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Home My WebLink About0122.095• . . '. , ..... , '-" • _-....." '. 0" J "'. ---". -. ", .-' '~ __ .--~~r City of Palo Alto City Manager's Summary Report TO: FROM: HONORABLE CITY COUNCn. CITV MANAGER DEPARTMENT: F1anning and Community Enviromneot AGENDA DATI'.: January 30, BIllS CMR:l22:9S SUBJECI': REOUESf CompnheDslve Plan Update -Housing Element of Compcellensive Plan This report, the attached in-deptlt staff report, and CMR:496 94 prepared for me Council meeting of November 7. 1994. forward 10 Council • 'U1IlIIWY 0{ the cooun<:nts on the Housing ElemeD! of the Comprehensive Plan. The comments were made by the Planning Ccmmission, <JIher &at<!l; and Ovnmissions, CPAC, and staff. The City Council should review this material and identify which goals, policies and programs should be incorpo<aIed into the Housing Element. The <inti Plan and Housing Element will be subject 10 considerable public review prior 10 adopOOn. BFlXlMM1gmIDONS It is recommended that !he CIIy Council review the proposed goals, policies and programs, iden!ifylng those that should be included in the dnft Housing Elemenl. POlJCY IMPI,ICA TIONS The CPAC. Board and Commission and staff recommendations contain numerous City policy impficatioos. The attached in-<leplh report and It .. previous City Manager Report (CMll:49694) provide infonnation on the polley cbanges. EXECUTIVE SUMMARy The goals, policies and programs prepared by CPAC and revkwed by the City Boards and Commission are generally consistent with the C\l rrently adopted Housing ElemeD!. The emphasis remains on the retention 0{ existing housing, maintaining ren!3.1 housing, encouraging the production 0( new housing, prommg affordable housing opportunities, and finding additional hou>ing sites, in part 10 ,",fisty the requirements 0{ Stale housing element law. A brier discussion on rair sbare housing numbers is also included, which notes City staff concerns on the insbility 0{ the bousing market 10 meet the City's current fair sbare bouslng goals and the slare delay in establisbing new fair sIJare housing numbers. ';.. . .'. 1 FlSCAL IMPACT Adoption of i I>eW Comprehensive Plan will result in po!elllial!) signlfica."\I impacts on City expenditures and City revenues, The anached m~terial identifies some fiscal impacts, and further fiscal impact analysis will be rondu<:ted dwi.'1g preparajOQ of !he drut Plan. ENYIRONMEN1'AL MSFS5MFJllT All Enviromnental Impact Report wilJ be prepued OIl Ihe drut Plan that emerges from !he public review and .ubsequeDI goal, policy and program dlreclion given by the City Council. PREPARED BY: James E. GilIDand, Assiswlt. P'.anning Official DEPARTMENT HEAD REVIEW: ~d~~ KENNETH R.. SCHREIBER Direc1cr of PlaDll.IDg and Communi!)' Environmelll CITY MAN. ... GER APPROY AL: BERNARD M. STRO" Assistant Cily Manager . > . -'- ... '. / • -.. ~, City Manager's Report (In-Depth) SUBJECT: Housing Dement of the Comprehensioe PIau RECOMMENDATIONS It is recommended 1llat t!ie City Council review !lJe proposed goals, policies and programs, identifying Ihose that shook! be incluQed in !he draft Housing Element. BACK~ Major comments 011 proposed Housing Elemem goals, policies and programs are included in !lJe • Staff Comments" portion of !he CPAC rocommendatioos (9/30.'94 staff repo<t 10 Boards and Commissions). Comments 011 Board and Commission r.ecommeodatioos are contained in !be November 7. 1994 City Manage,'s Report (CMR:496:94), which forwarded !be rommenIs from the City appointed Boards and Commissions and staff on tbe recommended goals, policies and programs developed by <-PAC. The November 7 COiIllIIeDIs are repeated in !his report with additiooal discusWil 00 fair share housing requlremenIs. Also distributed on November 1 was CMR:488:94, Policy Alternatives fOr Providing Housing WlIhin Palo Alto. I'QY.CY IMPLlCADQNS The majorily of tbe proposed Housing Elemelll goals, policies and p..-ograms build on the goals, policies and programs of!lJe currelll Housing Element. The emphasis remains on the retention of existing housing. maintaining renIaI housing. encouraging tbe production of new housing, and providing affordable housing opportunities. RegardIng encouraging !he produ<:oon e>f new W.lSing. !he currell! Housing Element and preceding housing elemenls back !O the adoption of !he 1976 Comprehensive Plan placed primary emphasis on three poIicy areas. 1. cooversion of nnnn;s:identially zoned land 10 residential zonbg has been a coosistcnl City poIicy direction, starting with !lJe 1968 rezOlling of commercial and industrial lands. especiilly near Downtown and the M'1d101>11 areas. Major efforts 10 identify nonresidential land suitable fOr residential use occurred in 1968. 