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Home My WebLink AboutORD 2722• I • • r:-...nftr."IN AL '"-·t t'\.1 '\.Ji ;..-i. ORDINANCE NO. 2722 ORDIN~~C~ OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO AMENDING THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 1972-73 TO APPROPRIATE $80,000 TO PROVIDE FUNDS FOR SCOTT STREET MINI-PARK AND Ir-1PROVEl1ENTS WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of Section 12 of Article III of the Charter of the City of Palo Alto, the Council did on June 26, 1972, adopt a budget for the fiscal year 1972-73; and WHEREAS, the City Council on r.tarch 23, 1973, directed the staff to enter into negotiations for the purchase of the two par- eel sites adjacent to 931 Scott Street for parkss recreation, or other public use; and ~'VHl!:REAS, $80,000 is required for acquisition and development of the property; and WHBREAS, this amount is ol!er and above the amount contained in the budget for fiscal year 1972-73; NOW, THEREFORE, the Council of the City of Palo Alto does ORDAlH a:;; follows: SECTION 1. The amount of Eighty Thousand Dollars {$80,000) be transferred from the Unappropriated Balance of the Capital Improvement Fund and be utilized for Project No. 72-98, Scott Street Mini-Park and Improvements. • • SECTION 2. This ordinance shall become effective immediately as provided in Section 12 of. Article III of the Charter and Section 2.04.375 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code. INTRODUCED: June 4, 197 3 PASSED: June 4, 1973 AYES: ~JORlTY NOES: Beahrs, Norton ABSENT: Berwald·. a:: 9,~ City Cle4/ APPROVED AS •ro FOR?<I: q ~~-t-\t!~,tk-~1~~~ Sr.~ Assistant City Attorney APPROVED~ ~ 7"' -p / -~d CipyManager APPROVI::D: d~ ai-"-0~t;;.:.zd2~: f-:;._:.-~...;_-~---- Y ~ roller -2- Mayor \. :::... \ ..,_ ~ -·-·._ .. , r -i: . ,. . . ~. ENVIRON~iL.iiTAL DOCUMENTS • ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT Proposed City Purchase of two parcels on Scott Street EIA-2 73 . ... Project Description ----- Location Adjacent to 931 Scott Street -.--- Sponsoring Person or Agency _____ C_i_ty~o __ f_P_a_l_o __ Al ___ to ______________ . _____________________ _ Address of Sponsor 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, CA ------------------------------~~--------~--------------------- Zoni\'lg at Project Location:...._ __ R_-_4 ______ _ Application for ___________ _ Fee paid;,___n_/_a_;......._ __ ~($25.00) Based upon the informati.on on the accompanying worksheets, the undersigned member of the Planning Department has made an Environmental Assessment of the Project and has concluded: J X I ~egative Declaration: The project has no significant environmental impact No environmental impact report is required. I X/ A supplew~ntal assessment is attached. I I Notice of Determination: The project may have a significant environmental impact. An environmental impact report will be prepared by the Planning Department. Planr.ing Department Reviewed During Agency or Processing By .. Department Date Agree Disagree . > . 1- 5-16-73:500 . ·~ • May 31, 1973 HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL Palo Alto, California • Environmental Impact ,\sses~ment for P~rchase of a Two-Parcel Site on Scott Street ' Members of the Council: PROJECT DESCRIPTION At its meeting of Apr:il 23, 1973, the City Council of Palo Alto directed the staff to negotiate for purchase of the two-parcel site comprising approx imately 11,200 square feet adjacent to 931 Scott Street for parks, recreation, or other public use. ENVIRONMENTAL DESCRIPTION The two parcels in question are located on the northeast side of Scott Street in an R-4 district and adjacent to an R-2 district. On the Channing Avenue side of the subject site is an apartment house and to the southeast of the site is a single-family frame residence. Across Scott Street lies the Palo Alto Convalescent Hospital; across Channing Avenue is the Palo Alto Medical Clinic and its large parking lot. The other parcels on Scott Street are developed with single-family frame houses over twenty years old. Physical and Biological Conditions. The site itself is in poor condition at present. The parcel on the north is covered wtth old paving somewhat above the grade of the southerly parce 1, which is covered with-weeds. A large and beautifully shaped white oak grows on the nort.'least corner of the site. No other plants of significance exist, and there is no suitable habitat at present for bird or animal life. lhderlying the imported paving material and alluvial soil is the Santa Clara formation of quaternary sandstones and gravels. No known earthquake fault is closer than seven miles. There is no historical record of flooding in this location from San Francisquito or Matadero Creeks. Air and noise pollution is moderate in relation to other similar locations in the urbanized sections of the City. Heavily-traveled Channing