HomeMy WebLinkAbout5/14/2013MINUTES OF THE CITY OF DIAMOND BAR
REGULAR MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION
May 14, 2013
Chairman Nelson called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. in the City Hall Windmill
Room, 21810 Copley Drive, Diamond Bar, CA 91765.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Commissioners Farago led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Present: Commissioners Frank Farago, Jack Shah, Vice
Chairman Tony Torng, Chairman Steve Nelson
Absent: Commissioner Jimmy Lin was excused.
Also present: Greg Gubman, Community Development Director;
James Eggart, Assistant City Attorney; Grace Lee, Senior Planner; Natalie
Tobon, Assistant Planner; David Liu, Public Works Director; and Stella Marquez,
Administrative Coordinator.
2. MATTERS FROM THE AUDIENCE/PUBLIC COMMENTS: None
3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA: As presented
4.1 Minutes of the Regular Meeting of April 23, 2013
VC/Torng moved, Chair/Nelson seconded, to approve the Minutes of the
Regular Meeting of April 23, 2013, as presented. Motion carried by the
following Roll Call vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSTAIN:
ABSENT:
COMMISSIONERS:
COMMISSIONERS:
COMMISSIONERS:
COMMISSIONERS:
5. OLD BUSINESS: None
Shah, VC/Torng, Chair/Nelson
None
Farago
Lin
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 2 PLANNING COMMISSION
6. NEW BUSINESS:
6.1 Review of Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Capital Improvement Program (CIP)-
for conformity with the General Plan.
SP/Lee presented staff's report and recommended Planning Commission
adoption of a Resolution finding the proposed Fiscal Year 2013-2014
Capital Improvement Program to be in conformance with the General
Plan.
VC/Torng said he had no questions about the presentation but asked if the
Lemon Avenue project would actually be finished by next June. PWD/Liu
responded that currently, the Lemon Avenue interchange is in the right-of-
way phase. However, there are complications with respect to City of
Industry's effort to be a financial partner to fund the right-of-way phase.
During the past few years City of Industry has dedicated their
redevelopment funds toward both the design and the right-of-way costs.
Because of Redevelopment Agency concerns, funding will not be an
option for City of Industry. As a result, Diamond Bar will restart the right-
of-way phase in July and based on the July start date, the right-of-way
phase could be completed by the end of June 2014 with construction
commencing immediately thereafter with construction slated to be
completed within a year and one-half. According to that time schedule,
the project should be completed by the end of 2015. The project is a
three-quarter interchange meaning that there will be on/off ramps in the
eastbound direction and a westbound onramp, but not a westbound off -
ramp. The existing off -ramps at Brea Canyon will remain and the existing
eastbound on/off (hook ramps) across the street from Barros Pizza, will be
eliminated, which will help with the local circulation.
C/Shah said that Nogales just had a groundbreaking cerernony and said
he believed that Fairway Drive project would be constructed next year
sometime and Fullerton just started a design. He asked if Diamond Bar
was coordinating the construction timing with ACE, particularly when the
Fairway Drive project goes, the tracks will be elevated about 12 feet or so
and the street will be depressed. So most likely they will be in
construction next year and he was curious if the traffic on Gale would be a
mess when the off ramp was being built. He thought Nogales was going
to close and that Fairway would be closed and Fullerton would be closed
when construction commenced. PWD/Liu said that staff is aware of the
different ACE projects, especially the project at Fairway. ACE recently sat
down with Diamond Bar to discuss a traffic management plan and one of
the mitigation measures identified for the City was a temporary signal at
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 3 PLANNING COMMISSIO&
the intersection of Lemon and Walnut Drive. Diamond Bar is looking
forward to close collaboration with ACE regarding traffic impacts. The
next several years there will be a lot of construction activities and the CIP
the Commission is reviewing tonight contains several of those items that
will actually commence this year.
There was no one present who wished to speak on this item.
C/Shah moved, C/Farago seconded, to adopt a Resolution finding the
proposed Fiscal Year 2013-2014 Capital Improvement Program to be in
conformance with the City's General Plan. Motion carried by the following
Roll Call vote:
AYES: COMMISSIONERS
NOES: COMMISSIONERS
ABSENT: COMMISSIONERS
7. CONTINUED PUBLIC HEARING(S):
Farago Shah, VC/Torng,
Chair/Nelson
None
Lin
7.1 Development Review No. 2010-373 — Under the authority of Diamond
Bar Municipal Code Section 22.48, the applicant and property owner
Horizon Pacific (c/o Jerry Yeh), requested Development Review approval
to construct a new single-family residence consisting of 10,186 square
feet of living space; 1,323 square foot garage/storage/utility space; and
482 square foot cabana on a 0.98 gross acre (42,762 square foot lot).
(Continued from April 23, 2013)
PROJECT ADDRESS
PROPERTY OWNER
APPLICANT:
22590 Pacific Lane (Lot 3)
Diamond Bar, CA 91765
Jerry Yeh
Horizon Pacific
20888 Amar Road #203
Walnut, CA 91789
AP/Tobon presented staff's report and recommended Planning
Commission approval of Development Review No. PL -2010-373, based on
the Findings of Fact, and subject to the conditions of approval as listed
within the resolution.
