Agenda Item: 4
CITY OF SANTA CLARITA
AGENDA REPORT
PUBLIC HEARINGS
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
DATE: June 25, 2024
SUBJECT: TOWN CENTER SPECIFIC PLAN (MASTER CASE 22-105) DEPARTMENT: Community Development
PRESENTER: David Peterson
RECOMMENDED ACTION
City Council:
1. Receive staff presentation.
2. Open the public hearing to receive testimony from the public.
3. Adopt resolutions approving The Town Center Specific Plan (Master Case 22-105) and certifying the Final Program Environmental Impact Report, including a Statement of Overriding Consideration and Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program.
4. Introduce and pass to a second reading an ordinance entitled: “AN ORDINANCE OF THE
CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA CLARITA, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING ZONE CHANGE 22-001, AND SPECIFIC PLAN 22-002 (MASTER CASE 22-105) TO AMEND THE CITY OF SANTA CLARITA’S ZONING MAP AND CHANGE THE ZONING DESIGNATION OF ASSOCIATED ASSESSOR’S PARCEL NUMBERS FROM REGIONAL COMMERCIAL TO SPECIFIC PLAN.”
BACKGROUND
Request
The request includes General Plan Amendment 22-003, Zone Change 22-001, and Specific Plan 22-002 for the creation of the Town Center Specific Plan (TCSP). The TCSP would provide a long-term vision for development within the specific plan area (Area) to create a balanced mix of land uses identified by the City Council and the community as desirable and further establish the Valencia Town Center area as a regional destination.
Origin
Santa Clarita 2025 (SC 2025) is the City of Santa Clarita’s (City) strategic plan developed in 2020 and launched in 2021 based on feedback from the public and direction of the City Council.
The goal of the City’s strategic plan is to provide a blueprint for key projects through 2025 by prioritizing resources, achieving milestones, and maintaining the City’s commitment to offering the highest quality services and facilities for current and future residents, businesses, and visitors.
The General Plan identifies the Valencia Town Center area as a “major [center] of the community” and “…a focal point for cultural, civic, educational, and shopping activities serving the entire Santa Clarita Valley.” As such, a specific plan provides the ideal mechanism for providing long-term, managed development that both achieves a balance of commercial and residential land uses and continues to establish the Valencia Town Center area as a premier destination within the community.
In an ever-evolving and complex regulatory environment, the recent introduction and implementation of legislation by the State of California has diminished the ability of municipalities to retain local land use authority within their jurisdictions. Given the importance of the Valencia Town Center area within the community and the region, and in light of potential future state legislation that could further reduce the City’s ability to review development projects, the creation of a specific plan for the Valencia Town Center area was included as a project within the SC 2025 plan.
Goals
The goals of the TCSP are as follows:
• Define a Vision for Development: Create a timeless, long-term vision for development within the Area that is consistent with the City’s General Plan and Housing Element. • Provide a Balance of Land Uses: Create a balanced mix of retail, dining, entertainment, hospitality, commercial, and residential opportunities to further establish the Area as a premier regional destination.
• Create Great Places: Create a distinct sense of place that is unique to the Area via creative use of urban design, iconic architecture, signature vistas, a vibrant public realm, and gathering spaces.
• Establish a Flexible Framework: Create a flexible framework for future development that is practical, buildable, and fosters the potential for numerous development possibilities.
Public Outreach
Guidance for the creation and refinement of the TCSP was done in part via a robust, ongoing public outreach process. This included a variety of workshops and focus groups with the general public, the development community, and the business community. An online survey and in- person interviews were also conducted with business owners and tenants within the Area.
• Summary of Key Feedback: Key areas of feedback received consistently during the public outreach process both aligned with and helped define the City’s goals for the TCSP. A summary of feedback includes:
o The specific plan should encourage enhanced shopping, dining, and entertainment opportunities.
o Although attracting the correct tenant mix is important, making the Valencia Town Center area a great, unique place to spend time is equally important. o New residential development should be balanced with new commercial development. o The plan’s vision should be timeless, and contemplate long-term market trends, not simply trends of the present.
o The plan’s vision should also be flexible, maximizing its ability to react to changing conditions over time and provide the best possible use of the space within the Area. o The plan should be accessible, practical, and buildable by offering a realistic development framework that will attract desirable land uses.
