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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC Minutes 12-06-17MINUTES REGULAR MEETING DOWNEY CITY PLANNING COMMISSION WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2017 CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER, 11111 BROOKSHIRE AVENUE DOWNEY, CALIFORNIA 6:30 P.M. Chairman Rodriguez called the December 6, 2017, Regular Meeting of the Planning Commission to order at 6:33 p.m., at Downey City Hall, 11111 Brookshire Avenue, Downey, CA. After the flag salute, Secretary Cavanagh called roll. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Jim Rodriguez, District 5, Chairman Miguel Duarte, District 1 Patrick Owens, District 2, Vice Chairman Steven Dominguez, District 3 COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Matias Flores, District 4 OTHERS PRESENT: Aldo E. Schindler, Director of Community Development Yvette Abich Garcia, City Attorney David Blumenthal, City Planner Monica Esparza, Senior Planner Mary Cavanagh, Secretary PLANNING COMMISSIONER ANNOUNCEMENTS; REQUEST FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS; AND CONFERENCE/MEETING REPORTS: PRESENTATIONS: Commissioner Dominguez and Vice Chairman Owens commented on their attendance of the Rancho South Campus Community meeting. They were pleased with the presentation, the flow and outcome of the meeting; the professionalism of the consultant, and staff; and integration of community. Vice Chairman Owens expressed his disappointment regarding an (unnamed) establishment found to be operating in violation of their Conditional Use Permit (CUP). Due to this concern, he requested a matrix of establishments with CUP approvals to look for similar issues. Director of Community Development asked for clarification as to establishments that are operating with a CUP in the downtown area or throughout the City, to which he confirmed, throughout the City. CHANGES TO THE AGENDA: None. REPORT ON CITY COUNCIL: Director Schindler reported: 1) The City Council overturned the Planning Commission's denial of a lot split at 7741 Third Street at the November 17, 2017 meeting; and 2) denied the request for an extension of the lot split moratorium. PUBLIC HEARINGS: 1. PLN -17-00052 (Zone Change and Site Plan Review Chairman Rodriguez opened the public hearing for PLN - 17 -00052 and Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. Senior Planner Monica Esparza presented the request to rezone a portion of the property located at 12120-12132 Woodruff Avenue, from P -B (Parking Buffer) to M-1 (Light Manufacturing); a Site Plan review to allow the demolition of the two existing buildings; and construct a new 17,656 square -foot, 18 -foot tall, one-story industrial building. Each tenant space will include a warehouse and office space. This application was reviewed by the City's Development Review Committee at which time the Fire Department had a concern regarding emergency fire access onto the site. The Applicant addressed this concern by providing a clear turnaround around in the rear of the site for fire access. There were no concerns from any other department', therefore, standard Conditions of Approval have been applied to the project. The proposed project will create a modern, industrial building that would complement the existing and surrounding architecture, bringing a new and attractive look to Woodruff Avenue where there are predominantly manufacturing buildings that lack a relationship to the street. Disclosures: Commissioner Dominguez stated he drove by the subject site. Planning Commission Minutes December 06, 2017 Applicant Jonathan Matson, Matson Architects, 12271 South Street, Cerritos, CA commented, the new building, lighting and landscaping will be an asset to the city. The Commissioners discussed the uses of the existing buildings and the aesthetics of the new buildings with the applicant. Correspondence: None. Public Comments: Armando Herman spoke in favor of the project. Staff recommended the Planning Commission adopt (2) two resolutions to approve the request for a Zone Change and Site Plan Review (PLN -17-00052). The Commissioners spoke in favor of the project Chairman Rodriguez closed the public hearing. The Commissioners Comments: It was moved Chairman Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Dominguez, and passed by a 4-0-1 vote, with Commissioner Flores absent, to adopt Resolution(s) 17-3040, thereby recommending approval of a Zone Change, and Resolution 17-3041, approving a Site Plan Review (PLN -17-00052). 