Chapter 24.08

TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS

This chapter is intended to protect the public health, welfare and safety by reducing air pollution caused by vehicle miles traveled. This chapter is intended to accomplish emission reductions by meeting requirements of AB 1791, Section 65089 (b)(3) which requires development of a trip reduction and travel demand element to the congestion management plan (CMP), and Section 65089.3(b) which requires adoption and implementation of trip reduction and travel demand ordinances by local agencies. (Ord. 689 § 2, 1992)

For purposes of this chapter, the definitions for the following terms shall apply:

"Alternative transportation mode" means any mode of travel that serves as an alternative to the single-occupant vehicle. This can include all forms of ridesharing such as carpooling or vanpooling, as well as public transit, use of alternate clean air powered vehicles, bicycling or walking.

"Applicable development" means any new development project that is determined to meet or exceed the employment threshold using the criteria contained in this chapter. An applicable development also includes developments which are owned and/or managed as one unit, such as a business park or shopping center, that also meet or exceed the employment threshold.

"Bicycle facilities" means any capital improvements which would benefit an employee who rides a bicycle to their work site, including shower facilities, locker facilities, bicycle parking, etc.

"Change of use" means a development or facility space of a lessee which has altered its initial use to another use not related to the previous. (Example: office space changes its use to commercial space.)

"Developer" means the builder who is responsible for the planning, design and construction of an applicable development project. A developer may be responsible for implementing this chapter as determined by the property owner.

"Employee" means any person employed by a firm, person(s), business, educational institution, non-profit agency or corporation, government agency or other entity which employs one hundred or more persons at a single work site.

"Employment generation factors" refers to factors developed for use by the jurisdiction for protecting the potential employment of any proposed development project.

"Employer" means any person(s), firm, business, educational institution, government agency, nonprofit agency or corporation, or other entity which employs one hundred or more persons at a single work site, and may either be a property owner or tenant of an applicable development project.

"Employment threshold" refers to the number of employees which an applicable development must have for this transportation demand management chapter to be required of the employer.

"Minimum standards" means the minimum changes made to establish a transportation demand management and trip reduction plan at an applicable development project to a level which

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City of Palm Desert, CA § 24.08.020

PALM DESERT CODE

"Mixed-use development" means new development projects that combine any land uses one with another.

"New development project" means any nonresidential project being processed where some level of discretionary action by a decision making body is required.

"Peak period" means those hours of the business day between seven a.m. and nine a.m., inclusive, Monday through Friday, which TDM strategies such as this chapter identify as the priority period for reducing work-related vehicle trips.

"Property owner" means the legal owner of the applicable development and/or its designee (i.e. developer).

"Rideshare facilities" means any capital improvements which would benefit an employee who rideshares to the work site, including on-site amenities, preferential parking and rideshare dropoff areas at the work site entrance.

"Site development plan/permit" means a precise plan of development that may be subject to public hearing before the planning commission of the city.

"Transit facilities" means any capital improvements which would benefit an employee who uses any form of transit to travel to the work site, including transit stops, shelters, bus turnouts, park and ride lots and other transit amenities.

"Transportation management association (TMA)" means a voluntary entity of employers, property owners and other interested parties who share a mutual concern for local transportation problems. TMAs have the ability to collectively pool participants resources to address these issues. A TMA must still satisfy the goals established for individual employers pursuant to this chapter.

"Transportation demand management (TDM)" means the implementation of programs, plans or policies designed to encourage changes in individual travel behavior. TDM can include an emphasis on alternative travel modes to the single occupant vehicle such as carpools, vanpools and transit; reduction or elimination of the number of vehicle trips, or shifts in the time of vehicle commutes to other than peak period.

"Work site" means a building or grouping of buildings located within the jurisdiction which are in physical contact or separated solely by a private or public roadway or other private right-ofway, and which are owned or operated by the same employer (or by employers under common control).

