Staff Report.Draft 2040 General Plan
PREPARED BY: Jennifer Armer, AICP
Planning Manager
Reviewed by: Town Manager, Assistant Town Manager, Town Attorney, Community Development
Director, and Finance Director
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● (408) 354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: 06/20/2022 ITEM NO: 1
DATE: June 15, 2022
TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: Laurel Prevetti, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Conduct a Public Hearing, Review the Planning Commission
Recommendations, Determine Any Additional Modifications, Adopt the Draft
2040 General Plan, and Certify the Final Environmental Impact Report.
RECOMMENDATION:
Conduct a public hearing, review the Planning Commission recommendations, determine any
additional modifications, adopt the Draft 2040 General Plan (Attachment 6), and certify the
Final Environmental Impact Report (Final EIR) (Attachment 5).
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Draft 2040 General Plan is a result of the Town Council’s direction to update the existing
2020 General Plan to address emerging trends and recent State laws, and consider new issues
relevant to the Town.
Over the course of two and a half years and 35 meetings, the General Plan Advisory Committee
(GPAC) worked with staff and consultants to create an updated General Plan. The GPAC
reviewed each General Plan Element to ensure a forward-looking document that is consistent
and accessible. The Draft 2040 General Plan is the result of extensive work and outreach as
described in this report.
After the completion of the environmental review process, the Planning Commission conducted
four meetings on April 13, April 25, April 27, and May 2, 2022, for consideration of the Draft
2040 General Plan. It unanimously recommended that the Town Council adopt the Draft 2040
General Plan with modifications and adopt the Final EIR.
PAGE 2 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY (continued):
The Town Council is the final decision-making body for both the Final EIR and the Draft 2040
General Plan. The Town Council has full discretion to modify the Draft 2040 General Plan,
including and not limited to its goals, policies, implementation programs, and housing numbers.
After listening to public testimony, the Council may wish to work through the Planning
Commission recommendations (Attachment 7) to provide structure for its deliberations. This
would involve considering modifications to the Vision and Guiding Principles and working
through individual Elements, leaving the Land Use and Community Design Elements last.
BACKGROUND:
On February 6, 2018, Town Council began the process of updating the 2020 General Plan with a
discussion of the scope and process for the General Plan update. At that meeting, the Town
Council indicated that the General Plan is serving the community well, and an update provides
the opportunity to refine the General Plan, address emerging trends and recent State laws, and
consider new issues.
Over the following four years, the General Plan update process has included multiple
community engagement opportunities, meetings with the Planning Commission and Town
Council, and the following key milestones:
• On April 17, 2018, the Town Council established the General Plan Update Advisory
Committee (GPAC) and identified initial guiding principles to support their work.
• On July 9, 2018, after approval by the Town Council, the Town Manager executed an
agreement with Mintier Harnish Planning Consultants for preparation of the General
Plan update and Draft EIR.
• On October 30, 2018, the GPAC held its first meeting.
• On March 15, 2019, the Background Report (available online here:
http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html) was released.
• On June 20, 2019, the GPAC reviewed the Issues, Opportunities, and Constraints Report
(available online here: http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html).
• On August 20, 2019, the Town Council adopted the General Plan Vision and Guiding
Principles (available online here: http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html).
• In December 2019, the Land Use Alternatives Report (available online here:
http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html) was released.
• On March 3, 2020, the GPAC started review and discussion of the initial drafts of
individual elements of the General Plan.
• On April 7, 2020, the Town Council approved the Preferred Land Use Alternatives
Framework (available online here: http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html).
PAGE 3 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
BACKGROUND (continued):
• On November 17, 2020, the Town Council discussed and provided direction on the Draft
Land Use and Community Design Elements.
• On May 6, 2021, the GPAC recommended approval of the Draft 2040 General Plan
(available online here: http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html).
• On June 18, 2021, the Draft 2040 General Plan was released for public review.
