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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1/21/1985 - Minutes PC• PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Cit of Orange Y Orange, California January 21, 1985 Monday, 7:30 p.m. The regular meeting of the City of Orange Planning Commission was called to order by Chairman Pro-tem Greek at 7:30 p.m. PRESENT: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master STAFF Jim Reichert, Associate Planner; Gene Minshew, Assistant City Attorney; Gary Johnson, City Engineer; and Toba V. Wheeler, Recording Secretary, PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE IN RE: MINUTES OF JANUARY 7, 1985 Commissioner Scott asked fora correction in the minutes of Janu- ary 7, 1985, regarding the approval of .the meeting of December 17, 1984, to show that he had abstained on that vote. Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that the minutes of January 7, 1985, be approved as corrected. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: ITEMS TO BE CONTINUED OR WITHDRAWN TENTATIVE TRACT 10112, CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT 1382 - RIDGEWOOD DEVELOPMENT. Mr. Reichert said this item was continued from the January 7, 1985, meeting and the applicant`s representative, by telephone this afternoon, has verbally requested a continuance to the meeting of February 20. 1985. Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that Tentative Tract 10112, Conditional Use Permit 1382, be continued to the meeting of February 20, 1985. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT:. Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: NEW HEARINGS ZONE CHANGE 1023, TENTATIVE TRACT 12299, VARIANCE 1751 - BARNETT-NOWLING Proposed Zone Change from A-1 to R-1-12 in order to develop an 18-lot residential subdivision which will also vary from the required minimum lot width on 15 lots, and to amend the Orange Planning Commission Minutes • January 21, 1985 Page Two Park Acres plan from open space and recreation to residential medium/low density or a Zone Change from A-1 to the recently enacted R-1-E one-acre minimum lot size. NOTE: Negative Declaration 944 has been prepared for this project. Mr. Reichert made the presentation in accordance with the Staff Report and said if the Planning Commission finds the tract map favorable Staff recommends that it approve the zone change and variance. Chairman Greek opened the public hearing on Zone Change 1023. Pat Capp, J. P. Capp & Associates, Consulting Civil Engineers, Planners and Surveyors, 15892 Pasadena Avenue, Tustin, representing the applicant, Barnett & Nowling Development Companu, which owns the property known as the Villa Park Country Club and Riding Club. He said the property is situated immediately adjacent to and contiguous with the Mayberry Ranch property and lies approximately northwesterly of the Santiago Channel. He said when they started the design or this project they met with Staff and reviewed the land use issues and alternatives available to them. He said the existing land use a'11owed two to six units per acre and based on their objective of being good neighbors with the Orange Park Acres group and the Mayberry Ranch group,-and based on the cost of improvements to provide access and utilities to the proposed development, Barnett & Nowling selected a yield of approximately two units per acre fora total of 18 units. He said the design of the subdivision provides for private streets and cul-de-sacs, and access to the site will be from Winder Drive across the channel via a clear-span bridge. He said that as a part of the design process they met on several .occasions with Planning Staff to learn of its concern for the design and one of the main concerns was that the property would be free of flood hazard. To this end, Barnett & Nowling prepared a hydrology and hydrolic report which was presented to Planning Staff, said report having determined that the site would be free of flood hazard. He said they .started on the design in September, have been working with Planning Staff and receiving. its input, and believe they have reached a point where they have met their objectives of being good neighbors,- providing a good trnasition from the more dense development of Mayberry Ranch to the lesser dense development of Orang Park Acres. Mr. Capp said they have met briefly with representatives of Orange Park Acres and are willing to meet their concerns so far as trails and access to the bridge if a trail is flooded or inundated. He said he would be-happy to answer any questions, as would Richard Nowling, who was also present, and that they look forward to commencing the project very soon. Marlene Fox, attorney, 3919 Westerly Place, Newport Beach, repre- senting Mr, and Mrs. Amos Deacon, residing on Winder Drive directly Planning Commission Minutes January 21., 1985 Page Three across from the proposed Tract 12299 with their driveway approxi- mately fifty feet away from the access to the tract as shown on the proposed tentative tract map. She said she has a number of items but is a little puzzled because she feels the Commission is putting the proverbial cart before the horse because the California Environmental Quality Act requires that the Commission evaluate the environmental impact of the project prior to evaluating the zone change itself and prior to moving on to consideration of the tentative tract or any variances. She said she understands; that Planning-Staff has recommended a negative declaration. She said she has had an opportunity to review the City file at which time Planning Staff was gracious and courteous enough to provide her with an exact duplicate of the file, including a copy of the negative declaration which is attached to the Staff Report and. a copy of the initial study on which the negative declaration is based. She said she made note when Mr. Capp was speaking that there is some sort of hydrology report that has been prepared and presented to Planning Staff for its evaluation but when she reviewed the file and spoke with Staff she was not told of the existence of any hydrology report and therefore until Mr. Capp made mention of that, she had no knowledge that such a report existed. She said she would be very interested in the opportunity to look at that report. However, she said, even with a hydrology report, it's very difficult to understand how a negative declaration could issue. She said she doesn't mean to be out of order in mentioning the negative declaration since the Planning Commission is addressing the zone change; however, she can`t even talk about the zone change, and the law says the Planning Commission is not supposed to do so, until the Planning Commission first makes a determination on the environmental aspects. because the one thing that CEQA requires is that the Planning Commission evaluate the environmental impacts early on in any project because it needs to make a meaningful informed decision before it can take a vote on a zone change or any other aspects of this development proposal. Ms. Fox said that if the Planning Commission would look at the initial study that has been prepared, that is by law supposed to be attached to the negative declaration, they would see that $he initial study is not attached to the negative declaration that is attached to the staff report; however, she was provided with a copy of the file and the initial study has a long list of .items. She said it is interesting to note that every item on the agenda for this meeting has a negative declaration prepared and not a single item on the agenda discusses environmental impact