East Palo Alto City Council November 10, 2022 Agenda Page 1 of 2
EAST PALO ALTO CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA
November 10, 2022, 6:00 p.m.
EPA Government Center
2415 University Ave, First Floor
East Palo Alto, CA 94303
NOTICE
This City Council meeting will be conducted in accordance with City of East Palo Alto Resolution adopted in accordance with Assembly Bill 361. All members of the City Council will participate in the meeting by video conference, with no physical meeting location available to the public.
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International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/aMWYF4KT East Palo Alto City Council November 10, 2022 Agenda Page 2 of 2
1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
2. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
(Government Code Section 54957.7(a))
3. POLICY AND ACTION
1. City Council consideration of a letter to the Menlo Park City Council regarding the Willow Village Project (Facebook/Meta Expansion) in Menlo Park.
4. ADJOURNMENT
This AGENDA is posted in accordance with Government Code Section 54954.2(a) This Notice of Availability of Public Records: All public records relating to an open session item which are not exempt from disclosure pursuant to the Public Records Act, that are distributed to the majority of the City Council will be available for public inspection at the City Clerk’s Office, 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto, CA at the same time that the public records are distributed or made available to the City Council. Such documents may also be available on the East Palo Alto website www.cityofepa.org subject to staff’s ability to post the documents prior to the meeting. Information may be obtained by calling (650) 853-3100.
The City Council meeting packet may be reviewed by the public in the Library or the City Clerk's Office. Any writings or documents pertaining to an open session item provided to a majority of the City Council less than 72 hours prior to the meeting, shall be made available for public inspection at the front counter at the City Clerk's Office, 2ND Floor, City Hall, 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto, California 94303 during normal business hours.
Information distributed to the Council at the Council meeting becomes part of the public record. A copy of written material, pictures, etc. should be provided for this purpose.
East Palo Alto City Council Chambers is ADA compliant. Requests for disability related modifications or accommodations, aids or services may be made by a person with a disability to the City Clerk's office at (650) 853-3127 no less than 72 hours prior to the meeting as required by Section 202 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the federal rules and regulations adopted in implementation thereof.
DECLARATION OF POSTING
This Notice is posted in accordance with Government Code §54954.2(a) or §54956. Members of the public can view electronic agendas and staff reports by accessing the City website. Under penalty of perjury, this Agenda was posted to the public at least 72 hours prior to the meeting.
POSTED: November 9, 2022
ATTEST:
James Colin
City Clerk
Future Meetings:
Meeting Date Time
Regular Meeting November 15, 2022 6:30 p.m.
Regular Meeting December 6, 2022 6:30 p.m.
Study Session December 13, 2022 6:00 p.m.
EAST PALO ALTO
CITY COUNCIL
STAFF REPORT
DATE: November 10, 2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
VIA: Patrick Heisinger, Interim City Manager
BY: Patrick Heisinger, Interim City Manager
SUBJECT: Willow Village Project?(Facebook/Meta Expansion) in Menlo Park Recommendation
By motion:
1. Receive the staff report regarding the Willow Village Project, which includes the Meta/Facebook expansion in Menlo Park; and
2. Direct the Mayor, on behalf of the City Council, to send a comment letter to Menlo Park’s City Council prior to them considering the Project on November 15, 2022.
Alignment with City Council Strategic Plan
This recommendation is primarily aligned with:
Priority No. 2: Enhance Economic Vitality
Priority No. 4: Improve Public Facilities and Infrastructure Priority No. 6: Create a Healthy and Safe Community
Background
The City of Menlo Park is considering a master plan for a 59-acre industrial site located on Willow Road between Hamilton Avenue and Ivy Drive. In addition to the main campus, the project includes three parcels west of Willow Road, totaling 3.1 acres, for realignment of Hamilton Avenue for improved access (Project).
