SUPPLEMENTAL REPORTS & COMMUNICATIONS
Office of the City Clerk
City Council of the City of Napa
Regular Meeting
December 19, 2023
FOR THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NAPA
AFTERNOON SESSION:
SUBMITTED PRIOR TO THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING
4. CONSENT CALENDAR:
4.F Agreement with Stantec Consulting Services Inc. for Environmental Review Services related to the South Oxbow Mixed-Use Project
1) Email from Charles Shinnamon, John Salmon, Cass Walker received December 18, 2023.
2) Email from Bill Allen received December 18, 2023.
3) Email from Christina Benz received on December 17, 2023. 4) Email from Steve Carlin received on December 17, 2023. 5) Email from Joe and Diana Wilcox received on December 19, 2023. 6) Email from Napa Housing Coalition received on December 19, 2023. 7) Email from Christine McClure received on December 19, 2023. 8) Email from Michele Grupe received on December 19, 2023. 9) Email from Alan Charles Dell’Ario received on December 19, 2023. 10) Email from Grania and Charles Lindberg received on December 19, 2023. 11) Email from Culinary Institute of America at Greystone received on December 19, 2023. 12) Email from Celeste Mirassou received on December 19, 2023. 13) Email from Carol Barge received on December 19, 2023.
5. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS:
5.A. Financial and Economic Indicator Update, December 2023 • PowerPoint Presentation from Robert Eyler, PhD.
5.B. Department Spotlight: Community Development Department Economic Development Division
• PowerPoint Presentation from Staff.
5.D. 2024 City Council Appointments to Local, Regional, and State Boards, Councils, Committees, and Commissions
• Memo from City Staff.
SUBMITTED AFTER THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING
4. CONSENT CALENDAR:
4.F. Agreement with Stantec Consulting Services Inc. for Environmental Review Services related to the South Oxbow Mixed-Use Project (PL23-0082).
1) Email from Rebecca Webster received December 19,2023. 2) Letter from Friends of the Napa River received December 19, 2023.
From:
Charles Shinnamon
To:
Clerk
Cc:
John Salmon
;
"Dorothy Salmon"
;
Cass Walker
Subject:
Council Agenda - Item 4-F; South Oxbow Mixed Use
Date:
Monday, December 18, 2023 9:10:25 AM
Attachments:
City Council - South Oxbow Mixed Use Project - 12-17-2023.pdf Oxbow Exhibit 06-14-23.pdf
Plan Comm - Oxbow South 6-14-2023.pdf
[EXTERNAL]
Mayor Sedgely and Council Members,
We are asking that Item 4-F be removed from tomorrow afternoon’s Consent Calendar. We and other members of the public would like to address the Council regarding this item.
Enclosed for your review are three documents:
Our June 14
th
Letter to the Planning Commission regarding our concerns about The Oxbow.
Our June 14
th
graphic we shared with the Planning Commission that shows hotel development potential in The Oxbow.
Today’s letter to you regarding the proposed Stantec consulting contract for environmental review of the South Oxbow Mixed Use Project.
Thank you for your consideration,
Felicia and Chuck Shinnamon
Dorothy and John Salmon
Cass Walker
Charles W. Shinnamon, P.E.
“If you don’t like the news, go out and make some of your own.” (Wes “Scoop” Nisker)
Item 4.F.
Napans Who Love The Oxbow
____________________________________________________
June 12, 2023
Napa City Planning Commission
c/o Ricky Caperton, Napa City Planning Department [email protected] 1600 First Street
Napa, CA 94559
Re: Oxbow South – End of the Magic?
Dear Chair Massaro and Commissioners,
Over the years since the American Center for Wine, Food, and the Arts was envisioned, the Planned Development ordinance passed and Copia built, The Oxbow has become a special place in our community.
It is special to both locals and visitors alike. Great e ffort has been made over the last four or five years to craft mechanisms, both visionary and practical, to allow further development in The Oxbow while maintaining the magic that has been created.
The City-sponsored 2018 ULI report was clear that the Oxbow District should be treated as its own unique area separate and distinct from the Downtown. It emphasized that the Napa River should be the focus of The Oxbow and that it should celebrate the River creating access and recreational opportunities. Further, the report recommended maximizing The Oxbow’s river and hillside views, that it be human scale with lower heights and massing, that the concept of “building small” should be implemented, that it be pedestrian friendly, eclectic, and artsy, all of the qualities loved by locals and visitors alike.
As you might know, a City-staff led process has been on-going for the last eighteen months in an effort to address some of the above goals. There has been good dialog and much effort to work together on some of the goals. Others, though, appear to be unresolved and development seems to be moving ahead without benefit of shared solutions.
Our concern is that the magic that is The Oxbow is going to be lost. Somehow, it feels like there is the real potential of killing the proverbial ‘Golden Goose.” In addition to the goals described in the ULI report, there are very real issues of traffic, parking, utility systems, and any number of environmental issues. If these projects continue to be processed by the City one at a time, in a piecemeal fashion, it is like death by a thousand cuts (or by a thousand rooms!). Clearly, an overall plan / vision for The Oxbow needs to be crafted using the underlying ULI recommendations.
What is the vision for the future of The Oxbow?
Is it really going to be a place limited to visitor-serving hotels along with expensive second homes? Are we locals no longer going to feel like The Oxbow is our ha ngout place, too? As can be seen on the enclosed aerial exhibit, there is the potential of over Eleven Hundred (1,100+) hotel rooms just within the bounds of The Oxbow. Is that really our community’s vision for our future? Where are all the hotel employees going to live or come from? Based on the City’s own commissioned studies (Bay Area Economics Study and Economics Planning Systems Study for the Trinitas Draft EIR ), anywhere from half to 90% of hotel employees qualify for affordable housing at 80% AMI and lower. Are these hotels going to fund most of that housing? We acknowledge the recent 1% Hotel Tax that helps fund affordable housing but those funds don’t come close to offsetting the housing impacts caused by new hotels.
How about the vehicle miles traveled (VMT’s) from folks commuting in and out of Napa to work in these hotels?
