City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: SEPTEMBER 5, 2023 FROM: COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WARDS: ALL
DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: STATE OF CALIFORNIA, OFFICE OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION 2023-2024 CERTIFIED LOCAL GOVERNMENT GRANT IN THE AMOUNT OF $40,000 TO PREPARE HISTORIC PROPERTIES ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT DESIGN GUIDELINES - SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION ISSUE:
Accept a State of California, Office of Historic Preservation 2023-2024 Certified Local Government Grant in the amount of $40,000 to be used to prepare Accessory Dwelling Unit design guidelines that would apply to historic properties and approve a supplemental appropriation in the grant amount.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Accept the State of California, Office of Historic Preservation 2023-2024 Certified Local Government Grant in the amount of $40,000 to prepare an Accessory Dwelling Unit Design Guidelines for historic properties; With at least five affirmative votes, authorize the Chief Financial Officer, or designee, to record an increase in revenue and appropriate expenditures in the amount of $40,000, or in the amount of the actual grant award in the Development Grants Fund, 23/24 CLG ADU Design Guidelines Project revenue and expenditure accounts; and Authorize the City Manager, Community and Economic Development Director, or designee, to execute an Office of Historic Preservation grant award standard agreement including making minor, non-substantive changes, and to sign all documents and instruments necessary to complete this project including, but not limited to agreements, payment requests and so on, which may be necessary to complete grant funded activities.
BACKGROUND:
In 1995, the California Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) recognized the quality of the City’s historic preservation program by designating Riverside as a Certified Local Government (CLG). One of the main benefits of becoming a CLG is that the City is eligible for annual competitive grant awards for projects relating to certain historic preservation criteria. Since being granted CLG status, the City has received approximately $337,800 in State CLG grants.
On April 28, 2023, the Community & Economic Development Department (CEDD), submitted two applications to OHP during the 2023-2023 CLG grant cycle application period. The applications included a request for $40,000 to prepare design guidelines for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU) for historic properties and a request for $40,000 to resurvey historic districts that have been identified as potentially eligible for designation but have not been formally designated. On July 14, 2022, the City received notice that OHP had accepted the application for the ADU design guidelines and awarded a $40,000 grant (Attachment 1).
DISCUSSION:
The development of ADU design guidelines will aid property owners and designers in the completion of a historically compatible design for an ADU at historic properties and will play a vital role in the City staff review of proposed ADUs at historic properties. . Guidelines will provide clear direction about how to design and construct a new ADU, garage conversion or a Junior ADU (JADU), in a manner that will be compatible with a historic residence. Historic property owners will be able to better plan and prepare for an ADU project with a complete set of design guidelines.
The ADU design guidelines project will include:
Conduct a minimum of two community meetings for outreach and to identify community members to participate in the development of the guidelines.
Meetings with an advisory committee, consisting of a Subcommittee of the Cultural Heritage Board (CHB) and community members, to discuss and develop standards and guidelines to be included. The committee is discussed more fully below.
Completion of ADU Design Guidelines for Historic Resources.
Presentation of finalized ADU Design Guidelines to CHB for adoption pursuant to Title 20 of the Riverside Municipal Code.
The awarded $40,000 in grant funds will be used to hire a consultant to prepare the guidelines, with the assistance of City staff and an advisory committee. The advisory committee will be composed of approximately three to four CHB members and approximately five to seven residents within Historic Districts or Neighborhood Conservation Areas. The Consultant will work with City staff and the advisory committee to identify specific development standards that would used by CEDD Staff in the review of proposed ADUs.
This project is in line with the goals of the City of Riverside’s Historic Preservation Element, as follows: it will ensure compliance with all applicable State and federal cultural resources protection and management laws in its planning and project review process; it will ensure compatibility between new development and existing cultural resources; and it will promote the preservation of cultural resources to ensure that citizens of Riverside have the opportunity to understand and appreciate the City's unique heritage.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
This project contributes to the Envision Riverside 2025 Strategic Plan: Priorities 2 –Community Well-Being (Goal 2.3 - Strengthen neighborhood identities and improve community health and the physical environment through amenities and programs that foster an increased sense of community and enhanced feelings of pride and belonging citywide.) and Strategic Priorities 5 – High Performing Government (Goal 5.2 - Utilize technology, data, and process improvement strategies to increase efficiencies, guide decision making, and ensure services are accessible and distributed equitably throughout all geographic areas of the City; and Goal 5.3 – Enhance communication and collaboration with community members to improve transparency, build public trust, and encourage shared decision-making).
This item aligns with each of the five Cross-Cutting Threads, as follows:
Community Trust – The proposed ADU design guidelines project will include community workshops, allowing input form community members throughout the process.
Equity – The proposed ADU design guidelines project will develop guidelines that will be applicable to all historic districts.
Fiscal Responsibility – The proposed ADU design guidelines project will be grant funded through a CLG grant from the State.
Innovation – The proposed ADU design guidelines project will make use of innovative GIS based story mapping to help tell the associated history.
Sustainability and Resiliency – The proposed ADU design guidelines project will include aid in the development of new ADUs to increase housing stock while maintaining the character of the City’s historic properties.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The fiscal impact of this action is $40,000. Upon Council approval, an increase in revenue and an appropriation of expenditures in the amount of $40,000 will be recorded in the Development Grants Fund, 23/24 CLG ADU Design Guidelines Project revenue account number 9349500-334100 and expenditure account number 9349500-440210. This grant will cover the external costs associated with the preparation of the Accessory Dwelling Unit Design Guidelines for historic properties.
All staffing and incidental printing costs incurred by Community & Economic Development Department Planning Division will be absorbed by the Division’s operating budget.
Prepared by: Jennifer A. Lilley, Community & Economic Development Director Approved by: Rafael Guzman, Assistant City Manager
Certified as to
availability of funds: Edward Enriquez, Assistant City Manager/Chief Financial Officer/City Treasurer
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachment:
CLG Grant Award letter
LGBTQ+ Historic Context CLG Grant ● Page 3