1972. 1974-76. 19r0-81 and 1989_ Amortization schedules were firslllSed with !he 1968 rezonings (whiellled \() some 0( the multiple family projects in the mid-l980s). The 1976 Plan establishecl a "grandfather" process 10 pelIllit longer or permanent exemptions 10 amortization of no",esidential uses. Use of gr;u;Jfa!hering exparlded in !be early 1980s, and nearly an the =rcial parcels rewned 10 re.idential as . . --. ,-;-::" .-, -.- --. .'-.. part 0( !he 1989 Citywide Study were !randfatbered o.nd DOt rubject to aroortization. The curtelll Update process has identified. bod! as pan of the initial work program o.nd in response 10 CoonciI din:ction to CPAC 10 identify new housing sites, new site-specific residential opportunlties. In a few instances. !he sUe. are recommended for residential conversion, but for !he majority of new s;tes. :he recommendations call for mixed-use flexibility. with additional residential allowances beyond !he curren! commercial starus. Sites identif!ed for bocsing poIeDIial which have not been considered in :he p2SI are located particularly near the intrrIJ!Odal transit centers. i.e .• in the Cal-Ventura AreJt and !he 'Dream Team' vicinity, and in mixed-use are ... and along transit corridors. 'These sites are generally of smaller om>ension and mo.-e numerous than those identified in previous Cily efforts 10 identify suitable housing sites_ In addition \0 recommending generally smaller but more numerous inc cements 0( housing. !he recommendations are targeted in areas where !he zoning >nd land use patterns are complex. Our traditional multi-family zoning distrlcts do not tend 10 work well in many o(!he areas identified as IJaving boosing pOOlntial. CP AC-recommended map cb.an!es are curretJ!ly under additional review by the Planning Commission, with Commissioo r=mendalions on map issues 10 be complete befoce !he CounciJ. considers map issues after completing revie .... o(!he six areas 0( goals. policies and programs (i.~ .• BoJSiness and Ecooomicl;. Housing, etc.)_ Developmcnl: 0( new zoning tools are also pan of !he recommendations. 1. DiscOlll'agin¥ or preventing commercIal gse of residential land has been addressed in lWo ..... ys. FIrs!, as noted above, the forced Iemllnation 0( COOIIIlercialllSes existing at !he lime 0( rezoning was an aggressive Cily polley in the late 19605. 19?Os and early 19808. That polley has weakened over lime, in respoI)SC to bo!h pleas for continued IXJIIlIIlerciaillse as the time for use termination approached o.nd through use 0( grandfathu provisions at !he time 0( or soon after !he rezor.ing_ The second o,,;couragcrnen{ of commeroial use has been an unwillingness to cb.an!e the land use de.ignation and zoning of residential land 10 • nonresidential designation. The current Housing Element contains an explicit policy 10 'Discourage conversion of residential lands ID commercial uses. ' An. important aspect 0( the current Comprehensive Plan Update process is addressing !he possible commercial use 0( several r .. -identialiy-designated parcels (primarily the Page Mil1IEI Camino Real comer and, for at least the IS-year time frame o(!be new Plan. !he former M.uimart site). As ooted above, the CPAC recommendations also contain • number of site-specite ebanges from oonresidential 10 residential with those items under further revkw by !he Planning Commission. ".: ~, i I , , ,."". While Ci!y SIllff stroogly supports the continued commercial ".., of the k>rmer Maximart site and • hoIel use for the residentially zoned land at Page Mill and EI Camino Real, staff at", supports cODlinued efforts 10 identify and .ppropri.a~ly zone potenDaI residellli.1l sites. 3. Ilnconrufnl n:sideD!ia! '*' of co!n!nercially zoned land was part of the 1976 Comprebensive Plan and subsequent 1978 Zooing Ordinance. Palo Alto', . cooresideD!ia! zooes OODlain pennitted residential uses. Commercial WIlfS include inceOOv~ 10 develop resideD!ia! or mixed-use projects. In the late 1970s and early 1980s. numerous commercially zoned parcels were developed v.ith residential or mixed midenlial-commercial uses. In the past 10 years, far f<:wer commercial parcels have been thus developed. Staff is unclear 10 " .. hat extenl this slowdowil has resulted from private secIOr unwillingness 10 finance mixed OSlO proje<:ts; shifting marlreI: prk'<ities; and City-initlated tighlening of multiple family reguTatioos which has made mixed use projects