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BACKGROUND In 2017, the California Legislature passed a package of 15 laws related to housing, referred to as the "housing package:" The housing package included a number of changes to state law intended to streamline and increase housing production; the legislation also authorized funding for planning and other efforts supportive of these same goals, including the SB 2 Planning Grants Program. A further series of housing- related legislation was passed by the legislature in 2019, including SB 330, the Housing Crisis Act. The streamlining provisions of SB 330 and other laws include measures to make approval processes more routine and predictable for developers, including 7- limitations on discretionary review processes and placing an increased emphasis on objective design and development standards as the primary criteria that may be used as the basis for project approval or denial. With these new criteria in place and expecting the emphasis on objective standards to continue in future legislation, it is in the City's interest to have a robust body of residential design and development standards in place, to ensure those projects deliver high-quality design, appropriate site planning and amenities, and are compatible with surrounding neighborhoods and the community. On September 8, 2021, the Planning Commission reviewed draft objective standards for the existing Housing Element sites zoned for multifamily development. In conjunction with this review, and in anticipation of additional sites that would be designated as part of the 6th Cycle (2023-2031) Housing Element, the Planning Commission recommended that the draft objective standards be applied as a "tesf" to potential new sites and to accountfor any needed modifications to the draft standards to ensure the highest possible quality design for new housing projects. The enhanced scope also includes incorporation of additional Housing Element sites into the objective design standards document. While the previous scope included objective standards for multifamily development, the revised scope includes specific review of the Downtown Design Guidelines and review of standards that would be appropriate for potential multifamily development outside of downtown. DISCUSSION Draft objective standards are expected to the presented to the Planning Commission for its recommendation and subsequently City Council for its consideration in conjunction with adoption of the Housing Element, as a draft in autumn 2022 and for adoption during the first quarter of 2023. Staff is seeking authorization for an amendment to the Professional Services Agreement with VMWP for $29,786 for the following work: • Revision of Downtown Design Guidelines and ODS for Multifamily Development: Review of the existing Downtown Design Guidelines to prioritize specific guidelines for conversion to objective standards for multifamily development and address omissions in the Downtown Design Guidelines. Amendments to the Pleasanton Municipal Code would be considered to account for multifamily development outside of the downtown area that is not subject to the Downtown Design Guidelines. Page 2 of 3