recess item consent calendar september 21, 2010 to: … · 2010. 9. 21. · 2180 milvia street, 5th...

2180 Milvia Street, 5th Floor, Berkeley, California, 94704 Telephone: 510.981.7000 TDD: 510.981.6903 Fax: 510.981.7099

E-mail: [email protected]

Office of the City Manager

RECESS ITEM CONSENT CALENDAR September 21, 2010

To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council

From: Phil Kamlarz, City Manager

Submitted by: Dan Marks, Director, Planning Department

Subject: Grant Application: State of California Sustainable Communities Planning Grant and Incentives Program

RECOMMENDATION Ratify the action taken by the City Manager during recess to submit a grant application for the State of California Strategic Growth Council’s Sustainable Communities Planning Grant and Incentives Program for the San Pablo Avenue Improvement Project and approve a resolution authorizing the application. NEGATIVE EFFECT IF ACTION IS DELAYED UNTIL AFTER COUNCIL RECESS The grant application was due on August 31, 2010. The Council Resolution supporting the submission of this application is the final document to complete the City of Berkeley application packet. A decision on the grant (whether it will be considered for funding or not) will occur in late September or October. Therefore, approval of this Council item at the 9/21 meeting is essential for the City to be competitive for this grant. SUMMARY The City is seeking a grant of $955,000 to fund completion of the stalled San Pablo Avenue Revitalization Project (1997-2004) that was intended to transform San Pablo into a thriving and sustainable corridor. Included in the project are completion of design guidelines for private development, and further design development for public improvements. This project is on the Planning and Development Department’s proposed Work Program for FY 2011 (not yet reviewed by Council). Similarly, the Public Works Department (another major participant) has had San Pablo Avenue improvements on its work program for some time.

rmolina

Typewritten Text

01

rmolina

Typewritten Text

rmolina

Typewritten Text

Grant Application: State of California Sustainable Communities CONSENT CALENDAR Planning Grant and Incentives Program September 21, 2010

FISCAL IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION The City is seeking a grant of $955,000. Although no matching funding was required, the grant guidelines make clear that some match is necessary to make the application competitive. Therefore, the grant application includes some limited staff commitment as a match (roughly $50,000 over two years), and proposes that the City fund any required environmental document (estimated at a maximum of $155,000). The grant would fund a portion of existing staff for three years; it is therefore expected that Fund 833 will have funding available for the environmental work in FY 2013 without significant negative impacts on the Fund. CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS San Pablo Avenue is identified in the City’s General Plan as an opportunity area for new mixed use development. To better manage and encourage that development, various projects were undertaken between 1997 and 2004, including preparation of Draft Design Guidelines and a draft conceptual Public Improvements Plan. The Draft Design Guidelines were not adopted, and the Public Improvements Plan did not proceed to additional design development due to lack of funding. In the interim since these plans were prepared:

The City adopted a Climate Action Plan (CAP); There has been significant private investment interest and development along

San Pablo Avenue (until the onset of the “Great Recession”); San Pablo Avenue has been designated by the City and by ABAG/MTC as a

“Priority Development Area”, meaning that it is an area where infill development is possible to meet regional housing needs in a transit-friendly location;

San Pablo Avenue has been identified in the City’s Draft 2010 Housing Element (scheduled to be before Council in late October) as an area where a significant portion of the City’s designated share of regional housing need can be met;

A rapid bus line has been developed by AC Transit; and. Some of the commercial nodes, such as those at University and at Dwight Way

have thrived and grown and the recent location of the West Berkeley Bowl near Ashby and San Pablo is likely to generate new investment in that area.

These changed circumstances and our better understanding of the relationship between San Pablo and its adjoining neighborhoods need to be reflected in both the Design Guidelines and Public Improvement Plans. The Sustainable Communities Grant program was established by the Governor’s Strategic Growth Council, a consortium of the heads of various State agencies created to oversee strategies to meet AB 32 greenhouse gas reduction targets. There are several grant programs being overseen by the SGC, and the particular grant program the City has targeted with this grant is a “Planning Grant”. The goal of the grant program is to further the goals of sustainable development.