Napa City Planning Commission
June 14, 2023
Parking in The Oxbow today can often be difficult. We haven’t yet seen an overall parking plan for The Oxbow. We do understand that there might be a parking garage somew here in The Oxbow but there is no plan for its location nor for its funding. The notion that future owners of the proposed condominiums might not be able to fully park in their own buildings or within close proximity is mind boggling. We do understand that a parking study will be conducted to assess how the residential, hotel, and retail uses might be able to share parking based on time demands and the like. As the vast majority of the proposed uses are residential and hotel, it strikes us that the parking demands will primarily happen simultaneously. That, again, speaks to the need for an overall plan for the entirety of The Oxbow and not just for this project.
We observe that the development team is proposing to use the State’s “Housing Accountability Act” . Our impression of the Legislature’s intent in passing this measure was to encourage communities and developers to create much needed new housing throughout California and not second homes . Although there are no legal restrictions from selling residential units as second or third homes, we believe the use of the “Housing Accountability Act” suggests an appropriate moral quid pro quo from the developers: in exchange for all of the rights granted by the Act, the developers agree to include language in a ny future Development Agreement that limits marketing and /or sale and use of these residential units to permanent residents rather than as second homes.
As noted earlier, the ULI report and its follow-up spoke to the notion of “building small”, maximizing river and hillside views, and adding to the special nature of what has been created in The Oxbow. We fully understand that “building small” doesn’t necessarily mean buildings that are low in height, for example.
Yet, our understanding of that term is that development occurs incrementally and organically much like it has so far. Think Copia, Oxbow Market, Gotts, Feast it Forward, wine tasting rooms, and the like.
To contemplate this large project, even broken into two phases, it certainly does not feel like “building small”. Does this project bring to mind the image we think of when we hear the words, “eclectic”, “artsy”, “magical”, “building small”, and “local and visitor serving”?? We don’t think so . We also question the suggestion that the project will maximize river and hillside views as outlined in the Project Description. It seems like those views are only being had from the rooms on the top floor of the hotel and not from First Street nor through the project unless one is on the future river trail.
To make this long story short, it is our considered opinion that several things need to happen:
• The Copia “South Garden” zoning and usage are still under the control of the overall Copia Planned Development Permit. How can this project come before the Commission while the underlying zoning authority and status of the PD Permit and Zoning are in question? • As alluded to above, an overall plan and vision needs to be crafted for the entirety of The Oxbow. • Subsequent to the above, a full Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is needed to address all of the issues that we and others will raise. Traffic, parking, infrastructure, employee housing, cumulative impacts of eleven hundred hotel rooms, and the like all need to be addressed. Continuing to process appl ications one at a time in this piece meal approach flies in the face of the intent of CEQA.
Thank you all for your consideration.
Sincerely yours,
Chuck and Felicia Shinnamon John and Dorothy Salmon Cass Walker Kirsten Shinnamon RITZ A
RITZ B
WESTIN
WINE
TRAIN
CIA
FOX …. BOW
COPIA SOUTH
OXBOW
RIVER
TERRACE
Napans Who Love The Oxbow
____________________________________________________
December 17, 2023
Napa City Council
c/o City Clerk
1600 First Street
Napa, CA 94559
Re: South Oxbow Mixed Use Project Via Email: [email protected] Item 4-F; Consent Calendar
Honorable Mayor and Councilmembers,
We respectfully request that Item 4-F, the proposed contract for environmental review for the South Oxbow Mixed Use Project, be removed from the Consent Calendar such that we and other members of the public might address you with our concerns regarding the scope of the review.
Over the years since the American Center for Wine, Food, and the Arts was envisioned, our historic Flood Control Measure approved, the Planned Development ordinance passed and Copia built, The Oxbow has become a special place in our community. It is special to both locals and visitors alike. Great effort has been made over the last four or five years to craft mechanisms, both visionary and practical, to allow further development in The Oxbow while maintaining the magic that has been created.
The City-sponsored 2018 ULI report was clear that the Oxbow District should be treated as its own unique area separate and distinct from the Downtown. It emphasized that the Napa River should be the focus of The Oxbow and that it should celebrate the River creating access and recreational opportunities. Further, the report recommended maximizing The Oxbow’s river and hillside views, that it be human scale with lower heights and massing, that the concept of “building small” should be implemented, that it be pedestrian friendly, eclectic, and artsy, all of the qualities loved by locals and visitors alike.
Our concern is that the magic that is The Oxbow is going to be lost. Somehow, it feels like there is the real potential of killing the proverbial ‘Golden Goose.” In addition to the goals described in the ULI report, there are very real issues of traffic, p arking, utility systems, and any number of environmental issues. If these projects continue to be processed by the City one at a time, in a piecemeal fashion, it is like death by a thousand cuts (or by a thousand rooms!). Clearly, an overall plan / vision for The Oxbow needs to be crafted using the underlying ULI recommendation s. And, we believe a full and comprehensive Environmental Impact Report needs to be prepared to analyze that plan / vision.
What are our concerns about the Scope of Services outlined in the consulting proposal prepared by Stantec Consulting Services?
• Hotels in the Oxbow. Full review of the cumulative impacts of the existing, approved, and foreseeable projects within The Oxbow is imperative. Both the River Terrace Inn and the Westin Hotel are built and successfully operating. The Westin has an additional thirty two (32) rooms approved and not yet built. The Ritz Carlton Hotel was approved for three hundred and fifty one rooms (351) almost sixteen years ago. Although we don’t know its status, i ts entitlements allow it to move forward in its current configuration without further discretionary review. The First & Oxbow Hotel was approved for seventy four (74) rooms in 2020 and new developers are proposing to add an additional forty nine (49) rooms.
All of the foreseeable impacts of these projects need to be addressed. We believe, that under CEQA, that we cannot make the assumption that these won’t all be built. We note that the Wine Train has appeared twice before the City Planning Commission in previous years with their proposed one hundred and forty eight (148) room hotel yet this proposal must probably be seen to be speculative at this time.
