were registered or not and the date of last registration, as well as see if a qualifying event- based report was submitted by type and date. The user interface should incorporate:
i) Americans with Disabilities (ADA) compliance
ii) Multilingual
iii) Review Rental Unit Registration Status/Date and Event-Based Report Type/Date
e) Integration Support – Ideally, the RRP software system solutions would:
i) Integrate or provide data exports to the City’s Financial and Utility Billing Systems ii) Export property location and other information to City’s GIS (GIST and ESRI – ArcGIS Enterprise)
iii) Export property location and other information into City’s Accela Application and Permitting Records Database
iv) Allow City staff access to other departments’ systems to view activities related to the property and rental units, e.g., inspection reports, building permits, etc.
f) Additional Deliverables, Capabilities, Modules, Features, and/or Functionality – The RRP software system solutions might benefit from additional capabilities, modules, features and functionality.
i) The qualified fi rm or firms are welcome to propose additional deliverables, capabilities, modules, features, and or functionality proposed to supplement the goals, purposes, and objectives
ii) The qualified firm or firms can suggest creation of a downloadable 'app' for IOS and Android as a supplementary deliverable to aid in RRP participation
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EXHIBIT B
SCHEDULE OF PERFORMANCE
CONSULTANT shall perform the Services so as to complete each milestone within the schedule specified below. The time to complete each milestone may be increased or decreased by mutual written agreement of the Project Managers for CONSULTANT and CITY so long as all work is completed within the term of the Agreement. .
Milestones Schedule
1. Project Management and Coordination Ongoing/Daily
2. Implementation September 2024
3. Daily Software Management/Maintenance
and Professional Services
Ongoing/Daily
4. Help Desk for End Users Ongoing/Daily
Optional Schedule of Performance Provision for On-Call or Additional Services Agreements. (This provision only applies if checked and only applies to on- call agreements per Section 1 or agreements with Additional Services per Section 4.)
The schedule of performance shall be as provided in the approved Task Order, as detailed in Section 1 (Scope of Services) in the case of on-call Services, or as detailed in Section 4 in the case of Additional Services, provided in all cases that the schedule of performance shall fall within the term as provided in Section 2 (Term) of this Agreement.
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EXHIBIT C
COMPENSATION
CITY agrees to compensate CONSULTANT for Services performed in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement, and as set forth in the budget schedule below. Compensation shall be calculated based on the rate schedule attached as E xhibit C-1 up to the not to exceed budget amount for each task set forth below.
CITY’s Project Manager may approve in writing the transfer of budget amounts between any of the tasks or categories listed below , provided that the total compensation for th e Services, including any specified reimbursable expenses, and the total compensation for Additional Services (if any, per Section 4 of the Agreement) do not exceed the amounts set forth in Section 4 of this Agreement.
CONSULTANT agrees to complete all S ervices, any specified reimbursable expenses, and Additional Services (if any, per Section 4) , within this/these amount(s). Any work performed or expenses incurred for which payment would result in a total exceeding the maximum amount of compensation set forth in this Agreement shall be at no cost to the CITY.
BUDGET SCHEDULE
TASK NOT TO EXCEED AMOUNT
Task 1 (Project Management and Coordination) $25,000
Task 2 (Implementation) $68,420
Task 3 (Daily Software Management /Maintenance and
Professional Services)
Year 1: $3,850 (monthly)/$46,200 (annual) + $12,000
(additional support hours)
Year 2: $4,043 (monthly)/$48,516 (annual) + $12,000
(additional support hours)
Year 3: $4,245 (monthly)/$50,940 (annual)
Year 4: $4,457 (monthly)/$53,484 (annual)
Annually fee for services occurring between September
and August of each respective year; the program year.
$223,140
Task 4 (Help Desk for End Users)
$15,600 per year
Annually fee for services occurring between September and August of each respective year; the program year.
$62,400
Sub-total for Services $378,960
Reimbursable Expenses (Amazon Web Services Connect;
$500/month; $6,000/year; 4 years)
$24,000
Total for Services and Reimbursable Expenses $402,960
Additional Services (if any, per Section 4) $40,296
Maximum Total Compensation $443,256
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REIMBURSABLE EXPENSES
CONSULTANT’S ordinary business expenses , such as administrative, overhead, administrative support time /overtime, information systems, software and hardware, photocopying, telecommunications (telephone, internet), in -house printing, insurance and other ordinary business expenses, are included within the scope of payment for Services and are not reimbursable expenses hereunder.
Reimbursable expenses, if any are specified as reimbursable under this section , will be reimbursed at actual cost. The expenses (by type, e.g. travel) for which CONSULTANT will be reimbursed are: Amazon Web Services Connect up to the not -to-exceed amount of :
$24,000.
A. Travel outside the San Francisco Bay A rea, including transportation and meals , if specified as reimbursable, will be reimbursed at actual cost subject to the City of Palo Alto’s policy for reimbursement of travel and meal expenses.
B. Long distance telephone service charges, cellular phone service charges, facsimile transmission and postage charges, if specified as reimbursable, will be reimbursed at actual cost.
All requests for reimbursement of expenses, if any are specified as reimbursable under this section, shall be accompanied by appropriate backup documentation and information.
Additional Compensation Terms
• AWS Connect subscription cost are included in the reimbursable expense section of Exhibit C.
• Subscription service is for up to 20,000 registered rental units. • Data migration from any existing systems is not included. If data migrations are required, we will need to schedule a meeting with our delivery team to understand the scope. • 3 integrations are included: customer’s identity management, ESRI GIS & Google mapping, and payment gateway/processing.
• Further Integrations with 3rd party software is possible but not included. If any more integrations are required, we will need to schedule a meeting with our delivery team to understand the scope.
• 3Di’s Engage based solution will provide cloud-based data archival, depending on which option the customer decides to purchase. If the subscription is active, CONSULTANT will continue the storage. The customer will be able to access the data in the system at any time. The customer will have the ability and right to download the data for other storage/usage options.
• Any cost related to sending text message notifications is not included.
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EXHIBIT C-1
SCHEDULE OF RATES
CITY and CONSULTANT may at any time mutually agree to add new position titles, rates, and adjust listed rates so long as the changes do not increase the not to exceed amount as noted in Section 4. CONSULTANT’s schedule of rates is as follows:
Resource Category Rate Range
Junior-Level Mid-Level Senior-Level
Program Manager $ 150.00 $ 175.00 $ 210.00 Project Manager $ 135.00 $ 160.00 $ 185.00 Project Coordinator $ 110.00 $ 135.00 $ 160.00 Business Analyst $ 100.00 $ 125.00 $ 145.00 Tech Lead/ Solution Architect $ 115.00 $ 155.00 $ 175.00 Infrastructure Architect $ 115.00 $ 145.00 $ 175.00 Database Architect $ 115.00 $ 145.00 $ 175.00 Database Designer/Developer $ 115.00 $ 145.00 $ 175.00 Database Administrator $ 105.00 $ 135.00 $ 175.00 Software Engineer $ 100.00 $ 125.00 $ 150.00 Network/Infrastructure Engineers $ 90.00 $ 110.00 $ 135.00 System Administrator $ 85.00 $ 100.00 $ 125.00 Cloud Systems Engineer $ 100.00 $ 125.00 $ 150.00 Cyber Security Engineer $ 150.00 $ 175.00 $ 210.00 Cloud Administrator $ 100.00 $ 120.00 $ 135.00 Cloud Architect $ 150.00 $ 175.00 $ 210.00 Cloud Security Specialist $ 150.00 $ 175.00 $ 210.00 Advanced Technology (ML, AI, AR, VR)
Engineer
$ 165.00 $ 185.00 $ 225.00 Microsoft Dot.Net Developers $ 95.00 $ 120.00 $ 135.00 Open Source/PHP Developers $ 95.00 $ 120.00 $ 135.00 Mobile Application Developers
(IOS/Android/Windows Mobile)
$ 100.00 $ 125.00 $ 150.00 Technical Writer $ 95.00 $ 120.00 $ 135.00 UX (User Experience) Architect $ 135.00 $ 155.00 $ 175.00 Graphic/UI Designer $ 90.00 $ 115.00 $ 130.00 HTML/JavaScript/CSS Developers $ 90.00 $ 115.00 $ 130.00 QA Lead/Manager $ 115.00 $ 135.00 $ 160.00 Quality Analyst $ 90.00 $ 115.00 $ 130.00
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EXHIBIT D
INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS
CONSULTANTS TO THE CITY OF PALO ALTO (CITY), AT THEIR SOLE EXPENSE, SHALL FOR THE TERM OF THE
CONTRACT OBTAIN AND MAINTAIN INSURANCE IN THE AMOUNTS FOR THE COVERAGE SPECIFIED BELOW, AFFORDED BY COMPANIES WITH AM BEST’S KEY RATING OF A-:VII, OR HIGHER, LICENSED OR AUTHORIZED TO TRANSACT INSURANCE BUSINESS IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA.
AWARD IS CONTINGENT ON COMPLIANCE WITH CITY’S INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS AS SPECIFIED HEREIN.
REQUIRED TYPE OF COVERAGE REQUIREMENT
MINIMUM LIMITS
EACH
OCCURRENCE AGGREGATE
YES
YES
WORKER’S COMPENSATION
EMPLOYER’S LIABILITY
STATUTORY
STATUTORY STATUTORY STATUTORY
YES
GENERAL LIABILITY, INCLUDING
PERSONAL INJURY, BROAD FORM
PROPERTY DAMAGE BLANKET
CONTRACTUAL, AND FIRE LEGAL
LIABILITY
BODILY INJURY
PROPERTY DAMAGE
BODILY INJURY & PROPERTY
DAMAGE COMBINED.
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
YES
AUTOMOBILE LIABILITY,
INCLUDING ALL OWNED, HIRED,
NON-OWNED
BODILY INJURY
- EACH PERSON
- EACH OCCURRENCE
PROPERTY DAMAGE
BODILY INJURY AND PROPERTY
DAMAGE, COMBINED
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
$1,000,000
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YES
TECHNOLOGY ERRORS AND
OMISSIONS LIABILITY COVERAGE
THE POLICY SHALL AT A MINIMUM
COVER PROFESSIONAL
MISCONDUCT OR LACK OF
REQUISITE SKILL FOR THE
PERFORMANCE OF SERVICES
DEFINED IN THE CONTRACT AND
SHALL ALSO PROVIDE COVERAGE
FOR THE FOLLOWING RISKS:
(i) NETWORK SECURITY
LIABILITYARISING FROM
UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, USE
OF , OR TAMPERING WITH
COMPUTERS OR COMPUTER
SYSTEMS, INCLUDING HACKERS,
EXTORTION, AND (ii) LIABILITY
ARISING FROM INTRODUCTION OF
ANY FORM OF MALICIOUS
SOFTWARE INCLUDING COMPUTER
VIRUSES INTO, OR OTHERWISE
CAUSING DAMAGE TO THE CITY’S
OR THIRD PERSON’S COMPUTER,
COMPUTER SYSTEM, NETWORK, OR
SIMILAR COMPUTER RELATED
PROPERTY AND THE DATA,
SOFTWARE AND PROGRAMS
THEREON.
CONTRACTOR SHALL MAINTAIN IN
FORCE DURING THE FULL LIFE OF
THE CONTRACT.
THE POLICY SHALL PROVIDE
COVERAGE FOR BREACH RESPONSE
COSTS AS WELL AS REGULATORY
FINES AND PENALTIES AS WELL AS
CREDIT MONITORING EXPENSES
WITH LIMITS SUFFICIENT TO
RESPOND TO THESE OBLIGATIONS
ALL DAMAGES $2,000,000 $2,000,000
YES
CYBER AND PRIVACY
INSURANCE. SUCH INSURANCE
SHALL INCLUDE COVERAGE FOR
LIABILITY ARISING FROM
COVERAGE IN AN AMOUNT
SUFFICIENT TO COVER THE FULL
REPLACEMENT VALUE OF
DAMAGE TO, ALTERATION OF,
LOSS OF, THEFT,
DISSEMINATION OR
DESTRUCTION OF ELECTRONIC
DATA AND/OR USE OF
CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION,
“PROPERTY” OF THE CITY OF
PALO ALTO THAT WILL BE IN
THE CARE, CUSTODY, OR
CONTROL OF VENDOR,
INFORMATION INCLUDING BUT
NOT LIMITED TO, BANK AND
CREDIT CARD ACCOUNT
INFORMATION OR PERSONAL
INFORMATION, SUCH AS NAME,
ADDRESS, SOCIAL SECURITY
NUMBERS, PROTECTED HEALTH
INFORMATION OR OTHER
PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION
INFORMATION, STORED OR
TRAMSITTED IN ELECTRONIC
FORM.
ALL DAMAGES $2,000,000 $2,000,000
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YES
PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY,
INCLUDING, ERRORS AND
OMISSIONS, MALPRACTICE (WHEN
APPLICABLE), AND NEGLIGENT
PERFORMANCE
ALL DAMAGES $1,000,000
YES
THE CITY OF PALO ALTO IS TO BE NAMED AS AN ADDITIONAL INSURED: CONSULTANT, AT ITS SOLE COST
AND EXPENSE, SHALL OBTAIN AND MAINTAIN, IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE TERM
OF ANY RESULTANT AGREEMENT, THE INSURANCE COVERAGE HEREIN DESCRIBED, INSURING NOT ONLY
CONSULTANT AND ITS SUBCONSULTANTS, IF ANY, BUT ALSO, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF WORKERS’
COMPENSATION, EMPLOYER’S LIABILITY AND PROFESSIONAL INSURANCE, NAMING AS ADDITIONAL INSUREDS CITY, ITS COUNCIL MEMBERS, OFFICERS, AGENTS, AND EMPLOYEES.
I. INSURANCE COVERAGE MUST INCLUDE:
A. A CONTRACTUAL LIABILITY ENDORSEMENT PROVI DING INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR CONSULTANT’S AGREEMENT TO INDEMNIFY CITY.
II. THE CONSULTANT MUST SUBMIT CERTIFICATES(S) OF INSURANCE EVIDENCING REQUIRED COVERAGE
III. ENDORSEMENT PROVISIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE INSURANCE AFFORDED TO ADDITIONAL INSUREDS:
A. PRIMARY COVERAGE
WITH RESPECT TO CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF THE OPERATIONS OF THE NAMED INSURED,
INSURANCE AS AFFORDED BY THIS POLICY IS PRIMARY AND IS NOT ADDITIONAL TO OR
CONTRIBUTING WITH ANY OTHER INSURANCE CARRIED BY OR FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE ADDITIONAL INSUREDS.
B. CROSS LIABILITY
THE NAMING OF MORE THAN ONE PERSON, FIRM, OR CORPORATION AS INSURE DS UNDER
THE POLICY SHALL NOT, FOR THAT REASON ALONE, EXTINGUISH ANY RIGHTS OF THE
INSURED AGAINST ANOTHER, BUT THIS ENDORSEMENT, AND THE NAMING OF MULTIPLE
INSUREDS, SHALL NOT INCREASE THE TOTAL LIABILITY OF THE COMPANY UNDER THIS POLICY.
C. NOTICE OF CANCELLATION
1. IF THE POLICY IS CANCELED BEFORE ITS EXPIRATION DATE FOR ANY REASON
OTHER THAN THE NON-PAYMENT OF PREMIUM, THE CONSULTANT SHALL PROVIDE CITY AT LEAST A THIRTY (30) DAY WRITTEN NOTICE BEFORE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF CANCELLATION.
2. IF THE POLICY IS CANCELED BEFORE ITS EXPIRATION DATE FOR THE NON-PAYMENT OF PREMIUM, THE CONSULTANT SHALL PROVIDE CITY AT LEAST A TEN (10) DAY WRITTEN NOTICE BEFORE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF CANCELLATION.
EVIDENCE OF INSURANCE AND OTHER RELATED NOTICES ARE REQUIRED TO BE FILED WITH THE CITY OF PALO ALTO TO THE FOLLOWING EMAIL: [email protected]
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EXHIBIT E
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EXHIBIT F
CYBERSECURITY TERMS AND CONDITIONS
In order to assure the privacy and security of the personal information of the City's customers and people who do business with the City, including, without limitation, vendors, utility customers, library patrons, and other individuals and companies, who are required to share such information with the City, as a condition of receiving services from the City or selling goods and services to the City, including, without limitation, the Software as a Service services provider (the "Consultant") and its subcontractors, if any, including, without limitation, any Information Technology ("IT") infrastructure services provider, shall design, install, provide, and maintain a secure IT environment, described below, while it renders and performs the Services and furnishes goods, if any, described in the Statement of Work, Exhibit B, to the extent any scope of work implicates the confidentiality and privacy of the personal information of the City's customers. The Consultant shall fulfi ll the data and information security requirements (the "Requirements") set forth in Part A below.
A "secure IT environment" includes (a) the IT infrastructure, by which the Services are provided to the City, including connection to the City's IT systems; (b) the Consultant's operations and maintenance processes needed to support the environment, including disaster recovery and business continuity planning; and (c) the IT infrastructure performance monitoring services to ensure a secure and reliable environment and service availability to the City. "IT infrastructure" refers to the integrated framework, including, without limitation, data centers, computers, and database management devices, upon which digital networks operate.
In the event that, after the E ffective Date, the Consultant reasonably determines that it cannot fulfill the Requirements, the Consultant shall promptly inform the City of its determination and submit, in writing, one or more alternate countermeasure options to the Requirements (the "Alternate Requirements" as set forth in Part B), which may be accepted or rejected in the reasonable satisfaction of the Information Security Manager (the "ISM").
Part A. Requirements:
The Consultant shall at all times during the term of any contract between the City and the Consultant:
(a) Appoint or designate an employee, preferably an executive officer, as the security liaison to the City with respect to the Services to be performed under this Agreement. (b) Comply with the City's Information Privacy Policy:
(c) Have adopted and implemented information security and privacy policies that are documented, are accessible to the City, and conform to ISO 27001/2 – Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) Standards. See the following:
http://www.iso.org/iso/home/store/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=42103 http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=5029 7 (d) Conduct routine data and information security compliance training of its personnel that is appropriate to their role.
(e) Develop and maintain detailed documentation of the IT infrastructure, including software versions and patch levels.
(f) Develop an independently verifiable process, consistent with industry standards, for performing professional and criminal background checks of its employees that (1) would permit verification of employees' personal identity and employment status, and (2) would DocuSign Envelope ID: AFCDE7EF-D2A6-431C-8FCE-DA2F7FC22081 Item 8
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enable the immediate denial of access to the City's confidential data and information by any of its employees who no longer would require access to that informa tion or who are terminated.
(g) Provide a list of IT infrastructure components in order to verify whether the Consultant has met or has failed to meet any objective terms and conditions. (h) Implement access accountability (identification and authentication) architecture and support role-based access control ("RBAC") and segregation of duties ("SoD") mechanisms for all personnel, systems, and Software used to provide the Services. "RBAC" refers to a computer systems security approach to restricting access only to authorized users. "SoD" is an approach that would require more than one individual to complete a security task in order to promote t he detection and prevention of fraud and errors.
(i) Assist the City in undertaking annually an assessment to assure that: (1) all elements of the Services' environment design and deployment are known to the City, and (2) it has implemented measures in accor dance with industry best practices applicable to secure coding and secure IT architecture.
(j) Provide and maintain secure intersystem communication paths that would ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the City's information. (k) Deploy and maintain IT system upgrades, patches and configurations conforming to current patch and/or release levels by not later than one (1) week after its date of release.
Emergency security patches must be installed within 24 hours after its date of release. (l) Provide for the timely detection of, response to, and the reporting of security incidents, including on-going incident monitoring with logging.
(m) Notify the City within one (1) hour of detecting a security incident that results in the unauthorized access to or the misuse of the City's confidential data and information. (n) Inform the City that any third party service provider(s) meet(s) all of the Requirements. (o) Perform security self-audits on a regular basis and not less frequently than on a quarterly basis, and provide the required summary reports of those self -audits to the ISM on the annual anniversary date or any other date agreed to by the Parties. (p) Accommodate, as practicable, and upon reasonable prior notice by the City, the City's performance of random site security audits at the Consultant's site(s), including the site(s) of a third-party service provider(s), as applicable. The scope of these audits will extend to the Consultant's and its third-party service provider(s)' awareness of security policies and practices, systems configurations, access authentication and authorization, and incident detection and response.
(q) Cooperate with the City to ensure that to the extent required by applicable laws, rules and regulations, and the Confidential Information will be accessible only by the Consultant and any authorized third-party service provider's personnel. (r) Perform regular, reliable secured backups of all data needed to maximize the availability of the Services. Adequately encrypt the City of Palo Alto's data, during the operational process, hosted at rest, and the backup stage at the Vendors' environment (including Vendor's contracting organization's environment).
(s) Maintain records relating to the Services for a period of three (3) years after the expiration or earlier termination of this Agreement and in a mutually agreeable storage medium.
Within thirty (30) days after the effective date of expiration or earlier termination of this Agreement, all of those records relating to the performance of the Services shall be provided to the ISM.
(t) Maintain the Confidential Information in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local data and information privacy laws, rules, and regulations. (u) Encrypt the Confidential Information before delivering the same by electronic mail to the City and or any authorized recipient.
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(v) Provide Network Layer IP filtering services to allow access only from the City of Palo Alto's IP address to the Vendor environment (primarily hosted for the City of Palo Alto). (w) Offer a robust disaster recovery and business continuity (DR -BCP) solutions to the City for the systems and services the Vendor provides to the City. (x) Provide and support Single Sign-on (SSO) and Multifactor Authentication (MFA) solutions for authentication and authorization services from the "City's environment to the Vendor's environment," and Vendor's environment to the Vendor's cloud services/hosted environment." The Vendor shall allow two employees of the City to have superuser and super-admin access to the Vendor's IT environment, and a cloud- hosted IT environment belongs to the City.
(y) Unless otherwise addressed in the Agreement, shall not hold the City liable for any direct, indirect or punitive damages whatsoever including, without limitation, damages for loss of use, data or profits, arising out of or in any way connected with the City's IT environment, including, without limitation, IT infrastructure communications. (z) The Vendor must provide evidence of valid cyber liability insurance policy per the City’s EXHIBIT “D” INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS.
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City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: Planning and Development Services
Meeting Date: May 13, 2024
Report #:2404-2882
TITLE
CONSENT/Legislative: Amendments to Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC) Chapter 2.27, Historic Resources Board, Section 2.27.010 to Reduce Required Members from Seven to Five, Reduce the Required Number of Professionals from Three to Two, and Expand the Professional Fields Consistent with Certified Local Government (CLG) Requirements for Historic Resources Boards; and to PAMC Section 2.27.030 (a) and (b) to Reduce Regular Meetings to Once per Month and Reduce the Size of a Local Quorum to Three Members.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council modify PAMC Sections 2.27.010 and 2.27.030 of the PAMC Chapter 2.27, Historic Resources Board to minimally meet CLG requirements. The goal is to:
1. Reduce the requirement to five members forming the City’s Historic Resources Board (HRB);
2. Reduce the criteria requiring three subject matter professionals from three to two members;
3. Broaden the categories of professions to match the Certified Local Government (CLG), requirements for historic commissions;
4. Remove the code requirement for one member to be an owner/occupant of a category 1 or 2 historic structure, or of a structure in a historic district;
5. Reduce the number of regular meetings from twice per month to once per month and cite a minimum four meetings to be held per year as required for CLG programs; and,
6. Reduce the size of an HRB quorum to three members present in Palo Alto.
BACKGROUND
The HRB’s goals and purposes (purview) are set in Palo Alto Municipal Code Chapter 2.27 Historic Resources Board, Section 2.27.040 Duties. These duties are to:
a) Render advice and guidance to a property owner upon the owner's application for alteration of any historic single-family or duplex building in the downtown area and any such building designated as significant elsewhere in the City Item 9
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b) Inform the architectural review board of the historical and/or architectural significance of historic commercial and multiple-family structures in the downtown area and any such buildings designated as significant elsewhere in the City that are under review by the Architectural Review Board. Submit recommendations to the Architectural Review Board regarding proposed exterior alterations of such historic structures c) Recommend to the council the designation of additional buildings and districts as historic. Research available information and add historical information to the inventory sheets of historic structures/sites. This inventory is maintained in the department of planning and development services
d) Perform such other functions as may be delegated from time to time to the Historic Resources Board by the City Council
The City's historic preservation program includes the implementation of the 2017-2030 Comprehensive Plan historic preservation policies, which include:
•Policy L7.2 (Preparation of historic evaluations to determine eligibility for the California Register of Historical Resources)
•Policy L7.1.1 (Recommend eligible resources to the local inventory) •Policy L7.1.2 (Reassess the Historic Preservation Ordinance) PAMC Sections 2.27.010 and 2.27.030
The Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC) Chapter 2.27, Historic Resources Board, Section 2.27.010 establishes a seven-member board including three professionals in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, building design or other design professionals. Members are not required to reside in Palo Alto, but with the current seven-member requirement, it is necessary for a quorum of five members to be present in Palo Alto for the HRB meetings. The current code states:
2.27.010 Historic Resources Board. The Historic Resources Board shall be composed of seven members appointed by the city council and serving without pay. Members shall have demonstrated interest in and knowledge of history, architecture or historic preservation. One member shall be an owner/occupant of a category 1 or 2 historic structure, or of a structure in a historic district; three members shall be architects, landscape architects, building designers or other design professionals and at least one member shall possess academic education or practical experience in history or a related field. The Palo Alto Historic Association shall be given notice of vacancies on the board and shall be encouraged to have its members submit applications.
The HRB has been holding at least 12 meetings each year for the past several years, as documented in annual work plans. The code states that two meetings per month will be held ‘or at the pleasure of the chairperson’. There is an interest in reducing these meetings to once per month, which may help to encourage candidates to apply for the position. The code states:
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2.27.030 Organization. (a) The Board shall hold meetings twice monthly or at the pleasure of the chairperson and shall establish such rules as may be appropriate and necessary for the orderly conduct of its business. The Board shall elect a chairperson and a vice chairperson from its membership who shall serve in such capacity for terms of one year each, or until a successor is elected. The chairperson shall preside over meetings of the board, and in the absence or disability of the chairperson, the vice chairperson shall perform the duties of the chairperson. (b) Four members shall constitute a quorum and decisions of the board shall be determined by majority vote of those members present at the meeting. Action minutes shall be kept by the Board.
Challenges for Recruitment
The City Clerk's office has often needed to pursue multiple recruitments for HRB positions and the HRB recently experienced members who had served multiple terms who then ‘termed out’.
The most recent recruitment for a seven-member HRB resulted in only one candidate application, from an incumbent member, for four open positions.
There are currently three HRB members whose terms did not end March 31, 2024. Four members are currently serving past their terms that ended March 31, 2024. Three of the four are now serving into the six-month timeframe prescribed in the City’s rules, until Council appoints their successors. Under the current code, the next recruitment would need to find two additional design professionals and another member, given the one eligible incumbent, an architect, has applied.
With hybrid meetings enabling remote participation by board members, it can still be difficult to ensure a quorum of five members are present in Palo Alto to hold these meetings. If the code were amended to reduce membership to five members and two professionals with a broadened list of professions, the recruitment may yield one more candidate needed for a five-person board. Reducing the board to seven members would require a quorum of three members within Palo Alto, and modification to Section 2.27.030. Staff would continue to work with members’ schedules to secure meeting dates allowing all members to attend.
Certified Local Government Board Requirements
The Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) has rules1 for minimum number of members serving on a historic commission for a CLG, the minimum number of professionals, and the range of professions considered eligible to serve the professional positions. CLG procedures require local commissions to meet these requirements:
•A minimum of five individuals with all members having demonstrated interest, competence, or knowledge in historic preservation.
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•At least two members are encouraged to be appointed from among professionals in the disciplines of history, architecture, architectural history, planning, pre-historic and historic archeology, folklore, cultural anthropology, curation, conservation, and landscape architecture or related disciplines, such as urban planning, American studies, American civilization, or cultural geography, to the extent that such professionals are available in the community.
•Commission membership may also include lay members who have demonstrated special interests, competence, experience, or knowledge in historic preservation.
Certified Local Government Benefits
The City of Palo Alto is a Certified Local Government (CLG). Participation as a CLG2 allows the City to apply for and receive federal grants annually to assist with the City’s historic preservation program. The CLG program is:
•To encourage the direct participation of local governments in the identification, evaluation, registration, and preservation of historic properties within their jurisdictions and promote the integration of local preservation interests and concerns into local planning and decision-making processes.
•A partnership with local governments, the State Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) and the National Parks Service (NPS), which is responsible for administering the National Historic Preservation Program. CLG Responsibilities include:
oEnforce appropriate state and local laws and regulations for the designation and protection of historic properties,
oEstablish an historic preservation review commission by local ordinance, oMaintain a system for the survey and inventory of historic properties, oProvide for public participation in the local preservation program, and oSatisfactorily perform responsibilities delegated to it by the state.
The NPS and OHP do not dictate the content of historic preservation plans or ordinances, nor is their approval needed prior to the selection and appointment of individual local preservation commissioners by local government officials. In no way is the autonomy of a local government decreased by being a CLG. However, the OHP may decertify a CLG if it establishes policies or adopts practices that violate the intent of the National Historic Preservation Act.
The OHP reviews the structure and processes of local preservation programs and may comment on or make suggestions about strategies a local government can use to accomplish its goals and objectives. Beyond that, neither the NPS nor OHP have any regulatory authority over local governments.
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FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
There is no significant cost reduction in publishing and mailing packets for five members instead of seven. Resources would be saved by reducing recruitments to fill five HRB seats.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
During March 28 and April 11 HRB meetings, staff announced the potential for reduction of the HRB, shared potential code language to modify the number of professionals and professions, and discussed reducing regular meetings. The HRB indicated support for all.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This ordinance is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to CEQA Guideline Section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Ordinance modifying PAMC Chapter 2.27 Sections 2.27.010 and 2.27.030 APPROVED BY:
Jonathan Lait, Planning and Development Services Director Item 9
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Ordinance of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Amending Chapter 2.27 (Historic Resources Board) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC) to Reduce the Number of Historic Resources Board Members from Seven to Five
SECTION 1. Findings and Declarations.
A. The City of Palo Alto is a Certified Local Government (CLG) with obligations to maintain a historic resources board of at least five members with at least two members in professions set forth by the State Office of Historic Preservation.
B. Recent recruitment for the Historic Resources Board have not yielded sufficient candidates to fill all open seats or sufficient open seats to maintain a four-member quorum of the Board.
SECTION 2. Section 2.27.010 (Historic Resources Board) of Chapter 2.27 (Historic Resources Board) of Title 2 (Administrative Code) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC) is amended to read as follows (additions underlined and deletions struck-through):
2.27.010 Historic Resources Board.
The Historic Resources Board shall be composed of seven five members appointed by the city council and serving without pay. Members shall have demonstrated interest in and knowledge of history, architecture, or historic preservation. One member shall be an owner/occupant of a category 1 or 2 historic structure, or of a structure in a historic district; three Two members shall be professionals in the disciplines of architecture, architectural history, planning, landscape architecture, or related disciplines, or pre-historic and historic archeology, folklore, cultural anthropology, curation, or conservation architects, landscape architects, building designers or other design professionals and at least one member shall possess academic education or practical experience in history or a related field such as American studies, American civilization, or cultural geography. The Palo Alto Historical Association shall be given notice of vacancies on the board and shall be encouraged to have its members submit applications.
SECTION 3. Section 2.27.030 (Organization) of Chapter 2.27 (Historic Resources Board) of Title 2 (Administrative Code) of the Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC) is amended to read as follows (additions underlined and deletions struck-through):
2.27.030 Organization.
(a) The Board shall hold meetings twice monthly or at the pleasure of the chairperson, but no fewer than four meetings per year.
(b) and The Board shall establish such rules as may be appropriate and necessary for the orderly conduct of its business, consistent with City Council guidelines for boards and commissions.
