Progress on Palo Alto’s Community and Economic Recovery and a Look Ahead
In this fourth progress report, the City of Palo Alto highlights its continued efforts to fuel economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, from enhanced community engagement and opportunities to support community health and wellness to business support, and more.
Background
City Council adopted Palo Alto’s Community and Economic Recovery Workplan on March 22, 2021, and since then the City has made progress on all of the plan’s goals. The workplan splits 11 work items into four different focus areas:
· Manage through the pandemic
· Community wellness and wellbeing
· Focused business support
· Citywide priority initiatives
Below is an update on these four priorities and their respective work items.
Manage Through the Pandemic
With the Omicron variant still spreading in Santa Clara County, testing, vaccinations, and proper masking remain important tools to prevent community spread and reduce serious illness. Encouraging the use of these tools, providing resources for the community, and adapting services to meet public health requirements remain an ongoing City priority.
Maintaining Services While Managing Daily Pandemic Needs
Free Testing
The City continues to host free COVID testing sites by Curative every Tuesday at the Mitchell Park Library parking lot and every Wednesday at City Hall. County testing continues at the Art Center Auditorium on select dates; upcoming dates include Feb. 11 and Feb. 25. Visit cityofpaloalto.org/Testing for more information and to schedule an appointment.
Free Vaccines
The County of Santa Clara Public Health department continues to offer free vaccines, which are recommended for ages 5 and up unless otherwise directed by your doctor. Schedule your free vaccination appointment or get one through your local health provider.
City Vaccination Policy
In October 2021, the City implemented an employee vaccination policy, requiring all employees to report their vaccination status. Employees reporting their status as unvaccinated are required to test at least weekly; all sworn Fire personnel are required to test at the beginning of each shift. The latest update shows vaccination rates at 91% citywide (non-sworn employees), 87% sworn police and 97% sworn fire staff. No adverse employee actions have been required, as all employees have remained compliant with reporting and testing requirements.
In January 2022, the City announced a series of service changes in light of the current COVID-19 surge. They range from changes to library hours and temporary closures, to fully remote City Council meetings.
Mask Guidelines
The County is still requiring masks to be worn indoors. As the highly contagious Omicron variant caused a wave of cases unlike any previous wave, the County updated its masking guidelines to encourage the use of N95s, KN94s, and KF95s. These masks provide the highest level of protection. If you don’t have access to an N95 or an equivalent, the County encourages double masking. This means wearing a cloth mask on top of a surgical mask. Officials say that any mask is better than no mask, and social distancing is still recommended when possible.
Online Services
To minimize community spread and workplace exposures, the City is encouraging the public to access services virtually. Many services are being offered online, including virtual appointments with City employees, which saves the public a trip to City Hall.
Online services include registering for classes, parking permits and tickets, building permits and planning appointments, utility , and police reports.
The City had been conducting hybrid City Council meetings (in person and online) in November and December 2021. Because of the Omicron variant, City Council has moved to virtual only meetings in January 2022 and is assessing the return to a hybrid environment on an on-going basis. Boards and Commissions meetings remain online, based on City Council direction in Dec. 2021.
Community Wellness and Wellbeing
COVID-19 forced rapid change across the world. Such disruptions to everyday schedules and routines can be difficult for many to cope with. To help with this issue, Palo Alto’s Community and Economic Recovery Plan focuses City resources on community wellness and wellbeing.
Support Wellness and Wellbeing Through Community Events, Presentations, and Engagement
Special Events: The City continues to offer safe, yet interactive community events to support wellness and wellbeing through art, music, education, and nature.
· CODE:Art2 brought interactive and engaging art to the downtown area for three days in October.
· The Art Center hosted several events including the Great Glass Pumpkin Patch, Clay and Glass Festival, and The Art of Disability Culture, which closed on Dec. 11. The most recent exhibition, Creative Attention: Art and Community Restoration opened on Jan. 22. The exhibition showcases alternatives to our chaotic world of stress and anxiety, through practices of mending, healing, restoration, belonging, sustainability, and resiliency.
· The December Holiday Tree Lighting event also brought people to the downtown area.
· The Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo opened to the public in November, offering families a place to explore science and nature.
· A multitude events, programs and classes continue to be offered by the Library and Community Services Departments to engage all members of the community.
Race & Equity: Since the last progress report enhanced reporting on hate crimes was announced by the Police Department, along with a presentation by local law enforcement on the issue and a City blog post, Steps the Community Can Take to Help Stop Hate Crimes.
Community Health: Through a collaborative engagement by Santa Clara County and the City of Palo Alto, the Police Department deployed the long-awaited Psychiatric Emergency Response Team (PERT). The unit went out for their first shift on Nov. 21, 2021.
Unhoused: Supporting unhoused peoples continues to be a priority. Since the last progress report, the City has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) in early 2022 for contracted homeless outreach services with the goal of having a provider selected and services underway by summer 2022. Additionally, the City submitted its application for Project Homekey funding to the County of Santa Clara. Recruitment for an additional resource to support housing and unhoused initiatives will begin in the first quarter of 2022.
