The 2019-21 and 2021-23 Climate Action Major City Goals included capital projects, program implementation, and the development of strategic plans and citywide climate policy. Staff can now move from planning to implementation with the adoption of the:

• Climate Adaptation and Safety Element of the General Plan (2023)
• Climate Action Plan update (2022), the Lead by Example Plan (2021)
• Community Forest Plan (2023), the Parking Access and Management Plan (2023)
• Active Transportation Plan (2021),
• City Facility and Fleet Electrification Roadmaps (2023)
• Transit Innovation Study (2023)

This comes at a time of historic federal and state funding for local climate mitigation and adaptation solutions. City staff and leadership will collaborate across departments and with the community to leverage these historic funding opportunities to realize critical progress towards Council’s adopted goals of reaching community-wide carbon neutrality by 2035 and municipal carbon neutrality by 2030, while also building resilience to climate disruptions.

Staff will also collaborate across Major City Goals as housing, economic development, and diversity, equity, and inclusion are all core considerations in the Climate Action Plan. Importantly, staff will continue to implement this Major City Goal with an equity and justice lens, ensuring that the City’s climate and resilience solutions support quality-of-life improvements in alignment with the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Major City Goal. 

Administration is the lead department for the purposes of Major City Goal administration, monitoring, and reporting.

However, the Climate Action, Open Space & Sustainable Transportation (Climate Action) Major City Goal will require the support and engagement from all City departments with special focus provided by Public Works, Utilities, Parks and Recreation, Fire, and Community Development.

The City will also continue to engage current partners, such as:

• SLO Climate Coalition
• Diversity Coalition of San Luis Obispo
• City Farm SLO
• ECOSLO
• Rotary de Tolosa
• R.A.C.E. Matters SLO
• Ecologistics
• GALA
• Bike SLO County
• The Land Conservancy of SLO County
• Air Pollution Control District of San Luis Obispo
• Central Coast Community Energy
• Integrated Waste Management Authority
• Resource Conservation Districts
• California Conservation Corps,
• San Luis Obispo County Community FireSafe Council
• CalFire
• other known and emerging partners

Implement the Climate Action Plan and Lead by Example 2023-25 Work Plans: The Climate Action Plan and the Lead by Example Plan provide critical path tasks to be completed in the 2023-25 timeframe and include work related to municipal operations, clean energy systems, green buildings, low carbon mobility, organic waste diversion, and natural solutions (due to Council’s direction for special focus, natural solutions and low carbon mobility are called out in Strategy 4.2 and 4.3, respectively). The City will use staff time and resources to pursue external funding and implement tasks described in the plans and in the Major City Goal work program.

Sustain, Manage, and Enhance the City's Greenbelt and Make Progress on Planting 10,000 trees by 2035: The City continues to have outstanding opportunities to further its proud legacy of open space protection within the San Luis Obispo Greenbelt. As the City pursues new conservation opportunities, it will enhance existing City Open Space properties through planting trees, managing for increased resilience to fires, droughts and floods, building new trails, and increasing equitable access to City open spaces and natural reserves. 

Preserve and Enhance Convenient and Equitable Alternative and Sustainable Transportation Options: The City will continue to implement actions in support of General Plan mode share targets (e.g., 50 percent of trips occurring outside of a single occupancy vehicle). This will occur through continued disciplined focus on the implementation of the highest-priority (“Tier 1”) Active Transportation projects, innovations and improvements to transit service, and supportive programing. For those that need to drive, the City will focus on enabling and deploying publicly accessible electric vehicle charging infrastructure. 

Increase Community Resiliency: The City continues to feel the disruptive effects of a rapidly changing climate. Building on decades of risk mitigation and the recently adopted Climate Adaptation and Safety Element of the General Plan, the City will implement projects and programs that build social infrastructure, reduce community risk, and increase the community’s ability to recover from natural disasters, with a focus on flood, wildfire, and heat impacts. 

Continue to Build City and Community Capacity for Transformational Climate Action: Transformational climate action requires staff, resources, and networks of individuals and organizations collaborating and innovating. The City will continue to support successful implementation and innovation through internal and external collaborative partnerships such as the City’s Green Team, support for regional governmental collaboration, and support for community-based organizations.

