CED Committee
December 9, 2025
AGENDA REPORT
TO: Jestin D. Johnson FROM: William A. Gilchrist
City Administrator Director, Planning and
Building Department
SUBJECT: Memorandum Of Understanding
Between City Of Oakland And City Of
San Leandro
DATE: November 14, 2025
City Administrator Approval Date:
RECOMMENDATION
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Authorizing The City Administrator To Enter Into A Memorandum Of Understanding With The City Of San Leandro Establishing That The City Of San Leandro Will Process Planning And Building Entitlements For Improvements To An Existing Structure And Parking Lot At 1 East 14 th Street/10701 International Boulevard, A Property Located Within Both Jurisdictions, And Act As Lead Agency For The Purposes Of Review Under The California Environmental Quality Act
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the City Administrator to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with the City of San Leandro, for development services oversight of a construction project that entails improvements to an existing structure and parking lot at 1 East 14th Street/10701 International Boulevard (“Property”). The Property is located within both jurisdictions and the MOA will allow the City of San Leandro to act as the lead agency for the issuance of planning and building permits for the proposed development.
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Property Description
The Property is comprised of four Alameda County Assessors Parcels Numbers (APN Nos. 75- 204-1, 45-5196-4, 45-5196-1-1, and 45-5196-2-1) and straddles the border between the cities of San Leandro and Oakland (s. The Property is generally bounded by 107th Avenue on the North, Bristol Boulevard on the South, two private residences on the West (1350 107th Avenue and 128 Bristol Boulevard), East 14th Street on the East (see Attachment B for a location map).
Jestin Johnson (Nov 24, 2025 20:47:43 PST)
11/24/2025
Approximately 42% of the Property is in San Leandro, and approximately 58% of the Property is located in Oakland.
An existing 28,813 square- foot structure is vacant and located entirely on the portion of the Property within the City of San Leandro (the “Building”). An existing parking lot is located on the portion of the Property within the City of Oakland (the “Parking Lot”).
Project
Greater Grace Temple (“Applicant”) desires to make improvements to the Building and Parking Lot, as well as other site improvements to the Property as a whole (collectively, “Project”). The Project will not include the construction of any structures on the Parking Lot. The purpose of the project is to improve the vacant building for the use of a church.
City of Oakland Zoning
The portion of the Property located in Oakland is within the CC -2 Community Commercial – 2 Zone, S-13 Combining Zone S-14 Combining Zone (CC-2/S-13/S-14), per the Oakland Planning Code, which would require a Conditional Use Permit (Community Assembly) under Planning Code Section 17.134.
ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
Staff supports the request that the City of Oakland cede jurisdiction to the City of San Leandro, the following reasons:
• The entirety of the structure is within the City of San Leandro, and the adjacent parking lot that serves the structure is within the City of Oakland; • No change of use is proposed for the parking lot, which is within the City of Oakland;
• San Leandro uses the same State mandated building codes as Oakland; and • The San Leandro Fire Department shall be responsible for the provision of emergency and public safety services to the Project, including those portions located in the City of Oakland.
In order to efficiently consider the Project, the Cities of Oakland and San Leandro desire to enter into an MOU to memorialize the designation of San Leandro as the lead agency for the purposes of both land use approvals and building inspection of the Project, including but not limited to issuance of building and occupancy permits, consistent with the terms and conditions contained in the draft MOU (Attachment A) and to ensure that Oakland will not be negatively impacted by the proposal:
• San Leandro will be the lead agency for all land use approvals regarding the Project; • San Leandro will be responsible for building permit issuance, plan check, issuance of certificates of occupancy, building inspections and similar activities for the entire Project consistent with the appropriate procedures, fees, and standards of San Leandro;
• The San Leandro Fire Department will be responsible for the provision of emergency and public safety services to the Property, including those portions located in the City of Oakland; and
Staff’s analysis of this site and of the proposed development located within both city jurisdictions supports the creation of the MOU between the City of Oakland and the City Of San Leandro to allow the City Of San Leandro to process the Planning and Building Entitlements for a construction project that entails improvements to an existing structure and parking lot adopting appropriate California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) findings. This advances the Citywide priority of being a responsive, trustworthy government.
Policy Alternative to Staff Recommendation
Alternative City Council declines staff’s recommendation and requires split jurisdiction during the permitting process for the Project, i.e., a planning permit would be processed in Oakland and building permits processed in San Leandro or vice versa.
Pros The City of Oakland would retain partial jurisdiction.
Cons This is inefficient, confusing, and is typically only done for larger projects which would generate significant revenue in both cities.
Reason for not
recommending
The portion of the Project’s addition in Oakland is the parking lot that serves the structure. Going through a bifurcated permitting process would be confusing for the applicant in terms of requirements, but also for staff where regulatory conflicts across jurisdictions may also be problematic. This option would require a more complicated MOU, inconsistent with the overall minor scope of the Project.
FISCAL IMPACT
Adoption of this proposed resolution is expected to be revenue neutral. While fees would not be paid to the City, there would also be no cost to the City because Planning and Building Department staff would not work on the Project. Furthermore, there would be no ongoing impact on the City of Oakland’s municipal services for the property.
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
This item did not require any additional public outreach other than the required posting on the City’s website.
COORDINATION
The City Attorney’s Office and the City of San Leandro have worked closely with staff on the preparation of the MOU and have reviewed this staff report and resolution.
SUSTAINABLE OPPORTUNITIES
Economic: There are minimal economic opportunities associated with this Project. The Project is not anticipated to provide a significant number of construction jobs, and these may or may not be for Oakland workers. No construction is proposed upon the parking lot that is within the City of Oakland.
Environmental: The Project will be required to meet modern standards for energy efficiency and green building.
Race & Equity: There are no race and equity impacts associated with this Project.
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA)
CEQA Guidelines exempt specific types of projects from environmental review. The following is an analysis citing the CEQA exemption that will likely apply to this Project:
• Section 15301 – Existing Facilities: Section 15301(e) of the CEQA Guidelines states that additions to existing structures that will not result in an increase of more than 50 percent of the floor area of the structures before the addition, or 2,500 square feet, whichever is less, is exempt from CEQA. The project proposes improvements to the existing structure, and any potential additions to the existing square footage will be minimal.
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Adopt A Resolution Authorizing The City Administrator To Enter Into A Memorandum Of Understanding With The City Of San Leandro Establishing That The City Of San Leandro Will Process Planning And Building Entitlements For Improvements To An Existing Structure And Parking Lot At 1 East 14 th Street/10701 International Boulevard, A Property Located Within Both Jurisdictions, And Act As Lead Agency For The Purposes Of Review Under The California Environmental Quality Act.
For questions regarding this report, please contact NEIL GRAY, PLANNER IV, at 510-238- 3878
Respectfully submitted,
William Gilchrist (Nov 13, 2025 16:31:02 PST)
WILLIAM GILCHRIST
Planning and Building Director
Reviewed by:
Edward Manasse, Deputy Director
Bureau of Planning
Prepared by:
Neil Gray, Planner IV
Bureau of Planning
Attachments (2):
A. Memorandum of Understanding
B. Map showing the location of project