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out of all Phases, an additional approximately 34 of the remaining 98 (including one Heritage) existing trees would be removed. The removed trees are primarily parking lot trees and interior trees. No new trees (except in existing planter areas in the parking lot where dead trees will be replaced with new ones) would be planted in Phase 1; however, at buildout, approximately 249 new trees of varying sizes would be planted on the subject site. Conditions of approval are included to mitigate the off-set for tree removal versus the new trees to be planted. Development Agreement State law authorizes cities to enter into binding development agreements with any person having an interest in property for the development of the property. A development agreement is a commitment between the City and a property owner or developer to proceed with a specific development in accordance with the terms of an agreement that describes what land use and related processes shall apply to the application. In essence, a development agreement locks in the laws in existence at the time of entering into the agreement and the City agrees not to change its planning or zoning laws applicable to the specific development project for a specified period. Therefore, future land use decisions regarding such a development project would not be based on then current planning and zoning law, but rather they would be based on the terms of the negotiated development agreement. The developer gains certainty, through the development agreement, of the continuity of regulations in place at the time of entering into the development agreement and prior to a commitment of a substantial investment for project improvements. In exchange, the City gets certain benefits and concessions or amenities it might not be able to require through conditions of approval. In the case of this project, the developer is requesting to be able to build above the average Floor Area Ratio (FAR) for this project, which, per the General Plan, requires sufficient amenities or mitigations to be incorporated into the project, to justify the increased density. For the proposed project, the Draft Development Agreement (DA) includes a provision for the Developer to contribute $1,000,000 in funding for the reconstruction of Fire Station No. 2., as an additional project amenity. Since the trigger for the contribution is the project exceeding 35 percent FAR, payment of this amount would be required at the point at which building permits were issued that would cause total square footage to exceed 35 percent FAR, which would happen in a later phase of the project. The terms of the DA would provide other benefits, including return of sales tax to the City for construction materials (this increment is above and beyond other sales tax revenues), and LEED Gold Equivalent certification for the project. The applicant has proposed a standard 10-year term for the development agreement, which is practical for phased projects. The draft development agreement is attached to Attachment 1C. The development agreement process requires the City Council to find the proposed Development Agreement in conformance with the General Plan and then approve it by Ordinance. The Planning Commission unanimously made the recommendation for a finding of conformance. 27