The City will engage in initiatives that advance DEI within the organization and community:

1. Develop and implement strategies, programs, and policies that build a workplace culture and community of inclusion, fairness, and belonging for all.
2. Involve underserved/underrepresented communities and diverse voices in program development and delivery to ensure current lived experiences drive understanding, priorities, and efforts.
3. Partner with proven community providers and utilize best practice and innovative models to leverage City resources and maximize effectiveness and impact of initiatives.
4. Identify and track measurable results as the City progresses in maturing diversity and inclusion efforts.

Responsible departments include Administration, Human Resources, Police, Park & Recreation, Public Works.

All Departments share responsibility for supporting and prioritizing DEI initiatives to advance the City’s strategies, ambition, and goal. 

Operationalize Office of DEI: Continue the ongoing commitment to meaningful, structural, and lasting operationalization of DEI strategies and efforts with the organization and the community. Further develop and strengthen equity, inclusion, cultural awareness and humility by creating activities, outreach, programs that enhance skills and knowledge. Enhance partnerships and provide support to departments in embedding DEI in all practices, policies, and processes throughout the organization.

Develop & Implement DEI Strategic Plan: Create a comprehensive and adaptable Strategic Plan by utilizing the DEI Task Force Recommendations as foundation, and other key community documents for reference and benchmarking. Roll out and implement the DEI Strategic Plan ensuring qualitative and quantitative data outcomes and metrics are embedded in program and project implementation.  

Foster and Promote Equitable Recruiting, Hiring, Retention, and Promotion Practices: Develop and implement innovative and proven strategies, programs, and policies that successfully attract, engage, retain, develop, and support a diverse workforce. Emphasize the development of internal candidates, broaden outreach, recruitment, advertising, and remove screening and selection bias in hiring processes.

Enhance Inclusive & Equitable Workplace Environment: Enhance and expand a welcoming and inclusive environment where all employees feel valued and included. Develop and implement DEI training and professional development, remove barriers from learning by developing interpersonal connections, improving and increasing dialogue and communication, integrating DEI into department’s operations, and growing interest in DEI practices among all employees. 

Community-based Policing & Restorative Practices: Identify strategies that promote best alternative methods to policing and provide the community voice for structural change. Enhance and maintain cultural humility and DEI trainings for officers to build and support understanding, strengthen relationships, and intentionally center the needs of the BIPOC and diverse communities.

Enhance and Expand Cal Poly & Cuesta College Partnerships & Educational Opportunities: Increase shared programming, training, community-building resources, and collaborative planning to enhance access and belonging for all City residents. Increase educational and cultural event offerings to the community at large, and convene regular roundtable meetings with the City, Cal Poly, Cuesta College leadership and students.

Strengthen Public Access and Engagement Through Transformational Strategies: Increase access and engagement for the public by enhancing and diversifying internal practices that reflect understanding, cooperation, and meaningful participation of staff. Sponsor and support outreach activities and experiences that highlight the City’s historically marginalized populations and create safe and brave spaces for all communities.

Equity & Inclusion in Budgeting, Planning, Programming & Policymaking: Focus efforts in reviewing and incorporating DEI language and lens into budgeting, planning, programming, and policymaking processes and practices that define City initiatives and strategies. Continue to provide support to departments and community organizations to diversify DEI applications based on available resources. Embed DEI staff into City leadership group opportunities to further expand and influence practice.

The City will engage and expand up on its community partnerships and invest in infrastructure, promotion, programs, and polices that support the economic resiliency and cultural vitality of the community while ensuring fiscal sustainability.

Additional focus will be placed on the retention and expansion of existing businesses, the vitality of arts and culture, the vitality of the downtown, and supporting underserved groups and populations.

Additionally, all actions will be viewed through the lens of the City’s Sustainability and DEI efforts. 

For the purposes of Major City Goal administration, monitoring, and reporting, City Administration is the lead department.

However, the Economic Resiliency, Cultural Vitality & Fiscal Sustainability (ERCS&FS) MCG will require the support and engagement from all City departments with special focus provided by Community Development, Public Works and Parks and Recreation Departments.

