Following a nation-wide search, the City of Fresno selected Mr. John Dugan as the City's new Planning and Development Director. He will begin work on September 1. Based on what I know of his background (I don't know him personally), he is an excellent choice.
Mr. Dugan's academic credentials are impressive: Master's Degree in City Planning from Harvard's Graduate School of Design and Kennedy School of Government. It's his experience, however, that should be a great asset to Fresno. Let's begin by looking at his current position as Deputy Director of Planning for the City of Los Angeles, where he manages the city's community planning programs. We will then turn to his experience as the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Planning Director. But first, Los Angeles.
Three cities have implemented different approaches to combat vacant building space and spur growth in depressed areas, typically downtown or industrial areas. Denver, New York City and Los Angeles have all developed adaptive reuse ordinances to provide incentives to property owners to reoccupy their buildings for housing and commercial purposes. Though Denver was the first to implement an adaptive reuse ordinance, Los Angeles has had the most success. As of 2006, Los Angeles had already reused 3,700 buildings, while 5,400 buildings were finishing the process, and 7,000 buildings had applied to the program but had not yet begun the work. These numbers are much higher today.
The Los Angeles Adaptive Reuse Ordinance provides several substantial incentives for building owners. First, the ordinance relaxes the building codes applicable to the building. This means that buildings in commercial zones could be held accountable only to residential building codes when adapted for reuse. Residential building codes are less strict in their requirements for indoor lighting, parking spaces, proper number of restrooms, etc. Second, the ordinance includes "by-right processing" - the property owner can bypass Planning Commission approval, Council approval, and environmental approval because: 1) the building already exists; 2) the adaptive reuse is only applied to the interior of the building (and minor exterior work); and 3) the ordinance includes a "Master EIR" for the Los Angeles downtown area. The owner only has to obtain the proper permits for the rehabilitation work and is only subjected to inspection fees, not any of the other fees associated with the development process (i.e. Planning Commission and EIR fees). Finally, the Los Angeles adaptive reuse ordinance also exempts the owner from any development fees and restrictions, including typical floor area ratios and open space requirements. Moreover, street fees or infrastructure fees are not levied against the property, even if significant rehabilitation is involved.
As a former City of Fresno Councilmember, I brought forward in 2006 and the Council discussed options for working with Planning and Development staff , staff from the Economic Development Department, and staff from the Redevelopment Agency to address the vacant space problem in Downtown. Fresno, however, faces an unique situation when addressing this problem. Unlike Denver, Los Angeles and New York City, Fresno does not benefit from high rent prices in Downtown. Reuse projects in Los Angeles are immediately economically viable because the buildings are tall and rent is high, translating into significant revenue from housing uses (many rooms x high rent), giving developers financial "cover" while the investment for office use, which takes longer to turn a profit, matures. Adaptive reuse is more profitable in Los Angeles, Denver, and New York City because it is cheaper and easier than redevelopment, both of which could combine housing and office elements. Consequently, while staff was asked to look into an adaptive reuse ordinance in Fresno, they were also asked to study what types of incentives will encourage developers to reuse vacant downtown buildings.
Additionally, the type of vacant building is a factor. Staff was asked to evaluate the types of buildings that constitute the 1,926,364 square feet of vacant space in Downtown. Not all buildings present viable options for reuse. Many single-story buildings - particularly, large, single-story industrial warehouses - are not good candidates for adaptive reuse projects because they are not profitable for the developer.
Fresno's ordinance needed to provide as many options as possible for projects that pose challenges to reuse. Previous reuse projects in Fresno, especially the JC Penny Building on the Fulton Mall and the Hotel Fresno, provide examples of effective and ineffective, approaches. Staff was asked to examine those case studies for clues to how a comprehensive ordinance will quicken the process. As a former council member, I requested and the Council directed in September 2006 that City staff develop an adaptive reuse ordinance for Fresno. Staff was asked to consider tailoring the Los Angeles adaptive reuse ordinance, or others, to Fresno or to create an original ordinance specific to Fresno.
Staff was further directed to provide incentives that would encourage developers to reuse vacant buildings, especially in downtown. The need for an adaptive reuse ordinance was expressed during Mayor Swearengin's public hearing a few months ago on downtown Fresno. City of Fresno staff, surprisingly, responded that nothing had been done to develop an adaptive reuse ordinance. This lack of progress on an adaptive reuse ordinance was disingenuous at best, particularly after assuring the Council numerous times since 2006 that one was being developed.
I encourage Mayor Swearengin to take advantage of Mr. Dugan's experience in Los Angeles and be more proactive than former Mayor Autry in insisting on having staff immediately prepare an adaptive reuse ordinance for Council and public consideration.
Mr. Dugan's experience in Los Angeles would probably be enough to move Fresno forward. Fortunately, he also combines experience as the Planning Director for the City of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma where, working in tandem with a visionary mayor, was largely responsible for a major renovation of their downtown, something badly needed for Fresno. I would encourage readers to visit http://www.okccvb.org/ for an overview of the City or, better yet, http://www.bricktownokc.com/ for a view of their bustling Bricktown Business and Entertainment Center.
Welcome, Mr. Dugan. Financial constraints are a challenge, but your experience, vision and hard work can make Fresno a FresYes.
Coming Soon. . .
1). Amidst all the problems, California is a wonderful place to live.
2). Will California compete in President Obama's "Academic Race to the Top?"
Your comments are welcome: Click on "comments" below or e-mail abriancalhoun@gmail.com.
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