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Home My WebLink AboutPC 2017-26PLANNING COMMISSION RESOLUTION NO. 2017-26 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DIAMOND BAR, CALIFORNIA ("PLANNING COMMISSION"), FINDING THAT THE CITY OF INDUSTRY FAILED TO PROVIDE SUFFICIENT AND/OR ACCURATE INFORMATION PERTAINING TO THE PURPOSE OF ITS PROPOSED AQCUISITION OF TRES HERMANOS RANCH TO ENABLE THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO DETERMINE SUCH ACQUISITION'S CONFORMITY WITH THE GENERAL PLAN OF THE CITY OF DIAMOND BAR ("GENERAL PLAN"). A. RECITALS 1. WHEREAS, on April 18, 1989, the City of Diamond Bar ("City") was established as a duly organized municipal corporation of the State of California; 2. WHEREAS, on July 25, 1995, the City adopted its General Plan incorporating all State mandated elements, and periodically adopted updates to portions of the General Plan when appropriate and necessary; 3. WHEREAS, as of the date of this Resolution's adoption, the Successor Agency to the Industry -Urban Development Agency ("Successor Agency") is the owner in fee of approximately 2,450 acres of real property, commonly known as Tres Hermanos, shown as Exhibit "A," attached hereto; 4. WHEREAS, the northernmost portion of Tres Hermanos Ranch, comprising approximately 730 acres (the "Subject Property"), is located within the corporate limits of the City, while the balance of the Tres Hermanos Ranch acreage is located entirely within the corporate limits of the city of -Chino Hills. The parcels comprising the Subject Property are further identified by Los Angeles County Assessor's Parcel Numbers 8701-021-271, 8701-022-270 and 8701- 022-273; 5. WHEREAS, the Subject Property is located within two General Plan land use designations, identified as Planning Area 1 ("PA-1/SP") and "Planning Area 5 ("PA-5/RH-30"), as shown in Exhibit "B," attached hereto; 6. WHEREAS, General Plan Land Use Element Strategy 1.6.1 describes the land use policies for PA-1/SP and PA-5/RH-30 as follows: a. PA -1 incorporates the Agriculture (AG) land use designation permitting single family residential at a maximum density of 1.0 dwelling unit per 5 gross acres. Facilities appropriate for this site should be designed based upon a vision for the future and not merely extend the patterns of the past. Such facilities may include educational institutions, reservoir for practical and aesthetic purposes, commercial developments which are not typical of those found in the area and a variety of residential, churches, institutional and other uses which are complimentary to the overall objective of having a master planned area. Development within the Tres Hermanos area should be designed so as to be a part of the Diamond Bar community as well as compatible with adjacent lands. b. PA -5 incorporates a 30 -acre (gross) area designated RH-30 to accommodate a maximum of 490 high density multi -family housing units consistent with the Regional Housing Needs Assessment and the Housing Element; 7. WHEREAS, the City of Industry ("Industry") proposes to acquire the Subject Property from the Successor Agency ("Proposed Acquisition") and both Industry and the Successor Agency have already approved the Proposed Acquisition; 8. WHEREAS, Section 65402(b) of the Government Code of the State. of California ["Section 65402(b)"] mandates that a city shall not acquire real property in another city with an adopted general plan, for any public purpose, "until the location, purpose and extent of such acquisition... (has) been submitted to and reported upon by the planning agency having jurisdiction, as to conformity with said adopted general plan or part thereof;" 9. WHEREAS, in a letter to the City dated September 1, 2017 ("Industry Letter #1"), Industry City Manager Paul Philips requested that the Planning Commission consider the matter of the Proposed Acquisition for conformity with the General Plan in accordance with Section 65402(b). Industry Letter#1 states that Industry "is acquiring Tres Hermanos Ranch for open space, preservation, public facility or other public purposes, in compliance with Government Code Section 37351..." Industry Letter #1 further states that "(a)t this time, the City (of Industry) does not have any more definitive plans for the future use of Tres Hermanos." A copy of Industry Letter #1 is attached hereto as Exhibit "C"; 10. WHEREAS, in a letter to Industry dated September 13, 2017, the City requested that Industry identify its purpose for the Proposed Acquisition as required under Section 65402(b) ("City's Request"). A copy of the City's Request is attached hereto as Exhibit "D"; 11. WHEREAS, in a letter to the City dated September 21, 2017 ("Industry Letter #2"), Mr. Philips responded to the City's Request by stating that "Section 65402(b)'s requirement has been satisfied," and repeated Industry Letter #1's claim ad verbum that purpose for the Proposed Acquisition is "open space, preservation, public facility or other public purposes, in compliance with Government Code Section 37351..." A copy of Industry Letter #2 is attached hereto as Exhibit "E"; 12. WHEREAS, substantial evidence has