Berkeley City Council
March 14, 2023

APPENDIX A. POLICY FOR NAMING AND RENAMING PUBLIC FACILITIES 36 A. Public Facilities are generally easier to identify by reference to adjacent street names, distinct geographic or environmental features, or primary use activity. Therefore, the preferred practice is to give City-owned property a name of historical or geographical significance and to retain these names.

B. No public facility may be named for a living person, but this policy can be overridden with a 2/3 vote of the City Council.

C. The naming of a public facility or any parts thereof in recognition of an individual posthumously may only be considered if the individual had a positive effect on the community and has been deceased for more than 1 year.

D. When a public facility provides a specific programmatic activity, it is preferred that the activity (e.g. skateboard park, baseball diamond) be included in the name of the park or facility.

E. When public parks are located adjacent to elementary schools, a n ame that is the same as the adjacent school shall be considered.

F. When considering the renaming of an existing public facility, in addition to applying criteria A-E above, proper weight should be given to the fact that: a name lends a site or property authenticity and heritage; existing names are presumed to have historic significance; and historic names give a community a sense of place and identity, continuing through time, and increases the sense of neighborhood and belonging.

Section 4 –Naming Standards Involving a Major Contribution When a person, group or organization requests the naming or renaming of a public facility, all of the following conditions shall be met:

A. An honoree will have made a major contribution towards the acquisition and/or development costs of a public facility or a major contribution to the City.

B. The honoree has a record of outstanding service to their community C. Conditions of any donation that specifies that name of a public facility, as part of an agreement or deed, must be approved by the City Council, after review by and upon recommendation of the City Manager.

Section 5 –Procedures for Naming or Renaming of Public Facilities A. Any person or organization may make a written application to the City Manager requesting that a public facility or portion thereof, be named or renamed.

1. Recommendations may also come directly of the City Boards or Commissions, the City Council, or City Staff.

B. The City Manager shall refer the application to the appropriate lead commission as defined in Section 1 of the City’s policy on naming of public facilities, for that commission’s review, facilitation, and recommendation of disposition.

1. The application shall contain the name or names of the persons or organization making the application and the reason for the requested naming or renaming.

C. The lead commission shall review and consider the application, using the policies and criteria articulated to the City Policy on Naming and Renaming to make a recommendation to Council.

1. All recommendations or suggestion will be given the same consideration without regard to the source of the nomination

D. The lead commission shall hold a public hearing and notify the general public of any discussions regarding naming or renaming of a public facility.

APPENDIX A. POLICY FOR NAMING AND RENAMING PUBLIC FACILITIES 37 1. Commission action will be taking at the meeting following any public hearing on the naming or renaming.

E. The commission’s recommendation shall be forwarded to Council for final consideration.

The City of Berkeley Policy for Naming and Renaming Public Facilities was adopted by the Berkeley City Council at the regular meeting of January 31, 2012.

APPENDIX B. GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING AND WRITING COUNCIL AGENDA ITEMS 38 APPENDIX B. GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING AND WRITING COUNCIL

AGENDA ITEMS

These guidelines are derived from the requirements for Agenda items listed in the Berkeley City Council Rules of Procedure and Order, Chapter III, Sections B(1) and (2), reproduced below. In addition, Chapter III Section C(1)(a) of the Rules of Procedure and Order allows the Agenda & Rules Committee to request that the Primary Author of an item provide “additional analysis” if the item as submitted evidences a “significant lack of background or supporting information” or “significant grammatical or readability issues.”

These guidelines provide a more detailed and comprehensive overview of elements of a complete Council item. While not all elements would be applicable to every type of Agenda item, they are intended to prompt Authors to consider presenting items with as much relevant information and analysis as possible.

Chapter III, Sections (B)(1) and (2) of Council Rules of Procedure and Order:

2. Agenda items shall contain all relevant documentation, including the following as Applicable:
a. A descriptive title that adequately informs the public of the subject matter and general nature of the item or report and action requested; b. Whether the matter is to be presented on the Consent Calendar or the Action Calendar or as a Report for Information;
c. Recommendation of the City Manager, if applicable (these provisions shall not apply to Mayor and Council items.);
d. Fiscal impacts of the recommendation;
e. A description of the current situation and its effects; f. Background information as needed;
g. Rationale for recommendation;
h. Alternative actions considered;
i. For awards of contracts; the abstract of bids and the Affirmative Action Program of the low bidder in those cases where such is required (these provisions shall not apply to Mayor and Council items.); j. Person or persons to contact for further information, with telephone number.

If the Primary Author of any report believes additional background information, beyond the basic report, is necessary to Council understanding of the subject, a separate compilation of such background information may be developed and copies will be available for Council and for public review in the City Clerk Department, and the City Clerk shall provide limited distribution of such background information depending upon quantity of pages to be duplicated. In such case the agenda item distributed with the packet shall so indicate.

APPENDIX B. GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING AND WRITING COUNCIL AGENDA ITEMS 39 Guidelines for City Council Items:

1. Title

2. Consent/Action/Information Calendar

3. Recommendation

4. Summary Statement/Current situation and its effects

5. Background

6. Review of Existing Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws

7. Actions/Alternatives Considered

8. Consultation/Outreach Overview and Results

9. Rationale for Recommendation

10. Implementation, Administration and Enforcement

11. Environmental Sustainability

12. Fiscal Impacts

13. Outcomes and Evaluation

14. Contact Information

15. Attachments/Supporting Materials
___________________________________________________

1. Title
A descriptive title that adequately informs the public of the subject matter and general nature of the item or report and action requested.

2. Consent/Action/Information Calendar
Whether the matter is to be presented on the Consent Calendar or the Action Calendar or as a Report for Information.

3. Recommendation
Clear, succinct statement of action(s) to be taken. Recommendations can be further detailed within the item, by specific reference.

Comm
on action options include:
● Adopt first reading of ordinance
● Adopt
a resolution
● Referral to the City Manager (City Manager decides if it is a short term referral or is placed on the RRV ranking list)
● Direction to the City Manager (City Manager is directed to execute the recommendation right away, it is not placed on any referral list) ● Referral to a Commission or to a Standing or Ad Hoc Council Committee ● Referral to the budget process
● Send letter of support
● Accept, Approve, Modify or Reject a recommendation from a Commission or Committee
● Designate members of the Council to perform some action

APPENDIX B. GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING AND WRITING COUNCIL AGENDA ITEMS 40 4. Summary Statement/ “Current situation and its effects” A short resume of the circumstances that give rise to the need for the recommended action(s).
● Briefly state the opportunity/problem/concern that has been identified, and the
proposed solution.
● Exam
ple (fictional):

Winter rains are lasting longer than expected. Berkeley’s winter shelters are poised to close in three weeks, but forecasts suggest rain for another two months. If they do not remain open until the end of the rainy season, hundreds of people will be left in the rain 24/7. Therefore, this item seeks authorization to keep Berkeley’s winter shelters open until the end of April, and refers to the Budget Process $40,000 to cover costs of an additional two months of shelter operations.

5. Background
A full discussion of the history, circumstances and concerns to be addressed by the item.
● For the above fictional example, Background would include in formation and data about the number and needs of homeless individuals in Berkeley, the number and availability of permanent shelter beds that meet their needs, the number of winter shelter beds that would be lost with closure, the impacts of such closure on this population, the weather forecasts, etc.

6. Review of Existing Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws Review, identify and discuss relevant/applicable Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws, and how the proposed actions conform with, compliment, are supported by, differ from or run contrary to them. What gaps were found that need to be filled? What existing policies, programs, plans and laws need to be changed/supplemented/improved/repealed? What is missing altogether that needs to be addressed?

Revi
ew of all pertinent/applicable sections of:
● The City Charter
● Berkeley Municipal Code
● Administrative Regulations
● Council Resolutions
● Staff training manuals
Review of all applicable City Plans:
● The General Plan
●
Area Plans
● The Climate Action Plan
● Resilience Plan
● Equity Plan

APPENDIX B. GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING AND WRITING COUNCIL AGENDA ITEMS 41 ● Capital Improvements Plan
● Zero Waste Plan
● B
ike Plan
● Pedestrian Plan
● Other relevant precedents and plans
Review of the City’s Strategic Plan
Review of similar legislation previously intr
oduced/passed by Council
Review of County, State and Federal laws/policies/programs/plans, if applicable

7. Actions/Alternatives Considered
● What solutions/measures have other jurisdictions adopted that serve as models/cautionary tales?
● What solutions/measur es are recommended by advo
cates, experts,
organizations?
● What is the range of actions considered, and what are some of their major pros and cons?
● Why were other solutions not as feasible/advisable?

8. Consultation/Outreach Overview and Results
● Review/list external and internal stakeholders that were consulted ○ External: constituents, communities, neighborhood organizations, businesses and not for profits, advocates, people with lived experience, faith organizations, industry groups, people/groups that might have concerns about the item, etc.
○ Internal: staff who would implement policies, the City Manager and/or deputy CM, Department Heads, City Attorney, Clerk, etc. ● What reports, articles, books, websites and other materials were consulted? ● What was learned fro
m these sources?
● What changes or approaches did they advocate for that were accepted or rejected?

9. Rationale for Recommendation
A clear and concise statement as to whether the item proposes actions that:
● Conform to, clarify or extend existing Plans, Pr ograms, Policies and Laws ● Change/Amend existing Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws in mino r ways
● Change/Amend existing Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws in major ways ● Create an exception to existing Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws ● Reverse/go contrary to or against existing Plans, Programs, Policies and Laws

Argument/summary of argument in support of recommended actions. The argument likely has already been made via the information and analysis already presented,

APPENDIX B. GUIDELINES FOR DEVELOPING AND WRITING COUNCIL AGENDA ITEMS 42 but should be presented/restated/summarized. Plus, further elaboration of terms for recommendations, if any.

10. Implementation, Administration and Enforcement
Discuss how the recommended action(s) would be implemented, administered and enforced. What staffing (internal or via contractors/consultants) and materials/facilities are likely required for implementation?

11. Environmental Sustainability
Discuss the impacts of the recommended action(s), if any, on the environment and the recommendation’s positive and/or negative implications with respect to the City’s Climate Action, Resilience, and other sustainability goals.

12. Fiscal Impacts
Review the recommended action’s potential to generate funds or savings for the City in the short and long-term, as well as the potential direct and indirect costs.

13. Outcomes and Evaluation
State the specific outcomes expected, if any (i.e., “it is expected that 100 homeless people will be referred to housing every year”) and what reporting or evaluation is recommended.

14. Contact Information

15. Attachments/Supporting Materials

APPENDIX C
43 APPENDIX C. TEMPORARY RULES FOR THE CONDUCT OF CITY

COUNCIL MEETINGS THROUGH VIDEO CONFERENCE DURING THE
COVID-19 EMERGENCY

Mayor and Councilmember Speaking Time on Agenda Items
For the Consent Calendar, the Mayor and Councilmembers will initially have up to five minutes each to make comments. After all members of the Council have spoken (or passed) and after public comment, members will each have two additional minutes to discuss the Consent Calendar.

For non-Consent items, the Mayor and Councilmembers will have two minutes each to make initial comments on an agenda item, except for the author of an agenda item who will have five minutes to initially present the item. After every Councilmember has spoken or declined and after public comment, Councilmembers will each have another five minutes per person to address an item. Debate may be extended beyond a second round of Council comments by a majority vote (5 votes).

Time will toll during staff answers to questions; Councilmembers are urged to ask their questions of city staff before the meeting or in writing.

Procedure for Pulling Items from Consent or Information Calendar Three (3) members of the City Council must agree to pull an item from the Consent or Information Calendar for it to move to Action. Absent three members concurring, the item will stay on Consent or Information Calendar and, with respect to Consent items, the Mayor or Councilmembers will be allowed to record their aye, nay or abstain votes on individual items or the entire Consent Calendar.

Moving an item from the Action Calendar to the Consent Calendar requires the unanimous consent of the entire City Council.

Public Comment Speaking Time
With the exception of prescribed times in the Rules of Procedure for public hearings, the amount of time for each speaker during public comment is limited to two minutes maximum and that speakers can only address an agenda item once, however the Presiding Officer has the discretion to reduce speaker time if needed in order to allow the orderly conduct of the meeting, subject to the consent of a majority of the City Council. Speakers may yield their time for a maximum of four minutes per individual. If a speaker wishes to yield their time, they must indicate so when called on by the Presiding Officer and state who they are yielding their speaker time to. The Presiding Officer will keep a list with the names and amount of time yielded to individuals.

In order to inform members of the public of their place in the speaker's queue, the Presiding Officer will call the names of 5 speakers at a time.

Public Comment on Non-Agenda Matters will be conducted in the order of hands raised on the Zoom platform, and will be limited to either the first 10 speakers during the initial round of Non-Agenda public comment, as well as all hands raised during the closing round of Non-Agenda public comment at the conclusion to the meeting, until such time that the

APPENDIX C
44 meeting adjourns. If there are five or fewer speakers with hands raised for Public Comment on Non-Agenda Matters, each speaker will have two minutes to address the City Council. If there are more than five speakers with their hands raised then speaker time will be limited to one minute per person. The procedure for selection of Non-Agenda speakers prescribed in the Rules of Procedure by random draw is suspended for videoconference meetings where there is no physical meeting location.

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.CityofBerkeley.info/Manager

PUBLIC HEARING
March 14, 2023
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: David Sprague, Interim Fire Chief
Subject: Ambulance User Fee Increase

RECOMMENDATION
Conduct a public hearing and upon conclusion, adopt a Resolution: 1) Adjusting the Ambulance User Fee Schedule to match Alameda County’s approved ambulance user fee schedule, made effective July 1, 2022, for the Cities of Alameda, Albany, Berkeley, and Piedmont; 2) Making the new Ambulance User Fee Schedule effective April 1, 2023; 3) Authorizing the City Manager to execute an amendment to Contract No. 31900182 with Alameda County for ambulance transport services to incorporate the fee increase; and 4) Rescinding Resolution No. 68,897–N.S., effective April 1, 2023.

FISCAL IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION
The Alameda County Health Care Services Agency notified the City on July 21, 2022 that they had approved an increase in the Bundled Base Rate User Fee that may be charged by the County’s 911 Ambulance Transport Service Provider. Under the terms of Berkeley’s Emergency Medical Services Ambulance Transport Services Agreement with Alameda County, the City may increase its Bundled Base Rate to $3,331.40, Mileage to $75.17, Oxygen to $248.88, and Treatment/Non-Transport to $668.13 beginning July 1, 2022. The City will increase its rate effective April 1, 2023 and will not apply the increase retroactively. These adjustments account for the increased cost of ambulance transport, paramedic services, and medical equipment/supplies. Collected ambulance fees are deposited into a General Fund revenue account.

Existing Proposed
Base Rate $2,181.38 $3,331.40
Mileage $50.71 $75.17
Oxygen $167.91 $248.88
Treatment / Non-Transport * $450.77 $668.13
*For patients who receive a medical intervention, such as intravenous medication administration, and subsequently refuse transport.

Ambulance User Fee Increase PUBLIC HEARING
March 14, 2023

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Under the terms of the Emergency Medical Services Ambulance Transport Services Agreement, Alameda County Board of Supervisors is responsible for setting and approving any fees that are applicable to all providers. The increases are either cost-of- living adjustments (COLA) or base rate adjustments. For the City of Berkeley, the last rate increase was approved by the City Council on May 14, 2019 (Resolution No. 68,897–N.S.); and the rate increase was made effective July 1, 2019.

BACKGROUND
The Alameda County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) is responsible for the procurement of emergency ambulance services for the local EMS system. The Berkeley Fire Department has an agreement with Alameda County to be the emergency transport provider for Berkeley since 1977. Albany, Piedmont, Alameda City, and Falck serve as the ambulance transport providers for other parts of Alameda County. Under the current agreement, all transport providers, including Berkeley, are in the Alameda County Emergency Medical Services District. Since 1986, the Berkeley Fire Department has provided ambulance transport service at the Advanced Life Support (ALS) or paramedic level.

