STUDY SESSION REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Land Use and Transportation Element of the General Plan (2016-7708)
Report
STUDY SESSION OVERVIEW
This report is for the City Council Study Session on the Land Use and Transportation Element of the General Plan.
As background, the Horizon 2035 Land Use and Transportation Element (LUTE) 2016 draft is available for public review (Attachment 1, or follow the link in Attachment 5). The Horizon 2035 LUTE was created with the assistance of the Horizon 2035 Committee that recommends a series of Goals, Policies and Action Statements concerning land use and transportation in Sunnyvale-with a projected buildout date of 2035. The LUTE includes two of the seven State required elements of Sunnyvale’s General Plan and establishes goals and policies for the physical development and transportation system of the city. The LUTE will be incorporated into the Land Use and Transportation chapter of the General Plan; that chapter also includes Economy and Open Space sections, which will not be modified by this update. Attachment 2 is the Table of Contents for the entire adopted General Plan. The Housing Element (Chapter 5) was updated in 2015; other elements will be updated in the future. The LUTE incorporates major land use and transportation changes in areas highlighted in the Changing Conditions map (Figure 1 on page 11 of the Draft LUTE), including areas of the Peery Park Specific Plan, Lawrence Station Area Plan, El Camino Real Plan, and proposed Village Centers.
The Study Session will focus on two policy issues that continue to surface as areas that staff would like more input: (1) Village Centers and (2) Parking and Transportation policies. Attachment 3 includes a listing of policies and discussion of Village Centers and Parking and Transportation. For purpose of the Study Session, staff requests that the City Council review these materials and be prepared to provide policy input on these two topics.
The Horizon 2035 LUTE plans for the potential buildout of approximately 72,100 housing units and 59.8 million square feet of industrial, office and commercial space. Since the commencement of the update to the LUTE, several interim land use changes have been made to the General Plan Land Use Map.
Transportation policies in the draft LUTE focus on a regional approach to reducing vehicle miles traveled, complete streets, alternative transportation, and supporting mixed-use development that allows for car-light and car-free living in Sunnyvale.
The LUTE Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) (available on Horizon2035.inSunnyvale.com <http://www.Horizon2035.inSunnyvale.com>) analyzes the potential environmental impacts of LUTE policies and mitigation measures that would reduce those impacts to less than significant levels, if feasible. The Draft EIR was available for a 45-day public review and comment period from August 26, 2016, through October 11, 2016, as required by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The Final EIR will be made available to the prior to the public hearings. The EIR will streamline the review of potential development projects in the city under CEQA when those proposed projects are consistent with applicable policy documents.
Next Steps
After the City Council Study session, staff will publish the Final EIR and prepare a public hearing draft of the LUTE. Public Hearings with Planning Commission and City Council are expected in March and April 2017.
After adoption of an updated Land Use and Transportation Element, staff will embark on several implementation efforts and updates to other plans. These include:
• Transportation Strategic Plan (Transportation Impact Fee) - update
• Noise and Air Quality Elements of the General Plan - update
• Climate Action Plan - implementation items and potential update
• Housing Element - implementation items
• Affordable Housing Strategy
• Bicycle Plan - update
• Green Building Program - update
• Environmental Justice (assess need for new General Plan policies)
PUBLIC CONTACT
The Horizon 2035 Committee met 29 times from December 2010 to September 2016 to work on the LUTE and the CAP, including hosting public outreach/information sessions and reconvening twice after the first document was prepared. In January 2015, staff updated the committee on the reinvigorated work on the LUTE and its relation to other specific plans and projects underway, and requested guidance on incorporation of certain key existing LUTE policies into the proposed Horizon 2035 policies.
In September 2016, staff provided the committee with a summary of the revised Draft LUTE and the Draft EIR, answered questions, and accepted comments. The Committee generally endorsed the changes to the plan. Staff presented two potential modifications to the LUTE that could be considered to address community feedback from the Open City Hall topics: reassigning density from some of the village centers to El Camino Real, and removing policy on unbundled parking. Several Horizon 2035 committee members expressed concern about or objections to these possible modifications to the plan. Agendas, handouts and notes of the Horizon 2035 committee meetings are available on the project website: Horizon2035.inSunnyvale.com <http://www.Horizon2035.inSunnyvale.com>.
Staff also held a meeting for an all Boards and Commissions in September 2016, presenting the Draft LUTE to a broader audience than the boards and commissions who will provide formal feedback on the Draft LUTE.
The LUTE was shared for public review on the Horizon 2035 website, tabled at community events, and shared on business and neighborhood group listservs.
In summary, between 2010 and 2016, public contact regarding the LUTE included outreach through the following:
• City Council Study Sessions (see details below)
• Neighborhood associations
• Business groups
• Boards and commissions
o Planning Commission
o Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission
o Housing Commission
o Sustainability Commission
• Interested-party mail and email lists
• Open City Hall (see fuller description below)
• Paper and online surveys
• Pop-up venues
• Project Website (Horizon2035.inSunnyvale.com <http://www.Horizon2035.inSunnyvale.com>)
Open City Hall
The most extensive public outreach conducted for the LUTE over the last two years took place through Open City Hall, Sunnyvale’s online public participation tool. Four topics were posted for public participation and open comment. These topics and participation rates are summarized in the table below. Summary results are available in Attachment 4 and full results including all comments made on Open City Hall are available on the Open City Hall website (see link in Attachment 5).
2015-2016 Study Sessions with City Council and Planning Commission
May 5, 2015 Joint Study Session with Planning Commission
• Land Use and Transportation Element (LUTE)
August 18, 2015 City Council Study Session:
• Update on Draft Land Use and Transportation Element and Consideration of Land Use Alternatives for Environmental Impact Report
August 23, 2016, Joint Study Session with City Council and Planning Commission:
• Draft Environmental Impact Report and Land Use and Transportation Element
2017 Study Session with City Council
January 31, 2017 Study Session
• Overview of LUTE and EIR
March 7, 2017 Study Session
• LUTE Village Centers Parking and select Transportation Policies
Sustainability Commission
The Sustainability Commission considered the Draft LUTE on October 17, 2016.
Housing and Human Services Commission
The Housing and Human Services Commission considered the Draft LUTE on October 19, 2016.
Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission
The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission considered the Draft LUTE on October 20, 2016.
Staff
Prepared by: Trudi Ryan, Director, Community Development
Reviewed by: Manuel Pineda, Director, Public Works
Reviewed by: Kent Steffens, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Deanna J. Santana, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Draft of Horizon 2035 LUTE
2. General Plan Table of Contents
3. LUTE references to Village Centers, Parking and Transportation
4. Open City Hall Results-Snapshot
5. Links to Horizon2035 Website and Other Sources