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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/26/1990CITY OF DIAMOND BAR MINUTES OF CITY PLANNING COMMISSION MARCH 26, 1990 The Planning Commission of the City of Diamond Bar convened in a regular session at 7:00 p.m. in the -Walnut Valley School District Board Meeting Room, 880 South Lemon Avenue, Walnut, California. PRESENT: 5 COMMISSIONERS: Grothe, Lin, Kane, Vice Chairman Harmony, and Chairman Schey ABSENT: 0 COMMISSIONERS ALSO PRESENT: Bill Curley, Assistant City Attorney Ron Kranzer, City Engineer Jack Istik, Deputy City Engineer Dennis Tarango, Acting Planning Director Robert Searcy, Assistant Planning Director Dawn Anderson, Planning Technician MINUTES: Chairman Schey asked the Commission to consider the Minutes of March 12, 1990, Vice Chairman Harmony requested a couple of changes to the minutes. On Page 5, first paragraph under Public Hearing Closed. He asked that the sentence stating that he would like to see a signal installed on Grand Avenue be changed to reflect that he would like to know more about a signal installation on Grand Avenue at Brea Canyon. And then on Page 6, 3rd paragraph from the top, he asked to add the words "inherent in the development review ordinance" at the end of the phrase ...thus not accomplishing the goals of the city council. Motion was made by Commissioner Kane and seconded by Vice Chairman Harmony to approve the minutes with this amendment. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. MATTERS FROM THE PUBLIC: Don Schad, 1824 Shaded Wood Road, Diamond Bar, stated that he submitted a tree ordinance about 5 or 6 months ago which he feels is very important and should be implemented in the City as soon as possible to preserve some of the wilderness areas that are left and requested a rapid review and serious attention given to this ordinance. 7'1�`717177_ f CONSENT CALENDAR: City Council Minutes of March 6, 1990 Motion was made by Vice Chairman Harmony and seconded by Commissioner Kane to approve the Consent Calendar. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. PUBLIC HEARINGS: 1. Conditional Use Permit 89528, a request to add an 80,000 square foot parking structure, a 2,000 square foot parts department and a 400 square foot office to the Honda Dealership, a 5,000 square foot fast food restaurant, a car wash facility and a 50 foot high freestanding sign on 4.8 acres, located at 525 South Grand Avenue, between Grand and Brea Canyon Road. Robert Searcy gave a brief summary of the project. The site is currently zoned C3 -DP -BE (Unlimited Commercial -Development Program -Bill Board Exclusion). The property across from the site is zoned Open Space which is currently the golf course, and properties on all other sides are within the City of Industry and are zoned Industrial which are currently undeveloped with no projects proposed for those areas. Under the Community Plan this project is proposed to be developed as Commercial due to its separation from the rest of the City and to insure compatibility with surrounding property located within the City of Industry. The project, as proposed, is going to entail construction of about 1,6725 square feet of additional interior square footage. Parking is in excess of all the requirements. In reviewing the Environmental Determination, four (4) areas were cited as follows: 1. Traffic 2. Visual 3. Biota 4. Geology PUBLIC HEARING WAS OPENED: Mike Wyatt, MJ Wyatt & Associates Architects and Emad Hamdy, Project Architect, presented the project for the Applicant Russ Hand. They brought forward a model of the proposed project to visually demonstrate the site layout. There i's only one entrance to the site off of Grand Avenue to help control traffic. The applicant has requested a left turn through the median on Grand Avenue as a way of alleviating the traffic. 2 The parking structure is designed 'mainly to store cars that are serviced and the inventory of vehicles, as well as, employee parking to keep cars from parking on Brea Canyon Road. The proposed additional buildings have been designed to match the architectural design of the existing Honda dealership. The office building will be approximately 2,500 square feet. The applicant has also proposed a fifty (50') foot sign and reader board for the project. They have tried to create a design that would not only represent the facilitiesbutalso identify the City of Diamond Bar by using the diamond shaped logo. A reader board, in addition to representing the site, will provide community bulletins, etc. The applicant felt that the sign needed to be 'fifty (50') feet in order to be seen by west bound traffic on the freeway. The site provides fire access on both sides. Staff met with the City of Industry twice and have confirmed that they have plans to install of signal at the intersection of Grand Avenue and Brea Canyon. Sharon Collins, Real Estate Representative for McDonalds, stated that the proposed McDonalds building is approximately 5,000 square feet with about 98 seats