ATTACHMENT III
Response to Comments from Save the Bay
In October 2022, Council received a letter from non-profit organization Save the Bay, urging the City to incorporate policies centered on equitable climate resilience to the General Plan Update. The following contains Save the Bay’s recommendations and proposed policies from the draft Hazards Element and Climate Action Plan corresponding to their comments:
1. Prioritize frontline communities for resilience investments and policy changes that are developed by those communities. Ensure robust representation from these communities in decision-making and planning.
• Design community engagement pathways that take into consideration all of the different factors that can deter people from being included in the planning processes; use approaches appropriate for the community. (
Resilience Playbook - Centering
People and Equity First)
o Allocate sufficient time, resources and opportunities for engagement to avoid rushing the process and tokenizing community participation. This will promote capacity building so that community stakeholders are able to provide meaningful feedback and decisions. (CEJA SB1000 Toolkit)
o Design capacity-building workshops to support community-driven policy development and to lead to the translation of community priorities into policy, policy reform language, and technical tools. (Making Equity Real in Climate Adaptation and Community Resilience Policies and Programs: A Guidebook) o Co-develop equity metrics (or plan to implement pre-existing metrics). (Making Equity Real in Climate Adaptation and Community Resilience Policies and Programs: A Guidebook)
• Policies in Draft Hazards Element:
o HAZ-4.9, HAZ-6.1 (Vulnerable Communities)
o HAZ-6.3 (Burdened Communities)
• Policies in Draft Climate Action Plan:
o BE-1.5 (Equity impacts of Reach Code)
o BE-2.3 (Upfront rebates for electrification)
o BE-2.8 (Targeted outreach to low-income communities about electrification strategy)
o BE-2.9 (Electrify low-income housing)
o BE-2.10 (Electrify low-income communities)
o BE-2.14 (Equitable distribution of financing options) o BE-2.16 (Prioritizing historically under-invested communities) o BE-3.8 (Equity impacts of decarbonization policy)
o BE-4.2 (100% renewable electricity for affordable housing) o EG-1.3 (Cooling centers for disadvantaged communities)
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o T-3.6 (Targeted outreach to low-income communities about disincentive- based transportation policies)
o T-3.7 (Define equity metrics for disincentives)
o T-3.10 (Low-income residents exempt from gasoline tax) o T-4.6 (Targeted outreach to low-income communities about purchasing EVs)
o T-4.7 (Program to assist low-income with EV purchases) o SW-1.8 (Free compost bins to frontline communities)
o WW-1.7 (Targeted outreach to low-income communities about water conservation programs)
o WW-1.8 (Outreach accessible in multiple languages)
o WW-1.9 (Free water conservation devices for disadvantaged communities) o WW-1.10 (Target frontline communities to install water conservation devices)
o CS-2.4 (Making urban parks accessible for low-income residents)
2. Require climate resilience planning as part of project design and approval. Integrate nature- based solutions to flooding, extreme heat, and sea level rise such as green stormwater infrastructure into road, transit, complete streets, and other public infrastructure projects. • Incorporate policies addressing sea level rise, heat mitigation, and other climate risks into zoning standards and all long-range planning documents. Revise these policies every five years based on current science and risk projections. (TLU-1, Equitable Climate Action Plan (ECAP), Oakland)
• Increase community resilience by (1) supporting community engagement and community-led disaster preparedness training, prioritizing frontline communities first; and (2) developing protocols and enhancing building systems to enable trusted community-serving facilities – including libraries, recreation and community centers, and parks – to reliably serve their communities as places of refuge during smoke days, extreme heat, and power outages. (A-1, ECAP, Oakland
)
• Fund and Implement Citywide Vulnerability Assessment and Comprehensive Adaptation Plan: Complete and/or update emergency plans, including the Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP), matching Federal requirements, including hazard identification and climate risk assessment. (A-3, ECAP, Oakland )
o Use nature-based solutions such as green stormwater infrastructure to address risks
