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Agenda and participation information >Planning 2022-05-12 Special Meeting

“City Staff is asking Park Commissioners to provide feedback on the Draft 6th Cycle Piedmont Housing Element as community members and key stakeholders. The Park Commission meeting on May 4 gives the public further opportunities to learn about the Housing Element update process and to give their input and feedback.”

Numerous proposals are in the Draft Housing Element many occurring throughout Piedmont.  Density increases, removal of parking requirements, raised height limits of buildings, end to neighbor input on proposals, zoning changes, Charter change, etc.

 All proposals in the 374 page Draft Housing Element document can be read online for public comment.  See link at the end of this article.

6. Proposed Specific Plan: Page B-12, Appendix B, of the Draft Housing Element proposes to prepare a specific plan (Government Code §65450 et. seq) for the area of the Public Works Corporation Yard to accommodate new housing development, incorporate existing amenities, and modernize current city functions. The portion of the site utilized for park Page 2 of 62 and recreational uses, are intended to remain as an amenity for the proposed specific plan area, with the existing vehicle parking reconfigured, as needed.  See map on linked attachment below.

7. Blair Park: The Draft Housing Element identifies Blair Park, which is located on the south side of Moraga Avenue, as a potential alternate site for housing if the proposed specific plan for the Public Works Corporation Yard fails to yield 122 housing units (page B-13). Blair Park is 3.55 acres, with the potential for 210 units if developed at 60 units per acre.

8. Zoning Amendments: In order to meet the 6th Cycle RHNA target with Piedmont’s limited available land, the Draft Housing Element’s Goal 1, New Housing Construction, proposes to increase the allowed residential density for housing affiliated with religious institutions in Zone A (program 1.D, page (37) and increase allowed residential density in Zone B (program 1.F), Zone C (program 1.G), and Zone D (1.H).

READ the Draft Housing Element May 4 presentation to the Park Commission and Agenda, including participation information below:

> 2022-05-04 Park Agenda

Piedmont is scheduled to adopt a new Housing Element to accommodate 587 new housing units in Piedmont.  You can play a role in deciding how! 

For development potential, some residents and City staff have suggested,  amongst other areas, the area around the City Corporation Yard on Moraga Avenue.  Undeveloped areas are unlikely to provide housing space for 587 new housing units leading to new units added in single family neighborhoods. 

Once the Housing Element is approved, the City will be prohibited by law from informing neighbors of certain proposed projects, potentially turning garages into housing, subdividing properties, adding new housing units on existing properties, restructuring existing homes as apartment buildings, etc. .

The Housing Element is important to all areas of Piedmont, for after parameters and requirements for housing are approved in the new Housing Element, “ministerial” permits are to be issued by the City Planning Department for all conforming proposals without neighborhood notification or input. 

The Piedmont Planning staff, along with outside consultants, have devised the new DRAFT Housing Element.  Attempts have been made by the City to involve Piedmont residents in the process.  The result is a 374 page DRAFT Housing Element document outlining conditions for approval of housing units. 

Go to the end of this article to learn how you can voice your preferences and read the DRAFT Housing Element.

TIME FOR WRITTEN INPUT TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION IS  ENDING ON MAY 5, 2022.

If you are not able or need assistance with submitting your ideas to the City, contact City Clerk John O. Tulloch at 510-420-3040 or Senior Planner Pierce Macdonald at 510-420-3050.

  The Piedmont City Council has planned a limited comment period based on an earlier State deadline for submittal of Piedmont’s new Housing Element. 

State Housing Element Update Timeline was Extended to May 2023 due to a recent state law requiring additional review and longer comment periods.

• April 8, 2022: Publication of the Draft Housing Element > Draft Piedmont 6th Cycle Housing Element.  (374 pages)

• May 12, 2022: Special Planning Commission public hearing, starting at 5:30 pm to discuss and consider the Draft Housing Element. Approximately one month comment period.
• June 2022: City Council public hearing. Approximately one month comment period.
• May 2023: NEW deadline for adoption of the final draft of the updated Housing Element, date amended due to recent state law requiring additional review and longer comment periods! 

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The 374-page Draft Housing Element, shown above, includes policies to increase housing access and affordability in Piedmont.