(Ord. 689 § 3, 1992)

• A. This chapter shall apply to all new development projects and/or change of use projects that are estimated to employ a total of one hundred or more persons as determined by the methodology outlined in subsection (B) of this section.

• B. For purposes of determining whether a new development project is subject to this chapter, the total employment figure will be determined as follows:

  1. Employment projections developed by the project applicant, subject to approval by the director of public works; or

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City of Palm Desert, CA

ENVIRONMENT AND CONSERVATION

§ 24.08.030

§ 24.08.050

2. Employment projections developed by Riverside County transportation commission using the following employee generation factors by type of use:

==> picture [377 x 117] intentionally omitted <==

----- Start of picture text -----
Land Use Category Gross Square Feet/Employee
Retail/commercial 500
Office/professional 250
Industrial/manufacturing 525
Hotel/motel 0.8—1.2 employees/room
Hospital 300
----- End of picture text -----

3. The employment projection for a development of mixed use or multiple uses shall be calculated on a case-by-case basis based upon the proportion of development devoted to each type of use.

• (Ord. 689 § 4, 1992)

Notwithstanding any other provisions, the following uses and activities shall be specifically exempt from this chapter:

• A. Development projects expected to employ fewer than one hundred persons;

• B. Temporary construction activities on any affected project, including activities performed by engineers, architects, contact subcontractors and construction workers;

• C. Other temporary activities, as defined in the city development code, or as authorized by the city when such temporary activities shall discontinue at the end of the designated period.

• (Ord. 689 § 5, 1992)

• A. All applicable new developments (nonresidential developments which employ one hundred or more persons) which are owned and/or managed as one unit shall submit a transportation demand management plan prepared by a traffic engineer, transportation planner or other qualified professional identifying traffic impacts associated with a proposed project and including design recommendations and mitigation measures, as appropriate, to address onsite and off-site project impacts. Said TDM plan shall comply with all AQMD Regulation XV requirements and shall have the goal of achieving an average vehicle ridership (AVR) of 1.3. The plan shall also indicate specific strategies and guidelines to reduce the amount of trips and increase the amount of nonvehicular transportation.

• B. All property owners of applicable new developments and/or changes of use shall be subject to required capital improvement standards as specified in this section. These standards must all be addressed to realize if they are applicable to their development. Those required standards may be used to achieve the average vehicle ridership of 1.3. Property owners of their project site development plan's provisions to address each of the following capital improvements:

  1. Transit facilities (on-site and off-site);

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City of Palm Desert, CA § 24.08.050

PALM DESERT CODE

3. Rideshare facilities; and

4. Golf cart facilities.

(See options in subsection (D) of this section for specific capital improvement strategies)

• C. The TDM plan shall also include operational standards that shall be implemented within sixty days after occupancy of the development by an employer. Operational standards are standards which employers, TMAs or a managing office of a development administrated as one unit are required to implement to achieve the goals of AQMD's Regulation XV program.

• D. The following options may be included in the property owner's TDM plan to fulfill both the capital improvement standards and the operational standards:

  1. Alternate work schedules/flex-time. Incorporate alternate work schedules and flextime programs (such as a 9/80 or 4/40 work schedule);

  2. Telecommuting;

  3. Bicycle facilities. Provide bicycle parking facilities equal to five percent of the total required automobile parking spaces; and preserve two percent of the gross floor area for employee locker and shower facilities;

  4. On-site employee housing and shuttles. Provide affordable on-site housing and shuttles to and from residential and work areas;

  5. Preferential parking for carpool vehicles;

  6. Information center for transportation alternatives;

  7. Rideshare vehicle loading areas;

  8. Vanpool vehicle accessibility;

  9. Bus stop improvements;

  10. On-site child care facilities;

  11. Preferential parking and/or shaded parking for electric golf carts;

  12. Availability of electrical outlets for recharging of electric vehicles;

  13. On-site amenities such as cafeterias and restaurants, automated teller machines, and other services that would eliminate the need for additional trips;

