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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-04-13 - Minutes - HPC-PC �� rr CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA rr�r r rr rrrr Historic Preservation Commission and Planning Commission Agenda April 13, 2022 MINUTES Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91729 7:00 p.m. The regular meeting of the Historic Presentation Commission and Planning Commission was held on April 13, 2022. The meeting was called to order by Chair Dopp 7:01 p.m. A. Roll Call Planning Commission present: Chair Dopp, Commissioner Morales, Commissioner Boling and Commissioner Daniels; Commissioner Williams. Staff Present: Serita Young, Assistant City Attorney; Matt Burris, AICP, LEED AP, Deputy City Manager-Community Development, Interim Planning Director; Jennifer Nakamura, Deputy Director of Planning; Mike Smith, Principal Planner; Brian Sandona, Principal Civil Engineer; David F. Eoff IV, Senior Planner; Lori Sassoon, Deputy City Manager, Administrative Services; Noah Daniels, Finance Director; Sean McPherson, Senior Planner; Vincent Acuna, Associate Planner; Elizabeth Thornhill, Executive Assistant. B. Public Communications Chair Dopp opened public communications and hearing no one, closed public communications. C. Consent Calendar Cl. Consideration to adopt Regular Meeting Minutes of March 23, 2022. Motion to adopt by Vice Chair Williams, second by Commissioner Boling. Motion carried unanimously 5-0 vote. D. Public Hearing Dl. LOCATED ON THE SOUTHEAST CORNER OF FOOTHILL BOULEVARD AND ETIWANDA AVENUE —WOOD PARTNERS —A request to construct a mixed-use development comprising of 259 residential units, 2 commercial units totaling 2,253 square- feet, and 1 live/work unit with 816 square feet of non-residential space within the Urban Corridor (UCR) District. APNs: 0229-311-14 and -15. A Mitigated Negative Declaration of environmental impacts has been prepared for consideration. Design Review DRC2020- 00440. Vincent Acuna, Associate Planner, presented Commissioners with a Staff Report and presentation (copy on file). Commissioner Daniels expressed he likes the project, it's well designed. He mentioned he would like to see more commercial with this project. He noticed there is only one live/work unit. He asked applicant to address. He commented the ball court is at a strange location. He asked what type of commercial would be going into project, and if the developer have any tenants in mind. Lastly, he confirmed with Vincent Acuna on the assigned parking map that guest parking is in purple. Chair Dopp asked what are some of the benchmarks the City is looking at when determining something meets mixed-use criteria in terms of mix of uses between commercial and residential Vincent Acuna explained that a mixed-use development would have two or more uses but in addition to having mixed-use within that project itself, it's also important to view the mixed of uses in the context of the larger neighborhood. In terms of this project, answering Commissioner Daniels question, the reason why there is one live/work unit is because the project was submitted under an SB330 application. This meant that the City, cannot reduce the project density as proposed. Originally, the project had five live-work units and when four live- work units were converted to two true commercial tenant spaces, this left one live-work unit. He explained what constitutes a mixed-use, it has to be completely separate from the living unit. Commissioner Daniels asked what the ratio is between residential and commercial space. Vincent Acuna answered 1.5 % of the project is commercial. Serita Young, Assistant City Attorney, mentioned as a reminder, that the project is under SB330, which means under that legislation, the City will not be able to lower the density of a project as proposed complies with the City's objective standards. In short, if increasing commercial square footage will reduce the number of residential units proposed, this cannot be done. Ms. Young also noted time limits for reviews related to SB330 projects. Commissioner Williams stated she is disappointed the project did not have a dedicated tot lot. She explained a tot lot is a place where they can bring their kids to play before taking a nap. There are 2- and 3- bedroom units and they will have children. You need a place for children to play, otherwise, they will destroy the property. She firmly believes you need a place to take your children to be children. She also said the bocce ball court on Foothill should be indoors where it's more private. She asked applicant to address these issues. Chair Dopp opened public hearing. Joe Gambill, Applicant, mentioned they added more parking spaces. All residents have assigned parking. They also have security cameras on-site staff to enforce the parking management plan. He mentioned bocce ball could be moved if it's an an issue. He added this property will be managed by Wood Partners, which is the same company as the developer. Lindsay Tabaian, Law Firm of Allan Matkins, representing the applicant, spoke about the letter received from Lozeau Drury firm. She said after reviewing the 641 pages received today, there are no new comments in this letter that are not adequately addressed in the IS/MND that was circulated for public review, which is part of this public record of proceedings tonight. She stated the IS/MND complies with CEQA, is complete and addresses all comments including those raised in this letter. There is no further response or changes to the environmental document are needed based on these comments. Chair Dopp asked what Lindsay thinks about some of the arguments in the letter. Chemical formaldehyde being present and a risk, diesel being harmful and a threat to public health, and a large amount of wildlife being killed as a result of the project. He asked what her response is from an environmental perspective considering she is an expert in the field. HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 2 of 9 FINAL Lindsay Tabaian responded that the comment about formaldehyde