(c) The Board shall elect a chairperson and a vice chairperson from its membership who shall serve in such capacity for terms of one year each, or until a successor is elected. The Item 9
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chairperson shall preside over meetings of the board, and in the absence or disability of the chairperson, the vice chairperson shall perform the duties of the chairperson. (bd) Four Three members shall constitute a quorum and decisions of the board shall be determined by majority vote of those members present at the meeting. Action minutes shall be kept by the Board.
SECTION 4. Any provision of the Palo Alto Municipal Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 5. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 6. The Council finds that the adoption of this ordinance is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to CEQA Guideline Section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment.
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SECTION 7. This ordinance shall be effective on the thirty-first date after the date of its adoption.
INTRODUCED:
PASSED:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTENTIONS:
NOT PARTICIPATING:
ATTEST:
____________________________ ____________________________ City Clerk Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED:
____________________________ ____________________________ Assistant City Attorney City Manager
____________________________
Director of Planning & Development
Services
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City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: CONSENT CALENDAR
Lead Department: Public Works
Meeting Date: May 13, 2024
Report #:2405-2972
TITLE
Removal of Committee Member from the Storm Water Management Oversight Committee; CEQA Status – Not a Project
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council remove committee member Bob Wenzlau from the Storm Water Management Oversight Committee.
BACKGROUND/ANALYSIS
Council appointed Bob Wenzlau to the Storm Water Management Oversight Committee on May 10, 20211, with a four-year term ending May 31, 2025. Staff recommends that Bob Wenzlau be removed from the Storm Water Management Oversight Committee given that staff has lost contact with Mr. Wenzlau.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact from this action.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Council action on this item is not a project as defined by CEQA because an appointment to or removal from an advisory committee is a continuing administrative activity. CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(2).
APPROVED BY:
Brad Eggleston, Director Public Works/City Engineer
1 City Council, May 10, 2021; Agenda Item #1; SR# 12279 https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas-minutes-reports/reports/city-manager-reports- cmrs/year-archive/2021/id-12279.pdf
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City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: ACTION ITEMS
Lead Department: Planning and Development Services
Meeting Date: May 13, 2024
Report #:2403-2760
TITLE
2501 Embarcadero Way [22PLN-00367]: Request for Council Approval of a Site and Design Application to Allow the Construction of a Local Advanced Water Purification System at the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP). A Design Enhancement Exception to Allow for a Taller Screening Wall is Also Requested. Environmental Assessment: Council Previously Adopted an Addendum to the 2015 Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the City of Palo Alto Recycled Water Project. Zone District: PF (D) (Public Facility with Site and Design Combining District).
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that Council take the following action(s):
1. Consider the previously adopted addendum to the City of Palo Alto Recycled Water Project EIR, provided in Attachment H.
2. Approve the draft Record of Land Use Action (RLUA) approving the request for Site and Design Review as well as the requested Design Enhancement Exception based on findings and subject to conditions of approval.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The application is a request for Site and Design Review for a proposed local advanced water purification system (AWPS). The project improves recycled water quality by reducing its average concentration of total dissolved solids (TDS) through the blending of reverse osmosis permeate with tertiary-treated recycled water. The project also includes a request for a Design Enhancement Exception to allow for a solid wall to provide screening and to serve as a sound barrier.
The project responds to Council’s expressed goal, as set forth in the Recycled Water Salinity Reduction Policy adopted in 2010, to reduce the TDS level of recycled water to 600 parts per million. It also responds to mitigation measure HYD-3d set forth in the corresponding Environmental Impact Report adopted in 2015, which requires the City to consider treatment options, such as reverse osmosis, to reduce the salinity of its recycled water and thus make its recycled water useable for irrigation of salt-sensitive species.
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In 2019, Council approved an agreement with Valley Water to further project design; these plans are presented to Council in this report for approval of this planning entitlement. A location map for the proposed AWPS is included in Attachment A. A detailed project description is provided in Attachment G.
BACKGROUND
Following adoption of the Recycled Water Salinity EIR, Council directed staff to coordinate with Valley Water and Mountain View to prepare a feasibility study and preliminary design report for a local advanced water purification system (AWPS), which was completed in 2017. The report was used as the basis for preparing preliminary plans for the proposed project. In 2019 the City Council approved an agreement with Valley Water to advance recycled water projects in the region; one of them is the Local AWPS. Staff proceeded with the design of the project in 2021. That design is reflected in the proposed project plans.
Previous Council Actions
In September 2015, the City of Palo Alto City Council certified an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Palo Alto Recycled Water Project (SCH #2011062037). The EIR included Mitigation Measure HYD-3d, which requires the City to consider treatment options, such as reverse osmosis, to reduce the salinity of its recycled water and thus making its recycled water useable for irrigation of salt-sensitive species. Since that time, staff has presented updates and components of this project to Council as follows:
•April 4, 2016, staff provided Council with an update on the recycled water EIR and collaboration work with Valley Water and Mountain View to expand the program and reduce TDS (CMR #6691);
•November 18, 2019, City Council approved Valley Water Agreement to move forward with the design of the Local AWPS. The EIR Addendum for the proposed AWPS was also adopted at this hearing (CMR #10627);
•March 8, 2021, Council approved a design contract for the Local AWPS (CMR #11782);
•September 12, 2022, City Council held a study session to hear an update on, and discuss, the proposed project (CMR # 14650);
•On September 19, 2023, the project was discussed at the Finance Committee with a recommendation to move forward with a Council recommendation (CMR#2305-1404); and
•October 16, 2023, Council approved Staff to move forward with loan agreement and directed Staff to secure financing and solicit bids for a construction contract (CMR #2308-1863).
Parks and Recreation Commission
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Parks and Recreation Commission (PRC) held two study sessions on May 24, 2022 and December 13, 2022 to provide feedback on the project. PRC feedback focused on the landscaping component, path alignment and external screening. Commissioners were generally supportive of the proposed design at the December study session.
Planning and Transportation Commission
In accordance with the Site and Design Review process, this project was previously reviewed by the PTC. On February 28, 2024, the PTC recommended approval of the proposed project to Council (6-0; Templeton recused), making the following motion:
Recommend approval of the project, including the design enhancement exception, to City Council based on the findings and subject to conditions and asking staff to:
•Investigate utilizing 2,700 kelvin lighting versus the 4,000-kelvin lighting currently proposed; and
•Consider 100% native planting
The landscaping plan has been refined to reflect all native plantings except for the climbing vines for the wall, for which a native alternative was not available. Staff investigated reducing the lighting color temperature. Ultimately, the recommendations to reduce the color temperature of the proposed safety lighting was not incorporated, as detailed discussed further in the analysis section of this report.
Architectural Review Board
On November 2, 2023, the Architectural Review Board (ARB) held a hearing to provide feedback on the proposed project design. The project applicant addressed most of the ARB comments and returned to the ARB on April 4, 2024. A summary of design refinements to address ARB comments is included in the April 4, 2024 staff report. The ARB recommended approval of the proposed project with the following conditions:
•The color temperature of the lighting be changed to 3,000 kelvins; •A screen be added to the northeast, northwest and southwest side of the building so that the bottom of the screen is no greater than 20 feet above finished floor; •Add a condition of approval related to requirements for motion sensors to reduce lighting on site and to set a maximum time limit for these motion sensors such that lights are only on at night as necessary for operational and safety needs; •Extend the sound wall to meet the existing chain link fence; •Explore the potential relocation of reverse osmosis permeate tank to move toward the new proposed structure and/or to move towards the future headworks building; and •That tree plantings be increased on the reverse osmosis permeate tank side of the soundwall.
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The applicant has explored these conditions and implemented them where feasible, as discussed further in the analysis. In particular, the proposed screening has been added, a condition of approval has been added for motion sensors, the sound wall has been extended, and additional trees are shown on the site plan. Relocation of the reverse osmosis permeate tank was explored, but ultimately the location was not revised. The recommended modifications to lighting color temperature were also not made. Those are discussed further below in the analysis.
Project Description
A complete project description is included in Attachment G. In summary, the project consists of several structures and components, including:
•A reverse osmosis permeate storage tank.
•a small prefabricated electric building; and
•a pre-engineered open-air building.
The circular storage tank would be 50 feet in diameter with a sidewall height of 30 feet and a capacity of 350,000 gallons. It would be erected on a reinforced concrete mat type foundation supported by deep pile foundation. The open-air building covers a membrane filtration system, chemical storage/feed system components, and other ancillary components essential to the purification system. The facility would have a building footprint of approximately 15,544 square feet. The open-air building will be constructed over a concrete deck in order to raise the equipment up out of the flood zone per FEMA requirements. The project will also include a blending station located in the basement of the RWQCP administration building and installation of yard piping inside the RWQCP. The project will be located on the northwest side of the RWQCP, abutting Embarcadero Road, partially outside the existing fence line but within the defined boundaries of the plant. The project also includes new landscaping, a new concrete screening wall, and revisions to the chain link fence surrounding the RWQCP to incorporate the area of the new AWPS (which would be inside the screening wall).
Requested Entitlements, Findings and Purview
The applicant requests the following discretionary application:
•Site and Design Review: The process for evaluating this type of application is set forth in PAMC 18.30(G). Site and Design applications are reviewed by the PTC and ARB, and recommendations are forward to the City Council for final action. Site and Design projects are evaluated against specific findings that include both the ARB findings (ARB purview) and Site and design findings (PTC purview). All findings must be made in the affirmative to approve the project. Failure to make any one of the findings requires project redesign or denial. Findings for Council to approve this site and design application are provided in Attachment B.
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•Design Enhancement Exception (DEE): The process for evaluating this type of application is set forth in PAMC 18.76.050. DEE applications are reviewed by staff and/or the Architectural Review Board in accordance with PAMC 18.77.070 and recommendations are forwarded to the Director of Planning and Development Services for final action (or Council when other Council approvals are required). DEE projects are evaluated against specific findings. All findings must be made in the affirmative to approve the project. Failure to make any one of the findings requires project redesign or denial. Findings for approval of the proposed DEE are provided in Attachment B.
ANALYSIS
Staff has evaluated the proposed project and finds the project consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordinance and other applicable goals and policies of the City.
There were additional recommendations from the PTC and ARB to explore and/or implement with respect to modifications to lighting and relocation of the reverse osmosis tank that were not incorporated into the revised project design. In these instances, memorandums explaining the exploration process and why these were not ultimately incorporated into the design have been provided for Council’s consideration.
Response to ARB and PTC Recommendations
As discussed above, several of the recommendations from the ARB, PTC, as well as early feedback from the PRC were incorporated into the project design. These include the addition of trees, reduced removal of trees, revisions to the landscape design, and other improvements to the color and design of the structures. However, there were two recommendations that were not incorporated into the design related to lighting and relocation of the reverse osmosis tank.
Color Temperature of Lighting
Both the PTC and the ARB asked the Public Works Department’s RWQCP to explore reducing the color temperature of the lighting for the proposed facility. In earlier design iterations Public Works staff had reduced the color temperature from 5,000 kelvins, which is the Illumination Engineering Society’s recommendation for industrial facilities to 4,000 kelvins. The City’s consultant design engineer indicated that 4,000-kelvins was the warmest temperature recommended for this facility while still ensuring worker safety. The PTC and ARB asked for the color temperature to be further reduced to between 2700 and 3000 kelvins. The City consulted experts to determine whether the design could be revised to reflect these recommendations.
Ultimately, the recommendations to reduce the temperature of the proposed safety lighting further were not incorporated into the design, consistent with the engineer’s recommendations, which had concluded that the proposed reduction to color temperature would not provide sufficient safety for workers. A summary of the reasoning and the engineer’s formal recommendation is included in Attachment D.
Nevertheless, the City added several features to reduce lighting while maintaining worker safety:
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1. All lighting is reduced to the minimum necessary, under the canopy and equipment area where workers need access to perform necessary operation and maintenance activities.
2. Light is shielded downward under the canopy to target the equipment area. The selected lighting provides a high level of light under the canopy but avoids light dispersion through shielding. As noted above, additional screening was added to better screen the lighting in addition to shielding views of the equipment from the public right- of-way.
3. The lighting color temperature was reduced from 5,000 kelvins to 4,000 kelvins
4. The design incorporates provisions for timers, motion sensors, and photocells.
Staff recommends allowing the color temperature lighting be 4,000 kelvins due to concerns for worker safety and based on the other provisions provided that effectively reduce light spillover and reduce nighttime lighting.
Relocation of the Reverse Osmosis Tank
The memorandum in Attachment E explains the options that were explored for relocating the reverse osmosis tank to be further from Embarcadero Road and/or closer to the existing tank.
Ultimately, the analysis determined that modifications would not be feasible because the project was designed to construct the reverse osmosis tank as far as feasible from the public right-of-way already while maintaining the necessary clearances for delivery and maintenance access.
Consistent with this memorandum, staff would not recommend adding further conditions that require modifications to the location of the reverse osmosis tank. As noted above, modifications to improve tree planting in front of the reverse osmosis tank were made, consistent with the ARB’s recommendations.
Consistency with the Comprehensive Plan, Area Plans, and Guidelines The Comprehensive Plan includes Goals, Policies, and Programs that guide the physical form of the City. The Comprehensive Plan provides the basis for the City’s development regulations and is used by City staff to regulate building and development and make recommendations on projects. Further, ARB Finding No. 1 requires that the design be consistent and compatible with applicable elements of the Palo Alto Comprehensive Plan. The Comprehensive Plan land use designation for the project site is major Institution/Special Facility which includes governmental and community service uses and lands that are publicly owned such as the subject property.
The proposed AWPS within the area of the RWQCP boundaries is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan Land Use. On balance, the project is consistent with the goals of the Comprehensive Plan, including Policy N-4.17 of the Natural Element, which states “Improve source control, treatment, and distribution of recycled water, including reducing the salinity of recycled water, to maximize its use.”
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Baylands Design Guidelines
The project is located within the boundaries of the Baylands Nature Preserve. However, because it is within the RWQCP boundaries, it is not located on land that is dedicated as parkland. Nevertheless, the project is subject to the Baylands Design Guidelines. The project is consistent with the guidelines to the extent that they are applicable.
Based on ARB feedback, the project was revised to improve consistency with the guidelines. In particular, the facility’s proposed red roof was modified to match the standard Sandy Grey color that is recommended in the design guidelines, to comply with the guideline’s “muted, natural colors” requirement. The plans show the general location of interactive signage, but the details of the signage will be reviewed separately from the current application. Any future signage will be required to comply with the Baylands Design Guidelines.
Airport Influence Area
The project is located within the Airport Influence Area. Specifically, the Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Palo Alto Airport shows that the project area, and all of the RWQCP, is within the Turning Safety Zone. In the Turning Safety Zone, typically lower density uses are encouraged. Hazardous materials uses such as gas stations are discouraged. The project includes some hazardous materials in relatively small quantities for the treatment of water, similar to the existing RWQCP. These materials are not combustible and do not pose a concern within the Turning Safety Zone. The project does not conflict with any height restrictions in the plan. Further, as detailed in the EIR addendum in Attachment H, the RWQCP is considered an existing facility.
Staff contacted County Airports on January 5, 2024 to confirm whether a hearing before the County Airport Land Use Commission was required for the proposed project. County staff responded on January 8, 2024 confirming that a hearing before the ALUC was not required for the proposed project, stating that only amendments to the General Plan, a Specific Plan or zoning or building regulations need to be referred to the ALUC, not individual development projects.
Zoning Code Compliance
The project is located within the Public Facilities (PF) Zone District as well as the Site and Design (D) Review combining district. The proposed facilities for the treatment of recycled water is considered a public facility and is an appropriate use within the PF zone district and especially within the boundaries of the existing Regional Water Quality Control Plant. Because the project includes a new building within the Site and Design Review Combining District, Site and Design review is required. A detailed review of the proposed project’s consistency with applicable zoning standards is provided in Attachment C. The project is consistent with the PF Zone District and D Combining District requirements or is otherwise requesting to deviate from the code in a manner that is consistent with the zoning ordinance. More specifically, a Design Enhancement Item 11
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Exception is requested to allow for an approximately 10-foot-tall wall where an 8-foot-tall wall is allowed in accordance with Chapter 16.24 of the code. Findings for the approval of both applications are included in the Draft RLUA in Attachment B.
Tree Ordinance Compliance
The proposed project includes the removal of 35 trees, 12 of which are protected due to their size. These trees are varying species of Eucalyptus, Myoporum laetum, and Casuarina glauca trees which are primarily non-native, invasive species. All of these are within the proposed project footprint. At the Parks and Recreation Commission’s request, the project was refined in its early design phases (prior to formal application submittal) to prioritize retention of some of the larger trees along the Embarcadero frontage. The project refinements retained eleven additional trees. However, five of those trees have since died/fallen in storms. The project includes planting 36 trees along the project frontage, along with other large and small shrubs, to provide an attractive landscape buffer between the pedestrian pathway and the RWQCP as well as between the pedestrian path and Embarcadero Road.
Subdivision Map Compliance
The existing property lines for the site do not follow the existing boundaries of the RWQCP.
Therefore, under existing conditions, the new facility would be constructed over an existing property line. A certificate of compliance is required to revise the boundary between the two City parcels (APN 008-05-005; and APN 008-06-001). The new proposed boundary is shown in the project plans. Recordation of the certificate of compliance is required as a condition of approval prior to building permit issuance.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
Funding for the Local Salt Removal Facility is projected to come from several sources. Prior to allocation of the $63.6 million total project cost for the Preliminary Finance Plan, external funding sources were subtracted from the total to reduce the overall cost to each agency.
External funding sources include the $16.3 million from the 2019 Agreement with Valley Water and a $12.9 million US Bureau of Reclamation grant, leaving a remaining funding requirement of $34.7 million which will be covered by Mountain View. Palo Alto currently has no plans to expand its existing recycled water system and Palo Alto does not currently have a customer base requesting this higher quality recycled water. Therefore, Palo Alto and Mountain View staff agreed that Mountain View would pay the remainder of the capital costs associated with this project. Mountain View staff recommended this project and Mountain View’s City Council approved it on June 27, 2023. On September 19, 2023 the finance committee recommended that Council approve the Financing Plan for the project and authorize staff to amend the Recycled Water Agreement with the City of Mountain View. Staff will return to Council for approval of an amendment with Mountain View. Council approved the financing plan on October 16, 2023.
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STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
The Palo Alto Municipal Code requires notice of this public hearing be published in a local paper and mailed to owners and occupants of property within 600 feet of the subject property at least ten days in advance. Notice of a public hearing for this project was published in the Daily Post on May 1, 2024, which is 12 days in advance of the meeting. Postcard mailing occurred on April 30, 2024, which is 13 days in advance of the meeting.
City Outreach and Coordination
The City’s Public Works, Environmental Services Division has worked diligently on this project since Council’s adoption of the EIR for the Recycled Water Program. In addition to the study sessions with Council and the PRC, as noted above, they held the following meetings to obtain stakeholder feedback throughout the process.
•Kickoff meeting for the feasibility study was held June 2016 with Mountain View and Valley Water. The City, in coordination with Valley Water and Mountain View, held workshops at 50% completion (September 2016), 80% completion (December 2016), and 95% completion (January 2017).
•Preliminary Design workshop with Mountain View and Valley Water (October 2017) •Quarterly Joint Recycled Water Meetings with Palo Alto Council Members, Mountain View Council Members and Valley Water Board Members
•Palo Alto hosted a community meeting on October 23, 2019 to inform the community and answer questions about the components of the funding Agreement between Palo Alto, Valley Water, and Mountain View, including partial funding for the AWPS/Local Plant. Members of the public approached staff during break-out sessions to get direct answers to questions. Most comments were focused on the Agreement terms and were overall supportive of the AWPS facility. With respect to Palo Alto itself, the open meetings on the budget process serve as the main vehicle for engaging the community on both new projects such as this and associated rate impacts. EIR Addendum was covered in this session.
•There was a 30% design workshop in December 2021, a 60% design workshop in January 2022, and a 90% design workshop in November 2022. Valley Water and Mountain View staff attended these workshops
•September 19, 2023 –There was a Finance Committee meeting to discuss the Local AWPS project. The Finance Committee approved and recommended moving forward.
Public Comments
At the PTC hearing on February 28, 2024, there was a comment from one member of the public who expressed concerns regarding lighting and its impacts on avian species as well as the color of the trees. The commented requested that the color temperature of the lighting be reduced to align more with the recommended color temperature recommended by Dark Sky International. At the ARB hearing on April 4, 2024, a representative of the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter identified concerns about the proposed project with respect to lighting. The Item 11
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same commenter, in coordination with the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society, also submitted a letter in response to the proposed project (Attachment F).
However, staff met with Midpeninsula Open Space to discuss the project on November 20, 2023. Midpeninsula Open Space provided the following key comments on the project:
•Consider egrets and herons in your planning. These nesting birds tend to return to the same nests year after year so the loss of trees with these nests can be impactful beyond the direct impact during nesting season if their nests are present in the trees planned for removal.
•Consider the trees being selected and whether any trees would serve as perching areas for raptors that may impact adjacent wetland areas.
•Consider additional measures to better protect from spread of invasive species, especially species such as eucalyptus, when removing. Protect from plant pathogens (e.g. those that cause sudden oak tree death).
•Make sure that the plant species being planted in the landscaping are appropriate for the environment in the Baylands
The trees proposed for removal do not have any egret or heron nests that these species may return to. In clarifying the location of the proposed tree plantings, staff and Midpeninsula open space agreed that trees in this location would not pose a concern for raptor predation.
Midpeninsula Open Space has agreed to send a list of standard best management practices to protect from the spread of invasive species that the City can review and incorporate as applicable into the building permit. The planting plan was designed to include native, low water use species appropriate for planting in the baylands. The planting plan is shown on sheet L-00- 200 and L-00-201 of the plans.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The subject project has been assessed in accordance with the authority and criteria contained in the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the State CEQA Guidelines, and the environmental regulations of the City. In 2015 Council adopted an EIR for the City of Palo Alto Recycled Water Project. The EIR included mitigation Measure MM HYD-3d, which required the City to consider treatment options, such as reverse osmosis, to reduce the salinity of its recycled water and thus make its recycled water useable for irrigation of salt-sensitive species.
On November 18, 2019, in taking discretionary actions to further pursue this project, Council adopted an EIR addendum that included more site-specific details associated with the proposed development. The adopted CEQA addendum is included in Attachment H.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: Location Map
Attachment B: Draft Record of Land Use Action
Attachment C: Zoning Comparison Table
Attachment D: Lighting Memorandum
Attachment E: Reverse Osmosis Tank Relocation Memorandum Item 11
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Attachment F: Applicant’s Project Description
Attachment G: Public Comment
Attachment H: Project Plans and CEQA Addendum
APPROVED BY:
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ACTION NO. 2024-
RECORD OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALO ALTO LAND USE ACTION FOR 2501 EMBARCADERO WAY: SITE AND DESIGN REVIEW AND DESIGN ENHANCEMENT EXCEPTION (22PLN-00367)
On __________2024, the City Council of the City of Palo Alto approved a Site and Design Review and Design Enhancement Exception (DEE) Application to Allow the Construction of a Local Advanced Water Purification System at the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP). The Proposed Project Includes the Construction and Operation of a Membrane Filtration Recycled Water Facility and a Permeate Storage Tank at the City’s RWQCP to Improve Recycled Water Quality and Increase its Use. The DEE Would Allow for a Taller Wall Within a Required Setback to Provide Screening and Reduce Noise. In approving the application, Council makes the following findings, determinations, and declarations:
SECTION 1. Background. The City Council of the City of Palo Alto (“City Council”) finds, determines, and declares as follows:
A. The City of Palo Alto Water Quality Division requests approval of a development project that includes Site and Design Review and a Design Enhancement Exception to allow the Construction of a Local Advanced Water Purification System (AWPS) at the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP). (“The Project”).
B. The project site area currently includes an approximately 10,000 sf area located across two parcels (APNs 008-05-005 and 008-06-001). The project is located within the boundaries of the Regional Water Quality Control Plant. The site is designated on the Comprehensive Plan land use map as Major Institution Special Facilities and is located within the Public Facility (PF) zone district, and Site and Design (D) Combining District.
C. The Planning and Transportation Commission (Commission) reviewed and recommended approval of the Project on _________, 2024. The Commission’s recommendations are contained in Staff Report ID#______ and the attachments to it.
The Architectural Review Board (ARB) reviewed and recommended approval of the Project on____________, 2024. The ARB’s recommendations are contained in Staff Report ID#____ and the attachments to it.
D. On __________, 2024, the City Council held a duly noticed public hearing, at which evidence was presented and all persons were afforded an opportunity to be heard in accordance with the Palo Alto Municipal Code and the Council’s Policies and Procedures.
SECTION 2. Environmental Review. The City, as the lead agency for the Project, has determined that the project is subject to environmental review under provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act. Council Previously Adopted an Addendum to the 2015 Environmental Impact Report for the City of Palo Alto Recycled Water Project Which Evaluated the Environmental Item 11
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Impacts of the Proposed Project. It was determined that the current project (22PLN-00367) does not present the circumstances pursuant to CEQA Guidelines 15162 to warrant the completion of a subsequent Mitigated Negative Declaration or an Environmental Impact Report, and therefore, an Addendum to the previously adopted EIR suffices. Pursuant to CEQA Guidelines 15164 the addendum need not be circulated. However, the addendum shall be considered with the adopted EIR. The City Council considered the Addendum to the EIR at a public hearing on November 18, 2019. The Mitigation and Monitoring Report is attached as Exhibit 1 into the Record of Land Use.
SECTION 3. Site and Design Review objectives.
The design and architecture of the proposed improvements, as conditioned, comply with the Site and Design Objectives as required in Chapter 18.30.060(G) of the PAMC.
A. Objective (a): To ensure construction and operation of the use in a manner that will be orderly, harmonious, and compatible with existing or potential uses of adjoining or nearby sites.
The proposed project is located within the boundaries of the existing Regional Water Quality Control Plant and includes the necessary equipment and facilities to treat recycled water. The facilities are designed in a manner that is orderly, harmonious and compatible with the existing RWQCP and surrounding uses. The project would not conflict with the City’s airport operations across Embarcadero Road and is consistent with the Airport Land Use Plan. The colors and design of the facilities are consistent with the Baylands Design Guidelines, such as using muted colors. The new screening/sound wall protects surrounding uses for visual and noise impacts from the proposed facilities. The proposed vegetation planting will provide additional long-term visual screening. Light is directed downward, primarily below the canopy, and is expected to be no greater than street lighting. Therefore, the project is consistent with this objective.
B. Objective (b): To ensure the desirability of investment, or the conduct of business, research, or educational activities, or other authorized occupations in the same or adjacent areas.
The project is a public facility, consistent with the land use designation and zoning, and provides treatment of recycled water to the city and surrounding communities. The project would not affect existing or potential future uses within the surrounding area including the plant operations, the adjacent airport, nearby office uses, and/or recreational use of the Baylands. The project is within the boundaries of the existing RWQCP. A component of the project includes repaving and re-landscaping the walking path leading out to the Baylands along Embarcadero Road.
C. Objective (c): To ensure that sound principles of environmental design and ecological balance shall be observed.
The project is consistent with the Baylands design guidelines in that it utilizes muted colors and the equipment/facilities are consistent with the height of the existing RWCQP buildings and equipment.
Lighting is designed and conditioned to not shine onto the adjacent properties. The project will implement green building measures as required by the Palo Alto Municipal Code and, in itself, allows for the increased reuse of recycled water within the City of Palo Alto and surrounding communities.
D. Objective (d): To ensure that the use will be in accord with the Palo Alto Comprehensive Plan.
The project is consistent with the following Comprehensive Plan land use designation, goals, and Item 11
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policies:
Land Use Designation: Major Institution/Special
Facility
This land use designation includes governmental
and community service uses and lands that are
publicly owned such as the subject property. The
proposed advanced water purification system
within the area of the RWQCP boundaries is
consistent with the Comprehensive Plan Land
Use.
Natural Element
Policy N-4.17: Improve source control, treatment,
and distribution of recycled water, including
reducing the salinity of recycled water, to
maximize its use.
This project is specifically intended to implement
this policy in order to reduce the salinity of
recycled water in order to maximize its use.
Policy N-2.2: Use the UFMP, as periodically
amended, to guide City decisions related to all
elements of Palo Alto’s urban forest, from its
understory habitat to canopy cover.
Policy N-2.3: Enhance the ecological resilience of
the urban forest by increasing and diversifying
native species in the public right-of-way,
protecting the health of soils and understory
vegetation, encouraging property owners to do
the same and discouraging the planting of
invasive species.
Program N2.7.3: Actively pursue funding for tree
planting to increase canopy cover significantly
across the city, avoid a net loss of canopy at the
neighborhood level and attain canopy size targets
in parks, open space, parking lots and City rights-
of-way.
The project includes removal of 35 trees that are
primarily non-native, invasive species, and their
replacement with 36 trees that are native as well
as the addition of understory vegetation for
landscape screening along the public ROW.
Policy N-4.1: Maintain a safe, clean and reliable
long-term supply of water for Palo Alto
The project improves the reuse of recycled water,
improving the City’s long-term supply of water for
Palo Alto.
Policy N-4.4: Manage water supply and water
quality to reflect not only human use but also the
water needed to sustain plant and animal life.
The project improves the ability to use recycled
water to sustain plant life by reducing the salinity
so that the water is more suitable for commercial
and public facility use, consistent with this policy.
Policy N-6.12: Ensure compliance with the airport
related land use compatibility standards for
community noise environments, shown in Table
N-1, by prohibiting incompatible land use
development within the 60 dBA CNEL noise
contours of the Palo Alto airport.
The project is a compatible land use with the
airport.
Policy N-7.5: Encourage energy efficient lighting
that protects dark skies and promotes energy
The lighting for this project is shielded and
directed downward, providing the minimum
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conservation by minimizing light and glare from
development while ensuring public health and
safety.
required lighting necessary for operation of this
facility. The project does not include windows
that would create glare.
Land Use Element
Policy L-1.2: Limit future urban development to
currently developed lands within the urban
service area. The boundary of the urban service
area is otherwise known as the urban growth
boundary. Retain undeveloped land west of
Foothill Expressway and Junipero Serra as open
space, with allowances made for very low-
intensity development consistent with the open
space character of the area. Retain undeveloped
land northeast of Highway 101 as open space.
The project includes development within the
boundaries of the existing RWQCP consistent
with this policy.
Policy L-1.3: Infill development in the urban
service area should be compatible with its
surroundings and the overall scale and character
of the city to ensure a compact, efficient
development pattern.
The project is compatible with its surroundings in
that it’s similar in height to other
buildings/equipment within the RWQCP and
meets the applicable height restrictions within
the Airport influence area.
Policy L-1.6: Encourage land uses that address the
needs of the community and manage change and
development to benefit the community
The need for improved recycled water has been
previously identified by Council and in the City’s
Comprehensive Plan. The project addresses the
need to improve recycled water quality to allow
for increased reuse, benefiting the community.
Policy L-6.2: Use the Zoning Ordinance, design
review process, design guidelines and
Coordinated Area Plans to ensure high quality
residential and commercial design and
architectural compatibility.
The project utilizes the design review process to
ensure high quality design and architectural
compatibility.
Policy L-10.2: Regulate land uses in the Airport
Influence Area to ensure consistency with the
Palo Alto Airport Comprehensive Land Use Plan
and the Baylands Master Plan.
The project complies with the Airport
Comprehensive Land Use Plan and the Baylands
design guidelines and Master Plan.
SECTION 4. Architectural Review Findings.
1. The design is consistent with applicable provisions of the Palo Alto Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Code, coordinated area plans (including compatibility requirements), and any relevant design guides.
This finding can be made in the affirmative because the project is consistent with applicable Comprehensive Plan goals and policies as summarized above in Section 3, Site and Design Findings.