The City will also continue to engage current partners, such as Chamber of Commerce, Downtown SLO, REACH, SLOMA, SLOREP, Cal Poly, Cuesta and other existing and new partners to support our efforts.

Sustainable, Diverse, and Inclusive: The City will ensure that the economic resiliency and cultural vitality efforts are focused on sustainability, diversity and inclusion in alignment with both the City’s Sustainability program and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion program.

Business Support: The City will support the SLO business community through a mix of traditional and non‐traditional economic development efforts. The efforts will include but not be limited to business expansion, retention, attraction, promotion and programs for new and existing businesses. In addition, the City will focus on efforts to make it easier for employers and employees by continuing to focus on permit processing improvements and childcare. 

Downtown Vitality: The City will support the unique needs of the downtown through specific promotional efforts, support services, cleanliness & safety programs and infrastructure investment. 

Support Arts and Culture: The City will support the vitality of the Arts and Cultural activities within the City by working with existing and new community partners.

Ensuring Fiscal Responsibility and Sustainable City Operations: The City will continue to focus fiscal responsibility and sustainability through all work efforts, programs, and the required budget appropriations. It will review its revenue sources ongoingly and maximize collection and return on its investments. In addition, based on the results of the 2023 Employee Engagement Survey, there will be continued focus to support and prioritize workforce development to ensure City employees have the tools and resources to effectively serve the community. 

The City will:

• prioritize Housing Element policies and programs that focus on facilitating the increased production of housing
• implement the Homelessness Response Strategic Plan and engage with the community, regional agencies, local non-profit partners, and the Federal government to leverage resources to be utilized to implement strategies that reduce homelessness
• clean-up creeks, open space areas, City Parks and public spaces associated with abandoned personal property and trash
• focus on public safety through support for the SLO PD bike patrol program and new Community Service Officer program

For the purposes of MCG implementation, administration, monitoring, and reporting, Community Development is the lead department. However, several of the tasks outlined in the MCG will include the participation of the following City Departments: Administration, City Attorney, Police, Public Works, Parks and Recreation, and Fire. 

 The City will also engage with the following stakeholders to support Housing and Homelessness efforts including, but not limited to: 

1. Residents
2. Homeless individuals and families
3. Homeless advocates
4. Business/Property Owners
5. Chamber of Commerce
6. Social service agencies
7. San Luis Obispo County Housing Trust Fund (HTF)
8. Affordable housing and market rate developers
9. Non-profit organizations
10. Owners and renters of affordable housing in the City
11. Homeless Services Oversight Council (HSOC)
12. County of San Luis Obispo Administration, Behavioral Health, and other key regional partners
13. Mid and Large-Scale Employers
14. Faith-based organizations

Housing Element Implementation: Implement the 6th Cycle Housing Element with focus on a missing middle housing program that enables "house-scale" multi-family housing opportunities (duplex, tri-plex, bungalow court, etc.) in select neighborhoods. Initiate updates to the Margarita Area and Airport Area Specific Plans to include more housing options of all types where appropriate and consistent with the County Airport Land Use Plan. Conduct a Study Session with the City Council to identify needs and opportunities across the housing spectrum and implement Below Market Rate Housing best practices. 

Homelessness Response Strategic Plan (HRSP) Implementation: Implement the recently adopted Homelessness Response Strategic Plan with a focus on regional collaboration, communication, data sharing, pilot programs and funding opportunities to prevent and address homelessness. Continue to develop the Safe Housing Outreach and Education Program, including preparation of a Council Memo on options for protecting renters. Monitor and update the HRSP to align with Countywide Plan to Reduce Homelessness, other regional and state opportunities, and in advance of the next City financial plan.

Environmental Clean-up in Creeks and Open Space: Environmental clean-ups in creeks, open space areas, City Parks and public spaces associated with abandoned personal property and trash.

Public Safety: Maintain the SLOPD bike patrol program as staffing allows and implement the new Community Service Officer program to ensure effectiveness and improvements in quality-of-life surrounding homelessness issues in the downtown.