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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009/10/28 - Minutes - PC-HPC CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES • Regular Meeting October 28, 2009 Vice Chairman Munoz called the Regular Meeting of the City of Rancho Cucamonga Planning Commission to order at 7:05 p.m. The meeting was held in the Council Chambers at Rancho • Cucamonga Civic Center, 10500 Civic Center Drive, Rancho Cucamonga, California. ROLL CALL COMMISSIONERS: PRESENT: Frances Howdyshell, Lou Munoz, Pam Stewart; Ray Wimberly ABSENT: Richard Fletcher STAFF PRESENT: Candyce Burnett, Senior Planner;Adam Collier, Planning Technician; Steven Flower, Assistant City Attorney; Larry Henderson, Principal Planner; Dan James, Senior Civil Engineer; Mayuko Nakajima,Assistant Planner;Jennifer Nakamura, Associate Planner; Corkran Nicholson, Assistant Planning Director; Lois Schrader, Planning Commission Secretary; Mike Smith, Associate Planner; James Troyer, Planning Director ANNOUNCEMENTS APPROVAL OF MINUTES • Motion: Moved by Stewart, seconded by Howdyshell, carried 4-0-1 (Fletcher absent), to approve the minutes of October 14, 2009. * * * * * PUBLIC HEARINGS A. DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENT DRC2008-00170-CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA- A request to delete Chapter 19.16 (Xeriscape Requirements) of Title 19 of the Rancho Cucamonga Municipal Code and Add Chapter 17.42 (Landscape Water Conservation)to Title 17 of the Rancho Cucamonga Municipal Code to enact water efficient landscape requirements. The project has been determined to be categorically exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as a Class 7 exemption under State CEQA Guidelines Section 15307, which covers actions taken by regulatory agencies to assure the maintenance of a natural resource as well as a Class 8 exemption under State CEQA Guidelines Section 15308 which covers actions taken by regulatory agencies to assure the protection of the environment. This item will be forwarded to City Council for final action. Jennifer Nakamura, Associate Planner, presented the staff report and PowerPoint presentation. Vice Chairman Munoz opened the public hearing and seeing and hearing no comment, closed the public hearing. Commissioner Wimberly commented that this ordinance will help conserve water and that now our landscaping definition includes the provision for artificial turf. Commissioner Howdyshell noted that it was a great report and presentation and remarked that the City already has some water conserving sprinkler systems in place in our medians with smart controls and water conserving plants and that this ordinance is an extension of what we already started. Commissioner Stewart agreed and noted that this ordinance is one of those that if we do not do this, another entity will do it for us and it is far better that we adopt our own standards now so we get do it the way we want to within the guidelines of the State Ordinance. Vice Chairman Munoz concurred and noted this ordinance has been in the works for quite some time and that it was going to happen because we have turned this desert, arid valley into an oasis. He said if we do not take responsibility for ourselves now, someone else will. He remarked that the staff report summed it up well in that the overarching theme is that the, "ordinance will encourage the development of thoughtfully designed, water efficient landscapes throughout the City." James Troyer, Planning Director, reported that Ms. Nakamura has spent 19 months working on this project; she has attended IEUA meetings and it should be noted that Rancho Cucamonga is the first City of the Chino Basin to adopt our own ordinance. He expressed his thanks and appreciation and said she has done an incredible job. Motion: Moved by Howdyshell, seconded by Wimberly, to adopt the Resolution recommending approval of Development Code Amendment DRC2008-00170 to be forwarded to the City Council for final action. Motion carried by the following vote: AYES: HOWDYSHELL, MUNOZ, STEWART, WIMBERLY NOES: NONE ABSENT: FLETCHER - carried . . . _ * B. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW DRC2007-00440 - PITASSI ARCHITECTS, INC.: An architecture and site development review of a proposal to construct an operations and maintenance facility for Omnitrans Transit Agency on a vacant property of approximately 29 acres in the General Industrial (GI) District(Subarea 8), located at the north side of Arrow Route approximately 1,200 feet east of the 1-15 Freeway; APN: 0229- 021-60. Related file: Conditional Use Permit DRC2008-00664. Staff has prepared a Mitigated Negative Declaration of environmental impacts for consideration. C. CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT DRC2008-00664 - PITASSI ARCHITECTS, INC: A land use review of a proposal to construct an operations and maintenance facility for Omnitrans Transit Agency on a vacant property of approximately 29 acres in the General Industrial (GI) District (Subarea 8), located at the north side of Arrow Route approximately 1,200 feet east of the 1-15 Freeway;APN: 0229-021-60. Related file: Development Review DRC2007-00440. Staff has prepared a Mitigated Negative Declaration of environmental impacts for consideration. Mike Smith, Associate Planner, presented the staff report. He noted that a new condition has proposed from the Engineering Department and that amended copies of the resolution conditions have been placed before the Commissioners for their review. He said the conditions reads as follows: Proposed cul-de-sac shall be constructed full width, including the Arrow Route catch basin Planning Commission Minutes -2- October 28, 2009 immediately upstream of it to the east and street lights for its entire length. Off site street trees and sidewalk may be deferred until development of the adjacent property. If required in spite of the Memorandum of Understanding with Air Liquide executed January 16, 2009, the developer may 111 request a reimbursement agreement to recover the cost for improvements east of the centerline from future development as it occurs on the opposite side of the street. If the developer fails to submit for said reimbursement agreement within 6 months of the public improvements being accepted by the City, all rights of the developer to reimbursement shall terminate. Pete Pitassi, Pitassi Architects, reported that he is representing the applicant. He said they have reviewed the staff report and all the conditions and agree to them including the newly added condition. He thanked Mike Smith, Dan James and James Troyer for their assistance because there were many concerns during the process and they were helpful in seeing the project to a successful conclusion. He noted Mike Smith's report was very thorough. Vice Chairman Munoz opened the public hearing. Ed Diet! of HPARC asked to see the plot plan. He said he thought there were historic properties in the vicinity of the project site. Mr. Smith offered him a copy of the site plan and reviewed the plan on the overhead. In doing so, he clarified the project location and assured him that the site is vacant and all appropriate studies were done. Vice Chairman Munoz closed the public hearing. Commissioner Howdyshell noted that the Design Review Committee(DRC)has high standards and that she trusts their review of the project. She offered her support to approve the application. I Commissioner Wimberly reported that he took part in the DRC meeting on the project and indicated that the issues brought forward seem to have been reasonably addressed. Commissioner Stewart noted that this project is a carryover from the Air Liquide project that was approved at the October 14, 2009 meeting. She remarked that the Commission is satisfied for now regarding the concerns about the traffic signal and that the various driveways will help alleviate the need for a signal at this time. She said this should be a great project. Vice Chairman Munoz confirmed that there were some traffic concerns and that a traffic report was done. He said the applicant worked well with staff and the DRC. He happily noted that the project has the potential for 1,100 new employees related to mass transit and that this is a good thing. Motion: Moved by Howdyshell, seconded by Wimberly, to adopt the Resolutions of Approval for Development Review DRC2007-00440 and Conditional Use Permit DRC2008-00664 with the added Engineering Condition as presented by staff. Motion carried by the following vote: AYES: HOWDYSHELL, MUNOZ, STEWART, WIMBERLY NOES: NONE ABSENT: FLETCHER - carried I Planning Commission Minutes -3- October 28, 2009 DIRECTOR'S REPORTS D. CONSIDERATION TO INITIATE GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENT DRC2009-00716-CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA-A request by Ralph and Maxine Strane to change the General Plan land use designation from Neighborhood Commercial (NC) to Low Residential (2-4 du/ac)for approximately 0.58 acres of land, located at 7403 Archibald Avenue. APN: 1077-011-43. Related Files: Development District Amendment DRC2009-00717. E. CONSIDERATION TO INITIATE DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT AMENDMENT DRC2009-00717- CITY OF RANCHO CUCAMONGA - A request by Ralph and Maxine Strane to change the Development District map from Neighborhood Commercial (NC)to Low Residential(2-4 du/ac) for approximately 0.58 acres of land, located at 7403 Archibald Avenue. APN: 