks Development Impact Fee Fund - Turf
Management Plan 0 100,000 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Transfers to Other Funds 53,757 2,520,000 2,380,000 2,380,000 2,375,000 2,370,000 2,365,000 11,870,000
Debt Service
Certificates of Participation Debt Repayment
(New Public Safety Building)0 0 0 7,286,000 7,286,000 7,286,000 7,286,000 29,144,000
Golf Course Certificates of Participation Bond
Issuance 17,507 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Debt Service 17,507 0 0 7,286,000 7,286,000 7,286,000 7,286,000 29,144,000
Total Expenses 42,817,001 120,536,351 177,601,102 52,517,275 39,537,750 33,578,957 34,501,108 337,736,192
Reserves
Reserve: Roth Building & Sea Scout Building
TDRs 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782 4,919,782
Reserve: Library Bond Proceeds 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000 588,000
Reserve: Infrastructure Plan 58,812,390 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Reserve: Debt Service 0 0 0 0 0 2,500,000 5,000,000 5,000,000
Reserve: Future Capital Needs 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total Reserves 64,320,172 5,507,782 5,507,782 5,507,782 5,507,782 8,007,782 10,507,782 10,507,782
Total Ending Fund Balance (Infrastructure
Reserve)51,569,511 46,798,098 14,823,152 8,464,857 3,639,597 2,205,730 1,509,312 1,509,312
Total Uses 158,706,684 172,842,231 197,932,036 66,489,914 48,685,129 43,792,469 46,518,202 349,753,286
Project
Number Project Title
FY 2019
Actuals
FY 2020
Estimate
FY 2021
Proposed FY 2022 FY 2023 FY 2024 FY 2025 5-Year Total
Attachment B
9
NOT YET ADOPTED
1
20200507cab027001
Ordinance No. ____
Ordinance of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Amending
Section 2.04.360 (Salary of council members) of the Palo Alto Municipal
Code to Provide Optional Salary Waiver
The Council of the City of Palo Alto ORDAINS as follows:
SECTION 1. Findings and Declarations. The City Council finds and declares as follows:
A. Article III, Section 17 of the Charter of the City of Palo Alto provides that compensation
may be paid to council members in amounts not to exceed those provided by general law.
B. Council member salaries were last set in 2015 by Ordinance No. 5304, mandating a
salary of one thousand dollars ($1,000) per month.
C. General law permits council members to voluntarily waive part or all of their permitted
compensation. Palo Alto does not currently provide a salary waiver option for council
members.
D. The proposed amendment would clarify that council members may voluntarily waive
part or all of their salary, with no change to the amount of salary authorized for council
members.
SECTION 2. Section 2.04.360 (Salary of council members) of Chapter 2.04 (Council
Organization and Procedure) of Title 2 (Administrative Code) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code is
hereby amended to read as follows:
“Section 2.04.360 Salary of council members
(a) The salary of the council members shall be $600.00 per month. Effective January 1,
2017, the salary of the council members shall be $1,000 per month.
(b) A city council member may waive any or all of the compensation permitted by this
section.”
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason
held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion or sections
of the Ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it should have adopted the Ordinance and
each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof irrespective of the fact that any one
or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid.
CMR 11376 - Attachment C
NOT YET ADOPTED
2
20200507cab027001
SECTION 4. This ordinance shall be effective on the thirty‐first day after the date of
its adoption.
SECTION 5. The Council of the City of Palo Alto hereby finds that this is not a Project
under the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to Section 15378 of the CEQA
Guidelines because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the Ordinance
will have a significant effect on the environment.
INTRODUCED:
PASSED:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTENTIONS:
ATTEST:
____________________________ ____________________________
City Clerk Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_____________________________ _______________________________
Deputy City Attorney City Manager
_______________________________
Director of Administrative Services
CMR 11376 - Attachment C
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 40.61 8,519,330 1,825,580 6,693,750
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Administrative Services Staffing Vacancies — 277,547 — 277,547
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —277,547 —277,547
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits — 207,264 — 207,264
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan — — 288,872 (288,872)
Tax and Fee Consulting Services (CMR 10493) — 59,700 — 59,700
Minimum Wage Compliance — 15,000 — 15,000
Business Registry Fee — — 3,592 (3,592)
General Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 12,473 — 12,473
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (14,073) — (14,073)
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 13,432 — 13,432
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — (6,130) — (6,130)
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 6,952 — 6,952
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —294,618 292,464 2,154
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 40.61 9,091,495 2,118,044 6,973,451
Budget Adjustments
Reallocate 1.0 FTE Performance Auditor II from
City Auditor's Office for Performance Report 1.00 195,011 — 195,011
Tax Compliance (Transfer from City Auditor's
Office)— 50,000 150,000 (100,000)
Real Estate Software — 38,500 38,500 —
Total Budget Adjustments 1.00 283,511 188,500 95,011
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 41.61 9,375,006 2,306,544 7,068,462
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Suspend City's Annual Performance Report (1.00) (169,343) — (169,343)
Staff Reorganization and Service Reduction (0.90) (185,582) — (185,582)
Accounting and Revenue Collections
Reorganization (1.50) (147,786) — (147,786)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 38.21 8,872,295 2,306,544 6,565,751
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
1
CITY ATTORNEY
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 10.00 3,386,954 742,893 2,644,061
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
None
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 80,984 — 80,984
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan — — 874,375 (874,375)
Contract Services — 256,349 — 256,349
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (8,574) — (8,574)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 5,920 — 5,920
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 1,047 — 1,047
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 2,469 — 2,469
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —338,195 874,375 (536,181)
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 10.00 3,725,149 1,617,268 2,107,880
Budget Adjustments
1 Shift City Attorney's Contingency Funds to City
Attorney's Budget — 100,000 — 100,000
Total Budget Adjustments —100,000 —100,000
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 10.00 3,825,149 1,617,268 2,207,880
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reductions (0.50) (81,171) — (81,171)
Travel, Training, and Supply Expense Reductions — (47,342) — (47,342)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 9.50 3,696,636 1,617,268 2,079,367
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
2
CITY AUDITOR
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 4.00 1,235,450 1,162,636 72,814
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
None
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 34,314 — 34,314
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan — — (46,752) 46,752
Contract Services — 4,000 — 4,000
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (5,228) — (5,228)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 2,372 — 2,372
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — (393) — (393)
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 982 — 982
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —36,047 (46,752)82,799
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 4.00 1,271,497 1,115,884 155,613
Budget Adjustments
1 Reclassification of 1.0 FTE Performance Auditor
II to 1.0 FTE Senior Performance Auditor — 57,555 — 57,555
2 Tax Compliance and National Citizens Survey
(Transfer from City Auditor to Administrative
Services and City Managers' Office)
— (77,000) (150,000) 73,000
3 Reallocate 1.0 FTE Performance Auditor II to
Administrative Services for Performance Report (1.00) (195,011) — (195,011)
Total Budget Adjustments (1.00)(214,456)(150,000)(64,456)
3.00 1,057,041 965,884 91,157Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Reduction in the City Auditor's Office — (165,000)— (165,000)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 3.00 892,041 965,884 (73,843)
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
3
CITY CLERK
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
5.00 1,345,822 676,735 669,087
— 30,611 —30,611
— 1,601 — 1,601
—— (24,157) 24,157
— (3,230)— (3,230)
— 2,132 — 2,132
— (3,218)— (3,218)
—883 —883
—28,779 (24,157)52,937
5.00 1,374,601 652,578 722,024
— (90,385)— (90,385)
Prior Year Budget
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
None
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments
Association Membership Fees
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan Information
Technology Allocated Charges Liability
Insurance Allocated Charges
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Contract Service Reductions
Travel, Training, Supply, and Event Expense
Reductions — (45,000)— (45,000)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 5.00 1,239,216 652,578 586,639
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
4
CITY COUNCIL
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
7.00 498,261 94,791 403,470
— (23,940)— (23,940)
——60,774 (60,774)
—521 —521
— (1,237)— (1,237)
—216 —216
—(24,440)60,774 (85,214)
7.00 473,821 155,565 318,256
Prior Year Budget
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
None
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges
Information Technology Allocated Charges
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Travel, Training, Supply and Event Expense
Reductions
—(48,955)—(48,955)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 7.00 424,866 155,565 269,301
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
5
CITY MANAGER
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 10.75 4,547,803 1,962,712 2,585,091
Base Adjustments
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Recruitment and Retention Initiatives — (250,000) — (250,000)
Contractural Funding for Office of Sustainability — (100,000) — (100,000)
Economic Development Funding — (72,000) — (72,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(422,000)—(422,000)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salaries and Benefits Adjustments — 473 — 473
Office of Sustainability Transition to Public Works (0.75) (263,994) (118,751) (145,243)
Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Grant
Completion — (260,000) (260,000) —
Contract Services — (7,000) — (7,000)
Transfer to Electric Fund for Canopy Contract — (2,039) — (2,039)
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan — — (34,489) 34,489
City Manager Relocation Expense Reimbursement — 24,000 — 24,000
Information Technology Department Allocated
Charges — (12,531) — (12,531)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 4,169 — 4,169
Printing & Mailing Allocated Charges — (10,033) — (10,033)
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 7,946 — 7,946
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities (0.75)(519,009)(413,240)(105,769)
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 10.00 3,606,794 1,549,472 2,057,322
Budget Adjustments
Tax Compliance and National Citizens Survey
(Transfer from City Auditor to Administrative — 27,000 — 27,000
—27,000 —27,000
10.00 3,633,794 1,549,472 2,084,322
(1.00) (218,750)— (218,750)
— (32,000)— (32,000)
Services and City Managers' Office)
Total Budget Adjustments
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reductions
Travel, Training, and Supply Expense Reductions
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 9.00 3,383,044 1,549,472 1,833,572
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
6
OFFICE OF TRANSPORTATION
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 6.68 2,312,134 141,332 2,170,802
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
VMT Estimation Tool (one-time surcharge) — (14,000) — (14,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(14,000)—(14,000)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits 0.15 10,823 — 10,823
Shuttle Service Contract Funding Alignment — 25,000 — 25,000
Information Technology Allocated Charges — 63,594 — 63,594
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 23,630 — 23,630
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 7,354 — 7,354
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 7,097 — 7,097
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities 0.15 137,498 —137,498
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 6.83 2,435,632 141,332 2,294,300
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reduction (0.48) (29,678) — —
Free Shuttle Service Elimination — (538,333) — —
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 6.35 1,867,621 141,332 2,294,300
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
7
COMMUNITY SERVICES
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 124.91 30,920,184 9,721,945 21,198,239
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Impact Fee Nexus Study — (60,000) — (60,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(60,000)—(60,000)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 255,892 — 255,892
Project Safety Net Transition (Year 2) (0.45) (196,790) — (196,790)
Realignment of Animal Control Staffing to Police
Department (0.48) (60,663) — (60,663)
Youth Community Services Funding Expiration — (50,000) — (50,000)
Realignment of Cubberley Staffing to Cubberley
Fund (CMR #9925, approved by the City
Council on December 17, 2018)
(0.25) (29,662) — (29,662)
Eliminate Funding for Downtown Streets Team
Park Maintenance — (29,124) — (29,124)
General Contract Adjustments — (12,701) — (12,701)
Animal Services Shelter Transition from Police
Department to Community Services
Department with Pets-In-Need (CMR #9822
Approved by the City Council on November 26,
2018) (Year 2)
— (6,840) — (6,840)
Transfer to Electric Fund for Canopy Contract — (6,990) — (6,990)
Arastradero Stewardship Consumer Price Index
Adjustment — 2,030 — 2,030
Technical Clean-Up for Arts & Sciences
Professional — 5,369 — 5,369
Supplies and Materials Adjustments — 9,000 9,000 —
CSD Management Alignment (Year 2) (1.00) 33,942 — 33,942
Human Services Resource Allocation Program/
Avenidas/PACC (consumer price index)— 40,713 — 40,713
Golf Course Revenue and Expense (CMR #8848,
approved by the City Council on April 6, 2018)— 41,280 1,440 39,840
Institute of Museum and Library Services Grant for
Interns — 43,500 43,500 —
Glyphosate Elimination at Road Medians Around 6
Schools — 67,000 — 67,000
Expansion of Special Interest Classes — 70,500 70,500 —
Recreation Management System Software — 101,170 101,170 —
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
8
COMMUNITY SERVICES
Communication Services Allocated Charges — 8,600 — 8,600
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (50,183)— (50,183)
Landscape Maintenance Contract/Allocated
Charges —— 5,126 (5,126)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 36,094 — 36,094
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 38,295 — 38,295
Refuse Allocated Charges — 14,236 — 14,236
Stormwater Management Allocated Charges — 1,102 — 1,102
Utilities Allocated Charges — 254,925 — 254,925
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — 43,972 — 43,972
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 14,003 — 14,003
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities (2.18)638,670 230,736 407,934
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 122.73 31,498,854 9,952,681 21,546,173
Budget Adjustments
1 New Junior Museum and Zoo Operating Plan 6.79 845,454 1,186,247 (340,793)
2 Therapeutics Staffing (Reclassification) — 5,982 — 5,982
3 Art Center Position Request & Contract
Funding 0.20 40,205 40,205 —
4 Art Center and Public Art Installation Position 0.99 — — —
7.98 891,640 1,226,452 (334,811)
130.71 32,390,494 11,179,133 21,211,362
(3.48) (585,750)— (585,750)
— (224,990) (46,000)—
(6.09) (721,254) (283,643) (437,611)
(2.44) (201,590) (50,000) (151,590)
(4.26) (452,084) (4,623) (447,461)
(3.27) (282,695)— (282,695)
— (274,844)— (274,844)
— (154,404) (13,542) (140,862)
(1.17)(243,905)— (243,905)
Requests
Total FY 2021 Budget Adjustments
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reductions
Junior Museum and Zoo
Reduce Theater Programming and Support
Teen Services Reduction
Art Center Programming Reductions
Community Center Reductions
Parks Maintenance Contract Service Reductions
Community Program and Event Reductions
Open Space and Recreation Reductions
Human Services Funding Reductions — (100,000)— (100,000)
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Middle School Athletics and Adult Sports Leagues —— 100,521 (100,521)
110.00 29,148,978 10,881,846 18,446,123
Revenue Adjustments
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
9
FIRE
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 98.40 34,863,692 11,264,190 23,599,502
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Fire Staffing Adjustment — 352,511 — 352,511
Firefighter New Hire Costs — (80,625) — (80,625)
Equipment Replacement — (48,000) — (48,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —223,886 —223,886
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 762,325 — 762,325
Overtime Adjustments — 63,958 — 63,958
Stanford Emergency Fire Services Annual Revenue
Alignment — — (260,787) 260,787
State Quality Assurance Fee Alignment — 5,000 5,000 —
Communication Services Allocated Charges — 14,800 — 14,800
Industrial Waste Discharge Fee Allocated Charges — 2,910 — 2,910
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (33,841) — (33,841)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 37,381 — 37,381
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 339 — 339
Refuse Allocated Charges — (621) — (621)
Stormwater Management Allocated Charges — (194) — (194)
Utilities Allocated Charges — 13,178 — 13,178
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — 3,899 — 3,899
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 44,897 — 44,897
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —914,031 (255,787)1,169,818
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 98.40 36,001,609 11,008,403 24,993,206
Budget Adjustments
Modified Staffing and Overtime Adjustment — 209,225 — 209,225
Total Budget Adjustments —209,225 —209,225
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 98.40 36,210,834 11,008,403 25,202,431
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
10
FIRE
Planning Inspection and Plan Review (0.40) (93,297)— (93,297)
First Responder and Ambulance Subscriptions Fee —— 1,855,000 (1,855,000)
Emergency Incident Response Services (5.00) (831,555) (202,100) (629,455)
Fire Administrative and Support Services (2.20) (412,000)— (412,000)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 90.80 34,873,982 12,661,303 22,212,679
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
11
HUMAN RESOURCES
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 16.96 3,945,119 1,856,860 2,088,259
