IN THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN LEANDRO
ORDINANCE NO. 2026-XXX
ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING CODE TO REPEAL AND REPLACE CHAPTER 4.08 (OFF-STREET PARKING AND LOADING REGULATIONS) AND ADOPT CHAPTER 4.10 (TRANSPORTATION DEMAND
MANAGEMENT) TO MODIFY PARKING REGULATIONS AND ESTABLISH TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT (TDM) REGULATIONS (ZCA26-001)
WHEREAS, The California Constitution, Article XI, Section 7, provides cities and counties with the authority to enact ordinances to protect the health, safety, welfare, and morals of their citizens; and WHEREAS, the San Leandro Zoning Code may be periodically amended to incorporate clarifications or corrections to existing designations, as well as substantive changes; and WHEREAS, the proposed Amendments consist of modifications to Chapter 4.08, Off-Street Parking and Loading Regulations, and the addition of a new Chapter 4.10, Transportation Demand Management; and
WHEREAS, in the adopted 2023–2031 Housing Element, the City identified the current vehicle parking ratios in the Zoning Code as a constraint to housing production, and noted that several housing projects had requested and received parking exceptions or planned developments to build less parking in order to make projects financially feasible, adding time and uncertainty that can impede housing development; and
WHEREAS, in Housing Element Program 14, Action 14.1, the City committed to removing parkingrelated constraints to housing production by retaining a third-party consultant to identify appropriate Zoning Code modifications and to consider a Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Ordinance to encourage reduction in vehicle trips and reliance on automobile parking; and WHEREAS, in 2025, the City contracted with W-Trans and Nelson Nygaard to analyze applicable local and state codes, review recently entitled development projects, conduct stakeholder outreach, and prepare a Parking and TDM Study with recommendations for Zoning Code amendments responsive to Housing Element Action 14.1; and
WHEREAS, the Parking and TDM Study recommended amendments to the City’s parking regulations and requirements for TDM; and
WHEREAS, the proposed amendments would revise Chapter 4.08 to consolidate vehicle parking requirements into fewer use categories and reduce ratios to reflect actual and observed demand; codify the transit-area parking exemption required by AB 2097 (Gov. Code § 65863.2); increase the maximum off-site parking distance to 2,000 feet consistent with AB 894 (Gov. Code § 65863.1); update bicycle parking standards; require unbundled parking for certain projects; update parking area lighting standards; and
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WHEREAS, the proposed Chapter 4.10 would establish TDM requirements for certain new residential and nonresidential developments; and
WHEREAS, the proposed amendments are consistent with the goals and policies of the San Leandro 2035 General Plan, including General Plan Policy T-1.3.C (Transportation Demand Management), Policy T-1.7 (Off-Street Parking Standards), and Policy T-1.8 (Shared Parking), and directly implement Housing Element Program 14, Action 14.1; and
WHEREAS, the proposed amendments would improve the City’s consistency with the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) Transit-Oriented Communities (TOC) Policy, a condition for prioritized access to regional funding; and WHEREAS, the amendments respond to changing state law requirements, regional policy, and local conditions and are necessary to advance the City’s interests with respect to housing production, economic development, and quality of life; and
WHEREAS, this project is statutorily exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to California Public Resources Code Section 21080.25(b)(11), as it is a planning decision carried out by a local agency to reduce minimum parking requirements and implement transportation demand management requirements; and is additionally categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15183, as the project is consistent with the Housing Element of the General Plan; and
WHEREAS, on May 7, 2026, the Planning Commission held a duly noticed public hearing for consideration of the Zoning Code amendments and did consider all public comments and testimony received prior to and during the hearing, and voted 5-0 (2 absences) to recommend City Council adoption of the proposed Zoning Code amendments, with additions; and WHEREAS, on July 6, 2026, the City Council held a public hearing on the proposed Zoning Code amendments, at which time the City Council considered all public comments received, the presentation by City staff, the staff report and attachments in adopting this ordinance; and WHEREAS, the City Council desires to adopt the proposed text amendments to the Zoning Code.
WHEREAS, the City’s General Plan and Zoning Code are incorporated herein by reference, and are available for review at City Hall during normal business hours and on the internet at any time; and NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of San Leandro hereby ORDAINS as follows:
Section 1. Recitals. The recitals above are true and correct and when applicable, incorporated herein by reference.
Section 2. Findings. The City Council makes the following findings in support of adopting this ordinance, based on the whole of the record:
1. That the proposed Zoning Code Amendments are consistent with the General Plan DRAFT
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because they are consistent with the following goals and policies, among others: Policy T1.3 (Transportation Demand Management), which identifies TDM as a key strategy for mitigating the transportation impacts of new development; Policy T-1.7 (Off-Street Parking Standards), which directs the City to implement variable parking standards that reflect proximity to transit, type of occupancy, and expected demand; and Policy T-1.8 (Shared Parking), which promotes shared parking arrangements to reduce total required parking.
The amendments also directly implement Housing Element Program 14, Action 14.1.
2. That the proposed Zoning Code Amendments are necessary and desirable to achieve the purposes of the Zoning Code because they reduce parking-related constraints to housing production identified in the Housing Element; simplify and modernize parking requirements to better reflect actual demand in recently entitled projects; codify multiple state law requirements not previously reflected in the Zoning Code; establish TDM requirements called for by numerous City plans and policies; improve consistency with MTC’s TOC Policy; and promote more efficient use of land by discouraging excess parking supply.
Section 3. Amendments of Zoning Code. The San Leandro Zoning Code is hereby amended to repeal and replace Chapter 4.08 (Off-Street Parking and Loading Regulations) and Adopt Chapter 4.10 (Transportation Demand Management) to modify parking regulations and establish Transportation Demand Management regulations, as shown in the attached “Exhibit A” and “Exhibit B”.
Section 4. Environmental Review. The passage of this ordinance is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) based on the following: (1) California Public Resources Code Section 21080.25(b)(11) as a planning decision by a local agency to reduce minimum parking requirements and implement TDM requirements; and (2) CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 as a project consistent with the Housing Element of the General Plan, which was evaluated under CEQA.
Section 5. Severability. 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 will 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 of 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. Publication and Effective Date. The effective date of this Ordinance shall be 30 days from the date of adoption. The City Clerk's Office shall publish and post this Ordinance in accordance with San Leandro Municipal Code section 1-1-325.
Introduced at a first reading by Councilmember ______________ on the 6th day of July 2026, and passed to print by the following vote:
AYES: ()
NOES: ()
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ABSENT: ()
Passed and adopted the ____ day of _____2026 after publication on ___________ by the following vote:
AYES: ()
NOES: ()
ABSENT: ()
ATTEST:
Sarah K. Bunting
City Clerk
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