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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-10-07 City Council (8)TO: City of Palo Alto City Manager’s Report, HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL " 1 FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: PLANNING and COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DATE:OCTOBER 7, 2003 CMR: 459:03 SUBJECT:ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT (EIR) SCOPING MEETING FOR THE MAYFIELD SOCCER COMPLEX DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AND STANFORD UNIVERSITY RECOMMENDATION The Department of Planning and Community Environment recommends that the City Council host a community-scoping meeting to receive public comments related to the potential environmental impacts of the proposed Development Agreement between the City of Palo Alto and Stanford University for the Mayfield soccer complex project. BACKGROUND The City issued a Notice of Preparation (NOP) on August 24, 2003 to the State Clearing House for an Environmental Impact Report for a Development Agreement between the City and Stanford University (see the attached NOP for the project description). The NOP identified the probable environmental effects of the project. Comments related to the NOP have been received from the State Department of Toxic Substances Control, the State Department of Transportation, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, and the Santa Clara Valley Water District. The environmental consulting firm, EIP Associates of San Francisco, has been retained by the City to prepare the EIR for the project. The Draft EIR will address the potential environmental impacts .related to: land use, noise, air quality, open space, visual/aesthetics, utilities and public services, hazardous materials, traffic and transportation and energy as described in the NOP and will include a reasonable range of feasible project alternatives. The EIR will also address the issues raised by the commenting public agencies. The main purposes of the scoping meeting are to are to provide the community an understanding of the EIR process for this project including public participation (see Attachment B) and provide the City and its consultants with comments regarding potential environmental effects from the project that should be addressed in the DEIR. The attached agenda) describes the format for the scoping meeting. ATTACHMENTS Attachment A: Agenda for the Scoping Meeting Notice of Preparation Attachment B: Steps in the EIR Process Attachment C: Notice of Preparation Attachment D: Area Zone Map PREPARED BY~ ~CAPORGNO I~VIEWED BY: ///~~~ ~~nEg Manager Direc~or~ of Planning ~~Env" ent and Community CITY MANAGER APPROVAL: City Manager AttaChment A ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AND STANFORD UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT FOR THE MAYFIELD SOCCER COMPLEX SCOPING MEETING AGENDA Tuesday, October 7, 2003 6:00 PM- 7:00 PM City Council Chambers, Civic Center, 1st Floor 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301 1.INTRODUCTION/OPENING COMMENTS - Vice Mayor Bern Beecham (5 minutes) = PROJECT OVERVIEW - Steve Emslie, Director of Planning and Community Environment- See attached Notice of Preparation (NOP) (5 minutes) 3.EIR PROCESS - Lisa Grote, Chief Planning Official - See attached Steps (5 minutes) PUBLIC COMMENTS (3 minutes per speaker) The purpose of this scoping meeting is to provide the community with the opportunity to provide the City and its consultants with comments regarding the potential environmental effects from the project that should be addressed in the Draft EIR. This meeting is not a public hearing. 5. COUNCIL COMMENTS (Remainder of time) DRAFT EIR PUBLIC REVIEW PERIOD The Draft EIR will be available for review during a 45-day circulation period. If you would like to be notified of the dates of the public review period, please be sure to put your name and mailing address on the sign in sheet. A public hearing on the Draft EIR will be held by the Planning and Transportation Commission prior to going to City Council for approval. In the event you choose to challenge this land use decision in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues you raised at this scoping meeting, the public hearing, or by a written comment during the public review period. Attachment B STEPS IN THE PUBLIC PROCESS FOR THE CITY OF PALO ALTO/STANFORD UNIVERSITY DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT (EIR) 1. EIR Scoping ¯Notice of Preparation (NOP) - sent to public agencies (August 25) ¯Public Scoping Meeting held to receive public comment (October 7) 2. Draft EIR (I)EIR) Process ¯City / consultant prepare DEIR ¯DEIR circulates for 45-day review by public and public agencies ¯Planning Commission hearing on Draft EIR ¯Comments submitted to City ¯City/consultant prepare responses to comments 3. Final EIR (FEIR) Process ¯Final EIR distribution ¯Planning Commission recommendation on Final EIR and Development Agreement ¯City Council action to certify and make findings on EIR ¯City Council action on Development Agreement Attachment C City of Palo Alto Department of Planning and Community Environment TO FROM SUBJECT Sandy Eakins League of Women Voters of Palo Alto 457 Kingsley Avenue Palo Alto, Ca 94301 City of Palo Alto Department of Planning and Community Environment 250 Hamilton Ave. Palo Alto, CA 94303 Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report Public Resources Code Section 21092, California Code of Regulations Title 14, Section 15082 The City of Palo Alto will be the Lead Agency and will prepare an Environmental Impact Report for the project identified below. We need to know the views of your agency as to the scope and content of the environmental information which is germane to your agency’s statutory responsibilities in connection with the proposed project. The project description, location, and the probable environmemal effects are contained in the attached materials. Due to the time limits mandated by State law, your response must be sent at the earliest possible date, but not later than 30 days after receipt of this notice. Please send your response to Tricia Schimpp, Project Manager, at the address shown above. PROJECT TITLE: Development Agreement between the City of Palo Alto and Stanford University Date: / Phone: 650-329-2679 Fax: 650-329-2154 PROJECT SPONSOR: City of Palo Alto Department of Planning and Community Environment Simaamr~ ~.