more difficult 10 design. The CP AC ~ndatioos address this issue boIh through the policy encouragement of medium ~.nd higber density residentlal and mi~ed use develop!!lents, especially near transit stations and .tong transit routes and through policies 10 ;.cililate alternative housing types (live-work and mixed use) in commercial areas. For resideD!ia! &reas, there are policy recommendations for housing prototype alternatives, including compatible medium density single family housing on smaD lots and courtyaId multiple family housing. N.ithef of these housing prototypes, even though they exist traditiooa!Iy in the communiiy today, are permissible UDder L1!e CUlTelll multiple family regulations. The policy/program recommendations also include odditionaI "cottag." and attached second !lilit pObmtial, beyond what is aIIowable under the cunelll second unit orolll2Ilce requirements. A f'.nal policy is5:lC thaI deserves bighlighting is the recommendation 10 apply the Below Marke( Rate requiremeDl 10 projects of 10 or more units as required prior 10 1991, instead of the curren! requirement of 3 or more -Housing Page S, Program 04. Staff supports this recommendation at the curreIll time because we have found thaI the administration of the curreDl program for projects of Wlder 10 units outweighs the benefits 10 be gained from it. The IQ-uni! requirement seems 10 ha,e a beller rationale, since it is the poinl where the Cit} would require a !lilit 10 be provided within the pro,iect. DUiq!SSJON Housing EIemen! Law: The City has • Housing Element that has been found by the Cilifornia State DepartmeDl of Housing and Olmmunity Developmelll (HCD) 10 be in compliance wit!! state law. Having the Housing Element in compliance with state law is advantageous in refuting legal challenges 10 the City's Comprehensive Plan and in . , .. .. " --,- obIaining srants (e. g., !he $I ,000,000 HOME funding for rehabilitation 0( the Barker HoIeI) and lid for boosing programs. The curreill P.ousing Elernent was approved by BCD in October 1~1. Hoosing element law states that the housing element shaIi, among o!her things. consist 0{ an idenli·fication end an.alysis 0{ existing and proje<:!ed boosing needs and a .!atrmeDl 0{ goo1., polJcies, quantified obje<:tives, fman<:i:!I resources, and sclleduled prog..rams for !he preservation, improvement. and deve10pment O{housing. The bousing elemen4: shall idclllify adequate sites for housing. inl:1uding rental hoosmg, faclory-bulll bousing and mobile bomes. and .baII malo adequate prov;sion for the existillg and proje<:led needs 0{ all economic segments of the communily. Stale law also requires that 1!1I: elements 0( the Comprebensive Plan must be consistent one with the other. hir Shire Hopsjng Numbe. ... : In order 10 ensure that =munities adequately provide for bousing. the stale mandates the establisbment 0{ fair share bou>ing numbeni for each local jurisdiction. The numbers are prepared by the local Council 0{ Governmentt. For Palo AJto.. the fair sha."" bousing numbers are assigned by the Association 0( Bay Area Governments (ABAG). In 1990. Palo Alto'. fair shan: housing requirement was 1,597 units 10 be procl1Y.ed by 1m. SinI:e 1990, the city bas bad a net increase of 292 bousing units, leaving a current deficit 0( 1,305 u..w. This gap between bousing production and !he fair share numbers bas =ed for nearly all jurisdictioos in the Peninsula and South Bay. New fair share boosing numbers were 10 be assigned by ABAG in 1m for subsequent adoption in locaJ housing elements which, under stale law, must be updated and readopted every live yean. The stale, bowever, bas not provided I\mcfmg for Councils 0{ Governmenllhroogbout the state .10 establlsb new fair share housing numbers. As a result the existing fair share bousing requiremenl and the need for • new housing element for Palo AJto. bas been extended 10 1997. New fair share bousing numbers will not be forthcooting until 1997 or later. In staff dis<:usslon with BCD regarding the adoption 0( • new bousing element, staff bas raised concerns that adoption of a new element will invalidate the current HCD~.pproved element and that HCn will DO( approve a new element until new fair share bousing numbers have been established. Since the law .11", requires that an elements of the Conwrebensive Plan be coosisleDl with ea<:h o!her, this bas produced. "Catch-22' situation for !he City. Cily staff is continuing 10 pursue this coocern and will be meeting with HCD and ABAG staff in the near future, and possibly requesting. ruling from the Attorney General regarding bow to resolve the slate-level inconsistency. Additional informatioo will then be forwarded 10 !he Coonei!. Legislative Changes: Sever.11 g.ner.ny unsuccessful atlempls have beeli made in the past few years at !he state level, to modify the Housing ElemeDl1egislation. The potential for ",-'of' . ~ ,-." ~ ' . : .