Project Description
The Area is approximately one mile east of the Interstate-5 freeway and is generally bounded by Magic Mountain Parkway to the north, Valencia Boulevard to the south and east, and McBean Parkway to the west, creating a roughly triangular project site. The McBean Regional Transit Center is directly adjacent to the southwest corner of the Area.
Unlike other specific plans, the TCSP does not include a static site plan. Rather, it establishes a flexible framework to guide overall development. Several potential development scenarios were analyzed by the Draft Program Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) and prepared in conjunction with the TCSP, including a maximum practical buildout scenario. This scenario includes approximately 2,200 residential units and 600,000 square feet of new commercial space.
It is important to note that these scenarios do not represent the actual ultimate buildout of the Area, but rather demonstrate concepts that reflect the framework elements and standards established by the TCSP.
The underlying General Plan Land Use and Zoning designation for the entirety of the Area is Regional Commercial (CR). The CR zone contemplates the highest intensity of commercial and residential development in the City, with a maximum floor area ratio (FAR) of 2.0 and a maximum of 50 residential units per acre, respectively. The TCSP will be consistent with these requirements, and all future development will be reviewed for consistency with these standards.
As such, the TCSP is consistent with the General Plan regarding the type and intensity of development contemplated within the Area.
The Area includes approximately 111 acres of largely urbanized land and is divided into four distinct subareas:
• Valencia Town Center: Measuring approximately 68 acres in size, the Valencia Town Center Subarea is the largest subarea within the Area. The subarea is primarily characterized by the existing Valencia Town Center Mall, The Patios lifestyle center, and the eastern portion of Town Center Drive. The total complex includes approximately one million square feet of retail and commercial space and a large surface parking field. • Town Center East: Separated from the Valencia Town Center Subarea by Citrus Street, the Town Center East Subarea is approximately 23 acres in size and primarily built out with existing structures and surface parking. The subarea contains approximately 245,000 square feet of public services, office space, personal services, and retail space. Primary uses include the Valencia Branch of the Santa Clarita Public Library, two multi-story private office buildings, and a small commercial/retail center. Other uses include the former Santa Clarita Station of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department Station 126, Santa Clarita Superior Court, and government offices for Los Angeles County.
• Town Center Drive: The Town Center Drive Subarea represents a transition from the retail mall and lifestyle uses associated with the Valencia Town Center Subarea into a total of 460,000 square feet of office space, entertainment, dining, personal services, and specialty retail uses that front on Town Center Drive. Prominent land uses include several office buildings measuring between four and six stories in height with ground-floor retail, restaurants, and services, a twelve-theater Regal Cinema, several one and two-story retail/office buildings, and two multi-level shared parking structures. The subarea is primarily built-out and is approximately 16 acres in size. • McBean and Valencia: At approximately four acres, this is the smallest of the subareas but occupies a prominent location on the northwest corner of Valencia Boulevard and McBean Parkway. The majority of the property is vacant, but in 2016 the property was entitled to the construction of a five-story hotel and a free-standing restaurant.
Structure
The contents of the TCSP have been structured into three chapters:
• An introduction that provides a brief summary of the project. • A collection of development standards that describes requirements and guidelines for all development within the Area.
• An implementation strategy for review of future projects.
A draft copy of the TCSP is attached.
Benefits
The following benefits are proposed within the TCSP to guide development within the Area:
• Flexible Zoning and Land Use Regulations: The TCSP would not require buildings or particular uses to be established in specific locations. The development standards are meant to be flexible, help guide development, and encourage a mix of uses throughout the Area. • CEQA Streamlining: A DEIR has been prepared for the TCSP that contemplates various buildout scenarios within the Area. All projects that comply with the vision, framework elements, and development standards established within the TCSP will require no additional environmental review under CEQA.
• Expedited Permit Processing: The TCSP contains its own permitted use chart (PUC) that establishes allowable uses for each subarea within the Area. The proposed PUC streamlines permit processing time and entitlement fees for projects that propose uses which the community and City Council have identified as desirable and appropriate for the area. • Enhanced Design Standards: Projects will be eligible to receive design benefits when proposing mixed-use projects that meet the vision of the TCSP. • Contemporary Parking Standards: The TCSP recommends a modernized approach to parking that reflects current industry standards, helps create great places, enhances pedestrian mobility, and is consistent with the existing legislative framework.
