TO: COMMUNITY AND
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
COMMITTEE
FROM: Christopher Burton
SUBJECT: Update to City Council
Policy 6-30, Outreach Policy
for Pending Land Use and
Development Projects
Status Report
DATE: October 13, 2026
Approved Date:
10/14/26
RECOMMENDATION
Accept the status report on the update to City Council Policy 6-30, Public Outreach Policy for Pending Land Use and Development Proposals.
BACKGROUND
City Council Policy 6-30, the Public Outreach Policy for Pending Land Use and Development Proposals (Policy), establishes public engagement and information requirements ranging from mailed and on-site notifications to community meetings for City decisions involving proposed changes to land use and development projects. The Policy was first introduced in 1999 and subsequently revised in 2004.
Since the last update to the Policy, there has been increasing awareness of the need to correct the lack of inclusivity inherent in long-standing outreach methods and procedures that rely on a “one-size-fits-all” approach that often fails to account for the diverse ways that people are able to access information. This has resulted in underrepresentation of marginalized and less economically privileged groups, such as non-English speakers and people with disabilities, in the City’s decision-making on land use and development issues.
Over the last several years, the City has focused on improving its community engagement approaches and removing barriers for residents to participate in engagement activities. These efforts include establishing financial need-based stipends for members of boards and commissions, developing lists of on-call community engagement consultants and community-based organizations, producing a Citywide Community Engagement Framework through the work of the Community Engagement Working Group, and conducting community engagement trainings for City staff in CED COMMITTEE AGENDA: 10/26/26
ITEM: (d)2
COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
October 13, 2026
Subject: Status Report on the Update of City Council Policy 6-30, Outreach Policy for Pending Land Use and Development Projects
conjunction with the City Manager’s Office of Racial and Social Equity. In addition, since the Policy was last updated in 2004, the media landscape has been significantly transformed by the rise of social media as a primary source of local news, while the reach of traditional media outlets such as newspapers and radio stations continues to decline.
Several City policy documents and reports have identified areas in need of improvement in the City’s outreach policies and procedures related to land use and development proposals. Specific recommendations are included in the 2019 City Auditor’s Report, the City’s Racial and Social Equity Plan, the requirements of the upcoming Environmental Justice Element, and the City’s 6th Cycle Housing Element. Strategy I-7 of the Housing Element requires that the City “amend the outreach and engagement policies, including City Council Policy 6-30, to ensure that outreach is robust and opportunities for meaningful public participation are fully supported.” The full set of recommendations and the corresponding documents are listed in the table below:
Requirement Driver
1 Establish guidance for identifying predominant languages for online/social media and printed notices and information; providing translation of documents and interpretation
services; and gathering multilingual input.
City Auditor Report,
Housing Element
Strategy I-7, Racial
and Social Equity
Plan, Environmental
Justice Element
2 Establish guidance for ensuring accessibility of online/social media and printed information (such as use of plain
language) and for gathering input from individuals with disabilities and other barriers to participation.
City Auditor Report,
Housing Element
Strategy I-7
3 Expand access to online information and other formats about proposed developments, land use/zoning changes, and
upcoming hearings.
City Auditor Report,
Environmental Justice
Element
4 Expand proactive community engagement methods to notify neighborhood and business associations and communitybased organizations about proposed development projects and land use/zoning changes.
City Auditor Report,
Housing Element
Strategy I-7
5 Revise guidance on timing and mailing radii for project and hearing notices to reflect best practices, in addition to state requirements.
City Auditor Report
6 Develop an accessible guide for residents in multiple languages that outlines the objectives of the public hearing process and provides direction for submitting comments.
City Auditor Report,
Housing Element
Strategy I-7
7 Establish guidance on planning community meetings,
including scheduling them to accommodate different work schedules, holding virtual meetings or providing options for remote participation, using meeting locations that are
accessible to residents, and planning for childcare.
Environmental Justice
Element
COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
October 13, 2026
Subject: Status Report on the Update of City Council Policy 6-30, Outreach Policy for Pending Land Use and Development Projects
Requirement Driver
8 Develop a mechanism for gathering public feedback on the public noticing/hearing process to assess effectiveness and inform future improvements.
City Auditor Report,
Environmental Justice
Element
9 Provide regular staff training on public noticing and community engagement practices, including accessing
language interpretation services.
Racial and Social
Equity Plan
10 Designate a Language Access Liaison and a Disability Access Liaison.
Racial and Social
Equity Plan
Initial planning of the work to update City Council Policy 6-30 was paused in FY 2025- 26 to devote staff capacity to the General Plan Four-Year Review Task Force process, but is being resumed in FY 2026-27, as outlined in this memorandum to the Community and Economic Development Committee.
