REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
January 28, 2016
FROM: Jennifer Clark, AICP, Director
Development and Resource Management Department
BY: Dan Zack, AICP, Assistant Director
Development and Resource Management Department
SUBJECT
Title
CONTINUED HEARING to consider Text Amendment No TA-15-001A and related environmental finding for adoption of Pedestrian Access and Façade Design Development Standards and related items in the Residential Multiple Family and Mixed Use zones of the Citywide Development Code (Sections 15-1004-E, 15-1005, 15-1104-F, 15-1105)
(THE PUBLIC INPUT PORTION WAS HELD ON DECEMBER 17, 2015 AND IS NOW CLOSED) (THE HEARING WAS CONTINUED FROM JANUARY 7, 2016)
1. ADOPT the environmental finding of Environmental Assessment No. TA-15-001A, that Text Amendment TA-15-001A is within the scope of the Final Master Environmental Impact Report SCH No. 2012111015 (“MEIR”) certified by the Fresno City Council on December 18, 2014 and the related Addendum adopted by the Fresno City Council on November 19, 2015 for the Citywide Development Code
2. BILL - (For introduction and adoption) - Approving Text Amendment Application No. TA-15-001A, to adopt Pedestrian Access and Façade Design Development Standards in the Residential Multiple Family and Mixed Use zones of the Citywide Development Code (Sections 15-1004-E, 15-1005, 15-1104-F, and 15-1105)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
HEARING to consider Text Amendment No TA-15-001A and related environmental finding for adoption of Pedestrian Access and Façade Design Development Standards and related items in the Residential Multiple Family and Mixed Use zones of the Citywide Development Code (Sections 15-1004-E, 15-1005, 15-1104-F, and 15-1105)
1. ADOPT the environmental finding of Environmental Assessment No. TA-15-001A, that Text Amendment TA-15-001A is within the scope of the Final Master Environmental Impact Report SCH No. 2012111015 (“MEIR”) certified by the Fresno City Council on December 18, 2014 and the related Addendum adopted by the Fresno City Council on November 19, 2015 for the Citywide Development Code;
2. BILL - (For introduction and adoption) - Approving Text Amendment Application No. TA-15-001A, to adopt Pedestrian Access and Façade Design Development Standards in the Residential Multiple Family and Mixed Use zones of the Citywide Development Code (Sections 15-1004-E, 15-1005, 15-1104-F, and 15-1105)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On November 19, 2015, the City Council considered a series of amendments including a request by Councilmember Brand to refer back to staff for further evaluation the sections in Multifamily and Mixed Use districts regarding Pedestrian Access and Façade Development Design Standards.
Mayor Ashley Swearingen convened two meetings with local developers of both multifamily and mixed use projects to discuss the sections on Wednesday, December 2, 2015 and Wednesday, December 9, 2015. The discussions provided a framework for staff to evaluate proposed developments and to clarify standards within the proposed Development Code sections. After the meetings, the revised sections were sent to the participants for their final review. Following the continuation of the item, the Mayor reconvened the group on January 13 to discuss further refinements to the sections. The Mayor also met with representatives of the Tower District Design Review Committee who had expressed apprehension about the proposed changes.
BACKGROUND
The public review draft of the Development Code was published on March 31, 2015 for a 60-day public comment period. Prior to the close of the comment period, staff held a developer workshop on each of the zoning districts including the Multifamily and Mixed Use districts. During that meeting in May, staff heard feedback from developers on the development standards. These comments were evaluated during the summer and changes were made in response to the feedback.
On September 11, 2015, a draft for Planning Commission review was published and another series of workshops were held. During the workshop on Multifamily and Mixed Use districts, additional feedback was received; staff refined the development standards following those workshops. The Planning Commission approved the revised standards on September 30, 2015. In early November the City Council held a series of workshops on the entire Development Code including the Multifamily and Mixed Use districts.
November 19, 2015, the City Council considered a series of amendments including a request by Councilmember Brand to refer back to staff for further evaluation the sections in Multifamily and Mixed Use districts regarding Pedestrian Access and Façade Development Design Standards. The City Council requested that the Mayor review the sections alongside local developers to revise and refine the standards. City Council also directed the City Manager to return within 30 days with a recommendation.
Mayor Ashley Swearingen convened two meetings with local developers of both multifamily and mixed use projects to discuss the sections on Wednesday, December 2, 2015 and Wednesday, December 9, 2015. At the first meeting, the discussion revolved around providing two alternatives for applicants - a certainty option and a flexibility option. The developers also discussed goal statements to better inform applicants as to the expectations for design and compatibility with surrounding developed parcels. Lastly, the consensus was that “one size does not fit all”; they requested that staff define multifamily standards in two categories - urban and suburban.
Based upon the input, staff developed a framework to evaluate proposed developments and to clarify standards within the proposed Development Code sections. This framework was provided to the participants for their review. At the second convening on Wednesday, December 9, 2015, the participants were pleased to see that the staff had listened to the request for revisions based on type of development (suburban versus urban) and the type of process for permitted uses (certainty versus flexibility). The convening also discussed the appropriate geographic designation for urban standards and recommended the use of Figure IM-1: Priority Areas for Development Incentives (also known as the Infill Opportunity Zone Map) from the General Plan. This was considered to be a good representation of established neighborhoods versus new growth areas.
The consensus of the Mayor’s meetings was that that staff had listened, responded and made appropriate revisions to Sections 15-1004-E, 15-1005, 15-1104-F, and 15-1105 related to Pedestrian Access and Façade Development Design Standards for both Mixed Use and Multifamily zone districts.
At the December 17 City Council hearing, there was some concern that additional changes may be necessary. The item was continued to January 7, and then to January 28. The Mayor reconvened the multifamily and mixed-use developer group on January 13 to discuss further refinements to the sections. Councilmembers Soria, Brandau, and Brand were also in attendance. Additionally, discussions were held with representatives of the Tower District who had expressed apprehension about the potential loosening of design standards. There was agreement among the administration, the majority of industry representatives, and neighborhood representatives regarding some additional changes to the sections, which are reflected in the attached ordinance bill. Generally, the design standards in the Certainty Option were retained and in some cases strengthened relative to the version presented on December 17. It was also clarified that in order to follow the Certainty path, all adopted neighborhood design guidelines must be followed (design guidelines will be reformatted into checklist form to facilitate this, as shown in the attached example). An additional point of agreement between the administration, the majority of industry representatives, and neighborhood representatives was that there should be additional measures taken to streamline the process for projects following the Certainty Option. These procedural refinements are under development will be brought to the Planning Commission and City Council in the near future.
It should be noted that in the December 17 version of this item there were also minor changes proposed to section 15-1004-C-1 and 15-5602-A. These changes were included to remove internal inconsistencies that developed when the pedestrian access and facades design standards were altered. However, the City Attorney has advised staff that changes to these sections were not part of the Councilmember Brand’s request on November 19, and therefore must be amended by a separate future action.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
Environmental Assessment No. TA-15-001A finds that Text Amendment TA-15-001A is within the scope of the Final Master Environmental Impact Report SCH No. 2012111015 (“MEIR”) certified by the Fresno City Council on December 18, 2014 and related Addendum adopted by the Fresno City Council on November 19, 2015 for the Citywide Development Code.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
N/A
FISCAL IMPACT
No impact.
Attachments:
Ordinance Bill
Revised Sections 15-1004-E, 15-1005, 15-1104-F, and 15-1105,
Developer Participant List
Potential Future Procedural Changes
Sample Design Guideline Checklist