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CC RES 1997-049RESOLUTION NO. 97 -49 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES APPROVING A "413" PERMIT TO ALLOW THE REMOVAL OF COASTAL SAGE SCRUB HABITAT IN CONJUNCTION WITH VESTING TENTATIVE TRACT MAP NO, 46628 (SUBREGION 1) WHEREAS, on March 17, 1992, the City Council approved Conditional Use Permit No. 158 and Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 46628 for a Residential Planned Development with 79 single family lots and 5 open space lots on a 132 acre vacant site located seaward of the terminus of Palos Verdes Drive West and Hawthorne Boulevard, between Lunada Pointe on the north and the Point Vicente Interpretive Center on the south; and, WHEREAS, as part of the dedication of nearly 71 acres of open space to the City, the project is conditioned to preserve certain areas of the site for wildlife habitat and to enhance the existing Coastal Sage Scrub habitat areas for use by the California gnatcatcher; and, WHEREAS, the subject property was recently purchased by J.M. Peters Company, who wishes to proceed with the approved Vesting Tentative Tract Map; and, WHEREAS, shortly after the approval of the project in 1992, the California gnatcatcher was listed as a federally threatened species and the City enrolled in the Natural Communities Conservation Planning (NCCP) program. In order for the developer to remove Coastal Sage Scrub habitat on the property prior to the adoption and certification of the City's NCCP program, the City must issue a special approval ( "4d" Permit), and the United States Department of Fish and Wildlife must concur with the issuance of this permit; and, WHEREAS, in order to concur with the issuance of the 4d Permit, the Unites States Fish and Wildlife Service has requested that the developer slightly modify the layout of the approved Vesting Tentative Tract Map, in order to provide a better connection between the habitat areas on the subject site and other habitat areas in the area, particularly the City Hall (upper Pointe Vicente Park) property. City Staff determined that the minor modification to the approved map would require a determination that the map was in substantial conformance with approved Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 46628; and, WHEREAS, on February 14, 1997, the J.M. Peters Company submitted a request to the Department of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement that the City Council issue a "4d" permit in conjunction with approved Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 46628; and, WHEREAS, on February 25, 1995, the Planning Commission adopted P.C. Resolution No. 97 -12 forwarding a recommendation to the City Council that the "information only" map was in substantial conformance with Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 46628 approved by the City in 1992; and, WHEREAS, on March 11 and June 3, 1997, the City Council held a hearing on the requested "4d" permit, at which time all interested parties were given an opportunity to be heard on the present evidence. NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL DOES HEREBY FIND, DETERMINE AND RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS: Section 1: The habitat loss does not cumulatively exceed the 5% guideline, since the total amount of Coastal Sage Scrub within the City boundaries as of March 25, 1993 has be calculated at 1,267.6 acres. Therefore, 5% of this amount of habitat equates to 63.4 acres that could potentially be removed prior to the adoption of the NCCP. The proposed project would result in the loss of 7.14 acres of existing Coastal Sage Scrub habitat. If all of the development projects previously approved by the City, including the proposed project, and proposed City public works projects are implemented, the total amount of interim loss would be less than the 5% maximum loss. Additional habitat will also be created as a result of the mitigation required in Section 5 of this Resolution. Section 2: The habitat loss will not preclude or prevent connectivity between areas of high habitat value. The enhanced Coastal Sage Scrub to be provided on the site will be within the line of site of similar habitat located across Palos Verdes Drive South on the City Hall property and the slope below the Los Verdes Golf Course. As evidenced by the occupation of the site in 1991 by a pair of gnatcatchers, when all of the current barriers also existed, the line of sight connection may be sufficient to allow use of the enhanced habitat area by the California gnatcatcher. Due to the fact that the existing habitat on the site is of low quality, the site has been unoccupied for a number of years by gnatcatchers, and this area will probably be on the northern extreme of the NCCP habitat preserve area, it is possible that the NCCP effort may determine that a connection is not needed or that the limited resources available for implementing a Coastal Sage Scrub preserve s stem are put to better use in another portion of the planning subarea. Notwithstanding the above, increased connectivity would be provided for in the form of the modifications to the approved vesting tentative tract map that were approved b the City Council on March 11 Y Y , 1997. Resolution No. 97 -49 Page 2 of 5 Section 3: The habitat loss would not preclude or prevent the preparation of a NCCP final preserve plan. The subject property was mass graded in 1972 in preparation for the