CITY OF SAN CLEMENTE
MINUTES OF THE ADJOURNED MEETING
OF THE ZONING ADMINISTRATOR
December 23, 2025
San Clemente City Hall
First Floor Community Room
910 Calle Negocio
San Clemente, California 92673
1. CALL TO ORDER
Zoning Administrator (ZA) Adam Atamian called the Adjourned Meeting of the City of San Clemente Zoning Administrator to order on December 23, 2025 at 3:00 p.m.
The meeting was held in the First Floor Community Room of City Hall, 910 Calle Negocio, San Clemente, California.
Staff Present: Adam Atamian, Zoning Administrator
David Carrillo, Associate Planner
Tamara Tatich, Administrative Assistant
2. MINUTES
None.
3. ORAL AND WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
None.
4. PUBLIC HEARING
A. Continued Public Hearing Project (PHP)25—461, 540/542 N. El Camino Real, A Retail/Office Use Requesting a Reduction of the On-Site Parking Requirement through Shared, Off-Site or Waived Parking
A continued public hearing to consider a Minor Conditional Use Permit approving a retail/office use at a two-unit commercial building at 540 N. El Camino Real with existing non-conforming on-site parking. Parking alternatives could include an off-site parking agreement, shared on-site parking agreement, or parking waivers.
The Zoning Administrator will also consider whether the project is Categorically Exempt from the requirements of the CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines § 15301 (Class 1: Existing Facilities).
ZA Atamian opened the public hearing and introduced Associate Planner Carrillo who summarized the staff report that highlighted:
• The property consists of one commercial building with two suites: 540 (vacant) and 542 (occupied by a salon).
• Before the current situation, the property was occupied by a retail shop (Family Assistance Ministries “FAM”) requiring 11 parking spaces.
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Zoning Administrator Adjourned Meeting December 23, 2025 Page 2 • Currently, there are seven parking spaces on the lot, but these do not meet engineering technical standards.
• The engineering division requires at least four parking spaces to be restored to meet minimum standards.
• The applicant sought off-site parking and shared parking options but found neither feasible.
• The new tenant for 540 North El Camino Real intends to use the space for retail/office, while 542 is occupied by a salon.
• The proposed uses require 13 parking spaces, a net increase of two over the previous 11 spaces required by FAM.
• Staff recommended an interpretation rather than approving a minor exception permit. The applicant agreed to designate the lower 1,300 square feet of the building as storage, which reduces the required parking from 13 to 9 spaces.
• This approach results in requiring fewer parking spaces than the original retail shop use.
• Public street parking is available and recent city parking studies do not indicate parking problems in the area.
• The storage designation would be indefinite, and any future changes in use that increase parking demand would require new approvals, such as shared parking or off-site agreements.
• The parking lot must be reconfigured and approved by the planning division and City Engineer, ensuring a minimum of four parking spaces, unless State or Federal laws require configurations with fewer spaces.
The Applicants, Allen Kandleman and Alura Aguilera added clarification about the parking spaces:
• If a van-accessible (ADA) parking space is required, only three regular spaces would be feasible instead of four.
• The salon occupies only the upstairs portion of 542, contrary to previous plans that had included storage below.
• The 540 suite’s lower level will be used entirely for storage, with retail/office on the upper level.
• The property owner explained that after FAM vacated the building in 2021, the salon took one suite, and a surfboard retail tenant briefly occupied the other suite but left due to signage issues and other challenges. • Suite 540 has been kept vacant pending a parking solution. • The tenant interested in 540 is now ready to lease, contingent upon resolving parking requirements.
ZA Atamian stated that he has visited the site, is familiar with the area and understands the limited parking issues accommodating all the uses in the zone.
ZA Atamian cited Section 3D of the Resolution stating the lower floor is restricted to storage indefinitely and noted that any future tenant should be able to request to use the space for non-storage.
ZA Atamian asked for clarification on the fourth parking space referenced in Section 3E. Staff advised that four were consistent with the history of the property and the applicant stated that the maximum would be parallel for DRAFT
Zoning Administrator Adjourned Meeting December 23, 2025 Page 3 backup systems on one side can accommodate four spaces, one being ADA.
ZA Atamian stated that this will be the decision of the Building Division.
ZA Atamian closed the public hearing and stated that he can make the Findings for the Interpretation.
Action: The Zoning Administrator determined that the project is Categorically Exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guideline §15301 (Class 1: Existing Facilities) and moved to adopt Resolution ZA 25-029 and approve Interpretation 25-566, Kandleman Retail/Office use, 540/542 N. El Camino Real, subject to the Conditions of Approval with the following Modifications:
• Section 3D, Line 2: Strike “indefinitely” and add after storage “to accommodate the current and proposed uses of the site and shall remain as storage in perpetuity of those uses.”; and
• Section 3E, Line 5: Strike “with a minimum of four parking spaces,” and add after parking lot, “that provides the maximum parking spaces possible under City, State, and Federal requirements,’.
5. NEW BUSINESS
A. Review of Tentative Future Agendas
No changes were made.
6. OLD BUSINESS
None.
7. ADJOURNMENT
Zoning Administrator Atamian adjourned to the next Regular Zoning Administrator meeting will be held on Thursday, January 22, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. in the Community Development Department, First Floor Community Room, located at 910 Calle Negocio, San Clemente, California.
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Zoning Administrator Adjourned Meeting December 23, 2025 Page 4 Respectfully submitted,
SAN CLEMENTE ZONING ADMINISTRATOR
_____________________________________
Adam Atamian, Zoning Administrator
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