Sustainability and Climate Action: Each month, the Sustainability and Climate Action Plan (S/CAP) Ad Hoc Committee has been delving into various topics related to the S/CAP update and includes the City’s roadmap of strategies needed to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 80 percent by 2030 and other community-wide sustainability goals.
Sibling Cities: Former Palo Alto Mayor Tom DuBois and Bloomington, Indiana Mayor John Hamilton announced a proposal to establish the nation’s first Sibling Cities relationship. The relationship seeks to foster community building, further goodwill, and enhance civic dialogue and public policy discussions.
Focused Business Support
Businesses were hit hard in the early days of the pandemic. Since then, significant investments have been made to support the business community, from Uplift Local and outdoor dining to direct outreach and marketing opportunities.
Continue, and further Promote, Uplift Local and other Retail Supporting Strategies
The Uplift Local initiative was originally an effort to connect the community with outdoor activities. As this initiative has evolved, it has expanded to also connect community members with businesses in the City.
Monthly community check-in meetings were held by the City to hear from the community on their experiences with the program and for Staff to share County progress and recovery updates, Uplift Local changes, parking program updates and upcoming events and art exhibits. The City is transitioning the monthly meetings over to Chamber of Commerce control, and will continue to participate.
In December, the City assisted Cal Avenue with holiday decorations to help establish a vibrant holiday environment. Staff also supported University Avenue and surrounding downtown businesses with promoting a Holiday Cheer campaign, featuring local discounts and offerings during the season.
Support Workplace Environmental Upgrades to Mitigate Risks for Local Businesses
Since the last progress report, the City’s consultant has completed the assignment of providing technical support for workplace environmental upgrades, which help mitigate health and legal risks for local businesses.
Refine the Scope of the City’s Economic Support Activities
The City has finalized an RFP for a consultant to analyze Palo Alto’s business environment and shifts in the market due to the pandemic. The City expects to bring a contract to Council to review and approve before the end of FY 2022. In the meantime, the City is finalizing details for a new economic coordinator position and expects recruitment to begin in the first quarter of 2022.
City Priority Initiatives
The pandemic has slowed down many industries. As we try to find the new “normal,” work is underway to expedite Palo Alto’s plans for resiliency, a vibrant economy, and a thriving community.
Accelerate Fiber-to-the-Home
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the immediate need of providing high-speed and reliable internet for our community to support work, education and learning, health care, and delivery of government services.
Since the last progress report, the City launched the Palo Alto Fiber Community Hub to inform and engage residents and businesses on the Fiber-to-the-Home project. There is an interactive map where residents and businesses can express their interest in fiber and provide other feedback. The community hub also includes FAQs, factsheets, and ways to receive notifications about the project.
The City launched a social media campaign, began a video series about fiber, and will begin recruiting public ambassadors to host small group meetings to discuss fiber in early 2022. Here are Five Fiber Tips to Plug Into the Conversation.
Create a Downtown Redesign to Better Accommodate Cars, Pedestrians, and Bicycle Riders
To support businesses, increase foot traffic, and support multiple uses of this public space, the City is in the process of planning a downtown redesign. Since the last progress report, an RFP was issued for the improvement of University Avenue between Alma Street and Middlefield Road. The City expects to bring this contract to City Council for approval in Q3 of FY 2022.
Exploring Potential Ballot Measures
The City is exploring potential ballot measures to seek new sources of revenue to support new and existing City services. In late September, the Finance Committee directed staff to model a business license tax, based on a business’s square footage, to include recommendations of size thresholds and criteria for exemptions. The Committee also directed staff to research the feasibility of a utility use-based tax, and to conduct polling for both potential ballot measures. The first round of polling was completed in November and December 2021. After reviewing the data in January 2022, the Finance Committee solidified recommendations on next steps for the City Council to consider.
For more on this effort go to www.cityofpaloalto.org/fiscalsustainability
Recommended Updates to the Foothills Fire Management Plan, including a Foothills Fire Early Warning System
On August 30, 2021, Staff prepared report CMR 13479 for a Study Session regarding wildland fire. That study session — which included partners from CAL FIRE, Santa Clara County Fire, Midpeninsula Open Space, and Stanford University — can be viewed online. The report highlighted risks and reported on actions regional agencies, residents and non-profits are doing or can do to mitigate the risks, including education. In late January, a report was deferred for Council consideration to later in February responsive to the topics from the Study Session and the prior Informational Report, noting that implementation stretches existing resources and new projects require additional resources.
Read the full fourth progress report for more information on Palo Alto’s Community and Economic Recovery plan.
Other Resources
· Progress Report #3 Blog Post
· Community and Economic Recovery webpage
· Be Well and Stay Healthy Resources
· Subscribe to the Business Connect email list for business recovery topics in Palo Alto
· Learn more about the City’s Race & Equity efforts
· Join the Fiber conversation on the Palo Alto Fiber Hub
· Sustainability and Climate Action Plan Ad Hoc Committee
· Check out promotions and support local businesses at UpliftLocal
