Burbank council orders legislative push and environmental review as SB 79 looms

The Burbank City Council on Tuesday moved to push back against parts of California’s new SB 79, directing staff to pursue cleanup language with state legislators, press regional agencies for clarity on which bus-rapid-transit stops qualify under the law, and seek additional environmental review tied to dedicated-lane BRT designs.

Staff presented a detailed analysis showing that SB 79 creates two tiers of transit-oriented development (TOD) stops and prescribes minimum densities and heights for qualifying sites. Principal planner Amanda Landry told the council that, under the city’s reading of the statute, three Tier 2 locations in Burbank are most likely to qualify — the Downtown Metrolink station and two Glen Oaks/Alameda-area stops — but that the law’s definitions are ambiguous for bus rapid transit (BRT) projects because the statute ties “stop” status to full-time dedicated lanes.

“Just because something is called a BRT doesn’t mean it automatically qualifies,” Landry said, noting staff’s analysis of underlying qualifying criteria and map overlays, including exclusions for very high fire hazard severity zones. She…