DATE: 02/18/2026
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Planning and Development Department
2026-66
REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
SUBJECT:
WAIVER FROM CORONA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION 15.60.080 ON THE
UNDERGROUNDING OF EXISTING OVERHEAD UTILITY WIRES LOCATED ALONG 220 VIOLET STREET (APPLICANT: LINDA DANIELA RODRIGUEZ CHAVEZ) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
This staff report asks the City Council to waive the requirement of Corona Municipal Code (CMC) Section 15.60.080 on the underground of the existing overhead utility wires located at 220 Violet Street. CMC Section 15.60.080 requires overhead wires that transmit less than 34,000 volts and provide service to a structure that is enlarged, or an addition is made thereto, to be relocated underground. In this project, an existing family dwelling will be demolished, and a new two-story single-family dwelling with a detached additional dwelling unit will be constructed. According to CMC Section 15.60.060, the City Council may grant a waiver from the requirement of CMC Section 15.60.080 if the undergrounding of the overhead wires would be unreasonable, impractical, and cause undue hardship to the applicant or the public.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
That the City Council grant a waiver from Section 15.60.080 of the Corona Municipal Code for the undergrounding of poles and overhead utility wires located along the frontage of 220 Violet Street.
BACKGROUND & HISTORY:
The property owner of 220 Violet Street plans to demolish an existing single-story residence to construct a new two-story single-family residence with a detached accessory dwelling unit on the 0.13-acre lot. The property is located along Violet Street, between Pomona Road and Railroad Street.
CMC Section 15.60.080 requires overhead wires that transmit less than 34,000 volts to be relocated underground when a new building or structure is proposed, or an addition is made to an existing structure or building. The applicant submitted a request to the City on February 1, 2026, requesting that the City Council grant a waiver from the undergrounding of utility poles and overhead wires that run across the property on Violet Street. The applicant has indicated that the overhead wires will continue to exist above ground beyond the project boundaries, and that the cost of doing this public improvement would be financially infeasible based on the scope of the project.
ANALYSIS:
Section 15.60.080 of the CMC recognizes above ground utility wires exist within the City and are considered nonconforming to the requirement of CMC Section 15.60.030. Section
15.60.030 prohibits above ground poles, wires, and associated structures, irrespective of the use or proposed use of the structure of building it is intended to serve. However, CMC Section 15.60.060 allows the City Council to grant a waiver to this requirement if the finding can be made that the undergrounding of the utility wires would be unreasonable, impractical, and cause undue hardship to the applicant or public.
Staff has determined that the finding exists for the City Council to grant the waiver for the following reasons:
a) The overhead wires will continue to remain above ground beyond the boundaries of the project site along Violet Street.
b) The approximate cost to underground electrical conduit and remove the power poles has been estimated to be $59,000 causing financial hardship to the applicant.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The applicant has paid the Utility Underground Waiver Request fee of $2,013.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
This action is exempt pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the Guidelines for the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA, which states that a project is exempt from CEQA if the activity is covered by the commonsense exemption that CEQA applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA. There is no possibility that this action on granting a waiver to the requirement within the Corona Municipal Code will have a significant effect on the environment. Therefore, no environmental analysis is required.
PREPARED BY: BRYAN OSEGUEDA, ASSISTANT ENGINEER
REVIEWED BY: BRETT CHANNING, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Exhibit 1 – Waiver Request Letter
2. Exhibit 2 – Pole Location
3. Exhibit 3 – Location Map