Not Yet Approved
1 111_20240530_ts24
Ordinance No. _____
Ordinance of the Council of the City of Palo Alto Calling and Fixing Date of a Special Election to Submit to the City Electors the Question of Discontinuance of the Use of a Portion of Park Land at El Camino Park
The Council of the City of Palo Alto ORDAINS as follows:
SECTION 1. Findings and Declarations. The City Council finds and declares as follows:
A. The area known as El Camino Park is owned by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University (Stanford) and is leased to the City of Palo Alto (City) until June 30, 2042.
B. Article VIII of the Palo Alto Charter provides that “All lands owned or controlled by the city which are or will be used for park, playground, recreation or conservation purposes shall be dedicated for such purposes by ordinance.” Accordingly, the City ado pted an ordinance dedicating El Camino Park for park, playground, recreation, or conservation purposes, as codified at Palo Alto Municipal Code (PAMC) section 22.08.230. A legal description of El Camino Park is codified as Exhibit A-19 to PAMC Title 22.
C. Article VIII of the Charter requires that “[n]o land heretofore or hereafter dedicated for such purposes shall be sold or otherwise disposed of, nor shall its use be abandoned or discontinued except pursuant to majority vote of the electorate. Any elect ion and related procedures under Article VIII shall conform to the provisions set forth in general law as it existed January 1, 1965, except that the council may call such election by majority vote.” The Charter includes the “provisions set forth in general law” in Appendix A to the Charter of the City of Palo Alto.
D. The City Council proposes that the voters discontinue park use for an approximately 13,960 sq. foot (or approximately 0.33 acre) segment of El Camino Park to be used to build a road connecting the adjacent Palo Alto Transit Center with El Camino Real, a state highway (the “project”). This will allow buses, shuttles, and other transit vehicles to shorten the drive time to and from the Transit Center and will encourage use of public transporta tion, among other benefits. The proposed project will also include multiple pedestrian and bicycle improvements adjacent to or near the proposed transit connection, including at the intersection of Quarry Road and El Camino Real.
E. Construction of the project is contingent on state agency approval, finalization of design, and obtaining adequate funding. If built, the project will remain under the terms of the El Camino Park lease, meaning that it will be owned by Stanford and leased to the City until 2042.
Unless a new agreement is reached, the project and El Camino Park will thereafter revert to Stanford.
F. On April 22, 2024, the City Council adopted a Resolution of Intention to Call an Election to Submit the Question of Discontinuance of a Portion of El Camino Park as Dedicated Parkland and setting June 10, 2024 for a Public Hearing for Protests.
G. In compliance with the City Charter, the City Council now has heard and desires to overrule all protests and desires to adopt this ordinance to call and fix the date of a special Not Yet Approved
2 election to submit to the city electors the question of the discontinuance of the use of a portion of park land at El Camino Park.
SECTION 2. The City Council hereby overrules all protests received regarding this proposed discontinuance.
SECTION 3. The City Council hereby calls a special election to submit to the city electors the question of the discontinuance of the use of a portion of park land at El Camino Park. Such election shall occur on November 5, 2024, consistent with Resolution XXXXX.
SECTION 4. The City Council finds the proposed project exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The proposed project comes within the statutory exemption for “facility extensions not to exceed four miles in length which are required for the transfer of passengers from or to exclusive public mass transit guideway or busway public transit services.” Pub. Res. Code § 21080(b)(12). Due to its fixed location, Caltrain qualifies as an “exclusive public mass transit guideway” service. The proposed project would extend the existing transit center facility by approximately 210 feet, through the intersection of Quarry Road and El Camino Real, to facilitate the transfer of passengers to Caltrain, among other public transit services.
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Not Yet Approved
3 SECTION 5. As an ordinance relating to an election, this ordinance shall be effective immediately upon adoption.
INTRODUCED:
PASSED:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTENTIONS:
ATTEST:
____________________________ ____________________________ City Clerk Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM: APPROVED:
____________________________ ____________________________ Assistant City Attorney City Manager
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Director of Community Services
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Chief Transportation Official