General Plan and Zoning
Adoption of the TCSP would be consistent with the following General Plan goals, policies, and objectives:
• Policy LU 1.1.5: Increase infill development and re-use of underutilized sites within, and adjacent to, developed urban areas to achieve maximum benefit from existing infrastructure and minimize loss of open space, through re-designation of vacant sites for higher density and mixed use, where appropriate.
• Policy LU 1.2.2: In Valencia, promote business development, job creation, and expansion of regional commercial, civic, cultural, and entertainment uses, to create a vibrant Town Center serving as a community focal point for the entire Santa Clarita Valley. • Policy LU 4.1.1: Promote expansion and enhancement of the Valencia Town Center to provide a focal point for cultural, civic, educational, and shopping activities serving the entire Santa Clarita Valley.
• Policy LU 4.1.3: Direct business creation and expansion for larger companies within and adjacent to existing and planned business centers and major transportation corridors. • Policy LU 4.2.3: Encourage businesses to locate in all appropriate areas of the community to encourage job creation in closer proximity to workforce housing. • Policy C 1.2.1: Develop coordinated plans for land use, circulation, and transit to promote transit-oriented development that concentrates higher density housing, employment, and commercial areas in proximity to transit corridors.
• Policy CO 1.5.5: Promote concentration of urban uses within the center of the Santa Clarita Valley through incentives for infill development and rebuilding, in order to limit impacts to open space, habitats, watersheds, hillsides, and other components of the Valley’s natural ecosystems.
Affordability
A buildout concept analyzed for the TCSP includes approximately 2,200 residential units throughout the Area. The City’s Housing Element identifies the need for 446 affordable units on specific properties within the Area. Because of this, the DEIR prepared for the TCSP contemplated 20 percent of units within the Area as being affordable. As required by the state, and in order to satisfy the TCSP goals for both compliance with the City’s Housing Element and to facilitate the implementation of a plan that is practical, flexible, and buildable, applicants will be strongly encouraged to include affordable units in any project that proposes a residential component.
Surrounding Land Uses
The Area is entirely surrounded by the CR zone with land uses including major retail centers, automobile dealerships, high-density residential developments, professional and medical office buildings, and a fuel sales use. Land uses beyond the immediate boundaries of the Area include low- to moderate-density housing, and a private golf course.
General Plan Amendment and Zone Change
Although the TCSP will be consistent with the specifications of the underlying zone, the creation of a specific plan necessitates changing the underlying General Plan Land Use and Zoning Designations from CR to Specific Plan (SP). Maps of these proposed changes are attached. The adopted specific plan would then become the regulatory framework for all development within the Area.
In addition, the following language would be included in the Land Use Element of the General Plan, under Item F, Specific Plans:
The Town Center Specific Plan (TCSP) was adopted in 2024 and encompasses approximately 111 acres of land in the community of Valencia. The specific plan area is bound by Magic Mountain Parkway to the north, Valencia Boulevard to the south and east, and by McBean Parkway to the west, with a 3.7-acre portion of the TCSP area located adjacent to the McBean Regional Transit Center.
The primary goals of the TCSP are to create a balanced mix of residential, commercial, retail, dining, and entertainment uses with a robust jobs-to-housing balance; create a distinct sense of place; create a flexible framework for future development that fosters the potential for numerous development possibilities; and create a practical, timeless, and buildable plan that is consistent with the General Plan and implements the Housing Element.
Planning Commission Public Hearings
The TCSP was brought before the Planning Commission during their regular meetings on April 16, 2024, and May 21, 2024. After hearing staff’s presentations detailing the project and
the associated environmental analysis, considering public testimony, and after their own deliberation, the Planning Commission, by unanimous vote, adopted resolutions recommending the City Council certify the Draft Final Environmental Impact Report (DFEIR) and approve Master Case 22-105.
