Joint Commission Meeting - April 13, 2026: General Plan Land Use Concepts Discussion

The joint meeting of the Climate and Environmental Justice, Open Space and Habitat, Planning, Recreation and Park, Social Services, and Transportation Commissions convened at 5:30 PM in Community Chambers, 23 Russell Boulevard, Davis, CA. The sole agenda item was a presentation and discussion on draft land use concepts for the 2025 General Plan Update, led by consultants Raimi + Associates. Commissioners provided feedback within their respective scopes, and public testimony was heard at the end of the meeting. The meeting adjourned around 8:00 PM.

Consent Calendar

• Unanimous approval of the agenda and designation of Jordan Blough (Climate and Environmental Justice Commission) as Lead Chair for the meeting.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Richard McCann (former Natural Resources and Utilities Commissioner): Noted that about 56% of residents commute out of Davis for work, creating emissions. Urged more in-town jobs and housing to reduce car dependency, criticized the concepts as too car-centric, and called for stronger accountability measures in the General Plan.
• Trish Price (Bike Davis): Expressed general support for the process and encouraged improved bicycle infrastructure.

Discussion Items

• Presentation by Raimi + Associates:
  • Overview of the General Plan process and community engagement results: A vision statement was finalized — "Davis advances safe, fair, healthy, and sustainable neighborhoods where everyone has what they need to thrive and succeed."
  • Land use background: Existing land use distribution — ~15% commercial/mixed-use, 10% public, 13% open space, and about two-thirds housing (half low-density single-family). The city added 3,500 jobs since 2010; 44% of residents both live and work in Davis. The city faces a fiscal deficit in FY 24-25.
  • Three land use concepts for areas inside city limits:
    1. Concept 1 (Concentrated): Intensifies downtown, select commercial and faith-based sites, employment areas, and some single-family neighborhoods.
    2. Concept 2 (Dispersed): Expands downtown south, adds more mixed-use along transit, intensifies all employment areas, and allows more housing types in all single-family neighborhoods.
    3. Concept 3 (Employment-focused): Expands/intensifies downtown and all employment areas, with additional density on select school sites.
  • One concept for areas outside city limits: Establishes an urban limit line, designates open space, creates design guidelines, and considers annexation of existing neighborhoods (e.g., El Macero, Willowbank). The concept includes areas for mixed-use north of the city and recognition of pending projects (Village Farms, Willow Grove, DISK).
  • None of the inside-city concepts alone meet the projected need of ~7,300 housing units by 2050; outside-city expansion would be required.
• Commission Discussions:
  • Climate and Environmental Justice Commission (Chair Jordan Blough): Supported mixed-use, higher density, walkability to daily needs, and alignment with the Climate Action Plan. Advocated expanding the urban limit line to capture the full sphere of influence and prioritizing multifamily housing with open space access.
  • Open Space and Habitat Commission (Chair Patrick Huber): Emphasized tree canopy enhancement, ecological diversity in stormwater channels, and opposed leapfrog development northeast of the city. Supported downtown intensification (citing Bend, Oregon) and suggested small-scale agriculture, climate tech jobs, and co-op/intergenerational housing outside city limits.
  • Planning Commission (Chair Michelle Weiss): Advocated for an innovation district linked to UC Davis, extensive upzoning to meet housing needs, annexation of UC Davis and El Macero, a comprehensive flood control master plan, and public-private partnerships using surplus city land.
  • Recreation and Park Commission (Chair Tony Marigo): Stressed that new housing should be within a 5-minute walk of parks (currently 35–55% depending on concept), connectivity between neighborhoods, and adequate funding for park maintenance and recreation programming. Raised concern about voter rejection of past Measure J/R/D expansions.
  • Social Services Commission (Co-Chair Patrick Curzon/others): Called for bold ambition to meet housing affordability goals (citing the 7,300-unit need), equity metrics, minimum density requirements on redevelopment sites, preservation of naturally occurring affordable housing, and exploring a transportation hub to Woodland.
  • Transportation Commission (Vice Chair Mark Huising): Proposed transportation benchmarks (e.g., car ownership per household, distance to trip generators) to reduce the $15,500/year average household car ownership cost. Supported infill over expansion due to existing infrastructure costs, and identified the intersection of Russell/113 as a logical high-density location.

Key Outcomes

• No formal votes were taken; commission feedback will inform continued refinement of land use concepts.
• Next steps include a community workshop on April 30, 2026, an online survey, pop-up events, and additional focus groups. Refined concepts will be presented back to the commissions in late summer/early fall 2026.
• The consultant team encouraged additional written feedback from commissioners via liaisons.