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PC Minutes 1979-05-01Arroyo Grande Planning Commission May 1, 1979 The Arroyo Grande Planning Commission met in regular session with Chairman Harris presiding. Present are Commissioners Fischer, Simmons and Vandeveer. Commissioners Gorsline and Moots are absent. Also in attendance are Planning Director Castro and Planner Sullivan. MINUTE APPROVAL There being no additions or corrections, the minutes of the regular meeting of April 17, 1979 were approved by the Chairman as submitted. ADDITIONS OR DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA Planning Director Castro requested continuance of Agenda Item 2 - Use Permit Case No. 79 -283; Item 5 - Subdivision Review, Tentative Tract No. 824; Item 6 - Review of Proposed Condominium Conversion Ordinance; and Item 7 - Review of New Proposed Suburban /Agricultural District. There being no objections to the contin- uance of the items, Chairman Harris advised that the foregoing agenda items would be continued to the next Planning Commission meeting of May 15, 1979. REVIEW COMMITTEE ACTIONS - ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW CASE NO. 79 -190, ADDITION OF A DRIVE -IN PICKUP WINDOW, 410 GRAND AVENUE (McDONALD'S RESTAURANT). Planner Sullivan reviewed the plans for the proposed drive -thru window to be constructed on the westerly side of the existing building. Planning Director Castro noted that Mr. Hemple had requested the City's consideration for paving a strip of land between the right of way and the property line. He stated unless there are some objections, staff will work with the petitioner in that respect. After a brief discussion, on motion by Commissioner Simmons, seconded by Commissioner Cole, and unanimously carried, Architectural Review Case No. 79 -190 was approved subject to the conditions as listed in Architectural Review Committee Action, dated April 25, 1979. REVIEW COMMITTEE ACTIONS - ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW CASE NO. 79 -191, ADDITION OF A STORAGE FACILITY, 1208 GRAND AVE. (JACK IN THE BOX). Planner Sullivan reviewed the proposed plans for a storage area to be added on at the rear of the property, and also the proposal to increase their trash receptacle area. After a brief discussion, on motion by Commissioner Vandeveer, seconded by Commissioner Cole, and unanimously carried, Architectural Review Case No. 79 -191 was approved subject to the conditions as listed in Architectural Re- view Committee Action, dated April 25, 1979. CONTINUATION OF PUBLIC HEARING - "KNOLLWOOD" DEVELOPMENT (FORMERLY HALCYON HILLS), LOCATED NORTHERLY OF THE NEW COUNTY FACILITY AND HIGHWAY 101; AND NORTHEASTERLY OF THE PAROCHIAL SCHOOL (GRANDE VENTURES). ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT. Planning Director Castro pointed out that,as a matter of procedure, the Commission should be aware that the environmental review process must be completed before proceeding with any further action and, should the Commission find the EIR adequate in their concerns for the development of the property; the approval of those findings would constitute disapproval of the de- velopment plan, in which case the Commission's action on the EIR would deny any further review of the zone change or the approval of the development plan. Mr. Castro read various communications with regard to the subject proposal. Mr. Castro suggested that if the Planning Commission would like to see a project that is being created more or less in the same fashion as the proposed Knollwood development, he would arrange a field trip to enable them to make a comparison before taking action. Mr. Castro stated, in his opinion, the first page of the EIR report states most of the areas of concern that were found to be in line with the previous sub- mittal presented by Mr. Jones, and if the Commission finds this to be correct, then they should accept the EIR, which in turn would deny the application. Mr. Castro further pointed out that the original application was for a zone change to the "RA -B1" District, which was modified to the "P -D" Planned Development District. Upon being assured by Planning Director Castro that the public hearing on the Knollwood Development had been duly published, Chairman Harris declared the hearing open. Mr. Bill Langworthy, Printz Road, stated he lives in the County just north and west of this area, and that he generally agrees with the EIR. He further stated he could see no difficulty with accepting the EIR; and that the project may be a sound one for certain areas, however, in his opinion, it is not the right 097 C98 Arroyo Grande Planning Commission, 5 -1 -79 Page 2 project for this piece of land in Arroyo Grande at this time. Peggy Langworthy, Printz Road, inquired when all of this land is developed and James Way becomes a major thoroughfare, if all of the traffic is going to dump on to Tally Ho Road, or if it will be directed to Highway 227? Planning Director Castro advised that one of the General Plan Elements being looked at is the Circulation Plan which includes review of other alternatives rather than dumping that traffic on to Tally Ho Road. There being no further discussion, for or against the