• On July 31, 2021, the Draft EIR (available online here:
http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html) was released for public review. The public
comment period ended on September 13, 2021.
• On September 20, 2021, the Town Council and Planning Commission held a Joint Study
Session for discussion of the Draft 2040 General Plan.
• On November 19, 2021, the revised Notice of Completion and Availability was reissued
along with a revised Chapter 4.15, Transportation, and Executive Summary of the Draft
EIR (available online here: http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html) for a reopened
public review period which ended on January 8, 2022.
• On December 7, 2021, the Town Council held a Study Session for discussion of housing
growth options and related analyses for Planning Commission and Town Council
consideration of the Draft 2040 General Plan.
• On March 24, 2022, the Final EIR was published online (available here:
http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html).
• On April 13, April 25, April 27, and May 2, 2022 Planning Commission considered and
recommended approval of the Draft 2040 General Plan with modifications and
certification of the Final EIR (staff report materials, meeting minutes, and a summary of
recommendation available here: http://losgatos2040.com/participate/general.html).
Over the course of two and a half years and 35 meetings, the GPAC worked with staff and the
consultants to create an updated General Plan. The GPAC reviewed each General Plan Element
to ensure a forward-looking document that is consistent and accessible. Each Element was
considered over multiple meetings (between two and five GPAC meetings per Element) with
the GPAC providing comments to staff and the consultant, and then further review and
direction on the implementation of those comments in a revised draft of each Element. The
Draft 2040 General Plan (previously provided and referenced here as Attachment 1) is the
result of this extensive work and outreach.
Additional outreach activities conducted throughout the process have included: the Town’s
website and weekly newsletter; social media posts; online engagement activities; newsletters;
two in-person community workshops; numerous in-person and online community meetings;
handouts and posters at the Library; information on the Town’s webpage; information in the
email signature of Planning Division staff; a Town-wide mailer; and informational booths at the
farmers market, the Library, Spring into Green, and Music in the Park.
PAGE 4 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
BACKGROUND (continued):
On April 13, 2022, the Planning Commission received public comments on the Draft 2040
General Plan and Final EIR, and began the review of the Draft 2040 General Plan. The April 13,
2022 staff report (Attachment 8) included information on the GPAC recommendation, all
written public comments received after the final meeting of the GPAC, as well as the following
topics, as requested by Town Council:
• Housing units;
• Community engagement;
• Missing Middle Housing;
• Senate Bill 9;
• Plan timeframe;
• Declining California population;
• Suggestions from public comments; and
• Additional changes recommended by staff and the California Board of Forestry.
The review of the Draft 2040 General Plan and consideration of the Final EIR continued on April
25, April 27, and May 2, 2022, for a total of 14 and a half hours of deliberations. At the May 2,
2022 meeting, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval of the Draft 2040
General Plan with modifications, and recommended certification of the Final EIR.
DISCUSSION:
A. General Plan Update Advisory Committee
On May 6, 2021, the GPAC recommended approval of the Draft 2040 General Plan. The
discussion at this meeting also included a recommendation for some modifications to the
Vision and Guiding Principles to better reflect the direction developed over the previous
years’ work. These changes are shown in Attachment 8, Exhibit 6 and summarized in
Attachment 8, Exhibit 7. Planning Commission’s recommendation supported these
modifications.
B. Planning Commission
The Planning Commission’s deliberations on the Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR
occurred on April 13, April 25, April 27, and May 2, 2022, and were based on the materials
provided in the staff reports (Attachments 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, and 18), particularly
Exhibit 7 to the April 13, 2022 Planning Commission staff report. Verbatim minutes are
included as Attachments 11, 14, 16, and 19.
