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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997-09-15 City Council (20)City of Palo Alto Manager’s Report TO: FROM: HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: DATE:September 15, 1997 CMR:392:97 SUBJECT: City Manager List of Issues for Priority Setting for Fiscal Years 1998-2000 Attached is the list of issues suggested by Council Members and Council advisory boards and commissions for consideration as Council priorities for fiscal years 1998-99 and 1999-2000. Council Members are asked to indicate their’ individual preferences on the attached score sheet, the compilation of which will provide the basis for discussion and consensus development at the Council Study Session on September 29. RECOMMENDATIONS Council Members should return their individually completed score sheets to the City Managers Office on or before Friday, September 19, so that the tabulation can be prepared and distributed in a timely.manner for the September 29 Council Study Session. POLICY IMPLICATIONS The process of setting priorities enables the Council to identify the issues which it believes require an intensified effort during the coming fiscal years. The implementation of the priorities will be incorporated in the budget soon to be developed for FY ’98-99 and ’99-2000. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Council Members have individually submitted their suggestions for priorities. Attachment ¯1 is the list of suggested issues. The Council-appointed boards and commissions were encouraged to submit suggestions and those have also been included in the attached list. (Note: Council Members Andersen and McCown have chosen not to submit suggestions due to the fact they willhnot be serving on the Council during FY 1998-2000. Suggestions from the Human Relations Commission will come subsequent to its meeting on September 11.) Each advisory group conveyed its appreciation to the Mayor and Council for the opportunity to participate in the process. CMR: 392:97 Page 1 of 2 In cases where more than one Council Member or advisory body suggested essentially the same issue, the issue is listed as one item. Statements elaborating on the issue are grouped together. Council Members’ names are indicated with the issues each submitted. Attachment 2 is the score sheet on which each Council Member will individually prioritize the issues. The Council "ground rules" allow allocation of points among the issues in any manner. If a Council Member wishes to include commertts elaborating on their choice of priorities, those also will be compiled and reproduced along with the tabulated scores. Council Members are encouraged to propose suggestions for refining the description of the priorities selected. Furthermore, the discussion that will occur at the Council study session will need to address whether the selected priorities will be for one or two fiscal years.~ FISCAL IMPACT The fiscal impact is unknown at this time. ENVIRONMENTAL RI~VIEW Setting of Council priorities is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 1. List of Suggested Issues for Priority Setting 2. Score Sheet for Pdoritizing Issues PREPARED BY: Janet Freeland, Senior Financial Analyst Assistant City Manager CMR: 392:97 Page 2 of 2 Attachment 1 LIST OF SUGGESTED ISSUES FOR PRIORITY SETTING Traffic Managemen~ and Safety_ (Fazzino, Huber, Schneider) Continue to make traffic safety and management a priority. (Fazzino, Schneider) (Note: The priority as adopted by the Council for FY 1996-98 stated: Address issues of parking, congestion, speed and traffic safety through the City by means such as enhanced enforcement, driver education, and physical changes to the street environment such as traffic calming devices. Evaluate transportation alternatives, for commuter and non-commuter alike, including the provision of a Palo Alto shuttle bus system, as a way to lessen traffic volumes. Continue to work cooperatively with the School district in dealing with School commute safety.) Implement intra-city shuttle system. (Fazzino) We need to continue this priority after completion of Comprehensive Plan tO demonstrate that we can in fact reduce some of the impact. (Huber) .C,~_mpletion and Implementation of Comprehensive Plan (Kniss, Wheeler, Eakins, Architectural Review Board) The Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee was appointed in 1992; we are heading rapidly toward 1998. We must make headway this fall/winter. (Kniss) Ensure that ordinances, include a revised zoning ordinance, and procedures are adopted to translate the policies and programs in the new Comprehensive Plan into reality. (TP’heeler) It is time to concentrate on finishing the Draft Comprehensive Plan and adopting it. New zoning ordinances ,are needed along with a noise ordinance among others. Transportation Planning needs to be implemented. (Eakins) Need to deal with the zoning changes that will be necessary following adoption 0fthe new Comprehensive Plan. Address conflicts that will occur during transition time between the adoption ~f the Plan and adoption of new zoning ordinance changes. (Architectural Review Board) (Note: The priority as adopted by the Council for FY 1996-97 stated: Continue the aggressive effort to assure completion of the Comprehensive Plan process by early Fall 1997, encouraging broad participation so that the doeumen~ is visionary and has strong community support. Critical steps include review and adoption of the final environmental impact report followed by adoption of the updated Comprehensive