Planning for future may go into 2017

MENLO PARK — City officials acknowledged for the first time that the process to update Menlo Park’s development blueprint could extend into next year.

This comes on the heels of a 15-day extension of the public comment period for a draft of the General Plan update’s impact report. The extension to Aug. 1 was requested by East Palo Alto’s mayor, as well as Menlo Park’s housing and transportation commissions, who were worried the plan, last fully updated in 1994, was being rushed forward.

At its meeting recently, the City Council approved an amended schedule that would tentatively wrap everything up by Dec. 13 but allow an extension beyond the holiday period, depending on the comments submitted. The amended schedule adds at least one additional town hall meeting in August or September, and the potential for an extra Planning Commission meeting to review the environmental impacts. It was approved 4-0, with Mayor Richard Cline absent.

“We are very committed to this schedule,” said Arlinda Heineck, the city’s community development director.

“There could be unknown circumstances ... or an extraordinary amount of letters that could affect that.”

“I’ve heard from a lot of people who want us to stay on track,” Councilwoman Catherine Carlton said. “If need be, if things happen, I’m not averse to revising the schedule.”

Former planning commissioner Patti Fry urged the city to hold additional community meeting on the plan, which will add up to 4,500 residential units, 400 hotel rooms and as much as 2.3 million square feet of nonresidential space.