(a) Applicability
The regulations set forth in this section shall apply to all office annual limit land uses that are established by new construction or through the conversion of existing development.
(b) Definitions
For purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the definitions below:
(1) "Office annual limit area" means the area shown in Exhibit A (attached to Ordinance No. 5439), comprising portions of the commercial districts of downtown, the California Avenue Area and the El Camino Real corridor.
(2) "Office annual limit land uses" shall include any of the following uses, each as defined in Section 18.04.030, in the office annual limit area:
(A) Research and development;
(B) Administrative office services;
(C) General business office;
(D) Medical office greater than 5,000 net new square feet; and
(E) Professional office.
(c) Office Annual Limit
No more than 50,000 net new square feet of office annual limit land uses per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30) shall be approved by the city in the office annual limit area.
(1) The 50,000 square foot limit imposed by this section shall not apply to exempt projects as defined in subsection (d) of this section and such projects shall not be counted towards this limit. However, if an exempt medical office project under subsection (d)(1) or exempt city office use under subsection (d)(3) is subsequently converted to a non-exempt office annual limit land use, the associated square footage shall be counted toward the 50,000 square foot limit for the fiscal year in which the conversion is requested or occurs.
(2) The 50,000 square foot limit shall apply to existing building area previously used by non-office annual limit land uses and converted to any of the office annual limit land uses.
(3) The removal of existing office annual limit land uses through demolition or conversion shall increase the amount of capacity available for allocation in that fiscal year by the amount of square footage removed.
(4) Unallocated square footage of office annual limit land uses shall be carried over to the next fiscal year and be available for allocation until the end of that fiscal year only.
(5) Notwithstanding subsections (3) and (4) above, at no time shall the annual office limit for a single fiscal year exceed 100,000 square feet.
(6) This restriction shall be in addition to any other applicable growth restriction including but not limited to Comprehensive Plan Policy L-1.10. In the event multiple policies apply to a project, the policy most restrictive of growth shall apply.
(d) Exemptions
The following projects shall be exempt from the office annual limit established by this section, provided that only one exemption shall be permitted per project site.
(1) Small Projects. Projects comprised of 2,000 net new square feet or fewer of office annual limit land uses, including accessory office space that is incidental to and customarily associated with a principal use or facility. This exemption shall be increased to 5,000 net new square feet or fewer where the net new square footage is devoted to medical office or nonprofit office use with a deed restriction to maintain the use for and by a nonprofit organization.
(2) Self-Mitigating Projects. Projects that would both: (1) provide rental housing for more workers than would be employed in the project; and (2) provide substantial transportation demand management strategies (individually or in cooperation with other projects or programs) to improve the current parking and traffic conditions.
(3) City Office Space. New office space used by the City of Palo Alto.
(e) Economic Hardship Waiver or Adjustment
An applicant may request that the requirements of this section be adjusted or waived based on a showing that applying the requirements of this section would effectuate an unconstitutional taking of property or otherwise have an unconstitutional application to the property.
The applicant shall bear the burden of presenting evidence to support a waiver or modification request under this section and shall set forth in detail the factual and legal basis for the claim, including all supporting technical documentation.
Any such request under this section shall be submitted to the director together with an economic analysis or other supporting documentation and shall be acted upon by the city council.
(f) Allocation of Office Square Footage for Projects Subject to the Office Annual Limit
(1) Office development capacity for office annual limit land uses shall be allocated upon approval of a planning entitlement, or a building permit or certificate of use and occupancy if no planning entitlement is required, in the order that the projects are approved.
(A) If a planning entitlement approved by the director is appealed to the city council, the project shall be allowed to retain the office allocation provided that the director's approval decision is upheld by city council. If the city council overturns the director's approval decision and denies the project, the office allocation shall be forfeited and made available to other projects.
(B) If the planning entitlement or building permit with which the project received an office allocation expires, the office allocation shall be forfeited and made available to other projects. A project that received an office allocation at issuance of a certificate of use and occupancy for the purposes of converting existing developed non-office space to one or more office annual limit land uses, shall forfeit its office allocation if the related building permit expires and the office allocation will be made available to other projects. However, if the expiration of the planning entitlement or building permit occurs in a later fiscal year than when the office allocation was made, the forfeited office allocation will only be made available to other projects if it would not cause the annual office limit for that fiscal year to exceed 100,000 square feet.
(2) If more than one project will be considered for approval on the same day, then the project with the earliest initial submittal date shall have priority in receiving office allocation.
(3) Projects that cannot be approved due to the office annual limit being reached for that fiscal year shall be considered for approval the following fiscal year.
(g) Implementation
The director shall have the authority to adopt rules or procedures for the efficient and equitable implementation of these regulations.
(Ord. 5439 § 2, 2018)