City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: MARCH 15, 2022 FROM: COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WARDS: ALL
DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CITY’S GENERAL PLAN 2025 IN CALENDAR YEAR 2021, PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 65400 (A)(2) ISSUE:
Receive and file an Annual Progress Report on the status of the City’s General Plan 2025 and submit it to the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the California Department of Housing and Community Development, pursuant to California Government Code Section 65400 (a)(2).
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council:
Receive and file the 2021 Annual Progress Report for the City of Riverside’s General Plan 2025; and Direct staff to submit the Annual Progress Report for the City of Riverside’s General Plan 2025 to the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the California Department of Housing and Community Development, pursuant to California Government Code Section 65400 (a)(2).
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
In California, all jurisdictions must submit an Annual Progress Report (APR) containing data on General Plan implementation, including project applications and approvals, processing times, and approval processes. Government Code Section 65400 requires that the APR be presented to City Council and submitted to the Office of Planning and Research and Department of Housing and Community Development by April 1 of each year and include the following:
The status of the General Plan and progress in its implementation.
The degree to which an approved General Plan complies with the State’s General Plan guidelines, and the date of the last revision to the General Plan.
The progress in meeting its share of regional housing needs assessment (RHNA), and local efforts to remove governmental constraints to the maintenance, improvement, and development of housing.
A list of sites rezoned to accommodate that portion of the City’s share of the RHNA.
The number of housing development applications received in the prior year.
The number of units included in all development applications in the prior year.
The number of units approved and disapproved in the prior year.
Within the Housing Element cycle, the number of net new units of housing, including rental and for-sale, issued a completed entitlement, building permit, or certificate of occupancy, and the income category, by area median income category, for each.
The number of affordable housing projects that requested processing under the State’s streamlining process (Government Code Section 65913.4(a)); and the number of units approved under the streamlining process, including those that conflicted with the State’s objective planning standards.
BACKGROUND:
The City’s General Plan 2025 Program (General Plan 2025) was adopted in November of 2007 and includes the General Plan, Riverside Municipal Code Title 19 - Zoning Code, RMC Title 18 – Subdivision Code, RMC Title 7 – Noise Control, and Citywide Design and Sign Guidelines. The Housing and Public Safety Elements were updated, and Environmental Justice Policies developed (Update), to meet the State’s 6th Cycle Housing Element requirements and adopted by City Council in October 2021. The objectives and policies in the General Plan and Update provide the City’s vision for growth based on input from residents throughout the City.
The General Plan 2025 includes 12 elements, including the Update, including the State-required General Plan Elements (some of which have been combined) and optional Elements including Arts and Culture, Education, Air Quality, Public Facilities and Infrastructure, Parks and Recreation, and Historic Preservation. General Plan 2025 includes an Implementation Plan, which contains Implementation Tools with specific actions, responsible entities, and timelines. The Implementation Tools show how the Objectives and Policies of the General Plan will be implemented. The Update includes policies and actions, including a detailed Action Plan, to help the City meet the Guiding Principles.
The Annual Progress Report (APR) (Attachment 1) reflects the City’s progress and fulfilling the General Plan 2025 objectives and policies and the Update policies and actions in the 2021 calendar year. State law requires the APR be presented to the City Council for review to ensure they are informed of the progress toward meeting mandated housing obligations. The APR also provides the public an opportunity to give oral testimony and written comment.
DISCUSSION:
The City’s Annual Progress Report (APR) for calendar year 2021 was coordinated with all City Departments to verify implementation progress for the General Plan 2025 Program (General Plan 2025) and the Housing and Public Safety Elements updates, and Environmental Justice Policies (Update). The APR includes General Plan 2025 implementation, General Plan 2025 course adjustments to improve implementation, correlation of land use decisions with the General Plan 2025 and progress in meeting the City’s share of regional housing needs, based on the 5th Cycle Housing Element, and removing governmental constraints to the development of housing. While the City is not required to report on the 6th Cycle Housing Element achievements, this has been included as a matter of information.