Environmental Impact Report, Chairman Harris declared the hearing closed. The Commission indicated their support of the Environmental Impact Report and, after a brief discussion, the following action was taken: RESOLUTION NO. 79 -669 EIR RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE ACCEPTING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT. On motion by Commissioner Fischer, seconded by Commissioner Simmons, and by the following roll call vote, to wit: AYES: Commissioners Cole, Fischer, Simmons, Vandeveer and Chairman Harris. NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Gorsline and Moots the foregoing Resolution was adopted this 1st day of May 1979. REZONING CASE NO. 77 -113. In view of the fact that the Commission has accepted the Environmental Impact Report on the "Knollwood" Development, which constitutes denial of the proposed project, the following action was taken: RESOLUTION NO. 79 -670 Z RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE DENYING WITHOUT PREJUDICE AN AMENDMENT TO THE MUNI- CIPAL CODE OF THE CITY OF ARROYO GRANDE, AS PROVIDED BY CHAPTER 4, ZONING, ARTICLE 32,OF SAID CODE. On motion by Commissioner Cole, seconded by Commissioner Fischer, and by the following roll call vote, to wit: AYES: Commissioners Cole, Fischer, Simmons, Vandeveer and Chairman Harris: NOES: None ABSENT: Commissioners Gorsline and Moots the foregoing Resolution was adopted this 1st day of TENTATIVE TRACT NO. 697. After a brief discussion, on motion by Commissioner Simmons, seconded by Commissioner Cole, and unanimously carried, Tentative Tract Map No. 697 was denied because of non - conformance with the-Zoning. PUBLIC HEARING - REZONING CASE NO. 78- 119,' "RA -B3" RESIDENTIAL AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT TO "RA -B1 -D" RESIDENTIAL AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT WITH THE " -D" OVERRIDE, "WILDWOOD RANCH ", 220 CORBETT CANYON ROAD (TEMPUS). Planning Director Castro referred to the staff report; dated 24, 1979 wherein reference was:made to the fact that the Commission's vote on the rezoning matter:of several months ago'was not conclusive'and, in Iine.with the:Commission:'s resolution of intention adopted at the last meeting, the rezoning case is again being presented for the Commission to reaffirm their position to the property from-the "RA -B3" District to the "P -D" Planned Development District instead of the "RA -B1 -D" District as noted on the petition. He further stated that, in his opinion, the Focus Report is a well written'document and the suggestions offered under alter- natives provides a more desirable plan'in protecting the terrain of the property and the existing vegetation. He further noted that in accordance with the.ideas ex- pressed in the Focus Report, the applicant has reviewed the matter and resubmitted the project as described in the map included in the Commissioners' packets. Staff feels the plan resubmitted by the applicant is a vast improvement from the previous plan and mitigates the concerns regarding the cutting of the property and the grading that would occur on the development. Mr. Castro reviewed the tentative recommenda- tions as listed in the staff report of April 24, 1979. Arroyo Grande Planning Commission, 5 -1 -79 Page 3 Mr. Castro advised that the drainage is suggested to be retained to some degree in the two areas as shown on the map, and that there was an addendum pre- sented by the architect that it would be metered out into Corbett Canyon and that flow would eventually get down to Tally Ho. The EIR expresses a different concern, and if the Commission is concerned about it,.perhaps they should: continue the matter and have the City Engineer present at the next meeting to discuss whether he feels that the concerns expressed by the EIR are valid or whether this is just as effective and would not necessarily cause any adverse conditions on the Tally Ho Creek area. Mr. Rob Rossi, with the firm of Preist, Richmond;; Rossi and Montgomery, 547 Marsh Street in San Luis Obispo, retained by Mr. Tempus to do the architectural planning of the project, stated the project is a planned unit development and they have tried to use the Environmental Impact Report as a basis for the design and to mitigate as many measures brought up as they could. They feel they have handled the potential flooding hazards and circulation problems depicted in the report, and the clustered development basically occurs on top of the knoll and should protect the visual aspect from Corbett Canyon Road. He further advised that the circulation through the site will be by private streets and they wanted to retain as much of the rural character of the site as possible. With regard to the conditions of approval, Mr. Rossi advised that they don't have any problem with the majority of them. However, with regard to Item No. 10, "All driveway aprons shall be a minimum of 20 ft. in length ", he stated that there are a couple of units that by going to a 20 .ft. driveway would require putting the units over the top of the hill and he suggested that in some instances it might be more ap- propriate to do the parking bay arrangement as suggested on the drawing. He fur- ther noted that this