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“The City of Planned Progress” has been at it again.
The Pleasanton City Council last month completed its biennial process of adopting a work plan of top priorities for the city to accomplish over the ensuing two years — and in helping Pleasanton live up to its aforementioned motto, the public planning process saw more citizen and stakeholder input than ever before.
“We had a record number of participation from the community in both input and attendance at this year’s workshop. This work plan is certainly a direct reflection of shared priorities from the community, mayor and City Council, staff and our commissions,” City Manager Nelson Fialho told the Weekly. “I am proud of the consensus we have built and eager to get working on these priorities over the coming two years.”
“Some of the key highlights of the new work plan include completion of the Downtown Specific Plan Update, Johnson Drive Economic Development Zone and North Pleasanton Police Substation, as well as updating the city’s Climate Action Plan, designing a new community farm, expanding public parking in downtown Pleasanton and continued collaboration with the school district to address facility needs,” Fialho added.
The comprehensive work plan, approved by the five council members March 19, lists out 81 specific priorities that will guide the council’s and city administrators’ decision-making during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 fiscal years, especially for how to allocate city resources — financial and staffing-wise — toward achieving those key objectives.
This latest work plan is a 21-page spreadsheet worth of projects and initiatives.
It’s the culmination of more than four months of work, finalized after city staff and the council received feedback on potential priorities from city department heads, appointed commissions and advisory boards, council members themselves, and the public.
To make the final cut, a project or initiative needed support from at least three council members.
The council formally adopted the work plan during its regular meeting on March 19, but the bulk of the public debate took place one week earlier, when the council (minus Mayor Jerry Thorne, who was absent with illness) heard comments from almost 70 resident speakers and drew nearly 200 more attendees during a five-hour public workshop.
It marked the longest and most well-attended priority-setting workshop ever for the city, which started the two-year work plan program 15 years ago.
The majority of public comment at the March 12 workshop focused on a handful of items up for priority consideration: the Merritt property senior housing development, bicycle safety, Climate Action Plan 2.0, pesticides in city parks, Amador Theater improvements, East Pleasanton Specific Plan, new skate park and lighted sand volleyball courts — all of which made the final list, but at varying prioritization levels.
In all, the council’s 81 priorities represent a range of objectives for city officials, the citizenry and other Pleasanton stakeholders.
Some are local construction projects, for either design or final building, such as West Las Positas Boulevard bicycle and pedestrian improvements, a second Bernal Bridge, renovations of Lions Wayside and Delucchi parks downtown, and redesigning fire stations Nos. 2 and 3.
Others involve key policy-making with short- and long-term impacts on Pleasanton, such as continuing work on new or updated master plans for the downtown, civic center/library and the off-street trails network; updating city utility rates; and a first-ever Human Services Communication Plan.
Housing is another theme throughout the work plan, from the Kottinger Gardens and Sunflower Hill affordable housing projects to reviewing the Lester property development to preparing for state housing legislation and trying to combat homelessness.
Other key initiatives include supporting Pleasanton’s 125th anniversary celebration this summer, finding solutions to parking problems at the Altamont Corridor Express train station and reducing single-use plastics.
And there are regional priorities as well, such as continuing to support Highway 84 widening and monitoring the planning process for the proposed Valley Link commuter light rail over the Altamont Pass.
Just over half of the priorities were new while the rest were carried over from the prior two-year work plan. This plan is a little more concise than its predecessor, which had 90 priorities.
Now that the priority list is finalized, Fialho and his staff will work to develop draft operating and capital improvement program budgets in line with the council’s goals — expected to come forward later this spring. After budget approval, city officials then work to develop project and program timelines.
The work plan is divided into 12 strategic objectives. Projects are not listed in a priority order from No. 1 to No. 81, nor are they prioritized as such within the 12 objective areas.
The priorities are placed into three categories: To be completed within the first year, a significant milestone will be completed by the second year and to be worked on as time permits but prioritized below the first two categories.
