Staff Report.Draft 2040 General Plan
PREPARED BY: Jennifer Armer, AICP
Planning Manager
Reviewed by: Town Manager, Assistant Town Manager, Town Attorney, and Community Development
Director
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● (408) 354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: 06/30/2022 ITEM NO: 1
DATE: June 28, 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.
REMARKS:
On June 20, 2022, the Town Council received public comments on the Draft 2040 General Plan
and Environmental Impact Report (EIR); and began the review of the Draft 2040 General Plan.
The review included discussion and progress motions on all of the recommendations from the
Planning Commission as well as additional changes recommended by Council Members.
The review and discussion included the following progress motions or consensus:
1. In the Introduction, modify the General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) recommendations
for the Vision and Guiding Principles to retain language about the mix of businesses.
• Staff prepared the following modified language for consideration with a new sentence
shown underlined:
The Town of Los Gatos is a welcoming, family-oriented, and safe community nestled in
the beautiful foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The Town takes pride in its small-
town character, historic neighborhoods, local culture and arts, excellent schools, and a
lively and accessible downtown. The Town is pedestrian friendly and offers a choice of
mobility options, housing opportunities, and superior public facilities and services,
governed by an open and responsive local government that is fiscally sound. The Town
includes a mix of businesses throughout Town that serve all residents, workers, and
visitors. A dynamic and thriving community, Los Gatos is committed to racial, social, and
environmental justice and underscores its commitment to long-term well-being by
embracing sustainability.
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REMARKS (continued):
2. In the Introduction, accept recommendations 1 through 8, except on Page 1-3, in the
description of the role of the Town Council replace the word “political” with “elected”;
3. In the Racial, Social, and Environmental Justice Element, accept recommendation 9 for a
new Implementation Program;
4. Request review of recommendations 10 through 14, and 42, as well as the whole of the
Racial, Social, and Environmental Justice Element and relevant definitions in the Appendix
by American Leadership Forum Insights:
• Staff recommends revised definitions be used, based on recommendations from
American Leadership Forum Insights:
o Equity. Ensures that outcomes in the conditions of well-being are improved for
marginalized groups, lifting outcomes for all. Equity is a measure of justice.
o Equality. Is sameness; everyone gets the same thing. Equality focuses on everyone
getting the same opportunity, but often ignores the realities of historic exclusion and
power differentials among whites and other racialized groups.
o Implicit Bias. Attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, decisions, and
actions in an unconscious manner.
o Environmental Justice. The fair treatment of people of all races, cultures, incomes,
political and religious affiliation, and national origins with respect to the
development, adoption, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws,
regulations, and policies including climate adaptation strategies.
• Staff recommends the following definitions be added, based on recommendations from
American Leadership Forum Insights:
o Explicit Bias. Conscious attitudes and beliefs about a person or group, also known as
overt and intentional bias.
o Social Capital. A concept in social science that involves the potential of individuals to
secure benefits and invent solutions to problems through membership in social
networks. Social capital revolves around three dimensions: interconnected networks
of relationships between individuals and groups (social ties or social participation),
levels of trust that characterize these ties, and resources or benefits that are both
gained and transferred by virtue of social ties and social participation.
• Staff recommends the following wording modification be made to Planning Commission
recommendation 11 to include “economically”, based on recommendations from
American Leadership Forum Insights:
o In the Racial, Social, and Environmental Justice Element, modify Policy RSEJ-6.2 to
state, “Support leadership development programs for historically marginalized,
economically, and socially disadvantaged individuals and groups to enhance effective
engagement in Town processes.”
5. In the Mobility Element, accept recommendations 15 through 17;
6. In the Mobility Element, correct reference to bike lanes on Shannon Road;
PAGE 3 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
REMARKS (continued):
• Town Council approved Class II Bike Lanes with a buffer on Shannon Road. Council did
state that if there is an opportunity to install barriers in the future for Class IV bike lanes,
staff should consider working with the residents.
7. In the Mobility Element, request modified language for Policy MOB-11.3 to leave room for
improvements to efficiency and safety;
• After further consultation with the Parks and Public Works Department, staff
recommends that Policy MOB-11.3 be retained as showing in the Draft 2040 General
Plan without further modifications. The Town may implement or support improvements
intended for efficiency or safety on this segment of SR 17 that are consistent with this
policy.