Under the terms of the Emergency Medical Services Ambulance Transport Services Agreement, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors is responsible for setting and approving any fees that are applicable to all agencies. The increases are either COLA or base rate adjustments.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
There are no identifiable environmental effects, climate impacts, or sustainability opportunities associated with the action requested in this report.

RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
The Berkeley Fire Department is seeking Council approval to increase the base rate for ambulance user fees to match those approved by Alameda County and made effective on July 1, 2022. Periodic rate increases help to recoup increasing costs incurred for providing ambulance services.

Government Code Section 6062(a) dictates the manner of publication for fee increase public hearings.

ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS CONSIDERED
Continue with the existing Ambulance User Fee Schedule which was approved by the Alameda County Board of Supervisors and made effective September 1, 2019.

Ambulance User Fee Increase PUBLIC HEARING
March 14, 2023

CONTACT PERSON
Dave McPartland, EMS Assistant Fire Chief, (510) 981-3473 Attachments:
1: Resolution
2: Public Hearing Notice

RESOLUTION NO. ##,###-N.S.

AMBULANCE USER FEE ADJUSTMENT
WHEREAS, the County of Alameda and the City of Berkeley are in an Emergency Medical Services Ambulance Transport Services Agreement dated July 1, 2019; and WHEREAS, the County of Alameda Board of Supervisors sets the rates for emergency ambulance transport; and
WHEREAS, the revenue collected will be deposited into General Fund revenue account 010-6405-341-7900; and
WHEREAS, the County of Alameda Board of Supervisors established and approved a new Contractor’s User Fee schedule for ambulance transport providers. The rates were made effective July 1, 2022.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Berkeley that the new Ambulance User Fee Schedule is adopted in accordance with the rates established by the County of Alameda, effective July 1, 2022, as follows:

User Fee
Schedule
Base Rate $3,331.40
Mileage $75.17
Oxygen $248.88
Treatment / Non-Transport $668.13
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the new Ambulance User Fee Schedule shall be effective April 1, 2023.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City Manager is authorized to execute an amendment to Contract No. 31900182 with Alameda County for ambulance transport services to incorporate the fee increase.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Resolution No. 68,897-N.S. is rescinded, effective April 1, 2023.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

BERKELEY CITY COUNCIL

AMBULANCE USER FEE ADJUSTMENT
The public may participate in this hearing by remote video or in-person.

Notice is hereby given by the City Council of the City of Berkeley that a public hearing will be conducted by said city council of the City of Berkeley at which time and place all persons may attend and be heard upon the following:

The Fire Department is proposing to increase the Ambulance User Fee rates to match the ambulance transport provider fees set forth and approved by the County of Alameda. Collected ambulance fees are deposited into a General Fund revenue account.

The County of Alameda has established and approved a new base rate Contractor’s User Fee schedule for ambulance transport providers effective July 1, 2022. The City of Berkeley fee increase would be effective April 1, 2023. For the City of Berkeley, the last rate increase was approved by the City Council on May 14, 2019 (Resolution No. 68,897–N.S.); and the rate increase was made effective July 1, 2019.

Existing Proposed
Base Rate $2,181.38 $3,331.40
Mileage $50.71 $75.17
Oxygen $167.91 $248.88
Treatment / Non-Transport * $450.77 $668.13
*For patients who receive a medical intervention, such as intravenous medication administration, and subsequently refuse transport.

The hearing will be held on March 14, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. in the School District Board Room, 1231 Addison Street, Berkeley CA 94702.

For further information, please contact David McPartland, EMS Assistant Chief, at (510) 981-3473.

A copy of the staff report for this hearing will be available on the City’s website at www.berkeleyca.gov as of March 2, 2023. Once posted, the agenda for this meeting will include a link for public participation using Zoom video technology, as well as any health and safety requirements for in-person attendance.

Written comments should be mailed or delivered directly to the City Clerk, 2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704, or e-mailed to [email protected] in order to ensure delivery to all Councilmembers and inclusion in the agenda packet.

Communications to the Berkeley City Council are public record and will become part of the City’s electronic records, which are accessible through the City’s website. Please note: e-mail addresses, names, addresses, and other contact information are not required, but if included in any communication to the City Council, will become part of the public record. If you do not want your e-mail address or any other contact information to be made public, you may deliver communications via U.S. Postal Service or in person to the City Clerk. If you do not want your contact information included in the public record, please do not include that information in your communication. Please contact the City Clerk at 981-6900 or [email protected] for further information.

If you challenge the above in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues you or someone else raised at the public hearing described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City of Berkeley at, or prior to, the public hearing. Background information concerning this proposal will be available at the City Clerk Department and posted on the City of Berkeley webpage at least 10 days prior to the public hearing.

Published: March 3 and March 10, 2023 – The Berkeley Voice Per Government Code 6062A
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I hereby certify that the Notice for this Public Hearing of the Berkeley City Council was posted at the display case located near the walkway in front of the Maudelle Shirek Building, 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, as well as on the City’s website, on March 2, 2023.

Mark Numainville, City Clerk

Fair Campagn Practices Commission

PUBLIC HEARING
March 14, 2023
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jim Hynes, Chair, Fair Campaign Practices Commission Submitted by: Samuel Harvey, Secretary, Fair Campaign Practices Commission Subject: Amendments to Berkeley Election Reform Act cost of living adjustment provisions

RECOMMENDATION
Conduct a public hearing and, upon conclusion, adopt first reading of an ordinance amending the Berkeley Election Reform Act (BMC Chapter 2.12) to (1) clarify that cost of living adjustments for the $250 campaign contribution limit to be performed in every odd-numbered year shall be rounded to the nearest ten dollars ($10), and (2) providing that all cost of living adjustments required by BERA be performed by March instead of January of each odd-numbered year to coincide with the availability of necessary data.

FISCAL IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION
None.

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
These recommended amendments to the Berkeley Election Reform Act (“BERA”) were approved by the Fair Campaign Practices Commission (“FCPC”) at its regular meeting of January 19, 2023.

Action: M/S/C (Ching/Tsang) Motion to approve staff’s recommended BERA amendments for submission to the City Council.

Vote: Blome, Ching, Hernandez, O’Donnell, Tsang, Hynes; Noes: none; Abstain: none;

Absent: Bernstein.)
Pursuant to Berkeley Municipal Code Section 2.12.051, BERA may be amended by the “double green light” process. This process requires that the FCPC adopt the amendments by a two-thirds vote, and the City Council hold a public hearing and adopt the amendments by a two-thirds vote.

BACKGROUND
Under the Berkeley Election Reform Act (BMC Ch. 2.12.) (“BERA”), the FCPC is required to adjust various dollar amounts in accordance with changes in cost of living every odd- numbered year.

These dollar amounts include the following amounts under the City’s Fair Elections (public financing) program:

1. Qualified contributions (BMC § 2.12.167)

2. Minimum qualified contributions required for public financing qualification (BMC §

2.12.500.A.3)

3. Aggregate per-candidate matching funds payments (BMC § 2.12.505.B.)

4. Maximum value of capital assets purchased with public financing funds (2.12.530.B.3.b.)
In 2021, the FCPC and City Council approved an amendment to BERA which provides that the $250 contribution limit for candidates not participating in public financing shall be adjusted for cost of living in every odd-numbered year. (See BMC § 2.12.415.) This proposed amendment would make the following changes:
a. Clarify that the $250 contribution limit shall be adjusted in $10 increments Pursuant to section 2.12.545, the above adjustments for the public financing program are to be rounded to the nearest $10 (or $1,000 for aggregate candidate payments under

2.12.505.B). This ensures that dollar amounts are adjusted to simple numbers that do not include fractions of a dollar. It also ensures that amounts will not be changed if the cost of living results in an adjustment of less than $5.

During the FCPC’s 2021 discussion of adjusting the $250 contribution limit for candidates not participating in public financing, it was understood that the same $10 adjustment rounding would apply to adjustments to the $250 limit. However, this change was not enshrined in the resulting amendment. As a result, the required adjustment to $250 could result in an adjustment of only a few dollars, including fractions of a dollar. This proposed amendment to BERA section 2.12.415 would clarify that the $10 rounding applied to other adjusted BERA amounts will also apply to adjustments to the $250 contribution limit b. Change timing of cost of living adjustments to coincide with availability of data BERA provides that the FCPC shall approve the cost of living adjustments in January of each odd-numbered year. The City Clerk Department prepares the proposed adjustments based on data made available by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (“BLS”).

This year, BLS did not make the necessary data available until the end of January 2023.

This was also the case during the previous round of adjustments in 2021. The proposed amendment would change the timing of the adjustment from January to March in order to allow sufficient time for City staff to acquire the needed data, calculate the necessary

adjustments, and prepare a proposal for the FCPC. This change may be accomplished by amending BERA sections 2.12.415 and 2.12.545 as proposed.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
None.

RATIONALE FOR RECOMMENDATION
The proposed BERA amendments will add clarity to the BERA cost of living adjustment process and ensure that City deadlines for making those adjustments coincide with the availability of necessary data.

ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS CONSIDERED
None.

CITY MANAGER
Staff concurs with the content and recommendations of the Commission’s report.

CONTACT PERSON
Jim Hynes, Chair, Fair Campaign Practices Commission, (510) 981-6998 Samuel Harvey, Commission Secretary, Fair Campaign Practices Commission (510) 981-6998
Attachments:

1. Proposed ordinance amending BERA

ORDINANCE NO.

AMENDING BERKELEY MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 2.12
BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the City of Berkeley as follows:

S
ection 1. That Berkeley Municipal Code Section 2.12.415 is amended to read as follows:

2.12.415 Persons other than candidate – Maximum permitted amount.

No person other than a candidate shall make and no campaign treasurer shall solicit or accept any contribution which will cause the total amount contributed by such person with respect to a single election in support of or in opposition to such candidate to exceed two hundred fifty dollars ($250). The Commission shall adjust the dollar amount in this Section for cost of living changes pursuant to 2.12.075 in JanuaryMarch of every odd-numbered year, or as soon thereafter as practicable. Such adjustments shall be rounded to the nearest ten dollars ($10). For purposes of this section single election is a primary, general, special, runoff or recall election
Section 2. The Berkeley Municipal Code Section 2.12.545 is amended to read as follows:

2.12.545 Cost of living adjustments
The Commission shall adjust the dollar amounts specified in Sections 2.12.167,

2.12.500.A.3, 2.12.505.B and 2.12.530B.3.b for cost of living changes pursuant to Section

2.12.075 in JanuaryMarch of every odd-numbered year, or as soon thereafter as practicable, following Council implementation. Such adjustments shall be rounded to the nearest ten dollars ($10) with respect to Sections 2.12.167, 2.12.500.A.3 and

2.12.530.B.3.b and one thousand dollars ($1,000) with respect to Section 2.12.505.B.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

BERKELEY CITY COUNCIL

AMENDMENTS TO THE BERKELEY ELECTION REFORM ACT
The public may participate in this hearing by remote video or in-person.

Notice is hereby given by the City Council of the City of Berkeley that a public hearing will be conducted by said city council of the City of Berkeley at which time and place all persons may attend and be heard upon the following:

The Fair Campaign Practices Commission of the City of Berkeley is proposing amendments to the Berkeley Election Reform Act related the cost-of-living adjustment provisions.

The hearing will be held on, March 14, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. in the School District Board Room, 1231 Addison Street, Berkeley, CA 94702.

For further information, please contact Samuel Harvey, Commission Secretary at (510) 981- 6998.

A copy of the staff report for this hearing will be available on the City’s website at www.berkeleyca.gov as of March 2, 2023. Once posted, the agenda for this meeting will include a link for public participation using Zoom video technology, as well as any health and safety requirements for in-person attendance.

Written comments should be mailed or delivered directly to the City Clerk, 2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704, or e-mailed to
[email protected] in order to ensure
delivery to all Councilmembers and inclusion in the agenda packet.

Communications to the Berkeley City Council are public record and will become part of the City’s electronic records, which are accessible through the City’s website. Please note: e-mail addresses, names, addresses, and other contact information are not required, but if included in any communication to the City Council, will become part of the public record. If you do not want your e-mail address or any other contact information to be made public, you may deliver communications via U.S. Postal Service or in person to the City Clerk. If you do not want your contact information included in the public record, please do not include that information in your communication. Please contact the City Clerk at 981-6900 or [email protected] for further information.

Published: March 3, 2023 pursuant to Berkeley Municipal Code Section 2.12.051 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I hereby certify that the Notice for this Public Hearing of the Berkeley City Council was posted at the display case located near the walkway in front of the Maudelle Shirek Building, 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, as well as on the City’s website, on March 2, 2023.
__________________________________
Mark Numainville, City Clerk

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.BerkeleyCA.gov/Manager

ACTION CALENDAR
March 14, 2023
(Continued from November 29, 2022)
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: Jordan Klein, Director, Department of Planning and Development Subject: Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update

SUMMARY
The City of Berkeley has long been a leader on climate action. In 2006, Berkeley residents voted to reduce the community’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 80% below 2000 levels by 2050, and the resulting Climate Action Plan (CAP) was adopted by the Berkeley City Council in 2009. In 2018, then-Governor Brown committed California to carbon neutrality by 2045, the Berkeley City Council resolved to become a “Fossil Fuel-Free City,” and the Council declared a Climate Emergency, all steps to signal the urgency of these ambitious goals and the need to act on climate threats in an equitable manner. Additionally, in 2020, Berkeley City Council established a 2030 GHG emission reduction target that reflects Berkeley’s fair share of the 50% global reduction in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), committing to reduce emissions 60.5% from 2018 levels by 2030.

The community is making notable progress reducing GHG emissions. Based on the best currently available data from 2020, the community has reduced overall GHG emissions by 31% since 2000 despite population increasing by 21%. While Berkeley has continued to see a decreasing trend in community-wide emissions since 2000, there was a significant drop in 2020 due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The transportation sector saw the greatest reduction in emissions as travel and commuting declined sharply during much of 2020. Transportation sector emissions are expected to increase in future years as travel and commuting resume to pre-pandemic levels.

Berkeley’s building sector electricity emissions increased significantly in 2020 due to changes in East Bay Community Energy’s (EBCE’s) Bright Choice product. Further declines in citywide electricity emissions are anticipated in 2022, when most residential and commercial electricity accounts transitioned to EBCE’s Renewable 100 product.

During the last two years, Berkeley City Council funded the Just Transition Pilot Program and the Climate Equity Fund, which will not only provide GHG emission savings but will also create a foundation to build on additional equity-focused programs.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Although Berkeley has made significant progress, additional work is required to achieve the City’s ambitious goal of becoming a Fossil Fuel-Free City.

This report contains new performance metrics to help measure progress in meeting climate action goals in the transportation and building sectors. Alongside GHG emission reductions, staff is prioritizing community resilience, adapting to the changing climate, and advancing racial equity, and will be collaborating with disadvantaged communities to develop meaningful metrics to measure how Berkeley’s climate programs advance equity and resilience.

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Berkeley’s progress on climate action and the annual community-wide GHG emissions inventory is a Strategic Plan Priority Project, advancing our goal to be a global leader in addressing climate change, advancing environmental justice, and protecting the environment.

City staff annually calculates community GHG emissions to understand which sectors and fuels contribute the most emissions in Berkeley, track progress toward the community’s climate goals, and provide data that can be used for prioritizing programs and policies.

Berkeley’s community-wide greenhouse gas emissions in 2020 totaled 501,013 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (mtCO2e). The 2020 GHG inventory was heavily impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. The effects of the pandemic on 2020 emissions are included within each sector’s analysis.

Figure 1 is a pie chart of 2020 community-wide GHG emissions inventory, the most recent available data, broken down by sector and fuel. The majority of our citywide emissions continue to come from Berkeley’s transportation and building sectors. The building sector was the largest source of emissions in 2020 and accounted for 51% (253,465 mtCO2e) of citywide emissions. Energy usage data for Berkeley buildings, provided by EBCE and PG&E, is broken down into residential and commercial (including industrial) buildings—for both electricity use and natural gas (gas) combustion.

