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PC MINS 19911126MINUTES PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING NOVEMBER 26, 1991 The meeting was called to order at 7:37pm by Chairman Von Hagen at Hesse Community Park, 29301 Hawthorne Blvd. PRESENT Von Hagen, McNulty, Hotchkiss, Katherman ABSENT None Also present were Director of Environmental Services Robert Benard, Senior Planner Carolynn Petru and Assistant Planners Mike Patterson, Fabio de Freitas, Donna Jerex and Kim Klopfenstein. COMMUNICATIONS None were received or acknowledged. CONSENT CALENDAR A. CIP CONSISTENCY -- GENERAL PLAN B. GRADING NO. 1506 -- REVISION C. GRADING NO. 1577 Commissioner McNulty moved, seconded by Commissioner Hotchkiss and carried, to approve the consent calendar. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. VESTING TENTATIVE TRACT Senior Planner Carolynn Petru MAP NO. 46628, presented the staff report CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT regarding the applicant's NO. 158, COASTAL PERMIT request to approve a 79 -lot NO. 94, GRADING NO. 1439 single family Residential Hawthorne/PVDW Planned Development. Staff's recommendation is to review and comment on the draft conditions of approval. Bill Gilmore, 340 E. 2nd St., Los Angeles, representing the applicant, asked for clarification on the Conditions of Approval and asked that building permits be issuable as final grading is finished within each workable phase. Lois Larue, 3136 Barkentine Rd, expressed concerns regarding wildlife protection and ti.depools. Director Benard noted that the wetlands, even though caused by a broken storm drain, will still be required to be maintained by the PLANNING COMMISSIO ETING November 26, 1991 applicant, and that the tidepools are not on the subject property, but are state tidelands. The public hearing was closed. Commissioner Hotchkiss suggested that the future residents of the project should somehow be notified that there might be an adjacent golf course eventually, so that they couldn't later object on the grounds that they were not aware of the possibility. Ms. Petru stated that the requirement of the CC&R's to alert property owners to the presence of public trails could be amended to include notification of the dedication of open space for recreational purposes. Chairman Von Hagen brought up the idea of forming a special assessment district to handle long term trail maintenance, and Commissioner McNulty said he thought that idea would be more appropriate at a specially noticed hearing, or should have been included with the trails network program. Mr. Von Hagen also asked staff to clarify sidewalk types in the conditions of approval. Commissioner Katherman expressed concerns about the rear yards facing the bluff road, and suggested there be uniform fence guidelines that would include 90% light -and -air on the rear yards to a maximum of 6' high, or a combination of solid and light -and -air fencing. Mr. Katherman also pointed out that a mitigation monitoring plan needed to be included in the conditions of approval as well. It was moved by Commissioner McNulty, seconded by Commissioner Hotchkiss, and carried, to continue the item to the December 10 meeting to bring back the revised Resolution. B. VESTING TENTATIVE TRACT Commissioner Hotchkiss excused MAP NO. 49067, himself from voting on the next ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT two items due to his membership NO. 600, CONDITIONAL USE in the Portugese Bend Club. PERMIT NO. 154, COASTAL PERMIT NO. 95, GRADING Assistant Planner Fabio de NO. 1420, VARIANCE NO. Freitas presented the staff 297, MINOR EXCEPTION report regarding the PERMIT NO. 414 applicant's request to approve PVDS/Schooner Drive an 18 -lot single family residential subdivision on vacant land located within the Portugese Bend Club. The staff's recommendation is to take testimony on the project, provide staff with direction, and continue the public hearing. The public hearing was opened. Lyman Lokken, 1150 S. Olive, Los Angeles, representing the applicant, compared the original plan to the revised one, addressing the concerns of view impairment previously expressed by Seaview residents. Page 2 PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING November 26, 1991 10 r John McCarthy, 104 Spindrift, representing the Portugese Bend Club Homeowners Association, asserted his approval of the revised plan, but expressed concern about controls on the sizes of the proposed homes. Ellen Hocking, 4014 Admirable Drive, representing the Seaview Homeowners Association, stated she also approved of the new plan, but still wants the rooftops of the homes to be below the street level. She also suggested that the lower Portugese Bend area be hooked up to the new sewer system. Richard Taube, 4194 Maritime, president of the Homeowners Association Tract 16540, stated he supported the new plan. Jack Jones, 4225 PVDS, stated he felt the new plan represented a significant improvement and addressed the homeowners' concerns. Joseph Lindorfer, 4207 PVDS, agreed that this plan was