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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/23/2007MINUTES SPECIAL MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO TUESDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2007 - 7:00 P.M. VETERAN'S HALL, 801 GRAND STREET SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA ROLL CALL: Council Members Present: Council Members Paul Brown, Andrew Carter, Allen Settle, Vice Mayor Christine Mulholland and Mayor Dave Romero City Staff: Present: Ken Hampian, City Administrative Officer; Jonathan Lowell, City Attorney; Audrey Hooper, City Clerk; Shelly Stanwyck, Assistant City Administrative Officer; Assistant City Attorney Christine Dietrick; John Mandeville, Community Development Director; John Moss, Utilities Director; Neil Havlik, Natural Resources Manager; Doug Davidson, Deputy Community Development Director — Development Review; Phil Dunsmore, Associate Planner --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mayor Romero commenced the meeting with a moment of silence in honor of the firefighters and citizens impacted by the fires raging in Southern California. City Clerk Hooper reminded those present that the meeting was not being broadcast live and announced the playback schedule. PUBLIC HEARING 1. CONSIDERATION OF A REQUEST TO ANNEX PROPERTY INTO THE CITY AND AMEND THE GENERAL PLAN MAP TO ACCOMMODATE RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AT THE EASTERN BOUNDARY OF THE CITY (1600 BISHOP, 2220 FLORA (SUNNY ACRES ESTATES ANNEXATION); 0 FAIRVIEW ( FAIRVIEW ESTATES ANNEXATION); 1700 HARMONY (HARMONY WAY MINOR ANNEXATION); 1925 SYDNEY, 1854 SYDNEY, AND 0 SYDNEY (SYDNEY STREET ANNEXATION) - GPIRIER!TR 135-06.126-06.142-04.4-05). City Attorney Lowell announced that because letters of withdrawal had been received for the Sunny Acres Estates and Harmony Way Minor Annexation applications, only two matters will be heard at this meeting, the Fairview Estates and Sydney Street annexations. As a result, Mayor Romero will be able to Special City Council Meeting Page 2 Tuesday, October 23, 2007 participate in the hearing because the remaining two applications being considered are no longer linked to the two which have been withdrawn, including the one which triggered a potential conflict of interest. Because of questions that have been raised related to whether he can make an unbiased decision on the matters before Council at this meeting, Council Member Settle stated for the record that while he has met with some of the principals and has expressed concerns related to them, he will remain open minded as he listens to the testimony presented and will be able to make a fair and impartial decision. In response to Council Member Carter, City Attorney Lowell explained the impact and options of a withdrawal, continuation or denial of a project. Also at the request of Council Member Carter, he read an e-mail to a citizen that expressed Council Member Settle's opposition to development on the hillsides, commented that this is a political process, noted that Council Member Settle has indicated that he has kept an open mind, and explained that it is Council Member Settle's decision as to whether to participate in the meeting. Council Member Settle explained that the preservation of hillsides has been an ongoing concern of his for many years and these were the concerns he expressed. In response to Vice Mayor Mulholland, City Attorney Lowell clarified that the matters before Council at this meeting are legislative in nature. He further clarified that Council is able to act on the two remaining annexations. Mayor Romero called for comments from the public who objected to proceeding with the hearing at this meeting. Jo Ann Wheatley, San Luis Obispo, said she objected to initially combining these four annexations into one project and had concerns that they were now being separated. There were no further public comments on proceeding and the Council was not interested in approving a continuance. Community Development Director Mandeville introduced the agenda report, following which Associate Planner Dunsmore provided a more detailed overview of the Sydney Street and Fairview Estates Annexations. He responded to questions throughout his presentation and reviewed the CAO recommendation which directed the applicants to amend the Sydney Street Annexation application to more closely comply with General Plan Policies and proceed to the environmental impact report stage and to deny the Fairview Estates Annexation proposal. 1 1 i LJ 1 Special City CounciiI Meeting Page 3 Tuesday, October 23, 2007 Mayor Romero opened the public hearing. David Watson, representing King Ventures and the King property annexation (Sydney Street) spoke in support of the CAO recommendation. He explained that the environmental impact report is necessary in order to gather information for an evaluation of the potential policy conflicts and possible solutions. He discussed the history of the project and explained why the Sydney Street Annexation could be considered independent of the other proposed Eastside annexations, thereby eliminating the requirement for a water tank large enough to support all of the annexations. He objected to prohibiting development beyond the development limit line since he thought its limitation related to water access. He suggested that he will proceed with a development within the county if Council denies the current request. Carol Florence, representing the Fairview Estates Annexation, clarified that the request before Council is not to approve an annexation, but to authorize an Environmental Impact Report. She displayed maps and discussed the revised proposal that was submitted based on concerns expressed by the Planning Commission and the public. She displayed drawings that depicted views from Terrace Hill and from the Villa Rose development, and explained that the proposed development is slightly below the