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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC RES 2906 1 4 5 6 9 10 11 19 13 14 15 16 18 19 9.0 9_1 22 24 9.5 26, 27 25 RESOLUTION NO. 2906 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF TUSTIN, DENYING CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT 91-01, A REQUEST TO AUTHORIZE ESTABLISHMENT OF A TIRE SALES AND SERVICE BUSINESS LOCATED AT 135 SOUTH PROSPECT AVENUE AND VARIANCE 91-08, A REQUEST TO DEVIATE FROM THE PARKING REQUIREMENTS IN VARIOUS PORTIONS OF THE SITE. The Planning Commission of the City of Tustin does hereby resolve as follows: I · The Planning Commission finds and determines as follows: A· That a proper application, Conditional Use Permit 91-01 has been filed on behalf of Steven Paquette to establish a tire sales and service business on the property located at 135 South Prospect Avenue. B. That a proper application, Variance 91-08, has been filed on behalf of Steven Paquette requesting to deviate from the parking requirements in various portions of the site on the property located at 135 South Prospect Avenue. Co That a public hearing was duly called, noticed and held on said application on April 22, 1991 and continued to May 13, 1991. De That establishment, maintenance, and operation of the use applied for will, under the circumstances of this case, be detrimental to the health, safety, morals, comfort, or general welfare of the persons residing or working in the neighborhood of such proposed use and will be injurious or detrimental to property and improvements in the area, evidenced by the following findings: . The subject site is inadequate in size, shape and configuration to accommodate the proposed auto service use and the existing medical/professional office use without creating major interface issues on-site and off-site based upon the following facts: 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 18 20 21 22 23 24 25 2¢ 27 28 Resolution No. 2906 Page 2 a · be c · The submitted plans indicate that one of the site access points will be taken from First Street. The proposed re-location of the First Street driveway will be approximately 25 feet from the location of the driveway to the car wash site, which is adjacent on the east side. Submitted plans also indicate the location of parking stall #1, which parallels the driveway, to be within 3 feet of the subject parcel's north property line. A vehicle parked in parking stall #1, during the course of business operations, would cause a visual obstruction to exist at this driveway location; resulting in a concern for the safety of pedestrians using the sidewalk located along First Street. The Commission has observed that the problem with traffic existing on First Street is compounded by customers attempting to gain access to the Post Office. Since a majority of the customers using the proposed auto service use will be attempting to drop off or retrieve their vehicles during peak traffic times and the subject site is within close proximity to the post office, the proposed auto service use will act as a contributor to an already existing negative impact to this portion of the community. The submitted plans show that while the proposed auto service use would operate in a separate building, the medical/professional office building and the proposed auto service building are located on one legal parcel which is .42 acres in size; maintaining approximately a 45-foot building separation which results in a constricted site for the two types of uses to function harmoniously. 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 12 13 14 15 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Resolution No. 2906 Page 3 de ee This is compounded by the fact that the submitted plans show one 25- foot-wide drive aisle running between the two access driveways located along First Street and Prospect Avenue. This type of auto service use has the potential to require the utilization of the entire parking lot area. The reason for this is that the majority of customers, as was stated in the applicant's correspondence dated April 15, 1991, which was attached to the previous staff report to total between 30 to 60, leave their vehicles anywhere from half a day to a full day for servicing. This results in blocked drive aisles, illegal parking and an increased need for vehicle storage due to parking overflow. The submitted plans indicate that the service bay doors are oriented directly across from some of the entrances and window openings of the existing medical/office buildings. Based upon the type of noise generated during the course of servicing the vehicles, combined with the fact that the vehicle servicing is performed with the service bay doors open, it can be determined that the proposed auto service use will be disruptive rather than conducive or complimentary to the existing medical/professional office uses. The submitted plans propose a parking layout that would require the approval of a variance to allow deviations from parking lot design criteria. The acceptance of the proposed parking layout would result in various entrances to the medical/professional office building being obstructed by the front end of vehicles allowed to overhang within 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 17 18 19 2O 21' 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Resolution No. 2906 Page 4 · inches of the building. This condition was observed while in the field at the subject site as the entrances were not apparent on the submitted plans. The proposed use will be detrimental to the properties and/or improvements in the area as the project does not meet the objectives of the First Street Specific Plan in that: a · The project site is located within what is identified in the First Street Specific Plan as Sub-Area 2 which encourages stimulation of retail commercial uses that specifically cater or serve the needs of pedestrian movement and use. The proposed auto service use does not function primarily as a use serving the needs of pedestrians as its primary activity will be to service vehicles; therefore, the primary use by pedestrians would be to leave a vehicle and proceed to walk elsewhere rather than linger or stroll on the site. Field observations of