Loading...
The URL can be used to link to this page
Your browser does not support the video tag.
Home
My WebLink
About
RCC AGENDA PK 1990/08/20
---f:RUI~V25TA---AN ~NVIRONFIENTA2,-AGENDA FOR THE 905 by Councilman Tim Nader INTRODUCTION In our community and around the planet, the 80s were a decade of environmental destruction which, unchecked, will destroy the future of the human species. We have heard ever stronger warnings from scientists about global warming, the greenhouse effect and deforestation. Closer to home, in Chula Vista and throughout the San Diego region, the explosive and largely uncontrolled growth of the last decade has created an ironic situation: while it seems as if the whole world would like to live here, unchecked growth threatens the desirability of our community as a place to live. Chula Vista has suffered traffic congestion, noise and air pollution, rapid loss of open space, and school crowding, to name a few effects of rapid growth, at levels unthought of 10 years ago. These problems have been exacerbated by the failure of our environmental policies - such as resource conservation; open space preservation and public transit - to keep. pace with explosive growth. The environment has been called "the issue of the 90s". Yet, some of us may recall that the environment 20 years ago was being called "the issue of .the. 70s''. As we approach the twentieth anniversary of the first Earth Day, it is imperative that we make a lasting commitment to the protection of the environment on which ~ life itself ultimately depends. While the City of Chula Vista, or even the entire San Diego-Tijuana region, cannot single-handedly save the earth, we must treat our corner of the planet more responsibly-than in the past. AIR QUALITY 1. PUBLIC TRANSIT A recent study released by the Worldwatch Institute, as reported in the Los Angeles Times, indicates the need for a drastic reduction in automobile use over the next 40 years if the human race is to comfortably survive. All cities have a responsibility to plan now the type of infrastructure which will work with our environment, not against it. Chula Vista Transit has experienced a significant increase in ridership in the last few years - a tribute to all of our transit staff (and perhaps also to the traffic congestion caused by rapid growth). The city should promote the continued expansion of public transit: - In 1990, we should follow through on the action the City Council took in approving the General Plan revision of July 1989, when we directed staff to draft a policy to expand the 1 availability of public transit on major traffic corridors and on routes~f--pa to-t~iose w o are ess i ely to drive, ~ such as senior citizens and youth. - After Assemblyman Peace proposed three years ago an eastward trolley extension to connect the existing trolley line to our shopping center, Southwestern College and Eastlake, we made a referral to staff..- The proposal has languished since, an apparent victim of other priorities. In the meantime, the widening of L St./Telegraph Canyon Rd./ Otay Lakes Rd. is underway, and staff has indioated in conjunction with yet another delay in construction of the Youth Center on L St. that provision must be made to .widen... that street to accommodate automobile traffic generated by growth in the east. Palomar St. is slated for similar action. It would be better, if streets must be widened,. to accommodate a trolley link than more cars. The time to act on Assemblyman Peaces proposal is now - if not much sooner - so as to avoid the gross inefficiency which will result if we continue to expend funds on massive street projects which consider only the needs of automobiles, leaving other improvements for another time. 2. TRAFFIC Besides being a serious stress factor, traffic causes the bulk. of-our air .pollution. - In 1987, the City Council unanimously approved our "Thresholds Ordinance" - a growth management measure requiring that new development not cause traffic flow to deteriorate below what is known as "level C" - except during certain hours. This exception should be reconsidered, as it has been documented that the exception enables some of our most congested streets to meet the letter, though not the spirit, of the "threshold" standard. - During the General Plan hearing in July 1987, Councilwoman McCandliss and I questioned the wisdom of planning to use streets in existing residential neighborhoods - such as Palomar St., western H St. and Hilltop Dr. - to accommodate more growth in the east. The City Council directed staff to come back with an amendment to the General Plan which would allow the traffic "thresholds" to be met without further jeopardizing our estak~lished neighborhoods. A plan should devised and implemented as part of the Growth Management Element of the General Plan to assure that priority is given to sparing existing residential neighborhoods from bearing the burden of growth-generated traffic. Our city's interest requires that we meet this objective, whether by a reduction in future growth or by working with developers to curtail traffic impacts. 2 ;~~ 3:- BICY ANFS l~ when growing up in Chula Vista I was able to go almost anywhere on my bicycle - E St., Bonita Rd. and Rohr Park, Broadway and the shopping center, Southwestern College, the civic center, ar Memorial .Park, to name a few frequent destinations. Today, parents allowing their children to take bicycle trips I took for granted might seriously wonder if they could be charged with neglect, thanks to the hazards posed by sharing city streets with an overabundance of auto traffic. Our city should be safe for bicyclists and pedestrians as well as motorists. Safe and adequate bicycle lanes should be a high priority in our capital improvement budget (as well as a requirement in new development). 4. TRAFFIC REDUCTION IN NEW DEVELOPMENTS The City Council has directed that a Growth Management Element of the General Plan be prepared which will address air quality.. - The growth management plan should require 'any new development to include, among other items, the following measures: - .-Land use patterns (ie, quality mixed use developments instead of traditional segregated land use "blobs" on a zoning map) which encourage people to walk to employment. or neighborhood _services rather than drive. Our downtown redevelopment is one example. layout) should be given sto tithe rsafe desneedsegofdesign speed and bicyclists, and safe bicycle lanes should always beeaequired and - Commercial and industrial centers of significant size should be accessible to public transit, provide flexible working hours and alternative work weeks for employees, and have convenient and secure facilities for bicycles. 5. TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT Chula Vista should enact a Transportation Demand Ordinance, requiring major employers (including city government) to file plans for significant reductions in drive-alone commuting. Methods to be employed could include incentives for carpooling, subsidies for use of public transit in lieu of free parking, and preferential hiring of local residents with shorter commutes. 6. MAKE PROPOSED PROJECTS ACCOUNTABLE FOR AIR QUALITY IMPACTS. complianceAwith federaltcleansair standardsegoA rgquality int our region has deteriorated, not improved over recent years. The Los 3 Angeles Times~c_entTv ,-Pn~rted__tyiat i n th~first-hai f ^f-~he-last decade, a 238 increase in deaths from asthma was attributable to ~ air quality deterioration; many avoidable deaths may also be expected from other cardiopulmonary illnesses and cancer. The politicians, the press and the public must understand that air pollution is more than a nuisance - air pollution kills people. "- In Chula Vista,-our problem is considerably milder than in much of the region, according to air quality officials.1 However, that does not relieve us of our moral obligation to improve the air quality in our community, or our legal obligation to r-ealistically consider the air quality impacts of new projects on our community. Under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) government officials are required to consider the environmental impacts -including air quality impacts - of any project requiring government action or approval,. through. an Environmental Impact Report (EIR). However, the practice in Chula Vista has been that when it comes to air quality its considered "someone else's problem". EIRs have been accepted for projects such-as Eastlake and Rancho del Rey with no more analysis of air quality impacts than to tell us that the project is within SANDAG Series VTI forecasts.. As SANDAG presently forecasts a failure to comply with federal clean air standards, all that such an EIR tells us is-that the project will make things worse - but no worse than SANDAG .expected them to be with poorly controlled growth. Approximately how many senior citizens. will die prematurely? Approximately how many children will become ill when exercising out of doors? How many work days will be lost? Our EIRs often greet such questions with eerie silence. The law requires more than an assurance that a project's impact will be no worse than another entity's forecast, which is unrelated to achieving healthy air for our people. Amore thorough EIR in this area won't let politicians hide behind "SANDAL Series VII" and other terms with which the public is unfamiliar, but it will straightforwardly tell the people what their politicians are approving. By coming out of the closet of "someone else's problem", a more complete EIR can also help us address ways of dealing with 1 It .should be noted that these assurances are generally. based on measurements at one location in our city - Fire Station #2, on E. J St., and do not reflect conditions closer to major sources of air pollution, such as more heavily traveled roads and freeways, or the SDG&E power plant. 