The transportation sector, which has historically been the largest source of GHG emissions and includes vehicles, BART, AC Transit, Amtrak and maritime vessels, accounted for 46% (232,009 mtCO2e) of the overall emissions in 2020.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Figure 1: Pie chart of 2020 community-wide GHG emissions inventory, broken down by sector and fuel.

Emissions from municipal energy use accounts for 0.3% (1,272 mtCO2e) of the 2020 community-wide GHG emissions. Municipal energy consumption includes City buildings as well as other uses such as streetlights and traffic signals.

The remaining 3% (14,267 mtCO2e) of Berkeley’s community-wide GHG emissions come from landfilled solid waste, water consumption, and waste water treatment.

The most current community emissions from 2020 are compared to the Climate Action Plan (CAP) baseline year of 2000, to identify reductions achieved thus far. A historic summary of Berkeley’s annual emissions inventories from 2000 to 2020 is provided in Figure 2. Please note that due to data access issues, the city was not provided with citywide energy use data in 2015 and 2016 so building energy usage was estimated using assumptions and is represented with shaded coloring. No inventory was calculated for 2017, so that year of data is omitted.

Co
mmercial
Gas
14%
Resid
ential
Gas
18%
Co
mmercial
Electricity
11%
Resid
ential
Electricity
8%
Mun
icipal Energy Use 0.3%Wate
r Consumption & Waste Water

0.3%
Lan
dfill Waste
3%
Transp
ortation
46%
2020
Greenhouse Gas Inventory
Summary:

Transportation: 46%
Buildings: 51%
Waste: 3%
Water: <1%

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Figure 2: Historic Berkeley emissions inventories back to 2000, broken out into building electricity and gas combustion, transportation, and other (water, wastewater treatment and landfill solid waste).

Community-wide emissions in 2020 decreased 31% from the 2000 baseline and decreased 7% from 2019. Berkeley’s original CAP goal of reducing GHG emissions by 80% from 2000 levels by 2050 was superseded by a commitment by the Berkeley City Council on May 11, 2021 to become zero net emissions by 2045 or sooner, requiring an additional 69% reduction of GHG emissions over the next 25 years.

Key accomplishments and examples of work underway to reduce GHG emissions and address the climate emergency are described below. Although the data for GHG emissions is for the calendar year of 2020, the progress on programs described in the following sections includes efforts since July 2020, the last time that this report was updated for City Council.

Equity
Equity Goal: Prioritizing the advancement of equity outcomes into policies and programs Equity Guardrails
Berkeley’s Existing Buildings Electrification Strategy (BEBES, 2021) developed a set of

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

“Equity Guardrails” which serve as minimum requirements for equity that must be met in order to advance a policy, program or project. These guardrails were developed as a result of targeted community outreach with disadvantaged communities to better understand and elevate community priorities and needs. The Planning & Development Department’s Office of Energy and Sustainable Development (OESD) has adapted these guardrails beyond the electrification of existing buildings, and now applies them to all of its work. The guardrails include:
 Maximize Access to Health, Safety & Mobility Benefits: Proposed projects should prioritize the benefits of building and transportation electrification including health, safety, and comfort to those most impacted by climate change.  Maximize Access to Economic Benefits: Proposed projects should leverage incentives and financing, reduce costs when possible, and support high-road job opportunities when possible.
 Maximize Ease of Participation: Proposed projects should be easy for all community members to access, and should be integrated with other programs and services when possible.
 Promote Housing Affordability & Anti-Displacement: Proposed programs should support housing preservation and tenant protections, and not displace renters or homeowners.

Measuring Progress
Cities have long been using quantitative metrics like GHG inventories to measure progress on climate action, but these inventories only tell part of the story. In order to capture the full impacts of climate change and measure equitable climate action progress, it is important to track programs over time to measure outcomes and progress. Ideally these indicators are co-created with the community to identify meaningful measures of success based on the community’s priorities. By creating indicators that show meaningful and equity-focused outcomes, staff can adjust programs and policies to improve equitable outcomes over time, and increase the quality of life for members of the community – particularly those who have been historically disadvantaged and are most impacted by climate change. Both qualitative and quantitative metrics need to be created and tracked, to be able to monitor things that are difficult to quantify such as comfort, health, and other resiliency benefits. In the coming year, staff will co-create additional equity metrics and indicators with disadvantaged communities based on their priorities, criteria, and available data. These metrics will be related to the climate programs advancing equity described in the Transportation and Buildings sections below.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Transportation
Transportation Goal: Advancing opportunities for people to safely walk, bike, take public transit, and electrify mobility options
Transportation Sector Emissions
Total community-wide transportation GHG emissions decreased 29% from 2019 to 2020, and 32% since 2000. Total miles driven by on-road vehicles decreased by 28% from 2019 to 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic caused the significant decrease in emissions and total miles traveled. Emissions from on-road vehicles are calculated using total miles traveled provided by Google Environmental Insights Explorer1.

Impacts to Berkeley’s Transportation sector emissions:
 COVID-19 Pandemic – On March 16, 2020, the six bay area counties and the City of Berkeley issued “shelter in place” orders restricting all residents to their homes in response to the global pandemic. The region-wide shutdown of offices, schools, and other services caused a drastic decrease in driving and commuting in 2020. Additionally, the ability to contract COVID-19 by close contact caused a decrease in public transit ridership, as more people opted to travel by walking, biking, and personal automotive vehicles.

Electric Mobility Roadmap
The Berkeley Electric Mobility Roadmap, adopted by Berkeley City Council in July 2020, identifies goals, strategies, and actions to create a fossil fuel-free transportation system.

This integrates with and supports the City’s ongoing efforts to increase walking, biking, and public transportation, and helps to ensure equitable access to the benefits of clean transportation.

This Roadmap centers equity by acknowledging and addressing the inequalities of our current transportation system. Early engagement of community-based organizations and nonprofits helped to identify important mobility gaps for low-income constituents, renters, communities of color, people with disabilities, and other priority stakeholders.

Equity was used as a lens through which all proposed strategies were filtered.

The four goals of the Roadmap, along with implementation updates, are detailed below:
1 https://insights.sustainability.google/

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

1. Ensure Equity in Access to Electric Mobility: Maximize electric mobility benefits in underserved communities
 Pilot Climate Equity Fund: On July 27, 2021, City Council approved a resolution establishing a Pilot Climate Equity Action Fund and allocated $600,000 to provide climate change and resilience benefits to low-income residents. One of the three program areas is creating an electric bike (e-bike) access program for income-qualified Berkeley households, and an e-bike youth education and workforce training program to service e-bikes and provide training for high-road job opportunities. Additional information on the Pilot Climate Equity Fund is provided in the Buildings section of this report.

2. Improve Alternatives to Driving: Shift trips to walking, biking, and shared electric modes
 Micromobility: In September 2021, Berkeley City Council adopted a resolution to establish a shared electric micromobility permit program. The city issued permits to three private shared mobility operators (Link, Spin, and VeoRide) which allows these operators to provide Berkeley residents and visitors with more sustainable commute options using electric scooters and e- bikes. In May 2022, the three operators launched their programs and over 1,000 electric scooters and e-bikes were distributed around Berkeley. To ensure equitable access to these devices, at least 50% of these devices must be deployed in designated equity priority areas and operators are required to provide both low-income programs and more accessible devices, such as sit scooters, to maximize accessibility of shared electric micromobility.

3. Achieve Zero Net Carbon: Eliminate emissions from private vehicles  Electric Vehicle Charging: The City continues to promote the use of electric vehicles (EVs) and facilitate the installation of EV charging stations through offering streamlined permitting, educating property owners about EV charging and grant opportunities, and providing EV charging on municipal property. As of August 2022, there were over 200 publicly-available EV charging ports (Level 2 and DCFC) in Berkeley and approximately 7.5% of registered cars in the community were electric. Both of these values have doubled in the last four years; in late 2018 there were 105 publicly-available EV charging ports and nearly 4% of registered personal vehicles were electric.

The City is currently partnering with East Bay Community Energy (EBCE) to site and develop future public EV DC Fast Charging Hubs in Berkeley.

Proposed local amendments to the 2022 California Green Building Standards Code, to take effect in January 2023, would require levels of EV charging in new buildings which would exceed the state requirements.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

4. Demonstrate City Leadership: Lead by example and guide the electric mobility transition
 Electrification of City Fleet: Staff worked with EBCE to conduct a municipal fleet electrification assessment including a plan for EV deployment and associated charging infrastructure through 2030, presented to Council in July 2020. The City is currently working to add EV charging for municipal fleet vehicles at the Corporate Yard, and has continued to increase the number of electric vehicles in the municipal fleet. In 2020 the municipal fleet included two electric scooters (for parking enforcement) and 15 plug-in hybrid sedans.

In 2021, five electric sedans were added. In 2022, EV additions to the municipal fleet will include an additional two electric scooters, three electric sedans, eight electric SUVs, and 15 electric pick-up trucks.  Electric Mobility Position: The City of Berkeley is hiring an Electric Mobility Coordinator. This position will organize and convene the City’s Electric Mobility Implementation Working Group, manage and coordinate the development of City-owned electric vehicle charging infrastructure, track and develop programs utilizing emerging mobility options, obtain grant funding for the City’s electric mobility programs, and catalyze actions such as electric mobility equity pilot projects, new best practices for curbside vehicle charging, and shared electric mobility hubs.

Measuring Progress in the Transportation Sector
% Sustainable Trips
32%
in 20202d
Goal: Increase of share of trips taken on
sustainable modes of transportation to 50%
by 2030 and 100% by 20403
% EV Adoption

7.5%
in 2021d
Goal: Increase the share of light-duty EVs
registered in Berkeley to 25% by 2025, 55%
by 2030, and 100% by 2045
2 Percent of sustainable trips in 2020 only includes trips from walking, biking, and public transit as EV trip data is currently not available.
3 The goal to increase sustainable trips to 100% by 2040 includes trips from walking, bicycling, public transit, and EVs.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

# of Gas Cars Per
Household 1.3
in 2021
Goal: Reduce the number of gas cars per
household to 0 by 2045
# of Public Level 2
Chargers 184
in August 2022
Goal: Install at least 420 public Level 2
chargers by 20254
# of Public DC Fast
Chargers 22
in August 20225
Goal: Install at least 100 public direct current
fast chargers (DCFC) by 20254
Buildings

Buildings Goal: Reducing energy use, promoting cleaner energy, and transitioning all buildings to clean electricity
Building Sector Emissions
Overall GHG emissions from Berkeley’s building sector increased by 29% from 2019 to 2020 but remain 29% below 2000 levels. While the emissions from the building sector increased, total community-wide electricity usage decreased 8% and total community- wide gas usage decreased by 7% from 2019 to 2020. Since 2000, total community-wide gas usage has decreased by 22%.

Impacts to Berkeley’s Building sector emissions:
 EBCE Bright Choice Electricity Emission Factor – The emission factor for EBCE’s default electricity product, Bright Choice, increased by 337% in 2020 compared to the 2019 value. The Bright Choice product accounts for 92% of Berkeley’s 2020 community-wide electricity consumption. The emission factor 4 Berkeley’s estimates for number of chargers needed by 2025 are based on charging infrastructure projections provided by the California Energy Commission using Alameda County’s ratio of needed EV chargers to projected EVs.
5 Includes Tesla fast chargers

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

increase is related to the changing procurement costs and loss of nuclear allocation in the electricity mix. EBCE is committed to providing 100% emission- free Bright Choice by 2030. Additionally, in 2022 all Berkeley customers were automatically opted-up into EBCE’s Renewable 100.

 COVID-19 Pandemic – The building sector was also affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly commercial buildings. Many Berkeley businesses reduced in-person operations during 2020 which contributed to the 15% reduction in electricity consumption and 13% reduction in gas consumption from commercial buildings. Even though more Berkeley residents worked from home in 2020 due to the shelter in place order, residential gas consumption still decreased by 3%.

Municipal Buildings
Municipal buildings are assessed for efficiency and electrification opportunities on an ongoing basis. The following list highlights recently completed projects and major current efforts.
 South Berkeley Senior Center: In 2021, the City of Berkeley received a $48,000 grant from East Bay Community Energy to help electrify commercial kitchens. Two commercial gas ranges in the South Berkeley Senior Center were replaced with a new commercial induction cooktop, and the current electric resistance steam table will be replaced with a new induction food warming table, saving nearly 90% of electricity use and 10,000 gallons of water per year. The Public Works Electrical Division completed the electrical upgrades needed for the induction appliances.
 Spring Animal Shelter: In 2021, a comprehensive lighting upgrade was completed at the Spring Animal Shelter which reduced peak demand6 energy by an average of 15kW per month, with a cost savings of $26/kW, and decreased total electricity consumption by ~10,000 kWh per month compared to its pre- COVID consumption. Even though electricity prices increased twice in 2022, energy bills decreased by ~$1,000/month. This project utilized PG&E’s On-Bill Finance program, which provides commercial customers with zero percent interest loans to complete energy efficiency upgrades. With a monthly loan payment of $609.29 and energy cost savings of ~$1,000, the City is saving ~$400 a month.
 Adult Mental Health Clinic, 2640 MLK Jr. Way: This project was primarily a T1 Bond project with Public Works Engineering, with OESD staff providing technical assistance through a grant from the Berkeley Lab to ensure that this site was an 6 Peak demand is when energy costs more and is typically more polluting (for EBCE customers, hours vary by rate class but are generally 4-9 PM).

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

all-electric Zero Net Energy building. The building was completed and occupied in 2021.
 Streetlighting Analysis: A second streetlighting retrofit was completed in 2018- 2019 which resulted in an 18% energy reduction. Additionally, analyzing utility bills from disputed streetlights (i.e., streetlights missing in the field, belonging to another entity, or added and not being billed by PG&E) resulted in $269,000 of bill credits for the City in 2021.
 Switching to East Bay Community Energy’s Renewable 100: In 2019, Berkeley City Council voted to switch municipal facilities to 100% renewable electricity and allotted $94,000 to cover the incremental costs for the first year.

By March 2022, nearly all electric accounts were converted to EBCE’s Renewable 100 electricity product. While electricity costs have increased, GHG emissions from electricity consumption by municipal facilities have been reduced to near zero.
 Solar + Storage: The City is partnering with EBCE to procure and implement solar + storage systems at critical municipal facilities to provide increased resilience and clean back-up power in the case of a power outage. Alongside Fremont, Hayward, and San Leandro, the City of Berkeley submitted a list of potential critical facilities to the EBCE project portfolio to be included in a joint Request for Offers (RFO) for Power Purchase Agreement vendors. In August 2022, EBCE released the RFO and hopes to select a vendor by the end of 2022, and start installation of the solar + storage projects in 2023.

Berkeley Existing Buildings Electrification Strategy (BEBES) The Berkeley Existing Buildings Electrification Strategy, approved by Council in November 2021, provides a framework for transitioning to all-electric buildings in a way that includes and benefits all residents, especially members of historically marginalized communities. The Strategy’s phased approach includes specific actions, policies, funding mechanisms, and a tentative timeline to transition Berkeley’s existing building stock off gas as soon as possible and no later than 2045. The strategy includes detailed actions which fall under four primary policies, with the equity guardrails influencing the timing of their implementation. The actions are broken into three phases based on available data, technology, and anticipated equity impacts. Phase 1 focuses on expanding and verifying the identified cost effectiveness and equity impacts of implementing foundational programs, and building community capacity. Phase 2 increases the stringency of the policies and begins to introduce mandatory measures, once sufficient supports are in place. Finally, Phase 3 policies finalize the move toward all-electric buildings through mandatory measures.

The four proposed strategies, and a fifth category of actions that are cross-cutting across many or all strategies along with implementation updates, are detailed below:

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

1. Time of Replacement (TR): Replace gas equipment at the end of its useful life, either when the gas equipment fails or when a major building renovation is taking place. Phase 1 action taken to date include:
 ACEEE Energy Equity for Renters Toolkit: In 2021, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) launched the Energy Equity for Renters (EEfR) initiative. The City of Berkeley, partnered with StopWaste and several Berkeley community-based organizations, were selected to participate. ACEEE is producing a toolkit for the EEfR initiative, to be released by early 2023, that include policies and programs that reduce GHG emissions and energy costs while preserving housing affordability, with a focus on naturally occurring affordable housing (i.e., properties where the units are not deed restricted to low-income tenants), as well as measures that local governments can use to better incorporate equity in the design and implementation of municipal energy efficiency, housing, and other policies.

