January 24, 2006

SUBJECT: Adoption of Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element - Study Issue (06-032)

REPORT IN BRIEF

It has been over 10 years since the Open Space Sub-Element and Recreation Sub-Element were last updated, and a revision is warranted. Council reviewed a draft combined (Open Space and Recreation) sub-element in June 2005 and the draft was then circulated to interested agencies and individuals and public input was solicited. The draft document has since been updated to incorporate the input received as well as to identify specific areas in the City which are relatively underserved by open space and those where future residential growth is anticipated. The revised Sub-Element details policies which guide the provision of open space and recreation programs, facilities and services. The Sub-Element also identifies Key Initiatives which will serve as the focus for study in the area of open space and recreation for the next two to five years. Adoption of the revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element would affirm the documents findings, policies and priorities for study.

The Planning Commission reviewed this report on December 12, 2005, and recommends Council approve Alternative No. 1 with the addition of language referencing the Sunnyvale Bicycle Plan to support coordination and linkages with bicycle issues; the addition of a policy to facilitate and encourage pedestrian traffic in public recreational open spaces by utilizing Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Pedestrian Technical Design guidelines whenever appropriate and feasible; and with additional language to support Programming Policy:  to the effect that the City should not only highlight cultural practices and traditions reflective of a diverse community; but that the City should promote activities that would bring together diverse parts of the community to interact with each other. These changes have been incorporated into the attached document.

The Parks and Recreation Commission reviewed this report on December 14, 2005, and recommends Council approve Alternative No. 1 with the substitution of Policy A3: with "The City considers the federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Federal Air field to be within the sphere of influence of the City of Sunnyvale and will pursue actions to acquire those lands as appropriate for open space and recreational uses for the benefit of the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View."

The Arts Commission reviewed this report on December 21, 2005, and recommends Council approve Alternative No. 1 with the substitution of Policy A3: with "The City considers the federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Federal Air field to be within the sphere of influence of the City of Sunnyvale and will pursue actions to acquire those lands as appropriate for open space and recreational uses for the benefit of the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View." 

Staff recommends Alternative No. 1: Adopt the Negative Declaration and approve the revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element to the Community Development Element by resolution. This alternative incorporates the changes recommended by the Planning Commission. This alternative does not incorporate the change to Policy A3 as recommended by the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Arts Commission, but instead reads: Pursue the acquisition of appropriate federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Naval Air Station.  Staff is concerned the wording as proposed by the Commissions could be misinterpreted. Further, staff feels the existing Policy A3 adequately addresses the Commissions’ intent.

BACKGROUND

The current Recreation Sub-Element of Sunnyvale’s General Plan was last adopted by Council in 1993; the Open Space Sub-Element was last adopted in 1992. These two sub-elements have been combined into one comprehensive document and the revised Sub-Element reflects significant changes to open space and recreation programs, facilities and services and also anticipates more changes in the upcoming years.

Council approved the work plan for the Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element update on October 5, 2004. The draft revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element was reviewed by Council in a joint study session with the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Arts Commission on June 14, 2005, at which time the draft Sub-Element was released for public comment.

EXISTING POLICY

While there is no one goal, policy or action statement for either the Recreation Sub-Element or the Open Space Sub-Element which specifically calls for an update every 5 years, there are numerous statements calling for a review of data, needs and conditions.

Additionally, the Legislative Management Sub-Element calls for:

7.3A.1c Review and update each General Plan Sub-Element approximately every 5 years.

DISCUSSION

 Citizen Participation

Public input was integrated into the revised Sub-Element during its development. Citizen participation involved the following outreach efforts:

·       Facilitated session to develop a community vision for open space and recreation services.

·       Parks and Recreation Commission and Arts Commission review of sections of the document, while in progress, as well as review of the final document with the public able to comment during the Public Hearings of these meetings.

·       Planning Commission review of the final draft document, with the public able to comment during the Public Hearing.

·       Distribution of approved draft document to a broad array of potentially affected individuals and organizations, including those who participate in the visioning session; and

·       Letters of invitation sent to individuals on the Department’s “Friends of Parks and Recreation” mailing list to participate in public hearings and/or to offer written comments on the full draft.

·      The San Jose Mercury News and the Sunnyvale Sun ran articles informing the public of the opportunity to review and comment on the draft document.

