CC MINS 20100330 ADJ MINUTES
RANCHO PALOS VERDES CITY COUNCIL
ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING
MARCH 30, 2010
The meeting was called to order at 6:03 P.M. by Mayor Wolowicz at Fred Hesse
Community Park, 29301 Hawthorne Boulevard, notice having been given with affidavit
on file.
City Council roll call was answered as follows:
PRESENT: Campbell, Long, Misetich, Stern, and Mayor Wolowicz
ABSENT: None
Also present were Carolyn Lehr, City Manager; Carolynn Petru, Deputy City Manager;
Carol Lynch, City Attorney; Dennis McLean, Director of Finance/Information
Technology; Joel Rojas, Community Development Director; Ara Mihranian, Principal
Planner; Candy McCormack, Recreation Leader II; and, Carla Morreale, City Clerk.
Also present were the following: William Gerstner, Chair of the Planning Commission;
Paul Martin, Registered Civil and Traffic Engineer, Robert Bein, William Frost (RBF) &
Associates Environmental Consulting; Rita Garcia, Environmental Impact Report (EIR)
Project Manager, RBF Consulting; and Jim Lancaster, City Geologist.
FLAG SALUTE:
The Flag Salute was led by Principal Planner Ara Mihranian.
CEREMONIAL:
Mayor Wolowicz recognized Recreation Leader Candy McCormack, for her five years of
service to the City Council, City Staff and the community assisting with late night City
Council Meetings.
APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA:
Councilman Misetich moved, seconded by Councilman Stern, to approve the agenda,
as presented.
Without objection, Mayor Wolowicz so ordered.
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
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March 30, 2010
Page 1 of 10
Suzanne Dean, Rancho Palos Verdes, Development Director, Shakespeare by the Sea,
requested funding for the Shakespeare by the Sea program planned to be held at
Hesse Park and in other venues in the community during the summer.
NEW BUSINESS:
APPROVAL OF CONSENT CALENDAR:
City Clerk Morreale reported that the Consent Calendar would include the addition of
Item 1B (Bail Schedule for Violations of Chapter 12.16 of the City's Municipal Code) on
the Addendum to the Agenda.
Councilman Stern moved, seconded by Councilman Misetich, to approve the Consent
Calendar, as amended.
The motion passed on the following roll call vote:
AYES: Campbell, Long, Misetich, Stern, and Mayor Wolowicz
NOES: None
Request to Reduce the Fees for Planning Applications and Building Permits to
the Amounts that were in Effect in May 2002, for the Sixteen (16) Vacant Lots
Owned by the Monks Plaintiffs in the "Zone 2" Area of the Portuguese Bend
Community (Planning Case No. ZON2002-00043)
Approved the reduction of the planning and building fees for the sixteen Monks lots.
Bail Schedule for Violations of Chapter 12.16 of the City's Municipal Code
ADOPTED RESOLUTION NO. 2010-20, A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES ESTABLISHING A BAIL SCHEDULE FOR
CERTAIN OFFENSES.
# # # # # #
PUBLIC HEARING:
Appeal of the Planning Commission's Conditional Approval of the Marymount
College Facilities Expansion Project: Conditional Use Permit No. 9 — Revision
"E," Grading Permit, Variance, Minor Exception Permit, Master Sign Permit and
Environmental Assessment (Case No. ZON2003-00317) Location: 30800 Palos
Verdes Drive East
City Clerk Morreale reported that notice of the public hearing was duly published with
written protests included with the staff report and late correspondence which was
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March 30, 2010
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distributed prior to the meeting. She reported that the City Council was reconvening the
public hearing from September 12, 2009, at which time the public hearing was
continued to a date uncertain and staff had re-noticed the public hearing in accordance
with State law. She reported that there were 25 requests to speak on the item.
Mayor Wolowicz provided introductory remarks and outlined the timeline and
procedures for the public hearing for the Marymount College Facilities Expansion
Project.
Councilman Stern moved to appeal the Mayor's ruling to limit the speaker's comments
to two minutes each instead of three minutes. The motion died for a lack of a second.