The requested DEE is allowed in accordance with Chapter 18.76.050 of the municipal code and the relevant findings can be made in the affirmative. The project is consistent with the Baylands Design Guidelines, as applicable to the proposed project, in that the project uses muted colors and the height of the new AWPS facility is consistent with the surrounding buildings at the RWQCP and would not be visible from the Baylands or otherwise create new obstructions to views of the Baylands.
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2. The project has a unified and coherent design, that:
a. creates an internal sense of order and desirable environment for occupants, visitors, and the general community,
b. preserves, respects and integrates existing natural features that contribute positively to the site and the historic character including historic resources of the area when relevant, c. is consistent with the context-based design criteria of the applicable zone district, d. provides harmonious transitions in scale, mass and character to adjacent land uses and land use designations,
e. enhances living conditions on the site (if it includes residential uses) and in adjacent residential areas.
The project is located within the boundaries of the RWQCP which is not accessible to visitors/the general community, as is appropriate for the proposed type facility. The project is designed in a manner that allows for maximum efficiency and future planned needs of the RWQCP. Although the project includes the removal of a number of trees, including protected trees, these trees are primarily non- native, invasive species. Replacement landscaping perimeter planting is proposed to provide long-term screening of the AWPS and existing RWQCP. The project complies with the contextual design criteria set forth in PAMC 18.24, which applies to most zone districts, including the Public Facility Zone District, as detailed below. The project is consistent with the mass and scale of the RWQCP facilities, which generally has 2 and 3-story equivalent buildings and equipment. There are no residential areas on or near the facility.
The project is consistent with the following context-based design criteria:
To create an attractive and safe public realm and sidewalk space for pedestrians and cyclists through the implementation of design, landscaping, and infrastructure.
The project is a public facility located wholly within the boundaries of the existing RWQCP. Due to the nature of this facility as critical infrastructure, protective fencing is required along the boundaries of the facility. However, the project screening wall, which protects the facility, provides screening from equipment, and serves as a sound wall for the project, is designed to provide an attractive and safe public realm along the adjacent sidewalk, creating a desirable place to walk.
Landscaping is also provided along the public ROW to provide screening and shade, enabling comfortable pedestrian passage. Therefore the project is consistent with this design criteria.
To provide facilities and accommodations for pedestrians, vehicles, cyclists, and transit users to safely and efficiently access and circulate both within individual sites and in the site's surrounding context.
The project is located within the existing RWQCP in a location that does not affect the current circulation within the plant. The system would be maintained by existing plant personnel; no additional parking is proposed for this self-operating system. The project maintains and improves the existing walking path along Embarcadero Road, and does not include any changes to the existing bicycle path or roadway. Therefore, the project is consistent with this design criteria. The project meets the required setbacks or seeks relief from the setbacks to comply with easement
1. Public Realm/Sidewalk Character (18.24.020)
2. Site Access (18.24.030)
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requirements and to be consistent with the surrounding properties. Relief is sought for the “build- to-line” setback along Embarcadero Road and given the opportunities and constraints of the site, adherence to the requirement does not create a better project layout. Additionally, the project includes varied materials such as metal, stucco, glass with contrasting colors providing visual interest. The two-story building is horizontally oriented consistent with the Baylands design guidelines.
To create a coherent and active interface between private development and the public realm that contributes to the sense of place and structure of the neighborhood and enhances the public's experience. Site design that responds to the orientation of adjacent uses and creates opportunities for landscaping and usable open space.
The project includes setbacks from Embarcadero Road to allow a buffer between the roadway and pedestrian path, landscape screening between the pedestrian path and the screening wall, and further setbacks to the buildings. These setbacks and the provided screening create a separation between the public realm and RWQCP facilities as is appropriate for this type of use and consistent with this requirement.
To create buildings that are compatible with and enhance the surrounding area through the consideration of building scale, massing, and bulk. Massing should create a human-scale environment that is of high aesthetic quality and accommodates a variety of uses and design features.
The project includes equipment for the purification of recycled water and is not intended to have a human-scale to the design that is inviting/interfacing with the public realm. However, the project meets this requirement by providing appropriate setbacks and screening from the public realm and providing high quality materials for the sound wall that will be visible from the pedestrian perspective.
To create cohesive and well-crafted building façades with human-scaled details that incorporate textures, colors, and other details that are compatible with and enhance the surrounding area.
The proposed equipment is set back from the public ROW and is screened from view, as is appropriate for equipment versus a traditional building façade. The proposed colors of the canopy cover on the equipment and the reverse osmosis tank, which would be visible from public ROW, are compatible with the Baylands Design Guidelines and enhance the surrounding area. The screening wall will be the primary feature viewed by the public. The wall has been designed to provide variation through stepbacks as well as through color. Therefore, the project is consistent with this criterion.
Private entries into ground floor residential units shall be designed to provide (1) human-scaled detailing; (2) enhanced pedestrian experience; (3) transition between public and private space; (4) spaces for residents to gather and spend time outdoors; (5) resident privacy
4. Building Massing (18.24.050)
3. Building Orientation and Setbacks (18.24.040)
5. Façade Design (18.24.060)
6. Residential Entries (18.24.070)
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The project does not include a residential use; therefore this design criteria does not apply.
To ensure that residents and visitors have access to usable open space and common facilities that provide recreational opportunities, promote a healthy environment, and enhance the experience of living in Palo Alto.
The project maintains or otherwise improves the public ROW. The project is located within the RWQCP boundaries which is not accessible to the public and does not include open space or common facilities. Therefore, this criteria does not apply to the project.
To promote the use of high quality, durable, sustainable, and attractive materials that exhibit a sense of permanence and contribute to the aesthetic quality of the development and to the urban design fabric of the community.
The proposed materials for the buildings are pre-fabricated and include primarily non-reflective metal or steel, as is appropriate for a tank and equipment cover. Therefore, the project is consistent with this design criteria.
To incorporate sustainability, green building, and environmental considerations into the project design and construction. Green building design aims for compatibility with the local environment: to protect, respect and benefit from it. In general, sustainable buildings are energy efficient, water conserving, durable and nontoxic, with high-quality spaces and high recycled content materials.
The project provides increased opportunities for use of recycled water and therefore is inherently a project to increase sustainability initiatives set forth by the City. The project also provides low water use, native plantings for landscape screening areas, replacing primarily non-native, invasive species.
3. The design is of high aesthetic quality, using high quality, integrated materials and appropriate construction techniques, and incorporating textures, colors, and other details that are compatible with and enhance the surrounding area.
The project includes muted colors that complement the surroundings and are appropriate to the proposed equipment/use. The project proposes a high-quality screening/sound wall that provides variation in colors and depth as well as quality, native, landscaping that maintain the high-quality experience along Embarcadero Road for all modes of transportation.
4. The design is functional, allowing for ease and safety of pedestrian and bicycle traffic and providing for elements that support the building’s necessary operations (e.g. convenient vehicle access to property and utilities, appropriate arrangement and amount of open space and integrated signage, if applicable, etc.).
The project is designed to maintain the same private access to the plant and maintains the existing pedestrian path connecting embarcadero Road out to the baylands. The AWPS would be operated by existing employees at the plant and no additional parking is proposed.
7. Open Space (18.24.080)
8. Materials (18.24.090)
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5. The landscape design complements and enhances the building design and its surroundings, is appropriate to the site’s functions, and utilizes to the extent practical, regional indigenous drought resistant plant material capable of providing desirable habitat that can be appropriately maintained.
Landscaping is provided along the perimeter of the site. The landscape palette uses drought tolerant, native species.
6. The project incorporates design principles that achieve sustainability in areas related to energy efficiency, water conservation, building materials, landscaping, and site planning.
The project itself is designed to improve the reuse of recycled water within the City of Palo Alto and neighboring jurisdictions, primarily Mountain View, and creates opportunities for future phase expansion to maximize recycled water use. The project provides lighting only to the degree necessary to provide for safe operation of the facility. Landscaping includes low-water use, native landscaping that is consistent with the Baylands.
SECTION 5. Design Enhancement Exception Findings
1.There are exceptional or extraordinary circumstances or conditions applicable to the property or site improvements involved that do not apply generally to property in the same zone.
The applicant requests a Design Enhancement Exception to allow for a screening wall that varies from
9.5 to 10 feet tall, where an 8-foot fence/wall is allowed in accordance with 16.24.030 (security fences).
The RWQCP is a public facility serving the region in a unique environment that provides important habitat and recreational opportunities. In this sense, the RWQCP is a unique land use that is inherently different from its neighbors and is of more critical importance for the services it provides. The proposed sound/screening wall will protect the quality of surrounding uses will allowing for the site to continue to serve the needs of the region.
2.The granting of the application will enhance the appearance of the site or structure, or improve the neighborhood character of the project and preserve an existing or proposed architectural style, in a manner which would not otherwise be accomplished through strict application of the minimum requirements of this title (Zoning) and the architectural review findings set forth in Section 18.76.020(d); and
The proposed wall will preserve the appearance of the public area adjacent to the entrance to the Baylands by screening this public infrastructure equipment and ensuring that sound levels remain below the code requirement consistent with the findings set forth in Section 18.76.020(d).
3.The exception is related to a minor architectural feature or site improvement that will not be detrimental or injurious to property or improvements in the vicinity and will not be detrimental to the public health, safety, general welfare or convenience.
The granting of the Design Enhancement Exception is a minor increase of a perimeter wall and would not negatively affect public health, safety, general welfare, or convenience or be detrimental to the property or improvements in the vicinity. The proposed DEE would improve the aesthetics at this entrance to the Baylands by providing screening (in conjunction with landscaping) as well as Item 11
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preserving the quiet for recreational users and surrounding uses.
SECTION 6. Conditions of approval
PLANNING DIVISION
1. CONFORMANCE WITH PLANS. Construction and development shall conform to the approved plans entitled, "City of Palo Alto Regional Water Quality Control Plant Advanced Water Purification System Architectural Review Submittal” stamped as received by the City on February 6, 2024, on file with the Planning Department, 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, California except as modified by these conditions of approval.
2. BUILDING PERMIT. Apply for a building permit and meet any and all conditions of the Planning, Fire, Public Works, and Building Departments.
3. BUILDING PERMIT PLAN SET. All Department conditions of approval for the project shall be printed on the plans submitted for building permit.
4. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS. All modifications to the approved project shall be submitted for review and approval prior to construction. If during the Building Permit review and construction phase, the project is modified by the applicant, it is the responsibility of the applicant to contact the Planning Division/project planner directly to obtain approval of the project modification. It is the applicant’s responsibility to highlight any proposed changes to the project and to bring it to the project planner’s attention.
5. LIGHTING. The owner or designee shall ensure that lighting is the minimum necessary and shielded downward to avoid light spillover as shown in the approved plan set. Motion sensor lighting shall be used and shall be set to turn off after a maximum 15-minute period except that a manual switch may be used to allow for lighting to stay on for a longer period, to the minimum extent necessary, for emergency maintenance purposes to ensure worker safety.
6. NOISE THRESHOLDS ON COMMERCIAL PROPERTY. In accordance with PAMC Section 9.10.040, No person shall produce, suffer or allow to be produced by any machine or device, or any combination of same, on commercial or industrial property, a noise level more than eight dB above the local ambient at any point outside of the property plane.
7. NOISE REPORT PRIOR TO INSPECTION. Where the acoustical analysis projected noise levels at or within 5 dB less than the Noise Ordinance limits, the applicant shall demonstrate the installed equipment complies with the anticipated noise levels and the Noise Ordinance prior to final Planning inspection approval.
8. MITIGATION MONITORING AND REPORTING PROGRAM. To the extent applicable, the project shall comply with mitigation measures set forth in the 2015 EIR for the City of Palo Alto Recycled Water Project as identified in the EIR Addendum.
9. INDEMNITY. To the extent permitted by law, the Applicant shall indemnify and hold harmless the City, its City Council, its officers, employees and agents (the “indemnified parties”) from and against any claim, action, or proceeding brought by a third party against the indemnified parties and the applicant to attack, set aside or void, any permit or approval authorized hereby for the Project, Item 11
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including (without limitation) reimbursing the City for its actual attorneys’ fees and costs incurred in defense of the litigation. The City may, in its sole discretion, elect to defend any such action with attorneys of its own choice.
10. FINAL INSPECTION. A Planning Division Final inspection will be required to determine substantial compliance with the approved plans prior to the scheduling of a Building Division final. Any revisions during the building process must be approved by Planning, including but not limited to; materials, landscaping and hard surface locations. Contact your Project Planner, Claire Raybould [email protected] to schedule this inspection.
BUILDING DEPARTMENT
11.A building permit is required for this project. Submit all plans listed on sheet G-00-002. Include a soil report and supporting structural calculations for the new building and non-building elements (i.e., tank, pipes and their supports, equipment, etc.). Include all MEPs plans, grading and drainage, and complete construction documentation.
PUBLIC WORKS ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
12. PUBLIC WORKS APPLICATIONS, FORMS, AND DOCUMENTS. Applicant shall be advised that most forms, applications, and informational documents related to Public Works Engineering conditions can be found at the following link: https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/Departments/Public- Works/Engineering-Services/Forms-and-Permits
13. STREETWORK PERMIT. The applicant shall obtain a Streetwork Permit from the Department of Public Works for all public improvements.
14. FLOOD ZONE. This project is in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area and shall comply with the requirements in Palo Alto Municipal Code Chapter 16.52
15. ENCROACHMENT PERMIT: Prior to any work in the public right-of-way, the applicant shall obtain an encroachment permit from the Public Works Department for any work that encroaches onto the City right-of-way.
16. GRADING PERMIT. A Grading Permit may be required per PAMC Chapter 16.28. The permit application and all applicable documents (see Section H of application) shall be submitted to Public Works Engineering if required.
17. CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE. Prior to issuance of any building permit for structures that extend across parcel boundaries, the applicant shall record a certificate of compliance to adjust to the parcel boundaries in a manner consistent with the approved plans.
WATER QUALITY
18. Include the Storm Water Pollution Prevention plan sheet (Public Works) • http://bit.ly/PAStormWaterPollution
19. All Bay Area Municipal Regional Stormwater Permit requirements shall be followed. Refer to the Santa Clara Valley Urban Runoff Pollution Prevention Program C.3 Handbook (download here:
http://scvurppp-w2k.com/c3_handbook.shtml) for details.
20. Stormwater quality protection:
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o Temporary and permanent waste, compost and recycling containers shall be covered to prohibit fly-away trash and having rainwater enter the containers. o Drain downspouts to landscaping (outward from building as needed). o Offsite downgrade storm drain inlets shall also be identified on this plan set and protected. If City staff removes protection from an inlet in the ROW during a rain event, the contractor shall replace the inlet protection by the end of the following business day.
ZERO WASTE
21. SALVAGE SURVEY. A Salvage Survey for reuse is not required. However, the highest source separation of any materials removed is still required.
PUBLIC WORKS URBAN FORESTRY
The following conditions and/or standard Municipal Code requirements are provided for supplemental guidance, recommendation and/or best practices. Any applicable items shall be addressed in any permit application such as a Building Permit, Excavation and Grading Permit, Certificate of Compliance, Street Work Permit, Encroachment Permit, etc.
22. TREE PROTECTION COMPLIANCE. The owner and contractor shall implement all protection and inspection schedule measures, design recommendations and construction scheduling as stated in the Sheet T-1 and is subject to code compliance action pursuant to PAMC 8.10.080. The required protective fencing shall remain in place until final landscaping and inspection of the project.
23. PLAN CHANGES. Revisions and/or changes to plans before or during construction shall be reviewed and responded to by the (a) project site arborist, or (b) landscape architect with written letter of acceptance before submitting the revision to the Development Services Department for review by Planning, PW or Urban Forestry.
24. TREE DAMAGE. Tree Damage, Injury Mitigation and Inspections apply to the Contractor. Reporting, injury mitigation measures and tree protection inspection schedule apply. Contractor shall be responsible for the repair or replacement of any publicly owned or protected trees that are damaged during the course of construction, pursuant to Title 8 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code.
25. URBAN FORESTRY GENERAL. The following general tree preservation measures apply to all trees to be retained: No storage of material, topsoil, vehicles or equipment shall be permitted within the tree enclosure area. The ground under and around the tree canopy area shall not be altered. Trees to be retained shall be irrigated, aerated and maintained as necessary to ensure survival.
26. EXCAVATION RESTRICTIONS APPLY. Any approved grading, digging or trenching beneath a tree canopy shall be performed using ‘air-spade’ method as a preference, with manual hand shovel as a backup. For utility trenching, including sewer line, roots exposed with diameter of 1.5 inches and greater shall remain intact and not be damaged. If directional boring method is used to tunnel beneath roots, then CPA Standard Detail #504 shall be printed on the final plans to be implemented by Contractor.
27. PLAN SET REQUIREMENTS. The final Plans submitted for a building permit shall include the following information and notes on relevant plan sheets:
a. SHEET T-1, The building permit plan set will include the City’s full-sized, Sheet T-1 (Tree Item 11
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Protection-it's Part of the Plan!), available on the Development Center website. A certified arborist shall complete and sign the Tree Disclosure Statement.
b. TREE PROTECTION FENCING, The Plan Set (esp. site, demolition, grading & drainage, foundation, irrigation, tree disposition, utility sheets, etc.) must delineate/show the correct configuration of Type I, Type II or Type III fencing around each Protected Tree, using a bold dashed line enclosing the Tree Protection Zone (CPA Standard Detail #605).
SECTION 7. Term of Approval.
1. Site and Design Approval. In the event actual construction of the project is not commenced within two years of the date of council approval, the approval shall expire and be of no further force or effect, pursuant to Palo Alto Municipal Code Section 18.82.080.
2. Design Enhancement Exception. The time limits for any DEE shall be the same as the time limits for the accompanying design review approval.
PASSED:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTENTIONS:
ATTEST: APPROVED:
City Clerk Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM: _____________________________
City Manager
__________________________ ______________________________ Assistant City Attorney Director of Planning and Development Services Item 11
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ATTACHMENT C
ZONING COMPARISON TABLE
2501 Embarcadero Way, 22PLN-00367
Table 1: COMPARISON WITH CHAPTER 18.28 (PF DISTRICT)
Regulation Required Existing Proposed
Minimum Site Area, width
and depth
None 44,566,185 (1023 ac) 44,802,715 (~1023 ac)1
Minimum Front Yard
(Embarcadero Road)
(2) 20 feet More than 50 feet 24 feet
Rear Yard 10 feet More than 115 feet Unclear (more than 100 ft) Interior Side Yard 10 feet More than 80 feet Varies; 96 to 118 ft Special Setback 24 feet – see Chapter
20.08 & zoning maps
Not applicable Not applicable
Max. Site Coverage 30% (24,691 sf) 0.87% 0.89%
Max. Total Floor Area
Ratio
1:1 (44,566.185 sf) .0082: 1.0 (366,108 sf) .0091: 1.0 (406,378 sf) Max. Building Height 50 ft or 35 ft when
located within 150 ft of
residentially zoned
property
Unknown 38 feet (permeate tank)
32.5 feet (canopy)
15 feet (electrical building)
Daylight Plane None Not Applicable Not Applicable
Employee Showers 0 required for new
square footage greater
than 9,999 sf
Unclear 0 (facilities will be
unmanned and maintained
by existing RWQCP staff)
1. The project plans do not reflect a proposal to change the parcels; however, in staff’s review it appears that a lot line adjustment may be necessary which ultimately would increase the square footage of the parcel on which the project is located.
Table 2: CONFORMANCE WITH CHAPTER 18.52 (Off-Street Parking and Loading) for Public Facilities*
Type Required Existing Proposed
Vehicle Parking To be determined by
Director
Unclear 0 (facilities will be
unmanned and maintained
by existing RWQCP staff)
Bicycle Parking To be determined by
Director
Unclear 0
Loading Space To be determined by
Director
0 0
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MEMORANDUM
FROM: James Allen; Public Works Department, Plant Manager Tom Kapushinski; Public Works Department, Senior Engineer Diego Martinez Garcia; Public Works Department, Engineer
TO: Claire Raybould, Planning Department
PROJECT: Local Advanced Water Purification System
DATE: March 21, 2024
April 22, 2024 ‐ Revised
SUBJECT: Investigation of correlated color temperature (CCT) reduction at the Local Advanced
Water Purification System located inside the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP). REVISED
On February 28, 2024, the Planning and Transportation Commission held a regular meeting where the Local Advanced Water Purification System (Project) was discussed. The Commission recommended approval of a Site and Design Application to construct the Project at the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP or Plant). A commission member requested an investigation to use 2700K correlated color temperature (CCT) lighting instead of the designed 4000K CCT lighting.
Background
Staff evaluated color temperature with the designer (Black & Veatch), a third‐party specialty consultant
(TJC and Associates), and independently at the staff level. The consultant’s technical memorandum advising on color temperature for this facility is attached (Appendix A). The RWQCP is an essential industrial facility providing wastewater treatment services. Onsite workers perform duties day and night. Numerous workers provide services during night hours including operators, mechanics, electricians, laboratory staff, technologists, engineers, contractors, chemical delivery drivers, and so forth. All workers need to perform work safely during the night hours. The new facility under consideration has areas that need proper lighting due to continuous operation and maintenance needs (e.g., around highly hazardous chemicals, rotating machinery, and power distribution equipment).
Correlated Color Temperature (CCT)
Compared to warm colors, higher color temperature lighting details natural color and work environments more accurately. The proposed lighting gives Plant staff a more realistic view during night hours. High color temperature will provide better visibility and ultimately create a safer working
environment by reducing the risk of accidents and injury. The higher color temperature lighting supports employee safety, consistent with the City’s Injury and Illness Prevention Plan and industry standards.
A third‐party electrical engineering firm and the designer recommended using a minimum CCT of 4000K following manufacturer Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) guidelines. Color temperatures between Item 11
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4000K to 5000K benefit industrial facilities. This range provides brighter, natural‐looking light, improves visibility, enables worker awareness, promotes alertness, enhances focus, and increases productivity.
Studies1,2 show that white light stimulates wakefulness and heightened cognitive function by suppressing melatonin levels, keeping workers awake and alert. Conversely, warm lighting induces fatigue resulting in reduced efficiency and performance1, 2 making them undesirable for industrial facilities. Warm light emits a less bright, yellow‐orange light that can hinder worksite visibility.
Local AWPS Lighting Design
The AWPS provides illumination that is safe and functional for onsite staff as well as being designed to reduce illumination impacts on nearby areas. The design promotes alertness, high productivity, and visual discernment of details. The Project is equipped with onsite control panels, pumps, valves, and electrical gear that need continual attention. Additionally, multiple hazardous chemicals are required to keep filtration and reverse osmosis membranes running under optimal conditions.
Addressing light pollution is a growing issue.
The RWQCP is sensitive to its proximity to the natural
resources of the Baylands. The AWPS design keeps lighting focused within the project area and out of the Baylands. Using the DarkSky Association and the Illuminating Engineering Society guidelines, the AWPS lighting design incorporates four of the five lighting principles for responsible outdoor lighting, including:
1) Useful – All light should have a clear purpose.
The lighting design only includes external fixtures under the canopy and equipment area where workers need access to perform routine operations and maintenance duties 24/7.
2) Targeted – Direct light so it falls only where needed.
The canopy ceiling lighting fixtures provide illumination targeted to the equipment area. The selected lighting fixtures provide a higher delivered footcandles in the work area, thereby avoiding light dispersion. On the north corner of the Project, there are pendant type lights installed in the roof structure with minor spill out towards the Project boundary. To further minimize light dispersion from the canopy, the Project includes an architectural aluminum panel to be installed in the upper canopy (Figure 1).
3) Low Level – Illumination design is code‐based for an industrial facility like the RWQCP.
4) Controlled – Use light only when it is needed.
The design incorporates provisions for timers, motion sensors, and photocells.
1 Ju, J., Chen, D. and Lin, Y. (2012). Effects of correlated color temperature on spatial brightness perception. Color Res. Appl., 37: 450-454. https://doi.org/10.1002/col.20711 2 Huang, R.-H., Lee, L., Chiu, Y.-A. and Sun, Y. (2015). Effects of correlated color temperature on focused and sustained attention under white LED desk lighting. Color Res. Appl., 40: 281-286. https://doi.org/10.1002/col.21885 Item 11
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Figure 1. Architectural aluminum panel for increased screening and to prevent light dispersion
Local AWPS Lighting Study
During the AWPS design, the designer conducted lighting calculations 3 to determine point‐by‐point
illuminance on any workplace or surface utilizing lighting fixture families and surface geometry present on the model. After receiving Architectural Review Board feedback, the design team updated the model to include a larger area outside the main canopy area. The results (see Appendix B) indicate a maximum illuminance of 21.7 foot‐candles outside the canopy area with an average of 1.3 foot‐candles. Areas near the boundary wall and the boundary with Embarcadero Road and contiguous properties show illuminances near zero foot‐candles. The model also simulated illuminance as a function of height. The results indicate that there will be low illuminance in the north wall near the corner of the canopy at between 1.0 and 2.0 foot‐candles with a maximum of 2.7 foot‐candles. For instance, the average illuminance inside the canopy would be 15.7 foot‐candles.
Conclusion
The RWQCP promotes a safe, well‐lit work environment; lighting is selected and used to enhance concentration, productivity, and alertness. An independent electrical engineering firm and the design engineer were consulted, and their recommendation is to use a minimum CCT of 4000K following manufacturer Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) guidelines. Color temperatures ranging from 4000K to 5000K offer numerous safety benefits in industrial facilities, including brightness, natural‐looking light, improved visibility in low‐light settings, and better worker awareness The AWPS design provides lighting that is safe and minimizes offsite impacts. The AWPS lighting design incorporates four out of five DarkSky Association lighting principles for responsible outdoor use, which includes using the minimum light needed to safely perform tasks and avoiding light dispersion. Lighting software was used to confirm proper lighting onsite and offsite. Areas near the boundary wall and the boundary with Embarcadero Road and contiguous properties show illuminance levels near zero foot‐candles.
3 Black & Veatch uses ElumTools software
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Appendix A - Professional Opinion
Memorandum Concerning Correlated Color
Temperature Reduction in Water and
Wastewater Treatment Plants
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03/21/24
Technical Memorandum
To: Diego Martinez Garcia, City of Palo Alto
From: Andrew Calma and Eileen Nakamura, P.E., TJC a nd Associates Rick Chan, P.E., Carollo Engineers, Inc.
Project Name: City of Palo Alto On-Call Engineering Services Task Order No. 6 Investigation of Correlated Color Temperature Reduction Project Number:
124016
Subject: Professional Opinion Concerning Correlated Color Temperature Reduction in Water and Wastewater Treatment Plants
File to: 124016 - 6.02
Date: March 21, 2024
This memo provides our professional opinion regarding how essential facilities such as treatment plants can address correlated color temperature reduction and minimize light pollution.
1. Correlated Color Temperature
Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) is a measure of the color appearance of a light source and is measured in degrees Kelvin. It is a gauge of how yellow or blue the color of the light emitted from a lighting fixture appears. Selection of lighting fixture CCT depends on the environment or application. A lower (warm) CCT includes hues of yellow or amber light colors, while a higher CCT appears as hues more associated with daylight or bright white light colors.
The Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) recommendations for industrial facilities lighting can be found in ANSI/IES RP-7-21. In Chapter 3, the IES recommends using LED light sources having a higher CCT, with typical values ranging from 4000K to 5000K. Lighting manufacturers also recommend using LEDs with daylight light color temperatures ranging from 4000K to 5000K. Sometimes, a CCT higher than 5000K is used for task lighting and distribution centers to help increase productivity and energize individuals.
Lastly, according to studies from the National Library of Medicine, warm color temperatures may help increase melatonin production and lights with high color temperatures help suppress melatonin production, promotes focus, and maintain alertness.
In contrast, for restaurants, hotels, and other hospitality-type establishments, the IES and lighting manufacturers recommend using LEDs with warm color temperatures ranging from 2200K-3500K, to create a friendly and relaxed ambiance. Warm color temperatures at 3000K and below (with hues of orange, amber, and yellow) are commonly used in hotel rooms.
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2. Light at Night
Light at Night is a collaboration between DarkSky International (formerly known as International Dark-Sky Association) and the IES to address the issue of light pollution or light spills that negatively affect the environment and human condition. The requirements for light pollution reduction for industrial facilities can be found in the California Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen), Section 5.106.8. This Section documents the allowable backlight, uplight, and glare ratings as determined by the State of California.
To comply with the light pollution reduction requirements of CALGreen, the measures that are applied to outdoor lighting include:
• Selecting a wedge-shaped lighting fixture having reduced uplight. • Choosing a fixture with “sharp-cutoff” photometrics for a more downward light aim and associated glare reduction.
• Installing accessories such as “light shields” to reduce light spills, glare, and backlight.
3. Professional Opinion on CCT Selection
Our experience at industrial establishments, including water and wastewater facilities, commonly use a CCT of 4000K minimum following manufacturer and IES recommendations. Lighting design criteria for industrial lighting generally emphasize safety and visibility. The measure used to ensure a safe working environment is to select lighting fixtures with high CCT’s to enhance visibility of potential hazards and provide clear egress and exit paths to minimize accidents and injuries. Similarly, a brighter appearing space is generally more pleasant to perform tasks that require focused visual effort, thereby enhancing productivity. Reducing lighting fixture CCT to values lower than 4000K in industrial facilities would increase the risk of accidents and injuries and would not be compliant with IES recommendations.
4. Professional Opinion for Light Pollution Reduction
To comply with light pollution reduction requirements, industry standard practices rely on a number of design schemes. House shields are typically installed in outdoor lighting fixtures to reduce light spills and are commonly used on pole-mounted fixtures. For lighting fixtures mounted on exterior walls, a wedge-shaped lighting fixture is commonly installed to focus light downward and not outward. Lastly, fixture photometrics that complement the physical placement of the fixtures (e.g., sharp cutoff characteristics) can maximize the lighting at the intended area while limiting light spills outside that area.
5. References and Resources
5.1 References
2022 California Green Building Standards Code, Title 24, Part 11 – Chapter 5, Section
5.106.8 Light Pollution Reduction. Accessed March 18, 2024. Accessed at https://www.dgs.ca.gov/BSC/CALGreen
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Correlated color temperature and light intensity: Complementary features in non- visual light field. Accessed March 18, 2024. Accessed at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8274909/
Red light and the sleep quality and endurance performance of Chinese female basketball players. Accessed March 18, 2024. Accessed at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3499892/
Effect of exposure duration and light spectra on nighttime melatonin suppression in adolescents and adults. Accessed March 18, 2024. Accessed March 18, 2024.
Accessed at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6561500/ The inner clock-Blue light sets the human rhythm. Accessed March 18, 2024.
