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Anaheim, CA 92805
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CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
City of Anaheim
PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT
DATE: DECEMBER 17, 2024
FROM: PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: ANNUAL REVIEW OF AMENDED AND RESTATED
DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT NO. 2005-00008
FOR THE A-TOWN PROJECT
ATTACHMENT (Y/N): YES ITEM # 07
GOVERNMENT CODE § 84308 APPLIES: YES
RECOMMENDATION:
That the City Council, by Motion, determine on the basis of the evidence submitted by PT Metro, LLC, that the property owner has complied in good faith with the terms and conditions of Amended and Restated Development Agreement No. 2005- 00008 for the 2024 review period for the A-Town mixed-use project located in the Platinum Triangle.
DISCUSSION:
A Development Agreement is a contract between the City of Anaheim (City) and property owner that provides certainty to the property owner that the approved project will be exempt from future changes to zoning laws and requires the property owner to provide benefits to the City in exchange for that certainty. In October 2005, the City of Anaheim and Lennar Platinum Triangle, LLC executed a Development Agreement to govern development of the A-Town Metro project. This project included 2,681 residential units, 150,000 square feet of commercial area, and two public parks on a 41.4-acre site located at 1404 East Katella Avenue.
In December 2009, Lennar Platinum Triangle, LLC amended the Development Agreement to reflect the transfer of ownership of the property to Platinum Triangle Partners, LLC and to extend the initial term of the Development Agreement from five years to ten years. Subsequently, Platinum Triangle Partners, LLC conveyed and transferred the property to PT Metro, LLC.
In October 2015, the City Council approved an Amended and Restated Development Agreement in conjunction with a request to revise the size of the A-Town Metro project. This revision allowed the development of between 1,400 and 1,746 residential units, a range of commercial area between 38,000 and 50,000 square feet, and a revision to the size and locations of the public parks.
Annual Review of Amended and Restated Development Agreement No. 2005-00008 for the A-Town Project December 17, 2024
In May 2018, the City Council approved Amendment No. 1 to the Amended and Restated Development Agreement. The applicant requested this amendment to modify certain performance milestones within the incremental periods that comprise the overall term of the Development Agreement. The changes to the milestones did not change the overall term of the Development Agreement but provided additional flexibility for the benefit of the City and applicant.
Specifically, milestones were established at the fifth (2020), seventh and one-half (2022), tenth (2025), and fifteenth (2030) anniversary dates of the Authorizing Ordinance. Completion of the milestones for each anniversary date grant the next corresponding two and one-half- or five-year extension.
Pursuant to the Development Agreement, the City Council is required to determine annually if the property owner has complied in good faith with the terms and conditions of the Development Agreement. Demonstration of good faith compliance includes conformance with all terms and schedules set forth in the Development Agreement. If the Council finds that the property owner has demonstrated good faith compliance, the review for that period is complete.
To date, the required milestones for 2020 and 2022 have been completed, authorizing extensions of the Development Agreement Term through October 2025. Specifically, the Public Works and Public Utilities Departments have previously confirmed that the property owner has completed all the required milestones associated with streets, public facilities, and infrastructure, including accelerated on-site and area-wide public improvements in the Platinum Triangle. In addition, the property owner has previously completed and dedicated to the City the 1.2-acre Aloe Greens Park and the 0.60-acre Public Linear Park, satisfying the obligations with respect to public parks.
These are two public parks owned by the City and maintained by the A-Town Master Homeowners Association. Additionally, construction has been completed on residential units in Development Area A (400 units), Development Area G (154 units), and Development Area H (84 units), totaling 638 units.
The next milestone in the Development Agreement requires completion of an additional 462 residential units for a total of 1,100 completed by October 2025. Final Site Plans including these units for Development Area B (270 units and 21,669 square feet of ground floor commercial space), Development Area C & D (508 units and 17,277 square feet of ground floor commercial space), Development Area E (257 units), and Development Area F (73 units) were approved by the Planning Commission in 2022 and early 2023. Construction is underway for Development Area F and building permits were issued in November 2024 for Development Area E, providing a total of 330 units towards the next milestone upon completion of construction.
The property owner has submitted the attached letter (Attachment No. 1), dated November 12, 2024, requesting a determination of good faith compliance with the Development Agreement for the review period. Staff confirmed that the property owner has completed all milestones required at this time. The property owner is also making progress towards completion of the milestones associated with the tenth anniversary date of the Development Agreement, however due to challenges financing large-scale mixed-use podium projects, the property owner anticipates delays in meeting the requirements to receive the next five-year extension.
Annual Review of Amended and Restated Development Agreement No. 2005-00008 for the A-Town Project December 17, 2024
Staff recommends that the City Council determine that the property owner has complied in good faith with the terms and conditions of the Development Agreement relevant for this review period. However, we anticipate continuing discussions in 2025 related to the completion of Development Areas B, C, and D, and associated obligations for ground floor commercial space.
IMPACT ON BUDGET:
There is no budgetary impact. The property owner is paying for the processing cost associated with this annual review.
Respectfully submitted,
Heather Allen
Acting Planning and Building Director
Attachments:
1. Annual Review Letter
2. Map Exhibit
3. Amended and Restated Development Agreement & Amendment No. 1