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 4 PLANNING COMMISSION
C/Shah asked about the topography of the site. AP/Tobon responded that
currently, the site is being rough graded for the five -lot subdivision and
most of the building pad is in place. The area that is being filled is toward
the back and side of the house toward the building pad. The cross
sections are included in the packet in the architectural plans.
Chair/Nelson said he assumed that's why the grading was miniscule and
PT/Tobon said grading was very minimal with this lot because the building
pad is currently being rough graded.
Chair/Nelson opened the public hearing.
Amat Tejuden, EBTA Architects, Irvine, thanked staff members, who have
been great in working with his firm throughout this process and guiding
them through Diamond Bar's very particular ordinances and design
criteria. With respect to the grade, he stated that these are fairly large
parcels and the way the Master Plan is designed is that the majority of the
pad is in the area he pointed out using the map. Part of the requirernent
for the pad is that they have a 25 foot extended area toward the back and
as a result of that, there are retaining walls that are built within the hillside
which all conform to the four foot maximum height and are spaced roughly
three and one-half feet apart creating the required level area. This plan is
a one-story with a two-story element with courtyards and breakups
throughout the plan. The Master Plan called for 44,000 square foot lots
allowing for relatively flat pads.
C/Shah complimented the architect on the elevation and the design. He
asked from the back of the site after the retaining wall, how much drop
down or slope is there and Mr. Tejuden responded that it was natural
slope that would not exceed 2:1. The intent is that there will be planting
between the walls that will actually grow up over the walls. C/Shah said
he was concerned about runoff.
VC/Torng asked if there were any protected trees in the area and
Mr. Tejuden responded that it is a raw land site. AP/Tobon responded
that this was done through a tree permit during the subdivision and
Tentative Tract Map project. CDD/Gubman said that there is an extensive
mitigation implementation plan that was part of this five -lot subdivision
where the developer has been required to go through the Department of
Fish and Game permitting process and are required to provide
replacement habitat and trees as part of the overall development. Once
this project gets to the individual lot phase the sites are basically ready to
build without any further mitigation.
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 5 PLANNING COMMISSION
With no one else present who wished to speak on this item, Chair/Nelson
closed the public hearing.
VC/Torng moved, C/Shah seconded to approve Development Review
No. PL2010-373, based on the Findings of Fact, and subject to the
conditions of approval as listed within the resolution. Motion carried by the
following Roll Call vote:
AYES: COMMISSIONERS: Farago, Shah VC/Torng,
Chair/Nelson
NOES: COMMISSIONERS: None
ABSENT: COMMISSIONERS: Lin
Chair/Nelson congratulated the applicant and architect on a lovely home.
7.2 Development Review No. PL2010-372 — Under the authority of Diamond
Bar Municipal Code Section 22.48, the applicant and property owner,
Horizon Pacific (c/o Jerry Yeh), requested Development Review approval
to construct a new single-family residence consisting of 10,018 square
feet of living space; a 1,300 square foot garage/storage/utility space; and
a 452 square foot detached tatami room on a 0.98 gross acre (42,719
square foot) lot. The subject property is zoned Rural Residential (RR) with
a consistent underlying General Plan land use designation of Rural
Residential. (Continued from April 23, 2013)
PROJECT ADDRESS
22588 Pacific Lane (Lot 4)
Diamond Bar, CA 91765
Jerry Yeh
Horizon Pacific
20888 Amar Road #203
Walnut, CA 91789
AP/Tobon presented staff's report and recommended Planning
Commission approval of Development Review No. PL2010-372, based on
the Findings of Fact, and subject to the conditions of approval as listed
within the resolution.
Chair/Nelson commented that there are no invasive plant species within
either palate.
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 6 PLANNING COMMISSION
VC/Torng asked if the tatami room was detached and AP/Tobon
responded that it is. VC/Torng asked why it was separated from the main
living area. VC/Torng invited the applicant to provide those details.
Chair/Nelson opened the public hearing.
Amat Tejuden, EBTA Architects, Irvine, on behalf of Horizon Pacific, said
EBTA was contacted to design something unique within "The Country
Estates" and EBTA appreciates this opportunity. This house can appeal
to many sorts of buyers but the tatami room is on axis with the master
bedroom and one might think the room impacts the view but it does not
because there is fenestration on both the front and back so views are
actually framed by that structure. He sees that area as fulfilling a desire
for better health — exercise, yoga and even meditation, a room that blends
in with the natural environment and the views. Beyond that there is a
sculpted gravel garden which provides a tranquil space. Both houses
have courtyards with wings that actually envelope the land around it. The
site plan and floor plan are all integrated to take full advantage of light and
landscape which is the primary reason for that type of structure. He
thanked staff for their consideration during this process.
C/Shah said this too was a very nice design and the layout of the footprint.
With no one else present who wished to speak on this item, Chair/Nelson
closed the public hearing.