Here is a list of the council’s 81 priorities. A few projects have funding estimates, but far from all. Click on these links to learn more about the full work plan, including in-depth project descriptions and the prioritization levels.
Quality of life
– Implement renovation of Lions Wayside and Delucchi parks
– Complete the Downtown Specific Plan Update
– Construct downtown corridor parking improvements (Bernal Avenue to Abbie Street)
– Renovate the Softball Complex Field House at Ken Mercer Sports Park, $709,000
– Conduct an Amador Theater facility assessment, $60,000
– Prepare a Century House Facility Assessment and Master Plan
– Replace Concession Stand No. 2 at Ken Mercer Sports Park, $350,000
– Renovate bocce courts at Pleasanton Senior Center
– Construct an inclusionary/all-access playground **
– Develop framework, recommendations and implementation plan to reduce homelessness in Pleasanton
– Alameda County Fairgrounds project review (proposed hotel and amphitheater) **
– Implement Phase III of Pioneer Cemetery Master Plan **
– Expand pesticide posting pilot project **
– Plan for the City of Pleasanton’s 125th anniversary **
– Library and Civic Center Plan
– Design Division Street improvements between Main Street and Railroad Avenue **
– Design lighting improvements on St. Mary Street from Peters Avenue to Railroad Municipal Parking Lot **
– Develop a Sound Wall Repair and Replacement Program
– Add a “Culture Art Walk” **
– Add new lighted sand volleyball courts **
– Add new skate park (and/or expand existing skate park at Ken Mercer Sports Park) **
– Design and construct Old Vineyard Avenue Trail phases I and III **
– Amend the city’s code and development standards to enhance minimum ADA accessibility requirements **
– Consider smoking restrictions for multi-family ownership residences (townhomes and condominiums) to address health effects of secondhand smoke **
– Design undergrounding of Bernal Avenue ditch, $350,000
– Amend city code to trigger mandated trash enclosure improvements/expansions in the city’s commercial, office and industrial areas **
– Develop program to help fund improvements to locally designated historic homes in city’s historic resources inventory **
Traffic circulation
– Improve traffic circulation
– Complete Trails Master Plan Update
– Support completion of Rail Authority’s planning process to connect BART to the new Valley Link
– Continue to support Highway 84 widening
– Design West Las Positas Boulevard bicycle and pedestrian improvements
– Widen westbound Bernal Avenue at First Street to allow second left-turn lane
– Implement new traffic signal technology **
– Develop short-term ACE Station parking solution **
– Design Sunol Boulevard interchange improvements
– Design second Bernal Bridge
– Explore long-term parking solution for ACE Station
– Design Santa Rita Road bicycle and pedestrian improvements **
– Design Foothill Road bicycle and pedestrian improvements **
General Plan
– Consider a residential subdivision with other amenities on the Lester Property consistent with Measure PP restrictions. Project would incorporate land dedication to EBRPD and a new public staging area for Pleasanton Ridge
– Restart the East Pleasanton Specific Plan process, which would be the foundation for future development of the east side **
– Monitor and coordinate the city’s response to various CASA proposals through the state’s legislative cycle **
– Create policy framework for redevelopment of Stoneridge Shopping Center area **
– Consider a residential subdivision on Merritt Property located on Foothill Road, with age-restricted housing and other amenities **
Environmental awareness
– Conduct East Bay Community Energy assessment and present to council for consideration to join the JPA **
– Evaluate and implement “Making Water Conservation a Way of Life” in line with governor’s executive order B-37-16 **
– Continue to participate with regional agencies on studies of water supply alternatives, including potable reuse **
– Prepare city’s Climate Action Plan 2.0 **
– Consider extension of the Committee on Energy and the Environment for an additional two-year term **
– Consider ordinance to reduce single-use disposables/plastics **
– Pilot use of alternative pesticide management treatment at designated park **
Fiscal sustainability
– Adopt 10-year Infrastructure and Facilities Replacement Plan