is a conceptual drawing and they will be spending more time detailing the configuration for the parking and circulation. Upon being assured by Planning Director Castro that public hearing for Re- zoning Case No. 78 -119 had been duly :posted, published and property owners noti- fied, Chairman Harris declared the hearing open. Mr. Manual Sebastian, Corral Place, stated that he had reviewed the focus report and the plan now being presented was not included in that report. He re- quested that this matter be continued until the public has had an opportunity to review the submittal. He further advised that one of the things that he did find that was fairly shallow, was that the Focus Report does not deal with any social impact or economic impacts that this project may have, and it does not deal with the changes that are required by other entities downstream due to the impact of this project; for instance, it does not deal with the impact of 100 units, and at 31 times the average family in the United States today, that means a community of 3500 people getting on to Highway 227, and who is going to pay the cost of that; because if you do have 100 units there you are going to have 3500 people if it is an average home. He further stated that the 20 ft. driveways' =that were talked about, and the problems they had due to the grading because of the site conditions because 65% of the site is over 5% slope, they will not hold many automobiles that are pre 1973, especially if they are cadillacs; they may hang over into the street. Mr. Sebastian again urged that this matter be continued to enable himself and other citizens to comment on this particular proposal being presented that is not proposal in the Focus Report. Mr. Sebastian stated, in his opinion, one big draw- back on this is drainage and the figures in the drainage calculations are conservative and the biggest problem is the impact of 75% of the site draining to Tally Ho Road. He stated the. drainage is an extremely critical issue on this pro- ject and the drainage concept won't work; Tally Ho Road-already has a problem be- cause the City has no control over what goes on up Highway 227 and up. Corbett Canyon Road; that is in the hands of the County, and that drainage is coming right down the Tally Ho Creek. This is going to do nothing but add a lot more to it. Planning Director Castro stated that at the time Mr. Sebastian came into the office the plans that are now before the Commission had not been submitted, which is the reason the information was not given to him. -Also, in response'to the con- cerns expressed in the EIR, it was his feeling that this proposal does, in fact, propose to mitigate some of the impacts that were presented. He further stated that if Mr. Sebastian has any specifics that he would like the staff to answer with regard to the social, economic or circulation aspects, if he would present those to staff, they would be more than happy to answer them. The reasons.why. they were not included in the Focus Report was because we know what the answers are and theyreport specifically addressed itself to the concerns that the City had at that point in time, which were mainly the grading and the drainage. The drainage flow that he is referring to that cannot be retained on the property is based on the old plan; not the new plan that is before the Commission tonight. 099 Arroyo Grande Planning Commission, 5 -1 -79 Page4 Peggy Langworthy, Printz Road, stated she did feel that there is too much density in the upper left -hand corner and that she would much rather see some- thing like this than the "Knollwood" type development. Mr. Ron Bennett, 1190 Highway 101, stated he agreed with Mr. Castro's comments and encouraged those Commissioners who have not seen this site to have Mr. Tempus walk the site with them. He further stated he feels the development will answer the specific need for a variety of housing and especially housing that will address the average income people in the community. He further stated he feels the density is appro- priate for the site, and encouraged the Commission not to reduce the density which will enable some housing that could be afforded by the average person. He advised he has looked at the drainage and the retention basins on top of the hill and in the lower area and, in his opinion, the calculations are proper and would work. Sharon Olson, Platino Road, inquired if the road going on to Platino is definitely being considered, and she felt it would be a dangerous street if it does go through. Mr. Bill Langworthy, Printz Road, stated he liked the private road concept to the extent that, in his opinion, housing developments do not pay their own way and this might constitute some way for the added cost of develop- ment to be shouldered by the development itself. Mr. Langworthy also commented that even though this project is not a big one, it will have an impact on the schools which continue to become desperately overcrowded. With regard to the en- trance problem, Mr. Langworthy stated he feels that this development does need more than one entrance if the City is going to be consistent. Mr. Langworthy stated with regard to drainage, it seems that the bulk of