CITY OF
LONG
February 8, 2022
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
City of Long Beach
California
RECOMMENDATION:
Department of Public Works
411 West Ocean Boulevard, 5th Floor Long Beach, CA 90802 (562) 570-6383
C-12
Adopt a Resolution ordering the summary vacation of the excess sidewalk right of way adjacent to 3770 East Willow Street in the block west of Grand Avenue and south of Willow Street. (District 4)
DISCUSSION
Crippled Children's Society, a nonprofit corporation, the owner of the property at 3770 East Willow Street, is requesting the vacation of the excess sidewalk right-of-way adjacent to their property along the west side of Grand Avenue, south of Willow Street, to improve it as part of their privately maintained landscaping property (Exhibit C to the Resolution). Proceedings for this vacation are being conducted in accordance with Chapter 4, Summary Vacation of the Public Streets, Highways and Service Easements Vacation Law of the California Streets and Highways Code. Section 8334(a) of that Chapter states that the legislative body of a local agency may summarily vacate excess right of way not required for street purposes.
The Public Works Department has investigated this site and supports this action based on the findings and conditions of approval, establishing the dedicated right-of-way to be vacated is unnecessary for present or prospective public use, finding that the proposed area to be vacated is excess right of way not required for street purposes, and not necessary for current or future public needs. If approved, this vacated area would revert to the adjacent property, privately improved and maintained with landscaping.
On September 2, 2021, the Planning Commission found that the vacation of the excess right of-way is in conformance with the maps and policies of the Long Beach General Plan within the Institutional (I) Zoning District (Attachment A).
This matter was reviewed by Deputy City Attorney Erin Weesner-McKinley on January 10, 2022 and by Budget Management Officer Nader Kaamoush on January 20, 2022
TIMING CONSIDERATIONS
City Council action is being requested on February 8, 2022, to allow the property owner to move forward with the landscape improvements early in February 2022.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
February 8, 2022
FISCAL IMPACT
A final vacation processing fee in the amount of $5,639 was deposited in the General Fund Group in the Public Works Department. This recommendation has no staffing impact beyond the normal budgeted scope of duties and is consistent with existing City Council priorities.
There is no local job impact associated with this recommendation.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully submitted,
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ERIC LOPEZ
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS
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ATTACHMENTS: RESOLUTION
A - Planning Commission GPCF
APPROVED:
THOMAS B. MODICA
CITY MANAGER
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OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
CHARLES PARKIN, City Attorney
411 West Ocean Boulevard, 9th Floor
Long Beach, CA 90802-4664
RESOLUTION NO.
A RESOLUTION ORDERING THE VACATION OF
THE EXCESS RIGHT-OF-WAY ADJACENT TO 3770 EAST
WILLOW STREET , IN THE CITY OF LONG BEACH,
COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PURSUANT TO CHAPTER 4, PART 3 OF DIVISION 9 OF
THE CALIFORNIA STREET AND HIGHWAYS CODE
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Long Beach adopts this resolution pursuant to Chapter 4 of the Public Streets, Highways and Service Easements Vacation law (Streets and Highways Code Sections 8330 et seq.); and WHEREAS, Streets and Highway Code Section 8334(a) provides that a legislative body of a local agency may summarily vacate an excess right-of-way of a street or highway not required for street or highway purposes; and WHEREAS, this resolution vacates the excess right-of-way adjacent to 3770 East Willow Street as described on the attached Exhibit “A”, and as shown on the attached Exhibit “B”; and
WHEREAS, the above-described property is excess right-of-way and is not required for street or highway purposes; and
WHEREAS, the vacation of this right-of-way will not cut off all access to any adjoining property; and
WHEREAS, this property is an excess right-of-way of a street or highway not required for street or highway purposes;
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Long Beach resolves as follows:
Section 1. Pursuant to Chapter 4, Part 3 of Division 9 of the California Streets and Highways Code (Sections 8330 et seq.), the following findings are made
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OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
CHARLES PARKIN, City Attorney
411 West Ocean Boulevard, 9th Floor
Long Beach, CA 90802-4664
regarding the above-described property:
A. That the document entitled “Sketch No. 1036V Showing a Portion of Grand Street Sidewalk Within Tract 16183 to be Vacated by the City of Long Beach,” attached hereto as Exhibit “C”, accurately depicts the property to be vacated.
