MINUTES OF THE ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL
of the City of Hermosa Beach, California, held on Monday, March 3, 2003, at the hour of 7:23 p.m.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Langley Kersenboom
CITY COUNCIL ROLL CALL
Present: Dunbabin, Reviczky, Yoon, Mayor Edgerton
Absent: Keegan
JOINT WORKSHOP OF CITY COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION
COMMISSION ROLL CALL:
Present: Hoffman, Kersenboom, Perrotti, Tucker, Chairman Pizer
Absent: None
Also present were City Manager Steve Burrell, Planning Director Sol Blumenfeld, City Clerk Elaine Doerfling, and Deputy City Clerk Jackie Drasco.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
None
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
None
-
COMMERCIAL LOT DEPTH ALONG PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY
Memorandum from Community Development Director Sol Blumenfeld and City Manager Steve Burrell dated February 26, 2003.
Director Blumenfeld presented the staff report and responded to Council questions. City Manager Burrell responded to Council questions.
Comments by City Council Members:
- Concerned about domino effect
- Supported keeping as much commercial as possible but noted a need to look at some properties
- Noted need for consistency between General Plan and Zoning maps
- Suggested SPA zoning and elimination of "saw tooth" areas along the highway
- Spoke of the need for a zoning study of the entire City for long-term benefits, including Aviation and Ardmore
- Consensus to maintain current M-1 zoning of Cypress
Comments by Planning Commissioners:
- Supported maintaining as much commercial as possible
- Pointed out that loss of commercial means loss of tax revenue
- Noted that zone change requests were almost always for commercial to residential
- Consensus to leave Cypress zoned M-1, as it currently is
Staff responses to comments/questions:
- Residential property is three times more valuable than commercial
- Reviewed necessary steps to change trailer park site to a residential mobile home park site
- Low and moderate income housing goal has not been (and probably never will be) met
- Senior housing might qualify as affordable housing with proper income level, but assisted living facilities do not
- Redevelopment of a lot or an expansion must use current zoning
- Zoning reflects where you are, General Plan reflects where you want to go
-
Memorandum from Community Development Director Sol Blumenfeld dated December 18, 2002 and attachments.
Community Development Director Blumenfeld responded to Council questions.
Comments by City Council Members:
- A General Plan review is a lengthy public process
- Many things have changed since General Plan was written or updated
- Consensus that an update of the General Plan was needed
Comments by Planning Commissioners:
- Priorities for review of General Plan are Land Use, Circulation, and Urban Design elements
- Not looking for a quick fix, process would take a year or more
- Nothing can be changed until all of the General Plan reviewed
-
MIXED USED DEVELOPMENT - (DESIREABILITY, LOCATION, DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS)
Supplemental memorandum from Community Development Director Sol Blumenfeld dated March 3, 2003.
Community Development Director Blumenfeld responded to Council questions, noting that the General Plan would have to be amended to allow mixed use.
Comments by City Council Members:
- Sometimes there are problems getting people to live over businesses
- Commercial use must be on the bottom floor, with residential above
- Need common owner of the business and residence to avoid problems
- Raised issue of required setbacks between mixed use and residential and the need to decide on permitted uses and resolve parking issues
- Can solve potential noise problems by having daytime-only businesses
- Owners in Cypress section might want to live above their businesses
Comments by Planning Commissioners:
- Referred to non-permitted uses listed in staff report (4.a-g)
- Suggestion for lower parking requirements for office space, or building double-deck parking for shared usage on upper Pier Avenue
- Mixed use increases density to solve the problem of sprawl - does the City want an increase population
- Noted a variety of combinations, harmony with community important
- Aviation corridor might benefit by mixed use, area needs facelift - may need traffic calming but would be no noise problem
- Support concept of mixed use if it is a live/work situation
- Should be separate entry areas for the two uses
- Commercial must be compatible with residential, non-permitted uses should include liquor stores and restaurants - only low-impact uses, such as professional offices, should be allowed
Staff responses to comments/questions:
- One mixed use alternative would be having apartments over small-scale commercial
- Would need Coastal Commission approval in order to lower parking requirements for office space
- Each use must have a full complement of parking, no shared parking
- Live-work sites would be deed restricted
-
DOWNTOWN DISTRICT
Community Development Director Blumenfeld presented supplemental staff report and responded to Council questions.
Comments by City Council Members:
- · Downtown business owners want and need to be responsible
- Commission puts reasonable conditions on downtown businesses
- Important issues are location, hours and noise attenuation
- Big problem is the "battle of the bands," with noise coming across the Plaza impacting other business that do comply
- Occupancy is not usually the problem
Comments by Planning Commissioners:
- Recent Council decisions regarding restaurants have sent mixed messages
- What penalties can be imposed on restaurant noise offenders
- Feel closing down business is more effective than monetary penalties
Staff responses to comments/questions:
- Citation program may be helpful in some cases
- Fines may not deter problems, but pulling encroachment permit would
- Time closed could increase with repeat offenses, as with fines
ADJOURNMENT
The Adjourned Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Hermosa Beach adjourned on Monday March 3, 2003, at the hour of 9:42 P.M. to the Regular Meeting of Tuesday, March 11, 2003, at the hour of 7:10 P.M.
