Chapter 17.36 — GROWTH MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

• A. Since the mid-1960s, Pleasanton's transformation from a small, agricultural-based community to a suburban bedroom community and then to a suburban "edge city" has been marked by periods of rapid growth which stressed the city's ability to provide infrastructure and services, affecting the quality of life of both existing and new residents.

• B. In order to minimize the adverse effects of rapid uncontrolled residential growth, the city council adopted its first growth management ordinance in 1978, designed to regulate the location and rate of new residential growth in a period of sewage treatment capacity constraints brought about by air quality degradation concerns. Through the 1980s and 1990s, the city council modified the growth management ordinance in order to better achieve the evolving goals set for it, with the rate, location, and type of residential units regulated to achieve the general welfare of the city.

• C. In 1996, the city council adopted a comprehensive revision to its general plan. Key goals and policies reflect the city's continued commitment to developing in an efficient, orderly, and logical fashion, ensuring adequate infrastructure and services are present to ensure that the city's quality of life and level of services are maintained. The general plan calls for assuring its citizens of a predictable growth rate, while providing housing to meet the needs of all economic segments of the community, regional housing needs, and employment growth.

• D. Despite the controls established by past versions of the city's growth management program, residential development has continued to fluctuate over time, there has been little predictability of the actual number of new building permits issued and development under construction, and there is uncertainty over the city's ability to maintain its service levels and quality of life for its citizens due to regional influences and uncertain revenue sources for city and other local service-providing agencies.

• E. This revised growth management program has been designed to rectify the areas wherein the former programs did not totally succeed; to establish a predictable growth rate which reflects community sentiment and which alleviates the potential for strain on the ability of the city and other local service providers to keep pace with services with no reduction in their quality; to continue to relate new residential growth to housing needs (including regional needs and local employment growth) and the availability of infrastructure and services; to move toward build-out of the community in a logical manner while affording future development areas the ability to accommodate changing housing demands; and to be fair and equitable to the development community, developers large and small, who have either received past approvals under former growth management programs or who have undertaken or will undertake development plans consistent with current goals and policies.

• F. In 2012, the city council amended the growth management program to reflect current circumstances and changes in state law.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

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City of Pleasanton, CA

PLEASANTON CODE

§ 17.36.020

§ 17.36.050

The protection of the public health, safety, and general welfare requires a growth management program to accomplish the following:

• A. Regulate the timing, location, and type of residential growth in accordance with the goals and policies of the general plan.

• B. Achieve predictability in the rate of growth at levels which reflect community sentiment and the ability of the city and other local service-providing agencies to provide services without compromising quality of life issues.

• C. Retain flexibility to accommodate projects desiring and capable of actual development in the short-term in order to more closely meet annual development goals.

• D. Create some certainty for the construction of city approved residential housing projects which are subject to market conditions that impact the timing of construction.

• E. Facilitate and implement the general plan goals, including the goals of the housing element, which cannot be accomplished by zoning alone.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no building permit for a new residential unit, including permits for installation of a mobilehome unit, shall be issued until a growth management unit allocation is first granted by the city council pursuant to the regulations contained in this chapter.

(Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

This chapter shall not be applicable to the following categories of residential units:

• A. Accessory dwelling or junior accessory dwelling units approved in accordance with city zoning regulations.

• B. Mobilehomes and/or living quarters located on school sites, public and institutional properties, and commercial/industrial properties used for security purposes or other purposes ancillary to the primary use, the use of which has been approved in accordance with city zoning regulations, when such residential units do not exceed one dwelling per site.

• C. A condominium conversion or replacement unit of an existing unit demolished and/or destroyed.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015; Ord. 2161 § 1, 2017)

• A. Review of Growth Management Report.

  1. Periodically, a growth management report shall be prepared which shall include:

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City of Pleasanton, CA § 17.36.050

PLANNING AND RELATED MATTERS

• b. Projections of likely building activity within the city by category of project;

  - c. Estimates of new projects which may seek approval in the following year or years; 
  
  - d. Analysis of the capability of infrastructure and services to meet the demands of new residential development, including any changes to established conditions and/or measures designed to mitigate the adverse effects of new residential development; and 
  
  - e. Progress toward meeting city general plan goals and policies. 
  

  2. The growth management report shall be presented to the planning commission for its review. The planning commission shall make recommendations to the city council regarding the growth management report, including, but not limited to, annual allocation issues.

