DATE:
September 2, 2025
TO:
LaTanya Bellow, City Manager
FROM:
Mohamed Alaoui, Public Works Director
Chadrick Smalley, Community Development Director
SUBJECT:
Resolution Of The City Council Of The City Of Emeryville Authorizing The City Manager To Execute A Fourth Amendment To The Professional Services Contract With Urban Planning Partners Increasing The Contract Amount By $124,989, For A Total Contract Amount Not To Exceed $841,547, For Preparation Of A CEQA-Compliant Environmental Document For The 5801 Christie Avenue Mixed Use Project Located At 5801 And 5681 Christie Avenue; And Appropriating $124,989 From Fund 250 – Traffic Impact Fee Fund To Division 1725, “Planning Reimbursables”, Account 80050, Professional Services
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council approve the attached resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a Fourth Amendment to the Professional Services Contract with Urban Planning Partners (UPP) increasing the contract amount by $124,989, for a total contract amount not to exceed $841,547, for preparing an environmental document consistent with the California Environment Quality Act (CEQA) for the 5801 Christie Avenue Mixed Use Project, and appropriating $124,989 from the Traffic Impact Fee Fund (Fund 250) to the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 budget for Planning Reimbursables, Professional Services (Division 1725, Account 80050).
BACKGROUND
On July 15, 2022, Oxford Properties Group submitted an application for a Use Permit and Design Review Permit to construct a 9-story, 90-foot-high residential tower with 94 units, a 12-story, 202-foot-high commercial tower with approximately 425,100 square feet of research and development and office space, and a parking structure accommodating 566 parking spaces on a 3.76-acre site at 5801-5861 Christie Avenue (the “Project”). Subsequently, on September 20, 2022, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 22-123 authorizing the City Manager to execute a Professional Services Contract with UPP to prepare an environmental analysis under CEQA that evaluates the potential impacts of the Project. Their analysis will include an assessment of impacts in a number of areas, and preparation of technical studies to assess potential impacts on a variety of topics. This was followed by a First Amendment to the Professional Services Contract on June 20, 2023, that was approved administratively to extend the completion time of delivery of services. The City Council approved the Second Amendment on July 18, 2023 (Resolution No. 23-093) to allow for analysis of the “Emeryville Loop” (Loop) in the environmental analysis of the project.
The Third Amendment was approved on May 21, 2024 (Resolution No. 24-052) to produce 10 percent conceptual drawings and 35 percent design documents for the Loop project. The Loop project would modify the roadway in the vicinity of the Project through construction of new two-way Class IV separated bikeway facilities, one new midblock crossing, and dedicated transit lanes. As a part of these improvements, operations for vehicles in the Loop would be converted to one-way, counterclockwise. The revised scope of work in the Third Amendment updated the Vissim transportation model analysis, including updating modeling assumptions to reflect expected travel demand. This analysis is being done to help the City better understand how the Loop will operate in real-world conditions.
DISCUSSION
The Fourth Amendment is now necessary to provide support in identifying potential grant opportunities for which the Loop may be eligible; update the operational analysis to include updated near-term land use assumptions and intersection volume forecasts and update the Vissim model; and conduct an operational analysis of the Loop project. The scope also includes preparation of a CEQA exemption document for the Loop project to support streamlined environmental compliance.
CEQA requires that all projects be reviewed for their environmental impacts. As the City does not have in-house staff to do such analysis, it routinely enters into contracts with consultants to conduct the environmental analysis. UPP will evaluate the Loop project using the methodology outlined in their scope of work dated May 13, 2025, included in Exhibit A to the Resolution.
FISCAL IMPACT
The cost of the environmental analysis is borne by the applicant as part of the permit/entitlement process. The original contract, First Amendment, and Second Amendment expenditures will be charged to Division 1725, “Planning Reimbursables”, Account 80050, Professional Services, and reimbursed by the project applicant through the City’s Cost Recovery program.
The Third Amendment that included the Loop analysis increased cost by $249,585, and the Council appropriated an additional $249,585 from Unallocated Fund 242 – Measure BB Local Streets for these expenditures.
The proposed Fourth Amendment will increase costs by $124,989 and the attached Resolution will appropriate an additional $124,989 from unallocated Traffic Impact Fee Funds (Fund 250) to Division 1725, “Planning Reimbursables”, Account 80050, Professional Services, to cover the cost of this contract amendment.
STAFF COMMUNICATION WITH THE PUBLIC
None.
CONCLUSION
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the attached Resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute a Fourth Amendment to the Professional Services Contract with Urban Planning Partners increasing the total by $124,989, for an amount not to exceed $841,547, and appropriating $124,989 from Fund 250 – Traffic Impact Fee Fund, for these expenditures.
PREPARED BY: Miroo Desai, Planning Manager and Ryan O’Connell, Senior Civil Engineer Approved and Forwarded to the
City Council of the City of Emeryville:
LaTanya Bellow, City Manager
Attachments
Draft Resolution
Exhibit A – Professional Services Contract (PSC) Fourth Amendment Urban Planning Partners Fourth Amendment to Contract for 5801 Christie Avenue Mixed-Use Project City Council Meeting | September 2, 2025
City of Emeryville
CALIFORNIA
MEMORANDUM