AgdaPkt 2015-03-23 Closed and Joint SA PFA

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9.A. - Page 1 REPORT To the Honorable Mayor and City Council From the City Manager March 23, 2015 SUBJECT Community Benefits - Partnership Redwood City RECOMMENDATION (1) Direct staff to prepare a final framework for a Community Benefits Program BACKGROUND The City has recently initiated a community program called "Partnership Redwood City." This program is intended to find new and creative ways to form working relationships within the community to achieve City goals including, but not limited to, improved transportation systems, parks, schools, and affordable housing for the community. The City's partners include Redwood City businesses, community groups and residents, and developers and property owners. In early 2014, Council directed staff to begin a community benefits study related to new development, which would be one aspect of the "Partnership Redwood City" program. The study purpose included identifying potential incentives and benefits for developers and property owners to achieve their goals of developing their property, while also achieving broader community goals identified by residents and other community members. City Council hearings were held on the potential program and related staff research. In summer of 2014, the City hired Dyett & Bhatia, Urban and Regional Planners to assist the City in conducting the study of potential community benefits. Links to the reports are found on the project website at www.redwoodcity.org/partnership. Since the summer there have been several venues for community input, including two "Community Benefit" workshops and a related Planning Commission study session. The purpose of the first workshop in October was to present information about possible community benefit programs and brainstorm potential community priorities. Affordable housing, parks and recreation, public art, and a variety of transportation-related benefits were identified. At that meeting, significant concerns were raised about the pace and scale of development activity in the City, particularly in the downtown area. Staff presented this information to Planning Commission in December for further comments. Community members spoke about the need for affordable housing, local hire programs, transportation demand management, percent-for-art programs and parks. Commissioners discussed these priorities and the importance of tailoring benefits for specific areas. Commissioners also discussed the need for schools and child care in particular. A second workshop was held in January 2015 to further refine and rank community priorities. A booklet was created to summarize identified benefits and existing and potential programs to support them (Attachment 1, Refining Priorities Booklet). This meeting provided additional information to