The Project site is located near the western border of East Palo Alto and Menlo Park, adjacent to the Kavanaugh, University Village and Palo Alto Park single family residential neighborhoods. The project is a multi-phase, mixed use development proposed by Peninsula Innovation Partners, LLC, a subsidiary of Meta Platforms, Inc. The Project includes demolition of all buildings and landscaping and construction of new buildings, establishment of various open space areas, and installation of infrastructure. Specific elements of the Project are as follows:
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• Campus district including 1.6 million square feet of office and accessory uses, including meeting/collaboration space (a maximum of up to 1.25 million square feet of offices with balance for accessory uses, inclusive of meeting and collaboration space); • Up to 200,000 square feet of retail/non-office commercial uses, including a grocery store, pharmacy services, entertainment and restaurant uses; • A grocery store proximate to Willow Road at the intersection with Hamilton Avenue/Main Street;
• Up to 1,730 multifamily housing units, including 308 below market rate units (260 inclusionary units or 15 percent, plus 48 units per the city’s commercial linkage fee/unit equivalency requirement);
• A 193-room hotel and associated retail/dining, proximate to the Town Square; • A 3.5-acre publicly accessible park (proximate to Willow Road at Park Street), a dog park (in the southeastern portion of the main Project site) and additional public open space;
• A 1.5-acre publicly accessible town square;
• A 2-acre publicly accessible elevated park extending over Willow Road providing access at the Hamilton Avenue Parcel North (Belle Haven Shopping Center); • A publicly-accessible, below grade tunnel for Meta intercampus trams, bicyclists and pedestrians connecting the Project with the West and East campuses.
The approval of the proposed Project requires the following actions:
• Environmental Review to analyze potential environmental impacts and certify the EIR as legally compliant with CEQA;
• General Plan Circulation Element and Zoning Map amendments to modify the locations of the public rights-of-way, new street connections, and paseos within the main Project site;
• Rezone of entire site from O-B (Office Bonus) and R-MU-B (Residential Mixed-Use, Bonus) to O-B(X) (Office Bonus, Conditional Development) and R-MU-B(X) (Residential Mixed-Use Bonus, Conditional Development) to allow for a conditional development permit (CDP) to develop the main Project site through the master plan process and establish the development regulations;
• Conditional Development Permit to develop the proposed Project through the master plan provisions outlined in the Zoning Ordinance, utilize the bonus level development allowances (increased height, density, and intensity) in exchange for community amenities, and outline the performance standards, development regulations (including adjustment requests), and project requirements for the implementation of the master plan;
• Development Agreement for adequate regulations in exchange for vested rights and the provision of specific community amenities;
• Architectural Control approval of the design of the individual buildings and associated site improvements;
• Vesting Tentative Map to create new buildable parcels, dedicate public rights-of-way, identify public access easements, site infrastructure, and realign Hamilton Avenue; • Heritage Tree Removal Permits to remove 266 heritage trees on the main Project site and 3 heritage trees on the Hamilton Avenue Parcels, and plant heritage tree replacements consistent with the City’s code requirements; and
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• Below Market Rate (BMR) Housing Agreement approval for on-site BMR units (inclusionary units and commercial linkage fee units) in accordance with the City’s BMR Ordinance.
Information on the Project, including the DEIR can be found on the Project webpage:
https://beta.menlopark.org/Government/Departments/CommunityDevelopment/Projects/Under-review/Willow-Village.
The Notice of Preparation (NOP) for this EIR was released for the on September 18, 2019, for a 30- day public review period and a public scoping meeting was held on October 7, 2019.
The City of East Palo Alto provided a scoping comment letter on October 17, 2019. The Notice of Availability (NOA) for this Draft EIR was released on April 8, 2022 with a 45-day public comment period set from April 8 through May 23, 2022. A public hearing for the Draft EIR was held before the Menlo Park Planning Commission on April 25, 2022.
