The Proposed Deal

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At the April 22nd Planning Commission meeting, City planners and Pixar presented a set of  approvals and agreements that would allow Pixar to expand its corporate headquarters.  To meet Pixar's needs, the City proposes to make substantial changes to existing community plans and standards, including allowing higher buildings, selling City-owned land, and eliminating a planned street extension.  In exchange, the City has put some limitations on the headquarters expansion, required Pixar to make modest payments for infrastructure and Pixar has agreed to make a monetary contribution to the City for unspecified infrastructure or community services.  However, as discussed below, many see the development as inadequate.

What is the City giving Pixar?

Like most large-scale development approvals, the details can seem complicated and arcane.  We have highlighted the most important approvals and benefits to Pixar below:

General Plan Amendments

bulletChange the Circulation Map to eliminate Emery Street from the transportation grid and relocate the pedestrian/bicycle route next to eastern edge of Pixar's property.
bulletChange the Land Use Map to designate the Hollis property as commercial rather than industrial.
bulletChange the Building Intensity Map so that the new Hollis building can be more than one floor.

Conditions of Approval

bulletPixar will be allowed to build three buildings between 45 and 55 feet tall
bulletPixar will be allowed to build a parking garage up to 75 feet tall (the limits on height in surrounding neighborhood are 55 feet to the north, west and south and 30 feet to the east in the Triangle neighborhood).

Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan Amendment

bulletMove the planned bike route from Emery Street to the edge of Pixar’s property and downgrade it from Class II (bike lane) to Class I (bike path).

Sale of City-Owned Land

bulletThe Emeryville Redevelopment Agency (ERA) will swap City-owned parts of Emery Street for public ownership of the proposed bicycle path.
bulletThe ERA will sell a third parcel of land (currently the parking lot for the Hollis building) to Pixar for $287,380.

Zoning Amendments

bulletMake several zoning amendments, including re-zoning the Hollis property and changing the Building Height Map.

What is the City requiring of Pixar?

The proposed development agreements between Pixar and the City include several requirements of Pixar.  Some of these are standard conditions that all commercial developers must comply with in Emeryville while others are specific to this project.

Standard Development Fees

bulletPixar will contribute 1% of the costs of the total expansion to public art (as per ordinance Article 4, Title 3 of the Emeryville Municipal Code)
bulletPixar will pay for environmental mitigations required in the Mitigated Negative Declaration (as part of its compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act). 

Project Specific Conditions:

bulletPixar will contribute $500,000 for each of the remaining three construction phases (for a total of $1.5 million) to the City's general fund for infrastructure improvements or community services
bulletPixar will pay for several infrastructure improvements in the surrounding area, including: construction of a bicycle and pedestrian path, landscaping along its western fence, construction of curb and gutter improvements, and pedestrian improvements at nearby intersections.
bulletPixar must build Phase II and III within specific time limits or face monetary penalties.
bulletPixar will maximize sales tax revenue for the City (i.e., make Emeryville the point of sale for some products and services) as long as it does not cost Pixar any additional money.
bulletPixar has to submit a trip reduction plan to the City.

Unfortunately, the City has not provided an estimation of the value of the infrastructure improvements, so there is not way to estimate the total value of benefits to the community.

(For more details on the provisions of the Pixar agreements, call the City's Planning Department for a copy of the April 29th Planning Commission Agenda Report on the Public Hearing on the Pixar Animation Studios Expansion Project: 510-596-4307)

Does the development agreement adequately benefit Pixar neighbors?

While everyone agrees that Pixar being headquartered in Emeryville adds value to the community, not everyone agrees that the benefits spelled out in the headquarters expansion development agreements are adequate given the concessions the City is making for Pixar.  The relaxing of planning standards, such as height restrictions, and changes to the City's General Plan, are substantial changes that the community is making to meet Pixar's desires.  The community already gave up several streets and made changes to its General Plan for the initial project in order to accommodate Pixar's super-block campus.  The City has also generously used its powers and resources, such as land clean-up and conveyance of City property to meet the company's development needs.

 

Will there be negative impacts from the Pixar project that should be addressed?

As discussed in the Impact on the Community and Pixar MND sections of this website, the surrounding neighborhoods will face significant negative impacts from the expansion project, including the loss of affordable housing, potentially significant increases in traffic congestion and air pollution and blocked views from a six story parking garage.  Also, as EBASE has documented in Behind the Boomtown:  Growth and Urban Redevelopment in Emeryville, there are signs that many residents in the older parts of Emeryville are being displaced due to rising housing costs.  This displacement has occurred hand in hand with Emeryville's commercial transformation and the Pixar project may also indirectly put upward pressure on the local housing market in the Triangle neighborhood.

 

Will the $1.5 million fee be used to meet community needs?

The $1.5 million fee charged to Pixar in the development agreement is not targeted for specific community needs and could be spent on anything - including infrastructure on the waterfront, salary raises for top City officials or economic assistance to future developers.  Also, as it is tied to development phases, the second payment of $500,000 may take up to 10 years to materialize and the last payment even longer.

 

What about the new property taxes?

The City does and will benefit from increased property taxes – as with any new economic development project.  However, because Pixar is in a "redevelopment area," neither the $800,000 that they currently pay nor the new revenues will go to the City's general or special revenue funds.  These funds are the primary sources of money for community services such as the child development center and the senior center.  Instead, the new property taxes will go to the Emeryville Redevelopment Agency, an arm of the City that is legally required to spend its money to attract more development to the city and to meet State requirements to build affordable housing.

 

How can Pixar do more to meet community needs not addressed in the development approvals and agreements?

Many Emeryville residents and EBASE are calling on Pixar to provide more benefits to the community and to target those benefits to the greatest community needs through a "community benefits agreement."  To find out more about the proposed community benefits agreement, go to the Community Benefits page of this website.

 

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 This web page was prepared by the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE) a regional non-profit policy and research organization that aims to increase economic opportunities for working families.  For more information on EBASE, click here: Who is EBASE?  You can also send questions or comments to info@workingeastbay.org.
Last updated: 10/23/04.