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Candidate Screening Tools — (80,000) — (80,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(80,000)—(80,000)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 225,334 — 225,334
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan — — 57,799 (57,799)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 9,006 — 9,006
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (4,855) — (4,855)
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — (9,767) — (9,767)
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 2,854 — 2,854
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —222,572 57,799 164,773
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 16.96 4,087,691 1,914,659 2,173,032
Budget Adjustments
Total Budget Adjustments
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 16.96 4,087,691 1,914,659 2,173,032
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reductions (1.96)(236,001)— (236,001)
Total FY 2021 Proposed Revised Budget 15.00 3,851,690 1,914,659 1,937,031
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
12
LIBRARY
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 61.28 10,314,028 210,017 10,104,011
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Pacific Library Partnership (PLP) Grant Funds
Distribution — (8,723) (8,723) —
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(8,723)(8,723)—
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 174,489 — 174,489
Library Equipment Maintenance Expenses
Adjustment — 13,915 — 13,915
General Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 13,292 — 13,292
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (55,443) — (55,443)
Printing & Mailing Allocated Charges — (128) — (128)
Refuse Allocated Charges — 10,868 — 10,868
Stormwater Management Allocated Charges — 60 — 60
Utilities Allocated Charges — (20,934) — (20,934)
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Charges — 413 — 413
Workers Compensation Allocated Charges — 6,015 — 6,015
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —142,548 —142,548
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 61.28 10,447,853 201,294 10,246,559
Budget Proposals
Elimination of Library Late Fines for Overdue Adult
Materials — — (85,178) 85,178
Budget Changes ——(85,178)85,178
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 61.28 10,447,853 116,116 10,331,737
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reductions (7.14) (718,410) — (718,410)
Reduced Library Hours & Services (9.27) (694,616) — (694,616)
Travel, Training, and Materials Expense Reductions — (241,500) — (241,500)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 44.87 8,793,327 116,116 8,677,211
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
13
OFFICE OF EMERGENCY SERVICES
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 3.48 1,728,080 295,589 1,432,491
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Mobile Solar Energy Generation and Storage
Trailer — (200,000) (200,000) —
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(200,000)(200,000)—
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits — 48,446 — 48,446
Contract Services Realignment (Shift to
Communication Services and Utilities
Allocation)
— (100) — (100)
Information Technology Allocated Charges — 423 — 423
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 2,046 — 2,046
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 2,363 — 2,363
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — 2,729 — 2,729
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 1,827 — 1,827
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —57,734 —57,734
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 3.48 1,585,814 95,589 1,490,225
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Position Reduction (1.00)(98,204)— (98,204)
Intrusion Detection Systems — (60,000)— (60,000)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 2.48 1,427,610 95,589 1,332,021
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
14
PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
8 PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES • CITY OF PALO ALTO FISCAL YEAR 2021 PROPOSED OPERATING BUDGET
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 65.37 20,363,132 18,064,577 2,298,555
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Planning and Development Services Department
Vacancies — 152,393 — 152,393
Planning and Development Services Department
Staffing Reorganization (1.00) (267,683) — (267,683)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments (1.00)(115,290)—(115,290)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits (0.15) 305,315 — 305,315
Rent and Lease Expenditure (office space lease at
526 Bryant St)— 115,269 — 115,269
On-Call Contracts Increase — 165,200 — 165,200
Revenue Adjustment (align with cost recovery
levels)— — 397,354 (397,354)
Utilities Transfer for Electric Services — (7,607) — (7,607)
Communication Services Allocated Charges — 800 — 800
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (101,606) — (101,606)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 11,979 — 11,979
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — (67,119) — (67,119)
Utilities Allocated Charges — (30,600) — (30,600)
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — 46,767 — 46,767
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 3,393 — 3,393
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities (0.15)441,790 397,354 44,436
Total FY 2021 Base Budget 64.22 20,689,632 18,461,931 2,227,701
Budget Adjustments
Planning and Development Services Fee Study — 110,000 — 110,000
Total Budget Adjustments —110,000 —110,000
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 64.22 20,799,632 18,461,931 2,337,701
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Administration and Program Assistance (2.48) (450,691) — (450,691)
Current Planning and Development Services Front
Counter (2.00) (736,897) (486,607) (250,290)
Code Enforcement (2.00) (264,546) — (264,546)
Building Inspection and Plan Review 1.00 (401,295) (1,335,306) 934,011
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
15
PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
Fire Inspection and Plan Review (2.08) (531,561) (529,424) (2,137)
Green Building — (105,548) (68,985) (36,563)
Development Services Public Works Alignment (0.70) (208,853) (207,162) (1,691)
Development Services Reserve Fund (DSRF)—— 500,000 (500,000)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 55.96 18,100,241 16,334,447 1,765,794
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
16
POLICE
POLICE • CITY OF PALO ALTO FISCAL YEAR 2021 PROPOSED OPERATING BUDGET 7
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 151.82 44,666,482 4,352,227 40,314,255
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
CAD Reporting System Update — (45,000) — (45,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(45,000)—(45,000)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits — 2,053,362 — 2,053,362
Overtime Adjustment — 51,537 — 51,537
Animal Services Revenue Alignments/Adjustments — — (369,157) 369,157
SVRIA Subscription Fee Adjustments — 197,550 46,300 151,250
Staffing Vacancies Alignment — 88,636 — 88,636
Animal Services Staffing Realignment 0.48 35,000 — 35,000
Contractual Increases — 15,400 — 15,400
Revenue Alignments — — (13,000) 13,000
Crossing Guards (CMR #8952 approved June 25,
2018)— 7,806 — 7,806
Stanford Emergency Communication Services
Revenue — — 64,098 (64,098)
Task Force Reimbursement — — 130,000 (130,000)
Communication Services Allocated Charges — — 160,850 (160,850)
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (97,090) — (97,090)
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 86,247 — 86,247
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 10,893 — 10,893
Utilities Allocated Charges — (3,743) — (3,743)
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — (2,966) — (2,966)
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 45,960 — 45,960
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities 0.48 2,488,592 19,091 2,469,501
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 152.30 47,110,074 4,371,318 42,738,756
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Reduction in Police Relations (1.00) (196,465) — (196,465)
Reallocate Position from Policy to City Manager's
Office — (296,190) — (296,190)
Patrol Operations (8.87) (1,822,497) — (1,822,497)
Technical Services Support (1.80) (391,139) — (391,139)
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
17
POLICE
Dispatch Services (5.49) (1,323,353) (131,000) (1,192,353)
Information Management and Records (0.29) (24,129)— (24,129)
Reduce Police Investigations (2.08) (345,649)— (345,649)
Reduce Police Reserve Program (0.72) (75,449)— (75,449)
Suspend Traffic Program (3.00) (539,134)— (539,134)
Suspend Parent Project — (60,000)— (60,000)
Recruitment (1.22) (443,819)— (443,819)
Reduce Training — (103,901)— (103,901)
Animal Control Program (1.48) (139,863) (40,372) (99,491)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 126.35 41,348,486 4,199,946 37,148,540
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
18
PUBLIC WORKS
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget 50.45 19,188,318 3,275,539 15,912,779
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
None
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Salary and Benefits Adjustments — 272,245 — 272,245
OOS Transition — 261,767 (2,516) 264,283
Custodial Contract (Amendment #2) — 67,850 — 67,850
Custodial Contract (Year 4 & Contingency) — 60,455 — 60,455
Charges to Other Funds for Engineering Services — — (40,874) 40,874
San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority
(SFJPA) Annual Membership Fee — 9,250 — 9,250
Contract Services Alignment — 1,396 — 1,396
Urban Forestry Mitigation Fee for Tree Planting — (48,500) (48,500) —
Vacancy Factor Adjustment — (45,155) — (45,155)
Urban Forestry Contract Alignment — (104,345) — (104,345)
Transfer to Electric Fund — (16,574) — (16,574)
General Fund Cost Allocation Plan — — (130,717) 130,717
Communication Services Allocated Charges — 35,150 — 35,150
Liability Insurance Allocated Charges — 45,584 — 45,584
Information Technology Allocated Charges — (19,268) — (19,268)
Printing & Mailing Services Allocated Charges — 10,759 — 10,759
Public Works Administration Allocated Charges — — (26,297) 26,297
Refuse Allocated Charges — (4,888) — (4,888)
Stormwater Management Allocated Charges — 748 — 748
Utilities Allocated Charges — (132,335) — (132,335)
Vehicle Replacement & Maintenance Allocated
Charges — 101,282 — 101,282
Workers' Compensation Allocated Charges — 8,064 — 8,064
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —503,485 (248,904)752,389
Total FY 2021 Proposed Budget 50.45 19,691,803 3,026,635 16,665,168
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Streets & Sidewalks Program Reductions — (700,000) — (700,000)
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
19
PUBLIC WORKS
San Fancisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority
(SFCJPA) Membership — 118,750 — 118,750
Public Works Development Services Alignment 0.45 80,109 — 80,109
Urban Forestry — (654,399) — (654,399)
Buildings and Facilities Reductions (0.65) (110,642) — (110,642)
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget 50.25 18,425,621 3,026,635 15,398,986
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
20
NON-DEPARTMENTAL
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
Prior Year Budget —42,975,631 —42,975,631
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments
Reserve: Budget Operations Reserve — (1,125,899) — (1,125,899)
Residential Parking Permit Program Operating
Deficit Transfer to RPP Fund — (683,810) — (683,810)
Reserve: Recruitment and Retention Initiatives — (500,000) — (500,000)
Airplane Noise Funding — (100,000) — (100,000)
Sea Level Rise Study Funding — (50,000) — (50,000)
Transfer to Business Improvement District Funding — (17,000) — (17,000)
One-Time Prior Year Budget Adjustments —(2,476,709)—(2,476,709)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities
Transfer to Infrastructure — 3,610,524 — 3,610,524
Residential Parking Permit Program Operating
Deficit Transfer to RPP Fund — 185,000 — 185,000
Traffic and Streetlight Electricity Costs Adjustment — 62,472 — 62,472
CPI Adjustment for El Camino Park Lease — 25,873 — 25,873
Transfer to University Avenue Parking Fund — 16,470 — 16,470
Property Tax Administration — 2,374 — 2,374
Transfer to Public Art Fund — 2 — 2
Transfer to Technology Fund (Technology
Surcharge)— (34,477) — (34,477)
Cubberley Lease Payments to PAUSD — (89,915) — (89,915)
Sustainability Contingency — (100,000) — (100,000)
Adjustments to Costs of Ongoing Activities —3,678,283 —3,678,283
Total FY 2020 Base Budget —44,177,205 —44,177,205
Budget Adjustments
November 2020 Elections — 225,000 — 225,000
Shift City Attorney's Contingency Funds to City
Attorney's Budget — (100,000) — (100,000)
Total Budget Adjustments —125,000 —125,000
Total FY 2020 Proposed Budget —44,302,205 —44,302,205
Revisions to FY 2021 Proposed Budget
Cubberley Lease Adjustment — (2,500,000) — (2,500,000)
City Council Contingency — (125,000) — (125,000)
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
21
NON-DEPARTMENTAL
Innovation and Special Events Contingency — (50,000)— (50,000)
Human Resources Contingency — (50,000)— (50,000)
Reduce General Fund Base Transfer to Capital — (9,950,000)— (9,950,000)
Reduce TOT Transfer to Capital — (8,455,000)— (8,455,000)
RPP Parking Administrative Program Revisions — (185,000)— (185,000)
Management and Professionals Unrepresented
Group Compensation — (3,473,000)— (3,473,000)
COVID-19 Recovery: Contact Tracing — 450,000 — 450,000
— 150,000 — 150,000COVID-19 Recovery: Business & Comm. Support
COVID-19 Recovery: Workplace Restoration — 350,000 — 350,000
Litigation Reserve —1,000,000 —1,000,000
Implementation Costs Associated with Balancing
Strategy — 2,075,000 — 2,075,000
Total FY 2021 Revised Proposed Budget —23,539,205 —23,539,205
Budget Reconciliation
Positions Expenditures Revenues
Net
General Fund
ATTACHMENT D:Combined FY 2021 Proposed Budget & CMR 11376 (as of 5/26)
22
1
Minor, Beth
From:Filseth, Eric (Internal)
Sent:Monday, May 25, 2020 5:38 AM
To:Fine, Adrian; Kniss, Liz (internal); 'Lydia Kou' (lydiakou@gmail.com); Cormack, Alison; Greg Tanaka
<greg@gregtanaka.org> (greg@gregtanaka.org); tomforcouncil@gmail.com
Cc:Minor, Beth
Subject:Staff Budget Plan in Excel Format
Attachments:Rebudgeting Worksheet Staff Plan 2.xlsx; FY21 Budget Cuts - Staff Plan 2.xlsx
Folks, FYI if you can use it, here’s an update to the previous worksheet model with the new Staff Plan in it. As before,
tweak the highlighted cells. “FY22 Optimism Factor” is to dial up and down the FY22 revenue. “5yr Capital Budget
Change” is more conservative.
Also a file with Staff proposed budget cuts in Excel format instead of pdf.
Eric
2
the message or any information contained in the message. If you received the
message in error, please notify the sender and delete the message.
Begin forwarded message:
From: Tom DuBois <tomforcouncil@gmail.com>
Date: May 25, 2020 at 12:08:03 PDT
To: "Filseth, Eric (Internal)" <Eric.Filseth@CityofPaloAlto.org>, "Nose, Kiely"
<Kiely.Nose@cityofpaloalto.org>, "Shikada, Ed" <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: "Fine, Adrian" <Adrian.Fine@CityofPaloAlto.org>, "Kniss, Liz (internal)"
<Liz.Kniss@CityofPaloAlto.org>, "'Lydia Kou' (lydiakou@gmail.com)" <lydiakou@gmail.com>, "Cormack,
Alison" <Alison.Cormack@CityofPaloAlto.org>, "Greg Tanaka <greg@gregtanaka.org>
(greg@gregtanaka.org)" <greg@gregtanaka.org>
Subject: Re: Staff Budget Plan in Excel Format
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious
of opening attachments and clicking on links.
Eric,
I truly appreciate and respect the amount of work you put into this and thanks for sharing. This email is
not a criticism of you doing this. On the contrary what you shared is excellent ‐ it's concise, it shows
where cuts are occurring, and it shows multi‐year impacts according to assumptions you made. I expect
it took you some time to extract this information from our budget materials.
However, I do want to say that that this is the type of information we need to be getting from staff. I'd
like to know staff's assumptions and see a model from staff's perspective.
Without going into any specific budget issues that touch on the Brown act, I just want to say that our
process has been rushed without clear and adequate information. I don't expect complete information,
but our process has not been good and we risk bad governance in a crucial time.
I’m no dummy. It's been hard to follow and discern what is most important, to know what items
are really essential and can't be cut, particularly on the captial budget side. We are being asked
not to make decisions but to affirm staff decisions without clear and adequate information.
I've dug through the budget docs and I walk away unsure on three basic questions:
1. How many dollars are true cuts of existing services vs vacant unfilled positions?
2. How many dollars are cuts from services that can't be rendered due to Covid 19?
3. How many dollars are recovered from actual efficiencies being found.
It has been difficult to extract that information, and I think it would servce us all well to have it.
Best,
Tom.
.
Total ($K)
Dept Total
($K) Dept Action
Expense
Drop ($K)
FTE ‐ Full
Time
FTE ‐ Pt‐
Time
Revenue
Drop ($K)
Revenue
Incr ($K)
$42,866 $591 Admin Svcs Annual Perf Report $169 1.00
Staff/Service in Purchasing $186 0.90
Accounting/Revenue Collection Reorg $148 1.50
Printing Services $88
$128 Attorney Position reduction ‐ citations, code enf $81 0.50
Travel, training $47
$165 Auditor Position reduction ‐ audits $165
$135 Clerk Travel, training, events $45
Contract services reduction $90
$49 Council Council budget ‐ travel, training, supplies $49
$251 City Mgr Position reduction ‐ asst to City Mgr $219 1.00
Travel, training, supplies expense $32
$3,242 CSD Position ‐ communications, oversight $586 3.00 0.48
JMZ ‐ ticket prices, opening delay $225 $46
Children's Theater ‐ fewer productions $721 1.00 5.09 $284
Teen Services ‐ many infeasible re Covid $202 1.00 1.44 $50
Art Center exhibitions, programming $452 2.10 2.16 $5
Community center 1 day/wk reduction $283 2.00 1.27
Park Maintenance $275
Community ‐ KYN Grant, events $154 $14
Open Space hours ‐ Evans, rangers $244 1.00 0.17
Human Service Funding, YCS $100
Middle School, Adult Sports fees $101
$1,337 Fire Inspection times $93 0.40
Raise Response/Ambulance fees $1,855
Reduce Overtime, positions $832 5.00 $202
Admin/support $412 2.20
$236 HR Position reduction $236 1.00 0.96
$1,320 IT Position reduction $534
S/W replacement $265
Allocated Charges reduction $521
$1,655 Library Position reduction ‐ lower service level $718 3.00 4.14
Reduce hours and days open $695 3.00 6.27
Travel, training, expense $242
$3,923 Non Dep 1 Cubberley Lease $2,500
Council contingency $125
Innovation / Spec Event Contingency $50
HR contingency $50
RPPP Admin reduction $185
Original revenue shortfall $38,794
More rev shortfall "Econ Sensitive" $5,000
Non Dep 2 Internal Service Fund Charges $486
OPEB accounting $527
$158 OES Position reduction $98 1.00
Caltrain crossing cameras budget $60
$568 Transport Position reduction ‐ parking citation review $30 0.48
Eliminate free shuttles $538
$2,699 Planning Admin ‐ proj mgmt, customer support $451 2.00 0.48
Devlt Svcs front counter $737 2.00 $487
Code Enforcement ‐ positions $264 2.00
Building Inspection + Plan Review $401 ‐1.00 $1,335
Fire Inspection + Plan Review $531 1.60 0.48 $529
Green building consulting $106 $69
Dev Svcs/PubWks application processing $209 0.70 $207
Dev Svcs Reserve (DSRF) $500
$5,760 Police Position reduction ‐ Comms, PR $196 1.00
Position reallocation to City Mgr office $296 * is this picked up in City Mgr office?