·       The City’s website contained a link to the draft document as well.

Public comments on the draft Sub-Element are summarized in Attachment B. The bulk of comments were from park and recreation agencies, updating the information in Appendix M of the draft Sub-Element that compares open space holdings among local agencies. Other comment suggested areas to emphasize or different ways to organize the data. Their comments were incorporated as appropriate and as noted in the attachment.

Several individuals requested inclusion of the open space acreage at Peterson Middle School that the Santa Clara Unified School District has said it is considering declaring as surplus. The “Issues” section now includes a short discussion of this issue. Several individuals interested in having the open space acreage at Peterson Middle School either acquired, maintain or studied by the City of Sunnyvale attended one or more of the meetings with the Planning Commission, the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Arts Commission. Two individuals spoke to the issue before the Planning Commission. One individual spoke to the issue before the Parks and Recreation Commission. In addition, several e-mails and/or letters were sent to Council by residents requesting that the Peterson field issue be included in the Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element for priority study. A summary of this input is included in Attachment B.

Other suggestions are not referenced specifically in the Sub-Element. The individuals making the suggestions received responses and the suggestions are highlighted here for Council’s benefit. These suggestions include:

• A resident identifying parcels of land that the City might consider in order to obtain funds for purchase of acreage at Peterson Middle School. Parcels identified include: Butchers’ Corner; the parcel at Mathilda and El Camino; Raynor; and/or Sunken Gardens.
• A resident suggesting consideration of a connector trail from the western terminus of Remington Avenue to Stevens Creek Trail if Mountain View were to construct the trail on an open space parcel located between Highway 85 and the westernmost border of City of Sunnyvale south of El Camino Real heading towards Fremont Ave.
• A resident requesting inclusion of several potential opportunities for trails, including: conversion of greenways belonging to Water District; corridors of Hetch Hetchy aqueduct, East Canal (north from Ortega Park to bay), shared corridors, Calibazas creek in the east and Steven’s creek in the west.

 Draft Sub-Element

This draft includes the following sections:

• Mission Statement and Mission Indicators
• Community Conditions: factual description of the Sunnyvale community as it relates to open space and recreation issues. Policies and key initiatives are based upon the data in this section.

• • Where We Were
  • Where We Are
    • Demographics
    • Programming
    • Open Space Inventory
    • Identification of Service Gap Areas
  • How We See Things Changing
    • Trends
    • Identification of Future Growth Areas
    • Issues
  • Community Condition Indicators
• Policies: Specific to open space and recreational services, facilities and amenities in the City of Sunnyvale, and based upon the data provided in Community Conditions.
  • Open Space
  • Programming
  • Regional Approach
  • Prioritization
  • Access
• Key Initiatives: These issues are believed to be the most significant items requiring study over the next five years, and are based upon the data provided in Community Conditions.
  • Open Space and Facilities Initiatives
  • Recreational Program Initiatives
  • Operational Initiatives

The two sections identifying service gap areas and areas of future growth have been added since Council reviewed the draft Sub-Element at their June 14, 2005 Study Session. Staff from the Planning Division of Community Development were able to work with maps depicting all of the City’s open space resources and identify those areas of the City which are relatively underserved by open space. Planning staff was able then to further identify the census tracks underlying those underserved areas to determine the number of households affected. Finally, working with zoning maps, Planning staff helped to identify several specific areas in the City where future residential growth is anticipated and which will result in the areas being underserved by open space under current conditions. Key Initiatives have been proposed to study these underserved areas to determine options for mitigating the situation.

Changes from 1992 Open Space Sub-Element and 1993 Recreation Sub-Element

Numerous changes have been made in the combined Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element being presented, beginning with significant changes to format, in order to streamline the document, reduce redundancy and to better emphasize strategy and direction. The section “Goals, Policies and Action Statements” has been significantly reworked and is now presented as three separate sections: Mission, Policies and Key Initiatives. This has resulted in an increase in detail, with no loss of substantive policy or other information.

The new “Mission” generally correlates to the previous "Goals." Mission indicators have been added. This is the overarching purpose and it is not anticipated that this Mission statement would change greatly from one revision of the Sub-Element to the next.

