The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About2025-04-23 - SupplementalsPlanning Commission Cal Box II April 23, 2024 Project: A request for site plan and architectural review of a 45,993 square foot addition to an existing 98,406 square foot industrial building and a Conditional Use Permit to operate a manufacturing use within Mixed Employment 2 (ME2) Zone. Entitlements: Design Review DRC2023-00379 Conditional Use Permit DRC2024-00288 Zoning Designation: Mixed Employment 2 (ME2) General Plan Designation: 21st Century Employment District Project Overview Project Location Street View Overall Site Plan Photo of Project Area South Building Elevation Development Code Compliance Required Provided Compliant? Building Setback (Street)15 Feet Maximum 70 Feet Yes* Building Setback (Side)N/A 40 and 50 Feet Yes Building Setback (Rear)N/A 135 Feet Yes Parking Setback 10 Foot Minimum 81 Feet Yes Landscape Coverage N/A 10.8 Percent Yes Floor Area Ratio .4 – 2.0 Percent 43 Percent Yes Building Height 4 Stories (Maximum)1 Story Yes *The proposed addition will bring the building into greater conformance with the required streetside setback in compliance with Development Code Section 17.62.030-B related to Nonconforming Uses and Structures. Parking Parking Ratio Required Parking Provided Parking Office Parking 1:250 SF 22 Spaces 22 Spaces Manufacturing 2:1,000 SF 24 Space 24 Space Warehouse Parking 1:1,000 for 1st 20,000 SF 1:2,000 for 2nd 20,000 SF 1:4,000 for the Remaining SF 48 Spaces 48 Spaces Total Vehicle Parking 94 Spaces 103 Spaces Trailer Parking (11 Dock High Doors)1 per Dock High Door 11 Spaces 11 Spaces Conditional Use Permit •Manufacturing uses over 50,000 square feet in area require the approval of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) under the Light Manufacturing (Large) use category; •Cal Box operates 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday, with up to 64 employees working in two shifts; •During peak periods, up to two Saturday shifts may be added per month, between 2:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.; •Office personnel work from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday; •On average, 20 trucks access the site daily. Environmental Assessment Planning staff determined that the project is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) under: • Section 15332 (Infill Development Projects): Covers infill developments on sites less than 5 acres, with no significant impact on traffic, noise, air quality, or water. • Section 15301 (Existing Facilities): Covers the Conditional Use Permit requirement for a Manufacturing Use (Large) over 50,000 square feet in the ME2 Zone. Correspondence This item was advertised as a public hearing with a regular legal advertisement in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin newspaper on April 8, 2025; The property was posted on April 9, 2025, Notices were mailed to 15 property owners within a 660-foot radius of the project site on April 8, 2025. A letter dated April 21, 2025, was received questioning: 1.The use of the CEQA 15301 exemption; and 2.The use of the CEQA 15332 exemption as the project may result in significant, cumulative air quality impacts. Response to Comment Letter Existing Facilities Exemption (15301) Applicability: •Used only for permitting (Minor Use Permit) — not for the building addition. •The permit supports an existing use; it does not constitute a new or expanded use. •CEQA guidelines allow flexible application when project components are separately scoped. Air Quality Question: •Construction-related emissions are temporary, limited in scope, and do not constitute a cumulative long-term impact (nearest residences are over 2,000 feet from the project site). •No new diesel truck traffic; existing levels unchanged. •Indoor relocation of operations may reduce fugitive emissions. Staff Recommendation •Staff recommends that the Planning Commission adopt the resolutions of approval for Design Review DRC2023-00379 and Conditional Use Permit DRC2024-00288, subject to the attached Conditions of Approval. VIA EMAIL April 21, 2025 Tony Morales, Chair Al Boling, Vice Chair Bryan Dopp, Commissioner James Daniels, Commissioner Melissa Diaz, Commissioner Planning Commission 10500 Civic Center Dr. Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 Planning@CityofRC.us City.Clerk@CityofRC.us Tabe Van der Zwaag Planning and Economic Development 10500 Civic Center Dr. Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 tabe.vanderzwaag@cityofrc.us Re: Comment on Cal Box II Class 32 CEQA Infill Exemption and Class 1 Exemption (Design Review DRC2023-00379 and Conditional Use Permit DRC2024-00288) April 23, 2025 Planning Commission Hearing Agenda Item No. D1. Dear Chair Morales, Vice Chair Boling, Honorable Commissioners, and Planner Van der Zwaag: This correspondence is submitted on behalf of Supporters Alliance for Environmental Responsibility (“SAFER”) and its members living and/or working in and around the City of Rancho Cucamonga (“City”) regarding the Cal Box II Project (DRC2023-00379 and DRC2024- 00288) (“Project”) and the proposed adoption of a California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) Class 32 Categorical Infill Exemption (“ In-Fill Exemption”) or a Class 