GENERAL PLAN PROGRESS
Highlights of progress made in implementing General Plan 2025 and the Update, as summarized in the APR, are summarized in the following table:
Table 1 – Implementation Summary
Department
Summary
Community & Economic Development
Processed 7 new Mills Act Contracts to provide incentives to preserve historic properties Completed Phase 1 General Plan Update – Housing Element, Public Safety Element and Environmental Justice Policies, which include Zoning Code amendments to streamline emergency shelter development Completed Title 19 amendment including modifications to implement the Actions in the Housing Element Update Sponsored funding of $148,969 to approximately 75+ organizations and provided Emerging Artists Grants of $500-$1,000 with a total budget of $10,000 Arts & Cultural Affairs Division granted out $288,484 to arts and cultural institutions for operational support Supported three mural installations in multiple sites throughout the city through a new Public Art Application system Purchased and installed Public Art for new Main Library from diverse, local, and national artists Housing Authority
Continued to partner with affordable housing developers to facilitate the development of affordable housing and the acquisition and rehabilitation of substandard housing units Continued to make available more than 1,500 affordable rental units to low-income seniors, families and individuals Assisted 44 households with housing through the rental assistance program resulting in 25 prequalified households in 2021 Contracted with Fair Housing Council of Riverside to provide assistance to 7,785 low to moderate-income persons Continued to operate 16 permanent supportive housing units and has 229 permanent supportive housing units in the pipeline Homeless Solutions
Initiated an analysis of a possible Inclusionary Housing Ordinance and conducted a virtual community workshop to provide information and answer questions Public Safety including
Fire Department and Police Department
Implemented changes with the Santa Ana MS4 permit (Regional Water Board) Continued preparation of 2017-2022 Department Strategic Plan (anticipated 2022 adoption) Participated in the Incident Command System training provided by FEMA Conducted 3 Crime-Free Multi-Housing training classes with approximately 45 property managers Riverside Public Utilities
Reported on GhG Emissions as required by State
Renewed the Tree Power program to provide customers with up to 6 free shade trees per year Customer Engagement Team created energy efficiency programs to encourage conservation Initiated the Urban Forestry, Water and Climate Project to identify priorities related to the urban forest, water management and climate resiliency, in partnership with Public Works and IT Initiated development of Small Business Direct Install program Increased participation in virtual community water conservation programs Completed Focused Water Master Plan Update for Downtown neighborhood Completed update to the Urban Water Management Plan and Water Shortage Contingency Plan Public Works
Updated the City’s Enforcement Response Plan
Established the Edible Food Recovery Program
Implemented an axle restriction prohibiting vehicles with 4 or more axles traveling along Van Buren Boulevard between Coyote Bush Drive and Dauchy Avenue Continued implementation of the Victoria Avenue Policy to protect the historic landscape Secured funding (Highway Safety Improvement Program) to retime signals in the Central Business District (Fall 2022 anticipated completion) Installed five traffic circles as part of the Active Transportation Program Initiated the TIG/m Riverside Streetcar Study and anticipate completing the study in early 2022 Received grant funds to construct sidewalks along Bryan Street and Cochran Avenue, which will assist students traveling to La Sierra High School Installed all 1,536 modules that make up 32 cassettes of the Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) and final testing completed Prepared and facilitated adoption PACT, including the Trails Master Plan/Standards, Crime Prevention through Environmental Design for streetscape improvements Secured funding (Highway Safety Improvement Program) to retime signals in the Central Business District (Fall 2022 anticipated completion) Awarded Best Project of the Year for the Phoenix Storm Drain Diversion to Sewer project, which has improved water quality and safety in the Santa Ana River Constructed bicycle lane improvements on Central Avenue, Watkins Drive, Canyon Crest Drive and Iowa Avenue Secured state funding for the preparation of a Local Roadway Safety Plan to improve high-collision intersections Completed Active Transportation Program Cycle 2 project to improve bike and pedestrian improvements in environmental justice communities Library
Grand Opening of the new Main Library
Museum
Harada House project awarded $7 million from the State of California to be used for rehabilitation Parks, Recreation and Community Services
Implemented community outreach, park master planning, and CEQA compliance for nine park sites along the Santa Ana River Completed an update of the Trails Master Plan as part of the Riverside PACT (Pedestrian Target Safeguarding Plan, Active Transportation Plan, Complete Streets Ordinance and Trails Master Plan Update) project Acquired a 4,970 square foot parcel at the western terminus of Lindy Street to preserve access to La Sierra/Norco Hills Secured $7.15 million State grant funding for Patterson Park renovations Innovation and Technology
Installed and configured Police WatchGuard Video System including 200 WatchGuard body worn cameras, 100 WatchGuard in-vehicle video systems, miscellaneous accessories, and software Developed Emergency Rental Assistance Program (RAP), similar to the public utilities’ Emergency Recovery Assistance Program (ERAP), to assist low income (at or below 80% of area median income) renters with rental assistance and utilities to ensure housing stability Completed the data center modernization project to consolidate physical server infrastructure into the state-of-the-art VxRails virtual server technology to improve system fault tolerance and business continuity Completed GIS modernization project to replace legacy GIS system Provided work from home packages that included 850 laptops, 700 monitors, and 500 docking stations
HOUSING PERMITTED UNITS
In October 2021, the City adopted a comprehensive update of the General Plan Housing Element for the 6th RHNA Cycle. The City’s 6th Cycle RHNA allocation saw a significant increase over the prior cycle with a final allocation of 18,458 units. The Housing Element update included an Opportunity Sites Inventory and associated Rezoning program, adopted concurrently, that identified and zoned sufficient land to accommodate approximately 20,997 units, 13.8% higher than the RHNA allocation. The 6th Cycle RHNA obligation will become the new benchmark for housing production for the period beginning October 15, 2021, and ending October 15, 2029, and staff will continue to track new units and the remaining RHNA obligation.
