PLANNING AND HOUSING COMMISSION
STAFF REPORT
DATE: 2/25/2019
TO: Honorable Chair and Commissioners
FROM: Community Development Department
APPLICATION REQUEST:
Title
CZ2017-0101 (CONTINUED): An application to change the zone on approximately 0.61 acres from A (Agricultural) to R1-9.6 (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 9,600 square feet) located on the north side of Othello Lane, approximately 840 feet west of Buena Vista Avenue. (Applicant: Tim East with the Evangelical Free Church of Corona, 988 W. Ontario Avenue Corona CA 92882).
End
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommended action
That the Planning and Housing Commission recommend adoption of the Mitigated Negative Declaration and Mitigation Monitoring Plan and APPROVAL OF CZ2017-0101 to the City Council, based on the findings contained in the staff report.
Body
PROJECT SITE SUMMARY
Area of Property: 0.608 acres
Existing Zoning: A (Agriculture)
Proposed Zoning: R1-9.6 (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 9,600 square feet)
Existing General Plan: LDR (Low Density Residential)
Existing Land Use: Vacant lot
Proposed Land Use: A single-family residential lot
Surrounding Zoning/Land Uses:
N: R1-9.6 (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 9,600 square feet)/Single-family residences
E: R1-A (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 40,000 square feet)/First Presbyterian Church
S: R1-7.2 (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 7,200 square feet)/Single-family residence
W: R1-9.6 (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 9,600 square feet)/Single-family residence
BACKGROUND
The Evangelical Free Church of Corona is on 6.8 acres located at 988 W. Ontario Avenue near the intersection of Ontario Avenue and Buena Vista Avenue. The zoning of the property is Agriculture which requires a minimum lot size of five acres. Most of the church property was developed in 1987 and contains the main sanctuary building, ancillary buildings associated with the congregation’s operations, parking lot and landscaping. However, 0.608 acres (26,480 square feet) located on the southwest corner of the church property was not developed and remains unimproved. The church is proposing to separate this approximate 0.61 acres from the rest of the site so that it is independent from the church and on its own separate parcel. The church is processing a change of zone application to change the current zone of the 0.61 acres from Agriculture to single family residential and a parcel map (PM 37357) to create two separate parcels over the entire 6.8 acres. One parcel will be established for the 0.61 acres and a second parcel will be established for the existing congregation. Both applications are being reviewed concurrently.
The proposed project was reviewed by the City’s Development Plan Review Committee on October 5, 2017 and subsequently by the City’s Project and Environmental Review Committee on December 21, 2017.
February 11, 2019 Public Hearing
The project was initially reviewed by the Planning and Housing Commission at a public hearing on February 11, 2019. The Commission continued the public hearing on the application to February 25, 2019 to allow staff the opportunity to address the comments from the Commission. The comments and responses are discussed in the Background section of the associated Parcel Map 37357 staff report.
PROPOSED CHANGE OF ZONE
CZ2017-0101 will change the zone on approximately 0.61 acres from A (Agriculture) to R1-9.6 (Single Family Residential, minimum lot size 9,600 square feet). The request is being sought at this time because the applicant is proposing to sell the land as the area is not being used by the church nor is the land necessary for their current operation. The R-1-9.6 zone is primarily for single family residential on lots having a minimum size of 9,600 square feet. The proposed zone is consistent with the current zoning in the immediate area as the properties immediately to the north and west are also zoned R1-9.6 (Exhibits 1 and A). It should also be noted that the properties bordering the project site to the west underwent a similar rezone in 2016 which changed 2.29 acres from Agricultural to R1-9.6 to enable the land to be subdivided into four lots (TTM 37114) for the development of single-family homes. The applicant’s proposal would result in a lot size similar to the size of lots of the adjacent tract.
The R-1-9.6 zone is consistent with the site’s General Plan designation of Low Density Residential (LDR) which allows a density range of 3 to 6 dwelling units to the acre (du/ac). The property is also within the boundaries of the South Corona Community Facilities Plan (CFP) and designated Low Density. The Low Density of the South Corona CFP has a residential target density of 2.96 du/ac. The 0.61 acres would accommodate one residential dwelling resulting in a density of 1.6 du/ac. The remainder of the church property will retain its Agricultural zone and will not result in additional residential density. Therefore, the proposed zone change maintains consistency with the General Plan and South Corona CFP.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
Per 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 effect on the environment. The Initial Study and Mitigated Negative Declaration are provided as Exhibit F.
