Only One Surprise At Planning Commission Meeting

SHORT AND NOT-SO-SWEET
In a Planning Commission meeting that lasted just over 2 hours there were very few surprises.

NUMBER 1 CONTINUED
The Public Hearing for a Conditional Use Permit for a church at 1901 Newport Boulevard was continued until the meeting of November 10th.

ITEMS 2 AND 3 PASSED
Both Small Lot Developments on the agenda were approved with minimal modifications to the terms on the staff reports.  Both were praised by the planning commissioners as precisely the kind of projects the Small Lot Ordinance was intended to facilitate - with plenty of parking and open space and virtually no deviations or variances.  Of course, nobody mentioned that the Small Lot Ordinance did away with the items that required variances - those protections in the municipal code to protect the character of our neighborhoods.  Now we'll just be cramming more and more dwellings on small lots and smile about it.  Both items passed on 5-0 votes.

HEALTH CLUB APPROVED, TOO
The final item on the agenda was the proposal to install a health club in the corner of the KMart Plaza Shopping Center.  Everyone was giddy over this one, too.  The representative pitching this plan was Bill Fancher, who lives over near Mayor Jim Righeimer and who was on the Charter committee.  The commission passed this one on a 5-0 vote.

STEVEN WHITE SPEAKS OUT
Perhaps the most uncomfortable moments of the evening came at the hands of former employee, Steven White.  He used his three minutes to castigate members of the commission and actually demanded to know who was responsible for what he called slanderous comments made about him on the Costa Mesa Taxpayer's page.  Chairman Jim Fitzpatrick is the President of that group.  Colin McCarthy is a founding member and past president.  As expected, he received no answers to his questions/demands.

THAT'S ALL FOR NOW
So, that's it until after the election.  The next Planning Commission meeting will be on November 10th.  The next City Council meeting will be on the 17th.  In the meantime, we can all just immerse ourselves in the nastiest political season in recent memory.

 WHY NOT RIGHEIMER?

And, if you want to know why I won't be voting for Jim Righeimer for City Council, read what I wrote recently HERE.

More Development And A Familiar Name

LAST PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING BEFORE THE ELECTION
Later this evening the Costa Mesa Planning Commission, under the leadership of the dynamic (tongue-in-cheek) chairman, Jim Fitzpatrick - shown here hard at work at the recent Public Safety BBQ -  will take a break from their political activism, commentary-writing, sign arrangement and the like,  and get back to work earning the highest pay of any Planning Commission in the county.  They will meet for the final time until after the election next month.  The agenda for the meeting, which begins at 6:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers, can be found HERE.

VACATE BANNING PLACE
On the Consent Calendar there's an item of interest, HERE.  It's the vacation of a strip of land at the end of Pacific Avenue adjacent to Fairview Park.  It's unlikely that it will get any discussion - that's the purpose of the Consent Calendar, after all.  I just thought you'd like to see the staff report.

SADDLEBACK CHURCH
There are four (4) Public Hearings on the agenda.  The first one, HERE, is Conditional Use Permit for the establishement of a church in part of the building at 1901 Newport Blvd.  The applicant has requested this item be continued - again - until the meeting on November 10, 2014.

320 E. 18TH STREET
Public Hearing #2, HERE, is an application to develop a two-unit residential site at 320 East 18th Street - a small lot subdivision adjacent to the Lighthouse Community Church, where the Kline School was once located by SCEL Properties.

119 CECIL PLACE
Public Hearing #3, HERE, is for another two-unit development, also by SCEL Properties, at 119 Cecil Place.

A FAMILIAR NAME
Public Hearing #4, HERE, is for a Conditional Use Permit for a 24-hour/7 days a week health club (Planet Fitness) in the Kmart Plaza at 2200 Harbor Blvd.  Of note for me was the name of the applicant - Bill Fancher of Fancher Development Services.  You may recall that when the Charter Committee was being formed more than a year ago, one of the persons selected was this self-same Bill Fancher.  At the time Mayor Jim Righiemer made a big deal of not knowing who he was - or, at least he feigned not knowing.  Why does it come as no surprise to find that Mr. Fancher is a developer?  Helping to craft a developer-friendly Charter?  Just sayin'...  And, here he is before the Planning Commission.... "Friends in High Places" and all that...