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Home My WebLink AboutStaff Report 3824 City of Palo Alto (ID # 3824) City Council Staff Report Report Type: Action Items Meeting Date: 5/13/2013 City of Palo Alto Page 1 Summary Title: Discussion of Cubberley Final Report & Lease Title: Council Discussion of the Cubberley Community Advisory Report and Guidance Regarding Negotiations Related to the Cubberley Lease and Covenant Not to Develop From: City Manager Lead Department: City Manager Background This Action Item has been placed on the Council’s Agenda as directed by the City Council at its meeting on April 22, 2013. The Council wanted to have a public discussion about the issue of Cubberley and the City’s lease negotiations with the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD). The Council also continued its proposed Closed Session from April 22 to May 20, 2013. Cubberley Community Advisory Committee Report Both the City Council and the School District received the Final Report and Recommendations of the Community Advisory Committee (CCAC) at a special joint meeting on March 14, 2013. The CCAC report was long and detailed and included reports from four subcommittees (School Needs, Community Needs, Facilities, and Finance) and 17 Recommendations. As their report stated, “The CCAC recommendations are of two kinds: (1) specific near term decisions that are required as essential components of the long term solution which will serve the best interests of the entire community, and (2) a number of decisions which we have identified as critical steps down a path which will enable the community to ultimately achieve a solution.” After the presentation of its final report, the CCAC’s work was completed. The Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) composed of three Council Members and two School Board members was also established concurrent with the CCAC, to serve as intermediaries between the respective governing bodies and staff (supporting the CCAC ) and was expected to report back to the Council and the Board as needed. The PAC’s role and timeline was established as concurrent with the CCAC. City of Palo Alto Page 2 Given the completion of the work of those two committees, it is appropriate now for the City Council to discuss how to review the CCAC report and how to move forward. Presumably the School Board will have similar discussions. As the CCAC report itself indicated, there are longer term issues that still will need to be addressed but “specific near term decisions that are required as essential components of the long term solution”. Discussion Option to Renew the Lease A critical near term decision is the Council’s conclusion on whether to renew the Lease and Covenant Not to Develop (lease) between the City and the School District, which needs to occur by the end of this calendar year. The Closed Session scheduled for May 20, 2013 is available for the Council to give specific direction to the City negotiating team in exploratory lease renewal discussions that must occur with adequate time, so that the Council can determine by December 31, 2013 whether to exercise its option to extend the lease. Those negotiations between the City and School District should begin soon. The Council may want to talk about its perspectives regarding the current lease and potential options for new terms, as well as other commentary related to the CCAC report. Staff would note that much of the CCAC report does deal with long term issues that could require ongoing effort into the future but that action on the lease question and establishment of principles or positions on Cubberley that can inform the City’s negotiating position need to occur sooner than later. The staff has some recommendations regarding Cubberley that we will be happy to discuss with Council but is holding those in abeyance to allow the Council discussion to unfold as you see best at the meeting on May 13, 2013. Council has made it clear that you scheduled this meeting to hear from the public and provide adequate time for the Council to discuss this most important matter and potentially provide direction to staff. Attachments Staff has included a summary of the CCAC Report’s recommendations (Attachment A) but Council Members may want to bring your full report copy to the meeting. After their report was issued and provided to Council, the CCAC reached out to staff to issue a clarification to their recommendations, which is included as Attachment B. Finally, the original staff report (CMR) establishing the Cubberley committees and Guiding Principles is included as Attachment C. Attachments:  Attachment A Summary of CCAC Report Recommendations (PDF)  Attachment B CCAC Final Report Errors & Omissions Addendum_5-8-2013(PDF) City of Palo Alto Page 3  Attachment C Cubberley Guiding Principles CMR & Attachments_5-14-2012 (PDF) Term of the lease renewal While most CCAC votes on the issues considered were unanimous or close to unanimous, the question of what term to recommend for the new lease always resulted in a roughly evenly divided vote. The arguments for a shorter (5 year) lease typically revolved around the need to create pressure to get the long term planning done in a timely manner ... it was felt that a shorter lease would have the effect of “putting the collective feet of the City and School District in the ﬁre” with some advocating completion and approval of such a long term plan as a condition for automatic extension of the lease beyond 5 years. Those who supported a longer term (10 year) lease suggested that this approach would provide needed stability for tenants, including