COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Chenin Dow, Director of Community Development
DATE: September 1, 2026
SUBJECT: Adoption of a Resolution Approving Amendment No. 2 to the Professional Services Agreement with Alta Planning + Design for Closeout of the Santa Maria 2045 General Plan Update
Description:
The City Council will consider a dopting a Resolution approving an Amendment to the Professional Services Agreement with Alta Planning + Design.
Environmental Notice: The activity is not a “Project” as defined under Section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act State Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to State Guidelines Section 15060(c)(3) no environmental review is required.
RECOMMENDATION:
1. Adopt a Resolution approving Amendment No. 2 to the Professional Services Agreement with Alta Planning + Design for completion of responses to public comments received throughout the final phases of the Santa Maria 2045 General Plan Update Project; and
2. Authorize the City Manager , or designee , to execute the amendment to the agreement.
BACKGROUND:
On November 5, 2019, the City Council approved an Agreement for Professional Services with Raimi and Associates (now Alta Planning + Design) to assist the City with the preparation of a comprehensive update to the General Plan and the associated technical work required by State law. The approved scope of work included a budget of $1,767,433.00 to complete the project. Subsequent to the establishment of the Agreement for Professional Services in 2019, the Community Development Department was awarded two grants, the Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) grant for $499,667 and the Local Early Action Planning (LEAP) grant for $500,000. Of this total awarded amount, $499,667 of the REAP grant and $329,886.69 of the LEAP grant (total of $829,553.69) was allocated to the project scope of work. The remaining $170,113.31 of the LEAP grant award was utilized to pay for consultant assistance in the preparation of the adopted 2023-2031 Housing Element and the Residential Objective Design Standards that were adopted by the City Council in 2025. 2 As work progressed with the General Plan Update project, there were four modifications to the original contract that were appro ved. These modifications were required to complete the additional technical studies required per State law such as Senate Bill 99, Assembly Bill 747, annexation studies, traffic modeling and Vehicle Miles Traveled analysis (SB 743). Below is a summary of t he approved modifications, which increased the overall contract expenditure authorization of the project to $1,867,605.
1. Contract modification Number 1, approved on December 16, 2019, removing any references to the corporate entity “Raimi and Associates, LLC” and replacing with “Raimi and Associates, an s-Corporation.”
2. Contract modification Number 2, approved on November 13, 2024, approving changes to the Scope of Work summarized in sections A through C below, resulting in an increase of $75,000, for a total new budget of $1,842,433. a. Task 5, Annexation Study: Revisions to Tasks 5.4 (Infrastructure Analysis),
5.5 (Natural Environmental Features and Constraints), and 5.6 (Meeting with City and LAFCO). Two new tasks were added (5.7 – Sphere of Influence Boundary Amendment Package, and 5.8 – Annexation Request Package).
b. Task 6, General Plan Preparation, was amended to include a new task (6.3.1: Emergency Evacuation) to comply with State legislation regarding emergency evacuation. Work included coordination meetings and management, SB 99 analysis, AB 747 analysis, and the development of Safety Element summaries and policies.
c. Task 10, Project Management and Team Meetings. Additional budget for Task 10.1: On-going Project Management was allocated to accommodate an extended project timeline.
3. Contract modification Number 3, approved on January 27, 2026, for the completion of additional traffic mobility analysis addressing travel demand modeling and a Vehicle Mil es Traveled (VMT) threshold analysis and recommendations and review procedures. This additional analysis increased the contract authorization by $25,172 for a total new authorization of $1,867,605.
4. Contract modification Number 4, effective February 1, 202 6, to reflect the acquisition of the firm Raimi and Associates by Alta Planning + Design. This modified the Agreement for Professional Services orginially established November 5, 2019, to be by and between Alta Planning + Design (formerly Raimi and Associates) and the City of Santa Maria.
3 DISCUSSION:
The Santa Maria 2045 General Plan Update was adopted by the City Council on May 5, 2026. During the final phases of the project, which included the completion of the Program Environmental Impact Report, policy development, public review, and drafting of the 2045 General Plan, the City received an extensive number of written public comments requiring the consultant team and staff to spend a significant amount of time that was beyond the initial scope of th e Agreement for Professional Services . This included reviewing and responding to each comment and, in some cases, multiple meetings to review responses with the public commenter. This effort required many added hours of coordination between City staff and the consultant team and those from the public who provided comments, as well as City decision -makers through additional study sessions and hearings. As a result, staff requests authorization to amend the Professional Services Agreement for an additional $87,575.52 for a total overall project cost of $1,955,180.52.
This is well within the remaining budget allocated for the General Plan update, which included $829,553.69 in grant funding. This amendment will complete and close out this Professional Services Agreement.
Fiscal Considerations
There will be no impact to the General Fund, as the full project cost was previously budgeted. The requested amendment to the Professional Services Agreement is covered through the existing budget for the General Plan within Community Development, which has been rolled forward from previous fiscal years throughout the life of the project. The total final cost will be $1,955, 180.52, with all but $87,575.52 previously authorized and paid. $829,553.69 of these costs were funded through State LEAP and REAP grants, for a total cost to the City of $1,125,626.83 – well below the initially approved cost to the City of $1,767,433.00.
Impact on the Community
Authorizing the Amendment to the Professional Services Agreement will have minimal impact on the community. The contract will be managed by City staff and the Amendment to cover the full cost of the contract beyond the initial requested amount will be paid from the Community Development Department budget.
ATTACHMENT(S)
A. Resolution
B. Original Agreement for Professional Services
C. Amendment to Professional Services Agreement
D. Alta Planning + Design Contract Amendment