Walnut Creek commissioners urge clearer priorities on housing, general plan update and climate resilience

Members of the Walnut Creek Design Review Commission used their Jan. 15 meeting to provide input to the City Council's upcoming priority-setting discussion, urging clearer direction on housing, general plan updates and climate resilience.

Director Vandenbrand opened the agenda item and announced a special joint study session with the Planning Commission on Jan. 30 to review the citywide sign program and a related ordinance update. Commission members then discussed the council'proposed priorities for the next two years, which staff summarized as: diversity, equity and inclusion; economic development and job creation; environmental sustainability and climate action; and public safety and social wellness.

Commissioners raised multiple consistent concerns about how recent state housing legislation constrains local review and how that interacts with neighborhood fit. One commissioner said the city has seen several infill residential projects that "don't necessarily...fit in the neighborhood" and recommended stronger neighborhood outreach and design measures to "stitch" new projects into existing neighborhoods. Staff noted that state law now requires housing projects to be reviewed against objective design standards; two commission members had helped update those standards earlier.

Commissioners also recommended that the general plan update be considered as a council priority so the city can address infrastructure needs tied to new housing, such as roads, transit, parks and impact-fee priorities. One commissioner pointed out that impact fees remain a local funding source for those improvements but said prioritization in the general plan is needed to guide how funds are spent.

Several commissioners linked diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) to implementation, saying DEI should include concrete deliverables and measurable actions, particularly related to the economics of housing and who the housing serves. Commissioners discussed the recent example of an affordable housing project adjacent to a taller, state-guided housing project and expressed concern about the impacts on existing residents and the immediate neighborhood.

Climate and public-safety considerations also arose. Commissioners asked that climate action and public safety be integrated, noting wildfire risk and regional examples of catastrophic fire behavior. One commissioner said communities that updated codes after prior fires now fare better and urged the city to consider "hardening" measures and better disaster communication and evacuation planning as part of environmental sustainability work.

Director Vandenbrand said staff would summarize the commission's feedback and convey it to the City Council ahead of the Feb. 11 priority-setting discussion.