AgdaPkt 2000-09-11 - Laserfiche WebLink

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<6A--T) downtown. The San Mateo Urgency Ordinance prohibits anv office on the ground floor in the central retail district. Changes to definitions did not generate much discussion at the August 28, 2000, Council meeting and these modifications do provide clarity to developers and to staff. Alternatives 1. Interim measures - Development Standards, Uses, and Definitions. A. Adopt proposed recommendations. During the time when the interim measures are in place, the interim measures also will be forwarded to the Planning Commission to be considered as amendments to the Zoning Ordinance. The Commission will make recommendations to the City Council if they feel further modification to these recommendations are appropriate. (Recommended.) B. Adopt interim measures with amendments as the Council may choose. 2. No interim measures. A. Accept that offices and other uses will be built using the existing standards, uses, definitions, and zoning districts and eventually try to improve their design, landscaping, and parking standards by initiating an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance using the conventional amendment process and timeline. This process will take approximately 3-5 months. B. Accept that offices and other uses will be built and that the existing permitted uses, development and parking standards will be applied. In addition to recommendations 1 & 2 above, the Council might also consider: 3, Direct the Planning Commission in consultation with the Housing and Human Concerns Committee to recommend sites to be re-zoned for housing (as suggested by one of the speakers on Aug. 28, 2000.) This alternative has a greater certainty to yield housing than incentives for mixed-use projects. Identification of appropriate sites could be delegated to the Planning Commission in collaboration with the Housing and Human Concerns Committee. Fiscal Impact There will be a cost to the City related to review of the amendments as they move through the Planning Commission and Council process. This work was not anticipated in the budget. Contract Planner assistance will be necessary at an additional cost to the City of approximately $30,000. This cost would be funded from the funding set aside for the General Plan review. Environmental Review The Interim Urgency Ordinances are exempt from CEQA; however, environmental factors will be considered as projects are individually reviewed. Conclusion The sheer unanticipated magnitude of office development, the rapid rate of change, and the limited provisions of the Zoning Ordinance result in the unintended consequences of high peak hour traffic accompanied by reduced air quality, parking overflowing to streets, lack of secondary access, reduced sites for high-density, multifamily housing, pressure to allow office uses on the ground floor in the core downtown retail area, a scale of development larger than envisioned because developers tend to build to the maximum allowable limits, and a likelihood that offices will be built on many lots now used for non-office activities. Staff 7 r'-""-T'.