Yet Another Sober Living Ordinance On Tap Monday

 IT'S GOING TO BE AN INTERESTING NIGHT
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission will meet Monday, March 27, 2017, beginning at 6:00 p.m. in City Council Chambers at City Hall to consider three Public Hearings, among them is a new ordinance directed at Group Homes and Sober Living Facilities.  You can read the full agenda report HERE.

CLAIRE FLYNN TO BE HONORED
One of the highlights for me is the recognition of Claire Flynn, former Assistant Development Services Director who left the City after nearly three decades last year.  She was a dedicated, very professional employee and her skills are certainly missed.

EXTENDING SADDLEBACK CHURCH CUP
Let's get the non-controversial items out of the way first.  Public Hearing #1, HERE, is a conditional use permit requested by Saddleback Church to continue operations at 1901 Newport Boulevard.  The church has been operating at that locations, in four venues within that location, for the past two years under a previously-issued Conditional Use Permit (CUP), which expired December 8, 2016.  They re-applied at the end of October.  Concerns over parking and traffic patterns were expressed so field observations were necessary before considering granting this CUP.  The staff has provided a lengthy staff report outlining the measures that will be taken to resolve those issues and are recommending approval of the requested CUP.

A NEW DOG DAY CARE ON W.16TH STREET
Public Hearing #2, HERE, is a request for a Conditional Use Permit for a dog day care and boarding facility at 704 W. 16th Street.  The staff report outlines the conditions being imposed on the operator and recommends approval.

STREAMLINING SOBER LIVING APPLICATIONS
Which brings us to the final item on the agenda, Public Hearing #3, HERE, the Code Amendment that will modify the Municipal Code with regard to group homes, state licensed facilities and boardinghouses in Multiple-Family and Single-Family Residential zones and Planned Development zones.  The revisions are intended to streamline the City's review of these applications and provide additional protections for residents of these facilities.  I won't attempt to replicate the 39 page staff report, but do find some of the changes fascinating.

STAGGERING NUMBERS!
This new ordinance affects the review process for two previously-issued ordinances - 14-13 and 15-11.  The numbers in the revised ordinance are staggering.  There is a red-line version available in the staff report, shown as Attachment 1 and beginning on handwritten page 8.  Here are some examples:

1. In the 38 months from January, 2014 to March, 2017 the City experienced an increase of 84% in the number of sober living facilities and residential care facilities in the multiple-family residential zones.  Those new facilities resulted in an increase of 715 beds - a 113% increase.  As of March 1, 2017 the City had a total of 115 residential care facilities in the multi-family residential zones, with an estimated 1,347 bed to treat drug and alcohol addiction.
2. Currently, in all zones, it is estimated that the City of Costa Mesa has 1,748 alcohol and drug recovery beds, divided as follows: 63 state licensed residential facilities/certified alcohol and drug programs in residential zones with six or fewer occupants, providing 352 beds; 19 state licensed facilities with seven or more occupants providing 269 beds; 97 unlicensed sober living homes in all residential zones, providing 1,127 beds; included in those homes are 10 homes that have been issued Special Use Permits providing 60 beds; and 1 approved CUP application per the MFR Ordinance providing 11 beds.
3. Costa Mesa is currently home to almost 29% of the state licensed residential drug and alcohol treatment facilities in Orange County although the city represents 3.6% of the County's population.

WHAT IT ADDRESSES
This new ordinance will address the following issues:

• Reasonable Accommodation
• Review process for group homes in multi-family zones containing seven or more residents
• Review process for group homes in single-family and multi-family zones containing six or fewer residents
• Eviction/involuntary termination of residency
• Compliance with Vehicle Code
• Required Separation between Group Homes 

EXPECTING A CROWD...
Needless to say, this hearing may be a long one, and will likely generate significant public interest.  I have no idea how many people will show up for this one, to offer their opinions on what appears to be an effort to make it easier for sober living homes to receive permits to operate without public knowledge.  Pitchforks and torches comes to mind...

GONNA BE FUN
So, Monday night will be interesting.  I suspect we will see a crowd in Council Chambers.  We'll report on it after... come see in person, watch live on Costa Mesa TV or the live stream on the city website.

