REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Adopt a Resolution Establishing Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) as the Threshold of Significance for Analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Adopt a Council Policy for Transportation Impact Analysis, and Find that the Action is Exempt from CEQA
Report
SUMMARY OF COMMISSION ACTION
The Planning Commission considered this item on June 22, 2020 and voted 4-1-1 (one Commissioner absent) to recommend Alternative 1 with one additional recommendation for the City to consider when evaluating residential development projects:
• Allow residential developers to propose unbundled parking for residential developments as it has been shown to reduce VMT.
The recommendation from the Planning Commission does not require any modification to the draft policy (Attachment 3). The VMT policy does not establish the types of mitigation that may be required; appropriate mitigation will be determined at the time of a project approval. Unbundled parking would require further study and potential changes to City ordinances and parking policies. If the Council is interested in considering unbundled parking, the Council may want to propose a study issue. The draft meeting minutes of the Planning Commission hearing of June 22, 2020 can be found in Attachment 15. Additionally, a support letter from the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority was submitted to the City on the day of the Planning Commission hearing and can be found in Attachment 16.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall, Sunnyvale Public Library and Department of Public Safety; and by making the agenda and report available at the Office of the City Clerk and on the City's website.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Adopt a resolution establishing Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) as the threshold of significance for analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), adopt a council policy for Transportation Impact Analysis, and find that the action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15378 (b)(5) and 15061(b)(3).
2. Adopt a resolution establishing Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) as the threshold of significance for analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), adopt a council policy for Transportation Impact Analysis with modifications, and find that the action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15378 (b)(5) and 15061(b)(3).
3. Do not adopt a resolution and a new council policy and direct staff with next steps.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Alternative 1: Adopt a resolution establishing Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) as the threshold of significance for analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), adopt a council policy for Transportation Impact Analysis, and find that the action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Sections 15378 (b)(5) and 15061(b)(3).
The Planning Commission voted 4-1-1 for Alternative 1 with one additional policy recommendation.
Staff believes that the use of the countywide VMT averages will provide the consistency with existing policies and the resources to be successful in reducing VMT. Furthermore, it is a conservative approach to implement the transition from Level of Service (LOS) to VMT until more information is available to measure the effectiveness of the policy in Sunnyvale. In addition, by adopting a Transportation Impact Analysis requirement, which includes LOS analysis, the City can continue to meet the Congestion Management Program (CMP) requirements, as well as evaluate transportation operations.
Staff
Prepared by: Karen Mack, Causal Manager III
Prepared by: Amber Blizinski, Principal Planner
Reviewed by: Chip Taylor, Director of Public Works
Reviewed by: Trudi Ryan, Director of Community Development
Reviewed by: Teri Silva, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Kent Steffens, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Report to Planning Commission 20-0475, June 22, 2020 (without attachments)
2. Draft Resolution
3. Draft Council Policy 1.2.8 (Exhibit A to Draft Resolution)
4. Link to City’s Transitioning to Vehicle Miles Traveled Webpage
5. Link to SB 743
6. Link to the State’s Technical Guidance for Adopting VMT
7. Congestion Management Program Requirements
8. VMT Reference Materials
9. Transit Supportive Projects Map
10. VMT Baseline Pros and Cons Summary
11. Residential VMT Heat Maps
12. Employment VMT Heat Maps
13. Project Examples for VMT Analysis
14. Meeting Meetings from the October 8, 2019 City Council VMT Study Session
Additional Attachments for Report to Council
15. Excerpt of Draft Minutes of the Planning Commission Meeting of June 22, 2020
16. Letter of Support from VTA