• Require that sea-level rise projects explore the potential for nature-based adaptation measures before considering hardened structures, which can direct wave energy onto adjacent shorelines and exacerbate erosion. Require incorporation of ecologically friendly features along seawalls and hardened shorelines (when possible) and where shoreline hardening exists or is planned, including public access for people walking or
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bicycling on seawalls or levees (Resilience Playbook - Protecting Communities from Floods and Drought)
o Hayward’s Shoreline Adaptation Masterplan outlines a variety of nature-based strategies and identifies a plan to balance nature-based, hardened infrastructure, and non-structural strategies
• Adopt a comprehensive and multi-departmental strategy to integrate greening into new city project planning and development. (Resilience Playbook–Harnessing the Power of Nature)
• Utilize overlay zones, ordinances, or resolutions to create new urban greening zoning requirements in areas regarding flooding, habitat, or other priorities. (CR-2 - CR-4, ECAP, Oakland)
• Focus green stormwater improvements for areas at risk of flooding (along creeks, in low-lying areas, and along the coast) with an emphasis on vulnerable communities. (Resilience Playbook–Harnessing the Power of Nature
)
• Policies in Draft Hazards Element:
o HAZ-4.7 (Design Standards)
o HAZ-4.11 (Increase Flood Protection Standards for New Construction and Renovations)
o HAZ-5.7 (Fire Flow Adequacy)
o HAZ-6.2 (Resilience Hubs)
o HAZ-6.5 (Adapted Community Structures and Infrastructure) o HAZ-6.6 (Adapted Services)
o HAZ-6.10 (Climate Overlay Zones)
• Policies in Draft Climate Action Plan:
o EG-1.1 (Battery storage facilities during emergencies/outages) o EG-1.3 (Cooling centers)
o CS-1.2 (Replacement trees are climate resilient and drought tolerant)
3. Broaden and accelerate planning, funding, and construction of green streets or other multi-benefit greening projects, especially in underinvested communities. Integrate nature-based solutions such as rain gardens, swales, green roofs, and tree canopy into road and transit projects, flood zones, and other public infrastructure. • Fund and implement a green infrastructure program for the installation and maintenance of projects and existing civic resources such as the parks system and public spaces, to improve stormwater management, support biodiversity, reduce air pollution exposure, and increase access to natural spaces, including trees. Prioritize investment in frontline communities, and particularly in residential neighborhoods dominated by concrete and asphalt with limited green space and elevated air pollution, in Priority Conservation Areas, and in areas where green infrastructure,
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including trees and other types of 4 vegetated buffers, can effectively address stormwater management issues and reduce air pollution exposure among sensitive populations. (A-6, ECAP, Oakland)
• Establish Temporary and Permanent Car-Free Areas: Use car-free areas for active transportation, parks and parklets and green infrastructure, pop-up community and commercial activity, and other uses that address community needs. (TLU-6, ECAP, Oakland)
• Invest in urban greening projects that improve the physical well-being of communities and protect against risks such as extreme heat and days with poor air quality. Map tree canopy gaps in cities and prioritize urban canopy expansion in communities vulnerable to urban heat effects. (Resilience Playbook–Centering People and Equity First)
o Align tree canopy efforts with stormwater planning, ensuring green stormwater infrastructure planning is incorporated in areas with high runoff and at risk of flooding.
• Hayward’s Green Infrastructure Plan was adopted in 2019. • Policies in Draft Hazards Element:
o HAZ-3.6 (Installation of Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development Practices)
o HAZ-6.4 (Green Economy)
o HAZ-6.7 (Transportation Corridors)
• Policies in Draft Climate Action Plan:
o All actions under Measure T-1 (Develop and Implement an Active Transportation Plan to increase active transportation mode share to 15% by 2030 and maintain through 2045)
o All actions under Measure CS-1 (Increase carbon sequestration by planting 1,000 new trees annually through 2030 to sequester carbon and create urban shade to reduce heat island effect)
4. Prioritize planning of communities that are SMART: Sustainable, Mixed-use, Affordable, Resilient, Transit-oriented. Avoid developing along the shoreline and in the hills to protect from flooding, sea level rise, and wildfire.