report. She said her question to the Planning Commission is, aside from the hydrology report that was not made available to her for her review and independent evaluation, since this has been submitted by the applicant`s consultant, where is the other empirical data on which the conclusions that exist within the initial study are based. She said it does not exist in the City file, so if it exists any place she would like to know where it does exist and Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Four would like to have access to that empirical data so .she can see just how Staff came to the conclusions it~.,reached in the initial study. For instance, she said, if you look at the check list, the first item on there talks about earth, "Will the proposal result in or be affected by" and then it has a list "A through G." She said if you are going to talking about building in an area that's a creek bed. and you are concerned with a hundred-year flood, and there isn`t anybody who lives in Orange County who hasn't read about the problems of Santiago Creek and flooding, if you`re going to get involved with construction of abridge,-it's necessary to know what you`re talking about in terms of grading, and if there`s going to be any grading you're going to have earth movement. Do you have a balance project or do you have a project where you're going to have either the import or export of dirt.- These are the sorts of things plus soil stability that the environmental impact, the initial study, is supposed to address. Ms. Fax said that she must say, without any intent to be derogatory toward consideration of this matter, it does not appear that Staff has wanted to give due regard to the environmental quality act and it really looks as if CEQA has been treated as a mere statutory nuisance., and the law requires more than that. Slhe said that in addition to questions relating to earth movement and construction of the bridge, she noted in the City file that there is an existing letter from the County of Orange, specifically from the environmental management agency, dated December 20, 1984, and this letter addresses - tract but the significance of this with the zone change comes the back to the environmental considerations because it talks about the ability of a bridge for passing the hundred-year flows occurring from Villa Park dam and the effect of Villa Park dam. inundation on subject tract improvements. She said the zone change designates the sue of this land and there has to be the proper zoning, as Staff has advised, in order to even consider the tract map. She said if the Planning Commission is going to work at some change of use for this land f rom~rec~reation and open sapce to residential regardless of what the density might be, it must address the questions of flood hazard and inundation from the Villa Park dam. She said if this is addressed in the .hydrology report, she would have no way to know it, and since her client is situated on Windes Drive very close to the access point to this tract, she believes that City counsel will tell the Planning Commission that there was a very significant California Supreme Court case called "Horn versus the County of Ventura" that says when your property if you have a significant and you`re going to be impacted by a proposed project such as a tract map or zone change, you have the opportunity and the right to participate, you have the right to be informed, a constitutionally guaranteed right of due process to be informed of these impacts and of what significance this will have. She said there is no way to know in this instance, there is no way for her to make an intelligent presentation to the Planning Commission about this proposed zone change because there is no data that exists in the City files--none, just simply a check list on 'which Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Five everything has been checked off with one or two exceptions--it provides "yes," "maybe" or "no"--and if there are some "yES9i checks then you are obligated to prepare an environmental impact report, if it has some "maybe" checks then possibly you should prepare an environmental impact report. She said if you go down the two pages of the checklist you'll see there are exactly two "maybe" and one "yes" checked, and she submits to the Planning .Commission that there should be many more "maybe" checks and certainly many more "yes" checks, at least with regard to earth, air, water, and biological resources. She said she has not had sufficient opportunity to go through the Orange Park Acres plan in careful detail; however, she has gone through it and it does talk about the significant wildlife habitat of this specific area. She said this tract, as she understands it since she was out looking at the property earlier today, is right at the base of something which she believes is called "Rattlesnake Hi11" and she understands from all of the plans that this is a significant wild life habitat. She said how~,;anyone could come to the conclusion that biological resources will not be impacted, at least based on the lack of data in the City file, she does not understand. She said she does not think it is a supportable conclusion. Ms. Fox said there are other impacts as well as transportation and circulation and the land use and recreation since it is already, designated in the Orange Park Acres plan as open space and recre- ational and it's A-1 zoning presently for the City of Orange. She said it is just simply not to be understood how the conclusion came about for the negative declaration, and that would be her first question and she would appreciate some sort of response to that question because that's a question that must be addressed and satisfactorily answered really before the Planning Commission can move on to give any further consideration to the zone change. She .said if any members of .the Planning Commission would like to address any questions to her she would be happy to answer them. Commissioner Greek said he lives in the Rattlesnake Creek area and there are no problems there. Ms. Fox said it is not a question of having problems but a question of making a determination if there is any wildlif a in the area what will the impact of this project be on that wildlife. She said it`s not a question of problems and whether problems exist, that's not what evaluating environmental impact is all about. She said she doesn`t know that there is wild- life on that hill, she cannot make that representation to the Commission, but that is the purpose of the environmental assessment. She said the Orange Park Acres plan does say in several places, and that plan was officially adopted by the City of Orange, that it is a significant wildlife habitat, and if that plan was correct when it was first writen and presented and subsequently adopted by the City, it is something to which the City of Orange must address its attention at this time. Mr. Minshew said he is not particularly concerned about Ms. Fox`s Planning Commission January 21, 1985 Page Six Minutes representation as to the sequence since the items are really being discussed simultaneously, but he is concerned about what she says about the back-up and if' the City is going to be challenged on this he thinks it might be a good idea to have the developer respond to it and if the Planning Commission is not satisfied with that, he thinks the Commission would do well to continue this matter until it can examine the matter of the back-up on the negative declaration. Gene St. Aumond, a member of the Orange Park Acres~imple~mentation committee and the City of Orange trail committee,-elaborated