--~J’ukie Capo~vance PlanningManager Development Agreement between the City of Palo Alto and Stanford University Introduction The purpose of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is to inform decision-makers and the general public of the environmental effects of a proposed project that an agency may implement or approve. The EIR process is intended to provide information sufficient to evaluate a project and its potential for significant impacts on the environment; to examine methods of reducing adverse impacts; and to consider alternatives to the project. The EIR for the proposed project will be. prepared and processed in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) of 1970, as amended. The EIR will include the following: ¯Summary of project ¯Project description ¯Description of existing environmental setting, potential environmental impacts, and mitigation measures ¯Reasonable range of alternatives to the project ¯Environmental consequences, including (a) any sign-tificant environmental effects which cannot be avoided if the project is implemented; (b) the gowth inducing impacts of the proposed project; and (c) cumulative impacts. Project Location The proposed project consists of four separate sites located in the 700 acre Stanford Research Park in the City of Palo Alto that is bounded by E1 Camino Real (SR 82) on the east, California Avenue on the north, Page Mill and Arastradero Roads on the south, and Stanford University lands on the west. Regional and vicinity maps of the project are attached as Figures 1 and 2, respectively. See the shaded areas on the Vicinity Map for the project sites. Project Description The project consists of the following: Development Ageement and 51-year lease by City of Palo Alto of 6 acres (Mayfield site-- currently zoned for 240 units of housing) from Stanford University to allow an athletic fields complex on the Mayfield site (3 fields with parking). In return, Stanford would receive vesting for 100,000 square feet of new development in the South Research Park. To offset the loss of potential housing on the Mayfield site, Stanford would build a minimum of 250 housing units on six sites in the City (on California Avenue and E1 Camino Real) currently occupied with 312,000 square feet ofR&D/of:fice devel6pment. Stanford would receive vested ri~ts to replace 200,000 of that square footage in the South Research Park and to 2 construct the 250 housing units. Under the proposed Development Agreement, Stanford may develop under City regulations as they currently exist. Thus, 300,000 square feet would replace 312,000 square feet of existing development within the Stanford Research Park. The City would also agree to retain the existing allowable Floor Area Ratio in the entire Stanford Research Park through 2010. By the Development Agreement, the City would accept the lease as mitigation for any community services impacts on the City resulting from development at Stanford authorized by the County in December 2000. The Development Agreement would also provide that the replacement commercial development will have priority over other unbuilt commercial development for utility cormections, waste treatment and storm drain capacity; that the City would not require dedications of land asa condition of the replacement commercial development; and to implement the vesting of the replacement commercial development, that the City would not use its design review authority to reduce the square footage allowed on a designated site. On any site used for such development, Stanford may construct development that exceeds the Floor Xrea Ratio (FAR) for such site by a maximum of 25% (so long as the total FAR allowable for all the sites is not exceeded). 2.Changes to the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map and zoning map to reflect changes in use on the Mayfield site and the new housing sites resulting from the Development Agreement. The City Council has requested a review and supplement of the existing Comprehensive Plan EIR prior to the approval of any additional development in the Stanford Research Park, such as the project identified above. Accordingly, this EIR will also review" the impacts of buildout of the Research Park under the current Comprehensive Plan and zoning, although this is not part of the project that the City is being asked to approve. In this respect, this EIR will supplement the EIR prepared for the Comprehensive Plan certified in 1998, which anticipated that an additional 800,000 square feet would be developed in the Research Park by 2010 and that the May-field site would be developed with a hotel, k is estimated that 700,000 of that 800,000 square feet has already been developed, and that an additional’750,000 square feet (allowed by current zoning) will be developed at the Research Park by 2025. This review will be detailed in the cumulative ¯ impact analysis in the EIR. As an update to the Comprehensive Plan EIR, this supplemental review may also be used, to the extent appropriate, for review of other individual projects in the Research Park as they are proposed. Also, as part of the Development Agreement, Stanford would collaborate with the City to develop a traffic mitigation program to identify reasonable and feasible reductions in the use of single occupancy vehicles as the transportation mode of choice for future new development in the Research Park. Potential Environmental Impacts of the Project The EIR will identify the significant environmental effects that could result from development of the project as proposed. As discussed above, there are three main components of the project: the playfields, the housing sites and the area in the South Research Park designated for the additional R&D/office development. The EIR analysis for the playfields will be based on project design and provide project level environmental review whereas the housing and R&D/office development analysis will be based on conceptual plans and will require further environmental review at the project stage. It is presently anticipated