Planning Commission Meeting Wrap...

LATE, BUT MOST FOLKS DON'T CARE...
Yeah, I know... I'm tardy with this report, but I seriously doubt if too many people are worried much about it.  There were fewer than a dozen folks in the auditorium Monday night for the 90 minute meeting, and nearly all of those were involved in one of the two items on the agenda.  But, let's get with it.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
All the commissioners were present at the meeting and they started right on time.  During the Public Comments segment three people spoke on issues important to them.

LICENSING CONFLICT
Steve Chan, who has been up to his ears in hassles with the new night club, Holiday, near his Center Street home, stepped up to remind the commission and Deputy City Attorney Yolanda Summerhill of the complications of issuing an entertainment permit to an establishment that is already encumbered with a beverage permit from the State that includes language affecting noice issues.  He's hoping for a clarification of the issue soon.

SUCCESSFUL GOWN DRIVE
Beth Refakes, representing the Military Affairs Team, told the commission about the successful gown collection/distribution event for the wives of the 1/5 Marines at Camp Pendleton.  She and her cohorts did a great job again of gathering gently-used gowns, prepping them and delivering them to Camp Pendleton for distribution.  Kudos to all involved again.  She also reminded us of the collection of individually wrapped candies for the "Trunk or Treat" event.  Residents are encouraged to deliver candies to City Hall for that distribution in a week or so.

SOBER LIVING HOMES
An unidentified person spoke to the commissioners on the Sober Living Home issue.  She's a member of TBON, a grass-roots organization created a few years ago to help get a handle on the proliferating Sober Living Home issues.  For more information on the group click on their name.

INTRODUCING NEW CONSULTANTS
Before turning to Commissioner Comments Chairman Rob Dickson introduced Jay Trevino, Interim Development Services Director, replacing the departed Gary Armstrong.  Trevino has a long and illustrious career in planning, both in Los Angeles and Orange County.  He held the top Development position in Santa Ana most recently.  He, in turn, introduced another consultant, Peggy Schneble, who is the Interim Assistant Director of Development Services - the position Claire Flynn held until she left for a private sector position earlier this year.  Both these individuals bring decades of relevant public and private sector experience to our city and should be helpful at a time when the workload is up and staffing is down.

During Commissioner Comments Colin McCarthy noted the departure of Fire Protection Analyst, Dave Hollister, who retired last week after decades of service to the City.  He suggested a proclamation be prepared to acknowledge his contributions.

Tim Sesler, once again, refuted comments made by that unidentified person, above.  He does that each time she speaks.

Neither Vice Chair Jeff Mathews nor Commissioner Stephan Andranian had any comments.

Dickson also addressed Hollister's contribution and spoke to Chan's concerns about the ABC license and asked the staff for a brief presentation on the process.

CLARIFICATION ON THE MINUTES OF 9/12/16
Chan asked for one of the items on the Consent Calendar - the minutes of 9/12/16 - be pulled for separate discussion.  He reminded the commission that they were being considered this time is because he challenged them at the last meeting as being inaccurate.  He is concerned that they may not meet the legal test because they are "action minutes".  When he finished it was explained by Dickson that if there were to be any legal challenge parties could refer to the video for a precise record of the event.

OLD LOS ANGELES TIMES SITE
At 6:25 Principal Planner Minoo Ashabi began hearing Public Hearing #1, the Re-zone of the old Los Angeles Times property and an adjacent chunk that currently contains a ball field - a total of just over 23 acres.  One speaker addressed this issue, reminding the commission that the "evil twin mayors" - Steve Mensinger and Jim Righeimer - had long ago commanded that there would be no residential uses north of the 405 Freeway and questioned their authority to unilaterally make such judgments.  She also told the commission that the Pat Moore Foundation - a 78 bed sober living facility - had recently moved out of their facility and, apparently, nobody at the City knew about it.  She wondered what was moving in there.  After almost no discussion the commissioners voted, 5-0, to approve the staff recommendation for the re-zoning of the property.  The entire discussion took less than 10 minutes.

SELF-STORAGE AT 375 BRISTOL STREET
Next came Public Hearing #2, the second pass at a modification of the property at 375 Bristol Street presented by Senior Planner Mel Lee.  The commission denied an earlier plan for this property in June.  This time around consultant Paul Freeman presented a different plan which abandoned the earlier proposed food court, retained some of the existing businesses and reduced the number of self-storage units to 719.

 A half dozen people spoke to this issue.  The previous time many more spoke - mostly business owners that would be forced to move with the old plan.  This time it was equally split between supporters and opponents, including existing business owners on both sides of the issue.

Following the speakers and other discussion Freeman reminded the commission that the current use is very constricted by the location and the airport and that the existing business model is not sustainable. 

Dickson told us he asked for a report from the Costa Mesa Police Department on typical calls for service to public storage places verses calls at the existing auto repair mall.  The self storage facilities had fewer calls for service.

McCarthy recalled the earlier presentation and described it as a "potato only half-baked".  He supported the new plan.