upon a letter sent by Orange Park Acres to the Planning Commission. He said it is the consensus of the implementation committee that the R-1-E one-acre zone would be more appropriate for development. He said the overall plan,-including the transition zoning at the east. end of Mayberry Ranch of R-1-20, was designed to blend development from the density of the Mayberry Ranch proper to the .eventual open space zoning of Santiago Oaks Regional Park and the one-acre zoning along Windes Drive, to place a higher density between the two properties would not be consistent or compatible with the surrounding area in terms of zoning or lot sizes,-and also the proposed deletion of existing trails would severely impair the trail system that has been developed in the City of Orange in the past few years. He said the entire circumferenceJperimeter of-the Mayberry Ranch is a trail a1 so and is a part of the overall trail system, and the intent there is to have continuity between that and the regional park which is also a wild life preserve. He said the R-1-20 zoning on the Mayberry Ranch was put in there in anticipation of open space in the area. He said when Standard Pacific developed that area it wanted to go with higher density all the way to the border of the property but were asked to use half-acre zoning and they complied. He said it would not be appropriate to go into the area with denser zoning. Bob Walters, president of Orange Park Acres Association, said the Association only began to become intimately involved with the details of this project on .Saturday and since it was followed by Super Bowl Sunday, the Association has not had an opportunity to address many of the questions they have. He said the Association needs to confer with all the members, do further checking on the horse trails, check what is written in the East Orange Plan and the Orange Park Acres Plan,-and to address some of the impacts on Windes Drive both of this potential project as well as the new County Park expansion that`s occurring .with. the road that`s no wider than it was before. Consequently,.-he said, the basic position tonight of the Orange Park Acres Association is that it would like to ask the Planning Commission to continue this to a later date until it has an oppor- tunity to explore all the issues .involved and perhaps arrive at something that is amicable for all parties involved. Commissioner Mson asked how long Mr. Walters though would be needed and he responded that at least two weeks would be needed and it could definitely be done within four weeks. Planning .Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Seven Mr. Capp said if it's the pleasure of the Commission to continue this for two weeks, his client would be more than happy to do it, and is willing to meet again with the Drange Park Acres group and further clarify any issues or problems that the~~,.may have, He said it would also give his~.c1ient time to present answers to the issues brought up by Ms. Fox. He said in regard to thelflood control issues, he had prepared a study fo.r a design storm which is in excess of the hundred-year storm by a factor of 100% and found the site free of inundation based on improvement of that channel, as well as finding Windes Drive free of .inundation, He said that as far as the question of wi1dli.fe, is concerned~- since the site has been used fairly rigorously over the years for equestrian uses and now there are people there with motorcycles so he believes there is just not that much wi'1dlife, loft on that particular site. He said the existing areas surrounding the site are natural habitats and they are not going to be touched. Commissioner Greek asked Mr. Capp to give the extent of the approxi- mate amount of grading he is proposing, as far as depth not yardage, Mr. Capp said they plan on leaving the site fairly close to the existing elevation, that there might be two- and three-foot cuts and two- and three-foot fills balanced throughout the site,-but no severe cuts or fills. ' Chairman Greek declared the public hearing closed. He said the environmental impact report could now be discussed but before the City gets too defensive he feels from his personal standpoint he understands the area enough that he recognizes that there will be minimum grading and some trafficimpact but he feels a full impact report will not resolve anything. Mr. Minshew said he doesn't see that as the thrust of the argument, he thinks that seems to be the attack is the support--how was the negative declaration arrived at. He said he thinks the Planning Commission might want to examine that if the item is continued to a future meeting. He said this matter will eventually go to the City Council and that is the place where this could be attacked because the position could be taken that the Planning Commission did not operate. on sufficient information .and the City Council would then be forced to go through the whole matter again. He said he is concerned when an attack is made on how the Staff arrives at the negative declaration. He said if there is no back-up for people who are concerned with it to see how it was arrived at, then he has a concern. He said if the Commission decides it wants to deal with this in its own way, then it will be dealt with again at the City Council level and the attack will be made there that the Planning Commission didn't operate from sufficient information. He recommended that the matter be continued until the Planning Commission has a chance to examine the allegations. Mr. Reichert said he feels Staff might want to take a look at the back-up information on the environmental analysis. Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Eight Moved by Commissioner Mason, seconded by Commissioner Scott, that this item be continued to the meeting of February 4, 1985. It was ascertained for the record that the applicant consents to this continuance. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master .MOTION CARRIED IN RE: NEW HEARINGS PRE=.ZONE CHANGE 1025 - CITY OF ORANGE Proposed pre-zone change from County of Orange A-1 to City of Orange M-1 on six parcels totaling approximately three acres on the east side of Batavia Street, approximately 730 feet south of Fletcher. NOTE: Negative Declaration 949 has been prepared for this project. Mr. Reichert made the presentation in accordance with the Staff Report and said Staff recommends approval. Chairman Greek opened the public hearing. Raymond L. Phillips, 9292 Batavia, one of the owners of property in the area to which the pre-zone change will apply,-spoke in favor of it and urged the Planning Commission to approve it as a step toward annexation of the area to the City of Orange. Chairman Greek declared the public hearing closed. Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that the Planning Commission accept the findings of the Environmental Review Board to file Negative Declaration 949, AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Scott, that .the Planning Commission appro~(e Pre-zone Change 1025 for the reasons stated in the Staff. ~Report:`° AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: 'NEW HEARINGS ZONE CHANGE 1026 - BACS DEVELOPMENT Proposed zone change from the R-1-6 District to the 0-P (Office Professional) District at the southeast corner of Palm Avenue and . Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Nine Palm Drive. NOTE:- Negative Declaration 950 has been prepared for this project. Mr. Reichert made the presentation in accordance with the Staff Report and said Staff recommends approval. Chainrman Greek opened the public hearing. Don Hertell, an architect with Architera, Inc.,-'1616 N.. Broadway, Santa Ana, representing Bacs Development, said they have prepared a proposed specific development plan associated with the request fora zoning change. He said the client, in considering the devel- opment of this property, felt that this use was most compatible with surrounding uses and would be best received within that market area in terms of developing the property. He said they have met. both with Staff and with representatives of residents in the area and have~;modified their original design considerably to reach the present proposal. He said they had originally proposed about a 6,000-square foot office with parking below of a residential character in materials and appearance similar to what is now proposed,-but it was taller and larger than what is proposed now. He said that after meeting-with the local residents the height of .the building was reduced by lowering the parking area into the ground to a 24' maximum height which is consistent with one-story buildings with peaked roofs. He said they also reduced the size of the building, increasing setbacks for landscaping and making the entry drive down to the-garage a more gradual slope to make a safer entry. He said in the original scheme they had two entrances to the parking and they have now reduced that to one in the interest of reducing traffic impact since they understand that because of the adjacent schools there are times when the streets are congested in that area. He said that in general they have tried to design a structure which would be compatible with the residential neigh- borhood even though there are no residential uses currently adjacent to their parcel, only schools and one residence which is used for professional use. Commissioner Mason asked if there is a lot on Main Street to the ® east of this piece of property that is not being dealt with tonight. Mr. Hertell said yes, the parcel consists of two lots but a zone change for only one lot is under consideration tonight, Dave Baker, )3271 Wheeler, Santa Ana,-principal of Sycamore School, 340 N. Main, Orange, said the school is directly across the street from the corner under consideration for a zoning change and the school`s concern on behalf of its students and their parents is that iahe'':d~~re1opment ©~f the property is a potential safety hazard to the students of the school. He said the extra traffic that will be brought into the area is of concern, the lowered parking area might be considered an attractive nuisance for the students, and any zoning change at all that would have some kind of development Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Ten like this across the street from our school would concern us about the hazards that that development would present to our students. He said the consideration of the Planning Commission for the welfare of the students at Sycamore School would be much appreciated in considering the zone change. Commissioner Greek asked who is the owner of the property; he said the Staff Report indicates that it is owned. by the. school district. Mr. Baker said that is correct. Comissioner Greek said it appears then that the Orange School District is requesting the zone change but the school principal is opposing it. Mr. Baker. said that is correct. Commissioner Mason asked Mr. Baker what type of develop- ment he would like to see on that property. He responded he would like to see some kind of development that would not bring the amount of traffic that he feels an office building would bring. Commissioner Mason asked him if he had seen the floor plan of the proposed building and he responded that he had seen it briefly. Lois Bark, 2022 Spruce, said this is about the third time this property has been before the Planning Commission and she is extremely concerned because all the young children enter the school at that point because it is too dangerous to enter on Main Street. She said little Palm is actually an access street for the school and was never meant to be a busy street because it was cut into the-school property only as an access street for the school. In addition, she said, it is a spot zone and the concerns of the residents in the area have been expressed numerous times. She said. the front parcel was designated with a conditional use permit and something was put into the title that if it ever changed configuration it would go back to residential, because when the street was widened it was so close to the front it was not very likely for residential. She said because the marriage and counseling service in conjunction with the Montessori School next door said they would keep it in a low profile consistent with the uses in the area, it was approved with that condition that it would stay in the single-family structure and be used that way. She said that was to mitigate a problem that was already there. She said she thinks the underground parking could be a danger for the children. She suggested that it stay in the public institution. She said since the Montessori School doesn't really have enough room she is hoping that they will acquire this property for '.its. expansion. She requested that this zone change be denied and that the property remain as it is for public institution use. Mr. Hertel1 said that the security issue was also raised by Staff and his client's intention is that the building will be a secure building with not only a total fenced yard but also a security gate to the garage so there wouldn`t be a possibility of children loitering under the building and there would also not be a danger of them falling into the garage area. Also, they are proposing an open, wrought iron grill so there won`t be hidden areas in the Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Eleven back and on the sides and the entire area will be visible. He said as far as traffic is concerned, they have located the entrance close to Main, adjacent to the driveway to the adjoining residence which is already being used for an office building, so it is really away from the school traffic congestion area. He said they are talking about only 18 cars which he feels is a minimum impact and probably not much greater-than other uses that might be proposed for that site. Regarding the office use, he said they feel that being next to a school could be an asset to the property owner with respect to renting the offices and also potentially an asset to the schools because it would offer s©me office space for related private and quasi-private groups to locate near the school and provide services relatdd to their functions. Commissioner Scott asked how many cubicles for office space there will be in the building. Mr. Herte7l said there will be one large leased space which could easily be divided into two spaces,-~so there could be two 2,000-square foot offices, or if there is a demand :for smaller spaces it could be .divided. into four or more with an internal corridor. Chairman Greek closed the public hearing. Commissioner Scott asked ~t what time the school starts in the morning. Mr. Baker said it starts at 8:15 a.m.. Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, .that the Planning Commission accept the findings of the Environmental Review Board to file Negative Declaration 950. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Greek, that Zone Change 1026 be continued until it can be heard by the full Commission, .Chairman Greek said his feeling is that this is a difficult piece of property surrounded by schools and it seems like the conflict is between the school district that has a piece of property it really can`t use and this .looks like a good use for it, he he feels that this is not a bad use and he doesn't think anything will be gained by waiting another two weeks except to have another public hearing. AYES: Commissioner Scott NOES: Commissioners Greek, Mason ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION DEFEATED Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Twelve ` Moved by Commissioner Mason, seconded by Commissioner Greek, that .the Planning Commission recommend to the City Council that it approve Zone Change 1026 for the reasons stated in the Staff Report. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason NOES: Commissioner Scott ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: NEW HEARINGS CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT 1390, VARIANCE 1750 ~- DATSUN OF ORANGE Proposed new truck sales in the M-2 District and proposed reduction of the landscape frontage from the required -ten feet to four feet on approximately a half-acre situated on the south side of Katel1a west from Batavia. l~I AYES: NOES: ABSENT:. NOTE: Negative Declaration 951 has been prepared for this project. Mr. Reichert made the presentation in accordance with the Staff Report and said Staff recommends that if the conditional use permit is approved, the variance also be approved. Chairman Greek opened the public hearing. Since there was no comment from the audience, Chairman Greek declared the public hearing closed. Moved by~~Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that the Planning Commission accept the findings of the Environmental Review Board to file Negative Declaration 951. Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott None Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION QARRIED~~~ AYES: NOES: ABSENT: Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that theiPlanning Commission approve Variance 1750 subject to the conditions in the Staff Report. Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott None Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason,=that the Planning Commission approve Conditional Use Permit 1390 subject the the conditions in the Staff. Report. Chairman Greek said that prior to the vote being taken he would like to ascertain that the applicant understands the conditions. Ray Gibson, vice president of Datsun of Orange, 1140 W. Katella, said he understands all the conditions. . Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Thirteen AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES : None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: NEW HEARINGS ZONE CHANGE 1027, CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT 1391. - TOYOTA OF ORANGE Proposed zone change from R-1-6 and M-H to C-1 and a conditional use permit to expand an auto dealership on approximately three- fourths of an acre at the southwest corner of Tustin Street and Trenton Avenue. NOTE: Negative Declaration 952 has been prepared for this project. Mr. Reichert made the presentation in accordance with the Staff Report and said Staff recommends approval per its report.- He said ® the Redevelopment Agency has reviewed the proposal and also recom- mends approval. Commissioner Mason asked if the entrance to the adjacent mobile home park would then be off of Trenton instead of Tustin and Mr. Reichert responded that it would. Commissioner Mason asked of the proposal to make Trenton into a cul-de-sac goes through would the residents of the mobile home park then not be able to enter it from Tustin Street. Mr. Reichers said the cul-de-sac situation has not been completely resolved yet but he believes that if Trenton is made into a cul-de-sac the mobile home park residents would take access of of Trenton and not take access off of Tustin.. Commissioner Mason asked if Trenton wasn't made into a cul-de-sac but only had a division, would the residents of the mobile home park be able to enter and exit via Tustin. Mr. Reichert said. the suggested median would pertain only to the driveways off of Toyota of Orange and therefore the right-turn restriction would a1 so apply only to Toyota of Orange. He said the configuration of the median would still allow mobile home park residents to turn left onto Trenton. Chairman Greek asked what type of access the mobile home park has now. Mr. Reichert said it's basically a driveway that is part of the mobile home park parcel. He said there is a condition of approval that a parcel map be filed and approved which would then reconfigure the property lines in that area to accommodate the proposal. Chairman Greek opened the public hearing. Norris Bishton, attorney for Toyota of Orange, 2029 Century Park East, Los Angeles, said he would like to go back and try to put this situation into perspective for the Planning Commission. He Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Fourteen said they have a traffic problem of some magnitude at Toyota of Orange, which now. has a single entrance off of Tustin for both entering and exiting and is also very close to the .intersection with Katella. He said this problem is magnified because there are not only people coming in the early morning to leave their cars for servicing but also this is the only place where the car carriers can deliver vehicles; consequently this has become an extremely dangerous situation based upon the amount of people using the facility each day. He said this project began months ago when they met with officials of the City of Orange and with members of Staff to try to come up with different solutions to .the traffic problem. He said the initial recommendation was to try to find some way in which people would not be entering and exiting at the same location. He said the immediate road-. block toytrying to expand to the north was the ingress .and egress of the mobile home park,-so they-ltrie.d tb world out a new entrance .and exit for it, considering various locations, and after all possible solutions had been considered the only one that seemed feasible was to use Trenton. He said one of the things they and the traffic engineers had a7 so observed was that people coming out of ..the .mobile home park now have great difficulty, He said he has observed that people walk out and act as a sort of traffic warden to help people exit by automobile and make a 1ef t turn down Tustin. He said everybody agreed that putting the mobile home park entrance and exit on Trenton would increase the safety of its residents many of whom are elderly and drive very slowly. Mr. Bishton said that in their initial meeting with the traffic engineers, they said the ideal solution to the situation in that area would be to cul-de-sac Trenton. He said the Redevelopment Agency, which had. just been formed, also met with them and also felt that was an excellent solution and would therefore assist in attempting to achieve it. He said they are now at that point; there has not yet been a proposal or final decision to cul-de-sac Trenton. Therefore,-that is not the issue tonight--it has only been considered and there is an interest in pursuing it. ® Mr. Bishton said what is being presented tonight is only an interim .solution, which may or may not end up being the permanent solution, to the traffic problems.: He said there will be two exits from the dealership onto Trenton: the one in the rear is located at a storage area which will have a seven-foot wall and contain vehicles that are not displayed for sale, it will be gated at all times and everyday traffic will not be using it; the one at the front will be used for everyday traffic. He said much of the land they have acquired is gong to be used to provide a driveway so that