1 Existing Facilities Exemption (“Existing Facilities Exemption”). For the reasons discussed below, the Project does not qualify for CEQA’s Infill Exemption nor does it qualify for the Existing Facilities Exemption and requires preparation of an initial study followed by either a mitigated negative declaration (“MND”) or environmental impact report (“EIR”) prior to approval. PROJECT DESCRIPTION The Project proposes a 45,993 square foot addition to an existing 98,406 square foot industrial building. The Project Site is located at the terminus of Toronto Avenue in the City of Rancho Cucamonga. April 21, 2025 SAFER Comment on Cal Box II Project Page 2 of 4 LEGAL STANDARD CEQA mandates that “the long-term protection of the environment . . . shall be the guiding criterion in public decisions” throughout California. (Pub. Resources Code (“PRC”) § 21001(d).) A “project” is “the whole of an action” directly undertaken, supported, or authorized by a public agency “which may cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.” (PRC § 21065; 14 CCR § 15378(a).) CEQA requires environmental factors to be considered at the “earliest possible stage . . . before [the project] gains irreversible momentum,” (Bozung v. LAFCO (1975) 13 Cal.3d 263, 284 n.28), “at a point in the planning process where genuine flexibility remains.” (Sundstrom v. Mendocino County (1988) 202 Cal.App.3d 296, 307.) To achieve its objectives of environmental protection, CEQA has a three-tiered structure. (14 CCR § 15002(k); Committee to Save the Hollywoodland Specific Plan v. City of Los Angeles (2008) 161 Cal.App.4th 1168, 1185-86.) First, if a project falls into an exempt category, or it can be seen with certainty that the activity in question will not have a significant effect on the environment, no further evaluation is required under CEQA. (14 CCR § 15002(k)(1).) Second, if the project is not exempt and there is a possibility the project will have a significant effect on the environment, an initial threshold study is required. (14 CCR § 15002(k)(2).) Third, either a mitigated negative declaration is required if the initial study shows that there is no substantial evidence that the project may have a significant effect (id.) or an environmental impact report is required if the initial study shows that the project may have a significant effect (14 CCR § 15002(k)(3). Because staff has recommended that the Commission find the Project to be exempt from CEQA, we are at the first step in the process. CEQA identifies certain classes of projects which are exempt from the provisions of CEQA. These are called categorical exemptions. (14 CCR §§ 15300, 15354.) “Exemptions to CEQA are narrowly construed and “‘[e]xemption categories are not to be expanded beyond the reasonable scope of their statutory language.’” (Mountain Lion Foundation v. Fish & Game Com. (1997) 16 Cal.4th 105, 125.) Here, staff has recommended that the Project is categorically exempt from the requirements of CEQA pursuant to CEQA’s Infill Exemption (14 CCR § 15332.) Under CEQA’s Infill Exemption, a project is exempt from the requirements of CEQA if the project meets the following five conditions: (a)The project is consistent with the applicable general plan designation and all applicable general plan policies as well as with applicable zoning designation and regulations. (b)The proposed development occurs within city limits on a project site of no more than five acres substantially surrounded by urban uses. (c)The project site has no value, as habitat for endangered, rare or threatened species. April 21, 2025 SAFER Comment on Cal Box II Project Page 3 of 4 (d)Approval of the project would not result in any significant effects relating to traffic, noise, air quality, or water quality. (e) The site can be adequately served by all required utilities and public services. Here, staff has also recommended approval of the Project on the basis that the Project qualifies for CEQA’s Existing Facilities Exemption. Projects falling within the Existing Facilities Exemption are those that “consist[] of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alternation of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features involving negligible or no expansion of existing or former use.” (14 Cal. Code Regs. § 15301.) Examples of the types of projects that qualify for the Existing Facilities Exemption include “[a]dditions to existing structures provided that the addition will not result in an increase of more than: (1)50 percent of the floor area of the structures before the addition, or 2,500 square feet, whichever is less; or (2)10,000 square feet if: (A) [t]he project is in an area where all public services and facilities are available to allow for maximum development permissible in the General Plan and (B) [t]he area in which the project is located is not environmentally sensitive. (14 Cal Code Regs. § 15301(e).) DISCUSSION I.The Project May Have a Significant Air Quality Impact, Precluding Reliance on the Infill Exemption. The Project does not qualify for the Infill Exemption because it might result in significant, cumulative air quality impacts. According to the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment’s (OEHHA) CalEnviroScreen Communities Environmental Health Screening Tool, the census