making rental of available space (for example, when Foothill College moves out) more easily accomplished and incentivize tenants to pay for improvements to their space or to a maintenance fund; another argument for a 10 year lease was the suggestion that it would likely be 10 years or more before major renovations of the site would be undertaken. The pros and cons of these different lease periods should be carefully considered as the City and School District negotiate the lease extension which, regardless of period, we strongly believe should be accomplished. For example, a longer lease term between the City and School District allows the City to enter into longer term leases with their tenants, possibly producing higher rental rates. The following questions and issues were put to a vote of the full CCAC, and are presented as they were drafted during CCAC discussions and need to be considered in the context of the discussions at the time (as presented in fuller detail later). The formal recommendations are: VOLUME 1 ... page 11 CCAC Report — Recommendations A B It is the strong recommendation of the CCAC that the entire Cubberley site become a joint / shared City / School District use facility. Passed 17-0-0 The CCAC’s preferred option is, not just a shared parcel, but rather a truly integrated use of the site The City and School District should renegotiate a lease extension option with additional conditions. Passed 17-0-0 The conditions of the lease extension should reﬂect the changed circumstances and economics since the original leases were signed. VOLUME 1 ... page 12 CCAC Report — Recommendations C D E F G H I The current Covenant Not To Develop should be removed from a Cubberley lease extension. Passed 18-0-0 This recommendation should not be understood to imply deleting the dollars associated with the covenant. Child care should continue to be provided at school sites and is important to the community. Passed 18-0-0 This recommendation pertains to the overall existing Lease, not development of the Cubberley site. The CCAC wanted to emphasize the importance of continuing the arrangements for child care at school sites that currently exists. Operating costs should not be shared in a ﬁve year window. Passed 19-0-0 During the ﬁrst ﬁve year lease period, all operations on site will be the City’s. Facility upgrades beyond routine maintenance should be negotiated. Passed 19-0-0 Currently the City pays for routine maintenance as determined necessary by the City. If the School District or City wants more extensive maintenance done, they should discuss sharing the costs. Capital expenses in the ﬁrst ﬁve years of the lease extension should be shared. Passed 15-2-1 A site master plan needs to be developed in the ﬁrst ﬁve years of any lease extension. Passed 18-0-0 In the ﬁrst ﬁve years of any lease extension, there should be a Community Needs Assessment developed with professional support. Passed 17-0-1 J K L CCAC Report — Recommendations M N O As a condition of any lease extension or renewal, an MOU shall be developed within one year of its execution that determines how a Community Needs Assessment and Master Plan will be developed in the next ﬁve years. Passed 19-0-0 The City and the School District shall explore the possibility of expanding City / School District joint-use agreement models including the expansion of joint-use at City and School District facilities. Passed 20-0-0 Discussed in detail, it was agreed that it would be important for the City and School District to explore this issue for the beneﬁt of our community, but was not suggested to be a part of the lease extension. As a condition of any lease extension or renewal, within one year of its execution near-term improvements to Cubberley shall be identiﬁed that can serve most, if not all, current and potential site uses (example: restrooms for playing ﬁelds). Passed 20-0-0 Any new leasing of the space should be done in the context of the MOU, Community Needs Assessment, and revised Master Plan Passed 20-0-0 The City and School District should further investigate alternative forms of governance and determine a governance structure for the joint use of Cubberley. Passed 14-0-0 A long-term master plan for Cubberley should not be a part of a 2014 ballot measure. Passed 20-0-0 It was generally agreed that the funding of site improvements at Cubberley is not compatible with a 2014 bond measure for reasons of time constraints and general uncertainties surrounding the project. VOLUME 1 ... page 13 P CCAC Report — Recommendations VOLUME 1 ... page 14 Q Phased construction should occur consistent with the MOU and Master Plan to minimize disruption to existing users. Passed 11-0-1 The City should not relinquish ownership of its 8 acres. Passed 13-4-0 While the School District would like ﬂexibility to use the full 35 acre site, the CCAC’s work has demonstrated: (1) valued current use and likely increasing need for community center space; (2) that the purchase of alternate space is cost prohibitive and unlikely to enjoy the beneﬁts of prime location and easy access by walking, bicycling, or transit; (3) successful examples of shared use in other communities and a variety of options for funding and governing a shared site; and (4) the feasibility of accommodating community center needs while still providing more, and more highly functional, space for school use than the entire current 35- acre facility offers.Planning for co-location and joint use of the whole site offers great potential for a win-win solution. Certainty about a long term City presence on the site facilitates that planning. —————— Please