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School Board meeting in March. Another topic to explore, which was raised at the last Council meeting, is the idea of financing a new school site at some point in the future. Discussion will likely continue at these meetings about how policy makers and staff can start assessing what the need looks like and how to construct a financing model based on development revenues and other mechanisms. The Council generally shared Ms. Testa's frustration and noted that in requiring local jurisdictions to remove development constraints, the State has also taken away some of the City's sustainability. Mayor Hosterman closed the public hearing. Councilmember Thorne thanked the participants of the task force, staff and all those involved in the project. He also thanked the property owners of those parcels that were rezoned for volunteering to do so, rather than being forced. He has been a strong advocate for additional workforce housing since being elected to the Council but that this should have been a decision made by the community through a public process and not by the State legislature or those who were never elected to make these sorts of local land use decisions. He agreed with others' concerns relating to impacts to infrastructure, including schools, but said that this is not a defensible argument against meeting regional housing allocations. Given the circumstances, he felt the Housing Element represented the best product possible and voiced his support. Vice-Mayor Cook-Kallio shared her appreciation for all those who put in an incredible effort creating the type of Housing Element that met the requirements of the settlement agreement while still being true to Pleasanton. One thing that became apparent through this process was that the City could have been more proactive in planning under these constraints which is something that it has the opportunity to do in the future. She stressed the value of schools to the overall quality of life and said she didn't believe Pleasanton, or any other community for that matter, wished to be so crowded that it could not pay attention to the needs of its members. Considering the circumstances, she felt the Housing Element was a strong document that could be used as a basis to resolve a number of issues that will likely come forward in the next few years. Councilmember McGovern said she felt the document met the requirements of the settlement agreement and has demonstrated that the City can be trusted to follow through on its word. At the request of a member of the public, Councilmember Sullivan asked that she be allowed to share her comments. Jackie Byerly requested an example of another city that has become more vibrant, safer and generally better as a result of this process. Community Development Director Brian Dolan said all jurisdictions are confronted with this obligation and many have undertaken this process with positive results over time. He could not name one community in particular. Mayor Hosterman hoped that as the opportunity to review State-mandated numbers comes around in 2013, the next Council would engage in a study of the methodologies used to assign these numbers and do its very best to ensure a fair process on behalf of Pleasanton. Councilmember Sullivan thanked the task force for its work on both the public policy issues and the rezonings that were accomplished. He thanked staff for supporting a process that allowed for the maximum amount of community input. He supported the document as a whole, though there were some policies with which he was not 100% comfortable. He recognized the push for workforce housing but noted that everyone seems to ignore the flip side of that argument, which is livable wages. He Special Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 7 February 13, 2012