REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
DATE: 08/07/2024
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Planning & Development Department
SUBJECT:
Title
CHANGE OF ZONE 2023-0006 TO CHANGE THE ZONING OF 0.59 ACRES FROM MOBILE HOME PARK (MP) TO GENERAL COMMERCIAL (C3) AND 4.01 ACRES FROM MP TO MULTIPLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL (R3) GENERALLY LOCATED WEST OF BUENA VISTA AVENUE, ON THE NORTH AND SOUTH SIDE OF SECOND STREET (APPLICANT: GREENS DEVELOPMENT)
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
This staff report asks the City Council to approve Change of Zone 2023-0006 (CZ2023-0006) changing the zoning of property from Mobile Home Park to General Commercial (C3) on 0.59 acres and to Multiple Family Residential (R3) on 4.01 acres. The properties are on the north and south side of Second Street, west of Buena Vista Avenue. The proposed C3 zone on the 0.59 acres is consistent with the site’s proposed General Plan designation of General Commercial (GC) that is concurrently proposed by General Plan Amendment 2023-0004 (GPA2023-0004) and the R3 zone on the 4.01 acres is consistent with the site’s existing General Plan designation of High Density Residential (HDR).
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommended action
That the City Council:
a. Approve CZ2023-0006 as recommended by the Planning and Housing Commission.
b. Introduce by title only and waive full reading for consideration of Ordinance No. 3400, first reading of an ordinance approving a change of zone from Mobile Home Park (MP) to General Commercial (C3) on 0.59 acres located on the north side of Second Street, approximately 450 feet west of Buena Vista Avenue and a change of zone from Mobile Home Park (MP) to Multiple Family Residential (R3) on 4.01 acres located at the southwest corner of Buena Vista Avenue and Second Street. (CZ2023-0006)
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BACKGROUND & HISTORY:
The combined project site of 4.6 acres is vacant. The project site was originally occupied with mobile homes but was eventually removed to accommodate the State Route 91 widening project. The Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) was the agency responsible for the freeway widening project and purchased the property to accommodate the right-of-way needed for the extension of Second Street to Lincoln Avenue and the new freeway on-ramp design.
After the construction of the freeway widening, RCTC determined the project site to be excess surplus land and disposed of the property according to the state’s Surplus Land Act. The Corona Housing Authority purchased the 4.01 acres located at the southwest corner of Buena Vista Avenue and Second Street, and the applicant purchased the 0.59 acres located on the north side of Second Street just west of Buena Vista Avenue.
The applicant and owner of the 0.59 acres also owns the adjacent 0.81 acres to the west, which was also purchased from RCTC. The zoning of the adjacent 0.81 acres is C3. This property was bifurcated by the extension of Second Street to Lincoln Avenue. The applicant intends to combine both parcels and develop the property for commercial.
The General Plan designation of the 0.59 acres is HDR. The applicant is also proposing to amend the General Plan to General Commercial (GC) to establish consistency with the proposed C3 zone. The applicant’s request is being reviewed by GPA2023-0004.
The Corona Housing Authority and owner of the 4.01 acres intend to have the property developed for multiple family residential apartments.
ANALYSIS:
CZ2023-0006 proposes to change the zoning of two separate parcels to accommodate future land uses planned on the sites.
Second Street Property
This site is 0.59 acres and is located between the right-of-way for State Route 91 to the north and Second Street to the south. The zoning of the site is MP. CZ2023-0006 proposes to change the zoning to C3 to be consistent with the adjacent parcel to the west. The proposed change to the C3 zone will allow the parcel to be combined with the adjacent parcel and allow for commercial land uses.
Buena Vista Property
This site is 4.01 acres and is primarily a corner parcel that is adjacent to Second Street to the north and Buena Vista Avenue to the east. The zoning of the site is MP. A small 0.16 acres is also located at the immediate southwest corner where Second Street and Buena Vista Avenue connect and is adjacent to the project site. This 0.16 acres is also owned by the Corona Housing Authority and zoned R3.
CZ2023-0006 proposes to change the zoning on the 4.01 acres to R3. The R3 zone will create consistency with the property’s General Plan designation, which is HDR. The HDR designation allows a residential density range of 15 to 36 dwelling units per acre (du/ac), which is the same density allowed by the R3 zone. The current MP zone has a residential density limit of 8 du/ac, which is lower than the density range allowed by the General Plan creating an inconsistency between the zoning and General Plan. The R3 zone will also be an extension of the R3 zone that exists on the 0.16 acres at the corner of Second Street and Buena Vista Avenue.
The Corona Housing Authority intends to combine both parcels and partner with a housing developer on the development of multiple family apartments.
California Housing Accountability Act
The state’s Housing Accountability Act (Government Code Section 65589.5) was amended in 2019 to include the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 (Government Code Section 66300). The Housing Crisis Act of 2019 requires cities to maintain the residential capacity that existed at the time of adoption of the legislation to ensure a no net loss in the zoning for residential units. Cities are allowed to rezone residential properties to a non-residential zone or less intense residential use only if the city concurrently rezones another parcel to make up for the shortfall in housing units lost under the previous zoning.
The Second Street property is 0.59 acres, and the MP zone allows a maximum density of 8 du/ac, which results in 5 residential units. The Buena Vista property is 4.01 acres, and the MP zone allows 32 residential units. The R3 zone allows a maximum density of 36 du/ac, which increases the residential density of the 4.01 acres. Minus the residential units already allowed by the MP zone on both properties, the R3 zone will allow an additional 107 residential units on the 4.01 acres. CZ2023-0006 satisfies the requirement under the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 because the rezoning will result in no net loss in residential units.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The applicant paid the application processing fees of $9,008.75 to cover the cost of the Change of Zone.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
Section 15070 of the State Guidelines for Implementing the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and Section 6.02 of the City’s Local Guidelines, a Mitigated Negative Declaration was prepared for the project because the Initial Study identified that the project’s potentially significant effects to the environment are capable of being mitigated to less than significant. Therefore, based on the project mitigation measures identified in the Mitigated Negative Declaration, there is no substantial evidence, in light of the whole record before the City, that the project may have a significant or potentially significant effect on the environment. The Mitigation Negative Declaration is being recommended for adoption with the applicant’s companion application General Plan Amendment 2023-0004 (GPA2023-0004).
PLANNING AND HOUSING COMMISSION ACTION:
At its meeting on July 8, 2024, the Planning and Housing Commission considered the subject matter and took the following action:
Motion was made, seconded (Woody/Longwell) and carried with Commissioner Alexander abstaining, that the Planning and Housing Commission approve CZ2023-0006, based on the findings contained in the staff report and conditions of approval. The minutes of the Planning and Housing Commission meeting are included as Exhibit 5.
PREPARED BY: JOANNE COLETTA, PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Attachments:
1. Exhibit 1 - Ordinance No. 3400
2. Exhibit 2 - Locational and zoning map
3. Exhibit 3 - Proposed Change of Zone
4. Exhibit 4 - Planning and Housing Commission staff report
5. Exhibit 5 - Draft Minutes of the Planning and Housing Commission meeting of July 8, 2024