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7.A. - Page 10 of 41 If the City Council chooses not to consider the development proposal via a General Plan Amendment Initiation at this time, staff would continue with development of the Transit District plan. However, this would likely extend a potential redevelopment timeline for Sequoia Station and could compromise the City's ability to establish a larger, more effective transit hub and accommodate additional rail tracks needed to support more frequent rail service. Relocation of the Safeway and CVS buildings are critical to these efforts. The developer has indicated that the timing of existing lease terms has created a window of opportunity for development. If redevelopment of the site is not possible in the near term, a longer and more expensive process would be needed to secure the needed land for additional rail and bus service. Having the ability to plan and engage the community for the future Central Redwood City Plan and the transit district while concurrently reviewing the Sequoia Station development application will greatly inform future land uses, site design and functionality of the community's future downtown area. Downtown Precise Plan Initiation: The Downtown Precise Plan also lists development caps, heights, and specifies parking ratios for uses. Consideration of reduced parking would be done in concert with the Precise Plan amendments. Interested parties may request the City to initiate an amendment of the Precise Plan, which may be authorized by the Planning Manager or designee. (Redwood City Zoning Code Section 52.5(A)). As with the previous request for 851 Main Street, the City's policy is to bundle related requests and have them acted upon by the highest approval authority, in this case the City Council. The proposed resolution includes initiation of a Downtown Precise Plan amendment. NEXT STEPS If the Sequoia Station is initiated, staff proposes the following steps: • Spring 2020 -Technical studies begin for railway operations and land needs on the Transit District. • Summer 2020 - Community outreach for the Transit District on goals, land uses, and connections. Sequoia Station project is revised to conform to the Transit District proposal. • Fall 2020 - Technical studies are completed and environmental review begins, including the Sequoia Station project. • Winter 2020 and 2021- Community engagement continues along with environmental studies and further refinements of the Sequoia Station project to address transit needs and community input. FISCAL IMPACT If a General Plan Amendment Initiation is approved for the proposed Sequoia Station project, a cost recovery account will be established to pay for staff review time, environmental review and community engagement efforts associated with considering the proposed project. If the project is not initiated, the City will need to use other funding sources including potentially the General Fund to pay for related planning efforts for the Transit District. Redevelopment of Sequoia Station could increase property and sales tax revenue to the City while also increasing City service obligations related to office, housing and retail uses. This would be analyzed as part Page 10 of 12 City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.ore 204