PREPARED BY: LIBBY TYLER DATE OF MEETING: 02/27/2024
SUBJECT:
TITLE
CONDUCT A PUBLIC HEARING AND CONSIDER RECOMMENDING THAT THE CITY COUNCIL REPEAL THE 2015-2023 HOUSING ELEMENT AND ADOPT THE HOUSING ELEMENT OF THE GENERAL PLAN FOR THE PERIOD OF 2023-2031; ADOPT A NEW COMMUNITY HEALTH & ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ELEMENT INCLUDING AMENDMENTS TO THE HEALTH ELEMENT OF THE SAN PABLO GENERAL PLAN 2030; AND ADOPT AMENDMENTS TO THE SAFETY & NOISE ELEMENT OF THE SAN PABLO GENERAL PLAN 2030. THIS IS A CITY INITIATED PROJECT AND IT APPLIES TO THE ENTIRE SAN PABLO PLANNING AREA
CEQA: An Addendum to the 2030 General Plan EIR (certified on April 18, 2011) was prepared for the proposed Housing Element, Environmental Justice Element and Amendments to the Health and Safety & Noise Elements, which found that there would not be any new or additional significant environmental impacts that have not been previously evaluated.
Label
Location: San Pablo Planning Area includes the corporate limits and adjacent unincorporated areas in Rollingwood and Hasford Heights.
APN: All APNs in Planning Area
Zoning: Refer to San Pablo and Contra Costa County zoning maps
CEQA: An Addendum to the 2030 General Plan EIR (certified on April 18, 2011) was prepared for the proposed Housing Element, Environmental Justice Element and Amendments to the Health and Safety & Noise Elements, including updated analysis of traffic and vehicle miles travelled, noise, and air quality and greenhouse gas emissions which found that there would not be any new or additional significant environmental impacts that have not been previously evaluated.
Owner: City of San Pablo
Applicant: City of San Pablo
Staff Contact: Elizabeth “Libby” Tyler, Ph.D., FAICP, Community Development Director
Recommendation
Conduct public hearing; adopt Resolution
Body
REQUESTED ACTIONS
This is a City-initiated request to have the Planning Commission conduct a public hearing and provide a recommendation on the adoption of a new Housing Element for the City of San Pablo, to cover the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) sixth-cycle period of 2023-2031. This Housing Element has been prepared pursuant to the requirements of State Law (e.g. Government Code Sections 65350-65362) and the procedures of the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The Housing Element has been revised in response to review comments on the first and second drafts of the document as submitted to HCD. The adopted Housing Element will be subject to further review and revision by HCD prior to its certification.
In accordance with State Law, in addition to recommending the revised Housing Element, the Planning Commission is asked to recommend a new Environmental Justice Element (including amendments to the City’s Health Element from the San Pablo General Plan 2030) and amendments to the Safety & Noise Element from the General Plan 2030 to identify available evacuation routes for any residential developments in any hazard area identified in the Safety Element. Collectively, the proposed Housing Element, Environmental Justice Element, and amendments to the Health Element and Safety & Noise Element are the “Project” for which the Planning Commission should make a recommendation.
The Planning Commission should hold a public hearing and take public comment on the Project. The City Council will also hold a public hearing and provide opportunity to provide comment at its regular meeting on March 18, 2024. A revised draft of the Housing Element has been made available on the City’s website in accordance with State Law at <https://www.sanpabloca.gov/2804/General-Plan-Housing-Element-Update>. The Community Health & Environmental Justice, Safety & Noise Element amendments, and EIR Addendum are also posted at this location. Public comments may be presented at the Planning Commission hearing and/or submitted to: generalplan@sanpabloca.gov <mailto:generalplan@sanpabloca.gov>.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION
In 2011, by Resolution 2011-045, the City of San Pablo certified the Final EIR for the San Pablo General Plan 2030 and adopted a Statement of Overriding Considerations for significant and unavoidable transportation impacts. For the proposed 2023-2031 Housing Element, Community Health & Environmental Justice Element, and amended Safety & Noise Element (i.e., the Project), the City has prepared an Addendum to the 2011 EIR on the San Pablo General Plan 2030. This Addendum includes updated analysis of traffic and vehicle miles travelled, noise, and air quality and greenhouse gas emissions. The Addendum determined that there are no substantial changes proposed by the Project or the circumstances in which the Project would be undertaken that would require major revisions to the General Plan 2030 EIR, that there are no mitigation measures or alternatives previously found not to be feasible that would in fact be feasible, and that the Project would be consistent with and within the scope of the General Plan 2030 EIR.