Another Short Planning Commission Meeting Monday

SHORT, BUT PROBABLY LIVELY
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission will meet again on  Monday, September 12, 2016 beginning at 6:00 in City Council Chambers for what should be a fairly short meeting.  You can read the agenda HERE.  Even though the main part of the agenda has only two items on it, that doesn't mean it won't be lively - maybe even contentious.

A 24-HOUR GYM REPLACING A CAR DEALERSHIP?
For example, Public Hearing #1, HERE, is a planning application for a conditional use permit (CUP) to place a physical fitness facility (UFC GYM) at 2860 Harbor Boulevard - the site of the former Mitsubishi car dealership.  This gym would operate 24 hours a day.  The staff report recommends approval and seems to have taken into account most of the possible noise issues for adjacent apartments.  This has me wondering if this is the beginning of the demise of our Harbor Blvd. Of Cars?  Just asking...

LIVE, LOUD MUSIC UNTIL 2:00 A.M.!
Public Hearing #2, HERE, should generate some community interest.  This is a planning application for Holiday (formerly Lion's Den and Maison) at 719 West 19th Street.  Some will recall the chaos revolving about the Maison opening - codes violated or ignored and on and on.  This request asks for a CUP to permit live entertainment including, but not limited to, music, dancing and open microphones, within 200 feet of residentially-zoned properties and on-site valet parking.  Currently their public entertainment permit allows dis jockey entertainment and dancing.  The proposed hours of operation are from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m., seven days a week; proposed hours for live entertainment are 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m., seven days a week.  The staff report includes the sordid history of this venue.  We know this plan is not viewed favorably by contiguous neighbors, so I expect to see more than a few of them presenting their case Monday night.

WHAT ABOUT THE SOBER LIVING APPLICATIONS?
This is the second short meeting in a row.  We're still waiting to hear from the Development Services Department about when the avalanche of Sober Living applications will be presented to the Planning Commission.  We understand there are upwards of 50 pending consideration.  Director Gary Armstrong warned the commission a couple months ago to expect to put in extra time on those issues - referring to additional meetings necessary to handle the workload.  And, of course, the Development Services Department is working with a depleted staff and a consultant acting as the Assistant Director since Claire Flynn left for the private sector a couple months ago.  It's going to be an interesting remainder of the year for that organization.

Business As Usual At Planning Commission

MEETING WENT AS ANTICIPATED
As anticipated, the Costa Mesa Planning Commission processed all the items before them Monday night, although not without some significant dialog.  Vice Chair Jeff Mathews was absent.

LAUDING CLAIRE FLYNN
The commissioners began the evening by praising now-departed Assistant Director of Development Services, Claire Flynn.  They spoke of her professionalism and bemoaned the loss of her skills and institutional knowledge.

SLICING AN EASTSIDE LOT
Public Hearing #1, that bifurcation of a single lot at the corner of Tustin and Walnut in the Eastside received a lot of discussion by nearby neighbors, who didn't like the change this would make in their neighborhood.  Among the complaints were the increase in traffic and loss of privacy by contiguous neighbors due to second story outside living areas.  This was simply an approval of the tract map, not approval of any development per se, so the neighbors get another shot at this as projects are proposed.   It was interesting, though, that the commissioners were sensitive to the previous proposal across Tustin on Walnut Place in which the neighbors convinced the commission to deny splitting a lot in to five segments - none of which were less than 6,000 square feet - and told the owner to come back with a plan for four lots. They denied that this project was the same thing - apples and red oranges was the phrase one commissioner used.  The commission approved the map on a 4-0 vote.

VIVANTE EXPANSION MOVES FORWARD
Public Hearing #2 is the proposed expansion of Vivante on the far Westside.  This discussion took much longer than I thought it would, with concerns expressed about the proposed setback and concerns by speakers about the proximity to the Hixson Metals facility.  Chair Rob Dickson addressed that issue firmly, citing the fact that the AQMD is on top of the issue.  The proposal asks to replace a previously-approved plan for office space with more housing units, a fitness center and an events center.  Relatives of residents had several questions about issues during the construction, most of which revolved around the safety of their loved-ones during that time.  Others expressed concerned about the density of the expansion.  The owner patiently took time to address all the concerns, emphasizing that they have a $100 million investment that they want to protect.  Subsequent discussions included concern about undergrounding utilities from two remaining poles.  The commissioners moved this proposal forward on a 4-0 vote a couple of modifications clarifying the undergrounding of utilities.