1077-011-43. Related Files: General Plan Amendment DRC2009-00716. Mayuko Nakajima, Assistant Planner, presented the staff report. Vice Chairman Munoz clarified that the purpose of tonight's item is to bring forward the request to initiate the amendments. Ms. Nakajima confirmed that tonight's action is to only give staff direction in the preparation of the draft amendments. Steven Flower,Assistant City Attorney, clarified that the item tonight is not a public hearing item but that the Chair could take public testimony if he chooses to. Vice Chairman Munoz asked if the applicant would like to say a few words. Ralph Strane, the property owner at 7403 Archibald Avenue stated that their representative is present and would do so. Frank Del Rio of Century 21 real estate, mentioned that he is the sales agent for the property owners. He noted there has been great interest in the property and an offer provided the proposed amendments are approved. He said the potential buyers would like to keep the property in the same good condition that it is in. Vice Chairman Munoz opened the floor for public comment. Seeing and hearing none, he closed the public comment period. Commissioner Howdyshell commented that the Commission has really taken a hard look at this request and has worked hard to assist the property owner with the barn and that she agreed that they should help them get the property sold. Commissioner Wimberly concurred that the Commission should push this forward to get the appropriate zoning approved. Commissioner Stewart commented that this is a win-win situation,that there are protections in place for the historic home and that anyone that wants to modify the home would have to come in for review and approval. She agreed to the initiation of the amendments. Vice Chairman Munoz concurred. He thanked the Strane's for their 40 years in the community and noted that they pioneered historic preservation in Rancho Cucamonga. He gave them hearty thanks for that. Planning Commission Minutes -4- October 28, 2009 Motion: Moved by Howdyshell, seconded by Wimberly, to engage in further study and to initiate General Plan Amendment DRC2009-00716 and Development District Amendment DRC2009-00717 by minute action. Motion carried by the following vote: AYES: HOWDYSHELL, MUNOZ, STEWART, WIMBERLY NOES: NONE ABSENT: FLETCHER - carried F. REPORT REGARDING POSSIBLE ADDITIONAL POSITIONS ON THE TRAILS ADVISORY COMMITTEE Larry Henderson, Principal Planner, presented the staff report. He reported that the resolution for approval amends the Administrative Regulations for the Trails Advisory Committee (TAC) in accordance with the Commission's action taken at the August 12, 2009 meeting. He said the resolution adds the position of the bicycling representative and his alternate. He noted that ADA compliant issues are actually handled by the City's park planner and through Senior Advisory Committee. He also noted that adding additional members might make conducting business of the committee more difficult, not easier. Vice Chairman Munoz concurred that Karen McGuire-Emery is an excellent planner. Motion: Moved by Wimberly, seconded by Stewart, to adopt the Resolution of Approval 09-43 amending the Administrative Regulations for the Trails Advisory Committee to reflect the addition of the bike alternate position. The action carried by the following vote: AYES: HOWDYSHELL, MUNOZ, STEWART, WIMBERLY I NOES: NONE ABSENT: FLETCHER - carried G. REPORT ON THE SIGN ORDINANCE WORKSHOPS James Troyer, Planning Director prefaced the report with background information. Adam Collier, Planning Technician presented the staff report. Vice Chairman Munoz expressed his appreciation for staffs efforts towards the workshops and the report. PUBLIC COMMENTS None * * * * * COMMISSION BUSINESS Commissioner Howdyshell announced the grand opening of the Frontier Project on November 7 and the public is invited. She noted it is to educate the public on "green" and sustainability topics. Vice Chairman Munoz concurred that this is a very interesting project and gives folks ideas they can use to conserve resources. Planning Commission Minutes -5- October 28, 2009 James Troyer, Planning Director noted that the Telephone Survey results have been placed before the Commissioners for their review and that a report will be scheduled for a future agenda. ADJOURNMENT Motion: Moved by Stewart, seconded by Howdyshell, carried 4-0-1 (Fletcher absent), to adjourn. The Planning Commission adjourned at 7:55 p.m. to a workshop held in the Rains Room. The workshop adjourned at 9:00 p.m. and those minutes appear separately. • Respectfully submitted, R Ja eefi s^R.R. Troyer, � rooyer, AICP Secretary Approved: December 9, 2009 1 Planning Commission Minutes -6- October 28, 2009