Accessed at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7065627/
5.2 Resources
2022 California Green Building Standards Code, Title 24, Part 11 (CALGreen) ANSI/IES RP-7-21 Recommended Practice: Lighting Industrial Facilities https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
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Appendix B - AWPS ELUM General
Lighting Calculation for Outside Area
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3 3
3 3
3 3
3 3
4 4
4 55
5 5 5
5 5 3
5 5
5 5
5 3
3 6
6 6
6 55
5 5
3 3
3 3
3 33
3 3
5 5
5 5
5 4
4 41E 1 1E 1 1E
11E11E1
1E 1 1E 1 1E
11E11E1
1E 1 1E 1 1E
11E11E1
5 5
1 1E 1 1E 1
11E11E
1 1E 1 1E 1E
1E11E11E
5 1E
5 5
NORTH WALL
NORTH-EAST WALL
SOUTH-WEST WALL
NORTH-WEST WALL
7 7
7 7
7 ASSUMPTION:
WALL HEIGHT - 50'-0" ABOVE FGL
CEILING HEIGHT - 50'-0" ABOVE FGL
PENDANT MOUNT AT 21'-0"
ABOVE FINISHED FLOOR
(TYP OF 20) RO AREA
PENDANT MOUNT AT 24'-0"
ABOVE FINISHED FLOOR
(TYP OF 30) MF AREA
NORTH-EAST WALL
NORTH WALL
NORTH-WEST WALL
SOUTH-WEST WALL
1/2
D11000
OF
FILE:
0 1 2 4(SCALE BAR IS 4" AT FULL SCALE)
PROJECT NO.:
DESIGNED:
DETAILED:
CHECKED:
APPROVED:
DATE:
3 PLOTTED:
Black & Veatch Corporation
Walnut Creek, California
REVISIONS AND RECORD OF ISSUE
C:\Users\pat79142\OneDrive - Black & Veatch\Desktop\Charan Patil (Dont Delete)\Office Work\1) Working Projects\Palo Alto Project\Palo Alto Outside Area Elum Calculation\Palo Alto detached_Model (Floor & Wall Calculation).rvt 11/28/2023 4:28:50 PM
100% SUBMITTAL
215
E-EC-101
CITY OF PALO ALTO
RWQCP ADVANCED
WATER PURIFICATION
SYSTEM
AWPS
ELUM
GENERAL
LIGHTING CALCULATION
OUTSIDE AREA
ELECTRICAL
AWPS
408520
HK
CP
CRM
PV
05/2023
1" = 20'-0"
PALO AWPS OUTSIDE AREA LIGHTING CALCULATION
1" = 20'
10' 0 20' 40'20'
GENERAL NOTES
1. SEE DRAWINGS E-00-001 AND E-00-002 FOR ELECTRICAL LEGEND, ABBREVIATION AND NOTES.
KEYPLAN
NO SCALE
ElumTools General Use Illuminance Results
Calcu
lation Points Name Average Maximum Minimum Space: Specif ied Lighting Load/Area OUTSIDE AREA 1.3 fc 21.7 fc 0.0 fc
INSIDE AREA 15.7 fc 38.4 fc 0.0 fc
SOUTH-WEST WALL 0.4 fc 0.6 fc 0.1 fc
NORTH-WEST WALL 0.2 fc 0.5 fc 0.0 fc
NORTH WALL 0.6 fc 2.7 fc 0.0 fc
NORTH-EAST WALL 0.0 fc 0.0 fc 0.0 fc
1 04/22 60% DESIGN SUBMITTAL
2 09/ 2
2 90% DESIGN SUBMITTAL
NO SCALE
NORTH WALL
NO SCALE
NORTH-EAST WALL
NO SCALE
NORTH-WEST WALL
NO SCALE
SOUTH-WEST WALL
Lighting Fixture Schedule
Fami
ly Fixture Type Photometric File Name Lamp Count Luminai re Input Watts Luminaire Lumens Total Light Loss Factor Mounting Height PVML (Pendant / Ceiling Mount) 1 PVML-11-UNV1-S891.ies 24 91 W 10676 lm 0.85 21'-0" PVML (Pendant Mount Emergency) 1E PVML-11-UNV1-S891.ies 26 91 W 10676 lm 0.85 21'-0" PVML (Pendant / Ceiling Mount) 2 PVML-3-UNV1-S891.ies 4 27 W 2756 lm 0.85 7'-10" PVML (Stantion Mount) 3 PVML-3-R3-UNV1.ies 12 26 W 2726 lm 0.85 7'-6" PVML (Stantion Mount) 4 PVML-7-R3-UNV1.ies 3 59 W 6285 lm 0.85 7'-6" Street_Light-LED-Lithonia-DSX1-MA 5 DSX1_LED_30C_700_40K_T3M_MVOLT_MA.ies 26 68 W 7345 lm 0.85 10'-0" PVML (Wall Mount) 6 PVML-3-R3-UNV1.ies 4 26 W 2726 lm 0.85 7'-6" WSQ-LED 7 WSQ LED P1 SR3 40K MVOLT.ies 5 20 W 2244 lm 0.85 8" Grand total: 104 104
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MEMORANDUM
FROM: Diego Martinez Garcia, Engineer
TO: City of Palo Al to Planning Department
Architectural Review Board Members
Cc – Tom Kapushinski, Seni or Engineer
PROJECT: Local Advanced Water Purification System
DATE: April 19, 2024
SUBJECT: Relocation of Reverse Osmosis Permeate Tank
A hearing with the City’s Architectural Review Board (ARB) to recommend a Site and Design Application was held on April 4, 2024 for action on 2501 Embarcadero Way (22PLN-00367) to allow construction of a Local Advanced Water Purification System (Project) at the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP or Plant).
The Project was approved and the motion included six Conditions of Approval. Condition or Approval #5 asked staff to “Explore the potential relocation of the reverse osmosis permeate tank to move toward the new proposed structure and/or to move towards the future headworks building”. The purpose of this memo is to provide a summary of this investigation.
Relocation of permeate tank towards the future headworks building Engineering staff reviewed the design plans and existing/future facilities. Staff concluded that is not feasible to move the permeate tank towards the future Headworks building for the following reasons:
a) The existing old chlorine contact tank will remain onsite for a few years until the new Headworks building is designed and constructed. Plant staff needs access around the old chlorine contact tank to drive trucks and equipment around it. There is an existing paved access area (18 ft wide) around the old chlorine contact tank that needs to be maintained. The proposed location for the permeate tank is such that the existing clearance is maintained. Additionally, the permeate tank manufacturers recommended maintaining 10 ft of clearance around for maintenance purposes (Figure 1). b) The future Headworks facility is currently in advanced planning. As such, the level of detail about the building’s footprint and needs is still to be determined. Existing influent wastewater pipes run through the site and space is needed for excavation of new pipes Item 11
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while maintaining existing ones in operation. Staff needs to preserve the old chlorine contact tank footprint for Headworks project needs as other Plant’s facilities are contiguous to the site.
c) The proposed Local AWPS design includes a utility corridor between the RO Permeate tank and the Old Chlorine tank. These utilities include the tertiary-treated recycled water line (feed water for the process), the final product water (permeate), the reverse osmosis concentrate line and current utilities that need to be relocated (Plant process water lines, Renzel Marsh line). Enough clearance is needed for these utilities in the existing space between tanks.
Figure 1. RO Permeate Tank and Old Chlorine Contact Tank spacing needs Relocation of permeate tank towards the new proposed structure Engineering staff reviewed the design plans and future AWPS main structure. Staff concluded that is not feasible to move the permeate tank towards the new proposed AWPS structure for the following reasons:
a) The AWPS requires the use of various chemicals and truck deliveries will occur on a frequent basis. The design engineer utilized a turning simulation software to assess the ingress/egress of a typical chemical truck on site. Due to existing site constraints and structures, the trucks will be required to back-up in the area between the permeate storage tank and the AWPS main structure. Figure 2 shows required space needs of a truck.
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Figure 2. Chemical Delivery Truck Access
b) During initial plan reviews, the City of Palo Alto Fire Department (PAFD) indicated that in case of an emergency, their vehicles should be able to access the AWPS facility from all the sides. They evaluated the available clearance between the permeate tank and the AWPS structure and requested to maintain that clearance for their trucks and equipment.
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Local Advanced Water Purification
System
ARB Major Submittal
Prepared by
City of Palo Alto
September 2022
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2 MEMORANDUM
FROM: Diego Martinez Garcia, Associ ate Engineer, City of Palo Alto Tom Kapushinski, Senior Engineer, City of Palo Alto
TO: Architectural Review Board/ City of Palo Alto
PROJECT: Local Advanced Water Purification System (AWPS)
DATE: September 2022
SUBJECT: Project Written Description
This project description summary is prepared for the City of Palo Alto (City) Architectural Review Board (ARB) site and design review of the Local Advanced Water Purification System (AWPS, proposed project) at the Regional Water Quality Control Plant (RWQCP), Palo Alto, California.
The proposed project will include the construction and operation of a membrane filtration recycled water facility and a permeate storage tank at the City’s RWQCP.
Introduction and Background of the Project
The City of Palo Alto owns and operates the RWQCP, which is an advanced treatment facility that provides wastewater treatment for the cities of Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford and East Palo Alto Sanitary District. Currently, the RWQCP treats an average of 17 million gallons per day (MGD), much of the treated effluent is discharged into the Lower South Bay. The RWQCP produces and distributes approximately 230 million gallons per year of tertiary-treated recycled water to the City of Mountain View, several City-owned facilities and a commercial truck fill standpipe at the RWQCP.
Following public concerns regarding the irrigation of redwood trees and other salt-sensitive species with recycled water, the City prepared an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) focused on water quality issues and salinity impacts. On January 25, 2010, Council approved the Recycled Water Salinity Reduction Policy including a goal of reducing the recycled water total dissolved solids level to 600 parts per million. In 2017, Valley Water, Palo Alto, and Mountain View finalized a feasibility study and the preliminary design report for a local Advanced Water Purification System (Project). Currently, the Project is in design and construction is expected to begin in 2023.
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3 The Project will improve the recycled water quality by reducing its average concentration of total dissolved solids (TDS) from 800 milligrams per liter (mg/L) to 450 +- 50 mg/L through the blending of reverse osmosis permeate with tertiary-treated recycled water. Highly treated water produced by the Project would benefit landscapes currently irrigated with recycled water in Palo Alto, enable Palo Alto to expand its non-potable distribution system, and provide a first step toward small-scale potable water production for direct or indirect potable reuse in Palo Alto.
Scope of Work
The Project will consist of the following elements: membrane filtration (microfiltration or ultrafiltration), reverse osmosis, chemical storage/feed systems, a permeate storage tank and ancillary components. The Project will be located outside the current fence on the northwest side of the RWQCP.
The new facility will be a one-story concrete deck approximately 116 ft by 134 ft in area and will house membrane filtration, the reverse osmosis system, a majority of the chemical feed system, and other ancillary components. The facility would have a building footprint of approximately 15,544 square feet. The concrete deck foundation will consist of 258 piles for the main deck with a pile tip elevation of -30 ft. The Project includes an electrical building located on the western side of the main structure. For this building, an additional concrete deck 80 ft by 20 ft will be installed. The foundation of this smaller deck will consist of 48 piles with a pile tip elevation of - 30 ft. The main structure will be partially covered by a roof. The roof dimensions are 112 ft by 66 ft with a height of 32 ft.
The Project also includes a reverse osmosis permeate tank that will be located northeast of the main structure and west of the former chlorine contact tank. The storage tank will be a 50 ft diameter circular tank with a nominal sidewall height of 30 ft. The storage tank capacity will be 350,000 gals. The tank will be erected on a reinforced concrete mat type foundation supported by deep pile foundation as designed by the tank supplier and installed by the Contractor The Project will also include a blending station located in the basement of the RWQCP Administration Building and installation of yard piping inside the RWQCP.
Existing and Proposed Uses
The local AWPS will be located on currently undeveloped land in the western portion of the RWQCP area. The site includes a soil bed filter that removes odors from the Influent Pumping Station. The soil bed filter will be removed, and an odor control system will be installed next to the Influent Pumping Station. Several water and wastewater mains are in the site. The main structure was designed to consider an East Palo Alto Sanitary District easement. The Project includes the relocation of one 8-inch sewer line located onsite.
The proposed local AWPS will be part of the RWQCP Recycled Water production system.
Tertiary-treated recycled water will be conveyed from the current Chlorine Contact Tank into the membrane filtration. Reverse osmosis permeate will be pumped to a permeate storage tank.
Permeate will be mixed with tertiary-treated recycled water and then sent to the recycled water system.
The facility will not be permanently occupied and will have space for one operator to access as needed for routine operations and maintenance.
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4 Purpose of the Proposed Changes
The purpose of the changes to the site is to construct an AWPS to improve the recycled water quality by reducing its average concentration of total dissolved solids (TDS) from 800 milligrams per liter (mg/L) to 450 +- 50 mg/L through the blending of reverse osmosis permeate with tertiary-treated recycled water.
Design Intent
The basis of design for the Project is to meet a maximum, instantaneous permeate production capacity of 1.125 MGD during the current first phase, expandable to 2.25 MGD in a future second phase. The Project is being designed to accommodate the future expansion with minimal civil/mechanical/electrical work by adding equipment to housekeeping pads.
To account for future sea level rise in accordiance with the City of Palo Alto Sea Level Rise Policy, the finished grade elveation will be raised at the location of the Project. The top of concrete of the main Project structure will be set at 11.5 ft. To make up for the remainder of the required elevevation to keep rotating mechanical, electrical and instrumentation out of the flood plain and future sea level elevation, equipment will be placed on equipment pads as required to an elevation of 13.5 ft. The top of the new chemical containment wall will be at 13.5 ft.
The main structure will sit approximately 3 to 4 feet higher than the surrounding terrain. The on- site grading is being designed to maintain a 2% or less slope in building access areas and 4% or less slope in operational maneuvering areas.
Electrical, potable water and fire services supply will be independent from the existing RWQCP services and new connections will be needed from City of Palo Alto Utilities.
The proposed architectural design addresses the City’s desire for a facility that blends into the surrounding environment but at the same time provides treatment for recycled water in an efficient way. The Project emphasizes functional and operation requirements needed for a facility such as the RWQCP, but also takes into consideration the existing pedestrian walkway and landscaping outside the RWQCP. The Project is being designed to address public views from outside the RWQCP perimeter by maintaining screening as much as possible given the severe space limitations on-site. Buildings, screen fencing/walls and canopies at the Project site will use materials, colors and design standards consistent with existing facilities.
The following strategies have been implemented to define the inward facing and outward facing architectural solutions:
a) Optimize the comfort and safety of the working environment beyond the minimum space requirements to achieve practical and functional solutions b) Use practical architectural forms, features, materials, finishes and colors to blend into the environment and be consistent with the existing RWQCP structures and in scale with surrounding area
c) Utilize building materials that promote durability, longevity and ease of maintenance d) Consider material availability and sourcing to keep project costs and schedules in check
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5 Materials, Colors and Construction Methods
The Project building, canopy, fencing/walls and materials are selected to meet the RWQCP operational and safety requirements outlined in the project, governing CEQA documents, design criteria, and compliance with building codes and standards. Building forms, materials and colors are selected to meet Palo Alto Baylands Master Plan and the RWQCP CEQA document requirements for screening in Embarcadero Road, the adjacent business park and the pedestrian path.
Canopy – The canopy will be over the microfiltration and reverse osmosis equipment, compressors, cartridge filters and blowers. The canopy will be approximately 66 ft wide, 116 ft long with a clearance of 25 ft and a maximum height of 32 ft. The canopy will be a pre- engineered metal building with purlin supports and a standing seam roof. The roof color will be colonial red, and the purlins will be painted cool zinc gray.
Electrical building – The electrical building will be a pre-fabricated building that houses motor control centers (MCCs) and variable frequency drives (VFDs) as well as a small control room for SCADA equipment. The building is located west of the main structure and is 80 ft long by 20 ft wide with a height of 12.5 ft. The building is a prefabricated unit painted ANSI 70 Gray #5049.
RO Permeate Tank – A 50 ft diameter tank, 30 ft tall tank made of glass-lined bolted steel painted forest green. The color was selected based on the manufacturer’s catalogue and provides continuity with the existing and new tree canopy around the RWQCP Item 11
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6 Chainlink security fence – An 8 feet high galvanized steel chain-link to meet RWQCP security specifications. Additionally, perimeter fencing solutions are developed to meet the project criteria of aesthetically screening the local AWPS from exterior public view.
Concrete soundwall – To reduce sound coming from the pumping equipment inside the facility, a 10 feet high, precast concrete wall with precast concrete pilasters will be installed in certain sections of the perimeter. The wall’s exterior surface will have a wood plank texture with a horizontal board staggered pattern. The wall will be stained and will be coated with an anti- graffiti sealer. Colors and materials were selected to blend into the adjacent landscape plant screening material.
Asphalt pedestrian path – A 5 feet wide asphalt pedestrian path with wood headerboard Construction Methods
The Project will be constructed over a period of 18 months beginning in 2023 and continuing through 2024. Project construction will consist of soil bed filter removal, tree removal, sewer line relocation, excavation, pile installation, building construction, equipment installation, startup and testing. In parallel, pile excavation and site preparation for the permeate storage tank will take place. On the exterior, the perimeter wall foundation will be excavated and constructed. The Project will include new landscaping and tree replacement onsite. Inside the RWQCP, yard piping excavation, installation and fill will occur as well as work in the chemical storage tanks and basement of the Administration Building. Construction access will be from Embarcadero Way. The Project will be designed to be constructed without interruption to the current treatment operations, except during special circumstances such as piping and utility tie-ins.
Landscaping Plan
The landscape design follows the requirements of the Palo Alto Baylands Master Plan and the requirements for the RWQCP to install and maintain landscaping around the facility to provide visual screening for visitors to the surrounding Baylands. The landscape solution is designed to:
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7 creating an aesthetically pleasing facility.
Take advantage of existing healthy mature screening, transition to denser shrubs along the fenceline and move to smaller shrubs and native grasses towards the road. Combine perimeter fencing solutions and layered plant materials to screen the Project and ancillary structures
Maintain safety and site security. The planting design considers the right balance of plant material and path alignment to provide vehicles, cyclists and pedestrian traffic adequate visibility to each other and safe sight distance. Provide a plant palette that will be low-maintenance, low water use, visually interesting in foliage color, texture and blooms, and locally adapted to the climate.
Lighting Design Criteria
Lightning levels will be provided following the recommended levels suggested by the Illumination Engineering Society (IES) handbook. Lighting fixtures types are to be suitable for the environments where installed and will be installed in a serviceable and accessible location for routine maintenance. Light sources for the entire project will be LED.
Indoor location will be provided with lighting fixtures than ensure all passages and exits remain illuminated in the event of power failure. Under the canopy ceiling mounted and pendant mounted fixtures will be installed. For outdoor locations but inside the RWQCP, pole mounted fixtures will be installed with heights as required to maintain lightning illumination levels in the area similar to other structures at the RWQCP. Pole heights and locations are considered to address maintenance issues for the City to replace or repair fixtures. The project does not include any modification to the lightning located outside the perimeter wall along Embarcadero Road.
Egress and emergency lighting systems are provided in conformance with NFPA 101 (Life Safety Code). LED type exit signs will be placed inside the facilities as well.
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SAN MATEO, SANTA CLARA & SAN BENITO COUNTIES
April 3 2024
To: Palo Alto Architectural Review Board
By email to: [email protected]
CC: [email protected]
Re: Lighting at 2501 Embarcadero Way - Local Advanced Water Purification System
Dear Chair Baltay and commissioners,
The Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society and the Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter are organizations united by our shared commitment to the protection of the environment, nature, and open space, and we represent thousands of members in the City of Palo Alto. We have been advocating for a reduction of light pollution in the region, and have engaged with the City of Palo Alto in promoting human and environmental health through reducing, and preventing the proliferation of artificial light at night.
Recognizing that the proposed project, a local advanced water purification system, provides important infrastructure, we remain concerned with the lighting plan for the proposed water treatment plant at 2501 Embarcadero in the Baylands area of Palo Alto1.
The State of the World's Migratory Species report, a first-of-its-kind assessment by the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS, an environmental treaty of the United Nations) – paints a stark picture. One in five migratory species listed by the CMS is at risk of extinction and almost half (44%) are decreasing in numbers2. Birds are especially vulnerable since most species migrate at night3.
1 https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/files/assets/public/v/1/agendas -minutes-reports/agendas-minutes/architectural- review-board/2024/arb-4.04-2501-embarcadero.pdf
2 - 1 in 5 migratory species are at risk of extinction, says a new UN report. World Economic Forum Feb 21, 2024
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/02/migratory-species-decline-extinction-un-report/ See also, https://www.cms.int/en/publication/state-worlds-migratory-species-report
3 Burt et. Al. 2022. The effects of light pollution on migratory animal behavior. 2022. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, Special Issue: Animal behaviour in a changing world. https://lightsoutheartland.org/images/articles/Burt TREE 2023EcolandEvolrevlighteffectsonmigration2023.pdf
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Lights with lower color temperatures (typically below 3000K) are better for wildlife because they have less impact on the natural behaviors and activities of nocturnal animals4. Nocturnal animals such as birds, bats, and insects rely on natural light cues to navigate and carry out essential functions such as feeding, breeding, and migration. Artificial light sources with higher color temperatures (typically above 3000K) can inte rfere with these natural cues, disrupting the animals' circadian rhythms and affecting their behavior. For example, high-color-temperature lights can attract insects, which in turn attract birds, bats and other animals that feed on them, leading to changes in insect populations and affecting the ecosystem. Additionally, high -color-temperature lights can cause birds to become disoriented during migration5, leading to collisions with buildings and other structures. Lights with lower color temperatures are less disruptive to wildlife because they produce light that is closer in color to natural moonlight and starlight. This can help minimize the impact of artificial light on nocturnal animals and allow them to carry out their natural behaviors without interference6.
The Staff Report for the ARB meeting of April 4th refers to the DarkSky International "Five Principles for Responsible Outdoor Lighting''7 (PDF p. 31). However, we believe that the Staff Report is inconsistent with Principle Five (Correlated Color Temperature, CCT). The Staff Report provides, “Warm‐colored – Industry standard recommendation is around 5000K to promote safety and alertness.” H owever, 5000K is not “warm-colored” and contradicts the DarkSky International guidance on that point. Safety considerations are important, but when CCTs values higher than 3000 are used, DarkSky International would recommend additional actions to reduce the impact of this lighting.
The point about higher CCT values for worker alertness (same page) doesn’t take into account the body of scientific research indicating that exposing workers to blue -rich white light at night is associated with health problems8.
In our conversation with experts, it was recommended that Palo Alto use 3000K. Should the City use 4000K white LED lighting, the intensity of the light should be reduced by 50% to achieve the same visual response
4 - Effects of LED Lighting on Terrestrial Wildlife. 2023. State of California Department of Transportation Technical Report. Prepared by Travis Longcore, Ph.D., UCLA.
https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/research-innovation-system-information/documents/final- reports/ca23-3696-finalreport.pdf
- US Department of Fish and Wildlife. Threats to Birds: Collisions - Nighttime Lighting Protecting our Night Skies for Birds. https://www.fws.gov/story/threats-birds-collisions-nighttime-lighting
5L.S.A. Huson 2021. Spatiotemporal effects of artificial lighting on migratory birds https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/24449/1/bBIO 2021 HusonLSA.pdf
6 Effects of LED Lighting on Terrestrial Wildlife
https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/research-innovation-system-information/documents/final- reports/ca23-3696-finalreport.pd and
7 https://darksky.org/resources/guides-and-how-tos/lighting-principles/
8 For example: More exposure to artificial, bright, outdoor night-time light linked to higher stroke risk. 2024 https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240325172425.htm, American Heart Association. More exposure to artificial, bright, outdoor night-time light is linked to higher stroke risk." Item 11
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from observers using the spaces at night. That is because the eye is more sensitive to blue light at lower intensities, so an observer would otherwise perceive scenes to be brighter compared to, e.g., 2700K lighting even if the quantity of light were the s ame9. Furthermore, higher -CCT lighting yields more ‘discomfort glare’ than lower-CCT lighting10. That can be fatiguing to people exposed to it for long periods of time.
We believe that the City should use a CCT of no more than 3000 Kelvin, and limit the duration and intensity of artificial light at night. Lights should be off when no one is around (a switch, or motion sensors can do this effectively). The intensity of the lighting should be set appropriately (DarkSky Principle #3), taking into account that perception varies according to light color.
Thank you,
Matthew Dodder
Executive Director
Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society
James Eggers
Chapter Director
Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter
9 Schlesselman B, et al. 2015. Melanopically enhanced metameric white lightings make a simulated sports field appear brighter allowing a trade-off between photopic intensity and melanopic content. In Proceedings of the Illuminating Engineering Society Annual Conference.
10 Huang W, Yang Y, Luo MR. Discomfort glare caused by white LEDs having different spectral power distributions.
Lighting Research & Technology. 2018;50(6):921-936. doi:10.1177/1477153517704996; Zhu, X., Det al. (2013).
Perception study of discomfort glare from LED road lighting. Light and Engineering, 21(2), 61-68.) Item 11
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Attachment H
Project Plans
Project plans are available to the public online. Hardcopies of the plans have been provided to Commissioners.
Environmental Review
Council previously adopted an Addendum to the 2015 Environmental Impact Report which evaluated the specific details of the proposed AWPS project. The Addendum is available on the project webpage. A memorandum to the addendum, updating the information as it relates to trees, is also provided. The revised information related to tree removal and replacement does not change the conclusions of the analysis.
Directions to review Project plans online:
1. Go to: bit.ly/PApendingprojects
2. Scroll down to find “2501 Embarcadero Way” and click the address link
3. On this project specific webpage you will find a link to the project plans and other important information
Direct Link to Project Webpage:
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/Departments/Planning-Development-Services/Current- Planning/Projects/2501-Embarcadero-Way
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City Council
Staff Report
From: City Manager
Report Type: ACTION ITEMS
Lead Department: City Manager
Meeting Date: May 13, 2024
Report #:2404-2963
TITLE
Discussion and Direction Regarding the City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook - Annual Discussion as Recommended by the Policy & Services Committee
RECOMMENDATION
The Policy and Services Committee recommends that the City Council discuss potential substantive edits, changes, and revisions to the City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook (CPP or Handbook). These suggestions were discussed at Committee in November 2023 and the Committee forwarded them all to the full City Council for review and discussion.
After City Council discussion and direction regarding the items of interest, staff can return with complete text for review at a future meeting submitted directly to the full City Council or through the Policy and Services Committee, if so assigned.
BACKGROUND
The Municipal Code provides that the City Council shall adopt “a handbook of procedural rules governing any aspect of the conduct of meetings and hearings for the Council and its standing committees, including but not limited to, agenda requirements, the order of business, rules of order, rules of evidence, closed session procedures and rules for public participation in meetings” (PAMC section 2.04.100). The City Council adopted a modern version of the City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook in the early 2000s and have made modifications over the years. By the early 2020‘s, the Handbook had grown hard to follow and needed a general update. As a result, the whole document was revised, reorganized, and reformatted in early 2023. This was a significant effort, led by the City Council, to improve Handbook readability and ease of use for City Council Members, staff, and the public. The City Council adopted the reorganized handbook on April 24, 2023.1
1 City Council April 24, 2023 Agenda Item 6:
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/Meeting?meetingTemplateId=12660 Item 12
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During the 2023 revision process, the City Council made seven (7) referrals to the Policy and Services Committee on various topics. The City Council discussed and approved language related to those referrals at various City Council meetings in early 2024 (February 26 and February 5)2. The most recent version of the Handbook with these changes is online at:
https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/Departments/City-Clerk/City-Council (scroll to the bottom of the page). It is also included with this report as Attachment C.
The Handbook calls on the City Council to review its procedural rules and protocols annually (CPP, Procedures Section 8.1). This is typically done at the City Council’s January/February retreat (or soon thereafter depending on agenda availability). In preparation for the 2024 annual review, the Policy and Services Committee discussed suggested edits (Attachment A) at its November 14, 2023 meeting3 and provided some initial thoughts on several topics. (Note that after the Committee discussion, staff removed the staff suggestions related to ad hoc committees and there is a note about this in Attachment A).
In the November Committee discussion, the Committee did not take an action to prioritize the items but rather did an initial review. The minutes summarizing the Committee discussion are included as Attachment B to this report.
ANALYSIS
The Handbook describes the way the Palo Alto City Council conducts its business and is a directional guide (PAMC section 2.04.100). It is intended to accomplish two goals: first, the Handbook is an informational guide for anyone doing business or appearing before the City Council. Second, the Handbook is a compilation of procedures and protocols that have been formally adopted by the City Council. Municipal Code 2.04.100 states the following related to the handbook:
Municipal Code 2.04.100 - Handbook of procedural rules The Council shall adopt by resolution a handbook of procedural rules governing any aspect of the conduct of meetings and hearings for the council and its standing committees, including but not limited to agenda requirements, the order of business, rules of order, rules of evidence, closed session procedures and rules for public participation in meetings. The handbook of procedural rules shall be deemed guidelines and failure to comply with any procedural rule shall not be the basis for challenge to or invalidation of any action of the council, nor shall they be construed to create any independent remedy or right of action of any kind.
Staff solicited the City Council for suggestions related to the annual discussion of the Procedures and Protocols Handbook (Handbook) in November 2023. Staff also compiled a list of 2 City Council February 26, 2024 Agenda Item 15:
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/Meeting?meetingTemplateId=13357 3 Policy and Services Committee November 14, 2023 Agenda Item 3:
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/Meeting?meetingTemplateId=12180 Item 12
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staff-generated potential changes based on observations throughout the year. These suggestions from City Council and staff are all included in Attachment A. These suggestions are included for City Council consideration and discussion. Staff requests City Council review of the list of suggested Handbook changes.
FISCAL/RESOURCE IMPACT
Depending on the nature and extent of the new/edited procedure or protocol revisions sought, the actual revision language could involve a moderate amount of staff resources to draft.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
The items included in Attachment A reflect feedback from Staff and the City Council. Staff received Handbook feedback from the City Council prior to the November Policy and Services Committee discussion.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
City Council action on this item is not a project as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because revisions to the City Council Procedures and Protocols is a continuing administrative or maintenance activity. CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(2).
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment A: City Council and Staff Proposed Changes to Council Handbook, as of Nov. 2023 Attachment B: Policy and Services November 14, 2023 Summary Minutes Attachment C: City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook (Revised February 2024) APPROVED BY:
Ed Shikada, City Manager
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Attachment A – Page 1 of 2
Attachment A – Suggested Handbook Changes for 2024 Handbook Revisions Changes are as of late 2023
Note: Staff has not yet determined the exact sections to which these suggested changes will apply if the City Council chooses to include them as changes. In an effort to keep the revised Handbook organized, Staff requests the ability to draft the exact language and evaluate the best placement within the Handbook document as an administrative task and to bring the suggested final language to City Council for the items that the City Council chooses to advance from the list below.
Suggestions from Council Members (as of November 2023):
- Kou: no proposed changes
- Stone: no proposed changes
- Tanaka: no proposed changes
- Veenker:
o Revisit discussion on remote participation for public comment (audio and video) o Procedures Page 14 (Sec. 3) Order of the Agenda: Consider adding a land acknowledgement at the start of meetings
- Lauing:
o Procedures Page 30 (Sec. 5.1(b)1 says “The Council limits the total time up to 30 minutes per meeting for General Public Comment.” We sometimes don’t abide by that. Should we abide by it strictly or have an exception clause (such as “at the Mayor’s/Presiding Officer’s discretion the 30-minute limit can be extended”)?
o Consider eliminating call-in public comment.
- Lythcott-Haims:
o Procedures page 30, Sec 5.1(a)(1) Mentions that the public can access the meeting online. Given recent events, I feel we should discuss whether to discontinue online public comment for items not on the agenda. o Procedures page 34, Sec 7(b) says there is a 2-3-year time limit on City Council priorities. This limitation was of concern to many of us last year. Feels like we should discuss.
o Procedures page 34, Sec 7(b) also says Council will provide (only) 2-3 specific objectives within a priority whereas this year we had many more. We should discuss whether we are going to hold to this expectation in coming years or whether we need to amend the handbook.
- Burt:
o We don’t have anything under the Consent Calendar on how long the members of the public get to speak if speaking on multiple Consent items. I recommend limiting it to 3 minutes total and it can be reduced according to other procedures on public speaker time reductions.
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o When Council members vote no on a Consent item and get to speak about their no vote, we do not have a time limit set for them. I recommend it be limited to 3 minutes total, no matter how many items a Council member has voted no on. o Council members’ use of public-funded events for their own political purposes:
need to clarify rules on this per FPPC.
o Protocols Page 37, Sec. 1.4(b)1: Council members should address each other with formal titles. We should update this section to address that Committee meetings can be less formal.
o Procedures Page 6, Sec. 1.2(d): Under CAO Committee, there is nothing about an annual responsibility to schedule CAO performance evaluations. Language should be added to address this scheduling responsibility for this committee.