tract where the Project is located has a pollution burden of 88, meaning residents in this tract bear a higher pollution burden than 88 percent of tracts in the state. (Exhibit A.)1 For diesel particulate matter (“DPM”), a toxic air contaminant, the Project location is worse than 69 percent of other census tracts in the state. (Exhibit B.) Diesel trucks, like those to be used during the construction and operation of the Project, are a major source of DPM emissions. (Exhibit B.) Exposure to DPM is known to cause serious health problems, such as heart and lung disease and lung cancer. (Exhibit B.) These health impacts are important to consider given that the census tract where the site is located is in the 68th percentile for cardiovascular disease, meaning it is higher than 68 percent of the census tracts in California. (Exhibit C.) 1 CalEnviroScreen is available at: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/ed5953d89038431dbf4f22ab9abfe40d/ April 21, 2025 SAFER Comment on Cal Box II Project Page 4 of 4 Within this setting, the Project will contribute to the already harmful air quality conditions in the surround area. This is a potentially significant cumulative impact that disqualifies the Project from proceeding under the Infill Exemption. The Project must undergo CEQA review through the preparation of an initial study followed by an EIR or MND to adequately analyze this impact. II.The Project Does Not Meet the Criteria for the Existing Facilities Exemption. The Project does not qualify for the Existing Facilities Exemption because it does not consist of a “minor alteration” that involves a “negligible or no expansion of [an] existing or former use.” (14 Cal. Code Regs. § 15301(e).) The Project greatly exceeds what is permitted as an addition to an existing structure, which at most is a 10,000 square foot addition. Here, the Project is proposing a 45,993 square foot addition, more than four times the additional square footage allowed under the Existing Facilities Exemption. Thus, the Project is far too big to qualify for this exemption and must be analyzed in an EIR or MND. CONCLUSION SAFER respectfully requests that the Planning Commission find that the Project does not qualify for the Infill or Existing Facilities Exemption and recommend that staff prepare an initial study followed by an EIR or MND for the Project in order to analyze and mitigate significant impacts as well as ensure compliance with CEQA. Sincerely, Kylah Staley Lozeau | Drury LLP EXHIBIT A CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Indicator Maps Results Map � Pollution Burden Results Census Tract 6071002110 Pollution Burden: Population: 88 7460 CalEnviroScreen 4.0 Percentile: 7 4 Ozone: PM 2.5: Diesel PM: Pesticides: 95 96 69 0 94 EXHIBIT B EXHIBIT C UES 14538 Meridian Parkway Suite A Riverside, CA 92518 p. 951.571.4081 | TeamUES.com Environmental Consulting & Permitting | Geotechnical Engineering | Materials Testing & Inspections Geophysical Technology | Building Sciences & Code Compliance April 23, 2025 Tabe Van der Zwagg City of Rancho Cucamonga 10500 Civic Center Drive Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730 Attention: Tabe Van der Zwagg, Associate Planner Reference: Cal Box II Class 32 CEQA Infill Exemption and Class 1 Exemption (Design Review DRC2023-00379 and Conditional Use Permit DRC2024-00288) April 23, 2025 Planning Commission Hearing Agenda Item No. D1- Response to Letter from Lozeau and Drury dated April 21, 2025 Response to DISCUSSION I. The proposed project is under the 75,000 square feet of warehousing used to screen out potential cumulatively considerable projects under CEQA according to the Southern California Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) cumulatively considerable threshold. The proposed project will cover an existing storage area. It will not result in an increase in traffic on the roadways. It will reduce traffic and congestion on-site and off-site. The construction is being completed to cover cardboard that otherwise must be covered with tarps, depending on the weather, and/or stored in other storage facilities. This will reduce the trips made to and from the facility. In addition, the cardboard boxes are now stored in the parking lot. Covering the area will allow operational efficiencies to reduce traffic and circulation congestion on the site. The Project would not contribute significantly to the surrounding area's air quality conditions, so it would not have a potentially significant cumulative impact because the potential impact would not be cumulatively considerable. In addition, the heavy equipment used during construction would be temporary and adhere to all current regulatory standards that are in place to reduce the potential air quality impacts to less than significant. No mitigation measures would be required to reduce the project’s potential impact on air quality. The project is categorically exempt from CEQA's requirements under CEQA’s In-fill Exemption (14 CCR §15332). CAL Box II Warehouse Expansion Project Project No. 4940.2400003.0000 April 23, 2025 Page 2 14538 Meridian Parkway Suite A, Riverside, CA 92518 p. 951.571.4081 | TeamUES.com Respectfully, UES Prepared By, Kurt Schlyer Principal Environmental Planner and Project Manager No Attachments