Stephanie McGeary / Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023 @ 12:55 p.m. / Agendizer

ARCATA’S GENERAL PLAN: City Council and Planning Commission Will Discuss City’s Vision Statement, Transportation and Inclusionary Zoning During Joint Study Session Tonight

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The Arcata City Council and Planning Commission will once again ditch their usual meeting times this week and instead hold a joint study session Tuesday night to discuss the City’s General Plan 2045 – the huge document that establishes Arcata’s goals and priorities and will guide the city’s policies and development over the next 20 years.  

To keep up with the changing times, the City comprehensively updates the plan every couple decades or so. This time around, things have been a little different with the introduction of the Gateway Area Plan, which will rezone a large section of town to make way for more housing. But there is much more to Arcata than just the Gateway and our officials still need to focus on updating other sections of the General Plan. Tonight they will be doing exactly that. The focus of  Tuesday’s study session will focus on three different parts of the general plan – the City’s vision statement, the circulation element and inclusionary zoning. 

The City’s vision statement is pretty much what it sounds like, a statement about Arcata’s goals and priorities that reflects how the City wants to be in the future. During the study session, the council and planning commission will consider any amendments to the vision statement and direct staff accordingly. Working off the vision statement from Arcata’s 2020 General Plan, the Planning Commission has drafted a proposed statement that focuses on conservation, prosperity, health and safety, connection and community, and the city’s “diverse character.”

The next aspect of the plan the council and planning commission will discuss is the Circulation and Mobility Element, which focuses on how people and goods move through the City and includes goals for public transportation, road maintenance, bicycle access and parking. The council and planning commission will work through the existing Circulation and Mobility Element and make recommendations where necessary. 

City staff also suggest that the council consider taking the circulation policy originally proposed for the Gateway Plan and applying it citywide.  

The final topic of discussion will be inclusionary zoning, which will establish the percentage of low-income to very-low-income units a developer would need to include in new housing developments. You might remember that the council has previously held in-depth discussions about inclusionary zoning for the Gateway Area Plan, and now the council will need to set inclusionary zoning standards for development in the rest of the City. 

According to the staff report, the commission recommends modifying the percentage of affordable units required and adding a workforce inclusionary zoning requirement, which would establish an affordable housing requirement for middle income people – those who earn 80 to 100 percent of the area median income (AMI) – who are still struggling to afford housing but are not eligible for housing subsidy programs. 

The commission recommends that the council set the inclusionary zoning requirement at 10 percent for median income units and then allow developers to choose to include either four percent very low-income units or six percent low-income units. 

The reason the commission chose these percentages is because they are below the levels in the State Density Bonus Law, which mandates that developers be allowed to build more units if they agree to provide a certain percentage of “affordable units.” For example, if the development includes at least five percent “very low income” and 10 percent “low income” units, the developer will be allowed to build 20 percent more total units. If the city were to set its inclusionary zoning limits too high, then it would be pointless, because the developer would already qualify for the density bonus. 

If the Council wishes to continue with establishing a workforce housing program, “The City’s legal team will need to assess the program and staff will develop rent limits that adjust by household size,” the staff report states. 

The Arcata City Council and Arcata Planning Commission joint study session will take place tonight (Tuesday, Nov. 28) at 6 p.m. at Arcata City Hall – 736 F Street. 

Directions on how to observe or participate in the meeting:

Observe: Members of the public can attend the meeting in person or observe the meeting on Zoom (see below), on Access Humboldt Channel 10, online by visiting www.cityofarcata.org and clicking on the See Live Meetings, Agendas, and Archives button on the home page, or on the City’s YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/CityofArcataCA

Public Comment Participation in Person and on Zoom: Members of the public may attend the meeting in person and give public comment. Or, they may access the meeting via Zoom to provide public comment.

1. Join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device: Please use this URL: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87499016503

2. If you want to comment during the public comment portion of any item, click on raise your hand on the right-hand side of your screen. When it is time for public comment on the item on which you wish to speak, the Clerk will unmute you. You will have 3 minutes to comment (2 minutes for Early Oral Communications), subject to the Mayor’s discretion.

Or join by phone:

1. *67 1-669-900-6833 November 28, 2023 City Council Agenda -2-

2. Enter Meeting ID: 874 9901 6503 3. If you are accessing the meeting via telephone and want to comment during the public comment portion of any item, press star (*) 9 on your phone. This will raise your hand. When it is time for public comment on the item on which you wish to speak, the Clerk will unmute your phone. You will hear a prompt that will indicate your phone is unmuted. You will have 3 minutes to comment (2 minutes for Early Oral Communications), subject to the Mayor’s discretion.

Arcata City Council

Nov. 28, 2023, 6 p.m.

1. CALL TO ORDER

1. Roll Call

2. PUBLIC COMMENT

3. NEW BUSINESS

A. 4310 : Consider Draft Elements of the General Plan.

The city council is having a meeting to discuss the general plan for the city. They will talk about the vision statement for the future of the city, transportation plans, and inclusionary zoning policies. The staff has made recommendations for these topics and they want the council’s direction on them. Inclusionary zoning means that developers would have to include a certain percentage of affordable housing in their projects. The staff has proposed changes to these requirements to make them more effective. There are attachments with more information about each topic.

— LoCOBot

… or, as a heartbreaking country/western song!

(Verse 1)
In the town of Arcata, where dreams were made,
The Council and Commission came to debate,
The future of a city that once thrived,
But now it’s torn apart, no hope to find.

(Chorus)
They talked about a vision, a dream to share,
But all I see is a broken promise, a world unfair,
The General Plan, they say, is meant to guide,
But all it’s done is tear our hearts wide.

(Verse 2)
They spoke of circulation, mobility for all,
But what about the ones left behind to fall,
The roads may be smooth, the paths may be clear,
But what good is it if our souls are in fear?

(Chorus)
They talked about a vision, a dream to share,
But all I see is a broken promise, a world unfair,
The General Plan, they say, is meant to guide,
But all it’s done is tear our hearts wide.

(Bridge)
And in the midst of it all, they mentioned zoning,
Inclusionary they called it, but it felt like a notion,
For the rich to prosper and the poor to cry,
As they struggled to find a place to call home.

(Verse 3)
They recommended changes, percentages and schemes,
But what about the ones who can’t afford their dreams,
Workforce housing, they spoke with pride,
But it only seemed to widen the divide.

(Chorus)
They talked about a vision, a dream to share,
But all I see is a broken promise, a world unfair,
The General Plan, they say, is meant to guide,
But all it’s done is tear our hearts wide.

(Outro)
In this heartbreaking country song, we face the truth,
That sometimes in the quest for progress, we lose,
The hearts and souls of a city torn apart,
By a General Plan that broke our hearts.

— LoCOBot

DOCUMENTS:

Staff Report • A. Vision Statement_Planning Commission Rec • B. Revised Vision Statement v2_03.01.23 • C. Vision Method Memo • D. Circulation and Mobility Element (2045)_2023.11.28 • E. Transportation Policies

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4. ADJOURNMENT