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TISHMAN SPEYER <br />January 25, 2021 <br />Dear Mayor Howard and City Council Members: <br />,Ah MidPen <br />H O U S I N G <br />Building Communni's. Changing Lives. <br />MidPen and Tishman Speyer are writing to comment on the environmental review options highlighted on page <br />nine of the Transit District Staff report that will be presented to Redwood City Council tonight. MidPen and <br />Tishman Speyer are proud to be collaborating on our proposal to redevelop the Chase Bank site as a commercial <br />building and 609 Price as 80 units of 100% affordable housing. The City Council unanimously approved the <br />initiation of a General Plan amendment to allow for this proposal and others through the City's Gatekeeper process <br />on October 12th, 2020. <br />Based on the Transit District Staff Report, Staff is considering combining the environmental review of projects <br />currently under consideration in the area (including the entire Transit District / Sequoia Station proposal). In <br />addition to combined environmental review, one hearing to approve both the environmental review and General <br />Plan Amendments required for all the proposed projects is being considered. <br />While we understand these options are being considered in an effort to create a streamlined process, past <br />experiences in Redwood City and throughout the State demonstrate that creating a joint environmental review <br />process (or potential joint entitlement) actually create a more complicated and drawn out multi-year process that <br />require an enormous amount of staff resources. Mixing smaller, site-specific development proposals with more <br />extensive development and planning efforts has the potential to confuse the public while slowing down the smaller <br />projects and associated community benefits. However, we would expect the EIRs to cover all projects and <br />planning efforts in the cumulative analysis, as required by law. This cumulative analysis will allow the public and <br />decision -makers to get a snapshot of everything proposed and the potential impacts. <br />MidPen and Tishman Speyer have worked in earnest over the last two years to create a proposal with broad <br />community support as exemplified by dozens of public comments and letters of support during the Gatekeeper <br />process. We will continue to do this throughout our entitlement and environmental review phase. We have also <br />committed to bring 2300 Broadway and 609 Price forward on a parallel timeline, and both are ready to begin its <br />environmental review now. If the Council believes some sort of bundling is required, we request that 2300 <br />Broadway and 609 Price move forward as one proposal as they have to date, and not be tied to any other projects. <br />Doing so would slow down the ability to deliver these desperately needed affordable units and 20,00 square feet <br />of new public green space directly adjacent to the Courthouse Square. <br />MidPen and Tishman Speyer are committed to being engaged and collaborative partners to Redwood City in <br />meeting its community benefit objectives, and we believe we can best do so if allowed to move forward with an <br />independent environmental review process for 2300 Broadway and 609 Price. Thank you for considering our <br />request. <br />Sincerely, <br />A,--rv(- <br />Henry <br />Sears <br />Tishman Speyer <br />Lillian Lew -Hailer <br />MidPen Housing <br />