Sports and Concert Facilities / Special Events Golden State Warriors Event Center and Mixed-Use Development SEIR, San Francisco, CA
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EDUCATION Mr. Mitchell has provided project management and technical analysis capabilities for a wide variety of projects requiring environmental review, B.S., Civil Engineering, San including transportation and transit, industrial, institutional, commercial, Francisco State residential, mixed-use, educational and recreational projects. He has served University as project director / project manager for a number of CEQA environmental 23 YEARS documents, including environmental review for sports facilities and sporting EXPERIENCE events, capital improvement projects, wineries and vineyards, quarries, university and local school district master plans, specific plans, planned use developments, transit service plans, multi-modal stations, and demolition projects. Mr. Mitchell’s technical analysis responsibilities include required CEQA/NEPA analysis of transportation, air quality, noise, land use and policies, and infrastructure issues. Sports and Concert Facilities / Special Events Golden State Warriors Event Center and Mixed-Use Development SEIR, San Francisco, CA. Project Manager. Paul recently managed a Subsequent EIR for a landmark $1 billion, privately funded development within the thriving Mission Bay neighborhood in San Francisco. The centerpiece is an 18,000-plus–seat event center that will be the new home of the Golden State Warriors basketball team, during the NBA season, and provide a year-round venue for a variety of other uses, including concerts, family shows, other sporting events, cultural events, conferences and conventions. Office, retail, and open space uses and structured parking are also proposed. A Subsequent EIR (SEIR) was prepared for the project, tiering from the 1998 Mission Bay Final SEIR. The project was processed under CEQA streamlining legislation of both AB 900 (“environmental leadership project”) and SB 743. The SEIR included substantial detailed modeling for transportation, air quality, health risks, noise, utilities, and wind and shadow; a helipad airspace assessment, site-specific archaeological testing, urban decay analysis, and stand-alone TMP. Important considerations included ensuring effects of the project on the adjacent UCSF Mission Bay campus and its medical center were fully addressed, and cumulative environmental effects of events of the proposed event center in conjunction with concurrent baseball games at nearby AT&T Park. The Final SEIR was unanimously approved by the City in December 2015. The SEIR adequacy was upheld by the California Superior Court and the California Court of Appeals on all accounts, and in January 2017, the California Supreme Court denied a petition to consider the case for further review. The project will be constructed in time for the Golden State Warriors 2019-20 season. Prior to GSW selecting the Mission Bay site, GSW proposed an equally ambitious proposal on Piers 30-32 and Seawall Lot 330 in San Francisco. This prior proposal included an event center, hotel, residential, retail and maritime uses (including a San Francisco Fire Department fire boat station, water taxi stop and cruise ship berth), and substantial open space. The Piers 30-32 site would have required substantial repair and structural upgrades to the piers, which are currently in disrepair. This project presented a variety of environmental concerns to be addressed in an EIR, including short-term marine biological, hydrologic/water quality and noise impacts from the pile driving and other in-water construction; and long-term transportation effects from increased project traffic and associated air quality emissions. 34th America’s Cup and Cruise Terminal EIR, San Francisco, CA. Co- Project Manager. Paul recently managed the EIR for two projects: 1) the proposed 34th America’s Cup (AC34) - a series of international sailing events to be held in the San Francisco Bay in summer-fall 2012/2013; and 2) a new San Francisco Cruise Terminal. The AC34 project sponsors, the City of San Francisco and the America’s Cup Event Authority, propose a variety of facilities and services needed to support the events, including team bases, media operations, hospitality, and entertainment and spectator venues. A substantial number of temporary and permanent improvements would occur at several Port of San Francisco piers, as well as at Crissy Field, Marina Green, Fort Mason, Aquatic Park, Alcatraz and Fort Baker to accommodate the AC34 events. The site of the proposed America’s Cup Village (at Piers 27-29) would also ultimately serve as the site of the Port’s proposed modern new cruise terminal. The projects posed a number of unique environmental concerns, including potential marine biological and hydrologic/water