– Adopt two-year operating budget for 2019-20 and 2020-21, and four-year capital improvement plan for 2019-23 **
– Update utility rates **
– Update the city’s Water and Sewer Master Plans, including city connection fees **
Affordable housing
– Complete Kottinger Gardens, Phase II, senior affordable housing project
– Conduct comprehensive housing legislative review, and policy and regulation update (including Senate Bill 35 readiness) **
– Continue to support Sunflower Hill’s project to bring affordable residential complex for adults with special needs **
– Review changes to the city’s First-Time Homebuyer Down Payment Assistance Program **
Public safety
– Complete Pleasanton PD substation in North Pleasanton, in partnership with Workday, BART and Simon Property Group
– Design and reconstruct Fire Station No. 3 at Santa Rita/West Las Positas, $4.035 million
– Design Emergency Operations Center at LPFD Fire Training Facility on Busch Road, $400,000
– Design improvements to Fire Station No. 2 on Stoneridge Mall Road, $470,000
Economic development
– Complete Johnson Drive Economic Development Zone process
– Create program designed to support and expand the life sciences industry in Pleasanton **
– Develop coordinated business support program **
– Develop a Fiber Master Plan **
– Work with Pleasanton Downtown Association to update Business Improvement District structure **
Youth programs
– Create awareness of health and safety issues and policies
– Expand connections to youth and teen services
– Expand recruitment strategies for youth and young adults
City services
– Jointly plan facilities for increased student population
– Prioritize and implement recommendations based on findings in Tri-Valley Paratransit Study
– Conduct a Joint PUSD/City Maintenance Facility Study
– Develop a Human Services Communication Plan **
Organizational success
– Implement a coordinated communications strategy **
– Upgrade city’s HR/finance system Tyler-Munis to version 2018.1 **
– Develop a City ADA Transition Plan **
– Remove City Hall modular buildings
Bernal Park
– Design Phase I of Bernal Community Farm **
City of Pleasanton is rich, it has enormous amount of Money. Driving through the streets of Pleasanton in some places it looks like an impoverished city. Santa Rita road for example! City of Pleasanton should reduce water rates. I also would hope that City Council should throw Ruby Hill out of Pleasanton City area and return it to Livermore, where it belongs
Impoverished city, not even _/=#$%%! Close. Get out of the bay area and see what impoverished is….then go to a country that actually is impoverished.
David, Pleasanton City doesn’t need Ruby Hill tax revenue. Our police spends more time in Ruby Hill than other places, because it is so opulent. City panders to Ruby Hills. I do not know why the city doesn’t fix the roads, and reduce the water bill? Any ideas?
The reasons any city doesn’t fix the roads generally include #1 Job security. if the streets are constantly in need of repair, then the engineering staff has something to do, #2 they under-design the street to save initial costs, so when the load or amount of traffic increases (demand) the base of the pavement falls apart because it was designed and built in asphalt (a petroleum product) that is cheap. If they had built in concrete like most cities with streets from the ’20s and ’30s still in operation with little maintenance it would be a simple and less expensive resurfacing. A sustainable pavement is one that lasts a long time (60+ yrs.) and doesn’t consume tax revenues to be fixed every 2 years. They also do #3 Deferred maintenance, which means they delay making repairs to accommodate another planned project (ie: bridge widening) or so they have a funded project (employment in future) thereby making the road condition worse in the interim. Been in that business for years, and there are NO good reasons for the conditions of any roads in our state (CalTrans) much less in Pleasanton. Drive safely and avoid the potholes!
Naveed, why give up all that property tax revenue to Livermore?
I agree the pavement on Santa Rita is bad and I wonder why neighborhood streets are fixed before this major street which has lots of big trucks as well as Vehicles. The freeway on and off ramps are pretty bad too like Stoneridge on ramp which is probably Caltrans responsibility but still pretty bad.