Napa City Council
December 17, 2023
Speculative or not, new hotel rooms on the horizon could add as many as 367 new hotel rooms to the 751 currently existing or previously entitled hotel rooms in the Oxbow, for a potential total of 1,118 hotel rooms. The impacts of a concentration of hotel rooms of that magnitude has not, to our knowledge, been previously considered in any EIR.
• Piecemealing. As noted above, the First & Oxbow Hotel has been approved for seventy four rooms.
We now understand from the developers that their proposed expansion of an additional forty nine rooms is scheduled for the January 18, 2024, Planning Commission for review. We don’t presume to be CEQA experts yet this is a project that is clearly foreseeable. How can that project move forward without being required to be included in this Scope of Services for the South Oxbow Mixed Use Project? • Parking. In both the ULI report and its subsequent review, the issue of parking was at the absolute top of the list of issues that need resolution in the Oxbow District. We were surprised to read that Stantec’s Scope of Services excludes this work:
“We anticipate a parking evaluation will be prepared by the Applicant in working with the City”. (Page 10 of the Scope of Services).
We know that City staff and some of the Oxbow District property and business owners have made concerted efforts toward the creation of a parking plan for the District. To our knowledge, there has been no progress toward such an overall plan. We do understand that there might be a parking garage somewhere in The Oxbow but there is no plan for its location nor for its funding. We believe that the Public-Private cooperation that led to the development of the Fifth Street Garage could, with the City’s leadership, serve as a model for the Oxbow.
We urge the Council to require that a full parking review and plan for Oxbow be prepared and fully reviewed as part of the proposed environmental document. Clearly, this effort will need to involve all of the property and business owners in some way to ensure that their disparate needs are addressed. To do otherwise would be a disservice to our community and to those businesses currently operating in the Oxbow.
• Sustainable Communities Environmental Assessment (SCEA). We read the reasoning in the Stantec Proposal (pages 13-14) outlining why the South Oxbow Mixed Use Project would qualify for a limited environmental review because the project lies within a prescribed distance from the Soscol Gateway Transit Center. Although we are not deeply conversant with the law and its requirements, we have a common-sense view of the Legislature’s purpose in adopting such a mechanism. We suspect that the Legislature intended to encourage and fast track housing affordable to working individuals and families.
We have heard second hand from several sources that this property is for sale by its owners with a sale to be consummated upon entitlements. Further, we understand that the sales literature suggests that the sales prices of the new condominiums, other than the thirteen “affordable’ units, are expected to sell in the two million dollar ($2M) range and more.
Stantec also claims that the South Copia site qualifies because it is less than 2/10ths mile from the Soscol Gateway Transit Center. While that measurement may be accurate as the crow flies, Google Map walking directions from 601 First Street to the Transit Center via First to Soscol to Third to 675 Burnell is one-half mile. Should someone prefer to first head east on First Street, the walk to the Transit Center will be 7/10ths mile.
We seriously question any notion that more than a handful of new residents or guests of the hotel are going to be traveling to Napa by local or regional buses and then walking to their home or their accommodations. We urge the Council to see through this approach and require a full EIR. This, in our common-sense view, was not the Legislature’s purpose in crafting this law.
Napa City Council
December 17, 2023
• Housing Accountability Act (ACA). We observe that the development team is proposing to use the State’s “Housing Accountability Act”. Our impression of the Legislature’s intent in passing this measure was to encourage communities and developers to create much needed new housing throughout California and not second homes. Although there are no legal restrictions from selling residential units as second or third homes, we believe the use of the “Housing Accountability Act” to build multi-million dollar homes a nd associated luxury hotel suggests an appropriate moral quid pro quo from the developers: in exchange for all of the rights granted by the Act, the developers agree to include language in any future Development Agreement that limits marketing and /or sale and use of these residential units to permanent residents rather than as second homes. We fully understand that there are no constraints in the law to preclude such sales yet, as noted, our common-sense view of the ACA is that such use of its statutes was not the Legislature’s intent.
As noted earlier, the ULI report and its follow-up spoke to the notion of “building small”, maximizing river and hillside views, and adding to the special nature of what has been created in The Oxbow. We fully understand that “building small” doesn’t neces sarily mean buildings that are low in height, for example.
Yet, our understanding of that term is that development occurs incrementally and organically much like it has so far. Think Copia, Oxbow Market, Gotts, Feast it Forward, wine tasting rooms, and the like.
To contemplate this large project, even broken into two phases, it certainly does not feel like “building small”. Does this project bring to mind the image we think of when we hear the words, “eclectic”, “artsy”, “magical”, “building small”, and “local and visitor serving”?? We don’t think so.
To make this long story short, we hope that the Council will address the issues that we and others are raising.
• As alluded to above, an overall plan and vision needs to be crafted for the entirety of The Oxbow , to include, or perhaps begin with, resolution of the siting of a parking structure. • Subsequent to the above, a full Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is needed to address all of the issues that we and others are raising. Please don’t be swayed by the arguments that a limited EIR is possible due to SCEA standards. That, to us, is not a common -sense approach given the type of housing being contemplated. Lastly, continuing to process applications one at a time in a piece meal approach flies in the face of the intent of CEQA.
Thank you all for your consideration.
Sincerely yours,
Chuck and Felicia Shinnamon John and Dorothy Salmon Cass Walker From:
Beth Painter
To:
Clerk
Subject:
Fwd: Environmental Report for 1100 Rooms in the Oxbow District Date:
Monday, December 18, 2023 10:06:53 AM
Begin forwarded message:
From:
William Allen
Subject:
Environmental Report for 1100 Rooms in the Oxbow District Date:
December 18, 2023 at 8:53:41 AM PST
To:
[email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected],
[email protected]
Dear Council Members,
As a resident of Alta Heights, I am very concerned about the prospect of 1,100 hotel rooms in the Oxbow District. Just as Downtown Napa is no longer a place for locals, will that be the future for the Oxbow district as well? Please reconsider
pulling the consulting contract from the consent agenda on the 19th.
