AgdaPkt 2002-03-25 - Laserfiche WebLink

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· There are people who, because of their personality and skills, have a particular 'fit' for work in downtowns. We recommend that the Agency seek such a The City's Economic Development Coordinator (Pat Webb) has been doing some of the tasks that would be assigned to this position. The Economic Development Coordinator position was originally created to implement the City's Economic Development Strategy. In practice, the position has been largely involved with implementing specific projects such as the Retail/Cinema proposal. There has been little work done on the broader strategy, and the creation of this DDM position will enable Pat to do what she was hired to do. It is proposed that this position be filled at the Principal Planner level (incumbents at this level include Tom Passanisi and Charles Jany)~. The budget cost for this position is $116,736 (including both salary and fringe benefits) and will be paid from Redevelopment funds. The incumbent will initially work closely with the Community Development Director to establish the position and the implementation program. A copy of the proposed job announcement is attached. Downtown Plan/Housing Element EIR Staff held a focus-group meeting with residential developers on December 11, 2001. Preparation of an overall EIR was cited as the most effective thing that we could do to expedite development in Downtown. Their reasons for this are as follows: One of the most time consuming and therefore costly features of pre-development is environmental review. The process involves extensive public disclosure of impacts, and often results in organized opposition to projects. From the developer's perspective, environmental review is the area of most uncertainty - taking up to 9 months to conclude -- and therefore cost. The developer's attending the focus group recommended the preparation of as detailed an EIR as possible, so that very little subsequent environmental review of their specific projects was necessary. We are proposing a combined EIR for both the Housing Element and the Downtown Plan because the Housing Element essentially incorporates the Downtown Plan by reference. The environmental impacts of both documents are therefore similar. Based upon this feedback from the residential developers, staff recommends that the Board allocate an additional $275,000 in professional service funds (object 50); $200,000 to the Agency fund (807); and $75,000 to the Agency housing fund (806). This will provide the Agency budget with the ability to pay for the costs for an EIR for these two documents. The Agency has funds already budgeted under professional services in both its housing and general funds, but there is not sufficient money in both funds to pay the entire EIR cost (the contract with the EIR consultant -- EDAW -- is on this same agenda in the amount of $249,262. The proposed supplemental appropriation of $275,000 provides for a contingency of $25,000 to cover additional services or issues that may emerge during EIR ~ The position is referred to as Community Development Services Supervisor in the City's salary Ordinance. The salary range is $6,447-$7,737/month, including PERS. 2