PLANNING AND HOUSING COMMISSION
STAFF REPORT
DATE: 8/26/2024
TO: Honorable Chair and Commissioners
FROM: Planning and Development Department
APPLICATION REQUEST:
Title
V2020-0003: Variance request from Sections 17.20.060 and 17.20.070(A) of the Corona Municipal Code (CMC) to reduce the minimum lot area requirement from 14,400 square feet to 10,125 square feet and the minimum lot width requirement from 90 feet to 75 feet for property located at 1765 Bobbitt Avenue (116-120-021) in the R-1-14.4 (Single Family Residential) zone. (Applicant: Carlos Padilla, PFT Properties, 13351 Magnolia Avenue, Corona, CA 92879).
End
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommended action
That the Planning and Housing Commission find the project exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines 15303(a), and adopt Resolution No. 2644 GRANTING V2020-0003, based on the findings contained in the staff report and conditions of approval.
Body
PROJECT SITE SUMMARY
Area of Property: 10,125 square feet
Existing Zoning: R-1-14.4 (Single Family Residential, 14,400 sq.ft. minimum lot size)
Existing General Plan: ER (Estate Residential, 1-3 du/ac)
Proposed Land Use: Single Family Residential
Surrounding Zoning/Land Use:
N: R-1-14.4 / Vacant
E: R-1-14.4 / Single Family Residential
S: R-1-14.4 / Single Family Residential
W: R-1-14.4 / Single Family Residential
BACKGROUND
Variance (V2020-0003) is a request by the applicant to reduce the minimum lot area requirement of Section 17.20.060 from 14,400 square feet to 10,125 square feet and reduce the minimum lot width requirement of Section 17.20.070(A) from 90 feet to 75 feet. The applicant indicates that the parcel was illegally created by deed in 1926 by the original owner. In order to legalize the parcel, the applicant submitted a Certificate of Compliance (CC2020-0005) which requires approval by the Board of Zoning Adjustment for non-legal parcels. A record of survey is also required to be recorded before the issuance of any grading and/or building permits. Prior to issuance of the CC2020-0005, the Planning Commission must first approve V2020-0003, which will allow the parcel to be legally established at a lot size smaller than required by the R-1-14.4 zone.
The applicant formally submitted the Variance application to the city on November 25, 2020 and the application was reviewed by the Project and Environmental Review Committee (PRC) on December 17, 2020. As a result of the concurrent processing of the applicant’s Certificate of Compliance (CC2020-0005) application and Variance application, and the final submittal of missing and revised items, the variance was deemed complete on July 11, 2024, and scheduled for the Planning and Housing Commission meeting of August 26, 2024.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The applicant is requesting V2020-0003 in order to develop the property with a new 1,620 square foot single family home with an attached two-car garage (Exhibit 4). The zoning of the property is R-1-14.4, which requires a minimum lot size of 14,400 square feet. The vacant property measures 75 feet in width by 135 feet in depth for a combined 10,125 gross square feet, which has the lot width and lot size less than 15 feet and 4,275 square feet of the minimum requirement, respectively. The property will take access from Bobbitt Avenue via a proposed new driveway and the development will include right-of-way dedication and public street improvements. The proposed single family home meets all of the development standards of the R-1-14.4 zone.
The property is surrounded by similar sized lots with single family residential uses and is located east of Howe Street on the north side of Bobbitt Avenue (Exhibit 2). The property is bordered by parcels that are identical in lot area, lot width and lot depth that contain single family homes (Exhibit 5), see analysis section of this report for further information.
The applicant has prepared building plans for the construction of the single family home and there are available city utilities such as sewer, water and electric to serve the future home as confirmed by the city’s Development Services division. The variance is required in order to process the Certificate of Compliance (CC2020-0005) and legalize the parcel at a lot size smaller than required by the R-1-14.4 zone.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
Per Section 15303(a) of the State Guidelines for Implementing the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and Section 3.28 of the City’s Local CEQA Guidelines, a Notice of Exemption has been prepared for the project because the project qualifies as a Class 3 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures) categorical exemption. The exemption applies to a single family residential unit in a residential zone, which will not result in any impacts to the environment. The Notice of Exemption is attached as Exhibit 9.
