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2023 10 10 PC MinutesPLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2023 CALL TO ORDER A regular meeting of the La Quinta Planning Commission (Commission) was called to order at 5:00 p.m. by Chairperson Nieto. PRESENT: Commissioners Guerrero, Hassett, Hernandez, McCune, Tyerman, and Chairperson Nieto ABSENT: Commissioner Caldwell STAFF PRESENT: Design and Development Director Danny Castro, Public Works Director Bryan McKinney, Planning Manager Cheri L. Flores, and Commission Secretary Tania Flores PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Vice Chairperson Hassett led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. CONFIRMATION OF AGENDA MOTION — A motion was made and seconded by Commissioners Hassett/Guerrero to confirm the Agenda as published. Motion passed: ayes — 6, noes — 0, absent — 1 (Caldwell), abstain — 0. PUBLIC COMMENT ON MATTERS NOT ON THE AGENDA — None. ANNOUNCEMENTS. PRESENTATIONS. AND WRITTEN COMMUNICATION — None. CONSENT CALENDAR 1. APPROVE MEETING MINUTES OF JUNE 27, 2023 2. APPROVE MEETING MINUTES OF AUGUST 22, 2023 MOTION — A motion was made and seconded by Commissioners Guererro/Hassett to approve the Consent Calendar as published. Motion passed: ayes — 6, noes — 0, absent — 1 (Caldwell), abstain — 0. BUSINESS SESSION 1. APPROVE CANCELLATION OF REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETINGS OF NOVEMBER 28 AND DECEMBER 26, 2023 PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Page 1 of 6 OCTOBER 10, 2023 The Commission waived presentation of the staff report, which is on file in the Design and Development Department. MOTION — A motion was made and seconded by Chairperson Nieto/Commissioner Hassett to approve the cancellation of the regular Planning Commission meetings of November 28 and December 26, 2023. Motion passed: ayes — 6, noes — 0, absent — 1 (Caldwell), abstain — 0. STUDY SESSION — None. PUBLIC HEARINGS 1. ADOPT RESOLUTIONS RECOMMENDING THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVE CHANGES TO THE LA QUINTA VILLAGE APARTMENTS PROJECT; CEQA: DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT PREPARED A MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION CONSISTENT WITH THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT; LOCATION; NORTHEAST CORNER OF WASHINGTON STREET AND AVENUE 50 COMMISSIONER NIETO RECUSED HIMSELF FROM DISCUSSION AND VOTE ON PUBLIC HEARING ITEM NO. 1, DUE TO A POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST STEMMING FROM A BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP, AS THE ALTUM GROUP, A CONSULTANT FOR THE PROPOSED PROJECT, IS HIS EMPLOYER; AND LEFT THE DIAS AT 5:05 P.M. VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT ASSUMED PRESIDING OFFICER DUTIES. DECLARATIONS REGARDING COMMISSION PUBLIC CONTACT — Commissioner McCune said he met with the applicant, at a private residence, regarding an unrelated project in which he did not have any contractual or financial obligations to the applicant. Commissioners Guerrero and Tyerman each said they had each previously attended a project presentation by the Developer. Commissioner Hernandez said that he had reviewed previous minutes and meeting recordings regarding this project. Planning Manager Flores presented the staff report which is on file in the Design and Development Department. Staff answered questions regarding traffic and traffic patterns on Washington Street and Avenue 50; possible installation of raised medians to prohibit illegal left turns into the project; additional traffic changes with the addition of the Avenue 50 bridge; and current and proposed pedestrian safety and accessibility around the project area. VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING OPEN AT 5:17 P.M. Commission Secretary Flores reported that nine written public comments were received via email in opposition to the project, which had been distributed to the Commission prior to the meeting and would be included in the final record of the meeting. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Page 2 of 6 OCTOBER 10, 2023 PUBLIC SPEAKER: Applicant, Jeff Parker, with Blackhawk Development, introduced himself and Project Architect Greg Irwin, Partner and Principal with Irwin Partners Architects; Mr. Parker said the project was revised as recommended by the City Council, including removing all three-story buildings, changing the architectural style from contemporary Mediterranean to Spanish Hacienda, and removing the garages at the north side perimeter wall; said there had been questions from residents in the surrounding community regarding the removal of the garages which may have provided noise reduction; noted the interior roadways were narrowed, which would provide an additional 6 feet of landscaping; provided a video rendering of the project; answered questions regarding north perimeter wall elevations; addition of block walls along the north side properties with no or inadequate perimeter walls; existing power lines and future undergrounding of power lines; power availability and proposed upgrades to the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) Marshall Substation; addition of raised medians, both temporary prior to the bridge implementation and permanent once the bridge construction is complete, to prohibit left turns into the project; entry and exit stacking and queuing; and entry access control. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Benjamin Egan, Civil Engineer for the project, provided additional information regarding traffic patterns and the traffic study performed in absence of the project traffic engineer. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Richard Gray, La Quinta — commented on the emergency ingress and egress; trash accumulation and output study; pedestrian access to garage structures; elevator and staircase access to buildings; and suggested the addition of three-bedroom units. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Tom Weigel, representing RJ Mayer and Mayer Corporation — opposed the project due to the proposed redesignation of affordable housing units to his client's property located at the north-east corner of Fred Waring Drive and Washington Street. PUBLIC COMMENT: George Christopher, La Quinta resident and former Commissioner of the IID Energy Consumers Advisory Committee — expressed support for the project due to upgrades to the IID Marshall Substation; provided comments regarding the traffic study, U- turns at Moon River Drive, and the deceleration lane and queuing at the project's access points; applauded the applicant for taking public comments and concerns into consideration and the changes made based on City Council direction; and suggested revisiting the removal of the garage structures for noise reduction. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Casey Dolan, La Quinta — expressed concerns regarding the garage structures reducing parking availability; lack of overflow parking availability; increased parking needs during festivals and events; and questioned possibility of requiring parking permits. VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT CALLED FOR A RECESS AT 5:51 P.M. DUE TO THE ACTIVATION OF THE EMERGENCY FIRE ALARMS IN CITY HALL. VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT RECONVENED THE COMMISSION MEETING AT 6:15 P.M. WITH COMMISSIONERS GUERRERO, HERNANDEZ, MCCUNE, AND TYERMAN PRESENT. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Page 3 of 6 OCTOBER 10, 2023 PUBLIC SPEAKER: Carolyn Brandon, La Quinta — opposed to the project due to limited parking and lack of guest parking, entry and exit queuing, traffic safety, and possible impacts of flooding in the area given the recent storm; lack of public outreach; lack of fire escape/emergency access; questioned traffic study time stamps; and questioned impacts of the stadium lighting from the nearby sports complex and schools. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Dante Gomez, La Quinta — opposed to the project due to proximity to the flood channel during flooding and expressed safety concerns. Commission Secretary Flores reported that two additional written public comment were received during the meeting: (1) opposed to the project due to traffic, parking, three-story buildings, and current designs; and (2) stating the speaker previously opposed the project but now is in support of the project due to the changes made by the developer. VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED AT 6:26 P.M. Commission discussion followed to include Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) Storm Channel and possible future grading and upgrades; traffic study times; Fire Marshall approval of development plans including entrance and exits, building design; sports complex lighting and future possible upgrades; traffic patterns, U -Turns, and medians on Washington Street; Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) impacts and California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) approval; and Commission expressed appreciation to the developer for implementing community and Council recommendations in the changes presented. City Attorney Ihrke said that although this subject is not under Commission consideration at this time, as part of the Conditions of Approval for this project, HCD would need to approve the alternative affordable housing sites proposed for the site inventory prior to the project moving forward in order to fulfill the State's "No Net Loss Law" requirements. He also reminded the Commission that due to the project including a General Plan Amendment and a Specific Plan, a majority vote of the membership of the Commission is required in order to recommend approval, i. e. a minimum of 4 votes to approve. MOTION — A motion was made and seconded by Commissioner Hassett/Guerrero to adopt Planning Commission Resolution No. 2023-016 as recommended: A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA, RECOMMENDING TO THE CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE CHANGES TO THE LA QUINTA VILLAGE APARTMENTS PROJECT, LOCATED ON THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF WASHINGTON STREET AND AVENUE 50 CASE NUMBERS: GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENT 2022-0002; SPECIFIC PLAN 2022-0001 (SP 2004-071, AMENDMENT 2); SITE DEVELOPMENT PERMIT 2022- 0001; ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT 2022-0001 APPLICANT: IRWIN PARTNERS ARCHITECTS Motion passed: ayes — 5, noes — 0, absent — 2 (Caldwell and Nieto), abstain — 0. VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT CALLED FOR A BRIEF RECESS AT 6:41 P.M. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Page 4 of 6 OCTOBER 10, 2023 CHAIRPERSON NIETO RECONVENED THE COMMISSION MEETING AT 6:53 P.M. WITH COMMISSIONERS GUERRERO, HERNANDEZ, MCCUNE, TYERMAN, AND VICE CHAIRPERSON HASSETT PRESENT, AND RESUMED PRESIDING OFFICER DUTIES FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE MEETING. 2. ADOPT A RESOLUTION RECOMMENDING THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVE ZONING ORDINANCE AMENDMENT 2023-1000 FOR ZONING CODE LANGUAGE CLEANUP AND CHANGES TO GAME COURT, FLAGPOLE, AND ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT (ADU) REGULATIONS; CEQA: THE PROJECT IS EXEMPT FROM ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PURSUANT TO SECTION 15061 (b)(3), COMMON SENSE EXEMPTION; LOCATION: CITY-WIDE DECLARATIONS REGARDING COMMISSION PUBLIC CONTACT — None. Design and Development Director Castro presented the staff report which is on file in the Design and Development Department. Staff answered Commission questions regarding the ADU Director Denial process and State regulations and requirements; locations of past and current ADU applications and known location or area issues; game court setbacks and recession in grade; building and code enforcement abilities when approving ADU permits and ADU parking requirements; City and Homeowner Association (HOA) ability to enforce parking regulations and high quality transit corridors; distinct address assignment to ADUs; flagpole setback and yard areas; reasoning for the proposed changes to the code; HOA and Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) regulation of flagpole locations and other development standards. CHAIRPERSON NIETO DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING OPEN AT 7:19 P.M. Commission Secretary Flores reported that one written public comment was received via email in opposition to the code updates regarding flagpoles, which was distributed to the Commission prior to the meeting and would be included in the final record of the meeting. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Steve Grocott, La Quinta (with partial time donated by Carol Shaw) — opposed the proposed code amendments due to negative visual impacts on surrounding neighbors; required flagpole lighting violating the City's dark sky ordinance; and his personal experience with negative impacts due to a neighbor's flag. CHAIRPERSON NIETO DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED AT 7:24 P.M CHAIRPERSON NIETO DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING RE -OPEN AT 7:25 P.M. PUBLIC SPEAKER: Carol Shaw, La Quinta (used her remaining time) — opposed the proposed code amendments due to negative visual impacts she is currently experiencing due to a neighbor's flagpole size, location, and proximity to her property. Commission discussed with Mr. Grocott and Ms. Shaw their current situation regarding the neighbor's flagpole and possible solutions; lack of HOA enforcement of CC&Rs; Andalusia's view corridor provisions; and the process needed to bring a new ordinance forward for Commission and/or Council consideration. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Page 5 of 6 OCTOBER 10, 2023 CHAIRPERSON NIETO DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED AT 7:36 P.M. Commission discussion followed to include HOA and City Code Enforcement issues; reasons for proposed changes to the current code; possibility of using a variance for achieving the flexibility versus City-wide code changes; United States Federal Code and regulations on lighting of the American flag; flag content regulation; and the ability to recommend proposed code changes with the exception of the flagpole section. MOTION — A motion was made and seconded by Commissioner McCune/Guerrero to adopt Planning Commission Resolution No. 2023-017 as presented except removing all reference to changes to the section relating to flagpoles: A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA, RECOMMENDING CITY COUNCIL APPROVE A ZONING ORDINANCE AMENDMENT FOR ZONING CODE LANGUAGE CLEAN UP AND CHANGES TO GAME COURT AND ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS (ADU) REGULATIONS AND FIND THE PROJECT EXEMPT FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT CASE NUMBER: ZONING ORDINANCE AMENDMENT 2023-1000 APPLICANT: CITY OF LA QUINTA Motion passed: ayes — 6, noes — 0, absent — 1 (Caldwell), abstain — 0. STAFF ITEMS — None. COMMISSIONER ITEMS — None. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, a motion was made and seconded by Chairperson Nieto/Commissioner Guerrero to adjourn this meeting at 7:49 p.m. Motion passed: ayes — 6, noes — 0, absent — 1 (Caldwell), abstain — 0. Respectfully submitted, TANIA FLORES, Commission Secretary City of La Quinta, California PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Page 6 of 6 OCTOBER 10, 2023