Item Number: 1
City Council / Board of Directors
Public Hearing(s)
Meeting of: July 15, 2025
Submitted By:
Alex Jauregui, City Planner
Subject:
An Amendment to the Victorville Municipal Code introducing various updates to Title 16 including but not limited to Land Use Table 7-1 to conditionally permit medical and dental offices within the IPD (Industrial Park District) zone; and a Site Plan and Conditional Use Permit with an environmental exemption to allow for the development of a new medical/professional office building on a vacant parcel zoned IPD with a deviation from Victorville Municipal Code design guidelines to allow a drive aisle at the rear of the property without requiring the inclusion of a 5-foot wide landscape planter.
Recommendation:
That the Honorable City Council:
(1) Open and conduct a Public Hearing to receive public testimony; (2) Close the Public Hearing;
(3) Find the Code Amendment exempt pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); and find the Site Plan portion of the project Categorically Exempt pursuant to CEQA Section 15332 entitled “In-Fill Development Projects”;
(4) Introduce Ordinance No. 2457 for adoption and first reading by title only to amend Title 16 of the Victorville Municipal Code to conditionally allow medical and dental offices within the IPD Zone District;
(5) Waive a further reading in full of proposed Ordinance No. 2457; (6) Adopt Resolution No. 25-054 approving the Conditional Use Permit portion of Case No. PLAN25-00002, subject to the attached conditions of approval; and (7) Adopt Resolution No. 25-055 approving the Site Plan portion of Case No. PLAN25- 00002, subject to the attached conditions of approval.
Fiscal Impact:
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There is no direct fiscal impact associated with this action; however, conditionally allowing for medical and dental offices within the IPD zone district included in this proposal will broaden land use allowances throughout the City, resulting in increased development impact fee collection for new developments as well as increased licensing and property tax revenue for the City. Revenue increases resulting from fee collection, licensing, and taxes is unknown at this time.
Strategic Plan Goal:
Approval of Ordinance No. 2457 as well as the Site Plan and Conditional Use Permit portions of Planning Case No. PLAN25-00002 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 create revenue that 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) – The proposed Victorville Municipal Code amendment includes a modification to land use allowances that will add medical and dental offices as a conditional use within the Industrial Park District zone and create more tax generating opportunities. These proposed changes will assist the City in attracting new businesses to the community and support the economic vitality and preservation of the community as outlined in the Strategic Plan.
Executive Summary:
As analyzed in the following discussion, the proposed changes to Title 16 of the Victorville Municipal Code include an expansion of allowances for medical and dental office uses within the Industrial Park (IPD) zone.
Additionally, the proposal includes utilizing the above noted amendment to Victorville Municipal Code (VMC) to allow for the development of a new approximately 8,100 square foot multi-tenant professional and medical office building on an approximately one-acre undeveloped property located east of and abutting Business Center Drive, approximately 200' south of Industrial Center Drive.
The full text and graphic depiction of the proposed changes to the Victorville Municipal Code (including existing and deleted text) are located in the attached Ordinance (Attachment B). An accompanying analysis of the amendment proposal, Conditional Use Permit request and Site Plan request are included in the following “Discussion” section of this report.
Background:
On June 11, 2025, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended City Council approval of Case No. PLAN25-00002 via the adoption of Planning Commission Resolutions No. P-25-015, P-25-016, and P-25-017 (Attachment E). Included in this proposal by the applicant, Pontious Architecture, approval was requested for a Site Plan 4 2
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and Conditional Use Permit to allow for the development of an approximately 8,100 square foot multi-tenant professional and medical office building on an approximately 4 2
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one-acre property located east of and abutting Business Center Drive and approximately 200' south of Industrial Center Drive. The proposed building includes three individual suites: one designed for a medical office, the second for a professional office, and a third suite with no designated user at this time.
Current land use allowances within Title 16 of the Victorville Municipal Code prohibit medical offices within the IPD zone district. Therefore, to facilitate the Site Plan and Conditional Use Permit proposal, which includes a medical office, the proposal includes an amendment to Title 16 of the Victorville Municipal Code to conditionally allow for medical and dental offices within the IPD zone district.
Discussion:
Proposed Code Amendment Summary
The proposed Code Amendment will conditionally allow for additional land uses within the City’s IPD zone district, as outlined in the following VMC section:
Section 16-3.07.010: Table 7-1 - Permitted and conditional land uses – All Zoning Districts Added “medical/dental office” as a conditionally permitted use within the IPD zone district.
Proposed Code Amendment Analysis
An “Office Building” is defined within Section 16-1.03.010 of the Development Code as:
“a building in which the majority of square footage that, by virtue of its design, is used or intended for use to provide a service and does not involve the retail sales of wares.” Given the similarities between general office uses and medical/dental offices, in that neither involve retail sales, conditionally allowing medical and dental offices would result in consistency for general office uses within the IPD zone district and coordinate the uses with the existing definition of “Office Building”. Conditional approvals will ensure that future proposals are appropriately located and developed to minimize any potential adverse impacts.
