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City of Pleasanton 2023-2031 (6th Cycle) Housing Element Update CEQA Findings of Fact and Statement of Overriding Considerations FirstCarbon Solutions 123 Https://adecinnovations.sharepoint.com/sites/PublicationsSite/Shared Documents/Publications/Client (PN-JN)/2148/21480022/FOF/21480022 Pleasanton Housing Element FOF.docx The Site Rankings Focus Alternative would advance all of the project objectives, albeit with several advanced to a lesser degree due to the decrease in proposed units. However, the reduction in total units would not reduce project impacts to below a level of significance and it would result the development of fewer housing units and would not increase the inventory of land available for the development of housing to the same degree as the proposed Housing Element Update. Thus, this alternative would advance the project objectives to a lesser degree and is therefore rejected. Environmentally Superior Alternative Section 15126.6(e)(2) of the State CEQA Guidelines indicates that an analysis of alternatives to a proposed project shall identify an environmentally superior alternative among the alternatives evaluated in an EIR. Each of the project alternatives would lessen the environmental impacts relative to the Housing Element Update to a certain degree (as described above and further in the Program EIR). If the No Project is the environmentally superior alternative, the EIR must also identify another environmentally superior alternative among the remaining alternatives. The City is mandated to update the Housing Element and the No Project Alternative is not feasible. Overall, based on these Findings, Alternative 2, Transit-Oriented Focus, would be the environmentally superior alternative given its reduced residential development potential resulting in a decrease in the shortfall in water supply. Because this alternative would result in the development of fewer sites, the associated environmental impacts would be less than those associated with the proposed Housing Element Update. As this alternative would focus new residential development near existing or planned transit centers, despite the reduction in housing units, this alternative would likely result in lower VMT than the proposed Housing Element Update. This alternative would still result in a significant and unavoidable impact with respect to VMT and water supply. Although Alternatives 1 and 3 would also reduce the number of sites and units, Alternative 2 results in a more substantial reduction of transportation impacts compared to the other two. Further, Alternative 2, Transit-Oriented Focus meets all the key objectives and goals of the Housing Element Update. Namely, it would ensure capacity for the development of new housing to meet the RHNA at all income levels and present the HCD with a housing element that would meet RHNA and reduce VMT and water demand. For these reasons, Alternative 2 is considered the Environmentally Superior Alternative. Each of the build alternatives would meet all the project objectives to a degree. However, the proposed Housing Element Update would more fully accomplish the project objectives because it would accommodate the greatest number of housing units, but each of the build alternatives would exceed the City’s RHNA. 1.9 - Findings Regarding Cumulative Impacts Consistent with CEQA’s requirements, the Draft Program EIR includes an analysis of cumulative impacts in every topical discussion. The discussion of cumulative impacts analyzes cumulative impacts of the Housing Element Update, taken together with other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future projects producing related impacts. The goal is to determine whether overall