Position reduction, overtime ‐ Patrol $1,822 8.87
Position reduction ‐ tech support $391 1.80
Position reduction, OT ‐ dispatch (20% reduct) $1,323 5.00 0.49 $131
Position reduction ‐ Information, records $24 0.29
Position reduction ‐ investigations $346 2.00 0.08
Position reduction ‐ Reserve (Spec Events) $75 0.72
Traffic program $539 3.00
Parent program ‐ domestic disturb $60
Detailed Breakdown
Recruitment $444 1.00 0.22
Training $104
Animal Control $140 1.00 0.48 $40
$2,541 Pub Wks Streets/Sidewalks $700
SF Creek JPA ‐$119
Dev Svcs realign (in‐transfer) ‐$80 ‐0.45
Tree trimming $654
Vehicle replacement rate $1,275
Position reduction ‐ Bldgs Capital projects $111 0.65
$255 Utilities Electric rate freeze $125
Gas rate 2% increase $28
Wastewater rate freeze $6
Water rate freeze $96
$3,473 Mgmt/Professional Compensation $3,473
‐$950 Covid Rec Covid‐19 Recovery ‐ Contact Tracing ‐$450
Covid‐19 Recovery ‐ Bz / Comms Support ‐$150
Covid‐19 Recovery ‐ Workplace Restoration ‐$350
‐$1,000 Litigation Reserve ‐$1,000
‐$2,075 Restruct Implementation/restructuring costs ‐$2,075
$18,405 Xfer to CIP GF Transfer to Capital $9,950
TOT Transfer to Capital $8,455
Total $42,866 61.77 25.70 $47,193 $2,456
FY23‐26
FY18 FY19 FY20 3‐yr FY21 Base FY21 FY21 FY22 Reb FY22 FY18 FY19 FY20 3‐yr FY21 Base Change FY21 New Savings FY22 %FY22 Bdgt FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26 CAGR
Item Adopted CAGR No Covid Drop % Bdgt $M Incr % Bdgt $M General Fund Dept Adopted CAGR No Covid ($M) ($M) (%)4%($M)3% 3% 3% 3% 3%
Property Taxes ‐ Total $42.8 $47.3 $48.6 7.3%$52.9 ‐2%$51.8 1%$52.4 FY22 Police $40.0 $42.2 $44.7 5.6%$47.1 ‐5.76 $41.3 12.2%4%$43.0 $44.3 $45.6 $47.0 $48.4
Sales Taxes ‐ Total $31.1 $36.5 $34.3 6.5%$37.6 ‐44%$21.1 20%$25.3 Optmsm Fire $33.6 $33.6 $34.9 2.5%$36.2 ‐1.34 $34.9 3.7%4%$36.3 $37.3 $38.5 $39.6 $40.8
Charges for Services $26.3 $26.7 $29.7 5.1%$30.5 ‐15%$25.9 8%$27.9 Factor Community Services $27.1 $29.0 $30.9 6.1%$32.4 ‐3.20 $29.2 9.9%4%$30.4 $31.3 $32.2 $33.2 $34.2
TOT $24.9 $25.6 $29.3 6.0%$29.7 ‐50%$14.9 20%$17.8 1.0 Planning/Development $19.9 $20.4 $20.4 1.5%$20.8 ‐2.70 $18.1 13.0%4%$18.8 $19.4 $20.0 $20.6 $21.2
Util Users Tax $15.4 $16.4 $17.6 4.5%$17.6 ‐10%$15.8 5%$16.6 Transportation $2.3 $2.4 ‐0.57 $1.8 23.8%4%$1.9 $2.0 $2.0 $2.1 $2.1
Everything Else $53.3 $53.1 $51.6 ‐0.9%$51.8 ‐10%$46.6 5%$49.0 FY23‐26 Public Works $18.4 $17.1 $19.2 2.3%$19.7 ‐2.54 $17.2 12.9%4%$17.8 $18.4 $18.9 $19.5 $20.1
Operating Transfers‐In $20.4 $19.8 $21.0 1.6%$21.4 ‐4%$20.5 2%$21.0 CAGR Library $9.1 $9.3 $10.3 4.6%$10.4 ‐1.70 $8.7 16.3%4%$9.0 $9.3 $9.6 $9.9 $10.2
Total Revenues $214.2 $225.4 $232.1 4.1%$241.5 ‐19%$196.7 7%$209.9 3%Admin Services $7.7 $7.6 $8.5 6.9%$9.4 ‐0.59 $8.8 6.3%4%$9.2 $9.4 $9.7 $10.0 $10.3
Non‐Dept 1/2 $6.4 $12.2 $9.0 4.0%$7.2 ‐3.92 $3.3 54.4%4%$3.4 $3.5 $3.6 $3.7 $3.8
HR $3.5 $3.6 $3.9 5.4%$4.1 ‐0.24 $3.9 5.9%4%$4.0 $4.1 $4.3 $4.4 $4.5
City Attorney $3.3 $3.6 $3.4 4.8%$3.8 ‐0.13 $3.7 3.4%4%$3.8 $3.9 $4.0 $4.2 $4.3
City Manager $3.7 $3.9 $4.5 ‐0.9%$3.6 ‐0.28 $3.3 7.8%4%$3.5 $3.6 $3.7 $3.8 $3.9
City Clerk $1.2 $1.1 $1.3 5.3%$1.4 ‐0.13 $1.3 9.3%4%$1.3 $1.4 $1.4 $1.4 $1.5
City Auditor $1.2 $1.2 $1.2 ‐2.9%$1.1 ‐0.16 $0.9 14.5%4%$1.0 $1.0 $1.0 $1.1 $1.1
City Council $0.5 $0.4 $0.5 0.0%$0.5 ‐0.05 $0.5 10.0%4%$0.5 $0.5 $0.5 $0.5 $0.5
OES $1.0 $1.2 $1.7 17.0%$1.6 ‐0.16 $1.4 10.0%4%$1.5 $1.5 $1.6 $1.6 $1.7
Operating Xfers‐Out $4.7 $9.6 $5.0 ‐1.4%$4.5 0.00 $4.5 0.0%4%$4.7 $4.8 $5.0 $5.1 $5.3
IT (embedded above)‐1.30 ($1.3)4%‐$1.4 ‐$1.4 ‐$1.4 ‐$1.5 ‐$1.5
Utilities (embed.)‐0.26 ($0.3)4%‐$0.3 ‐$0.3 ‐$0.3 ‐$0.3 ‐$0.3
Mgmt/Prof Comp (embed.)‐3.47 ($3.5)4%‐$3.6 ‐$3.7 ‐$3.8 ‐$3.9 ‐$4.1
One‐time: Covid Recovery $0.0 0.95 $1.0 ‐100%$0.0 $0.0 $0.0 $0.0 $0.0
One‐time: Litigation Rsrv $0.0 1.00 $1.0 ‐100%$0.0 $0.0 $0.0 $0.0 $0.0
One‐time: Restruct. Costs $0.0 2.08 $2.1 ‐100%$0.0 $0.0 $0.0 $0.0 $0.0
Net General Fund OpEx $181.3 $196.0 $201.7 $206.2 ‐24.47 $181.7 11.9% $184.8 $190.4 $196.1 $201.9 $208.0
Available to Fund Things $32.9 $29.4 $30.4 $35.3 $14.9 $25.0 $25.8 $26.6 $27.4 $28.2
XFER TO INFRASTRUCTURE $24.8 $27.5 $29.0 9.5%$32.6 ‐$18.4 $14.2 56.4%5%$14.9 $17.1 $19.7 $22.7 $26.1 15%
Total Expenses $206.1 $223.5 $230.7 5.0%$238.8 ‐$42.9 $195.9 18.0% 1.9% $199.7 $207.5 $215.8 $224.6 $234.1
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 FY21‐25 Capital/Infrastruct. Xfer
GF Revenue $117.0 $127.0 $137.0 $145.0 $141.0 $145.0 $146.0 $159.0 $167.0 $171.0 $199.0 Base Plan $164.4
GF Expense $117.0 $125.0 $132.0 $141.8 $141.0 $147.0 $144.0 $162.0 $164.0 $164.0 $180.0 New Projection $88.7
5yr Capital Reduction $75.7
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020A 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
GF Revenue $194.0 $195.0 $214.2 $225.4 $232.1 $196.7 $209.9 $216.2 $222.6 $229.3 $236.2
GF Expense $191.0 $194.0 $206.1 $223.5 $230.7 $195.9 $199.7 $207.5 $215.8 $224.6 $234.1
Xfer to Infrastructure $29.4 $22.9 $24.8 $27.5 $29.0 $14.2 $14.9 $17.1 $19.7 $22.7 $26.1
BSR Balance $51.6 $48.1 $52.1 $41.4 $22.0 $22.7 $32.9 $41.5 $48.4 $53.1 $55.2
Target BSR Balance $35.9 $36.1 $39.6 $41.7 $42.9 $36.4 $38.8 $40.0 $41.2 $42.4 $43.7
FY21‐26 EXPENSES ProjectionREVENUESEXPENSESHistorical GF Revenue Data FY21‐26 REVENUES Projection Historical GF Expense Data
$100.0
$150.0
$200.0
$250.0
$300.0
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020A 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
General Fund ‐‐ Revenue and Expense ($M)
GF Revenue
GF Expense
$0.0
$10.0
$20.0
$30.0
$40.0
$50.0
$60.0
$70.0
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020A 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
Infrastructure Transfer and Budget Stabilization Reserve ($M)
Xfer to Infrastructure
BSR Balance
Target BSR Balance
City of Palo Alto (ID # 11307)
City Council Staff Report
Report Type: Informational Report Meeting Date: 5/26/2020
City of Palo Alto Page 1
Summary Title: 2019 Palo Alto TMA Annual Report
Title: 2019 Palo Alto Transportation Management Association Annual Report,
2019 Downtown Commute Survey, and 2020 Strategic Business Plan
Summary
From: City Manager
Lead Department: Transportation Department
Recommendation
Staff recommends that Council receive this informational report containing the Final 2019
Annual Report, Fall 2019 Downtown Commute Survey, and 2020 Strategic Plan Summary of the
Palo Alto Transportation Management Association (TMA).
Executive Summary
The Palo Alto TMA implements programs to reduce single-occupancy vehicle (SOV) trips to and
from Palo Alto. The funding agreement between the Palo Alto TMA and the City of Palo Alto
restricts the use of City funds to trip reduction programs in the Downtown area only and
requires the TMA to report annually on the use of these funds. The attached Annual Report
covers the 2019 calendar year, detailing how public funds were spent to support SOV trip
reduction in Downtown including the results of the Fall 2019 Downtown Commute Survey. The
attachment also includes a summary of the 2020 TMA Strategic Business Plan.
Background
Following direction from the City Council in 2013, staff worked to develop transportation
demand management (TDM) strategies to encourage alternatives to solo driving as part of a
multi-faceted effort to address traffic and parking concerns in the downtown area and the city
at-large. The development of a TMA for Palo Alto was seen as a key component of this
approach, which the City funded via a $499,880 contract with consultants Moore Iacofano
Goltsman, Inc. (CMR #4766 August 11, 2014). After the TMA was formed in January 2016, this
contract continued to fund sub-consultant Wendy Silvani, who served as the TMA’s part-time
executive director. The TMA hired permanent part-time staff in April 2018. This executive
director resigned due to family illness in July 2018, and the TMA was able to hire a new
executive director immediately to provide continuity of leadership.
City of Palo Alto Page 2
In June 2016, Council authorized the City Manager to formalize the provision of additional City
funding for TMA programs by executing a funding agreement between the City of Palo Alto, the
Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF), and the Palo Alto TMA. Because the TMA was not
yet an approved Section 501(c)(3) organization (its application was pending with the Internal
Revenue Service), the TMA operated as a program of SVCF. SVCF held and administered a fund
restricted to specific charitable purposes and had legal discretion and control over the
restricted account. When the TMA received its formal 501(c)(3) status, SVCF ceased to be the
organization’s program sponsor and to act as the TMA’s fiscal agent.
The City Council approved an agreement with the Palo Alto TMA and the Silicon Valley
Community Foundation (SVCF) in June 2016 to provide $100,000 in funding for TMA programs
to reduce single-occupancy vehicle (SOV) commute trips to and from downtown Palo Alto.
Under a subsequent amendment, the City provided an additional $100,000 to support the
TMA’s work in 2017. The City Council adopted an FY18 budget that included $480,000 for the
Palo Alto TMA to continue to support its efforts to reduce SOV commute trips using a variety of
strategies. An amended and restated agreement signed in 2017 incorporated this approved
funding, extended the agreement’s term and set forth the parties’ obligations over the
remaining years. This 2017 funding agreement delegated authority to the City Manager to
amend the agreement to add funding if the Council chose to budget additional funds for future
fiscal years and to remove the SVCF as a party once the TMA received IRS section 501(c)(3)
nonprofit status and no longer required SCVF to act as the TMA’s fiscal agent. In December
2018, the agreement was amended to incorporate additional funds allocated for FY19 and to
reflect the fact that the SVCF no longer serves as the financial agent for the TMA now that the
TMA is a non-profit.
In April 2019, the Council Finance Committee received a presentation from the TMA and
provided feedback on the TMA Strategic Plan. On May 15, 2019, the Finance Committee
recommended an increase in employee parking permit rates to provide the TMA additional
funding of up to $180,000, for a total of $660,000 annually. On June 17, 2019, the Council
voted to increase the FY20 budget recommendation by $90,000 from the University Avenue
Parking Permit Fund for a total amount of $750,000. In July 2019, the agreement was amended
to reflect the Council’s appropriation of $750,000 for FY20.
Discussion
This informational item transmits the 2019 TMA Annual Report (Attachment A), including
commute program data, results and analysis of the Fall 2019 Downtown Commute Survey, and
a summary of the 2020 Strategic Business Plan. These reports are required under the TMA’s
funding agreement with the City. In the past year, the TMA has used City funds to purchase
transit passes for low-income workers, supporting their use of transit, and to subsidize other
programs such as carpooling and ride-share aimed at increasing all downtown commuters’ use
of alternative modes of transportation.
City of Palo Alto Page 3
Data from the 2019 Downtown Commute Survey is included in the TMA Annual Report and is
one of two ways that the TMA has been measuring its effectiveness. Emulating SRPGo’s
“outreach-focused” commute survey, the TMA’s Fall 2019 survey done in-house by TMA staff
cost 40% less than using an outside vendor, and the methodology was successfully modified to
increase program participation by downtown employees by 30% by encouraging respondents
to directly enroll in TMA programs via links in the survey. Because this new outreach-focused
methodology tripled the overall response rate, and especially those of service and technology
commuters who were not yet participants in TMA programs, the survey data show an increase
in downtown SOV commute mode share (52% in 2019 vs. 49% in 2018). For reference, the SOV
rate in 2015 was surveyed to be 57%. Similarly, given the new survey methodology that
captures more SOV commuters, the data show a decrease in transit usage (25% in 2019 vs. 27%
in 2018). Transit mode share in 2015 was 18%. In addition to this survey, the TMA tracks the
transit passes it distributes and commuter participation in a variety of other programs. Using
this program-generated data, the TMA estimates that during the four quarters of 2019, over
300 daily SOV trips were converted to other modes through TMA programs. The peak quarter
of January through March saw 386 daily SOV trips converted, and the lowest quarter of July
through September reported 307 daily SOV trips converted. April through June and the final
quarter of 2019 posted approximately 330 daily SOV trips converted using TMA programs.
The annual report also shares the outcomes of a privately funded $100,000 pilot program that
demonstrated the demand for the TMA’s programs in the California Avenue Business District
from March to October 2019. The successful program ran from March through October of 2019,
encompassed 20 businesses, and quickly surpassed its goal of distributing 50 transit passes per
month during its second month. The TMA Strategic Plan summary discusses growth areas for
the organization including expansion to the California Avenue Business District pending City
funding availability.
Policy Implications
The funding agreement between the City and the Palo Alto Transportation Management
Association (TMA) requires that the TMA strategic plan be regularly updated. In addition, the
transportation demand management (TDM) services provided by the TMA are consistent with
the following Comprehensive Plan policies and programs:
Policy T-1.1 Take a comprehensive approach to reducing single-occupant vehicle trips by
involving those who live, work and shop in Palo Alto in developing strategies that make it easier
and more convenient not to drive.
Policy T-1.2 Collaborate with Palo Alto employers and business owners to develop, implement
and expand comprehensive programs like the TMA to reduce single-occupant vehicle commute
trips, including through incentives.
City of Palo Alto Page 4
Program T1.2.1 Create a long-term education program to change the travel habits of residents,
visitors, shoppers and workers by informing them about transportation alternatives, incentives
and impacts. Work with the PAUSD and with other public and private interests, such as the
Chamber of Commerce and Commuter Wallet partners, to develop and implement this
program.
Program T1.2.4 Evaluate the performance of pilot programs implemented by the Palo Alto
Transportation Management Association and pursue expansion from Downtown to California
Avenue and other areas of the city when appropriate.
Program T1.2.6 Pursue full participation of Palo Alto employers in the TMA.
Policy T-1.13 Encourage services that complement and enhance the transportation options
available to help Palo Alto residents and employees make first/last mile connections and travel
within the city for daily needs without using a single-occupancy vehicle, including shuttle, taxi
and ridesharing services.
Policy T-2.2 As part of the effort to reduce traffic congestion, seek ongoing funding and engage
employers to operate and expand TMAs to address transportation and parking issues as
appropriate in the City’s employment districts.
Program T2.2.1 Work in partnership with the Palo Alto TMA and Stanford University to
aggregate data and realize measurable reductions in single-occupant vehicle commuting to and
from Downtown and in the Stanford Research Park.
Policy T-5.5 Minimize the need for employees to park in and adjacent to commercial centers,
employment districts and schools.
Program T7.1.1 Expand transportation opportunities for transit-dependent riders by supporting
discounts for taxi fares, rideshare services and transit, by coordinating transit systems to be
shared by multiple senior housing developments, by maintaining a database of volunteer
drivers and other transit options.
Resource Impact (as needed):
A total of $750,000 was budgeted for FY20 from the University Avenue Parking fund. TMA
funding for FY2021 will be considered in the annual budget process and is subject to Council
approval.
Timeline
The funding agreement between the City and the TMA lasts through the end of Fiscal Year (FY)
2020 (June 30, 2020).
Environmental Review
City of Palo Alto Page 5
This is an informational item, and no action will be taken, therefore no environmental review is
required.
Attachments:
• Attachment A: 2019 TMA Annual Report, Survey, & 2020 Strategic Plan Summary
Calendar Year 2019 Annual Report
Version 1.08. Short URL to this document: https://bit.ly/PATMA2019report
By Steve Raney and Kruti Ladani
SUMMARY: ’19 Annual Report & ‘20 Strategic Plan
This five-page summary provides Palo Alto staff and Council with the most important portions of the TMA’s 2019
Annual Report and 2020 Strategic Plan. Included in this section: 1) How the TMA will help The City, 2)
Cost-saving offers from the TMA to The City, 3) Requests for guidance, 4) The TMA’s productive use of funds,
5) The Fall 2019 downtown commute survey.
Summary.1. 2020 Strategic Plan Summary: TMA will help The City achieve budget and policy objectives
The TMA will accelerate Palo Alto economic recovery from COVID-19
On multiple occasions, Council has requested special support for hard-hit local, service, and small businesses.
The TMA is an essential part of The City’s business support toolkit. The TMA is working hard to support current
struggling businesses (for new teleworkers, we have added coaching and technical support office hours).
Supporting University Ave and Cal Ave businesses is vital to getting the economy back on track. The TMA will
accelerate economic recovery by providing Palo Alto with a competitive hiring advantage over cities without
TMAs. Employers and employees testify to the TMA’s crucial role: 1
●“The PATMA subsidies are amazing. Thanks for helping reduce traffic and conserve energy!!!”
●“The TMA provides an amazing program! Having a Caltrain pass is SO HELPFUL, especially the days
when I'm called off early. Before this program, there were days when I was paying more to get to work
than I was making at work.”
●“This is a fantastic program! I wish more cities would offer this assistance to people working in their
cities. This is a great help!”
●“Without this program, I would not be able to work down here in Palo Alto. So KEEP this program
ALIVE!”
Perceived employee risk starts when commuters leave their home, not just when they enter their office. The
TMA will guide employers on safe return-to-workplace practices that increase employee confidence.
The TMA’s groundbreaking federally funded social equity research found indications that rehiring service 2
workers will be unusually difficult because idled workers will move out of the Bay Area. “In the Bay Area from
2000 to 2015, there was a large displacement of African American and Latinx residents from the urban core to
the far outer edge of the Bay Area. This displacement increased commute distances. Of the low-income people
of color who moved during the period, 30 percent moved entirely out of the Bay Area.”
The TMA will help deliver on the adopted City S/CAP Key Actions for Mobility:
MOB1 - Implement solutions and incentives to reduce SOV travel
MOB3 - Fund the TMA with the goal of reducing SOV commute-trips downtown by 30 percent
MOB5 - Provide incentives for the appropriate mode of travel
1 Testimonials From PATMA’s 2019 Downtown Commute Survey
2 Appendix C, “Social Equity and Accessibility: Low-income Transit Pass Program,” for City of Palo Alto’s Fair Value Commuting Project,
October 2019
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 1 of 41
As the economy recovers, the return by commuters to the workplace offers a unique opportunity to establish
new commute habits and to reduce SOV. PATMA will exploit this habit-formation period to further distance
post-COVID from business-as-usual. 3
The TMA will provide employers with Return-to-Workplace commute consultation, helping employers provide
safe options as the transportation system recovers.
