Agenda Report
Fullerton City Council
MEETING DATE: OCTOBER 15, 2024
TO: CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR AGENCY
SUBMITTED BY: SUNAYANA THOMAS, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PREPARED BY: ANDREW KUSCH, ASSOCIATE pLANNER
SUBJECT: Upper Golden Hill Neighborhood ZONE CHANGE REQUEST
SUMMARY
The applicant requests a zoning amendment to rezone properties in the Upper Golden Hill Neighborhood from R-1-7.2 (Single Family Residential, 7,200 square feet minimum lot size) to R-1-7.2P (Single Family Residential, 7,200 square feet minimum lot size, Preservation Zone) to create a historic preservation area.
PROPOSED MOTION
Introduce Ordinance No. XXXX for first reading by title only and waive further reading of the ordinance.
ORDINANCE NO. XXXX – AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FULLERTON, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING A ZONE CLASSIFICATION CHANGE FROM “R-1-7.2” TO “R-1-7.2P” ON PROPERTIES LOCATED IN THE UPPER GOLDEN HILL NEIGHBORHOOD, GENERALLY DESCRIBED AS THE PROPERTIES BOUNDED BY WEST VALLEY VIEW DRIVE, WOODS AVENUE AND RICHMAN AVENUE AND INCLUDING PROPERTIES ON GRANDVIEW AVENUE, FERN DRIVE AND LOIS LANE
ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS
Approve the Proposed Motion
Other options brought by City Council.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the Proposed Motion.
CITY MANAGER REMARKS
The City Manager concurs with the Planning Commission’s recommendation.
PRIORITY POLICY STATEMENT
This item matches the following Priority Policy Statement:
Infrastructure and City Assets.
FISCAL IMPACT
None.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Zone Change
The Upper Golden Hill Neighborhood consists of properties zoned R-1-7.2 (Single Family Residential, 7,200 square foot minimum lot size). The proposed zone change would add a “P” to the zone reflecting the Preservation Zone designation. A Residential Preservation Zone classification can apply to a mature residential neighborhood with existing housing and environment determined a valuable asset to the City and worthy of preservation (Fullerton Municipal Code Section 15.48.020).
Request for Zone Change
The City received a request to reclassify the Upper Golden Hill Neighborhood to a Residential Preservation Zone on May 13, 2024. The City held an informational meeting to explain Preservation Zone implications and the public hearing process on June 13, 2024 pursuant to Fullerton Municipal Code Section 15.48.055. Representatives from 37 properties attended the informational meeting according to the sign-in sheet.
Fullerton Heritage participated in the meeting and provided information in response to questions. Fullerton Heritage also provided a handout pertaining to the Upper Golden Hill Neighborhood and Residential Preservation Zones.
Fullerton Heritage provided a petition for property owners to sign in support or opposition to the Preservation Zone after the informational meeting. Volunteers circulated the petition in the neighborhood and received a 72% response rate. The responses resulted in the following:
Support
85 85%
Oppose
1 1%
No Response
14 14%
TOTAL PROPERTIES:
100
100%
The petition meets the minimum requirement of 51% property owner support of a zone change to allow the Director of Community and Economic Development to initiate the zoning amendment to consider the request to reclassify the neighborhood to a Residential Preservation Zone.
Historical Significance
Most homes in the neighborhood were built in the 1920s through early 1950s. The neighborhood includes several designated Local Landmarks and Significant Properties. Fullerton Heritage provided following in support of the request:
Upper Golden Hill was the first of a series of tracts for expensive homes developed in the hillside areas north of the original townsite. Irregularly shaped, the historic district consists of two tracts subdivided in 1921 and 1922. Upper Golden Hill was laid out with large lots along the 500 and 600 blocks of West Fern Drive and West Valley View Drive as well as the 800 blocks of Grandview Avenue and Lois Lane.
The developers of the tracts, Walter Jack Cadman and Robert E. Corcoran Sr., made the area extra special by installing decorative metal lampposts and placing power lines underground. Fern Drive was the first block to be extensively developed, with residences on Valley View Drive and Grandview Avenue coming later. The initial large lots fronting both sides of Grandview Avenue were later subdivided piecemeal over the years, creating the existing configuration of smaller lots fronting both Grandview Avenue and Lois Lane. Large lots between Lois Lane and Woods Avenue were similarly subdivided by deeds.
