09-06-17 CUP PACIFIC COURIERS 624 N. Eckhoff Street
TO: Chair Glasgow and
Members of the Planning Commission
THRU: Anna Pehoushek
Assistant Community Development Director
FROM: Robert Garcia
Senior Planner
SUBJECT
PUBLIC HEARING: Conditional Use Permit (CUP) No. 3049-17 – Pacific Couriers, 624 N.
Eckhoff Street
SUMMARY
The applicant is proposing to occupy a 5,619 SF tenant space for an administrative office in excess
of 25% of the total gross floor area in the Light Manufacturing (M-1) zone.
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Adopt Planning Commission Resolution No. PC 24-17 entitled:
A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE
CITY OF ORANGE APPROVING CONDITIONAL USE
PERMIT NO. 3049-17 ALLOWING AN ADMINISTRATIVE
OFFICE IN EXCESS OF 25% OF THE TOTAL GROSS FLOOR
AREA IN THE LIGHT MANUFACTURING (M-1) ZONE
LOCATED AT 624 N. ECKHOFF STREET
AUTHORIZATION/GUIDELINES
Orange Municipal Code (OMC) Section 17.20.030 and Table 17.08.020 authorize the Planning
Commission to review and take action on Conditional Use Permits for administrative offices in excess
of 25% of the total gross floor area in the Light Manufacturing (M-1) zone.
PUBLIC NOTICE
On August 24, 2017, the City sent a Public Hearing Notice to a total of ___ property owners and
occupants within a 300-foot radius of the project site. The project site was also posted in two locations
with notification on that same date.
Planning Commission
Agenda Item
September 6, 2017
Planning Commission Staff Report
CUP No. 3049-17
September 6, 2017
Page 2
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Categorical Exemption: The proposed project is categorically exempt from the provisions of the
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) per State CEQA Guidelines 15301 (Class 1 – Existing
Facilities) because the project consists of permitting a use in an existing private structure involving
no expansion.
PROJECT BACKGROUND
Applicant: Suheil Hazv, Pacific Couriers, Inc.
Property Owner: Suheil Hazv, Pacific Couriers, Inc.
Property Location: 624 North Eckhoff Street
Existing General Plan
Land Use Element designation:
Light Industrial (LI)
Existing Zoning
Classification:
Light Manufacturing (M-1)
Old Towne: No
Specific Plan/PC: No
Site Size: 5,619 SF tenant building space of a 12,840 SF building on a
6.42 acre lot. The overall site consists of 8 buildings for a
total of 141,620 sq. ft.
Circulation: The parcel is located on Echkoff Street, which is designated
as a Secondary Street with an ultimate right-of-way of 80
feet.
Existing conditions: A single story 141,620 sq. ft. industrial condominium
development consisting of 8 buildings on a 7.9 acre lot with
363 parking stalls.
Surrounding land uses
and Zoning:
The site is surrounded by M-1 zoned properties on the north
and west and Office Professional (O-P) on the east and south
sides of the parcel.
Previous Applications/Entitlements: TTM No. 16443: In 2003, the City Council approved the
subdivision of existing multi-tenant industrial buildings to
allow the sale of 23 individual tenant spaces.
DRC No. 3810-03: In 2003, the Design Review Committee
approved upgrades to property landscaping and minor
building façade alterations.
CUP No. 2880-12: In 2013, the Planning Commission
approved an administrative office in excess of 25% of the
total gross floor area for a construction management office at
604 N. Eckhoff Street.
CUP No. 3028-16: In 2017, the Planning Commission
approved an administrative office in excess of 25% of the
total gross floor area for a construction management office at
604 N. Eckhoff Street.
Planning Commission Staff Report
CUP No. 3049-17
September 6, 2017
Page 3
Other entitlements have been granted at the industrial
complex, which include a commercial recreational use, ABC
license and a church use.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The applicant, Pacific Couriers, provides courier services for its clients. Pacific Couriers is expanding
its services to federal contracting services and is therefore expanding into the site in question. The
purpose of the request for a CUP to exceed the 25% office area is to accommodate for the expansion
of its administrative services associated with the federal contracts, while maintaining warehouse
space for storage. The 5,619 SF tenant space will consist of 2,695 SF of office (48%) and the
remaining 2,924 SF of warehouse space. There will be six full time employees initially, with an
anticipated growth as additional federal contracts are awarded.