2. Time of Sale (TS): Implement requirements that are triggered when a building changes ownership. This policy generally applies to single-family homes since they are sold more frequently than other types of buildings. Time of sale requirements are currently required through Berkeley’s Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO) and could be expanded to include a range of required measures such as an electrification-ready panel upgrade, appliance replacement, or whole building electrification and incentives. Some Phase 1 actions taken to date include:
 Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO)
BESO requires building owners to complete and publicly report building- specific energy efficiency assessments and energy scores. The goal of BESO is to reduce both energy costs and GHG emissions in Berkeley’s existing buildings. To date, BESO has achieved many successes, including:
 Provided data on the energy use and energy efficiency opportunities of Berkeley’s existing building stock.
 3,198 Energy assessments completed.
 2,498 Home Energy Scores7 completed, with an average of 4.4 out of

10.  Developed an online application and payment system to improve customer service
7 Developed by the US Department of Energy and its national laboratories, the Home Energy Score provides home owners, buyers, and renters directly comparable and credible information about a home’s energy use. Each Home Energy Score is shown on a simple one-to-ten scale, where a ten represents the most efficient homes. More information can be found at:
https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/downloads/home-energy- score#:~:text=Developed%20by%20DOE%20and%20its,about%20a%20home's%20energy%20use.&text =Each%20Home%20Energy%20Score%20is,represents%20the%20most%20efficient%20homes.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

In December 2020, Berkeley City Council amended BESO to further align the program with the City’s electrification and community resilience goals. The amendment:
 Required small/medium buildings to complete an electrification assessment prior to listing a building for sale. - Implemented Summer 2021
 Added a Fuel Source Disclosure at time of listing. - Implemented Summer 2021
 Lowered the building size threshold for the energy benchmarking requirement. – Implemented Summer 2022
 Requires staff to develop energy upgrade requirements for Council consideration. – Currently in development

3. Building Performance Standards (BP): Establish building-level requirements such as minimum GHG emissions standards or elimination of gas systems or equipment by a specified date. These standards are generally applied to larger buildings, including multi-family residential and commercial buildings, in order to have the highest impact on the largest energy users. The size and type of building covered could expand over time. Some Phase 1 actions taken to date include:
 Staff is working to develop requirements for building performance standards (BPS) that lead to the elimination of gas in Berkeley’s large buildings. These requirements would be administered through Berkeley’s existing BESO program.

4. Neighborhood Electrification and Gas Decommissioning (NE): Create a plan to strategically reduce and eventually eliminate gas infrastructure in the city.

Neighborhood-level electrification can be a more equitable way to electrify communities as opposed to a building-by-building approach which will leave those who cannot afford to electrify with higher gas rates. Larger scale projects also create more opportunities for high-road jobs, and could incorporate resilience measures such as on-site solar and islandable backup battery storage that could act as a neighborhood micro-grid to improve energy assurance. Some Phase 1 actions taken to date include:
 The City has been exploring opportunities for neighborhood electrification and gas decommissioning projects, including work supporting a pilot project led by Gridworks and funded by the California Energy Commission to develop criteria to identify neighborhoods for potential gas decommissioning projects.

5. Cross-Cutting Actions: These actions support the overall success of electrification both in the City and beyond. Many of these actions cannot be taken by the City

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

alone and will need wider collaboration from regional partners and the State. Some Phase 1 actions taken to date include:
 Pilot Climate Equity Fund
On July 27, 2021, City Council approved a resolution establishing a Pilot Climate Equity Action Fund and allocated $600,000 to provide climate change and resilience benefits to low income residents in both buildings and transportation. The City of Berkeley released an RFP in December 2021, and on April 26, 2022 the City Council approved contracts with five vendors to implement the following three program areas:
 Program Area #1 – Resilient Home Retrofits Pilot: This program area will focus on building decarbonization improvements that enhance resilience, support occupants and reduce greenhouse gas emissions for low-income residents.
 Program Area #2 – Electric Mobility Access Pilot: This program area will create an electric bike (e-bike) access program for income-qualified Berkeley households, and an e-bike youth education and workforce training program that will service the e-bikes and provide training for high-road job opportunities.
 Program Area #3 – Community Access to Resilience Measures and Electrification Engagement Pilot: This program will elevate the voices of under-represented voices in climate and resilience, pilot and build capacity in local community organizations, and increase access to information and equipment for climate resilience and electrification efforts.

The implementation of these programs will take place through 2024. This advances implementation of the Berkeley Existing Buildings Electrification Strategy (2021), which identified long- and short-term strategies to make existing buildings in Berkeley free of fossil fuels in a way that includes and benefits all residents, especially members of historically marginalized communities.
 Just Transition Pilot Program
On June 14, 2022, City Council approved a resolution to develop an Existing Building Electrification Installation Incentives and Just Transition Pilot Program, with a budget of $1,500,000. The program, using pre-qualified contractors who meet minimum labor standards, will target homes for households at or below 120% of the Area Median Income for replacing with gas water heating, HVAC, and cooking equipment with systems that run on clean electricity. The resolution calls for the establishment of labor standards that provide pathways to high-road careers for workers in residential electrification. This program advances implementation of the Berkeley Existing Buildings Electrification Strategy (2021). Staff is conducting research

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

to inform program design through interviews with key stakeholders and participation in the Bay Area regional High Road Training Partnership (HRTP)8, and getting input from the Berkeley Environment and Climate Commission (ECC), the City Council Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment & Sustainability (FITES) Policy Committee, and others. A Request for Proposals for this Pilot Program is anticipated by early 2023.

Measuring Progress in the Building Sector
Citywide Building Energy
Usage from Gas
Combustion
69%
in 2020d
Goal: Decrease percentage of building
energy from fossil fuel consumption, in
the form of gas combustion, to 0 by 2045
while switching to clean electricity
BayREN Home+: # of
Measures Completed 795
from 2019-2021
Goal: Increase BayREN Home+
participation
BayREN Multifamily: # of
Units Participated 1,052
from 2014-2021
Goal: Increase BayREN Multifamily
participation and upgrade more units to
decrease energy use, emissions, and
increase comfort
Total GHG emissions
Saved through BayREN
Upgrades
338mtCO2e
from 2014-2021
Goal: Increase total GHG emissions
saved through participation in BayREN
Home+ and BayREN Multifamily
8 https://cwdb.ca.gov/initiatives/high-road-training-partnerships/ mtCO2e

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Waste
Waste Goal: Leading the way towards zero waste in policy, planning and practice Landfill Solid Waste Emissions
Total community-wide landfill solid waste and overall emissions from the waste sector decreased by 18% in 2020 compared to 2019, placing current waste sector emissions 47% below the 2000 baseline.

Impacts to Berkeley’s Building sector emissions:
 COVID-19 Pandemic – The COVID-19 pandemic was the cause of the significant drop in our 2020 waste consumption and emissions. Many businesses reduced in-person operations in 2020 to adhere to local COVID-19 health orders.

Additionally, UC Berkeley was fully remote for the start of the Fall 2020 semester and many students did not return to the City for in-person classes until 2021.

SB 1383
In 2016, SB 1383 was signed into law. This State legislation is designed to reduce short-lived climate pollutants and requires 75% organic waste reduction by 2025 and a 20% increase in recovery of edible food that is currently disposed by 2025. California local jurisdictions have significant, new requirements to implement additional waste reduction programs and enhanced reporting and enforcement protocols to comply with the state legislation. SB 1383 implementation started January 1, 2022.

Community Outreach & Engagement

Community Engagement Goal: Achieving equitable climate action together Since 2012, the Berkeley Climate Action Coalition (BCAC), co-convened by the Ecology Center and the City, has been a vehicle for climate engagement. BCAC continues to engage Berkeley and East Bay residents on issues of climate justice. In 2020 public engagement and education activities moved online due to social distancing requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Community Convenings with BCAC
The City and BCAC collaborated with governmental and community organizations, houses of worship and municipalities in both Alameda and Contra Costa counties to host webinars on a variety of topics such as building electrification, waste and recycling, climate and health, electric cars, residential energy efficiency, and solar and storage.

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

East Bay Green Home Tours
In Spring of 2021 and 2022, the City hosted multi-day East Bay Green Home Tours9 showcasing various efforts of local residents to save water and energy, increase resilience to drought and heat, and reduce the carbon footprint of their homes. Over 700 people attended the East Bay Green Home Tour each year.

Ride Electric
In October 2021, the City hosted its first in-person outdoor event since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic at the successful 4th Annual Ride Electric at the Farmers’ Market, offering test drives in City fleet plug-in cars as well as an Electric Bike Expo. This year the City hosted its 5th Annual Ride Electric in conjunction with the City Harvest Festival on October 15, 2022, and was excited to offer electric bike and scooter test rides through the City’s new shared electric mobility providers. As in years past, community and governmental agencies that offer resources to income qualified residents participated.

Climate Adaptation & Community Resilience
Adaptation and Resilience Goal: Strengthening and preparing the community for shocks and stresses, including adapting to the impacts of climate change The City’s resilience efforts, as outlined in the 2016 Resilience Strategy, include the following goals:

1. Build a connected and prepared community

2. Accelerate access to reliable and clean energy

3. Adapt to the changing climate

4. Advance racial equity

5. Excel at working together within City government to better serve the community

6. Build regional resilience
Programs that provide multi-benefit solutions are prioritized, such as the Climate Equity Fund programs collaborating with disadvantaged communities to improve access to building electrification and electric micro-mobility to low-income people and communities of color. Many City departments are leading efforts to enhance resilience and help Berkeley adapt to a changing climate, including Public Works, Parks Recreation and 9 https://www.eastbaygreenhome.com/

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Waterfront, Health, Housing and Community Services, and Fire. A summary of programs is provided below:

Sea Level Rise
In 2019, the City initiated the Waterfront Specific Plan project to develop a long-term vision for achieving a financially self-sustainable publicly-owned Waterfront. The project is currently in the public engagement phase, which involves an extensive community outreach process to brainstorm ideas for potential new revenue-generating and complementary uses at the Waterfront. A draft Sea Level Rise Study for the Berkeley Waterfront was completed as part of the project. Preliminary findings indicate that three locations at the Berkeley Waterfront may experience periodic flooding by 2050 during a 100-year storm and King tide: 1) the shoreline at the north segment of Marina Blvd between the Virginia Street Extension and the entrance to Cesar Chavez Park, 2) the shoreline to the south of University Avenue between West Frontage Road and Marina Blvd, and 3) various spots in the northeast corner of the inner harbor of the Marina. Staff will research and scope out shoreline improvement projects that will minimize these impacts. In 2020 and 2021, staff submitted two grant proposals to regional agencies for the project along Marina Blvd, but were not successful in obtaining project funding. Staff will continue to seek funding to implement these projects over the next five years.

Groundwater Rise Grant
As sea levels rise and extreme storms become more frequent, communities are developing climate adaptation plans to protect housing, jobs, ecosystems, and infrastructure from flooding. However, these plans often neglect an important potential flood hazard – emergent groundwater. Shallow groundwater in coastal communities will rise as sea levels rise, increasing the risk of flooding communities from below. The threat of rising groundwater levels is a critical data gap in regional climate resilience planning. This project is exploring the links between sea level rise, precipitation, and the elevation of shallow groundwater in the San Francisco Bay Area so that adaptation plans can consider all potential flood hazards.

Through funding from the California Resilience Challenge grant, a project10 will develop a series of shallow groundwater maps that consider the response to eight sea level rise scenarios for four of the nine Bay Area counties, including Alameda County. The project is led by the San Francisco Estuary Institute Aquatic Science Center, in collaboration with Pathways Climate Institute and UC Berkeley, along with Bay Area cities and counties which have identified rising groundwater as a potential problem within their jurisdictions. The City of Berkeley is a joint proposer and is participating in the Project Management Taskforce.
10 https://www.sfei.org/projects/shallow-groundwater-response-sea-level-rise

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Wildfire Smoke
The Bay Area has experienced multiple days and periods of unhealthy air quality due to wildfire smoke in recent years. Often times these events can coincide with heat waves, high fire risks, and/or Public Safety Power Shutoffs. To better address the threat of wildfire smoke, in 2019 the City of Berkeley participated in a grant led by Alameda County to create a communications protocol for responding to wildfire smoke and other air quality conditions.11 The City is also currently working to advance emergency and resilience planning for extreme heat and high air quality index (AQI) events, including coordination with cities around North America on extreme heat and AQI event planning, and local collaboration outreach with community partners serving disadvantaged communities.

Tree Canopy
The City of Berkeley currently has a vibrant urban forest made up of approximately 38,000 street, park and median trees. These trees are managed and maintained by the Urban Forestry Unit of the Parks, Recreation & Waterfront Department. However, while dense and vibrant in areas, this urban forest is not equitably distributed throughout the City. Current tree inventories and overall canopy coverage data illustrates fewer trees located in the West and South Berkeley neighborhoods, which also have a higher population of lower-income and historically disadvantaged communities. The City plans to plant 1,000 new trees in West and South Berkeley neighborhoods over the next two years. Funds have been secured to cover most costs of these tree planting efforts through an Urban Greening Grant of $726,000 and an Environmental Enhancement and Mitigation Grant of $576,000. Both grants are sponsored by the California Natural Resources Agency.

This project aims to eliminate the past barriers to growing new street trees by first promoting tree planting opportunities, engaging with communities and gathering specific tree planting requests in areas with low tree counts. Next, funding will cover all costs of the tree growing process, which include site planning and species selection, creating new sidewalk growing spaces, purchasing and planting trees, and providing the three years of watering investment needed to establish these drought tolerant trees.

These new trees will help to provide shade, cooling, storm water benefits, and beautification in neighborhoods that have been historically underserved. Additionally, this project offers an opportunity to grow resilient climate change ready tree species and utilize modern urban forestry methods to create sustainable sites and reduce future infrastructure conflicts.
11 https://www.acgov.org/sustain/what/resilience/smoke.htm

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Pollinator Gardens
Bees and other insects are responsible for the pollination of much of the world's crops and flowering plants. The ecological service they provide is essential for a healthy environment. While numbers of many species have declined, several Berkeley Parks have been renovated to create space for native pollinator gardens and corridors. The pollinator garden partnership and collaboration began in 2020 with the first site at George Florence Park. Since then pollinator gardens have expanded to sites at James Kenney Park, John Hinkel Park, San Pablo Park, King School Park, Strawberry Creek Park, Haskell-Mabel Park and Prince Street Park. The City of Berkeley has also planted Bay Area and California native herbaceous perennials and groundcovers on 1450 feet of roadway median. These native plants are effective at attracting pollinator species, creating habitats, and sequestering carbon from the atmosphere. The Parks Tax is the primary source of funding for the pollinator gardens, but much of the labor for installation and maintenance is completed by volunteer community members.

Resilience Hub Training
In 2021, The City of Berkeley participated in a Resilience Hub Leadership Training funded through the Urban Sustainability Directors Network and facilitated by the NorCal Resilience Network.12 The training brought together 150 community leaders and 16 government partners across dozens of sites for a ground-breaking 8-month training session to catalyze resilience hubs, spaces and neighborhoods, preparing participants with critical skills to be “ready for anything” and thrive. The training session was largely funded by and based on the resilience hubs guidelines developed by USDN, and in collaboration with both local governmental agencies and community-based organizations.

Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP)
The LHMP is the main document that houses the City’s climate adaptation work. Last updated in 2019, the plan identifies climate change as a man-made hazard that will affect the Berkeley community through hazards such as extreme heat, sea-level rise and flooding, and water security. The LHMP is updated every five years, with the next update is expected in 2024.

