Subject: Review and Comment on the Railyards Specific Plan Amendment related to the Major League Soccer Stadium and Bicycle Network (P15-040)

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1 Report to LANNIN AND DESIN COMMISSION City of Sacramento 915 I Street, Sacramento, CA o: Members of the lanning and Design Commission SAFF REOR September 8, 2016 Subject: Review and Comment on the Railyards Specific lan Amendment related to the Major League Soccer Stadium and Bicycle Network (15-040) Location/Council District: enerally east of Sacramento River, south of City Water reatment lant and North B Street, west of 12 th Street, north and west of the Alkali Flat neighborhood, north of H Street between 5 th and 7 th, and northwest of 5 th and I Street ANs: , , , , , , , , , , , Council District 3 Recommendation: Staff recommends the Commission provide review and comment on the proposed Major League Soccer sports complex and the proposed amendment to the 2016 City Bicycle Master lan. Contact: eresa Haenggi, Associate lanner, (916) thaenggi@cityofsacramento.org Evan Compton, Senior lanner, (916) ecompton@cityofsacramento.org Richard Rich, Railyards roject Manager, (916) rrrich@cityofsacramento.org Applicant: Owners: Jay Heckenlively, Downtown Railyard Ventures, LLC Downtown Railyards Ventures, LLC 3140 eacekeeper Way, McClellan, CA (LLC Members: Larry D. Kelley, Denton Kelley, Jay Heckenlively, Frank Myers, and Alan Hersh) City of Sacramento, 915 I Street, Sacramento, CA State of California, 455 olden ate Ave. #8, San Francisco, CA SMUD,.O. Box 15830, Sacramento,

2 Railyards Specific lan Amendment (15-040) September 8, 2016 Summary Staff is seeking review and comment from the lanning and Design Commission on two entitlements required for the Sacramento Railyards project: I. Site lan and Design Review for a major league soccer sports complex; II. Amendment to 2016 City Bicycle Master lan; and All documents related to this project are provided on the City s website at: rojects/railyards-roject/sacramento-railyards Entitlement Background: In June of 2015, an application was submitted for the Railyards, including a request to modify the land use plan to allow for a soccer sports complex and a major medical center. Due to the complexity of the proposal, different aspects of the project have been presented to the lanning and Design Commission for review and comment on five occasions, including a joint commission meeting with the reservation Commission. ublic/neighborhood Outreach and Comments: Staff sent a hearing notice to owners of properties within a 500-foot radius of the project site and to various neighborhood groups and associations, including the Alkali and Mansion Flat Neighborhood Association, Dreher ract Neighborhood Association, River District, reservation Sacramento, Downtown Sacramento artnership, Midtown Business Association, China Mall Committee, Old Sacramento Business Association, Sacramento Housing Alliance, Walk Sacramento, and Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates. Staff received one correspondence from a property owner in the Creamery Development who expressed concerns about the noise level of construction and operation of the Sports Complex. (See Attachment 4.) he applicant is conducting an extensive outreach effort, which will continue throughout the entitlement process. Environmental Considerations: he City Council certified an environmental impact report (EIR) as part of its approval of the Railyards Specific lan in Amendments to the Railyards Specific lan, Design uidelines, and Special lanning District, and the Kaiser ermanente and MLS sports complex project proposals for development will be evaluated in a Subsequent Environmental Impact Report (SEIR) that includes a complete project description, identification of potential significant effects, mitigation requirements, and an evaluation of alternatives. he draft SEIR has been circulated for a public review period which ended July 27, Certification of the SEIR is required before approval of any project component. 2