The City of Menlo Park published a Final EIR on October 14, 2022. The Final EIR included the responses to written and oral comments received for the Draft EIR, including those sent by the City of East Palo Alto. The Final EIR also included revisions to clarify the Draft EIR and minor project refinements. The minor refinements did not result in any new significant environmental impacts. The City of Menlo Park is required to certify the Final EIR before any final decisions on land use entitlements. Staff submitted comments to the City of Menlo Park on the Final EIR on October 24, 2022. Staff comments included requests for further consideration of impacts on East Palo Alto on construction, transportation, air quality and utilities and service systems.
The City of Menlo Park has held two Planning Commission meetings on the Project. The Menlo Park Planning Commission first considered the Final EIR and Project entitlements at their hearing on October 24, 2022 and continued it to the November 3, 2022 meeting. The Planning Commission adopted a resolution recommending that their City Council approve the proposed project at their November 3rd meeting, but the matter was continued. The project is now scheduled for a City Council decision on November 15, 2022.
Analysis
To date, the City of East Palo Alto has delivered three letters to the City of Menlo Park regarding the Project. Previous correspondence focused primarily on Project elements related to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as part of the NOA for the Project. The City commends Menlo Park staff/consultants for their work incorporating the City’s CEQA-related comments into the Project’s Final EIR.
While Menlo Park has responded to East Palo Alto’s concerns regarding the EIR, concerns remain about the potential unintended consequences for residents of East Palo Alto that may result from the approval and eventual construction of the Project. To address these concerns, the East Palo Alto City Council requests that the Menlo Park City Council consider opportunities to offset these potential impacts and require that the developer (Meta/Facebook) provide tangible mitigations as a condition of Project approval.
As the new Project progressed through design, East Palo Alto staff and City Council have conveyed these overarching concerns, as well as the following specific areas of interest:
• The Project may result in unintended financial consequences for the City of East Palo
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Alto. For example, it is expected that the Project will include a large grocery store, which is a beneficial amenity for the Belle Haven neighborhood and Menlo Park as a whole, but it is unclear how this store will benefit East Palo Alto. If a significant number of residents frequent this new store, the few smaller grocery stores in East Palo Alto may experience negative impacts to their businesses, and the City will receive decreased sales tax revenues. In addition, increased traffic created by East Palo Alto residents traveling to the new store will only worsen current traffic concerns. • The East Palo Alto Police Department could be impacted by an increase in calls for service, which would require the City of East Palo Alto to fund more police officers during a time when the City has a significant budget deficit. • The Facebook/Meta expansion is located in close proximity to the Cesar Chavez Ravenswood Middle School, which already experiences traffic congestion during common drop-off and pick-up hours. Facebook/Meta and the City of Menlo Park should ensure that the Project does not impact the students, staff, and other community members connected to the middle school campus.
• Traffic and air quality, resulting from increased vehicle traffic through East Palo Alto to access to future Project, are perhaps the greatest concerns. These realities should be acknowledged and City of East Palo Alto should be engaged as a partner to consider necessary infrastructure projects that may be of mutual benefit. • The City of East Palo Alto has a critical need for emergency-access water storage locations. If water storage may be included in the Project’s design, this would offer support to East Palo Alto residents during a potential emergency.
Staff recommends the City Council authorize the Mayor to send the attached letter (Attachment 1) requesting that the Menlo Park City Council defer action on the Project until the City of East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, and/or Meta/Facebook have the opportunity to meet to discuss the City’s concerns outlined in this report.
Staff further recommends that if representatives from Meta/Facebook or a subcommittee of the Menlo Park City Council want to meet to discuss, the Mayor and Vice Mayor serve as the City’s Ad Hoc representatives.
Next Steps
If directed, the Mayor will transmit the comment letter to the City of Menlo Park for their City Council’s consideration at their November 15, 2022 public hearing.
Fiscal Impact
None.
Public Notice
The public was provided notice by making the agenda and report available on the City’s website and on a bulletin board located at City Hall: 2415 University Avenue, East Palo Alto.
Environmental
Pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines section 15378(b)(5), the
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adoption of an ordinance of general policy does not constitute a “project” in that it is a governmental organizational or administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect changes in the environment.