Bay Area Climate Adaptation Network (BayCAN)
Berkeley is a founding member and participates in the Steering Committee of the Bay Area Climate Adaptation Network (BayCAN), a network of local government staff helping coordinate an effective and equitable response to the impacts of climate change. BayCAN works to share best practices, develop opportunities for collaboration and program implementation, and secure funding and resources for equitable climate adaptation.
12 https://norcalresilience.org/leadership-training/

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

Climate Action at UC Berkeley and The Berkeley Lab
UC Berkeley and the Berkeley Lab are not included in Berkeley’s GHG emissions inventory because their campuses are outside of the City’s jurisdiction. However, both institutions track their own emissions reduction goals and are engaged community partners in addressing climate change. UC Berkeley and the Berkeley Lab have completed their 2020 GHG inventories and they provide additional information on their climate action progress on their 2021 Sustainability Reports13.

The Berkeley Lab has partnered directly with the City on several innovative sustainability projects including building data management tools, zero-net energy analysis of municipal buildings, and a Building Performance Standard (BPS) policy analysis for the development of energy upgrade requirements through BESO. The City of Berkeley also participates in the Berkeley Lab Community Advisory Group (CAG).

BACKGROUND
In recognition of the climate crisis, the City has added additional climate goals to bolster the Climate Action Plan goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions below 2000 levels by the year 2045. Berkeley’s goals include:
 Fossil Fuel Free Berkeley: In June 2018, the City Council referred a proposed resolution to the Energy Commission and Transportation Commission to further implement the Climate Action Plan and establish a goal of becoming a Fossil Fuel Free City.
 Climate Emergency: On June 12, 2018, the City Council adopted a Climate Emergency Declaration.
 Net-Zero Carbon Emissions: In 2018, Mayor Arreguin announced the City’s intention to achieve zero net carbon emissions by 2045, in alignment with California state-wide goals.
 Race to Zero: In 2020, Berkeley City Council adopted a resolution for the Cities Race to Zero Campaign to establish a 2030 emission reduction target that reflects Berkeley’s fair share of the 50% global reduction in CO2e, committing to reduce emissions 60.5% from 2018 levels by 2030.

The more traditional emissions inventory that Berkeley uses—known as a “production- based” or “sector-based” inventory—lays a foundation for key climate policy and program planning, while consumption-based inventories consider the entire life cycle of 13 UC Berkeley 2021 Sustainability Report: https://sustainabilityreport.ucop.edu/2021/locations/uc- berkeley/ and the Berkeley Lab 2021 Sustainability Report:
https://sustainabilityreport.ucop.edu/2021/locations/lawrence-berkeley-national-lab/

Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update ACTION CALENDAR March 14, 2023

a specific product to calculate its GHG emissions. Consumption-based inventories include goods and services such as air travel (even if, as for Berkeley, the airport is located outside of a jurisdictional boundary), food, appliances, and construction of buildings. An inventory of all Alameda County cities was created by the CoolClimate Network in 201814 and was reported in Berkeley’s Community-wide Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory that year.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
The City’s Climate Action Plan, Resilience Strategy, Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, and Strategic Plan all contribute to advancing the community towards a clean and resilient energy future that successfully meets Berkeley’s climate goals.

POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
This report provides the City Council with an update on GHG emission trends, an overview of associated current activities, and the planning efforts underway to develop strategies to accelerate the rate of GHG emission reductions to reach Berkeley’s increasingly ambitious climate goals. The Climate Equity Fund and Just Transition Program are examples of valuable opportunities to pilot programs that can eventually scale to continue to achieve equitable GHG emissions reductions.

FISCAL IMPACTS OF POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
Mitigation of GHG emissions within Berkeley and planning for the impact of climate change are interrelated. Current investment to reduce citywide emissions and enhance climate adaptation and resilience, such as the Climate Equity Fund Pilot Projects and the Just Transition Pilot Project, will help reduce the costs of addressing the impacts of climate change in the future. Staff will be closely monitoring the applicability and availability of Federal funding to support the transition away from fossil fuels and other opportunities to clean energy and climate resilience goals.

CONTACT PERSON
Billi Romain, Manager, Office of Energy & Sustainable Development, 510-981-9732 Ammon Reagan, Community Services Specialist II, Office of Energy & Sustainable Development, 510-981-7416
14 Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Consumption-Based GHG Emissions Inventory:
https://www.baaqmd.gov/about-air-quality/research-and-data/emission-inventory/consumption-based-ghg-emissions- inventory

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.CityofBerkeley.info/Manager

ACTION CALENDAR
March 14, 2023
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: Eleanor Hollander, Economic Development Manager Subject: Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update

INTRODUCTION
The Office of Economic Development (OED) is pleased to present the Citywide Economic Dashboard update for December 2022 (Attachment 1), and the updated Commercial District Dashboards (Attachment 2).

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Throughout 2022, the City of Berkeley continued to exhibit sustained economic recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales tax revenue across all industry sectors has increased over the last year, with the retail sector actually surpassing pre- pandemic levels. Ground floor retail vacancy rates have dropped in many commercial districts, although the citywide average remains above 8 percent. Innovation sector businesses have continued to be a driving force in the Berkeley economy, with 62 companies raising more than $2.1 billion in private capital in 2022 alone. The attached dashboards present these trends in more detail and include the latest citywide data available through the fourth quarter of 2022, much of which has been collected through on-the-ground fieldwork.

Key findings include:
 Pandemic recovery brought thousands back to work. Between December 2021 and December 2022, the total number of jobs located in the East Bay increased by 14,800, or 1.1%. The sectors with the highest year-over-year percent growth in employment included Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (+19%), Manufacturing (+7%), Retail (+7%), and Accommodation & Food Services (+6%). The countywide unemployment rate continued its downward trend, dropping from 3.8% in December 2021 to 2.7% in December 2022.

Berkeley’s unemployment rate dropped even lower, from 2.9% to 2.5% over the same period. This tracks with the year-over-year decline in the statewide unemployment rate from 4.8% to 3.7%.

Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update ACTION CALENDAR
March 14, 2023

 Berkeley’s innovation sector spurred significant wealth creation while providing new solutions to global social and environmental challenges. In 2022, the City of Berkeley was home to more than 400 “innovation sector” businesses in software, life sciences, clean technology, food tech, and other science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) industries. Roughly a third of the sector is comprised of software companies (35%) and another third is made up of life science companies, including biotechnology and healthcare (31%). Of the remaning third, 14% of innovation sector firms in Berkeley are hardware companies, 12% are in cleantech, 5% are in foodtech, 2% are in education technology, and the remaining 1% are in “other” industry categories. The vast majority (83%) of Berkeley’s innovation companies are relatively early stage and many take advantage of the city’s coworking spaces, accelerators, and incubators. Though often small, Berkeley startups have an outisized impact on wealth creation. They collectively raised more than $1.8 billion dollars through venture capital, angel-backed financing, and convertible securities. Meanwhile, five Berkeley companies received more than $5.9 million in grants from the federal and state government for Research & Development (R&D) to find solutions for a range of environmental and human health challenges.  Office vacancy rates in Berkeley increased while the market for lab space remained tight. Overall office availability in Berkeley rose slightly from 11.1% in Q4 2021 to 11.5% in Q4 2022, though the figure is significantly lower than the 20% vacancy average for the Greater Oakland area. Asking rents for high quality office space in Berkeley have stayed relatively consistent since the start of the pandemic and are currently $3.96 per square foot, up $0.43 from the same period last year. Lab space remains at a premium in Berkeley. The vacancy rate for Berkeley lab space is 5.3%, which is lower than the 14.7% vacancy rate in neighboring Emeryville, 10.1% rate reported for the East Bay, and the 6.5% lab vacancy rate reported for the Bay Area overall.
 Average citywide ground floor commercial vacancy rates remained slightly higher than what is assocated with standard market churn. Based on field data collected from September–November 2022, the citywide ground floor commercial vacancy rate did not change significantly from last year (it rose from

8.3% to 8.4%). For context, normal market churn is associated with a vacancy rate between 4-8%. San Pablo Avenue, University Avenue, South Berkeley, and West Berkeley have all experienced a rise in vacancy rates—San Pablo rose from 7.9% to 10.8%; University rose from 9.1% to 12.8%; South Berkeley rose from 8.8% to 11.8%; and West Berkeley rose from 4.7% to 5.2%. Downtown Berkeley experienced the largest drop in vacancy rate over the last year—from

15.7% to 11.9%. This may be in part due to UC Berkeley students and faculty returning fully to campus this past academic year.

Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update ACTION CALENDAR
March 14, 2023

 Occupancy by retail businesses, as a share of total ground floor square footage, declined; food and beverage held steady. Retail saw the biggest drop as a proportion of total commercial inventory, decreasing by 7% over the last year. Neighborhood commercial districts like Solano, North Shattuck, and Elmwood saw little decline in Retail square footage over the last year, whereas Downtown saw a decline of about 7 percentage points. Food & Beverage businesses also saw a slight decrease (from 12.3% to 10.6%) in occupancy as a share of total ground floor square footage in the city, potentially indicating that habits and commute patterns changed by the pandemic are impacting the local restaurant industry.
 The City of Berkeley’s sales tax revenue surpassed pre-pandemic levels.

Berkeley’s annual sales tax revenues increased 22% year-over-year through the second quarter of 2022, from $13.4 million to $16.4 million. During the same time period, Alameda County experienced a 12.8% increase in sales tax revenue and the state of California experienced an 11.5% increase in revenue. In Q2 2022 (April-June), the Retail subsector was the largest contributor to the city’s sales tax revenue (45.6%), with Food & Beverage coming in second (27.4%). This tracks with upticks in sales tax revenue for each of these sectors—the Retail sector was up 32% from a year prior and the Food & Beverage sector was up 64% over the same time period. Select sub-categories in the Business & Professional Services sector also experienced jumps in sales tax revenue.  Even as the housing market cooled slightly, Berkeley home prices and rental costs remained high. Berkeley’s single family home values decreased

12.2% from December 2021 – December 2022, with a 52% decrease in sales volume over the same period. 27 single family homes were sold in Berkeley in December 2022, with an average of 20 days on the market. Since the pandemic began in March 2020, the median price of single family homes in Berkeley hit an all time high ($1,910,000) in April 2022. For rentals, between Q3 2021 and Q3 2022, Berkeley’s rents for studio apartments increased by 12%, rising to an average of $1,784 per month.
 The City of Berkeley Office of Economic Development continues to support small businesses, artists, community organizations, and innovators. The City’s Small Business Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) and COVID-19 Resiliency Loan Program (RLP) have provided more than 60 small businesses with over $3 million in financing to keep operations going since the start of the pandemic. The City’s Civic Arts Grants program funded 11 individual arts projects ($44,000 total awarded), 33 festivals ($194,299 total awarded), and 70 arts organizations ($458,697 total awarded) in 2022. The Berkeley Arts Recovery Grants for Artists & Cultural Practitioners also made $275,000 available in the form of grants (up to $10,000 each) to help the City’s artists and cultural practitioners. Marketing campaigns including #DiscoveredinBerkeley and #BerkeleyHolidays helped to

Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update ACTION CALENDAR
March 14, 2023

increase visibility and sales for small businesses across Berkeley. OED also supported local businesses and organizations by conducting targeted outreach, and providing technical assistance related to sustainable economic recovery.

BACKGROUND
Since 2015, OED has consistently released two companion publications, the Citywide Economic Dashboard and Commercial District Dashboards, which analyze a wide variety of economic trends and indicators in Berkeley. Attached to this report is the updated version of the Citywide Economic Dashboard and Commercial District Dashboard for December 2022 (Attachments 1 and 2). These dashboards are designed to make current economic and community data and information more accessible to Council, City staff, and community stakeholders. Providing this information also allows investors to evaluate potential markets and provides vital information for policymakers.

Staff will continue to update these dashboards on an annual basis, as staffing allows.

The most recent version and dashboards from past years are available on the City’s website at: https://berkeleyca.gov/doing-business/economic-development/economic- dashboards-and-reports.

To produce these publications, OED staff compiled and analyzed a wide variety of data sources including the Monthly Labor Force Data (Labor Market Information, California Employment Development Department), WARN notices provided to the Alameda County Workforce Development Board, commercial real estate firm data (Newmark Cornish & Carey, JLL, Cushman & Wakefield, Norheim & Yost, Colliers), housing market data (Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board, MLS, RentCafe, Redfin) and sales tax data (MUNIServices). Staff also analyzed data from City databases including business licenses, building permits and planning permits, and City publications such as rent board reports and the housing pipeline report. Information on Berkeley startups and other innovation companies was obtained from Pitchbook, Crunchbase, LinkedIn, the U.S. Small Business Administration, tech industry news sources, and direct communications with businesses and the Berkeley Startup Cluster’s partners including UC Berkeley, the Berkeley Lab, and Berkeley’s startup incubators and accelerators including SkyDeck, Bakar Labs and Activate. Finally, in the third and fourth quarters of 2022 OED staff updated its field occupancy survey of ground floor commercial spaces in Berkeley commercial districts (Attachment 2).

These publications support the City’s Strategic Plan, advancing our goal to be a customer-focused organization that provides excellent, timely, easily-accessible service and information to the community.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
Many of the City’s environmental sustainability goals are inextricably tied to the overall health of the City’s economy. Staff believes that the continued pursuit of sustainable economic growth represents a strength and source of resilience for Berkeley.

Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update ACTION CALENDAR
March 14, 2023

POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
OED staff will, as directed by Council through previous and future referral items, partner with other City departments and community partners to implement programs and policies that foster a dynamic, sustainable, and locally-based economy, and assist in economic recovery throughout 2023 and beyond.

FISCAL IMPACTS OF POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
Actions that facilitate increased economic activity will increase revenues related to sales tax and property tax, and thus have a positive fiscal impact on the city.

CONTACT PERSON
Eleanor Hollander, Office of Economic Development, (510) 981-7536 Elizabeth Redman Cleveland, Office of Economic Development, (510) 981-7532 Attachments:
1: Citywide Economic Dashboard
2: Commercial District Dashboards

2022 Economic Dashboard
Office of Economic Development
1

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Table of Contents

CITYWIDE ECONOMIC DASHBOARD
EMPLOYMENT ACTIVITY 3-7 • Activity by Industry Sector
• Top 25 Employers
COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY 8-14
• Office Trends & Transactions
• Commercial Trends & Transactions
• Commercial Districts & Vacancy Rates
• Sales Tax Revenues
DEVELOPMENT & HOUSING 15-16 • Construction & Pipeline
• Housing Costs
SUSTAINED ECONOMIC RECOVERY 17-23 • Business & Arts Support
• Loans and Relief Grants
• Local Shopping & Marketing Campaign
• Future Talent Pipeline

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Percent change in employment by sector
(Dec. 2021 – Dec. 2022)
Employment Activity
by industry sector - employment
Between December 2021 -2022, the total number of jobs located in the East Bay increased by 14,800 (1.1%). The following sectors have notable job gains post-pandemic:
• Arts, Entertainment & Recreation
• Ma
nufacturing
• Retail and
• Accommodation & Food Services.

Berkeley’s unemployment rate is lower than the County’s or State’s.

Source: Alameda County Workforce Development Board,
Labor Market Information (LMI-EDD) for East Bay.

East Bay Industry Sector % Change
Arts,
Entertainment & Recreation 19.1%
Manufacturing 7.2%
Clothing & Clothing Accessory Stores 7.0%
Accommodation & Food Services 6.2%
Architectural, Engineering & Related
Services 6.1%
Construction 5.7%
Real Estate & Rental & Leasing 5.6%
Educational & Health Services 3.0%
Retail Trade 2.9%
Transportation & Warehousing 1.1%
Government -1.4%
Job Recovery Amidst the Pandemic
Source: State of California Employment Development Department (EDD) December 2021 December 2022
Calif
ornia 4.8% 3.7%
Alameda County 3.8% 2.7%
Berkeley 2.9% 2.5%

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Employment Activity
by industry sector - employment
Top 25 Berkeley Employers
Berkeley’s top 25 employers (by
number of employees) is
reflective of the city’s diverse
economy. There are four top
employers in both the healthcare
and education sectors. UC
Berkeley remains one of the
city’s main economic engines.

New biotech and R&D companies
have now made it onto the top
25 list, which reflects the
strength and positive growth
trajectory of these industries.