is an unsubstantiated comment, which assumes that wood containing formaldehyde would be used in connection with the project. She said it's a new construction that has to comply with very strict environmental standards in terms of the types of material used on-site. Compliance with those environmental standards would ensure that none of the formaldehyde type impacts raised in the letter would occur on-site. She explained the diesel particulate emissions is not an issue on this site. She said in the original letter they included a screening Health Risk Assessment (HRA) for construction, which alleged there would be diesel particulate and other air quality and GHG impacts. Although an HRA is not required for a project of this type, the applicant prepared their own detailed health risk assessment. It concluded there would be no diesel particulate impacts associated with the project. She spoke about impacts on wildlife. The biological assessment concluded that there would not be any significant biological impacts. The IS/MND was done to the satisfaction of the CA Fish and Wildlife. Chair Dopp thanked her for her explanation and opened the public hearing. The following persons commented on the project: • Jordan Sisson, on behalf of Lozeau Drury, states the IS/MND was not up to standard and requested the commission not take any action on the project until revisions are made. • Eliseo Flores, resident, raised concerns about project affecting the neighborhood in terms of parking and traffic. • Marcos Rico, resident, raised following concerns: Traffic, noise and light pollution. For the record, it is noted that the following correspondence was received after the preparation of the agenda packet and the following general concerns are noted. The actual correspondence should be referred to for details: • Letter from Lozeau Drury, stating that the IS/MND failed as an informational document and the project may have adverse environmental impacts. Request an Environmental Impact Report EIR be prepared, pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). • Email received from Cain Estrada, resident, mentioned he is not against the project, but has traffic concerns for the safety of his children. Jason Pack, Principal with Fehr and Peers, responded to the traffic comments. He said the City did require a full traffic study and the assessment identified Etiwanda and Foothill is congested and currently not operating as well as it should. As such, the project will be making significant improvements to the North bound approach and to the East bound approach and making frontage improvements along Foothill. Regarding parking, he said they did provide in their parking memo for variety national parking rates for similar type developments and took surveys at a similar development in Upland. He stated that number of parking spaces provided for this project is significantly more than a similar development in Upland. They felt comfortable that there will be adequate parking. There is a condition of approval to ensure compliance with the parking management plan. Commissioner Daniels stated that each tenant will have assigned parking. He asked about EV charging stations in the subterranean parking garage. Ted Young, Architect, responded that there are EV charging stations in the subterranean garage. Commissioner Daniels asked how EV charges are assigned to tenants. HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 3 of 9 FINAL Ted Young responded that EV stalls will be installed as needed. He said that, under the management plan, there will be flexibility assigning those stalls permanently for someone who has electric car, or where people can share it. Commissioner Daniels asked how you determine the amount of EV spaces provided. Ted Young answered that it is based in the Green Building Code, which currently requires 10% of all stalls to be EV ready. Lindsay Tabaian stated the Lozeau Drury's very long letter does not include any new substantial evidence or studies, other than a few statements from the experts in the record about how the comments/response letter were not good enough in their expert opinion. She said there are other factual reports that are offered that were not already included with the October 1st material that were reviewed and responded to in detail. Joe Gambill responded to resident concerns about light pollution. He explained all light standards in parking lot are 14 ft. high, within city requirements. He also clarified that a 6-foot-high block wall will be installed along the south and east property lines abutting residential property to further reduce light pollution. Commissioner Williams suggested adding a swing set. She said your tenants would appreciate it and she will be very happy. Joe Gambill stated they can do that. Commissioner Morales asked what significant things they will do to help with the traffic and how much the intersection improvement would cost Joe Gambill explained that along Etiwanda running north, they are dedicating a traffic and bike lane from the existing property. North of Foothill running east and west they are installing a bus lane. The existing traffic signal on the corner, will be moved. He does not know exact dollar amount. He can follow up. Chair Dopp confirmed with Vincent Acuna it's in the Conditions Item #5 for Engineering. Vincent Acuna replied yes. Commissioner Boling confirmed that the Standard Condition of Approval, Planning Department Item #33, a 6 ft. block wall will be constructed along the north and east property lines of the project, abutting single-family residential property. Commissioner Boling expressed appreciation to the applicant for considering the neighborhood and residents that surround it and for the project meeting the city's parking requirements. He said they have done a good job trying to increase the number of parking stalls on site. Regarding the tot lot amenities, he asked will they be up and available during the day/evening hours or does it have to be set up and taken down periodically. Joe Gambill replied we have storage units to put them in. He said