The historic district consists of single-family residences constructed both before and after World War II. Large scale and distinctive period revival architecture – Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, Neoclassical Revival, etc. – characterized the initial 1920’s dwellings, with many the work of notable local contractors and developers, such as Evan J. Herbert, Earl G. Snyder, Ernest S. Gregory, Frank K. Benchley, Luther J. Ellis, Harry G. Maxwell, Harvey L. Tadlock and Arthur M. Thompson. The most prolific local contractor was Ernest S. Gregory, who constructed speculative Spanish Colonial Revival dwellings throughout the historic district.
Later postwar homes were primarily Minimal Traditional or Ranch-styled dwellings, with a number designed and built by notable builders and developers, including James L. Pickering, Horace R. Blair, and the Jewett Bros. Although Upper Golden Hill is associated with historic period revival homes, North Grandview and North Woods Avenues are dominated by Minimal Traditional residences.
Elegant metal lampposts and majestic palms were crucial streetscape elements, and landscaping with large front yards was an important feature for the individual lots. Newer homes have been designed to fit into the ambience; older homes have mostly been left intact. The area is outstanding not only for the designs of the residences but for the total coordination of architecture and environment, the landscaping, the streetlamps, and the restrained modifications. The area is surrounded by post-World War II housing.
Because Upper Golden Hill remains entirely residential, it also conveys its original development pattern as a single-family residential neighborhood, retaining a high level of visual association with its past. After the streets were laid out in 1921, homes were constructed in primarily Period Revival styles starting in 1922. The Great Depression caused home building to cease, but when the economy began to improve, another wave of residential construction continued until the start of World War II.
After the war, remaining lots were filled with Minimal Traditional and Ranch-styled homes (three are Storybook ranches). A few older homes were demolished to make way for new ones. The last home built in the district was in 1991 (839 North Lois Lane). Some homes have completely lost their character defining features and have endured a significant loss of integrity. Some home remodeling projects and new additions to the neighborhood have transformed dwellings into outsized McMansions that conflict with the original character of the district.
Planning Commission
The Planning Commission held a public hearing on August 14, 2024 to consider the request (Attachment 7) and received the following input:
A property owner representing other property owners in the affected neighborhood spoke in favor of approving the zone change. The speaker referenced an updated voting tally provided to the Commission indicating 85 property owner signatures in support, one signature in opposition and 14 that did not sign the petition.
A speaker representing Fullerton Heritage urged approval of the request and spoke about property owner diligence to provide outreach to other property owners.
The Planning Commission recommended City Council approve the zoning amendment by a 4 – 0 - 1 (Absent: Mansuri) vote. Commissioners in favor of the application noted the data provided, including percentage of supporting property owners, indicates a strong case to approve the zone change.
Two Commissioners inquired about changes proposed for houses modified from their original architectural design. Staff clarified alterations or additions need consistency with the existing architecture. A Commissioner inquired how the proposed Preservation Zone affects existing applications for Urban Lot Splits. Staff clarified the City has no pending Urban Lot Split applications within the boundaries of the proposed Preservation Zone nor any pending subdivision applications.
Commission Chair expressed gratitude for the work by Fullerton Heritage. The Chair referenced a conversation with Mayor Dunlap identifying preservation zone adoption as one of the best ways to protect the historic fabric of neighborhoods. A Commissioner asked how the preservation zone could affect housing numbers. Staff clarified that with or without a preservation zone, housing production numbers would increase with any proposed accessory dwelling units.
Environmental Review
The proposed project is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Agency provisions per CEQA Guidelines 15308 (Class 8 – Actions by Regulatory Agencies for Protection of the Environment) because the project proposes a Zoning Amendment to add a preservation designation to an established neighborhood with historic characteristics. This project requires no public review. Staff will file a Notice of Exemption for this project.
Attachments:
Attachment 1 – PowerPoint Presentation
Attachment 2 – Draft Ordinance No. XXXX
Attachment 3 – Draft Ordinance No. XXXX Exhibit A
Attachment 4 – August 14, 2024 Planning Commission Staff Report Attachment 5 – Planning Commission Resolution No. PC-2024-22 Attachment 6 – August 12, 2024 Letter supporting zone change Attachment 7 – August 14, 2024 Planning Commission Minutes cc: City Manager Eric J. Levitt
Upper Golden Hill Zone Change
October 15, 2024 - Page 2