CITY COUNCIL AGENDA PACKET - Laserfiche WebLink

Page 4 of 7 to require all new commercial projects be subject to Planning Commission Design Review approval administered at a public hearing (residential development permitted by the 4th, 5th and 6th Cycle Housing Elements is not part of the DA and is subject to the Objective Design Standards and process for approval set forth in other City regulations). Since the last extension of the DA was approved in 2021, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have continued to affect the overall retail and commercial development market, and although there has been some recovery, it is not yet fully concluded. The applicant has indicated the need for additional time to evaluate these changes in the retail climate, and how to best proceed with expansion of the shopping center to remain competitive and meet current market demands/trends that have evolved over the past several years and have most likely shifted again post-pandemic. Additionally, since the 2021 extension, the City adopted the Stoneridge Mall Framework components document, and completed the 6th Cycle Housing Element update, with sites identified at Stoneridge Shopping Center among the housing inventory sites that will be rezoned to allow for additional residential uses on certain portions of the mall. Such sites are in addition to those properties within the mall identified in the 4th and 5th Cycle Housing Elements, one of which is the location of the Stoneridge Mall Apartments project (approved earlier this year). The Stoneridge Mall Framework, as adopted in January 2023, provides a conceptual land use and circulation plan, and policy guidance for future development/ redevelopment of the shopping center. In consideration of this Fifth Amendment, the City and applicant have agreed on a list of milestones (i.e., tasks) tied to progressing the Stoneridge Mall Framework toward a full master plan or similar comprehensive plan document. Based on the terms of the Fifth Amendment, the applicant would be required to work with the City to establish a more detailed schedule for completion of the various milestones by March 2024, with the goal of (among other tasks) advancing technical studies and submitting a development application for the master plan no later than December 31, 2025. The schedule established in March 2024 is expected to set more detailed, interim steps and timeframes toward achieving submittal of the master plan within the desired timeframe; on demonstration of good faith efforts to progress these more detailed efforts, the City Manager may administratively grant another one-year extension of the DA, through December 31, 2026. Attachment 1 (Section 7) provides a complete list of the required milestones. Given the passage of time since the DA was originally written, the City has asked, and the applicant has agreed, to include as part of the Fifth Amendment provisions specifying that any development pursuant to the DA is subject to current City development impact fees and other fees, offset by prior payments for traffic improvements. In addition, the City and applicant have included terms that specify that the Objective Design Standards (ODS) adopted in January 2023 and the requirements of the future Framework would also apply to any residential or mixed-use development on the site. The section about transfer or assignment has been amended to provide for City approval. And, finally, there is also a provision for the applicant to reimburse the City for the cost of environmental review and consultant work on the Stoneridge Mall Framework process. For these reasons, staff supports the DA extension. The additional time allowed for by the Fifth Amendment would allow the Stoneridge Mall Framework planning efforts to progress and also facilitate the applicant’s participation in the process in order to secure the orderly development of the shopping center expansion, with greater opportunities to secure effective traffic Page 31 of 371