Sesler seemed on the fence about it and interrogated Freeman on some issues.  An amusing sidebar - Freeman had to ask Sesler to speak into the microphone because he couldn't make out what he was asking.  Welcome to my world, Paul!  Sesler is nearly impossible to understand when you're in the auditorium - he usually sounds like he's talking with a mouth full of marbles.

Andranian acknowledged that it is a difficult piece of property to work with, but felt he could support the current plan. 

The commission voted to approve the plan, 5-0, at 7:24 p.m.

ADDITIONAL MEETINGS... MAYBE
Trevino told the commission that they were working on a plan for possibly having extra meetings this month and, maybe, again in December.  He mentioned that they might have back-to-back meetings on October 24th and 25th to accommodate the avalanche of Sober Living Home appeals, and said the staff was working with the commissioners to coordinate their schedules.  As it turns out, as of this afternoon, there will only be one meeting - at the regularly-scheduled time and date - Monday, October 24, 2016.

Planning Commission Surprises

BIG TURNOUT
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission met again Monday night in a meeting that was full of surprises, the first of which was that this meeting, at least in the beginning, played to a nearly packed house.  My best guess was nearly 185 people filled the auditorium.  You can count them in the photo above.  This is a rare occurance for the Planning Commission.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
During Public Comments two people spoke.

REHAB IMPACT - HOME BURGLARIES
Jay Humphrey observed about the homelessness issue in the city, and related it to the sober living homes, one of which recently produced a home burglar.  He also complimented the Costa Mesa Fire Department on their new badge, and gave credit for the new design to Firefighter Scott Purcell.

TOWN HALL
Mary Spadoni reported on the success of the Town Hall last Thursday and showed some of the images from that program.  She reminded folks that the video of the event is available on the Costa Mesa Brief YouTube site.

AN "OOPS" MOMENT
After passing the Consent Calendar, 5-0, without discussion  Commissioner Colin McCarthy - observing the packed house, most of whom were present for Public Hearing #3 - suggested moving that item forward, so the commissioners voted to do that.  Unfortunately, that caught the staff by surprise - Planner Mel Lee was still in his office.  So, Zoning Administrator Willa Bowens-Killeen presented New Business #1 while we waited.

CAMPAIGN SIGN ISSUES
This item is a change in how signs - and campaign signs specifically - will now be handled.  This slide provides a brief summary of the changes.  The biggest one, in my estimation, is the fact that campaign signs will not be restricted to weekends, but will be permited throughout the week during the 6 weeks before an election and must be removed by 10 days following the election.  The commission passed those changes on a 5-0 vote.

ARTS AND LEARNING CONSERVATORY
Then came Public Hearing #3, the request for a Conditional Use Permit to establish a music/theater arts and learning program for elementary and middle-school age children called Arts and Learning Conservatory utilizing an existing 6,000 square foot industrial building at 3184A Airway Avenue - which presently houses the Berean Community Church.

DYNAMIC LEADER
The applicant, Debora Wondercheck, presented a short video about the Conservatory and spoke of their successes.  The use will be much less intense than the current church use and the parking requirements are also much less. 

LAWYER - NO WAY!
During the Public Comments segment Michael Kehoe, a lawyer representing the association of the tenants in the industrial site argued that this was an inappropriate use, that parking is a problem and the parking management plan is inadequate.

BROKER SUPPORTS THE TENANTS
Matt Christiansen, a real estate broker, spoke in favor of the plan, citing much decreased intensity of use.

THE PASTOR IS IN FAVOR
Peter Kim, one of the lead pastors of the Berean Church, spoke of the growth of their church - 450 members and growing and reinforced their need to sell the property so they can move to a larger site.  He observed that the only other use that might work for the building is another church, which would complicate parking.

LAWYER THINKS THEY ARE ON SOLID GROUND
Phillip Kim, a lawyer and member of the church, reminded the commissioners of the decreased intensity of use and the fact that it will improve the parking situation.

5-0 VOTE AND AWAY THEY GO!
After a fairly short discussion the commissioners approved the plan, 5-0, modifying language to impose a maximum number of students at certain times.  More than 100 people left the auditorium following that vote.

SHARED PARKING HANDLED QUICKLY
Public Hearing #2, a shared parking arrangement at a location on Paularino and Red Hill Avenues, was dispatched in less than fifteen minutes.  The crux of this project is the demolition of one 12,000 square foot building to make more parking to increase the viability of the retail center.  It passed on a 5-0 vote.

BACKGROUND MUSIC FOR BARLEY FORGE
Public Hearing #4 is the request from the Barley Forge microbrewery for a modification of its use permit to allow live entertainment until 11 p.m.  Their representative, Marice DePasquale, assured the commissioners that there had been no problems at this site, and that the music being proposed would not involve dancing - the space is just too small for that.  Neither would it involve "shows".  It will just be background music to add to the ambiance of the site.  The commission passed this one, 5-0.

PUBLIC HEARING #5
This brought us to the big one of the evening, the request for a zoning change and permit to demolish an existing automotive retail center, which includes a couple restaurants, and replace it with 744 self-storage units and a small "food hall".   This one was full of surprises, to say the least.