Avenue and the large expanses of pave ment in nearby parking lots raise the air temp~rature and probably produce higher-than-average automobile emission pollutants in the mdcro-environment. ~ultural Factors. It 1.8 ·aesumad for purposes of this assessment that two to three bl,ocks is the maximum service distance of this proposed public site., if usad as a park. It is also assumed that the general boundaries of the use area are Waverley Street on the northeast (a fairly heavily-traveled street diffi cult or inconvenient for many peotio•le to cross), Channing Avenue on the north- CMR:745:3 .. ~-.. ..... • • Page Two west, Emerson Street on the southwest and Kingsley Avenue on the southeast. Within these thirteen censue tract blocks there are 228 o7cupied housing units with a total population of just under 500 persons.~ Of these persons, 16% (or about 80) are under eighteen years of age, and 23% (or about 115) are over sixty-two years of age, In addition, within this area there are 68 occupants of the Palo Alto Convalescent Hospital, of whom an average of 10 are ambulatory, and 48 employees of thts hospital. The seven census tract blocks to the north of Channing Avenue are developed with the mixed residential, professional/office, comi!!~rcial and manufacturing uses permitted in the R-1~, C-2 and M-1 distrlcts, There are~ 102 occupied housing units with a total population of 172 persona. Of these 10%, or about 17 are under eighteen and 2 7%, or about 4 7, :E'. over sixty-two years of age. It hae not bee.I\ possible to tabulate the numb'cr of people employed in this area who might be potential users of the Scott Street site with the excep tion of those at the Palo Alto Medical Clinic. This institution reports a total of 500 employees in its various facilities.!/ ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Purchase of this site and development of it for public purposes as a mini park, for recreation, or for other public use will improve the physical bJ.ological conditions in the area. Preservation of the existing oak tree, removal of the impervious surface~ and installation of more plants will aid in counter-acting the heat reflected from hard surfaces. Rainwater will no longer be channeled directly into the City's storm sewer from this site, but will aid in recharging the underground water supply. Noise at this site emanating from nearby traffic sources will not be diminished by this purchase however. The need for a park site in what has been termed the Downtown Park South area has been recognized for·. some years by the Council and in several planning re ports and studies, although the present site is leas than the one acre previously proposed for neighborhood parks. The site will qualify for a "mini-park" •.hich needs no more than 10,000 to 15,000 square feet. 1/ ~I u. s. Department of Connnerce, Bureau of tl J Cens~s, Block Statistics, San Jose, California, Utbanized Area, December, 197i, page 83. Information from payroll department of Palo Alte Medical Clinic on May 22, 1973. • • Page Three Its location is close to the north boundary of its estimated use area (discussed under cultural factors, above) for residences. If potential users from the commercial/office structures in the northern area are con sidered, however, the total number of potential users increases considet" ably, and the park site becomes more central to its service area. Assuming that there are 600 potential employees who might use the site for lunch hour or coffee break {this includes 500 from the Clinic, 48 from the Conva lescent Hospital, and some 50 others) plus 672 residents of the vicinity (some 250 of whom are the very young and the very old) the potential number of users would approach being too great for such a site. However, this demonstrates the need for a park somewhere in this location. Purchase of this site for public use will cause the City to lose the tax revenue presently generated (about $1,250 annually) as well as potential tax revenue which might be realized by thfs site. were it developed ~der the present R-4 zoning. City services to the site also wi~l cost somP-what more in the way of maintenance and policing than they would if the site were privately developed. The impact upon ttse neighborhood of public purchase and development of this site will undoubtedly be favorable. On the contraryr traffic congestion would increase in the neighborhood with the R-4 development that could take place if a mini-park is not created. The cost in public funds for purchase of the site may be considerable i.n this time of inflationary land prices, but there is no indication that land prices will take a downward direction in the foreseeable future. In surunary, the Planning Department finds that the proposed purchase of this site will not have a significant adverse environmental impact, and a full report will not be necessary. Respectfully submitted,