In 2020, the TMA will utilize our entrepreneurial skills to develop a ground-breaking, cost-effective, scalable bike
commute incentive program (also supporting scooters and skateboards and bike-to-transit) with leading-edge
mobile trip verification and commuter wallet mobile payment technology. Commuter incentives will be directed to
local Palo Alto merchants. We will pursue grant funding to strengthen the program.
Summary.2. 2020 Strategic Plan Summary: Cost-Saving and Strategic Offers by the TMA to The City
The TMA can develop a 98%-Accurate Business Registry for The City, kept current by the month or quarter.
The TMA developed a door-to-door process for the commute survey that yielded valuable data for an update of
the Business Registry. The City Auditor Report found the current Business Registry dataset to be unreliable as
did PATMA. Because of the extreme fiscal circumstances, The City may be able to negotiate a cost-reduction
from the current contract.
●Such a registry will be a vital tool in gauging the strength of economic recovery within the city.
●A current contact person for each employer can allow the TMA to collect important public health
information from businesses as well as provide more successful public health outreach to businesses.
●Such a registry will inform The City’s analysis and deliberations about a Business Headcount Tax.
●The TMA will work closely with property managers and will have access to new tenants to help form
green commute habits.
The TMA can lead a streamlined update of The City’s TDM Program, Ordinance, and SB743 implementation.
Because of the extreme fiscal circumstances, The City may be able to negotiate a cost-reduction from the
current contract.
●The TMA has analyzed best practices for TDM Programs, Ordinances, and SB743 implementation in
ten nearby cities. The analysis covers fines, occupancy triggers, annual reporting, driveway count
methodology, commute survey methodology, commute program expenditure reporting, and cost-efficacy
reporting. We have identified the need to refine ITE Trip Generation in a post-COVID world with
increased telework. Hence the TMA can lead a simple process to identify best practices from those
cities. The TMA has unique expertise in next-generation employer commute program software that can
provide a precise daily commute dashboard, calculating VMT/GHG for each employee with knowledge
of commute mode and vehicle make/model/mpg.
●The TMA can convene the nearby cities and the Manzanita Talks effort to progress consensus towards
consistent, standardized TDM Programs.
●Following the example of Santa Monica’s TMA, the TMA can undertake the majority of the city’s TDM
Compliance work. SB743 implementation requires increased TDM Compliance effort.
●The TMA can develop Accela Smart City TDM Compliance workflow automation software, providing a
sortable open-data dashboard with GIS parcel search. Residents Arthur Keller and Neilson Buchanon
have championed transparent accountability for The City’s TDM Program. Because of the extreme fiscal
circumstances, The City may be able to negotiate a cost-reduction from the current contract.
Council’s April 13, 2020 S/CAP transportation discussion included guidance by Mayor Fine, Councilmember
Cormack, and City Manager Shikada on congestion pricing and behavioral “sticks.” The TMA offers to provide
a unique, streamlined pricing analysis where different policies are ranked on dimensions including {political
viability, VMT/GHG impact, cost-efficacy, social equity, ease-of-implementation, and breadth of applicability}. 4
Policies for consideration include: parking meters, gas tax increase, internal-combustion-engine-free
electric-vehicle-only parking days, cordon charging (East Palo Alto and Mountain View have considered),
mandatory work from home, per-mile Road User Charge, auto insurance that changes behavior, workplace SOV
3 The TMA is a thought-leader on the commute ramp up as shelter-in-place loosens and on post-COVID commuting, Commuting after
COVID-19: The pattern will change, but not dramatically, https://medium.com/@steve_52928/commuting-after-covid-19-28cf16a6b9b0
4 “Rank Eight Congestion Reduction Pricing Policies via the Delphi Method,” Steve Raney, ITS World Congress, #AM-SP0789, Nov 2017.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 2 of 41
charge, workplace parking cashout, and capping SOV commuting at 50%. A stakeholder input process will
comprise an essential part of the policy ranking.
Summary.3. 2020 Strategic Plan Summary: Requests for Policy and TMA Guidance from The City
In support of economic recovery and S/CAP, should The City modify the PATMA/City funding agreement to
allow the use of City funds beyond downtown Palo Alto? Permissions would allow commute reduction in all of
Palo Alto, including Cal Ave (excluding SRP).
In support of S/CAP and The City’s Bicycle + Pedestrian Transportation Plan (with the unrealized 2012-20
goal to double bike commute trips):
●should staff be provided with discretion to leverage up to $25,000 of TMA budget for use as
“cost-sharing” or “matching funds” for grant proposals for cost-effective pilots?
●Should The City study conversion of City-controlled automobile parking spaces into secure bike
parking?
●In the future, should The City initiate a Downtown Area Plan process with improvements for biking?
There is scant US precedent for TMAs generating fee-for-TDM-service, except where there is a government
mandate. Council mandated that Hotel Parmani and the new Marriotts join the TMA. The President Hotel
developers approached the TMA, and we developed a $40K/year TDM program for them (should they obtain
approvals). For approvals going forward, The City may enact more join-the-TMA mandates, ensuring that new
buildings pay for themselves without City-provided TDM subsidy?
Eight out of twelve Bay Area TMAs operate shuttles. Over time, should The City transfer shuttle operation from
The City to the TMA? 5
Summary.4. 2019 Annual Report Summary: The TMA’s Productive Use of City Funds in 2019
The TMA is very grateful for The City’s generous FY2020 funding of $750,000.
In our Annual Report, the TMA welcomes the opportunity to justify our existence every year. Our maturing TMA
is taking more than 333 cars off the street: For the last quarter of CY2019, 333 cars were removed, 221.0 by the
transit pass program, 9.9 by Scoop, 95.1 by Waze Carpool, and 7.3 by the Lyft after-hours program. We also
proved the demand for our transit pass program on Cal Ave, resourcefully utilizing $100,000 in private sector
funding. Council pushed us hard for better metrics, so we developed industry-best metrics - Councilmember
Filseth champions changing TDM from "effort-based" to "performance-based." Collaborating with the City, we
have created an ongoing expert evaluation. In the entire industry, our Annual Report is unique in providing
transparent, quantified analysis. The TMA is more than twice as cost-effective as adding a new $33M parking
structure and more cost-effective than the large employer TDM efforts. During SRPGo’s 2019 presentation to
Council, Mayor Fine asked SRPGo to adopt PATMA metrics.
In CY2019, the TMA:
●Lowered our hourly labor costs significantly. Our hourly costs are one-half of other Bay Area TMAs
●Decreased our management overhead percentage-of-expense significantly, down to a svelte 10.5%
●Lowered the cost of our annual commute survey by 40% while tripling the number of responses and
increasing program adoption by 30%
●Brought in $40,000 via a Federal Transit Administration Grant
●Brought in $54,000 from Palantir
●Brought in $50,000 from Facebook
●Collected more than $30K in Board dues
●Modified our bylaws to allow fee-for-TMA-services in adjacent cities, offering our services to East Palo
Alto nascent TDM effort.
We recruited a new TMA staffer, Kruti Ladani, who has exceeded expectations. We renewed our talented Board
of Directors:
5 Altrans TMA Inc, providers of PATMA staffing, operates numerous shuttle services. In 2019, The Altrans Mountain View Community
Shuttle carried 446,000 riders: Annual 2019 Operations Report.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 3 of 41
●bringing in five new Directors: Premier Property’s Brad Ehikian, Westin’s Amit Patel, Cal Ave
restaurateur Zareen Kahn, Amazon/A9’s Mattew Weinberg, and Palantir’s Carmel Moyal,
●keeping The City’s Michelle Flaherty,
●while seeing four directors depart: Lemonade’s Rob George - who left to increase The City’s employee
retention and commute program, Palantir’s Bob McGrew, Google’s Lucy Noble, and IDEO’s Jonah
Houston.
At the staff and Board level, we have increased the TMA’s diversity and expanded perspectives to cover a larger
portion of The City.
As far as financial performance, in CY 2019, PATMA had $848,887 in revenue with $791,385 in expenses. 74%
of our budget went straight to commuter subsidies.
No Bay Area TMA obtains city General Fund allocations. Some cities provide TMA funding via property-based
improvement districts. To fund PATMA, Council raised downtown parking permit prices (user fees paid for by
for-profit beneficiaries) and gave that increased revenue to the TMA. Compared to all other forms of U.S. TMA
funding, this mechanism is the most-directly aligned with behavior change away from SOV commuting.
PATMA continues to occupy a unique position. In the entire US, one other city, South Bend, has joined Palo Alto
in providing a full-subsidy transit pass program. Bloomberg Philanthropies is funding the South Bend pilot
program that is one-quarter the size of Palo Alto’s, providing transit passes and subsidized Lyft rides to
late-night workers and employees with odd shifts.
Employers are spending millions on TDM. The 2021 FASTER regional 1% sales tax has a novel TDM provision
where employers will be required to pay about $360/year on non-SOV commuters and contribute the same $360
(into a regional TDM funding pot) for each SOV commuter. The TDM provision will make this expenditure more
transparent to the public. The TMA provided expert analysis/guidance on FASTER reporting/metrics to the
regional ACT NorCal TDM association, SVLG, and Bay Area Council.
Summary.5. 2019 Annual Report Summary: Fall 2019 Downtown Commute Survey
SRPGo uses their commute survey as an outreach tool. States Jamie Jarvis, “Our survey is our number one
engagement and outreach opportunity. That’s why we emphasize continuing to increase the survey response
rate.” In 2019, PATMA converted the downtown survey also to be outreach-focused, generating program growth
over the next three months of 31% for Waze Carpool, 38% for Transit Passes, and 70% for After-hours Lyft. The
survey’s motto, “Take the survey today, try a new mode tomorrow morning.”
In previous years, EMC Research conducted the Commute Survey. In 2019, PATMA staff undertook the survey
work in-house:
●tripling response rate from 486 to 1,471
●quadrupling the number of participating employers from 44 to 156.
●reducing the cost by 40% from $38,500 to $22,500
●generating more than 30% commute program growth.
To increase the response rate, TMA staff laboriously undertook block-by-block, door-to-door canvassing
resulting in a dataset of 800 downtown businesses that was provided to The City to help update the Business
Registry. The previous one-size-fits-all survey instrument created confusion as some employers have
well-developed in-house TDM programs, and only some employees qualify for the TMA’s low-income programs.
In response, the TMA added survey branching to segment employees and also created custom surveys to meet
the needs of different employers. The TMA went so far as to create employer-specific surveys for The City,
Palantir, and A9 that combine employer program questions with TMA program questions. Within those three
custom surveys, respondents were motivated to contact their employer or the TMA about specific programs.
Further, the TMA enabled Palantir and A9 to bring the survey behind their firewalls so that they could meet their
data protection/privacy requirements while still providing the same survey data to the TMA as other employers.
PATMA’s methodology is unique in the U.S.
The commute survey segments downtown into government, light office, service, and technology employers.
Government and light office SOV mode share decreased from 2018 to 2019. Increased response rate within an
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 4 of 41
employer increases resultant SOV mode share because proud non-SOV commuters are the first survey
responders. Service response rate tripled, and technology quadrupled, resulting in higher SOV mode share.
Specifically for service employers, previous surveys focused on participating employers. Specifically for
technology, a much wider variety of small, medium, and large tech employers participated in 2019, where
small/medium do not have the internal TDM programs of larger employers.
Figure Summary.1: Number of responses and SOV mode share by subtype, 2017-19
PATMA was happy to go well beyond the contractual requirements for the Annual Survey, surveying
non-downtown City staff {MSC, Community Center, libraries, etc}. The City’s downtown workers have 42% SOV
commute mode share. As would be expected, non-downtown staff with fewer commute alternatives have 78%
SOV share.
Summary.6. The rest of this annual report
The three numbered sections of the annual report cover:
●Program Results
●the Cal Ave Transit Pass Program Pilot
●Bike Love Active Modes Pilot.
Also, three appendices are provided covering:
●Commute Survey Details
●Downtown Employment Headcount
●the report entitled “Social Equity and Accessibility: Low-income Transit Pass Program,” prepared for The
City’s Fair Value Commuting Project, part of the Federal Transit Administration's Mobility on Demand
Sandbox program.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 5 of 41
Section 1: Program Results
1A. Downtown Cars Removed, Commute Program Notes, Mode Shift, VMT/GHG Reduction
Commuters shifted from
SOV
PATMA Program Q1 '18 Q2 '18 Q3 '18 Q4 '18 Jan-Mar'19 Apr-Jun '19 Jul-Sep '19 Oct-Dec '19
Transit pass subsidy 90.0 100.0 149.0 227.3 238.0 199.7 185.0 221.0
Scoop 43.2 42.4 52.5 50.4 73.6 64.5 38.4 9.9
Waze Carpool 10.8 17.3 32.7 44.1 65.5 52.6 75.6 95.1
Lyft 5.5 5.9 7.3 10.4 9.3 9.4 8.2 7.3
total 149.5 165.6 241.6 332.2 386.5 326.2 307.3 333.3
Transit/Lyft service mode shift 4.77% 5.29% 7.82% 11.89% 12.37% 10.46% 9.66% 11.42%
Scoop/Waze office mode shift 1.80% 1.99% 2.84% 3.15% 4.64% 3.90% 3.80% 3.50%
Vehicle Miles Traveled
PATMA Program Q1 '18 Q2 '18 Q3 '18 Q4 '18 Jan-Mar'19 Apr-Jun '19 Jul-Sep '19 Oct-Dec '19
Transit pass subsidy 138,413 153,792 229,150 338,681 366,025 307,123 284,515 339,880
Scoop 51,910 52,623 64,131 60,582 87,033 79,949 47,639 11,927
Waze Carpool 15,050 20,236 83,527 106,752 72,785 112,063 141,010 153,183
Lyft 1,082 1,200 1,475 2,066 1,960 2,171 1,710 1,098
total VMT reduced 206,454 227,850 378,283 508,081 527,802 501,305 474,874 506,088
total lbs GHG reduced 187,047 206,432 342,725 460,321 478,189 454,183 430,236 458,516
metric tons reduced 85 94 155 209 217 206 195 208
societal benefit $43,562 $48,076 $79,818 $107,205 $111,366 $105,775 $100,199 $106,785
Table 1.1: Cars removed by TMA Program, Mode Shift, VMT/GHG reduction
●“Transit/Lyft service mode shift” is the percentage of service workers that are served by PATMA
programs. This is calculated as the number served divided by the number of downtown service workers,
which was estimated as 2,000 by PATMA in 2017.
●“Scoop/Waze office mode shift” is the percentage of office workers that are served by PATMA programs
and is calculated as the number served divided by the number of downtown office workers, which is
estimated as 3,000 by PATMA in 2017.
●“Societal benefit” is calculated as $0.21 per VMT reduced. 6
In addition to reducing cars downtown, in 2019, the TMA proved the ability to eliminate 60 or more cars from Cal
Ave.
6 FHWA’s Allen Greenberg provides an estimated $0.211 benefit for each VMT reduced, broken out as A) $0.101 for broad societal benefit
from the reduction of: congestion, crashes, criteria air pollutants, noise and GHG, and B) $0.11 individual driver benefit from reduced gas
and auto insurance costs. From “Designing pay-per-mile auto insurance regulatory incentives,” Transportation Research Part D: Transport
and the Environment, Volume 14D, 2009, pages 437-445.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 6 of 41
Notes on the Downtown public transit subsidy program for low-income workers
'19 Transit Pgm Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
Passes Activated 240 245 229 214 198 187 183 184 188 196 223 244
New applications 22 28 0 0 0 0 0 16 11 23 50 28
Turnover 23 23 16 15 16 11 4 15 7 15 23 7
Percent turnover 9.6% 9.4% 7.0% 7.0% 8.1% 5.9% 2.2% 8.2% 3.7% 7.7% 10.3% 2.9%
Table 1.2: Clipper Card monthly transit passes activated by month, 2019
To avoid running out of funds, we stopped accepting applications mid-way through February, and we resumed
again in August.