VC/Torng moved, C/Farago seconded, to approve Development Review
No. PL2010-372, based on the Findings of Fact, and subject to the
conditions of approval as listed within the resolution. The motion was
carried by the following Roll Call vote:
AYES: COMMISSIONERS: Farago, Shah, VC/Torng,
Chair/Nelson
NOES: COMMISSIONERS: None
ABSENT: COMMISSIONERS: Lin
Chair/Nelson congratulated the applicant and architect on another lovely home.
8. PLANNING COMMISSIONER COMMENTS/INFORMATIONAL. ITEMS: None
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 7 PLANNING COMMISSIOZ
9.1 Public Hearing dates for future projects.
CDD/Gubman stated that the next scheduled Planning Commission
meeting is slated for May 28 with two items set for that agenda consisting
of two additional new homes, one on Alamo Heights in "The Country
Estates" and the second is for a new home to replace a home that needed
to be demolished as a result of the Sunset Crossing/Minnequa landslide
several years ago. When that hillside was repaired and all of the
remediation work was completed, the house could not be salvaged so the
item to be reviewed at the next meeting will be for the replacement home
on that property.
CDD/GUbman reported that with respect to Site D, last week Lennar
Homes submitted the Tentative Tract Map and Development plans and
their project consists of 182 dwellings. The Site D Specific Plan allowed
for up to 200 units and Lennar was able to yield 182 somewhat less than
what was approved. There are three product types in the initial application
being proposed which will be coming before the Commission in about
three months which will consist of single family detached housing, 47 of
which would be units on individual "for sale" lots; there will be an additional
73 detached homes which will be in a condominium configuration and
those units will be on a commonly owned parcel among individuals
homeowners; the balance of the site is proposed to be 62 attached
townhome products. The product types are somewhat similar to the
Brookfield Development above Target which also consists of both
attached and detached products. The subdivision map also includes a
collection of parcels that would collectively comprise the required parkland
to be dedicated to the City the net acreage of which is approximately 3
acres. Under the Specific Plan the developer is obligated to provide 2 net
acres. The Developer hosted a follow up meeting last Thursday at
Heritage Park. VC/Torng was present along with Parks and Recreation
Commissioners and City Council Members. The purpose of the meeting
was to follow up on the Neighborhood Outreach Workshop that was held
last January to get community input on the character and types of
amenities for the Site D Neighborhood Park. The consensus plan that
was presented at the meeting last week reflected the individual and group
exercise activities that collectively created a vision for the park. The
workshop facilitator took all of the workshop input and went through a very
detailed and systematic process of synthesizing all of those individual
thoughts into an overall consensus plan. Some of the park amenities
would include a couple of tot lots, walking trails, seating areas, an area
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 8 PLANNING COMMISSION
that is preliminarily called the rain garden which takes in a water
retention/water quality feature that is required for new developments
whereby a certain amount of storm water runoff is retained. What the
development proposes to create is a wetland area that would offer a
habitat, interpretive panels and walking paths and bridges to create a
unique environment to add to the City's park amenities inventory.
CDD/Gubman briefed the Commission on the progress of the Shell Station
abatement effort. As previously mentioned, the Shell Station is under the
control of a receiver at this time. The receiver has gone through a process
of accepting bids from contractors to complete the work for the stalled
project and is concurrently consulting with commercial Real Estate
Brokers because the ultimate goal after completing the project, is to sell
the project and take the proceeds from the sale to reimburse the City for
its legal expenses to cover the receivership fees that were incurred, to pay
off the liens that have accumulated on the property due to back taxes,
mechanics liens, etc. This has been a long and painstaking process and
there are several legal requirements that need to be filled to go through a
receivership process and staff is hopeful that within the next 60 days
construction will commence with the construction phase taking about 60
days. Staff sees this project finally reaching the finish line in about four
months.
C/Shah asked if there was an update on the Walmart Grocery Store at
Grand Avenue and Diamond Bar Boulevard. CDD/Gubman responded
that the property was sold to ROIC and they will not acknowledge it is
Walmart although their PR Department put out a press release that said
the "Neighborhood Walmart Market" so it's out there. The property owner
does not know what the rollout timeframe is with the grocery store. What
staff does know is that there are plans to rollout several store openings
within a fairly well planned sequence. As of this time, the City has not
been contacted about permitting or construction scheduling. The press
release that disclosed confidential information did not scare Walmart
away. The deal has proceeded and it will happen.
Chair/Nelson asked where the City is in ranking of people to be paid from
the proceeds of the Shell Station sale and CDD/Gubman responded that
the City is second below the federal government seeking $1.8 million in
tax liens that takes super priority over all other liens. The receivership has
priority over all of the other liens. So the City would be next in line after
the federal government.
MAY 14, 2013 PAGE 9 PLANNING COMMISSIOM
Chair/Nelson asked if staff knows the value of the property and
CDD/Gubman said staff believes it is around $4.5 million which will allow
the City to recoup its money.
•[I"HINI
As listed in tonight's agenda.
ADJOURNMENT: With no further business before the Planning Commission,
Chairman Nelson adjourned the regular meeting at 7:50 p.m.
The foregoing minutes are hereby approved this 28th day of May, 2013.
Attest:
Respectfully Submitted,
Greg Gubman
Community Development Director
Meve Nelson, Chairman