FISCAL IMPACT
The applicant paid $4,895.00 in application processing fees for the change of zone application.
PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENTS
A 20-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 Community Development Department has not received any inquiries from the public in response to the notice.
STAFF ANALYSIS
The change of zone will enable the Evangelical Free Church of Corona to subdivide their 6.8 acres into two parcels to accommodate a smaller undeveloped area that is less than five acres. The best use for the remnant 0.61 acres affected by the change of zone is single family residential because of the surrounding residential properties in the immediate area. The proposed zone is also identical to the zoning in the area and on the adjacent properties. The proposal also maintains consistency with the General Plan and South Corona CFP.
CZ2017-0101 will serve to implement General Plan Policy 1.8.1 to promote the conservation of existing residential neighborhoods by permitting the infill of housing that is compatible in density and scale with existing uses. Therefore, CZ2017-0101 is recommended for approval based on the following findings.
FINDINGS FOR APPROVAL OF CZ2017-0101
1. An initial study (environmental assessment) has been conducted by the City of Corona so as to evaluate the potential for adverse environmental impacts. The environmental assessment identifies potentially significant effects on the environment, but:
a. The project applicant has agreed to revise the project to avoid these significant effects or to mitigate the effects to a point where it is clear that no significant effects would occur.
b. There is no substantial evidence before the City that the revised project may have a significant environmental effect.
2. CZ2017-0101 is in conformity with the General Plan map and text for the following reasons:
a. CZ2017-0101 is consistent with the Low Density Residential designation of the General Plan which prescribes a maximum density of six dwelling units per acre and the South Corona Community Facilities Plan which prescribes a target density of 2.96 dwelling units per acre. The R1-9.6 Zone being proposed on the 0.61 acres will result in a density of 1.6 du/ac to allow for one dwelling unit on the property.
b. The R1-9.6 Zone is primarily for single family residential and is consistent with the Low Density Residential designation of the General Plan.
c. CZ2017-0101 is consistent with General Plan Policy 1.8.1 which promotes the conservation of existing residential neighborhoods by permitting the infill of housing that is compatible in density and scale with existing uses.
3. The subject property is suitable for the uses permitted in the R1-9.6 Zone in terms of access, size of parcel, relationship to similar or related uses, for the following reasons:
a. The project site is located in an area that has existing land uses that are similar and compatible with the proposed use of the project site and has access from a public street.
b. The project site is larger than the minimum lot size required by the R-1-9.6 zone and future development of the site would be capable of meeting the development standards of the zone.
4. CZ2017-0101 is necessary and proper at this time, and is not likely to be detrimental to the adjacent properties for the following reasons:
a. The R1-9.6 zone will not be detrimental to the adjacent properties because the surrounding zoning and land uses to the north, west and south are single family residential having the same or similar residential zoning.
b. The R1-9.6 zone accommodates the applicant’s parcel map application (PM 37357) which would allow a parcel smaller than five acres to be created from the current Agriculture zone, but still compatible with the surrounding residential land uses.
5. CZ2017-0101 is in the interest of the public health, safety, necessity, convenience and general welfare and in accordance with good zoning practice for the following reasons:
a. CZ2017-0101 is consistent with the Low Density Residential designation of the City’s General Plan Land Use Map.
b. CZ2017-0101 will help facilitate development of a single family residence on excess land that is not being used by the property owner and improve undeveloped property in accordance with city standards.
PREPARED BY: LUPITA GARCIA, ASSISTANT PLANNER
REVIEWED BY: SANDRA YANG, SENIOR PLANNER
REVIEWED BY: TERRI MANUEL, PLANNING MANAGER
SUBMITTED BY: JOANNE COLETTA, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
EXHIBITS
1. Aerial and Zoning Map
2. Exhibit A - Existing and Proposed zoning map amendment
3. Exhibit B - Existing General Plan and South Corona CFP exhibit
4. Exhibit C - Parcel Map 37357
5. Exhibit D - Applicant’s letter dated July 12, 2017
6. Exhibit E - Legal Description and plat map of the change of zone project site
7. Exhibit F - Environmental Documentation
Case Planner: Lupita Garcia (951) 736-2293