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9.A. - Page 7 of 10 <br />• Retail and active ground floor uses <br />• Shared public parking <br />• Other programs as identified by the community or City Council <br />Staff would provide a summary of how each proposal addresses the City's adopted Strategic Plan and <br />otherwise provides community benefits. At the Gatekeeper meeting, the City Council could decide <br />whether to allow particular projects to proceed to a full project submittal with the corresponding CEQA <br />analysis. Where possible, staff would consolidate CEQA reviews rather than doing an individual review for <br />each project. Development project sponsors would be responsible for funding staff and consultant <br />resources to support this effort. Staff will recommend that only a limited number of projects move <br />forward for further review in order to avoid overwhelming the City's resources, City staff time to <br />coordinate multiple project reviews, and to allow for participation in the community visioning initiative. <br />FISCAL IMPACT AND RESOURCES <br />The Planning Division currently has a significant workload, with multiple long-range and current planning <br />efforts already underway (see Land Use Studies and Timeline, Attachment A). To provide adequate <br />resources for these multiple overlapping efforts, staff has developed the following resource plan: <br />1. Additional Staff Positions - On December 16, 2019, the City Council approved two additional full- <br />time planning staff positions. These positions will provide experienced staff to help process <br />complex applications. Staff is in the process of filling those positions. <br />2. On-call services - At the same meeting, City Council also approved contracts with three <br />professional planning firms, in addition to regular staff, to provide on-call assistance for <br />potentially both the Sequoia Station project and review of projects for the Gatekeeper process. <br />3. Grants - On November 25, 2019, City Council approved a resolution for a non-competitive grant <br />(SB2 funds) totaling $320,000 in financial assistance for the visioning process, with one of the <br />stated goals being to plan for additional housing and accelerate the production of housing. Staff <br />will also be submitting for the REAP/LEAP (Regional/Local Early Action Planning) Grants that could <br />approximate an additional $300,000. <br />4. Budget Amendments - The upcoming FY 20/21 budget will include amendments to the <br />professional service budget to fund additional work. Staff expects Caltrain and SamTrans to fund <br />the technical, transit -related work. We will collaborate to identify funding for station area design <br />work included in the Transit District. <br />NEXT STEPS <br />1. February 2020 - Bring the Sequoia Station General Plan Amendment Initiation to the City <br />Council, tentatively scheduled for February 24, 2020. <br />Page 7 of 9 <br />City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org <br />117 <br />