Loading...
PC MINS 19960924Approved 10/22/96 s CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES PLANNING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING SEPTEMBER 24, 1996 CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7 00 P M by Chairman Clark at the Hesse Park Community Building, 29301 Hawthorne Boulevard. FLAG SALUTE The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Associate Planner Pfost. ROLL CALL Present: Commissioners Alberio, Cartwright, Franklin, Ng, Whiteneck, Vice Chairman Vannorsdall and Chairman Clark. Absent: None Also present were Director of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement/Planning Commission Secretary Petru and Associate Planner Pfost. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Vice Chairman Vannorsdall moved for the approval of the agenda as written The motion was seconded by Commissioner Ng and, there being no objection, it was so ordered by Chairman Clark (7-0) COMMUNICATIONS Staff Director/Secretary Petru distributed the following to the Commission o Invitations from the City Attorney's office for a reception at the upcoming League of California Cities conference to be held in the City of Anaheim, and Planning Commission September 24, 1996 o A full size copy of one of the exhibits for Agenda Item No 3 (Extreme Slope Permit No. 42, Mr. Greg L. Reinhardt, 30829 Via Rivera) Commission Commissioner Alberio related input about discussions of the following topics at the recent Mayor's Breakfast which he attended: the Planning Commission's activities, the idea of installing a bike path on Palos Verdes Drive South, and the utility tax which will be on the ballot in November 1996 CONSENT CALENDAR MINUTES OF AUGUST 13, 1996 With regard to Consent Calendar Item No 1, Commissioner Ng asked that paragraph 12, page 15, of the August 13, 1996 Planning Commission minutes be modified to reflect the names of the Commissioners on the roll call vote. Commissioner Ng requested that the last four paragraphs on page 15 be modified to show the title of the topic under discussion in addition to the topic numbers from the Staff Report Vice Chairman Vannorsdall suggested that the minutes provided in the agenda packets be stamped "Draft" to differentiate them from approved minutes Commissioner Cartwright commended the August 13, 1996 minutes. He offered the following motion MOTION Commissioner Cartwright moved for the approval of the August 13, 1996 Planning Commission minutes as modified The motion was seconded by Commissioner Whiteneck and, there being no objection, it was so ordered by Chairman Clark (7-0) 2. TIME EXTENSION REQUEST FOR CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT NO. 136, GRADING PERMIT NO. 1246 AND LOT LINE ADJUSTMENT NO. 38 - YORK LONG POINT ASSOCIATES, 6610 PALOS VERDES DRIVE SOUTH MOTION. Commissioner Alberio moved to waive the staff report. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Cartwright and there being no objection, it was so ordered by Chairman Clark (7-0). Planning Commission September 24, 1996 2 Commissioner Whiteneck asked if a one-year time extension to September 11, 1997 would give the property owner ample time to get all of the work done and bring this project to a conclusion On behalf of York Long Point Associates, Mr. James York, 6610 Palos Verdes Drive South, came forward to explain that the City Council recently approved the City's hiring of a consultant who he will fund and who will report to the City Manager and work on the point Long Point/City development project, which could potentially develop into a golf course on the properties. He stated his understanding that, after talking to many resort developers, a nine -hole golf course would not be a sufficient enough attraction to have a top-rated resort on the Long Point property and said that he therefore, would like to join together other parcels to facilitate an 18 -hole championship golf course. Mr. York related his hope that the consultant will be hired by the City very soon and that there will be some significant progress on this project over the next year. Chairman Clark clarified that the requested time extension was not to pursue the previously approved project for the Long Point property, but to pursue a project as described above by Mr. York. Director/Secretary Petru advised that both the City and the Coastal Commission requirements only allow for one-year time extension increments Commissioner Alberio envisioned that this project will be completely revised Director/Secretary Petru verified that either new applications could be submitted or the previously approved plans could be revised. She explained that the project which Mr York was contemplating would require a variety of land use changes and additional applications; but, the base applications could either be replaced or revised to fit into the larger project Ms Petru advised that there was one request to speak to this item. Vice Chairman Vannorsdall noted that this was not a public hearing and he questioned if the Commission must allow requests to speak Director/Secretary Petru advised that Consent Calendar items which interested parties would like to address are generally pulled from the Consent Calendar and discussed later in the meeting; however, if the input was brief, it could be provided at this time Ms. Lois Larue, 3136 Barkentine Road, said that she has resided in Rancho Palos Verdes since 1963 and was one of the founders of Save Our Coastline 2000, which appealed the Long Point project to the Coastal Commission. She asked Staff to always use the correct information when referring to the Long Point project and maintained that the Coastal Commission approved 390 hotel rooms and 60 casitas, and not a 450 -room hotel Planning Commission September 24, 1996 Director/Secretary Petru advised that staff viewed the Long Point project as a 450 -room hotel with 390 rooms in a main core building, with 60 rooms at the developer's option in casitas units. She explained further that Staff referred to them as "rooms" to distinguish them from time shares or any other kind of single- family residential, long-term residency type facilities. MOTION- Vice Chairman Vannorsdall moved to approve the Staff recommendation of a one (1) year time extension via Minute Order, thereby setting the expiration date as September 11, 1997, with all Conditions of Approval remaining in full force and effect The motion was seconded by