4 _our problems - through the analysis of mitigation measures_ also required-Ty CEQA. Some air quality mitigation measures which r should be_routinely discussed in any acceptable EIR on a project with.. air quality .impacts include changes in land use mixes to reduce automobile trips, street designs to make walking and bicycling safer and more attractive, development agreements promoting flex hours and ride sharing, and open space preservation. A review of past EIRs should be conducted, particularly those which were done for projects which have turned out to have impacts on air quality or traffic which were not anticipated (ie, projects which contributed to unprecedented traffic on E St, H St, and L St), to determine how deficiencies occurred and how they can be avoided in the future. .Consultants should be responsible for negligence. 7. CITY EQUIPMENT MAINTENANCE The City Council should receive a report on the periodic maintenance of city equipment, ie vehicles, which can reduce the air quality impacts of government activity. 8. ALTERNATIVE FUELS In .the 1970s, city vehicles switched to the use of propane, a cleaner fuel than gasoline. The rising cost of propane induced the city to return to the use of gasoline. ~ Performance of public emergency vehicles -.police and fire - must not be sacrificed for any reason, and costs must be contained. However, we must not forget the cost of continuing to use gasoline as our transportation fuel - a cost measured in death and suffering as well as dollars. The City Council should a) adopt a policy of preference for cleaner alternative fuels, by procuring vehicles designed to run on cleaner fuels and by making any necessary modifications on current city vehicles to enable them to run on cleaner fuels, and b) receive annual public reports on the use of alternative fuels in city operations. 9. CITY VEHICLES All city vehicles should be regularly inspected and maintained to reduce pollution and improve efficiency. The city should adopt a procurement policy giving preference to vehicles demonstrating reliable emissions control, fuel efficiency and ability to use alternative fuels. 10. CITY EMPLOYEES Immediate steps should be taken to reduce air pollution 5 created-by .automobile commuting to City Hall. Government should set-an examp e; --- -_Financial bonuses should be provided to employees who carpool, yvalk;;bicycle, or use public transit to get to work. We are currently planning an expansion of our civic center and the acquisition of more parking facilities. In closed session, our staff has estimated that city-built parking costs the taxpayers 12 000 er,s ace: Employees who do not drive to work alone are good for the environment-and good for the taxpayer, and should be rewarded.- - Trolley and bus passes for employees should receive an appropriate subsidy,-..similar to those currently- provided to employees of county and state government as well as many private firms. . - Plans for flexible working hours and alternative work weeks shduld be offered to employees wherever possible; to reduce driving at peak hours on our streets.. Slow stop-and-go traffic creates more air pollution than. smooth travel. While each of the above measures would alter. working conditions for employees - making ,them better - all are voluntary and should therefore be implemented immediately, without waiting for employees to bargain for them. All of these measures would benefit-not only our employees, but their boss - the People of Chula Vista. These are win-win proposals. 11. SDG&E MERGER Chula Vista should continue the efforts initiated here by Councilman Malcolm to oppose the merger of SDG&E with SoCal Edison. The merger is a transparent attempt to fuel more growth in the Los Angeles air basin at the expense of the air quality of our community and the health of our children. We should demand a full accounting of all potential environmental impacts, and be ready,. together with other jurisdictions, to back our demands with litigation and with a denial of necessary franchise transfers. We should ask the City of San Diego and other jurisdictions to consider with us a partial public takeover of SDG&E acquisition of the distribution grid, leaving energy production in the hands of private enterprise, and opening up the field to free enterprise. A public energy distribution utility could choose from among various competing private energy producers based on financial and environmental costs to ratepayers. 12. SDG&E POWER PLANT Last year, Councilman Malcolm revealed that SDG&E's plans to put a new fossil fuel burning plant in Chula Vista were 6 considerably €urther a khan Considering our experienaen with the exists ng power p n z,bwelmust '~ say no to another one here. While it may be true that a combined cycle plant will create less pollution than the old plant, the old plant is hot being replaced• thus, the net effect is more air pollution in the lungs of our citizens. As for SDG&E's claim that the augmentation proposal will reduce pollution, it appears this only- ho3ds true if natural gas rather than oil is burned. Our citizens need something more valuable than SDG&E's-word to protect our environment. We must be ready to use every regulatory and legal tool at our disposal to protect the health and property of our citizens. We should move forward expeditiously with Malcolm's proposal to rezone the SDG&E land. 13. INDOOR AIR POLLUTION offer greater protection to the health ofothose who chooses notuto smoke. Being an asthmatic who has had to go to the emergency room as~a child for treatment of life-threatening asthma attacks brought ~n by exposure to."second-hand" tobacco smoke, I know the need for this from painful personal experience. - We should make an effort within city government to eliminate use of chemicals which pollute the indoor air of public facilities. 14. OZONE LAYER PROTECTION - We should support state and federal legislative efforts, such as those of our Congressman Bates, to .protect the earth's ozone layer. policy to prohibitu purchase gofc produ~ts dwhich attack the rozone layer. 2 Residents downwind of the existing power plant often used to awake to find their private property covered with soot. SDG&E at one point claimed the soot came not from burning of oil at the power plant, but from bee droppings. (Common sense says the only droppings involved were of a different variety.) SDG&E finally agreed not to continue burning polluting oil at the plant without prior notification to the. city, burning gas instead. When residents came to me indicating their suspicion that SDG&E was again burning oil - suspicion based on the reappearance of soot in their neighborhood - I brought the matter up at the next City Council meeting, only to be told that this couldn't be so because SDG&E had .made an agreement with us. When it turned out that it was so, we were then treated to assurances that the resumption of oil burning posed no threat to air quality - based on measurements taken two miles away. 7 - One of the largest~nntr; t,,,r~,-G ~ ~yDn®_._deple~ion is -tfie escape of coolant from automobile air conditioners during repair.. Currently available equipment can prevent this but the equipment costs about $3,000. We should adopt an ordinance requiring businesses engaged in work on automobile air conditioning to have and use such equipment; however, to avoid a counterproductive competitive disadvantage-for local business, we should provide that the ordinance takes effect only on adoption of similar laws by neighboring jurisdictions, including the City and the County of San Diego. which depleteethe ozone layertwhereusubst t tes aree availab dects GROWTH MANAGEMENT 1. GENERAL PLAN GROWTH MANAGEMENT ELEMENT In July 1987, I cast a crucial third vote for the General Plan revision despite serious environmental reservations (two councilmembers were precluded from voting because of conflicts of interest}.. Prior .to agreeing to support the General Plan revision, I obtained approval of a motion to require staff to bring back to the council a Growth Management Element of the General Plan which would address, among other concerns, the protection of air quality, of water quality and supply, and the need to prevent our existing residential streets-from becoming mini-freeways serving the traffic needs of new development. I hope approval of my motion was -not a ~ ruse to obtain a vote. The draft Growth Management Element which was presented to council .last fall contains .little more than "Mom and apple pie" goals, without the necessary