8. In the Public Facilities, Services, and Infrastructure Element, accept recommendations 18
through 22;
9. In the Open Space, Parks, and Recreation Element, accept recommendations 23 through 25.
10. In the Environment and Sustainability Element, accept recommendations 26 through 38,
with additional staff review of recommendation 39 for improved wording;
• Staff prepared the following modified language for consideration with deletions shown
in strikethrough and additions shown underlined. Staff further recommends that
additional modifications be considered for more specific language once the current work
on land acknowledgement has been completed.
o Policy ENV-13.8, “Support a community sense of stewardship for historic and
cultural resources through supporting talks, tours, and other programs that increase
awareness and promote Los Gatos as a destination with historic cultural resources
and through including Indigenous Ohlone Ppeople in the conversation and
planning.”
o Section 8.8, “Los Gatos is in an area once occupied by Indigenous Ohlone (or
Costanoan) Ppeople, which extends from the point where the San Joaquin and
Sacramento rivers flow into the San Francisco Bay to Point Sur, with the interior
Coastal Ranges most likely constituting the inland boundary. Before colonization,
Indigenous People Ohlone lived in base camps of tule reed houses and seasonal
specialized camps. Indigenous People Ohlone ate food gained by hunting, gathering,
and fishing. Mussels were particularly important to their diet, as well as sea
mammals and acorns.
Seven Franciscan missions were built in Indigenous People’s Ohlone territory in the
late 1700s, and all Indigenous People members of the Ohlone group were eventually
forced into the mission system. After the establishment of the missions, the Ohlone
population of Indigenous People of this area was decimated from roughly 10,000
people in 1770 to 1,300 in 1814. In 1973, the population of Indigenous People of
PAGE 4 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
REMARKS (continued):
this area people with Ohlone descent was estimated at fewer than 300 after what is
widely cited as a genocide. The descendants of the Indigenous People of this area
Ohlone united in 1971 and have since arranged political and cultural organizations to
revitalize, maintain, and pass on their culture.”
• Staff recommends an additional Implementation Program in the Racial, Social, and
Environmental Justice Element to review and update language used in the Environment
and Sustainability Element in regards to Indigenous People to be consistent with the
Town’s work on a land acknowledgement.
11. In the Environment and Sustainability Element, modify Policy 10.1 to include a bullet point
to encourage a reduction in packaging and microplastics getting into the environment;
• Staff prepared the following language for consideration: “Promote and implement
programs that reduce packaging and microplastics that get into the environment;”
12. In the Environment and Sustainability Element, modify Implementation Program NN to
include “storage”;
• Staff recommends the following modified language, “Incentivize installation of roof-top
solar and onsite energy storage on all new construction, including parking facilities,
using the latest in green building technology.”
13. In the Hazards and Safety Element, accept recommendations 40 and 41;
14. In the Land Use Element, accept recommendations 43 through 46;
15. Replace the term “missing middle housing” with “small multi-unit housing”;
16. Study the implications of reverting Low Density Residential to 0-5 dwelling units per acre,
with the exception of those properties within the Community Place Districts;
• Additional discussion below.
17. Replace the term “Community Place Districts” with “Community Growth Districts”;
18. In the Land Use Element, delete Policy LU-1.3;
19. In the Land Use Element, study alternative language for Goal LU-5 to incorporate the
concepts and/or language from Goal LU-1 of the 2020 General Plan;
• Staff prepared the following modified language for consideration with deletions shown
in strikethrough and additions shown underlined: “Goal LU-5: Maintain, cherish, and
enhance the Town’s a sense of place and small-town character in residential
neighborhoods to meet the required housing needs, while expanding housing
opportunities for a diverse population.”
20. In the Land Use Element, in Goal LU-2, replace the word “urban” with the word
“community”;
21. Replace “urban services” with “municipal services”;
• Staff recommends that this change exclude the use of the term of art: “Urban Service
Area” as this is an area established by Santa Clara County LAFCO.
22. In the Community Design Element, accept recommendations 47 through 52, with modified
wording to recommendation 49 to replace “and” with “or”;
PAGE 5 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
REMARKS (continued):
The meeting included an initial discussion of housing density limits and the development table,
and the Town Council continued that discussion, along with discussion of the Final
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) to June 30, 2022. Additional information on these topics is
included in the sections below.
HOUSING BUILDOUT DISCUSSION:
A. Reduction in Densities in the Low Density Residential Designation
One motion by the Council was a request that staff and the consultant study the possibility
of reverting Low Density Residential to 0 to 5 dwelling units per acre (du/ac), with the
exception of those Low Density Residential properties within the Community Place Districts
(now called Community Growth Districts) which could have a “Low-Medium” Density
Residential designation of 0 to 10 du/ac.