Also should add that the CAO committee can review the contract on who will do the CAO reviews as well as review and recommendation to Council related to CAO recruitments.
o Agenda setting for Committee Business: the CPP does not spell out how Committee agenda setting is done. It should say that Committee agenda setting is done between the staff and the Committee chair based on the Council referrals and annually assigned items. Can also include that agenda setting will include items within the Council guided delegated topics of the Committee. o New recommendation: That a Committee would be able to make recommendations to the City Council for a Committee to be able to discuss/explore a specific topic instead of always using a Colleagues’ Memo to Council to get a topic delegated to the Committee.
Note from Staff: For the Committee’s consideration when looking at the suggestions related to remote / call-in participation, it should be noted that the City Council may revise its procedures by ending (either indefinitely or temporarily) the call-in option for public comment. Doing so, however, would foreclose the ability of City Council Members to use streamlined noticing procedures under AB 2449 where there is just cause or emergency circumstances. To use streamlined remote attendance procedures under AB 2449, the agenda must provide an opportunity for all public comment via a call-in option, an internet-based option, and an in- person option. (Government Code section 54953 (f)(1)(C)).
Proposed Changes for City Council Handbook from Staff (as of November 2023):
A. Establish a protocol related to the gifts the City can receive from international partners such as Sister Cities. The intention is to set a maximum amount of a gift that a City representative can receive on behalf of the City. This would also include a note that City officials cannot accept hotel accommodations from an international partner.
B. Establish as a procedure, additional guidance for proclamations, specifically identifying guidelines on if and why proclamations can be brought forward.
C. Note: The suggestion related to additional ad hoc committee guidelines has been removed.
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POLICY AND SERVICES COMMITTEE
SUMMARY MINUTES
Regular Meeting
November 14, 2023
The Policy and Services Committee of the City of Palo Alto met on this date in the Council Chambers and by virtual teleconference at 7:00 P.M.
Present: Tanaka (Chair), Lauing, Veenker
Absent:
Call to Order
Vinh Nguyen called roll and noted three were present.
Chair Tanaka called the meeting to order.
Public Comment
There were no requests to speak.
Agenda Items
1. Recommendation to the City Council to Adopt an Urgency Ordinance and an Interim Ordinance That Allows the Director of Planning and Development Services to Extend Planning Entitlements up to an Additional 18 Months Until the City ’s Housing Element is Certified by the State Department of Housing and Community Development.
Environmental Review: Exempt from CEQA i n Accordance with CEQA Guidelines 15061(b)(3).
Planning & Development Services Director Jonathan Lait announced that this was a reques t to bridge the gap between so me planning entitlements that would lapse in December a nd one in January. Approving the ord inances would allow for an 18 -month extension of the planning entitlements. He commented t hat the homebuilding environme nt had remained volatile, so some projects had not moved to the building permit phase. It was anticipated to be a short - term measure. They were not requesting a change in the code . There were two ordinances for the Committee’s consideration, which were essentially the same – one an urgency ordinan ce, which would take place immediately and be valid for 45 days , and the second was essentially the same but would require a first and a second reading. It would not be effective by the time of the lapsing of the planning entitlements and was why they were requesting both ordinances.
If there was support by the Committee, staff planned to inc lude it on the Consent Calendar for the City Council meeting in December.
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Public Comments
Megan Watson with Grubb Properties, which owned 788 San Antonio, thanked the Committee for the prompt response to the entitlement extension request. Their entitlement was to expire January 6, 2024. They suppo rted the goa ls of both ordinances but requested the HEU process be struck from Section 2 of both ordinances , and she detailed the reason for the request. Theu asked that it be modifie d and the authority be sunset on Dec ember 31, 2024. They had submitted an email detailing the technical language.
Council Member Veenker asked if staff had a res ponse to the public comment. She asked if there could be language added to indicate there could be an extension for good cause shown.
Director Lait expressed this was not intended to be a lon g-term ordi nance, and he thought connecting it to the Housing Element reflected the City relyin g on these sites for housing opportunities. The projects identified in the Staff Report would receive an 18-month extension.
He was unsure about other applications between certification and the end of 2024 and what it would mean for those projects if certification should happen sooner. He hoped folks were mindful of their entitlement expir ation dates and coming in for extensions . There would be no [inaudible] if t he Committee felt extending it thr ough 2024 was appropriate. He thought it would be fine to add language indicating there could be an extension for good cause shown.
Council Member Lauing did not see any downside to this. He queried if this would be precedent setting beyond the scope of the ordinance.
MOTION: Council Member Veenker moved, sec onded by Council Member Lauing to recommend the City Council forward a recommendation to the City Council to adopt the two attached ordinances (Attachment A & B) , with the amendment that the language “and for good cause shown” be added in section 2 of the proposed ordinances after “his/her discretion” and that the sunset date would b e December 2024 and not the HCD approval of the Housing Element.
MOTION PASSED: 3-0
2. Staff Recommends the Policy and Services Committ ee Recommend the City Council Accept the Status Update of the Audit of the Building and Permit Review Report Planning and Development Servi ces Dir ector Jonathan Lait introduced Senior Operations Manager Sarah McRee , who was involved in the permitting operation from system improvements and making changes to that and had been working on refinements to address the audit bein g reported on at this meeting. He also intr oduced Chief Building Official George Hoyt.
Senior Operations Manager Sarah McRee mentioned that she would provide a status update on the 17 recommendations from the Building and Permit Review Audit. She declared that she would be discussing the background , three key areas of improvement , next steps , and the Item 12
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recommendation. She outlined the 3 objectives that had bee n presented in June 2022, which resulted in 17 actionable recommendations for implementation. She furnished a slide listing the 17 recommendation statuses. For th e purpose of the upda te, staff had grouped the recommendations into th ree key areas for the discussion – a staffing model, tech nology and customer accessibility of information, and process training and operations. She noted that nine recommendations had been completed, seven were in progress, and one had not been started.
She presented a slide related to the staffing model and noted that the initial six recommendations were rooted i n the staffing model for building inspection and plan review services. She det ailed what the recommendations required. She spoke of building inspection and its services . Throughout the pandemic, there had been a shift in the labor market , which she elaborated on. She presented a chart showin g vacan cies, and she stated that wait times had increased due to lacking staff. Historically consultants had been hired to augment services, but they had not been able to secure consultants during that tim e. Planning and Development Services (PDS) had met with eight of the City ’s on-call firms and learned that there had been a shortage of building inspectors. The City had instituted a training program, so there was a pipeline for potential staff , which had reduced wait times and improved service delivery. S he noted that the last three building inspector hires had been part of the consultant trainees. The City was previously in a hybrid model and there needed to be transition to in -house staffing, so two FTE inspectors had been added in the last year, and a new classification of a senior building inspector had been created and positions reclassed to allow flexibility in recruitment strategy as well as for retention. Temporary, part-time staff had been dedicated administratively to help support and expedite rec ruitments. All these activities resulted in inspections within 48 hours of a request. The plan review function was supported by many departments. There were three main areas within PDS. She provided a graph showin g the vacancies in all the programs, which impacted review times. Focusing on the building plan reviews, the program was previously 100% contracted ou t to consultants, and the y had experienced same challenges. The program needed to be transitioned to a hybrid model, and they added 2.0 in -house plan check engineers, created a new classification for a senior plan check engineer , and reclassed all positions. The percentage of on-time reviews had increased due to hiring one in -house staff.
Staff expected continued improvement as the second vacancy was filled. Through the structural changes made, six listed recommendations were complete . They were positioned to monitor and make adjustments as needed. The second key area of improvement had been grouped as technology and customer accessibility of information. There were five recommendations to address how information and guidance was provid ed to c ustomers thr ough the tech nology platforms. Over the last year, substantial improvements had been made. T hey continued to evaluate the tech nology used. This year t hey had completed a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the electronic document review system. She detailed the c hanges that had been made to the website. The submittal checklist s and requirements had also been reduc ed. A user navigation guide had been created an d published for Accela Citizen Acc ess (ACA). They continued to look for op portunities to stream line the application process, and that had been done in the SolarAPP+ and instant p ermits. Heat pump water heaters had been a dded as part of qualifying instant p ermits, and permits could be obtained on the website. She noted that 450 i nstant permits had been issued July thr ough November of 2023 and only 551 had been issued in Item 12
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totality last year. They hoped to add more permits in the next six months. All the change s had streamlined efforts for applicants. User access had been improved for the website and the ACA where possible. Although many recommendations had bee n addressed, PDS identified fo ur of the five recomm endations as in progress because technology would continue to be updated, and they hoped to bring those forward in the next itera tions. They would continue to develop fillable forms in the online permit system , and t hey w ere exploring th ird-party wizards and applications to improve that system. T hey wanted to expa nd instant permits to include heat pump mechanical residential replacements and residential bath and kitchen remodels.
Chair Tanaka thought this would help increase efficacy. He voiced that a big source of building permit process complaints was the lack o f knowledge transfer from planner to planner. He added that the private industry used a CRM system to solve the problem. He requested Senior Operations Manager McRee speak about the lack of knowledge transfer.
Senior Operations Manager McRee replied that a CRM system was not being considered currently. She thought it would tie into the next area of dev eloping standard ope rating procedures. Accela was limited in the functionalities, so it was not meant to be a CRM system. A CRM was something they could explore. She continued to speak of key areas of improvements.
She shared a list of six recommendations, which tied into updating the internal processes, documenting internal procedures, and training staff , which was to increase quality control and consistency in the application and permitting process. Over the last y ear, they looked at the permitting process from beginning to end from the customer and the staff processing perspectives. She outlined areas of improvement they had made immediately. She highlighted that over the summer they had an appointment pilot program , which was to understand if required appointments would be beneficial. Currently virtual and in-person appointments were offered, but they were not required. An area the audit focused on was training, and so me of the changes made in building inspection and plan review programs allowed some of the capacity challenges related to dedicating time for training. Sta ff now had the ability to train beyond minimum certifications, and they were bring ing in t raining beyond technical expertise.
A department-wide customer service mandatory training was held last month. She supplied a summary slide outlining her presentation on process, training, and operations. Work was ongoing, and they were not done making changes, so once the changes were complete, training materials needed to be developed and standard operating procedures created. The PDS strategic plan had no t been started, and it would begin upon completion of the majority of the substantial changes.
Council Member Lauing queried if t here were results to report on the pilot . He questioned if there should be follow-up done to ensure customers understood the process. He asked if direct outreach could be done, which he thought should be included in the processes. He suggested spot checking with customers to get their input concerning the process.
Senior Operations Manager McRee did not have the pilot information for this meeting . She commented that it had been interesting, and she detailed what had been done. The next phase was a work in progress, but it would focus on certain permit types that might benefit from an Item 12
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appointment. Concerning follow-up and direct outreach, s taff had been actively monitoring applications, and the y ha d started proactively reac hing ou t to applica nts in c ertain circumstances. She noted that the simplified ch ecklist helped. They had customer surveys for almost every area of the department, and they were tryi ng to print survey card s so they could provide a survey card to a customer every time they interacted with a customer.
Council Member Veenker asked if staff reached out every time an application was not accepted and how that had gone. She thought it was a great practice.
Senior Operations Manager McRee indicated they did reac h out ev ery time an application was not accepted.
Chief Building Official George Hoyt expressed that, according to staff, reaching out to applicants had gone fairly well. It could be very beneficial in providing needed clarification to staff, which would allow the customer to complete their application . To give it a personal touch , they were also promoting more phone calls versus email. If there was a communication email disconnect, customers were invited in for a virtual or in-person meeting.
Chair Tanaka loved how they were doing surveys, and he liked how they were trying to solicit feedback. He thought their survey results should be published because it could be inspiring for staff and the public. He spoke of organizations having incentives for filling out surveys. He asked what was being done to incentivize participation in a short survey to get somewhat continuous feedback.
Senior Operations Manager McRee answered that the next step of the survey proc ess was to increase participation by printing very short , simple ranking surveys on card s that would be distributed at the end of every interaction.
Chair Tanaka thought it might be better to include a survey on every email generated or at the end of every phone call rather than handing out car ds. He suggested having kiosks at the Development Center. He noted that people were generally impressed with staff , the City, and what was offered, but he had experienced areas of concern around the Development Center and Utilities. He discussed customer s ervice being unde r pressure but not having to be adversarial, and he felt training was important. He sens ed that the majority of staff was doing an amazing job, but he heard that there were certain staff members at the Development Center that people would go out of their way to avoid. He inquired if employee evaluations were done and if staff commented on performance reviews and provided feedback and coaching. In his experience, people were afraid to livestream especially related to building permits due to fear of retaliation, and he did not know if retaliation was happening. He asked staff to speak to that issue. He loved the idea of staff randomly calling people for feedback. He believed the City was a customer service organizati on. He shared a story of hearing about a cus tomer s ervice rep making a snide comment to a customer.
Senior Operations Manager McRee expressed that the surveys were at touchpoints. At the end of emails, there was usually a survey linked to the employee’s program area.
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Director Lait added that the objective was to send a survey to the contractor to respond to in real time at the end of every action placed in the system by an inspector . There had been technology problems when that was executed, so it was challenging using the current system, and th at process had to be aborted. They were trying to w ork through the tech nology challenges. Getting real-time feedback was the goal. There were QR codes at the DC. He was interested in exploring the kiosk idea. Everything was being done in coor dination with the City Manager’s office related to communication strategies in terms of how to collect survey information. All surveys could be distill ed into a single datapoint of overall customer service with a point system assigned. He did not think there was currently enough data to post. If it was posted, he thought it would be artific ially higher than the sen timent. Once more data was collected, they would be happy to publish it online. Regarding customer service sometimes being adversarial, he did no t want anybody wh o interacted with the department feeling they were not treated professionally and respectfully. He had spoken to staff about it, and i t was a big part of customer service tra ining recently. He kn ew there were examples where they had fallen short. He had re cently received feedback, and he met with the individual and the supervisors, and they discussed what had happened. They were taking training and customer service very seri ously. He was quick to respond to feedback. It was not okay for sta ff to feel they have authority beyond advancing the City’s regulations and processes. While making these changes and having some success es, staff recognized there was a fair amount of baggage that had to be navigated thr ough. He declared that feedback was gold. If the re were problem individuals who were consistently the source of a problem, he needed to know about it so he could follow up to ens ure cor rective action. He voiced that it was hard to hear of the possibilities of retaliation, but he was not surprised to hear it. He stated that he had been in the building and planning field for over 2 5 years, and in his earlier years, he had somewhat experienced seeing that happen. He did not think that was okay, and he knew George McRee and the inspection manager did not think it was okay. He remarked that a lot of the staff was guided by true government public service. To the extent that any staff member should take action, delay, or cause a bad situation, he wanted to know about it, and it would be addressed immediately. It was not acceptable. He did not know how to get folks to communicate with him if they were uncomfortable contacting to a supervisor in the Department. He was quick to respond to emails sent to [email protected], which was a great way to reach out to him , and he could pursue an issue and provide ano nymity to the claimant . He was responsible for ensuring that custom er service was the best it could be. He discussed being understaffed and working conditions being difficult.
Deputy City Manager Chantal Cotton-Gaines added that customer service was pinnacle for their work. If someone felt uncomfortable reaching out to Director Lait, her office was available, and they wanted to know if th ere were any issu es especially causing fear. They wanted to be a conduit related to the Department. If City Council should hear about issues, she requested that information be shared ASAP because real-time information would help the Department address any issues. It was al so important to validate positive situations where go od customer service had been provided and to give feedback more real time on issues that may have gone a little awry.
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Senior Operations Manager McRee proceeded with her presentation and commented that they continued to focus on recru itments. There was a vacancy for an assistant chief building official, which had been vacant since July 2022. She noted that recruitment had been very challenging because it was currently a very competitive market. They were developing internal dashboards for performance tracking, so managers would have visibility into all key areas of the permitting process. They were considering possible third-party applications that could be layered on top of the online permitting system, which could possibly make the user in terface better or make t he application process easier for customers. She supplied a slide showing the staff recommendation.
Council Member Lauing queried if shifting to an in -house model from consulting was finding enough supply chain or if there were still vacancies.
Senior Operations Manager McRee responded there were still vacan cies. On the Development Services side, there were two vacancies for building inspectors. They had an offer out for one , which they hoped would close soon. There was a plan check engineer vacancy, and they were at the end of the recruitment process. She explained that t hey had seen the market shift and change over the last year. Recently the y had been more successful in filli ng recruitments, especially with in-house staff, which was a little more reliable. They reached out very frequently for plan review services, and they were n ot abl e to dedicate FTE to the City. Next year, they would do an RFP for on -call services, and they hoped to expand the bench of consultants and have more options.
Council Member Lauing asked if they had been rescoping for the critical number two spot.
Director Lait explained that they wanted somebody to take on policy work . With the po sition not being filled, they we re tackling the ability to look for ward to so me of the prog rams and priority projects the Council had advanced. He recently spoke to a recruiter about the position, and he was told the job title was wrong, so they have been discussing chan ging the title. They had also been considering advancing a midyear request.
Council Member Veenker questioned if the hotline was appropriate for folks worried about reporting problems. She expressed that she had not received a disproportionate number of complaints about the Planning Department or of the process. She noted that permits needed to be issue d as quickly and as appropriately as possible. She felt that tech nology and staffing would help. She indicated that customer service in this area was perhaps more high profile than in many of the City’s departments. She was encouraged by the report and the ongoing efforts.
She respected the strategic plan being delayed in favor of addressing customer service, but she questioned why it would not start for anot her year. She com mended staff on the audit and embracing the recommendations.
City Attorney Molly Stump clarified that the hotline was focused on fraud , waste, and abuse, and general customer concerns would not fall within that. Something rising to the in tentional misapplication of the law, etc., would be appropriate.
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Director Lait expressed, related to strategic planning not start ing for anot her year , that 17 recommendations on the audit was a significant amount of work to address , and decent progress ha d been made. He first wanted to focus on things that they knew needed to be addressed. He hoped after implementation of some of the systems and a little runtime that the effort could be made to define what the City ’s role was in government, with customers, and to each other in the Department. He felt time was neede d before eng aging in the stra tegic plan.
He estimated that strategic planning would start in about a year.
Senior Operations Manager McRee added that they were continuing to make progress toward strategic planning.
Public Comments
There were no requests to speak.
City Auditor Adriane McCoy was pleased to see the work done. She declared that they were available to assist the Department with the ongoing findings in progress and working toward the strategic plan. Through their follow-up activities over the next six months , they would be in conversation with Director Lait and his team members to a complete end.
Chair Tanaka discussed incentives and measuring and reaching scores and thought there should be incentives for reaching and exceeding scores. He queried if there was a program to recognized those doing an excellent job , especially in customer service. He suggested there be public recognition, such as putting the person ’s name on a board , etc., and perhaps monetary benefits. In terms of customer service, h e asked if the re were goal metrics to get a percentage measurement or score by a certain date.
Chief Building Official Hoyt remarked that when he recognized a staff member going above and beyond, he complimented them on their efforts. H e voiced that he needed to make more time to write personal notes because he thought that would mean a lot. They had a lot of events and potlucks to try to celebrate certain occasions.
Director Lait did not think there were metri cs for goals , but it was not for a lack of consideration. He discussed the dashboard tracking progress in turning around applications, etc., and making proactive calls to respond to the customer service piece. He thought additional information was needed and systems needed t o be in place before thinking about publicizing metrics. He was open to ideas to achieve that. He thought they were trying to approach it from different angles as opposed to a score on a satisfaction bar.
Chair Tanaka t hought it start ed with a measurement goal, then looking at [inaudible] scores , and then setting something reasonable and achievable for the organization , and everyone in the organization should know that a certain score was being targeted. It needed to be transparent and e asy to un derstand. He asked what was keeping the m from using a CRM system, which would provide coherency in engagement with customers.
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Director Lait thought more consideration needed to be giv en to a CRM sys tem. He remarked that sometimes notes were taken when there was interaction with custom ers thr ough the Accela process, although it was hard to track th at data when on a phone call or when with a customer. Sometimes information was presented in a different way, so a CRM program would be beneficial to the City.
MOTION: Council Member Veenker moved, seconded by Council Member Lauing to recommend the City Council accept the status update of the Audit of the Building and Permit Review Report.
Chair Tanaka inquired if there was anything that could be recommended to Council that might be helpful for the budget for a CRM system, a consultant, or a midterm hire, etc.
Director Lait thanked Chair Tanaka for his support. He did not currently have any specific recommendations, but going through midyear and into next year’s budget, he anticipated that there may be some adjustments to staffing and some con sultant budge t enhancement requests. He had been reaching out to a consultant to understand a little more of the nuance related to the application intake process, so if he had someone from the outside go through the process, there may be some opportunities for refinement.
Deputy City Manager Chantal Cotton -Gaines thought a budget requ est was beyond the current agenda item with it being a status report. She voice d that it was important to ha ve the recommendation in the context of the larger budget conversation. [The Committee took a five-minute break]
MOTION PASSED: 3-0
3. Discussion and Recommendation to the City Council Regarding the City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook – Annual Discussion
Deputy City Manager Chanta l Cotton-Gaines noted that the item was a cursory review. It was pre-conversation for the Full Council on the annual review of the handbook. She stated that they planned to take the referrals that cam e from Council earlier in the year to the Full City Council on February 27, and they would report on all the actions taken thus far on the referrals, which was on censure, international travel, role of lia ison for boards and commis sions, etc. She asked that that be separated from this discussion. Each year, the Committee was to review the handbook and consider any necessary modification s. Staff offered a few items in the Staff Report, and they had also solicited the Full City Council for suggested updates to the handbook, and all the suggestions were included in the report. The current item was to organize the topics within the report and to think about the Full Council discussion on the annual handbook review.
She noted that typical ly occurred at the City Council’s retreat in the January or February time frame, but in the last few yea rs, there had usually not been time at the retreat, so it would happen a meeting or two aft er the retreat. She had a few categories to summarize the topics into, and she wanted to get the Committee ’s acceptance that those were the categories and Item 12
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the approval to put this on the Council agenda around February 2024. She had categorized the topics in thinking about the order of the agenda.
Chair Tanaka asked that this be presented one at a time.
Public Comments
There were no requests to speak.
Deputy City Manager Cotton-Gaines expressed that the staff recommendations were at the top of Packet Page 34 , which she displayed on a slide, and included boundaries of receiving gifts from sister cities and other international communities that Palo Alto was in relationship with.
Council Member Veenker asked if this applied to the Cit y and City represen tatives receiving gifts.
Assistant City Manager Cotton -Gains clarified that the intention w as to be clear and establish a gift dollar limit that could be received by the City. She provided an example of the City receiving a gift of a high dollar value , and the gifts Palo Alto might provide not being of the same dollar value. It could apply to the City or individuals. Indivi dual gifts were already legi slated. This was more related to large gifts from another city to Palo Alto as an organization. It was not designed to address what may be given, only what may be received.
Council Member Veenker me ntioned that if felt odd to her that the City could give a large gift but not receive one. She was concerned about the inconsistency, and it felt as though Palo Alto was putting itself on a pedestal.
Assistant City Manager Cotton-Gains indicated that on a verage the gifts Palo Alto gave were of lower dollar value than gifts received. Giving away the firetruck was an exception. It could apply to what may be received as well as what may be given. She noted that currently the decision to receive a gift was left to an individual, and this procedure would provide more structure.
Chair Tanaka supported Council Member Veenker’s comments. He did n ot understand why this was needed because he thought all elected officials had an FPPC limit. He questioned how a hotel room would be a gift to the City versus an individual.
City Attorney Molly Stump explained that this applied to gifts to the City , not to individuals.
There was a specific FPPC rule on international travel.
Assistant City Manager Cotton-Gains indicated there should be something in place saying hotel accommodations would not be accepted by international partners.
Discussion ensued related to why this was needed, what was included in FPPC, and the City and individuals receiving gifts.
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Council Member Veenk er suggested that it be view ed as three entities – the City, an elected Council member subject to FPPC reporting, and staff /neighbor’s abroad /others on behalf the City. She thought there may be different rules.
Assistant City Manager Cotton-Gains felt that was helpful feedba ck, and noted that it could be refined before presenting it to Council.
Chair Tanaka did not think the City should make donations.
Assistant City Ma nager Cotton-Gains remarked that there were no t clear guidelines related to proclamations. Staff wanted to add clear instructions.
Council Member Veenker thought there should be clear instructions.
Council Member Laui ng believed there should be guidelines with broad discretion and not too restrictive.
Council Member Tanaka asked if this was a problem.
Discussion ensu ed concerning the volu me of proclamations increasing; the M ayor doing a recent proclamation on her own ; when, where , and b y w hom procl amations should be; and staff having difficulty providing [inaudible].
Assistant City Manage r Cotton -Gains noted that C on Packet Page 34 related to additional guidelines for ad hoc committees. Staff had provided some draft ad hoc committee guidelines in the packet. It would be brought forward for Counci l’s discussion. Ad ho c committees had been used more in recent history, so staff recommended the handbook provide clear expectations for them.
Council Member Veenker supported Council discussing and providing clarity for ad hoc committee guid elines. She f elt that the tone of the specifics as wr itten appeared to be reprimands to Council memb ers. She addressed 2d on P acket Page 34 and noted there should be an option for compromise. She did not see anything indicating what staff should do to make it work. She discussed the flexibility of ad hocs. She thought Council member limits should be set forth, but it felt like negatives as opposed to positives and/or compromise.
Council Member Lauing agreed. He thought it was meant to be defensive o f workload and normal process. He noted that they were not trying to circumvent staff opinion. He provided an example an ad hoc agreeing on the Director’s approach on an issue, although there could have been disagreement, which then Council could have made a decision from both perspectives.
Council Member Veenker addressed Item 4 and inquired how a work plan could be created, adopted, etc., in the ten ure of an ad hoc as ad hocs were generally short, temporary committees.
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Assistant City Manager Cotton -Gains answered that a work plan could be perceived as larger than it actually was. It was to make clear what assignments the committee would do given the time they had.
Council Member Lauing thought an ad hoc would have a specific objective, and he was not sure a work plan would be done. He was comfortable dropping Item 4.
Assistant City Manager Cotton -Gains voiced that it would vary by topic. Some topics were very clear and other s were to explore a topic and present something to Council. In the latter, it would be helpful to have a definition very early on.
Chair Tanaka liked Council Member Veenker ’s comments related to the tone o f the item. It seemed like staff was relaying to Council they could not do X, Y, or Z. He discussed the importance of Council hav ing the freedom to ope rate. He suggested that Council have discussions instead of publicized rules in the handbook. He did not think staff should tell Council how to operate. He thought items should be removed if items were added. It appeared to him that some of the items seemed to be micromanagement of Council by staff , which could provide limits to future Council members. He agreed with the perspectives previously voiced by Council members. He addressed the size of the handbook and suggested it be compressed.
Council Member Lauing asked if it could be condensed before coming back.
City Attorney Stump was sure it could be condensed, more user friendly , and positive. She clarified that this was more about the relationship between Council and ad hocs, not between ad hocs and staf f. An ad hoc needed to stay tethered to the purpose and scope given by Council.
Assistant City Manager Cotton -Gains would explore edits that could be made. She furnished a slide of the Supplemental Memo, which contained ideas received from City Council.
Council Member Veenker summarized her sugge stions related to remote participation . S he detailed why she was less excited about moving away from video participation and thought it should be reconsidered.
Public Comments
There were no requests to speak.
Chair Ta naka noted that he had had more participation by doing his o ffice hours vi a Zoom , which he thought was helpful and useful. He discussed why it should be encouraged.
Discussion ensu ed related to this meeting providing Council with a specific recommendation, and the Committee decided to provide feedback to Council without taking a vote. It was noted that the item may return to PSC.
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Council Member Veenker voiced that her second suggestion in the Supplemental Memo related to the City adopting a formal land acknowledgement, which she supported and wanted to see it added to the agenda. She p rovided a defin ition of land ack nowledgement. She noted that it could be determined when and how often it would be done.
Assistant City Manager Cotton -Gains added that so me or ganizations had chosen to do land acknowledgements at the start of events and meetings . The id ea was to honor and acknowledge that the land had roots from people prior to [inaudible].
Chair Tanaka liked the idea, but he was concerned that could extend meeting times.
Council Member Lauing dis cussed his recommendation s in the Supplemental Memo related to a 30-minute limit for public comment and questioned if it should be strictly abided by or if there should be an exception clause, and he thought call-in public comment should be discussed.
Council Member Veenker thought this should be included in the time management category, and she believed they were all worth discussing. She believed the rule s should be stated publicly.
Chair Tanaka felt rules should be followed.
Assistant City Manager Cott on-Gains noted that the item contained two ideas – one enforcing the existing rule and the other suggesting a change to amend the rule.
Chair Tanaka addressed the ideas in the Supplemental Memo from Council members not present at this meeting, and he sugg ested they speak to their ideas when they were in attendance at a future date.
Council Member Veenker c ommented that she was glad Council Member Lythcott -Haims brought up her third item in the Supplemental Memo, which would be good to discuss, and she thought clarity should be provided as she felt there were miscommunications related to it Council Member Lauing added that Council Member Lythcott -Haims’ first item was also worth debate.
Council Member Veenker supported discussing Council Member Lythcott-Haims’ first item. She was interested in C ouncil Member Burt ’s recommendation concerning a Committee making recommendations to Council for a Committee to discuss a specific topic instead of using a Colleagues’ Memo. She thought the proposed ad hoc rules indicated that was a possibility.
Council Member Lauing did not think Council Member Burt was referring to ad hocs.
Council Member Veenker thought it should be made clear that it related to standing or formal committees.
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Chair Tanaka suggested the handbook be streamlined to red uce the number of pages , and asked staff to include that in the item. He thought something should be removed if anything else was added.
Assistant City Manager Cotton -Gains remarked tha t there had been a few iterations of the handbook. The most compreh ensive was the one Council did earlier in 2024, which started in Policy and Services.
Future Meetings and Agendas
Assistant City Manager Chantal Cotton-Gains declared the re would be two ba ck-to-back meetings in December , which included the legislative platform for the coming year , the auditor’s risk asses sment and audit plan , and an audit on wa stewater treatment. She noted there were about four audits. The re was also the 2024 City Council priorities discussion and recommendations and referral, the last referral on procedures and protocols related to Council discretionary expenditures. There were about seven items that would be split between the two evenings.
Council Member Veenker explained why she may not be in town for the meetings. She would confirm her schedule and let Assistant City Manager Cotton-Gains know for certain.
Chair Tanaka requested there be another Doodle poll, if needed, to see if the meetings could be rescheduled.
Assistant City Manager Cotton-Gains would work with the Clerk’s office to issue a Doodle poll if needed. She would also check with staff related to the items to determine which actually had to come before the Committee this year. She flagged that there was an informational item for the Committee to read on their own related to the Race and Equity update being done t his month.
They continued to move forward Council’s recommendations and the initiatives. They had also hired an Equity and Inclusion Program Manager.
Chair Tanaka asked the Committee for thoughts about how the next meeting should be streamed.
Council Member Veenker thanked staff for the Equity and Inclusion Program manager hire.
Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 9:38 P.M.
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If you have any questions about this handbook, please feel free to contact the City Clerk by phone at (650) 329-2571 and e-mail at [email protected] or the City Attorney by phone at (650) 329-2171 and e-mail at
[email protected].