FISCAL IMPACT
The applicant paid the applicable processing fees to cover the cost of the variance. There is no fiscal impact to the city.
PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENTS
A 10-day public notice was mailed to all property owners within a 500-foot radius of the project site, as well as advertised in the Sentinel Weekly News and posted at the project site. As of the preparation of this report, the Planning and Development Department has not received any response from the public regarding the proposal.
STAFF ANALYSIS
Per CMC Section 17.96.020, a variance can only be granted by the Planning and Housing Commission if there are special circumstances applicable to the property that deprive the property of privileges otherwise enjoyed by other properties in the vicinity that have identical zoning. Per state law, the special circumstances applicable to the property would include the size, shape, topography, location, or surroundings.
The special circumstance applicable to this property is the property was illegally created by deed in 1926. Had the property been legally created, the applicant would be allowed to build on the property regardless of the lot size. Not granting this variance would render the property useless by preventing future development on the site. The subject parcel is similar in lot area and dimensions to the three parcels located immediately to the west and east of the subject parcel (APNs: 116-120-022, 116-120-020 and 116-120-019)(Exhibit 5). Furthermore, there are at least six parcels located within 300 feet along Howe Street and Nelson Street, also within the R-1-14.4 zone, that have reduced lot areas of 6,750 square feet with lot widths of 50 feet and lot depths of 135 feet (Exhibit 6). The majority of these substandard sized lots all contain newly developed, two-story single family homes.
Based on Section 17.96.020, the strict application of the CMC deprives the subject property of privileges enjoyed by other properties in the vicinity under identical zone classification and therefore, there are findings which can be made as there are special circumstances applicable to this property. As such, the Planning and Development Department recommends approval of V2020-0003, subject to the findings below and the recommended conditions of approval in Exhibit 3.
FINDINGS FOR APPROVAL OF V2020-0003
1. A preliminary exemption assessment has been conducted by the City of Corona and it has shown that this project does not require further environmental assessment because the project qualifies as a Class 3 Categorical Exemption under CEQA Section 15303 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures) categorical exemption. The exemption applies to a single family residential unit in a residential zone, which will not result in any impacts to the environment. The project is a variance to reduce the lot area and lot width of a residential parcel.
2. The strict application of the terms of the zoning regulations from which the Variance is being sought deprives the subject property of privileges enjoyed by other properties in the vicinity and under identical zone classification because of the following special circumstances applicable to the property related to size, shape, topography, location or surroundings:
a. The property was illegally created by deed in 1926. Had the property been legally created, the applicant would be allowed to build on the property regardless of the lot size. Not granting this variance would render the property useless by preventing future development on the site that is similar to other residential developments on the adjacent and surrounding properties that also have lot sizes smaller than the R-1-14.4 zone.
3. The approval of V2020-0003 does not constitute the granting of special privileges inconsistent with the limitations upon other properties in the vicinity and zone in which subject property is located for the following reasons:
a. The Variance is not a granting of special privileges because other residential parcels within the immediate vicinity enjoy privileges under the identical zone classification to which the subject property is currently being deprived of.
b. The proposed development of a single family home is a permitted land use in the R-1-14.4 zone and is consistent with the other single family houses developed in the immediate area.
4. The Variance will not adversely affect property and the use thereof in the vicinity of subject property or the public health, safety, and general welfare for the following reasons:
a. The Variance will not adversely affect the properties in the vicinity, because the subject property is consistent with the size of surrounding parcels and is capable of accommodating a single family house according to the on-site development standards of the R-1-14.4 zone.
b. The Variance will not affect the property or use thereof in the vicinity of the subject site because the development of the site will require the construction of the missing public improvements and roadway adjacent to the property.
PREPARED BY: ROCIO LOPEZ, CONSULTING PLANNER
REVIEWED BY: SANDRA VANIAN, PLANNING MANAGER
SUBMITTED BY: JOANNE COLETTA, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
EXHIBITS
1. Resolution No. 2644
2. Locational and Zoning Map
3. Conditions of Approval
4. Site Plan
5. Variance Exhibit
6. Assessor’s Parcel Map
7. Photographs of the project site
8. Applicant’s letter, dated August 19, 2022
9. Environmental Documentation
Case Planner: Rocio Lopez (951) 736-2293