PAGE 5 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
DISCUSSION (continued):
On Monday, May 2, 2022, the Planning Commission completed its 14 and a half hours of
deliberations on the Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR with a unanimous
recommendation to the Town Council to adopt the Draft 2040 General Plan with
modifications and certify the Final EIR. The bulk of the Planning Commission’s discussion
was spent working towards a consensus on housing numbers. An informational
memorandum (Attachment 20) was prepared, provided to the Town Council, and posted
online in May that summarized the Commission’s recommendations. Attachment 7 is a full
description of the modifications recommended by Planning Commission, without the
references to Planning Commission’s Exhibit 7 that were part of the original motions, and
with suggested wording for the new definitions that Planning Commission recommended be
included.
C. Potential Housing Buildout
As a result of the recommended modifications to the residential densities in the Land Use
Element, the General Plan Residential Buildout table (Table 3-1 on page 3-4 of the Draft
2040 General Plan, available: www.losgatos2040.com) would be modified as follows:
Land Use Designation
Density
Range
(du/ac)
Typical
Density
(du/ac)
Assumed
Redevelopment
New Housing
(Vacant Land)
New Housing
(Redevelopment)
LDR Low Density
Residential 1 to 10 10 5% 230 56
MDR Medium Density
Residential 14 to 22 18 10% 201 302
HDR High Density
Residential 30 to 40 36 15% 110 268
NC Neighborhood
Commercial 10 to 20 18 10% 26 91
CC Community
Commercial 20 to 30 26 15% 0 156
MU Mixed-Use 30 to 40 36 20% 126 605
CBD Central Business
District 20 to 30 26 15% 21 113
Subtotal 714 1,591
Housing Units, New and Redeveloped 2,305
Housing Units, ADUs 500
Housing Units, Existing Projects 475
TOTAL NEW THROUGH 2040 3,280
PAGE 6 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
DISCUSSION (continued):
As noted in the April 13, 2022 Planning Commission staff report, the Town’s Regional
Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) is 1,993 dwelling units plus a recommended 15 percent
buffer, resulting in 2,292 units for the eight-year Housing Element. If one were interested
to understand the contribution of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and existing projects
towards the eight-year RHNA, then at a minimum, 300 ADUs and 400 units of Existing
Projects should be removed prior to making a comparison. As a result, the potential
residential buildout for the eight-year period based on the Planning Commission
recommendation would be 2,580 units, which is 288 housing units above the RHNA plus
buffer, instead of the 746 excess units noted in the April 13, 2022 staff report for the Draft
2040 General Plan recommended by the GPAC. This reduces the excess units by more than
half.
Please note that the table does not include the potential for growth through new homes on
properties in the Hillside Residential designation because the 116 units noted in previous
documents is based on acreage of undeveloped lots, with no consideration of land slope or
other constraints, and the Draft 2040 General Plan does not include any changes to the
current regulations in this designation.
Please note the calculations have not taken into consideration that the Town’s zoning
regulations do currently allow housing as part of a mixed-use project in the Office zone
through a Conditional Use Permit, even though the Office Professional General Plan
designation does not specify if housing is allowed or not. It is therefore not yet been
determined whether residential could now be prohibited in these zones, due to constraints
imposed by Senate Bill 330. If residential has to continue to be allowed in the Office zone,
an additional 114 units would be added back based on an existing typical density of 18 dwelling
units per acre.
The Town Council has full discretion to modify the Draft 2040 General Plan, including and
not limited to its goals, policies, implementation programs, and housing numbers. If the
Council wishes to reduce the housing capacity of the Draft 2040 General Plan further,
please refer to Attachment 8 page 6 which details additional reduction options.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Written comments received since the completion of the work by the GPAC are included as
attachments to this report, as described here:
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Thursday, May 6, 2021, and 11:00
a.m., Monday, September 20, 2021, were provided with the written staff report
materials for the September 20, 2021 Town Council and Planning Commission Joint
Study Session, and are provided again here as Attachment 8, Exhibit 9.