CITY COUNCIL
PROCEDURES AND
PROTOCOLS HANDBOOK
Procedures and Protocols Approved 04/24/2023
(last updated 02/05/2024 and 02/26/2024)
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction ............................................................................................................. 3 PART I: CITY COUNCIL PROCEDURES .......................................................................... 4 SECTION 1 – CITY COUNCIL ORGANIZATION AND STRUCTURE .................................................. 4
1.1 Annual Organization of City Council .............................................................................. 4
1.2 Council Committees ...................................................................................................... 4
1.3 Respect the Work of the Council Committees .............................................................. 7 SECTION 2 - GENERAL PROCEDURES FOR CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS ......................................... 8
2.1 Meeting Schedules, Agendas and Supporting Materials ............................................... 8
2.2 The Mayor and Vice Mayor Should Work with Staff to Plan the Council Meetings ...... 9
2.3 Attendance Procedures ................................................................................................. 9
2.4 Colleagues’ Memos ..................................................................................................... 14 SECTION 3 - CITY COUNCIL MEETING ORDER OF THE AGENDA ............................................... 14
3.1 Call to Order ................................................................................................................ 15
3.2 Special Orders of the Day ............................................................................................ 15
3.3 Closed Sessions ........................................................................................................... 15
3.4 Agenda Changes, Additions, and Deletions ................................................................. 17
3.5 General Public Comment (see Section 5 on Public Participation for more details about “General Public Comment”) ............................................................................. 17
3.6 Council Member Questions, Comments, and Announcements (including reports on Boards, Commissions, and Committees) .................................................................... 17
3.7 Study Sessions ............................................................................................................. 18
3.8 Consent Agenda .......................................................................................................... 18
3.9 City Manager’s Comments .......................................................................................... 20
3.10 Action Items ................................................................................................................ 20
3.11 Adjournment ............................................................................................................... 20 SECTION 4 - PROCEDURES AT CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS ......................................................... 21
4.1 Council Motion and Voting Processes throughout the Agenda (exist. Procedures 2.4 U and V) ...................................................................................................................... 21
4.2 Motion Procedures ..................................................................................................... 21
4.3 Voting and Debate of Agenda Items ........................................................................... 25
4.4 Quasi-Judicial Matters ................................................................................................. 27 SECTION 5 - HOW THE PUBLIC ENGAGES WITH THE CITY COUNCIL ........................................ 29
5.1 Public Participation During City Council Meetings ...................................................... 29 SECTION 6 - CITY COUNCIL QUESTIONS ON AGENDA-RELATED ITEMS .................................... 32
6.1 Submit Questions on Council Agenda Items Ahead of the Meeting ........................... 32
6.2 City Council emails for Agenda-Related Items Procedure ........................................... 32 SECTION 7 – COUNCIL VALUES AND ANNUAL COUNCIL PRIORITIES ........................................ 33 SECTION 8 - PROCEDURES AND PROTOCOLS REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT............................ 35
8.1 Annual Review and Update of Handbook................................................................... 35
8.2 Commitment to Follow the Procedures and Protocols Handbook ............................... 35
8.3 Procedures for Enforcement ................................................................................................ 35 PART II: CITY COUNCIL PROTOCOLS .......................................................................... 36 SECTION 1 – CITY COUNCIL CONDUCT ..................................................................................... 36
1.1 Positive Work Place Environment ............................................................................... 36
1.2 Comply with Law ......................................................................................................... 36 Item 12
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1.3 City Council Core Responsibilities (exist. Protocol Sec. 1) ........................................... 36
1.4 General Member Conduct........................................................................................... 37
1.5 Decisions Based on Merit ............................................................................................ 38
1.6 Advocacy ..................................................................................................................... 38
1.7 Council Conduct with City Staff ................................................................................... 39
1.8 Use of Staff Time ......................................................................................................... 40 SECTION 2 - CITY COUNCIL CONDUCT WITH PALO ALTO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS .......... 41
2.1 If Attending a Board or Commission Meeting, Identify Your Comments as Personal Views or Opinions ....................................................................................................... 41
2.2 Refrain from Lobbying Board and Commission Members ........................................... 41
2.3 Remember that Boards and Commissions are Advisory to the Council as a Whole, not as Individual Council Members ................................................................................... 41
2.4 Concerns about an Individual Board or Commission Member Should be Pursued with Tact .............................................................................................................................. 41
2.5 Be Respectful of Diverse Opinions .............................................................................. 42
2.6 Keep Political Support Away from Public Forums ....................................................... 42
2.7 Maintain an Active Liaison Relationship ...................................................................... 42
2.8 Role of Council Liaison to Board or Commission ......................................................... 42 SECTION 3 - STAFF CONDUCT WITH CITY COUNCIL ................................................................. 42
3.1 Respond to Council Questions as Fully and as Expeditiously as is Practical ................ 42
3.2 Respect the Role of Council Members as Policy Makers for the City .......................... 42
3.3 Demonstrate Professionalism and Non-Partisanship in all Interactions with the Community and in Public Meetings ............................................................................ 42
3.4 It is Important for the Staff to Demonstrate Respect for the Council at all Times...... 43 SECTION 4 - CITY COUNCIL AND BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS POLICY FOR TRAVEL AND MISCELLANEOUS EXPENSE REIMBURSEMENT .................................................................... 43
4.1 Mayor and Vice Mayor Additional Compensation ...................................................... 43
4.2 Miscellaneous Expenditures ........................................................................................ 43
4.3 Council and Boards and Commission Travel Policy ..................................................... 43 SECTION 5 - Confidentiality, Conflicts of Interest, Gifts And Favors ........................................ 44 Item 12
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City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook
3 Introduction
The purpose of this City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook is to review a set of rules through which the Palo Alto City Council conducts its business in a fair, equitable and effective manner. Adoption of the Handbook is requirement of the Palo Alto Municipal Code:
Municipal Code 2.04.100 – Handbook of Procedural Rules
The Council shall adopt by resolution a handbook of procedural rules governing any aspect of the conduct of meetings and hearings for the council and its standing committees, including but not limited to agenda requirements, the order of business, rules of order, rules of evidence, closed session procedures and rules for public participation in meetings. The handbook of procedural rules shall be deemed guidelines and failure to comply with any procedural rule shall not be the basis for challenge to or invalidation of any action of the council, nor shall they be construed to create any independent remedy or right of action of any kind.
The handbook is organized in two parts:
Part I: City Council Procedures
This section explains the process through which work is done and basic rules for City Council meetings including public participation guidelines.
Part II: City Council Protocols
This section explains conduct guidance for the City Council.
If a provision of this Handbook conflicts or is inconsistent with the Charter, the Municipal Code, or State or Federal law, the Charter, Code, or State or Federal law shall govern.
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4 PART I: CITY COUNCIL PROCEDURES
SECTION 1 – CITY COUNCIL ORGANIZATION AND STRUCTURE
1.1 Annual Organization of City Council
The Palo Alto Charter, Article III, Section 8 directs Council to elect one of its members to serve as Mayor and one as Vice-Mayor, and sets forth their duties. Palo Alto Municipal Code Section 2.04.060 provides additional detail. Mayor and Vice-Mayor are elected at the first meeting in January each year. Nominations may be made by any Council member and do not require a second.
1.2 Council Committees
(a) Standing Council Committees
Policy
It is the policy of the Council to use standing committees in open and public meetings to study City business in greater depth than what is possible in the time allotted for Council meetings.
Purpose
These rules are intended to enhance public participation and committee meetings so that the best possible decisions can be made for Palo Alto.
General Requirements
Council standing committees shall be subject to the following procedural rules:
1) Quorum
A majority of the committee membership shall constitute a quorum.
2) Referrals
Only the Council or City Manager shall make referrals to the standing committees.
Referrals will generally be directed to only one of the standing committees.
Items may be withdrawn from the committee and taken up for consideration by the Council at any Council meeting with the consent of a majority of the Council, and subject to any applicable noticing or agenda-posting requirements.
3) Attendance by Nonmembers
As required by the Brown Act, Council members who are not on a committee may attend the committee meeting but only as an observer; they may not speak or otherwise participate in the committee meeting.
If Council wishes to allow members who are not serving on the committee to speak, the meeting should be noticed as a meeting of the full Council, and all Council procedural requirements will apply.
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5 4) Function of committees
The purpose and intent of committee meetings is to expedite Council action by providing more thorough and detailed discussion and study of prospective or current Council agenda items with a full and complete airing of all sentiments and expressions of opin ion on City problems by both the committee and the public. Actions of the committee shall be advisory recommendations only except as to matters delegated to the committee by Council.
5) Minutes and Report of Committee
The City Clerk shall be responsible for the preparation and distribution to the Council of the minutes of standing committee meetings. The minutes for these meetings shall be action minutes which reflect the motions made during these meetings. The minutes of each committee meetin g serve as the report to the Council and should be included, as appropriate, in subsequent relevant staff reports.
6) Agenda
The presiding officer of each standing committee shall work with staff to prepare the agenda for committee meetings. Items should be scheduled as they are ready, taking into account the sequence of referral, the time required for staff research and analysis to support committee discussions, the time- sensitivity of items, and other factors as determined by the chair and City Manager.
7) Public Participation at Committees
The presiding officer shall determine the time that each speaker is allotted during general public comment and public comment on agendized items. The chair will typically set individual speaker speaking time at 3 minutes per speaker. If extended public participation is desired the chair may provide for a longer period; if there are a large number of speakers or many agenda items, speaking time may be shortened.
8) New Standing Committees
Council may establish new standing committees as needed.
(b) Policy and Services Committee
The Municipal Code states that the role of the Council Policy & Services Committee is to consider and make recommendations on matters referred to it by the Council relating to parliamentary and administrative procedures and policy matters pertaining to intergovernmental relations, personnel policies, planning and zoning, traffic and parking, public work, and community and human services. (§2.04.220).
(c) Finance Committee
The Municipal Code states that the role of the Council Finance Committee is to consider and make recommendations on matters referred to it by the Council relating to finance, budget, financial audits, capital planning and debt. (§2.04.210).
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6 (d) Council Appointed Officers (CAO) Committee
The CAO Committee meets on an as-needed schedule to address issues that Council has referred to the Committee related to Council's four direct appointees: the City Manager, City Attorney, City Clerk and City Auditor. For example, the committee may be tasked with duties related to performance evaluations, compensation, and the filling of vacancies.
(e) City Schools Liaison Committee
The City-Schools Liaison Committee is composed of two Council members and two members of the Board of Education of the Palo Alto Unified School District. The committee’s purpose is to share information, collaborate, and coordinate on issues related to Palo Alto’s school-aged children and youth.
(f) Ad Hoc Committees
Policy
The Council may create Ad Hoc Committees on a limited basis where necessary to study City business in greater depth than what is possible in the time allotted for Council and Standing Committee meetings.
Purpose
These rules are intended to clarify the distinctions between Standing and Ad Hoc Committees and to set up guidelines for creation of Ad Hoc Committees.
General Requirements
Council Ad Hoc Committees shall be subject to the following procedural rules:
1) Definition of Ad Hoc Committee
An Ad Hoc Committee is a temporary advisory committee composed solely of less than a quorum of members of the Council or any Council Standing Committee. The work of an Ad Hoc Committee has a limited or single purpose. An Ad Hoc committee is not intended to be perpetual but rather to be dissolved in a finite period time, once its specific task is completed. By contrast, a Standing Committee has continuing subject matter jurisdiction over a variety of related topics.
2) Brown Act
The procedural requirements of the Brown Act apply to all committees that have either:
(a) continuing subject matter jurisdiction over a matter or group of related matters; or (b) a regular meeting schedule set by Council action. All Standing Committees are Brown Act bodies. Ad hoc committees are generally not Brown Act bodies, provided that they are temporary bodies, formed for the purpose of addressing a limited or single purpose, include only members of Council, and do not have a regular meeting schedule set by Council action. When Council creates an Ad Hoc committee that is not a Brown Act body, Council may, at its discretion, direct that the committee follow Brown Act procedures.
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7 3) Creation and Appointment
The Mayor or the Council may create an Ad Hoc Committee and appoint three or fewer members of the Council to serve. In contrast, only the Council and not the Mayor alone can create a Standing Committee. The Mayor makes appointments to Standing and Ad Hoc Committees. The Mayor will publicly announce any Ad Hoc Committee created by her or him and its membership and stated purpose. The Clerk shall post this information on the Council website. The City Manager shall prepare a report to Council about the anticipated time commitment required for staff to assist the Ad Hoc Committee.
4) Duration
Ad Hoc Committees are created for a finite period of time. If an Ad Hoc Committee does not complete its task by the end of the calendar year, it shall not continue unless reappointed by the new Mayor in the following year.
5) Members
Ad Hoc Committees shall consist of less than a quorum of Council members only, and shall not include any other persons, including members of other legislative bodies.
6) Reporting
Ad Hoc Committees shall report their recommendations to the Council in the timeframe directed by Council. Any Council Member may ask during ‘Council Member Questions, Comments And Announcements’ that an updated Ad Hoc Committee report be placed on an upcoming meeting agenda.
7) Termination of Ad Hoc Committee by Majority of Council A majority of the Council may vote to terminate any Ad Hoc Committee following placement of the issue on an agenda.
8) Conclusion
A public announcement shall be made any time the Ad Hoc Committee has concluded its work and/or upon dissolution.
1.3 Respect the Work of the Council Committees
Council should respect the work of Council committees, as their purpose is to provide focused, in - depth discussion of issues to help inform and expedite Council business. If a matter is taken forward to the full Council for approval after receiving a unanimous vote at committee, the item will be placed on the Consent Calendar, unless otherwise recommended by the committee, Mayor, City Attorney or City Manager.
* * *
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8 SECTION 2 - GENERAL PROCEDURES FOR CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
The purpose of these guidelines is to facilitate the orderly and efficient conduct of Council business. This purpose recognizes the value of establishing a community understanding of meeting procedures so that broad public participation is encouraged. This purpose also recognizes that Council members must have a common approach to the discussion and debate of City business so that meetings are both streamlined and thorough.
These are guidelines, rather than rules. The Council intends that City staff and Co uncil members will follow these guidelines. However, these guidelines should not be used in a way that leads to inefficiency, unfairness, or the promotion of form over substance.
In addition to Council-adopted guidelines, State law establishes a variety of mandatory meeting rules that the City must follow in order to ensure open government and fair process, regardless of unusual situations and consequences. (See Cal. Govt Code section 54950.)
2.1 Meeting Schedules, Agendas and Supporting Materials (a) Meeting Schedules for Regular and Special Meetings
The Council generally conducts two different kinds of meetings: regular meetings and special meetings.
The Municipal Code provides that regular Council meetings are conducted at City Hall on the first three Monday nights of each month, except during the Council’s annual summer and winter recesses, at 5:30 p.m.
The Council also schedules periodic speci al meetings, which are meetings on any day or time other than the regular meeting time. This may include meetings on the regularly -scheduled first three Mondays where the start time is 5 p.m. or earlier, or meetings on a fourth or fifth Monday, or meetings scheduled on any other day or time.
The Mayor or Council may call a special meeting on a minimum of 24 hours’ notice. Special meetings need not be held at City Hall, as long as the alternate location is within the City. The Council makes every effort to provide notice well in advance of 24 hours, especially when the special meeting is for the purpose of conducting a Study Session.
(c) Posting of Agendas
Under the Brown Act, meeting agendas must be posted no later than 72 -hours prior to regular meetings and 24-hours prior to special meetings. It is City policy to make every effort to post the agenda on Thursday, 11 days prior to Monday meetings, whether regular or special. Agendas are posted in King Plaza by the elevators and are uploaded to the Council web page.
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9 (d) Supporting Reports and Materials
It is City policy to make every effort to provide supporting reports and materials at the time the agenda is posted. Typically, this will occur 11 days before the meeting. Materials that are not available at the time of agenda posting will be distributed as soon as feasible before the meeting.
Materials that are distributed to a majority of Council will be made available to the public at the same time, as required by law. Some materials, such as presentation materials or “supplemental memoranda” (previously referred to as “at places” memoranda) may be distributed to Council members and the public at the meeting.
(e) Late Submittal of Correspondence or Other Information Related to Planning Applications In order to allow for adequate staff review and analysis and to ensure public access to information, all plans, correspondence, and other documents supporting planning applications being heard by the Council must be submitted to staff not later than noon five (5) working days prior to the release of the Council Agenda Packet. If any correspondence or other information is submitted after this deadline to Council members or staff, and staff determines additional review is needed, staff will reschedule the item for a future Council meeting.
If a Council member receives planning application materials from a project applicant, or receives other significant material related to the application from any source, he or she shall notify the City Clerk and the City Manager as soon as possible so that all relevant material can be entered into the official record and made available to all parties and the public. At the meeting the Council may determine whether to continue or refer the item to the appropriate board and/or commission if significant changes to a project or significant new information become known.
2.2 The Mayor and Vice Mayor Should Work with Staff to Plan the Council Meetings There are three purposes to the pre- Council planning meeting: 1) to plan how the meeting will be conducted, including review of approximate time allocation of Staff Report presentations and to ensure adequate time for large complex items; 2) to identify an y issues or questions that may need greater staff preparation for the meeting; and 3) to discuss future meetings. Consideration in building the agenda should be given to the potential length of the meeting and at what point items of significant public concern may be heard.
The purpose of the meeting is not to work on policy issues. Normally, only the Mayor and Vice Mayor are invited and expected to attend the pre-Council meetings with the City Manager, other CAOs, and department managers. The Mayor and Vice Mayor’s role is to represent the interest of the entire Council.
2.3 Attendance Procedures
(a) Attendance Required
Council members, the City Clerk, City Attorney, and City Manager, along with any other City officers and department heads that have been requested to be present, shall take their regular stations in the Council Chambers at the start of every scheduled meeting. The presiding officer will ensure that each meeting will include at least one 15-minute break. The Council expects its members to attend regularly and notify the City Clerk of any planned absences. The Council may levy fines of Item 12
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10 up to $250.00 against Council members who willfully fail to attend meetings (PAMC section
2.04.050).
(b) Remote Attendance of Council Members at Council and Committee Meetings Council members are strongly encouraged to attend meetings in person. State law allows Council members to attend meetings remotely by following the procedures outlined in Government Code Section 54953(b) (“Standard Remote Attendance”) or the procedures outlined in Assembly Bill 2449 (2022) (“AB 2449 Remote Attendance”). For convenience, these procedures are summarized below and are current as of the date of Handbook revision. If state law is subsequently amended, the amended terms of State law will apply.
Council members are encouraged to consult in advance with the City Clerk and, if needed, the City Attorney to ensure compliance with all required procedures.
1) Number of Remote Appearances
Remote attendance shall be permitted not more than 3 five (5) times a year per legislative body (for example, five times a year for full Council meetings and five additional times a year for each Council committee). AB 2449 rules still apply which state that no more than two meetings may be attended remotely during a calendar year for “just cause,” as described below.
2) General Procedures for Appearing Remotely
Council members must follow mandatory procedures set forth in State law. At any meeting where a Council member is attending remotely, the following requirements must be met:
(A) At least a quorum of the Council must participate from a singular physical location within the City.
(B) The agenda must identify and include an opportunity for the public to attend and directly address the council member through a call-in option, an internet-based service option, and in-person at the location of the meeting. (C) Council may not take action if there is an unresolved disruption to the meeting broadcast or to the ability to take call-in or internet-based public comment.
If the above threshold requirements are met, the Council member attending remotely must ensure they follow the procedures associated with either Standard Remote Attendance or AB 2449 Remote Attendance.
3) Standard Remote Attendance Procedures
A Council member attending remotely using these procedures must ensure that:
(A) The meeting agenda identifies the remote attendance location and is posted at that location in an area that is accessible and visible 24 hours a day for at least 72 hours prior to a regular meeting and 24 hours prior to a special meeting.
(B) The remote attendance location is open and fully accessible to the public, and fully accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act, throughout the entire Item 12
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11 meeting. These requirements apply to private residences, hotel rooms, and similar facilities, all of which must remain fully open and accessible throughout the meeting, without requiring identification or registration.
(C) The remote attendance technology used is open and fully accessible to all members of the public, including those with disabilities.
(D) Members of the public who attend the meeting at the remote attendance location have the same opportunity to address the Council from the remote location that they would if they were present in Council Chambers.
(E) The remote attendance location must not require an admission fee or any payment for attendance.
(F) If the meeting will include a closed session, the Council Member must ensure that there is a private location available for that portion of the meeting. A priv ate location means a closed room such that no other person can hear any portion of the closed session.
If the Council Member intends to follow the procedures of Standard Remote Attendance but determines that any or all of these requirements cannot be met, he or she shall not participate in the meeting remotely using Standard Remote Attendance procedures.
4) Standard Remote Attendance Guidelines
(A) Five days written notice in advance of the publication of the agenda must be given by the Council member to the City Clerk’s office about their intent to participate remotely; the notice must include the address at which the remote attendance will occur, and the address the Council packet should be mailed to, if a hard copy is requested.
(B) The Council member is responsible for posting the Council agenda in the remote location, or having the agenda posted by somebody at the location and confirming that posting has occurred. The City Clerk will assist, if necessary, by emailing, faxing or mailing the agenda to whatever address or fax number the Council member requests; however, it is the Council member’s responsibility to ensure that the agenda arrives and is posted. If the Council Member will need the assistance of the City Clerk in delivery of the agenda, the fax number or address must be included in the five-day advance written notice above.
(C) The Council Member must ensure that the location will be publicly accessible while the meeting is in progress.
(D) The Council Member must state at the beginning of the Council meeting that the posting requirement was met at the location and that the location is publicly accessible and must describe the location.
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12 5) AB 2449 Remote Attendance Procedures
In 2022 the Legislature adopted AB 2449, which amended the Brown Act to allow remote participation in certain narrow circumstances (listed below) without publishing the remote location on the meeting agenda and without providing public access from the remote location.
Where the requirements of AB 2449 are met, a Council member is not required to follow the procedures described in Section 2.3(b)(3)(A)-(E), above.
A Council member may use AB 2449 if the Council member has either “just cause” or “emergency circumstances” that require remote participation, as defined by AB 2449. (A) Just cause.
i. “Just cause” is defined as:
a. a childcare or caregiving need of a child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner that requires remote attendance, b. a contagious illness that prevents in-person attendance, c. a need related to a physical or mental disability which cannot be resolved by a request for reasonable accommodation, or
d. travel while on the business of a state or local agency. ii. Notice. A Council member with “just cause” to attend remotely must notify the Council or Council committee and the City Clerk at the earliest possible opportunity, including at the start of the meeting, of their need to participate remotely and provide a general description of the circumstances.
(B) Emergency Circumstances.
“Emergency circumstances” is defined as a physical or family medical emergency that prevents a Council member from attending the Council meeting in person. i. Notification and acceptance.
a. A Council member attending remotely due to “emergency circumstances” must notify the Council or Council committee and the City Clerk at the earliest possible opportunity.
b. The Council or Council committee must request a general description of the circumstances relating to the Council member’s need to appear remotely. The description does not need to have more than 20 words, and the Council member does not have to disclose any personal medical information.
c. At the earliest opportunity available to it, the Council or Council committee must, by a majority vote of i ts members, take action on the request to approve or disapprove it. If the request does not allow sufficient time to place it on the agenda for the meeting for which the request is made, the legislative body must take action on the request at Item 12
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13 the beginning of the meeting by majority vote.
(C) Disclosures. Council members attending remotely must publicly disclose at the meeting before any action is taken whether any other individuals 18 years of age or older are present in the room at the remote location with the member and the general nature of the member’s relationship with the individual.
(D) Technology. Council members attending remotely shall participate using both audio and visual technology.
If the Council member intending to follow the procedures of AB 2449 Remote Attendance determines that any or all of these requirements cannot be met, he or she shall not participate in the meeting remotely using AB 2449 Remote Attendance procedures.
6) AB 2449 Remote Attendance Sample Scripts
At the start of the meeting, the Council member attending remotely may use the following language to identify under which provision they are attending remotely:
Just Cause:
“I have just cause to attend this meeting remotely under AB 2449. I have not attended a meeting remotely due to just cause more than once this calendar year. I have attended [NUMBER] meetings remotely this calendar year. I must attend this meeting remotely because…
1. “… I must provide caregiving to [RELATION].”
2. “… a contagious illness prevents me from attending in person.”
3. “… I have a need related to a disability which could not be accommodated at this meeting.”
4. “… I am travelling while on official business of [STATE OR LOCAL AGENCY].”
“In this room, I am accompanied by…
1. “…no one over the age of 18.”
2. “…one or more individuals over the age of 18. They are [RELATION (e.g., my spouse, coworker, medical provider)].”
Emergency Circumstances:
“Due to emergency circumstances, I request to attend this meeting remotely under AB 2449. I have attended [NUMBER] meetings remotely this calendar year. The [PHYSICAL OR FAMILY] medical emergency I am facing requires my remote attendance because [BRIEF DESCRIPTION].”
“In this room, I am accompanied by…
1. “…no one over the age of 18.”
2. “…one or more individuals over the age of 18. They are [RELATION (e.g., my spouse, coworker, medical provider)].”
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14 2.4 Colleagues’ Memos
Council members may bring forward a colleagues’ memo on any topic to be considered by the entire Council. A minimum of two Council members are required to place such a memo on the agenda, reflective of the Council procedure requiring a motion and a second for consideration of a motion by the Council. Up to three Council members may sign a colleague memo. To comply with the Brown Act, three is the maximum number Council members who may discuss or sign onto a colleagues’ memo.
Prior to preparing a colleagues ’ memo, Council members should consult with the City Manager to determine whether the City Manager is able to address the issues as part of their operational authority and within current budgeted resources. Colleagues’ memos should include a section drafted by the City Manager that identifies any potential staffing or fiscal impacts of the contemplated action.
Council members shall provide a copy of the proposed memo to the City Manager and City Attorney prior to finalization. Completed Council colleagues’ m emos should be provided to the City Manager, City Attorney and City Clerk with as much advance notice as possible, to provide time for staff to prepare the resource impact section and prepare the memo for placement on the agenda.
The Council will not take action on the night that a colleagues’ memo is introduced if it has any implications for staff resources or current work priorities which are not addressed in the memo. The Council will discuss the colleagues’ memo and refer it to a committee or direct the City Manager to agendize the matter for Council action. Action may be taken immediately by the Council on colleagues’ memos where there are no resource or staffing implications, or where these implications are fully outlined in t he colleagues’ memo. The Brown Act requires that the public be fully informed of the potential action by the Council when the agenda is published. In order to satisfy the Brown Act requirements, the Council should consult with the City Attorney to ensure t hat the proposed title to the colleagues’ memo contains all actions that the Council members want completed on the night of the Council review.
Council members nearing the end of their term desiring to submit a colleagues’ memo should consider submittal timing and steps needed in order to ensure Council discussion prior to the end of their term.
Staff will make best efforts to agendize such memos prior to the end of the Council term.
* * *
SECTION 3 - CITY COUNCIL MEETING ORDER OF THE AGENDA
Council agendas will be prepared by the City Clerk and presented to the Council in the order described below, except as determined otherwise by the Mayor in consultation with the City Manager. In setting the agenda, the typical order of agenda items is as shown below but the ordering can be changed in the agenda-setting process if needed. The City Manager, with prior approval of the Mayor, is authorized to designate upon the agenda items that shall be taken up first or at a specific time during the course of the meeting (PAMC section 2.04.070.) The Council may take matters up out of order upon approval by a majority vote of those present:
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15 Call to Order
Special Orders of the Day
Closed Session
Agenda Changes, Additions and Deletions
General Public Comment
Council Member Questions, Comments and Announcements
Study Session
Consent Agenda
Items may be placed upon the consent calendar by any council -appointed officer whenever, in such officer's judgment, such items are expected to be routinely approved without discussion or debate. Council Minutes are approved on Consent. The consent calendar shall be voted upon as one item.
City Manager Comments
Action Items
Adjournment
Items Considered After 10:30 p.m.: The Council makes every effort to end its meetings before 11 p.m. With that goal in mind, the Council generally does not start discussion of new matters after 10:30 p.m. Before 10 p.m. the Council will decide and announce whether it will begin consideration of any agenda items after 10:30 p.m. and, if so, which specific items will be taken up.
3.1 Call to Order
The meeting can be called to order in recognition of a holiday or special designation to bring awareness and show appreciation of that holiday or special designation. The Mayor will determine such recognitions in consultation with the Manager, and dates will primarily originate from a calendar adopted by the Council.
3.2 Special Orders of the Day
Council may acknowledge a special appreciation for individuals or groups for achievements, holidays (dates included in the annual Council-adopted calendar), etc., through the Special Order of the Day. This can be done through:
- A certificate of recognition for individuals linked to a certain event or holiday - Information read by Council members in honor of a group or individual - A proclamation or resolution presented to a group or individual - Informational presentation from a community group about their program.
3.3 Closed Sessions
Closed sessions are the only part of a Council meeting that the public cannot attend though to the public may make public comments before the start of the closed session. Council may meet in closed Item 12
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16 session only as specifically authorized by State law. The most common types of closed sessions are labor negotiations, litigation, employment issues, and real estate negotiations.
The Council will make a public report after the session where required by State or local law.
(a) Closed Session Requirements
1) Announcements Before Closed Sessions
The Mayor/City Clerk shall announce the item or items to be considered in closed session by reference to the appropriate agenda number or letter, or in an alternate form that shall be provided by the City Attorney.
2) Public Comments
Members of the public are permitted to make public comments on closed session matters.
The City Clerk shall be present in the open session to record Council attendance and any statements made by the public or by the Council.
3) Vote to Go into Closed Session
The Council shall vote to go into closed session.
4) Attendance
The City Manager and City Attorney, or their designees, shall attend closed sessions unless it is necessary to excuse them. Additional staff and consultants may attend, but only to the extent that their attendance is necessary to support Council’s consideration of the item.
5) Public Reports
State and local law require the Council to make a public report after a closed session when certain kinds of actions are taken (PAMC section 2.04.030). Reports from closed sessions shall be made by the Mayor, the Vice Mayor in the Mayor's absence, or such other City representative as designated by the Cou ncil. Such designated person is the only individual authorized to make public statements concerning the closed session.
It is the policy of the Council to inform the public of action taken in closed session to the greatest extent possible. It is recognized, however, that the need for confidentiality is inherent in closed sessions and that certain matters if revealed may be a detriment to the results desired. The Council shall publicly report:
(A) any decision to appoint, employ, or dismiss a public employee and the roll call vote thereon at its next public meeting;
(B) actions related to litigation and the roll call vote on such actions, unless the report would, in the written opinion of the City Attorney for specifically stated reasons, clearly jeopardize the City’s ability to effectuate service of process on one or more unserved parties or impair the City’s ability to resolve the matter through negotiation, mediation or other form of settlement. Notwithstanding the City Attorney's written opinion, the Council may under any circumstance, by majority vote, determine that it is in the City's best interests to disclose actions taken in Item 12
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17 closed session related to litigation. The public report shall be given as soon as possible, but no later than the next regular meeting, and shall include the vote or abstention of every member present. The City Attorney’s written opinion shall be made public, along with any action taken and any vote thereon, as soon as any litigation is concluded. The City Attorney shall record any action and vote upon such forms as the City Attorney may deem desirable;
(C) Other matters as required by law.
6) No Minutes
No minutes of closed sessions shall be kept. The City Attorney shall record the information necessary to comply with State law and Municipal Code section 2.04.030.
7) Confidentiality
No person in attendance at a closed session may disclose the substance or effect of any matter discussed during the session (PAMC section 2.04.040), except to the extent authorized by a majority vote of Council or as required by a court.
3.4 Agenda Changes, Additions, and Deletions
(a) By majority vote, Council may change the order or delete an item from the agenda. Council may not add items to the agenda except in cases of emergency as defined by State law.
(b) When the Council decides to reschedule business items, the business items will generally be rescheduled as follows:
1) Items Rescheduled to a Date Uncertain
When Council reschedules an item to a date uncertain, the City Manager, Clerk and Mayor shall confer on an appropriate date to reschedule the item.
2) Items Rescheduled to a Date Certain
Council may reschedule an item to a specific future Council meeting.
