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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC Minutes - 05/15/13 of no MINUTES L c'� REGULAR MEETING .�x „ 1 DOWNEY CITY PLANNING COMMISSION a ' ,9 WEDNESDAY, MAY 15, 2013 ``' CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER, 11111 BROOKSHIRE AVENUE �g�� DOWNEY, CALIFORNIA �gLIFORrs` 6:30 P.M. A Regular meeting of the Planning Commission was called to order on May 15, 2013, at 6:35 p.m. at Downey City Hall, 11111 Brookshire Avenue, Downey, CA. After the Flag Salute, roll was called. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Matias Flores, District 4 Jim Rodriguez, District 5 Louis Morales, District 3, Chairman Hector Lujan, District 1 COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Robert Kiefer, District 2, Vice Chairman OTHERS PRESENT: Brian Saeki, Director of Community Development Yvette Abich- Garcia, City Attorney William Davis, City Planner David Blumenthal, Senior Planner Kevin Nguyen, Assistant Planner L Mary Cavanagh, Secretary PLANNING COMMISSIONER ANNOUNCEMENTS; REQUEST FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS; AND CONFERENCE /MEETING REPORTS: None PRESENTATIONS: None REPORT ON CITY COUNCIL ACTION: Brian Saeki, Director of Community Development reported that the introductory ordinances for the City Council were postponed as listed below, due to a heavy agenda. Transitional Housing 05/28/13 Cottage Food Business 06/11/13 PUBLIC HEARINGS: 1. PLN -13- 00053: (Special Event) Chairman Morales opened the public hearing for PLN -13- 00053. Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. Assistant Planner Kevin Nguyen gave a PowerPoint presentation of his staff report: a request to conduct a one -day event to hold the annual Spring Festival in the parking lot of the Iglesia De Cristo Church, located at 12145 Woodruff Ave, on Saturday June 1, 2013 from 9:00 am to 8:00 pm. The event will include pony rides, jumpers, live music and a variety of food and non - alcoholic beverages; no outside vendors are permitted, all food will by supplied by the church. The applicant will provide on -site parking, as well as additional parking at various nearby locations. Staff is recommending approval based on the conditions listed in the staff report. L Applicant, Jose Lopez, Co- Pastor of the Iglesia De Cristo Church appeared to answer any questions the Commission may have. Chairman Morales asked Mr. Lopez if he agreed to all of the conditions of approval, to which Pastor Lopez replied, yes. Commissioner Lujan asked if someone would be cleaning up the area during the event. Mr. Lopez stated that there will be two clean up crews on site throughout the day. Planning Commission Minutes May 15, 2013 Thomas Lopez, 12115 Cornuta, Downey, spoke in opposition of the event. Mr. Lopez stated that although the applicant is providing additional parking, there have been constant problems with parking, not only during the special events, but on a weekly basis during and church services that cause an overspill into the residential area; however, Mr. Lopez explained that last years' event went well and that he would like the Commission to place the same conditions of approval as last year with the exception of changing the start time to 10 am due to a high noise level early in the morning with trucks coming into the area to set up for the event. Director of Community Development Brian Saeki advised Mr. Lopez that staff will mirror last years' event, and staff will work with the applicant to change the start of the event to 10:00 am. Applicant David Martinez, representative of the Iglesia De Cristo Church addressed the residential issues together with Co- Pastor Jose Lopez. Mr. Martinez stated that he appeared before the Commission last year as a representative of the church and tried to speak to the neighbors last year regarding the concerns of the residents, and further stated that he would like to mirror last years' event which he believes was successful, also agreeing to a 9:00 am set up time and start time of 10:00 am. Chairman Morales asked the applicant if they have parking issues on Sundays during services, and if the church was planning to have religious services during this event. Mr. Lopez responded that they will not be having religious services on the day of the event, and have not had problems with parking. He continued by saying that the church has security patrolling the area within two to three residential streets and provides additional (contracted) parking at the school and the ARC parking lots for their members, which includes bus transportation to and from the lots. Mr. Saeki suggested changing the hours for condition 7 regarding clean up to 8:00 am; however, it was clarified by Mr. Lopez and Mr. Martinez that the clean up will be immediately after the doors close at 6:00 pm and should be completed by 8:00 pm. Mr. Saeki then asked if that would allow them enough time to remove all of the canopies, carnival rides as well as clean up, to which Mr. Lopez and Mr. Martinez confirmed that they would be able to have it completed by 8:00 pm. Commissioner Rodriguez asked how many security