B. That the findings of fact made by the City Council for the purposes of this summary vacation of excess right-of-way pursuant to California Streets and Highways Code Section 8334(a), set forth in the document entitled “City Council Findings” and attached hereto as Exhibit “D”, are incorporated herein and made a part of this resolution by this reference.
Section 2. The above-described portion of the right-of-way is hereby vacated and closed. From and after the date this resolution is recorded, such vacated right-of-way shall no longer constitute a street or highway.
Section 3. The City Clerk is hereby instructed to certify to the adoption of this resolution, and to cause a certified copy to be recorded in the Office of the County Recorder of the County of Los Angeles, California.
Section 4. Upon receipt of the City Engineer’s certification, the Clerk shall certify to the adoption of the resolution, and cause a certified copy to be recorded in the Office of the County Recorder of the County of Los Angeles, California.
Section 5. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption by the City Council, and the City Clerk shall certify to the vote adopting this resolution. ///
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OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
CHARLES PARKIN, City Attorney
411 West Ocean Boulevard, 9th Floor
Long Beach, CA 90802-4664
I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution was adopted by the City Council of the City of Long Beach at its meeting of _________________________, 2022, by the following vote:
Ayes: Councilmembers:
Noes: Councilmembers:
Absent: Councilmembers:
Recusal(s): Councilmembers:
City Clerk
DETAIL A
SKETCH NO. 1036V
SKETCH SHOWING A PORTION OF GRAND STREET
SIDEWALK WITHIN TRACT 16183 TO BE VACATED
BY THE CITY OF LONG BEACH
SHOWS AREA TO
BE VACATED
ATTACHMENT C
RECORDATION DATA
RESOLUTION OF INTENTION .
ADOPTED
RESOLUTION VACATING .
ADOPTED .
RECORDED .
DOCUMENT NO. .
DETAIL A
SCALE: NONE
CITY COUNCIL FINDINGS
RIGHT OF WAY VACATION - PORTIONS OF SIDEWALK ALONG LOCUST
AVENUE AND THE NORTH-SOUTH ALLEY WEST OF LONG BEACH
BOULEVARD, NORTH OF WARDLOW ROAD
Reference Sketch No. 1036V
The subject portions of right -of-way are unnecessary for present or prospective public street purposes, and the vacation of said right -of-way would not have a significantly adverse environmental effect. This finding is based upon the following subfindings:
1. The sidewalk right -of-way along Grand Avenue, a local street, with a width greater than 64 feet, is excessive for the street classification and unnecessary for public needs.
2. On September 2 , 20 21, the City of Long Beach Planning Commission determined that the subject vacation action is consistent with the General Plan, as required in Section 8313 of the Public Streets, Highways and Service Easements Vacation Law.
3. Existing utilities adjacent to the area to be vacated will not be affected by this vacation.
4. The interested City Departments, including Fire and Police, have reviewed the proposed right -of-way vacation and land development, and have no objections to this action.
5. The right-of-way would not be useful for exclusive bikeway purposes.
EXHIBIT D
CITY OF AGENDA ITEM No. 1
LONG
September 2, 2021
CHAIR AND PLANNING COMMISSIONERS
City of Long Beach
California
RECOMMENDATION:
ATTACHMENT A
Development Services
Planning Bureau
411 West Ocean Boulevard, 3rd Floor, Long Beach, CA 90802 562.570.6194
Find the proposed vacation of a portion of public right-of-way abutting 3770 East Willow Street in conformance with the adopted goals and policies of the City's General Plan (GPC21-001). (District 5)
APPLICANT:
DISCUSSION
Background
Ability First
c/o Lori Gangemi
1300 East Green Street
Pasadena, CA 91106
(Application No. 2105-13)
The applicant requests a finding of conformance with the City of Long Beach General Plan for the vacation of a portion of public right-of-way abutting 3770 East Willow Street (Attachment A - Vicinity Map). The right-of-way is adjacent to the Institutional (I) Zoning District and Regional Serving Facility (RSF) General Plan PlaceType designation.
The applicant is currently pursuing the vacation application with the Public Works Department; a General Plan Conformity determination is required before it may proceed further. This request will vacate approximately 1,085 sq. ft. of excess right-of-way (Attachment B - Vacation). This portion of the right-of-way is part of Grand Avenue, a local street as classified by the Long Beach Mobility Element. This classification requires a minimum of 56 feet in width.