policies to achieve them. It in no way addresses the environmental concerns mandated by the Council. This is particularly. dangerous to our local environment because the City Council has approved major developments since last summer on the condition that they ultimately conform to the yet-to-be-adopted Growth Management Element of the General Plan - a condition which will mean nothing if the Growth Management element has no teeth. We should resolve in 1990 to adopt a Growth Management Element to our General Plan which protects our citizens' health and lifestyle. At a minimum, such a Growth Management Element must contain strategies to reduce air and water pollution, conserve water supply, hold traffic to healthy levels and protect sufficient open space to keep Chula Vista distinguishable from Los Angeles. As state law requires development to conform with the General Plan, a strong Growth Management Element, if enforced, will do much to protect our local environment for generations to come. If, in implementing the Growth Management Element (or the. Thresholds Ordinance), we find we must limit the number of units built to less than that otherwise allowed, we should not allocate permits on a first-come, first-served .basis, but according to community benefit from a project. First-come, first-served 8 allocation would merely_r~ward tt,~sP dPVptoper~ ..,hn r-us#-their p=o~ects through the fastest; we should reward those who show sensitivity to community needs. 2. PARKS Relevant conditions of new developments at each approval stage should be reviewed by our Parks and Recreation Commission prior to being brought to the City Council, to assure future park needs are met. - 3. ACQUISITION OF LAND FOR PERMANENT OPEN SPACE Adequate open space is crucial for both the appearance and the psychological health of a community. Science has suggested a correlation between overcrowding and violent, anti-family behaviors. While we should continue to require new development in the east to provide permanent open Space, we should also take steps for open space preservation as western Chula Vista continues to in- fill. Too often, we hear that a development project must replace open space because we lack the funds to acquire the land: While this sometimes sounds like a misleading excuse for pro-growth votes (the law generally allows us to preserve more open space than we do), it is nonetheless true that we currently lack a funding mechanism to acquire additional open space in the city. We should adopt the proposal of the Environment and Open Space subcommittee of Chula Vista 2000 to create assessment districts within which new development would be assessed to create a fund for open space and parks acquisition in areas of our community which are most in need. 4. REDEVELOPMENT All redevelopment plans should take into account not only protection of sensitive environmental habitat, but the open space and recreation needs of our community. I propose requiring redevelopment plans to go through our Resource Conservation Commission and our Parks and Recreation Commission before coming to the City Council. 5. RESOURCE PROTECTION Our Hillside Preservation Ordinance, passed by the City Council in 1973, was a model for protection of hillsides from overgrading. However, its application has been limited by the practice of exempting. from its -ambit any area not specifically zoned for its protection. The Hillside Ordinance should be amended to protect the entire city. Other than the Hillside Ordinance, it may surprise many to 9 learn that th_e Cit~o h ,1 ~Y.ista__cnrrPnr i ~_~g__nc~oy ~r the protection of sensitive lands, beyond those mandated by state and federal law and those contained in the General Plan. Case-by-case ad hoc assessment of projects may be inadequate to assure open space and sensitive lands preservation. The City Council should adopt a Sensitive Lands Ordinance to assure preservation of canyons and other open space with important ecological or aesthetic value. This -ordinance, together with the hillside ordinance and the General Plan, should form a floor, not a ceiling, for environmental protection as our city continues to face unprecedented pressure for growth. 6. EIRs Again CEQA requires that projects be approved only after consideration of an EIR which provides comprehensive information on the environmental impacts of the project - including generation of further growth. We have both a legal and a moral obligation to reject any EIR which does not provide useful information as to any growth-generating impacts of a project, ie, open space loss, air degradation, water consumption, traffic, etc, as a result of additional growth caused by leapfrog development or by generating jobs which cannot be filled by our own community. A reference to SANDAL projections is inadequate. .SANDAL tells us what will happen if we don't manage .growth - we have an obligation to learn the specific impact of a project before we vote on it, and to consider realistic alternatives, as the law requires. ~ The convenience of government. or of developers, while nice, are not acceptable as "overriding considerations" to justify serious environmental impacts, nor as a basis for declining to consider alternatives to approval of a proposed project and should never be accepted as such. 7. THRESHOLDS ORDINANCE REVISION AND ENFORCEMENT Our "Thresholds Ordinance", designed to assure that new development does not overburden our streets, schools, emergency services, and environment, represents in many ways a model approach to growth management. Unfortunately, it has not been consistently implemented, and weaknesses need to be addressed. - No project which will result in impacts not allowed under the ordinance should even be brought to the Planning Commission or the Council, except with the clear understanding that under Proposition V, such a project cannot be approved without a unanimous vote of the council. Such projects unfortunately have 3 When such decisions are made, it is crucial to the public that the media report them; otherwise. the law and the public interest it is supposed to protect are lifeless. 10 been brought forward, in at least one instance~a~e, oval" ova sprit council vote No law is worth the paperlvits wraPten on ~ without enforcement. - It is clear, following the first report of the Growth Management Oversight Committee which we created to monitor implementation of the Thresholds Ordinance, that we are presently failing to-.meet the "threshold" levels of service in parts of our city for schools and traffic, and are in danger of failure in the areas of air and water.4 The ordinance should be toughened to assure that development does not imperil our ability to meet these standards. For example, we should require provisions in every development agreement that development stops when a threshold standard is not being met, and we should create provisions for more meaningful action than a "letter of concern" by the Council to other agencies when standards in such areas as schools, air and water are not being met. We must recognize that, within our city, the City Council is the ultimate land use authority, and we should not be content to "pass the buck" for the consequences of our de-cisions to other agencies. - We should include in the Thresholds Ordinance consideration of5 financial and environmental impacts,. and of service quality. For example: A. The cost to ratepayers and to the environment of new sources of water supply for growth should be considered; sources which raise rates for existing users or seriously degrade the environment should not be construed as meeting the water supply threshold. B. Our firefighters have been asking for years that we enhance their safety and their service by providing four-person crews for each fire engine; management tells us we lack the financial resources to do so. We should not resign ourselves to continuing this situation as a means of paying for service to new development, and doing so should not be construed as meeting the fire service threshold. C. Pedestrian and bicyclist safety, particularly a We "met" the threshold for police service by simply reducing the standard, not by growth management. Council took this action on the recommendation of the GMOC. Unfortunately, it turns out that GMOC in turn made its recommendation to the council based on a staff presentation leading at least some GMOC members to believe that the City Council had directed them to recommend an adjustment of the standard that would bring us into compliance. In fact, we never gave such a direction. s The City Council has directed the GMOC to consider a "cost component" to the thresholds. 11 in resdential_.rleighb9rhoQds an d_ naar__g~ools, should never be sacrificed as a means of "meeting" a traffic threshold to accommodate more growth. Street "improvements" that create hazards, although allowing more cars to travel at the same rate of speed, should not be construed as a way of meeting the traffic threshold standard. Generally, our policy should be that thresholds are not met by increasing costs to existing ratepayers and taxpayers, by harming the environment, or by accepting less than top-quality service. - We should make clear to GMOC that we encourage them to use their talents to recommend changes in our growth management strategy whenever they view change as desirable. 