MEETING CANCELED -
CITY COUNCIL STUDY
SESSION
AGENDA
5:30 PM - Tuesday, March 14, 2023
via Videoconference and In Person
Please Note: THIS MEETING HAS BEEN CANCELED
MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
CONFIRM QUORUM
PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEM(S)
1. Public Comment (Added 3.13.23)
DISCUSSION ITEM(S)
1. Los Altos Downtown Theater: Receive update from the Downtown Theater Working Group on the Downtown Theater Feasibility Study
ADJOURNMENT
SPECIAL NOTICES TO THE PUBLIC
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Altos will make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting. If you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, please contact the City Clerk 72 hours prior to the meeting at (650) 947-2610.
Agendas Staff Reports and some associated documents for City Council items may be viewed on the Internet at http://www.losaltosca.gov/citycouncil/online/index.html. Council Meetings are televised live and rebroadcast on Cable Channel 26.
On occasion the City COuncil may consider agenda items out of order. 1 PUBLIC CORRESPONDENCE
The following is public correspondence received by the City Clerk’s Office after the posting of the original agenda. Individual contact information has been redacted for privacy. This may not be a comprehensive collection of the public correspondence, but staff makes its best effort to include all correspondence received to date.
To send correspondence to the City Council, on matters listed on the agenda please email [email protected]
2 Agenda Item 1.
From: Couture, Terri
To: Public Comment
Subject: city council study session 530pm March 14 Agenda item #1 Date: Saturday, March 11, 2023 3:54:38 PM
Dear Los Altos City Council and City Manager
In light of the worsening economy with no good indicators in the future, please table the theater feasibility study. Real Estate industry insiders are projecting low sales this year, which property taxes is the bulk of income the City of Los Altos receives. The included report suggest a cost of $21M, but the Community Center's price was increased many times.
The safety of our community to provide adequate police, fire, utilities, and city employee services is much more important, than entertainment in these troubled times.
You have an obligation to make sure Los Altos residents are safe and their investment in this town is safe.
Thank you
Fred Tuerk & Terri Couture
*Wire Fraud is Real*. Before wiring any money, call the intended recipient at a number you know is valid to confirm the instructions. Additionally, please note that the sender does not have authority to bind a party to a real estate contract via written or verbal communication. 3 Agenda Item 1.
From: Roberta Phillips
To: Public Comment; City Council
Subject: Study Session March 14, Downtown Theater
Date: Sunday, March 12, 2023 12:23:46 PM
Dear Council Members
I reviewed the slide presentation in the Study Session packet and found that there is no financial feasibility study. I do not find any proof that a new theater downtown will be financially feasible.The public does not know how much money the Theater Company is asking the City to contribute. There is no indication if the land will be provided at no cost by the city. There is no analysis of the ongoing maintenance costs.
I looked at the Treasures Report ( Item # 5 in the agenda report for the Regular Council meeting for March 14th 2023 ) I find that the City is minus -$ 5,629,738 form the quarter before ( Ending balance 12/31/2022) , It is not a good time for the City to commit to any funds or land be given to the Los Altos Stage Company.
The City has many critical CIP projects to address first that are part of the City Council Priorities..
In addition , the Surplus Land Act requires that land be used for affordable housing first. I am concerned that there are legal implications in using land from our parking lots downtown for a theater instead of housing.There is no plan to replace the lost parking. We have already lost parking because of the Parklet Program.
The goal of the Downtown Visioning report was to add more " Feet on the Street '' The new housing that is identified in the Housing Element for downtown will add vibrancy and more feet on the street. A theater is not necessary to meet this goal . The Los Altos Stage Company and the City might be wise to leave the theater in its current location and make appropriate repairs or remodeling as needed.
The presentation is also lacking survey results. LAR did a survey and found that a majority of people do not want to pay for construction or maintenance of a new theater downtown.
Please do not move forward. We were told by the City Council , when the Theater Working Group first came to Council, that there would be no cost to the taxpayers. Then a few weeks later, the Council gave $38,000 to the Stage Company. Was that money used to do the feasibility study ? If yes, where is the financial analysis and survey results ? Sincerely
Roberta Phillips
4 Agenda Item 1.
From: oleg
To: Public Comment
Subject: Public Comment on the Theater
Date: Sunday, March 12, 2023 11:14:30 PM
> Survey gleaned response from over 445 area residents
Why weren't the results of the survey included in the slides? What is the "contributed revenue" on the operating plan? Who will be contributing it? There are millions of $$ of "contributed revenue" needed over the next 5 years. The plan doesn't project a break-even revenue date, suggesting that the theater will always operate at a loss and keep getting bailed out... By whom? By the city?
--
Oleg Kiselev (personal account)
5 Agenda Item 1.
From: Pat Marriot
To: Public Comment
Subject: PUBLIC COMMENT ITEM #1 MARCH 14, 2023 STUDY SESSION Date: Monday, March 13, 2023 11:44:32 AM
Council Members:
I have three concerns about the theater study session:
1.Lack of timely information. Assuming you think public input is important to the discussion, the only document we have now is a data-free 14-page presentation. The agenda doesn’t indicate anything else is available.