and a play land, seating is also proposed for the play land area. They are proposing a monument sign off of Grand Avenue along with McDonalds standard facia signs to be placed on building. The building will have a tower which will extend to thirty-one (31") feet high before the A -shaped roof. Hours of operation will be from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. McDonalds did a market study in 1987 showing that there was a need for a second restaurant to be located in an area oriented to serve the traffic traveling the 57 freeway. John Brewster, 4071 Second Street, Yorba Linda, represents the car wash. The facility will be able to wash 800 to 1000 cars a day. It will be able to hold 25 to 30 car in the detail area and store 90 to 120 cars on the lot at one time. It wi 11 also have 14 permanent parking spaces. The number of employees will vary on the number of cars being washed. Landscaping will be provided along entire perim4ter of site'. A waiting and seating area will be provided with a fountain. The car, wash will normally operate seven (7) days a week with hours basically from 8:00 a.m, to 6:00 p. m. , Sundays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 P.M. Peak times are approximately Monday through Thursday 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m, and again at 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays are steady all day. Mr. Brewster is also proposing a small monument sign at the entrance which is approximately 48 square feet, part of the sign will advertise gas prices. 3 7-7 '71777 Mark Logan, General Manager of Diamond Bar Honda, stated that they are anticipating that when Grand Avenue is extended, parking on the street will be prohibited. They also would like to keep cars from parking on Brea Canyon. As a result, they are proposing to build a parking structure which will also include service bays. Expansion to the Parts Department is needed due to the growth of the dealership. They currently have six (6) off-site storage facilities which increase costs. There is also a need for an expansion to the showroom office. Russ Hand, Owner of Diamond Bar Honda, stated that he has been, since 1983, working on putting together what he feels is a well thought out proposal. Steve Sosaki, Westen Pringle and Associates, prepared the traffic study. The report addressed the construction of the McDonalds restaurant, the car wash, and the addition to the Honda dealership, along with incorporating the growth of the surrounding areas. The result was that they still came up with acceptable levels at the two freeway ramps. There will be a left turn into the site only, no left turn out of the site will be permitted. Kurt Schlyer', Simpson Van wren Inc., prepared the Biota and Visual report on the project. He felt that the site, in its undeveloped state, detracted from the City's appearance and the proposed developments would be more aesthetically pleasing in his opinion. Vice Chairman Harmony asked several questions which were answered by the applicant. When the Honda Dealership was first established, the owner anticipated that he would eventually establish another dealership on the undeveloped property. The grading that has been done on the site was to conceal an exposed drainage channel that went across the property. The applicant had to apply for a grading permit to bury this under the ground so that they could, in the future, develop the property. The permit wasnot issued for any specific project at that time. The dirt that was excavated from the property was put back at the approximate pad elevations of the present proposed site plan with anticipation that this project would be approved. Parcel 4 will probably be landscaped until it is developed. Mr. Hand contacted Cal Trans in regards to purchasing or leasing the property located on the other side of the Freeway on-ramp. It was established that Cal Trans could not sell it because the property maintained a Freeway on-ramp, but they could maintain a long- term lease. El 77777117717T J I�D Mr. Hand discussed the possibility of landscaping this property and using it for display. The possibility of building a tunnel was also discussed with Cal Trans but has not been pursued beyond that point. Mark Brownstein, one of the operators of the existing McDonalds on Diamond Bar Boulevard, established that the existing site is approximately 3,500 square feet, not including the basement. The proposed McDonalds will be approximately 4,966 square feet. The existingMcDonalds has had an addition made to it. Vice Chairman Harmony was concerned whether this new proposal will be large enough to serve the public's needs. - The applicant's sign request was presented to the Chamber of Commerce and received favorable comments for the following reasons: 1) The special location of the property, it is freeway oriented away from residential areas; and 2) The fact that Diamond Bar has no significant recognition along the 57/60 Freeway other than one other small sign. There is a minimum of 39 