8. TREES Chula Vista is rightly proud of its designation as "Tree City USA". Preservation and planting of trees has always been known, without the benefit of consultants or staff reports, to contribute to the aesthetic .quality of the .community. Today, we also know that trees are an important .weapon in the fight to save our planet from the Greenhouse Effect. Our city should do its part .by adopting a policy directing staff to work with property owners to identify trees in the area of any project and to promote their preservation. This should be done. at the earliest stage of an application, not .later when the desirability of saving a tree will come as a surprise to a property owner. We should review our ordinances and policies to assure that unpermitted grading and destruction of -trees does not occur. Escondido's new Arbor Day program is a model which we should consider. 9. CREATING JOBS FOR LOCAL RESIDENTS Several studies have confirmed what I suggested on the council three years ago: the greatest factor creating pressure for new residential development is the creation of jobs which cannot be filled by local residents - and which therefore necessitate the construction of new housing, often of a type promoting sprawl and unaffordable to most families in our community. We should create a jobs program to: A. Identify job skills which will be present in our local labor pool in the future; B. Working with our school districts, our community college district, and other institutions of higher learning, see to it that our community's workers, present and future, have the opportunity to acquire the job skills that will put them ahead in tomorrow's market; and, C. In our development decisions, give preference to land uses which will help achieve these goals. 12 _ This grogram would-__both__improse-ecenomie__opp©rtunity -in our community and help alleviate the pressure for urban sprawl. WASTE 1. Bxx Following the three spill incidents which we were told couldn't happen but did last year, it is clear that a toxic waste facility such as BKK does not belong near a residential neighborhood in Chula Vista. Another, more suitable site must be found for this facility, away from the homes of law-abiding citizens. A site near the prison would be far more appropriate, coupled with a site in southern Orange County to reduce the transportation of toxic wastes to the South Bay. Councilwoman McCandliss and I, working as a council subcommittee, will continue. pushing the relocation of BKK, and the continued support of colleagues and neighbors is appreciated.. In the meantime, every possible measure, including a demand for full environmental review backed by a readiness to litigate if necessary, should be taken to protect our citizens from continued operation of the facility at its present site. 2. TOXIC WASTE REDUCTION AND ON-SITE TREATMENT The best solution to problems posed by facilities like BKK is to use technology that reduces the generation and transportation r of toxic waste.- We should instruct our staff to work with the Environmental Health Coalition to sponsor a model ordinance in this area for our county. 3. DRUG LAWS San Diego County is the Methamphetamine Capital of the World, and 25~ of the toxic waste processed at the BKK plant is from the illegal manufacture of this hellish drug. Illegal methamphetamine manufacturers are murderers as well as serious polluters, and should get life in prison, not probation. Then they could permanently reside near a toxic waste site more appropriate than the one currently used by BKK. Our city should again make known to the Legislature and to local judges our dissatisfaction with sentencing priorities and practices which actually encourage criminals to make money by killing our citizens, destroying our families and polluting our environment. 4. RECYCLING IN CITY GOVERNMENT It is clear that without substantial increases in recycling, we will soon run out of places with which to feed our traditional belief in the myth that there is an "away" to throw things to. Government should set an example with a comprehensive recycling 13 pr~ram. Thi_s__y_ea~, ; n addit-ion to t;:e euFrent-pr-ogram of ~ recycling computer paper generated in City Hall, we should implement a program to recycle all paper (which government is known to generate large amounts of), plus aluminum and glass. 5. CURBSIDE RECYCLING We should expand the current pilate program of curbside recycling to include the entire city. When the trash contract next comes. up, recycling services should be a component of the new contract. 6. CITY PROCUREMENT OF RECYCLABLE MATERIALS Again, government should lead by example - we should adopt a policy of procuring recyclable materials wherever feasible. 7. BANNING NON-RECYCLABLE AND OZONE-DEPLETING PRODUCTS Following the lead of other cities such as Irvine, we should ban the sale of non-recyclable -and ozone-depleting products for which .affordable alternatives are available. 8. RECYCLING STORAGE AND PICKUP At least until curbside recycling becomes a reality city-wide, we should set aside convenient places for dropoff, storage and pickup of recyclable materials in such places as parks, and in new developments. 9. PRISON RECYCLING PROPOSAL we should support - subject to appropriate environmental review - the proposal for biogeneration of methane from trash at Donovan Prison. This technology promises the potential of deriving environmentally superior energy from trash - without the air pollution caused by trash incineration. WATER POLLUTION 1. SUPPORT BAY CLEANUP We should adjourn the debate over whether San Diego Bay is the most polluted bay on the West Coast, or merely unacceptably 5 I am currently working with event to be held. at Rohr Park emphasizing recycling (along with and Recreation Department staff festivities. for our city. the sponsors of Earth Day on an in Chula Vista on April 21, free egtertainment). Our Parks is also working on Earth Day 14 polluted. Chula Vista,_~articularly in its mole as a_port_city, and given our ong-term interest in recreational use of our bayfront, should support any efforts by the Regional Water Quality Control Board, the Port District, the Environmental Health Coalition and others to see to it that pollution laws are enforced and that San Diego Bay is cleaned up. Any-plan for "revenue sharing" by the Port should assure that sufficient funds are reserved for cleanup of the bay. 2• OFFSHORE OIL The recent oil spill off Huntington Beach dramatizes the need to continue steadfast opposition to offshore oil drilling - not to increase offshore drilling, as some politicians have suggested. We should also support legislation to require double-hulling of oil .tankers. 3. SDG&E We should require SDG&E to identify any equipment or processes at its, South Bay plant using PCBs. or other toxic water pollutants, and to eliminate their use in our city. 4. SEWAGE We can expect soon an attempt to foist on Chula Vista ratepayers a huge-rate increase to pay .for the City of San Diego's unilateral decisions on the Metro sewer system - an attempt which t some Chula Vista councilmembers, including myself, have indicated at public meetings will probably be refused. We should, in conjunction with our possible secession from the Metro system, explore more economical alternative technologies for environmentally acceptable sewage treatment as well as water reclamation. Technologies to be explored in a cooperative effort of government agencies and the private sector should include biological solutions and waste reduction. A willingness to innovate - and to carefully manage our growth until a viable answer to sewage treatment is available - is essential to both the environmental and economic future of our community. 5. ENHANCE STREETSWEEPING PRIOR TO RAINY SEASON Enhanced streetsweeping activity prior to rain can help minimize polluting runoff into the bay. WATER CONSERVATION 1. CONSERVATION FINANCE AUTHORITY We should establish a city Conservation Finance Authority to. make no-interest loans to both new and current homeowners for 15 installation. of conservation technologies _(such as low-flow 1-umb in --- -- P ~J~i~tures,drougFi~ resistant landscaping, solar heating and - heat. exchange systems) where such technology can be expected to pay for itself within a reasonable time. 2. RETROFIT ORDINANCE In the .current litigation between the City of San Diego and the federal government, Sierra Club has taken the sound position that any settlement should include a city conservation program, including an ordinance requiring retrofit of conservation devices at time of resale. Such a policy, by reducing the flow through the sewage system, can achieve significant cost savings (San Diego's current plan will cost over $2 billion to ratepayers) as well as conservation of energy and water. The City of Chula Vista will probably refuse to pay for San Diego's unilateral decisions on sewage of the last 20 years, but we should in any event pursue a conservation program similar to that advocated by the Sierra Club, embracing an energy and water conservation retrofit ordinance. An ordinance requiring buildings sold in the city to be equipped with simple, cost-effective conservation devices (i.e., insulation and low-flow showerheads) and requiring large new developments to subsidize conservation retrofitting in older developments to offset their consumption of more resources, could save both scarce resources and money. 