3.5 General Public Comment (see Section 5 on Public Participation for more details about “General Public Comment”)
3.6 Council Member Questions, Comments, and Announcements (including reports on Boards, Commissions, and Committees)
The purpose of this agenda item is to allow Council to briefly ask staff about matters upon which Council has taken action or given direction, make general comments as a reference to staff on factual matters of community concern, or make brief announcements in a manner consistent with Government Code section 54952.2. If more than brief statements are desired, the item shall be agendized for a future meeting in the manner otherwise provided by these Procedures, such as by the City Manager or through a Colleagues’ Memo. Major policy issues and new assignments will not be discussed or considered in this item. To the extent possible, Council will confer with staff before raising matters under this agenda item. This agenda item will generally last up to 15 minutes and the Item 12
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18 public may not comment.
3.7 Study Sessions
Study Sessions are agenda items during which the Council receives information about City business in an informal setting. Study sessions are intended to be discussion items only. The Decorum rules still apply to the behavior of the Council and public.
(a) Study Session Procedures
1) Time
Special study sessions will be held as needed.
2) Topics and Process
Study sessions are intended to be conducive to in-depth factual presentations by City staff and detailed questioning and brainstorming by Council on issues of significant interest. The Council may discuss the material freely without following formal rules of parliamentary procedure, and the presiding officer shall have discretion to determine the appropriate process for conducting the study session, including when public comment will be heard.
3) Public Participation
Members of the public are allowed to make public comments on study session matters at the time directed by the presiding officer. The general rules of decorum apply.
4) No Action Taken
Staff may be directed to bring matters back for Council consideration at future meetings, as no action can be taken.
3.8 Consent Agenda
The Consent Agenda is the section where items not anticipated to require discussion can be presented and acted upon efficiently by Council. This generally includes administrative items; implementation of policies and programs previously approved by Council, including contracts; and other routine or non- controversial items. The Mayor and City Manager should be sensitive to high dollar value contracts and consider placing those items in the action agenda section. The consent section may include:
(a) Ordinances and Resolutions
The following ordinances and resolutions may appear on a consent calendar:
1) Second Reading (passage and adoption) of Ordinances. 2) Resolutions that are ceremonial in nature.
3) Ordinances or resolutions that implement a prior Council policy dire ction in the manner contemplated by the Council's previous actions, in the Adopted Budget (including the Capital Improvement Program and especially in the department key plans), the Council Priorities, and other similar sources.
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19 4) Budget amendments that accept funding such as grants or gifts, provided Council has previously approved the activity or program.
5) Resolutions approving funding applications, such as grants or loans, provided that the program or activity has been previously approved by Council. 6) Clerical amendments to local laws.
7) Conforming amendments to local laws that are required by State law, except items of significant public interest.
(b) Administrative Matters Including Contracts, Appointments, Approval of Applications, and Any Other Matter
An administrative matter may be placed on the consent calendar if it is:
1) An action that is merely the administrative execution of previous Council direction. The Council direction and vote will be quoted in the Staff Report accompanying the item. 2) Contracts for which the subject or scope of work has been previously reviewed by the Council.
3) A contract for goods, general services, professional services, public works projects, dark fiber licensing contracts or wholesale commodities, purchases, as outlined in the Purchasing Ordinance, provided such contracts represent the customary and usual business of the department as included in the Adopted Budget. Examples include routine maintenance contracts, annual audit agreements software and hardware support agreements, janitorial services, and copier agreements or postage machine agreements. 4) Designation of heritage trees.
5) Designation of historic building at the request of the property owner if there are no unusual policy ramifications.
6) Approval of funding applications, such as grants or loans, provided that Council has previously approved the general program or activity.
7) Items identified in the Municipal Code for placement on Consent. This includes, for example, certain appeals of determinations of the Director of Planning and Development Services.
8) Approval of minutes.
9) Referral of an item to a Standing Committee, Committee, Board, Commission, or Council Appointed Officer.
10) Other similar matters as determined by the City Manager, in consultation with the Mayor.
(c) Items Unanimously Recommended for Approval by a Council Committee or Council-Appointed Board or Commission, Unless Otherwise Recommended by the Committee/Commission, Mayor, City Attorney or City Manager
Items recommended unanimously for approval by Council committees and Council-appointed boards and commissions are generally placed on Consent, except as otherwise recommended by Item 12
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20 the Committee, Board or Commission, or the Mayor, City Manager or City Attorney, or as required by law.
(d) Public Comment on Consent Agenda
Members of the public wishing to speak to items on the Consent Calendar shall be permitted to speak prior to Council Member requests to remove an item or the vote to adopt the Consent Calendar.
(e) No Discussion or Debate; Voting; Recusals; Speaking to a No Vote There shall not be discussion or debate on any item on the Consent agenda. A Council member who needs to recuse themself from a Consent item shall inform the Mayor and make any public disclosure that is required. The Clerk shall record the recusal on the item.
Any Council member may request that his or her vote be recorded as a "no" on any item or items on the Consent agenda. Any Consent item not receiving the number of “yes” votes required for the item is not approved.
Council members may explain their "no" votes at the end of the Consent Agenda, with 3-minutes permitted for non-appeal items and 5 minutes for appeal items for each Council member. Council members may also submit statements in writing to the City Clerk before action is taken. The City Clerk shall preserve and make available such written statements in a manner consistent with the Brown Act and shall assure that the minutes of the meeting make reference to the existence and location of such written statements.
(f) Council Requests to Remove Items from Consent Agenda Three Council members may request that an item be removed from the Consent Agenda except where otherwise required by the Municipal Code. Under the Municipal Code, four votes are required to remove a second reading of an ordinance from the Consent Agenda.
Removed items will be heard either later in the meeting or agendized for a subsequent meeting, depending upon the number of speakers, the anticipated length of the items that have been officially scheduled for discussion on a particular evening, the availability of staff required to support the discussion, and legally- required noticing procedures. The Mayor, in consultation with the City Manager, will decide when any removed items will be heard.
Council members who intend to request to remove an item should strive to inform the City Manager’s office no later than noon the Sunday before the meeting. This is so that the Manager can assess the operational impacts of rescheduling a removed item to a later agenda and, if appropriate, can arrange for appropriate staff to attend Council to support consideration of the item.
3.9 City Manager’s Comments
3.10 Action Items
3.11 Adjournment
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21 * * *
SECTION 4 - PROCEDURES AT CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
4.1 Council Motion and Voting Processes throughout the Agenda (exist. Procedures 2.4 U and V)
(a) Motions, Debate & Voting
Policy and Summary of Rules
It is the policy of the Council to follow simplified rules of parliamentary procedure for motions, debate and voting as an alternative procedure to Robert’s Rules of Order. These rules focus on the types of motions the Council can make and when those motions are properly used. See the Summary Table below.
Purpose
The purpose of these rules to facilitate orderly and thorough discussion and debate of Council business in order to create open respectful discussion and results that serve the public interest.
(b) Motions
A motion is a formal proposal by a Council member asking that the Council take a specified action. A motion must receive a second before the Council can consider a matter. Motions may be provided to the City Clerk in advance of the Council meeting so that the Clerk can efficiently post the motion on the screen for the convenience of the community and Council members.
There are two types of motions; these are the “main” motion and any secondary motions. Only one main motion can be considered at a time. The main motion is the first motion to be made and receive a second. A secondary motion is described below which can be considered while a main motion is pending.
4.2 Motion Procedures
(a) Main Motion Procedures
1) Get the Floor
A Council member should seek permission of the presiding officer before making a motion.
2) State the Motion
A motion is made by a Council member (the “maker”) stating his or her proposal. Longer proposals can be written.
3) Second Required
Any other Council member (including the presiding officer) who supports the proposal (or who simply wishes it to be considered) may “second” the motion without first being recognized.
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22 4) Motion Transcribed
The Clerk shall transcribe the motion so that Council members, the public and staff can read it.
5) Lack of a Second
If there is no second stated immediately, the presiding officer should ask whether there is a second. If no Council Member seconds the motion the matter will not be considered.
6) Discussion
The maker shall be the first Council member recognized to speak on the motion if it receives a second. The seconder shall be the second Council member to speak on the motion.
Generally Council members will speak only once with respect to a motion. If the presiding officer or Council permits any Council member to speak more than once on a motion, all Council members shall receive the same privilege.
7) Secondary Motions
Secondary motions may be made by a Council member upon getting the floor.
8) Action
After discussion is complete the Council will vote on the motion under consideration.
(b) Secondary Motion Procedures
Only one main motion may be entertained by Council at a time. The Council recognizes the following secondary motions which may be considered while a main motion is pending. These motions shall have precedence in the order listed below. This means that a secondary motion that is higher on the list will be considered ahead of a pending secondary motion that is lower on the list:
The purpose of the allowed secondary motions is summarized in the following text and table.
1) Fix the time to which to adjourn
This motion sets a time for continuation of the meeting. It requires a second, is amendable and is debatable only as to the time to which the meeting is adjourned.
2) Adjourn
This motion ends the meeting or adjourns it to another time. It requires a second and is not debatable except to set the time to which the meeting is adjourned, if applicable. A motion to adjourn shall be in order at any time, except as follows: (a) when repeated without intervening business or discussion; (b) when made as an interruption of a member while speaking; (c) when the previous question has been ordered; and (d) while a vote is being taken.
3) Take a recess
This motion interrupts the meeting temporarily. It is amendable but is not debatable.
4) Raise a question of personal privilege
This motion allows a Council Member to address the Council on a question of personal Item 12
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23 privilege and shall be limited to cases in which the Council Member's integrity, character or motives are questioned or when the welfare of the Council is concerned. The maker of the motion may interrupt another speaker if the presiding officer recognizes the "privilege." The motion does not require a second, is not amendable and is not debatable.
5) Lay on the table
This motion is used to interrupt business for more urgent business. A motion to lay on the table requires a second, is not amendable and is not debatable. It shall preclude all amendments or debate of the subject under consideration. If the motion prevails, and the subject is tabled, the matter must be reagendized in the future if further consideration is to be given to the matter.
6) Previous question
This motion “calls the question” by closing debate on the pending motion. A motion for previous question requires a second, is not debatable and is not amendable. It applies to all previous motions on the subject unless otherwise specified by the maker of the motion. If motion for previous question fails, debate is reopened; if motion for previous question passes, then vote on the pending motion. A motion for previous question requires a two - thirds vote of those Council members present and voting.
7) Limit or extend debate
This motion limits or extends the time for the Council or any Council Member to debate a motion. It requires a second, is amendable and is not debatable. The motion requires a two-thirds vote of those Council members present and voting.
8) Continue to a certain time
This motion continues a matter to another, specified time. It requires a second, is amendable and is debatable as to propriety of postponement and time set.
9) Refer to a city agency, body, committee, board, commission or officer This motion sends a subject to another city agency, body, committee, board, commission or officer for further study and report back to Council, at which time subject is fully debated.
It requires a second, is amendable, and is debatable only as to the propriety of referring.
The substance of the subject being referred shall not be discussed at the time the motion to refer is made.
10) Amend or substitute
A motion to amend retains the original motion and modifies it in some way. A substitute motion deletes the original motion and replaces it with a different motion. Both require a second, are amendable, and are debatable only when the motion to which they appy is debatable. A motion to amend an amendment is in order, but one to amend an amendment to an amendment is not. An amendment modifying a motion is in order but an amendment raising an independent question or one that is not germane to the main motion shall not be in order. Amendments take precedence over the main motion and the motion to postpone indefinitely.
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24 C. Motion Process Reference Chart
Motion
Description 2nd
Required
Debatable
Amendable
2/3 Vote
Fix the time to
which to adjourn
Sets a next date and time for
continuation of the meeting
YES
Only as to time to which
the meeting is adjourned
YES
NO
Adjourn
Sets time to adjourn. Not in order if (a)
repeated without intervening business
(b) made as an interruption of a
member while speaking; (c) the
previous question has been ordered;
and (d) while a vote is being taken
YES
Only to set the time to
which the meeting is
adjourned
NO
NO
Take a recess Purpose is to interrupt the meeting YES NO YES NO
Raise a question of
privilege
Allows member to address Council on a
question of personal privilege limited to
Council welfare or cases where a
member’s personal integrity, character,
or motives are questioned.
NO
NO
NO
NO
Lay on the table Interrupts business for more urgent
business
YES NO NO NO
Previous question
(close debate or
“call the question”)
Closes debate on pending motion
YES
NO
NO
YES
Limit or extend
limits of debate
Purpose is to limit or extend debate
YES
NO
YES
YES
Motion to continue
to a certain time
Continues the matter to another,
specified time
YES
YES
YES
NO
Refer to committee
Sends subject to another city agency,
body, committee, board, commission or
officer for further study and report back
to council, at which time subject is fully
debated
YES
Only as to propriety of
referring, not substance
of referral
YES
NO
Amend or substitute
Modifies (or reverses course of)
proposed action. Cannot raise
independent question. Can amend an
amendment, but no further
YES
Only if underlying motion is
debatable
YES
NO
Motion to
Reconsider
Motion that can be made only during the
meeting or adjourned meeting in which
the action was taken
YES
YES
NO
NO
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25 4.3 Voting and Debate of Agenda Items
(a) Presiding officer to review motion
The presiding officer shall assure that all motions are clearly stated before allowing debate to begin. The presiding officer and the maker of the motion should work with the City Clerk to clarify the motion before allowing debate to begin. The presiding officer may review the motion prior to voting.
(b) Presiding officer may debate and vote
The presiding officer may move, second and debate from the chair, subject only to such limitations of debate as are by these rules imposed on all Council members. The presiding officer shall not be deprived of any of the rights and privileges of a Council member.
(c) Division of question
If the question contains two or more divisible propositions, each of which is capable of standing as a complete proposition if the others are removed, the presiding officer may, and upon request of a Council member shall, divide the same. The presiding officer's determination shall be appealable by any Council member.
(d) Withdrawal of motion
A motion may only be withdrawn by the maker with the consent of the Council Member seconding it.
(e) Change of vote
Council members may change their votes before the next item on the agenda is called.
(f) Voting
On the passage of every motion, the vote shall be taken by voice or roll call or electronic voting device and entered in full upon the record, except where state law requires a roll call vote
(g) Failure to vote
It is the responsibility of every Council member to vote unless the member is recused. No Council member can be compelled to vote.
(h) Abstaining from vote
Council members should only abstain if they are not sufficiently informed about an item, e.g., when there was a prior meeting on the topic and they were unable to view the prior meeting before the current meeting. In the event of an abstention, or silence during a vote, the abstainer in effect, "consents" that a majority of the quorum of the Council members present may act for him or her.
(i) Not participating
A Council member who is recused from an item due to a conflict of interest, common law bias, or other legal prohibition shall make disclosures required by law, leave the dais if required, and not participate in any way in the discussion or determination of the item. A Council member may otherwise disqualify themself to avoid an appearance of impropriety.
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26 (j) Tie votes
Tie votes may be reconsidered during the time permitted by these rules on motion by any member of the Council voting yes or no during the original vote. Before a motion is made on the next item on the agenda, any member of the Council may make a motion to continue the matter to another date. To the extent allowed by law, it is the Council’s intention that any continuance hereunder shall suspend the running of any time in which action of the Council is required by law. Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent any Council member from recommending the agendizing of a matter that resulted in a tie vote for a subsequent meeting.
(k) Motion to reconsider
A motion to reconsider any action taken by the Council may be made only during the meeting or adjourned meeting when the action was taken. A motion to reconsider requires a second, is debatable and is not amendable. The motion must be made by one of the prevailing side of an issue but may be seconded by any Council member. A motion to reconsider may be made at any time and shall have precedence over all other motions, or while a Council member has the floor, providing that no vested rights are impaired. The purpose of reconsideration is to bring back the matter for review. If a motion to reconsider fails, it may not itself be reconsidered.
Reconsideration may be moved only once on the same motion. However, a Council member may make a motion to rescind such action at a subsequent meeting of the Council, provided an appropriate item is on the published agenda.
(l) Appeal from the decision of presiding officer
When the rules are silent, the presiding officer shall decide all questions of order, subject to appeal by a Council member. When in doubt, the presiding officer may submit the question to the Council, in which case a majority vote shall prevail. Any decision or ruling of the presiding officer may be appealed by request of any member. The presiding officer shall call for a roll call or electronic voting device vote to determine if the presiding officer's ruling shall be upheld. If said vote passes or results in a tie vote, the presiding officer's ruling shall stand. If said vote fails, the decision or ruling of the presiding officer is reversed.
(m) Getting the floor; improper references to be avoided Every Council member desiring to speak shall address the presiding officer and, upon recognition by the presiding officer, every Council member shall be confined to the question under debate, avoiding all indecorous language and personal attacks.
(n) Interruptions
Except for being called to order, a Council member once recognized, shall not be interrupted when speaking, except as otherwise provided for in these rules. A Council member called to order while speaking shall cease speaking until the question or order is determined, and, if in order, said Council member shall be permitted to proceed.
(o) Council Member Speaking Time
The presiding officer shall give each Council member up to five (5) minutes to speak in each round of discussion during discussions on Council items where discussion takes place. The Council shall be guided by the speaking times set by the presiding officer and shall conclude comments at the Item 12
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27 direction of the presiding officer . The presiding officer shall endeavor to treat all members equitably.
4.4 Quasi-Judicial Matters
(a) Quasi-Judicial Matters
It is the policy of the Council to assure that the due process rights of all persons are protected during City hearings. A “quasi-judicial” hearing is a hearing that requires a higher level of procedural due process because of the potential impact on life, liberty or property. Usually, quasi-judicial hearings involve consideration of an application to develop real property. The City, including Council and associated Boards and Commissions, reaches a determination by applying standards and requirements in existing law to the facts and evidence submitted in the hearing. Findings must be stated to explain the evidentiary basis for Council’s final decision.
Purpose
These rules are intended to assure that Council decision making on quasi-judicial matters is based upon facts and evidence known to all parties and to support the role of Boards and Commissions in making independent recommendations to Council.
General Requirements
1) Quasi-Judicial Proceedings Defined
Quasi-judicial proceedings subject to these procedural rules include hearings involving the following matters:
(A) Conditional Use Permits
(B) Variances
(C) Home Improvement Exceptions
(D) Design Enhancement Exceptions
(E) Subdivisions, other than final map approvals
(F) Architectural Review
(G) Other Matters as Determined by the City Attorney
2) Restrictions on Council Communications Outside of Quasi-Judicial Hearings It is the policy of the Council to discourage the gathering and submission of information by Council members outside of any noticed public meeting, prior to final recommendations by the Architectural Review Board or Planning & Transportation Commission. The following procedural guidelines are intended to implement this policy but shall not be construed to create any remedy or right of action.
3) Identification of Quasi-Judicial Matters
The City Attorney, in conjunction with the City Clerk and City Manager, will identify agenda items involving quasi-judicial matters on both the tentative and regular Council agendas.
This identification is intended to inform the Council, interested parties, and the public that this policy will apply to the matter.
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28 4) Council to Track Contacts
Council members should track contacts with any person or entity pertaining to quasi-judicial matters. Contacts include conversations, meetings, site visits, mailings, or presentations during which substantial factual information about the item is gathered by or submitted to the Council Member.
5) Disclosure
When a quasi-judicial matter is agendized at Council, Council members will disclose on the record any contacts they have had outside of a noticed meeting, identify any new or different information they have received, and note information that may influence their preliminary views or opinions about the item. Disclosures may be oral or written and should explain the substance of the contact so that the project applicant, other Council members, interested parties, and the public will have an opportunity to learn of the factors influencing the Council's decision and have an opportunity to controvert or rebut any such factor during the hearing. Disclosure alone will not be deemed sufficient basis for a request to continue the item. A contact or the disclosure of a contact shall not be deemed grounds for disqualification of a Council Member from participation in a quasi-judicial matter unless the Council Member, in consultation with the City Attorney, determines that the nature of the contact is such that it is not possible for the Council Member to reach an impartial decision on the item.
6) No Contacts after Hearings
Following closure of a quasi-judicial hearing, and prior to a final decision, Council Members will refrain from any contacts pertaining to the item, other than clarifying questions directed to City staff.
7) Written Findings Required
On any matter for which state law or City ordinance requires the preparation of written findings, the staff report and other materials submitted on the matter will contain findings proposed for adoption by the Council. Any motion directly or impliedly rejecting the proposed findings must include a statement of alternative or modified findings or a direction that the matter under consideration be continued for a reasonable period of time in order for staff to prepare a new set of proposed findings consistent with the evidence which has been presented and the decision which is anticipated.
8) Rules of Evidence
Council hearings need not be conducted according to formal rules of evidence. Any relevant evidence may be considered if it is the sort of evidence upon which responsible persons rely in the conduct of serious affairs. The presiding officer may exclude irrelevant or redundant testimony and may make such other rulings as may be necessary for the orderly conduct of the proceedings while ensuring basic fairness and full consideration of the issues involved. Evidentiary objections shall be deemed waived unless made in a timely fashion before the Council.
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29 9) Council Members Who are Absent During Part of a Hearing A Council member who is absent from any portion of a hearing conducted by the Council may vote on the matter provided that he or she has watched the video record of the entire portion of the hearing from which he or she was absent and if she or he has examined all of the exhibits presented during the portion of the hearing from which he or she was absent.
Council members who were absent should state for the record that they have reviewed the proceedings and materials.
(b) Presenting at Quasi-Judicial Hearings
In the case of a quasi-judicial hearing, single applicants and appellants shall be given 10 minutes for their opening presentation and 3 minutes for rebuttal before the hearing is closed. In the case of a quasi-judicial hearing for which there are two or more appellants, the time allowed for presentation and rebuttal shall be divided among all appellants, and the total time allowed for all appellants shall be a total of twenty minutes for the opening presentation and six minutes for rebuttal before the hearing is closed; however, each individual appellant shall be given a minimum of 5 minutes for presentation and 3 minutes for rebuttal. In the event a request is made and the need for additional time is clearly established, the Presiding Officer shall independently, or may upon advice of the City Attorney, grant sufficient additional time to allow an adequate presentation by the applicant or appellant.
(c) Submittal of Materials Directly to Council
If Council Members receive materials related to a quasi-judicial agenda item they should notify the City Clerk and the City Manager as soon as possible so that the materials can be placed in the official record and distributed to all Council members, parties to the proceeding, staff and the public.
* * *
SECTION 5 - HOW THE PUBLIC ENGAGES WITH THE CITY COUNCIL
5.1 Public Participation During City Council Meetings
Overview
The Council welcomes members of the public to participate in meetings through public comment opportunities. It is the policy of the Council to assure that members of the public have the opportunity to speak to any regular or special meeting agenda item before final action. These rules are intended to enhance public participation and Council debate so that the best possible decisions can be made for Palo Alto. Palo Alto has a long and proud tradition of open government and civil, intelligent public discourse. Open government meetings must allow everyone to be heard without fear of cheers or jeers. For these reasons, the Council takes these rules seriously.
Disruptive or unruly behavior in violation of the law can result in removal from the Council meeting and/or arrest and prosecution.
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30 (a) Access to Meetings
1) In-Person and Remote Participation
Council meetings are available in person in the Council Chambers and through an online meeting platform. Members of the public are welcome to attend the meeting in person or to join the online meeting platform.
2) Translators
Speakers may bring a translator as needed and will be allotted additional time, as appropriate.
3) ADA Access
Palo Alto makes every reasonable effort to accommodate the needs of the disabled consistent with law . Any provision of these rules may be modified if needed to provide reasonable accommodation. Persons needing assistance should contact: the City Clerk, City of Palo Alto, 650- 329-2571 (voice) or email at [email protected]@cityofpaloalto.org.
4) The Council does not allow members of the public to activate their personal video during their public comments.
(b) Summary of Rules for Public Participation
Every regular Council agenda has two different kinds of opportunities for the public to speak. The first is during General Public Comment. The second is during the public comment or public hearing portion of each agenda item.
1) General Public Comment
This part of the meeting is provided so that the public can speak to any subject that is in the Council’s jurisdiction, when there is no item listed on the agenda on that topic. The Council limits the total time to up to 30 minutes per meeting for General Public Comment. State law does not permit the Council to act on or discuss an item raised at that meeting in General Public Comment. Council members shall not enter into debate with speakers, but Council members may ask brief clarifying questions and may ask City staff to follow up on any concerns raised.
2) Public comment or public hearing portion of each agenda Item The Brown Act requires the opportunity for public comment on all listed agenda items, except ceremonial items, procedural items (Agenda Changes and Deletions) and brief announcements (City Manager Comments and Council Member Questions, Comments and Announcements). Public comments or testimony must be related to the matter under consideration.
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31 (c) Time Limits
1) Individual Speakers
The presiding officer may announce the time that each speaker may use. The Council generally allows 3 minutes per speaker, but a shorter time may be designated when there are many speakers, numerous items on the agenda, or items anticipated to be lengthy. For example, if there are fewer than 10 speakers, the presiding officer may allow speakers 3 minutes to speak. Or if there are more than 10 speakers, then the presiding officer may choose to reduce the time for each speaker.
2) Spokesperson for a Group
When a group of people wishes to address the Council on the same subject matter, they may designate a spokesperson to address the Council. Spokespersons are subject to the same time limits as other speakers, except that spokespersons who are representing a group of five or more people who have requested to speak and are verified as present in the Council Chambers or online will be allowed 10 minutes and will, to the extent practical, be called upon ahead of individual speakers. If the presiding officer reduces the speaking time for individual speakers, the total speaking time for a spokesperson will also be reduced as determined by the presiding officer.
(d) Gaining Permission to Speak
Any person who wants to make a spoken public comment on an item on the Council agenda can do so if they are attending either in person or virtually. If attending in person, members of the public should fill out a speaker card and hand it in to the City Clerk prior to the end of the staff presentation. Members of the public participating virtually should use the “raise hand” function in the online meeting platform, or if participating via phone, hit *9 to notify the Clerk that they wish to speak. The Clerk will provide the names of the speakers to the Mayor or Vice Mayor so that the speakers can be identified and organized in an orderly way.
The presiding officer will endeavor to identify in advance the time when public comment cards will no longer be accepted.
(e) Public Decorum During Meeting
The presiding officer at Council meetings (usually the Mayor or Vice-Mayor) is authorized and required to “preserve strict order and decorum.” (PAMC section 2.04.080(b).) This is important in order to assure a fair opportunity for everyone to participate in an open and civil setting.
1) No person, other than a Council member and the person having the floor, shall be permitted to speak without the permission of the presiding officer.
2) All remarks should be addressed to the Council as a body and not to any individual member or staff person.
3) No person, besides staff or the Council, shall enter the staff area of the Council dais without the permission of the presiding officer or appropriate Council Appointed Officer.
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32 4) The Palo Alto Municipal Code makes it unlawful for any person to: (1) Disrupt the conduct of a meeting; (2) Make threats against any person or against public order and security while in the Council Chambers; (3) Use the Council Chambers during meetings for any purpose other than participation in or observation of Council Meetings.
Any Council Member may appeal the presiding officer’s decision on a decorum violation to the full Council. Decorum violations are a misdemeanor and may lead to a person being removed from the Council meeting. (PAMC sections 2.04.120, 2.04.150.)
(f) Record of Speakers
1) Persons wishing to address the Council within the meeting room, shall use the microphone provided for the public. All public speakers, whether in person or virtual participants shall speak in a recordable tone, either personally or with assistance, if necessary.
2) Speakers are requested to state their name but cannot be compelled to do so as a condition of addressing the Council.
(g) End of Public Comment After a Council Motion
Following the time for public input and once the matter is returned to the Council no person shall address the Council without first securing the permission of the presiding officer to do so, subject to approval of the City Attorney with respect to any hearing required by law.
* * *
SECTION 6 - CITY COUNCIL QUESTIONS ON AGENDA-RELATED ITEMS
In order to facilitate open government, all Council Members should make decisions with the same information from Staff on agendized or soon-to-be agendized items (i.e., items on the tentative agenda or in a Council Committee). The Council adopted protocols provide a framework for the policy on e -mail communications between Council members and staff on agenda-related items, including the following:
6.1 Submit Questions on Council Agenda Items Ahead of the Meeting In order to focus the Council meetings on consideration of policy issues and to maintain an open forum for public discussion, questions which focus on the policy aspects of agenda items should be discussed at the Council meeting rather than in one-on-one communications with staff prior to the meetings. Any clarifications or technical questions that can be readily answered can be handled before the meeting. Council members are encouraged to submit their questions on agenda items to the City Manager or other appropriate Council Appointed Officer by 5:00 p.m. the Wednesday prior to the meeting so staff can be prepared to respond before or at the Council meeting. If a staff report is incomplete by 5:00 p.m. Thursday, there will be an extension to submit Council questions until 5:00 p.m. Friday. Council members are strongly discouraged from asking questions already addressed in the staff report.
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33 6.2 City Council emails for Agenda-Related Items Procedure
(a) Council members should direct any questions on staff reports and agenda items only to the City Manager or designee. Questions on reports from the City Auditor, City Attorney, or City Clerk should be directed to the appropriate Council Appointed Officer.
(b) Council members should submit questions on agenda items no later than 5 p.m. on the Wednesday prior to the Council meeting at which the item will be discussed. Staff will make best reasonable efforts to post written responses to timely-submitted questions by Thursday 5 p.m.
Any questions received after 5 p.m. on the Wednesday before the meeting may be responded to via e-mail, or alternatively, will be responded to at the Council meeting.
(c) Staff will not engage in “dialogues” with individual Co uncil members regarding questions; however, follow-up questions to initial questions will be responded to at the Council meeting.
(d) Staff will give highest priority to responding prior to the Council meeting via e-mail only on items on the Consent Agenda. Questions which address the policy aspects of the item on the Council agenda will not be responded to prior to the meeting, although Staff welcomes such questions in advance of the meeting in order to prepare for the Council and public discussion. Technical and clarifying questions on non-Consent Calendar items will be responded to as time permits.
(e) If the staff will be responding to a Council member ’s Consent Agenda question at the meeting rather responding to the question via e -mail, Staff will inform the Council member as early as possible after receipt of the question(s).
(f) Questions and all staff- prepared responses will be forwarded to all Council members as well as posted online for public review of Council agenda questions and staff responses. Staff will include the name of the Council member posing the questions in the “subject” field of the e -mail response.
(g) Copies of all Council member agenda questions and staff responses will be emailed to the Council and posted publicly on the meeting agenda. If staff responses are not released until the meeting date, they will be provided in printed form at the dais.
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SECTION 7 – COUNCIL VALUES AND ANNUAL COUNCIL PRIORITIES
(a) Council Values
In November 2022, the Council adopted a set of values as described here:
The Palo Alto City Council holds these values to help guide decisions that:
1) Balance revenues and expenses, now and in the future. 2) Are environmentally sustainable.
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34 3) Integrate equity into our decisions, considering how decisions affect people differently based on their identity or circumstances.
4) Make decisions that create a healthy, safe and welcoming community for all. 5) Safeguard public trust through transparent practices and open communication. 6) Embrace innovation.
(b) Annual Council Priorities
Priorities Background and Definition
The Council adopted its first Council priorities in 1986. Each year the Council reviews its priorities at its Annual Council Retreat. On October 1, 2012 the Council formally adopted the definition of a Council priority, and the Council’s process and guidelines for selection of priorities.
There is a goal of no more than three to four priorities per year and priorities generally have a two- to three-year time limit. Council can identify two to three specific objectives within a priority.
A Council priority is defined as a topic that will receive particular, unusual and significant attention during the year. This varies from a Council value which is defined as an enduring goal and intention to guide the work of the Council. The values (shared above) allow the Council to maintain these enduring intentions while also selecting annual priorities that reflect shorter- term projects and goals.
Purpose
The establishment of Council priorities will assist the Council and staff to better allot and utilize time for discussion and decision making.
Process
In advance of the annual Council Retreat, staff will solicit input from the Council on the priorities to be reviewed and considered for the following year.
1) Council members may submit up to three priorities.
2) Priorities should be submitted no later than December 1. 3) As applicable, the City Manager will contact newly elected officials for their input by December 1.
4) The City Manager and the City Clerk will solicit for the public to share proposed priorities prior to the Council retreat. The Policy and Services Committee shall recommend to the Council which suggestions if any shall be considered at the Council retreat. 5) Staff will collect and organize the recommended priorities into a list for Council consideration and provide to Council in the packet for the Council retreat.
