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CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
City of Anaheim
PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT
DATE: SEPTEMBER 12, 2023
FROM: PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: APPEAL OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION DECISION
APPROVING DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION NO. 2021-00218
FOR A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT RELATING TO THE
ESTABLISHMENT OF A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL AT 2780
EAST WAGNER AVENUE
ATTACHMENT (Y/N): YES ITEM # 12
GOVERNMENT CODE § 84308 APPLIES: NO
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council, by Motion, deny an appeal of the Planning Commission’s decision to approve a conditional use permit (CUP) to permit a charter school with up to 480 students ranging from Transitional Kindergarten (TK) to 8th Grade at an existing church and pre-school site; and by Resolution, approve a CUP, thereby approving the project.
DISCUSSION:
On July 17, 2023, the Planning Commission held a public hearing and on a 5-2 vote, approved a request from Enrique Diaz of Red Hook Capital Partners, LLC (the “Applicant”), to permit a charter school with up to 480 students at an existing church and pre-school site. Ten people spoke in opposition to the request. Twelve people spoke in support of the request. A copy of the July 17, 2023, Planning Commission resolution, staff report, draft meeting minutes, and written public comments received by the Planning Commission are included as Attachments 2, 3, 4, and 5 to this report.
On July 25, 2023, Cecilia Flores (the “Appellant”), filed an appeal of the Planning Commission’s decision. The appeal request is included as Attachment 7. The Applicant submitted a response to the appeal, included at Attachment 8.
Project Description: The applicant requests approval of a CUP to establish a charter school with up to 480 students ranging from TK to 8th Grade at an existing church and pre-school site. The project includes the remodel of existing buildings for classroom and school administration use, the construction of a new 5,633 square foot two-story classroom building, and various ancillary site modifications and landscaping improvements. There would be on-site queuing capacity for approximately 31 cars leading Development Application No. 2021-00218
September 12, 2023
to the drop-off/ pick-up area, with a separate exit circulation lane to leave the property. A detailed analysis of the project is included in the July 17, 2023, Planning Commission report (Attachment 3).
SITE PLAN
ON-SITE CIRCULATION PLAN
Basis of Appeal: The following is the Appellant’s basis for appeal and staff’s analysis.
1. Increased air pollution: This project will unnecessarily increase resident exposure to air pollution. The vehicles needed to collect and transport 480 children to and from school Development Application No. 2021-00218
September 12, 2023
will intensify pollution hotspots in and around school premises, especially as vehicles idle in the drop-off and pick-up queue every morning and afternoon. Paired with the air pollution from the adjacent 57 freeway, this project will only compound resident exposure to fine particulate matter and impact the health of vulnerable populations in our neighborhood, including those with asthma and respiratory diseases.
The main emission source generated by the project would be vehicles traveling to and from the project site, or vehicle miles traveled (VMT). The school has been “screened out” from project-level impacts associated with VMT to and from the school site and the associated greenhouse gas (GHG) impacts. In the City’s adopted Transportation Impact Assessment (TIA) Guidelines, local‐serving K‐12 schools are presumed to have a less than significant impact.
The on-site drop off and pick up of students will occur primarily during two short time frames of 30 minutes in the morning from 7:30 - 8:00 a.m., Monday through Friday for drop off, and in the afternoon from 3:00 - 3:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday and 12:15 - 12:45 p.m. on Fridays. Based on the Vehicle Miles Traveled Analysis and Traffic Impact Assessment, the greenhouse gas emissions from vehicle trips are presumed to have less than a significant impact and not cause a significant increase in air pollution in the vicinity of the Project.
2. Increased traffic congestion: The school has failed to address our concerns with parents using the nearby neighborhoods to pick up and drop off their children. This lack of planning and the absence of a marked crosswalk will increase safety hazards for children and drivers.
A Traffic Management Plan was prepared by the Applicant to ensure efficient operations during drop-off and pick-up periods and to address potential traffic impacts to the surrounding community, including restricting off-site drop-off or pick-up of students. The Traffic Management Plan was reviewed and approved by the City’s Traffic Engineer. In addition, the City Traffic Engineer examined the need for new crosswalks in the vicinity of the proposed school and determined that, based on the TIA and Traffic Management Plan new crosswalks were not warranted, and that the surrounding area has sufficient pedestrian circulation in accordance with City and State standards.
3. Increased noise levels: The proposed school would have close to 480 participants, leading to a significant increase in noise levels in our neighborhood. In a simulated environment, the noise report shows that drop-off and pick-up times would barely meet the sixty decibels requirement once the school ramps up to 480 enrollment. However, we are not confident that this noise assessment will hold up in a real-world environment.
