January 28, 2025
Temporary Suspension of
Short-Term Rental Prohibition
2 Background
• October 12, 2020: Study session on short-term rentals • Provided a comparison of the policies of surrounding cities for the City Council to provide direction on the City's short-term rental policies. • November 10, 2020: Ordinance 2020-17
• Adopted interim urgency ordinance prohibiting establishment and/or operations of short-term rentals for an initial period of 45 days
• December 15, 2020: Ordinance 2020-20
• Extended Ordinance No. 2020-17 for a period of 10 months and 15 days to expire on November 10, 2021.
• November 2, 2021: Ordinance 2021-17
• Prohibited the establishment and/or operation of short-term rentals, with the exception of owner-occupied home-sharing uses.
3 2025 Firestorms
• Palisades Fire (Began 1/7)
• 12,317 structures threatened
• 6,837 structures destroyed
• 1,107 structures damaged
• 12 fatalities
• 4 injuries
• Eaton Fire (Began 1/7)
• 55 structures threatened
• 9,418 structures destroyed
• 1,073 structures damaged
• 17 fatalities
• 9 injuries
4 Temporary Suspension of STR Prohibition
• STR are rentals of less than 30 days of either the entirety or a portion of a residential unit.
• All STRs are prohibited in Costa Mesa, except for home-sharing. • This resolution would temporarily lift the prohibition on non-home hosted short term rentals for a limited period of time. • The objective is to assist those affected by the Los Angeles and Ventura Counties firestorms by providing as many options as possible for temporary housing as they deal with the aftermath of the firestorms.
FAIRVIEW
PARK MASTER
PLAN UPDATE
City Council Study Session #1
January 28, 2025
Parks and Community
Services Department
Introductions
Parks and Community Services Director
• Brian Gruner
Consultant Team
• Jenni Zell – Project Manager, Landscape Architect (MIG) • Travis Brooks – Restoration Ecologist (Land IQ)
• Robb Hamilton – Biologist (Hamilton Biological)
Background
• City purchased 208-acre Fairview Park in 1986 ($1.9M) from the County of Orange
• First Fairview Park Master Plan adopted in 1998
• Master Plan Revised in 2001, 2002, and 2008
• In 2011, the City entered into agreement with Orange County Transit Authority (OCTA) for mitigation of 23 acres of native habitat • Measure AA Adopted in 2016 to keep Fairview Park as a natural and open space as documented in the Master Plan based on voter approval Background Continued
• 2019-2020 City Council authorized Master Plan Update; allocated funding in CIP budget
• In 2022, City received $4.5M in grant funds from Senator Min’s office for Fairview Park projects: Mesa, Bluffs, and Wetlands
• In 2023, MIG was contracted to spearhead the Fairview Park Master Plan Update
Presentation Outline
1. Goals and Objectives
2. Status of Master Plan Update
3. Community Use and Activities
4. Historical, Ecological and Cultural
Context
5. Existing Conditions: Vegetation
Communities and Wildlife Habitats
6. Master Plan Considerations & Next Steps
Community Use and Activities
What makes Fairview Park Unique?
Community Use and Activities
• Access to:
Talbert Regional Park
Randall Preserve
Santa Ana River Trail System
• Walking/hiking/jogging
• Biking
• Wildlife observation
• Model train riding at Goathill
Junction
Established in 1985
Thousands of rides per month
Community Use and Activities
• Model glider flying since the mid 1960’s
• Community based restoration/volunteering
SOY (Save Our Youth)
Local High School Participation
• Citizen science
• Concerts in the park
• Serves as a local park to area residents
Community Use and Activities
City Partnerships at Fairview Park
• Coastal Corridor Alliance
• Fairview Park Alliance
• Institute For Conservation Research and Education
• Harbor Soaring Society
• Orange County Model Engineers
• Sea and Sage Audubon
• Informal University & Academic Partnerships
Goals and Objectives of the Master
Plan Update
• Protect, preserve, and enhance the unique natural and cultural resources of Fairview Park as a passive open space park • Reflect the vested interests of the community and the City in environmental stewardship
• Update the 2008 Master Plan to align with current conditions and incorporate adopted and new concepts, laws, policies and activities
• Review public use and expand cultural and environmental interpretation and education
• Update existing conditions reports and prepare environmental documentation
Status of the Master Plan Update
• Review of existing documentation
• Hosted community engagement:
Community workshops
Fairview Park Steering Committee
PACS Commission
Tribal Advisory Group
Special events
• Resource assessment and analysis of existing conditions • Update findings and recommendations
Environmentally Sensitive Areas
Dedicated
Land
o Vernal Pools & Vernal
Pool Watershed
o Wetland and Riparian
o Nonnative
Grassland/Forbland
& Native Flower
Fields
Habitat
Restoration
Projects
Indigenous
People
Village Use
Area
Protected
Habitat
2 Nationally Registered
Archaeological Areas
o Coastal Sage Scrub
(CSS)
Sensitive/
Protected
Species
What makes Fairview Park Unique?