Mayor Pro Tern Long reported that he reviewed the DVD of the City Council Meeting of
February 16, 2010 from which he was absent and Appendix "D" was discussed. He
reminded that the proceeding before Council was a quasi judicial matter regarding
specific findings and conditions made by staff and the Planning Commission.
Councilman Stern and Mayor Pro Tern Long disclosed that they have each individually
met with members of Marymount College and the Concerned Citizen's Coalition/
Marymount Expansion (CCC/ME) on different occasions.
Principal Planner Mihranian provided a staff report and PowerPoint presentation
regarding the Appeal of the Planning Commission's Conditional Approval of the
Marymount College Facilities Expansion Project. The PowerPoint presentation
provided an overview report on the Appeal of the Marymount College Facilities
Expansion Project, including the existing facilities; the proposed square footage of the
project; the Planning Commission approval of the project with conditions; and appeal
process to date. He provided information on the project revisions including the
following: elimination of the residence halls from the original project; clarification and
refinement of the enrollment cap of 793 students; athletic building; increase of the
parking setback of the east parking lot at the Lower Terrace; reduction in the total
grading; remedial grading; drainage plan; and removal of the parking lot grass-crete
pavers. He commented on the approved site plan; proposed expansion of existing
buildings; addition of new buildings and walkways; certification of the EIR; two
significant and unavoidable impacts as presented in the Statement of Overriding
Considerations; academic programs and degrees currently offered and proposed to be
offered at Marymount College; enrollment cap; number of faculty and staff members;
hours of operation; athletic programs; and athletic field locations. He highlighted the
CCC/ME points of appeal to the project. He concluded with the staff recommendations
for the project relating to the athletic building and the east parking lot.
Council and staff discussion ensued.
Paul Martin, EIR Traffic Engineer, with Robert Bein, William Frost (RBF) &Associates
Environmental Consulting provided a brief overview of the Traffic and Parking analysis
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March 30, 2010
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that was conducted in connection to the site's present conditions and the proposed
project based on the September 12, 2009 proposed revisions. His presentation briefly
summarized potential changes to traffic and parking resulting from additional trips
relating to the introduction of the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree program and the
mitigation regarding the cumulative impacts to a less than significant level.
Jim Lancaster, City Geologist, answered Council questions regarding grading plans,
geology, and drainage plans.
Council and staff discussion ensued.
Lois Karp, CCC/ME, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that CCC/ME has never delayed the
project; CCC/ME has compromised several times regarding solutions to problems; there
was always an understanding that an appeal would be filed after the Planning
Commission's decision from the side that did not prevail; and, the proposed dormitories
were never completely excluded from the long-range plans by Marymount College. Ms.
Karp expressed the following CCC/ME's concerns regarding the appeal of the project:
insufficient visitor parking for public use in conjunction with student parking; the parking
setback area along San Ramon; grading plans and revisions to grading; grading
disturbance of the south-facing slope and stability of that land; the proposed eight years
of construction to build the project and problems with noise and an unsightly site; the
preferred location for the Athletic Building at the Palos Verdes Drive North campus; the
location, size, safety issues of the athletic field along Palos Verdes Drive East; the
proposed location for the modular buildings in the view corridor; the boxing and
preservation of mature trees; affordable housing; inadequacy of the EIR due to deferred
mitigations including the detaining or drainage basin; insufficient parking traffic impacts
and mitigations; the height of several of the two-story buildings; the statement of
overriding considerations for the project; inconsistency in the setbacks of the project;
conditions of approval, including geotechnical concerns, excessive grading, hours of
operation; compatibility of the project with the General Plan; and the feasibility of
Alternative No. 3 of the Split Campus Plan.
Council and staff discussed ensued regarding affordable housing, grading, hours of
operation, parking, maximum enrollment cap,
RECESS AND RECONVENE:
Mayor Wolowicz called a brief recess from 8:29 P.M. to 8:41 P.M.
Dr. Michael Brophy, President, Marymount College, stated that the Conditional Use
Permit (CUP) was full of examples of compromise citing an example that there are no
current conditions regarding hours of operation for the College campus, but the College
came to an agreement with the City through the Planning Commission regarding the
hours of operation.