The 2011 EIR for the San Pablo General Plan 2030 is available for viewing at these links:
<https://www.sanpabloca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/565/San-Pablo-GP-FEIR--021011?bidId=>
BACKGROUND
The City’s General Plan is a state-required long-range policy document that provides guidance to decision makers regarding the allocation of resources, and the future physical form and character of development for the City. San Pablo’s General Plan was last comprehensively updated in 2011 by the Oakland-based consulting firm of Dyett & Bhatia. The plan has served as a critical policy planning document for the City over the past 12 years, helping to set the stage for subsequent actions such as the Climate Action Plan, San Pablo Avenue Strategic Plan, and Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan. Updates to the General Plan are currently underway to recognize the community progress that has been made since 2011 and to outline future land use and growth strategies, to ensure consistency with other planning documents and initiatives, and to allow for increased focus in the areas of housing production, reductions to vehicle miles traveled, environmental justice, and updates to land use planning along the Rumrill Boulevard and 23rd Street corridors and other key locations.
The Housing Element is one of several mandatory elements of the General Plan. Under State Law, the Housing Element is required to be updated every eight years in accordance with the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) eight-year cycle. The RHNA process, in turn, is used to determine how many new residential units each local agency must plan to accommodate in its Housing Element, and the affordability of those units. This process is repeated every eight years. Cities in the Bay Area are currently updating their Housing Elements for the planning period 2023 to 2031 (i.e. the “Sixth Cycle”). The proposed Housing Element reflects the RHNA as determined by the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) for the Sixth Cycle. The RHNA process is intended to ensure every city and county plans for enough housing production to accommodate future growth. HCD assigns each region of the state an overall RHNA allocation. For the nine-county Bay Area region, ABAG then distributes a “fair share” portion of that allocation to each local jurisdiction. Each city and county must then identify adequate sites with a realistic capacity for development sufficient to meet this RHNA.
The San Pablo Housing Element was last updated in 2015 with the assistance of the Berkeley-based firm of Baird + Driskell. For the Sixth Cycle, the Housing Element Update is focused on updated policy and planned housing development sites to help ensure that the City meets its RHNA obligations. For the Sixth Cycle, ABAG has determined that San Pablo must identify sites sufficient to accommodate 746 new housing units, with a specific number of units designated as affordable to each income category, as shown in the table below:
|
Income Level |
AMI |
Needed Units |
Percent of Needed Units |
|
Very-Low Income |
0-50% |
173 |
23.2% |
|
Low-Income |
51-80% |
100 |
13.4% |
|
Moderate-Income |
81-120% |
132 |
17.7% |
|
Above-Moderate Income |
>120% |
341 |
45.7% |
|
Total |
|
746 |
100% |
A total of 173 units must be affordable to households making less than 50 percent of area median income (AMI);100 units must be affordable to households making between 50 and 80 percent of AMI; 132 units must be affordable to households making between 80 and 120 percent of AMI; and 341 units must be affordable to households making over 120 percent of AMI. The RHNA does not specifically break down the need for extremely-low-income households. As provided by State Law, the housing needs of extremely-low income households, or those making less than 30 percent of area median income, is estimated as 50 percent of the very-low-income housing need. The proposed Housing Element identifies appropriate locations and densities for housing development which will work in concert with the land use map changes and subsequent zoning map amendments from the General Plan Update to facilitate the necessary housing production.
San Pablo initiated the General Plan/Housing Element Update process in late 2019/early 2020 by applying for and receiving substantial grant funds from HCD in the form of Senate Bill 2 (SB2) funds and Local Early Action Planning (LEAP) Grants and from ABAG/MTC in the form of Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) Grants and Priority Development Area (PDA) grants, all of which have been combined with previously allocated general funds to assist the City with completing the General Plan/Housing Element Update as part of a multi-year capital planning project. On March 15, 2021, the City Council adopted Resolution 2021-025 accepting the HCD SB2 and LEAP planning grants and authorizing the City Manager to enter into an agreement with Dyett & Bhatia for planning services related to the General Plan and Housing Element Updates (copy attached).