2. PLN -17-00111 (Revision 'A' to a Conditional Use Permit): Chairman Rodriguez opened the public hearing for PLN -17-00111 and Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. Senior Planner Monica Esparza presented the request by an existing restaurant (20/20 Drafthouse), to expand into the adjacent space to the west of the restaurant, on property located at 8228 Firestone Boulevard, zoned DDSP (Downtown Downey Specific Plan). The restaurant currently operates with an ABC Type 47 (On -Sale General for Bona Fide Public Eating Place) license, and live entertainment, (7) seven days a week, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. Ms. Esparza reviewed the surrounding uses, zoning and floor plan of the subject site. This application was reviewed by the City's Development Review Committee at which time the Downey Police and Fire Departments expressed concerns with current issues of over occupancy; hence, staff has modified conditions of approval to address these concerns which will nullify and void the previous conditions and resolution. These changes occurred after the staff reports were distributed to the Commission; therefore, staff is presenting the modified conditions on a yellow sheet today for review/discussion. Ms. Esparza reviewed the modified conditions which will address potential noise concerns and removal of conditions deemed unnecessary due to repetition of existing requirements. The Commissioners commented on the restaurants' overcrowding and agreed there is a need for expansion. Chairman Rodriguez expressed concern that the proposed dance floor appears to be too small and inefficient, obstructs the employees' path of travel through restaurant, and questioned their compliance with the Fire Codes. Senior Planner Esparza stated they are in compliance with the Fire and Building Codes; there is no requirement to keep the tables permanently where they are, however, the booths are permanent. The door closest to the stage would be used for emergency exits only, per the Fire Code, and people are not counted as an obstruction as they are considered moveable objects. As such, there is nothing from preventing people dancing there, per the Code. Chairman Rodriguez asked staff if the tables can be removed to create one big dance area, as long as they met the appropriate occupancy. Senior Planner Esparza confirmed that it is possible. Commissioner Dominguez referred to modified Condition # 27 and asked staff why there is no specific number of security guards required, and merely states it is "based on the number of security guards agreed upon". Staff explained, if the application is approved, the applicant would be required to obtain a security plan approved by the Chief of Police, who would review the operations and determine the number of security guards needed. Based on the operations in this case, the Police Department was fine with a standard employee taking counts at the door verses a uniformed security guard at the doors. -2- Planning Commission Minutes December 06, 2017 Commissioner Duarte asked, 1) are they limited to the 230 sq. ft. dance floor, or can they expand; and 2) if so, what safeguards are there, should they continue to have issues after the expansion? Senior Planner Esparza reviewed the conditions of approval related to controlling the overcrowding, and the ramifications should they be found in violation of these conditions. Several of the Commissioners witnessed patrons using the rear door of the restaurant as the main entrance, without a security guard at the door. They asked if the condition addressing the rear entrance being reserved for ADA and employee access only, applies at all times. Senior Planner Esparza explained that Condition No. 13 is a new condition that applies at all times and is intended to prevent patrons from using the rear entrance exclusive of the security guard, ADA patrons and employees. This was not as clearly stated in the previous resolution, as it will be now. Vice Chairman Owens stated there was a music issue as well; they wanted to put outside speakers there in the back during the last public hearing. City Planner Blumenthal confirmed this business has had problems with occupancy load on numerous occasions. This can be better controlled by queuing the patrons onto Firestone Boulevard, with one employee taking count of those waiting to enter the establishment. This allows our Police Department the ability to better monitor the area, which is consistent with other businesses along Firestone Boulevard and Downey Avenue. Vice Chairman Owens questioned the distance the patrons would travel from the parking lot (rear of the building), to get to the front door of the business. Senior Planner Esparza confirmed the path they would travel to the restaurant and advised the Commission that they also have the option to utilize the cut through path located near the Yogurtland and Sushi restaurant. Vice Chairman Owens asked if this was discussed with the applicant, to which Ms. Esparza confirmed that the applicant reviewed the