Below are a handful of Tuesday night's agenda items:
J2. Authorize the city manager to execute a fourth amendment to the professional services agreement with the M-Group for the Housing Element Update project and appropriate $152,746 to support the project.
Agenda Item J2 is on the Consent Calendar and is to authorize additional funding for our Housing Element consultant, M-Group. Due to the technical and complex nature of certain work, and our limited staff capacity, the City relies on various contractors and consultants to assist with key projects. This request is for an additional $152,746, which brings the total contract amount, for the 2+ year process to $1,700,212.
Also included in the staff report is information on the timing of Housing Element associated zoning changes and the other updates. As stated, Staff "will be bringing the zoning implementation for the Housing Element to the Planning Commission on Oct. 23 and the City Council on Nov. 28. The project team is also concurrently working on revising the Housing Element to address comments from HCD [California Department of Housing and Community Development] and direction from the City Council at its Oct. 10 meeting with a goal of releasing an updated Housing Element for public review by the end of October."
K1. Introduce and waive the first reading of an ordinance to add to and amend the Menlo Park Municipal Code to allow electrification equipment in existing covered parking spaces (e.g. garages or carports) and to allow exterior enclosures for electrification equipment within the required side and rear setbacks for existing residential dwelling units in all zoning districts.
In order to meet Menlo Park's ambitious Climate Action Plan goals, especially Goal #1, which seeks to electrify 95% of existing buildings by 2030, the City must make it as easy as possible for residents to install electrification equipment at their homes. Many zero emission Heat Pump Water Heaters (HPWHs) are slightly larger than their gas-powered counterparts, and require additional space. There is also need to have space for EV chargers, back-up batteries and more. Agenda Item K1 would relax municipal code requirements to enable locating electrification equipment in garages and in side and rear setbacks. Note that existing noise limits are proposed to stay as-is.
L1. Approve the Menlo Park Community Campus parking management plan and adopt a resolution authorizing timed parking restrictions.
As the Menlo Park Community Campus in the Belle Haven neighbor gets closer to completion, various decisions need to be made regarding the site. This agenda item includes the parking management plan for the facility which includes priority parking for Beechwood School, a handful of time-restricted spots, a loading zone, bicycle parking and plans for additional analysis once operations are in place for priority parking for seniors and additional wayfinding signage.
M3. Receive an update on the Vision Zero Action Plan.
The transmission of Informational Item M3 is a preview of a future study session on this item, currently scheduled for November 7th. The staff report outlines the Vision Zero Action Plan, which will implement the City's Vision Zero policy - to eliminate road fatalities and reduce collisions by 50% by 2030. As you likely know, one of my top priorities is to ensure that our streets are safe for people of all ages and abilities, using all modes of transportation. I look forward to discussing this topic more when it comes to Council as a discussion item within the next month.