ANALYSIS
While the update to City Council Policy 6-30 is aimed at addressing identified deficiencies and meeting the City’s obligation under state housing element law, the overarching goal of the process is to engage San Jose residents, community stakeholders, and City departments in developing a set of processes and procedures that promote racial and social equity, support broad participation in decision-making with full accessibility to information, and utilize effective communication methods1. The Planning Division’s Housing Policy unit began this effort in September 2026 and expects to bring a revised Policy to the Planning Commission for consideration in May 2027 and to City Council in June 2027 (Attachment).
The work plan for the Policy update includes the following components:
1. Outreach and Engagement: September-January 2026. This phase will consist of outreach and engagement activities to gather feedback from community members and stakeholder groups that will inform the Policy revisions. a. Focus groups: The primary aim of the focus groups is to hear from those members of the community who typically do not participate in land use and development decision-making and who may encounter barriers to doing so.
The focus will be on underrepresented groups such as people with disabilities, monolingual Spanish and Vietnamese speakers, youth, and renters. This effort will also include established stakeholder groups such as developers and neighborhood associations.
1 The Policy 6-30 update work will be concurrent with the City’s process to develop uniform standards for data centers and large energy projects and will incorporate any revisions to reflect those standards.
COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
October 13, 2026
Subject: Status Report on the Update of City Council Policy 6-30, Outreach Policy for Pending Land Use and Development Projects
b. Meetings with internal stakeholders: This activity is aimed at understanding City staff’s experience implementing City Council Policy 6-30 and seeking feedback on ways to improve the policy’s effectiveness and efficiency. c. Community meeting: Staff will conduct a virtual community meeting in fall 2026. The goal of the meeting is to provide a general forum in which to inform the community about the update effort and obtain feedback about ways to improve outreach processes.
d. Meetings with external stakeholder groups: Staff will attend meetings of stakeholder groups on request and as staffing allows to gather feedback and provide updates on the Policy revision process.
e. Webpage: A webpage for the City Council Policy 6-30 update will be created for the Planning website and will go live in October. The webpage will include information about the update process and a link to an online survey about outreach and engagement methods and procedures.
2. Policy Revisions: January-March 2027
• Prepare draft of Policy revisions
• Planning management and City Attorney’s Office review
3. Public Hearings
• Planning Commission: May 2027
• City Council: June 2027
The table below provides a summary of the work plan phases and key dates:
Phase Date
Outreach September 2026-January 2027
Policy Revisions January-March 2027
Planning Commission May 2027
City Council June 2027
Citywide Planning Work Plan Prioritization Context
On October 20, 2026, the City Council will take action on the work plan for the entire Citywide Planning team from the period of October 2026 through December 2027. As discussed in that memorandum2, the scope of work for the update to City Council Policy 6-30 has been revised to reflect existing staff capacity as balanced within the prioritized work plan. If significant changes or outreach are added to the scope of work, it will result in further delays in the completion of this project. This could have implications for the City’s Housing Element program obligations, as the key metric for Housing Element Strategy I-7 is revision of City Council Policy 6-30 to address the audit report 2 https://sanjose.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=16058027&GUID=FE00A663-3FC7-4B7A-B6A3- 67CAD614EDBE
COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
October 13, 2026
Subject: Status Report on the Update of City Council Policy 6-30, Outreach Policy for Pending Land Use and Development Projects
recommendations, with a deadline of 2026. This somewhat narrower scope of work proposed is aimed at reducing further delays in completing Strategy I-7 in 2027 given one staff vacancy in Citywide’s Housing Policy team and necessary work around the City’s Missing Middle Housing program related to the General Plan Four-Year Review.
EVALUATION AND FOLLOW-UP
Staff will complete the work plan components of the Policy update and bring the proposed revised Policy to Planning Commission in May 2027 and to City Council in June 2027.
FISCAL IMPACTS
Recruitment is underway to fill the existing vacancy on the Citywide Housing Policy team. Staff expects to complete the more narrowly scoped work plan to update City Council Policy 6-30 within existing staff capacity, with no additional budget impacts anticipated for the current scope. If City Council directs broader community engagement beyond what is contemplated in the current work plan, additional resources, such as consultant support, would be needed. No additional resources are currently committed to this effort. PBCE does not currently anticipate requesting additional positions or resources through a future budget process for the current work plan. Any potential budget request to support an expanded scope would be evaluated if City Council directs that additional work.
COORDINATION
This memorandum has been coordinated with the City Manager’s Budget Office and City Attorney’s Office.
/s/
Christopher Burton, Director
Planning, Building, and Code
Enforcement
For questions, please contact Jerad Ferguson, Principal Planner, Department of Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement, at [email protected] or (669) 223-1160.
ATTACHMENT:
Attachment – City Council Policy 6-30 Update Work Plan