PAGE 7 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
PUBLIC COMMENT (continued):
• Written comments received on the Draft EIR are included, with responses to comments,
in the Final EIR, and referenced here as Attachment 4.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Monday, September 20, 2021, and
11:00 a.m., Thursday, April 7, 2022, are included as Attachment 8, Exhibit 10.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Thursday, April 7, 2022, and 11:00
a.m., Monday, April 11, 2022, are included as Attachment 9, Exhibit 11.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Monday, April 11, 2022, and 11:00
a.m., Wednesday, April 13, 2022, are included as Attachment 10, Exhibit 13.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Wednesday, April 13, 2022, and 11:00
a.m., Friday, April 22, 2022, are included as Attachment 12, Exhibit 15.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Friday, April 22, 2022, and 11:00 a.m.,
Monday, April 25, 2022, are included as Attachment 13, Exhibit 16.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Monday, April 25, 2022, and 11:00
a.m., Monday, May 2, 2022, are included as Attachment 18, Exhibit 18.
• Written comments received between 11:01 a.m., Monday, May 2, 2022, and 11:00 a.m.,
Wednesday, June 15, 2022, are provided as Attachment 23.
As requested by Town Council, a summary of the questions asked at the September 20, 2021,
and December 7, 2021, Study Sessions is included as Attachment 21 with responses.
A collection of all of the Breaking It Down Series published between July 30, 2021, and March
11, 2022, to respond to questions and increase awareness of the content of the Draft 2040
General Plan is included as Attachment 22.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
A Notice of Completion and Availability of the Draft EIR (previously provided and referenced
here as Exhibit 2) for the project was circulated for 45 days commencing on July 30, 2021, and
concluding on September 13, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. Written comments were received by the
Community Development Department. A Planning Commission public hearing to receive oral
comments was held during the review period on September 8, 2021.
During the review of comments and the preparation of the Final EIR, the Town became aware
of a procedural error in the original Notice of Completion and Availability and also noted that
Appendix C erroneously included a draft rather than a final Transportation Analysis.
Additionally, Chapter 4.15, Transportation, of the EIR was revised to elaborate on transit
impacts and cumulative VMT impacts. Even though the content changes were minor, the Town
believed to provide maximum clarity, it was important to recirculate the Transportation
Analysis of the Draft EIR and its Appendix, as well as the Executive Summary which includes a
PAGE 8 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT (continued):
summary of transportation impacts (previously provided and referenced here as Exhibit 3).
Accordingly, the Town of Los Gatos reissued the Notice of Completion and Availability of the
Draft EIR, and formally recirculated Chapter 4.15, Transportation and Appendix C,
Transportation Analysis for the Draft EIR, as well as the Executive Summary.
The reopened public review period ran from Friday, November 19, 2021, to at 5:00 p.m. on
Friday, January 7, 2022. A public hearing to receive comments on the revised Draft EIR was
held on December 8, 2021. During this additional 45-day public review period, written
comments were received and are included, along with response to all comments from the
initial comment period, in the Final EIR (previously provided and referenced here as Exhibit 3).
The analysis of the Draft EIR identified significant and potentially significant impacts in the
following environmental issue areas:
• Air Quality;
• Cultural Resources;
• Geology and Soils;
• Greenhouse Gas Emissions;
• Noise; and
• Transportation.
Mitigation measures are proposed in all of these subject areas. Not all of the potential impacts
could be mitigated to a less than significant level and therefore, the following topic areas were
found to have significant unavoidable impacts: Greenhouse Gas Emissions; and Transportation.
The Town is the Lead Agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for the
environmental review process for the projects, including the Draft 2040 General Plan, that are
proposed within its jurisdiction. When a Lead Agency finds that there are impacts that are
significant and unavoidable, CEQA requires preparation of Findings of Fact and a Statement of
Overriding Considerations (Attachment 5, Exhibit A). The Town Council is the deciding body on
both the Final EIR and the Draft 2040 General Plan.