The 1992 and 1993 Sub-Elements were characterized by generalized statements of policy or practice. For example, both documents called for the City to develop partnerships, and this is repeated with minor variations throughout: with the citizenry, with business, with schools and other governmental agencies, etc. The revised document still supports such actions but has consolidated that into one broad policy of utilizing partnerships. In addition, many more specific policies governing the provision of open space and recreation facilities and services have been detailed. A few of these, such as those dealing with school open space, have been taken from the City’s Legislative Action Policies, so as to have all open space policies in one, logical space. Others reflect previously unwritten departmental practices, and are put forth here for the benefit of public and Council scrutiny. The policies related to accessibility and prioritization, in particular, have not been included in previous Sub-Elements.

The new “Key Initiatives” roughly correspond to the old “Action Statements”. These are intended to be strategic and require specific action. They are not tied to any one policy statement, as was the case with Action Statements, as many of the policies may be pertinent.

Changes Made to the Sub-Element since Study Session with Council

In addition to numerous cosmetic changes and clarifications of items, several significant changes or additions have been made to the document since Council reviewed it at their June 14, 2005, Study Session. The major changes have been highlighted in the attached final draft (Attachment C) and are summarized below.

• A new section referencing the youth services needs assessment completed in 1999 that divided the City into zones for the purposes of targeting services for youth.
• An expanded section on Open Space Inventory that discusses different ways of looking at the City’s inventory.
• A new section on Open Space Guidelines that discusses acreage guidelines/standards.
• A new section on Distribution of Open Space Resources as Compared to Population Density and which identifies specific areas in Sunnyvale that are relatively underserved by open space.
• A new section that discusses specific areas within Sunnyvale that are expected to see future increases in population due to zoning that allows conversion from industrial to residential uses.
• Reworked discussion of the issues being raised in the revision of the Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element and how they tie in to the Key Initiatives being proposed, including a brief discussion of the acreage at the Peterson Middle School which the Santa Clara Unified School District expects to declare as surplus and the reasons why it is not being proposed as a Key Initiative for study in the next two to five years.
• Several additional policies within the “Priorities” policy grouping that detail priorities or criteria in acquiring or developing open space.
• Reorganized Key Initiative section so that there are three groupings: Open Space and Facility Initiatives; Recreational Programming Initiatives; and Operational Initiatives.
• Refocusing of several Key Initiatives so that one would study how well several existing City holdings would meet the needs of the service gap areas and the identified priorities for acquisition and development; and a second Key Initiative would look at how the City can mitigate the needs of identified service gap areas.
• New language referencing the City’s adopted bicycle plan in response to specific issues that the Planning Commission raised during a Study Session relating to coordination and linkages with bicycle issues.
• A new policy to facilitate and encourage pedestrian traffic in public recreational open spaces and to utilize the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Pedestrian Technical Design guidelines whenever appropriate and feasible.

New Policy Recommended by Parks and Recreation and Arts Commissions

Both the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Arts Commission are recommending Council re-word a proposed policy relating to the City’s interest in Moffett Field. Policy A3, as currently appears in the attached final draft, reads: Pursue the acquisition of appropriate federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Naval Air Station. Both Commissions recommend that Policy A3 instead read: The City considers the federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Federal Air field to be within the sphere of influence of the City of Sunnyvale and will pursue actions to acquire those lands as appropriate for open space and recreational uses for the benefit of the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View.

Under the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), Moffett Field is officially designated for annexation by Sunnyvale if the land is ever surplused for private or public development. Some concern by staff has been expressed that the phrasing proposed by the Commissions may be open to misinterpretation such that any use other than open space is inappropriate.  Other concerns center on the phrase "pursue actions to acquire" which could imply that the City is going to take some sort of immediate action to purchase the property or even use eminent domain (which is not a legal possibility anyway against the federal government).

Options

Council has several options as they relate to the revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element. One option is to adopt the revised Sub-Element to the General Plan by adopting a resolution to that effect. In doing so, Council would be accepting the information presented and affirming the policies contained therein. Council would further be endorsing the priorities for study for the next two to five years as listed in the Key Initiatives.

Another option would be to accept the information presented but to make changes to one or more policies or to the Key Initiatives. Council might, for example, add an additional Key Initiative or remove one of the ones currently suggested.

A third option would be for Council to direct staff to do further research and/or analysis.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW

A negative declaration has been prepared in compliance with California Environmental Quality provisions and city guidelines. An initial study was prepared for this project and determined that the project would not cause any adverse impact on the environment (attachment).

