March 8, 2022
City Council authorized the filing of the final ‘tract’ map for Los Altos lots located at 4846 and 4856 El Camino Real. The tract map filing confirms the merger into a single lot with the new property address listed as 4848 El Camino Real. This action will allow development to begin.
To be in accord with current state laws, the City Council adopted amendments to zoning requirements in the Los Altos Municipal Code relating to appeals about projects; ongoing maintenance of required landscape features; inclusionary housing requirements for affordable housing development projects; and density bonuses. The Planning Commission recommends a feasibility study of proposed inclusionary housing requirements.
The City Council adopted the 2022 Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP). Along with other Bay Area cities, Los Altos faces extreme drought, more frequent heatwaves, poor air quality and the effects of wildfires. The Los Altos Environmental Commission proposes targets in this CAAP to achieve an 85% reduction in Green House Gas (GHG) emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 and to achieve Carbon Neutrality by 2035. Of the thirty actionable goals in the plan, the main areas for action are
- Transportation: will reduce GHG emissions from vehicles, including transport use by municipal operations.
- Energy: Los Altos, mostly residential buildings, will reduce energy use and increase use of renewable energy.
- Resource Conservation: will reduce GHG by diverting more waste from the landfill, using and conserving water efficiently, and promoting sustainable consumption patterns.
- Green Community: will increase tree canopy and other appropriate vegetation to conserve water use and reduce GHG emissions.
Public comments ranged from applause for the actions to a concern that the city’s main goal is to improve its Housing Element plans, not CAAP. Written comment opposed carbon emission permits and suggested that calling on good will actions by residents is better than legislating forced action.
March 22, 2022
To avoid more delay in development, the City Council granted an exemption from the City’s Story Pole policy for the 5-story, 64 feet tall, 90-unit, 100% affordable development proposal at 330 Distel Circle. Story Poles show the outlines of a property to be developed. Comments to approve the exemption noted that poles will take up space around a building still in use until June 2022, landscaping must be pruned, poles will limit driveway access and have been known to fall on occasion. In addition, for a project dependent on public funding, the cost to put up story poles is exorbitant. Opponents to the exemption say the poles give residents a true sense of the size of the project.
The city council adopted a resolution to accept the Housing Element Annual Progress Report (APR) for 2021. Each California city and county is required to prepare the report on the status and progress in implementing the number of housing units in the city. Staff was authorized to submit the report to the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The report includes tables enumerating applications, incomplete applications, new approved projects, and completed projects. A notice will be inserted in the resolution to state that earlier tables had errors and should be updated by HCD. Written comment asked for certain projects to be withdrawn from the tables in the report because they don’t follow the zoning requirements. Other comment questioned the parcel sizes and their possible use described at community engagement workshops. Not enough discussion ensued about the range of multi-family housing types possible to increase density.
In addition to the APR report, the City Council received a staff update on the status of the Housing Element community engagement process, the consultant’s contract, and next steps.
Since the project began in 2021, there is an informational Housing Element page on the City’s website. Small group meetings and Housing Element pop-ups began in December and are ongoing. The first virtual Community Workshop was held January 13, 2022. In March 2022 Los Altos residents received postcards notifying them of upcoming community workshops to inform and ask for feedback on potential housing element sites and rezoning opportunities. Public comment ranged from the need to act soon to find sites for more housing to concerns about using commercial areas in the city to develop housing units. Comments called for up-zoning some identified areas to allow more housing.
City Council approved the expansion of the role of the Housing Element Council Subcommittee. Their re-envisioned role is to work with the consultant on both input and feedback, particularly regarding policy direction, timing, and outreach.
Claire Noonan, Observer