Included in the Planning Commission’s motion were a series of recommended minor text amendments to the TCSP document itself for consideration by the City Council. These include language for:
• Outdoor dining and merchandise;
• Maintenance of micro-mobility vehicles;
• Parking management strategies;
• Private funding of improvements;
• Construction management plans; and
• Requirements for electric vehicle charging stations.
A complete list of proposed text changes is attached for the City Council’s consideration and potential inclusion in the specific plan.
Analysis
As previously stated, Chapter one of the TCSP includes an introduction to the document.
Development Framework & Standards:
The development framework and standards contained in Chapter Two of the TCSP include the building blocks, details, and examples of the contents of the TCSP. The framework and standards identified are intended to establish the components, expectations, and general requirements for all future development plans prepared in accordance with the TCSP. The TCSP encourages a balanced mix of residential and non-residential uses throughout the Area and emphasizes the importance of proper placemaking to create a sense of space for the community.
Each framework element further articulates a vision for the Area in greater detail and provides a comprehensive, flexible mechanism for its implementation. Development standards are included with the framework elements and provide specific requirements in areas where additional detail and guidance is needed. Taken in concert, the framework elements and development standards provide the blueprint to achieve the vision identified by the TCSP.
Entitlement proposals submitted within the Area that are consistent with the development framework and standards will enjoy the streamlining and benefits provided by the TCSP described in the Project Description section above. The submission of a Conditional Use Permit (for review and decision by the Planning Commission), and all other required entitlement applications may be submitted for a proposed project that meets the spirit and intent of the TCSP, but otherwise requires a modification to any requirement, framework, or development standard to the TCSP, with the exception of an increased allowance for floor area ratio and residential unit density.
The sixteen individual development framework and standards are organized into four groups and are summarized below. A detailed description of each element is contained within the Planning Commission agenda report from their regular meeting on April 16, 2024. This document has been included in the reading file.
• Land Use: The Land Use section of the development framework and standards provides a narrative for a flexible plan, a mix of commercial uses and housing opportunities, and further describes how each of these elements can be executed throughout the Area in future development.
o Element LU1 - Balance of Land Uses: This element establishes the TCSP’s requirement for a balance of land uses. These requirements incentivize mixed use development, require an economic study to be performed to measure progress as the Area is built out or when over 25,000 square feet of existing commercial space is proposed to be demolished, and allow the City to require development plans to be submitted on a sub-area basis instead of a project-by-project basis.
o Element LU2 - Plan Flexibility: This element establishes the benefits included within the TCSP as described in the Project Description section, above. o Element LU3 - Permitted Use Chart: This element includes a permitted use chart (PUC) that includes entitlement requirements for projects within the Area. Any land uses that are not included in the PUC within the TCSP are subject to the Unified Development Code (UDC) for the CR zone.
• Placemaking: This section of the development framework and standards provides the narrative that describes how the TCSP will meet the identified need to develop the Area into a great place for the community to enjoy. As important as the TCSP’s goal for creating a balanced mix of land uses, when done in lock-step the goals of balance and placemaking will not only attract the right mix of land uses, but create a vibrant, exciting and visually interesting environment where visitors can shop, dine, be entertained, live, work, or spend time.
o Element PM1 - Development Blocks: This element establishes the requirement for the shape and size of future development blocks to define the urban fabric, provide visual interest, character, and create great spaces within the Area. o Element PM2 - Signature Vistas: This element defines how signature vistas must be created throughout the Area. A signature vista is a deliberate placemaking strategy where a prominent building, monument, fountain, public art piece, public space, or common space is positioned at a strategic point along a visual axis or at the end of a visual axis. o Element PM3 - Architectural Design: Projects must choose from a palette of five architectural styles, each of which reflects a different design philosophy. These various standards include the tradition of the City’s current architectural requirements for the community of Valencia as defined by the Community Character and Design Guidelines, honor the history of architectural styles that are currently within the Area, including art deco, mission revival and contemporary, and add an allowance for the neo-classical style which is not currently found within the Area. The thoughtful application of these styles
will create a unique character that defines and identifies the Area within the community and the region.
