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BACKGROUND In October 2010, the City Council confirmed an 11- member Housing Element Task Force comprising two Housing Commissioners, two Planning Commissioners, two City Council members, and five at -large members of the Pleasanton community (see Attachment 1). The mission of the Task Force is to oversee the update of the City's Housing Element, with a focus on the following: • Provide recommendations on potential sites to rezone to accommodate high density multifamily development sufficient to meet the City's share of the regional housing need; • Address requirements for homeless, transitional and supportive housing as required by State housing law; • Develop a non - discrimination policy and program and otherwise comply with the requirements relating to the Housing Element in the Settlement Agreement in the matter of Urban Habitat v. City of Pleasanton; • Undertake outreach to the Pleasanton community to obtain feedback on housing strategy choices. The Housing Element Task Force has met five times since November 2010, and has accomplished the following: • Reviewed and discussed the additional amount of residentially - designated land required to meet the City's share of the regional housing need. This includes the City's housing need based on the current (2007 -2014) regional housing needs allocation and the remaining unmet need from the last Housing Element cycle, minus the residential units approved or developed since the beginning of the planning period, as well as what would be developed on any vacant land currently designated for residential development. In order to meet the State's density and affordability requirements, the City needs to designate an additional 55 acres of land at 30 units per acre or more, and 14 acres of land at 23 units per acre or more. • Developed a list of criteria by which to evaluate potential new multifamily housing sites. The criteria reflect housing location principles related to: building on existing neighborhoods (i.e. being an in -fill site rather than extending urban development); proximity to transit and bike routes; neighborhood convenience and livability (within a half -mile of elementary and middle schools, grocery stores, and parks); absence of adverse conditions (such as odors, bad air quality, geologic or fire hazard area or high noise environment); compatibility with surrounding residential development in terms of height and massing, impact on any sensitive environments, trees, or historic resources; consistency with General Plan themes such as preserving and enhancing Pleasanton's character and quality of life; and the property owners interest in having to site rezoned to allow multifamily residential development. Page 2 of 6