development of a high density, multiple - family residential project. However, the project was abandoned and in the intervening years, a small amount of Coastal Sage Scrub habitat has reestablished on the property. Although the EIR prepared for the original project documented that the site was occupied by a pair of California gnatcatchers in 1991, the birds have not documented on the site since that time. Accordingly, it can be inferred that the habitat is not currently of high value to the species. This fact, in combination with the very small amount of Coastal Sage Scrub that would be removed, would not preclude or prevent the preparation of a NCCP final preserve plan. Section 4: The habitat loss has been minimized to the maximum extent practicable. In 1992, the project was conditioned to preserve and enhance a minimum of 15 acres of Coastal Sage Scrub habitat on Open Space Lot No. 80 for a California gnatcatcher reserve. This requirement was based on the fact that Open Space Lot No. 80 included the portion of the site that was being used by a pair of gnatcatcher in 1991. In addition, the landowner was required to re- vegetate Open Space Lot No. 82 (along the bluff top) with "native vegetation." The USFWS has requested that the current project preserve and enhance a minimum of 30 acres of Coastal Sage Scrub on the site. The level of mitigation for the previous and currently proposed project exceeds the 3:1 replacement of Coastal Sage Scrub which is typically required for projects of this type. Therefore, since Open Space Lot No. 80 will still be preserved as part of the modified project and the USFWS has still requested that 15 acres of Coastal Sage Scrub be re- vegetated, habitat loss has been minimized and mitigated to the maximum extent possible. Section The habitat loss will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of survival and recovery of listed species in the wild. The California gnatcatcher has not been documented as using the subject property for foraging or breeding since 1991. Therefore, it is unlikely that removal of the habitat will have an immediate or direct impact on the species. In addition, with the proposed mitigation, which includes 30 acres of habitat replacement, the amount and quality of Coastal Sage Scrub habitat in the area will be increased dramatically over existing levels, thereby increasing the likelihood of survival and recovery of the California gnatcatcher, as well as other sensitive Coastal Sage Scrub species. Section 6: Habitat loss is incidental to otherwise lawful activities. The habitat loss would be associated with the development of Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 46628, which was approved by the City in 1992. Therefore, the removal of the habitat would be incidental to the development of 79 single family residential lots, public recreational facilities and associated infrastructure, such as streets and utilities, which are lawful activities under the City's General Plan, Coastal Specific Plan and Zoning Map. Resolution No. 97-49 Page 3of5 Section 7: On March 17, 1992, the City Council certified Final Environmental Impact Report No. 35 for the proposed project, including the associated Mitigation Monitoring Program and Statement of Overriding Considerations. Since the issuance of the "4d" permit would be in substantial conformance with the approved project and substantially less than the project analyzed in EIR No. 35, the issuance of the permit will not result in any new significant impacts that were not identified in the certified EIR. In addition, substantial changes to the project would not occur with respect to the circumstances under which the project is undertaken which would require revision to the certified EIR, since there are no new significant environmental impacts that were not considered in the certified EIR, 'and there is no new information of substantial importance to the project which indicates that the project will have one or more significant effects not discussed previously in the EIR. Therefore, the Environmental Impact Report previously certified for the proposed project is adequate and does not require any further analysis or revision. Section 8: The time within which the judicial review of the decision reflected in this Resolution, if available, must be sought is governed by Section 1094.6 of the California Code of Civil Procedure. Section 9: For the foregoing reasons and based on the information and findings included in the Staff Report, Minutes, other records of proceedings and testimony provided at the meeting of March 11 and June 3, 1997, the City Council hereby approves the issuance of a "4d" permit for Vesting Tentative Tract Map No. 46628, in accordance with "information only" map submitted to the City on February 20, 1997 pursuant to the requirements of the Natural Communities Conservation Planning Process Guidelines. PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED this 3rd day of June 1997. Ile bR ATTEST: CITY CLERK STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES )ss CITY OR RANCHO PALOS VERDES ) Resolution No. 97 -49 Page 4 of 5 I, Jo Purcell, City Clerk for the City of Rancho Palos Verdes, hereby certify that the above Resolution No. 97-49 was duly and regularly passed and adopted by the said City Council at a regular meeting held on June 3, 1997. N:\ GROUP \PLANNING\RESOS \CC \TTM46628.4D Jo�urcell, City Clerk Ci of Rancho Palos Verdes Resolution No. 97 -49 Page 5of5