retail centers or uses indicate that most customers use the site for a duration of time that would be significantly shorter than was observed of the customer using an auto service use. be The project site has been identified in the Specific Plan as a potential "use change" site. This classification recognizes that there are buildings and/or uses on a particular parcel that are no longer viable and could, in some cases, be considered non-conforming. Although the subject building proposed to serve as the tire sales and service business was originally built for garage/automotive uses, the intent of the Specific Plan was for this building and the automotive use originally associated with it to be 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 2O 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Resolution No. 2906 Page 5 . replaced as continued or refurbished use of an automotive use at this location was considered inappropriate and obsolete. Consequently, approval of an automotive use at this location would be detrimental to future and present development within the Specific Plan area as it is a use that directly contradicts with the Specific Plan objectives, which indicated the need to remove or replace the building(s) on the site with a new use. Ce The Specific Plan identified this site as a parcel that potentially could be combined with southerly adjacent parcels for potential "Use Expansion Opportunities." The Land Use Concept portion of the Specific Plan discusses the incentives available for use expansion areas when combined with those parcels maintaining a First Street frontage, thereby gaining development that is particularly responsive to the Specific Plan objectives. Consequently, approval of the proposed use would inhibit the potential for this objective to ever be realized which results in a detriment to surrounding properties by thwarting the development opportunities that would satisfy the long-range goals of the Specific Plan. During the course of the public hearing held April 22, 1991, the proposed use was viewed to be inappropriate for the subject site by community members. The following reasons were stated and are related to many of the findings and observations made by staff: a ~ The proposed use would detract from the unique setting, charm and convenience afforded to pedestrians 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 18 19 2O 21 22 23 24 25 26 28! Resolution No. 2906 Page 6 in the Specific Plan area as the primary focus of the service is to automobiles. b, The subject site was considered inadequate to serve both uses simultaneously resulting in parking impacts on surrounding streets. Ce The project is not sensitive to the close proximity of the Cultural Resources Overlay Zoning District, of which the subject site borders on the southeast along Prospect Avenue, and does not promote the positive characteristics considered vital to creating a desired pedestrian ambiance and a "slower pace." de The proposed use, based upon submitted plans, can not be accommodated on the site without the granting of a variance and no overriding condition could be identified that would justify an approval. That, because of a lack of special circumstances applicable to the subject property, relative to size, shape, topography, location or surroundings, a strict application of the Zoning Ordinance is not found to deprive the subject property of privileges enjoyed by other properties in the vicinity and under identical zone classification in that: The proposed use is classified as a use intensification and, therefore, requires the non-conforming parking lot area to be upgraded and brought to current standards. During the course of the public hearing, it was pointed out that many properties with currently operating uses also maintain deficient parking lot designs and this should be considered as justification for this variance request. However, these properties are considered non-conforming and are permitted by right 1 2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 ~1.5 ~6 ~7 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Resolution No. 2906 Page 7 to continue operating; but in the event that a use should change or intensify, the property would be required to be brought into conformance. Therefore, the implementation of the zoning requirements would not be denying privileges as all non-conforming sites under these circumstances would be required to upgrade. · Subsequent to the enactment of the Specific Plan, those projects that were approved, where circumstances entailed the re-use of an existing facility have not received the benefit of variances to operate. Also, those projects where deviations were considered, did not require variances as the projects entailed new construction; and, pursuant to the incentive section discussed in Section III of the Development Regulations for the Specific Plan, certain allowances can be made to obtain benefits that the Specific Plan recommends achieving. F· That the granting of a variance as herein provided will constitute a grant of special privilege inconsistent with the limitations upon other properties in the vicinity and district in which the subject property is situated in that the proposed layout maintains self-imposed hardships due to the proposed use and shifting of an existing driveway access. G · That this project is Categorically Exempt (Class 1) pursuant to the provisions of Section 15301 of the California Environmental Quality Act. II. The Planning Commission hereby denies Conditional Use Permit 91-01 and Variance 91-08 for the property located at 135 South Prospect Avenue. 7 8 9 10 11 13 14 17 18 19 20 Resolution No. 2906 Page 8 PASSED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the Tustin Planning Commission, held on the 13th day of May, 1991. Chairman Recording Secretary STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF ORANGE ) CITY OF TUSTIN ) I, KATHLEEN CLANCY, the undersigned, hereby certify that I am the Recording Secretary of the Planning Commission of the City of Tustin, California; that Resolution No. 2906 was duly passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the Tustin Planning Commission, held on the 13th day of May, 1991. KATHLEEN CLANCY Recording Secretary 22 23 24 25 28