Sustainability Commission

City of Sunnyvale Meeting Minutes - Final Sustainability Commission Monday, September 19, 2016 7:00 PM West Conference Room, City Hall, 456 W. Olive Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94086 CALL TO ORDER Vice-Chair Srivastava called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. in the West Conference Room. SALUTE TO THE FLAG Vice-Chair Srivastava led the salute to the flag. ROLL CALL Present: 6 - Vice Chair Amit Srivastava Commissioner Brian Glazebrook Commissioner Dan Hafeman Commissioner Petya Kisyova Commissioner Kristel Wickham Commissioner Steven Zornetzer Absent: 1 - Chair Bruce Paton Commissioner Hafeman arrived at 7:03 p.m. Commissioner Glazebrook arrived at 7:04 p.m. Chair Paton’s absence is excused. Council Liaison – Pat Meyering (absent) PRESENTATION 16-0904 Building Energy Codes Diana Perkins, Permit Center Manager, and Amber Blizinski, Principal Planner, provided information to the Commission on the City’s current Building Code requirements and how they relate to the CalGreen Code and the City’s Green Building Program. The Commission asked clarifying questions about the City’s building code requirements for different types of projects, how inspections are conducted, and about the Green Building Program’s incentives. Commissioner Kisyova expressed concerned that energy efficiency was lacking in the current City of Sunnyvale Page 1 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 19, 2016 requirements and that energy efficiency should be emphasized. Commissioner Kisyova also expressed concerns with the effectiveness of third party certifications and that the LEED and Green Point Rated rating systems may be behind when the new CalGreen requirements go into effective on January 1, 2017. Commissioner Kisvoya also questioned the City’s ability to delegate review authority for certain CalGreen items to third parties because Building Officials are prohibited from delegating major functions to third parties. Staff clarified that it has been standard practice for both programs to update their checklists and scoring systems in response to changes to CalGreen. Commissioner Glazebrook asked if the City could look at focusing LEED points on specific areas based on local priorities such as transportation. Staff clarified that the City’s position has been to allow flexibility for project proponents to choose how they will obtain the required points. Staff responded that these types of considerations could be evaluated with the Green Building Program Update in 2017. Commissioner Wickham asked how the Commission could provide input to the update. Staff will include opportunities for Commissions to provide input as the work plan is developed for the update. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS None. CONSENT CALENDAR 16-0848 Approve the Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes of August 15, 2016 Commissioner Hafeman moved, and Commissioner Glazebrook seconded, a motion to approve the August 15, 2016 meeting minutes as submitted. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6 - Vice Chair Srivastava Commissioner Glazebrook Commissioner Hafeman Commissioner Kisyova Commissioner Wickham Commissioner Zornetzer No: 0 Absent: 1 - Chair Paton STANDING ITEM: CONSIDERATION OF POTENTIAL STUDY ISSUES 16-0714 Draft Study Issue: Solar-Ready Roofs Vice-Chair Srivastava provided a brief summary of the draft study and the intent. City of Sunnyvale Page 2 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 19, 2016 The Commission discussed the scope and clarified the objectives. Vice-chair Srivastava moved to sponsor the Study Issue because it is important for the City to continue to advance solar readiness. Commissioner Glazebrook offered a friendly amendment to fold this Study Issue into the 2017 Green Building Program Update. After discussion by the Commission, the motion died. Vice-Chair Srivastava moved, and Commission Zornetzer seconded, a motion that the Commission strongly recommends that staff consider enhancing the City’s solar ready requirements as part of the 2017 Green Building Program Update in lieu of a separate Study Issue on the topic. Commissioner Kisyova stated that she would not support the motion because the solar ready requirements are already included in State Building Code (Part 6 of the California Energy Code) and in recognition of the limited staffing resources available within the Community Development Department for Study Issues. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 5 - Vice Chair Srivastava Commissioner Glazebrook Commissioner Hafeman Commissioner Wickham Commissioner Zornetzer No: 1 - Commissioner Kisyova Absent: 1 - Chair Paton 16-0924 Draft Study Issue: Eliminate the Use of Chemical Pesticides on City Owned or Leased Property Commissioner Wickham provided a summary of the proposed study. The Commission discussed the objectives and scope. Commissioner Wickham moved, and Commissioner Hafeman seconded, a motion that the Commission sponsors the Study Issue as proposed. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 6 - Vice Chair Srivastava Commissioner Glazebrook Commissioner Hafeman Commissioner Kisyova Commissioner Wickham Commissioner Zornetzer No: 0 City of Sunnyvale Page 3 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 19, 2016 Absent: 1 - Chair Paton NON-AGENDA ITEMS & COMMENTS -Commissioner Comments Sustainability Speaker Series Subcommittee Report: Commissioners Wickham and Zornetzer provided an update on the development of the proposed plan for the Sustainability Speaker Series and gathered input from the Commission on the framing of the speaker series including potential themes, topics, and speakers. The subcommittee will continue to work on developing a proposal for the Commission to consider. Vice-Chair Srivastava reported on attending an El Camino Real Corridor Workshop. There were 200-250 people in attendance. One of the key take-aways from the workshop is that a recent poll of Sunnyvale residents found overwhelming support for shifting the El Camino Real Corridor towards denser residential land uses. This is a significant change from polling results from about three years ago which favored keeping the area as commercial and mixed use. This change is driven by residents’ desire to reduce traffic and to create a more walkable community in the area. Additional workshops will be scheduled. -Staff Comments Elaine Marshall, Environmental Programs Manager, reported that there were several study sessions and joint meetings scheduled in the next two months including: All Commissions Meeting on the Land Use and Transportation Element (September 22nd), City Council Study Session with Commission Chairs and Vice Chairs (October 25th), and City Council and Sustainability Commission Joint Study Session on the Climate Action Plan (November 1st). Additionally, Ms. Marshall announced that three sustainable landscape classes will be held in Sunnyvale starting in October and that she will send the schedule to the Commission. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:17 p.m. City of Sunnyvale Page 4