conditions of approval and had not commented on the path of travel. Commissioner Dominguez asked why the graffiti removal hours were modified from 24 hour to 72 hours. Senior Planner Esparza explained graffiti removal occurs on weekdays; the 72 hours is pertaining to instances that occur on a Friday and cannot be addressed until the following Monday. Vice Chairman Owens asked if the hallway is to then have very little or no patrons there, but employees only. Senior Planner Esparza confirmed and reviewed Condition No. 34 that states the customers are not permitted to stand in the hallway along the eastern wall of the establishment while they are waiting to be seated. All patrons must enter off of Firestone Boulevard. Chairman Rodriguez suggested the same result could exist if the queueing were to take place in the parking lot to the rear of the building, but not in the hallway of the restaurant. City Planner Blumenthal replied, it does not make logistical sense to queue in the rear due to the lack of space for a queue line in that parking lot without starting to block parking spaces. Vice Chairman Owens asked City Planner Blumenthal for confirmation that Club DB Lounge is also required to queue on Firestone Boulevard, to which he confirmed they are treated the same way. Disclosures: Chairman Rodriguez stated he visited the site; it was all positive, and nothing recently. Commissioner Dominguez walked by the subject site and commented on the number of people standing in front of the site smoking. Applicants: Leo Guerrero, Owner, Diana Avila, Operations Manager, and Filiberto Virrueta, project Engineer were present to address any questions or concerns. Mr. Guerrero stated they have been working to resolve the overcrowding by hiring a host to monitor the seating and queue the overflow to line up on Firestone Boulevard, using a new seating chart. Ms. Avila stated they host/stand is not shown on the plans, and they have also added removable benches outside due to the long wait (approximately 2 hours). -3- Planning Commission Minutes December 06, 2017 Ms. Avila and Mr. Guerrero reviewed the path of travel and opined it may be an issue and are unsure of the impact it would have on their business. Chairman Rodriguez surmised there is a breakdown in communication and suggested continuing the item to resolve the issues presented. Commissioner Dominguez asked the applicants if they find that the waits are related to the non -live entertainment, or the entertainment hours. Ms. Avila confirmed it is due to the food sales. Mr. Guerrero and Ms. Avila stated they approved to operate with live entertainment Thursday through Sunday; however, they are limited by the success of the restaurant's food sales, which currently causes a 2 hour wait time. They estimated the wait time would increase up to 4 hours on Friday and Saturday if they operated with live entertainment without the expansion. They made a last minute request for a revision to the hours for live entertainment, asking to remove the requirement to cease 30 minutes prior to closing. Commissioner Duarte commented that the 30 minutes does not apply to the hours of entertainment. Director of Community Development Schindler clarified, the requirement to cease 30 minutes prior to closing pertains to the sale of alcohol per ABC (Alcohol Beverage Control). He reviewed the hours of operation are Monday through Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. The hours currently allowed for live entertainment are: • Thursday: 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday: 8:00 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. • Sunday: 8:00 P.M. to 11:00 P.M. Ms. Avila stated she misread the conditions of approval pertaining to the hours for live entertainment and rescinded the request to modify the hours for live entertainment. Commissioner Dominguez stated he sensed the lack of utilizing the rear entrance may be problematic for a restaurant. However, the applicant made no mention or offered options as to how they might remedy the potential problem that might exist in relation to their architectural drawings and the flow the business. Mr. Guerrero explained that their preference is to continue using the rear entrance with security to assist in directing the patrons to the front entrance. Commissioner Dominguez asked City Planner Blumenthal if there is a remedy where they may have a designated waiting area that is within the confines, so that we don't have people in the streets and allow this business to prosper and also have the queueing up front. City Planner Blumenthal stated, using Google, he was able to measure the distance from their rear door, walking through the Gateway project to the front of their business is 500 feet. Going around the other (around Club DB) is about 