parking spaces required and the app licant has provided fifty-one (51) spaces for the McDonalds restaurant. When the parking plan was discussed, the applicants took into consideration that their intent was to create a place for those people waiting for their car to be serviced or washed to have lunch. This might make the number of parking spaces needed fewer. Landscaping, employees and future growth were all taken into consideration so that there will not be a need to expand at a future date. Frank Carmack stated that fifty (50%) percent of McDonalds patrons use the drive-thru. The drive -up area for the proposed restaurant will be fairly long. The visual report did not address the structures individually but all structures as a whole. The mitigation measures that were recommended were that the new structures match the architecture of the existing Honda Dealership. Vice Chairman Harmony expressed concern for the appearance of the parking structure. He wanted it to be constructed as to be aesthetically pleasing. The report stated that the project, as proposed, would be more aesthetically pleasing than it is in its present undeveloped state. 101 17717 The applicant felt that the addition to the parts department will not generate any more traffic than will the entire expansion and development of the property. The inventory will not increase; they currently are using off-site storage facilities. They will maintain the same inventory, the parts department expansion will simply bring the inventory closer and easier to accessed. , The report conducted by Westen Pringle & Associates deals with traffic volumes. Turn movement volumes at the intersection were addressed specifically in the worksheets in the back of the report. The specific turning movements associated with this project along with the existing turning movements are contained in this Analysis. The traffic generated by the expansion of Grand Avenue was considered when the traffic study was done. The study indicated there was approximately 4,000 cars entering the facility. This is actually 2,150 people coming in and the same people coming out. The study also indicated that most of the traffic will come from cars stopping at the proposed facilities while already traveling on Grand Avenue going to or from their homes. Vice Chairman Harmony felt that the traffic report was vague. He also wished to see the site plans. The criteria for an intersection analysis is Level of Service D or better which would be .90. On the south bound freeway ramps during the critical a.m., p.m. peak hours, the level was between .73 and .76. Creating a left turn into the site will not raise the level of service above the acceptable level. There has not been a sound study conducted for the project. The car wash has all of its equipment enclosed. There is an eight (8') foot to nine (9') foot embankment on both sides, which buffers the office and the McDonalds restaurant from the noise generated from the car wash. The main concern is how the noise from the freeway will affect the car wash. This is why the applicant will place the waiting area opposite the freeway side of the site. No fault lines were discovered in the Geological report. Those in Favor of the Project: There were none. V Those opposed to the Prolect: Dan Buffington, 2605 Indian Creek, expressed concern with the parking standards. In the past, there has been a deficiency, in his opinion, with the parking provided for other developments. He also did not want to see a painted median in front of the Honda Dealership. Public Hearing was closed. Discussion among the Commission followed. Concern for the sign, its height and the proposal for the sign to contain a reader board was discussed. Motion was made by Chairman Schey and seconded by Vice Chairman Harmony to continue the project to the April 23rd Planning Commission meeting, with the applicants' concurrence, requiring the applicant to come back to the Commission with a detailed parking plan showing the exact number of spaces proposed and the dimensions, a report from staff on the possibility for Brea Canyon being developed as a through street, a sign program sowing exactly what signs are - proposed, their locations and, how they affect the line of - sight from the freeway. It was also included in the motion to require a. second traf f i c anal ysi s by an i, ndependent traf f i c engineer addressing the issues of the long term traffic potential at the intersection of Grand Avenue and Brea Canyon Road, as well as, studying in detail the potential impact of the intersection of the off -ramp of the south bound 60/57 Freeway if the left turn lane in the center median is not allowed. The traffic study will then be referred to the Traffic Commission. Ron Kramer stated that as the City Engineer, he is also a licensed Traffic Engineer. Three (3) Commissioners were opposed, two (2) Commissioners were in favor. MOTION FAILED. Motion was made by Chairman Schey and seconded by Commissioner Grothe identical to the above motion requiring a reassessment of the existing traffic study based upon the points that have been raised and that the City Engineer review that from a it be analysis stand point and still maintaining that it be referred to the traffic Commission for analysis and recommendation. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. 0 2. Tract tAe!o- 452901/Oal� T c;-6,rlmit ,27 6,49, a minor subdivision to create 29 Parcels on 20.6 acres and an Oak Tree permit to remove 92 oak trees, located northerly of Autumn Glow Drive and Fern Hollow Drive. Rob Searcy gave a brief description of the project. The surround 4 ng zoning is R1-10,000, R1-8,000, to north there is a Commercial Manufacturing project, to the west is the 57 Freeway, across the freeway there is R1-15,000 and RPD - 10,000. The proposed dwelling density is 1.4 units per acre, The Community Plan stipulates U1. According to this, the zoning should situate homes at a 1.1 to 1.3 density level. The proposed project meets these standards. To mitigate negative sound there has been proposals to construct a berm wall, a combination berm and wall, which will separate and block the sound generated from the freeway from affecting the proposed houses. There will be some mitigative construction materials used to keep sound leve:ls within the single family residences to an acceptable level. Public Hearing was opened: Dorian Johnson, Vice President of Planning, Marlborough Development, which is the owner of the property, did not make a presentation. He made a request that Condition 69, referencing the replacement of oak trees be changed from 36 gallon trees to 15 gallon due to the fact that the applicant is proposing that the landscaping 'in the rear of the property be maintained in maintenance assessment district. They believe that the City will have the ability to maintain 15 - gallon trees sufficiently and assure its survival rate; 2) because the 15 gallon trees have a better survival rate. The applicant is asking that the commission consider a mixture of 36 and 15 gallon trees. Lights will be maintained through the assessment district. Al Dayton, civil Engineer, - addressed the drainage requirements. There is a drainage system proposed for the tract which will be designed so that it will be in accordance with the run-off that is anticipated within the tract. The Fire Marshal stated to the applicant that the Fire Department would like to see fifteen (15%) percent maximum grades. If topography makes it otherwise impossible to develop, the Fire Department wi-ll sometimes accept seventeen (17%) percent. 8 The 36 inch box trees do not have as good a survival rate as the smaller tree because they are larger. There is more trauma in replanting and moving of the tree -itself. The smaller tree is less prone to trauma. If trees die within one year of planting, the applicant is required to replace them. On the conditions of approval there is a condition that requires resubmission of a final landscape plan showing the location of all the trees. Generally trees are proposed posed to be placed within the slope banks, not within the front yards. The applicant did not know if there are any trees identified as heritage size trees. The sound study did not address whether the sound barrier wall will have a positive effect on the homes outside the proposed tract. The slope was brought eighteen (18') feet high on the freeway side. An eight (8') foot wall will be constructed on top of the slope and the slope will be flattened out and brought back down to the lots on the interior side. The wall plan including the proposed materials to be used will be submitted at the time the landscape plans are submitted. Those in Favor of the Project: There were none. I Those in Opposition to the Project: CelestHowel, 1729 Cliffbranch, felt that theprojectwill not be as aesthetically pleasing as the landscaping that exists now. She was concerned with the increase in traffic that would occur increase by constructing 29 new homes. She was also concerned with the annoyance the construction would create in a residential area. Also, the existing wooded area helps to absorb the sound generated by the freeway. New trees are probably going to be needed to be water regularly. She was concerned about the feasibility of this when there is a drought. She wondered if the new homes would make that area more accessible to foot traffic and possibly � present a fire hazard. The Oak Tree Report gave her the impression that the majority of the existing trees were unhealthy. Becky Hill, 21331 Pinehill Lane, was concerned with the possible repercussions of the installation of the sound barrier wall. There was reference made previously in the meeting to fact that there have been cases where the installation of a sound barrier wall presented a negative affect on surrounding homes by causing sound to bounce around. She asked for a report to be done and presented' to the surrounding home owners addressing the affects that will be created by the sound barrier wall and also the affects of the noise