Please
consider
a full Environmental Impact Report on the entirety of the Oxbow.
And,
consider spending some time to develop a plan
for the district that allows
for public input on issues of traffic, water supply, and flooding.
Bill Allen
Napa
Allen, Shea & Associates
Certified California
eran Business
Disabled Vet
Enterprise and Small
Business
#0001707
www.allenshea.com
[EXTERNAL]
From:
Christina Benz
To:
Clerk
Cc:
Charles Shinnamon
;
Cass
Subject:
Item 4F-Environmental Review for South Oxbow Project
Date:
Sunday, December 17, 2023 7:25:57 AM
[EXTERNAL]
Please give these comments to the Mayor and City Council members.
Thank you!
Dear Mayor and City Councilmembers,
We are asking that you remove item 4F from the Consent Calendar and discuss a plan to review all of the potential Oxbow projects under one Environmental Impact Report. Currently there are 457 entitled hotel rooms in addition to the 294 built rooms. The South Oxbow Project would add another 170 hotel rooms.
As always the question comes down to housing: where will the workers for these projects live?
As our Mayor and City Council, you have been diligent about prioritizing residents' needs.
Please continue to do so by calling for an overall plan for the Oxbow District with a thorough understanding of the opportunities and limitations, before approving any further work on projects in the area.
Thank you,
December 17, 2023 Dear Mayor Sedgley and Napa City Council Members, We continue to watch with great interest the proposed development of the South Lot at Copia and the old Napa Corporate Yard site at 933 Water Street. From what we have seen on the city’s website and submittals from the developer, the scale of the project is massive, and its impacts will almost certainly be detrimental to the neighborhood. As such, we support the City following a thorough environmental review process. Our concern is that the magic of “The Oxbow” is going to be lost through the environmental and societal impacts caused by over developing these two sites. It’s the classic 10 pounds of potatoes in a 5-pound bag. The developer is using new housing laws to circumvent existing height, density, and parking limitations historically imposed by the city. Because the developer is circumventing the typical review process, all environmental impacts must be closely studied. While local serving housing is certainly welcomed, and we fully support, we understand there is a potential for more than 1,100 hotel rooms in the Oxbow District if this project and others that have been previously approved or proposed are built. All of this is to say that we believe it is incumbent upon the City to clearly understand the cumulative impacts of adding all these hotel rooms and homes before proceeding any further on any new development proposal. In conjunction with a comprehensive environmental analysis, a complete parking and traffic study should be conducted by the City and not by the developer as it appears is currently being suggested in the Stantec proposal. It is not hyperbole to state that the future of The Oxbow is in your hands. We hope you will proceed with great caution in determining what level of environmental review is necessary for Oxbow South before making any determination on the future of this neighborhood altering project. With respect, Steve Carlin Oxbow Public Market From:
Beth Painter
To:
Clerk
Subject:
Fwd: Oxbow Development
Date:
Monday, December 18, 2023 5:42:07 PM
Begin forwarded message:
From:
Joe and Diana Wilcox
Subject:
Oxbow Development
Date:
December 18, 2023 at 4:26:47 PM PST
To:
[email protected]
[EXTERNAL]
We ask you sincerely to slow down the development of the Oxbow area,
particularly the proposal to add many more hotel rooms in the current parking
area.
We need a thorough environmental impact report and a long-term, big-
picture vision of the Oxbow’s future. The limited parking, congested traffic, and
urbanization of a lovely natural area could compromise quality of life for local
residents and rob the Oxbow of its charm for tourists.
Counting on you—
Diana and Joe Wilcox
From:
Beth Painter
To:
Clerk
Subject:
Fwd: Oxbow project
Date:
Monday, December 18, 2023 7:51:58 PM
Begin forwarded message:
From:
Chris McClure
Subject:
Oxbow project
Date:
December 18, 2023 at 7:42:15 PM PST
To:
[email protected]
,
[email protected]
Cc:
[email protected]
,
[email protected]
,
[email protected]
[EXTERNAL]
Dear Mayor Sedgely and Council Members, Ms. Alessio, Ms. Painter, Mr. Narvaez, and Ms.Luros,
I am VERY concerned about the apparent piecemeal project being proposed near the site of the Oxbow Market that includes over a thousand hotel rooms and NO parking structure. For a project like this we need an Environmental Impact Report and an OVERALL plan that includes ALL aspects.
Think about when any of you wants to remodel your house. You have to consider everything: site plan, entrances, exits, heights, how one aspect relates to another, what the flow is, lighting, water and on and on.
So here we have a proposal for multiple new buildings being built in a small area without any of that unified forethought and parking not addressed at all. That is crazy.
I visit the Oxbow area about twice a week to shop or walk along the flood control project park or river trail. I love the views, the waterfowl, the sunsets over the area and just the general ambiance. That could all be destroyed by approving this project without taking into consideration the whole site and its natural elements. Some of the recommendations from the Urban Land Institute specified a focus on the river and to nurture public life. Soooo let’s do it!
PLEASE rule in favor of, at the very least, 1. an EIR, 2.a unified plan that encompasses all of the various proposed hotel rooms and 3.solid plans for a parking garage.
Let’s do it right for residents and visitors alike.
Sincerely,
Christine McClure
From:
Michele Grupe
To:
Clerk
Cc:
Scott Sedgley
;
Beth Painter
;
Bernie Narvaez
;
Mary Luros
;
Liz Alessio
Subject:
12/19 Agenda Item 4F - remove from consent agenda
Date:
Tuesday, December 19, 2023 8:58:52 AM
Dear Mayor and Council Members,
I am writing to request that the City Council remove Consent Agenda Item 4F from the Consent Calendar to allow a discussion with citizens who are concerned about the number of developments/projects planned for the Oxbow District.
As a resident and new member of the
Napa Housing Coalition, I agree with the concept that a
FULL Environmental Impact
Report (EIR)
needs to be performed on the entirety of the Oxbow District that includes all of the projects that are being proposed currently or that have been approved but not yet built.
Thank you for your consideration of this request.
