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Delays in Pleasanton's process were the result of key personnel retiring (Planning Director, Principal Planner and City Manager), major changes in the City Council in late 2004, and the departure of the City's Traffic Engineer in May 2006. In spite ofthese changes, several Draft Elements as noted above, are ready to be incorporated into a Draft General Plan document, and the City Council is close to endorsing a preferred circulation and land use plan for the purposes of the Draft EIR analysis. DRAFT COMMUNITY CHARACTER ELEMENT The Community Character Element is an optional element in the General Plan and is not required by state law. This element was included in the Pleasanton General Plan for the first time in 1996 and addresses topic related to urban design and the social aspects of Pleasant on's unique identity, including the City's edges, streetscapes, architectural style and character, arroyos and canals, special interest areas, public improvements and maintenance, and community programs and activities. Attachments land 2 are marked up and clean copies (respectively) of the Draft Element. Planning Commission Action The Planning Commission reviewed and commented on the Draft Community Character Element on September 27,2006. At that time Commissioners requested several changes and additions related to including additional community events and descriptions in the background section, and including policies related to entryway signage and appearance, the "walkability" of bus stop locations, the appearance of newspaper racks, the approval of in-fill development, and the preservation of ridge land areas. Planning Commission minutes are included as Attachment 3. Summary of Recommended Changes to the 1996 Community Character Element In summary, the proposed changes to the background text of the Draft Community Character Element include: . General editing, updating and reorganizing of background material from the 1996 General Plan. This includes changing the two sections of the original element (Existing Community Character and Urban Design Enhancement Plan) into six new sections: Purpose, Overview, Special Interest Areas, Public Improvement and Maintenance, Existing Programs and Implementation, and Relationship to Other Elements. . In the Overview section adding information about future community character challenges and updating information in Streetscapes and Patterns, and Architectural Style and Character. . Adding a paragraph on how the concept of sustainability relates to community character. . In the Special Interest Area section adding information on Historic Resources, and adding sections on Residential Neighborhoods, Commercial Areas, and Agriculture. The information on City Entryways in this section is also updated. Page 5 of?