see Volume 3 for further insight to, and understanding of, these CCAC recommendations as provided by the minutes of our discussions, which understanding will, we believe, contribute to ﬂexibility in the design and development of future phases. May 8, 2013 CCAC Final Report Errors & Omissions Addendum Although unintended, one error and one omission were identified in the CCAC Final Report. The error and omission were identified by CCAC members following the distribution of the CCAC Final Report. Therefore, the CCAC, via email and at the direction of its leadership, decided that the best way to correct this is to do two things: 1) issue an addendum document that identifies the changes; and 2) revise any impacted pages of the CCAC Final Report posted online. No further changes or corrections to the CCAC Final Report are anticipated. The corrections are below: 1) Volume 1, Page 12, Recommendation C  Recommendation C is, “The current Covenant Not To Develop should be removed from a Cubberley lease extension. Passed 18-0-0”  After the voted on recommendation language a sentence appears that was neither approved nor voted on by the CCAC and should be removed.  The sentence to be removed is, “This recommendation should not be understood to imply deleting the dollars associated with the covenant.” 2) Volume 1, Page 14  A voted-on recommendation from the January 30, 2013 CCAC meeting was omitted from the Final Report and should be inserted on page 14 of Volume 1 of the CCAC Final Report after Recommendation Q.  The new recommendation is labeled “Recommendation R” and follows Recommendation Q.  Recommendation R reads as follows, “The City Council should include in a 2014 bond measure the flexibility to include capital improvements necessary to maintain building life for 10 years at Cubberley. Passed 18-0-0” City of Palo Alto (ID # 2861) City Council Staff Report Report Type: Consent Calendar Meeting Date: 5/14/2012 Summary Title: Cubberley Guiding Principles Title: Council Approval of Guiding Principles for the Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee and the City Manager and Superintendent Community Advisory Committee From: City Manager Lead Department: City Manager Recommendation Staff recommends that the City Council approve the Guiding Principles for the Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee and the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) appointed by the City Manager and PAUSD Superintendent. Background and Discussion On May 8, 2012, the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) approved the draft Guiding Principles without amendments. As Council is aware, the draft Guiding Principles were revised and forwarded by Council to the Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) composed of Council Members Yeh, Shepherd and Klein; and Board Members Mitchell and Townsend. The PAC met on April 20, 2012 and prepared the draft presented to the PAUSD School Board. The draft is now before the Council for final approval and is as Attachment A. The PAUSD School Board also suggested an additional member of the CAC in the “Other Community Members” category. Brian Carilli was suggested to the City Manager and Superintendent and has been added to the draft CAC list. Timeline Once Council approves the final Guiding Principles and all suggestions for the CAC members have been made, Staff will poll the CAC for a convenient meeting time the 3rd or 4th week of May. Attachments:  Attachment A: Final Draft Cubberley PAC Guiding Principals (DOC)  Attachment B: PAUSD Board Packet 5.8.12 Action Item 9 (PDF) Prepared By: Steve Emslie, Deputy City Manager Department Head: James Keene, City Manager City Manager Approval: ____________________________________ James Keene, City Manager Attachment A Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee City Manager and PAUSD Superintendent Community Advisory Committee Guiding Principles Approved by the Board of Education Agenda May 8, 2012 Draft for the Palo Alto City Council May 14, 2012 The Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) consists of two Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Board members appointed by the School Board President and three City Council members appointed by the Mayor. The PAC shall be the primary advisor to the Council and the School Board on issues related to the lease and possible re-use or joint use of the Cubberley campus. The Cubberley Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is jointly appointed by the City Manager and Superintendent, and shall represent a cross section of Cubberley, neighborhoods, schools and citywide representatives. The CAC shall review Cubberley background and history and provide the PAC with community input including but not limited to possible re-use scenarios, alternative lease arrangements, site plan configurations, possible funding plans, identification of joint use opportunities and compatible standards. 1. The City and PAUSD recognize that our citizens have substantial investments, both emotional and financial in the Cubberley Campus, and shall work to reach decisions for the benefit of our entire community. 2. The Committees shall maintain open and transparent processes at all times, and members of the public shall be invited to all meetings. The CAC shall complete a final report. PAC and CAC meetings shall be audio-recorded with minutes completed for the PAC, and notes completed for the CAC. (Costs of minutes shall be cost-shared by the City and PAUSD). 3. Documents, architectural drawings and other written communication provided to the Committees shall be made available to the general public as soon as possible. 