3. DROUGHT TOLERANT LANDSCAPING when I first raised this issue at the City Council three years ago, it was met with little attention and some controversy. However, the Council adopted a policy requiring developers to save water by landscaping with native and drought tolerant plants. Fortunately, since then, thanks largely to the efforts of the County Water Authority and the recent focus on the water shortage facing our region, the issue has gained more attention and acceptance. We should expand our existing policy to use tentative subdivision map conditions to put CC&Rs in new subdivisions requiring landscaping to be done with native and drought resistant plants. Such water conservation measures will help protect the lifestyles and pocketbooks of our citizens. 4. WATER RECLAMATION In addition to steps -the city is taking to require water reclamation uses and capabilities in new developments, we should expand the use of reclaimed water at city parks and other public facilities. 16 EMPOWERING OURSELVES TQP_ $OTECZOSJR__EI9S71RONMENT i. RESOURCE CONSERVATION COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS We should act without further delay on the package of recommendations made to the City Council last year by our own Resource Conservation Commission to beef up environmental awareness and protection in our city, including proposed improvements in the commission's function and broader participation from neighborhoods on environmental issues. We should not allow key environmental decisions to be made in an atmosphere of a .club with a closed membership. 2. LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM Our City's lobbying program with the State Legislature and U.S. Congress should continue to include pro-environment positions, particularly on such issues as clean air, global warming (the "greenhouse effect"), offshore oil, toxic waste and land use. We should join vigorously with other cities in fighting the Governor's recent proposals, to replace local land use decisions with centralized State policy (it didn't work in Russia, and it won't work here) and to increase offshore-oil.. 3. PUBLIC INFORMATION We should improve our efforts to .provide information to. the public on environmental and land use issues. Such efforts should include articles by environmental experts in the city newsletter, information on how to participate in decision-making at City Hall before decisions are cast in concrete, and speakers for public awareness programs at schools, churches, and other forums. Our participation in Earth Day this year will be a forward step in this direction. 4. IN-HOUSE ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERTISE While other cities have departments devoted to environmental quality, or give individual councilmembers the authority to hire individual staff (such as Jay Powell on Councilwoman Bernhardt's staff in San Diego) to deal with environmental issues, our city does not presently have the capability to readily provide impartial expert information to the council on many environmental issues. This situation has greatly disadvantaged our citizens on such issues as air quality downwind of the SDG&E plant. We should hire an environmentalist with expertise and proven background on environmental issues within the city manager's office, on council staff, or as a retained consultant to provide the city with independent information on environmental issues on which we are called to make decisions. We should not be at the mercy of special interests or other bureaucracies whose own agendas may or may not include the best interests of Chula Vista. 17 CONCLUSION Saving our environment, on which the next generation's survival depends, will be a monumental challenge for all levels of government. It will require new approaches, and in some cases a willingness to discard. orthodoxy, to protect and enhance our community~s_ future. The sooner we start, the easier it will be. The time is now. 18 Items for Council Action from "F.nvironmantal aRa_~__„da_for_the 90s" ~r 1. Council policy to undertake no further east-west streets or widenings for accommodation of more eastward development until planning is completed fcz new east-west public transit. 2. A General Plan amendment precluding further approvals of major new projects which would have been illegal prior to the General Plan Revision of 1989 until the issues raised by council referrals on General .Plan issues - provision of public .transit, protection of residential neighborhoods from increased traffic, and a Growth Management Element to the General Plan - have been resolved. 3. Directing staff to prepare a long-term plan for the construction of a citywide system of bicycle lanes to make bicycling convenient and safe throughout the city, with a phased plan for implementation through the capital improvements budget. 4~. Anew zoning ordinance requiring mixed uses (e.q., neighborhood commercial and residential) within walking distance of each other in new development, and facilitating. mixed .uses consistent with community character in previously built areas, subject to design review. 5. A new street design ordinance, requiring new streets to be designed to be 'driven at a safe speed for pedestrians (not just motorists), prohibiting high-speed design on residential streets and near sc:ools and senior centers, and requiring the provision of usable a~:d safe bicycle lanes. 6. A zoning ordinance requiring new employment centers to be situated within convenient walking distance of public transit services, with provisions for partnerships between developers and the city for the provision of such services where feasible. 7. A Transportation Demand Management Ordinance. This ordinance would require large employers, including the City, to prepare plans for a reduction in "drive alone" commutes during peak hours of over 508 within five years. Measures in transportation demand management plans could include carpooling, transit and bicycle incentives, flex hours and alternative workweeks, hiring from residential areas near the place of employment, or other measures to be determined in each plan_ Plans should be monitored for compliance with goals, and goals should be periodically evaluated for their ability to achieve healthier air. 8. Adoption of a city government transportation demand management plan in .advance of .the effective date of the above ordinance, including the measures listed above. Direct staff to prepare a plan for the construction, through ..u - .... ~ .. _. ~:.3 the capital im rov~nentsprncess- appropriate areas). of secure bicyal pa} eking fa it 1 ties atdcity facilities_and commercial centers, giving priority to locations at businesses wishing to provide such improvements in partnership with the-city. . ... - .. .. ... hit 10. Adoption of an ordinance prohibiting contracts for EIRs which do not_require the best po§sible quantification of impacts in areas mandated by CEQA, and prohibiting payment for unacceptable EZRs. 11.:.Direct staff to identify projects impacting Chula Vista where environmental and. traffic forecasts on which policy makers relied turned out _to be seriously wrong, to hire a consultant not connected to any such projects to conduct a study of how they went wrong, and to provide recommendations for correcting the process in the future, as well as on any remedies the city may have. 12: Request a staff report on current air quality maintenance programs for city equipment, with recommendations for improvements if appropriate. 13. Adopt: an ordinance containing a preferential procurement policy for clean fuels-(within realistic economic parameters) and requiring an annual public .report on implementation. 14 .' Send a letter from the City Council to Mayor O'Connor of San Diego,-the Chair of the County Board of Supervisors, and the mayors ~~ of the other cities in the county asking them to join in a cooperative effort to .explore the feasibility and desirability of .creating a public energy distribution utility while opening energy production to the free market. 15. Direct our staff, as intervenors in any proceeding concerning proposals for new SDG&E facilities in Chula Vista, to demand proof of air quality claims, and to oppose any such proposals in the absence of proof that they will improve our air quality and that SDGSE will be held to any assurances it gives by the prospect of meaningful penalties for violations of any agreements. 16. Send a letter to the California Energy Commission outlining our agreement with SDG&E concerning the rezone of their Chula Vista land and putting on the record of any Energy Commission proceeding the invalidity under that agreement of any implication that new industrial uses by SDG&E on our bayfront are consistent with local land use regulations. 17. Consider an Open Space zone alternative for at least part of the SDG&E bayfront property. 