REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
DATE: 08/17/2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Planning & Development Department
SUBJECT:
Title
Specific Plan Amendment 2022-0004 amending various specific plans to reference the off-street parking requirement in Chapter 17.76 of the Corona Municipal Code for multiple-family residential (Applicant: City of Corona).
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The City Council will consider approving Specific Plan Amendment 2022-0004 (SPA2022-0004), which will affect various specific plans that have specifically identified multiple-family residential parking requirements that differ from the parking requirements in Chapter 17.76 of the Corona Municipal Code (CMC), which is the City’s Off-Street Parking Ordinance. The amendment proposes to have the multiple-family residential parking requirements match the parking requirements in the CMC.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommended action
That the City Council:
a. Approve SPA2022-0004, as recommended by the Planning and Housing Commission.
b. Introduce by title only and waive full reading for consideration of Ordinance No. 3354, first reading of an ordinance approving amendments to various specific plans to reference and apply the off-street parking requirements set forth in Chapter 17.76 (Off-Street Parking) of the Corona Municipal Code to Multiple-Family Development (SPA2022-0004).
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BACKGROUND & HISTORY:
On March 8, 2021, the City Council directed staff to study the City’s parking ordinance to determine if the City’s existing parking requirements were consistent with surrounding cities and industry standards. Specifically, the City Council expressed concern about the parking required for market-rate, multiple-family residential projects. Several multiple-family residential apartments and attached condominium projects in the City have experienced a lack of sufficient parking spaces to accommodate the demand from residents.
Staff completed its parking study in September 2021. The study compared Corona’s parking requirements for various land uses to the cities of Ontario, Eastvale, Orange, Moreno Valley, Riverside, and Lake Elsinore. A comparison was also done using the average parking requirement for specific land uses from the Institute of Transportation Engineer (ITE) Parking Generation Manual.
Staff presented the parking study to the Committee of the Whole on September 8, 2021. The Committee recommended changes to the multiple-family residential parking requirement that would increase the parking requirement for studio/one-bedroom units by 0.5 spaces for a total of two spaces per unit, and three- or more bedroom units by 0.5 spaces for a total of three spaces per unit. No changes were made to two-bedroom units, which required two spaces per unit. Guest parking was unchanged at one space for every five units.
On September 20, 2021, the Planning and Housing Commission held a study session to discuss the results of the parking study performed by staff. The Commission concurred with the recommendation made by the Committee of the Whole on the multiple-family residential parking. The Commission also recommended changes to the parking requirements for other land uses. The recommended changes discussed with the Committee and the Commission are being presented by Zone Text Amendment 2022-0002 (ZTA2022-0002), which is an amendment to Chapter 17.76 (Off-Street Parking) of the Corona Municipal Code (CMC). Chapter 17.76 regulates the City’s parking requirements for various land uses.
Throughout this process, staff reminded the Committee of the Whole and the Commission that multiple-family residential, which is intended for affordable housing, is subject to parking requirements regulated by Section 65915 (p)(1) of the California Government Code. Staff will continue to refer to the California government code for parking when it pertains to the development of affordable housing for low and moderate-income households. For reference purposes, the current parking requirement in the government code for affordable housing is:
a) Zero to one bedroom: 1 onsite parking space.
b) Two to three bedrooms: 1.5 onsite parking spaces.
c) Four or more bedrooms: 2.5 onsite parking spaces.
ANALYSIS:
The specific plans subject to this amendment are identified as having parking requirements that are different from CMC Chapter 17.76 for multiple-family residential. The following specific plans are being amended by SPA2022-0004.
Ø Northeast Corona Specific Plan (SP81-2)
Ø Township in Corona Specific Plan (SP82-1)
Ø Crown Properties Specific Plan (SP83-01)
Ø Sierra Del Oro Specific Plan (SP85-2)
Ø Corona Ranch Specific Plan (SP85-3)
Ø Mountain Gate Specific Plan (SP89-1)
Ø Chase Ranch Specific Plan (SP89-2)
Ø Corona Vista Specific Plan (SP90-5)
Ø El Cerrito Specific Plan (SP91-2)
Ø North Main Street Specific Plan (SP99-1)
Ø Dos Lagos Specific Plan (SP99-3)
To prevent non-conforming land uses for developments previously constructed and utilizing the parking requirements in effect at the time of construction, language is being added that new developments constructed after the adoption of this amendment shall refer to the provisions of Chapter 17.76 of the CMC.
Language is also being added to the North Main Street Specific Plan in the Urban Density Residential (UDR) and Mixed-Use (MU) Districts to address residential parking requirements for a project that would be located within a one-half mile of a major transit stop or high-quality transit corridor. The North Main Street Specific Plan has properties within walking distance to the Metrolink Rail Station. The residential parking standards currently adopted for the UDR and MU Districts are designed to consider the access to the rail station, which is less than would be required in CMC Chapter 17.76. Rather than eliminate the current parking requirements in these two districts, the amendment would increase the parking requirement by 0.5 spaces for two or more bedrooms, and it will allow the parking to remain if the development is located within one-half mile of a major transit stop or high-quality transit corridor as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 21155 of the Public Resources Code. This practice aligns with the State’s housing policies on having higher density housing near public transportation to reduce vehicles miles traveled and to reduce barriers to housing. Properties that fall outside of the location of this definition will be required to meet the provisions of CMC Chapter 17.76.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
There is no financial impact to the City for this action.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
Per Section 15061(b)(3) of the State Guidelines for the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), a Notice of Exemption has been prepared for the project because Section 15061(b)(3) states that a project is exempted from CEQA if the activity is covered by the commonsense exemption that CEQA applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA. This amendment is solely a text revision and there is no possibility that this activity will have a significant effect on the environment.
PLANNING AND HOUSING COMMISSION ACTION:
At its meeting of July 25, 2022, the Planning and Housing Commission considered the subject matter and took the following action:
Motion was made, seconded (Meza/Woody) and carried unanimously, that the Planning and Housing Commission recommend approval of SPA2022-0004 to the City Council based on the findings contained in the staff report. The minutes of the Planning and Housing Commission meeting are included as Exhibit 4.
PREPARED BY: JOANNE COLETTA, PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Attachments:
1. Exhibit 1 - Ordinance No. 3354 - (clean version)
2. Exhibit 2 - Redline version of SPA2022-0004
3. Exhibit 3 - Planning and Housing Commission staff report
4. Exhibit 4 - Draft minutes of the Planning and Housing Commission meeting of July 25, 2022