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35 6) If needed, the Policy and Services Committee, each year at its December meeting, shall make recommendations about the process that will be used at the Annual Retreat paying particular attention to the number of priorities suggested by Council members. The recommended process is to be forwarded to Council for adoption in advance of the Council retreat.
*
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SECTION 8 - PROCEDURES AND PROTOCOLS REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT
8.1. Annual Review and Update of the Handbook
Once each legislative year, the Policy and Services Committee shall initiate a review and update of the Procedures and Protocols Handbook and may make recommendations to Council. Council will review the Handbook and the recommendations of Policy and Services and approve updates as appropriate.
The Council will not politicize these procedural issues.
8.2. Commitment to Follow the Procedures and Protocols Handbook
Council members have the primary responsibility to assure that these procedures and protocols are understood and followed, so that the public can continue to have full confidence in the integrity of government. As an expression of the standards of conduct expected by the Council for Council members, the procedures and protocols are intended to be self-enforcing. They are most effective when members are thoroughly familiar with them and embrace their provisions. For this reason, Council members entering office shall sign a statement affirming they have read and understood the Council procedures and protocols.
8.3 Procedures for Enforcement
When a concern arises regarding a Council member’s conduct, the concerned Council member or members are encouraged, where possible, to raise and attempt to resolve the concern at the lowest possible level, such as through one-on-one direct conversations (consistent with the Brown Act) or through the Mayor.
Under circumstances where Council members believe that actions by another Council member are inconsistent with
federal, state or local law, this Handbook, or any other document adopted by the Council, and that those actions require formal review and potential Council response, a public discussion and potential disciplinary action are available steps for review and enforcement. The following enforcement procedures are intended for serious or ongoing concerns that are not amenable to resolution through informal means.
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36 (a) Purpose. This policy provides the mechanism by which the Council may adopt a resolution of censure or take other disciplinary action expressing the Council's disapproval of the conduct of a Council member if the Council finds, subject to the procedures set forth herein, that a Council member's conduct violates federal, state or local law, this Handbook, or any other document adopted by the Council.
(b) Types of Disciplinary Actions. This section refers to the following types of disciplinary actions:
(1) Admonition. An admonition is a warning or reminder. Council may direct an admonition to any or all members of the Council, reminding them that a particular type of behavior is in violation of law or City policy, and that if it occurs or recurs, could make a member subject to a reprimand or censure. An admonition does not necessarily require an investigation or separate hearings to determine whether an allegation is true. However, while an admonition may be issued by the Council prior to a formal investigation or any findings of fact regarding allegations, a significant factual basis should exist before issuing an admonition. In general, Council will provide its members with an opportunity to respond to the alleged violation before taking any action, including issuing an admonition. (2) Informal Reprimand and Direction to Correct. An informal reprimand is a reprimand directed to a Council member or members based on a particular action or set of actions that the Council determines violates law or City policy but is considered to be not sufficiently serious to require formal censure. The Council may include direction to the subject Council member or members to correct the particular behavior or the result of the behavior that violated law or City policy.
(3) Resolution of Censure. Censure is a formal statement of disapproval expressed through a resolution. Censure is the strongest sanction available to Council, and is typically reserved for serious or recurring conduct, such as conduct that has substantially disrupted Council’s work, brought approbation on the City, or damaged public trust in City government. A resolution of censure may include the imposition of sanctions against the Council member, as allowed by law. Such sanctions may include, for example, removal from a committee or restrictions on City-related travel privileges.
(c) Procedures. The following procedures are intended to guide Council to reach accurate and appropriate conclusions in an expeditious manner, while providing fairness and transparency for all Council members and the public. Council will endeavor to adhere to these procedures, except where extraordinary circumstances require alternative steps be taken. In all cases, an opportunity to be heard will be afforded to any Council member who may be subject to informal reprimand or censure.
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37 (1) Should two or more Council members believe that actions by a Council member are inconsistent with federal, state or local law, this Handbook, or any other document adopted by the Council, those Council members may use a Colleagues’ Memo to schedule public discussion of the matter at an upcoming Council meeting. A Colleagues’ Memo may initiate a discussion of Council member conduct and Council expectations, may propose that Council protocols be clarified or a new protocol be included in this Handbook, or may propose initiation of disciplinary action. Proposed disciplinary actions may include admonition, informal reprimand, direction to correct, and/or censure. (2) If a Colleagues’ Memo proposes discipline of a Council member, the Memo must contain the specific charges on which the proposed discipline is based. Completed Council Colleagues’ Memos shall be provided to the City Clerk’s staff by noon on the Thursday 11 days prior to the Council meeting that the memo is intended to be agendized, to provide time for the City Clerk to process for the Council packet. The City Clerk will provide a copy of the Colleagues’ Memo to the Council member who is the subject of the memo no later than the Thursday 11 days prior to the meeting at which the memo is agendized.
(3) The Council member who is the subject of the proposed disciplinary action may address the matter in writing or at the Council meeting or both. If the Council member submits written materials, those must be published in a supplemental packet, no later than 72 hours before the meeting.
(4) During the Council meeting at which the Colleagues’ Memo is agendized, the Council will decide, by majority vote, whether:
(i) A formal disciplinary hearing should be agendized for a future Council meeting;
(ii) Further investigation of the allegations is required; (iii) Further investigation is not warranted and an admonition should be issued;
(iv) Council’s procedures and protocols should be clarified or a new procedure or protocol should be introduced; or
(v) No further action is necessary.
(5) If the Council determines that further investigation is required, the Mayor (or the Vice Mayor if the Mayor is the subject of the proposed disciplinary action) may designate an ad hoc committee to conduct the investigation. The Council or the ad hoc committee may select an independent investigator to assist in conducting the investigation. The independent investigator would be managed by the ad hoc committee or other official designated by Council. The ad hoc committee shall review the findings of the investigation and arrive at a recommendation to Council. The ad hoc committee should proceed as promptly as reasonably possible.
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38 (6) Upon receipt of the report of the ad hoc committee, the City Clerk shall place the matter on the Council's next agenda in order for the Council to receive the committee report and determine appropriate next steps. If the Council decides to set the matter for censure hearing, it shall schedule the hearing as soon as possible but no sooner than three weeks after its determination to hear the matter. Council shall give due consideration to requests from the subject Council member for additional time to prepare. The Council shall not schedule the matter during any previously scheduled excused absence of the subject Council member.
(7) The Mayor (or the Vice Mayor if the Mayor is the subject of the proposed disciplinary action) will designate a Council member responsible for preparing and submitting to the City Clerk a censure resolution and supporting materials. Final materials shall be submitted to the Clerk by noon on the Thursday 11 days prior to the Council meeting that the hearing is intended to be agendized, to provide time for the City Clerk to process the materials for the Council packet.
The Council member assigned to prepare the materials will submit the draft resolution and supporting materials to the City Attorney’s Office no later than the Thursday 18 days before the hearing, to give the City Attorney’s Office adequate time to review the materials before publication.
The City Clerk shall deliver written notice of the hearing, along with the report, proposed resolution, and supporting materials, to the Council member subject to the censure by close of business on the Thursday 11 days prior to the Council meeting for which the hearing is agendized.
(8) The Council member who is the subject of the proposed disciplinary action may address the matter in writing or at the hearing or both. If the Council member submits written materials, those must be submitted in time to be published in a supplemental packet no later than 72 hours before the hearing.
(9) At the disciplinary hearing, the Council member who is the subject of the request for disciplinary action shall have the opportunity to rebut the allegations in the censure resolution and to question any known complainants or witnesses if they agree to be questioned. The member subject to the charges may be represented and may have the representative speak or ask questions on their behalf
. The questioning or cross-questioning
of witnesses may be reasonably limited by the Mayor (or Vice Mayor if the Mayor is the subject of the proposed disciplinary action). Testimony shall be taken only from witnesses having direct knowledge of facts or circumstances relevant to the specific charges under consideration. However, the rules of evidence and judicial procedure applicable in courts of law shall not be apply to this hearing, and the procedures shall be generally informal.
(d) Disciplinary Action. If, at the close of the hearing, a majority of the Council finds that the subject member's conduct violates federal, state or local law, this Handbook, or any other document adopted by the Council, the Council may take one or more of the following actions:
(1) Issue an Admonition. An admonition may be directed to any or all members of the Council, reminding them that a particular type of behavior is in violation of law or City policy.
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39 (2) Issue an Informal Reprimand with possible Direction to Correct. An informal reprimand may be issued to a Council member or members based on a particular action or set of actions that the Council determines violates law or City policy but is considered to be not sufficiently serious to require formal censure. The Council may include direction to the subject Council member or members to correct the particular behavior or the result of the behavior that violated law or City policy.
(3) Adopt a Formal Resolution of Censure, with or without additional sanctions. The Council may adopt a resolution of censure based on clear and convincing facts supporting the allegations of misconduct giving rise to the censure. A resolution of censure may include the imposition of sanctions against the Council member as a majority of the Council deems appropriate, as allowed by law. Such sanctions may include, for example, removal from a committee and/or restrictions on City-related travel privileges.
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40 PART II: CITY COUNCIL PROTOCOLS
The citizens, businesses and organizations of the city are entitled to have fair, ethical and accountable local government, which has earned the public’s full confidence for integrity. To this end, the City Council has adopted Council Protocols and this Co de of Ethics for members of the City Council to assure public confidence in the integrity of local government and its effective and fair operation.
SECTION 1 – CITY COUNCIL CONDUCT
1.1 Positive Work Place Environment
Members shall support the maintenance of a positive and constructive work place environment for City employees and for citizens and businesses dealing with the City. Members shall recognize their special role in dealings with City employees to in no way create the perception of inappropriate direction to staff.
1.2 Comply with Law
Members shall comply with the laws of the nation, the State of California and the City in the performance of their public duties. These laws include but are not limited to: the United States and California constitutions, the city Charter, laws pertaining to conflicts of interest, election campaigns, financial disclosures, employer responsibilities and open processes of governments and City ordinances and policies.
(a) Respect for Process
Members shall perform their duties in accordance with the processes and rules of order established by the Council governing the deliberation of public policy issues, meaningful involvement of the public and implementation of policy decisions of the Council by City staff.
1.3 City Council Core Responsibilities (exist. Protocol Sec. 1) All members of the Council, including those serving as Mayor and Vice Mayor, have equal votes. No Council Member has more power than any other Council Member, and all should be treated with equal respect.
(a) All Council Members:
1) Demonstrate honesty and integrity in every action and statement 2) Comply with both the letter and spirit of the laws and policies affecting the operation of government.
3) Serve as a model of leadership and civility to the community 4) Inspire public confidence in Palo Alto government
5) Work for the common good, not personal interest
6) Prepare in advance of Council meetings and be familiar with issues on the agenda 7) Fully participate in Council meetings and other public forums while demonstrating respect, kindness, consideration, and courtesy to others Item 12
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41 8) Do not politicize procedural matters such as minutes approval or agenda order for strategic purposes
9) Participate in scheduled activities to increase Council effectiveness 10) Review Council procedures, such as these Council Protocols, at least annually 11) Represent the City at ceremonial functions at the request of the Mayor 12) Be responsible for the highest standards of respect, civility and honesty in ensuring the effective maintenance of intergovernmental relations
13) Respect the proper roles of elected officials and City staff in ensuring open and effective government
14) Provide contact information to the City Clerk in case an emergency or urgent situation arises while the Council Member is out of town
1.4 General Member Conduct
Councils are composed of individuals with a wide variety of backgrounds, personalities, values, opinions, and goals. Despite this diversity, all have chosen to serve in public office in order to improve the quality of life in the community. In all cases, this common goal should be acknowledged even as Council may "agree to disagree" on contentious issues.
(a) Conduct of Members
The professional and personal conduct of members must be above reproach and avoid even the appearance of impropriety. Members shall refrain from abusive conduct, personal charges or verbal attacks upon the character or motives of other members of the Council, boards and commissions, the staff or the public. Rude and unprofessional behavior are also unacceptable. Council members are expected to share factual information during meetings and within the public domain and Council members should refrain from repeating false and misleading information.
(b) In Public Meetings
1) Use Formal Titles
The Council should refer to one another formally during Council meetings as Mayor, Vice Mayor or Council Member followed by the individual’s last name.
2) Practice Civility and Decorum in Discussions and Debate Difficult questions, tough challenges to a particular point of view, and criticism of ideas and information are legitimate elements of a free democracy in action. Be respectful of diverse opinions.
3) Honor the Role of the Presiding Officer in Maintaining Order and Equity Respect the Chair's efforts to focus discussion on current agenda items. Objections to the Chair's actions should be voiced politely and with reason, following the parliamentary procedures outlined in the Council Procedural Rules.
4) Demonstrate Effective Problem-Solving Approaches
Council members have a public stage to show how individuals with disparate points of view can find common ground and seek a compromise that benefits the community as a whole.
Council members are role models for residents, businesspeople and other stakeholders involved in public debate.
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42 5) Be Respectful of Other People's Time
Stay focused and act efficiently during public meetings.
(c) In Private Encounters
1) Treat Others as You Would Like to be Treated
Ask yourself how you would like to be treated in similar circumstances, and then treat the other person that way.
1.5 Decisions Based on Merit
Members shall base their decisions on the merits and substance of the matter at hand, rather than on unrelated considerations.
1.6 Advocacy
(a) Representation of Private Interests
In keeping with their role as stewards of the public interest, members of Council shall not appear on behalf of the private interests of third parties before the Council or any other board, commission or proceeding of the City, nor shall members of boards and commissions appear before their own bodies or before the Council on behalf of the private interests of third parties on matters related to the areas of service of their bodies.
(b) Advocacy
Members shall represent the official policies or positions of the Council, board or commission to the best of their ability when designated as delegates for this purpose. When presenting their individual opinions and positions, members shall explicitly state they do not represent their body or the City, nor will they allow the inference that they do.
(c) Council Voting Delegate Authority at Conferences / Annual Meetings The Council may authorize a Council member to act as the voting delegate at conferences or meetings of other bodies, including, but not limited to, the League of California Cities annual conference, National League of Cities conference, and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) annual meeting. Prior to the conference / meeting, the Council may provide the voting delegate with specific direction on proposed resolutions and other matters. When provided specific direction, the voting delegate’s authority is limited to matters on which the Council has directed the delegate to vote. In the absence of explicit direction, when the Council member is aware of a prior position the Council has taken, the Council member will adopt that position.
(d) Be Cautious in Representing City Positions on Issues Before sending correspondence related to a legislative position, check with City staff to see if a position has already been determined. When corresponding with representatives of other governments or constituents remember to indicate, if appropriate, that the views you state are your own and may not represent those of the full Council.
As a Council member, it is important to remember to indicate when the views you state are your own versus views which represent those of the full Council. This is relevant whether sending Item 12
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43 correspondence related to a legislative position or corresponding with constituents or representatives of other governmental agencies or organizations.
Council Members appointed to regional boards, commissions, or agencies shall stay informed of any positions adopted by Council relevant to the jurisdiction of the Board and shall consider such positions along with other pertinent information in carrying out their duties on the regional body.
In the case where a Council member is speaking publicly on an issue on which Council has taken a position, and that Council member also serves on a regional body that has also taken a position, , the Council member should clearly state whether they are speaking on behalf of the City or the regional body.
(e) Use of City Letterhead
Official Mayor/ Council letterhead should only be used for correspondence signed by the Mayor or Council members when specifically directed by the Council or consistent with prior Council direction. This applies to the use of any stationery that could be interpreted as official letterhead.
1.7 Council Conduct with City Staff
Governance of a City relies on the cooperative efforts of elected officials, who set policy, and City staff, which analyze problems and issues, make recommendations, and implement and administer the Council’s policies. Therefore, every effort should be made to be cooperative and show mutual respect for the contributions made by each individual for the good of the community.
(a) Treat All Staff as Professionals
Clear, honest communication that respects the abilities, experience, and dignity of each individual is expected. As with your Council colleagues, practice civility and decorum in all interactions with City staff.
(b) Channel Communications through the Appropriate Senior City Staff Questions of City staff should be directed only to the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, City Attorney, City Clerk, Assistant City Clerk, City Auditor, Senior Assistant City Attorneys, or Department Heads. The Office of the City Manager should be copied on any request to Department Heads. Council m embers should not set up meetings with department staff directly, but work through Department Heads, who will attend any meetings with Council members. When in doubt about what staff contact is appropriate, Council members should ask the City Manager for direction. However, nothing in these protocols is intended to hinder the access Council -appointed liaisons (e.g. to the San Francisquito JPA or NCPA) may require in order to fulfill their unique responsibilities.
(c) In order to Facilitate Open Government, All Council Members Should Make Decisions with the Same information from Staff on Agendized or Soon- to be- Agendized Items (Items on the Tentative Agenda or in a Council Committee)
(d) Never Publicly Criticize an Individual Employee, Including Council Appointed Officers.
Criticism is differentiated from questioning Facts or the opinion of staff. All critical comments about staff performance should only be made to the City Manager through private correspondence or Item 12
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44 conversation. Comments about staff in the office of the City Attorney, City Auditor or City Clerk should be made directly to these CAOs through private correspondence or conversation.
(e) Do Not Attend Staff Meetings Unless Requested by Staff Even if the Council member does not say anything, the Council member’s presence may imply support, show partiality, intimidate staff, or hampers staff’s ability to do its job objectively.
(f) Depend upon the Staff to Respond to Citizen Concerns and Complaints It is the role of Council members to pass on concerns and complaints on behalf of their constituents.
It is not, however, appropriate to pressure staff to solve a problem in a particular way. Refer citizen complaints to the appropriate senior staff member, according to the protocol on channeling communications. The senior staff member should respond according to the Policy and Procedure for Responding to Customer Complaints. Senior staff is responsible for making sure the Council Member knows how the complaint was resolved.
(g) Do not Solicit Political Support from Staff
The City Charter states that “Neither the city manager or any other person in the employment of the city shall take part in securing or shall contribute any money toward the nomination or election of any candidate for a municipal office.” In addition, some professionals (e.g., City Manager and the Assistant City Manager) have professional codes of ethics, which preclude politically partisan activities or activities that give the appearance of political partisanship. Council members shall refrain from coercing staff in making recommendations to the Council as a whole.
(h) Use of Public Resources
Council members shall not use public resources, such as City staff time, equipment, supplies or facilities, for private gain or personal purposes.
1.8 Use of Staff Time
(a) Do Not Get Involved in Administrative Functions
The key provisions on Council-staff relations found in section 2.04.170 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code:
“Neither the council nor any of its committees or members shall direct, request or attempt to influence, either directly or indirectly, the appointment of any person to office or employment by the city manager or in any manner interfere with the city manager or prevent the city manager from exercising individual judgment in the appointment of officers and employees in the administrative service. Except for the purpose of inquiry, the council and its members shall deal with the administrative service solely through the city manager, and neither the council nor any member thereof shall give orders to any of the subordinates of the city manager, either publicly or privately.”
(b) Respect the “One Hour” Rule for Staff Work
Requests for staff support should be made to the appropriate senior staff member, according to the protocol for channeling communications. Any request, which would require more than one hour of staff time to research a problem or prepare a response, will need to be approved by the full council to ensure that staff resources are allocated in accordance with overall council priorities. Once Item 12
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45 notified that a request for information or staff support would require more than one hour, the Council Member may request that the City Manager place the request on an upcoming Council agenda. The 1-hour rule applies to all Council members equally.
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SECTION 2 - CITY COUNCIL CONDUCT WITH PALO ALTO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
The City has established several Boards and Commissions as a means of gathering more community input.
Citizens who serve on Boards and Commissions become more involved in government and serve as advisors to the Council. They are a valuable resource to the City’s leadership and should be treated with appreciation and respect. Council members serve as liaisons to Boards and Commissions, according to appointments made by the Mayor, and in this role are expected to represent the full Council in providing guidance on Council processes or actions to the Board or Commission. Refrain from speaking for the full Council on matters for which the full council has not yet taken a policy position. In other instances, Council members may attend Board or Commission meetings as individuals, and should follow these protocols:
2.1 If Attending a Board or Commission Meeting, Identify Your Comments as Personal Views or Opinions.
Council members may attend any Board or Commission meeting, which are always open to any member of the public. Any public comments by a Council member at a Board or Commission meeting, when that Council member is not the liaison to the Board or Commission , should make a point to clearly state it is an individual opinion and not a representation of the feelings of the entire Council.
2.2 Refrain from Lobbying Board and Commission Members
It is inappropriate for a Council member to contact a Board or Commission member to lobby on behalf of an individual, business, or developer, or to advocate a particular policy perspective. It is acceptable for Council members to co ntact Board or Commission members in order to better understand a position taken by the Board or Commission or the status of an ongoing matter.
2.3 Remember that Boards and Commissions are Advisory to the Council as a Whole, not as Individual Council Members
The Council appoints individuals to serve on Boards and Commissions, and it is the responsibility of Boards and Commissions to follow policy established by the Council. Council members should not feel they have the power or right to unduly influence Board and Commission members. A Board and Commission appointment should not be used as a political reward.
2.4 Concerns about an Individual Board or Commission Member Should be Pursued with Tact If a Council member has concerns with a particular Board or Commission member fulfilling his or her roles and responsibilities and is comfortable in talking with that individual privately, the Council member should do so. If needed, the Council member may involve a Chair of a commission or the liaison to the commission if there is one. Alternatively, or if the problem is not resolved, the Council Item 12
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46 member should consult with the Mayor, who may address the issue to the Council as appropriate.
2.5 Be Respectful of Diverse Opinions
A primary role of Boards and Commissions is to represent many points of view in the community and to provide the Council with advice based on a full spectrum of concerns and perspectives. Council members may have a closer working relationship with some individuals serving on Boards and Commissions but must be fair to and respectful of all citizens serving on Boards and Commissions.
2.6 Keep Political Support Away from Public Forums
Board and Commission members may offer political support to a Council member, but not in a public forum while conducting official duties. Conversely, Council members may sup port Board and Commission members who are running for office, but not in an official forum in their capacity as a Council member.
2.7 Maintain an Active Liaison Relationship
Appointed Council liaisons or alternates are encouraged to attend all regularly sched uled meetings of their assigned Board or Commission.
2.8 Role of Council Liaison to Board or Commission
The role of Council liaison to a Board or Commission is to be a point of contact with Council and a resource to the Board and Commission, as well as to share prior Council discussions and actions on issues as applicable, and assist the Board or Commission in understanding how it might inform Council decision-making. The liaison is expected to attend Board or Commission meetings as requested by the body unless the Council member has other conflicting duties.
* * *
SECTION 3 - STAFF CONDUCT WITH CITY COUNCIL
3.1 Respond to Council Questions as Fully and as Expeditiously as is Practical The protocol for staff time devoted to research and response is in application here. If a Council Member forwards a complaint or service request to a department head or a Council Appointed Officer, there shall be follow-through with the Council Member as to the outcome.
3.2 Respect the Role of Council Members as Policy Makers for the City Staff is expected to provide its best professional recommendations on issues. Staff should not try to determine Council support for particular positions or recommendations in order to craft recommendations. The Council must be able to depend upon the staff to make independent recommendations. Staff should provide information about alternatives to staff recommendations as appropriate, as well as pros and cons for staff recommendations and alternatives
3.3 Demonstrate Professionalism and Non-Partisanship in all Interactions with the Community and in Public Meetings
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47 3.4 It is Important for the Staff to Demonstrate Respect for the Council at all Times All Council members should be treated equally.
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SECTION 4 - CITY COUNCIL AND BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS POLICY FOR TRAVEL AND
MISCELLANEOUS EXPENSE REIMBURSEMENT
4.1 Mayor and Vice Mayor Additional Compensation
The Mayor shall receive $150 monthly and the Vice Mayor $100 monthly to defray additional expenses of these offices.
4.2 Miscellaneous Expenditures
(a) Expenditure of City Council Contingency Funds
Requests for expenditure of Council Contingency Funds up to $10,000 should be made to the Mayor and Vice Mayor. Where the Mayor and Vice Mayor agree with the request, it will be announced during Council Member Questions, Comments and Announcements. The expenditure will be considered approved unless two or more Council members request additional information or discussion, in which case the expenditure will be agendized at a future meeting. Expenditures over $10,000 require action by Council motions, which shall be by Colleagues’ Memo placed on Consent, or as part of an agendized item.
(b) City Purchase of Tickets or Sponsorship of Non-Profit Organization Events The City Manager may purchase tickets or sponsor events by non-profit organizations, subject to budget availability, under any of the following circumstances:
1) where the event serves a City educational purpose,
2) recognition for work done by staff (not including elected or appointed officials), or 3) expending budget allocations specifically intended for event attendance.
(c) Expenditure for Annual Holiday Event
Expenditures of up to $1,500 from the Council Special Events budget may be directed to be expended from an annual holiday celebration, subject to budget availability for attendance by Council members, executive leadership staff, and community leaders. Event details will be coordinated by the Mayor and facilitated by staff.
4.3 Council and Boards and Commission Travel Policy
Council member travel expenses and reimbursements will adhere to the Citywide Travel Arrangements and Expense Reimbursement Policy (Administrative Policy 1-02/ASD)
The following additional policy is set by the Council and applies to Council members and to Board and Commissions members. In reimbursing travel and miscellaneous expenses, a municipal purpose requiring the expenditure of public funds must be in evidence; also, in accordance with the Charter and Municipal Code, such expenditures must be from authorized appropriations. Council members are limited to six (6) times per year for travel reimbursements, subject to budget availability. Council member travel Item 12
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48 will be approved by the Mayor.
(a) Travel Related to Sister Cities, Sibling City, or Shared Interests with Another City Abroad
1) Given the City’s relationship with many Sister Cities and a Sibling City, there may be a need to send a Palo Alto delegation to another city abroad or within the United States related to Sister Cities, Sibling City, or shared interests between Palo Alto an d another city abroad. The following will apply when a Council member travels abroad or domestically on behalf of the City as part of Sister City, Sibling City, or shared interests efforts. Note, such a trip would count towards the six (6) total tips cap described above.
The proposed travel must in clude an approved Pre -Travel Authorization Request for travel that explains how the travel will advance the City's interests or policy/Council objectives and a consideration of the cost/value relationship of the trip. The request should also explain why virtual attendance is not effective in that circumstance. The Council will be re sponsible for ensuring that visits to any individual city will be reasonably spaced apart. The Pre -Travel Authorization Request will be approved by the Mayor. If the Mayor is the requested traveler, the request will be approved by the Vice Mayor.
2) Annually, the total amount the Council will budget for international and domestic travel related to Sister Cities, Sibling City, or shared interests between Palo Alto and another city abroad will be capped at $40,000 with reasonable annual adjustments beyond 2024 to account for inflation. This funding will be distributed equitably amongst Council m embers who meet the guidelines above and express an interest to travel.
(b) Support Services
The City Clerk’s Office makes travel arrangements for Council members. This service includes conference registration, hotel reservations, per diem advances and reimbursement of unforeseen expenses. The department liaison for each board and commission will be responsible for arrangements for Officials.
(c) Activities Not Considered Reimbursable
1) Voluntary attendance at any conference or meeting, not representing the City.
A) Meetings of social or service organizations.
2) Meetings of voter groups or with individual citizens concerned with agenda items.
3) Election campaign activities.
4) Alcohol and entertainment expenses.
5) Personal portion of the trip and other non-mileage automobile expenses.
(d) Reports to Council
Council members and officials shall provide brief verbal reports on meetings attended at the City’s expense at the next regular Council/Board/Commission meeting. If multiple Officials attended, a joint report may be made. All related documents are subject to the Public Records Act and can be Item 12
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49 periodically reviewed by auditors.
(e) Violation of This Policy
Use of public resources or falsifying expense reports is in violation of this policy and may result in any or all of the following:
1) Loss of reimbursement privileges
2) A demand for restitution to the City
3) The City reporting the expenses as income to the elected or appointed Official to state and federal tax authorities
4) Civil penalties of up to $1000 per day and three times the value of the resources used
5) Prosecution for misuse of public resources
* * *
SECTION 5 - Confidentiality, Conflicts of Interest, Gifts And Favors Members shall respect the confidentiality of information concerning the property, personnel or affairs of the City. They shall neither disclose confidential information without proper legal authorization, nor use such information to advance their personal, financial or other private interests. There are many State laws regarding confidentiality, conflicts of Interest, and gifts and favors. Council members should stay apprised of and comply with State law on these topics.
Resource Links will be added here.
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City Council
Staff Report
Report Type: SPECIAL ORDERS OF THE DAY
Lead Department: City Clerk
Meeting Date: May 13, 2024
Report #:2404-2886
TITLE
Appointment of Candidates for Vacancies on the Stormwater Management Oversight Committee and Utilities Advisory Commission. CEQA Status - Not a project.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends City Council vote to appoint candidates for the following positions:
•Three (3) vacancies on the Stormwater Management Oversight Committee with terms ending March 31, 2027
•Two (2) vacancies on the Utilities Advisory Commission with terms ending March 31, 2027
*A majority vote (4 yes’s) is required to appoint a candidate. Council may choose to make additional appointments if additional vacancies occur after the publishing of this report.
BACKGROUND
Boards and Commissions are established as advisory bodies to the City Council, made up of community volunteers that provide essential feedback on matters of importance to the community. The City Clerk’s office advertises and recruits for vacancies, the Council considers the applications, interviews desired candidates, and makes appointments for the open positions.
INTERVIEWS
At the April 1, 2024 City Council meeting, the Council elected to interview 4 candidates for Stormwater Management Oversight Committee and 6 candidates for the Utilities Advisory Commission. The interviews were held on April 8, 2024, April 30, 2024, and May 6, 2024. Video recording of the interviews are available on our City of Palo Alto YouTube Channel1. All 1 City of Palo Alto YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/cityofpaloalto Item 13
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applications for the Stormwater Management Oversight Committee2 and Utilities Advisory Commission3 can be accessed online.
MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENTS
Each Board or Commission has different requirements for appointment such as mandatory residency, specialized training, or professional service in a specified area. Additionally, appointed members cannot be council members, officers, or employees of the City of Palo Alto.
Stormwater Management Oversight Committee
•Each member shall be a resident of Palo Alto, an employee of a business located in Palo Alto, or an owner of a real property within the City. (Resolution 9969) Utilities Advisory Commission
•Each member of the commission shall be a utility customer or the authorized representative of a utility customer. (PAMC 2.23.010)
•Palo Alto Residency for at least six members of the commission (PAMC 2.23.010). This requirement is currently fulfilled by all 7 members of the Utilities Advisory Commission.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
The 2024 Annual Boards and Commissions recruitment invited applications from January 1, 2024 through March 17, 2024 through the new online application process. Palo Alto Municipal Code 2.16.060 requires public notification regarding vacancies of the Commissions as follows, “The City Clerk shall exercise their discretion in choosing the method of advertisement that will most effectively reach potential candidates.” Based on the September 14, 2021 Policy & Services Committee meeting report regarding Board and Commission Member demographics and community representation, the City Clerk’s office expanded recruitment efforts through additional means to “most effectively reach potential candidates”.
This recruitment was advertised through various methods including paid print and digital advisements in The Palo Alto Weekly and the Daily Post; via the City’s website and social media channels; in physical locations of the Palo Alto Libraries and Community Centers; and distributed by e-mail through established distribution lists to community based organizations, individuals and City subscription based notification lists.
APPROVED BY:
Mahealani Ah Yun, City Clerk
2 Stormwater Management Oversight Committee applications:
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/viewer?id=0&type=7&uid=d79f6864-7531-4cb6-ab61-662a97bdf957 3 Utilities Advisory Commission applications:
https://cityofpaloalto.primegov.com/Portal/viewer?id=0&type=7&uid=b2acaa6d-2648-44a2-8d81-b8fe27660778 Item 13
Item 13 Staff Report
Item 13: Staff Report
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