Michele Grupe
EXTERNAL]
From:
Alan Charles Dell"Ario
To:
Mary Luros
;
Scott Sedgley
;
Beth Painter
Cc:
Charles Shinnamon
;
Thomas B Timar
;
Karin Troedsson
Subject:
Fwd: Oxbow Area - South Copia Hotel Development - City Council - Tuesday Dec. 19th - WE NEED YOUR HELP!!! Date:
Sunday, December 17, 2023 9:49:07 AM
Attachments:
ATCH 1 - Stantec Proposal.pdf
Mary, Beth, Scott,
I’m sure you’re aware of the groundswell of concern about the proposed development in Oxbow.
There needs to be comprehensive EIR, in my opinion.
Putting this item on the
consent calendar does not promote transparency and fails to address questions I and my neighbors have about this project.
~Chuck Dell’Ario
Alan Charles Dell’Ario
2019 California Lawyer Attorney of the Year
Certified Specialist, Appellate Law
State Bar of California Board of Legal
Specialization
Begin forwarded message:
From:
"Charles Shinnamon"
Subject:
Oxbow Area - South Copia Hotel Development - City Council - Tuesday Dec. 19th - WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!
Date:
December 17, 2023 at 9:33:17 AM PST
To:
"Charles W. Shinnamon"
Friends and Neighbors,
As we promised when we emailed you, here is the information about the City Council meeting this Tuesday afternoon at 3:30 pm. The session is held at City Hall at 955 School Street.
A contract with an environmental consulting firm to perform the environmental review of the
“South Oxbow Mixed Use” area is currently on the Council’s Consent Calendar at 3:30. We intend to ask the item to be removed from the Consent Calendar such that we can all address the Council and express our concerns about the project and the manner in which the environmental review is being handled. We have included a copy of the consultants’ proposal if you wish to dig deeper into the scope they propose.
As we outlined in our earlier email, we believe that there are many issues that need to be addressed and we fully suspect that you will have others of deep concern to you and your friends and neighbors.
[EXTERNAL]
There is a need for a
comprehensive
review of the Oxbow District based on the
potential of 1,100 hotel rooms as was shown to the Planning Commission last summer. We fully understand that they probably won’t all be built but the Ritz has been approved and could move forward, the Westin expansion has been approved and could move forward, the First & Oxbow was approved and the developers are asking for more rooms. The impacts from all of these need to be included in the environmental review.
Although we all know parking is a huge issue, the environmental consultant’s contract specifically excludes parking: “
We anticipate a parking evaluation will
be prepared by the Applicant in working with the City”
. How is this going to be
addressed?
We were amazed that the item is on the Consent Calendar. It does not speak well for open and transparent government, or for the good of the community, that a project of this magnitude is brought to Council on the "Consent Calendar" in an afternoon session less than a week before Christmas. What is this about? It is vitally important that the Council hears from you and it would be terrific if many of you could attend the Tuesday afternoon meeting. If you don’t want to personally address the Council, raising a hand in support of us when asked would be wonderful.
NOW
is the time for the Council to hear all of our concerns. The longer this project proceeds without questions being raised, the higher the probability of its being approved.
We hope to see you Tuesday!! For those of you who cannot join us, you can email your concerns to the City Council via the City Clerk:
Chuck and Felicia Shinnamon
Dorothy and John Salmon
Cass Walker
Charles W. Shinnamon, P.E.
“If you don’t like the news, go out and make some of your own.” (Wes “Scoop” Nisker)
From:
To:
Scott Sedgley
;
[email protected]
;
bnarvaez@cityofnapa
;
Mary Luros
Subject:
Oxbow area-south Copia hotel development
Date:
Friday, December 15, 2023 2:03:07 PM
[EXTERNAL]
Dear Council Members
The prospect of a 170 room hotel and 130 condominiums is alarming for the south copia area.
The already congested area is not the right place for visitor-serving development with no requirement for housing for the workforce that will be needed to support this development.
And new development must be evaluated as part of already approved development in the area.
With a potential of 1100 hotel rooms a comprehensive parking plan should be done. Please don’t approve this proposal before further study is completed. Yes we need more housing but what is proposed will make our city worse, not better.
Respectfully,
Grania and Charles Lindberg
Sent from my iPad
18 December, 2023
Mayor Sedgley
City Hall
955 School Street
Napa, California, 94559
Dear Mayor Sedgley and Napa City Council Members,
We, at The Culinary Institute of America have been closely watching the progress of the proposed development of the South Lot at Copia and the old Napa Corporate Yard site at 933 Water Street.
From what we have seen, based on the city website and submittals from the developer, the scale of the project is massive, and its impacts will almost certainly be detrimental to the neighborhood.
Our concern is that the special place the Oxbow District holds with locals and visitors alike will be negatively impacted by the scale of this development. Over the last few years Oxbow District businesses have been working together with city staff to identify what makes the district so special. There have been several studies done, Urban Land Institute as well as a student project by UC Berkeley students. Our intent as “Oxbow Stakeholders” was and is to assist in developing a comprehensive plan for the district instead of a piece by piece approach. We believe the residents, visitors, and the city deserve that attention to detail in a comprehensive plan.
We also understand that the developer is using new housing laws to circumvent existing height, density, and parking limitations historically imposed by the city.
While local housing is certainly welcomed, and we fully support, the possibility of more than 1,100 hotel rooms in the Oxbow District if this project and others that have been previously approved or proposed are built would overwhelm the area.
We believe a truly comprehensive environmental study is called for at this time. Although it may not be the intent of this current meeting the CIA believes a full Environmental Impact Report (EIR) on this project should be considered. The CIA is also concerned that at this early-stage parking and traffic is not one of the important topics being studied. This has been an issue the Oxbow Stakeholders and city staff have been meeting and discussing for the past three years or more. A study of this importance and impact to the district should be incorporated, and not leave this critical component to the developer as is currently being suggested in the Stantec proposal.