I reached out to Vicki Reeder, who is always gracious and responds quickly to my questions, asking if there was a backup document with more information. She said the complete study is a 75-slide Power Point presentation, still in draft form as of March
11. Without that presentation, residents – and Council – don’t have enough time to study and respond to the information prior to the study session.
2.Reacting to the proposal that the theater be donated to the city and managed by the Los Altos Stage Company: That “gift” would be an eternal burden on taxpayers and city staff. Residents are faced with a major sewer tax increase. The city budget is in the red.
The economy is headed downhill. We’re already understaffed and, assuming the state approves our housing element update, staff will have three years of work to update our General Plan and zoning codes.
We have a poor track record of maintaining the buildings we have. Our police station needs to be replaced. The last thing we need is another building to maintain.
3.Three council members – Dailey, Fligor and Weinberg – have already made up their minds to support this theater with public land and public money. Councilmember Fligor has pushed it since January 2021. Councilmember Weinberg told the Theater Working Group he’s so excited about it, he wants to cut the ribbon. Councilmember Dailey should recuse himself from any discussions because he is a member of the TWG.
Respectfully,
Pat Marriott
6 Agenda Item 1.
Progress-Momentum-Next Steps
Capital Campaign Analysis
State-of-the-Art Downtown
Theater
Multi-purpose
Neighborhood Playhouse
7 Agenda Item 1.
Outcomes- Findings-Forecasts
160-seat downtown theater
Estimated $23 M construction cost
Funds for construction raised as a
public-private partnership
Opening operating budget of $1M
Theater donated to the City and
managed by Los Altos Stage
8 Agenda Item 1.
Pillar One:
Intergenerational,
multi-cultural, &
multidisciplinary
arts programs
3 9
Agenda Item 1.
Pillar Two:
Youth education,
engagement
& empowerment
10 Agenda Item 1.
Pillar Three:
Subsidized
community
access
opportunities
11 Agenda Item 1.
Los Altos Theater Study
Key Findings and Recommendations
12 Agenda Item 1.
Feasibility & Vision
Phase 1
Assessing Feasibility
• Supply, Demand, and Aspiration
Phase 2
Setting Definition
• Operating Model, Building
Program, Financial Forecast
Scope of Work
13 Agenda Item 1.
Solid growth over five years pre -covid with revenues meeting expenses Stage Company on Firm Foundation
60%
growth in revenue in
years leading up to 2020
(pre COVID)
53%
growth in attendance in
years leading up to 2020
(pre COVID)
14 Agenda Item 1.
The market for arts consumption is strong
Market Assessment: Strong Potential for Growth
53%
of patron households have
children living at home –
indicating strong potential
for youth and multigenerational programming
40%
of households in the
primary market have
incomes over $200k – the
highest concentration in
California
55%
of the market’s population
is under age 40 –
representing strong future
growth potential for arts
patronage
15 Agenda Item 1.
…a space by & for the Los Altos community
Community Survey Shows Support
Survey gleaned
response from
over 445 area
residents
There is high interest
in diverse content
including programs for
young people, film,
lectures, theater, &
live music
Stakeholders envision
a multi- and intergenerational gathering
place that contributes
to downtown vitality
16 Agenda Item 1.
Activity Drives Attendance
A Bustling, Year-round Venue
Annual attendance of 20,500 from
over 725 activities annually,
including:
• Community events
• Concerts, lectures, film, comedy,
& family performances
• Rental uses
• LASC & LAYT performances
• Classes & camps for young people
• Rehearsals
Rehearsal,
307
Classes/Workshops/Camps,
197
Performance, 158
Other (nonperformance), 63
17 Agenda Item 1.
A New Theater for the Community
• 23,400 square feet
• 13,000 sq. ft.
minimum site
footprint required
• Order of
magnitude cost =
$1,000/sq. ft.
Back of house 160-seat theater
support spaces Lobby, patio, &
community
gathering spaces
Dedicated youth lounge, rehearsal & teaching
spaces, offices, storage
18 Agenda Item 1.
Mapping It Out: LASC Growth
LASC will grow incrementally over years leading up to normalization of operations around Year 5
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
$1,400,000
$1,600,000
$1,800,000
$2,000,000
CONTRIBUTED REVENUE
EARNED REVENUE
OPERATING EXPENSES
19 Agenda Item 1.
MOVING FORWARD…
Where do we go from here?
Conduct a Capital Fundraising
Analysis • To understand the environment in
which a capital campaign will occur
• To develop an achievable capital
campaign strategy
Our Ask of City Council • City staff resources to support continued evaluation
• Financial commitment from City to
commence fundraising feasibility
study • City to split the cost of fundraising
study and other necessary
planning steps with LASC and
community donors
• Continued support of the MOU
20 Agenda Item 1.