  3. The city council shall receive and review the growth management report, and the recommendations of the planning commission. The city council's review of the growth management report should coincide with the council's review of requests for modifications of allocations and should occur at the council's second meeting in September. The city council may schedule such review at any time during the year should changed circumstances relating to the provision of planned infrastructure and/ or services require a review and possible modification to the growth management program.

• B.

• Program Review.

1. The city council, as necessary to administer the growth management program, including following review of the growth management report, shall have the following duties and powers:

   • a. Determine whether the annual new residential unit limits, including those pertaining to trades or reallocation, require adjustment due to infrastructure/ service constraints;

   • b. Determine whether to adjust future allocations established for new residential units;

   • c. Coordinate the requested trades of units among developers;

   • d. Determine the disposition of reallocation requests;

   • e. Take other action determined by the council to be necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter.

2. The city council shall act on the following in administering the growth management program on an ongoing basis:

   • a. Grant initial growth management unit allocations;

   • b. Review and act on requests for amendment of growth management agreements;

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City of Pleasanton, CA

§ 17.36.050

§ 17.36.080

PLEASANTON CODE

• c. Adjust annual limits as it deems necessary pursuant to subsection A of this section;

• d. Take any other action determined by the council to be necessary to implement this chapter.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

• A. Except as provided herein, effective July 1, 2014, the number of annual growth management unit allocations issued for new residential units subject to this chapter shall not exceed the regional housing needs allocation assigned to the city as provided in the Association of Bay Area Government Regional Housing Needs Allocation Plan divided by the number of years in the regional housing needs allocation cycle.

Except as provided in subsection C of this section and except when necessary to increase the annual housing allocations in order to grant approvals to projects so that the city is able to meet its total regional housing needs goals, the maximum limitations established in this section shall not be modified except by an ordinance adopted by the city council in implementing this chapter.

• B. Within 90 days of the Association of Bay Area Governments issuing its regional housing needs allocation plan, the city manager shall provide the city council with a report identifying the annual growth management unit allocation.

• C. The limitations established in subsection A of this section may be reduced by the city council if, upon reviewing the annual growth management report, it determines that infrastructure and/or services will not be available to satisfy the demands of the new residential units allowed for a given year. The limitation reduction mentioned in the previous sentence may be citywide or localized, depending on the scope of the infrastructure and/or service shortfalls. The city council shall exercise its discretion pursuant to this subsection if the planned, phased infrastructure expansions which form the basis for establishing the managed growth to build-out of the general plan are not completed in a timely manner. "Infrastructure" as used herein includes new school construction pursuant to the school financing agreement, sewage treatment/export facility expansions, treated water availability, traffic network expansions consistent to implement city LOS policies, park procurement/development, and other measures of infrastructure/ services as described in the growth management reports.

• D. No reduction in future annual growth management unit allocations shall affect any project which has received growth management approval granting future years' allocations so long as the conditions in effect at the time of the initial approval remain unchanged and the approved project continues to meet all project requirements. Nothing herein, however, limits the city's ability to impose a development moratorium under state law.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

• A. A project developer must receive a growth management unit allocation for each housing unit proposed in accordance with the process below. One growth management unit allocation shall be required for each housing unit.

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City of Pleasanton, CA § 17.36.080

PLANNING AND RELATED MATTERS

• a. A project developer may request a growth management unit allocation at the time of, or after, any of the following: PUD plan approval, design review approval, or a tentative map approval. The community development department shall provide the necessary application forms, and a project developer must file the application with the planning division. The application shall be accompanied by a fee established by the resolution establishing fees and the charges for various municipal services. The request shall indicate the desired phasing of the project.

  - b. No application will be accepted for processing by the planning division if the growth management unit allocation capacity is not available for a reasonable project phase within at least the second calendar year after the year the application is tendered. 
  

  2. Growth Management Approval.

     • a. The city council may grant a specific growth management unit allocation to a project for one or more years so long as the total units allocated do not exceed the growth management unit allocation for that year.

     • b. In reviewing a project developer's request for growth management unit allocation, the city council shall use its discretion in giving consideration to the number of projects which are pending or are likely to seek approval in the near term, the economic feasibility of phasing the project, and other factors. The approval of growth management unit allocations shall be in the form of a growth management agreement approved by the city council.