o Element PM4 - Building Specifications: Appropriate, practical, and purpose-driven development standards for the built environment incentivize a balanced mix of commercial and residential uses and, in concert with other design elements, create great and unique places throughout the Area. Building height requirements are included in this element. Highlights include a maximum height threshold of 7 stories for mixed use buildings, while single-use residential structures would have a height threshold of 3 stories. Expansions to the existing mall would have a height threshold of 55 feet, while new, stand-alone retail structures would have a threshold of 40 feet. Heights that exceed these thresholds would be subject to a CUP.
o Element PM5 - Gathering Spaces: Gathering spaces that are conveniently located throughout the Area, that utilize architecture and building mass to define space, and that act as focal points along significant vistas all contribute to creating great places that foster community involvement, encourage pedestrianism, create vibrant outdoor settings for retail and dining, establish community character and create recognizable landmarks. The TCSP establishes a hierarchy of gathering areas and requires at least one public space of an acre or more in size within the Valencia Town Center subarea, while also requiring a series of smaller common spaces, each of which measuring at least 2,500 square feet. o Element PM6 - Gateways: Gateways are specific locations or areas that serve as entry points to the Area. Gateways are distinct features that signal the transition from the surrounding area and establish a tone that reflects what those entering the Area can expect. There are currently five gateways leading into the Area, and three potential gateway locations pending future development. Major gateways represent primary entrances into a subarea at signalized intersections with major public streets, while minor gateways represent secondary entrances without signalized intersections. This element defines gateway standards including the use of monumental architecture, signage, landscaped areas, and access to pedestrian traffic.
• Mobility: This section of the development framework and standards defines requirements for the overall mobility network within the Area. Together these standards will develop a mobility network that provides a safe, efficient, convenient, and attractive system of facilities for vehicle, bicycle, and pedestrian traffic that integrates into the City’s streets, sidewalks, paseos, bike trails, the McBean Regional Transit Center, and bus stops surrounding the Area.
o Element MO1 - Roadway Network: This element defines the hierarchy of external and internal streets that both surround and are within the Area. The TCSP defines two types of private streets within the Area: major connectors; and internal roadways. The TCSP requires the extension of the existing Town Center Drive from its current terminus near the west entrance to the Valencia Town Center Mall to Citrus street. Further, new streets within the Area would include Class II bike trails within their alignments to facilitate safe, efficient bicycle travel across the site.
o Element MO2 - Pedestrian Streetscapes: Creating pedestrian-friendly streetscapes fosters vibrant, livable, and sustainable communities. Well-designed pedestrian infrastructure, such as sidewalks, plazas, and walkways, can encourage social interaction, create lively street-scenes, support local businesses, and create inviting public spaces. To accomplish this, the TCSP includes standards that facilitate outdoor dining and displays of
merchandise, provide safe, convenient pedestrian access, and establish attractive parkways.
o Element MO3 - Pedestrian and Bicycle Networks: This element requires new development within the Area to provide pedestrian and bicycle connectivity to adjacent development blocks within the Area as well as peripheral streets, sidewalks, paseos, bicycle trails, the McBean Regional Transit Center, and bus stops in order to form a comprehensive network of multi-modal transportation.
o Element MO4 - Pedestrian Bridge Connectivity: This element focuses on enhancing accessibility to the three existing pedestrian bridges that connect the community to the Valencia Town Center subarea of the Area. All development within the Area that occurs adjacent to an existing pedestrian bridge will be required to provide a landing area that provides direct access into the Area, includes a shaded seating area and wayfinding signage. Further, the landing area must have connectivity to adjacent development within the Area. The element also encourages the relocation of the existing pedestrian bridge that spans McBean Parkway to a location closer to the McBean Regional Transit Center. o Element MO5 - Micro Mobility: Micro-mobility refers to the use of small, lightweight, modes of transportation for short-distance travel within urban areas. These modes of transport typically include electric scooters, electric bicycles, and other compact vehicles.
Micro-mobility is well-suited for "last-mile" transportation, bridging the gap between public transit stations or bus stops and a final destination, and can also provide quick and efficient transportation between subareas within the Area. Although not required, the TCSP provides guidelines for the placement of micro-mobility stations and their maintenance.
o Element MO6 - Transit Drop-Off Zones: A drop-off zone refers to designated areas where taxis and services such as Santa Clarita Transit, and transportation network companies (for example Uber and Lyft), pick up or drop off passengers. The purpose of a zone is to provide a convenient and safe area for quick pick-ups and drop-offs without obstructing traffic flow. The TCSP requires at least two drop-off zones be located in the Valencia Town Center subarea, and one within each of the remaining subareas.
