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CC MINS 19990208 ADJMINUTES RANCHO PALOS VERDES ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING CITY COUNCIL & PLANNING COMMISSION WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 8, 1999 The meeting was called to order at 7:00 P.M. by Mayor Hollingsworth at Fred Hesse Community Park, 29301 Hawthorne Boulevard, notice having been given with affidavit thereto on file. After the Pledge of Allegiance, roll call was answered as follows: City Council PRESENT: Byrd, Ferraro, McTaggart, and Mayor Hollingsworth ABSENT: None LATE ARRIVAL: Lyon (arrived at 7:56 PM) Planning Commission PRESENT: Alberio, Clark, Lyon, Paris, Slayden, and Chair Cartwright ABSENT: Vannorsdall Also present were City Manager Les Evans; Assistant City Manager Carolynn Petru; City Attorney Carol Lynch; Director of Planning, Building & Code Enforcement Joel Rojas; Principal Planner Dave Snow; and, Recording Secretary Jackie Drasco. APPROVAL OF AGENDA: It was the consensus to approve the agenda as presented. Introduction and Format of Workshop Mayor Hollingsworth explained that the workshop would be composed of three parts: developer presentation, speakers, and comments from the City Council and the Planning Commission. City Manager Evans said that this workshop would include preliminary discussion of a complicated proposed project and provide important feedback from the City Council and the Planning Commission regarding their concerns, but that no action would be taken at this meeting. Principal Planner Snow presented the February 8, 1999 staff report which recommended that the Council and the Planning Commission hear brief presentations from staff and the project applicant, take public testimony regarding the draft proposal, and provide staff and the applicant with preliminary comments on issues and concerns with the proposed project. Continuing, Mr. Snow gave an overview of the staff report which presented details on the background, regulatory issues, environmental /project issues, and City as landowner issues. Long Point Project Jim York, owner of 420 acres in Rancho Palos Verdes, said that he was not a real estate developer but had hired Lowe Enterprises and its subsidiary, Destination Hotels and Resorts, experienced developers, operators and owners of resorts, to manage the project for him. He explained that the plan was an improvement over the one he presented three years ago: this plan was more environmentally sensitive and more economically viable. Bob Lowe, Chairman of Lowe Enterprises, described the real estate and resort investment, development and management activities and a history of the stability of his Los Angeles based company. Additionally, he explained his experience in working with government agencies and providing projects compatible with the community. He showed a video which described resorts he had developed or managed. Bob Glazier, of Hill Glazier Architects, explained his firm's specialty of designing hotels in California, specifically along the coastline, and showed slides illustrating his practice of designing buildings with architectural style compatible with the environment and community. Mike Mohler, Project Manager from Destination Hotels and Resorts, showed slides indicating the additional parcels of land needed to complete the project and described past and anticipated meetings with residents to obtain input and address concerns. He summarized environmental issues, the 400 -room hotel, the 75 attached resident villas, the 15 to 20 detached residence villas, and the ten miles of trails proposed for the project. He then provided estimates of revenue from transient occupancy tax, sales tax, and property tax and the benefit of increased property values resulting from the project. He closed by explaining a proposed timeline for the development of the project. City Manager Evans described the sizes and ownership of the various parcels needed for the project, including land owned by the City, Los Angeles County, the U.S. Coast Guard, and two private owners. He explained that the residences, the resort, and five City Council /Planning Commission Workshop Minutes February 8, 1999 Page 2 holes of golf would be on the York property and the remaining holes of golf were proposed to be on the other parcels. He explained the requirement for General Plan and Coastal Specific Plan amendments and a zone change. Continuing, he said that the 80 acres in Upper Point Vicente Park (Civic Centers deeded from the Department of the Interior did have certain restrictions but could be used for public recreation managed by a concessionaire. He described zone changes needed for some of the other parcels owned by the County, the Coast Guard, and private entities, as well as environmental mitigation requirements and approval by the Coastal Commission. Principal Planner Snow presented the process this proposed project would follow: a finalized specific plan, E.I.R. Preparation, Planning Commission and City Council public hearings on the General Plan and Coastal Specific Plan amendments to create consistency between documents, zone changes, and the EIR followed by Coastal Commission approval. Revisions made at Coastal Commission level would be reviewed by the City Council for final consideration. Then, after these general approvals, specific details would be provided by the developer to seek actual entitlements, such as a tract map and a CUP for construction of the project. Council discussion covered the following concerns: the economic feasibility of the previously pp approved plan for this area; that the main part of the proposed hotel and trails are back further from the bluff but that