PC RES 2008-030 P.C. RESOLUTION NO. 2008-30
RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING I IO F THE I F
RANCHO PALOS VERDES RECOMMENDINGTHAT THE CITYCOUNCIL
CERTIFY A NEGATIVE DECLARATION PURSUANT TO THE CALIFORNIA
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACTFOR CASE NO. Z N27®00598, A
AMENDMENT T TITLE 17 (DEVELOPMENT CODE) OF THE CITY'S
MUNICIPAL CODE TO ENCOURAGE E IL I "
CONSTRUCTION.
WHEREAS, on March 6, 2007, after considering oral and written testimony, based
on a staff request, the City Council directed Staff to initiate a code amendment to
implement a green building program for private projects within the City; and
WHEREAS, it is necessary to amend Title 15 (Building Code) and Title 17
(Development Code) to provide City residents, architects, contractors and builders with
guidelines and an incentivized program for property owners to construct"green buildings"
that are energy and water efficient, utilize recycled and renewable materials, incorporate
new technologies focused on efficiency and alternative energy sources, and improve
indoor air quality; and,
WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act,
Public Resources Code Sections 21000 et. seq. ("CEQA"), the State's CEQA Guidelines,
California Code of Regulation, Title 14, Section 15000 et. seg., the City's Local CEQA
Guidelines, and Government Code Section 65962.5(f)(Hazardous Waste and Substances
Statement), the City of Rancho Palos Verdes prepared an Initial Study and determined that
there is no substantial evidence that the approval of ZON2007-00598 would result in a
significant adverse effect upon the environment and, therefore, a Negative Declaration has
been prepared and notice of same was given in the manner required by law; and,
WHEREAS, an Initial Study was prepared on April 12, 2008 and distributed for
circulation and review from April 12, 2008 through May 12, 2008; and,
WHEREAS, on April 12, 2008, notice of a public hearing on the proposed
amendments to Title 15 (Building Code) and Title 17 (Development Code)of the Municipal
Code was published in the Palos Verdes Peninsula News; and,
WHEREAS, copies of the draft Negative Declaration were distributed to the
Planning Commission, and prior to taking action on the proposed Municipal Code
Amendments, the Planning Commission independently reviewed and considered the
information and findings contained in the Negative Declaration; and,
WHEREAS, after notice issued pursuant to the requirements of the Rancho Palos
Verdes Development Code, the Planning Commission held a duly noticed public hearing
on May 13, 2008, at which time all interested parties were given an opportunity to be heard
and present evidence.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS
VERDES DOES HEREBY FIND, DETERMINE, AND RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
action 1: That ZON2007-00598, an Amendment to the City's Municipal Code, is
necessary to provide guidelines and an incentivized program for property owners to
voluntarily construct "green buildings."
Section 2: In addition to the adoption of a voluntary Green Building Program,the
City would benefit from specific mandatory green practices and development standards
that would be applicable to all new residential development applications; and
Section 3: The benefits of "green building" construction include, but are not
limited to the following: 1) a reduction of environmental impacts from home construction at
both a local and global level, 2) long-term savings through reduced energy and water
consumption, 3) increase the lifespan of a structure from the industry 40-year standard to
100+ years of sustainability, 4) provide certified recognition to a home owner for
constructing an environmentally friendly structure, and 5) reduction of output to existing
infrastructure and utilities, thereby increasing the lifespan of local infrastructure; and
Section 4. The proposed project is an amendment to the Rancho Palos Verdes
Municipal Code. Specifically, it amends Title 17 (Development Code) to incorporate a
Voluntary Green Building Program and establish mandatory green practices and
development standards for all proposed residential construction. The proposed
amendment will not create or result in any significant impacts to the General Plan, Zoning
Code, nor be in conflict with any applicable environmental plans or policies, be
incompatible with existing land uses, affect agricultural resources, or disrupt the physical
arrangement of the established community. Therefore,there will be no significant land use
or planning impacts associated with this project.
Section 5: The proposed project does not include any physical modifications or
alterations to existing land or structures. Any physical modifications or alterations to
existing land and/or structures as a result of the project objectives will be addressed
through separate environmental analysis consistent with CEQA. As such, there will be no
significant exposure to geological risks, nor any significant impacts to water resources, air
quality, transportation/circulation, biological resources, energy and mineral resources, no
significant hazardous conditions created, no significant noise impacts, no significant
impacts to public services, no significant impacts to utilities and service systems, no
significant aesthetic impacts, and no significant impacts to cultural and recreational
resources, as a result of the proposed project.
Section 6. For reasons discussed in the Initial Study,which is incorporated herein
by reference, the project would not have any potential to achieve short-term, to the
disadvantage of long-term, environmental goals, nor would the project have impacts which
are individually limited, but cumulatively considerable.
P.C. Resolution No. 2008-30
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Section a The proposed project does not include any physical modifications or
alterations of the existing land or structures. Any physical modifications or alterations to
existing land and/or structures as a result of the project objectives will be addressed
through separate environmental analysis consistent with CEQA. As such, the project does
not have the potential to degrade the quality of the environment, substantially reduce the
habitat of a fish or wildlife species, cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-
sustaining levels, threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community, reduce the number or
restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal or eliminate important examples
of the major periods of California history or prehistory. Further, for this reason, the
proposed project does not have impacts that are individually limited but cumulatively
considerable, nor have environmental effects that would cause substantial adverse effects
on human beings, directly or indirectly.
Section 8: For the foregoing reasons and based on its independent review and
evaluation of the information and findings contained in the Initial Study, Staff Reports,
minutes, and records of the proceedings, the Planning Commission has determined that
the project will not result in a significant adverse impact on the environment. Therefore, the
Planning Commission hereby recommends that the City Council certify the Negative
Declaration making certain environmental findings in association with Case No. ZON2007-
00598.
PASSED, APPROVED, AND ADOPTED this 9t" day of September 2008, by the following
vote:
AYES:Commissioner Knight, Ruttenberg, Tetreault, Tomblin, Vice Chairman Lewis,
Chairman Perestam
NOES: None
ABSTENTIONS: None
ABSENT: Commissioner Gerstner
RECDSALS: None
Stephan Perestam
Chairman
Joeloja , AicP
Direc or o Planni , Building and
Code orcement; and, Secretary
to the Planning Commission
P.C. Resolution No. 2008-30
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