This segment of Grand Avenue varies in width from 68 to 74 feet. The Public Works Department completed a feasibility review of the request and recommended the maintenance of a right-of-way width of 66 feet, allowing for the vacation of a variable 2- to 8-foot strip of land abutting the subject property. Upon successful vacation, the right-of-way would be merged with the adjacent property parcel. The property owner intends to make improvements to the subject
CHAIR AND PLANNING COMMISSIONERS
September 2, 2021
area that includes updating a sign currently located at the southwest corner of the East Willow Street and Grand Avenue and enhancing the landscaping at that corner.
The abutting property is owned and operated by Ability First, a nonprofit facility serving people with disabilities. As a staple of the community, Ability First provides programing and services to children and adults in the rehabilitation and preparation of real-world adaptations. The vacation would provide Ability First with the opportunity to refresh the corner with new landscaping and signage (Attachment C - Site Photos).
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY FINDINGS
Before an application for the vacation of the public right-of-way can be acted on by the City Council, a finding of conformity with the maps and policies of the Long Beach General Plan must be made by the Planning Commission. The General Plan consists of thirteen (13) elements; each element carries the same authority concerning land use issues. Staff reviewed this project's conformance with all elements of the General Plan, and the proposed vacation was found to be in conformance with all applicable elements. A review of the relevant elements and specific General Plan consistency findings are presented below.
Land Use Element
The Land Use Element (LUE) divides the City into 14 land use districts known as PlaceTypes which provide general guidance as to the appropriate type and density of land uses. The public right-of-way is located adjacent to the Regional Serving Facility (RSF) Place Type of the LUE.
The LUE states that the RSF Place Type is intended for facilities with a regional-serving scope.
The vacated right-of-way will be incorporated into the abutting property which is owned by, Ability First, a use called out specifically as an example of the RSF compatible land uses in the LUE (LUE Page 99).
According to the LUE, a subdivision approval (which category would include the proposed vacation) is considered consistent with the LUE when the density of the proposed subdivision meets the PlaceTypes commercial/industrial intensity. Although a subdivision is not proposed in this case, the vacation of the public right-of-way would become part of the abutting property, increasing the overall lot area from 66,796 square feet to 67,881 square feet. With the expansion of the property, the use and intensity of the existing development on the site remain consistent with the land use, height and intensity contemplated by the RSF PlaceType designation.
Mobility Element
The City's Mobility Element is aimed at transforming Long Beach into a city of flexible, convenient, affordable, and energy-efficient transportation options for residents and visitors of all ages and abilities alike. Per the City's Mobility Element, Grand Avenue is identified as a local street, intended to "provide access to individual residential parcels. The local street typology are generally two lanes with on-street parking, tree planting strips, and sidewalks.
Traffic on a local street should have a trip end on that street, or on a connecting local street or to a connector". The existing right-of-way currently provide vehicular and pedestrian access to the immediate development site. The application has been conditioned to construct any and
CHAIR AND PLANNING COMMISSIONERS
September 2, 2021
all off-site improvements needed to provide full ADA accessibility compliance, to the satisfaction of the Director of Public Works. The public sidewalk would remain eight (8) feet in width and consistent with Public Works requirements (Attachment D - Conditions of Approval).
The proposed vacation would not disrupt travel patterns through and around the area. The area proposed for vacation is remnant right-of way that is in excess of that required by the street designation and operational needs, as determined the analysis conducted by the Public Works Department. As such, it has been determined that the public right-of-way proposed to be vacated is not necessary for the overall movement of people and goods through the city.
The initial review of the proposed vacation yielded no above ground nor below ground public utilities that will require a reservation of easement; therefore, none will be reserved.
PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE
A General Plan Conformity Certification does not require a public hearing or public notice.
However, the Public Works Department conducts public notification for the vacation in accordance with State law, as the vacation is processed.
CHAIR AND PLANNING COMMISSIONERS
September 2, 2021
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action to make a finding of conformance with the General Plan is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), per Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines, and no environmental review is required. Separate CEQA review will be required for any development proposal that moves forward at this site.
Respectfully submitted,
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gNATHAN INIESTA
PROJECT PLANNER
ALEXIS OROPEZA
CURRENT PLANNING OFFICER
PATRICIA DIEFENDERFER, AICP
PLANNING BUREAU MANAGER
CHRISTOPHER KOONTZ, AICP
DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
SERVICES
OSCAR W. ORCI
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DIRECTOR
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Attachments: Attachment A - Vicinity Map
Attachment B - Vacation Exhibits
Attachment C - Site Photos
Attachment D - Conditions of Approval