  14. Airport shuttle service to hotels and spas;

  15. Contributions to funds providing regional facilities such as park and ride lots, multimodal transportation centers and transit alternatives in the area;

  16. Incentives for mass transit usage including provision of a bus pass, additional pay, flex-time or others;

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City of Palm Desert, CA

ENVIRONMENT AND CONSERVATION

§ 24.08.050

§ 24.08.070

17. Implementation of increased parking fees or new fees;

18. Restriction of business hours;

19. Restriction of delivery hours;

20. Provide a direct pedestrian path from the oldest transit stop into the facility;

21. Contribute up to one dollar per square foot to a housing subsidy fund so that affordable housing can be created closer to employer sites;

22. Develop rideshare and shuttle programs at resorts/hotels;

23. Create golf cart circulation system and/or transit connection(s) with city golf cart routes;

24. If an applicable development is on a current transit route, provide a transit stop, shelter, trash barrels, benches, shade and wind protection and bus turnouts;

25. If an applicable development is not located on a current transit route, contribute to a fund which will be used to provide transit amenities;

26. If an applicable development is located on a major arterial, statements in subsection (D)(24) and (D)(25) of this section should be considered;

27. Provisions for the implementation of bicycle lanes; and

28. Provide other creative or innovative strategies to reduce vehicle trips or utilization of alternative fueled reduced pollution vehicles.

• (Ord. 689 § 6, 1992)

It shall be the responsibility of the director of public works or designee to provide applicant with a transportation demand management review application and inform the applicant that the application must be completed within thirty days of receipt. Once the application is complete, the director of public works shall either approve or deny the application within sixty days or forward the application to South Coast Air Quality Management District for their approval, assuring that the application is processed expediently (no more than ninety days). (Ord. 689 § 7, 1992)

• A. A request for TDM approval shall be made through application forms provided by the public works department. The application for such approval shall be filed with the director of public works within thirty days of receipt.

• B. A processing fee shall be paid at the time the completed application is filed with the director of public works. The fee shall be as stated in Section 24.08.090 of this chapter.

• C. An application for TDM review shall be supplemented by plans and other pertinent information to adequately address all applicable aspects of a proposal.

• D. The director of public works, environmental conservation manager or designee shall review

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City of Palm Desert, CA § 24.08.070

PALM DESERT CODE

• A. Each employer to which this chapter applies shall submit to the director of public works for review a copy of all plans and reports submitted to the AQMD pursuant to requirements of Regulation XV. The director of public works shall cooperate with the AQMD to assure that all TDM plans comply with current AQMD requirements. The city shall cooperate with the AQMD in enforcement action.

• B. AQMD and/or RCTC shall also review any approved TDM plans for compliance if complaints about TDM plan and its noncompliance are recorded in the city.

• (Ord. 689 § 9, 1992)

• A. For purposes of meeting its obligations under this chapter, the city council may set fees deemed necessary to review and monitor TDM plans. The following fees shall be imposed on the subject property owner(s):

  1. A trip reduction/TDM plan review fee of one hundred dollars at the time of initial project application submission to the public works department;

  2. A trip reduction/TDM plan renewal/review for compliance fee of ten dollars at the time of initial review by the director of public works or designee.

• B. These shall be fixed fees charged to all applicable developments for the purpose of defraying the costs of processing and review of individual trip reduction/TDM programs.

• (Ord. 689 § 10, 1992)

For purpose of ensuring that applicable developments comply with the provisions of this chapter, the director of public works shall, following written notice to subject property owner(s), initiate action(s) against such property owner(s) or designee(s) which may include, but not be limited to, the following:

1. Withholding issuance of a building permit or certificate of use and occupancy;

2. Noncompliance infraction; and

3. Issuance of a stop work order.

• (Ord. 689 § 11, 1992)

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City of Palm Desert, CA

ENVIRONMENT AND CONSERVATION

§ 24.12.010

§ 24.12.020