TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Mark Danaj, City Manager
FROM:
Richard Thompson, Director of Community Development
Laurie Jester, Planning Manager
Quinn Barrow, City Attorney
SUBJECT:Title
Downtown Study and Downtown Specific Plan Discussion, and Authorize Staff to Issue a Request for Proposals for the Preparation of a Downtown Specific Plan (Community Development Director Thompson).
DISCUSS DOWNTOWN STUDY OPTIONS AND APPROVE RFP
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council discuss downtown study options and authorize staff to issue a Request for Proposal for the preparation of a Downtown Specific Plan.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The City Council appropriated $100,000 for the preparation of a Downtown Specific Plan in FY 2013-2014 which may be utilized to fund the technical expertise and services contemplated under the Request for Proposals (RFP). Staff anticipates that the cost to prepare a Specific Plan will be two to three times the allocated budget, depending on the level of required California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review.
BACKGROUND:
Downtown Manhattan Beach is the heart of the community and the City has focused significant attention and resources in the area to ensure its on-going viability. The City Council has made the development of a Downtown Specific Plan a priority and appropriated funds to undertake this effort. An RFP for a Downtown Plan was agendized, presented to, and approved by the City Council on May 20, 2014. The RFP was issued, two proposals were received, the teams were interviewed and the recommendation to approve a contract for the preparation of the Plan was agendized for July 15th, but was later removed from the agenda. The City Council requested that staff return with this report summarizing the differences and the pros and cons of a Downtown Plan and a Downtown Specific Plan, and to present an RFP for a Specific Plan.
At the July 15, 2014 meeting, the City Council also considered and adopted an Urgency Interim Zoning Ordinance (IZO) to maintain the status quo with the existing land uses in the downtown during the study. The item will return as a noticed public hearing on August 19th, and is only valid for 45 days, unless extended.
DISCUSSION:
Specific Plan versus Downtown Plan
There are various tools available to the City to work toward the goals and objectives for Downtown Manhattan Beach. The attached tables (Attachment 1) provide a brief summary of the differences between a Specific Plan meeting the requirements of State Planning and Zoning Law, and the hybrid approach of a visioning study to identify goals and objectives for the Downtown with more discrete ordinance and plan amendments to achieve some of those goals and objectives (referred to herein as a "Downtown Plan"). As a preliminary matter, the term "Downtown Plan" does not have one particular meaning as it is not a standard planning document. Instead, as envisioned here, it would be a document or set of documents compiled at the discretion of the City to identify and work toward a set of goals. The second and third tables present the potential pros and cons associated with the Specific Plan and Downtown Plan approaches discussed above and in detail in the first table.
Also attached (Attachment 2) is the latest version of a document from the State of California Governor's Office of Planning and Research entitled "A Planner's Guide to Specific Plans," which details the State requirements for preparation of a Specific Plan. Although the document was prepared in 2001, the statutes have not changed significantly.
Request for Proposal (RFP)
The draft Downtown Specific Plan RFP is attached for City Council consideration and is shown as a redline-strikeout document using the Downtown Plan RFP presented on May 20, 2014, as the template (Attachment 3). Some of the main goals of the Specific Plan as outlined in the draft RFP are as follows:
• Create a strong sense of community identity and sense of place for the Downtown;
• Enhance the vibrancy and economic vitality of the district through an emphasis on unique and independent retailers and businesses;
• Set the stage for and contribute to business success;
• Reinforce retail, entertainment, dining and active street fronts in the Downtown;
• Provide for the best mix of retail, commercial and service businesses;
• Boost the attractiveness of the Downtown for local residents and visitors alike;
• Strengthen the City's tax base.
The RFP also includes a review and update of existing documents and plans which currently guide development and uses in the area. The scope of work outlined in the RFP includes establishing updated zoning and land use designations, revised development regulations and standards and development of a detailed Downtown Streetscape and Public Improvement Plan. Additionally, an update and integration of appropriate portions of the Downtown Parking Master Plan and the Downtown Design Guidelines is included. Amendments to the Local Coastal Program are also anticipated. The project could include a phased approach, providing visioning and minor amendments, and then more comprehensive study in accordance with State requirements to follow. The scope of work will also include processing the appropriate level of environmental review based on the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), which would include an initial study and either a Mitigated Negative Declaration or an Environmental Impact Report (EIR).The Specific Plan would be required to comply with all State Government Code regulations including discussions of major infrastructure components, implementation and financing measures, and relationship and consistency between the proposal and existing land use documents including the General Plan.
An economic and market demand assessment is also an important component of the scope of work. The Downtown is functioning very well and sales tax revenue is continuing to grow. Economic data over the past ten years shows steady annual growth in the Downtown, including Metlox, with the exception of the decrease in FY 2008-2009. With over 9% increase in sales tax revenue year-over-year through the first quarter of 2014, the Downtown shows the highest percentage of growth of any of the geographic areas in Manhattan Beach. Continuing to grow the economics, while balancing the character, charm, and pedestrian orientation of the Downtown, will be evaluated.
A key component of the scope of work includes active engagement of residents and stakeholders in the development of the Downtown Specific Plan. The City anticipates considerable public, property owner, and business interest in this effort, as the community is very active and engaged. The City has created a Downtown page on the City's website. In addition, the public may comment through the "SpeakUp Manhattan Beach" component of the website, which will continue to be utilized as a means to engage those interested in the project. Finally, an initial Town Hall meeting on the development of the Downtown study was hosted by the City on Thursday, June 5, 2014, to kick off the effort, with over 60 residents, business owners, and property owners in attendance. These groups represented a wide variety of interests and opinions, and provided valuable input.
The draft RFP requires that firms or teams of firms respond by September 11, 2014, after which the proposals will be reviewed and a contract prepared for consideration by the City Council tentatively on October 7, 2014.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that the City Council discuss downtown study options and authorize staff to issue a Request for Proposal for the preparation of a Downtown Specific Plan.
Proceeding with the development of a study for the downtown is in keeping with a number of the City Council's strategic goals.
Attachments:
1. Specific Plan versus Downtown Plan and Pros and Cons Tables
2. A Planners Guide to Specific Plans- State of California Office of Planning and Research (OPR)
3. Downtown Specific Plan Draft Request for Proposals- redline strikeout version- August 2014