DEPARTMENT: Department of Planning & Community Development
DEPARTMENT HEAD: John Dugan, AICP
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Citywide
SUBJECT:
A briefing on the current status of the City of San Antonio’s three growth-related plans including the Comprehensive Plan, the Strategic Multi-Modal Transportation Plan and the Sustainability Plan, collectively named “SA Tomorrow.”
SUMMARY:
A briefing on the current status of the City of San Antonio’s three growth-related plans including the Comprehensive Plan, the Strategic Multi-Modal Transportation Plan and the Sustainability Plan, collectively named “SA Tomorrow.”
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Comprehensive Plan
Existing Conditions Report
MIG, the City’s lead Comprehensive Plan consultant, finalized San Antonio’s Existing Conditions Report that serves as a baseline for analyses informing the City’s comprehensive planning process. The Existing Conditions Report builds on research and analysis completed by Economic and Planning Systems (EPS) in 2014, which detailed the City’s infill development capacity, jobs and economic opportunities within the City Limits, and the fiscal impact of alternative development scenarios. These studies and reports will be used by the Plan Element Working Groups and consultant teams, and have been made available online for the public.
Plan Element Working Groups
The Plan Element Working Groups (Working Groups) are comprised of industry and community leaders drawn from the various organizations of the Comprehensive Plan Advisory Group and supplemented by subject matter experts identified by the planning team and their partners. In collaboration with these working groups and City staff, the MIG Team (Comprehensive Plan Consultants) facilitate the development of a series of topical policy papers that include assets, opportunities, and challenges, and that will be utilized in the formation of the City’s three growth-related plans. These papers will be a key step in the planning process and will provide the basis for more specific policy recommendations. The Plan Element Working Groups are:
• Housing
• Growth & Urban Form
• Historic Preservation
• Transportation & Connectivity
• Healthy Neighborhoods
• Public Facilities and Community Safety
• Military
• Jobs & Economic Competitiveness
• Natural Resources & the Environment
The second round of Plan Element Working Group meetings were held between May 26 through May 28, 2015 at the San Antonio Area Foundation. There were approximately 120 participants in attendance. The meetings focused on the baseline studies conducted by Economic and Planning Systems (EPS). Subsequently, working group members were polled on various issues related to their respective working group. The polling data results were utilized by MIG to develop initial goals and policies for each working group.
The third Plan Element Working Groups met between July 21 and July 23, 2015 at the South Pre-K 4 SA Center. The purpose of the meetings were to validate San Antonio’s existing conditions, provide input and feedback on the draft goals and policies of the Comprehensive Plan, and to discuss the implications of draft policies for future growth and urban form. The attendance at the meetings increased from the second round of working group meetings. In addition, the meetings included media coverage, robust dialogue and significant participation from partner agencies and various City departments.
Citizens Planning Institute
The Citizen Planning Institute (CPI) is comprised of residents appointed by the City Council (two per Council District) and the Mayor. The roles of the CPI members are to be both citizen-representatives in the development of the three-growth plans and to be growth plan ambassadors to their communities. The Institute is administered and staffed by the Department of Planning & Community Development, with instructors drawn from other department staff and volunteers from allied professions such as planners, architects, and engineers.
The first CPI meeting was held on June 23, 2015 and served as an introductory meeting.
The second CPI meeting was held on July 29, 2015 and provided an introduction to basic planning principles as well as an introduction to SA Tomorrow and the studies that have been completed to date.
Strategic Multi-Modal Transportation Plan
Since the SA Tomorrow kick off in April, the Multimodal Team has attended approximately 100 “go to them” meetings and has interacted with approximately 10,000 people. A small meeting series was held July 24 through August 5 to allow citizens advanced notice of a meeting time and place where they could engage with staff about the City’s transportation future. An interactive webinar we be held August 11. As the transportation team works with the Comprehensive Plan to develop goals and policies, technical analysis is underway by the consultant team to evaluate the City’s built and planned arterial roadway system. They also are exploring several new transportation scenarios the go beyond the scenario adopted by the Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, to test the impact of new connections, as well as, future scenarios with a greater mode shift to transit.
Sustainability Plan
The Office of Sustainability staff and consultant team have completed Phase I and II of four phases of the planning process. The Sustainability Forum was held on June 23rd, which provided the public a platform to learn about and help refine what sustainability means to San Antonio. The event had over 365 attendees who shared their ideas and concerns about air and water quality, economic vitality, social equity, land use decisions, transportation options, and much more. There was a diverse and energized turn-out for this inaugural event with active participation and packed rooms for the Forum’s various activities and speakers programs that were running concurrently.
Over the last quarter, the Office of Sustainability hosted the two of four Sustainability Plan Steering Committee Meetings on May 20th and June 24th that focused on reviewing best practices from around the country, developing draft goals, and brainstorming strategies for each goal. The Office of Sustainability also hosted a municipal leadership meeting for the Municipal Sustainability Plan (Lead by Example). This meeting informed City Leadership on the purpose and value of a municipal sustainability plan, and held a discussion on goals and priorities for the plan. Additionally, the Office of Sustainability hosted a vulnerability workshop on June 25th with the Resilience Advisory Committee as part of the Vulnerability Assessment component of the plan. This committee is made of first responders, City and County Departments and agencies, and local support agencies. The Committee participated in vulnerability and adaptability exercises as part of the process for the vulnerability assessment.
ISSUE:
This City Council “B” Session is a quarterly recurring “B” Session briefing to the entire City Council on the progress and future work associated with developing and completing the three growth plans. Significant milestones are scheduled for all three-growth related plans during the third quarter of 2015. It is projected that the three-growth related plans will be completed by the Spring of 2016.
ALTERNATIVES:
N/A
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with this briefing.
RECOMMENDATION:
This is a briefing for informational purposes only.