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March 30, 2010
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Don Davis, Burke Williams and Sorenson, legal counsel for Marymount College, stated
that the goal of the College was to take the existing historic campus and turn it into a
more modern institution continuing to offer an education to local community, state,
national and international students with an education with the state-of-the-art facilities.
He reported that the College was requesting the denial of the appeal; certification of the
Final EIR (including Appendix A and D); re-approval of the project without staff
modifications; and consideration of minor revisions to the CUP. Mr. Davis stated that
the net new total of square footage for the project was 58,882 square feet with a
building footprint of less than 10 percent coverage for the site; and the need for an
athletic facility. He reported that the EIR findings demonstrated that the impacts of the
major project areas were fully mitigated except for the two following areas: short-term
construction noise and cumulative traffic at PVDE/PVDS intersection. He stated that
the EIR concluded that that split campus provided no substantial environmental
advantages regarding the construction noise and cumulative traffic impacts. He stated
that reducing the length of the overall construction timetable would not reduce the short-
term construction noise, nor could the college function as an educational institution due
to the current operations on the site. He stated that the project will bring significant
benefits to the community including a new library, lecture hall, and athletic facility; the
Palos Verdes North site is inadequate in size at 11.35 acres; and the athletic facility
belongs on the main Marymount College campus. He stated that the existing site for
the athletic field was considered by the college, but rejected because of problems with
the geology, soil erosion, and size constraints, which is the reason the field was moved
to the west side of the campus as supported by the environmental documents. He
stated that the EIR found that both the College's preferred original layout of the athletic
or Alternate D-2, the safety impacts could be mitigated; the overall design of the
campus was better with improved pedestrian circulation; parking would be located along
the borders so available parking would be obvious; parking was not a CEQA
consideration based on observed demand; parking demand on peak student use hours
versus non-peak hours; and the implementation of the parking management strategy
required to be submitted annually.
Michael Laughlin, Planner for Marymount College, Psomas, stated that once the
residence halls were removed from the project, the EIR determined that there would no
longer be a significant and unavoidable impact to the visual character of the south slope
with the athletic facility, as it was designed before staff's recommendation to reduce the
building by ten feet. He noted that reducing the size of the athletic building would
eliminate over 2600 square feet of area which was planned as office space, exercise
room, and snack bar; and noted that the building could not be moved back due to the
adjacent maintenance facility and retaining wall. He reported that there would be 10
acres of open space below the athletic facility and concluded that landscape screening
would not be necessary with the building as modified with a flat roof design. He
reported that the east parking lot redesign has a setback of 80 feet and 10,000 square
feet of open space which is more than adequate for the project. He reported that
Condition No. 159 protects the use of the driveway space along San Ramon Drive, with
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March 30, 2010
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a five foot landscape strip with restricted parking of faculty and staff from 7:00 A.M. to
10:00 P.M. only.
Scott Boydston, Architect for the Marymount College, Rasmussen and Associates,
stated that the grading for the site will be a balance of cut and fill; the artificial fill on the
south slope which is unstable will be removed and recompacted; and the site will retain
over 11 acres of undeveloped area. He noted that the Final EIR and geotechnical
reviews found the grading as conditioned, could be done without impact. He explained
the process of regrading the south slope to restore it to its natural contours and to
stabilize the slope; provided an overview of the overall proposed grading of the site for
the project; and briefly discussed the three phases of construction.
Don Davis, emphasized his earlier statement that there are no current conditions on
hours of operation for Marymount College and that there never have been through the
existing CUP, nor were there, in the City files, any documented complaints regarding
evening use of the campus. He noted that the library was currently open for studying
until 11:00 P.M., particularly during exam time, and that the auditorium has been used
for community events for 30 years. He stated that the College has requested the
following: 1) Construction periods over two full summer periods for the completion of
Phase 1 of the project due to the constraints of only being able to perform the work
during the summer months; and, 2) Reduction of the College's financial obligation to
fully fund the traffic signal at the Miraleste intersection to a fair share payment; and,
3) Elimination of the new proposed cap on outdoor events including religious services.