Notes on Waze Carpool and Scoop
Google’s Waze Carpool participation rose during 2019, while Scoop ridership declined. The TMA decided to
focus on the Waze Carpool, ending the Scoop program. The TMA is still very enthusiastic about Scoop’s
long-term prospects - Scoop partners, including SRPGo, indicate that substantial Scoop ridership can be
achieved in other locations. The TMA negotiated a contract update with Waze, yielding higher costs in 2020 that
are still cost-effective compared to other TDM programs.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 7 of 41
As of the end of 2019, 85 downtown employers participate in the transit pass program:
Employer Passes Employer Passes Employer Passes
Sheraton 35 Coconuts Caribbean 2 HanaHaus 1
Westin Palo Alto 30 Creamery 2 Heinichen's Garage 1
Coupa Cafe 20 Design Within Reach 2 Houzz (Medallion) 1
Apple 15 La Strada 2 Il Fornaio 1
Crepevine 10 Medallion rug Gallery 2 Institute for the Future 1
Oren's Hummus Shop 10 Old Pro 2 La Selva 1
Verve 9 Onigilly 2 Landmark theater 1
Dntn Kindercare 7 PAMF - MIDA Industries 2 Lemonade 1
Dntn Streets Team 7 Pizzeria Delfina 2 Local Union 271 1
Reposado 7 Rejuvenation 2 MacArthur Park 1
Comm. Pharm. Walgrns 6 Tacolicious 2 Mac's smoke shop 1
Whole Foods Market 6 Tam Tam Restaurant 2 Mills the florist 1
Buca di Beppo 5 The Pace Gallery 2 Nola Restaurant 1
Lytton Gardens 4 Union Bank 2 Palo Alto Bicycles 1
MNT Studio 4 Walgreens 2 Palo Alto Club 1
Patagonia 4 Apercen 1 Palo Alto Creamery 1
Patxis Pizza 4 Avenidas 1 PATMA 1
Webster House 4 b8ta 1 Peninsula Creamery 1
Cardinal Hotel 3 Bare Bowls 1 Premier Talent Partners 1
Clement Hotel 4 Bell's Book 1 Rangoon Ruby 1
Dan Gordon’s 3 Bryant Street Gallery 1 Reservoir Engr Rsrch 1
Gobble 3 Cafe 220 1 Rose & Crown 1
Gong Cha 3 Comerica Bank 1 Salt & Straw 1
JOYA Restaurant 3 Connie Ho MD 1 Steam 1
Keen Garage 3 Footwear 1 Tamarine 1
The Hamilton 3 Garden Court Hotel 1 The Tap Room 1
AT & T 2 Gleim The Jeweler 1 Watercourse Way 1
Bistro Maxine 2 GW & Wade, LLC 1 Yayoi 1
Channing House 2
Table 1.3: 85 downtown employers participate in the TMA’s transit program
1B. Cost-efficacy: Annual cost per each employee shifted away from SOV
PATMA Program Efficacy
Oct-Dec '18,
non-SOV
cost/yr
Jan-Mar '19,
non-SOV
cost/yr
Apr-Jun '19,
non-SOV
cost/yr
Jul-Sep '19,
non-SOV
cost/yr
Oct-Dec '19,
non-SOV
cost/yr
Transit Pass Subsidy - pass outlay $1,572 $1,708 $1,429 $1,719 $1,577
Waze Carpool $1,224 $777 $1,026 $714 $568
Scoop Program $2,729 $1,830 $1,920 $1,920 $1,860
Lyft Program $1,855 $2,088 $2,282 $2,399 $2,331
Table 1.4: Cost for one year’s worth of non-SOV commuting (or freeing up one parking space)
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 8 of 41
1C. 2019 Income Statement
INCOME CY 2019 EXPENSES CY 2019
City of Palo Alto $677,500 TMA Management $82,986
Fair Value Commuting (FTA
MoD) $39,981 Program Operation Labor $49,634
Google $10,000 Transit Passes $347,587
Facebook $50,000 Cal Ave Transit Pilot Labor $24,929
Palantir $63,990 Cal Ave Transit Passes $69,555
SVCF $7,416 Scoop $99,448
TOTAL INCOME $848,887 Waze Carpool (Google) $48,398
Lyft $24,989
CY 2019 SURPLUS $57,502 Commute Survey $22,450
Administrative overhead 10.5% Fair Value Commuting Research $8,284
Direct commute benefits $589,977 Rent, office, insurance, legal $13,126
% Direct commute benefits 74.5% TOTAL EXPENSES $791,385
Table 1.5: 2019 Income Statement
Section 2. Cal Ave Transit Pass Program Pilot
2A. Pilot Description and Results
Palo Alto Transportation Management Association’s (PATMA’s) downtown low-income worker transit pass
program is the only such program in the US. It is crucial because of challenges including:
●30% of Silicon Valley residents cannot meet their basic needs without financial assistance,
●ongoing displacement of low-income people from the urban core to the far outer edge of the Bay Area.
With the Cal Ave Transit Pass Program Pilot, PATMA purchased, distributed, and tracked transit passes for Cal
Ave service workers making less than $70,000 per year. We bought more than 50 passes per month, with the
program operating for eight months from March-October 2019. We are very grateful to participating Cal Ave
employers and to our two $50,000 funders, Palantir, and Facebook.
Pilot boundaries encompassed people working at businesses and organizations at California Avenue, Town &
Country Village, the area along El Camino Real, and school district offices. Transit options in the area include
Caltrain, VTA 22, VTA 522, VTA 101, VTA 102, VTA 103, VTA 104, VTA 182, SamTrans ECR, and AC Transit
Dumbarton Express.
With the Pilot, we answered our two research questions in the affirmative:
●In an area with a lower level of transit service than downtown, is there sufficient demand? (Yes)
●Can PATMA’s downtown transit pass program scale to other locations staffed by different people and
organizations? (Justine Burt and Kruti Ladani did an excellent job!)
We have yet to answer the question of whether we can find a permanent funding source to restart the program.
There is sufficient demand
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 9 of 41
Some people were skeptical, but we found that Cal Ave demand, though significantly smaller than downtown
demand, was sufficient. With a modest outreach effort, demand grew to be one-fifth as big as downtown’s
demand. Coincidentally, Cal Ave Caltrain ridership is one-fifth as large as downtown. We also found that 7
demand grew rapidly from nothing to 50 passes in only two months.
The PATMA transit pass program can be brought to new locations
With Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s “Manzanita Talks,” eight cities and eight major employers are exploring
collaborative opportunities to reduce traffic. For current and new Transportation Management Associations,
efficient organizational structures are being considered to share program knowledge and resources. Both of our
Pilot funders are engaged in the Manzanita Talks.
To validate our second research question, we created a “mini-TMA” with separate staff and accounting. We
trained two new staff and validated our training “cookbook.” We verified that the complicated monthly workflow
utilizing PATMA’s transit pass backend could be spread. The Pilot operation ran relatively smoothly. Lessons
learned from Cal Ave also benefited the downtown transit pass program. We conclude that PATMA can expand
to new areas and that other cities involved in the Manzanita Talks can quickly adopt the unique PATMA transit
pass program.
Is there funding to restart the Cal Ave program?
Our ongoing attempts to secure permanent public or private funding of $10,000 per month to extend the
program have not yet been successful. We will quickly restart the program if/when funding arises. In the interim,
PATMA can provide fee-based commute program services to Cal Ave businesses.
One example of a funding mechanism is that of Downtown, where parking permit revenue funds commute
programs. Permit rates were explicitly increased to fund the TMA.
2B. Program Feedback
“There are a couple reasons I really love having the pass. It takes the extra strain off my mind of remembering to
purchase the pass every month because the program conveniently reminds me to renew the pass through the
reminder texts. It's a huge relief to take the train instead of driving through the tough Bay Area traffic every day.
And overall, I think my quality of life went up because now I have a little bit of extra money to save up every
month! I just got engaged, so every bit helps. Thanks a lot!”
●Carmen Lew, PIP Printing
Says one staffer from Embarcadero Publishing: “I am very disappointed and saddened to learn the transit pass
pilot program is ending.”
7 Caltrain 2018 average weekday ridership was 1,693 for Cal Ave and 7,764 for downtown Palo Alto.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 10 of 41
2C. Cal Ave transit program pilot metrics
2019 Cal Ave March Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct
Passes Activated 41 59 52 58 59 49 53 48
New applications 45 29 3 7 5 3 4 0
Turnover 0 11 10 1 4 13 0 5
Percent turnover 18.6% 19.2% 1.7% 6.8% 26.5% 0.0% 10.4%
Table 2.1: Cal Ave Monthly Metrics
20 businesses on California Ave participated in the Cal Avenue Transit Pass Pilot Program:
Employer Transit passes per
employer % of program
Embarcadero Media 7 13.0%
La Bodeguita del Medio 7 13.0%
The Counter 6 11.1%
Zareen's 5 9.3%
Momentum for Mental Health 4 7.4%
Starbucks 4 7.4%
Massage Therapy Center 3 5.6%
PIP Printing of Palo Alto 3 5.6%
Country Sun Natural Foods 2 3.7%
Next Insurance 2 3.7%
Summit Bicycles 2 3.7%
Abbey Neuropsych Clinic 1 1.9%
Babka By ayelet 1 1.9%
Bank of the West 1 1.9%
Blossom Birth and Family 1 1.9%
Gott's Roadside 1 1.9%
Izzy's Brooklyn Bagels 1 1.9%
Kali Greek Kitchen 1 1.9%
Self Employed 1 1.9%
SpiceKit 1 1.9%
Grand Total 54 100.0%
Table 2.2: Participating Cal Ave Employers
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 11 of 41
Section 3: 2020 Bike Love Active Modes Program
Compared to other U.S. bike commute incentive programs, PATMA will develop, test, and implement a
higher-tech program that recycles incentive dollars into local Palo Alto businesses. The program will be twice as
cost-effective as PATMA’s transit, Waze Carpool, and Lyft after-hours programs. Additionally, our program will
incentivize scooter and skateboard commuting.
3A. The Need and Potential for a Bike Love Pilot
In the 2012 Bicycle + Pedestrian Transportation Plan (BPTP), the City of Palo Alto aspired to double bicycle use
by 2020. This objective has not yet been achieved. Palo Alto’s Sustainability & Climate Action Plan also
supports increased biking.
Silicon Valley should be America’s biking capital. According to SFMTA Executive Director Jeff Tumlin’s keynote
presentation at Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s 2017 State of the Valley Conference, “American visitors to 8
Amsterdam, Copenhagen and other European cities are startled to learn the bicycle is the dominant mode of
commuting, despite the cold weather and challenging terrain. Why not Silicon Valley? We have a Mediterranean
climate, a flat landscape, and a health-conscious population that cares about the environment.” Joint Venture
and the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition produced the Silicon Valley Bike Vision report, providing a vision for
Silicon Valley becoming the national bike commuting leader and a roadmap for getting there. Bike Vision lists 9
Palo Alto resident 2012 commute mode share as 8.6%, creating a BPTP 2020 doubling objective of 17.2%:
Figure 3.1: From Silicon Valley Bike Vision, page 21
8 JVSV 2017 State of the Valley Conference, https://youtu.be/V8rV0ZUNRvE.
9 Silicon Valley Bike Vision report, by JVSV and SVBC,
https://jointventure.org/publications/joint-venture-publications/1522-silicon-valley-bike-vision,
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 12 of 41
According to the American Community Survey 2009, the bike commute mode share of workers commuting to
Palo Alto jobs was 2.3%. The BPTP 2020 in-commute doubling objective is approximately 4.6%.
Table 3.2: Palo Alto Bike In-commuting
The Need to Improve the Bike Network to Reduce Perceived Stress
There is a need to reduce the perceived stress of bike riding. In 2015, Google, Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition,
and Alta Planning teamed to create the Google North Santa Clara County Bike Vision Plan. 10
To increase the attractiveness of bike commuting (and bike first/last mile to/from transit), the project pioneered a
map-based analytics tool, the “Bike Network Stress Test,” to measure rider stress level by route. A mile biked on
a high-stress street feels eight times longer than a mile biked on a protected bike lane:
Figure 3.3: Google North Santa Clara County Bike Vision Plan, pg 20
The project identified low-cost techniques to mitigate high-stress points, with an overriding objective of making
Silicon Valley as bike-friendly as Copenhagen. Key points from the Google Bike Vision Plan:
●The reasons people chose not to ride are varied, but a key factor is the state of today’s roads and bike
network.
10 https://altaplanning.com/wp-content/uploads/Google-Bike-Vision-Plan_high_res.pdf.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 13 of 41
●60% of Silicon Valley’s population can be classified as “Interested but Concerned” and will only bicycle
on low-stress streets, having a low tolerance for high-stress streets or intersections.
●The Bike Network “4Cs:” Continuity, Connectivity, Convenience, and Completeness: Bike networks
must be continuous: too many bike lanes in the United States disappear at intersections and other
stressful spots. Bike networks must connect: a single gap in an otherwise complete bike route can
discourage potential bicyclists. Bike networks must be convenient: people won’t ride bikes to key
destinations if they must go far out of their way. It is also not enough to provide a network of bicycle
facilities without also considering what happens when a bike ride ends. A successful network includes
sidewalks, safe intersections, and access to transit and bike parking. This design approach is
sometimes called “Complete Streets.”
To attract “Interested but Concerned,” obstacles such as “high-stress streets” and “unfriendly intersections” must
be overcome:
●High-stress streets are those with multiple lanes and speed limits of 35 mph or more. Many streets that
have bike lanes are also high-stress; building traditional bike lanes on such streets isn’t enough to get
more people riding bikes. High-stress streets are often designed for driving speeds well above the
posted speed limit, discouraging all but the most confident of bicyclists. High-stress streets can also act
as barriers to bicycling, with easy crossings only possible at intersections with traffic lights.
●In addition to geographical barriers and high-stress streets, the design of intersections strongly
influences who chooses to ride a bicycle. There are several ways intersections can be unfriendly to
bicyclists:
○Bike lanes end before reaching the intersection
○Bike lanes merge across lanes of traffic
○Freeway on-ramps or off-ramps
○Uncontrolled crossings of multi-lane roads
○High-speed right-turn lanes (aka slip lanes).
The faster Palo Alto can build out the BPTP, the faster biking will increase.
Bike Commuting is Poised to Double
E-bikes increase achievable commute distance: Some of Silicon Valley’s major employers have promoted
e-bikes to shift mode away from SOV on 5- to 10-mile commutes, the distance with the highest SOV rate. E-bike
sales are skyrocketing in Europe, with a 25% market share for electric bikes in Germany. Continued 11
price/performance increases in the e-bike space will contribute to doubling biking.
Deloitte Insights forecasts that bike technology will explode in 2020 , “Technological innovations are making 12
bicycling more attractive to millions of commuters. Bicycling’s upswing in popularity could mean cleaner air, less
traffic, and healthier people for cities worldwide.”
MTC region expects that biking will win the most mode shift away from SOV commuting. From the MTC Horizon
Futures Final Report presentation, slide 18: “When it comes to achieving mode shift to address traffic congestion
across the future planning scenarios, strategies that prioritized active transportation saw the most pronounced
shifts in the regional model. Given the low cost relative to other investments studied, the benefit-cost ratio is
greater than one in all three Futures and the equity scores suggested that lower-income individuals received a
larger share of accessibility benefits than higher-income individuals, meaning this strategy advances equity
outcomes too."
Recent bike infrastructure improvements help bike adoption. Thee include the Managers Mobility Partnership’s
Peninsula Bikeway and the new Highway 101 overpass bike bridge near IKEA. 13
11 https://www.bike-eu.com/sales-trends/nieuws/2019/08/e-bike-sales-skyrockets-across-europe-10136495
12 Deloitte Insights, Dec 2019 article Cycling’s technological transformation: Making bicycling faster, easier, and safer,
https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/technology/technology-media-and-telecom-predictions/2020/bike-technology-transformation.html
13 http://peninsulabikeway.com
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 14 of 41
PATMA’s GIS analysis supports the potential for PATMA’s Bike Love to succeed. For “first mile by bike to
transit,” 80% of PATMA’s target commuters live within three miles of Caltrain, VTA LRT + Caltrain, or
Dumbarton Express.
Governor Newsome recently signed a bill providing e-bike vouchers to low-income individuals who trade in their
car for an e-bike.
If the November 2021 FASTER regional 1% transit sales tax measure passes, it provides an enhanced TDM
policy (~$360/year/commuter or upwards of $500M per year) to help scale non-SOV active modes.
Within this “commute behavior change” technology/investment space, ByCycling raised a substantial funding
round based on the Bike Love business model. In addition, Crunchbase indicates GetMiles has raised $6.1M
from 19 investors. This demonstrates private sector validation.
The Bike Love software platform can scale to serve the proposed Subregional TMA and can scale to major
employer commute programs.
Any new efforts by Palo Alto, such as initiating a Downtown Area Plan with bike improvements or increases to
the availability of secure bike parking, will also contribute to increased biking.
3B. Bike Commute Incentive Programs: The State of the Art
In the U.S. TDM universe, two TMAs and eight employers provide the following bike incentives:
TMA Bike Incentive Notes
Atlanta's Cash for Commuters $5/day, max $150
Yolo County T.R.I.P. $25/mo, max $75
Employer (usually via paychecks) Bike Incentive Notes
Anonymous Major Employer $5/day Habitual bikers earn more than $1,200/year
Seattle Children's Hospital $3.50/day Uses Luum commute software
Gates Foundation (Seattle) $3/day Uses Luum commute software
Sony $2/day
Ecology Action (Santa Cruz) $2/day Uses online timesheets by Neon
Oregon Health & Science U. $1.50/day Uses Luum commute software
Stanford U. Clean Air Cash $25/mo
Tesla daily incentive Bike trips verified by Dero ZAP
Google bike pumps/lights/jackets Via RideAmigos connected to Strava
Table 3.4: U.S. TMA and Employer Bike Incentives
Our new bike commute program will provide incentives that are four times larger than those of any other TMA
program in the U.S.
3C. PATMA Bike Love Concept and Feature Set
PATMA is developing a pilot with ByCycling (https://www.cashbycycling.com/) where the TMA, as a third party,
can incentivize verifiable, geofenced active mode commutes to Palo Alto. TMAs cannot tap directly into
employer payroll commute benefits, but TMAs can provide redeemable vouchers.
Commute.org has provided some Bike Love insights to PATMA based on Commute.org's experience with their
Carpool 2.0 rewards program, where they use Scoop connected to the RideAmigos commute program platform.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 15 of 41
Their commuters collect incentive points and then convert points into Tango gift cards for redemption via
national brands.
There are multiple software platforms for bike commute incentives, Dero ZAP, Redwood Shores’ GetMiles,
RideAmigos with Strava, and Luum with Strava. For our commuter and backend requirements, ByCycling is the
best fit. ByCycling’s iPhone/Android app is already available and their software roadmap and business model
align well with the TMA’s aspirations.
The pilot will provide daily incentives for active mode commutes (bike, e-bike, scooter, e-scooter, skateboard,
e-skateboard), up to $600 per commuter per year. Earned incentive points are redeemable for iPhone/Android
vouchers tied to individual local Palo Alto merchants that have capable “fintech point of sale (POS) terminals”
such as Square terminals. By this means, incentives recycle into the Palo Alto economy. PATMA expects Bike
Love to be the TMA’s most cost-effective program.
Some commute incentive programs use plastic gift cards where the TMA is required to purchase an inventory of
fixed denomination cards in advance of demand. The Bike Love pilot will pioneer “multi-merchant real-time
any-denomination” iPhone/Android vouchers - as would be expected in a mobile phone “commuter wallet.” POS
software vendors such as Square, Clover, and Toast are just introducing the enabling API this year. Provided
below is an example use case that was previously impossible to solve:
●The commuter has earned $200 in Bike Love points. She dines at a participating downtown
restaurant. The bill and tip come to $127. In less than 60 seconds, the commuter launches the Bike
Love app, selects the participating restaurant, enters $127, a single-merchant QR appears, and the
cashier scans the code.
Four “partner merchant” types will be supported, ” such as:
●“commute-focused:” public transit including Caltrain, PA Bicycles, BikeHub/BikeLink Caltrain bike
storage, Patagonia (for foul weather gear, etc.)
●“memory-making” merchants: {Reposado, Rooh, Mangosteen Nails & Spa, Watercourse Way, and Form
Fitness}.
●“once-a-week” local merchants: {Zareen’s, Coupa Cafe, Gong Cha, Oren’s, Morsey Creamery,}
●“weekly shopping” at WFM and CVS.