~. % .-: • fUIwc c!wlges 10 state requirements and the impact 0( recent election results on future boiIsing elemen! requirements are impossible 10 de1enninc a! this time. Staff CgmnymfJ og the HQ!]Sing Section of Policies and PrOVf1ID$ Daft IV: The Overan CommenI on page I. of !he CP AC Draft IV recommeodatioos (9130194 staff repo<t 10 Boards and Commissions} identifies state housing element requirements ~ially re!attd 10 the 'fair share' boIlsing need numbers that mIlS! "" ad<:!re.sed by !be Housing E1emen!. The list of sites in !he wrrent Hoosing Element is significanlly out of <late. However. staff and CP AC !lave identified a new list of po!eIIIial boosing sites !ha! can be incoIporated into !be Housing Element. Map specific changes will be LIken up by the Cooncil at !be eDd of Phase n. The Planning Commission is currenlly unde ... .aking & series of slUdy sessions 10 examl:le map exhibits in more detail and identify any additiorull housing opportunities. The Commi.<sion recommendations will be forthcomilIg prior 10 Cooncil review 0( the maps. The Draft IV poIkies and programs document COD!ains numerous O'.l>er staff commentS. The November 1.1994 staffreporl (CMR:496:94) cootained the following ccmmeIJIsOO !be Board and CommL .. ion recommendations: Page", - Page S- Page 9- CMR:U2:'15 Prognm HS-I.BI. -This program sboold be retaWd in the draft Plan because it pr","ideo; pari 0( !be basis foe the City', Condominium Conversion Ordinance (Program 81. - 'Coo!lnue 10 d"lSCOUI"age the """version of renIal units 10 coodominlums unless the renters oCcupying sucl! units althe lime of conversion approve the change. potentially with the first option 10 buy ruch units.'). Program HS-I. 0 J7. -This existing Comprehensive Plan program shook! be retained be<:a!lSC 0( tile unique nature of the Mobile Home Parle (Program 017. -'Recognize the Buena VISta mobile parle as an important resource for vel)" Iow-. Iow-and moderate-income housing opportunities. '). Po\icy HS-I.J and Program J I. -State !aw related 10 Hoosing Element content requires that the element address ..nergy conservation. Therefore, it is recommended that Po\icy HS I J and Program Jibe reWned in the draft Plan. Policy HS-IJ: Continue efforts 10 reduce the cost of housing by p!"O!IlOIing energy efficiency and resource management and con;ervatlon for new and existing housing. "". 7 at t ' .. , ~ , . ~., . Program J I: Continue staff support lIlIl 1eCbnica! ""sistanu in energy CO<tSer'<'ation and cJemand-si<lc management 10 arclriteclS, develope~ and utilil), customer50. Page U -Program HS-3.A3. -Staff beOO'" tha! over the next IS years, air space development is an crOOn that sboold be COCIaiood in the Plan and thus Program A3 should be retained: 'Continue 10 cocsi<ler developmenl of residerrtial units 011 air space over selecled public and private parking lots.' A1:rE1lNATMi:S Altematives 10 many of the goals, policies and programs include deletion and substantive modification. FTSC.ll, IMPACT M IIOIed in preYious staff reports 011 the Comprebensive P"=: 'Adoption and imp1emeDtation cf the new Comprehensive Plan will rcpres«ll shifts in City r:soulCC allocation and coold have very signifi<:ant nnpacrs on City expendirures and likely impacts on City revenues. Staff has identified cost ranges for some (I( the larger potential expend"lIUreS. including those which are likely 10 be implemented ooIy with non-local funding sources (e.g., Ugh! 1Uil), but many other policies and programs still have \IIldefined fucal impacts. Further fiscal impact analysis will be cooducled in Phase ill. ' FJMRONMENTAL As.<!I!;SSMJi;NT An Environmental Impact Report will be prepared 011 the draf\ Plan thaI emerges from the public review and subsequent goals, policy and program direction given by the City Council. STEPS FOLLOWING APPROYAL Aftec Council identification of goals, policies and programs. a draft Ccmprebensive Plan will be prepared. That documerd will receive eJ<lenSive public review. includ"mg reyjew by each Board and Commission, prio< 10 Council evaluation and action. Par. lor, ',' .. ' , cc: CPAC AlChitecn.ral Review BomI Jr1Sloric Rtsources Board HwnanRela!ioos C<lIllJllission Planning Commission Public Art Commission 00.ity Advisory Commission I'a&" ~,