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Home My WebLink About04/9/1990CITY OF DIAMOND BAR MINUTES OF CITY PLANNING COMMISSION APRIL 9, 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: COMMISSIONERS: Grothe, Lin, Kane, Vice Chairman Harmony, and Chairman Schey ABSENT: 0 COMMISSIONERS ALSO PRESENT: Bill Curley, Assistant City Attorney Jack Istik, Deputy -.ity Engineer Dennis Tarango, Acting Planning Director Robert Searcy, Assistant Planning Director Dawn Anderson, Planning Technician LK"iflEAS Chairman Schey asked the Commission to consider the Minutes of March 26, 1990. Vice Chairman Harmony requested teat on Page 9 the second to the last sentence in paragraph 1 be changed to read "the applicant did not know if there were any trees identified as heritage trees 1° . Secretary Tarango asked that on Page 9, f i rst sentence of paragraph 1, the words "36 gallon trees" be changed to read "36 inch box trees". Chairman Schey noted that on Page 7 the roll call for the motion was missing. Motion was made by Vice Chairman Harmony and seconded by Commissioner Kane to approve the minutes with these amendments. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. MATTERS FROM THE PUBLIC: The Commission granted those in the audience an opportunity to speak in reference to the items scheduled for discussion by the Planning Commission. E -F- T 11 1 7711 11 [1171171177 „..-.....,««_ �_ — — It - __ , , - , - -.1 u 4 1 1.1.” WYW6hLL11 1 , Dan Buffington, 2605 Indian Creek, Diamond Bar, spoke in reference to the tree ordinance. After reviewing the ordinance, he thought that it did not address any trees other than oak trees. He felt that the walnut trees should also be addressed. Don Schad, stated that, although the ordinance names only a few particular trees, it did pertain to all trees located within the city, CONSENT CALENDAR: City Council Minutes of March 20, 1990 Motion was made by Commissioner Kane and seconded by Commissioner Grothe to approve the Consent Calendar. MOTION CARRIED unanimously. PUBLIC HEARINGS: 1. Chamber of Commerce Sign Survey. Commissioner Kane discussed the idea of multi -language signs. The sign ordinance covered -this briefly., It stated that the dominant message should be in Roman characters. A. Temporary Signs On-site. Chairman Schey felt that excessive quantities of signs detract from the appearance of the City. He felt that signs or banners representing a special event which warrants special attention such as the Ranch Festival should be permissible. The Commission discussed the fact that signs help bring revenue to businesses. Commissioner Grothe stated that it would be easier to enforce a law prohibiting any temporary signs then it would be to enforce a time limit on temporary signs. 4 The Commission discussed setting standards indicating which situations would be categorized as special events. Each project would be addressed on a case -by -'case basis. Vice Chair Harmony brought to the Commission's attention a banner sign that is made of canvas and is back lighted. This sign was designed to get around City ordinances. Also, trailers which may appear to be broken down are often used to bear signs or advertisements for a particular business. These are some of the items that the Commission need be aware of. 2 Bill Curley cautioned the Commission on restricting only some signs and permitting others. He felt that the ordinance should be definite in permitting all or none in order to avoid legal complications. Chairman Schey indicated his concern for placing signs in the public right-of-way. This might present a potential danger to people traveling in the right-of- way. This might also present a problem with determining who would be responsible Donsible if accidents did occur. Also, signs placed in the right-of-way are sometimes placed where they might obstruct the view of pedestrians and drivers or they might block street or road signs. The Commission discussed political signs. Vice Chairman Harmony stated that restricting these signs would be a violation of an individual's right of speech. Commissioner Kane felt that instead of prohibiting political signs, the Commission could state in the ordinance where these signs could be placed. Commissioner Grothe felt that they needed to state in the ordinance who will be responsible for the removal of the signs. Often there are fragments of the signs, tape, nails etc. left behind when the signs are removed. This needs to be addressed as these things start to detract from the appearance of the City. Bill Curley explained Buena Park's sign ordinance pertaining to political signs to the Commission. There is a time frame of 30 to 60 days prior to the election day when signs can be erected. The City designates a party to be responsible for the signs. They are required to keep a log of where the signs are located, how they are installed, who approved them if they are located on private property, etc. There is also a time frame of approximately iC days to remove the signs after the elections. B. Temporary Off-site Signs. Commissioner Grothe worked in a City where they only allowed one sign on each corner. If more than one sign appeared on a corner, the signs would be confiscated. Chairman Schey felt that open house signs should be allowed to be posted only during the duration of the open house instead a 48 hour time limit. By not allowing the signs to be located in the right-of-way, the individuals posting the sign will have to have the permission of the property owners in order to post the signs on their property. This will help control the quantity of these signs. 