Sincerely,
Thomas Bensel
Managing Director
Culinary Institute of America - California
From:
Tiffany Carranza
To:
Clerk
Subject:
FW: Today"s City Council Meeting
Date:
Tuesday, December 19, 2023 11:43:17 AM
Attachments:
Oxbow Comments.docx
Tiffany Carranza
City Clerk
Pronouns: She/her
City of Napa – City Hall
955 School Street, Napa, CA 94559
Phone
(707) 257-9661
Email
[email protected]
Website
www.cityofnapa.org
From:
Celeste Mirassou
Sent:
Tuesday, December 19, 2023 11:28 AM
To:
Tiffany Carranza <[email protected]>
Subject:
Today's City Council Meeting
Tiffany,
I will read this statement today at the City Council meeting.
Please include my
statement in the record for the meeting.
Happy Holidays!
Celeste Mirassou
[EXTERNAL]
I am concerned about the information and methodology on which future development decisions are being made:
Information
The focus on existing dominant industries like the wine and hotel businesses is troublesome as I hear different economic projections:
Robert Eyler, Phd who is presenting is economic dashboard indicates that the “wine industry is beginning to come back in full” and the “end of summer surge led to good tourism growth.”
Christopher Thornberg who spoke at the Chamber’s Economic Conference suggests the “wine economy is shifting” and that “retail sales for beer and wine have flattened.” He also indicated that Napa Valley lodging revenue is down.
Despite their differences, both economists point out the lack of housing supply for workers.
What is needed is a comprehensive plan for our low to moderate housing needs and especially as it relates to significant in-fill opportunities.
New hotel rooms, rooms that currently exist, and rooms that have been previously entitled in the Oxbow area now total 1,100 plus hotel rooms.
Building hotels exacerbates our low to moderate income housing deficiencies as most hotel jobs don’t support living in Napa.
This project includes $2 – 4 million properties. These are not the projects that should be pushed forward at this time.
Methodology
I say “pushed forward” as I particularly don’t like the timing of this discussion taking place within days of Christmas as an item on the consent calendar.
Everything the city does should be considered through a prism of fighting climate disruption.
You’ve committed to being climate neutral by 2030.
With transportation being the largest area of carbon impact, I don’t understand adding a disproportionate # of low income jobs to an area that can’t house these employees. Jim Wilson says it better, but I would say “When you’re in a hole, stop digging.”
We need a comprehensive plan to manage the development of in-fill projects for land much needed low to moderate income housing in a sustainable way.
Let’s take a pause this development to consider how we can solve some of our housing issues and diversify our economic development instead of steaming ahead blindly.
From:
Beth Painter
To:
Clerk
Subject:
Fwd: South Oxbow Mixed-Use Project
Date:
Tuesday, December 19, 2023 12:52:39 PM
Begin forwarded message:
From:
Carol Barge
Subject:
South Oxbow Mixed-Use Project
Date:
December 19, 2023 at 12:51:45 PM PST
To:
Undisclosed recipients:;
[EXTERNAL]
I am writing today to lend support to the letter you received from the Shinnamons, the Salmons and Cass Walker, dated December 17. Their thoughtful and detailed letter regarding the Oxbow and surrounding area slated for development by various developers can really help in your careful consideration going forward.
As happened with the HHS project, Heritage Housing Partners was able to incorporate improvements to the project and buy-in by the neighbors based on their robust outreach to the community and the feedback they received.
Ideally an
ongoing and robust outreach to the community at large for input, ideas and concerns would help Oxbow and surrounding area, as well.
I understand that 4.F. on this afternoon’s agenda will be removed, allowing for public comment. I am unable to attend the meeting, but wanted to lend my voice to this very important topic.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Carol
Carol Barge
CITY OF NAPA: DASHBOARD
CITY COUNCIL PRESENTATION
NAPA, CA
DECEMBER 2023
Robert Eyler, PhD
President, Economic Forensics and Analytics Inc.
Professor, Economics, Sonoma State University
[email protected]
1 City Council Regular Meeting
12/19/2023
Supplemental - Item 5.A.
From: Robert Eyler, PhD
Core PCE Prices, 2007 to 2026: Is the FED’s job done?
2 What to Watch
• Slow fall through forecasted
inflation to 2026
• Rates likely to fall in 2024:
how far and when?
FED will not move rates down
quickly unless:
1. Job losses/slower growth
2. Continued fall toward
dotted line
Real GDP (%) Unemployment Rate (%) Core PCE Inflation (%) Annual data (projections based on annual-average levels):
Previous New Previous New Previous New
2023 2.1 2.4 3.6 3.7 3.7 3.5
2024 1.3 1.7 4.0 4.1 2.4 2.4
2025 2.1 1.8 4.2 4.2 2.1 2.1
2026 1.7 2.1 4.1 4.0 N/A N/A
Federal Reserve Philadelphia
Forecast, Survey of Professional Forecasters
Source: Federal Reserve Philadelphia Branch
These data are from November 2023
Bottom Line: Economy more resilient than previous forecasts, inflation beginning its descent; relatively high interest rates will continue pressure economy to 2025 Napa at a Glance: end of Q3 2023
4 Labor Market: Napa Residents, Quarterly
2019 Q1 to 2023 Q3
5 Occupancy Rates and Average Daily Rates
Napa, April 2019 to Sept 2023, Monthly
6 Taxable Sales, Growth from Q2 2022 to Q2 2023
Current Dollars, Napa, Napa County and California
7 -2.0%
2.4%
-4.0%
-5.0%
-4.0%
-3.0%
-2.0%
-1.0%
0.0%
1.0%
2.0%
3.0%
City of Napa Napa County California
Fiscal Years 2022 to 2023
Source: California Dept of Tax and Fee Admin (CDTFA)
Work From Home: % of Working Residents
2019, 2021 and 2022, 5-Year Averages
8 5.7% 5.2%
12.4%
5.9%
10.9%
9.3%
25.9%
13.6%
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
Napa City Napa County Marin County California
2019 2021 2022
Source: Census Bureau
City of Napa: Economic Development
• Tourism to remain strong for Napa in 2024
• 2024 likely a mixed year given slower economy and uncertainty • Global threats may keep people from traveling to Europe and Middle East • Expect more competition from the core Bay Area in 2024 and 2025 • Wine industry moving toward new “steady state”
• Changes in retail and restaurants continue, with direct-to-consumer markets and competition settling into long-term patterns • Napa to remain global space for food and wine: consumers changing • Shifting housing markets: the next steps for Napa supporting needs for local workers
9 Community Development Department
Economic Development Division
Council Spotlight
12.19.2023
City Council Regular Meeting
12/19/2023
Supplemental - Item 5.B.