700 feet. This is not a long distance and it is within the downtown, which is a pedestrian oriented environment. He reminded the Commission, that people being out of their cars and walking around participating in the downtown is good for the other businesses. He reviewed their concern and intent with the occupancy load is in the case of emergency is to allow sufficient time to get people out safely. He explained how the occupant load calculated based on the type of uses tables, chairs, standing room area and kitchen area. They all have to have their own calculations and the number of doors that are out there and how fast people can get out safely. He reiterated, queueing on Firestone Boulevard is the best way to maintain control. Commissioner Dominguez said in short, if they want a waiting area inside, the remedy would be to remove tables and chairs, or to accept that they have to walk around and queue in the front of the building. Chairman Rodriguez anticipated a scenario where patrons might use the rear entrance of a neighboring business as a cut through to get to Firestone Boulevard. Mr. Guerrero and Ms. Avila stated their guest utilizing the business neighbors' rear entrance has been a concern of theirs and are uneasy with how it will affect their relationship with the business owner. They were apprehensive with the cost of hiring additional personnel to redirect their guests to the front and asked if it might be possible to allow them to utilize the rear door during slow hours and or lunch time. -4- Planning Commission Minutes December 06, 2017 Commissioner Dominguez stated it is a public safety issue. Chairman Rodriguez opined there are no occupancy issues from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and suggested they allow the applicant's to utilize the rear entrance during their slow times. Staff explained the Downey Police Department would not be able to monitor that. Correspondence: None. Public Comments: Armando Herman spoke in favor of the project. Jorge Ramirez Downey resident spoke in support of the business expansion. He spoke in favor of modifying the hours to allow the use of the rear entrance during their slow times. He also agreed with the proposed conditions and believes the findings have been met. Staff recommended the Planning Commission approve the request for Revision 'A' to Conditional Use Permit PLN -17- 00111. Chairman Rodriguez closed the public hearing. Chairman Rodriguez remained concerned with the dance floor location. He reminded his fellow Commissioners that approval of this application is not limited to this establishment, but for any future businesses and asked for Counsel's opinion as to possible ramifications to the City if the dance floor area is allowed for future uses. City Attorney Garcia commented, "So, if the floor plan were allowed to move forward with this approval and something were to happen and if any injured person would want to come back to the city and say, well you approved this; under the Government Code there is an immunity from litigation on behalf of the city. So the city can assert an immunity under the Government Code that states that the city cannot be sued for issuing a legal lawful permit, or refusing to issue a permit. So any of those two decisions, the city can assert an immunity and be immune from litigation. So the crux there, the caveat there, is that the permit was issued legally and lawfully. So, if the permit met all of the city's laws and codes and regulations when it was issued, it complied with its building code, for instance it met all the findings, so it was all done in accordance with the city's laws; the city would be able to assert immunity from that litigation, they could not be sued just because they approved a permit. So there is no exposure here to the city, if the city issues a permit of any kind if it follows its own rules of laws." Chairman Rodriguez asked for the record to reflect that that he is unhappy and uncomfortable with the dance floor area being in that specific location. Commissioner Dominguez opposed: 1) the language used in the staff report regarding "allowed noise" is a global statement that opens the door for businesses to abuse in downtown Downey; and 2) disagreed with modifying the 24 hour graffiti removal requirement to 72 hours. Commissioner Duarte did not take issue with increasing the graffiti removal time to 72 hours as he has not seen graffiti in the area and is ok with the 72 hours. He agreed with Chairman Rodriguez to allow the applicants to utilize the rear entrance Monday through Friday before 5:00 p.m. and the remaining hours would require using the front door. Vice Chairman Owens said he shared the same concerns as the Chairman regarding the dance floor. He was concerned with one of the doors adjacent