more palatable but that he still had concerns that the longer homes would affect his view, which was diagonal to the project, and that he hoped the access road would be off of PVDS. Lois Larue, 3136 Barkentine, spoke against the development expressing geological concerns. Commissioner McNulty stated that he felt the homes were as low as they could be, and he didn't feel they could realistically be restricted to only one story. Mr. McNulty also suggested closing the public hearing. Commissioner Katherman disagreed, and stated he felt the talks between the developer and homeowners should continue. Mr. Katherman also requested an analysis of the affect of the project on the wildlife habitat area, the drainage situation, and questioned the sanctity of the Coastal Setback line. Chairman Von Hagen thanked the applicant for being so responsive to the community and the Commission's input, and stated he felt the new design was appropriate because the lot pads were now at the same level as Yacht Harbor. Commissioner Katherman moved to continue the item to the December 10, 1991 meeting for purposes of discussing the Conditions of Approval only pursuant to Designs A & B. Commissioner McNulty seconded, and the motion passed without objection. C. COASTAL PERMIT NO. 108, Assistant Planner Donna Jerex VARIANCE NO. 311 presented the staff report 96 Yacht Harbor Dr. regarding the applicant's request to allow a 1137 s.f. addition and remodel for a property located within the Page 3 PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING November 26, 1991 Portugese Bend landslide boundary. Staff's recommendation is to require the applicant to work with staff to redesign the project. Tor Petterson, 4150 PVDS, explained the new design, and stated he had the support of his neighbors. Gary Wynn, 1852 Lomita Blvd, Lomita, project architect, stated the project was necessary to repair the foundation of the house. Commissioner Katherman suggested that a reduction of the deck size might be a possible compromise, but Commissioner McNulty stated he felt the scope of the project was too large to be considered merely an improvement to the existing house, and that it should be a teardown and rebuild. Mr. McNulty suggested that this should go back to the City Council for direction on the merits of the project. Kim Paterson, 98 Yacht Harbor, expressed support for the project. Director Benard suggested that the Commission adopt the staff recommendation to deny the application, which would allow the applicant to bring the appeal to the City Council, along with the Commission's concerns about the project. Commissioner Katherman stated he would rather see modifications of the conditions of approval rather than an outright denial. Commissioner McNulty moved to adopt the staff recommendation xto deny the project. Commissioner Von Hagen seconded, and the motion passed 2-1, with Commissioner Katherman dissenting. D. VARIANCE NO. 310 Staff report was waived COASTAL PERMIT NO. 107 regarding the applicant's 132 Sea Urchin Lane request to allow a patio enclosure under an existing deck. Staff's recommendation is to approve the request with conditions. The public hearing was opened. Joel Dime, 132 Sea Urchin, applicant, stated he was in agreement with the conditions of approval. The public hearing was closed. Commissioner McNulty moved to adopt the staff recommendation, Commissioner Katherman seconded, and the motion passed without objection. CONTINUED BUSINESS A. GRADING NO. 1560 Assistant Planner Mike 43 Avenida Corona Patterson presented the staff Page 4 PLANNING COMMISSIOOEETING November 26, 1991 report regarding the applicant's request to allow a new single family residence. Staff's recommendation is to deny the request. Lamar Robinson, 1455 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance, project architect, explained aspects of the design, including lowering the height of the house to deal with problems encountered during a Height Variation application. John Resich, 840 W. 9th St., LA, counsel for the application, explained the background of the application. The Commission discussed different ways to reduce the amount of grading, and staff explained that they felt a large house could be accommodated on the lot without any grading at all. Commissioner Katherman moved to adopt alternative #3, to approve the project subject to conditions required by staff. The motion was seconded by Chairman Von Hagen and carried unanimously. NEW BUSINESS A. RULES OF PROCEDURE Audience member Lois Larue PLANNING COMMISSION expressed some objections to various parts of the document. The Commission also suggested adding a disclaimer that audio tapes of meetings in no way represent official minutes --only the typewritten minutes approved by the Planning Commission or City Council. Commissioner Katherman moved to continue the item to the January 14 meeting, Commissioner McNulty seconded, and the motion passed without objection. QUESTIONS FROM THE AUDIENCE There were no audience questions. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 12:17am. Page 5