FISCAL IMPACT

There is no fiscal impact as a result of this report. Studies that would result from this report would include their own fiscal impact analyses.

Conclusion

The Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element has been revised in response to changes in community conditions and to address identified trends and issues. Since the last updates, over 10 years ago, the community has grown in population, density and ethnic makeup, with an increased demand for recreational and open space programs, services and facilities. After Council reviewed a draft of the sub-element in June 2005 the draft was circulated for public input. The draft document has since been updated to incorporate the input received as well as to identify specific areas in the City which are relatively underserved by open space and those where future residential growth is anticipated. The revised Sub-Element details policies which guide the provision of open space and recreation programs, facilities and services. The Sub-Element also identifies Key Initiatives which will serve as the focus for study in the area of open space and recreation for the next two to five years. Adoption of the revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element would affirm the documents findings, policies and priorities for study.

PUBLIC CONTACT

Public contact was made through posting of the Parks and Recreation, Arts and Planning Commissions and Council agendas on the City’s official notice bulletin board, posting of the agendas and report on the City’s web page, publication of the Council agenda in the San Jose Mercury News, and the availability of the report in the City Clerk’s office, Library, Parks and Recreation Administration office, Corporation Yard, Community Center and Senior Center.

Notice of Commission and Council meetings regarding this report was also distributed to the “Friends of the Parks and Recreation” mailing list (a list of approximately 180 organizations and individuals who have expressed an interest in parks and recreation issues).

On November 28, 2005, the Planning Commission conducted a Study Session on this report and on December 12, 2005, the Planning Commission conducted a public hearing on this report. On December 14, 2005, the Parks and Recreation Commission conducted a public hearing on this report. On December 21, 2005, the Arts Commission conducted a public hearing on this report.

ALTERNATIVES

Formal adoption of this Sub-Element by the City Council to occur after review and comment from the Parks and Recreation Commission, Arts Commission and Planning Commission.

1. Adopt the Negative Declaration and approve the revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element to the Community Development Element to the Community Development Element by resolution. (Attachment A)

2. Adopt the Negative Declaration and return the Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element to staff for revisions.

3. Other action as determined by Council.

RECOMMENDATION

The Planning Commission reviewed this report on December 12, 2005, and recommends Council approve Alternative 1 with the addition of language referencing the Sunnyvale Bicycle Plan; the addition of a policy to facilitate and encourage pedestrian traffic in public recreational open spaces by utilizing Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority’s Pedestrian Technical Design guidelines whenever appropriate and feasible; and with additional language to support Programming Policy:  to the effect that the City should not only highlight cultural practices and traditions reflective of a diverse community; but that the City should promote activities that would bring together diverse parts of the community to interact with each other. These changes have been incorporated into the attached document.

The Parks and Recreation Commission reviewed this report on December 14, 2005, and recommends Council approve the document with the substitution of Policy A3: with "The City considers the federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Federal Air field to be within the sphere of influence of the City of Sunnyvale and will pursue actions to acquire those lands as appropriate for open space and recreational uses for the benefit of the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View."

The Arts Commission reviewed this report on December 21, 2005, and recommends Council approve the document with the substitution of Policy A3: with "The City considers the federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Federal Air field to be within the sphere of influence of the City of Sunnyvale and will pursue actions to acquire those lands as appropriate for open space and recreational uses for the benefit of the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View."

Staff recommends Alternative No. 1, Adopt the Negative Declaration and approve the revised Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element to the Community Development Element by resolution. This alternative incorporates the changes recommended by the Planning Commission. This alternative does not incorporate the change to Policy A3 as recommended by the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Arts Commission, but instead reads: Pursue the acquisition of appropriate federal lands currently located at the former Moffett Naval Air Station. Staff is concerned the wording as proposed by the Commissions could be misinterpreted. Further, staff feels the existing Policy A3 adequately addresses the Commissions’ intent.

Reviewed by:
David A. Lewis, Director, Parks and Recreation
Prepared by: Jenny L. Shain, Casual Manager

Approved by:
Amy Chan
City Manager

Attachments

A. Resolution Adopting Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element of the General Plan
B. Summary of Public Comment
C. Final Draft Open Space and Recreation Sub-Element
D. Negative Declaration