A Noise Study was prepared for the Project to evaluate future noise levels on the site (compared against existing conditions) resulting from outdoor student activities associated with the proposed educational use. Based on noise modeling for the proposed outdoor uses, the site and building orientation, the existing 6-foot-high solid masonry wall along the west property line, the westerly landscape setback, and noise studies at existing schools, the noise assessment concluded that the noise levels at the adjacent residential properties are expected to be less than 60 dBA and comply with the Code without any modifications to the proposed design. Further, the Applicant has submitted a supplemental letter (included Development Application No. 2021-00218
September 12, 2023
in Attachment 8) which further explains that numerous conservative assumptions were used in calculations and modeling of the noise study and that the expected actual noise levels will be lower than the calculated levels.
4. Impact on the Rio Vista Trail: The Rio Vista Trail is a popular walking and biking trail that runs through our neighborhood. The morning and afternoons are peak times for those visiting the trail, coinciding with school pick-up and drop-off times. This will force trail users to park in nearby neighborhoods, creating traffic congestion and parking problems.
It also will make it difficult for pedestrians to find a safe place to cross.
Staff does not anticipate that the project will have any negative impacts on the Anaheim Coves Trail. The closest public entrance to the trail is approximately 200 feet north of the school site at Lizbeth Avenue and Rio Vista Street, with an additional entrance approximately 1,000 feet further north on Rio Vista Street. Staff does not anticipate any conflicts between public users entering the trail system and school attendees entering or exiting the school site. All parking, drop off and pick up will be contained on the school site and therefore would not impact parking for members of the public using the trails.
Environmental Impact Analysis: The Planning Commission found that the proposed Project is Categorically Exempt from the requirements to prepare additional environmental documentation per CEQA Guidelines, Section 15301, Class 1 (Existing Facilities); Section 15302, Class 2 (Replacement or Reconstruction); and Section 15303, Class 3 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures). The Class 1 exemption consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, and/or minor alteration of existing public or private structures or facilities, involving negligible or no expansion of use beyond that existing at the time of this determination. The Proposed Project includes the conversion of a religious assembly and private school use on an existing developed site to a public educational use. The proposed project includes the remodeling and ongoing utilization of three (of four) existing buildings and ancillary site improvements, with no physical expansion beyond existing conditions. The Class 2 exemption consists of replacement or reconstruction of existing structures and facilities where the new structure will be located on the same site as the structure replaced and will have substantially the same purpose and capacity as the structure replaced. The exemption includes the replacement or reconstruction of school facilities to provide earthquake resistant structures which do not increase capacity by more than 50 percent. The proposed project will retrofit all existing buildings to meet Category 3 seismic requirements and will not increase capacity by more than 50 percent. The Class 3 exemption consists of construction and location of limited numbers of new, small facilities or structures up to 10,000 square feet in urbanized areas on sites zoned for such use if not involving the use of significant amounts of hazardous substances where all necessary public services and facilities are available, and the surrounding area is not environmentally sensitive. The new 5,633 sf, two-story building would meet Category 3 seismic requirements and would match the existing 24’-6” height of other buildings on the site. The Proposed Project will not use any hazardous substances, is located on a fully developed site that is serviced by all public services and is not located in a designated environmentally sensitive area. Pursuant to Section 15300.2 (c) and 15301, 15302, and 15303 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, there are no unusual circumstances in respect to the proposed project for which staff would anticipate a significant effect on the environment.
Staff recommends that the City Council determine that the project will not cause a significant effect on the environment and is, therefore, categorically exempt as outlined herein from the Development Application No. 2021-00218
September 12, 2023
requirement for the preparation of environmental documents under the California Environmental Quality Act and no further environmental review is required.
CONCLUSION: The Planning Commission carefully considered the Project, considered the staff report, the applicant’s presentation, and public comments and determined that the Project, as designed and conditioned, would not adversely affect the adjoining land uses, or the growth and development of the area. In addition, the Planning Commission determined the size and shape of the Property is adequate to allow the operation of the Project in a manner not detrimental to either the particular area or to the health and safety of the public and the traffic generated by the Project would not impose an undue burden upon the streets and highways designed and improved to carry the anticipated traffic generated by the Project. Therefore, staff recommends the City Council uphold the decision of the Planning Commission approving the project.
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
There is no budgetary impact. The Appellant paid the fee necessary to schedule this appeal request, and the costs associated with this hearing will be incurred by the project applicant.
Respectfully submitted,
Ted White
Director of Planning and Building
Attachments:
1. Draft City Council Conditional Use Permit Resolution
2. Planning Commission Resolution July 17, 2023
3. July 17, 2023 Planning Commission Staff Report (without attachments)
4. July 17, 2023 Planning Commission Meeting Draft Minutes
5. Planning Commission Public Correspondence
6. Applicant Community Outreach Log
7. Appeal of Planning Commission’s Decision (Cecilia Flores)
8. Applicant Response to Appeal
9. Project Plans
10. Parking and On-Site Circulation Plan
11. Parking Evaluation
12. Traffic Circulation Letter
13. Noise Study
14. City Council Public Correspondence