Los Gatos currently has approximately 1,800 acres of land designated for Low Density
Residential, of which just over 150 acres (or eight percent) are located in the Community
Growth Districts. If the maximum allowed density in all Low Density Residential was
reduced outside of the Community Growth Districts, the Town could expect an estimated
90 percent reduction in potential units within the Low Density Residential designation from
the Draft 2040 General Plan. Because of the small portion of the Town’s Low Density
Residential parcels that are located within the Community Growth Districts, it is estimated
that this change would reduce the projected housing production from the Planning
Commission recommendation by approximately 181 units. If the Council chooses to apply
the 0 to 5 du/ac density to all Low Density Residential properties Town-wide, the
development capacity would be reduced by 198 total units, which is only a 17-unit
difference from the progress motion.
While it is feasible to implement a new Low-Medium Density Residential (0 to 10 du/ac)
land use designation, or an overlay zone for those Low Density Residential properties within
the Community Growth Districts, this technique was considered, and not selected because
of concerns expressed by the General Plan Update Advisory Committee in regards to the
complexity and potential confusion that would result.
In addition, the Council discussed and did not make a progress motion on a potential
quarter-mile buffer around each Community Growth District which could change existing
Low Density Residential parcels to the Low-Medium Density Residential (0 to 10 du/ac)
designation. While it is appreciated that the Council is considering appropriate places for
increases in density, the unique neighborhood circumstances surrounding each Community
Growth District would require extensive analysis to determine logical boundaries associated
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HOUSING BUILDOUT DISCUSSION (continued):
with a quarter-mile criterion, identify specific properties to be included, and then run a full
calculation of redevelopment potential of those parcels. The work involved in this analysis
is not feasible at this time. Staff recommends that the Council not pursue this option.
If Council decides to proceed with a reduction in the Low Density Residential designation to
the levels in the 2020 General Plan (0 to 5 du/ac) Town-wide in combination with the
Planning Commission recommended modifications to the other residential designations and
their 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 0 to 5 4 5% 75 13
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 559 1,548
Housing Units, New and Redeveloped 2,107
Housing Units, ADUs 500
Housing Units, Existing Projects 475
TOTAL NEW THROUGH 2040 3,082
TOTAL NEW THROUGH HOUSING ELEMENT CYCLE (2031), excluding 300
ADUs and 400 Pipeline Project Units 2,382
An additional line was added to the table above to exclude the 300 ADUs that would be
projected to be built after the eight-year Housing Element cycle (25 units per year) and the
400 units from Pipeline Projects that are expected to receive building permits before the
Housing Element update is approved, and therefore would not be counted toward the 6th
cycle Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) allocation.
PAGE 7 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
HOUSING BUILDOUT DISCUSSION (continued):
B. Additional Options for Residential Densities Reductions
A request from a Town Council Member during the discussion was for additional
information on what additional modifications could be made to bring the total number at
the bottom of the Residential Building Table 3-1 of the Draft 2040 General Plan to 1,993
units (Regional Housing Need Allocation) plus a 15 percent buffer (2,292 total units). The
following list of potential reductions was provided to Planning Commission for its
consideration.
• Revert Low Density Housing designation housing density back to the existing 2020
General Plan level: 279 units from the Draft 2040 General Plan and 198 units from the
Planning Commission recommendation as discussed above;
• Revert Medium Density Housing designation housing density back to the existing 2020
General Plan level: 327 units from the Draft 2040 General Plan and 263 units from the
Planning Commission recommendation;
• Remove housing from Office and Service Commercial designations: 313 units from the
Draft 2040 General Plan and 0 units from the Planning Commission recommendation as
this was included in the Planning Commission recommendation;
• Revert properties in the new Community Commercial designation back to Neighborhood
Commercial: 58 units from the Draft 2040 General Plan and from the Planning
Commission recommendation (not included in Planning Commission recommendation);
• Reduce the allowed density in the Mixed-Use designation from 40 dwelling units per
acre to 30 dwelling units per acre: 255 units from the Draft 2040 General Plan and from
the Planning Commission recommendation (not included in Planning Commission
recommendation);
• Reduce the allowed density in the High Density Residential designation from 40 dwelling
units per acre to 30 dwelling units per acre: 111 units from the Draft 2040 General Plan
and from the Planning Commission recommendation (not included in Planning
Commission recommendation); or
• Revert properties in the new Central Business District designation back to housing
density allowed in the existing 2020 General Plan: 76 units from the Draft 2040 General
Plan and from the Planning Commission recommendation (not included in Planning
Commission recommendation).
If Town Council were to proceed with all of the above reductions, then the Total NEW at the
bottom of Table 3-1 would be revised to be reduced by 1,419 units, to be 2,319 units. This
would be only 27 units over the target 2,292 units through the year 2040 or 1,619 units
through 2031.