The subject site is located along the West Orangewood Avenue and North Eckhoff Street industrial
and office district. Industrial uses are permitted by right in the M-1 zoning district with administrative
offices not exceeding 25% of the business gross floor area. The subject site was developed in 1977
with eight buildings that are divided into 23 tenant spaces and 363 on-site parking spaces. In 2003,
the City Council approved the subdivision of the existing multi-tenant industrial buildings to be sold
into 23 individual units. There is one entrance to the office and one exit to the rear of the warehouse.
The subject site also includes Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) and a condominium
ownership association, known as Orange Industrial Park for the purposes of assigning responsibility
for the maintenance of the shared parking lot, landscaping area, and buildings.
Development Standards
No changes are proposed to the lot size, building square footage, building height, or parking as part
of this application. Therefore, a comparison of the building to existing development standards has not
been conducted.
APPLICATION(S) REQUESTED/REQUIRED FINDINGS
Conditional Use Permit: The applicant is proposing to occupy a 5,619 SF tenant space with an
administrative office space in excess of 25% of the gross floor area in an M-1 zone.
Required Findings:
1. A Conditional Use Permit shall be granted upon sound principles of land use and in
response to services required by the community.
2. A Conditional Use Permit shall not be granted if it will cause deterioration of bordering
land uses or create special problems for the area in which it is located.
3. A Conditional Use Permit must be considered in relationship to its effect on the community
or neighborhood plan for the area in which it is located.
4. A Conditional Use Permit, if granted, shall be made subject to those conditions necessary
to preserve the general welfare, not the individual welfare of any particular applicant.
Planning Commission Staff Report
CUP No. 3049-17
September 6, 2017
Page 4
ANALYSIS/STATEMENT OF THE ISSUES
Pacific Couriers will occupy 5,619 SF of a 12,840 SF building in a condominium industrial park and
is proposing to use 2,695 SF floor area dedicated for office and 2,924 SF open warehouse for storage.
The proposed office would exceed the maximum 25% office allowed as a permitted use in the M-1
zone, therefore a Conditional Use Permit is requested. The proposed use would result in 48% of the
tenant’s gross floor area being utilized as administrative office space. Approval of such a request
would not result in transforming the industrial complex into a professional office environment due to
the nature of the businesses located at the industrial complex.
Based on the uses located at the subject site the current parking requirement is 339 parking spaces for
the entire condominium industrial park. The subject site contains a total of 363 parking spaces. The
proposed use requires 13 parking spaces for its administrative office and storage use and the total
required number of parking spaces would increase to 341 spaces. This would leave the site over-
parked by 22 spaces.
Staff does not anticipate that approval of the applicant’s request will result in negatively impacting
the surrounding industrial and office uses, because other tenants at the property include construction
contractors’ offices, equipment suppliers and general product storage businesses and the additional
parking required by the proposed administrative office use is provided for on the subject property.
ADVISORY BOARD RECOMMENDATION
No advisory board review occurred for this application because the Planning Division is the
responsible party for reviewing conditional use permit requests of this nature where no changes to the
site plan or building footprint are proposed.
ATTACHMENTS/EXHIBITS
Attachments to Report:
1. Planning Commission Resolution PC 24-17
2. Vicinity Map
Exhibits provided to the Planning Commission:
A. Site and Floor Plan dated labeled September 6, 2017
CC: William Lushbaugh
Cadtronics
2070 Business Center Drive #220
Irvine, CA 92642
N:\CDD\PLNG\Applications\Conditional Use Permits\CUP 3049-17 CWA Offices\CUP 3049-17 606 N Eckhoff - PC Staff Report.Docx