This proposal is also supported by the General Plan, which aims to provide balanced growth through specific Goals, Objectives, and Policies. Specifically, Goal #1, Policy LU- B.4 of the Land Use Element of the General Plan addresses integration of compatible uses that complement the industrial uses and serve the needs of their employees, such as restaurants, health clubs, business service uses, and other similar supportive uses.
Staff finds that medical/dental offices would serve the needs of adjacent businesses within the Light Industrial land use designations in accordance with the noted Goals/Policies of the General Plan.
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Conditional Use Permit
Adoption of Ordinance No. 2457 would result in medical offices becoming a conditionally permitted land use type within the IPD zone district. Pursuant to Section 16-3.02.050 of the Development Code, the Planning Commission has determined the proposed development and requested Conditional Use Permit comply with the following required findings:
The proposed location of the conditional use is in accord with the objectives and requirements of the Development Code.
The proposed location of the conditional use and the conditions under which it will be operated is consistent with the General Plan and will not be detrimental to the public health, safety, and welfare or materially injurious to uses, properties or improvements in the vicinity.
The traffic generated by the proposed conditional use will not overload the capacity of the surrounding street system and will not create a hazard to public safety. The proposed conditional use will comply with each of the applicable provisions of the “Zoning and Land Use Requirements” chapter of Title 16.
Inasmuch as the above findings are required by the VMC, the Planning Commission made the noted findings based upon consistency with the applicable components of the General Plan (e.g. Land Use Element), compliance with the development standards outlined in Title 16 of the Development Code, and no finding of adverse impacts resulting from the proposal with the inclusion of the recommended conditions of approval.
Therefore, at the recommendation of the Planning Commission in accordance with Section 16-3.02.050 of the VMC, the subject Conditional Use Permit is presented for approval by the City Council, which requires the adoption of Resolution No. 25-054 pursuant to Section 16-2.05.010 of the VMC given the projects inclusion of a Municipal Code Amendment.
Site Plan
The project has been designed in accordance with most development standards outlined in Title 16 of the Municipal Code (Development Code) for the IPD zone district and the Industrial Design Guidelines, including conformance with required parking, access, setbacks, and building height standards. Site Plan Resolution No. 25-055 includes a deviation from landscaping standards to eliminate the requirement for a five-foot-wide landscape planter at the rear of the site to accommodate a two-way drive aisle width and emergency access around the rear of the building, as previously approved by the Planning Commission pursuant to Section 16-3.24.110(f) of the Municipal Code. In lieu of this planter, the site design includes features that exceed Development Code standards such as larger landscape planters throughout the site with mature live landscaping, and a decorative block wall along the rear property line.
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The multi-tenant building consists of a modern design aesthetic with multiple façades and finishes, including pronounced entry features, cantilevered roof systems, wall plane and roof line changes throughout, distinct recessed walkways, and increased parapet heights.
Metal wall paneling, smooth finish stucco, storefront glass, and mid-century breezeway block was utilized to accentuate aspects of the overall building design. Copies of the plans can be viewed within Attachment E.
Environmental Assessment
Since it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility the amendment to Title 16 of the City Municipal Code will have a significant effect on the environment given that the proposed amendment will conditionally allow for additional land uses within the IPD zone district, the proposal does not modify existing codes in a manner that will negatively affect the environment and because each individual project is subject to a separate environmental analysis, this portion of the proposal is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA guidelines.
Additionally, the .97-acre site is located on a previously disturbed 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 commercial and warehouse developments to the east and west, and an automotive repair facility to the south;
The proposal, contingent upon the associated Code Amendment adoption, is consistent with the underlying Light Industrial General Plan land use designation and zoning regulations within the Light Industrial zone district as medical/dental and professional office uses are conditionally permitted; 4 2
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The project site has been previously disturbed and cleared of all vegetation and is not considered sensitive habitat for the Western Joshua Tree as determined by the biological pe-construction survey.
The development can be served by all required utilities and public services given sufficient water and sewer infrastructure 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 proposed development is located within a mostly developed area with access to completed roadways, the submitted water quality plans are in accordance with the City’s Small MS4 permit, and existing development standards will ensure compliance with the City’s noise ordinance and air quality requirements
Prepared By:
Casandra Erskine, Associate Planner
Attachments:
A. Location Map
B. Ordinance No. 2457 (Municipal Code Amendment)
C. Resolution No. 25-054 – Conditional Use Permit
D. Resolution No. 25-055 – Site Plan
E. Site Plan Graphics
F. Planning Commission Staff Report & Attachments – June 11, 2025