Purple arrows identify the locations of the links to the Draft Housing Element on the homepages of the City website and Piedmontishome.org

Win a $50 gift card to Grand Lake Ace Hardware by submitting your housing plan, email, and comments in the Piedmont Housing Puzzle. Click below to start! START

• ·     The City purchased the 801 Magnolia Avenue property in 2003 at a cost of $735,000.  A the time, the City was developing the Civic Center Master Plan, a redevelopment of the Civic Center that called for replacing the 801 building with a modern building and civic plaza.  Undergrounding cost overruns and the 2008 economic downturn forestalled proceeding with the master plan at that time.

• ·     In March, 2011, the City received a proposal from the Piedmont Center for the Arts to lease the building.  The City conducted a public hearing, “Consideration of the Concept of use of City Property at 801 Magnolia Avenue by the Piedmont Center for the Arts” at which PCA presented its Articles of Incorporation which state “The specific purpose of this corporation is to promote artistic endeavors for youth within the Piedmont community by providing exhibit and performance space and a website to connect the Arts Center with exhibitors and renters.”  At the hearing, commenters recommended other uses for the building such as a Maker Center, teen or senior center and public library.

• ·     In April, 2011 PCA signed a 10-year, no-rent lease with the City which stipulated that PCA could rent space to only non-profit sub-tenants.  Over the ensuing 10 years, the City modified the Zone B use restrictions so that a for-profit business of a PCA Board member could be operated in the 801 Magnolia Building.

• ·     In November 2021, the City came forward with a 10-year lease renewal with PCA.  No public hearings on the use of the 801 Building were held at City Council or city commissions nor did Council discuss the 801 lease renewal in closed session prior to the November meeting.

Failure to engage the public and City Council in discussions of use of the 801 Building prior to the November meeting soured the public process from the start.  According to the City Charter, “An ordinance may be introduced by any Councilmember at any regular or special meeting of the City Council.”

At the November 2021 meeting, the previous Mayor publicly stated he was asked by PCA to open negotiations on a new lease and presumably used this ordinance authority to bring forward the new lease (at his last meeting as mayor). But in so doing, he ignored the input of his Council colleagues and the community at large on the use of 801 Magnolia.  Other factors contributing to public dissatisfaction with the process were flaws in the lease and the obvious bias to Piedmont Center for the Arts it contained. Read the analysis by Rick Raushenbush to see just how badly the first draft of the agreement represented the City’s interest.

https://www.piedmontcivic.org/2020/11/29/opinion-four-major-flaws-in-proposed-art-center-lease/

Since November 2021, overwhelming public opposition to the first draft of the lease and the process by which it was brought forward resulted in the City taking more control of the building and relying on a facility use agreement that was approved by Council in March, 2022

(http://piedmont.hosted.civiclive.com/common/pages/DisplayFile.aspx?itemId=18384268). 

But as with the first draft, no public hearings or closed sessions of City Council on the use of 801 were held in the ensuing 15 months and again, the majority of public comment has been critical of the agreement and the lack of transparency into its development.  So three meetings over a 15-month period was not a “robust public process” but a series of reactionary meetings with the public trying to claw back access to this public building.

What’s really confounding is why the City didn’t conduct an open public process on the use of 801 Magnolia?  PCA would likely have retained preeminent use of the building with better community access being achieved at the same time.  Instead, a lease highly favorable to PCA was always the only topic for comment, sending a strong signal that it was a fait accompli.  It should be noted that it was in the City’s interest, as well, to have a limited discussion of 801’s use.  Office space is at a premium in City Hall and no doubt staff will make use of the new space in 801 for employees.

There are three spaces in the 801 building – the office space, classroom and performance hall – and a more equitable agreement would be to have assigned the classroom to the community as a senior center.  The Recreation Department is doing a better job of providing senior programming, but what seniors really need more is a gathering space and the 801 classroom would be perfect for that.

Why all this matters is that 6 years from now the facility use agreement will expire and the community will again go through this process for the 801 building. Several current Councilmembers could be involved again so hopefully a better public process will be followed.  This whole saga reminded me of the scene from Oliver Twist when Oliver approaches the master and asks “Please sir, I want some more”.  Hopefully it won’t be so hard to ask next time.

Editors’ Note: Opinions expressed are those of the author. 

*Since 1986, PCA has been the logo for the Piedmont Civic Association.  In 2011, when the Piedmont Center for the Arts was formed and  began using PCA as an identifying symbol, the Piedmont Civic Association  informed the Arts Center of the potential misunderstanding for two Piedmont organizations to refer to themselves as PCA.   The two PCA organizations are separate and unrelated entities serving Piedmont.  The Piedmont Civic Association has never had a lease or agreement with the City of Piedmont for use of  801 Magnolia Avenue. 