guards they have in place, and suggested they speak to their security to be friendly with the neighbors, and also inquired as to how they keep the members from jaywalking across Woodruff to get to the church. Mr. Lopez responded by saying there are approximately 16 guards for security as well as shuttle buses, and Mr. Martinez added that they try to direct people to park in the Tots, and not occupy the residential area. Thomas Lopez repeated his parking concerns and stated that this is a constant issue, to which Chairman Morales advised him that the discussion is for this event only. City Attorney Yvette Abich- Garcia added that the Commission can only discuss the parking issues as they pertain to this application only. Any other issues must be discussed with staff at a later date. Mr. Lopez responded by stating that he wants to make sure that he receives notice of the conditions as discussed, and asked if he can make an appointment to meet with Mr. Saeki regarding the problems with parking, to which Mr. Saeki agreed. There being no further questions regarding staffs recommendation, Chairman Morales closed the public hearing. Chairman Morales stated that this is an annual event and with the revised conditions of approval, he does not see a problem, considering that the event went well last year. Commissioner Flores stated that this is a reoccurring event, and there is a discrepancy as to the interpretation of the facts, and the church will be held to a very strict application of what they are going to do this year. He -2- Planning Commission Minutes WI May 15, 2013 continued by saying that he believes it is intrusive to the neighbors in the area; however, he also believes that these events are good for the City and we need to be mindful of the neighbors. Commissioner Rodriguez asked if the trash receptacles as noted in the conditions of approval would also include the parking lot across to which Mr. Saeki directed the Commission to item no. two of the conditions of approval which include the removal of trash from the subject site, parking lots, and adjacent streets. Chairman Morales then asked the applicant, Mr. Lopez if he is an agreement to the changes to the conditions of approval to which Mr. Lopez responded yes. It was moved by Commissioner Lujan, seconded by Commissioner Flores, and passed by a 4 -0 vote; to adopt Resolution 13 -2828 with revised conditions of approval, thereby approving the request for a Special Event (PLN -12- 00053). 2. PLN -13- 00077: (Special Event) Chairman Morales opened the public hearing for PLN -13- 00077. Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. Assistant Planner Kevin Nguyen gave a PowerPoint presentation of his staff report: a request to conduct a two -day event to hold the annual Greek Festival at the Saint George Greek Orthodox Church located at 10830 Downey Ave. The event will be held on Saturday, June 1, and Sunday June 2, 2013, from 11:00 am to 10:00 pm. The event will include selling of a variety of foods and alcoholic beverages, as well as dancing, live music, a kid's zone, and cultural events. Parking will be provided on- street along Downey Ave, La Villa St., and nearby churches. Staff is recommending approval of the event. Chairman Morales disclosed that he rents the church facilities for football events; however, he does not L believe there is any conflict. Christina Davilas, church representative appeared before the Commission to request approval of the annual Greek Festival. Ms. Davilas advised the Commission that the event will include, live music, food and a bar serving alcoholic beverages, and cultural presentations. This year the church will also be open to the public for viewing. The church has also provided letters from surrounding churches that have agreed to allow them to use their parking lots. There will also be a clean up crew to clean up not only the church premises, but will include the cleaning of the surrounding areas such as Downey Ave, La Villa and other streets. They are in the process of obtaining permits from ABC for the bar and the Health Department for food sales. Chairman Morales asked Ms. Davilas if she read and agreed to the conditions of approval, to which Ms. Davilas replied, yes. Harold Tseklenis appeared in favor of the event, by saying that the event is in its 29 year and has become a tradition in Downey, along with the Holiday Parade and the annual Street Fair. He is pleased to be a part of the cultural mosaic that is Downey. There being no further questions regarding staffs recommendation, Chairman Morales closed the public hearing. It was moved by Commissioner Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Lujan, and passed by a 4 -0 vote, to adopt Resolution 13 -2829, thereby approving the request for a Special Event Permit (PLN -13- 00077). 3. PLN -13- 00063: (Conditional Use Permit) Chairman Morales opened the public hearing for PLN -13- 00063. Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. City Planner William Davis gave a PowerPoint presentation of his staff report: a request for a conditional use permit to allow Baby Brothers Pizza and Wings restaurant, located at 9641 Lakewood Blvd. to operate with alcohol sales (ABC Type 41, On -Sale Beer & Wine /Eating Place). Mr. Louis Christopoulus the restaurant and property owner is requesting the license to sell alcohol in order to enhance the dining experience of his -3- Planning Commission Minutes ( May 15, 2013 customers. Mr. Christopoulus also has plans to expand the restaurant in the future. The application is non controversial and staff is therefore recommending approval of the application. Louis Christopoulus 9641 Lakewood Blvd stated that he is the restaurant owner. The restaurant is a family style restaurant that sells Pizza and Wings; they did not want to sell Alcohol at first, but Pizza and beer go hand in hand and not selling beer has affected his sales. Chairman Morales asked if they will be expanding to the east or west, and whether or not they will be putting in an additional restroom. Mr. Christopoulus stated that he will expand to the west and confirmed that he will be adding an additional restroom. Commissioner Rodriguez stated that he had visited the restaurant in the past and asked if the area that appears to have been remodeled with the booths would be expanded further, to which Mr. Christopoulus stated that the area was originally there, and he does plan to expand beyond that section. There being no further questions regarding staffs recommendation, Chairman Morales closed the public hearing. Commissioner Flores stated that he recently visited the restaurant during a sporting event, and was in agreement with the request as found the restaurant to be very nice; however, it was 6:30 pm and there wasn't a soul in there, yet the Downey Pizza Company had a wait at that time. Commissioner Lujan stated that he is in favor of the application as he believes it will help the applicant by drawing in more customers. Chairman Morales was also in agreement seeing that it would enhance the restaurant. It was moved by Commissioner Lujan, seconded by Commissioner Rodriguez, and passed by a 4 -0 vote, to adopt Resolution 13 -2830, thereby approving the request for a Conditional Use Permit (PLN -13- 00063). 4. PLN - 00071: (Planned Sign Program) Chairman Morales opened the public hearing for PLN -13- 00071. Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. Senior Planner David Blumenthal gave a PowerPoint presentation of his staff report: a request for a Planned Sign Program at 8734 Cleta St., to approve the size color and location of signs on a multi- tenant property. The site is currently void of signage; therefore the applicant is requesting a new monument sign. The Municipal Code states that more than three tenants on the property would require a planned sign program; however, only one of the tenants is requesting to be on the sign. Mr. Blumenthal presented two options for signage to which the owner would have to choose one. The first one would be listing the single tenant, and the second option would allow for additional tenants to be included in the sign. Staff is recommending approval of the application. Applicant Andrea Ferraco appeared to request approval of the request, stating that there business does not generally have customers coming to this location. They do not generally deal with the public. They are an orthotic prosthetic provider and this location is for storage. Mostly it is employees coming to pick up products to deliver to medical facilities; however, on occasion they do have patients that come to pick up their products and it would assist them in directing people to their location. Commissioner Flores disclosed that he visited the site yesterday but had no comment. Chairman Morales stated that signage does add to the character of the industrial area and believes it will compliment the area. It was moved by Commissioner Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Flores, and passed by a 4 -0 vote, to adopt Resolution 13 -2831, thereby approving the request for a Planned Sign Program (PLN -13- 00071). -4- t ot Planning Commission Minutes Wrj May 15, 2013 NON - AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENTS: None. IL CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS: 5. Approval of the Minutes from May 1, 2013 It was moved by Commissioner Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Lujan, and passed by a 4 -0 vote, to approve the Minutes of May 1, 2013. OTHER BUSINESS: None. STAFF MEMBER COMMENTS: None. ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business to discuss, Chairman Morales adjourned the meeting at 7:40 p.m., to Wednesday, June 5, 2013, at 6:30 p.m. at Downey City Hall, 11111 Brookshire Ave., APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 5th day of June, 2013. • A,e,e iif ' ouis Mora -s, Chairman City Plan 'ng Commission L I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Minutes were duly approved at a Regular meeting of the Planning Commission held on the 5th day of June, 2013, by the following vote: AYES: COMMISSIONERS: Flores, Rodriguez, Lujan and Morales ABSENT: COMMISSIONERS: None ABSTAIN: COMMISSIONERS: Kiefer NOES: COMMISSIONERS: None / ( Mary C I anagh, Secretary City PI nning Commission 1 -5-