From: City Staff
Share with the Council some of the Community Development Department Economic Development Division’s recent activities and future projects.
Agenda:
• Introduction / Economic Development Focus Areas
• 2023 Highlights
• 2024 Initiatives for Napa EIFD
Economic Development Team
Neal Harrison,
Economic Development
Manager
Jennifer Owen,
Economic Development
Program Coordinator
Brendan Hurley,
Economic Development
Program Coordinator
v
Source: California Association for Local Economic Development (CALED) revenue
2023 Highlights
Business Support
• ~20 Business Concierge
Direct Support
• Business Concierge
Roundtable (Broker)
• 3 Napa Makes Events
(100+ participants)
• New maker spaces (100
Coombs, Lab Creative,
etc)
• SBDC – 16 Success
Accelerator ($40K grants)
• 735 new businesses
Data & Communication
• ED Public Dashboard &
Internal Indicators
• Quarterly Council w/ Dr.
Eyler + Guests
• Monthly ED Newsletter
(4k subscribers; 48% OR)
• 13 Napa Makes
Newsletters (300
subscribers; 75% OR)
• Conferences (Chamber
Summit, WANB Labor
Report, MMNAC)
• Website refresh & project
clearinghouse
Tourism Improvement
District
• 8 Local Governing
Committee Meetings
• Notice of Grant Funding &
Application (~30
applicants)
• $600k in grants (Lighted
Arts, Vine Trail, etc)
• $800k in DoNapa
marketing contract
(Augustine)
• Launched TID 5-Year
Strategic Plan process
Placemaking
• $450k PBID Downtown
Wayfinding (Phase 1
complete; Phase 2 2024)
• $25k Downtown Banners
(TID funded)
• 10 Oxbow Stakeholder
meetings
• Public Art Collaboration
w/ Recreation Division
(Mural First/Main, Fire
Museum, etc.)
• Supported other
Downtown/Oxbow Events
City of Napa
Enhanced Infrastructure
Financing District (EIFD)
• Napa EIFD formed in July 2022
• Noncontiguous: 50% of future property tax
increment; estimated ~$65M in present-value
• Goal = capture value from private
sector investments to direct funding for
infrastructure and other public improvements
Get the
“EIFD Wheels Turning”
Prioritizing 4 Subarea Projects
based on key criteria
Potential Community and Economic Benefits
(jobs, fiscal revenue, housing, public amenities)
Potential Catalytic Impacts
(unlock private sector investment & OPM)
Feasibility for Implementation
(potential to implement in the near term)
4 EIFD Subareas Selected
Potential Surplus Land /
Downtown Parking Lots
& Cinedome
Napa Makes &
“Maker’s District”
Napa Riverwalk, eg
“RiverLine”
City-Owned Land in Downtown
• Potential community and economic
benefits
• Catalytic for housing + development
• Fill in holes in urban fabric and
pedestrian experience
• One time funding from sale and
ongoing source of revenue
Explore Surplus Land in Downtown
• Council Directed Staff to further explore a
Surplus Land Act Disposition Plan
(December 5th Council Meeting)
• Next Steps Include:
• Ensure we understand larger publicly-
owned inventory
• Exemptions in SLA
• Connection to Parking Management &
impact
• Site constraints and current use
(farmer’s market, shared trash fencing,
easements, parking)
• Community & developer outreach
• Valuations
Napa
Makes
Napa Makes is the City of
Napa's initiative to support
and grow the artisan makers,
small-scale manufacturers,
and artist + creatives sectors
within the City of Napa -
resulting in a more diversified,
resilient economy.
2023 efforts + highlights
New creative spaces
Events
Partnerships
Napa
Makes
Laying the foundation for a
Makers District, providing
business support and
resources
2024 efforts
Makers/Artisan Use
In all non-residential zones
Administrative permit
Designed to remove barriers
Makers District
Redevelopment of the Makers District area could
generate a potential increase of $37.5M in average
value of parcels, equaling an additional $46K annually
for the General Fund and $46K annually for the EIFD.
Accelerator Program
Provide support to makers taking the next step
What is the Napa RiverLine/Riverwalk?
• The Napa RiverLine is a continuation of past projects; it implements the General Plan and other transportation/trail plans to activate and connect the river.
• An opportunity to create a community-driven, forward-looking story of what the River could be for Napa’s long-term future. • Will expand The Living River concept established in County Flood Control Project and tie in recreational opportunities to the River.
• Complements the $40 million federal investment for flood retaining walls north and south of downtown to address the design and economic impact.
The Napa RiverLine/Riverwalk
Project Overview
Napa River
Corridor
The Napa RiverLine/Riverwalk
Project Benefits
The project would connect to:
• Major job centers that account for
15,930 jobs or 56% of citywide jobs.
• 630 acres of river and adjacent land.
• Better connect river access to
13,000 residents.
• Hundreds of millions of dollars worth
of private investment across
11 development sites.
• Connects to 470 acres of parks and
open space and 900 acres of wetland
protection.
Potential private sector investment and
economic benefit from the project:
• New development (housing, hotel,
commercial)
• $150M + in new assessed value
• $200K+ in annual tax increment to EIFD
• $5M+ in annual hotel transient occupancy
tax (TOT) to General Fund
• Additional regional “draw” as a diverse
outdoor destination
• Additional mixed-income housing,
commercial development, pedestrian
activity, indirect impacts
• Continue to build a public-private partnership to
develop and implement a vision and plan.
• City partnership with grant applications to plan for the Riverline and fund infrastructure improvements.