CONCLUSION:
The Draft 2040 General Plan is a result of the Town Council’s direction to update the existing
2020 General Plan to address emerging trends and recent State laws, and consider new issues
relevant to the Town. Over the course of two and a half years and 35 meetings, the GPAC
worked with staff and the consultant to create an updated General Plan. The GPAC reviewed
each General Plan Element to ensure a forward-looking document that is consistent and
PAGE 9 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
CONCLUSION (continued):
accessible. The Draft 2040 General Plan is the result of extensive work and outreach as
described in this report.
All additional comments received on the Draft 2040 General Plan are included as Attachments
as described in this report. The Final EIR, which includes all comments received on the Draft EIR
as well as the responses to the comments and any changes to the EIR is contained in
Attachment 4.
After the completion of the environmental review process, the Planning Commission conducted
four meetings on April 13, April 25, April 27, and May 2, 2022, for consideration of the Draft
2040 General Plan. It unanimously recommended that the Town Council adopt the Draft 2040
General Plan with modifications and adopt the FEIR.
In conclusion, based on the GPAC and Planning Commission's recommendations, staff
recommends that the Town Council:
• Receive public comments;
• Review the Draft 2040 General Plan (Attachment 1) and recommended modifications
from the Planning Commission (Attachment 7);
• Consider additional modifications or changes to the Planning Commission’s
recommendations;
• Consider the Final EIR (Attachments 2 through 4) and Findings of Fact and a Statement
of Overriding Considerations (Attachment 5, Exhibit A); and
• Adopt a resolution (Attachment 5) to certify the Final EIR; and
• Adopt a resolution (Attachment 6) to adopt the Draft 2040 General Plan.
ALTERNATIVES:
Alternatively, the Town Council may:
1. Certify the Final EIR and adopt the Draft 2040 General Plan with additional or different
modifications; or
2. Continue consideration of the Draft 2040 General Plan to a date certain with specific
direction.
COORDINATION:
The preparation of the Draft 2040 General Plan involved all Town Departments and most Town
Commissions. The Community Development Department coordinated with the Town
PAGE 10 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 15, 2022
COORDINATION (continued):
Attorney’s Office, Parks and Public Works Department, and the Santa Clara County Fire
Department in the review of the final recommendation from Planning Commission.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Funding for the General Plan update comes from the General Plan update fund.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachments previously received under separate cover:
(available online here: http://losgatos2040.com/documents.html)
1. Draft 2040 General Plan
2. Draft EIR
3. Revised NOA and Transportation Section
4. Final EIR
Attachments with this Staff Report:
5. Draft Resolution Certifying the EIR for the 2040 General Plan, with Exhibit A Draft Findings
of Fact and Statement of Overriding Considerations
6. Draft Resolution Approving the 2040 General Plan
7. Planning Commission Recommendation
8. April 13, 2022 Planning Commission Staff Report, with Exhibits 5-10
9. April 13, 2022 Planning Commission Addendum Report, with Exhibit 11
10. April 13, 2022 Planning Commission Desk Item Report, with Exhibits 12-13
11. April 13, 2022 Planning Commission Verbatim Minutes
12. April 25, 2022 Planning Commission Staff Report, with Exhibits 14-15
13. April 25, 2022 Planning Commission Desk Item Report, with Exhibits 16
14. April 25, 2022 Planning Commission Verbatim Minutes
15. April 27, 2022 Planning Commission Desk Item Report, with Exhibits 17
16. April 27, 2022 Planning Commission Verbatim Minutes
17. May 2, 2022 Planning Commission Staff Report
18. May 2, 2022 Planning Commission Desk Item Report, with Exhibits 18
19. May 2, 2022 Planning Commission Verbatim Minutes
20. Planning Commission Recommendation Informational Memo
21. Study Session Questions and Responses
22. Breaking it Down Series
23. Public Comment received between 11:01 a.m., Monday, May 2, 2022, and 11:00 a.m.,
Wednesday, June 15, 2022