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Peter MacDonald, Downtown business owner, stated that the staff report was excellent and did a good job of summarizing the issues and the positions of the various groups. He indicated that he supports the recommendations of the Task Force with the corrections proposed by the EVC and the PDA Board. He noted that if the Planning Commission accepts this recommendation, then a restaurateur will be able to stay open until 11:00 p.m. and have indoor music until 11:00 p.m. without having to go through a bruising Conditional Use Permit process. He stated that the policy as proposed is smart regulation, and Downtown has succeeded because of the smart regulation in place. Mr. MacDonald stated that the City does not have redevelopment money, but there was a collaboration between the business and the planning functions. He noted that in the 1980's restaurants were allowed into existing buildings without having to provide additional parking, leading to a renaissance of restaurants Downtown. He added that in the 1980's, the business owners voted to tax themselves to promote Downtown, which led to the Concerts in the Park, the Farmers' Market, and a whole number of events and activities that make the Downtown very successful. He stated that the City and the PDA have had a productive partnership in helping the Downtown to be all that it can be, and that needs to be continued. Mr. MacDonald stated that in recent years, the Downtown has fallen behind nearby cities in growth and vitality. He noted that side street development can be encouraged or Downtown can be left to stagnate. He pointed out that one big problem has been with too much regulation such that 12 different bars have 12 different use permits, with 12 different sets of hours and many more variations. He added that all too often, the planners would split the baby with the most contentious neighbor from within 300 feet, and the Conditional Use Permit process typically takes six months or more. He emphasized that what is needed is uniform, simple rules and smart regulation. Mr. MacDonald stated that in 2010, the PDA formed the Hospitality Committee to address the barriers to evening business in Pleasanton with the idea behind responsible hospitality regulation being to get the community benefits of a vital and safe evening activity while managing and controlling the potentially adverse impacts. He indicated that this led to the City forming the Downtown Hospitality Guidelines Task Force which had lively and informative discussions, many compromises and new regulations, and a recommendation that will truly help the Downtown to be successful. Mr. MacDonald stated that he does not want to focus on the importance of the EVC and PDA Board recommendations regarding decibel levels. He indicated that nobody who understands acoustics would lower the dBA standard for Downtown commercial from 70 dBA to 60 dBA as every hospitality business would violate that standard every night. He stated that the members thought they had that corrected at the Task Force, but that was not the case, and it has to be corrected now or Downtown vitality will crash. He pointed out that it is essential to the success of the Downtown that the Planning Commission support the Task Force recommendation with generally the corrections proposed by the EVC and the PDA Board. He asked the Commission to respect the work of your task force. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES, September 12, 2012 Page 19 of 35