• Submitted an Economic Development Administration
Economic Disaster Resiliency grant, up to $250k for
planning.
• Other grants include Cal. Dept. of Parks and Recreation Trails program, Clean California Local Grant Program, CA Parks Program, other EDA, CA, and fed grants.
• Explore district funding mechanisms as an ongoing
funding stream
The Napa RiverLine/Riverwalk
2024 Work Efforts
www.napariverline.org
THANK YOU!
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?
City Hall: 955 School Street, Napa CA 94559
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 660, Napa CA 94559
(707) 257
-
950
3
www.cityofnapa.org
MEMO
TO:
Mayor and City Council
M
embers
FROM:
Tiffany Carranza, City Clerk
DATE:
December
1 8
,
2023
SUBJECT:
Correction to Agenda Item
5.D.
Exhibit A to
Attachment
1 -
2024 City
Council Appointments to Local, Regional, and
State Boards, Councils, Committees, and
Commissions
Subsequent to publishing the
agenda material for the
December
19 ,
2023
,
City Council
meeting,
an
edit
to
Agenda Item
5.D.
,
2024 City Council Appointments to Local, Regional, and
State Boards,
Councils, Committees, and Commissions
,
was
identified.
The below graphic identifies redline changes to Exhibit A of Attachment 1 as follows:
1. There is an appointed
alternate to the Napa County Climate Action Committee (CAC)
Attachment 2
, as
published,
correctly
identifies
the current
appointees and alternate
appointee for the Napa County Climate Action Committee (CAC).
Item 5.D.
SUPPLEMENTAL REPORTS & COMMUNICATIONS
Office of the City Clerk
City Council of the City of Napa
Regular Meeting
December 19, 2023
FOR THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NAPA
AFTERNOON SESSION:
SUBMITTED AFTER THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING
4. CONSENT CALENDAR:
4.F. Agreement with Stantec Consulting Services Inc. for Environmental Review Services related to the South Oxbow Mixed-Use Project (PL23-0082).
1) Email from Rebecca Webster received December 19,2023. 2) Letter from Friends of the Napa River received December 19, 2023.
From:
To:
Clerk
Subject:
Oxbow Area Development
Date:
Tuesday, December 19, 2023 4:59:12 PM
Dear Council Members,
I was hoping to join the meeting this afternoon in support of the Napa housing coalition as I echo many of their concerns, but I have to work during this time. This is the case for many residents, who are impacted by the decisions made at these meetings.
There is a huge need for a
comprehensive
review of the Oxbow District based on the
potential of 1,100 hotel rooms as was shown to the Planning Commission last summer.
While they probably won’t all be built, the Ritz has been approved and could move forward, the Westin expansion has been approved and could move forward, the First & Oxbow was approved and the developers are asking for more rooms. The impacts from all of these need to be included in a current environmental review.
I am further disappointed that projects of this size are on the Consent Calendar, in an afternoon session, less than a week before Christmas.
We need more housing all around - not more hotels, and not more second or third homes for visitors.
Respectfully,
Rebecca
Webster, MPH
Item 4.F.
[EXTERNAL]
.
Friends of the
NapaJ^tver
flei^ ^^.
The community's voice for the protection, restoration, responsible development, and celebration of the Napa River and its watershed through education and advocacy. ^U9CT-
PO Box 537, Napa, CA 94559 [email protected] www.fonr.org
^n^e. u^^^^
Board of Directors
Francie Winnen
President
Dennis Rinehart
Secretary
Chuck Shinnamon
Treasurer
Bemhard Krevet
President Emeritus
Phill Blake
Barry Christian
David Graves
Rex Stults
AndySzmidt
Honorary
Advisory Board
Moirajohnston Block
(In Memoriam)
Chip Bouril
David Garden
(In Memoriam)
Shari Gardner
Roger Hartwell
Tracy Krumpen
Tony Norris
Laurie Puzo
Mike Rippey
Kent Ruppert
Ginny Simms
(In Memoriam}
Barbara Stafford
(In Memoriam)
Karen Bower Turjanis
/4 "living" Napa River
conveys equilibrium
and harmony with all
that it touches and
resonates through
the human and
December 18, 2023
Napa City Council
School Street
Napa, CA 94559
Re: South Oxbow Mixed Use EIR
Via Email: [email protected]
Dear Mayor Sedgely and Councilmembers,
The Friends of the Napa River are deeply concerned about the proposed environmental review of the South Oxbow Mixed-Use area. This project and the proximate Firstand Oxbow Hotel front on approximately 1,500 to 2,000 feet of the Napa River. Impacts to the river and its banks are of key importance to us and to the Napa community.
Several Friends' Board members actively participated as technical members of the Flood Control District's Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) and are familiar with the riverbanks in the project area. We want to have assurance that the project will not disturb the riverbank now or in the future. As part of the overall project, we understand that the developers are required to construct a public pedestrian trail along the entirety of the project's river frontage. We are very supportive of the development of this trail while also having concerns about its precise location. Given the steepness of multiple portions of the riverbank, it will be imperative that the trail is situated sufficiently far from the top of bank to allow future, natural erosion to occur with no current or future need for artificially buttressing the bank to prevent such erosion.
We suggest that the EIR include a detailed analysis of the trail's location with adequate, surveyed cross sections showing appropriate setbacks and possible access locations. The environmental document is the proper place for this analysis. It should not be postponed to some future date when the project is in design.
We fully support a complete and comprehensive environmental document that covers not only the South Oxbow Mixed-Use project but also the river frontage of the proposed First and Soscol Hotel project. They are clearly being processed by the City in a concurrent fashion.
Friends are also very concerned about the lack of community outreach and education regarding this large project. Example- the lack of notice and subsequent lack of attendance at the Planning Commission's Oxbow South study session this summer. Oxbow South as proposed will have a tremendous impact on the Oxbow District and the Napa River. You, our City Council Members, will determine if it is positive or negative for us locals. A full EIR could help you.
Thank you for your consideration.
Francie Winnen, President Dennis Rinehart, P.E., Vice-President