3 Railyards Specific lan Amendment (15-040) September 8, 2016 ENILEMEN DISCUSSION I. Major League Soccer (MLS) Sports Complex roject Description. he MLS sports complex would be constructed initially with seating for 19,621 attendees and the capacity to accommodate concerts with an attendance up to 21,500 people. he sports complex could be expanded to a maximum of 25,000 attendees over time. he seating bowl of the sports complex would include general seating, standing room decks, and premium seating including suites. he seating areas would be accessed via a concourse area that would surround the seating bowl. here is an entry at grade via the 8 th Street plaza and on the north side. Sports Complex Site lan and Design Review he lanning and Design Commission has heard several components of the MLS sports complex including: March 24, 2016: eneral lan Amendments and Rezones May 12, 2016: Specific lan, Design uidelines and Special lanning District June 30, 2016 (Joint Commission Meeting): Stadium design August 11, 2016: Noise variance, event parking, 10 th Street extension, and shifting the stadium to the north. For the purposes of this Review and Comments, staff will address security fencing at the proposed sports complex and continue the discussion on shifting the stadium site to the north. Future lanning and Design Commission Meeting will include MLS-related items, such as parking lot conditional use permit and lighting. Shifting the Sports Complex In response to recent discussions, the applicant team submitted a revised site plan that shifts the sports complex structure approximately 40 feet to the north towards North B Street. he revised site plan proposed to shift the stadium to the north and to reduce the structure s footprint by an additional 10 feet on all sides of the stadium. hese modifications result in an additional 10-foot increase of space on the east and west sides of the site, and 50 feet of additional space on the south end, thus placing the structure farther away from the Alkali Flats neighborhood. Staff believes this new siting is beneficial to the stadium and the overall Railyards site because it provides a fully contained loading and staging area with sidewalks, thereby minimizing pedestrian conflicts with service and delivery vehicles. he full site plan is provided in Attachment 1. 3

4 Railyards Specific lan Amendment (15-040) September 8, 2016 Figure #: South Side of Sports Complex Site with Stadium Shifted to the North 4

5 Railyards Specific lan Amendment (15-040) September 8, 2016 ates and Security Fencing he proposed sports complex has two primary gates and fencing systems. One is a fixed arrangement that consists of permanent fencing around the perimeter of the stadium structure with access at permanent gates that lead into and out of the stadium. he second proposed gate and fencing system is temporary and generally placed at the outer edges of the site. he temporary fencing will be used to block off the plaza area and take tickets at specific entry points. A third permanent fencing system only occurs at the southern end of the stadium where the delivery and loading area is, and at northern portion of the site that abuts private property just north of the 10 th Street extension. he primary function of this permanent fencing is to secure the site. While staff understands the need to create a safe and secure site for event attendees, staff s attention regarding gates and fences is focused on three areas discussed below. Limits Access to the laza. he temporary fencing around the stadium site during events may limit the use of the plaza area and forego opportunities to create a vibrant quasi-public space that would activate the area around the stadium before, during and after events. Creates a Bottleneck at the emporary ates. According to the plans, security precautions and event tickets will be processed at the temporary gates. Event attendees will be on the outside of the perimeter fence waiting to get in. his has potential to create a back-up of pedestrians which may cause pedestrian/bike/vehicle conflicts. Materials of Fencing. It is important that the materials of both the permanent and temporary fencing are of good quality to ensure a level of upkeep and quality to the site which will insure the stadium is a valuable asset to the community. he most current version of the security fencing plan does not indicate the materials to be used, though earlier versions included chain-linked fencing. Staff believes that quality materials such as tubular steel fencing are necessary to retain the high quality of experience and design that the MLS stadium strives to achieve. Also, staff would like the applicant to explore ways to rely on the permanent gates and fencing for security, thus leaving the plaza active and safe. he gate and fencing plan is found in Attachment 2. II. Amendment to the Bikeways Master lan he 2016 City Bicycle Master lan was developed to serve the recreational and transportation needs of the public. his document was adopted by the City of Sacramento on April 11, 1995 and has since undergone several updates and revisions, the most current update was approved on August 16, he current master plan bikeways within the Railyards is based on the 2007 Sacramento Railyards approvals. 5

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8 AACHMEN A: MLS Site lan SOUH ARK SREE CL 4% 100% SD CENER OF ICH ( = 0, Y = 0, Z = 0) ADA AH ROOSED CENER OF ICH ( = 0, Y = 40, Z = 0) " 22'-0 LANDSCAE MIIAION ROOSED SIE LAN : OION 3A - SADIUM FOORIN REDUCED BY 10' ON ALL SIDES - SADIUM SHIFED 40' NORH - AINED 50' ON SOUH, 10' ON EAS, 10' ON WES 0 8' 16' 32' 64' 128' SCALE: 1/32" = 1' - 0" EVEN LEVEL 8