been submitted into the record evidencing that Industry does, in direct contradiction to Mr. Philips' representation, have definitive plans for the Subject Property for a solar facility, although the evidence does not establish the exact size or location of the solar facility; 13. WHEREAS, on October 10, 2017, at a regularly scheduled meeting, the Planning Commission, considered the matter of the Proposed Acquisition, and concluded said review prior to the adoption of this Resolution. B. RESOLUTION NOW, THEREFORE, THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DIAMOND BAR DOES HEREBY RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS: 1. The Planning Commission hereby specifically finds that all of the facts set forth in the Recitals, Part A, of this Resolution are true and correct. 2. The Planning Commission hereby finds that Industry has not provided sufficient information pertaining to the purpose of the Proposed Acquisition for the Planning Commission to determine whether or not the proposed acquisition is in conformance with the General Plan. Further, the Planning Commission finds that Industry has made material misrepresentations to the Planning Commission as to its plans for the Subject Property. Finally, the Planning Commission finds that Industry's application is untimely and does not comply with Government Code Section 65402(b). These findings are made on the basis of the following facts: 2 PC Resolution No. 2017-26 a. Government Code Section 65402(b) requires Industry to identify the "location, purpose and extent of such acquisition..." prior to acquiring the Subject Property. The documentation submitted to the City (i.e., Industry Letters #1 and #2), however, does not identify Industry's "purpose" in acquiring the Subject Property or any other portion of Tres Hermanos Ranch. Given that by definition a general plan is a land use document, a determination as to whether the Proposed Acquisition is consistent with the General Plan can only be made if Industry identifies and provides reasonable details regarding the purpose, i.e., the use, for which it is acquiring the Subject Property. Merely identifying the location and extent of the acquisition and reciting a proposed deed restriction on the Subject Property which could entail a number of different uses for the Subject Property, does not provide the Planning Commission with adequate information to perform its statutoryduty. Because the application is incomplete, the 40 -day period for the Planning Commission to make the General Plan conformance finding has not begun to run. b. Industry asserts that the Proposed Acquisition is in "compliance with Government code Section 37351." Section 37351 permits Industry to purchase property outside its jurisdiction "as is necessary or proper for municipal purposes." It is unclear how it is that Industry can, on the one hand, state it is acquiring the Property in accordance with Section 37351 and on the other hand, state it has no definitive plans for the Property. Mention of a deed restriction in Industry Letters #1 and #2 to be imposed on Tres Hermanos Ranch limiting the use of the land to public use or open space is of no informational value in that it places no limits whatsoever on Industry's future use of Tres Hermanos Ranch, inclusive of the Subject Property, which did not already exist under State law. c. The statement that Industry has no definitive plans for the Subject Property is contradicted by substantial evidence in the record that Industry intends to use some unidentified portion of the Subject Property for a solar facility. The Applicant is directed to re -submit the Application containing sufficient details of its proposed use to enable the Planning Commission to make its determination. d. The City Council of the City of Industry has already approved the Proposed Acquisition without taking into consideration and having the benefit of the Planning Commission's General Plan conformance finding, thereby undermining the intent of Government Code Section 65402. The City Council of the City of Industry should withdraw its approval of the Proposed Acquisition until such time as it has the benefit of the Planning Commission's determination. The Planning Commission shall: (a) Certify as to the adoption of this Resolution; and (b) Forthwith transmit a certified copy of this Resolution to Paul Philips, City Manager, P.O. Box 3366, City of Industry, CA 91744-0366. APPROVED AND ADOPTED THIS 10th DAY OF OCTOBER, 2017, BY THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DIAMOND BAR. 1 1. BY:uw V� 2 nife ahlke, Acting thailmeson 3 PC Resolution No. 2017-26 I, Greg Gubman, Planning Commission Secretary, do hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution was duly introduced, passed, and adopted by the Planning Commission of the City of Diamond Bar, at a regular meeting of the Planning Commission held on the 10th day of October, 2017, by the following vote: AYES: Commissioners: NOES: Commissioners: ABSENT: Commissioners: ABSTAIN: Commissioners: ATTEST: Greg Gubman, Secretary Barlas, Farago, AC/Mahlke None Mok, Wolfe None 4 PC Resolution No. 2017-26