Since commencing work on the General Plan/Housing Element Update, the Consulting team along with City staff have completed several milestones, including:
• Completed a Draft Existing Conditions/Key Trends Report
• Prepared draft future land use and housing site maps
• Conducted a review of existing policies
• Prepared a Public Engagement Strategy
• Conducted an on-line and pop-up Community Survey
• Publicized updates in El Portal, on the City website, and social media
• Conducted Affordable Housing Developer’s Forums (January 20, 2022)
• Completed Draft reports on Housing Needs Assessment and Assessment of Fair Housing
• Completed Housing Site Selection Maps
• Completed a Draft Profile report for the Rumrill Priority Development Area (PDA)
• Completed a Draft Market Conditions & Trends Report for the Rumrill PDA
• Established a Technical Advisory Committee for the Rumrill PDA
Presentations to the Planning Commission on progress on the General Plan/Housing Element Update were made on January 25, 2022, July 26, 2022, August 30, 2022 (public hearing), February 28, 2023, and October 24, 2023. Presentations to the Economic Development, Housing & Project Management Standing Committee of the City Council were made on December 8, 2021 and August 30, 2023. Presentations to the full City Council were made on September 19, 2022 (public hearing) and on September 5, 2023.
The first draft of the 2023-31 Housing Element was made available for a 30-day public review period from August 19, 2022 to September 19, 2022. A public hearing on the first draft was held at the Planning Commission on August 30, 2022 and at the City Council on September 19, 2022 and the revised document was submitted to HCD for review on September 30, 2022, meeting the statutory deadline for the first submittal. HCD sent comments on the first draft to the City on December 27, 2022, within the 90-day review period, and were received on January 3, 2023 (copy attached). Staff and the consultant diligently worked to address HCD’s comments and requests, but due to the extent of the requested revisions, the City was unable to meet the due date for certification of the Housing Element update for all Bay Area communities which was January 31, 2023.
A second draft of the Housing Element was made available for a seven-day review period from September 14,2023 to September 21, 2023. No public comments were received and the City submitted the document to HCD for review on September 22, 2023. HCD’s second comment letter was received on November 22, 2023, within the 60-day review period, and contained a reduced, but still substantial number of comments. This second review letter notes that once the necessary revisions have been made and adopted by City Council, the Element will meet the statutory requirements of State Housing Law. Since receiving the second review letter, the planning staff and consultant have met with HCD staff to review the revisions contained in the current version of the revised Housing Element. Once City Council adopts the revised Housing Element, staff is hopeful that HCD will certify it without further comments. HCD will have up to 60 days to certify the Housing Element. The City Council’s resolution adopting the Housing Element will include text allowing staff to incorporate any non-substantive revisions required by HCD in their final certification review.
PLANNING PROCESS
The City employed a range of public outreach and engagement strategies to solicit meaningful community input that has informed the Housing Element, Environmental Justice Element, and other General Plan Updates. These strategies included community-wide surveys, virtual forums, focus group discussions, stakeholder interviews, and pop-up outreach at popular locations around town. A summary of these engagement activities is described below:
• Community Planning Survey. A citywide survey was conducted from December 28, 2021, to February 21, 2022. The survey provided opportunities for residents, business owners, and people who work or go to school in San Pablo to help identify appropriate locations for housing as well as to provide input on key policy topics. In total, 262 people participated and respondents strongly supported adding new, higher density housing along the community's major arterial corridor.
• Housing Focus Group - A focus group discussion with affordable housing developers and service providers was conducted in January 2022 to learn more about opportunities and challenges from the developer perspective, obtain input on housing needs and constraints, and discuss what the City can do to facilitate the production of affordable housing.
• Housing Survey - As part of the Affordable Housing Strategy adopted in November 2020, an online survey in English and Spanish was distributed to the community online from June to mid-July 2020 to gather feedback on the community’s key issues with housing and their priorities for future housing-related work. A total of 198 survey responses were collected, including 173 responses from the English version of the survey and 25 responses from the Spanish version of the survey.
• Targeted Stakeholder Interviews - Strategic Economics interviewed various public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and developers to gather information on affordable housing needs and resources in San Pablo/Contra Costa County, as well as opportunities and constraints to residential development in San Pablo/Contra Costa County. In total, nine stakeholder interviews were held.