that land does drain down toward Tally Ho Road, and Tally Ho Road is a very sensitive area for drain- age, and he doubts that the people reading the legal notices in the newspaper would stop to realize that this might be of impact to the Tally Ho area and, on that basis, he felt it would be a sound idea to continue the hearingsso that the people who should be aware of the possible impact would have a chance to study and react to it. In summary, he stated in his opinion, this is the kind of pro- ject that we have all talked about; the clustering idea makes sense and, with any kind of luck, the housing could be brought in at a reasonable price and over- all it seems like a rather decent way to use the land. Mr. Clark Moore, 1180 Ash Street, pointed out that the plan that is on the wall was not the one included in the Focus Report so he has not had a chance to look at it. He stated he has been studying the Tally Ho Road drainage problems for about 10 years. He pointed out that a regulating reservoir gets full of water and then it rains again the next day, the reservoir does not regulate; it just lets the water run through. If the rainy season is long and wet, like it was a year ago, it soaks all the soil up on the hill and then the rain might as well be falling on a rock; it cannot soak in, and the only thing that will soak it in is the native grass area, but it will go speeding off of most areas. When the water leaves this site and crosses Highway 227, it goes through a 24 inch culvert and right against a man's house on its way to Tally HoRoad; it passes through an earth waterway which has annual rye grass and wild oats in it. This whole stream of water passes within not more than 10 feet of a man's house. He pointed out that another impact is that the outlet of this stream just happens to coincide exactly with Canyon Way coming in from the opposite side of Tally Ho Road, and about 3 or 4 weeks ago this Commission gave preliminary approval dor 13 more lots on Canyon Way. He further pointed out that Canyon Way caused lots of problems a year ago and, in his opinion, this matter should be continued un- til a little more information is provided. Planning Director Castro commented with regard to the Canyon Way drainage, that it comes in north of the Wildwood outlet and it is not in that impacted area of Tally Ho. Mr. Castro further pointed out that all of the drainage concerns have not yet been addressed and the proposal is one alternative that the City will be considering. Mr. Rossi stated, with regard to circulation, that in looking at an overall neighborhood map, which includes the new development going on out in the County, that the proposed location was a reasonable place to have the main ::entrance to the project, and that this connection was probably necessary for the mutual bene- fit of both neighborhoods; not as a primary circulation link, but moreover an emergency access means and as a secondary access. With regard to drainage, Mr. Rossi pointed out that all of the proposed units occur up on the flat area, and it is their feeling that the majority of the water created by this new hard sur- face can be collected in the ponds, He stated that the engineer on the project has run some preliminary calculations and demonstrated that using the City;s cri- teria, we would only generate about one acre foot of water using the hundred year flood criteria, and the ponds being created can hold up to six acre feet of water. He stated they do not have final figures on it yet because it would be premature to do so, but they feel that the technique being employed is applicable and can mitigate any problems of this project contributing to the flooding of Tally Ho Creek. Mr. Bob Flowers, Engineer for the project, briefly explained the proposed drainage scheme for the development. Arroyo Grande Planning Commission, 5 -1 -79 Page '5 There:being no further comments from the audience, Chairman Harris restricted further comments to the Commission. Commissioner Vandeveer stated, in his opinion, this is one of the better pro- jects he has seen, and that it is an area that should appropriately be developed. He stated he is aware of.the concerns on drainage and it is apparent that Tally Ho needs to be fixed, and he feels this probably will aid the Tally Ho area by metering and controlling the water. He further stated he feels this is an excel- lent area for housing; it is a beautiful area and well designed. Commissioner Fischer stated she feels it is a perfect design for the site. She further stated she understands the concerns about the drainage and the circulation, and she can see more work being needed on it, and that she would like more staff input on the problems on the runoff, the drainage on to Tally Ho and the traffic. Commissioner Simmons stated she likes the plan and she likes the cluster concept on the houses up on the top, and she would be in favor of continuing the public hearing so that the City Engineer can comment on the proposed retention basins. Commissioner Cole stated she would be in favor of continuing the public hearing in order to have more input regarding the drainage problems and circulation. Chairman Harris stated he feels the design of the