4. The City and PAUSD recognize that Cubberley is a major cultural, educational, recreational and non-profit resource, very important to the community’s health and vitality. 5. Acknowledging that each entity has different regulations and governing legislation, the City and PAUSD shall seek to work cooperatively to explore all practical joint- uses of the Cubberley campus for both educational and community services. 6. The City and PAUSD have ownership interests in portions of the campus: PAUSD owns 27 acres and the City owns 8 acres. The parties may consider relocation of Attachment A their ownership interests within the site to facilitate optimal site layout and efficiency. 7. The City Manager and PAUSD Superintendent shall jointly prepare a project budget for 2012/13, with costs shared equally between the City and PAUSD. 8. While the Policy Advisory Committee planning shall occur as cooperatively as possible, the City Council representatives and the PAUSD Board Members shall retain independent recommending authority should consensus not be reached. 9. Maintaining the quality of PAUSD schools is a significant community value, and planning for a growing population is essential to maintaining educational excellence and the overall health and well-being of our community. 10. Cubberley programs enrich the community and criteria shall be developed to prioritize and/or retain existing uses as well as assess prospective new uses. 11. The City and PAUSD recognize that joint-use could result in stronger educational and cultural programs provided more efficiently. 12. The City Council and PAUSD representatives on the Policy Advisory Committee shall report, not less often than every other month, to their respective bodies on Cubberley planning activities. 13. The City and PAUSD shall work to continue community access to Cubberley to the extent possible. Recreation facilities provided at the Cubberley campus produce important services benefitting the community at large. 14. The residential neighborhoods surrounding Cubberley shall be considered in determining the compatibility of possible changes on the Cubberley campus. 15. Transportation issues and access to and within Cubberley shall be considered in determining possible options including improved bicycle and pedestrian facilities. 16. All recommendations shall be mindful of the dynamic short-, mid-, and long-term forces impacting the PAUSD and City. BOARD OF EDUCATION Attachment: Action 9 PALO ALTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT Date: 05.08.12 TO: Board of Education FROM: Kevin Skelly, Superintendent of Schools SUBJECT: Cubberley Community Advisory Committee Composition and Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee Guiding Principles STRATEGIC PLAN INITIATIVE Governance and Communication BACKGROUND A process for discussing the Cubberley site began in November of 2011. The plan is to achieve consensus on a vision for the future of the Cubberley site one year prior to the City's current lease expiration in December 2014. The process involves forming three groups: a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) made up of executive staff from PAUSD and the City; a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) to be appointed by the City Manager (with recommendations from the School Superintendent); and a Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) composed of three City Council members (Yeh, Shepherd and Klein) and two PAUSD members (Mitchell and Townsend). Note: At the last meeting, conceptual site plans were presented and discussed. This part of the item from the last meeting has been removed COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE (CAG) The CAC is intended to represent a cross section of Cubberley, neighborhoods, schools and city-wide representatives. The members are appointed by the City Manager, with input by the Superintendent of Schools. They will provide the PAC with community input. A listing of the proposed membership as of May 3, 2012 is attached. The Board is asked to approve this list for consideration by City Council on May 14, 2012. GUIDING PRINCIPLES A draft set of Guiding Principles (GPs) for use by the PAC and CAC has been developed. The GPs are intended to reflect community values of transparency ensuring that the public is invited to meetings and offered opportunities to interact with both groups. In addition, the Guiding Principles set up very broad objectives to clarify that the process is intended to be collaboration between the City and the School district, emphasizing joint use of the facilities where possible. A discussion regarding these GPs took place at the PAC meeting on Friday, April 20, 2012 and the PAUSD Board meeting on April 24, 2012. Staff has provided an updated version of the Guiding Principles based on Board input and recommends approval. These Guiding Principles are scheduled for consideration by the City Council at its May 14, 2012 meeting. PROCESS AND TIME LINE The City's Cubberley lease expires in December 2014. At that time, the lease may be extended an additional 5 years upon mutual consent of the City and the District. The City's schedule assumes providing the District notice of its intentions regarding renewal of the lease at the end of 2013 to provide the District with one year's notice prior to the lease expiration. The first meeting of the CAC was anticipated to be in early May and there will be approximately 12 months of meetings. As mentioned, the PAC had their first meeting on Friday, April 20. As discussed above, the CAC and PAC are scheduled to meet over the course of 2012 concluding their recommendations in 2013. This timeline allows the Council to engage in lease negotiations with the School District two years prior to the expiration of the lease in 2014. The timeline anticipates a decision on the lease by the end of 2013, providing a one-year notice period if either party decides to not exercise the 5 year option to extend the lease. RECOMMENDATION The Guiding Principles and Citizen's Advisory Committee composition, as attached, are recommended for approval. Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee City Manager and PAUSD Superintendent Community Advisory Committee Guiding Principles Draft for Board of Education Agenda May 8, 2012 The Cubberley Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) consists of two Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Board members appointed by the School Board President and three City Council members appointed by the Mayor. The PAC shall be the primary advisor to the Council and the School Board on issues related to the lease and possible re-use or joint use of the Cubberley campus. The Cubberley Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is jointly appointed by the City Manager and Superintendent, and shall represent a cross section of Cubberley, neighborhoods, schools and citywide representatives. The CAC shall review Cubberley background and history and provide the PAC with community input including but not limited to possible re-use scenarios, alternative lease arrangements, site plan configurations, possible funding plans, identification of joint use opportunities and compatible standards. 1. The City and PAUSD recognize that our citizens have substantial investments, both emotional and financial in the Cubberley Campus, and shall work to reach decisions for the benefit of our entire community. 2. The Committees shall maintain open and transparent processes at all times, and members of the public shall be invited to all meetings. The CAC shall complete a final report. PAC and CAC meetings shall be audio-recorded with minutes completed for the PAC, and notes completed for the CAe. (Costs of minutes shall be cost-shared by the City and PAUSD). 3. Documents, architectural drawings and other written communication provided to the Committees shall be made available to the general public as soon as possible. 4. The City and PAUSD recognize that Cubberley is a major cultural, educational, recreational and non-profit resource, very important to the community's health and vitality. 5. Acknowledging that each entity has different regulations and governing legislation, the City and PAUSD shall seek to work cooperatively to explore all practical joint uses of the Cubberley campus for both educational and community services. 6. The City and PAUSD have ownership interests in portions of the campus: PAUSD owns 27 acres and the City owns 8 acres. The parties may consider relocation of their ownership interests within the site to facilitate optimal site layout and efficiency. 7. The City Manager and PAUSD Superintendent shall jointly prepare a project budget for 2012/13, with costs shared equally between the City and PAUSD. 8. While the Policy Advisory Committee planning shall occur as cooperatively as possible, the City Council representatives and the PAUSD Board Members shall retain independent recommending authority should consensus not be reached. 9. Maintaining the quality of PAUSD schools is a significant community value, and planning for a growing population is essential to maintaining educational excellence and the overall health and well-being of our community. 10. Cubberley programs enrich the community and criteria shall be developed to prioritize and/or retain existing uses as well as assess prospective new uses. 11. The City and PAUSD recognize that joint-use could result in stronger educational and cultural programs provided more efficiently. 12. The City Council and PAUSD representatives on the Policy Advisory Committee shall report, not less often than every other month, to their respective bodies on Cubberley planning activities. 13. The City and PAUSD shall work to continue community access to Cubberley to the extent possible. Recreation facilities provided at the Cubberley campus produce important services benefitting the community at large. 14. The residential neighborhoods surrounding Cubberley shall be considered in determining the compatibility of possible changes on the Cubberley campus. 15. Transportation issues and access to and within Cubberley shall be considered in determining possible options including improved bicycle and pedestrian facilities. 16. All recommendations shall be mindful of the dynamic short-, mid-, and long-term forces impacting the PAUSD and City. Cubberley Community Advisory Panel Group First Name Last Name Neighborhoods Fair Meadow Tom Vician Walnut Grove Tom Crystal Green Meadow Lanie Wheeler Greendell Michael Bein Charleston Gardens Jean Wilcox Midtown Sheri Furman PAN Ken Allen Commeroial Retail Charleston Plaza Tenant Village Properties Damian Cono PTA's Fairmeadow Elementary Claire Kirner JLS Middle School John Markevitch Gunn High School Tracy Stevens Palo Alto High School Susan Bailey Cubberley Tenants Child Care Rachel Samoff Artist Lessa Bouchard Non Profit -Cardiac Therapy Jerry August FOPAL Jim Schmidt Community/Arts & Services Susie Thom Park and Rec Commission PT&C Greg Tanaka Other Community Members Diane Reklis Mandy Lowell Brian Corilli Acterra Michael Closson PABAC William Robinson City School Traffic Safety Penny Elison Recreation and Sports League Soft Ball Mike Cobb