TENANT OPPOSITION
Paul Freeman, representing the property owner, provided his presentation and the reasoning behind it.  He also spoke of providing a letter notifying tenants that they would have to relocate by October, 2017.  Then the parade of twenty (20) members of the public addressing this issue,  90% were against the changes.  Most were business owners in that strip mall, some of whom had been there for 20 years or longer. Chelsy Sharp spoke with passion about growing her business, only to have this rug pulled out.  Speaker after speaker spoke of their trials and tribulations of founding and growing a business at that site.  By the time the dust settled 20 people had spoken, including the young son of one of the business owners  - an impressive showing for such an event and it provided some guidance to the commissioners about the zoning move.

FREEMAN FRUSTRATED
A clearly frustrated Freeman returned to the podium and, again, explained their rationale for removing several viable businesses and impacting the lives of nearly 75 people.  It is a land-use issue and they are not asking for much in the way of return except that pesky zoning change. 

FOUR COMMISSIONERS OPPOSE
Then came long discussions by the commissioners during which Tim Sesler led the charge to oppose the proposal because not enough was being done to help the business owners who would be dislocated.  Keep in mind, there is NO requirement in our codes for that kind of assistance.

MC CARTHY MOVES  
McCarthy led three of the other commissioners opposing Chairman Rob Dickson's views and moved to reject each of the segments of this issue..  Dickson posed a substitute motion, which received no second.  The original vote passed on a 4-1 vote, with Dickson voting no.  This item will move along to the City Council.

VERY STRANGE, INDEED
This was a very curious situation, but one with a precident.  Some may recall that not too long ago this commission rejected a property owner's plan to build five (5) homes on a large Eastside lot with a plan that met every requirement, including lot sizes.  There was no way the commission would reject the plan!  However, there was such community outrage, with complaints about such large homes ruining the character of the neighborhood, that the commission rejected the plan and required the owner to come back with a plan for four (4) houses on that large lot.  It seemed very arbitrary to me at the time and this decision last night is the same - very arbitrary.  However, in this case the owner wants a zoning change, which will apparently be held hostage until the owner does "something" to help the soon-to-be evicted tenants.  We'll see what the City Council decides to do with this one.

Peter Naghavi - The Perfect Public Servant

A WONDERFUL TRIBUTE
Last night I was honored to be invited to a little retirement party thrown for Peter Naghavi - the Costa Mesa employee with the longest title in the building.  Currently his title is "Economic and Development Services Director/Deputy Chief Executive Officer".

MORRIS - MASTER OF CEREMONIES
The man who hired Naghavi in the Transportation Department almost two dozen years ago, retired Public Services Director Bill Morris, put this event together and was the Master of Ceremonies.  He invited folks to stand and praise - or otherwise address - Peter Naghavi's long and illustrious career with the City of Costa Mesa. 

ROEDER AND MORE
Among those who stepped up were former City Manager Allan Roeder, former council members Mary Hornbuckle, Jay Humphrey, Sandra Genis and current councilwoman Wendy Leece.  Naghavi's current boss, CEO Tom Hatch, shown below with his wife, Vanessa, stepped up to praise him, as well.

PERRY BROUGHT DOWN THE HOUSE
Former co-workers like Perry Valantine, shown here with his wife, Pam and Naghavi, stood to share stories about their time with Naghavi.  Valantine brought down the house when he identified himself as an 8-year retiree who has learned to speak in 3-minute increments. 

HELEN BROUGHT UP THE TEARS
Employee association president Helen Nenadal stood and presented what may have been the most serious moment when she thanked Naghavi for "being there for us" during the very trying past nearly two years.  She referred to the events of St. Patrick's Day, 2011 and praised Naghavi for being their rock - always there for them.

FREEMAN TEASED US
Former Segerstrom spokesman Paul Freeman stepped up and shared stories that I'm sure were edited for a "general" audience - there is probably a much more "adult-oriented" version that he really wanted to tell.  Freeman and Naghavi have become great friends through their business contacts.

POIGNANT SPEECH BY HIS SON
Naghavi's son also spoke about life with his father and his friends.

THE CONSUMMATE PROFESSIONAL
The thread through all the comments made by Naghavi's friends and co-workers was that of a consummate professional - a man of his word that you could count on.  Whether he was your peer, boss or subordinate, the message was the same.

PROUD TO BE HIS FRIEND 
Personally, I've gotten to know Peter Naghavi over the years that I've been paying attention to city issues.  He was always responsive to questions I've had for clarification on one issue or another.  He never turned me away and, based on the comments last night, it sure sounded like that's how he treated everyone.  He's been a cheerful, enthusiastic, honest man to deal with - again, part of the thread of the comments last night.  He may have been the perfect municipal employee.  I'm proud to be Peter Naghavi's friend and wish him every success wherever his post-retirement takes him.  He's much to young a man to simply just pack it in, but I suspect there's a lot of travel in his near future.  He will leave his post with the City in December and will be sorely missed.

(A special thanks to Soraya Julian for the use of several of her photos from the event last night.)