The Council heard from City staff, the City attorney, residents, non-residents, the Recreation Department, representatives from arts groups, and performers addressing an Agreement with the Piedmont Center for the Arts, a local non-profit organization, regarding the City owned property at 801 Magnolia Avenue.

Between 7:30 p.m. and almost midnight on Monday, March 7, 2022, there was a lively discussion of the proposed Agreement with the Piedmont Center for the Arts organization for their continued use of the City facility across from Piedmont High School.

Issues discussed were:

• Length of Agreement  – 5 years – Accepted
• High fees Arts Center might charge for usage of their time – Undetermined
• Lack of review by Recreation Commission – True
• Problematic process and insufficient information to community 
• Excessive number of dates and times reserved for Arts Center group
• Control over City facility by external group – To be reviewed
• $200,000 + in Arts Center current reserves derived from fees
• 90 day deadline for Arts Center to advise the City of non-use of their allotted time slots – Accepted
  
• City review of Agreement and usage after  18 months – Accepted
• City review of Agreement on an annual basis – Accepted
• End to sub-leases of the property – Accepted
• Adequate opportunities for other groups to use the facility 
• Revenue not captured by the City
• Compromises by all involved to reach Agreement
•  Desire to continue the successful activities of the Arts Center 
•  A provision for potential use of the property for housing – Accepted

Council members expressed sincere appreciate to the many volunteers from the Piedmont Center for the Arts in establishing a successful and regionally recognized arts venue in Piedmont.

Three Council members supported the Agreement not wanting to delay the matter further and approved the staff proposed Agreements with minor changes.   Those approving were King, Andersen and McCarthy.

Two Council members voted no desiring additional information, a more transparent process, shorter term to the Agreement, and guaranteed equitable access for the entire community; these were Council members Cavenaugh and Long.

Since the lease with the Arts Center will end, sub-tenant, The Piedmont Post, was given an extension of 60 days from time of notice to vacate the Arts Center building. The City will use the space for expanded recreational programs and Recreation Department staff needs.

See prior article on the proposed Agreement. 

Council to Consider Use of 801 Magnolia Avenue –

Staff Recommendation:

a. Approve a Facility Use Agreement between the City of Piedmont and the
Piedmont Center for the Arts (PCA) for use of the Main Hall at 801 Magnolia,Avenue (Main Hall);
b. Authorize the City Administrator to provide written notice of termination of the 2011 Lease Agreement between the City and Piedmont Center for the Arts on March 25, 2022; and
c. Establish user fees for community use of the Main Hall as set forth in the fee schedule listed in this staff report.

Proposed Use Agreement:

Under the proposed Facility Use Agreement, the City would manage the use of the Main Hall under the auspices of the Recreation Department, which manages other City facilities and event spaces. The Department of Public Works will manage maintenance of the building. The Agreement specifies that the City will reserve for itself the annual use of the Main Hall on all weekday mornings, two weekday evenings each week, and sixteen weekends. In turn, Piedmont Center for the Arts [PCA]  would have access to program the space for art related use on weekday afternoons, two weekday evenings each week, and up to thirty-six weekends each year. Hours not scheduled for use by PCA will be released for City use. The proposed agreement designates and assures at minimum, 2,492 hours (45% of the useable time) each year for City use of the Main Hall.

Key Provisions:

Approved Use: PCA use is limited to arts programming only
User Fee: PCA will pay a monthly user fee of $1,000 with an annual Consumer Price
Index (CPI) increase.
Calendar: Annually, PCA will be provided right of first refusal for 36 weekends,
weekday afternoons and two evenings per week within which to schedule
arts related events and programs. This allocation is intended to provide
flexibility for advance scheduling. It is expected that PCA will not utilize
all of this time and there are systems in place to allow for unscheduled
time to be released back to the City for broader community use.
Term: Six years
Termination: The proposed agreement allows the City to terminate the use agreement immediately if the Main Hall is needed for City operations due to an
emergency or unforeseen circumstance as well as with one year notice if
statutory requirements necessitate City use of the facility or if City facility
renovations require relocation of City Staff to 801 Magnolia Ave.
Parking: One parking place in the driveway located on Bonita Avenue will be
reserved for the Main Hall user group at any given time.