     • c. Notwithstanding subsection (A)(2)(b), a total of 10 growth management allocations for housing units subject to the discretionary approval of the Zoning Administrator as set forth in Chapter 18.20 of the Pleasanton Municipal Code, may be approved annually by the zoning administrator. Any such approval shall require the developer of the project to enter into a growth management agreement with the city approved by the zoning administrator without the need for city council approval. The city council may increase the number of allowable annual growth management allocations subject to discretionary approval of the zoning administrator based on demonstrated need.

     • d. Any growth management unit allocation approved will be deducted from the total number of annual growth management unit allocations available for the year in which the project is approved and from the total number of growth management unit allocations in the regional housing needs cycle.

• B. Proration of Project Growth Management Unit Allocations. Generally, the approval of a growth management unit allocation is intended to be made available to developers in chronological order consistent with subsection (A)(1). However, in certain instances when the demand for growth management unit allocations is known to exceed the number of remaining units available in a particular year, the city may approve a growth management application in any manner it finds equitable, including assigning unused growth management unit allocations from previous years or to future years. If assigned to a future year, the unit allocation will be accounted for in that year; not the year the growth

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City of Pleasanton, CA § 17.36.080

PLEASANTON CODE

• C. In the event that growth management unit allocations are unavailable during a particular year and the city has approved a project containing affordable units that is subject to a city affordable housing agreement, growth management unit allocations from previous and/or future years shall be approved in the number required to accommodate the affordable housing units, including if necessary, borrowing from the next regional housing needs allocation period.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

• A. A project developer may be issued building permits up to the maximum number of growth management unit allocations established in its growth management agreement provided that a building permit shall not be issued prior to the year approved for the growth management unit allocations. Once the building permits are issued, the units may be constructed at any time consistent with conditions set forth in the growth management agreement or project approvals.

• B. Any amendment to a growth management agreement requires submittal of an application on a form provided by the community development department and approval by the city council.

• C. In the event a project developer does not utilize the maximum number of growth management unit allocations as specified in its growth management agreement, it may, subject to the approval by the city council, assign or trade the unused number of growth management unit allocations for use by a different project provided the parties involved in the assignment or trade show proof of an agreement regarding such trade. Any approved transfer or trade shall not be counted as new growth management unit allocations.

• D. The city council shall have the discretion to approve rules or procedures concerning the use, loss, trade, reallocation, and assignment of growth management unit allocations at any time, including when the city council considers a project developer's development agreement or other legislative act relating to a project so as long as the overall number of allowed permits do not exceed the total number assigned to the city for the current regional housing needs allocation cycle.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

Once a project has secured a growth management agreement, the project may be modified without affecting its growth management allocation approval, subject to city council review and approval, so long as no additional units are added. Such a modified project retains its original growth management unit allocation. Project modifications as used in this section shall mean significant changes to a project's design, density, product type, affordability component, amenities, and other aspects which bear on its original approval. Architectural modifications, site plan changes, and other project adjustments which are characterized as "minor modifications" in the city's PUD ordinance shall not need city council review and approval to retain growth management approval. Should the modification reduce the number of units, the units eliminated shall be deducted from the project's allocation, if applicable. (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

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City of Pleasanton, CA § 17.36.110

PLANNING AND RELATED MATTERS

§ 17.36.120

• A. A project developer will pay normal city development fees in effect at the time building permits are issued or at the time otherwise provided by the city ordinances or resolutions, or by agreement.

• B. A project developer shall pay the required city fees in conjunction with the issuance of a building permit. Growth management fees shall be placed in a special fund applied to public projects made necessary by the cumulative effects of ongoing residential development.

• C. The city council may approve an increase or decrease in the growth management fees or permit a developer to provide finished public works in lieu of paying growth management or other city fees in order to achieve the purposes of this chapter and the general plan. The fee or public work may be implemented by resolution or by agreement with the developer.

• (Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

A residential unit in projects which were approved prior to the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter and which have been determined by the city attorney to have a vested right to the issuance of a building permit at the time such a permit is sought shall be issued such permit notwithstanding the annual limitation on building permits contained in Section 17.36.060 of this chapter.

(Ord. 2112 § 2, 2015)

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City of Pleasanton, CA

PLANNING AND RELATED MATTERS

§ 17.38.010

§ 17.38.020