Plan Orinda Adoption

City Council Adoption of Plan Orinda

On Tuesday, January 31st, the City Council considered and took the following actions related to the Plan Orinda project:

1. Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) -

   1. Certified the Final Environmental Impact Report;

   2. Adopted Findings under CEQA;

   3. Adopted a Statement of Overriding Considerations for impacts that were found to be significant and unavoidable;

   4. Adopted and incorporated into the Project all of the mitigation measures for the Project;

   5. Adopted the Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program for the Project;

2. Adopted the Downtown Precise Plan (DPP);

3. Adopted a General Plan Amendment to (1) Approve the 2023-2031 Housing Element Update, and (2) Approve the Safety Element Update; and

4. Authorized submittal of the approved 2023-2031 Housing Element Update to HCD for final certification.

What’s next for Plan Orinda?

Each component of the Plan Orinda project has its own next steps:

1. CEQA Environmental Impact Report - Following City Council certification and adoption of the CEQA components listed above, the City is required to file a Notice of Determination (NOD) with the County Clerk’s office. The NOD was filed on February 1, 2023. No further action is needed to implement the EIR at this time.

2. Downtown Precise Plan (DPP) - Next steps for the DPP will include amendments to the City’s existing documents to reflect the vision and guiding principles of the DPP and the draft Objective Design Standards. This will include amendments to the City’s General Plan, General Plan land use map, the Land Use Element of the General Plan, and Orinda Municipal Code.

3. Housing Element Update - The revised draft Housing Element must be submitted to HCD for a 60-day review and certification period. The adopted Housing Element was submitted to HCD on February 1, 2023. If the City obtains a letter of substantial compliance from HCD after the 60-day review, next steps would include rezoning and General Plan amendments to comply with the policies and programs of the Housing Element.

4. Safety Element Update - Following adoption of the Safety Element, the City will implement the goals and policies within the updated Element.