In the event Council approves the Facility Use Agreement, the next step would be for the City to formally provide notice to PCA that the current month-to-month tenancy is to be terminated with 30 days’ notice. In order to allow the Recreation Department time to organize implementation of this significant transition, Staff recommends issuing a notice of termination of the existing lease agreement on March 25, 2022, and upon expiration of the 30-day period, the proposed Facility Use Agreement would take effect on April 25, 2022.

User Fees:
Staff further recommends Council approval of a fee schedule for the Main Hall so that
community users can begin accessing the space as soon as possible. The fees as proposed are intended to provide relatively low-cost access to the Main Hall for meetings and small events and to serve needs not met by Community Hall or the Veterans Memorial Building. If approved these fees will also be incorporated in the annual review process for Recreation Department facilities undertaken during the approval of the annual budget.

Proposed Fees

• PUSD [Piedmont Unified School District] sponsored event with onsite supervision No Charge
• Piedmont Community Based Organization $30/hr
• Community Based Organization (CBO) $50/hr
• Private Rental Resident $80/hr
• Private Rental Non-resident $125/hr
As with the City’s other rental facilities, all uses will be subject to capacity and compatibility constraints. As a reminder, 801 Magnolia Avenue is a relatively small space without any kitchen facilities.

Community members are invited to attend the meeting virtually via Zoom or by coming to the City Council chambers. The meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. 

• Meeting Agenda (Including Participation Details)

• Agenda Report  Lease and Diagram of Spaces at 801 Magnolia Avenue.

Community members can provide comment on this topic by sending email to citycouncil@piedmont.ca.gov. If you have questions about the report, please email City Administrator Sara Lillevand. 

Now is the time !

by March 21, 2022

to volunteer for City of Piedmont Committees and Commissions –

Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee, Civil Service Commission, Park Commission, Planning Commission, Public Safety Committee, Recreation Commission,  Mosquito Abatement Representative

Information  is linked below:

Residents wishing to apply must take one of the following two actions on or before the posted deadline of Monday, March 21, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. Postmarks will not be accepted for paper applications.

1) Apply online OR

2) Complete and return the paper application form A link to the electronic application and a downloadable application for paper submission are available on the city’s website at https://piedmont.ca.gov or from the office of the City Clerk, Piedmont City Hall, 120 Vista Avenue, Piedmont, or by telephone at (510) 420-3040.

All applicants must be available for an interview with the City Council the evening of Monday, March 28, 2022, at which time appointments may be made.

Read links below:

PCA Commission Application 2022

PCA Commission Description of Duties 2022-02-28

PCA2022-02-28 Volunteers for Commissions-Committees

PCA Notice of Appointive Vacancies 2022

Who is fighting to stop the State takeover of local land use planning?

California residents, including Piedmonters, are becoming more and more aware of the loss of control over local land use planning in their cities and neighborhoods. Public interest groups are forming to fight State takeover of local planning processes.

Developers are projected to be the monetary gainers of State control over housing and planning.

The continuing loss of local citizens’ ability to control development and feel confident of their community’s future is felt and shown in the number of homeowners deciding this is the time to leave California. 

To date, the Piedmont City Council has fully supported the Piedmont Regional Housing Need Assessments (RHNA) calling for an additional 587 housing units added in Piedmont.  Proposals call for the Piedmont Planning Department to ministerially take action on approvals without neighborhood input on Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) that meet certain criteria. Areas in Piedmont, including a park, are  being considered to be designated for multiple housing units. 

State legislation impacts Piedmont’s two “single family” residential zones differently.   Zone A where smaller parcels are typically found in “lower Piedmont,” there is a requirement of a 5 foot setback from side and rear property lines for habitable buildings.  Zone E (Estate), an elite zone where parcels are generally located in upper Piedmont,  require more space  around their homes for the greater 20 foot side and rear yard setbacks.   Roof overhangs are allowed into the setbacks further narrowing the distance between buildings.  Zone E has been questioned as illegally established as never having been established by voter action per the City Charter . 

The required number of RHNA housing units was assigned to Piedmont without consideration of the numerous substandard, narrow, and winding road ways impacting safety and emergency vehicles.   Deficient municipal open space, lack of local employment, and other local problems were also not factored into Piedmont’s 587 new housing unit assessment.

Various groups opposing State imposition of housing requirements are linked below for information.

 www.stopsacramento.org

https://www.livablecalifornia.org/livable-california-endorses-the-our-neighborhood-voices-initiative/