project is satisfactory and that he has two considerations with the specific design aspects of it,.such as the housing on the northeastern portion of the project: being too dense. He stated he would like to see a few more detached houses from anaesthetic point of view, and he feels there are some po- tential problems about excessive grading in the southeast portion the property that should be looked into with regard to some of the houses on the north side of the road. He further stated he feels it is a considerable improvement over what it was because it basically leaves thelland intact and that it would be an aestheti- cally desirable area to live in if it were.developed in that manner. , Also, he strongly approves the private roads in projects of this kind, primarily because it saves the City money. He further pointed out that there are definitely some prob- lems on Platino which have previously been discussed. After further discussion, on motion by Commissioner Cole, seconded by Commis- sioner Fischer, and unanimously carried, that the public hearing on Rezoning Case No. 78 -119 be continued to the next regular meeting of May 15, 1979. WRITTEN CORRESPONDENCE Planning Director Castro reviewed that on April 4, 1979, Gating and Taylor had requested a one year extension for Mr. Brennan on his lot split on Huasna Road (Lot Split Case No. 78 -295), and explained that this would be an extension to the requirements of the Minor Subdivision Committee condition #7 requiring that Tract 555, Unit 2, be recorded and the improvements completed and accepted prior to the recording of Mr. Brennan's parcel map. After a brief discussion, on motion by Commissioner Vandeveer, seconded by Commissioner Cole, and unanimously carried, granting a one year extension on Lot Split Case No. 78 -295. Chairman Harris referred to his memo regarding the Change of City Policy Regarding Reimbursement Agreements for Offsite Improvements, which had been for- warded to the Commissioners for their review. Planning Director Castro stated he doesn't have any particular problem with the proposed change, except that he would point out, as the City Engineer had already mentioned, it has been the policy of the City not to provide this reimbursement procedure. Planner Sullivan pointed out that the only thing that a reimbursement procedure is not set up for is for streets; there is a reimbursement procedure for utility lines, etc. He further advised that City Engineer Karp asked him to advise the Commission that, in the technical sense of this Government Code section, he feels that the City does do this as each project requires access. Chairman Harris stated that, in most cases, the City has done satisfactorily in the past and he feels that probably there have been some inequities in some cases and, in his opinion, if the City would change its policy, the cost would be shared equitably among the owners. He further stated his understanding of the ordinance is that it is required by State law. Commissioner Vandeveer commented he felt this was a Council matter and he would go along with what the City Engineer said, in that the City-of Arroyo Grande was incorporated in 1911 and they have never had a problem. After considerable discussion, on motion by Commissioner Fischer, seconded by Commissioner Simmons, and carried, recommending that the City Council adopt a policy recognizing that reimbursement agreements be entered into on road improvements as on other improve- ments. 101 `02 Arroyo Grande Planning Commission, 5 -1 -79 Tage'6 Planning Director Castro stated that with regard to Mr. White's lot split on Printz Road, he had talked to City Attorney Shipsey and his statement was that the Commission's 3 to 3 vote constitutes a denial. He also stated he was in agreement with the concern that Commissioner Simmons brought up that a lot of record is legal as long as it remains intact, but to resubdivide that lot, it would have to meet the requirements of the Ordinance. Mr. Castro further stated that due to the absence of Mr. Shipsey he was unable to get a ruling on the matter and with the Commission's approval, he would advise Mr. White that he has a right to appeali the decision to the City Council even though the ten day period has lapsed. Commissioner Fischer advised that she would no longer be able to serve on the Architectural /Lot Split Committee and Subdivision Review Board. Commissioner Vandeveer volunteered to serve as a member of those committees. Chairman Harris suggested that due to his absence, the Commission elect a temporary chairman and vice chairman until the election of officers in July. After discussion, on motion by Commissioner Vandeveer, seconded by Commissioner Fischer, and unanimously carried,that Commissioner Gorsline be appointed as tem- porary Chairman of the Planning Commission. On motion by Commissioner Vandeveer, seconded by Commissioner Fischer, and unanimously carried, that Commissioner Cole be appointed as temporary Vice Chairman until'such'time as.an election can be held after the fiscal year and a new Commission is seated. • ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Commission, the meeting was ad- journed -by') the Chairman at 10:15 P.M. Chairman