Redwood City Council Meeting - January 8, 2024: Fee Updates, Public Comments on Israel-Hamas Conflict, and Park Impact Fee Project List
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Redwood City Council Meeting – January 8, 2024
The Redwood City Council held its first regular meeting of 2024 on January 8, 2024, at 6:00 PM. The meeting included proclamations, extensive public comment on the Israel-Hamas conflict, approval of updates to development impact fees and utility capacity fees, and adoption of the park impact fee project list. All votes were 6-0 with Councilmember Aguirre absent.
Proclamations & Presentations
- Proclamation declaring January 15, 2024 as Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Redwood City – Presented to the Domini Hoskins Black History Museum and Learning Center. The museum will be open February 1–29, 2024, noon to 6 PM, featuring 22,000 square feet of African American history.
- Recognition of Samaritan House – Acknowledged the ongoing partnership with the city and Fair Oaks Community Center to fight poverty.
Public Comments & Testimony
The council modified public comment procedures, temporarily suspending Zoom comments due to regional disruptions. A total of 17 in-person speakers and 12 emailed comments (of 13 received) were presented. The vast majority of speakers addressed the Israel-Hamas war, urging the council to keep divisive foreign policy resolutions off the agenda. Speakers included members of Congregation Beth Jacob, Jewish community leaders, a Palestinian American Christian, and high school students.
- Support for keeping the conflict out of local government (16 of 17 speakers): Many expressed concern about rising anti-Semitism, cited bomb threats at Beth Jacob synagogue, and stated that ceasefire resolutions would divide the community and harm local Jewish residents. Speakers thanked the council for not agendizing a ceasefire resolution. Rabbi Levi Potash, Ilana Goldhaber Gordon, and others asked the council to focus on local issues. A high school student described harassment for wearing a Star of David.
- Call for a ceasefire (1 speaker): Seema Shami, a Palestinian American Christian, described her aunt and cousins sheltering in a Catholic church in Gaza with no access to electricity, clean water, food, or medicine, and urged the council to have a voice for ceasefire.
- Emailed comments: 12 emails were read into the record. Most urged the council to avoid foreign policy resolutions; one comment supported the permanent pedestrian mall on Broadway, and another expressed concern about park impact fees for ADUs.
- Mayor's response: The mayor reaffirmed the council is united against hate and apologized for hate speech experienced by community members, reaffirming the city's commitment to respectful dialogue.
Consent Calendar
Items 7B through 7G were approved in a single motion (6-0).
- 7B: Resolution of intention to establish a pedestrian mall on the 2000 block of Broadway and on Redwood Creek.
- 7C: Acceptance of FY2022 FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant ($1,320,578) and award of master purchasing agreement to Motorola Solutions ($1,446,572).
- 7D: California Health and Safety Code Section 13146.4 Fire Department State Mandated Inspections Reporting.
- 7E: Review and acceptance of Development Impact Fees report for FY ending June 30, 2023.
- 7F: Approval of December 18, 2023 City Council minutes.
- 7G: Approval of claims and checks from January 8 to January 22, 2024.
Discussion Items
Item 7A – Agreement for Services for Redwood Life Project (pulled from consent for discussion)
- Councilmember Howard requested clarification on questions raised during public comment regarding consultant qualifications and community engagement. City Manager Diaz confirmed all consultant costs are funded by the applicant. Community Development Director Schwab explained that the optional tasks are included in the total contract price and that the community engagement strategy will be shared with the council before outreach. The motion to approve passed 6-0.
Item 8A – Adoption of Nexus Study and Impact Fee Updates for Transportation, Water, and Sewer
- Staff presented a comprehensive update of fees, some of which had not been revised since 1995 (sewer) or 2007 (water). The transportation impact fee (TIFF) was last updated in 2012. The proposed fees are based on a nexus study and growth projections to 2040.
- Key adjustments: Downtown residential TIFF reduced by 38%; general retail reduced by 80%. The water and sewer capacity fees are recommended at 100% of the justified amount. The TIFF is recommended at 50% for the first six months, then 100%, to allow completion of a fee burden analysis in February 2024.
- Public comment: One emailed comment from Tishman Speier expressed concern about the TIFF increase on the 2300 Broadway project and asked for a delay until the fee burden analysis is complete.
- Council discussion: Members noted the city’s fees remain low compared to peers, and that the fee burden analysis will inform future policy decisions on affordable housing, ADUs, and downtown incentives. The motion to approve the staff recommendation (including the 50% phase-in for TIFF) passed 6-0.
Item 8B – Adoption of Updated Park Impact Fee Project List
- Staff presented the required annual capital improvement plan for the park impact fee program under AB 602. The list includes 30 specific projects plus land acquisition goals for neighborhoods with deficiencies. The current ratio is 2.25 acres per 1,000 residents, below the adopted goal of 3 acres per 1,000.
