CCMIN051915 - Laserfiche WebLink

and eager for direction from the Council and would very much like to have an opportunity to weigh in on these options before the Council. Mayor Thorne asked how many in the audience would support asking the Task Force how it would like to proceed. John Bauer said he attended the last 2 community meetings on the matter, where not one person spoke in favor of the project, and subsequently reviewed the full EIR and appendices. He found it interesting that the comments received from most stakeholders were generally negative and in fact none were supportive. He said the EIR is based on obsolete data gathered during an economic depression and asked what was wrong with maintaining the current industrial zoning. He noted that the issues raised in Ms. Cousins' editorial piece would be issues regardless of whether or not the plan moves forward. Maurice Turner said he selected Pleasanton for the high quality of life enjoyed by its residents and asked the Council to support Option 3. Diane Rodriguez said the town has changed dramatically since she moved here in 1958, at which point the water table was reported to be about 10 feet below the ground surface. She estimated that to be closer to 150 feet today. She reminded the Council and public that from 1880-1920 Pleasanton served as the water source for the city and county of San Francisco and now its own residents cannot even reap the same benefits. She said the impact of growth on water, in addition to the other negative environmental impacts, are not warranted by the development contemplated by the specific plan. She asked the Council to acknowledge what has really been a planning mistake and to support Option 3. Wing Tse said that at the second community meeting he had asked what the additional load on the waste water treatment plant at Stoneridge and 1-580 would be under the proposed plan. When he then asked if the plant could handle the additional 570,000 gallons per day, no answer was given. Today he asked the Council whether the addition of 1,300 homes and the resulting strain on infrastructure would increase what he and others current pay for waste water treatment. Mayor Thome said it has already been reported that there is sufficient sewer capacity and requested that staff meet with Mr. Tse to address any other questions. Lisa Vorderbroeggen, Building Industry Association of the Bay Area, said that it is unrealistic to think that this or any other Bay Area community can simply raise its drawbridges and refuse to plan for growth despite the drought. She reported that the Bay Area is projected to add 1.1 million jobs and 660,000 households by 2040. While the region has exceeded jobs projections by almost 200% to date, it has fallen 30% behind in housing. The affordable housing crisis continues to force current and future generations out of their hometowns and condemns them to long commutes. She saw no evidence that completing this planning process would produce any insurmountable negative consequences but said that failure to plan would almost certainly hurt future generations. The Building Industry Association of the Bay Area urges the Council to stay the planning course and avail itself of the considerable land use controls embedded in the specific plan process. Rong Wu said he has noticed significant changes in traffic since moving here in 2008 and questioned the EIR's claims that extension of El Charro Road would mitigate congestion along Sunol Boulevard, First Street or Bemal Avenue. Christine Gibney said that despite her initial skepticism and support for Option 1, she could support the ballot option proposed by the Mayor. George Bowen agreed that perhaps a public vote would be most effective in determining which side the majority truly falls on. He expressed concern that a ballot measure might be weighted in favor of the City Council Minutes Page 11 of 15 May 19,2015