you would request from property manager to check out and return when done. HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 4 of 9 FINAL Commissioner Boling mentioned that the two commercial units have great visibility along Foothill Blvd. He asked how customer parking would work, as well as loading/unload, as the nearest parking space is roughly 200 feet from the units themselves. Joe Gambill replied that the customers, employees, and deliveries would primarily park toward the rear of the project and utilize the sidewalks to get to the commercial units. Commissioner Boling asked if there were dedicated loading zones for the commercial units. Joe Gambill answered no. He said with the parking spaces can coordinate deliveries. Commissioner Boling expressed that he wants to make sure that the tenants of the commercial space have a clear understanding of where their customers will park and where the deliveries can be accommodated. Chair Dopp suggested to flip the commercial and visitor parking in the north side with the 12 and 6 units and maybe during off hours. Joe Gambill replied yes, that could be done. Chair Dopp mentioned he has concerns of the location of bocce ball being close to Foothill. Not the best placement if it will be actively utilized. Joe Gambill responded it can be relocated. Commissioner Boling asked about underground utilities. Is it anticipated that the utilities will be underground. Brian Sandona, Senior Civil Engineer, answered yes, they are conditioned to underground utilities along Etiwanda and Foothill. Commissioner Boling expressed that he appreciates the project. The architecture height variations and color scheme of the project looks good. The project, as a whole, with a mix of units 1, 2, and 3 bedrooms, along with design and amenities is good. It's appreciated. Commissioner Boling asked about the bus lane, and if it was going to be included as part of the dedication on Foothill Blvd. Joe Gambill confirmed. Chair Dopp mentioned since he and Commissioner Williams saw this project at Design Review Committee meeting, they talked about events programming in Wood Partners project in Chair Dopp asked if they feel comfortable with bocce ball being a good amenity. Joe Gamble explained they had a similar arrangement in Upland where they had a bocce ball court and horseshoes, along the entrance of the building, and it worked really well. He said they would be happy to move it if it's an issue. Chair Dopp closed public hearing. HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 5of9 FINAL Commissioner Morales stated if we were to approve this, they would have Conditions of Approval (COA) for a Parking Management Plan. He asked staff to explain the parking management plan, and if there is a parking problem what the City can do to help correct that. Brian Sandoval, Sr. Civil Engineer, explained the City does not necessarily advocate for a parking district but residents may petition for a parking district. Commissioner Morales reiterated that the City has an enforcement tool to make the owner of the property take corrective action if parking becomes an issue. Brian Sandona replied not necessarily the enforcement for the owner of the property, but the COA allows the City to facilitate the initiation of parking district in the event that the residents vote for it. Serita Young, Assistant City Attorney, stated Commissioner Morales might be asking about parking management plan and in terms of how the City might enforce should there be an issue. David Eoff, Senior Planner, stated that if there was an observed violation, we would contact the property owner and bring to their attention and do our own observations. There could be the ability to do a parking district/pass, a resident parking permit system. could be signage that could be installed. He said the important thing is to make sure the parking management is being complied with. Vincent Acuna, Associate Planner, mentioned that the applicant has provided a parking management plan. Part of the purpose of this condition is to ensure that if Wood Partners was to sell this building to someone else, there is a condition of approval in this project to assure the parking management plan would be followed by the new owner. Chair Dopp asked staff if they feel comfortable that these numbers are going to be correct at the end of the day. He asked are they confident the number of parking spaces needed is going to greatly exceed and put impacts on the community. David Eoff replied that they are comfortable with the project meeting parking. With the parking management plan and, the COA the city can effectively monitor the site and rectify issues as necessary. Vice Chair Williams stated she realizes she was a little critical initially, but overall, the project is very nicely done. It will make a nice addition to the community. She likes the idea of the monthly activities, but a simple little swing set will make a world of difference. Commissioner Morales mentioned we had a lot of good comments from the public today. Residents, Mr. Flores and Mr. Rico. He said if there were not enough parking spaces, there would be no way he could support it because he feels the City's responsibility and Commissioners are to avoid harm to the neighborhood. He believes the traffic improvements the developer will do to fix the traffic problems will most definitely help. A 6 ft. wall that was already mentioned will protect the views and privacy around the neighborhood. The parking plan is very crucial. He likes the design of the Paseo with trees and sitting area; it's a plus. With the developer and City working together and listening to the resident's concern, they created project that that he can support. Commissioner Boiling expressed his appreciation of staff and their comments regarding the parking management plan. He said it's wonderful to have in place but in practice, the critical element is management of it, which falls upon the property owner. He is glad it will be managed by Wood Partners after its built and occupied. He hopes they appreciate all comments heard