people~~com~~ng iri for service or customers arriving to pick up their new cars have a way .out without going out the same way they came in. He said they will go out by using the driveway to reach a second, electric- ally-controlled gate and will normally be closed so no one can use Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Fifteen it for an entrance. He said there will be a strip on the street to prevent people exiting from turning left, they will have to turn right and go out to Tustin, because there is no desire on the part of the dealership to create any additional traffic on Trenton. Mr. Bishton said the long-range proposal, if it ever comes to pass, to cul-de-sac Trenton, was proposed by the enginering department to solve problems of through traffic that presently exists on Trenton and nothing that Toyota of Orange is proposing now is .going to increase the traffic on Trenton since nobody exiting the dealer- ship will be able to go west on Trenton. Mr. Bishton said this has been a difficult problem to work out because he had problems finding adjacent property owners who lived out of town. He said the hardest problem has been to deal with the mobile home park which has a ground lease, but fortunately the ground lease lessor is the same as the one who holds the ground Tease for the property Toyota of Orange is on, and he has been able to work out a complex arrangement which will allow Toyota of Orange to lease the existing mobvle,home park driveway and in turn provide on property Toyota of Orange has acquired an exit for the mobile home park out to Trenton. Mr. Bishton said Toyota of Orange the conditions in the Staff Report by the Planning Commission.. is prepared to comply with all and requests a favorable decision Commissioner Greek said he wished to clarify the fact that the ownership of the access to Tustin will remain with the parcel of property that's the ownershipciof the :mobile home park. Mr. Bishton said that currently both the mobile home park and the present premises of Toyota of Orange are owned by Mr. and Mrs. Fisher who are retired and live in Hemet. He said Toyota of Orange has a ground lease on its property that will run for 42 or 43 more years, the mobile home park has a ground lease that runs a few more years than the Toyota of Orange ground lease. He said what they have done is coordinated everything and leased and sub-leased back and forth so that the property that is being acquired by Toyota of Orange to use, that formerly was the mobile home park access, is tied in to Toyota`s ground lease with the Fishers. He said the parcel that Toyota had to buy on Trenton to provide the exit has in turn been granted on a ground lease to the Fishers and subsequently to the mobile home park so that as long as one is beigg~used by the dealership the other will be the access out to Trenton. He said all of the documents for the various leases and sub-leases will be submitted to the City Council for approval. Larry Muse11, architect for Toyota, 3353 Linden Avenue, Long Beach, said Mr. Bishton has addressed most of the things he was going to discuss, so he is available for questions. Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Sixteen Marvin Wesson, 1536 East Trenton, said his house will be the one right next to the proposed site of the new driveway for the mobile home park. Using the map, on the wall, Mr. Wesson said Mr. Bishton suggested that the traffic coming out of the proposed gate would have to make a right-hand turn onto Trenton.. He said if they do that the people living there now cannot get out and make a turn onto Tustin. He said there is already traffic backed up from the signal light at the corner and this would be increased by traffic exiting from Toyota of Orange. He suggested alternate exits using Katella and Tustin. He also wanted to know of what material the proposed seven-foot wall would be constructed and suggested that it be of slumpstone rather than just a block wall.. Carl Peace, 1414 East Trenton,. said he is more a less a spokesman the street who support the issues he will for the residents of . bring to the attention of the Commission. He said Mr. Bishton said the issue tonight is pertaining only to the small change of the former drive-in restaurant that was .situated on the corner of Tustin and Trenton and the two .houses they demolished. He said Mr. Bishton also made a statement that to his knowledge Trenton would be considered for a cul-de-sac although it might never come to pass. He said the residents are aware of the fact that Toyota has purchased the existing Hudson Station on the northwest corner of Trenton and Tustin and has also more or less come to an agreement to purchase the swim school and to make a more liberal offer to the lady who owns the first house on the north. side of Tustin, which would bring the whole phase into the so-called cu7-de-sac, He said he thinks the majority of the residents of Trenton really are not opposed to the change but what they are really concerned about are three or four issues to which they would like to hear the Commission's overall opinion concerning the possibility of the cul-de-sac. He said Toyota can talk all it wants about the little things it is going to do now but that's He said the first thing is if it does come just the beginning. . to the point where Toyota takes over the existing property across the street on the north side of Tustin, apparently the cul-de-sac would be down toward the first house. He said there are some people in the area, particularly two or three elderly 7adies,~who don`t drive who have a hard time getting to the pi aces of business at Tustin and Katella. He said as it exists now, they can walk to that point but if there is a cul-de-sac there, that means they would have to go from seven to ten blocks around westbound Trenton Avenue to Cambridge and up to Katella, to get to the same area that they can now reach in only one or two blocks of walking. He said they hope the Commission the feasibility of putting a walkway through at the end of the cul-de-sac if indeed the change does come about. The second concern is the traffic in and out of Toyota. He said that besides the existing gates they propose to put in there, which are fine for right-hand turns, there is the problem of what will be used by the people who want to make Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Seventeen a left-hand turn. He said that instead of putting the traffic out of Toyota onto Trenton, which would then try to get out onto Tustin, Hfhich is difficult to do already because the traffic backs up from the signal light sometimes even up to Chestnut Street, they suggest that the traffic exiting from Toyota should use the delivery lane in back of the building, exit to the left and go out onto Katella at which point it could turn either left or right. He said the third thing about which they are concerned is if Trenton does become a cul-de-sac there should be a four-way stop at Trenton and Cambridge. Mr. Peace said. the residents of the area are also concerned about the amount of heavy traffic emanating from Toyota. He said when Toyota takes a car out for testing by a mechanic the car exits onto Tustin, turns right down to Katella, turns a right again on Katella to Cambridge,-trurns right again on Cambridge to Trenton,. and makes aright again. onto Trenton to return to the Toyota lot, He said the neighborhood is upset about the excess traffic from Toyota that uses the residential streets as a testing run. .They are also concerned that Toyota will use Trenton for the car carriers to deliver the new cars once the new gate is built into