- Public comment: One emailed comment from a resident asked the council to consider waiving or reducing the park impact fee for ADUs over 750 sq ft.
- Council discussion: Councilmembers discussed equity metrics, walkability, and the need to factor in privately held open space. Vice Mayor Espinoza Garnica requested a future study on synthetic turf and expressed interest in focusing projects on equity priority communities. The motion to adopt the project list passed 6-0.
Key Outcomes
- Votes: All actions passed 6-0 (Councilmember Aguirre absent).
- Fee updates: Approved new transportation impact fee (50% for first six months, then 100% of nexus), water capacity fee (combined two previous fees, 100% of nexus), sewer capacity fee (100% of nexus), and user fee adjustments. Effective 60 days after second reading on January 22, 2024.
- Park impact fee project list: Adopted for FY 2023-24.
- Next steps: Fee burden analysis to be presented in late February/early March 2024; second reading of fee ordinances on January 22, 2024.
- Ad hoc committee: The SR 84/US 101 interchange ad hoc committee (meeting Jan 5, 2024) reported on right-of-way and fundraising efforts, including a federal RAISE grant application in February.
- City manager updates: A children’s swap event at the library on January 18, 2024, and a biannual resident satisfaction survey beginning January 17, 2024.
Meeting Transcript
Well, good evening, everyone, and welcome to Redwood City. Welcome to our first meeting of 2024. Um, and I hope we everyone had a happy new year and uh a nice holiday season. We're continuing to offer in-person and remote options for our city council meetings. However, due to continued recent disruptions during public comment at open meetings throughout our region and state, we've modified our public comment procedures until further notice. The city welcomes public comment on topics within the city's subject matter jurisdiction, and this can be provided in person during the meeting or by email ahead of the meeting. At this time, we're temporarily suspending public comments by Zoom. We want to ensure that the city can continue to conduct the city's business in a manner that allows all residents to participate. We are currently re-evaluating our public comment procedures and we'll share an update soon. Our public comment procedures for items on the agenda or within the city's subject matter jurisdiction are as follows. Public comment is taken in person during the meeting or in advance via email as outlined on the agenda. In-person speakers must turn in a speaker card to the city clerk at the dais to be recognized to speak. Comments that were received by 5 o'clock PM today may be read into the record by the city clerk. All public comment received by 5 o'clock will be made part of the final meeting record. Both in-person and emailed comments are subject to the same time limit. Lastly, if we have a high volume of comments this evening, we may decrease the time allotted for each comment or limit the local time for public comment.org so that we can see your comments and that they would card the meeting records. But before we move to closed session, I'd like to turn it over to the clerk for any public comment on the closed session item. Well good evening again and thank you for joining us. Thank you for your patience the council. No reporter action this evening. So now we'll begin our presentation and acknowledgment part of our council meeting. This is a month long initiative to raise awareness. Poverty is about not having enough money to meet basic needs, including food, clothing, and shelter. We're really proud of the ongoing partnership that we have with the city and with Fair Oaks Community Center, ensuring that our communities most vulnerable or are uh fed, clothed, healthy, and housed. I want to thank you again for your ongoing support of Samaritan House and for uh working with us to fight poverty and lift lives. Alec, thank you and thank the Samaritan House and everyone, the board and all the volunteers for making a difference in River City. I'm going to come down and present this proclamation to you and ask counsel to join us in the front for a photo. So, Alec. Thanks. As you know, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. dedicated his life to the principle that we as a people have achieved and can continue to achieve nonviolent social change. I'd like to take a moment to read a few excerpts from this proclamation this evening. Whereas Dr. King was a great orator and leader whose eloquent message influenced his country to integrate peacefully and resulted in the passing and signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. And whereas Dr. King received the Nobel Priest Prize in 1964 for his constant adherence to the principles of nonviolence in the face of frequent th threats. So now therefore it be resolved on behalf of the City Council. We do hereby proclaim January 15th, 2024 in Redwood City as Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and encourage all residents to recommit themselves to the principle of justice and equality for all. On behalf of the Domini Hoskins Black History Museum and Learning Center, I would like to thank you for this honor. The museum started in part because of Dr. King. Throughout history, we know that all races and nationalities marched and died with Dr. King because of the injustice to African Americans. So today we honor him because of what he stood for. Freedom and justice for all people. So I invite you to come and visit the Domini Hoskins Black History Museum and Learning Center to help keep his dream alive. We are unstoppable, proud, strong, fearless, and inspiring. The museum will open February 1st through the 29th from 12 noon to 6 p.m.
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