BACKGROUND Revising the Draft Design Guidelines for San Pablo Avenue has been on the Planning and Development Department’s draft work program for several years but has not been undertaken due to other high priority projects. Similarly, taking the Public Improvements Plan to the next level of design so that funding can be sought has not been funded. Both of these “plans” need revision to reflect changed circumstances since they were first prepared some years ago. The proposed grant would provide the City with funding to undertake a project consistent with adopted City goals and policy that we have long wanted to undertake. As described in the Grant Summary:

The proposed project will promote sustainable development by re-energizing and completing the stalled San Pablo Avenue Revitalization Project (1997-2004) intended to transform San Pablo into a thriving and sustainable corridor. Two draft products of this earlier effort will be revised to incorporate goals of the Berkeley CAP and SB 375, elements of subsequent Berkeley planning projects, and lessons learned from approved mixed-use developments. In addition, tools highlighted in the Berkeley CAP will be developed, using San Pablo Avenue as a test case, thereby advancing CAP implementation in other parts of the City. The products include: San Pablo Avenue Public Improvements Plan will provide a blueprint for

integrating parks and green space into the corridor and improving pedestrian and bicycle amenities;

San Pablo Avenue Design Guidelines will create a more attractive streetscape, thereby encouraging new investment in housing sensitive to the existing community’s needs;

Zoning ordinance amendments will incorporate “lessons learned” from a pre-recession surge in mixed-use projects along San Pablo Avenue and direct development consistent with these development tools;

Development Decision Guide will provide local decision-makers a user-friendly tool for evaluating the level of sustainability of proposed development projects city-wide; and

Performance Measures will be created to measure long term progress toward the Climate Action and health goals.

Berkeley’s primary goals are to complete the implementation tools necessary to revitalize San Pablo Avenue in a cohesive transit-friendly manner that in the long term also reduces vehicle miles traveled along this corridor

As with any planning program in Berkeley, the planning effort would include a substantial community outreach component to ensure that the community is fully


engaged in planning for this area. This project is expected to take approximately three years, beginning in January 2011 and concluding with adoption of appropriate plans by the end of 2013. RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION The project that would be funded by the grant is consistent with City policy. The grant would fund a project the Council has already indicated an interest in pursuing. Although the City Manager authorized submittal of the grant application, the City must submit a resolution of the City Council to be in compliance with grant submittal requirements. CONTACT PERSON Dan Marks, Director of Planning and Development, Planning Department, 981-7400 Attachments: 1: Resolution 2: Grant Application

RESOLUTION NO. ##,###-N.S.

APPROVING THE APPLICATION FOR GRANT FUNDS FOR THE SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES PLANNING GRANT AND INCENTIVES PROGRAM UNDER THE SAFEDRINKING WATER, WATER QUALITY AND SUPPLY, FLOOD CONTROL, RIVER AND COASTALPROTECTIONBOND ACT OF 2006 (PROPOSITION 84) WHEREAS, the Legislature and Governor of the State of California have provided funds for the Sustainable Communities Planning Grant and Incentives Program; and

WHEREAS, the Strategic Growth Council has been delegated the responsibility for the administration of this grant program, establishing necessary procedures; and

WHEREAS, said procedures established by the Strategic Growth Council require a resolution certifying the approval of application(s) by the Applicants governing board before submission of said application(s) to the State; and

WHEREAS, the applicant, if selected, will enter into an agreement with the State of California to carry out the development of the proposal.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Council of the City of Berkeley hereby approves the filing of an application for the San Pablo Avenue Improvement Project in order to become a sustainable community.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council of the City of Berkeley hereby certifies that applicant understands the assurances and certification in the application.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council hereby certifies that applicant or title holder will have sufficient funds to develop the Proposal or will secure the resources to do so.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council hereby certifies that the Proposal will comply with any applicable laws and regulations.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Council of hereby appoints the City Manager, or designee, as agent to conduct all negotiations, execute and submit all documents including, but not limited to applications, agreements, payment requests and so on, which may be necessary for the completion of the San Pablo Avenue Improvement Project.

ATTACHMENT 2 - Grant Appllication Page 1 of 24

recess item consent calendar september 21, 2010 to: … · 2010. 9. 21. · 2180 milvia street, 5th...

Documents