Title
Informational Presentation: Urban Land Institute Technical Assistance Panel Report - ONE HEAT (LR26-005)
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FileID
File ID: 2026-00571
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Location
Location: Citywide
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Recommendation
Recommendation: Review and comment on the Urban Land Institute (ULI) TAP Final Report.
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Contact
Contact: Bruce Monighan, Urban Design Manager, (916) 808-1241, bmonighan@cityofsacramento.org; Laura Tuller, Associate Planner, (916) 808-3546, ltuller@cityofsacramento.org; Vic Randall, Senior Planner, (916) 808-5530, vrandall@cityofsacramento.org, Community Development Department; Rachel Patten, Sustainability Manager, Public Works Department, (916) 808-5016
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Presenter
Presenter: Bruce Monighan, Urban Design Manager, (916) 808-1241, bmonighan@cityofsacramento.org, Community Development Department
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Applicant
Applicant: Not Applicable.
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Property Owner
Property Owner: Not Applicable.
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Attachments
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Background
3-One Heat: Advancing Heat Resilience in Partnership with the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County Final Report
4-Presentation
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Additional Description/Analysis
IssueDetail
Issue Detail: Sacramento continues to experience increasing extreme heat impacts that pose significant risks to public health, infrastructure, and mobility, particularly in areas with limited tree canopy and high levels of impervious surface. In 2025, the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County participated in the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Technical Assistance Leadership Exchange (TALE) program focused on advancing extreme heat mitigation and resilience strategies.
Through this program, ULI convened a multidisciplinary panel of national and local experts to examine opportunities for integrating heat mitigation into land use planning, urban design, development standards, and public-realm improvements. The resulting report, ONE HEAT: Advancing Heat Resilience in Partnership with the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County (see Attachment 3), summarizes key observations and near- and long-term recommendations.
The purpose of this item is to present the findings of the ULI Technical Assistance Panel to the Planning and Design Commission and provide an overview of how the report may inform future climate adaptation and heat mitigation efforts.
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PolicyConsiderations
Policy Considerations: The General Plan and Climate Action & Adaptation Plan include goals and policies focused on extreme heat mitigation:
General Plan Policies:
ERC-8-1: Cooling Design Techniques: Through design guidelines and other means, in all new development the City shall promote the use of tree canopy, cool pavements, landscaping, cool roofing and other cool building materials, and site design techniques that provide passive cooling and reduce energy demand. In particular, the City shall promote the use of voluntary measures identified in the California Green Building Code (Title 24, Part 11 of the California Code of Regulations) to minimize heat island effects, including hardscape and roof materials with beneficial solar reflectance and thermal emittance values and measures for exterior wall shading.
ERC-8-2: Large Heat Islands. The City should work with property owners and businesses identified in urban heat island hot spots, informed by Figure 7-2 to address the urban heat island effect and reduce ambient temperatures in surrounding residential areas. City actions may include the following:
• Facilitating coordinated action among property owners; and
• Providing information and incentives for cost-effective heat reduction strategies, including front yard tree plantings and vegetation where streets lack room for street trees.
ERC-3-2: Tree Canopy Expansion. The City should strive to achieve a 25 percent urban tree canopy cover by 2030 and 35 percent by 2045. Prioritize tree planting and maintenance in areas with the lowest average canopy cover and explore strategies to reduce barriers to tree planting in disadvantaged communities and improve tree health.
Climate Action & Adaptation Plan Goal A-2: Create built environments that reduce exposure to extreme heat and mitigate urban heat island effect.
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EconomicImpacts
Economic Impacts: Not applicable.
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EnvironmentalConsiderations
Environmental Considerations: Review and comment on the Urban Land Institute Technical Assistance Leadership Exchange Report is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act as it consists of an organizational activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment (CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(5). Any actions that could result in a physical change in the environment would be identified as projects and would be subject to CEQA review.
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Sustainability
Sustainability: Participation in the Urban Land Institute Technical Assistance Leadership Exchange program supports the City’s ongoing efforts to advance sustainability and improve resilience to extreme heat impacts.
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Commission/Committee Action
Commission/Committee Action: Not Applicable.
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RationaleforRecommendation
Rationale for Recommendation: Presenting the ONE HEAT report to the Planning and Design Commission provides an opportunity to share the findings and increase awareness of potential strategies to create built environments that reduce exposure to extreme heat and mitigate the urban heat island effect.
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FinancialConsiderations
Financial Considerations: Not applicable.
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Public/NeighborhoodOutreachComments
Public/Neighborhood Outreach and Comments: Not applicable.
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