REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Introduce an Ordinance to Add a new Chapter 19.45 (Residential Transportation Demand Management) to the Sunnyvale Municipal Code, Adopt a Resolution Creating the Multi-family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program (Study Issue-Planning File 2015-7150), Rescind Council Policy 1.1.15 (Residential Transportation Demand Management), and Find that these Actions are Exempt from CEQA.
Report
SUMMARY OF PLANNING COMMISSION ACTION
This item was considered by the Planning Commission at their August 22, 2016 hearing. Staff answered questions from the Commissioners and discussed the proposed Multi-Family Residential Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Program point system versus a trip reduction approach. One member of the public spoke in favor of the proposed program.
The Planning Commission recommended introduction of an ordinance and adoption of a resolution to create the Multi-Family Residential TDM Program with one modification to the staff recommendation: Require property owners and homeowner associations to monitor (through driveway counts) trips to and from all new multi-family residential complex 10 units or greater every year for the first 10 years to evaluate the effectiveness of the TDM Program.
Staff does not recommend incorporating the suggested change from the Planning Commission based on the following reasons:
• Proposed plan does not include trip reduction requirements: The proposed TDM Program is similar to the green building program in the City; applicants choose the most appropriate TDM measures for their project from a prescribed list. This approach does not include trip reduction requirements; therefore, the results of the driveway counts would be informational only and could not be directly used to determine program success. If the City determines that collection of this data would be beneficial, the City could fund driveway counts on larger properties when staff time permits and the data could be studied and be utilized to make future changes to the program.
• Staff time: The amount of staff time required to coordinate driveway counts represents a tremendous effort. The City is currently preparing to do driveway counts on three large office project sites this year, and the staff coordination required is significant. The current process is as follows:
o Staff contacts the property owner to submit funds for the counts (approximately $2,500 per driveway),
o The City has the City consultant perform the counts
o The City provides the property owner the approved City counts
o The property owner hires a consultant to prepare a report to submit to the City. The report analyzes the counts against the TDM requirement
o The City reviews and accepts the report.
This type of process and effort is a small challenge when working with office/industrial property owners, who tend to be more sophisticated regarding City requirements and process. It would be even more difficult for a homeowner association or small group of residents to fund and complete a similar monitoring program. Although the information collected could be useful, the amount of staff time to coordinate and monitor the yearly collection makes the effort infeasible without additional resources, including funding and staff.
The Report to Planning Commission can be found in Attachment 1. Minutes from the Planning Commission hearing can be found in Attachment 9.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Introduce an ordinance to repeal Section 19.22.035 and add a new Chapter 19.45 (Residential Transportation Demand Management) to the Sunnyvale Municipal Code and adopt a resolution to adopt the Multi-Family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program (Attachments 3 and 4 of this report).
2. Introduce an ordinance to repeal Section 19.22.035 and add a new Chapter 19.45 (Residential Transportation Demand Management) to the Sunnyvale Municipal Code and adopt a resolution to adopt the Multi-family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program with modifications to the staff recommendation.
3. Introduce an ordinance to repeal Section 19.22.035 and add a new Chapter 19.45 (Residential Transportation Demand Management) to the Sunnyvale Municipal Code and adopt a resolution to adopt the Multi-Family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program with the modifications recommended by the Planning Commission.
4. Rescind Council Policy 1.1.15 (Residential Transportation Demand Management).
5. Find that these actions are exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15308.
6. Do not take the actions needed to create a new Multi-Family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program.
Recommendation
Alternatives 1, 4 and 5: 1) Introduce an ordinance to repeal Section 19.22.035 and add a new Chapter 19.45 (Residential Transportation Demand Management) to the Sunnyvale Municipal Code, and Adopt a resolution to adopt the Multi-family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program (Attachments 3 and 4 of this report), 4) Rescind Council Policy 1.1.15 (Residential Transportation Demand Management), and 5) Find that these actions are exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15308.
The staff recommended alternatives will put the City ahead of other cities in the region for implementing residential TDM programs. TDM for residential projects are very difficult to implement, especially for ownership units and smaller complexes. The recommendation represents an approach to push the envelope on TDM programs and sustainable practices while being mindful of the challenges with implementation and monitoring of programs. The creation of the new zoning code chapter requiring all multi-family projects to implement a minimum amount of TDM measures, as described in the multi-family residential TDM program, supports several adopted Sunnyvale goals and policies including leadership in sustainability, promotes fewer single-occupant automobile trips, and provides support for a multi-modal transportation system and variety of transportation modes.
Sunnyvale will be the first city in Santa Clara County to require a multi-family residential TDM program. These changes will lead to a related reduction in vehicle trips associated with residential development projects, and therefore help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the City. The concepts included in the TDM program, trip reduction values and the desire to reduce GHG emissions are supported and encouraged by existing Council Policies, State Legislation and the Sunnyvale Climate Action Plan.
Staff
Prepared by: Amber Blizinski, Principal Planner
Reviewed by: Andrew Miner, Planning Officer
Reviewed by: Manuel Pineda, Director, Public Works
Reviewed by: Trudi Ryan, Director, Community Development
Reviewed by: Kent Steffens, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Deanna J. Santana, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Report to Planning Commission, August 22, 2016 (without attachments)
2. Study Issue Paper
3. Draft Residential TDM Ordinance
4. Resolution to Adopt the Multi-family Residential Transportation Demand Management Program
5. City of Sunnyvale Multi-family Residential Transportation Demand Management Toolkit
6. Full Text of Council Policies 1.1.15 and 1.2.2
7. Additional Information on State and Bay Area Legislation and Policies pertaining to Transportation Demand Management
8. Link to Additional Information on the GreenTRIP Program
Additional Attachments - for Report to Council
9. Draft Planning Commission Minutes of August 22, 2016