Alrita Development. She asked Council to permit the applications to move through the study process. In response to questions raised by Council Member Carter, Utilities Director Moss discussed the need for the larger water tank to service the area and explained the importance of looking at this as a regional situation. Staff's concerns relate, in part, to fire protection and system reliability, particularly if there was a power outage. The following people asked Council to uphold the Planning Commission recommendation to deny the annexation requests. Unless otherwise noted, the speakers are residents of San Luis Obispo. Pat McKeague Jim Lewellen Adam Hill Suzie Valadez Charles Felix John Edmisten Michael Sullivan John Altman Earle Murie Deborah Cleere Randy Allen Charlene Abeloe Karen Merriam (Chair, Santa Lucia Chapter of Sierra Club) Alan Thomas Carol Rich Cameron Tapp (County resident) Steve Zawalick Jean Hyduchak JoAnn Wheatley Terry Mohan John Belsher Janie Holland Martha Chivens (County resident) Nikki Jakins Sean Laughney John Ashbaugh (Planning Commissioner) Stacey King Bill Herreras V.L. Holland Orval Osborne Jan Hall Marx Pat Mullen Mila Vujovich- LaBarre Special City Council Meeting Page 4 Tuesday, October 23, 2007 Council recessed during the public hearing from 9:00 until 9:10 p.m. and resumed 1 with all members present. Following is a list of some of the comments or concerns expressed by the prior speakers: • Houses should not be built above the 460 foot development limit because they are at greater risk of fires, mud slides, and floods. • The proposals will result in a loss of views and open space. • Safety issues will arise on the sloped roads during the rainy season, traffic will increase. • Approving development above the 460 foot development limit line will set a bad precedent. • There is seismic instability on steep slopes. • Bicycle access would be limited because of the steep slopes. Mayor Romero closed the public hearing. Council Member Brown clarified that the sphere of influence does not guarantee development, but provides the City with more influence as to what can be developed in these areas. He pointed out there have been times when development has exceeded the 460 foot development limit line. However, in this case, the two projects before Council require more exceptions and are less warranted because of slope and other issues. Vice Mayor Mulholland opposed the loss of open space and the development on the hillsides above the development limit line. She encouraged the property owners to pursue the concept of transferring development credits to pursue development on a more suitable property. She discussed the importance of the County and City working together on projects within the City's urban boundary. She expressed concern regarding the withdrawal of the Sunny Acres Estates and Harmony Way Minor Annexations at the last minute. Council Member Carter discussed his site visit to the Filipponi and Twisselman properties (Fairview Estates) and said he could not approve the project as proposed because of the steepness of the slopes. He explained why the only reason he would support the King property (Sydney Street) Annexation would be for the installation of the water tank, which is important for fire suppression in that area. He discussed the Planning Commission's action on the sphere. of influence for this area and concurred with Council Member Brown's comments regarding the purpose of the sphere. He concurred with and expanded on Council Member Brown's comments regarding the development limit line, and noted that there are large variations in the altitudes of the urban reserve line throughout the City. Special City Council Meeting Page 5 Tuesday, October 23, 2007 Council Member Settle spoke in support of the Planning Commission recommendation. He expressed his continuing concerns regarding hillside development, noting the importance he places on the development limit line. He was also particularly concerned about potential fire hazards. He suggested that the solution to these development proposals is transferring development credit. Mayor Romero expressed concern that if the City opposes the annexation applications, development could receive approval from the County with lesser standards. However, he agreed that the Filipponi - Twissman site is too steep to develop and that the transfer of development credits may be the best option. He indicated that the loss of views was not of concern to him and that he did not think flood issues would increase. Additionally, he thought the proposals would increase fire protection and that the City would benefit from the open space. However, he said that in light of the community outpouring in opposition to the proposals, he would not support the CAO recommendation. Council Member Brown questioned whether any Council Members wanted to consider further the King property annexation. There was no interest in doing so. Council Member Carter clarified that the King property has the potential for a water tank for fire suppression. He reiterated that the installation of the water tank is needed for good fire suppression in that area and this would be the only reason why he had an interest in the King annexation. He stated, however, that he is going to support the motion. ACTION: Moved by Mulholland /Settle to adopt, based on findings: 1) Resolution No. 9936 (2007 Series) denying a General Plan Amendment, Prezoning and Annexation for property located at 1925 Sydney Street (ER/GP /R/ANNX 4 -05). 2) Resolution No. 9337 (2007 Series) denying a General Plan Amendment, Prezoning, and Annexation for property located at 0 Fairview (Fairview Estates; ER/GP /R/ANNX 126 -06). The motion did not include the denial of Tentative Tract Maps 2827 or 2773; motion carried 5:0. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Council, Mayor Romero adjourned the meeting at 10:51 p.m. Audrey 1-14opei City Clerk/ APPROVED BY COUNCIL: 11/20/07