9 AACHMEN 2: erimeter Fencing and ates 100% SD CENER OF ICH ( = 0, Y = 0, Z = 0) LANDSCAE MIIAION " 22'-0 ROOSED CENER OF ICH ( = 0, Y = 40, Z = 0) ADA AH SECURIY ERIMEER DIARAM ERMANEN AE SECURIY / ICKEIN ERMANEN SECURIY FENCE EMORARY SECURIY FENCE ERMANEN SECURED ERIMEER ROOSED SIE LAN : OION 3A - SADIUM FOORIN REDUCED BY 10' ON ALL SIDES - SADIUM SHIFED 40' NORH - AINED 50' ON SOUH, 10' ON EAS, 10' ON WES 0 8' 16' 32' 64' 128' SCALE: 1/32" = 1' - 0" EVEN LEVEL 9

10 4% LANDSCAE MIIAION " 22'-0 ROOSED CENER OF ICH ( = 0, Y = 40, Z = 0) ADA AH 100% SD CENER OF ICH ( = 0, Y = 0, Z = 0) SECURIY ERIMEER DIARAM ERMANEN AE SECURIY / ICKEIN ERMANEN SECURIY FENCE EMORARY SECURIY FENCE ERMANEN SECURED ERIMEER ROOSED SIE LAN : OION 3A - SADIUM FOORIN REDUCED BY 10' ON ALL SIDES - SADIUM SHIFED 40' NORH - AINED 50' ON SOUH, 10' ON EAS, 10' ON WES 0 8' 16' 32' 64' 128' SCALE: 1/32" = 1' - 0" MAIN CONCOURSE 10

11 Bercut St Richards Blvd AACHMEN 3: Bicycle lan Sacramento River Bike rail KEY Site RS Boundary Area N 7th St arks/open Space Water N B St ublic Easements roposed Bicycle Network roposed Bridge Jibboom St South ark St. Huntington St Railyards Blvd Camille Lane Stanford St 5th St Judah St 6th St 7th St 8th St 10th St N B St N 12th St Class 1 - rail Class 1 - rail (Easement on rivate roperty) Class 2 - Lane Class 3 - Route Class 4 - rotected Lane edestrian unnel Stevens St Existing Bicycle Network D St C St Class 1 - rail Class 2 - Lane E St Class 3 - Route edestrian unnel F St SACRAMENO RIVER Interstate 5 3rd St 4th St 5th St 6th St 7th St 8th St I St H St St 9th St 10th St 11th St 12th St 13th St 14th St 15th St 16th St Base Information Source: Sacramento rid 2.0 referred Bicycle Network N ,000 ft SOURCE: AECOM, June 6, 2016 Sacramento Railyards Specific lan Update Figure 2-15 Bike lan 11

12 AACHMEN 4: Comment Letter eresa Haenggi From: Sent: o: Subject: eresa Haenggi uesday, August 30, :30 AM eresa Haenggi FW: Railyards Comments From: Charles ickrell Date: August 14, 2016 at 1:34:23 AM D o: ecompton@cityofsacramento.org Cc: <web@kcra.com>, <shubler@sacbee.com> Subject: Rail yards project amendment for MLS Dear Mr. Compton, I have just recently purchased a new home in the Creamery subdivision. I have just learned from your report that the new MLS stadium will also host concerts that will drive very high noise levels in the Creamery subdivision and next to the KCRA studios. I would ask that the city make alterations to the development plan for the stadium to mitigate this permanent noise pollution that will reduce our quality of life for families and negatively impact our property values. Changes could be made to the stadium, or the introduction of physical sound barriers between the stadium and the residential areas just to the south of it. I would also like to state that I'm concerned the proposal mentions a 10th street extension into the Rail Yards that will drive significant amounts of traffic into this residential neighborhood without displaying diagrams of this requested extension, a traffic study, and impact to street parking for local residents. Stadium visitors will likely want to use street parking here and walk two blocks to the new stadium. Finally there is a request for a construction noise variance to allow building for 16 hours a day, six days a week for the duration of the entire construction period. According to the draft EIR this will include pile-driving supports for the stadium. Again this will make it nearly impossible for families and businesses to function with these significant noise levels for 16 hours non-stop. I urge you to look into alternative solutions to mitigate this construction noise pollution. Sincerely, Charles ickrell lanning and Design Commission Report