today. They have done a HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 6 of 9 FINAL wonderful job as an organization, addressing concerns previously brought up, and making adjustments as needed. Working with your residents and commercial tenants, and keeping fingers crossed, they will succeed. The commercial spaces can be challenging spot, depending on the type of tenants brought in. He said that the developer should be mindful of that. However, overall, it's a good project. Commissioner Daniels mentioned he likes the project and it's a good location. It is going to give benefit to the city. He knows they are meeting code requirements but personally would like to see more commercial to future mixed-use developments. He believes with a project this size there needs to be more commercial. He said the ball court should be relocated or eliminated. He agrees with Williams on the swing set. With the number of residents, a swing set would be a real asset to the project. Overall, it's a very good project. Chair Dopp asked Commissioners to come to a consensus on whether they want to actually move the bocce courts and if the commissioners wanted to move the commercial parking. Commissioner Boling stated regarding the parking, we should leave it up to the applicant to best determine service ability of those two commercial units, as well as live/work. Commissioner Williams expressed she is very comfortable asking to relocate or eliminate bocce ball. Maybe make it into a nice sitting area with umbrellas and a fireplace. It is concerning to her the ball going over the wall to Foothill Blvd. It is one of the most crowded streets we have. Commissioner Boling suggested instead of calling it bocce ball, maybe just an open court type area. David Eoff mentioned the idea behind it was to provide additional amenity to public service. He said staff could work with the applicant to be adjusted if so desired by the Commission. Chair Dopp closed with the following comments: It's very clear to the applicants and future mixed-use developments, we are paying close attention to parking. This project meets the need for our community. It's very well designed. It's an attractive development. He is comfortable with the IS/MND. No further written evidence is needed at this point. The concerns were addressed appropriately. Motion to adopt by Commissioner Boling, second by Vice Chair Williams, with the proposed change to Condition of Approval Item #5. Motion carried unanimously 5-0 vote. Adopting Resolution 22-09. E. General Business E 1. Consideration of a Resolution Making Findings of General Plan Conformance for the Rancho Cucamonga EIFD's Infrastructure Financing Plan, and Making other Findings Related to the Formation of the EIFD and Actions of the EIFD Public Financing Authority. Lori Sassoon, Deputy City Manager, Administrative Services and Noah Daniels, Finance Director, presented Commissioners with a Staff Report. Lori Sassoon mentioned input from Commissioners are welcome as stakeholders, and their feedback will be taken into consideration. Commissioner Boling commended staff on taking a very innovative and unique approach to looking at future financing of projects that would provide an economic benefit to stimulate development within the city. Commissioner Daniels asked if there is a deadline for the County to respond if they want to participate. He asked can they join after it's formed. HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 7 of 9 FINAL Lori Sassoon responded she is having discussion with the County. She is hopeful for their participation. It would jump start these investments. She said if they were to consent to join in the next several months, it's administratively easier, but they can join in a later date. Chair Dopp asked does the money that gets captured by EIFD take away from the City's general fund. Lori Sassoon answered it captures a piece of the growth that would not otherwise happen if it were not for these investments. Chair Dopp stated it fits the vision of the General Plan holistically in terms of helping take cars off the road and prove the value that can potentially be brought from a parking perspective in the City's Civic Center district. Motion to adopt by Commissioner Boling, second by Commissioner Morales. Motion carried unanimously 5-0 vote. Adopting Resolution 22-08. E2. Study Session on the Development Code Update. Jennifer Nakamura, Deputy Director of Planning, presented Commissioners with a Staff Report and presentation (copy on file). Commissioner Daniels commented that form-based code is a wonderful idea. Staff did a great job presenting it. Commissioner Boiling stated form-base helps those that are not in the development business see and understand the look, the feel, the connectivity of similar situated developments, they all interact. It will help create an understanding of the economic development impact on some of the projects and what they bring to the city. Commissioner Morales mentioned that it is good that we get this done so the developers get moving on their projects. Vice Chair Williams agrees with what has been said. It's simple, this is what we want. She likes the attitude of it. It's modern and uplifting. She is in support of it. Chair Dopp commented that looking at the form base code, he asked is the nonresidential requirement for mixed use projects the metric we will be using in the future. Jennifer Nakamura answered yes it is. With no further discussion, Chair Dopp thanked Jennifer Nakamura and looks forward to seeing this move forward soon. Report has been received and will be filed. F. Director Announcements - None G. Commission Announcements - None H. Adjournment HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 8 of 9 FINAL Motion by Vice Chair Williams, second by Commissioner Boling to adjourn the meeting, motion carried unanimously, 5-0 vote. Meeting was adjourned at 9:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, E a eth Thornhill utive Assistant. Planning Department Approved: HPC/PC April 27, 2022, meeting. HPC/PC MINUTES—April 13, 2022 Page 9 of 9 FINAL