the storage area. He said the residents of Trenton would be most thankful to the Commission if it would give these four concerns high consideration. Robert Koenig, 1434 East Trenton, said he understands that pnly people residing within 300 feet of the property proposed to be rezoned are to be notified and. if that is true, he would like to know what steps can be taken to change such a policy. He said the only way people not within 300 feet found out what would be happening at this meeting is that an alert neighbor put out the word to those who had not been notified. Mr. Minshew said it is state law that the notification area be 300 feet and as to changing it, he doubts that state law can be changed and anyway most of the time 300 feet is adequate, although in this situation it may not be. He said the Commission can direct that notification be sent to anyone who might be concerned; also anyone who is concerned and is not within the 300 feet can submit his name and address and request notification. He said anybody can request to be notified on any type of matter in the City at any time. He suggested that if the residents of Trenton want to know of anything that might concern Trenton, they should give a list of their names, addresses and zip codes to the Planning Commission secretary and request that in the future they be notified of all matters pertaining to Trenton. Patricia Tartaglio, 1403 East Trenton, said she would like to have a clarification as to how much land is to be rezoned in the M-H area. Chairman Greek said the interpretation the Planning Commission has is that the land which is being requested to be rezoned from M-H to C-1 is that property within the existing driveway. Planning Commission Minutes. January 21, 1985 Page Eighteen Joseph Slifko, 1420 North Tustin: (the mobile home park), said that people living in the mobile home park always turn right in exiting and if the new driveway is built they will have to turn left to reach the shopping areas in the neighborhood. He complained because the residents did not receive a notice of this proposal. He said he has lived there for 20 years and hates to see any changes to the mobile home park. Chairman Greek said that if this would be built there is a condition that a median be built from approximately the western property line to the intersection which would end prior to the mobile home park property and therefore the people living in the mobile home park could still turn in either direction as they wish. He also pointed out that in the case of a mobile home park there is no list of residents for notification purposes,-the notification goes to the legal owner of the property; however,%if the residents wish to be notified of future actions all they have to do is request it and submit names and addresses. Mr. Slifko asked if the change would mean the mobile home park address would be changed from Tustin to Trenton. Chairman Greek said he thought it probably would have to be changed. Mr. Bishton said that insofar as the mobile home park is concerned, the access i7o Tustin will be easier after the change is made than it is now. We said the notification of this meeting went to the owners of the ground lease to the trailer park but he will be happy to see that a notice is sent on any future events to the clubhouse for posting on the bulletin board for the residents to see. He said no portion of the rezoning of the mobile home park involves any place where trailers are located, it is simply a change of the ingress and egress driveway. He said if there are any future hearings on the proposed cul-de-sac he will see that all residents of Trenton receive notification of the hearing. He said that a cul~.de-sac on Trenton will solve the problem of the bad traffic on Tustin as it relates to the residents of Trenton. He said it is not simple to do ,because the owner of the property on the corner, Mudson Oil Company,--is in bankruptcy in Kansas City, and it took a long time to enter into a contract to purchase that corner,-- He said they decided to purchase that corner whether the cul-de-sac went through or not because it could at least be used as an employee parking area or storage area. He said the ugly building wi]l be taken down and the corner will be improved if only by the removal of the building and the area being paved. Secondly, he said,-he and the Redevelopment Agency have been discussing with the owners of the swim school the acquisition of that property but they are along way from an understanding because the owners want to relocate in this area. Also, in order to cul-de-sac the next house up the street would also have to be acquired and he has talked to Mrs. Lewis, the owner of that property;-who is concerned about where she could relocate. So, he pointed out, there are a lot of hurdles that have to be overcome before the question of whether or not to cul-de-sac Trenton can be reached. Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Nineteen Mr. Bishton said Traffic Engineering thinks it is a gopd~,idea to make Trenton a cul-de-sac and he is sure they will look favorably upon making a four-way stop at Trenton and Cambridge. He said Toyota of Orange has had, still has, and will always have a policy that it does not test drive cars along Trenton, that the employees are told not to do that, and if the employees are doing it, it is not known to management, and he will point out to Toyota of Orange that this must not be done in the future. He said there are two things that are important to keep in mind if the cu1~de-sac does come about: 1) there will at the same time a knock down barrier put in at the cul-de-sac end so emergency vehicles can get through from Tustin, 2) there will be a walkway put in for anyone wishing to walk from Trenton to Tustin. Mr. Bishton said he has talked to Mr. Wesson regarding his property. and one of the things Toyota plans to do is put in a fluted, sp1it- face block wall which will be decorative $= as well as upgrade the area with landscaping,to improve its appearance. Commissioner Mason questioned the southern departure from Toyota. Mr. Bishton said that would be the obvious solution because the City of Orange has a dedicated alley running east and west as well as one at the west end of the shopping center, and hh has studied that situation, but if traffic is put out into that dedicated alley it wi11 go every which way, creating a problem across someone else's private property. He said he tried to persuade the mobile home park owners to go out to the alley at the west end and go out to California Street where there`s a traffic light, which would have made ingress and egress much easier, but the answer he got was that it is only an alley and they don't want to have an alley as the means of ingress and egress. Another problem in doing that is that trucks delivering merchandise to the various stores in the shopping center so the alley is blocked occasionally and does not present an ideal traffic route. Consequently, the traffic engineers also rejected any suggestion of looking southward to try to solve the problem. Mr. Minshew said that if the residents of Trenton make up a list of names and addresses for notification, he thinks a copy should also be sent to the City Clerk for any possible City. Council action, especially since any action regarding a possible cul-de-sac would be an abandonment act ion and would not involve the Planning Commission, only the City Council. He said just sending a notice to the mobile home park for its bulletin board might be sufficient, if the residents read the bulletin board, but if any of them or any other resident on