HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC AG PKT 2013-07-08 #EAGENDA STAFF REPORT
DATE: July 8, 2013
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THRU: Jill R. Ingram, City Manager
FROM: Jim Basham, Director of Community Development
SUBJECT: FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS FOR ALTERNATIVE
RESIDENTIAL HIGH DENSITY REZONE SITE: MARINA
DRIVE SITE
SUMMARY OF REQUEST
Staff recommends that this report be received and filed and that the Mayor direct
staff to place on the July 22, 2013 City Council agenda the second reading of
Ordinance No. 1629 to rezone the Accurate Storage site at 1011 Seal Beach
Boulevard from Light Industrial to Residential High Density.
BACKGROUND
At the meeting of June 24, 2013, the City Council instructed staff to contact
property owners (Exxon and Chevron) regarding the vacant 4.3 acre parcel
bounded by Marina Drive and 1st Street.
Staff contacted several representatives of Exxon and Chevron Corporations to
determine if the City could obtain permission to conduct Phase 1 and 2 site
assessments on the property. Chevron indicated they would not permit a third
party assessment.
Staff did contact the company that prepared the site assessments for the ARCO
gasoline station and obtained an estimated cost of $50,000 to complete a Phase
1 and 2 site assessment on the vacant parcel. In addition, while no initial study
has yet been prepared, it is very likely that an environmental impact report would
be necessary. Accordingly, the City's housing element consultant contract would
need to be amended to include the preparation of an environmental impact report
and traffic impact analysis, estimated to cost the City approximately$200,000.
In addition, on June 28, 2013, staff received a letter from the State Department of
Housing and Community Development (HCD) reviewing the City's 5th Cycle Draft
Housing Element. The letter states that if the City does not implement Program
1 a in the 4th Cycle (2008-2014) Housing Element, the 5th Cycle Draft Housing
Agenda Item E
Element, as drafted, does not comply with state law and will have to be revised to
demonstrate adequate sites for the 4th Cycle's unaccommodated need. The
implications of the HCD letter are applicable if the City does not rezone either the
Marina site or the Accurate Storage site for multifamily zoning by October 2013:
• The City has not implemented its 4th Cycle Housing Element
• The draft 5th Cycle Housing Element will have to be revised to
demonstrate adequate sites for the 4th Cycle's unaccommodated need (19
units)
• That site or sites would have to be rezoned within the first year of the
planning period for the 5th Cycle
• The revised 5th Cycle Housing Element has to be adopted within 120 days
of October 15, 2013
• If the City does not meet that deadline, then the State will require that the
City must prepare at least two consecutive Housing Elements by the
statutory deadline every 4 years instead of every eight 8 years.
DISCUSSION
The property adjacent to the Marina Park is approximately four acres and located
on the southeastern side of First Street. It is zoned for oil extraction and is
currently vacant. The owner previously indicated a desire to develop the site for
residential use, but the owners have not expressed an interest since then. The
City recently submitted and was unsuccessful in being awarded a Prop. 84
statewide parks grant for the possible expansion of Marina Park to include a
community pool.
3. Site Studies and Analyses
If the City Council directs staff to initiate the process to consider rezoning this
site, feasibility and environmental impact studies would be necessary.
The feasibility study would examine such matters as the likelihood of residential
development and the scope of necessary legislative amendments (e.g., zoning
map and general plan amendments) and administrative approvals and
entitlements (e.g., subdivision approval) that would be necessary before the sites
could be developed with residential uses.
The environmental assessment would examine such matters as land use
compatibility, parking, transportation/traffic circulation, aesthetics, and air quality
impacts. However, in view of the site's prior use involving petroleum products,
the most significant part of the environmental impact report (EIR) would most
likely be analysis and disclosure of subsurface volatile organic compounds. This
information is imperative in order to complete the EIR.
The preparation of an EIR for the Marina Park expansion site would require
approximately 12-18 months to complete along with the necessary public
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participation. Also, an environmental remediation and action plan can require
several years to implement and require numerous clearances from state and
possibly federal agencies.
In sum, there simply is not enough time to conduct all the necessary studies of
the Marina site within state statutory deadlines.
Likewise, conducting additional site analysis to find an alternative adequate site
that can be developed with the planning period cycle cannot be accomplished
within state statutory deadlines.
LEGAL ANALYSIS
The City Attorney has reviewed this report.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
An environmental impact report with a traffic impact analysis is estimated to cost
$200,000. Phase 1 and 2 assessments are estimated to cost $50,000. Such
costs would require an amendment to the consultant's contract (Douglas &
Associates) at a cost of $200,000 and an amendment to the FY 2013/2014
Budget.
CONCLUSION
Based upon the foregoing, staff recommends that the Mayor place the second
reading of Ordinance No. 1929 on the agenda for the July 22, 2013 meeting.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that this report be received and filed and that the Mayor direct
staff to place on the July 22, 2013 City Council agenda the second reading of
Ordinance No. 1629 to rezone the Accurate Storage site at 1011 Seal Beach
Boulevard from Light Industrial to Residential High Density.
