1 STAFF REPORT
DATE: October 1, 2024
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager
FROM: Patrick Prescott, Community Development Director
VIA: Fred Ramirez, Assistant Community Development Director - Planning Scott Plambaeck, Planning Manager
BY: Amanda Landry, Principal Planner
SUBJECT: Review of the Livable Communities Initiative
RECOMMENDATION
Note and file.
BACKGROUND
At the February 13, 2024, City Council Meeting, Mayor Schultz requested a report on the goals of the Livable Communities Initiative ( LCI) including staff’s assessment of its alignment with the City of Burbank’s land use policies and strategies. This report provides an assessment of how the City's land use strategies and ongoing specific plan efforts align with the goals and principles of the Livable Communities Initiative.
DISCUSSION
The Livable Communities Initiative
The LCI is a development plan created by a grassroots advocacy group established in Los Angeles. The initiative has been included as part of the City of Los Angeles Housing Element (Program #131) , with many of the group’s Advisory Committee members representing City of Los Angeles based organizations, such as the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT), and Imagine LA. While the City of Los Angeles’ regulations, including its Housing Element program items, are not applicable to or enforceable in Burbank, the LCI has identified Burbank as a suitable community to encourage implementation of LCI goals.
COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
2 The LCI promotes reforms to local government policies to encourage a comprehensive land use planning approach aimed at improving the quality of life in urban and suburban areas through sustainable development and coordinated community planning. The LCI focuses on development of three-to-five stories of medium density housing above existing ground retail on commercial corridors , adding protected bike lanes and tree canopies, promoting car-light streets, and creating 15- minute livable, walkable, and bikeable communities.
According to the LCI’s public website1, the organization’s goals include:
• Sustainable Development: Promoting development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
• Quality of Life: Enhancing the overall quality of life for residents by creating environments that are safe, healthy, and economically vibrant. • Equitable Access: Ensuring that all developers and community members have access to essential services, amenities, and opportunities, regardless of their socioeconomic status.
• Environmental Stewardship: Protecting and preserving natural resources and promoting practices that minimize environmental impact.
The LCI includes several strategies that the City of Los Angeles and other local governments can follow to achieve the LCI’s goals, and additionally has identified a few general strategies that are specific to Burbank . The LCI establishes that in Burbank, efforts to facilitate the development of three-to-five stories of gentle density housing above small retail is key to transform ing commercial streets into neighborhoods that are walkable, bikeable, and livable areas. Also suggested is that any street with small lots along the corridor are most suitable for implementation of LCI strategies , including Burbank Boulevard, Magnolia Boulevard, San Fernando Boulevard, South Victory Boulevard, and West Olive Avenue.
The broadly applicable general strategies developed by the LCI to achieve their goals include:
• Mixed-Use Development: Encouraging the development of architecturally interesting, mixed-use neighborhoods in existing commercial corridors that integrate residential, commercial, and recreational spaces. This reduces reliance on cars, promotes walkability, and fosters a sense of community. • Transit-Oriented Development (TOD): Designing communities around public transportation hubs to reduce traffic congestion, improve air quality, and increase
1 https://www.livablecommunitiesinitiative.com/
3 access to transportation options. Walkability is emphasized as a primary mode of transportation.
• Green Building Practices: Promoting the construction of buildings that are energy-efficient, use sustainable materials, and minimize waste generation. This includes promoting courtyard style housing and investing in standard plan availability.
• Affordable Housing: Supporting the development of affordable housing options to ensure diverse socioeconomic groups can live and work within the community. • Community Engagement: Engaging residents, businesses, and stakeholders in the planning and decision-making process to ensure that development meets the needs and desires of the community.
• Preservation of Open Spaces: Preserving and enhancing parks, green spaces, and natural areas to provide recreational opportunities, improve air quality, and support biodiversity.
• Infrastructure Investment: Investing in infrastructure improvements such as roads, sidewalks, and utilities to support population growth and enhance connectivity.
Alignment with City of Burbank Planning Efforts
Many of the existing City land use planning strategies and efforts incorporate key concepts that are also prioritized by the LCI. This includes the Burbank2035 General Plan, Complete Our Streets Plan, Burbank 2021- 2029 Housing Element, Green House Gas Reduction Plan, Zoning Ordinance, Mixed- Use and Residential Only objective development standards for non- residential zones (which covers almost all the corridors that are not in specific plan areas), and the City’s Specific Plan efforts (development of the Downtown Burbank Transit Oriented Development Specific Plan, Golden State Specific Plan, and update to the Media District Specific Plan). The following list highlights areas of alignment between LCI and Burbank policies:
• Mixed-Use, Transit Oriented Development: Burbank's zoning code facilitates mixed-use development, particularly in downtown and transit -oriented areas and in the corridors and allows for parking reductions in transit -oriented areas. This supports LCI’s goal of creating vibrant, walkable neighborhoods that are less reliant on cars, where residents can live, work, and access amenities conveniently. Further, all three ongoing specific plan efforts also include updated objective development standards that are flexible enough to accommodate a wide variety of different mixed- use scenarios including three-to-five story mixed-use developments that address the unique character of each specific plan areas.
• Affordable Housing: Council has an established goal to facilitate the development of 12,000 dwelling units by 2035 and support the City’s effort s to meet its state - mandated Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) allocation for the 6 th
4 planning cycle by accommodating 8,772 dwelling units by the end of October 2029.
Consistent with these efforts, the City has incorporated affordable housing mandates into its objective development standards and is currently in the process of updating these standards to better address contemporary affordable housing regulations and needs. This includes identifying appropriate incentives for developers to encourage the development of a wide variety of types of affordable units in new residential projects, which is in alignment with the LCI’s focus on housing affordability. • Transportation and Connectivity: Burbank's land use and mobility planning efforts, including the Complete Our Streets Plan and associated Complete Our Streets Objective Development Standards, prioritize transportation strategies and options that reduce reliance on single-occupancy vehicles. These strategies include focusing on making other modes of travel, such as pedestrian, bike and transit, and promoting bike lanes, pedestrian-friendly streetscapes, and access to public transit, required components for new public and/or private development projects, which contributes to improving the overall safety of the City’s mobility network. This supports the LCI’s aim to improve mobility and reduce carbon emissions through the collaborative effort between developers and the City.
• Green Space and Recreation: The Burbank2035 General Plan and the ongoing specific plan efforts highlight and incorporate provisions for more greenspace in individual development projects, along city streets, parks, open spaces, and recreational facilities within residential neighborhoods. This commitment aligns with the LCI’s objective of enhancing public health and community well -being through access to nature and recreation.
• Community Engagement: Council and the Burbank2035 General Plan place a high value on robust community engagement for all land use planning activities. Burbank actively engages residents and stakeholders in the planning process through public workshops, advisory committees, and coordinated outreach efforts. This participatory approach ensures that community values and aspirations are reflected in the C ity's development policies, which is consistent with the LCI’s emphasis on inclusive decision-making.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This report is an informational item only and does not have the potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and as such, is not a “project” subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 14 Cal. Code Regs § 15378.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with this informational report.
5 CONCLUSION
The City places a high value on strategic land use planning that encourages and facilitates the growth of a desirable and livable community for residents, businesses, and visitors alike. This emphasis on working together for a safe, beautiful, and thriving community is woven throughout the City’s core policy documents, including the Burbank2035 General Plan and the Zoning Code, and is reflected in the ongoing specific plans efforts and zoning code amendments that have been facilitated by Council . This strategic appr oach is in strong alignment with the LCI’s principles of sustainability, inclusivity, and quality of life enhancement.
ATTACHMENTS
None.