The challenge of redeeming the substantial $600 per year per commuter in Palo Alto will influence the
merchants we select.
Active mode commutes will be verified by an iPhone/Android app that can distinguish mobile phone sensor data
streams for active modes versus automobile travel. The accuracy of this emerging technology is improving each
month. Commute endpoints must be inside designated geofences for a commute trip to be validated. The pilot
will incent both active first-mile to transit and direct home-to-work active commuting. For first-mile bike commute
to Caltrain stations, the software platform allows for the configuration of geofences around station areas.
We have designed varied daily incentive amounts to maximize behavior change, higher in the first few weeks
and during winter. Program participation will be limited to:
●SOV commuters that convert to active modes
●workers that change job locations and have to establish new commute habits.
Because of flat tires, commuting via bike is less reliable than via automobile. For commuters who prefer not to
repair their flats, Bike Love will provide Lyft SUV to get the commuter to work and will also drop off the bike at
PA Bicycles for repair.
The Bike Love pilot will implement a threaded Facebook chat board providing:
●advice on best bike gear from other program participants
●real-time updates: “commute issues this AM because of construction”
●a PATMA competition (vacation giveaway) in conjunction with a media outlet for the safest nighttime
bike lighting
●software feature requests.
Upon enrollment, commuters will opt-in to having both ByCycling and PATMA access to their data. ByCycling
and PATMA will jointly “own” the commuters.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 16 of 41
The pilot will support technology, light office, government, and service workers. Specifically for service workers,
cell phone ownership is now very high in the US, at 92% for non-high school graduates, 96% for Latinx
commuters, and 95% for commuters earning less than $30,000 per year. Feature-rich smartphone market 14
penetration has increased from roughly 40% in 2011 to 80% in 2018. Cellphone and smartphone market
penetration will likely increase each year. As far as any service workers being unbanked, Bike Love provides
financial incentives without requiring a bank account.
Active mode commuting has some holistic hurdles. The TMA will advocate for:
●increasing the number of secure bike storage parking spaces, possibly converting City of Palo Alto
automobile parking spaces into bike parking
●accelerating implementation of the BPTP to de-stress routes
●building multi-city bike corridors.
Appendix A: Commute Survey Details
A1. Downtown Commute Mode Share by Employment Subtype:
SOV Transit Carpool Bike Walk Telecommute # of Responses
Government 42% 39% 8% 7% 1% 3% 155
Light Office 60% 18% 6% 4% 4% 8% 413
Service 70% 20% 4% 3% 2% 1% 386
Technology 37% 39% 5% 5% 4% 9% 517
“Overall”
Weighted
Total
52.3% 25.4% 4.7% 5.1% 4.1% 7.8% weighted
Table A.1: Downtown mode share: by subtype and overall share, calculated with the following weighting: 13% Government,
25% Light Office, 28% Service, 34% Technology
Downtown Mode Share by Worksite:
Figure A.2: Mode share by subtype
14 Pew Research Center: Internet and Technology’s Mobile Fact Sheet: https://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheet/mobile/
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 17 of 41
Government workers mode share. SOV has declined every year. n = 155
Figure A.3: Five-year Government commute mode share
Downtown government mode SOV decrease is caused by The City’s change in benefits vendor that made
non-SOV program enrollment easier. Also, the recently retiring City staff had higher SOV use, and recent City
staff recruits have utilized transit at a higher rate.
Light Office workers mode share. SOV decreased in 2019. n = 413
Figure A.4: Five-year Light Office mode share
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 18 of 41
Service workers mode share. n =386
Figure A.5: Five-year Service Worker mode share
Tech workers mode share. n = 517
Figure A.6: Five-year Tech Worker mode share
A2. Overall Downtown Commute Mode Share
As explained in Appendix B, calculating downtown employment and employment share by our four employment
subtypes is challenging. Using the weighting provided by the previous survey contractor, EMC, results in an
increase in overall downtown SOV from 49% SOV in 2018 to 52.3% in 2019. The tripling of response rate from
2018 to 2019 was responsible for part of the increase because the first line of survey respondents are proud of
taking SOV alternatives, and the larger the set of respondents, the more likely to attract SOV-first commuters.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 19 of 41
Figure A.7: Five-year Overall mode share
A3. Comparison of City Staff Downtown and Non-Downtown Commutes
PATMA was happy to go well beyond the requirements for The City’s survey, surveying non-downtown City staff
{MSC, Community Center, libraries, etc}. The City’s downtown workers have 42% SOV commute mode share.
As would be expected, non-downtown staff with fewer commute alternatives have 78% SOV share. Commuting
by non-downtown staff is further broken down below:
Figure A.8: City of Palo Alto mode share at non-downtown locations
Survey response from Fire Station and Foothills Park was 100% SOV. The number of staff that responded by
location:
●Community Center respondents = 24
●East of 101 respondents = 68
●Fire Station respondents = 1
●Foothills Park respondents = 3
●Libraries respondents = 31
●Other respondents = 30
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 20 of 41
A4. Responses to the Commute Survey’s Open-Ended Question
Some responses centered around:
●“Nothing would encourage me to take alternative transportation.”
●“Daycare drop-offs prevent non-SOV commuting.”
●Complaints about traffic & parking issues.
●“Having a car is required for work.”
●“Carpool matching takes too long.”
●“Transit is broken.”
Notable Comments About Commuting
Truthfully, I gave up on finding a working transit solution and rented a room in Palo Alto. I
spend 2-3 nights per week there, which is a surprisingly large quality-of-life improvement for
me. (I own my place so moving is infeasible).
I am a native of the peninsula region. This entire region was planned from the 40's - 70's
around single-driver cars ... no one projected the population density we now have in the Bay
Area during this planning and road building period. Many people working in Palo Alto have
jobs that require unforeseeable and substantial amounts of daily overtime work - this makes
ridesharing or mass transit impossible. I support creating opportunities for various means of
movement of people and goods - but I can say with the benefit of having driven in downtown
Palo Alto for the past 30+ years that the downtown has become a morass of dangerous
chaos. We have Uber/Lyft cars that stop dead without warning in the middle of moving traffic
so that pedestrians can randomly lunge out into traffic or jump unexpectedly out of cars ... we
have people driving motorized skateboards, bikes, scooters, and other odd devices in the
middle of streets as if they were cars - yet they have nothing on them like turn signals or
brake lights to convey their intentions or planned movements ... many of these motorized,
single-human drivers do not obey traffic lights or well-settled vehicular laws ... they just dart
aggressively and wildly into intersections without reference to lights or cars ... in many cases
they move against the direction of traffic ... there are also numerous pedestrians who stand
on corners where crosswalks allow for two, different choices of crossing ... they will loiter
there (often waiting for Lyft/Uber cars) look down at their phones fixedly and leave drivers
unclear and unable to move with green lights because their intentions are unclear ... the
slavish pandering to all of this chaos at the expense of stable, orderly car traffic creates an
overall atmosphere of stress and high-stakes anxiety in the downtown. I feel that if people
are going to use means of movement in the downtown other than: (1) single user cars, (2)
commuter shared cars, (3) motorcycles subject to M1/M2 licenses, (4) normal delivery
vehicles, (5) law enforcement / emergency vehicles, (6) military / government vehicles, or (7)
publicly-funded mass transit like municipal buses - that they should be forced to carry a form
of license that obligates them to be tested periodically and held accountable for their behavior
in public places and on public streets and roads. Finally, if tech companies are going to clog
the key choke points to entry/exit to the downtown with high-density, double-deck buses, then
I believe they should be compelled by the city to pay annual fees to defray the wear-and-tear
on the city's streets and the usage of large amounts of publicly-funded areas for
pickups/drop-offs of pedestrians.
I would love for you guys to give me a free car!
I'm currently looking to move because I can't afford the Dumbarton bridge crossing everyday.
I have tickets from Fastrak. I can't afford the bridge toll.
Table A.10: Selected Commute Survey Free-text Comments
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 21 of 41
A5. Fall Downtown Commute Survey Instrument
Web/Paper Survey
Downtown Palo Alto Employees
2019 PATMA Commute Survey
Palo Alto Transportation Management Association (PATMA) is conducting this SHORT survey of employees in downtown
Palo Alto to understand how you get to work. Your participation will help support our continuing efforts to improve
commuter options and access to downtown Palo Alto.
Enter into a prize drawing at the end of this survey for a chance to win 1 of 10 $25 gift cards to spend in downtown Palo
Alto!
Please direct any questions or comments to connect@paloaltotma.org.
SECTION: COMMUTE MODE
Q1. How do you travel to work most often each day of the week? If you use more than one type of
transportation, choose the one used for the LONGEST distance of your trip.
o Drive Alone* includes driving with children, motorcycle, 1-passenger UberX/Lyft
o Carpool** includes Scoop, Waze Carpool, traditional carpool, vanpool, UberPool, Lyft Line, dropped off
o Transit*** includes Caltrain, SamTrans, VTA, AC Transit, corporate bus, Stanford/Palo Alto shuttles, etc.
o Bike, etc.**** includes e-bike, e-scooter, skateboard
Drive
Alone*
Carpool**
Transit***
Bike,
etc.****
Walk
Telecommut
e (work
remotely)
Other
Monday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Tuesday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Wednesday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Thursday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Friday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Saturday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Sunday □ □ □ □ □ □ □
Q2. What city and postal zipcode do you get to work from?
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 22 of 41
Home City
Home Zip Code
Q3. Your employer’s name and address:
We need this information to analyze commuting patterns for four different types of employers (service,
technology, light office, and government).
Employer/Company Name:
Employer’s downtown address (number and street):
The rest of the questions in this short survey are designed to improve your commute.
Q4. What is your annual salary?
o Less than $70,000
o More than $70,000 Skip to Q7
SECTION: TMA PROGRAMS
DOWNTOWN TRANSIT PASS PROGRAM
(Answer if Q3 = less than $70,000)
Q5. PATMA offers a transit pass program subsidy if you work in the downtown Palo Alto area. You can get a FREE
transit pass if you commit to using transit 3 days per week!
PATMA will give qualified employees a Clipper Card loaded with your choice of a Caltrain, SamTrans, VTA or
Transbay (Dumbarton Express) monthly pass. The monthly pass is good for unlimited trips within your pass
parameters each month. As long as you use it for commuting 3 or more days per week, you can renew each
month!
That’s a value of $800 to over $1,800 per year! Plus, you’ll save gas, parking headaches and other commute
costs.
Sign up for the program here - bit.ly/patmaTransit.
Have questions? PATMA staff are available via instant SMS texting at (507)-339-4301 from 10am to 2pm
between Sept 24 to Dec 15! You can also email us at connect@paloaltotma.org.
On a scale of 1-5, how well does this transit solution fit your needs?
o A great deal
o A lot
o A moderate amount
o A little
o None at all
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 23 of 41
LYFT AFTER-HOURS PROGRAM
(Answer if Q3 = less than $70,000)
Q6. Sometimes, using transit isn’t an option. If your shift in Downtown Palo Alto starts early or ends late here’s
how we can help!
We’ll help with subsidized Lyft shared rides from your home directly to your job. Each month, PATMA will pay up
to $10 per ride for up to 15 rides per month, so you can take advantage of your annual transit pass! Leave your
car (and the stress of parking) home!
Click here to learn more about the program - paloaltotma.org/programs and sign up here - bit.ly/patmaLyft.
Have questions? We're available instant SMS texting at (507)-339-4301 from 10am to 2pm between Sept 24 to
Dec 15! You can also email us at connect@paloaltotma.org.
On a scale of 1-5, how well does this program fit for your work schedule?
o A great deal
o A lot
o A moderate amount
o A little
o None at all
CARPOOLING MOBILE APPLICATIONS
Q7. Earn extra $$$ as a carpool driver or pay a lower fare as a rider through PATMA with Scoop or Waze
Carpool. Now drive or ride in a carpool on your schedule.
To find out more about the apps and how these apps work, click on the links (and download the app and start
using it) - paloaltotma.org/scoop and paloaltotma.org/waze.
Have questions? PATMA staff are available instant SMS texting at (507)-339-4301 from 10am to 2pm between
Sept 24 to Dec 15! You can also email us at connect@paloaltotma.org.
On a scale of 1-5, how well does the above-mentioned carpooling solution fit your needs?
o A great deal
o A lot
o A moderate amount
o A little
o None at all
TRIP CONSULTATION
Q8. PATMA staff is happy to sit down and explain all your commute options with you.
PATMA staff is also available instant SMS texting at (507)-339-4301 from 10am to 2pm between Sept 24 to Dec
15! Let us know your home address and your work schedule. You can also email us at connect@paloaltotma.org.
Would you like help in planning your commute?
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 24 of 41
o Yes
o No
SECTION: FEEDBACK
Q9. Questions/comments? Issues/concerns about your commute? Let us know.
Q10. Thank you for completing the 2019 Palo Alto Commute Survey!
Please provide your name and email below to enter the prize drawing for a chance to win one of ten, $25 gift
cards for meals in Downtown Palo Alto!
Your email address will be used to notify you if you win the gift card and to contact you regarding your interest
in PATMA programs. Your email address will not be shared with any other party.
First Name:
Last Name:
Email Address:
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 25 of 41
Appendix B: Downtown employment headcount
To obtain downtown employment headcount and split overall employment into four different employment
subtypes, the TMA researched six conflicting datasets:
●EMC
●Census Transportation Planning Package
●Census On The Map
●Dun & Bradstreet’s Hoovers data portal
●InfoGroup’s dataset
●A PATMA Business Registry-based calculation.
All of the datasets have shortcomings, the geographical boundaries differ, and even the two Census datasets
are not in agreement.
For PATMA’s 2015-2018 commute surveys, the sophisticated survey research firm, EMC, via a proprietary
methodology, calculated 9,500 downtown jobs in 2017 and 11,000 jobs in 2018. Given EMC’s 13% government
weighting, we would expect about 1,430 downtown government jobs. The actual is about 432, with 412 City of
Palo Alto downtown staff and 20 US Postal Service workers. By this single calculation, EMC’s numbers are off
by 231%.
Census Transportation Planning Package (CTPP) provides data for downtown Census Tracts 5113.01 and
5113.02, leaving out Sheraton, Westin, and Sutter PAMF. 12,795 jobs in the two census tracts
Using 2012-16 CTPP Table A202106 (“Occupation 25 Workers 16 years and over”), the downtown employment
count is 12,795 jobs. CTPP can be split into 25 occupations or, using table A2020104, 15 industries (A202104).
These segmentations do not entirely correspond with our four employment subtypes.
2017 Census On The Map provides 20,632 downtown jobs for the two Census Tracts.
Dun & Bradstreet’s Hoovers data portal provides information for the 94301 zip code. This overstates
employment because Cal Ave, Town and Country, Castilleja School, and PAUSD are included. Hoovers’
estimate is 7,139 jobs.
Another private sector dataset provider is InfoGroup. Their estimate is only 1,991 jobs for the two Census
Tracts.
PATMA combined Dyett and Bhatia’s 2014 employment density information with the Business Registry 15
dataset. For employment density, Dyett and Bhatia state:
●“The median square feet per employee use for traditional office uses (including professional services)
range from 315 square feet to 645 square feet based on the size of the establishment. Median
employment density for retail uses including but not limited to gyms, yoga or pilates studios, garages
and auto shops, salons, spas, art galleries, jewelry stores, bike shops etc. range from 430 square feet to
900 square feet depending on the size of the establishments and number of employees. The food
service or restaurant establishments have a median square feet range of 150-to 600 square feet
depending on their size and number of employees. All of these employment density ranges are within
the expected ranges found in other similar communities.”
Using this employment density, PATMA calculates 8,495 downtown jobs
15 Dyett and Bhatia memo on the Palo Alto Downtown Development Cap: Summary of Business and Employment Density Survey (2014):
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/civicax/filebank/documents/45069
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 26 of 41
Appendix C: Social Equity and Accessibility:
Low-income Transit Pass Program
For City of Palo Alto’s Fair Value Commuting Project, Part of the FTA Mobility on Demand Sandbox
Social Equity and Accessibility:
Low-income Transit Pass Program
Summary of Full Report
For the City of Palo Alto’s Fair Value Commuting Project
Oct 7, 2019. by Steve Raney, Sana Ahmed, Kruti Ladani
The full report may be accessed at: http://bit.ly/FVCequity
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 27 of 41
Appendix C: Executive Summary
Silicon Valley Equity Challenges
The Bay Area, Silicon Valley (defined as San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties), and Palo Alto all face
an equity challenge. Some of the major challenges include:
●30 percent of Silicon Valley residents cannot meet their basic needs without public or informal
financial assistance.
●From 2000 to 2015 in the Bay Area, there was a large displacement of African American and
Latinx residents from the urban core to the far outer edge of the Bay Area. This displacement
increased commute distances. Of the low-income people of color who moved during the
period, 30 percent moved entirely out of the Bay Area.
●White Silicon Valley residents earn three times more than Latinx residents.
●From 1925 to 1950 Palo Alto had deed covenants preventing the sale of homes to non-whites.
●Palo Alto has only one-quarter as many Latinx residents as Santa Clara County, six percent
versus 24 percent.
Equity-increasing Low-income Transit Pass Program
PATMA is a non-profit with about $500,000 per year in revenue and matching expenses. PATMA’s
goal is to reduce commute trips by 30%. Downtown Palo Alto service worker SOV commute mode
share was initially measured at about 70%, providing PATMA’s largest immediate opportunity for trip
reduction. Within the U.S. TDM Social Equity Subdiscipline, PATMA is undertaking two unique
activities:
●Buying and managing monthly transit passes for more than 240 low-income commuters who
work in downtown
●Undertaking door-to-door, in-person outreach to 300 downtown Palo Alto businesses, some
with only a handful of workers. This can be characterized as “retail TDM.” TDM scales more
easily in the service of large employers, whereas PATMA outreach efforts are relatively
labor-intensive.
PATMA low-income commuters are service workers at restaurants, hotels, Starbucks, CVS, Verizon
Store, etc. The annual household income limit of $70,000 reflects the high regional cost of living
(Santa Clara County defines households earning less than $84,000 as low-income). The average 16
cost of transit passes for Caltrain, SamTrans, VTA, and AC Transit (Dumbarton Express) is about
$133 per commuter per month. The TMA works first with store managers who disseminate program
information to their workers. Once a worker applies for the program, the TMA works directly with them
to provide a Clipper transit fare card and then electronically add transit passes to their card every
month. 66 out of 300 downtown businesses participate in the program.
