Comments by Council Member Trippe on three separate actions being considered at public hearing no 145/2. The at Ana are for thing a s buns. J
and support workforce and affordable housing as being essential to the Community, I am not currently in support of the three actions being taken today for the reasons below:
What is the problem with parking?
Short answer: Not enough parking will be available to new renters, users of expanded facilities and current facilities on the Project site. The Town is creating a long term parking headache for residents and visitors, Reasoning: The staff report contains a summary of the changes to parking as a result of the project. Currently there are parking spaces around Town Hall and in front of Schmidt Hall/Yountville Fit. This includes street parking, which strictly speaking is probably not part of the Project.
The way I think about the number of spaces is to consider the use and number of existing spaces by Town Hall and in front of Yountville Fit, and compare it to the number of spaces which will be added for the new construction. The project will add an additional 70 parking spaces for a total of 169 spaces. These parking spaces will be the only parking available on the Project site which will now include parking for Town Hall, up to 150 residences, Schmidt Hall, 8,000 square feet of new public/commercial buildings, and an enhanced Yountville Fit, enhanced garden and 3,000 square feet of food related new buildings (See page 2-3 2025 EIR Addendum "Project Components") Currently on a typical day about 50% of the existing spaces are occupied in the in the Town Hall lower lot.
During times when the summer camps are being held at Schmidt Hall, the parking lot in front is almost full. It is difficult to imagine there will be sufficient parking given the existing parking demand, the new demand and only 70 new parking spaces. This may cause a significant parking problem on Yount Street, especially given the location of the Project Guest Houses on Yount Street, which will replace the existing parking in front of Schmidt Hal/Yountville Fitl. I am especially concerned that apart from the amount of available parking, putting buildings in front of Schmidt Hall where parents and Yountville Fit people park, will make these two very important amenities less useful to the community.
It is clear that many residents of the new rental units will not have assigned parking spaces and will likely park on the street or in other places in Yountville.
While it is laudable goal for new residence to not own and park cars in Yountville. This seems to be wishful thinking. Public transportation in Yountville is very limited as well as shopping and entertainment options. While I love the ' Town market, residents in the new units are likely to need to shop for a wider array of groceries, prescriptions and other needs outside of Yountville. An Uber ride to downtown Napa is approximately $20 one way. Uber or bike riding for serious shopping is not a realistic option for most people; they will need a car.
The limitations on parking will 1) create parking problems for existing residents on Finnell and Yount 2) impact the marketability of the units if residents can't have a car or park at a reasonable distance from their unit and 3) make existing facilities Schmidt Hall and Yountville Fit less usable by residents.
Why are we assuming people in the Yountville workforce don't have families?
Short Answer: I do not know why a large majority of units will be studios between 300-350 square feet that would be suitable at the most for two people, This is not something the Council has voted on or made a public decision after discussion. I do not favor small studios for as part of the General Plan amendment or this Project. The existing General Plan and Housing Element state a Town commitment to senior housing, diverse types of units in new developments, housing that works for people with disabilities and workforce housing. (List of General Plan and Housing Element Policies provided at bottom) It is possible to build housing that accomodates all these commitments. Many seniors are in he workforce; many people with physical limitations are in the workforce and many people who need affordable housing fit in multiple categories of people to whom the Town has committed to providing housing through its General Plan and Housing Policies.
The project apparently focuses on addressing the needs of one group: workers without families who are willing to live in a hotel room size home possibly without a car, with difficult parking for visitors, little public transportation, and few local amenities for shopping and reasonable entertainment. As one resident has commented, this seems "punitive"
The average hotel room in Yountville is approximately 375 ft.2. Typical hotel rooms are between 300 and 350 square feet. Typical studios rented in commercial buildings is 475 square. The Project studios will be between 300 and 350 square feet, many without dedicated outdoor space. It is worth reflecting on how difficult it may be to live in what is essentially a smallish hotel room and cook, store your food, clothes, household supplies, bicycles, and everything a couple or single person needs to live. As one resident put in her public comment on the Project, this seems "punitive".
In talking to town management the idea seems to be the unit mix in the Project's 14 buildings will depend on the pro-forma financial projections for income/rentability, construction costs and and how much money we can and should borrow as a Town. To date, there has been no information on these issues provided to the Council or public, with the exception of estimates regarding the cost to build and operate a swimming pool. This seems to me to be backward. It would make more sense for the town to decide what would meet workforce housing goals, as well as goals related to encouraging seniors, families and workers with children and couples to live in Yountville as the starting point. With this approach, the town would first decide what type of housing it wants to build and then decide how to finance it as opposed to building what someone will loan the money to build.
About 1/3 of this Project to date has been financed by Measure "S" which was Yountville voters as a 1% addition to the Yountville Tourist and Occupancy tax on hotel guests for purposes of providing workforce and affordable housing.
Workforce and affordable housing are not two exclusive categories. Many workers need affordable housing and many people who need affordable housing are part of the workforce. These funds when approved by voters and the language of the ballot measure does not require the funds to be dedicated only to units suitable for a specific category of workers who work in Yountville (i.e. mostly single workers, willing and able to live live in a hotel sized home with very constrained parking and limited local services). Current information from Town Management is that the intention may be that all of the Measure "S" funds will be used for this project, thereby eliminating the possibility of using the funds for other projects in support of affordable and workforce housing such rehabilitation of single family homes or acquire properties in Yountville to rent to families. The plan as I understand it is that this will be considered at the upcoming finance decision making stage, although the next meeting of the Measure "S" Oversight Committee (this oversight was required when Measure S was passed by Yountville voters) will occur in April after the financial decision making.
How many civic buildings do residents need and want to pay for? • Short answer: Yountville has a large amount of space for residents to enjoy; it now amounts to 35,000 square feet. More housing is needed. More public space is probably not needed and will be an ongoing expense for the Town to construct and maintain.
The Yountville Town General Plan describes the existing community space as being approximately 15,000 square feet at the community center, which includes event space, indoor kitchen, outdoor kitchen, meeting rooms and a library. The General Plan concludes this is adequate to meet the needs of the population through 2040. In addition to the existing space described in the General Plan, the Town now has purchased and maintains an additional public space of 20,000 square feet for Schmidt Hall/Yountville Fit. Without new additions, the Town has roughly 35,000 square feet of public facilities. Just to put this in perspective, the average home in Yountville is 1400 square feet. The Town has 3,000 residents, including those who reside at the Veterans Home. The Project will build an additional 11,000 square fee including a Town archive (part of one of the residential buildings) and a separate conference building. Three thousand square feet of the 11,000 square feet will be dedicated to food and retail. It is As a matter of policy, I do not think the Town needs to pay to build and maintain more space for recreation and public uses, given the size of our population. At minimum, before a plan is approved, the residents and Council should have cost figures available to understand what the ongoing cost to the Town will be versus the realistic need for the Town to build additional public buildings.
5 Relevant Yountville General Plan Policies Regarding Housing:
HO-1.4 (page 91)
Yountville requires under "Inclusionary" zoning that new developments over 10 units provide affordable units and no more than 25% can be studios LU-5.2 (page 78)
Residential development is encouraged that meets the needs of all residents and all income levels
Yountville Housing Element Policies and Goals
Goal H.3 (page HO-5)
Yountville commits to promoting the development of a variety of types of housing and will require developments of 10 or more units to provide a variety of housing types, styles and designs.
Policy 4.9
Yountville will work with "non-profit developers" to facilitate more affordable rentals
Policy 9.2
Yountville will maintain affordable housing options for seniors HO-26
Yountville "will encourage developers to construct accessible units to meet the needs of seniors, persons with disabilities and large families:.