Source: State of California Employment Development Department (EDD) Berkeley Repertory Theatre
Credit: Young Electric
Berkeley Bowl West
Credit: Architectural Record
Company Sector
Ansys, Inc. Software
Arris Composites, Inc. Manufacturing/R&D
Backroads Inc. Recreation
Bayer Corp. Biotech
Berkeley Bowl Produce Food & Beverage
Berkeley Cement Inc. Construction
Berkeley City College Education
Berkeley Repertory Theater Arts & Entertainment
Berkeley Unified School District Education
City of Berkeley Government
DoubleTree by Hilton Hospitality
Fieldwork Brewing Co. Food & Beverage
Foresight Mental Health Healthcare
Kaiser Permanente Medical Group Inc. Healthcare
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Laboratory
Lifelong Medical Care Healthcare
UPSIDE Foods Biotech/R&D
OC Jones & Sons Construction
Siemens Corp. Manufacturing/R&D
Sutter Bay Hospital Healthcare
Technical Safety Services, Inc. Biotech
The Wright Institute Education
University of California Education
Whole Foods Market Food & Beverage
YMCA of the Central Bay Area Recreation

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Employment Activity
by industry sector - hospitality
Tourism & Lodging
Food & Beverage Services
Ber
keley’s tourism and lodging sector came roaring back in 2022, posting solid gains in hotel occupancy and revenue.
• Average nightly hotel occupancy rose from
53% in 2021 to 69% in 2022. T
his is still
below pre-pandemic average occupancy
rates in the low 80% range.
• Revenues are up 110% from 2021, but
total revenue still lags by 10% from pre-
pandemic levels.
• Several Berkeley lodging properties were
repurposed for the Homekey program
and
two new high-rate hotels opened: Aiden
by Best Western and Residence Inn by
Marriott.
• Leisure travel led the recovery with a
return to more traditional vacation
patterns. Meetings, conventions, and
group travel continue to lag, but there are
signs of increased demand in these
segments for 2023.

One of the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic—
restaurants— notched solid gains in 2022 as indoor
seating returned to complement the popular
addition of outdoor dining citywide. Berkeley
Restaurant Week, March Munch Madness, and the
fast-growing Berkeley Wine Block and its First
Friday events spurred sales.

Residence Inn by Marriot. Photo: Visit Berkeley.

DoubleTree by Hilton. Photo: Visit Berkeley.

Berkeley Wine Block First Friday. Photo: Visit Berkeley.

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Employment Activity
by industry sector – startups & innovation businesses
Source: OED, Berkeley Startup Cluster
Source: City of Berkeley Office of Economic Development (OED), UC Berkeley IPIRA *Companies defined as startups are for-profit
businesses that sell innovative technology products
or services OR substantively use innovative
technologies to develop and manufacture their
products or provide their services AND are
developing repeatable and scalable business
models that aren’t yet profitable.

Of more than 400 Berkeley innovation
companies citywide, Software is the
largest component (35%). Healthcare
and Life Sciences comprise nearly a
third (31%). CleanTech is also a
growing component (representing 13%
of the total, up from 9% two years ago).

In 2022, 62 Berkeley companies raised
more than $1.8B in venture capital.

In addition, Berkeley companies were
awarded more than
$5.9M in grant
funding and almost $250M in loans
in 2022.
35%
31%
14%
5%
2% 12%
1%
Innovation Companies by
Industry Category
Software
Healthcare & Life Sciences
Hardware
Food & Beverage
Education
CleanTech
Other
0 50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Number of Startups in Berkeley

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Employment Activity
by industry sector – startups & innovation businesses
Berkeley Innovation Sector
2022 Highlights
• Upside Foods raised $387 million and
became the first in the world to receive the
greenlight from the FDA for cultivated meat.
• Twelve raised $130 million for its carbon
transformation technology that converts CO2
into fuels and other products historically
made from fossil fuels.
• Carmot Therapeutics
raised $160 million to
develop therapeutic treatments for diseases,
cancer, and inflammation.

More than 80% of Berkeley’s innovation
companies are relatively early stage. The
remainder of the companies in the local
innovation ecosystem are:
• publicly traded or operating profitably in
the STEM (science, technology, engineering
&math) industry;
• consultants without explicit goals to scale;
• subsidiary companies who are part of a
larger parent company;
• incubators or coworking facilities, like
Bonneville Labs or Cell Valley Labs.
83%
10%
4% 2% 1%
Innovation Companies by
Growth Stage
Startup
Established Company
Consulting Company
Subsidiary Company
Incubator or Coworking Facility

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
Office trends & transactions
Q4 2022 Office Market,
Berkeley Indicators
Total Inventory 3,449,141 SF
Under Construction 611,800 SF
Availability Rate 11.5%
Qtr Gross Absorption 2,112 SF
Qtr Net Absorption 84,666 SF
YTD Net Absorption 55,844 SF
Average Asking Rent $3.96 / SF
Source: Newmark Cornish & Carey, 4Q22 Greater Oakland Office Market Report Source: Newmark Cornish & Carey, 4Q22 Greater Oakland Office Market Report Office Availability, East Bay Cities
Q4 2019 – Q4 2022
0%
5%
10%
15%
2 0%
25%
30%
35%
4Q19 1Q20 2Q20 3Q20 4Q20 1Q21 2Q21 3Q21 4Q21 1Q22 2Q22 3Q22 4Q22 Alameda Berkeley Emeryville Oakland Richmond

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
R&D facility investments
Berkeley Commons (600 Addison St., Berkeley, CA) will
be a new state-of-the-art life science campus located on the West Berkeley waterfront. Construction is under way on two buildings that will offer 539,000 rentable square feet (RSF). The property will be LEED Gold certified,
featuring expressed balconies and native plant gardens.

Leasing has begun and will continue through 2023.

Foundry 31 (31
00 San Pablo Ave) officially opened in
2022. Oxford Properties Group bought the property in
2021 and pursued a rapid renovation to create new lab
space for life science users. Two R&D companies have
already signed leases and t
he building still has flexible
office and lab space available for future tenants.

New Developments for Research and Development (R&D)

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
Commercial trends & transactions
Source: OED, Q3 2022
Retail saw the biggest drop as a proportion
of total commercial inventory, decreasing by
7% over the last year. Food and beverage
also saw a slight decrease as restaurants
continue to face lasting pandemic impacts.
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Citywide Commercial Inventory by Square
Footage, Select Sector Trends 2017-2022
Food & Beverage Services Retail
Retail space available in Elmwood (2946 College
Avenue). Photo: Gordon Commercial Real Estate.

Masa Ramen Bistro opened in Downtown Berkeley in
the fall of 2022. Photo: Jason F, Yelp.

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
Spotlight: West Berkeley Real Estate Prices
Manufacturing Warehousing
(tra
ditional)
Warehousing
(Advanced
Manufacturing
/ R&D)
Life Sciences/
Lab Office Retail
Rents per
square foot
(monthly)
$0.78 - $1.88 $0.90 - $2.00 $1.49 - $2.25 $2.75 - $7.44 $2.50 - $3.25 $3.00 - $3.25 Costs per square foot for West Berkeley commercial properties vary dramatically based on whether they are based on sale or rental price and also based on the property age, quality, embedded operating systems, submarket location, and other included amenities or assets. Pricing range is also affected by total rented square footage, with smaller spaces (such as the type that are prevalent in West Berkeley) tending to drive a higher price per square foot.

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
Commercial trends & transactions
The Bay Area Council survey of Bay Area employers found that the majority of workers don’t come into the office every day, and 25% don’t come into the workplace at all (a slight drop from 28% one year ago). Employers expect this to fall slightly in the next six months to only 17% working completely remote, with 76% of workers traveling into the workplace at least two days a week. With remote and hybrid work patterns becoming the new norm, demand for office space may begin to level off in the Bay Area.

Source: Bay Area Council Employer Network Poll - September 2022 Source: Bay Area Council Employer Network Poll – September 2022

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
Commercial districts & vacancy rates
Vacancy Rates by District, Calculated by Square Footage, 2017-2022 Citywide, the ground floor commercial vacancy rate has increased to 8.4%*, an increase of 0.1% since Q3 2021. San Pablo has experienced the highest jump in vacancy rate in the last year, while Elmwood and Solano have both dropped to pre- pandemic vacancy rates.

Source: Berkeley OED
Source: Berkeley OED*Typical commercial district storefront vacancy rates range from 4-8% due to natural market churn. The high vacancy rate in Q3 2022 can be attributed to the ongoing effects of the COVID- 19 pandemic with many businesses not renewing their leases facing economic downturn.

District 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Dow
ntown 4.6% 3.1% 5.1% 9.9% 15.7% 11.9%
Elmwood 5.4% 7.3% 7.3% 10.9% 10.9% 7.7%
North Shattuck 0.4% 1.7% 0.7% 4.3% 4.3% 4.3%
San Pablo 5.5% 4.9% 4.6% 4.8% 7.9% 10.8%
Solano 4.8% 4.1% 2.6% 6.7% 4.4% 3.7%
South Berkeley 9.6% 9.7% 7.6% 10.1% 8.8% 11.8%
Telegraph 7.1% 7.9% 4.4% 17.2% 12.6% 8.5%
University 12.0% 11.0% 7.8% 11.0% 9.1% 12.8%
Neighborhood
Commercial (C-N) 7.3% 3.2% 2.3%
West Berkeley 1.9% 3.7% 5.8% 3.7% 4.7% 5.2%
Citywide Avg. 4.6% 5.0% 5.4% 6.9% 8.3% 8.4%
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &…
Publ
ic and Nonprofit Entities
Trade Services
Business / Professional Services
Personal Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
Ground Floor Commercial Occupancy By Category, 2022 Q3
Vacant Arts, Entertainment & Recreation Public and Nonprofit Entities Trade Services Business / Professional Services Personal Services Office / Other Non-Retail Food & Beverage Services Retail

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Commercial Activity
Sales tax revenues in 2022
Total Annual Sales Tax Revenue - Past 4 Quarters Q3 2020- Q2 2021 Q3 2021- Q2 2022 % Change City of Berkeley $13,361,873 $16,385,109 22.6%
Alameda County (total including cities) $369,540,764 $416,849,170 12.8% State of California $8,332,085,544 $9,292,057,968 11.5% In Q2 2022, the Retail subsector was the largest contributor to the city’s sales tax revenue (45.6%), with Food & Beverage second (27.4%). As the city economy recovers post- pandemic, sales tax revenues also climb. Compared to Q2 last year, sales tax revenue across business categories is up 44% andhas surpassed pre-pandemic revenue. Since the early days of the pandemic, total Q2 sales tax revenue has increased by 70%. The increase in Q2 sales tax collection was largely due to significant increases in the Food and Beverage sector (up 63.6% from Q2 2021), Retail (up 32.1%) and select sub-categories in the Business & Professional Services sector, i.e. Bio R&D and Light Industry (up 88.6%).

Source: MuniServices, Quarter 2 (Apr-June) Collections 2013 to 2022 Source: MuniServices, Quarter 2 (Apr-June) 2017 to 2022, Nominal Values $-
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,
500,000
$2,000,000
$2,500,000
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Berkeley Q2 Sales Tax Revenue by Business Category
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage Services Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
$3,910,342 $3,909,194 $4,068,236
$2,628,526
$3,095,449
$4,470,298
$-
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,500,000
$2,000,000
$2,500,000
$3,000,000
$3,500,000
$4,000,000
$4,500,000
$5,000,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Total City of Berkeley Q2 Sales Tax Revenues

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Development & Housing
Construction & pipeline
Housing Development Pipeline
Housing Pipeline Project Highlights
Medak Center at 2009 Addison St. is
a new, seven-story artist housing
development that opened this fall. In
addition to 45 apartment units, the
building includes two workshop
spaces and an outdoor terrace. The
building will house visiting artists and
15 young professionals who are
awarded a fellowship each year.

Riaz Capital is preparing plans for
two buildings in South Berkeley:
one six-story, 174-unit building
with 1,900 square feet of ground
floor commercial space at 3030
Telegraph Ave. and another
seven-story apartment building at
2300 Ellsworth St.

Berkeley Multi-Family Residential Developments, 2022
3,744 housing unit permits were issued from 2015
to 2021. 85 percent of the permits issued have
been for market rate units.

Source: SF Business Times (below) and Berkeley Rep Press Release 2022 (above).Source: Map Red Oak Realty, updated November 2022; City of Berkeley Planning Dept. November 2022.

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Development & Housing
Rental costs & sale prices
Median Sale Price, Single-Family Homes, Dec. 2022
Alameda $1,337,500
Albany $1,300,000
Berkeley $1,379,000
El Cerrito $1,058,000
El Sobrante $730,000
Emeryville $833,000
Oakland $817,500
Richmond $640,000
Piedmont $2,250,000
San Leandro $850,000
Source: Redfin
Sources: Redfin, and City of Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Berkeley’s single family home values decreased 12.2% from Dec. 2021 – Dec. 2022, with a 52% decrease in sales volume over the same period. 27 single family homes were sold in Berkeley in Dec. 2022, with an average of 20 days on the market. Since March 2020, the median price of single family homes in Berkeley hit an all time high ($1,910,000) in April 2022.

For rentals, between Q3 2021 and Q3 2022, Berkeley’s rents for studio apartments increased by 12%, rising to an average of $1,784 per month.

Home sales and rental prices remain high
Sources: Redfin, and City of Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board $900,000
$1,000,000
$1,100
,000
$1,200,000
$1,300,000
$1,400,000
$1,500,000
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
$2,000
Housing Prices in Berkeley, 2017-2022
Median Rents, Studio Apartment Median Sale Price, Single Family Homes

17

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Business & Arts Support
Small business revolving loan fund & resiliency loan program Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Portfolio Total Loans Act ive Loans Number of RLF Loans 45 8
RLF $ Loaned $2,778,417 $795,000
Total Non-RLF $ Leveraged $7,453,083 $2,303,486
Private Sector Jobs Created 204 50
Private Sector Jobs Saved 100 76
COVID-19 Resiliency Loan Program (RLP) Portfolio Active Loans Numbe
r of RLP Loans 16
RLP $ Loaned $682,000
Supporting Berkeley’s existing small businesses
RLF recipient Nabolom Bakery is a
woman-owned bakery located in
the Elmwood district that
specializes in baked goods and
pizza. Nabolom has been in
operation in Berkeley since 1976!
RLF recipient Cupcakin’,with
locations on Telegraph Ave. and
Shattuck Ave., has been selling
gourmet cupcakes in Berkeley
since 2014. As an advocate for
sustainability and the natural food
movement, owner Lila Owens
found Berkeley to be the perfect
place to set up shop.

Current RLF Borrowers Include:

Source: Berkeley OED, January 2023

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Business & Arts Support
Arts and Culture in Berkeley
Berkeley’s Cultural Vibrancy
Arts and culture is important for Berkeley’s identity and economy. Berkeley is home to over 150 arts and culture nonprofits who together generate approximately $165 million annually in economic activity and provide ~6,500 jobs. While the industry’s economic impact stalled during the pandemic, the vibrancy of Berkeley’s arts sector is returning to pre-pandemic levels with most theaters, music venues, museums, galleries, and other arts organizations opening back up to the public. As we continue pandemic recovery, Berkeley is in a strong position as an international destination for arts and culture.

The City of Berkeley Civic Arts program provides grant
funding to support a robust arts ecosystem, strengthen
diverse cultural expressions, and ensure equitable access to arts and culture throughout Berkeley.

Civic Arts Grants Awarded in 2022:
• 11 individual arts projects ($44,000)
• 33 festivals ($194,299)
• 70 arts organizations ($458,697)

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Business & Arts Support
Berkeley Arts Recovery Grants
Organizations and Festivals
BARG for organizations & festivals were funded through a one-time allocation by Berkeley City Council of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars. The one-time grant funding to all qualifying Berkeley-based nonprofit and fiscally sponsored arts organizations and festivals was used to mitigate an organization’s economic loss from the pandemic, implement COVID-19 prevention tactics, and procure consulting and marketing services to support future financial sustainability. In February and March 2022, arts organizations received 74 grant awards ranging from $3,000 to $33,000, with an average grant award amount of $20,734.