• Affordable Housing Forums - The City of San Pablo, in collaboration with Strategic Economics, the San Pablo Economic Development Corporation, the Housing Authority of Contra Costa County (HACCC), and Contra Costa County, hosted two virtual “Affordable Housing Forums” open to the San Pablo community, in both English and Spanish. The Affordable Housing Forums served to inform San Pablo residents about existing and upcoming resources/programs available to them from the City, County, Housing Authority and State, as well as provide San Pablo residents the opportunity to ask questions about existing and upcoming programs and initiatives.
• Environmental Justice Pop-up Outreach - The City of San Pablo held two environmental justice outreach events at the San Pablo Community Hall and Kidd Manor, senior housing facility, on separate occasions to better understand impacts of environmental justice issues that the community faces. Feedback and themes identified during these events has informed the policies in the Health and Environmental Justice Element. A total of 48 community members participated in these events, including older adults, Spanish-speaking community members, adolescents, and disabled community members.
• Public Review Period - The First Draft Housing Element was released for a 30-day public review period on August 19, 2022. Public hearings for review of the Draft Housing Element were held before the Planning Commission on August 30, 2022 and before the City Council on September 19, 2022. During the public comment period, two comment letters were received - one from East Bay Municipal Utilities District and one from YIMBY, which generally expressed support for the content of the Draft.
• Additional Public Review Periods - A Second Draft Housing Element was published for a seven-day public review period from September 14, 2023 to September 21, 2023. The City did not receive any public comments. Revisions to the Second Draft were published for a seven-day public review period from November 8, 2023 to November 15, 2023. The City did not receive any public comments. Further revisions to the Second Draft have been published on February 15, 2024 for public review and consideration by the Planning Commission at the scheduled public hearing to be held on February 27, 2024.
• Decision-Maker Review - Following review of the further revised Second Draft by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), public hearings will be scheduled for review and adoption of the Housing Element. These hearings are scheduled for February 27, 2024 and March 18, 2024.
• Once the Housing Element has been certified by HCD (which should occur no later than May 18, 2024), City Council will be holding a housing workshop to focus on the implementation of the Housing Element and its Action Plan programs.
HOUSING ELEMENT CONTENTS
The Housing Element follows the content requirements established by HCD. It includes the following Chapters:
1. Introduction
Description of purpose, relationship to General Plan, public involvement, sources of information, and report organization
2. Community Profile
Location and context, demographics, housing development trends, constraints and barriers
3. Housing Resources
RHNA, Available Sites, Pipeline Projects, Projections, and Fair Housing Assessment
4. Housing Action Plan
Goals for Housing Supply and Choice, Affordability and Housing Security, Equal Access to Housing, Neighborhood Quality, Energy Conservation and Waste Reduction, and Local Government Capacity
Appendices include:
A. Sites Inventory
B. Housing Needs Assessment, including at-risk affordable
C. Constraints Analysis
D. Fair Housing Assessment
E. Fifth Cycle Accomplishments
The second draft and current revised version of the Housing Element includes additional information and clarification of issues in the following topic areas:
• Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH)
• Population and Employment Trends
• Land and Housing Inventory
• Governmental Constraints
• Nongovernmental Constraints
• Existing Assisted Housing Developments
• Housing Programs
o Specific program commitments and timelines
o Program outcomes and deliverables
o Actions to be taken to Make Sites Available
o Programs to assist in development of adequate affordable housing
o Remove governmental and nongovernmental constraints
o Promote and AFFH
o Preservation of low-income assisted housing developments
• Quantified Objectives
• Public Participation
COMMUNITY HEALTH & ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ELEMENT
State law (Government Code Section 65302(h)) requires California cities and counties to identify “disadvantaged communities” within territory covered by the General Plan. Disadvantaged communities are defined as (1) a census tract in the top 25% of the CalEnviroScreen scores, or (2) low-income areas that are disproportionately affected by environmental pollution and other hazards that can lead to negative health effects, exposure, or environmental degradation. State Law requires cities and counties with disadvantaged communities to adopt an Environmental Justice Element with goals and policies to reduce the unique or compounded health risks in such disadvantaged communities, promote civic engagement in the public decision-making process, and prioritize improvements and programs that address the needs of disadvantaged communities. The Health Element of the 2030 General Plan, one of the first in California, already addresses many of the requirements for the Environmental Justice Element, incorporating policies related to healthy transportation and physical activity; healthy food access and equity; and access to public services.