the golf course is closer; habitat mitigation on the California Pacific Holdings (CPH) property (subregion 1), and the requirement for as much or more habitat as the section of the CPH property; protection of the blufftop; the likelihood of a Coastal Commission requirement for blufftop trails; the matter of safety and keeping golf balls away from the highways and the Pt. Vicente Interpretative Center (PVIC) without the use of netting or high berms; the fact that golf is considered active open space; and, if it was possible to use reclaimed water for irrigation on the golf course. Planning Commission questions and concerns centered on the following: This golf course could be considered a public recreational use, privately operated and open to the public; the possible requirement for a traffic signal at the entrance to the facility; and, p p q whether tunnels and or /bridges under or over the highway to travel from one part of the golf course to another would be necessary. The developer explained the need for additional parcels of land to provide an 18 -hole golf course as an activity for the hotel, otherwise, the resort would not be feasible; the possible problems with coastal setbacks and Coastal Commission approval; the abandonment of the idea of building a City Hall as part of this project in order to separate the projects; that having two golf courses (this one and Ocean Trails) made this proposed resort more attractive; that it was common to have a residential City Council /Planning Commission Workshop Minutes February 8, 1999 Page 3 component within a resort; and, that the golf course seemed spread out because the design had to take into account steep slopes, protection of habitat, and preservation of the former missile silos. Recess and Reconvene: At 8:35 P.M., Mayor Hollingsworth declared a recess. The meeting reconvened at 8:50 P.M. Audience Comments Donald Pehrson, 8 Shadow Lane, Rolling Hills Estates 90274, said he believed a hotel without a golf course and residences would not be successful. John Douglass, 62 Via Capri, representing Villa Capri Homeowners Association, said that the members of his association are concerned about ingress and egress in emergencies and drainage issues, adding that the developer had begun to give them satisfactory answers. He stated that he had spoken to the City Manager in Coronado and he praised Destination Hotels and Resorts for abandoning a contentious plan to work satisfactorily with the community and providing the best master plan he had seen for such a facility. (Mr. Douglass' statement is on file with the City Clerk's Office) Lynn Swank, 8 Seacove Drive, President of the Los Serenos de Point Vicente, explained that her group of 120 worked as volunteers at Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center, Abalone Cove, and Ladera Linda. She objected to the proposed use of a net around the Interpretative Center to protect it from golf ball and was concerned that the portion of adjacent land to be used for golf was currently a wildlife habitat which made up about two- thirds of their tour. Denny Miller, 4040 Palos Verdes Drive North, Rolling Hills Estates 90274, representing the Palos Verdes Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, said that he supported business on the Peninsula and was in favor of the project. Jim Malakoff, 30017 Via Riviera, spoke in favor of the project, believing that it would be something of which the community could be proud. Ilse Oetiker, 6504 Via Baron, objected to the residential element of the project and was concerned that the coastline would not be visible from the highway. Suzie Park, 28019 Ridgebrook Court, President of the Palos Verdes Peninsula League of Women Voters, described the goals of her organization and believed the use of public land should be considered very carefully. City Council /Planning Commission Workshop Minutes February 8, 1999 Page 4 Juan Forteza, 4021 Via Larga Vista, Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274, believed the undeveloped site would be improved by a project which was planned intelligently. Robert Haase, 20 Sea Cove, objected to City land being used by a developer, stating that the land belongs to the residents and visitors to the City. He believed that the deed restrictions from the federal government would not allow this type of use of public land and felt it was a waste of time to consider the details of the project before land use issues were settled. The mayor asked that copies of the deed be made available to the public at the libraries and at City Hall. Jim Knight, 5 Cinnamon Lane, was concerned about increased traffic; additional lighting to lessen enjoyment of the starlit sky; and, use of public land for what he considered private use. Gar Goodson, 1709 Via Zurita, Palos Verdes Estates 90274, founder of Save our Coastline 2000 and the Coastal Conservation Coalition, which includes the Sierra Club, South Bay Audubon Society, California Native Plant Society, Palos Verdes Peninsula Horsemen's Association, and Endangered Habitat League, said that he considered this an unsuitable project because it involved the use of land deeded to the City by the federal government. He was concerned also about loss of open space, particularly in Subregion 1, reduced public access to the blufftops and a threat to the California Gnatcatcher. He said that CEQA mitigation areas cannot be used later for development and that he opposed the loss of land adjacent to the Pt Vicente Interpretive Center for picnicking, walking and agricultural use. Susan McNeill, 32735 Seagate, "E ", commended the property owner for bringing in a quality organization to develop the project and felt that it would be