18. Adopt an indoor smoking law patterned after San Diego County's. 2 -v ~ i 19. Direct staff to report on the zncc'hle_-es}~},1;~hm~ + of a fund,- similar to that- proposed at the federal level by the ~"- Environmental Defense Fund, to subsidize the removal of lead from older Chula Vista homes. This report should include an analysis of need, and, if the need is shown, of possible funding sources, e.g., a ballot measure fo tax lead products. 20.: Direct staff- to„-~iepare a policy, with input from the Esivronmental Health Coalition and appropriate others, to eliminate the use of polluting chemicals by the city and prescribing alternatives.. 21. Adopt a city policy to identify and prohibit the purchase of any unnecessary products the production, use, or disposal of which is harmful to the earth's ozone layer, and assure that all staff with purchasing authority receive a copy. 22'. Adopt an ordinance requiring work on automobile air conditioners to be performed with equipment to prevent the escape of ozone-depleting chemicals into the environment, with the effective date delayed until a similar ordinance is adopted in all jurisdictions in the county. 23. Add support for the Bates ozone layer protection bill to the city's legislative ,program. 24. Add support for Assemblyman Peace's A.B. 1332 to phase-out chlorofluorocarbons from automobile air conditioning by 1995 to the .city's legislative program. 25. Hold off on further .tentative map approvals for major projects relying on the 1989 General Plan revision until that revision.- including a Growth Management Element with implementation measures - is complete. 26. Adopt an ordinance requiring new developments to be considered by the Parks and Recreation Commission, with that commission's recommendation being put before the City Council at the time of any council action, and prohibiting council approval prior to such input. 27. Adopt an ordinance for the creation of open space and parks acquisition assessment districts. 28. Adopt an Open Space zone. 29. Adopt an ordinance requiring redevelopment plans to be considered by the Planning Commission and the Resource Conservation Commission prior to City Council action. 30. Adopt a Sensitive Lands Ordinance for the protection of slopes, canyons, riparian habitats and other environmentally 3 ,;,:fix :-~ sensitive lands. {f' 31. Adopt a policy requiring certification, prior to approval, of projects compliance with .the General Plan Growth Management Element, the "Threshold" standards, and Proposition V, with the understanding that projects not in compliance with the latter are required by law to gain atiunanimous council vote to win approval. 32.,__Adopt._an ordinance requiring all development agreements to contain provisions. halting development where the "threshold" standards are not met. 33. .Adopt an ordinance amending the "threshold" standards to measure compliance by impacts on cost and quality, as well as quantity, of city services, and by impacts on public safety. 34. Adopt an ordinance requiring new developments to show they will pal. their own way in staffing needs as well as capital improvements. 35. Send.a letter from the City Council to-the Growth Management Oversight Committee, the Planning .Commission, the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Resource Conservation Commission emphasizing the council's intent. to give these bodies the widest possible latitude to develop policy recommendations for the council. 36. Adopt a Tree Preservation Ordinance. ~~ 37. Direct staff to consider a future Arbor Day program.similar to that being implemented this year iri Escondido. 38. Direct staff to prepare an RFP for a study (to be done jointly with neighboring jurisdictions if they wish) to identify future job demands and training needs in our locale and to recommend education, training and economic development measures, with assistance from a city Economic Development Commission. 39. Direct staff to work with the Environmental Health Coalition to develop a model Toxic Waste Reduction Ordinance. 40. Send letters from the city to legislators and local judges reiterating our desire for greater protection - tougher sentencing - of methamphetamine manufacturers. 41. Send appropriate letters in methamphetamine manufacturing in the seriousness of this activity public. sentencing proceedings involving Chula Vista, reminding judges of and the need for protecting the 42. Establish a program for collecting all recyclable materials (glass, aluminum, paper) generated at City Hall. 4 e ,q 5Z._ Dire~staf~hrough-our~Y-~~~~-~;-budget-,--te et~e~ hire a staff person at the Deputy City Manager level with a solid environmentalist background, or to retain a private environmental expert to-work directly with city policy makers on all policy issues having environmental implications. >: .5; 6 RESOURCE CONSERVATION COMMISSI0:2 MEETING OF AUGUST 6, 1990 RECOMMENDATION TO CREATE COMMUNITY PLANNING GROT'PS THF. RESOURCE CONSERVATION COMMISSION RECOMMENDS THAT THE CHULA VISTA CITY COUNCIL CREATE TWO NEW COMMUNITY PLANNING GP.OL'PS - ONE IN THE SWEETh?ATER PLANNING AREA AND ANOTHER IN THE EASTERN TERRITORIES PLANNING AREA. BECAUSE OF UNPRECEDENTED GRCWT}i AND ITS RELATED PROBLEMS, THE NEIGHBORHOODS OF THESE TWO PLANNING AREAS NEED A MORE IMMF.DIATF. AND RESPONSIVE VOICE IN THE PLANNING FROCESS. COUNCIL SHOULD USE THE MECHANISM IN MUNICIPAL CODE CHAFTER 2.48 TO CREATE THESE TWO COMMITTEES (GROUPS). THE PROCESS SHOULD BE AS FOLLOWS: 1. USE THE GEOGRAPHIC BOUNDARIES AS DEFINED IN THE GENERAL PLAN TO CREATE THE ShTEETWATER AND EASTERN TERRITORIES COMMUNITY PLANNING COMMITTEE. 2. FOREGO THE REQUIREMENT THAT 25% OF THE ELECTORS SIGN A PETITION TO ESTABLISH THE COMMITTEES. 3. CONDUCT A PUBLIC HEARING TO DETERMINE THE NECESSITY. 4. APPOINT THE INITIAL SEVEN MEMBERS. ALL OTHER NECESSARY PROVISIONS FOR FORMATION AND PROCEDURES ARE LOCATED IN MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 2.48. PROJECT NAME: Western Business Park PROJECT LOCATION: Northwest corner of Bay Boulevard and Palomar Street (APN #617-011-04, ptn) PROJECT APPLICANT: Western Salt Company, 7220 Trade St., Suite 102 San Diego, CA 92121 CASE N0: IS-90-20 DATE: December 13, 1989 A. Project Setting The 4.62-acre project site is located at the northwest corner of Bay Boulevard and Palomar Street in the Coastal Zone. The site is presently undeveloped and has been previously graded.. An abandoned well is located at the northeast portion of the- site. The well was capped recently in response to Department of Health Services safety concerns. Surrounding land uses include the Nellcor light industrial park to the north, Western Salt Company and adjacent salt ponds to the south and west. and light industrial/retail development. to the east. .The San Diego and Arizona Eastern railroad Tines transect the easterly portion of .the site from north to south. An unimproved drainage channel lies east of the property and west of .Bay Boulevard. The site lies at the southernmost portion of the City of Chula Vista's Local Coastal Program. B. Project Description The proposed project consists of two light industrial concrete tilt-up buildings. The project totals 65,880 sq. ft. with 122 adjacent parking spaces. The, primary access will be off Bay Boulevard. An internal service court would be provided for delivery access, and service access would be provided at the northeast corner of the site off Bay Boulevard. C. Compatibility with Zoning and Plans The Chula Vista General Plan designates the site "Research & Limited Industrial", and the current zoning designation is (IL) Limited Industrial. The proposed light industrial use is in conformance with the zone and the General Plan. To conform to the requirements of the Chula Vista Coastal Zone, .the applicant must obtain a coastal development permit prior to the issuance of building permits. The site is in the portion of the Coastal Zone subject to the review of the California Coastal Commission. -2- D. Compliance with the Threshold/Standards Policy 1. Fire/EMS The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that fire and medical units respond to calls within 7 minutes or less in 95% of the cases and within 5 minutes or less in 75% of the cases. The estimated response time is 6 minutes, and the nearest fire station is 1.5 miles away. The proposed project is in compliance with this threshold standard. The Fire Department will be requiring the installation of one (1) on-site fire hydrant and may require the installation of an automated sprinkler system. 2. Police The Thresholds/Standards Policy. requires that police units must respond to Priority 1 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority- 1 calls. of 4.5 minutes or .less. Police units must respond to Priority 2 calls within 7 minutes or-less and maintain an average response time to all Priority 2 calls of 7 minutes or less. The proposed project is in conformance to this threshold standard because the Police Department indicated it is maintaining an acceptable level of service in this area. 3. Traffic The Thresholds/Standards Policy ,requires that all intersections must operate at a Level of Service (LOS) "C" or better, with the exception that Level of Service (tOS) "D" may occur during the peak two hours of the day at signalized intersections. Intersections west of I-805 are not to operate at a LOS below their 1987 LOS. No intersection may reach .LOS "F" during the average weekday peak hour. Intersections.of arterials with freeway ramps are exempted from. this policy. The Engineering Department has reviewed the proposed project and has determined that it would not adversely impact levels of service on surrounding roads or intersections. The Engineering Department will be requiring street improvements, as specified in Section E of this document. 