Plan. Determine the manner in which the Plan’s goals, policies and programs will be implemented, establish priorities, review financing alternatives and prepare a schedule for implementation. In accord with that schedule, begin to undertake the ordinance changes essential for implementation of the Plan. Infrastructure Plan (Fazzino, Huber, Kniss, Rosenbaum, Schneider, Wheeler, Public Art Commission) It is clear that our 100-year old city needs to be updated more rapidly than is currently happening. (Kniss) ’ We are still not through the overall review process; we need to finish the study and plan and provide for funding. (Huber) Infrastructure Strategic Plan: Having identified the infrastructure building and maintenance needs and desires, in 1998-2000, we need to formulate a strategy to pdoritize and fund them. (if’heeler) Infrastructure: Beautification of our neighborhood environments (Public Art Commission) (Note: The priority,adopted for FY 1996-98 stated: Continue the development of the long-range integrated plan (begun in FY 1995-96) for the restoration and maintenance of the City’s public .infrastructure including buildings, parks and open space, streets, sidewalks and other public paths and bikeways. The infrastructure implementation plan should accommodate attention to aesthetics as well as function, and set forth a program for long-term financing. The emphasis in FY 1-996-97 will be on completion of the public buildings component of the plan and development of the overall framework for a comprehensive infrastruetul;e management system (IMS). The feasibility of expanding the IMS to include the integration of pre-existing programs for streets and sidewalks will be evaluated. In FY 1997- 98, the emphasis will be on development of the ~remaining plan components for parks an open space, and public paths, bikeways and parking lots.) Families. Youth and Communi _ty (Kniss, Public Art Commission) Continue the priority of Families, Youth & Community.; the Family Resource Center is still to be "opened." (Kniss) Develop public art programs that support families, youth and community. (Public Art Commission) (Note: The priority adopted for FY 1996-97 stated: In cooperation with the school district and the private sector, continue with the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive approach for providing: 1) additional youth activities; 2) programs and projects to provide intervention for "at-risk" youth and their families; and 3) improvement to the family environment by strengthening and coordinating existing services to parents and families in need of community support. Follow through on the recommendations of the Positive Alternatives for Youth committee. Particular attention will be directed at consolidating services to avoid duplication of effort and cost, and at accomplishing these tasks through the . involvement of the youth, families, and neighborhoods for whom se~ices are sought. Major emphasis will be placed on the establishment of the Family Resource Centtr.) Residential Design Standards/Historic Preservation (Rosenbaum) Compatibility of new residential construction. (Rosenbaum) Residential Design Standards: The entire city needs design standards for residential construction and significant remodeling. Onlb, the pre-1940 areas are being protected now. "Compatibility" will not work for the newer parts of the City where construction and designs are too variable and have had too many changes. We identified community building features during the Comprehensive Plan pro.eess. This knowledge should be applied to design standards for non-historic neighborhoods. (Eakins) Strengthen neighborhood identity through residential design guidelines. (Schneider) Transition of the Electric Utility to a Deregulated Environment (Utilities Advisory Commission, Schneider) In light of the utility deregulation that will formally commence in CY 1998, the UAC feels that the successful transition of the utility should be one of the priorities of the Council during the upcoming year. Emphasis needs to be placed on insuring the continued economic viability of the utility in the face of competition as well as on preserving the reliability that might be impacted as a result of the unbundling of the traditional generation and distribution infrastructure. Special emphasis should be placed in the areaof governance of the utility in the face of the sweeping changes that are about to .take place in the utility industry. Governance and strategic planning, similar to that of private industry, will be needed to insure the long-term viability of our utility in a deregulated environment. (Utilities Advisory Commission) Issues related to Homelessness. Services for the Needy (Fazzino, Eakins) Provide services to the needy. (Fazzino) Housing Solutions for the Homeless: we need to find some more places for the unhoused. (Eakins) ~orhood/Communi _ty Environment (Schneider, Public Art Commission, Architectural Review Board) Complete the Do.wntown Master Plan by year 2000. (Public Art Commission) Improve aesthetics in our neighborhoods and city environment.(Public Art Commission) Revise the Sign Ordinance. (Architectural Review Board) Strengthen neighborhood organizations and identity. (Schneider) 10. Alternative Financing for Major Capital Improvements (Schneider) " Investigate alternative financing for major capital improvements. (Schneider) Impacts of Large Developments Outside Ci_ty (Schneider) Address the impact on Palo Alto of large developments outside city’s jurisdiction, i.e., Stanford, East Palo Alto. (Schneider) ATTACHMENT