Artists and Cultural Practitioners
The Berkeley Arts Recovery Grants (BARG) for artists & cultural practitioners provided $275,000 in grants to help individuals mitigate their financial needs resulting from the pandemic. In May and June 2022, grants ranging from $1,250 to $8,000 were awarded to 114 artists and cultural practitioners.

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Business & Arts Support
business marketing campaign
The #DiscoveredinBerkeley campaign continued to make Berkeley business owners proud to have chosen Berkeley as their home while exciting local residents and shoppers about the businesses they can find in Berkeley’s commercial districts, as well as the high impact innovations that companies are commercializing locally.

Throughout 2022:
• More than 3,300 new users visited the campaign’s microsite, DiscoveredinBerkeley.com • Instagram @DiscoveredinBerkeley achieved nearly 900 followers (and #DiscoveredinBerkeley exceeded 4,400 uses) • 10 Berkeleyside articles generated 23,000+ page views and the corresponding banner ads generated 829k+ impressions and more than 900 “clicks”

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Business & Arts Support
#BerkeleyHolidays Gift Guide and marketing campaign
• The Berkeley Chamber held its 4th Annual Holiday Gift Fair at Hotel Shattuck Plaza, featuring 30 merchants selling eco-friendly goods, clothing, jewelry, books, art, coffee, spices, and more.

Despite stormy weather, it drew more than 300 attendees. • Gift bags were given to the first 100 attendees and included promotional goods from a dozen local businesses, providing a unique marketing opportunity.
• The fair was featured in Fun Cheap East Bay
, as well as the SF
Chronicle's list of top holiday events, and Berkeley Times featured photos of the fair in its Dec. 15 print edition.
• The #berkeleyholidays h ashtag was used in hundreds of social media posts and marketing for the fair reached 6,000+ peo ple.
• The online BerkeleyHolidays.com Gift Guide was updated to feature 40 businesses, including two dozen women-owned
businesses and 8 minority or black-owned businesses. The site drew several thousand unique visitors.

CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2022 Berkeley’s Future Talent Pipeline
STEM CareerX Day Tours
As part of the Berkeley Startup Cluster's Berkeley Ventures, Berkeley Values programming, and with support from the Institute for STEM Education at Cal State University, dozens of Berkeley High School (BHS) students had an opportunity to see how their science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills will apply in the workplace through tours of Berkeley startups, accelerators, and other STEM companies.

Novel Farms Tour
At West Berkeley foodtech startup Novel Farms, 15 BHS students heard from co-founder Nieves Martinez-Marshall about how she went from getting her PhD in molecular biology to launching a startup in Berkeley.

A hands-on experiment prepared by co-founder Michelle Lu, CSO, also showed how to make gourmet food in a lab setting.

Bakar BioEnginuity Hub Tour
At UC Berkeley's Bakar BioEnginuity Hub, 30 BHS seniors learned about the history and mission of the new state of the art Bakar Labs facilities from UC Berkeley's Chief Innovation & Entrepreneurship Officer, Professor Rich Lyons. Then they had a near-peer networking lunch with UC Berkeley bioscience students and participated in a collaborative neuroscience innovation exercise with Professor Daniela Kaufer.

Berkeley High School students visit Novel Farms, Fall 2022.

Office of Economic Development (OED)
See the OED website for past Economic Dashboards and other economic reports:
https://www.cityofberkeley.info/oed/reports/
Contact OED for more information:
[email protected]
24

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Downtown: 2022 Snapshot
Downtown Berkeley serves as the City’s core commercial district, meeting the daily needs of residents, students, workers, and visitors. The district features from a significant number of arts and entertainment businesses which occupy 15.7%
Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
of total ground floor
commercial space in the district
compared to 6.3% citywide. As
of Q3 2022, the vacancy rate in
Downtown is 11.9%, down from

15.7% in 2021. Sales tax
revenue generated by Food &
Beverage services increased in
2022 to $980,700 (a 66%
increase from 2021). Sales tax
revenue from other sectors has
stayed consistent over the past
five years.

Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,
500,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

4.6%

3.1%

5.1%

9.9%

15.7%

11.9%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Down
town Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-
Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage
Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Elmwood: 2022 Snapshot
Elmwood is a compact, three-block commercial district along College Avenue near the Berkeley-Oakland border and the neighboring Rockridge shopping district. The Elmwood features many Food & Beverage businesses (28.4%) and Personal Services (13.4%), and is a walkable, neighborhood-serving commercial district. As of Q3 2022, the district’s vacancy rate by square footage is 7.7%, which is a lower rate than 2021 (10.9%). Two large Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
commercial spaces that will soon
be filled include the new 5 Tacos
& Beers restaurant at 2914
College Avenue and the
Catfenated Café at 2960 College
Avenue. Sales tax collected from
the Food & Beverage sector in
the Elmwood increased 21%
from last year, totaling $170,738
in 2022. Similarly, sales tax
revenue for Retail increased 37%
since last year, totaling $121,658
in 2022.

Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$50,000
$100,000
$150,000
$200,
000
$250,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Personal Services Retail

5.4%

10.4%

7.3%

10.9% 10.9%

7.7%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Elm
wood Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 North Shattuck: 2022 Snapshot
The North Shattuck district is characterized by a high concentration of well-known, long-standing, and celebrated restaurants. North Shattuck is both a walkable, neighborhood-serving commercial district as well as a global destination for food and dining. As of Q3 2022, the district’s vacancy rate by square footage is 4.3%— the same rate as last year.

Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
Sales tax collected from
the Food & Beverage
sector in North Shattuck
increased by 42% in the
last year, from $298,196
in 2021 to $424,038 in
2022. Sales tax revenue
from Retail has declined
slightly, which could
partly be tied to the 2%
drop in commercial retail
space by square footage
since 2021.

Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$100,000
$200,000
$300,000
$400,
000
$500,000
$600,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

0.4%

1.7%

0.7%

4.3% 4.3% 4.3%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
North
Shattuck Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 San Pablo: 2022 Snapshot
San Pablo Avenue is Berkeley’s largest commercial corridor, running the entire north-south length of the City. San Pablo is characterized by a high concentration of Trade Services (15.1%)— including over 50 automobile Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
services— and Office/Non-Retail space
(22.8%). San Pablo functions as a
regional destination for specific uses
rather than a walkable, neighborhood-
serving commercial district; as such, it
features fewer Food & Beverage Services
(7.1%) and Personal Services (11%). In
Q3 2022, the district’s vacancy rate was

10.8%— a significant increase from 7.9%
in 2021 and among the highest in the
City. Sales tax revenue has not changed
significantly in the last year, although
there was an increase of $39,187 in the
Business and Professional Services
sector.

Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,
500,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

5.5% 4.9% 4.6% 4.9%

7.9%

10.8%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
San P
ablo Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Solano: 2022 Snapshot
Solano is a small commercial district in North Berkeley, with a total of 147 commercial spaces and approximately 274,800 total square feet of commercial space. It shares a border with Albany and is situated next to an Source: Berkeley OED
elementary school and an
active neighborhood of single-
family homes. Solano has a
large key asset (the former
Oaks Theatre) that is due to be
occupied by a climbing gym.

The district’s vacancy rate by
square footage is among the
city’s lowest, at 3.7%. Sales tax
revenue has been recovering steadily since 2021, with the Food & Beverage sector’s sales tax increasing by 16% over the last year, from $216,349 in 2021 to $250,160 in 2022.

Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$50,000
$100,000
$150,000
$200,
000
$250,000
$300,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Personal Services Retail
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Solano Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

4.8%

4.1%

2.6%

6.7%

4.0% 3.7%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 South Berkeley: 2022 Snapshot
South Berkeley is a large, diverse commercial district that includes the Lorin District, the Sacramento corridor, and the South Shattuck area. South Berkeley includes several car dealerships, which accrue significant retail sales tax revenue for the City. The
Source: Berkeley OED
area also features a high
concentration of Personal
Services businesses (18.8% vs. 7%
citywide) but is under-served by
Food & Beverage services, which
account for only 4.4% of ground
floor commercial space, as
compared to 10.5% citywide. As
of Q3 2022, the district’s vacancy
rate by square footage increased
from 8.8% to 11.8%. Sales tax
revenue has not changed
significantly over the last year.

Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,
500,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

9.6%

10.5%

7.6%

10.1%

8.8%

11.8%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Sout
h Berkeley Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Telegraph: 2022 Snapshot
The Telegraph district is a bustling commercial district that stretches south of the UC Berkeley campus. It has a high concentration of Food & Beverage businesses, with 29.4% of ground floor commercial space occupied by restaurants and eateries in 2022, compared to 10.5% citywide. The district’s vacancy
Source: Berkeley OED
rate continues to decline,
dropping from 12.6% to 8.5% in
the past year. This can be
attributed partly to 8 new
developments opening along
Telegraph Avenue, including The
Standard; a large housing
complex on Bancroft Ave. Sales
tax revenue from the Retail and
Food & Beverage sectors on
Telegraph have been increasing
steadily and are back to 2020
levels; due in part to the full
return of students on campus.

Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,
000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

7.1% 7.9%

4.4%

17.2%

12.6%

8.5%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Tel
egraph Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 University Ave: 2022 Snapshot
University Avenue, from Martin Luther King Jr Way to the waterfront, intersects many of the City’s residential neighborhoods and serves as a gateway to the UC Berkeley campus. Since 2017, Retail and Food & Beverage Services have generated the most sales tax revenue in the district.

Source: Berkeley OED
Food & Beverage sales
tax revenue increased
from $729,387 in 2021
to $1,045,950 in 2022.

The ground floor
vacancy rate has
increased over the last
year, jumping from

9.1% in 2021 to 12.8%
in 2022.

Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,
500,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

12.0%

11.0%

7.8%

11.0%

9.1%

12.8%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Unive
rsity Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 West Berkeley: 2022 Snapshot
West Berkeley represents all commercial spaces west of San Pablo Avenue, including 4th Street and the Gilman Corridor. There are a number of major, large-floor-plate retailers, and a dense cluster of home supplies and construction businesses. There is also a higher percentage of non-retail commercial uses, including manufacturing and warehousing, compared to other districts. Retail accounts for 47.3% of ground floor commercial space. West Berkeley has a smaller percentage of square footage devoted
to Food & Beverage (6.8%) businesses
than the citywide rate of 10.5%. The
commercial vacancy rate in Q3 of 2022
is 5.2%--a small increase from last year.

Sales tax revenue has increased across
all sectors in West Berkeley in the last
year, with Retail seeing the largest
increase (21%) compared to 2021
revenue. Retail accounts for the most
sales tax revenue generated in the
district.

Source: Berkeley OED Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$1,000,000
$2,000,000
$3,
000,000
$4,000,000
$5,000,000
$6,000,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

1.9%

4.1%

5.4%

3.7%

4.7%

5.2%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2017-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
West
Berkeley Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail

City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Neighborhood (C-N): 2022 Snapshot
Across Berkeley there are 11 smaller commercial pockets, zoned as “C-N” or “Neighborhood Commercial.” These areas are one or two block collections of commercial enterprises that are found throughout Berkeley (see map in blue). Taken together,
Source: Berkeley OED
the C-N areas represent
nearly 190 commercial
spaces, and approximately
300,000 square feet of
commercial space. The
C-N areas collectively
ge
nerate 2.6% of the city’s
total sales tax. They also
include a few large Arts,
Entertainment & Recreation
facilities (19.6% by square
footage) and Public and Non-
Profi
t entities (21.2%
compared to 4.8% citywide).

Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$100,000
$200,000
$300,000
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2017-2022
(Q3, Q4, Q1, Q2 Annually)
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail

3.2%

2.3%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
2021 2022
Ground Floor
Commercial
Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage),
2021-2022
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
C-N Ci
tywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2022 Q3
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business / Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public and Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
• Hopkins and
Monte
rey
• Hearst and Euclid
• Martin Luther
King Jr Way (MLK)
and Dwight
• MLK and Hearst
• MLK and Rose
• MLK and Virginia
• Claremont and
Prince
• Claremont and
Tunnel
• College and
Alcatraz
• Gilman and Curtis
• Hopkins and El
Dorado
C-N areas include commercial nodes
at the following intersections:

Lori Droste
Councilmember, District 8
Action Calendar
March 14, 2023
To: Honorable Mayor Jesse Arreguín and Members of the City Council From: Councilmember Lori Droste
Subject: Bureaucratic Effectiveness and Referral Improvement and Prioritization Effort (BE RIPE)
Recommendation
In order to ensure that the City focuses on high-priority issues, projects, and goals and affords them the resources and funding such civic efforts deserve, the City Council should consult with the City Manager’s Office to develop and adopt a suite of revisions to the City Council Rules of Procedure and Order that would implement the following provisions:

1. Beginning in 2023, Councilmembers shall submit no more than one major legislative proposal or set of amendments to any existing ordinance per year, with the Mayor permitted to submit two major proposals, for a maximum of ten major Council items per year.

2. In 2023 and all future years, Councilmembers shall be required to submit major items before an established deadline. Council shall then prioritize any new legislative items as well as any incomplete major items from the previous year using the Reweighted Range Voting (RRV) process. This will help establish clear priorities for staff time, funding, and scheduling Council work sessions and meetings. For 2023 alone, the RRV process should include outstanding/incomplete Council items from all previous years. In 2024 and thereafter, the RRV process should only incorporate outstanding/incomplete major items from the prior year. However, Councilmembers may choose to renominate an incomplete major policy item from an earlier year as their single major item.

3. During deliberations at a special worksession, Council retreat, and/or departmental budget presentations, Council and the City Manager should develop a work plan that establishes reasonable expectations about what can be accomplished by staff given the list of priorities as ranked by RRV. Council should also consult with the City Manager and department heads, particularly the City Attorney’s office, Planning Department, and Public Works Department on workload challenges (mandates outside Council priorities, etc.), impacts, reasonable staff output expectations, and potential corrective actions to ensure that mandated deadlines are met, basic services are provided, and policy proposals are effectively implemented.

4. Budget referrals and allocations from City Council must be explicitly related to a previously established or passed policy/program, planning/strategy document, and/or an external funding opportunity related to one of these. As a good government practice, councilmembers and the Mayor may not submit budget referrals which direct funds to a

specific organization or event. Organizations which receive City funding must submit at least annually an application detailing, at a minimum: the civic goal(s)/purpose(s) for which City funds are used, the amount of City funding received for each of the preceding five years, and quantitative or qualitative accounting of the results/outcomes for the projects that made use of those City funds. Organizations receiving more than $20,000 in City funds should be required to provide quantitative data regarding the number of individuals served and other outcomes.

5. Ensuring that any exceptions to these provisions are designed to ensure flexibility in the face of an emergency, disaster, or urgent legal issue/liability and narrowly tailored to be consistent with the goals of enhanced efficiency, effectiveness, fairness, and focus.

Policy Committee Recommendation
On February 14, 2023, the Agenda and Rules Committee adopted the following action: M/S/C (Hahn/Arreguin) to send the item to the City Council with a Qualified Positive Recommendation to refer the relevant concepts of the original item to the Agenda & Rules Committee for consideration under the existing committee agenda item regarding enhancements to the City’s legislative process. Vote: All Ayes.

Current Situation and Its Effects
Over the past few years (excluding the COVID-19 state of emergency), City Council has grappled with potential options to reduce the legislative workload on the City of Berkeley staff.

While a significant portion of this workload is generated from non-legislative matters and staffing vacancies, it is important to recognize that staff also continue to struggle to keep up with Council directives while still accomplishing the City’s core mission or providing high quality public infrastructure and services.

Background and Rationale
Berkeley faces an enormous staffing crisis due in part to workload concerns; as such, Council should take steps to hone its focus on legislative priorities. November 2022’s Public Works Off- Agenda Memo offers a benchmark for problems faced by City departments. Public Works staff struggles to complete its top strategic plan projects, respond to audit findings, and provide basic services, in addition to fulfilling legislative priorities by Council. While the “Top Goals and Priorities” outlined by Public Works is tied to 130+ directives by the City Council, it is not reasonable to assume that all will be implemented.