Employers and employers find the program effective in addressing economic challenges:
●“Without this program, I wouldn’t be able to work here. This is instrumental in helping people
have a job out here.”
●“Our hardest thing is hiring people. Alleviating an employee's cost of traveling to work by
$150/month is like getting a $1/hour raise.”
●“Being able to offer potential employees the TMA transit pass gives us a leg up to hire new
employees. For some people, it's a deciding point about whether they will work here or not.”
16 Joint Venture Silicon Valley report: Poverty in the Bay Area, March 2015.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 28 of 41
In a provided analysis of TDM program cost efficacy, the transit pass program is shown to be
relatively cost-effective, but is not the most cost-effective program.
Obstacles such as higher need to trip chain (to access multiple jobs) and residential location make
transit a more difficult option for service workers than for technology, light office, or government
workers. Incremental solutions such as signal synchronization to speed transit will provide some relief.
Non-incremental solutions, such as building more affordable housing closer to jobs, are more difficult
to bring about, but offer the hope of larger relief. Equity obstacles are unfortunately increasing for
service workers. The PATMA transit pass program provides improved equity within a deteriorating
equity situation.
Transit Pass Program Accessibility
PATMA’s transit pass program provides monthly transit passes on four public transit operators, each
of which is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The program provides strong
accommodations for language and program information accessibility, and for commuters who are
underphoned, unphoned, or unbanked.
Appendix C: Low-income commuter profile and their challenges
Downtown Palo Alto is a myriad of businesses and PATMA caters to about 240 commuters at these
businesses. Each business is different in its employee operations and needs resulting in a specific
commuter profile as explained in the subsequent paragraphs. Identifying the commuter profile helps to
design the programs so that it best fulfills the needs of low-income commuters.
For one restaurant:
●Ten staff bike to work from East Palo Alto or Redwood City.
●70% of staff use Spanish as their primary language.
●Because of the high cost of living, ten staff were priced all the way out of state.
●Tech companies are paying $20/hour for dishwashers, a rate that restaurants have difficulty
competing with.
For one healthcare employer:
●There was an evening mugging of a staffer right across the street from the facility.
●Five years ago, the majority of the staff lived in East Palo Alto, but since have been priced out
to San Jose and the East Bay.
●Many staffers hold two jobs. Many have days with long hours.
●Some workers buy reduced price half-year on-street permits, but complain that permits are
only available in parking zones with long walks in the cold of winter at night.
SOV-commuting employees at coffee shops, cellular stores, and drug stores often move their cars
every two hours, frequently collecting multiple parking tickets per month. Throughout the day, the walk
back from moving cars between colored zones gets longer and longer. While these employees qualify
for reduced-price $50 per half-year parking permits, there isn’t much uptake. Barriers include:
●Unwillingness to envision six months at the same job
●Difficulty in completing the permit application process, especially for ESL employees
●Lack of availability of permits in convenient, nearby parking zones.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 29 of 41
One frustrated bartender collected four parking tickets in a month and contemplated quitting. He
knows he needs to move his car within 20 minutes but then he gets slammed with customers for
about 45 minutes. When the customer rush lets up he goes to move his car only to find a ticket.
The latest Downtown Palo Alto Commuter Survey was conducted October 2018 through December
2018, the respondents being employees of businesses located within Downtown Palo Alto. The
survey was paper and web-based to increase participation from downtown businesses. The unique
part of the survey was that it was provided in Spanish as well as English. The survey results showed
downtown SOV trips have decreased while transit trips have increased. Details about the survey
instrument, methodology and results of the Downtown Commute Survey can be found in the full
report.
Service workers often work odd hours and long shifts, making it more difficult to find good transit
options. On weekdays, Figure 1 shows that while the most common start time is 8 AM, workers start
as early as 5 AM or even as late as 12 AM. Many of the start times occur outside of normal transit
operating hours, creating an obstacle to using transit.
Figure 1
Appendix C: Testimonials from program participants
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 30 of 41
Figure 2
The PATMA transit pass program is changing the lives of low-income commuters and supporting a
vibrant downtown by making it easier to recruit staff:
Person & Employer Testimonial Quote
K, Palo Alto Bicycles
"Our hardest thing is hiring people. Alleviating an employee's cost of traveling
to work by $150/month is like getting a $1/hour raise."
R, Il Fornaio
"Being able to offer potential employees the TMA transit pass gives us a leg
up to hire new employees. For some people, it's a deciding point about
whether they will work here or not."
Manager at Keen
“Without this program, I wouldn’t be able to work here. This is instrumental in
helping people have a job out here.”
Manager at MacArthur
Park
“I love when my employees take the train because then they’re on time for
their shifts. When they drive they’re often late because they’re stuck in traffic.”
M, Sheraton
"I'm thinking of going back to school with the money I save from the TMA's
transit pass."
I, Sheraton
"I'm going to go back to school since I’m now saving enough money on my
commute."
M, Sheraton
"Taking the VTA bus then Caltrain gets me here faster than driving from San
Jose. With the bus and train, I get here in 40 minutes. Driving can take one
hour and 45 minutes."
L, The Westin "The train is much faster than driving."
H, Community
Pharmacy
"This allows me to save more money for pharmacy school next year. The
Caltrain from Sunnyvale is faster and more relaxing. In the morning it's
express to downtown Palo Alto. This pass is like Christmas."
S, Community
Pharmacy
I live in Hayward and used to spend $90/month on Dumbarton Bridge tolls.
Now I'm much less stressed. It's so relaxing on the bus. I'm very happy and
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 31 of 41
very grateful for this transit pass."
another Community
Pharmacy employee
"I feel bad for people who drive and are stuck in traffic. The train is so much
faster."
R, The Taproom
"The Caltrain from San Jose is much faster than driving and I get to relax on
the way to work."
K, Il Fornaio
"I get off late at night and the Caltrain whizzes you home. Having another
$80/month makes a big difference, like the City is looking out for you. It's also
convenient that I only have to tag on and off one trip and then not the rest of
the month. That way if I'm running late for the train I can just jump on. That
extra minute makes a difference between catching the train or missing it."
Table 3. Commuter/employer testimonials collected by Justine Burt on 11/15/18 and 11/29/18
Figure 4. Selected responses from October 2018 pass renewal emails and text messages
Appendix C: Annual income distribution of program participants
From the PATMA’s transit pass program operational database, a histogram of the annual income of
556 transit program commuters who participated in the program at some point for one or more months
is presented below. The median income is $31,200 while the mean income is $31,440. The histogram
conveys that the majority of PATMA’s participants lie in the $25,000 to $45,000 range depicting the
importance of the transit pass program subsidy.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 32 of 41
Figure 5
Appendix C: Historical turnover rates of program participants
Below is an Aug-Dec monthly tally of passes that were “activated,” meaning physically tagged at a
Clipper Card reader at a train station or bus. Each month, a number of new applications for transit
passes are processed. Each month there is “turnover,” where transit passes are not activated.
Unused transit passes are refunded to the TMA. Some downtown businesses have a 200% annual
turnover (16% each month) of employees, but the TMA’s transit pass program turnover is lower.
Lower turnover rate means that the transit pass program subsidy also helps employers retain their
employees by giving them a sustainable commute.
TRANSIT PASSES Aug '18 Sep '18 Oct '18 Nov '18 Dec '18 Jan '19 Feb '19 Mar '19 Apr '19 May '19 Jun '19
Passes Activated 117 149 214 227 241 240 245 229 214 198 187
New applications 36 49 74 33 40 22 28 0 0 0 0
Turnover 17 9 20 26 23 23 16 15 16 11
Percent turnover 11.4% 4.2% 8.8% 10.8% 9.6% 9.4% 7.0% 7.0% 8.1% 5.9%
Table 6: Monthly turnover rate of transit pass program participants
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 33 of 41
Appendix C: Program utilization by transit operator
Between the four transit providers, 80% of revenue goes to SamTrans (Caltrain or SamTrans bus). A
snapshot of June 2019 monthly transit pass outlay shows the percent of transit pass expenditure that
goes to each transit provider:
Transit Operator Passes Percent Expenditure
Caltrain 123 62% $19,503.00
VTA 36 18% $3,240.00
SamTrans 36 18% $2,361.60
Transbay DBX 3 2% $594.00
total 198 100% $25,698.60
Table 7: June 2019 Downtown Transit Pass Program
Appendix C: Cost-efficacy comparison with other TDM strategies
For comparison to PATMA programs, a sampling of non-PATMA program cost-efficacy is provided
below. Cost-efficacy is measured by an employer’s cost per year of reducing a single SOV commute.
This can also be thought of as the cost of freeing a parking space. Caltrain’s Go Pass program
charges $285/year for each employee, whether or not they use Caltrain, meaning that cost-efficacy is
higher for employers with high Caltrain mode share. In addition to TDM programs, Row #8 provides
an estimated annual cost of a new structured parking space to accommodate an SOV commute to
downtown.
Row # For comparison: TDM Program efficacy
Annual cost
of non-SOV
commute
1 Gates Foundation TDM: $12/day SOV fee yields 32% SOV -$432
2 "Stanford-like" TDM: $3/day SOV fee yields 50% SOV $0
3 Self-motivated bike or carpool $0
4 Go Pass for downtown TechCo at 35% Caltrain mode $814
5 Go Pass for Stanford campus @ 17% mode share $1,676
6 Go Pass for an employer with 10% mode share $2,850
7 Private express bus service from SF, 25 riders $3,508
8 New structured parking space (SOV commute) $3,908
9 Employer housing stipend to live close to work $10,000
Table 8: Calculation details are provided in the full report
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 34 of 41
Compared to typical US TDM program efficacy, PATMA is cost-effective.
PATMA Program Efficacy
Annual cost
of non-SOV
commute
Waze Carpool $1,224
Transit Pass Subsidy - pass outlay $1,572
Transit pass subsidy including staff time: $2,072
Lyft Program $1,855
Scoop Program $2,729
Table 9: calculation details are provided in the full report
Appendix C: Cost pressures and potential for cost reduction
Transit operator economic challenges will continue to result in increased costs for low-income
commuters:
Monthly Pass Product 2018 Monthly
Cost
2019 Monthly
Cost
2020 Monthly
Cost
AC Transit Transbay/Dumbarton $162.00 $198.00
Caltrain 2 Zone pass $163.50 $187.50
Caltrain 1 Zone pass $96.00 $120.00
SamTrans local service $65.60
VTA standard service $80.00 $90.00
Table 10
PATMA met with Caltrain on November 7, 2018, to explore the potential for a discount, but the effort
was unsuccessful. Starting around June 2019, Caltrain began offering low-income discounts for
individual Caltrain trips, but not for monthly passes. Unfortunately, on a monthly basis, discounted
individual trips are more expensive than monthly passes, consequently, Caltrain’s program will not
benefit PATMA finances.
Appendix C: Commute obstacles
From the 496 responses to the 2018 PATMA Commute Survey, these responses were split into four
employer sub-types: 164 government workers, 137 light office workers, 79 service workers, and 116
technology workers. Service workers, compared to the other three employment sub-types, have
higher obstacles to commute alternatives:
●56% of service workers need to drive to work because they make other stops (second job,
school, kids, errands) before or after work. One partial explanation is that service workers
often have two jobs in two different locations.
●38% of service workers need to drive to work because they use their car for meetings,
deliveries, or other work-related tasks.
●42% would rather not drive to work, but have no other good options.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 35 of 41
As far a transit obstacles, service workers report:
●47% would take transit to work if the service was faster or more frequent.
●31% would take transit if parking at transit stops was available.
●42% would take transit to work if it was easier to get to a transit stop (the first mile problem).
The Bay Area public transit system is fragmented , with 27 different operators implementing 17
uncoordinated fares, schedules, strategy, branding, user experience, and capital planning. Despite
ongoing investment, per-capita ridership has been declining for years. Though Palo Alto is a major
employment center, transit service suffers because it lies at the border of two county bus systems. In
addition, ongoing economic pressure on VTA has led to route planning emphasis on their core,
densest areas at the expense of the lower-density periphery.
Appendix C: Human/technical challenges
and potential equity-increasing solutions
PATMA’s transit subsidy program is labor-intensive and prone to both human and technology errors.
Each month, about 15% of Caltrain monthly pass commuters “tag on but don’t tag off,” resulting in
negative balances that can result in $75 citations. PATMA intervenes on behalf of commuters to
remedy negative balances and has also successfully appealed Caltrain citations.
Potential Incremental Solutions to help low-income transit commuters
●System improvements are underway that will benefit service workers an increase transit
ridership. These include:
○Dumbarton Corridor improvements
○The Manager’s Mobility Partnership’s new north/south bike route
○City of Palo Alto’s bike/scooter share program
○Palo Alto Transit VisionPlan Local Shuttle Service Enhancements
○Improvements that could spring from the Sub-Regional TMA collaboration called the
Manzanita Talks.
●Regional low-income discounts offer potential benefits to service worker commuters.
●The GIS maps in this report could provide some insights into potential new shuttle bus route
possibilities.
●Reduced bike stress. A key factor preventing biking is the poor state of roads and the bike
network. 60% of Silicon Valley’s population is “interested but concerned” about biking and will
only bicycle in low-stress conditions. Analysis and improvements are underway to de-stress
biking. 18
Potential non-incremental solutions to help low-income transit commuters
Solutions may include seamless public/private mobility, capping SOV commuting at 50%, robovans,
ebikes, major Caltrain improvements, personal rapid transit, higher capacity freeways, and affordable
housing production.
17 “Seamless Transit: How to make Bay Area public transit function like one rational, easy-to-use system,”
https://www.spur.org/publications/spur-report/2015-03-31/seamless-transit
18 Reduce Bay Area Commuting 25%, Section 7A. Bike route stress reduction.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 36 of 41
Appendix C: TDM Social Equity Subdiscipline
The U.S. TDM Social Equity Subdiscipline is emerging, with only a few programs beyond PATMA’s
program. These include: 19
●In dense urban centers where bike share is prominent, multiple programs offer subsidized
membership to low-income travelers. Better Bike Share Partnership is a leading organization.
●The Chicago Individualized Marketing Go Programs, including Go Pilsen, focus on bringing
residential TDM to five Chicago neighborhoods that are low-income and highly ethnically
diverse. Locally-hired project Ambassadors persuade residents to increase walking, biking,
and public transit.
●Los Angeles’ People for Mobility Justice organization is a Black Indigenous People of Color
(BIPOC) collective that corrects past discrimination in how public transportation benefits and
burdens are allocated, maintained, and developed. Those who have had the least should be
given the most. The organization educates different audiences, creating a safe learning
environment to build consciousness around mobility justice.
●In Austin, Texas, the public housing authority offers a program called Smart Work, Learn, Play,
which connects underserved communities with opportunities to increase their use of public
transportation. The program recruits “mobility ambassadors” to meet residents where they are,
provide one-on-one training on utilizing various tools to access transportation options and work
together to advocate for transportation change with City officials.
●King County Metro’s ORCA LIFT fare card provides low-income public transit subsidy based
on household income. The four-person household maximum income is $48K, one-person is
$24K.
●UC Berkeley’s Parking & Transportation Department administers the Educational Opportunity
Program to provide low-income, first-generation students with better opportunities to take
advantage of TDM programs such as scooters and bike share. Being proactive to deliver new
mobility services is one step to ensure equitable access to transit is provided and is more than
just a "checkbox item."
●San Jose’s Sacred Heart Community Service organization sponsors Bus Riders United for
Transportation Revitalization, a committee of bus riders organizing for transportation justice,
influencing transit agency policy and priorities for improved transit service and increased
affordability.
●Oregon Health and Science University provides subsidized Lyft rides, without income
qualification (but benefiting multiple low-income commuters), for people commuting between 7
pm and 5:30 am, up to $15 per trip. “We launched this program just last spring and it has been
very popular so far, offering a new option to many of our off-peak commuters.”
●Research by Portland Metro is defining “How to better design TDM programs that serve
communities of color.”
●Pleasanton’s Hacienda Business Park provides free Wheels local bus EcoPass to all workers
and residents within the service area, without income qualification. “A large portion of the users
of our transit pass program are service workers and employees with more limited means. The
way that the local bus routes are structured, there are strong connections between the more
affordable housing in the region (mostly found in Livermore) and the larger employment
centers such as Hacienda. We think that this has provided a key piece of affordability for
people who work in service industry jobs within Hacienda.”
●Contra Costa Centre Transit Village subsidizes a portion of transit passes for low-income
workers but does not fund 100% of those passes.
19 Thanks to the national transp-tdm listserv for listing other equity-increasing programs.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 37 of 41
Appendix C: Service Equivalency for the mobility-impaired
and other disabled
PATMA’s programs are designed to be accessible to all so that no one is treated in a different or
inferior manner. PATMA also accommodates changes in programs and services to help everyone
equally. People with disabilities have to meet the essential eligibility requirements, such as income
needed to participate in PATMA programs, wherever applicable, just like everyone else.
Disability entails having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life
activities. According to the World Health Organization, the disabled represent 15% of the world’s
population. In 2017, approximately 21% of SamTrans bus riders were seniors or people with
disabilities. PATMA’s transit pass program provides monthly transit passes on four public transit
operators, each of which is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Along with the
operators, PATMA provides assistance to disabled passengers in obtaining the information they need.
Outside of the transit pass program, disabled passengers may also avail themselves of paratransit
services.
Caltrain for People with Disabilities 20
Caltrain is a wheelchair accessible commuter rail service. Customers can board at all
wheelchair-accessible stations using either on-board lifts or an accessible ramp (depending on the
type of train). Caltrain has boarding assistance areas where customers who need help boarding or
finding a seat can wait. Conductors will look for passengers in this area and will offer assistance. All
Caltrain commuter rail trains have at least one wheelchair accessible car. Caltrain allows service
animals on the train.
Every train car has priority seats for seniors and people with disabilities. The seats are marked with a
sign.
Caltrain offers free travel training to teach people with disabilities how to use the service. They
contract with local disability organizations to provide one-on-one training to teach people how to use
the service.
People with a disabled parking placard or with a current disabled license plate issued by the
Department of Motor Vehicles may park for free at Caltrain parking lots.
Seniors and people with disabilities who present a Regional Transit Connection discount card, a
Medicare card or a Department of Motor Vehicles Disabled Person Placard may ride Caltrain at
approximately half fare.
SamTrans Bus for People with Disabilities 21
SamTrans provides high quality service to people with disabilities to go to work, school, shopping or
recreational activities.