• Advance zoning and implementation changes that encourage sustainable, small and mid-sized, multi-family, and workforce housing, especially in lower density neighborhoods. Prioritize affordable housing in cultural districts and other relevant geographies with historically marginalized racial or ethnic identities to encourage their stabilization. (Resilience Playbook–Centering People and Equity First )
• Increase the density and diversity of land uses across jurisdiction. To the extent feasible, give priority to multi-benefit recreational projects that maximize pollution
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reduction and adaptation, carbon sequestration, heat-island reduction, stormwater capture that increase infiltration, habitat protection and biodiversity, community health improvements, promote innovative public-private partnerships, or a combination thereof. Design public space and the transportation system (including roadways) to advance racial and social equity by co-developing public spaces with Black, Indigenous, People of Color community members and understanding their needs before designing the space. (Resilience Playbook–Centering People and Equity First)
• Reduce or prohibit development in the most hazardous areas. Hazards and climate impacts to consider are earthquake, liquefaction, flooding (riverine and sea level rise), groundwater rise, subsidence, landslide, and wildfire. Establish a hazard or climate overlay zone. Apply an overlay zone to areas with the greatest current hazards and/or future climate impacts. Associate corresponding risk reduction, adaptation policies, and standards specific to the hazard or climate impact. ( Resilience Playbook–
Protecting Communities from Floods and Drought)
• Policies in Draft Hazards Element:
o HAZ-3.2 (Development in Floodplains)
o HAZ-4.5 (Rising Sea Level Disclosures)
o HAZ-4.8 (Shoreline Protection Plan)
o HAZ-6.8 (Parks and Open Space Resilience)
• Policies in Draft Climate Action Plan:
o BE-1.1 (Electrification Reach Code)
o BE-1.2 (Ban natural gas in all new construction)
o BE-2.2 (Ban expansion of natural gas infrastructure in existing single- family buildings)
o BE-2.4 (Electrify single-family homes by 2045)
o BE-2.15 (Thresholds for retrofits)
o BE-3.2 (Ban expansion of natural gas infrastructure in existing commercial and multi-family buildings)
o BE-4.3 (All Hayward customers enrolled in Renewable 100 by 2030) o T-2.1 (Promote development that is compact, mixed-use, transit-oriented) o T-2.2 (New development to be transit-oriented and multi-functional) o T-2.3 (Parking requirements to be mixed-use, walkable, transit-oriented)
5. Pursue new funding mechanisms to support urban greening and nature-based climate resilience projects at the local and regional level.
• Advocate for state grant programs to support local planning and project implementation. Sources include: CA Natural Resources Agency Urban Greening Grant Program, Strategic Growth Council Transformative Climate Communities Program, Office of Planning and Research Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program
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& Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program. (Resilience Playbook - Harnessing the Power of Nature))
• Pursue stormwater infrastructure funding and financing options for multibenefit urban greening, including stormwater fees, developer impact fees, fees for offsite green stormwater infrastructure instead of onsite stormwater treatment, and Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts. (
Resilience Playbook–Harnessing the
Power of Nature)
• Policies in Draft Climate Action Plan:
o BE-2.12 (Feasibility study for incentivizing all-electric retrofits through on- bill financing)
o BE-2.17 (Identify opportunities for natural gas infrastructure pruning to reduce stranded assets)
o BE-3.9 (Feasibility study to evaluate effectiveness of PACE financing for installation of renewable energy systems)
o EG-1.7 (Advertise available incentives for installing solar on homes) o T-1.12 (Explore funding opportunities for pilot bike-share program in low- income communities)
o T-1.16 (Explore funding opportunities to improve active transportation and mobility)
o T-2.10 (Explore funding opportunities to implement City transit/TDM projects)
o T-3.8 (Fund public transit programs through gasoline tax and paid parking fees)
o T-3.9 (Implement Transportation Network Company tax to fund transit/mobility infrastructure)
o T-4.9 (Work with partners to incentivize EV charging installations through on-bill financing)
o T-4.10 (Explore opportunities for EV/hydrogen charging infrastructure) o T-5.3 (Secure funding for procurement of EV or ZEV vehicles and charging/fueling infrastructure at municipal facilities) o T-5.4 (Evaluate opportunities within the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program for ZEV/EV fueling and charging stations for the municipal fleet) o T-7.4 (Partner with BAAQMD to identify funding opportunities for residents to replace gas-powered landscaping equipment with zero emission equipment)
o T-7.5 (Partner with BAAQMD to develop incentives for upgrading off-road equipment)
o SW-1.12 (Work with partners to fund edible food recovery organizations) o SW-2.17 (Explore funding opportunities to increase circular food economy)
o CS-1.9 (Dedicate staff time to obtaining grant funding for tree planting) o CS-1.10 (Explore opportunities to fund Urban Forest Management Program)
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o CS-1.11 (Establish a Tree Trust or Tree Endowment to help fund Urban Forest Management Program)
o CS-1.13 (Establish alternative fee mechanisms to fund nature-based solutions)
o CS-2.6 (Explore opportunities to use park in-lieu fees to implement the Carbon Management Activities Program)
In addition to the draft policies listed above, the Environmental Justice Element is currently being drafted and will have policies that address Save the Bay’s recommendations with regards to centering frontline communities in the decision-making and planning process.