and fronted at Firestone appears to be used as an emergency exit door that does not open unless there is an emergency. Senior Planner Esparza explained, the door is closed, not locked and will be used as an emergency exit door. Vice Chairman Owens felt uneasy with 1) the flow of the dance floor area; 2) the dance area appears to be larger than 230 sq. ft. and may overflow into the seating area; 3) the patrons walking through the dance area to their seats; and 4) the ability to obtain an occupancy count. He made note for the record to reflect he is opposed to the location of the dance floor. He concurred with his fellow commissioners to allow the applicants to utilize the rear entrance Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Vice Chair Owens opined the 500 to 700 foot walk around the building to the -5- Planning Commission Minutes December 06, 2017 entrance is cumbersome and might be difficult for elderly people. He commented on the growth and vibrancy of the business. Chairman Rodriguez reviewed the items discussed and agreed to the following modifications to the conditions of approval: • Modifying the hours of graffiti removal to a maximum of 24 hours. • Allowing the applicant to utilize the rear entrance Monday through Friday during the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; along with the requirement to maintain an occupancy count that is readily available for city staff, such as Fire and Police Departments Senior Planner Esparza read the modified conditions of approval as such: 11) Any graffiti applied to the site shall be removed within 7-2 24 hours. 13) During the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, patrons may enter through the rear entrance. At all other times, customers are only permitted to enter off Firestone Boulevard. A security guard shall be stationed at the rear entrance, directing customers to enter from Firestone Boulevard. The rear entrance shall be reserved for ADA access and employee access only. 32) Payment for beverage service services shall be made only after such services have been provided to the patrons by the business. 33) The owner/applicant shall impose a dress code that shall not permit patrons to wear the following: Gang/attire colors, baggy pants, bandanas, back packs, and/or caps worn backwards. It was moved by Chairman Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Dominguez and passed by a 4-0-1 vote, with Commissioner Flores absent, to adopt Resolution No. 17-3042, thereby approving (PLN -17-00111) with modified conditions as stated. Vice Chairman Owens exited the Council Chambers at 8:20 p.m. and returned at 8:22 p.m. Commissioner Dominguez pulled PLN -17-00143 to discuss mandated timelines and verify this item has enough time to continue it to the next hearing. Staff verified there is ample time to continue the item. 3. PLN -17-00143 (Tentative Parcel Map No. 77188): Chairman Rodriguez opened the public hearing for PLN -17- 00143 and Ms. Cavanagh affirmed proof of publication. It was moved by Chairman Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Duarte, and passed by a 4-01 vote with Commissioner Flores absent, to continue PLN -17-00143 to a date uncertain. NON -AGENDA PUBLIC COMMENTS: Armando Herman expressed his concerns regarding accessory dwelling units and second unit developments. CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS: 4. PLN-17-00182(Final Tract Map No. 74254) 7940 Telegraph Road 5. Approval of the Minutes from September 20, 2017 It was moved by Chairman Rodriguez, seconded by Commissioner Dominguez, and passed by a 4-0-1 vote with Commissioner Flores absent, to approve the Consent Calendar. OTHER BUSINESS: Commissioner Dominguez discussed the need to do an assessment of existing and potential businesses; their accountability to adherence to statutes; the impacts they have on the city and its residents; and how the Planning Commission can better serve the city. Planning Commission Minutes December 06, 2017 STAFF MEMBER COMMENTS: Chairman Rodriguez discussed the order in which the Planning Department activity is posted on the city's website. ADJOURNMENT: Chairman Rodriguez adjourned the meeting at 8:42 p.m., to Wednesday, December 20, 2017, at 6:30p.m. at Downey City Hall, 11111 Brookshire Ave. APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 5th day of December, 2018. Patrick Owens, Chairman City Planning Commission I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Minutes were duly approved at a Regular meeting of the Planning Commission held on this 5th day of December, 2018, by the following vote: AYES: COMMISSIONERS: Duarte, Dominguez and Owens NOES: COMMISSIONERS: None ABSENT: COMMISSIONERS: Flores and Frometa ABSTAIN: COMMISSIONERS: None 4 Mary Cav nagh, Secretary City Planning Commission -7-