Guidelines are also provided about the location of drop-off zones and amenities that should be provided.
• Parking: Parking within the Area must provide direct, convenient access to shopping, dining, entertainment, employment, and residential opportunities in a manner that maximizes the efficient use of available space. The TCSP contemplates the utilization of wrapped, structured parking over surface parking because it serves to reduce the time and distance required for visitors, employees, and residents to travel between their vehicle and their ultimate destination, or destinations. Further, wrapped parking structures in alignment with signature vistas, public and common spaces, a robust pedestrian street scene, and an interconnected, on-site pedestrian network will create a more comfortable and visually interesting environment than traveling across open surface parking fields on foot. This encourages pedestrianism throughout the Area, and fosters a “park once” philosophy. Finally, a balanced on-site mix of uses will take advantage of shared parking opportunities between residential units and commercial space, both within the project and throughout the Area.
o Element PK1 - Parking Strategy: This element defines the parking strategy for the Area, and is based both on the existing context of existing parking on-site, as well as research performed on parking requirements from other similar commercial and mixed-use properties throughout Southern California. New commercial space would be parked at a rate of 3.5 spaces per 1,000 square feet, while both residential and hospitality projects would be parked a rate consistent with the UDC.
Implementation
Chapter three of the document outlines strategies for the implementation of the stated goals of both the TCSP and the development framework and standards. Together these strategies provide the regulatory framework for ensuring that a balanced mix of commercial and residential land uses occur throughout the plan area. The TCSP proposes a four-pronged approach that includes:
1. Comparison to Analyzed Buildout Scenarios: The explicit intent of the TCSP is to ensure that a balanced mix of uses is developed within the Area. Residential and non-residential uses must be provided in lock-step, with projects providing combinations of retail, dining, entertainment, hospitality, commercial, and residential uses on an ongoing basis as new development and redevelopment occurs within the Area. Both the Low and Full Buildout Scenarios analyzed with the project provide conceptual examples of the development framework and standards proposed in the TCSP and act as a general blueprint for comparison of future development projects. Although the actual buildout of the Area will occur over time and the physical location and square footage of structures, as well as the exact mix of land uses, will vary from the analyzed scenarios, all development must conform to a similar balance of commercial and residential land uses and be consistent with the urban form that is depicted in these scenarios.
2. Incentives for Mixed Use Development: A process that incentivizes mixed use development.
This process provides the potential for additional residential square footage with the inclusion of commercial square footage within the same project. Projects that only propose multi-family residential units must either provide a significant community amenity with their project, or it will not qualify for benefits that apply to mixed use projects, and be subject to review and approval by the Planning Commission.
3. Required Economic Study: A requirement for economic studies to be performed by developers to measure progress as the Area is built out. Specifically, these reports are triggered by proposed residential development over time and/or when proposed projects include the demolition of 25,000 square feet of existing commercial space or more.
4. Subarea Plan Submittal: An allowance for the City to have development plans submitted on a subarea basis, as opposed to a project-by-project basis.
In addition to providing implementation strategies focused on mixed use development within the Area, Chapter Three also provides other regulatory requirements associated with projects proposed within the TCSP including:
• Level of Service Analysis: New entitlement projects must submit a traffic study for review by the City. The purpose of these studies will be to identify impacts to the level of service
(LOS) on the street network surrounding the Area and identify mitigations in the form of physical, or other types of improvements that must be made to impacted intersections.
Funding of improvements to the impacted intersections will be made at the expense of the developer.
• Construction Management Plan: Following entitlement approval and prior to construction, all projects must create a construction management plan to detail short-term impacts to traffic, haul routes, and on-site parking and traffic management.
• Transportation Demand Management Plans: A transportation demand management plan must be submitted with all projects that include a commercial component that generates 50 full- time employees or more and/or includes a multi-family component of 100 residential units or more.
All development within the Area will be conducted by the private development community.
