In 2015, the City of Burlingame initiated a multi-year process focused on a community-led effort to update the City’s General Plan, Zoning Ordinance, and Climate Action Plan, called “Envision Burlingame.” It was the first comprehensive update of the General Plan since it had originally been adopted in 1969.

As Planning Manager, Kevin Gardiner served as the Project Manager for the General Plan update, overseeing the process from the initial grant application through final adoption. The update featured extensive community engagement, including open houses, pop-up events, stakeholder meetings, and guidance from a Community Advisory Committee (CAC). As part of the effort, interim zoning was developed for the plan’s “change areas” to ensure that implementing regulations could be adopted in tandem with the updated General Plan. Housing was a central focus of the update, positioning the City well for its subsequent Housing Element process.

To provide a user-friendly interface, the updated elements were formatted into a digital, web-based “ePlan” designed for ease of use and transparency.

Results

• Fully integrated update of the General Plan, Zoning Ordinance, and Climate Action Plan.

• New transit-supportive land use and zoning designations.

• New “missing middle” duplex zoning to comply with State Law.

• Corridor planning to integrate “complete streets” with transit-supportive land uses.

• Policy guidance and development standards for sea level rise adaptation.

• More than 2,500 new housing units approved within the first five years of adoption, representing a 20% increase in the city’s housing stock.