generated by the grading of the site. There is already a traffic problem in that area and she was concerned with the increase in traffic. She wanted to see a map indicating exacting which trees are proposed to be removed. She asked that the landscaping of the graded slopes be done with drought tolerant plants. Don Schad, 1824 Shadedwood Road, stated sound decibel levels from about 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. are 80 to 95 decibels. The shape of the canyon acts like a megaphone in reverse. The people on the small end receive the concentration of sound. The existing trees and vegetation help to absorb this sound. Sound rises so the people on the high end will receive high concentration of sound. He was concerned with the affect that the construction of this project would have on the existing wildlife. He asked that the black soil excavated from the. site be given to the City to be used by the parks program. The black walnut that exists in canyon is somewhat protected and provides food for wild animals. He was worried about possible land slides. The geology of the canyon is deceptive. The geology has a hardness factor of shale of 1.5 in some places, this can be crushed with a person's fingers. He would like to see plans showing the structures verses the trees, an overlay allowing them to see if some of these trees can be saved allowing the structures to be built in harmony with existing trees. He asked that all grading be delayed until all wild animals have completed their nesting to enable them to relocate themselves. George Brown, 1729 Cliff branch, was concerned with losing the beautiful view that they now have. He didn't feel that every vacant piece of land needed to be developed. He felt that one of the major reasons the citizens of Diamond Bar worked to have the City incorporated was to enable them to control and work on solving the existing traffic problem. The new homes will only add to this problem. Jim Solon ason, 21312 Pinehi I I, was concerned with the increase of the traffic problem that the development would create. 10 M ki 12110, Public Hearing Closed. Vice Chairman Harmony made amotion to require a full Environmental impact Report and that special consideration be given to the concerns expressed by the public. Bill Curley recommended a few alternatives. 1) Denying the Negative Declaration if the Commission is going to require an EIR. The Oak Tree Permit is a separate project and requires separate action. 2) He read the findings for the project. in considering recommending a EIR, the Commission should refer to the findings of the project. I Motion was made by Vice Chairman Harmony and seconded by Commissioner Kane to deny the Negative Declaration and to deny Oak Tree Permit 87549 without prejudice and required the applicant to prepare an Environmental Impact Report focusing on Visual, Biota, Acoustic and Traffic concerns. Motion was made by Vice Chairman Harmony and seconded by Commissioner Kane to deny Tentative Tract Map 45290 without prejudice. Commissioner Kane withdrew his second of the previous motion and Vice Chairman Harmony withdrew his motion. Motion was made by Vice Chairman Harmony and seconded by Commissioner Kane to deny Oak Tree Perm -it 87549 without prejudice. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. Motion was made by Vice Chairman Harmony and seconded by Chairman Schey to deny Tentative Tract Map 45290 without prejudice. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. 0 Commissioner Grothe asked that the Commission packets be delivered to the Commissioners about 5 days prior to the meeting. The possibility of setting a cut-off date for the applicants. to submit all information to the Planning Department was discussed. He also stressed the importance of working on improving the City's standards. He proposed that every other Commission meeting be a public hearing and every other meeting be a work session to allow the Commission to work on standards for the City. 11 -7 1� Vice Chairman Harmony asked for business and identification cards to identify the Commissioners when they are visiting the various developments. He has informed staff that he will be available to meet with any applicant to discuss their projects. These meetings will take place at the City offices with a staff member in attendance. He wants to make the rest of the Commission aware of these meetings. He expressed how informative and interesting he felt the Colorado Water District tour is and recommended that all the Commissioners attend. The tour will take place on April 22, 25 & 26th. There being no further business to come before the' Commission, motion was made by commissioner Kane and seconded by Commissioner Grothe and carried unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 11.45 p.m. to the next regularly scheduled meeting of April 9, 1990 to be held at the Walnut Valley Unified School District Board Room at 7:00 p.m. ATTEST: Dennis A. Tarango Secretary, Planning Commission im 7117777 7- David Schey Chairman