Commissioner Albeno and ultimately passed by unanimous roll call vote Discussion continued with Commissioner Franklin stating that he was puzzled over the City hiring a consultant at Mr. York's expense and that, although he understood the rationale behind it, he was concerned that the consultant would present things to the Planning Commission from a biased point of view He questioned how this type of situation could be avoided in the future. Chairman Clark related his understanding that the consultant will be selected by the City on the basis of objective criteria. Director/Petru explained that the process of hiring the consultant will be very similar to that of the City hiring a consultant to compile an Environmental Impact Report and that mechanisms clanfymg that the consultant will be the City's consultant are built into the process. The motion passed by unanimous roll call vote (7-0). Chairman Clark noted the 15 -day appeal period from this date CONTINUED BUSINESS None PUBLIC C HEARINGS 3. EXTREME SLOPE PERMIT NO. 42 - MR. GREG L. REINHARDT 30829 VIA RIVERA Associate Planner Pfost presented the Staff Report Chairman Clark opened the public hearing. There being no requests to speak, the public hearing was closed. Planning Commission September 24, 1996 4 MOTION Commissioner Alberio moved to approve Extreme Slope Permit No 42 subject to the Conditions of Approval The motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Vannorsdall and ultimately passed by unanimous roll call vote. Prior to roll call vote, discussion continued with Commissioner Ng asking if Staff received any correspondence regarding this project. Associate Planner Pfost replied that Staff had not. Chairman Clark asked Staff to explain why this request was not dealt with when the applicant's spa permit was granted Associate Planner Pfost advised that, according to the applicant, the applicant was misled by the previous contractor who did not proceed with obtaining an Extreme Slope Permit. Director/Secretary Petru advised that the portion of the deck over the slope was removed from the plan by the previous contractor when the plans were presented to the City for review over the counter Commissioner Cartwright expressed his appreciation of the recommendation to plant foliage in front of the deck to mitigate any visual impact and he voiced his regrets that other decks in the area are not screened in such a manner Chairman Clark mentioned that screening with vegetation was often used on decks built over extreme slopes. Commissioner Ng commented that the applicant's previous contractor apparently did not complete the job and she asked if that contractor would be allowed to do business in the City in the future Director/Secretary Petru advised that the City cannot refuse to issue a permit to contractors that have an active contractor license and a business license in Rancho Palos Verdes. Mrs. Mary Reinhardt, applicant, stated her desire to make the deck as nice as possible She said that the deck would be very small (18'X 6') and enclosed with tempered glass and that plants will be placed in front of the deck for screening Commissioner Franklin observed that the vegetation to be planted around the deck would be "small" and asked if it would grow up to the deck floor Mrs Reinhardt confirmed that the plants would grow up to the deck floor and that the deck would be stained a honey brown color to blend in with the hillside. Planning Commission September 24, 1996 Commissioner Ng asked if Staff normally distributed information on contractors to the public, should he make a future effort to do business in the City. Director/Secretary Petru advised that, as a public agency, the Staff cannot advocate or oppose contractors that work in the City and must remain neutral. She noted that there were other consumer protection agencies that dealt with these sorts of problems The motion was passed by unanimous roll call vote (7-0). Chairman Clark noted the 15 -day appeal period from this date NEW BUSINESS None. ITEMS TO BE PLACED ON FUTURE AGENDAS Staff 4 PRE -AGENDA FOR THE REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING OF THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8. 1996 Staff Chairman Clark requested updated information on the 107 foot high antenna tower request proposed by Mr. Peter Von Hagen. Director/Secretary Petru advised that Staff has been in discussions with the City Attorney about the memo the Commission requested regarding Federal antenna requirements and restrictions and that this information will be available for the meeting of October 8, 1996. She explained that a meeting was held between the various parties involved but no compromise was reached Director/Secretary Petru reviewed the remainder of the Planning Commission Pre -Agenda for October 8, 1996. She related that the Height Modification Guidelines and a Conditional Use Permit revision for the Tramonto by the Sea tract will be included on the October 8, 1996 meeting agenda as New Business items Planning Commission September 24, 1996 0 6- 6 Commission Commissioner Ng observed that the minutes for the Adjourned Planning Commission meeting of August 19, 1996 were not included on the Pre -Agenda for the meeting of October 8, 1996. Director/Secretary Petru advised that those minutes are being prepared and that, if completed, they will be included on the meeting agenda for October 8, 1996 Commissioner Cartwright recalled that the Commission previously asked Staff to provide information about the previous appeal hearings for Minor Exception Permits for antennas Director/Secretary Petru advised that a summary with some detail will be provided in the Staff Report for October 8, 1996. COMMENTS FROM THE AUDIENCE Mrs. Lois Larue, 3136 Barkentine Road, expressed her increased admiration for Commissioner Franklin in raising the issue of the City accepting money from the Long Point developer to hire a consultant (as discussed earlier in the meeting) Ms Larue explained that Tramonto means "sunset" in Italian, reviewed the ownership history of the Tramonto by the Sea property; and commended former Councilman Ryan's accomplishment of reducing the number of homes in that tract from 63 to 43 She related input on her personal successes pertaining to the Portuguese Landslide ADJOURNMENT At 7.44 P.M. the meeting was formally adjourned to a Regular Meeting on Tuesday, October 8, 1996, 7.00 P M. Planning Commission September 24, 1996