Attachments
A. City Letter Willow Village
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CITY OF EAST PALO ALTO
November 10, 2022
Mayor Nash and Menlo Park City Councilmembers
City of Menlo Park
701 Lauren Street
Menlo Park, CA 94025
Subject: Willow Village Project
Dear Mayor Nash:
This correspondence is being sent at the direction of the East Palo Alto City Council.
The City of East Palo Alto has delivered three letters to the City of Menlo Park regarding the Willow Village project (Project). Previous correspondence focused primarily on project elements related to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as part of the Notice of Availability (NOA) for the Project. We commend your staff and consultants for their work incorporating the City’s CEQA-related comments into the Project’s Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR).
The purpose of this letter is to express, in the strongest possible terms, our deep concerns about the potential unintended consequences for residents of East Palo Alto that may result from the approval and eventual construction of this Project. To address these concerns, the East Palo Alto City Council requests that the Menlo Park City Council consider opportunities to offset these potential impacts and require that the developer (Meta/Facebook) provide tangible mitigations as a condition of Project approval.
Since its incorporation in 1983, the City of East Palo Alto has struggled to achieve economic growth and financial sustainability, especially in comparison to other nearby communities. To address this reality, the City’s leadership has ensured a strong focus on actions that strengthen the City’s economic profile, with the ultimate goal of improving the lives and enhancing the well-being of East Palo Alto residents.
As the new Project progressed through design, East Palo Alto staff and City Council have conveyed these overarching concerns, as well as the following specific areas of interest:
3.1.a
Packet Pg. 8
Attachment: City Letter Willow Village (2473 : Willow Village Project?(Facebook/Meta Expansion) in Menlo Park) • The Project may result in unintended financial consequences for the City of East Palo Alto. For example, it is expected that the Project will include a large grocery store, which is a beneficial amenity for the Belle Haven neighborhood and Menlo Park as a whole, but it is unclear how this store will benefit East Palo Alto. If a significant number of residents frequent this new store, the few smaller grocery stores in East Palo Alto may experience negative impacts to their businesses, and the City will receive decreased sales tax revenues. In addition, increased traffic created by East Palo Alto residents traveling to the new store will only worsen current traffic concerns.
• The East Palo Alto Police Department could be impacted by an increase in calls for service, which would require the City of East Palo Alto to fund more police officers during a time when the City has a significant budget deficit. • The Facebook/Meta expansion is located in close proximity to the Cesar Chavez Ravenswood Middle School, which already experiences traffic congestion during common drop-off and pick-up hours. Facebook/Meta and the City of Menlo Park should ensure that the Project does not impact the students, staff, and other community members connected to the middle school campus. • Traffic and air quality, resulting from increased vehicle traffic through East Palo Alto to access to future Project, are perhaps the greatest concerns. These realities should be acknowledged and City of East Palo Alto should be engaged as a partner to consider necessary infrastructure projects that may be of mutual benefit.
• The City of East Palo Alto has a critical need for emergency-access water storage locations. If water storage may be included in the Project’s design, this would offer support to East Palo Alto residents during a potential emergency.
In accordance with the above considerations, the City Council of East Palo Alto asks that the Menlo Park City Council defer action on the Project until the City of East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, and/or Meta/Facebook have the opportunity to meet to discuss the City’s concerns.
In conclusion, the City of East Palo Alto values its relationship with the City of Menlo Park and Facebook/Meta, yet we are aware that, unless mitigated, many aspects of the Project may negatively impact the residents of East Palo Alto and the City’s ability to achieve our goals. An effective partnership between the City of Menlo Park, Facebook/Meta, and the City of East Palo Alto may successfully address these concerns, thus ensuring that all three entities thrive in the future. The City would be eager to engage in these discussions.
Sincerely,
Ruben Abrica
Mayor
3.1.a
Packet Pg. 9
Attachment: City Letter Willow Village (2473 : Willow Village Project?(Facebook/Meta Expansion) in Menlo Park)