3 `7177711M,777 C. I -) Permanent Signs. Billboard signs were briefly addressed. Although the City wants uniformity with the signs located in shopping centers, some shopping centers can appear monotonous if all signs are identical. Individuality draws attention to the center and helps in identifying businesses. Sign programs are created for shopping centers for this purpose. The Commission discussed the possibility of identifying the main tenants in a shopping center on the center's directory sign and then allowing the smaller tenants to, advertise, for example, that they are located in the Ralph's shopping center. This would help keep directory signs uncluttered and easy to read. Bill Curley discussed the legalities of bi-lingual signs. It has been argued that for emergency purposes the signs need to be identifiable in English as well as another language. It has also been argued that in case of an emergency, the building can be identified by the address. The sign is not used as a means of locating a building for emergency purposes. The best way of dealing with bi- lingual signs is not to restrict the; but to require the street address to be clearly marked. The Commission discussed whether it was necessary to require bi-lingual signs to contain English translations. The Commission directed staff to gather ordinances that address the issues that have been raised, present them to the Commission to allow the: to select those provisions they feel will apply to the City of Diamond Bar, and then return this to staff with the direction to draft an ordinance. Bill Curley suggested that staff gather 5 to 6 different ordinances, 'select those provisions which are similar, categorize them, and present this document to the Commission for discussion. The Commission was in agreement to follow Mr. Curley's directive. Cl 77T'77' 2. Tree Ordinance. Don Schad forwarded a draft tree ordinance to the County a year ago and the City Council and City Manager have now asked the Commission to review it,and make a recommendation to the City Council. Mr. Schad reviewed this Ordinance with the Commission. The purpose of this ordinance is to preserve the natural beauty of Diamond Bar. Fifty years ago there was 775,000 acres of oaks in California now there is 12,000. He wanted to draw the Commission's attention to some changes he wanted to make to the ordinance. Section 66-13, Page No. 2, Damaged Trees. City Attorney Andrew Arczynski made a change to this section as shown on the Tree Ordinance. Section 66-14, Penalties. Mr. Schad asked the Commission's permission to raise the fine from $1000.00 to $5000.00. Section 66-14, b. He asked to insert the words "as approved" after the word replacement. At the time he wrote this ordinance, Mr. Schad was not certain which agencies would be enforcing it. He asked the Commission to insert the proper agencies. Section 66-19, Significant Tree. Page 3, No. 1, he asked that the statement ...a height of 20 feet at least and a diameter of 8 inches or more as measured 4 feet from the highest slope on -1--he around... be changed to "lowest point". This gives a tree an advantage especially if it is growing on a slope. This would place the tree in a more favorable category as far as saving the tree at time of development, Section 66-19, No. 2, should read ...diameter of 41nches or more as measured from the lowest slope of the ground at the trunk of the tree. Section 66-19, No. 3, The words City Council should'be changed to Planning Commission. 777 17711-1717-17 Section 66-19, No. 4, The words City Council should be changed to read Planning Commission. The Commission asked Mr. Schad to clarify Statement No. 4. Mr. Schad explained that it had to do with the coverage of the tree verses the property. it is possible that the property could be developed and destroy a significant tree if the property was too small to allow the development. In essence, he is trying to establish a setback from the tree where development may begin. He wants to protect the drip line of,the tree beyond 15 feet of the root growth. If there is a significant tree on a lot that is less than one acre, he asking that the property be deleted from a developable category. Under State Law,' an oak tree can only be pruned 10 percent other trees can be pruned up to 20 percent. if they have been damaged by an act of God then they can be pruned Up to what appears natural. This tree ordinance covers all trees including those located on private property. Chairman Schey expressed his concern with requiring property owners to obtain a permit before removal of any trees. This would be difficult to enforce. Mr. Schad stated that his purpose is to prevent indiscriminate destruction of trees, even on private property, without a permit. JII Chairman Schey expressed his desire to see a program established to help reforest some of the hillsides in Diamond Bar that have been deforested over time. Secretary Tarango discussed The City of San Marino's Tree Ordinance. The City looks at the individual's backyard as a whole. If they have several trees similar to each other, then removal of one tree is not a problem. The City of San Marino has identified the types of trees they want to preserve and have categorized them into different classifications. he individuals need a permit if the tree is a Class I tree. Commissioner Grothe discussed the possibility of requiring the size of the replacement tree to be increased instead of requiring several trees to be planted. Many times developers plant an over abundance of small trees and when those trees grow there is an overcrowding which kills surrounding vegetation. Mr. Schad also requested that the Commission discuss adopting an ordinance requiring a planting strip to be located between the curb and the sidewalk. There are certain trees that will not disturb the sidewalks. The Commission directed staff to review other Cities' tree ordinances and draft an ordinance to be presented to the Commission. Chairman Schey requested staff to present the Commission with a list of the items pertaining to design issues that they need to review so that they Can address them by priority. Chairman Sch6y asked Secretary Tarango to discuss Ordinance 25A which will be going into effect. He stated that thi's ordinance gives the Planning Commission more power. This was approved at the last City Council meeting. Vice Chairman Harmony asked that staff order the Planning Commissioner's handbook for each of the Commissioners. Vice Chairman Harmony asked that the minutes reflect the specific questions asked by the Commissioners. He wanted more of the discussion among the Commission to be transcrAbed. Commissioner Grothe felt that a summary of why the Commission approved or denied a project would adequate. Resolutions are required for denial and approval of the projects. These resolutions contain a list of the reasons for denial or approval. ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business to come before the Commission, motion was made by Commissioner Grothe and seconded by Commissioner Kane and carried unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 9:40 p.m. to the next regularly scheduled meeting of April 23, 1990 to be held at the Walnut Valley Unified School District Board Room at 7:00 p.m. David Schey Chairman ATTEST: A Dennis A. Tarango Secretary, Planning Commission Ili 7 71,