October 28, 2024: Multi-Family Residential Production - Council District 4

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Multifamily Program

• September 16: Developers - Meeting recording
• September 17: Advocates - Meeting recording
• September 26: Developer's Roundtable - Meeting recording
• Presentation

June 3, 2024: Downtown High-Rise Incentive Program

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• Presentation
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• Meeting summary

May 29, 2024: Downtown High-Rise Residential Program

• Meeting recording
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February 29, 2024: Downtown Residential High-Rise Program - Fee Discussion

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The City’s Parkland Dedication (PDO) and Park Impact Ordinances (PIO) require new residential development projects to satisfy a parkland obligation that is equivalent to dedicating three acres of land for public recreational use for every 1,000 new residents. Residential projects can comply with this obligation by a variety of means:

• Land Dedication: Dedicating a half an acre or more of land to the City of San José for recreational purposes;
• Fee Payment: Paying a park impact in-lieu fee that equals the value of the land dedication requirement;
• Park Development: Constructing new recreational facilities;
• Enhancement: Improving existing recreational facilities; or
• Combined Approach: Through a combination of these methods.

A Development’s parkland obligation must be contractually satisfied prior to the issuance of a Parcel Map, Final Map or Building Permit. Revenue gained from the payment of park impact in-lieu fees is deposited into the Park Trust Fund. The Park Trust Fund represents the second highest source of funding capital projects for the Department and supports several staff positions that administer the program.

Monies in the Park Trust Fund can only be spent on capital recreational projects. Capital projects include the acquisition of land, design and/or other studies that enable new construction, renovation, repair, expansion, or replacement of an existing public recreational facility. Per State law (the Quimby Act), these monies cannot be spent on maintenance or operation. Park Trust Fund dollars must be spent within ¾ of a mile of the residential development for a neighborhood serving capital project or within three miles for a regional or community serving capital project from the development project that supplies the funds.

The Parkland Fee Schedule (Resolution Number. 78474)1 lists all current park impact in-lieu fees and is typically modified annually to adjust the fees to reflect current land value prices consistent with land valuation studies.

While land valuations were last comprehensively evaluated in 2008, the method by which the City determines the land value calculations, geographic collection and spending locations, and the methods in which to grant credits towards the parkland obligation and expend resources, has not been comprehensively analyzed since the ordinances were adopted in 1988 (PDO) and 1992 (PIO).

Concurrently, the City is considering how its impact fee programs can be translated into a more transparent framework. The Office of Economic Development (OED) is leading an effort to address Council Priority #7: The Development Fee Framework. This framework aims to align three residential impact fee programs including: The Inclusionary Housing Ordinance, the PDO and PIO, and Construction Taxes. The work plan proposed for the PDO/PIO program will inform the effort of OED.

The overall process for the Fee Study is anticipated to take approximately 18 to 24 months to complete and is targeted to be presented to the City Council in December 2022.