4. Parks/Recreation The Thresholds/Standards Policy for Parks and Recreation is 3 acres/1,000 population. This threshold standard applies only to residential projects, therefore, the proposed industrial project is exempt from the threshold standard for Parks and Recreation. -3- 5. Drainage The Engineering Department will require that a detailed hydraulic and hydrology study be completed to properly locate the flood lines on the site. Future pad elevations shall be a minimum of one foot above the 100-year inundation line. Additionally, the natural drainage channel east of the site shall be stabilized to prevent erosion. Specific drainage issues are discussed in Section F of this document. 6. Sewer Review of the specific development proposals by the City will ensure that sewage flows and volumes not exceed City engineering standards. The proposed project. will be required to connect to an existing 8-inch sewer main on Bay Boulevard. An industrial user discharge permit shall be obtained from the Metropolitan Sewage System prior to issuance of building permits: 7. .Water The Thresholds/Standard Policy requires that adequate storage, treatment and transmission facilities be constructed concurrently with planned growth and that water quality standards are not jeopardized during growth and construction. The project will not exceed the threshold standards for water resources. E. Identification of Environmental Effects An initial study conducted by the City of Chula Vista determined that although the proposed project could have a significant environmental effect, subsequent revisions in the project .design have implemented specific mitigation measures. Potential impacts deemed to be potentially significant include: biology and visual impacts. Potential impacts deemed to be less than significant include: hydrology, geology/soils, and traffic. Biology Impacts Potential biology impacts are associated with the proximity of the site to habitat used by a variety of sensitive species. The Bel ding's Savannah Sparrow, California Least Tern, Black Skimmer, Elegant Tern, and Snowy Plover are known to use the levees and salt ponds on the adjacent Western Salt Work's property to the south and west. Although the project site, itself, is devoid of vegetation due to previous grading, potential biology impacts to adjacent habitat could result from lighting and glare impacts to the adjacent salt ponds. Potential. biology impacts would also .result during the construction phase of the project from disturbance associated with construction-equipment noise and dust. -4- The salt ponds of the Western Salt Company are utilized as. resting and feeding areas for a variety of species of water birds which utilize the bay. The dikes which border the salt ponds support nesting colonies of both elegant and least terns. The salt pond dikes support the only nesting colony of elegant terns in the United States, and the least tern is state and federally-listed endangered species. The Snowy Plover, a federally-listed Category II species, also uses the dike as a nesting site. The dikes are also used to support nesting colonies of Caspians & Forster's terns and black-necked stilts. San Diego Bay and the ,Sal ton Sea are the only two nesting places remaining in Southern California for Forster's terns. The salt marsh savannah sparrow has also been known to use the adjacent salt works area.- Vi sual The project's location within the Coastal zone, immediately adjacent to the Chula Vista Bayfront, is associated with potential visual impacts. Development within the Bayfront should be given special design attention to ensure that- development is properly sited and to minimize adverse visual impacts. Potential visual impacts associated with 'the proposed project are deemed to be less than significant. Site design requirements, including directional lighting to prevent unnecessary glare and light impacts to adjacent levees will minimize disturbance to sensitive bird species. To ensure the reduction of any potential visual impacts,. the location of parking areas and the lighting of parking areas will be reviewed at the design review stage. The provision of adequate landscaped buffers will be required in conformance to City Landscape requirements. These site design techniques will ensure that the views from Bay Boulevard will be enhanced and that the site proximity to the Bayfront will be considered. The following impacts have been deemed to be less than significant: Geology/Soils An initial soils investigation was conducted on the site by Geocon (January 1990). The survey determined that there are no adverse soil or geologic conditions existing on the site which preclude the project development, provided that the recommended site preparation standards are followed. The site is not located on any known, active fault trace, however, The Rose Canyon Fault Zone is located within 1/2 mile of the site to the west.. All- grading on site shall be performed in accordance with Geocon's Soils Report (Appendix C) and with City of Chula Vista Grading standards. Although the site has-been previously graded,. there is no record on file of a previous grading permit approved by the City. This will require special handling by the Engineering Department. -5- With compliance to site preparation standards, potential geology impacts are deemed to be less than significant. Hydrology The project site is adjacent to the bayfront and falls within the southernmost portion of the City of Chula Vista Local Coastal Program. The project boundaries are not represented on the Federal Emergency Management. Agency (FEMA) floodplain maps, therefore, the Engineering Department does not have sufficient information to determine whether the site falls within the 100-year floodplain. Due to the lack of hydrological information on site, the Engineering Department will be requiring a detailed hydrology and hydraulic study for the project, prior to the issuance of grading. .permits. Future pad elevation should be a minimum of one. foot .above the 100-year inundation lines. With the provision that a hydraulic study be required, the potential hydrology impacts are deemed to be less than significant. Traffic The proposed project is accessed off. Bay Boulevard, and the projected amount of traffic generated by the. proposed project is 1,506 ADT. Currently, this segment of Bay Boulevard is operating at Level of Service (LOS) "A" with 4,840 ADT. After the project is completed, the estimated LOS would remain "A", with a total of 5,896 ADT. The Engineering Department has indicated that -the primary access roads are adequate to serve this project, provided specific traffic engineering standards are implemented. Traffic Engineering standards to reduce traffic impacts include full street improvements, including 26 ft. half street pavement improvements to match existing northerly segment of roadway; and curb, gutter, and sidewalk with ramps. Traffic signal fees will be assessed., and 36 ft. half street improvements will be required. Additionally, one 250 watt HPSV street ligFit will be required just south of the main driveway. With implementation of these specific traffic engineering measures, potential traffic impacts are considered to be less than significant. F. Mitigation necessary to avoid si nificant effects Specific mitigation. measures have been required to reduce potentially significant biology and visual impacts. Potential impacts deemed to be less than significant include geology, hydrology, and traffic. No specific mitigation measures have been required for these impacts. G. Findings of Less than Significant Impact A Negative Declaration has been prepared pursuant to Section 15070 of the State ~EQA guidelines and the following findings have been made. -6- Based on the following findings, it is determined that .although the project described above could have a significant environmental impact, no environrental impact report will be required because specific biology and visual mitigation has been included in the project design. Through the provision of mitigation measures, potentially significant impacts have been reduced to a level of less than significant. 