SMALL LOT PROJECT ON FLOWER
Public Hearing #3 is the design review of a small lot project at 155 Flower Street at the corner of Fullerton Avenue.   The two homes proposed by the developer will, in theory, sell in the $1.4 million range!  Yikes!  Concerns were expressed about privacy from second story windows.  Colin McCarthy sarcastically muttered at one point, "Where are all the SLO naysayers when you need them?"  He and Stephan Andranian praised the lot as the perfect application of the Small Lot Ordinance. The map was approved quickly on a 4-0 vote.

NOT SO QUICK!
Next up was Public Hearing #4,  a companion project by the same developer, at 163 Flower.  This one proved to be more problematic due to the configuration of the residences on the site.  The alley at the rear of the property created a significant amount of heartburn for members of the public.  The second unit basically fronts on the alley, with only a narrow side gate on the front property identifying the rear residence.  The narrowness of the alley was a primary concern expressed by Jay Humphrey and others.  Others expressed concern about construction traffic in the alley and were worried about construction noise from 7 a.m. - 7 p.m.  In addressing this project McCarthy said "We're cursed with this alley issue throughout the Eastside," and bemoaned the fact that there really is no better alternative for this property.   Dickson asked for inclusion of conditions of approval addressing the identifying of pedestrian access to the rear unit on Flower Street.  He also asked for a Construction Management plan, including limitations on the use of the alley for construction vehicles.  The commission approved the plan, 4-0.

MORE MEETINGS PER MONTH COMING UP!
During his report Director of Development Services Gary Armstrong alerted the commissioners that, due to the anticipated very heavy workload coming up he will be polling the commissioners about having three meetings per month rather than two, probably starting in September for a couple months.  I suspect this has to do with the mountain of sober living home applications and appeals.  This certainly will put an additional burden on an already stressed staff and those appeals will be high-visibility issues.  It's going to be an interesting fall, for sure.

Claire Flynn Bids Costa Mesa A Very Fond Adieu

A LIFE-CHANGE AWAITS
Early last week I got some news that I received with very strong mixed emotions... Costa Mesa's Assistant Director of Development Services, Claire Flynn, is moving on.  Her last day with the city she's served for more than fifteen years will be next Friday, July 8th.  I'm happy for her, but sad for the loss it means to our city.

CANNOT LET HER GO WITHOUT COMMENT
Claire is a very private person and didn't what any kind of hoopla to be made as she leaves.  So, I waited as long as I could, but cannot let her departure go without comment - she's been too important to my city to just watch her fade into the sunset.

A LOCAL STAR
A Costa Mesa High School graduate, Claire came to the City of Costa Mesa from Mission Viejo's Community Development Department in 2001.  During the decade and a half with the City she's held five progressively more responsible roles in planning and development and has been in her current role since 2011.

STRONG GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT
She worked under some excellent leaders - Don Lamm and Kimberly Brandt were among her most influential mentors.  Lamm moved to the City of Westminster as City Manager and currently has his own consulting firm.  Brandt is presently Community Development Director for the City of Newport Beach.  And, of course, during most of her career at Costa Mesa she worked under the guidance and leadership of City Manager Allan Roeder.

WILL LEAVE A VOID
Many of us who follow city issues recognize the huge hole this leaves in the Development Services Department.  Claire has been the rock - the consummate professional who could always be depended upon to provide the right answers at the right time to those decision makers she served.

A REAL PRO
Personally, I've always found Claire to be patient, approachable and professional - always ready, willing and able to provide information on development issues to even the most dense of us.  I'm going to miss her.

BALANCING LIFE AND CAREER
Claire will join a private sector organization where her planning education - she has a Master's Degree in Urban and Regional Planning - and more than twenty-two years experience can be fully utilized and also provide her some time flexibility.  Her goal starting this new chapter of her life is to achieve better balance in her planning profession and family life.