The challenges faced by the Public Works department are not an anomaly. Other departments share the same challenges. In addition to needing to ensure that the City can adopt a compliant state-mandated Housing Element, process permits, secure new grant funding, mitigate seismic risks, and advance our Climate Action Plan, Planning Department staff have been tasked with addressing multiple policy proposals from the City Council. The sheer number of referrals also impacts the ability of staff in the City Attorney’s office to vet all ordinances, protect the City’s interests, participate in litigation, and address the City’s other various legal needs.

Best Practices
A number of nearby, similarly-sized cities were contacted to request information about how these cities approach Councilmember referrals and prioritizations processes. Cities contacted

included Richmond, Vallejo, Santa Clara, Concord, and Sunnyvale. Of these cities, Santa Clara, Concord, and Sunnyvale replied.

Santa Clara
Overall, Santa Clara staff indicated that—similar to Berkeley—the Council referrals and prioritization process is not especially formalized, with additional referrals being made outside of the prioritization process.

Each year, the Council holds an annual priority setting session at which the Council examines and updates priorities from the previous year and considers what progress was made toward those priorities. The prioritization process takes place in February so that any priorities that rise to the top may be considered for funding ahead of the budget process. In any given year, some priorities may go unfunded and even holding those priorities over to a second year is not necessarily a guarantee of funding.

Despite conducting this annual prioritization exercise, Councilmembers in Santa Clara often still do bring forward additional referrals outside of this process. Part of this less restricted approach in Santa Clara’s 030 (“zero thirty”) policy, which allows members of the the City Council to add items to the Council agenda with sufficient notice and even allows members of the public to petition to have items added to a special section of the Council agenda.

Despite the overally looseness of Santa Clara’s approach. Council members still rely upon staff to provide direction with respect to what priorities are or are not feasible based upon available funding and staff bandwidth.

Concord
According to Concord City staff, although Concord—like Berkeley and Santa Clara—does have a process for Councilmembers to request items be added to Council agendas, Councilmembers generally agree not to add referrals outside of the formal priority-setting process.

Concord City staff only work on “new” items/policies that are mandated by law, recommended by the City Manager, and have been recommended for review/work of some kind by a majority (three of the five members) of the City Council.

In general, Councilmembers agree to not add work items outside of the Council’s formal priority setting process. The Concord City Council has a once-a-year goal setting workshop each spring where the City plans its Tier 1 and Tier 2 priorities for the year (or sometimes for a 2-year cycle).

Most Councilmembers abide by this process and refrain from bringing forward additional items. However any Councilmember may put forward a referral outside of the process and use the method outlined below.

Outside of the prioritization process, Councilmembers can request that their colleagues (under Council reports at any Council meeting) support placing an item on a future Council meeting agenda for a discussion. The Concord City Attorney has advised councilmembers that they can make a three sentence statement, e.g. “I would like my colleagues’ support to agendize [insert item]” or “to send [insert item] to a Council standing committee for discussion.” Followed by:
“This is an important item to me or a timely item for the Council because [insert reasoning]. Do I have your support?” The other Councilmembers then cannot engage in any detailed discussion or follow up, but may only vote yes or no to agendizing the item.

If two of the Councilmember’s colleagues (for a total of 3 out of 5) agree to the request to have the item agendized for a more detailed discussion by Council, then the item will be added to a future agenda for fuller consideration. An additional referral outside the prioritization process is suggested perhaps once every month in Concord, but the Concord City Council usually does not provide the majority vote to agendize these additional items.

Sunnyvale
Of all the cities surveyed, Sunnyvale has the most structured approach for selecting, rating, and focusing on City Council priorities. “Study issues” require support from multiple councilmembers before being included in the annual priority setting, and then must go through a relatively rigorous process to rise to the top as Council priorities. And, perhaps most importantly, policy changes must go through the priority setting process to be considered. The Sunnyvale City Council’s Policy 7.3.26 Study Issues reads, in part:

Any substantive policy change (large or relatively small) is subject to the study issues process (i.e. evaluated for ranking at the Council Study Issues Workshop).

Policy related issues include such items as proposed ordinances, new or expanded service delivery programs, changes to existing Council policy, and/or amendments to the General Plan. Exceptions to this approach include emergency issues, and urgent policy issues that must be completed in the short term to avoid serious negative consequences to the City, subject to a majority vote of Council.

If a study issue receives the support of at least two Councilmembers, the issue will go to staff for the preparation of a study issue paper. Council-generated study issues must be submitted to staff at least three weeks ahead of the priority-setting session, with an exception for study issues raised by the public and carried by at least two Councilmembers, if the study issues hearing takes place less than three weeks before the priority setting.

At the Annual Study Issues Workshop, the Council votes whether to rank, defer, or drop study issues. If a majority votes to drop the issue, it may not return the following year; if the issue is deferred, it returns at the following year’s workshop; and if a majority votes to rank an issue, it proceeds to the ranking process. Sunnyvale’s process uses “forced ranking” for “departments” with ten or fewer issues and “choice ranking” for departments with eleven or more issues. (The meaning of “departments” and the process for determining the number of issues per department are not elucidated within the policy.) Forced ranking involves assigning a ranking to every policy within a given subset, while choice ranking only assigns a ranking to a third of policies within a given subset, with the others going unranked.

After the Council determines which study issues will be moving forward for the year based on the rankings, the City Manager advises Council of staff’s capacity for completing ranked issues.

However, if the Council provides additional funding, the number of study issues addressed may be increased.

In 2022, Sunnyvale had 24 study issues (including 17 from previous years and only 7 new ones) and zero budget proposals. Although Sunnyvale does consider urgency items outside the prioritization process, this generally happens only 1 to 3 times per year and usually pertains to highly urgent items, such as gun violence.

Status Quo and Its Effects
Council currently uses a reweighted range proportional representation voting method to determine which priorities represent both a) a consensus and b) district/neighborhood concerns.

This process allows Council to coalesce around a particular common area of concern; but if there is a specific neighborhood or district issue that is not addressed by Council consensus, it also allows for that district’s councilmember’s top priority to be elevated in the ratings even without broad consensus, so long as there are not multiple items designated as that councilmember’s “top” item. More information about this process can be found here. This system was established in 2016 due to the sheer amount of referrals by Council and the lack of cohesive direction on which of the 100+ referrals the City Manager should act upon.

Subsequent to this effort, Council created a “short-term referral” pool which was intended to be light-lift referrals that could be accomplished in less than 90 days. However, that designation was always intended to be determined by the City Manager, not Council, with respect to what was operationally feasible in terms of the 90 day window. The challenge with Council determining what is a short-term referral is that it is not always realistic given other duties that the staff has to attend to and inappropriate determinations can stymy work on other long term priorities if staff have to drop everything they are doing to attend to an “short-term” or “emergency” referral.

An added challenge is that the City Auditor reported in 2018 that the City of Berkeley’s Code Enforcement Unit (CEU) had insufficient capacity to enforce various Municipal Code provisions.

This was due to multiple factors, including understaffing—some of which have since improved.

Nevertheless, the City Auditor wrote,
“Council passes some ordinances without fully analyzing the resources needed for enforcement and without understanding current staffing capacity. In order to enforce new ordinances, the CEU must take time away from other enforcement areas. This increases the risk of significant health and safety code violations going unaddressed. It also leads to disgruntled community members who believe that the City is failing to meet its obligations. This does not suggest that the new ordinances are not of value and needed. Council passes policy to address community concerns. However, it does mean that the City Council routinely approves policy that may never result in the intended change or protections.” Subsequent to that report, an update was published in September of 2022. A staffing and resource analysis for Code Enforcement is still needed to ensure that the laws Council passes can be implemented.

Fiscal Impacts
These reforms are likely to result in significant direct savings related to reduced staff time/overtime as well as potential decreases to costs associated with the recruitment/retention of staff.

Alternatives Considered
Alternatives were considered using effectiveness and efficiency as the evaluative criteria for referrals. One missing criterion that will be necessary in developing this process will be operational considerations so the City of Berkeley can continue to deliver basic services in an efficient manner.

All-Council determination
Council could vote as a body on the top 10 legislative priorities. The drawback of this method is that it, by default, eliminates any remaining priorities that have been passed by Council. It also eliminates “minority” voices which may disproportionately impact neighborhood- specific concerns as the remainder of the Council may not value district-specific concerns outside of their council district.

Councilmember parameters
Councilmembers could select their top two legislative priorities (as a primary author) for the year and the Mayor could select four legislative priorities for the year for a total of 10 legislative priorities per year. These “legislative priorities” would not include resolutions of support, budget referrals for infrastructure or traffic mitigations or other non-substantive policy items…..

Status Quo Sans Short-Term Referrals
The status quo of rating referrals is the fairest and most equitable if Council wishes to continue to pass the same quantity of referrals; however, it does not address the overall volume and that certain legislative items skip the prioritization queue due to popularity or perceived community support. Council enacts ordinances that fall outside of the priority setting process and designates items as short-term referrals. This loophole has made this process a bit more challenging. One potential option is to continue the prioritization process but eliminate the short- term referral option unless it is undeniably and categorically an emergency or time-sensitive issue.

Contact Person
Councilmember Lori Droste (legislative aide Eric Panzer) [email protected]
Phone: 510-981-7180
Attachments
Update on Public Works’ Goals, Projects, Measures, and Challenges

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.CityofBerkeley.info/Manager

November 15, 2022

To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Re: Update on Public Works’ Goals, Projects, Measures, and Challenges This memo shares an update on the department’s Performance Measures and FY 2023 Top Goals and Projects, and identifies the department’s highest priority challenge. I am proud of this department’s work, its efforts to align its work with City Council’s goals, and the department’s dedication to improving project and program delivery.

Performance Measures
The department’s performance measures were first placed on the department’s website (https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/about-us/departments/public-works) in 2020.

They are updated annually in April. Progress continues in preventing trash from reaching the Bay, reducing waste, increasing bike lane miles, reducing the City fleet’s reliance on gas, increasing City-owned electric chargers, expanding acres treated by green infrastructure, and reducing the sidewalk repair backlog. Challenges remain with the City’s street condition and safety.

Top Goals and Projects
Public Works’ top goals and projects are also on the department’s website (https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/about-us/departments/public-works).

Department goals are developed annually. This year, after reviewing the 130+ directives from open City Council referrals, FY 2023 adopted budget referrals, audit findings, and strategic plan projects, staff matched existing resources with City Council’s direction and the ability to deliver on this direction while ensuring continuity in baseline services.

The FY 2023 Top Goals and Projects is staff’s projection of the work that the department has the capacity to advance this fiscal year. This list is intended to be both realistic and a stretch to achieve. More than tthree-quartersof the work on the FY 2023 Top Goals and Projects is tied to the existing 130+ directives from City Council referrals, budget referrals, audit findings, and strategic plan projects. The remainder are initiatives internal to the department aimed at increasing effectiveness and/or improving baseline services.

Public Works conducts quarterly monitoring of progress on the goals and projects, and status updates are shared on the department’s website using a simple status reporting

November 15, 2022
Re: Update on Public Works’ Goals, Projects, Measures, and Challenges

procedure. Each goal or project is coded green, yellow, or red. A project coded green is either already completed or is on track and on budget. A project in yellow is at risk of being off track or over budget. A project in red either will not meet its milestone for this fiscal year or is significantly off track or off-budget. Where a project or goal has multiple sub-parts, an overall status is color-coded for the numbered goal and/or project, and exceptions within the subparts are identified by color-coding. Quarter 1’s status update is here. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quarter results will be posted at the same location.

Challenge
Besides the volume of direction, the most significant challenge in delivering on City Council’s directions is the department’s high vacancy rate. The Public Works Department is responsible for staff retention and serves as the hiring manager in the recruitment and selection process. Both retention and hiring contribute to the department’s vacancy rate, and the department collaborates closely with the Human Resources Department to reduce the rate. Over the last year, the vacancy rate has ranged from 12% to 18%, and some divisions, such as Equipment Maintenance (Fleet), Transportation,1 and Engineering, have exceeded 20%. While the overall vacancy rate is lower than in Oakland and San Francisco, it is higher than in Public Works Departments in Alameda, Albany, Emeryville, and San Leandro.

The high vacancy rate obviously reduces the number of services and projects that staff can deliver. It leaves little room for new direction through the course of the fiscal year and can lead to delays and diminished quality. It also detracts from staff morale as existing staff are left to juggle multiple job responsibilities over long periods with little relief. The department’s last two annual staff surveys show that employee morale is in the lowest quarter of comparable public agencies and the vacancy rate is a key driver of morale.

Attachment 1 offers an excerpted list of programs and projects that the department is unable to complete or address in this fiscal year due to the elevated vacancy rate and/or the volume of directives.

Attachment 1: Selected list of program, project, referral, and audit finding impacts

cc: Paul Buddenhagen, Deputy City Manager
LaTanya Bellow, Deputy City Manager
Jenny Wong, City Auditor
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
Matthai Chakko, Assistant to the City Manager

1 Three of the City’s five transportation planner positions will be vacant by December 3. Before January 1, 2023, the City Manager will share an off agenda memo that explains the impact of transportation -specific vacancies on existing projects and programs.

November 15, 2022
Re: Update on Public Works’ Goals, Projects, Measures, and Challenges

Attachment 1: Selected list of program, project, referral, and audit finding impacts

Project and Program Impacts
• Major infrastructure planning processes are 6+ months behind schedule, including comprehensive planning related to the City’s Zero Waste goal, bicycle, stormwater/watershed, sewer, and streetlight infrastructure. • Some flashing beacon installations have been delayed for more than 18 months, new traffic maintenance requests can take 2+ months to resolve, and the backlog of neighborhood traffic calming requests stretches to 2019. • The City may lose its accreditation status by the American Public Works Association because of a lack of capacity to gain re-accreditation. • Some regular inspections and enforcement of traffic control plans for the City’s and others’ work in the right of way are missed.
• Residents experience missed waste and compost pickups as drivers and workers cover unfamiliar routes and temporary assignments.
• Illegal dumping, ongoing encampment , and RV-related cleanups are sometimes missed or delayed.
• The backlog of parking citation appeals has increased. • Invoice and contracting approvals can face months-long delays. • The Janitorial Unit has reduced service levels and increased complaints. • Maintenance of the City’s fleet has declined, with preventative maintenance happening infrequently, longer repair response times, and key vehicles being unavailable during significant weather events.

Prior Direction Deferred or Delayed
• Referral: Expansion of Paid Parking (DMND0003994)
• Referral: Long-Term Zero Waste Strategy (DMND0001282) • Referral: Residential Permit Parking (PRJ0016358)
• Referral: Parking Benefits District at Marina (DMND0003997) • Referral: Prioritizing pedestrians at intersections (DMND0002584) • Referral: Parking Districts on Lorin and Gilman (DMND0003998) • Budget Referral: Durant/Telegraph Plaza, 12/14/2021
• Referral: Traffic Calming Policy Revision (PRJ0012444) • Referral: Public Realm Pedestrianization Opportunities (PRJ0019832) • Referral: Long-Term Resurfacing Plan (PRJ0033877)
• Referral: Street Sweeping Improvement Plan (DMND0002583) • Audit: Leases: Conflicting Directives Hinder Contract Oversight (2009) • Audit: Underfunded Mandate: Resources, Strategic Plan, and Communication Needed to Continue Progress Toward the Year 2020 Zero Waste Goal (2014) • Audit: Unified Vision of Zero Waste Activities Will Help Align Service Levels with Billing and Ensure Customer Equity (2016)

Communications

All communications submitted to the City Council are
public record. Communications are not published directly to the City’s website. Copies of individual communications are available for viewing at the City Clerk Department and through Records Online.

City Clerk Department
2180 Milvia Street
Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 981-6900

Records Online
https://records.cityofberkeley.info/

To search for communications associated with a particular City Council meeting using Records Online:

1. Select Search Type = “Public – Communication Query (Keywords)”

2. From Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting

3. To Date: Enter the date of the Council meeting (this may match the From Date field)

4. Click the “Search” button

5. Communication packets matching the entered criteria will be returned

6. Click the desired file in the Results column to view the document as a PDF