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Excerpts of Planning Commission Minutes UNAPPROVED/DRAFT April 23, 2009 <br />Agenda No. 09-08 Page 4 of 5 <br />differently than in the past. Even in a period of restored economic growth, it may be impractical to revert <br />to the old way. <br />Commissioner Finberg agreed that although business is slow now, in busy times both the Planning <br />Commission and BZA have regular meetings with full agendas. She said San Leandro has been known for <br />its business-friendly climate, which is why the City has been able to attract so many good, strong <br />companies. If our processes were to mean longer lead times and more delays, she fears that companies <br />might bypass San Leandro and then move on to another city where they could get in more quickly. That <br />would endanger potential tax revenues, which could have long-term effects on the City. On the other <br />hand, she said, it might have made more sense to have delayed tonight's meeting until there was at least <br />one more item for the agenda, and have one "beefy" meeting rather than two "mini" meetings. She said <br />she hates to think about dampening the City's friendly business climate and the potential for tax revenues; <br />those are her two biggest concerns looking toward the future. <br />Commissioner Abero echoed Commissioner Finberg's thought that we want to remain business-friendly <br />and process things quickly because it does attract businesses into the community, which increases <br />revenue. She asked whether it has been considered moving to a single Planning Commission meeting a <br />month and one BZA meeting a month during slow times. That would not incur any retraining costs and <br />have the same impact on staff costs as merging the two bodies. When the workload increases, the <br />situation could be addressed. <br />Mr. Sims, emphasizing that no decisions have been reached, said that a reduced schedule was and is <br />under consideration. The City Council is very much aware of that alternative, and he and Ms. Livermore <br />have talked about it. He agrees that from a staff point of view it would be the same until the level of <br />activity increases and each group would have to meet more often. <br />Secretary Livermore added a point of clarification, that it was the City Council's Rules Committee that <br />talked about this. <br />Mr. Sims said that it was both the Rules Committee and the City Council; it started with the City Council <br />and was referred to the Rules Committee. <br />Commissioner Collier would prefer keeping the Planning Commission and the BZA separate because a <br />lot of property in the City will be changed somehow at some point. There is a considerable amount of <br />underutilized property, some industrial and some commercial. If interest rates and property prices remain <br />low, we could experience amini-boom. In the meantime, she would like to see both Planning <br />Commission and BZA have one meeting per month, with the possible option -when needed - of having <br />the second meeting as a continuation of the first or called as a special meeting. For instance, if staff <br />determines that the Kaiser proposal will take six hours in the Planning Commission, there would be two <br />meetings that month. Reduced meeting frequency makes more sense, Commissioner Collier said, than <br />dropping something that would be difficult to bring back when circumstances change. <br />Commissioner Brannan said she shares the sentiments of fellow Commissioners who have already <br />spoken. She does not want to see us "shooting ourselves in the foot" at the cost of what we can do for <br />businesses for some short-term gain under difficult economic circumstances. She favors continued cost- <br />cutting efforts. For instance, she considers delivery of Planning Commissioners' packets unnecessary, the <br />exception rather than the rule. They could go in the mail unless they are very large, in which case delivery <br />might be more practical. She agrees with Commissioner Ponder that online packets would streamline <br />delivery -either downloaded or emailed. She also said it sounds as if it would cost more trying to <br />combine the BZA and the Planning Commission than the savings it would produce. <br />Commissioner Reed thanked Mr. Sims for his presentation, which summarized the situation quickly and <br />well. The delays in approvals, business licenses and so on that would come with the actions described <br />bother him because San Leandro takes pride in being business-friendly and stands out in that sense from <br />other communities. From a practical standpoint, the potential loss of revenue from business licenses and <br />