Similarly, all improvements will be funded by private developers, unless otherwise identified by the City.
Environmental
DEIR
The DEIR for the TCSP analyzed three conceptual buildout scenarios; the low and full buildout scenario and a high buildout scenario. The full buildout scenario includes approximately 2,200 residential units and nearly 600,000 square feet of net-new commercial space. The high buildout scenario exceeds the intensity of the full buildout scenario by 15 percent and was included to provide a more conservative analysis of the project.
The DEIR concluded that the following would result in less than significant impacts with mitigation:
• Cultural Resources
• Geology and Soils
• Hazards and Hazardous Materials
• Tribal Cultural Resources
All other areas were deemed to be less than significant without mitigation. Notably, because the Area is located within half a mile of the McBean Regional Transit Center, an identified major transit stop, and because the TCSP represents a regulatory document that will create a mix of uses with emphasis on alternative transportation within the urban center of Santa Clarita, the City’s vehicle miles traveled (VMT) ordinance requires no additional VMT analysis. An LOS analysis would be required for each new project within the Area in the Implementation chapter of the TCSP.
A summary of mitigation measures is included in the Executive Summary of the DEIR, which is attached.
The DEIR determined that the project would result in a significant and unavoidable impact on air quality related to a net increase in criteria pollutants. The TCSP’s operational emissions are generated by area sources, energy sources, and mobile sources. The net increase of operational emissions from the TCSP would not exceed the regional thresholds of significance established by the Southern California Air Quality Management Department, except for volatile organic compounds (VOC) under the full buildout scenario and VOC and PM10 (particulate matter) under the high buildout scenario. Therefore, the Project would result in a cumulatively considerable net increase in criteria pollutants for which the South Coast Air Basin is non- attainment under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards or the California Ambient Air Quality Standards.
However, the TCSP would not include any direct demolition or development. Future individual development projects within the Specific Plan would be required to comply with mitigation measures which require implementation of energy efficiency and transportation measures to reduce emissions to the extent feasible. In addition, the TCSP could result in fewer operational impacts on air quality than if the Area was built entirely under the current UDC.
Public Comments
The comment period for the DEIR began on March 5, 2024, and closed on April 29, 2024.
During that time, the City received written comments from the following parties:
• California Department of Toxic Substances Control;
• Los Angeles County Fire Department;
• Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department;
• Western States Regional Council of Carpenters (WSRCC); and • Sierra Club, Santa Clarita Chapter.
Comments received were generally regarding:
• Greenhouse gas emissions;
• Air quality emissions;
• The benefits of local hire policies; and
• The need to recirculate the DEIR.
A summary of responses to these comments is contained within the Planning Commission agenda report for its regular meeting on May 21, 2024. A complete response to comments is included in the DFEIR. This document is included in the reading file. Responses to comments were provided on June 15, 2024, to all agencies that provided comments.
Following the conclusion of the DEIR comment period, the City received additional comments from the WSRCC and from another organization, UNITE HERE Local 11. Comments from the
WSRCC did not raise any new, substantive issues, but did recommend a series of mitigation strategies to further reduce air quality emissions. Each of these is either addressed by the plan or represents a program the City currently implements. Further, projects that are submitted within the Area will be subject to additional mitigation measures at the discretion of the City beyond what is already required by the TCSP.
Similarly, UNITE HERE Local 11 comments did not raise any new issues regarding the adequacy of the DEIR and require no additional responses.
Noticing
All public noticing required by law has been completed including an advertisement placed in The Signal newspaper and by noticing all interested parties on June 4, 2024, as well as two sign postings on the project site on June 11, 2024.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION
Other actions as determined by the City Council.
FISCAL IMPACT
The project was funded entirely by a $500,000 LEAP Grant from the California Department of Housing and Community Development in September 2020. There is no impact to the General Fund. All financial obligations for future development would be the responsibility of project applicants.
ATTACHMENTS
Public Hearing Notice
Proposed Text Changes to the Town Center Specific Plan
Project Resolution
CEQA Resolution
Zone Change Ordinance
May 21 2024 Staff Report and Minutes (availible in the City Clerk's Reading file) April 16 2024 Staff Report and Minutes (availible in the City Clerk's Reading file)