S TTED BY:
Basham,
ector of Community Development
Attachment:
NOTED AND APPROVED:
A. Letter from HCD dated June 28, 2013
Page 3
ng a , City Manager
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
DIVISION OF HOUSING POLICY DEVELOPMENT
1800 Third Street, Suite 430
P. 0. Box 952053
Sacramento, CA 94252 -2053
(916) 323 -3177 / FAX (916) 327 -2643
www.hcd.ca.gov
June 28, 2013
Mr. Jim Basham
Director of Community Development
City of Seal Beach
211 Eighth Street
Seal Beach, CA 90740
Dear Mr. Basham:
RE: Review of the City of Seal Beach's 5th Cycle Draft Housing Element
Thank you for submitting Seal Beach's draft housing element received for review on
April 29, 2013 along with additional revisions received on June 11, 2013. Pursuant to
Government Code Section 65585(b), the Department is reporting the results of its review.
A telephone conversation on May 16, 2013 with you and your consultant, John Douglas,
and subsequent communications facilitated the review.
The draft element addresses many statutory requirements; however, revisions will be
necessary to comply with State housing element law (Article 10.6 of the Government
Code). In particular, the element must be revised to demonstrate adequate sites for the
City's unaccommodated need for the 4th planning period and quantified objectives
reflecting the results of the City's programs.
1. Include an inventory of land suitable for residential development, including vacant sites
and sites having the potential for redevelopment, and an analysis of the relationship
of zoning and public facilities and services to these sites (Section 65583(a)(3)). The
inventory of land suitable for residential development shall be used to identify sites
that can be developed for housing within the planning period (Section 65583.2).
Unaccommodated Need From 4th Cycle (AB1233): Per conversations with you,
Program la from the 2008 -2014 element to rezone between 0.58 and 0.95 developable
acres for multifamily development to accommodate the regional housing need allocation
(RHNA) for lower- income households was not implemented. As a result,
per Government Code Section 65584.09 (AB 1233), the City is required to zone or
rezone sites to accommodate the unaccommodated need within the first year of the
current planning period. While the element identified and analyzed a candidate site
for rezoning, it is our understanding Seal Beach is considering other sites to address
the identification of unaccommodated need. Please be aware that any site to be
rezoned must meet all the requirements of Government Code Section 65583.2,
including identification of land suitable for residential development within the eight -year
planning period. Refer to AB 1233 Technical Assistance Memorandum at
http: / /www.hcd.ca.gov /hpd /hrc /plan /he /ab 1233 final dt.pdf and Building Blocks
at http : / /www.hcd.ca.qov /hhpd / housinq element2 /GS reviewandrevise.php.
Mr. Jim Basham
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2. Identify adequate sites which will be made available through appropriate zoning and
development standards and with public services and facilities needed to facilitate and
encourage the development of a variety of types of housing for all income levels.
Where the inventory of sites, pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a), does not
identify adequate sites to accommodate the need for groups of all household income
levels pursuant to Section 65584, the program shall provide for sufficient sites with
zoning that permits owner - occupied and rental multifamily residential use by right,
including density and development standards that could accommodate and facilitate
the feasibility of housing for very low- and low - income households (Section
65583(c)(1))_
As noted in Finding 1, the City has not completed the required rezone and the
corresponding analysis. As a result, the adequacy of sites and zoning were not
established. Therefore, the City needs to add or revise programs to address the
unaccommodated need from the 4th cycle.
3. Establish the number of housing units, by income level, that can be constructed,
rehabilitated, and conserved over a five -year time frame (Section 65583(b)(1 & 2)).
Table V -1 should be revised to reflect the realistic number of units expected to be
produced over the full eight year planning period based upon the housing element's
implementation programs as well as private planned activities.
Please note, to remain on an eight -year planning cycle, pursuant to Senate Bill 375
(Chapter 728, Statutes of 2008) the City must adopt its housing element within 120
calendar days from the statutory due date of October 15, 2013 for Southern California
Association of Governments localities. If adopted after this date, the City will be
required to revise the housing element every four years until adopting at least two
consecutive revisions by the statutory deadline (Government Code Section
65588(e)(4)). More information on housing element adoption requirements is on our
website at: http: / /www.hcd.ca.gov /hpd /hrc /plan /he /he review adoptionsteps110812.pdf.
The Department appreciates your efforts during the course of our review. We are
committed to assist the City of Seal Beach in addressing all statutory requirements of
housing element law. If you have any questions or need additional technical assistance,
please contact Celia Yniguez, of our staff, at (916) 327 -6470 or celia.yniguez @hcd.ca.gov.
Sincer- ly,
len A. Campora
Assistant Deputy Director