quality impacts from the proposed installation of two miles of temporary floating docks, wave attenuators and other in-water construction; short-term air quality effects from AC34 event-related recreational, charter and team support boats, and long- term air quality emissions from cruise terminal cruise ships; substantial AC34 event-related traffic impacts; and potential environmental effects associated with long-term development at a number of Port properties. The EIR also addressed a variety of proposed implementation plans proposed to support the AC34 event, including a “People Plan” (transportation management), Parks Events Operations Plan, and Water and Air Traffic Plan. The EIR for this large project was completed in record time - 9 months. The Final EIR was certified by the City of San Francisco on December 15, 2011. Sonoma State University Concert Pavilion, Sonoma, CA. Project Director. Paul directed the completion of the environmental review for a proposed new concert pavilion at Sonoma State University as part of a minor revision to its Master Plan. The concert pavilion is the latest addition to the Green Music Center complex on the University campus. The project consists of a state-of- the-art outdoor venue to serve various musical and arts programs and accommodate a wide range of artists and performances, including symphonic music, opera and dance, and amplified genres of pop and rock. The proposed facilities include a large pavilion structure spanning a performance stage, LED video screens, sound/light towers, and fixed seating within a landscaped amphitheater. ESA completed an EIR addendum to the original Master Plan EIR to evaluate environmental effects of these proposed permanent facilities which would be developed instead of temporary facilities that were originally envisioned. Piedmont Skate Park Environmental Review, Piedmont, CA. Project Manager. Paul managed the completion of the environmental review for a proposed City-owned and -operated skate park in Piedmont. The proposed skate park was developed in response to a growing demand for a public skate facility in the City. Principal issues included geotechnical considerations (the facility is located adjacent to steep slopes), and traffic and pedestrian access issues. Mixed-Use Development Pacific Union College Ecovillage EIR, Napa County, CA. Project Manager. Paul managed the preparation an Administrative Draft EIR for a proposed “Ecovillage” in the unincorporated community of Angwin in Napa County, on land owned by the Pacific Union College (PUC). The project included 380-units of new housing, 72,500-square-feet of commercial uses, organic farm, and a variety of supporting recreation, transportation and infrastructure improvements. In addition, the EIR addressed development of 230 acres for potential vineyards/wineries, and preservation of over 1,100 acres of forest land. The project proposed a number of sustainable features, including but not limited to, upgrade of the PUC’s wastewater treatment plan to provide tertiary-treated water for agricultural irrigation and landscaping; springwater capture and rainwater harvesting; and sustainable technologies, including photovoltaic (PV) panels and geothermal heat pumps; the production of locally-farmed organic food; and implementation of an aggressive transportation demand management program. Further, a “synergistic” relationship was envisioned between the proposed Ecovillage and the PUC, where the Ecovillage would be served in part by the PUC’s cogeneration plant (which burns natural gas, generating electricity and providing steam for heating), and the PUC would benefit from the Ecovillage’s proposed PV system. Prior to publication of the Draft EIR, the Ecovillage project went on hold, pending resolution of funding and other project-related issues. Educational Facilities Sonoma State University Master Plan Revision EIR, Sonoma County, CA. Project Manager. Paul managed the preparation of an EIR for Sonoma State University for a major revision to its Master Plan. The University’s 219- acre campus is located immediately east of the city of Rohnert Park, in Sonoma County. The University proposed over 260,000 square feet of instructional expansion, a 100,000-square-foot music center and concert hall (Green Music Center), a 215,000-square-foot University Center, soccer stadium, and substantial increases in on-site student housing and parking. In addition, under the plan, a large parcel of land adjacent to the campus was planned to be acquired for future student housing. The principal issues associated with the project include traffic, circulation and parking, land use, and potential hydrologic and biological impacts to a seasonal creek that runs through the campus. ESA has also since completed several EIR Addendums for the University for Subsequent Minor Revisions to its Master Plan, including