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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996/01/31 - Workshop Minutes - PC-HPC CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Adjourned Meeting January 31, 1996 Chairman Barker called the Adjourned Meeting of the City of Rancho Cucamonga Planning Commission to order at 7:00 p.m. The meeting was held in the Council Chamber at Rancho Cucamonga Civic Center, 10500 Civic Center Drive, Rancho Cucamonga, California. Chairman Barker then led in the pledge of allegiance. ROLL CALL COMMISSIONERS: PRESENT: David Barker, Heinz Lumpp, Larry McNiel, John Melcher ABSENT: Peter Tolstoy STAFF PRESENT: Miki Bratt, Associate Planner; Brad Buller, City Planner; Alan Warren, Associate Planner ANNOUNCEMENTS There were no announcements. DIRECTOR'S REPORTS A. COMMERCIAL LAND STUDY DISCUSSION Brad Buller, City Planner, highlighted the repod and gave a brief update of the process the Commercial Study had been through and asked the Commission how they would like staff to proceed. Chairman Barker requested the discussion be limited. Commissioner Melcher said he would have to leave by 8:45 p.m. Chairman Barker said he would also like to see a separate workshop on design issues for the Wohl site at a future date. Commissioner McNiel said that was acceptable if the applicant is aware that the land use issue will not be prejudiced by the design considerations. Commissioner Melcher indicated he would object to a design workshop because there are significant land use considerations. Commissioner Lumpp said he would like to look at the larger land use issues first. Mr. Buller said the applicant could apply for a Preliminary Review proposing uses that meet current zoning uses. Peter Desforges, Wohl Investment Company, 2402 Michelson, Suite 170, Irvine, stated they would like to go forward following Mr. Buller's suggestion. Commissioner Melcher said he would like to have staff sit down with the Commission and review the land use map and the allowed uses to understand how different uses fit together. Commissioner Lumpp agreed. Commissioner McNiel said that the Commission needs to go carefully in order to make sound decisions. Chairman Barker said there appeared to be a consensus that the Commission would host a design workshop with Wohl so long as the issue is design and not land use. Commissioner Melcher felt that plans which conform to the zoning should proceed along with examination of what needs to be changed. Mr. Buller described the current zoning concepts and the way in which they are integrated rather than rigidly defined. Chairman Barker asked if the public would like to address the issue. Jim Axtell, Mission Land Company, said they suppod the process of text amendment and "Master Plan" concept. He noted that the Mills project is pushing the clock and that potential sites on the south side of Fourth Street to the west in Ontario compete with the north side in the City. Mr. Desforges commented on the study and the fact that retail uses such as an Office Max office supply store are already permitted on the south side of Foothill Boulevard. He felt that the same rhythm of retail development should be allowed starting in the west and moving east as Lewis has done on the north side. Commissioner Melcher inquired about the relative size of Mission Land frontage and the Mills frontage on 4th Street, as well as the Wohl frontage and the Terra Vista frontage on Foothill Boulevard. There was general discussion of the approximate lengths. Commissioner Melcher noted that Mission Land controls about half the frontage that the Mills project does, that Wohl has about half that of the Mission Land, and that Terra Vista has about 1-3/4 miles. John Koenig, Lewis Homes, stated that they suppor~ the Agajanian study. He said they will be applying for another Land Use amendment to close the retail gap on Foothill between Elm Street and Milliken Avenue. He indicated Lewis has reviewed their position and now supports the Mission Land and Archibald Avenue and 4th Street recommendations in the Market Study. Mr. Buller stated that a large box office supply retail store on the south side of Foothill would require a Use Determination by the Commission and would not be automatically permitted. Commissioner Melcher thought the Commission needs to rediscover the intent of the text not just look at the use tables in the Industrial Area Specific Plan. Commissioner McNiel observed that to accommodate some retail in the Industrial Area Specific Plan, the concept of 20 percent for "ancillary uses" was developed. He agreed the Commission needs to revisit that concept. PC Adjourned Minutes -2- January 31, 1996 Chairman Barker questioned whether more office use is planned on Foothill than the market will support. Mr. Buller indicated the intent was to encourage offices to concentrate on the Haven Avenue corridor and the south side of Foothill. He said that originally the Terra Vista frontage was planned for Mixed Commercial, majority office, and some retail. Chairman Barker said the Commission needs to look at what was intended to happen and what did happen, for example to the Victoria Mall. Commissioner Melcher expressed support for going forward with the Mission application on 4th Street opposite the Mills project. The Commissioners agreed unanimously and directed staff to move forward. Commissioner Lumpp said because of the high visibility and traffic volume, there appeared to be a potential for large scale retail at the 1-15 and route 30. Chairman Barker said that he and Commissioner McNiel had spent a lot of time on Route 30. He felt that large scale retail may not work out because of the two-level interchange, positioning of off ramps to favor Fontana, and the land use pattern. Mr, Buller said that Staff and the Commission could "walk through" the freeway layout and existing zoning of the area but because the freeway completion is still a few years off, other sites may have a higher priority. Chairman Barker stated that the Commission needs to look at the zoning and uses for each of the areas. Mr. Buller said that some applications are in process and will come to the Commission, for example an environmental impact report is being prepared for 4th Street and Archibald Avenue. Commissioner Melcher stated that the south side of Foothill Boulevard from Haven Avenue to Rochester Avenue should be a priority for the meeting of February 14. Mr. Buller suggested review of various zones allowed along Foothill Boulevard in the various Specific Plans. Chairman Barker agreed. Mr. Buller said there would be an initial walk through with maps and discussion of definitions. Commissioner McNiel stated his first level of priority was for 4th Street north of the Mills project, auto sales in Subarea 8, and Foothill at 1-15 because each has a high potential of benefit to the City; his second level would be for the south side of Foothill Boulevard because it is significant but more controversial and for 4th Street and Archibald Avenue; and his last priority would be for the Southern California Edison Corridor and the State Route 30/I-15 interchange. Mr. Buller felt that Foothill Marketplace at Foothill Boulevard and the 1-15 interchange is a success and that the City should look at strategies and incentives for this critical core. He noted that 4th and Mills and 4th and Archibald Avenue are in the works and that Subarea 8 auto sales will be back as soon as an application is received. He agreed that the south side of Foothill Boulevard will take time. He said staff would like to move towards expanding uses subject to a master plan on the Mission Land site. PC Adjoumed Minutes -3 - January 3 l, 1996 Commissioner Lumpp said he could suppod the master plan concept as long as that when something does not work, it can be changed. Commissioner Melcher supported going forward. There was general agreement to go forward with the master plan concept. Mr. Buller indicated that staff has sufficient direction to proceed for February 14. PUBLIC COMMENTS Mr. Desforges indicated Good Guys are willing to continue at the Wohl site but will evaluate their position at the end of February. He expressed hope that the Commission would work with this request. He then offered some observations of his views of existing city commercial corridors. He stated again that retail is really the highest and best use of the Wohl site. COMMISSION BUSINESS There was no additional Commission business. ADJOURNMENT The Planning Commission adjourned at 8:35 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Brad Buller Secretary PC Adjourned Minutes -4- January 31, 1996