Discussion ensued between the City Council, staff, and the applicant.
Planning Commissioner Gerstner, responding to a question from Councilman Campbell,
stated that a median barrier along Palos Verdes Drive East at the curve was not
discussed at the Planning Commission although the mitigation measures were
discussed at length, including the 10 foot depression, setback from the street, and the
height and operation of the safety netting.
George Zugsmith, CCC/ME, Rancho Palos Verdes, commented on the traffic study
analysis, traffic count study, and number of trips as analyzed as part of the Draft
Environmental Impact Report (DEIR).
Jack Karp, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that he agreed with the previous speaker's
comments.
Jim Gordon, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that Marymount College's architect spoke
earlier, he omitted discussion of the sheer key grading at the site; commented on a
compliant athletic field location that was included in the late correspondence, which
addresses the safety issues, fire lane issues, reduces grading, reduces and eliminates
retaining walls, and displaces fewer parking spaces than the plan provided by staff.
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March 30, 2010
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Larry Clark, Rancho Palos Verdes, spoke in opposition to the Marymount Expansion
Project, opining that it does not appropriately balance the land use of the property and
noting that the athletic facility should be placed off site as previously planned on the
Palos Verdes Drive North campus.
Craig Whited, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that he was concerned regarding safety,
noise, a near fatality from a student who was driving illegally, the fatality resulting from
intoxication of a college driver, and the lack of institutional control from flying golf balls
from the College site.
Greg Mitre, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated he was concerned with safety issues related
to the potential of a catastrophic accident as a result of flying balls from the athletic
fields onto Palos Verdes Drive East, and issues regarding the grading of the south
slope.
Becky Clark, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that she had concerns regarding safety
issues related to the land use of the Marymount property; construction over the next
eight years; decrease in property values due to dormitories and traffic; traffic and
parking impacts; and, the hours of operation.
Ari Requicha, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that he had concerns regarding the
disturbances and destruction to the neighborhoods surrounding Marymount College and
safety issues regarding fire regulations.
Neil Nichols, Rancho Palos Verdes, spoke in opposition to the project.
Marc Harris, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that he agreed with the staff
recommendation regarding the increase to the east parking lot buffer; expressed
concerns with the excessive burden of 3 years of phased construction of the project
over eight years; and noted that the property given to Marymount College at the Palos
Verdes Drive North campus was documented at 13 acres.
Pat Carroll, Rancho Palos Verdes, referencing his PowerPoint presentation, stated that
much of what has been heard is hyperbole and provided statistics regarding the low
numbers of supporters from the immediate neighborhoods.
Paula Petrotta, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that Marymount College began as a small
girls' school that has continued to grow, and noted concerns with the traffic, dangers to
the community, length of construction, scope of the project, and parking.
Gary Mattingly, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that he had concerns with the possibility
of future residence halls at the site and length of construction of the project.
Don Ott, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that perhaps the temporary classes could be
held down at the Palos Verdes Drive North campus site; requested the preservation of
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March 30, 2010
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the mature pine trees on the extreme slope reducing the grading of the extreme slope;
and commented on his experience of fire trucks driving over numerous types of
surfaces, including golf courses, playing fields, dirt fire access roads.
Gregory Lash, Rancho Palos Verdes, spoke in support of the appeal on his behalf and
the behalf of two elderly residents who were not able to be present. He quoted a
section from the original CUP and noted that he believed the project would violate the
original conditions on land use grounds alone.
Petra Schneider, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that she has previously submitted
signatures from neighbors in opposition to the Marymount Expansion project; and
commented on the buildable lot size and the extreme slope of the project.
Dianne Bozler, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that she was present in support of the
appeal filed by CCC/ME.
Hans Bozler, Rancho Palos Verdes, thanked CCC/ME for their efforts; commented on
the aggregation of the traffic studies and hazards on the dangerous switchbacks, which
would increase the probability of serious accidents.