RHNA progress is tracked and monitored annually by collecting data on the number of permitted units during the reporting period. For the entire calendar year of 2021, building permits issued for residential projects totaled 738 dwelling units, which is significantly higher than the 388 units permitted in 2020 (which was low largely due to the Covid 19 Pandemic) and higher than the 623 units permitted in 2019.
For calendar year 2021, the building permits issued include:
410 apartment units;
192 single-family residences;
127 accessory dwelling units;
8 duplex units; and
1 manufactured home.
122 of the permitted units are covenant restricted for low and very-low-income households. The remainder will serve moderate or above-moderate income households. For 2022 and beyond, the City expects an increase in the permitting of lower-income households, as the Housing Authority had 537 affordable housing units in the pipeline.
The City also continues to monitor housing production (units built) for compliance with the RHNA obligation. For the reporting period of January 1 through October 14, 2021, the Building and Safety Division completed final inspections on 639 residential units in the following categories:
516 apartments;
67 single family residences;
45 accessory dwelling units;
10 duplexes; and
1 manufactured home.
Housing production is expected to be steady in Riverside, but units for families with moderate and lower incomes may remain below the City’s obligation. The Housing Element Update and Action Plan identifies specific actions that the City will undertake to further streamline and increase housing production that includes, but is not limited to:
Finalize study on a potential Inclusionary Housing Program; Finalize the standard plans for accessory dwelling units and continue streamlining applications; Update the City’s density bonus regulations;
Prepare a small lot/infill ordinance;
Create a publicly viewable dashboard of developable housing sites; Prepare a vehicle mile traveled (VMT) mitigation program; and Prepare a comprehensive update to the City’s current General Plan that will include:
Revision of the Zoning Code and Specific Plans;
An evaluation of, and revisions to, the Citywide Design and Sign Guidelines and the Citywide Residential Historic District Design Guidelines; A Program Environmental Impact Report; and
Strategic guidance on sustainability and resilience issues.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
The report out contained in the Annual Progress Report (APR) supports the Envision Riverside 2025 City of Riverside Strategic Priorities as follows:
Strategic Priority 1 – Arts, Culture and Recreation (All Goals) Strategic Priority 2 – Community Well-Being (All Goals) Strategic Priority 3 – Economic Opportunity (Goal 3.3)
Strategic Priority 4 – Environmental Stewardship (Goals 4.2, and 4.3) Strategic Priority 5 – High Performing Government (Goals 5.2, 5.3, and 5.5) Strategic Priority 6 – Infrastructure, Mobility & Connectivity (Goal 6.1) This Update aligns with the following Cross-Cutting Threads as follows:
Community Trust – The report out contained in the Annual Progress Report aligns with the Community Trust Cross-Cutting Thread as the APR summarizes the outcomes of the General Plan 2025 and Update that sought public input in their development and benefits all residents in the City.
Equity – The report out contained in the Annual Progress Report aligns with the Equity Cross-Cutting Thread in that it provides a summary of progress made on the General Plan 2025 and Update that takes an “all Department” approach in implementation that benefits all residents.
Fiscal Responsibility – The report out contained in the Annual Progress Report aligns with the Fiscal Responsibility Cross-Cutting Thread the General Plan 2025 and Update implementation provides for a planned and coordinated use of public funds.
Innovation - The report out contained in the Annual Progress Report aligns with the Innovation Cross-Cutting Thread as it reports out implementation of the General Plan 2025 and Update actions and summarizes innovative approaches to action implementation.
Sustainability and Resiliency – The report out contained in the Annual Progress Report aligns with the Sustainability and Resiliency Cross-Cutting Thread as it includes an update on actions completed in implementing General Plan 2025 and the Update and considers the needs of residents without compromising future generations.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with this report.
Prepared by: David Welch, Community & Economic Development Director Certified as to
availability of funds: Edward Enriquez, Chief Financial Officer/City Treasurer Approved by: Rafael Guzman, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Annual General Plan Progress Report for Calendar Year 2021 Presentation
PSP20-0003, Annual General Plan Progress Report for Calendar Year 2021 ● Page 2