Fairview
Park is a
Regional
Biodiversity
Hotspot
iNaturalist
Observations
At Fairview
Park
Community Engagement
Community Engagement Highlights
• Community Workshops
○ Aug. 31, 2023, Nov. 8, 2023, Sept. 4, 2024
• Parks and Community Services Commission
○ June 27, 2024
• Fairview Park Steering Committee Meetings (3)
• Informal Outreach - Love CM Day, Earth Day, Concerts
in the Park
Remove excess trails on the mesa
Wide trail for loop, narrow for others
Ensure regular maintenance of trails
Engagement Themes
Address numerous cultural, biological,
and ecological topics
Improve and modernize existing signage
Provide additional trash and dog waste
receptacles
Include benches to enhance the experience of
views at the bluffs
Engagement Themes
Historical, Cultural, and Ecological
Context
History of the Park
• Indigenous village use dating to 1500 BC
• State sold preserved surplus land to County of Orange in 1973 (257-acre Fairview Regional Park)
• City purchased 208-acre Fairview Park in 1986 ($1.9M)
Habitat Loss to Development and Decline
of Endangered Tricolored Blackbird
(State Ownership until 1973,
when the site was sold to the
County)
Regionally Significant Cultural Site
Cultural & Historical Resources
• Indigenous Village Site, Genga
• 2 Nationally Registered Cultural Resource
Historic Sites
Koerper, H. C., Mason, R. D., & Peterson, M. L. 1994. Complexity, demography, and change in Late Holocene orange county. ENVIRONMENT, 77.
Biodiversity Hotspot
• 197 Plant Species
• 10 Rare Plant Species
• 18 Vegetation Community Alliances
• Habitat for Protected Species, including
Least Bell’s Vireo, Coastal California
Gnatcatcher, Burrowing Owl, and Crotch’s
Bumblebee
• 20 Butterfly Species
• 220 Species of Birds
• Wildlife Corridor
Regionally Significant Ecological Site
Coastal California Gnatcatcher
Photo Credit: Robb Hamilton
Biodiversity Hotspot
• 197 Plant Species
• 10 Rare Plant Species
• 18 Vegetation Community Alliances
• Habitat for Protected Species, including Least
Bell’s Vireo, Coastal California Gnatcatcher, &
Crotch’s Bumblebee
• 20 Butterfly Species
• 220 Species of Birds
• Wildlife Corridor
Vernal Pools
• Federally Protected Vernal Pool Habitat
for San Diego and Riverside Fairy
Shrimp
• 8 Special Status Vernal Pool Plants
Regionally Significant Ecological Site
Vernal Pools
Biodiversity Hotspot
• 197 Plant Species
• 10 Rare Plant Species
• 18 Vegetation Community Alliances
• Habitat for Protected Species, including Least
Bell’s Vireo, Coastal California Gnatcatcher, &
Crotch’s Bumblebee
• 20 Butterfly Species
• 220 Species of Birds
• Wildlife Corridor
Vernal Pools
• Federally Protected Vernal Pool Habitat
for San Diego and Riverside Fairy
Shrimp
• 8 Special Status Vernal Pool Plants
Regionally Significant Ecological Site
Vernal Pool Watershed
Existing Conditions: Vegetation
Communities and Wildlife Habitats
2023 Vegetation Communities
o
o
o
o
o
o
Wildlife Diversity
Least Bell’s Vireo
Willow/Cottonwood Riparian
Woodland and Forest
White-tailed Kite
Red-shouldered HawkSouthern Alligator Lizard
Anna’s Hummingbird
Lorquin’s Admiral
Mulefat/Willow Riparian
Thickets
Downy Woodpecker
Baja California
Chorus Frog Least Bell’s Vireo
Coyote
Mulefat Thicket
Water Bodies
Double-crested Cormorant
Belted Kingfisher
Great Blue Heron American Coot
Mexican Amberwing
Coastal Sage Scrub, Cactus
Scrub & Coyote Brush Scrub
California Gnatcatcher
California Towhee California Box Thorn
Cactus Wren
(locally extirpated)
White
-crowned
Sparrow Southern Pacific Rattlesnake
Nonnative Grasslands, Mustard
Fields, and Native Flower
Fields
Western Kingbird
Burrowing Owl
Northern Harrier
Red-winged Blackbird Side-blotched LizardSay’s Phoebe
Vernal Pools
East of Placentia
Vernal Pool Features 1, 4, 5, 6 and 7
Vernal Pools
Past & Current
Habitat Restoration Projects
Restoration Opportunities
(2024) and Obligations
Master Plan Update Considerations
and Opportunities
Master Plan Considerations and Next
Steps
Master Plan Update Considerations
and Opportunities
• Balancing Public Use and Mandated Resource Protection • Ample public education and engagement potential
• Improvements for trail design
• Conservation grants
• Biological resource protections and listing updates
• Environmental clearances, regulatory permitting for projects/activities • Long Time Horizon of Restoration
Next Steps
• Study Session Part 2: Findings and Recommendations, Draft Fairview Park Master Plan Update Presentation
• 30-day Public Review of Draft Master Plan Update
• Draft Initial Study/Negative Declaration
• Final Master Plan Update Adoption by City Council
HSS Special Use Agreement
• Current HSS Use Agreement with the City authorizes
the City Manager to extend the Agreement for one
term
• In July 2024, the City Manager extended the agreement by six-months to 1/31/25
• Current activities are to continue until the Master Plan Update draft is presented or until May 31, 2025
Questions?
Questions?