that the EIR will include at least the following specific environmental categories: Land Use The EIR will describe the existing land uses adjacent to and within the project area. Land use impacts which would occur as a result of the proposed housing, playfield and R&D/office development will be described, including the compatibility of the proposed and existing land uses in the project area. The project’s consistency with the City of Palo Alto’s Comprehensive Plan and zoning, evaluation of any incompatible land use impacts from proposed land use changes, and the jobs/housing imbalance will be addressed. Mitigation measures will be identified for any significant land use impacts, as warranted. Noise The EIR will describe the existing noise levels (including automobile traffic) and potential increases in noise levels resulting from the project including the playfield use, housing and R&D/office deve!opment. Short-term construction noise impacts will be assessed. Mitigation measures will be identified for any significant noise impacts, as warranted. Air Quality The EIR will evaluate potential air quality impacts from development of the playfields, housing and R&D office based on the criteria established by the Bay Area Quality Management District. Construction of the project components may result in short-term air quality impacts and mitigation measures will be identified in the EIR, as warranted. Open Space The EIR will assess the potential for any impact from additional R&D/office development in the South Research Park on the adjacent Coyote Hill open space area. Mitigation measures will be identified for any significant open space impacts, as warranted. F~ts ual/A esth etics The project will introduce new structures, play fields and lighting to the project sites. The EIR will describe the existing visual character of the project area and will include photographs to illustrate the text. The change in the visual character resulting from the proposed new housing sites and additional R&D/office growth in the South Research Park will be described in the EIR. Lighting impacts from the playfields will be evaluated. Mitigation measures will be identified for any significant aesthetic impacts, as warranted. 4 Utilities and Public Services The EIR will describe the project requirements for utilities and public services and will address the capacity of the existing and planned systems to accommodate the various project components. Appropriate mitigation will be identified to reduce any significant impacts, as warranted. Hazardous Materials The playfield site is located in an area that is known to have contaminants. The EIR will describe the potential for contamination in soils and water from existing hazardous materials on sites resulting from historic and present land uses. Mitigation measures will be identified for any significant impacts, as warranted. Traffic and Transportation The EIR will describe the existing traffic circulation conditions in the vicinity of Stanford Research Park and will address the adequacy of access to and from the proposed project sites. A traffic analysis will be completed by the City of Palo Alto to identify the transportation impacts on the surrounding roadway system of the additional commercial development in the South Research Park, the change in use from office to housing on the E1 Camino Real and California Avenue sites and the playfield use. The study will identify the traffic impacts of the proposed development on key intersections and roadway segments in the vicinity of the project. The impacts will be evaluated in conformance with City policies and the Congestion Management Program if required. Impacts from the project traffic on nearby residential neighborhoods will also be evaluated. Mitigation measures will be identified for any significant transportation impacts, as warranted. Enero.~y The EIR will include a discussion of the energy impacts from the housing R&D/office and playfields and describe how the project will reduce energy consumption. Alternatives The EIR will evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project, based on the results of the environmental analysis. The alternatives discussion will focus on those alternatives that could feasibly accomplish most of the basic purposes of the project and could avoid or substantially lessen one or more of the significant effects. The alternatives could include the following: !.No Project Alternative--2 scenarios: (1) no additional development on any of the project sites (existing conditions remain) and (2) development occurs as anticipated under the existing Comprehensive Plan and zoning on the project sites, including housing on the Mayfield site 2. Location Alternative 3. Reduced Development Alternative Growth Inducing Impacts The EIR will identify and describe in qualitative terms the extent to which infrastructure (including transportation improvements) proposed or required by the project would include excess capacity, and identify what, if any, additional development might be accommodated by that capacity. Significant Unavoidable Impacts The E!R will identify any impacts that cannot be avoided, fit_he project is implemented as proposed. Cumulative Impacts The EIR will include a Cumulative Impacts section that will address any significant cumulative impacts of the project when considered with other reasonably foreseeable future projects in the area. The analysis will also evaluate the development of the housing, playfields and R&D/office in conjunction with the development allowed under Stanford Community Plan adopted in 2000 and any additional development envisioned in the General Plans of adjacent jurisdictions adopted since 1998. This section would also evaluate the full buildout of the Stanford Research Park, assumed to occur by 2025, as a supplement to the Comprehensive Plan EIR, described above. 6 The City of Palo Alto Stanford Research Park Housing Sites and Play Fields This map is a product of the City of Palo Alto GIS Atherton I Menh Park ,,~," East Palo Alto " "-,,.- 0~ Stanford University )In City Boundaries (KM) Stanford Research Park ./ Los Altos The Citv of Palo Alto This map is a product of the City of Palo Alto GIS Stanford Research Park Vicinity Map Attachment D