RES 201131 - Laserfiche WebLink

FINDINGS OF FACT AND STATEMENT OF OVERRIDING CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO THE CERTIFICATION OF THE REVISED FINAL SUPPLEMENTAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR THE CITY OF PLEASANTON'S JOHNSON DRIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ZONE (AND RELATED GENERAL PLAN LAND USE AMENDMENTS AND REZONINGS) I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND The Johnson Drive Economic Development Zone Project(the"Project") is a proposal to spur investment in 40-acres of mostly under-utilized or vacant land situated along Johnson Drive near I-680 and Stoneridge Drive. The goals of the Project include maximizing the benefits of the Project location as an infill site located along transportation corridors and encouraging the development of a diverse mix of uses that would promote long-term economic growth by generating substantial new revenues for the City. a. 2009 General Plan EIR and Project's 2016 Supplemental EIR In 2009,the City approved an update to its General Plan, including an Economic and Fiscal Element that contained an aggressive program of business retention and expansion. The Project is part of this program. In 2012,the City approved an amended Housing Element, Climate Action Plan, and associated General Plan amendment(s) and re-zonings. Neither the EIR prepared for the 2009 General Plan(State Clearinghouse No. 2005122139; the"General Plan EIR")nor the supplemental EIR prepared for the 2012 amendments (State Clearinghouse No. 2011052002; the "2012 SEIR") evaluated impacts associated with re-zoning the parcels within the Project to a commercial Planned Unit Development zone, nor did those documents evaluate a program of likely development of the parcels if re-zoned. Sections 15162 and 15163 of the California Environmental Quality Act("CEQA")Guidelines require that a supplement to a previously certified environmental impact report be prepared when changes are proposed to a project such that minor additions or changes are necessary to make the previous environmental impact report adequately apply to the project in the changed situation. In that instance,the supplemental environmental impact report need only contain the information necessary to make the previous environmental impact report adequate for the revised project. Given the previous environmental review completed for the Project area(i.e.the General Plan EIR and the 2012 SEIR),the City complied with CEQA and prepared and circulated a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Report for the Project(the"Draft SEIR")in September 2015. In March 2016,the City responded to written comments on the Draft SEIR and released a Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report for the Project which included those responses and additional economic analysis of the Project("Final SEIR"). b. 2016 Citizens'Initiative The City delayed its consideration of the Project and the Final SEIR while the City's voters considered an initiative that would have limited the size of new uses in the Project area. After the initiative was defeated by 63 percent of the electorate in November 2016,the City resumed processing the Project. The City held public hearings on the Project in late 2017. c. Original 2017 Project Approval The City released a Recirculation Memorandum dated June 5, 2017, which found recirculation of the Final SEIR was not required prior to the City Council's consideration of the Project. The City Council approved the Project on November 7, 2017, which included certification of the Final SEIR,amendment of the City's General Plan, rezoning of the properties to allow an expanded set of uses, and adoption of development standards and design guidelines for the Project area. d. 2017 Project Lawsuit and 2018 Rescission of Project Approvals In December 2017, an unincorporated association of persons calling themselves Pleasanton Citizens for Responsible Growth ("Petitioners") filed a lawsuit asking the court to