 GOOD LUCK, CLAIRE - AND THANKS
So, as she moves off into the sunset of her Costa Mesa career I want to thank Claire Flynn for her service to our city and wish her all the best.  Her talents will be well-utilized in her new assignment and her young daughter will certainly benefit from more quality "Mom time".

Planning Commission "Continues" General Plan Two Weeks

GENERAL PLAN REVIEWED, THEN CONTINUED
Monday night the Costa Mesa Planning Commission, minus Chairman Rob Dickson who was absent due to illness, heard the staff report, two excellent reports from consultants and comments from fifteen (15) residents, then decided to "continue" the item until their meeting on April 25th.

FLYNN CLARIFIES THE SCHEDULE
The meeting began when Assistant Development Services Director Claire Flynn provided some clarification of the staff report and corrected the presumption by many in the community that the Commission would vote to move the General Plan and the Draft Environmental Impact Report to the City Council.  She confirmed that the commission is under no obligation to do so and, in fact, would be well-advised to wait until after April 18th - the final day for written comments on the documents - before beginning to consider sending it up to the council.  More no that in a minute.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
During Public Comments a half-dozen residents addressed several issues.

SOCIAL MEDIA EXAMINED
Cindy Black suggested that, since Commissioner Tim Sesler is such a fan of a prominent social media page, he should investigate the Fairview Park Preservation Alliance page and the Costa Mesa Sandbox page - where one can post without fear of retribution.

FAIRVIEW PARK DEFENDED
Kim Hendricks spoke on Fairview Park and the illegal activities that have happened there over the years using her slide show to demonstrate the problem areas.

RIGHEIMER CROWING PREMATURE
An unidentified person told the commission that the settlement between The City and Solid Landings is not yet finalized - it has not been signed yet - so the crowing by "you-know-who" is premature.  We presume she meant Mayor Pro Tem Jim Righeimer.  She also alerted us all to a group home at 126 E. Rochester.

WATER CONSERVATION EMPHASIZED
Tamar Goldmann addressed an article in the Los Angeles Times on the need to conserve water and told the commission they need to be cognizant of that fact when approving projects.  She said we should be requiring permeable pavers whenever possible.

SOBER LIVING HOME C.U.P.
Mary Spadoni addressed the issue that had been removed from the agenda - the request for a Conditional Use Permit for to contiguous sober living homes and wondered why it was even on the agenda in the first place since we have ordinances against what they want to do.

NEARBY NEIGHBOR ALSO CONCERNED
An unidentified young man spoke to the same issue.  He didn't know the item was not on the agenda until he arrived at Council Chambers.  He owns property nearby and is concerned about the impact of those homes on the neighborhood.

COMMISSIONER COMMENTS
During Commissioner Comments Sesler thanked that unidentified person for the information on the Solid Landings settlement - but he called it "Solid Living"....

ABANDON SOCIAL MEDIA
Colin McCarthy suggested we all need to stop using social media and cited things he did with the time he saved by abandoning Facebook recently.

CONSENT CALENDAR
Both items on the Consent Calendar were handled quickly but separately because McCarthy had a conflict on the second one.  The first passed, 4-0 and the second, 3-0.

GENERAL PLAN
That left the General Plan and Draft EIR.  Staffer Minoo Ashabi led the discussion and introduced the consultants that would be participating.  She also mentioned that the City Council had directed staff to NOT include any mention of Affordable Housing in the General Plan - perhaps because of the pending $20 million bond measure that Righeimer is using as a vindictive tool to flog the affordable housing advocates into submission.  Ashabi gave us an outline of where we stand now.  The following slides were part of her presentation.

FINANCIAL IMPACT OF THE GENERAL PLAN
Consultant Roger Dale of the Natelson-Dale Group provided us with a PowerPoint presentation on the Financial Implications of the General Plan as proposed.  These slides were his presentation.  Most of them are easily-read, but click on the image to enlarge any of them if necessary.

TRAFFIC IMPACT
Following his presentation a representative of Stantec provided a discussion of the traffic impact of the General Plan through 2035.  These are his slides - most of which are hard to read except for the titles.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
During Public Comments several people stepped up to offer suggestions/criticisms.