20 Information provided by SamTrans ADA Coordinator Tina Dubost
21 Information provided by SamTrans ADA Coordinator Tina Dubost
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 38 of 41
All SamTrans buses are wheelchair accessible with ramps or lifts. The Bus Operator can lower the
bus (“kneel”) to make it easier to board.
All buses have an automated system that makes amplified announcements of major transfer points,
intersections and destinations. An electronic message board on the bus displays the same
information. External loudspeakers announce the route number and destination of the bus at all
stops. An Operator will also announce stops that the customer requests.
Seats near the front of the bus are priority seating for seniors and people with disabilities. The seats
are marked with a sign.
SamTrans offers free travel training to teach people with disabilities how to use the service. They
contract with local disability organizations to provide one-on-one training to teach people how to use
the service.
Seniors and people with disabilities who present a Regional Transit Connection discount card, a
Medicare card or a Department of Motor Vehicles Disabled Person Placard may ride SamTrans at
approximately half fare.
People who have a disability that prevents them from riding SamTrans some or all of the time may
qualify for ADA paratransit. This service is pre-scheduled, demand response service that is
comparable to the SamTrans bus service.
VTA bus and light rail for people with disabilities 22
VTA’s transit centers, shelters, and most bus stops are fully accessible. Guidance surface tiles and
directional tiles are provided to guide pedestrians with visual disabilities using white canes. Lifts,
ramps, and device spaces on buses are maintained at ADA standards to provide access for mobility
devices. Most VTA bus stops and at all transit centers, bus stop poles are marked with raised letters
and Braille that read “BUS”. VTA buses also audibly announce the line number and destination when
the doors open at bus stops.
VTA ACCESS paratransit is complementary to the fixed-route transit and provided to eligible
individuals. All transit services provide information in accessible formats (large print, Braille, audio
tape) and PATMA provides assistance in obtaining the information.
AC Transit bus for people with disabilities 23
All AC Transit buses are equipped with the following accessibility features:
●Passenger lifts or ramps
●“Kneeling”, which lowers the first step several inches to make the first step easier
●Priority Seating near the front of buses, for persons with disabilities and seniors
●Two wheelchair securement locations per bus, each equipped with securement devices which
hold the wheelchair safely in place.
●An onboard stop announcement system provides “next stop” audio announcements on many
bus routes and the voice announcements are augmented by internal text-message signs.
Sight- and hearing-impaired passengers on buses equipped with this system can rely on the
onboard information to help them find a stop or destination.
22 https://www.vta.org/go/accessibility
23 http://www.actransit.org/actrealtime/rider-guides/accessibility/
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 39 of 41
Appendix C: Language and program information accessibility
As far as language accessibility, several low-income downtown workers speak Spanish as their first
language. For one restaurant downtown, 70% of staff use Spanish as their primary language. PATMA
has a Spanish-speaking person on staff to make participation easier and for helping commuters
succeed in using their passes. On several occasions, PATMA overcomes the language barrier using
tools such as Google Translate to provide a seamless customer experience. Moreover, PATMA
commute surveys are available in Spanish as well as English. PATMA can also provide interpreter
services for language assistance other than Spanish. In addition, participating employers often assist
their Spanish-speakers in navigating the program.
As far as program information accessibility, PATMA’s web is accessible to an extent in that the
images, text, graphics and site structure are prepared to increase performance with assistive
technologies. For assistance with monthly pass renewals, PATMA can provide with assistance and
communicate the renewal confirmations and such via phone. PATMA can also fill out transit pass
applications on behalf of the commuter. Where PATMA struggles in providing accessibility services,
specialists are hired to provide the best possible service. In addition, participating employers often
assist their Spanish-speakers in navigating the program.
Appendix C: Service Equivalency for the unphoned and underphoned
The unphoned are those with no cell phone of any kind. The underphoned are those with a flip phone;
a no-contract phone; another basic device that lacks important capabilities; or a phone with
capabilities the owner cannot, or chooses not, fully to use. PATMA’s monthly transit pass program
workflow features communication with commuters to verify that they would like to renew their transit
pass. This communication occurs using SMS or email. To date, no commuters have needed
accommodation for the renewal process, but PATMA will collaborate with employers to address a
communication deficit, should one arise.
Cellphone ownership is now very high in the US, at 92% for non high school graduates, 96% for
Latinx commuters, and 95% for commuters earning less than $30,000 per year. Feature-rich 24
smartphone market penetration has increased from roughly 40% in 2011 to 80% in 2018. Cellphone
and smartphone market penetration can be expected to increase each year.
24 Pew Research Center: Internet and Technology’s Mobile Fact Sheet: https://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheet/mobile/
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 40 of 41
Own smartphone Own cellphone
Race / ethnicity
White 82% 96%
Black 80% 98%
Latinx 79% 96%
Annual Income
Less than $30K 71% 95%
$30K-$50K 78% 96%
$50K-$75K 90% 98%
$75K+ 95% 100%
Education
Not high school graduate 66% 92%
High school graduate 72% 96%
Some college 85% 96%
College graduate 91% 98%
Table 11
Appendix C: Service Equivalency for the unbanked and underbanked
The unbanked are those with no checking, savings, or credit card account. The underbanked have an
account but continue to rely on alternative financial services, like check cashing services, payday
loans, pawn shops, or rent-to-own agreements. PATMA’s transit pass program provides Clipper fare
media cards to the unbanked and underbanked, eliminating their fare payment obstacles to utilizing
public transit.
PATMA CY2019 Annual Report Page 41 of 41
City of Palo Alto (ID # 11367)
City Council Staff Report
Report Type: Informational Report Meeting Date: 5/26/2020
City of Palo Alto Page 1
Summary Title: Update on Business Support Activities
Title: Update on Business Roundtables, Small Business Grant and Donation
Programs
From: City Manager
Lead Department: City Manager
Recommendation
Staff recommends that Council accept this status update on several business support efforts
underway, such as the responding to Business Roundtable input and ideas, the Small Business
Recovery Grant program and the related Donation program.
Executive Summary
Update on the Business Roundtables
In mid-April, City staff, the Business Support Ad Hoc Committee consisting of Councilmembers
Cormack and Kniss, and an external facilitator, began meeting with various local businesses.
Through a series of meetings, the Committee heard from over 50 businesses about how they
are struggling during the pandemic, their challenges and their opportunities. The Committee
heard about how they are changing their business models, if possible, and what they need most
from the City and from each other. The attachment provides a summary of these sessions.
Together, City staff and the business community developed ideas for possible near- and long-
term solutions and introduced new ways to collaborate. After hearing from businesses about
their immediate needs, staff took several specific actions, such as:
• Printing signage and offering signage for downloading for window displays to support
businesses re-opening efforts;
• Communicating ways the City can support local businesses through this transition and
seeking input both by (1) directly engaging businesses and (2) more broadly through
digital newsletters and targeted approaches;
• Ensuring our community has tools to support local restaurants and retailers now, and
other businesses later as they work to reopen;
• Establishing an online forum for businesses to share ideas with each other;
City of Palo Alto Page 2
• Beginning a series of focused industry-specific design sessions with stakeholders; and,
• Forming internal project teams to look ahead and respond to business needs such as the
ability to facilitate curbside pickup and delivery and expand outdoor restaurant seating.
City staff continue to work closely with the business community by quickly developing solutions
to meet their needs, while addressing the continually evolving public health orders and rules
during this time. Staff’s work will progress, and we will continue to update Council on our
efforts.
Update on the Small Business Recovery Grant and Donation Program
On May 4, 2020, Council directed staff to create and implement a business recovery grant
program providing $500,000 from the City’s general fund to small businesses, while
simultaneously creating and implementing a program to accept private donations to add to the
City’s funding. By May 20, 2020, both programs were fully developed.
Information on the Small Business Grant program is on the City’s website, along with an
expansive FAQ site providing the specifics of the program. The City has communicated this
information in several editions of the City’s “Coronavirus Daily Reports,” by direct
communication with the Business Roundtable participants, and digitally through the City’s
business-to-business Slack channel, social media, and digital newsletters. Additionally, the City
has communicated the grant availability directly to eligible businesses on the City’s business
registry. As of this writing, the City has received over 120 pre-applications, the first step in
participating in the grant program, and staff have begun fielding questions from a newly-
created email account: BusinessGrants@cityofpaloalto.org.
The City intends to hold a lottery on May 27 to select the businesses who will be invited to
apply for a grant. The exact selection process and details are noted in the FAQ website.
Also on the City’s Business Grant web page and new Business Reopening web page is
information about how individuals and other businesses can help by donating to the grant
program. The City is partnering with the East Bay Community Foundation (EBCF), a non-profit
organization that maintains and administers donations, to manage the donation program to
support recovery efforts in Palo Alto. With their expertise, resources, and existing
infrastructure, EBCF created a Relief Fund, which is a special funding category used in times of a
declared disaster that allows a non-profit entity to accept donations benefiting for-profit
businesses.
In addition to establishing this Fund, EBCF created an online portal to accept tax-deductible
donations, which the City has linked on the City’s website. On behalf of the City, EBCF will
receive and hold all donations, maintain the appropriate financial records, and distribute funds
directly to the City to supplement the Small Business Recovery Grant program. This partnership
and services will be accomplished through an annualized administration fee of 1.25% of the
total fund balance, determined on a quarterly basis.
City of Palo Alto Page 3
EBCF was selected as a third-party administrator after staff spoke with five potential partners.
Of those five, EBCF was the only organization that was available to assist the City’s efforts, that
had the infrastructure already in place, with prior expertise in assisting cities with business
grants, and that could offer tax deductible donations for a low administrative fee. Staff will
share this new donation opportunity with the community through all the City’s communications
channels. Additionally, the City is partnering with the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce to
expand outreach through their channels and networks.
Timeline
Staff anticipates distributing grants in early June after the May 27 lottery, and holding
additional lotteries as donations are received. The date(s) of additional lotteries will be made
public at least one week before they are held. Pre-applications are always accepted.
Staff will continue to work with the business community to address needs as we move towards
re-opening.
Stakeholder Engagement
City staff has met with over 50 businesses through a series of five virtual meetings. Staff has
participated in the online Slack channel established to facilitate communication. Staff has had
conversations with the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, provided information in the City’s
coronavirus reports, created new web pages and shared information broadly through all the
City’s communications channels, and established an email account specifically to communicate
with stakeholders about the grant program.
Environmental Review
This informational report is not a project for the purposes of the California Environmental
Quality Act.
Attachments:
• Attachment A: Business Roundtable and Grant and Donation Programs Update
MAY 11, 2020 www.cityofpaloalto.org/businessassistance
BUSINESS ROUNDTA BLE UPDAT E
2
WHAT WE’VE DONE SO FAR—PROCESS
•Three 90-minute Roundtable sessions convened
•April 17, April 24, and April 28. 2 city council members
and 6 city staff in attendance
•Report-back to Roundtable participants on May 7
•Additional listening and ideation sessions for “urgent
actions” on May 12, “expanded restaurant seating” on May
14, and “future of retail” on May 17.
•More than 50 businesses engaged
2
THANK YOU TO OUR ROUNDTA BLE ATTENDEES
PIP Printing
Bells Books
Zola
iTalico, Terunpizza
Osteria Toscana
Landowner
Coupa Café
Hair International
Ford Greenfield Labs
Tamarine
Nauto
Village Flower Shop
Sereno Group
San Mateo CVB
Embarcadero Media
The Counter
Nola
Calave
Bittered Sling
Five Ten Gifts
Hilton Garden Inn
Premier Properties
La Bodiguita
Ada's Café
Monica Foster Salon
Dinahs Hotel
MacArthur Park
Philz Coffee
Gleim Jewelers
Premier Properties
Stanford Research Park
Zareens
Keller Williams
Palo Alto Chamber
Sand Hill Properties
Bacchus Mgt Group
MongoDB
Cardinal Hotel
Ergo Works
VMware
CCSCE
Newmark Knight Frank
Edgewood Market
Watercourse Way
Leaf & Petal
Hotel Parmani
Peninsula Pediatric
Dentistry
Rapp Development
Sheraton
Individual
The Cobblery
Palo Alto Bicycles
Thoits Bros
Local Union 271
Houzz
Siam Royal
2
WHAT WE’VE DONE SO FAR—OUTCOMES
•Established B2B Support Slack channel, 22 members + city
staff—currently active around discussions around crowd-
sourcing hand sanitizer, cleaning & training protocols
•Retail signage designed with community input printed and
available 5/20
•Project teams forming for outdoor seating, future of retail
•Numerous staff projects influenced by Roundtable feedback
9
NEXT STEPS
•Continue to recruit business owners to Slack Channel
•City staff to support prototypes of outdoor dining, future of retail
THEMES/CHALLENGES/OPPORTUNITIES/IDEAS GENERATED DURING THE ROUNDTA BLE SESSIONS
3
THEMES/CHALLENGES (1 of 2)
•Difficulty / insufficiency of PPP and other federal programs
•Challenges interpreting county COVID-19 regulations
•Many compassionate businesses—helping employees, helping front-line staff
•Many businesses are adapting, but at a greatly reduced volume
•Restaurant business vulnerable before the pandemic
•Close contact businesses (e.g., salons, spas, dentists) especially vulnerable.
Also, Stanford student-and crowd-dependent businesses
•The future is not predictable—will customers and employees return? When?
How? (shift to remote work? Delivery?)
•Businesses looking for guidance, leadership at local level—
to represent local business with county and state
4
THEMES/CHALLENGES (2 of 2)
•Businesses want clarity about city’s role and responsibility to support them
•Good time to re-evaluate fundamentals (zoning, parking, retail preservation)
as COVID-19 potentially ushers in a new era
•Good time to improve “Palo Alto process” (permitting, parking); shift from
enforcement to support
•Supply chain issues emerging—sanitation & PPE, food
•Desire for the business community to support one another—“trade
commitments,” share knowledge, etc.
•Good opportunity to reconsider/better plan/curate the mix of companies
doing business in Palo Alto. (Fewer restaurants? Fewer gyms? New types of
retail establishments that complement online?)
5
OPPORTUNITY STAT EMENTS
What should the city’s role be? Should we and, if yes, how might we:
•Help businesses navigate complex Federal programs? County health regs?Challenge/advocate for businesses with county and state regulations?
•Celebrate and encourage “compassionate business” practices?
•Support businesses operating in the near-term at lower volume?
•Support close-contact businesses?
•Provide “predictability” in an uncertain future?
•Adapt City fundamentals such as zoning, parking, for a “new normal?”
•Adapt Palo Alto processes? Be seen as supporters rather than enforcers?
•Help businesses with supply chain issues?
•Develop a Palo Alto business blend strategy? Retail strategy? Restaurant strategy?
•Agree on decision-making criteria? (Assist largest number vs. most vulnerable, economic vitality, place-making, new vs. preservation, etc.)
•Help the business community help itself?
6
IDEAS FROM THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY (1 of 2)
Financial Support
•Financial aid for small businesses: loans, grants; utility bill “forgiveness”
(using public/private funding sources)
•Reduce minimum wage ordinance
•Belt-tightening by City
•Reassess property taxes
Land Use and Transportation Planning
•Close streets for outdoor seating for restaurants (for social distancing)
•Strategy to reconcile demand for parking with demand for social-
distancing retail space
•Relax parking permitting & fees
•Strategy on how to deal with vacant properties
•Revisit retail zoning (in light of businesses’ shift to work from home)
•Redesign “Palo Alto Process” to make it easier for businesses
7
IDEAS FROM THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY (2 of 2)
Advocacy and Education
•City advocates for policy changes / stimulus package
•“Keep it local,” B2B campaigns
•Preliminary social distancing design guidance for offices and retail (to
hasten transition)
Community Engagement, Facilitation and Convening
•Convene a business network. Create ongoing business roundtable
engagement structure.
•Facilitate purchasing commitments among Palo Alto “ecosystem”
(residents, businesses, city, other organizations)
•Coordinate PPE/Sanitation supplies (e.g. sanitizer)
•Create “ask/offer” platform for B2B exchange
•Create ongoing business roundtable engagement structure
•Engage landlords to strategize on rent relief
•Partner with Stanford to develop/publish “gold standards” for cleaning,
health monitoring and social-distancing protocols for businesses
8
UPDATES ON CITY SOLUTIONS
Three Major City Council actions on Monday night (May 4, 2020):
1. City grant program for small business recovery
•$500,000 in up to $10,000 grants for local small businesses
•Lottery to select recipients from all qualified applicants
•City is acquiring a third-party grant administrator
•Make sure you are current with the City’s business registry!!
2. Business assessments waived for the year
•Business Registry
•Downtown Business Improvement District
3. Significant City budget reductions contemplated
•Planning for a $40 million shortfall in the coming year
City of Palo Alto (ID # 11352)
City Council Staff Report
Report Type: Informational Report Meeting Date: 5/26/2020
City of Palo Alto Page 1
Summary Title: Affordable Housing Month Proclamation
Title: Affordable Housing Month Proclamation
From: City Manager
Lead Department: Planning and Development Services
Attachments:
Attachment A: Affordable Housing Month Proclamation
______________________________
Adrian Fine
Mayor
AFFORDABLE HOUSING MONTH
WHEREAS, affordable housing is a basic human right and yet, each year, thousands of Silicon Valley
families and individuals struggle to find an affordable home in this expensive housing market; and
WHEREAS, our region needs a total of 53,689 new affordable rental homes, including 38,689 for those
making less than 30% of the area’s median income, in order to meet the existing need; and
WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic will exacerbate the existing housing and homelessness crises; Palo
Alto residents have lost their jobs in the last few weeks and are struggling to pay their rent or mortgage; and
WHEREAS, Palo Alto has further responded to the pandemic with urgency and compassion by enacting a
citywide moratorium on evictions to protect renters from displacement and support small businesses; and
WHEREAS, the process of economic recovery will be gradual. Palo Alto must put the ongoing need for new
affordable housing development, preservation of existing affordable homes, and protection of its most vulnerable
residents at the center of its recovery planning to promote the stability of its community; and
WHEREAS, many organizations throughout Silicon Valley are dedicated to providing safe, stable, permanent
and affordable housing to all members of the community; these organizations along with local agencies and
community members have organized Affordable Housing Month; and
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Adrian Fine, Mayor of the City of Palo Alto on behalf of the entire City Council do
hereby proclaim the month of May as Affordable Housing Month in the City of Palo Alto, to call upon our
community to support affordable housing solutions and to recognize the successful efforts of the City of Palo
Alto and its partners who seek to improve access to affordable housing in Palo Alto.
PRESENTED: May 26, 2020
Proclamation