PAGE 8 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
HOUSING BUILDOUT DISCUSSION (continued):
Housing Units, New and Redeveloped 1,344
Housing Units, ADUs 500
Housing Units, Existing Projects 475
TOTAL NEW THROUGH 2040 2,319
TOTAL NEW THROUGH THE HOUSING ELEMENT CYCLE (2031), excluding 300 ADUs
and 400 Pipeline Project Units
1,619
As further discussed below, staff recommends that the Commercial, Mixed-Use, and High
Density Residential designations be maintained at the levels included in the Draft 2040
General Plan, to not significantly affect the Housing Element update process.
C. Critical Designations for Housing Element
The Tier 1 sites included in the Housing Element Draft Site Inventory approved by Town
Council on June 7, 2022, included sites in the Central Business District, Neighborhood
Commercial, Community Commercial, Mixed-Use Commercial, North Forty Specific Plan,
Low Density Residential, Medium Density Residential, and High Density Residential
designations. In addition, there are sites in the Community Commercial and Office
Professional designations that are currently listed as Tier 2, and may be added to the Site
Inventory if needed. Based on the Site Inventory, the Commercial, Mixed-Use, and High
Density Residential designations are the most critical to planning the housing required for
the Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA).
D. Redevelopment Assumptions
The General Plan Residential Buildout Table includes an assumed redevelopment for those
properties that are not vacant. This assumed redevelopment is not 100 percent for every
developed property as it is highly unlikely that every property owner would be interested in
demolishing existing buildings and constructing new. Instead, a reasonably foreseeable
assumption is between 5 and 20 percent. The assumed redevelopment was lower where
the planned density was low, and higher where planned density was higher because a
greater density and greater height is more likely to incentivize redevelopment. These
calculations were guided by an economist who was part of the General Plan consultant
team. The economist provided the information regarding redevelopment potential as
contained in the Alternatives Analysis Report, based on their expertise and familiarity with
redevelopment and growth throughout the Bay Area, including Santa Clara County.
E. Properties in the Wildland Urban Interface
Attachment 27 is a map showing the parcels and associated land use designations that are
included in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) beyond the Hillside land use destinations.
PAGE 9 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
HOUSING BUILDOUT DISCUSSION (continued):
The Council’s progress motion to reduce Low Density Residential to the 2020 levels would
address a substantial portion of the area of concern raised in public testimony.
F. Senate Bill (SB) 330 and Downzoning
At the June 20, 2022 Town Council meeting, Councilmember Hudes asked whether Senate
Bill 330, which amended a number of Government Code sections, precludes the Town from
reducing allowable density on property in the future if the Town finds that the densities
proposed in the General Plan need adjustment in the future. Government Code Section
66300(b) precludes a local agency from “changing the general plan land use designation, or
zoning of a parcel or parcels of property to a less intensive use or reducing the intensity of
land use within an existing general plan designation, specific plan land use designation, or
zoning district in effect at the time of the proposed change, below what was allowed under
the land use designation or zoning ordinances . . . in effect on January 1, 2018, except as
otherwise provided. . . .” In other words, the Town Council could elect to reduce densities
in the future so long as allowed densities remained at or above January 1, 2018, levels.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
Attachment 26 itemizes additional information, clarification, and correction of typos in
response to two private letters in the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR). Some of these
clarifications resulted in revisions to the Draft EIR as noted in the Attachment. Under the
California Environmental Quality Act, modifications to responses to non-agency comment
letters do not require recirculation of the Final EIR (CEQA Guidelines Section 15088.) The Final
EIR has been updated online to include all revisions at: www.losgatos2040.com
Because the modified housing densities currently under consideration by the Town Council are
within the development projections considered in the EIR for the Draft 2040 General Plan and
alternatives, no additional modifications or analysis would be required for certification of the
EIR and adoption of the 2040 General Plan. In other words, reducing the development capacity
in the 2040 General Plan is covered by the Final EIR.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
Attachment 28 includes additional public comments received between 11:01 a.m., Monday,
June 20, 2022, and 11:00 a.m., Tuesday, June 28, 2022.
PAGE 10 OF 10 SUBJECT: Draft 2040 General Plan and Final EIR DATE: June 28, 2022
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 previously received with June 20, 2022 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
Attachments previously received with June 20, 2022 Desk Item:
24. Council Member Comments
25. Public Comment received between 11:01 a.m., Wednesday, June 15, 2022, and 11:00 a.m.,
Monday, June 20, 2022
Attachments with this Staff Report:
26. Summary of Final EIR Edits
27. Map of non-hillside properties in the WUI
28. Public Comment received between 11:01 a.m., Monday, June 20, 2022, and 11:00 a.m.,
Tuesday, June 28, 2022