To ensure full compliance with State Law, new data, maps, and policies have been added to the Health Element, which is being renamed Community Health & Environmental Justice Element. Amendments incorporated include:
• Inclusion of a map identifying the seven Census tracts in San Pablo designated as Disadvantaged Communities (DACs) by the State, pursuant to Senate Bill 535. Encompassing all of the western part of the city and most of the south, these tracts experience an elevated level of pollution exposure relative to the statewide median, and their socio-demographic profile means the residents are more susceptible to adverse health outcomes.
• Current data regarding the socio-demographic conditions in San Pablo that contribute most to disparities in opportunity, including poverty, low educational attainment, and linguistic isolation, as well as prevalent public health issues.
• Policies to increase tree canopy coverage in residential areas and establish cooling centers to help mitigate the adverse health impacts from the projected increase in extreme heat events and average daily summertime temperatures. These policies address an approximately 30-degree difference projected between the hottest and coolest areas of the City, and localized urban heat islands include Helms Middle School, Lifelong Emergency Medical Clinic, and the industrial/commercial center between Giant Highway and Center Street.
• Policies to ensure continued focus on improving air quality through regional collaboration.
• Policies to help bridge the "digital divide" in San Pablo, where 12.2 percent of the population either has no computer in their home or has a computer but lacks an internet subscription. These policies include pursuing partnerships to provide public Wi-Fi in certain parks or public areas, as well as expanding mobile-friendly and non-digital communication with residents.
• A strategy to prioritize investments in DACs, which includes the preparation of a Corridor Plan for Rumrill Boulevard to improve environmental conditions, economic opportunities, and housing choices along a segment of the corridor that runs between Brookside and Costa, designated as a Priority Development Area.
SAFETY & NOISE ELEMENT AMENDMENTS
State law (Government Code Section 65302(g)) requires that the Safety Element must be updated to comply with State Law requirements related to evacuation routes upon a revision of the Housing Element occurring after 2020. The Safety Element must identify residential developments in any hazard area that do not have at least two emergency evacuation routes. The area of San Pablo southeast of I-80 is adjacent to the Wildcat Canyon area identified as a Very High Fire Hazard Zone and is the most at risk from natural hazards. Accordingly, the City's Safety & Noise Element has been updated to identify available evacuation routes for the area, which include Hillcrest Road, Morrow Drive, Alpine Road, and Arlington Boulevard. Additionally, as a strategy to improve outbound evacuation traffic flow during an evacuation, policy direction regarding manual traffic control at the intersections and temporary roadway signage has been incorporated. Other information in the Element has been updated to reflect changing conditions and information since adoption of the Element in 2011, such as completion of Fire Station 70 and the Wildcat Creek Greenway Project.
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY REQUIREMENTS
The General Plan and all Elements thereof are required to be internally consistent and to contain goals and policies that are compatible. State Law also prohibits the City from amending the mandatory elements of the General Plan (including the Housing Element, Safety Element, and Environmental Justice Element) more than 4 times per year, and requires any amendment to the General Plan to be in the public interest. The proposed Housing Element and other amendments to the General Plan contain internally consistent goals and policies and are in the public interest. Moreover, most of the proposed amendments are required by State Law.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the Planning Commission review the attached revised Housing Element, along with the amendments to the Community Health & Environmental Justice Element and Noise & Safety Element; hold a public hearing to receive public comment on these documents; provide feedback to staff; and make recommendations to San Pablo City Council regarding adoption of these documents to be considered by the City Council at a public hearing at the March 18, 2024 meeting of the San Pablo City Council.
ATTACHMENTS
A) Resolution PC24-05
B) Planning Area Map
C) City Council Resolution 2021-025
D) City Council Resolution 2011-045
E) HCD First and Second Review Comments, December 27, 2022 and November 22, 2023
F) Proof of Publication
G) Revised Housing Element
H) Community Health & Environmental Justice Element
I) Safety & Noise Element Update
J) EIR Addendum