PC 092210 Special Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

b. PRZ-55, City of Pleasanton Work Session on the amendment of the Pleasanton Municipal Code to reference the California Green Building Standards (CALGreen) Code, with local amendments to address specific green building issues, and other related green building amendments Ms. Stern advised that Mrs. Rondash will be presenting the workshop item. She noted that the item will return to the Commission next week to make a recommendation to the City Council. She added that any concerns the Commissioners may have at this meeting would be addressed at next week’s meeting. Rosalind Rondash, Assistant Planner, introduced Dennis Corbett, Senior Plan Checker with the Building and Safety Division. She then gave a PowerPoint presentation on the California Green Building Code. Mrs. Rondash stated that staff is proposing to amend the Pleasanton Municipal Code to reference the California Green Building Standards (CALGreen) Code, as well as local amendments to address specific green building issues and other related green building amendments. She explained that the purpose is to avoid having two regulations in effect at the same time; if the amendment is not adopted, both regulations will be in effect January 1, 2011. She noted that staff’s proposal will result in having only one set of requirements for building structures in the City. Mrs. Rondash noted that green building is a whole-systems approach to the design, construction, and operation of buildings, which significantly reduce the negative impacts of buildings on the environment and occupants in five broad categories: Sustainable site planning; Safeguarding water and promoting water efficiency; Energy efficiency and renewable energy; Conservation of materials and resources; and Indoor environmental quality, which is another way of saying the air that we breathe while inside Mrs. Rondash then gave the history of the green building requirements, stating in 2002 when Pleasanton adopted green building requirements for new commercial buildings of 20,000 square feet or more and civic buildings. She continued that in 2004, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an Executive Order, known as the “Green Building Initiative” focusing on state-owned buildings, and in 2006, the Pleasanton City Council expanded its green building requirements to new residential projects. She noted that In 2010, the California Building Standards Commission adopted the Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen), with the final version of CALGreen being published in July 2010, and automatically going into effect state-wide on January 1, 2011. She indicated that the City has historically formally adopted California building codes, with local amendments, and staff expects the same to take place for CALGreen. She added that those local agencies that take no action will have CALGreen in effect in their jurisdictions. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, September 22, 2010 Page 14 of 23