Item Number: {{item.number}}
City Council / Board of Directors
Public Hearing(s)
Meeting of: December 19, 2023
Submitted By:
Scott Webb, City Planner
Subject:
Site Plan with Environmental Exemption and Zone Change from C-2 (General Commercial) to IDP (Industrial Park District) for a Wholesale Facility on Northwest Corner of Dos Palmas Road and Park Avenue
Recommendation:
That the Honorable City Council conduct a public hearing, receive public testimony, and take the following actions:
1) Find the Site Plan portion of the project categorically exempt under Section 15332 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) entitled “In-Fill Development Projects” and the Zone Change portion of the project exempt under CEQA Section 15061(b)(3); and
2) Introduce Ordinance No. 2447 for adoption and first reading by title only for the Zone Change portion of Case No. PLAN22-00027; and
3) Waive further reading in full of proposed Ordinance No. 2447; and 4) Adopt Resolution No. 23-099, approving the Site Plan portion of Case No.
PLAN22-00027.
Fiscal Impact:
There is no direct fiscal impact associated with the recommended actions. Any loss of potential tax revenue resulting from the change to an industrial zoning classification from a commercial zoning classification has been previously assessed in conjunction with the Land Use Element of the General Plan, which classifies the subject property as Light Industrial.
Strategic Plan Goal:
Approval of Ordinance No. 2447 to allow for the subject Zone Change and associated Resolution No. 23-099 that approves a Site Plan allowing for the construction of a new 3 3
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wholesale warehouse facility will enable the City to further fulfill the following Goals outlined in the 2023-2026 Strategic Plan:
•Goal A (Financial Sustainability) – Approval of this project will lead to its subsequent construction, which will require the collection of development impact fees as part of the permitting process. Development impact fees can then be used to offset the impact of the proposed development and the City services that it requires. •Goal C (Community and Economic Development) – Approval of this Zone Change and Site Plan to develop a new wholesale warehouse facility will allow for the retention of an existing wholesale business that will relocate to this site from their current nearby facility while also creating vacancies for new businesses. Additionally, the continued development in this vicinity, including public improvements to dedicated rights-of-way, will further improve the area and encourage and attract new businesses.
Background:
The applicant, Steeno Design Studio, Inc., has proposed the development of an approximately 26,850 square foot wholesale facility. The proposed tenant of the facility will be Desert Star Wholesale, who has operated from a nearby location since 2012 providing wholesale retail of bulk products intended for future sales at convenience stores. The project site is comprised of one parcel totaling approximately 1.6 acres in size and is located at the northwest corner of Dos Palmas Road and Park Avenue in the vicinity of existing small warehouse operations and directly south of the existing wholesale facility that Desert Star Wholesale will relocate from.
To accommodate this proposal, the applicant is requesting a Zone Change to reclassify the eastern portion of the project site from C-2 (General Commercial) to IPD (Industrial Park District) to match the western portion of the project site, which will bring the zoning into conformance with the current General Plan land use designation of Light Industrial.
The proposed Zone Change will result in a more consistent and compatible land use pattern that presently exists in the immediate vicinity of the proposal.
Due to the inclusion of a Zone Change in the proposal that requires final approval by the City Council, the Planning Commission took action following a public hearing on November 8th, 2023, recommending City Council approval of the project by a vote of 4-
0. The Planning Commission’s action allows the City Council to make a final determination on the project in its entirety, including both the Zone Change and Site Plan aspects of the proposal.
Discussion:
Zone Change
The proposed Zone Change will reclassify approximately 1.52 acres of land from C-2 (General Commercial) to IPD (Industrial Park District) where wholesale establishments are permitted by-right. The project site currently contains two separate zoning designations, where the western portion is zoned IPD the easterly portion is zoned C-2.
The proposed zone change to IPD will rectify this issue of mixed zoning and will result in a more consistent zoning pattern in the area.
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The City’s General Plan Land Use Element recently underwent an update which reclassified the entire project site to a Light Industrial land use designation. An upcoming City-initiated Zone Change will take place within the coming months to bring the zoning of affected parcels into conformance with their updated General Plan land use designation. This would include the rezoning of the C-2 portion of the site to IPD zoning.
However, since this project has a more accelerated timeline than the City-initiated Zone Change proposal, a preemptive Zone Change request is being made by the applicant of this project.
Site Plan
The project has been designed in accordance with all development standards outlined in Title 16 of the of Municipal Code (Development Code) for an IPD Zone District, as well as in compliance with the Industrial Design Guidelines that will provide for a unique and enhanced development that is mindful of the built environment surrounding the project site. The proposed development includes conformance with required parking, landscaping, setbacks, building height standards, and will include the installation of a refuse collection enclosure and street improvements.
The proposed wholesale facility is well designed and in accordance with the City’s Industrial Design Guidelines. As proposed, the building elevations provide variation in wall planes and parapet heights, with various materials, colors and textures. The building will be constructed with concrete tilt-up panels and enhanced architectural features and colors on the street facing front elevation and corner. The proposed building’s exterior color palette will be comprised of various shades of grey, blue, and white. Decorative building elements include freestanding wall panels at the entrance and visible corner of the building, horizontal tiled panel inlays with reveals, parapets with decorative cutouts, and metal canopies. Copies of the plans can be viewed within Attachment D.
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Environmental Assessment
The 1.6-acre site is located on a previously disturbed and graded property in an urban infill environment. Pursuant to Section 15332 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) entitled “In-Fill Development Projects”, new construction of a building on a site less than five acres in size that is surrounded by urban uses can be found Categorically Exempt from CEQA if the project meets certain benchmarks. In accordance with the noted CEQA Section 15332, Staff finds that the Site Plan portion of the subject proposal meets said benchmarks and is Categorically Exempt from CEQA because:
•The project site is less than five acres in size and surrounded by and abutting urban development including multi-tenant and single-tenant warehouse developments to the north and west, a car dealership to the south, and an automotive repair and maintenance facility ancillary to that car dealership to east; •The proposal will be consistent with the underlying General Plan and proposed zoning regulations given that wholesale facilities are a permitted use in the proposed IPD (Industrial Park District) Zone District;
•The site has no value as habitat for rare, endangered, threatened, or special status species given its previously disturbed and graded state with active use as ancillary parking for neighboring businesses;
•The development can be served by all required utilities and public services given sufficient water and sewer infrastructure exist and are accessible to the site; and •Approval of the project will not result in any significant effects to traffic, noise, air or water quality since the use is permitted and located within a developed industrial park with access to completed roadways, submitted water quality plans in accordance with the City’s Small MS4 permit, and existing development standards that ensure compliance with the City’s noise ordinance and air quality requirements.
The Zone Change component of the project is also separately exempt under the “common sense” exemption, CEQA Section 15061(b)(3), because it can be seen with certainty that the adoption of the zoning reclassification will not have a significant effect on the environment. Given that the proposed zoning reclassification to IPD is consistent with the General Plan land use designation for the property, CEQA Section 15061(b)(3) is applicable in this case.
Attachments: A. Ordinance No. 2447 (Zone Change)
B. Resolution No. 23-099 (Site Plan)
C. Zone Change Graphic
D. Site Plan Graphics
E. Background information from the November 8 th, 2023 Planning Commission Meeting
F. Aerial Image