ANGRY
Flo Martin cited all the hard work the Bikeways and Walkability Committee had done for nearly a year to prepare their goals, objectives and polices for inclusion in the General Plan, only to have Righeimer tell them that their "policies" really should be "recommendations" - despite the fact that the committee had been using a format and template provided by the staff.

"REPURPOSING" FAIRVIEW PARK?
Jay Humphrey cited sections in the General Plan that mentioned that Fairview Park should be "repurposed", and that was inconsistent with the current plan and certainly not consistent with the wishes of the people.

FAIRVIEW PARK
Kim Hendricks outlined several sections in the documents that were inconsistent and needed to be corrected.  She spoke of the many protected species in the park - the Burrowing Owl and the San Diego Fairy Shrimp, just to mention two - that were in danger of being lost by mismanagement of the park.

DISREGARD FOR SAFETY
Cynthia McDonald, who has attended almost every meeting on the General Plan for the past three years, mentioned that she was preparing a written report/suggestions/corrections, but cited one item at this time - that she perceives a disregard for safety in this document.  She said there is no plan for managing the increase in pollution generated by the increase in traffic that the build-out of this plan will produce.

 "THREE FICTIONS"
Kathy Esfahani spoke on the lack of Affordable Housing in the General Plan, cited a letter generated in December of 2015 to which she has received no reply from staff.  She bemoaned the loss of the motels, which provide de facto affordable housing for many Costa Mesans, and said she will cover "Three Fictions" in a letter.

A REMINDER - "YOU CAN'T ACT TONIGHT!"
Cindy Black reminded the commission that they CANNOT act on the General Plan until at least April 18th.

MORE ON WATER
Tamar Goldmann continued with her observations that water needs to be part of this plan.

TRAFFIC AND TBON
An unidentified person expressed concern about the 22% increase in traffic, the lack of affordable housing and the proliferation of rehab homes in the city that seem to have not found a place in the General Plan documents.  She also suggested a visit to the TBON web page where a pin map showing sober living homes in the city may be found.

AIR QUALITY AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Andrea Marr cited the need to get the numbers straight - the consultants numbers varied significantly - and the need to consider Air Quality in the plan somewhere.  She also observed that many of her friends - young professionals - are leaving Costa Mesa for more affordable housing elsewhere.

REHAB RIVIERA
Another unidentified person wondered how much of our tax dollars were spent generating these reports.  She said Dr. Phil promotes rehab homes in Costa Mesa and the Los Angeles Times referred to our city as "Rehab Riviera".

AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Linda Teng spoke on behalf of the Costa Mesa Affordable Housing Coalition.

HIGH DENSITY HOUSING AND TRAFFIC
Richard Huffman was concerned about the proliferation of high density housing planned and the traffic it will bring.

SAFETY A CONCERN
Wendy Leece spoke about the need for the Safety element - parts of which had been dropped in the new plan.  She was concerned about the levels of service by both Fire and Police.

HOPE YOU ALL READ IT ALL
Robin Leffler thanked Vice Chair Jeff Mathews for his smooth handling of the meeting in Dickson's absence, then hoped that all the commissioners had read both documents so they will be prepared to make sound judgments.

LESS COPS, MORE CRIME
Mary Spadoni also cited the fact that we have fewer officers and much more crime now.  She also cited the financial and traffic impacts of Sober Living Homes seem not to have been considered in both documents.

LOOKING FOR CLARIFICATION
During the subsequent discussion both McCarthy and Stephan Andranian said they supported continuing the issue until their next meeting.  McCarthy wanted clarification of some of the disparities in some of the numbers, including the traffic numbers.  Andranian echoed that sentiment and said he was looking forward to reading all the written responses.

REALLY?
Sesler made a strange comment about "confusion and skepticism" about some of the numbers and said it would have been good to have a brief summary of the consultants qualifications.  The guy is just unbelievable!

CONTINUED, WITH AN EARLY WRAP-UP
The commission voted, 4-0, to continue this item to their April 25th meeting and the meeting ended at 8:02 p.m.!  Yea!