Tom Redfield, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that the safety issues regarding the
proximity of the athletic field to Palos Verdes Drive East could be resolved with slight
adjustments to the location of the athletic fields for Alternative D-1. He opined that the
athletic building, tennis courts, and soccer field could be placed at the Palos Verdes
Drive North site due to the size of that property.
Lynn Elliott, Rancho Palos Verdes, spoke in support of the Marymount College program
and the expansion project.
Craig Mueller, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated he had concerns with safety issues with the
location of the athletic field, the length of the construction of the project, and asked the
Council to consider a partial refund to the CCC/ME.
Dennis McLeod, Rancho Palos Verdes, spoke in support of the CCC/ME of the
Marymount Expansion Project, and noted concerns regarding the location of the athletic
field and tennis courts for reasons of safety, view impairment, and noise.
Grace Malolepshy, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated she had concerns with insufficient
parking on the Marymount College site when multiple simultaneous uses are taking
place on the same day; and noted concerns with the last heavy rain fall and the
landslide on 25th Street.
Susan Brooks, President, Mira Catalina Homeowner's Association, Rancho Palos
Verdes, spoke regarding concerns of safety for the students, faculty, and homeowners
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March 30, 2010
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in the community, noting existing concerns with the stabilization of the Tarapaca, San
Ramon and South Shores Landslides.
Lisa Vavic, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that she has concerns regarding the dangers
of errant balls flying on to Palos Verdes Drive East due to the location of athletic field;
relocation of the athletic building; and, hours of operation for the school district's outdoor
pools/gyms.
Alicia Maniatakis, Rancho Palos Verdes, spoke regarding her concerns with the three
landslides surrounding the Marymount College campus and stabilization of Palos
Verdes Drive East and Palos Verdes Drive South.
Discussion ensued between City Council Members and staff regarding the landslides;
drainage issues; location of the athletic fields; and concerns regarding the irrigation of
the athletic fields.
RECESS AND RECONVENE:
Mayor Wolowicz called a brief recess from 11:03 P.M. to 11:11 P.M.
Lois Karp, CCC/ME, in rebuttal, Rancho Palos Verdes, stated that the main concern of
CCC/ME is a land use issue and the impacts on the surrounding homes; supported the
suggestion of a permanent restriction on the south facing slope; reiterated the
importance of the revision to the hours of operation; and expressed the preference for
the Alternative D-1 location of the athletic field. She noted the feasibility of the
Alternative Plan for the athletic facility and athletic field at the offsite location at Palos
Verdes Drive North.
Dr. Michael Brophy, in rebuttal, stated that they are adding athletic and academic
programs to improve Marymount College for the residents and students, noting that
there is local support for the project. He requested the denial of the appeal and
suggested a neighborhood advisory group as a condition of the approval of the project.
He commented that Marymount College was not being hostile or blackmailing the
Council; the positive impact on the quality of life as a result of Marymount College and
the programs held on campus; and, the typical existence of a modern library, athletic
facility, and soccer field on a college or university campus. He commented on the
delays of the project; the consistent decision making of the leaders of the City of
Rancho Palos Verdes; support for the campus; and, the approval of high density
projects and developments that have been approved by the City.
Don Davis, in rebuttal, stated that much of the additions to the campus are physical
meeting spaces, computer labs, and an athletic facility; necessary additional trips and
safety issues related to traffic impacts with the split campus alternative; conditions on
the project restricting the use of the South slope and increasing the East parking lot
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March 30, 2010
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setback might reflect the taking of property as well as concerns regarding the buffer and
parking spaces.
Council and staff discussion ensued regarding the holding of a Closed Session prior to
the Regular Session tomorrow evening.
Mayor Wolowicz declared the public input portion of the public hearing closed.
Council and staff discussion ensued regarding concluding remarks and the continuation
of the meeting tomorrow evening.
Councilman Misetich moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Long, to continue the item to
tomorrow night, March 31, 2010 at 7:00 P.M.
ADJOURNMENT:
At 11:50 P.M., Mayor Wolowicz adjourned the meeting to Wednesday, March 31, 2010
at 7:00 P.M. at Hesse Park to continue the public hearing, which would be preceded by
a Closed Session.
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City Council Minutes
March 30, 2010
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