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Unite Here urges Burbank to require development agreements for hotels in Golden State specific plan
Summary
Two callers representing Unite Here Local 11 told the council the Golden State specific plan should require development agreements for hotel projects to protect land for housing and industrial uses and to secure enforceable community benefits; callers cited examples in Glendale and Santa Monica and said development agreements provide certainty for both city and developers.
Callers representing Unite Here Local 11 urged the Burbank City Council to require development agreements for hotel projects proposed in the Golden State specific plan area, arguing that hotels could occupy land intended for housing or job-producing industrial uses.
Charlie Carno told the council that the plan rezones large areas and allows hotels in many zones, and he asked that "the city require development agreements for hotel uses within the plan area" so hotel development is evaluated with the same rigor as other land uses. Griffin Joseph, also with Unite Here Local 11, reinforced that position and said development agreements let the city secure enforceable community benefits while giving developers certainty at approval. Joseph cited examples from other municipalities, saying similar approaches exist in Glendale and Santa Monica.
Both callers warned without "appropriate guard rails" hotel projects could displace housing-eligible sites and limit remaining industrial capacity. The callers noted that about "0.5" of hotels in the plan area were previously developed through development agreements (transcript phrasing), and they recommended extending that tool consistently to hotel uses to preserve housing and industrial land and to memorialize mitigation and amenities in exchange for development incentives.
The council did not take action during the public-comment segment; the testimony was part of the study-session materials the council planned to consider when it reconvened later in the day.