Trention wants to receive notification they should submit their individual names and addresses. Mr. Bishton said he would commit Toyota of Orange to send out notices to the mobile home park and to the individual residents of Trenton on any hearings that would involve the possible cul-de-sac. • Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Twenty Commissioner Mason. asked if anyone knew if the address of the mobile home park would have to be changed if Trenton is made into a cul-de- sac. Mr. Minshew said he thought that would be up to the post office. Mr. Johnson said he thought it definitely would have to be changed as the entrance should also be the mailing address. Commissioner Scott asked what is the width of Trenton- curb-to-curb right now. Mr. Johnson said he believes it is 36 feet with a within- sixty-feet of .right-of-way. Commissioner Scott asked if a two-foot median could be installed in that space, Mr. Johnson said that, depending on how it is striped, the curbs might have to be moved back, but he believes there is adequate room, certainly within the right-of-way and possibly within the existing street. Chairman Greek said he has some concerns he would like to see addressed before he feels comfortable making any decision. He said he wants to see a tentative parcel map that really reflects what is being created. He pointed out that the mobile home park currently has only one access and pointed out that the City hasn`t allowed any mobile home parks with only one access for along time. Consequently, the City would be creating something by just moving the one access that it would not allow to happen if this was anew construction. He is also concerned that there be definite access to the mobile home park so it is not a piece of land-locked property that can never be developed to any other usage. He said he would a1 so like to see a traffic study that indicates what is going to be happening traffic-wise, with some projections from a consultant who could indicate what traffic volumes are anticipated with this type of .development. He said he also would like to see something done as soon as possible with the Hudson Station corner because it is an eyesore now.. Mr. Bishton said Toyota closes escrow on that property on January 31 and plans to immediately remove the building and the tanks in the ground so the corner can be improved. He pointed out that although the mobile home park has only a single exit., it also has access a71 along the south side to the dedicated alley. Chairman Greek said that he feels that if the mobile home park access is going to be moved, it should also be brought up to today`s standards and have two accesses. Commissioner Scott said he questions whether or not the two alleys are really dedicated alleys. Mr, Johnson said he knows the alleys are dedicated for storm drain purposes and he believes they are dedicated for ingress and egress. Commissioner Scott said he would like to have that checked out because his recollection is that the dedication easement was fora storm drain only. Chairman Greek asked for the opinion. of Commissioners Mason and Scott as to whether or not this matter should be voted upon at Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Twenty-one this meeting or continued. Commissioner Mason sa id she saw no reason for continuance unless the Commission wanted some specific answers to certain questions. She asked if the Commission was going to propose having a traffic study. Chairman Greek said he would like to have the traffic study as well as the tentative parcel map and an indication of whether or not another access could be put at the mobile home park. Commissioner Scott said he wanted to be sure the alley was dedicated for more than a storm drain and he would also like to see the layout for the median strip on Trenton. Mr. Johnson said there is a possibility that a new configu~~ation of property lines not creating any new parcels but reconfiguring them could be done by a lot line adjustment. Chairman Greek pointed out that Condition ~2 asks fora parcel map. He said he is of raid that some kind of a monster will be created by changing the access to the mobile home park and not having a second access. He said that easements can be changed but a parcel map is a recorded document and can`t be changed. Chairman Greek declared the public hearing closed. Moved by Commissioner Mason, seconded by Commissioner Scott,=that this item be continued to the meeting of February 4, and that the Staff be asked to come up with. answers to the questions brought up at this hearing. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: NEMV W.EARINGS TENTATIVE PARCEL MAP 84-771, CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT 1392 - SANTA FE LAND IMPROVEMENT COMPANY. NOTE: Negative Del ca ration 952 has been prepared for this project. Proposed resubdivision of .three parcels into five parcels and a conditional use permit to allow an off ice development in the industrial zone on one of the parcels. Mr. Reichert made the presentation in accordance with the Staff Report and said Staff recommends approval subject to the conditions in its report. Chairman Greek opened the public hearing. Howard F. Thompson, architects. 16520 Ashton Street, Irvine, repre- senting the developer and applicant, said he is present to answer any questions concerning the project. Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 Page Twenty-two AYES: NOES: ABSENT: Jerry Clark, Keith Engineering, 2900-B Bristol Street, Costa Mesa, said he is also here in favor of the proposal and will answer any questions. Chairman Greek declared the public hearing closed. Chairman Greek asked Mr. Thompson if he had seen the conditions relating to the development. He said he had not, so Chairman Greek called a brief recess during which Mr. Thompson could read them. Subsequently, Mr. Thompson said he had read the conditions and understood them and finds them acceptable. Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that the Planning Commission accept the findings of the Environmental Review Board to file Negative Declaration 953. Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott None Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED AYES: NOES: ABSENT: AYES.: NOES: ABSENT: Moved by Commissioner Mason, seconded by Commissioner Scott, that the Planning Commission recommend to the City Council that it approve Tentative Parcel Map 84-771, subject to the conditions listed in the Engineer's Plan Check. Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott None Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED Moved by Commissioner Scott, seconded by Commissioner Mason, that the Planning Commission approve Conditional Use Permit 1392, subject to the conditions in the Staff Report. Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott None Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED IN RE: OTHER BUSINESS A request was received from the Planning Department Staff for per- mission to make up a commendation resolution to present to David Hart for his chairmanship of the Planning Commission during the past year. Moved by Commissioner Greek, seconded by Commissioner Scott, that this commendation resolution be prepared. AYES: Commissioners Greek, Mason, Scott NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Hart, Master MOTION CARRIED Planning Commission Minutes January 21, 1985 '~""~ Page Twenty-three IN RE: ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10.:00 p.m. to reconvene at a regular meeting on February 4, 1985, at the Civic Center Council Chambers, 300 East Chapman Avenue, Orange, California.