an asset to the community while maintaining the integrity of Pt. Vicente Interpretative Center and relocating habitat. Sharon Cowley, 6331 Tarragon Road, was opposed to using public land and was concerned that walking trails were proposed to be built on or near the golf course, Larry Goldsmith, 18 Fifth Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254, past president of the Palos Verdes Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, believed the proposed project would provide a wonderful opportunity for the entire peninsula and future financial security for the City. Angelika Brinkmann -Busi, 2141 W. 35th St., San Pedro CA 90732, representing the South Coast Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, urged the Council to City Council /Planning Commission Workshop Minutes February 8, 1999 Page 5 consider the use of public land without waiting for the results of NCCP and felt it was wrong to use open space which was mitigation for another project. John W. Hill, 6600 Sea Cove Drive, supported the project but believed the workshop was not productive because there were too few details. He said that the York property is not attractive at the present time because it is full of weeds and he urged the Council to allow the project to move forward before another recession made it unfeasible. Lois Larue, 3136 Barkentine Road, said that the federal government deed did not allow the City to give the public land to a private developer and she was opposed to the homes and the golf course, which she did not consider open space. Douglas Stern, 2731 Coral Ridge Road, speaking as President of Rancho Palos Verdes Council of Homeowners Associations, said that the organization composed of many of the homeowners associations in the City had always been a strong advocate of the General Plan, the Local Coastal Plan and the preservation of parklands. He asked that the Council and Commission review the resolution adopted by the Association in January 1999 supporting these documents and this concept and he opposed this project because it was contrary to these documents. He believed the golf course described would be considered world class and, as such, could not really be considered for use by the general public. He said that more than half the land needed for this project is public land and that it should be preserved so that the public could freely see the vistas from the public land. Richard Bara, 1 Peppertree Drive, was concerned that protection of the bluff face was considered mitigation and urged the Council to consider at least a 150 foot bluff top corridor, to eliminate the residential portion of the project, and use the land set aside for holes which were presently planned too close to the highway and the Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center. Assistant City Manager Petru announced that Chip Schultz, 32 Seaview Drive North, Rolling Hills Estates 90274, said that he did not need to speak but did want to provide his support of this project. Also that there were six additional letters received regarding the project. Recess and Reconvene: At 10:05 P.M., Mayor Hollingsworth declared a recess. The meeting reconvened at 10 :15 P.M. The City Council resumed discussion of the project and commented on the following: the requirements for low and moderate housing which were based on square footage and number of employees; that a concession agreement would allow someone to City Council /Planning Commission Workshop Minutes February 8, 1999 Page 6 operate the golf course on city -owned property; that residents should provide input to the City Council; that the Natural Conservation Community Plan (NCCP) should be completed by mid -year 1999; that updated geology reports will be required; that golf safety is an important issue, and should be achieved without netting or berms; that perhaps the residential component should be reduced or eliminated to facilitate golf holes being moved farther away from the Pt. Vicente Interpretive Center (PVIC) and the highway; that bluffto corridors must be maintained; if the City contributes land, that p there must be a benefit to the City; that promises were made and kept by City Council from the time of incorporation to keep density low; that visitor services zoning should not p P Y be converted to residential; and, that use of Long Point property should be maximized for the project and, if possible, lower Filiorum should be used. Planning Commission discussion comments were as follows: balancing the interests of the public and the property owner; the enhancement of public access resulting from this project, specifically s ecifically the ten miles of trails; that trading some residential space for additional golf space should be explored; that the developer is to be commended on working ith the community; that the project could be a major addition to the community g Y p if p lanned well; and, that deed restrictions should be studied and a clear explanation be provided to the public. Further Council discussion focused on the importance of blufftop trails and it was believed that the Coastal Commission would also insist upon these trails. Concern was voiced about increased City costs for road maintenance, habitat protection, and if the Federal Government would consider a golf course an acceptable use for the land deeded to the City. Council suggested that the property owner prepare two or three scenarios to estimate the benefit to the City for the concession agreement. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 11:10 P.M. on the motion of Mayor Hollingsworth. ATTEST: CITY CLERK 0208 9ccmins MAYO City Council /Planning Commission Workshop Minutes February 8, 1999 Page 7