1. The project has the potential to substantially degrade the quality of the environment, substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species, cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaining. levels, threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community, reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal, or eliminate important examples of the major periods of California history or prehistory. Although, the proposed Western Business Park Project could have a significant adverse effect upon the quality of the natural environment, it will not have a significant effect because specific mitigation measures have been required to reduce potential impacts to a level of less than significant. The project conditions will ensure that any potentially adverse impacts will be reduced to a level of less than significant. Mitigation of potentially significant biology and visual impacts are set forth in Section F of this document. 2. The project has the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long-term environmental goals. The project is consistent. with. the General Plan and zone. The project will not achieve short-term goals to the disadvantage of long-term goals because these long-term goals would be achieved through compliance with City threshold standards, site preparation standards and. specific mitigation measures set forth in Section F of this document. 3. The project has possible effects. which are individually limited but cumulatively Considerable. As used in the subsection, "cumulatively considerable" means that the incremental effects of an individual project are considerable when viewed in connection with the effects of past projects, the. effects of other current projects, and the effects of probable future projects. Although the proposed project would create cumulative impacts, such as temporary noise impacts relating to construction activities, these impacts are short-term and are not considered significant, since they: would occur during the construction phase of the project. -7- 4 The impacts to the surrounding community will be incremental and the improvements will not cause significant growth in the surrounding community. There is no significant growth inducement nor cumulative impact associated with the project, provided that City standards are complied with. The environmental effects of a project will cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly. The Geocon Report (January, 1990) did not identify any hazardous materials on the property. The project will not emit any hazardous gases, noise, vibration, or radiation which would impact human beings. There will be temporary noise impacts associated with the construction phase. of the project, but these will be short-term only. The project will not cause any substantial adverse impact to human beings., since no potential human health impacts were identified in the Initial Study. H. Consultation 1. Individuals and Organizations City of Chula Vista: Maryann Miller, Environmental Review Coordinator Phil Landowski, Chula Vista Fire Department M. J. Donnelly, Engineering Department Eugenia A. Franco, Engineering Department Robin Putnam, Community Development Samir Nuhaily, Engineering Department Bill Wheeler,. Building. and Housing Carol Gove, Fire Marshal Captain Keith Hawkins, Police Department Ed Batchelder, Planning Department Shauna Stokes, Parks and Recreation Sweetwater High School District: Thomas Silva. Applicant's Agent: Bob Sawyer, Land Use Planner Western Salt Co. 7220 Trade St., Suite 102 San Diego, CA 92121 2. Documents Chula Vista General Plan Chula Vista Municipal Code IS-88-15 Rohr Industries Buildings 99 and 100 IS-85-21, Bay side Business park, Bay Blvd.. and Palomar Street Dept. of Fish & Game, "The Natural Region of San Diego Bay.," Oct. 1973 Survey of Bel ding's Savannah Sparrows in California, Sept. 1986 -8- 2. Documents (cont'd) A Report to the U.S. Navy Natural Resources Management Branch Chula Vista Bayfront Specific Plan Coastal Development Permit Procedures Manual, Sept. 10, 1985 Phase II Chula Vista Bayfront Local Coastal Program, Land Use Plan, March 27, 1984 (as amended 4/89) Bay Blvd., Redevelopment Project FEIR, Westec Services, January 1979 This determination,- that the project will not have any significant environmental impact, is based on the attached Initial Study, any comments on the Initial Study and any comments. on this Negative Declaration. Further information regarding the environmental review of the project is available from the Chula Vista Planning Department, 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 92010. ~h,~( Ct-u'tti 12c'tc-G(°'~-' ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW COORDINATOR EN 6-(Rev. 3/88) WPC 7086P Mitigation Monitoring Program Western ~iness Pam Northwest corner of Bay Boulevard and Palomar Street, IS 90-20 This Mitigation Monitoring Program is prepared for the Western Business Park project, in order to comply with AB 3180. This legislation requires public agencies to ensure that adequate mitigation measures are implemented on mitigated negative declarations, such as IS-90-20. AB 3180 requires monitoring of potentially significant or significant impacts. The mitigation monitoring program for the Western Business Park ensures mitigation for the following potentially significant impacts: - Biology Impacts - Visual Impacts Due to the relatively small scale of the proposed project and the nature of the issues, the Mitigation .Compliance Coordinator (MCC) shall be the Environmental Review Coordinator (ERC) for the City of Chula Vista. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the conditions of the Mitigation Monitoring Program are met. Biology and Visual Mitigation The proposed project is associated with potentially significant biology and visual impacts on the site. Mitigation of Potentially Significant Biology and Visual Impacts will be accomplished by the following: 1. Design and construction of parking areas shall be reoriented away from the salt dikes which border the property. Site redesign. shall occur during design review. 2. A redesign of the parking areas will serve to mitigate light and .glare impacts to the salt dikes from lighting in the parking area. 3. Grading and construction equipment shall not intrude into the salt dike areas. With implementation of these mitigation measures, the proposed project will not have a significant effect on the environment. These mitigation measures will be implemented during the design review process. WPC 7206P negative de~iaration PROJECT NAME: Phase III, Addition to Security First Self Storage PROJECT LOCATION: 3023 Main Street and 3033 Hermosa Avenue PROJECT APPLICANT: Security First Self Storage CASE N0: IS-90-49 DATE: July 20 1990 A. Pro.iect Settino The project site occupies a portion of the property that is already partially developed for self storage in the southeast quadrant of the intersection of Main Street and Hermosa Avenue. There are currently five block buildings under construction within the 1.4-acre Security First Self Storage property. The site is on the southern fringe of a commercial area. To the north, north of Main Street, are a restaurant/bar and other commercial uses. Lou's Gym and other commercial uses are located immediately east of the project area. To the west, west of Hermosa Avenue, there are agricultural operations, and to the south and southwest, there are sand and gravel operations and a processing plant. A small drainage borders the property on the east. B. Proiect Description The project proposes to add 2,200 square feet of self storage area to the existing buildings and buildings currently under construction. The project site would continue to be accessed from Main Street. The steel-framed, metal roofed buildings on the three proposed buildings would be approximately 40' x 266 (Building N), 40' x 266' (Building 0), and 40' x 98'7" (Building M). The storage units within the proposed buildings would be approximately 12' x .40' and would be designed to store small trucks, vans, boats, trailers and recreational vehicles that are frequently parked on residential streets. The project buildings would cover approximately 50% of the site. The project would include the installation of landscaping along both Main Street and Hermosa Avenue. It would also entail the removal of the two existing driveways off of Main Street and the construction of a new 24' driveway off of Main Street. As part of the project, the existing to be relocated and one private fire knox box will need to be installed on fire hydrant on Main Street will need hydrant is required. In addition, a the gated entrance off Main Street. Applicable school developer fees will be assessed by both the Chtala Vista and Sweetwater School Districts. ~~tr~ city of Chula vista planning department ~` environmental review section CHUILA VISTA -z- Comoatibility with Zoning and Plans The project site is designated for Research and Limited Manufacturing uses, as are all of the surrounding properties in all directions. The project site is zoned M-52, as are all of the surrounding properties in all directions. The proposed project is in conformance with the existing General Plan land use designation and the zoning. In addition, it is compatible with the designated land uses and zoning for the surrounding properties. The proposed additions to the existing structures will expand an existing conforming use. D. Compliance with the Threshold/Standards Policv 1. fire EMS The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that fire and medical units must be -able to respond to calls within 1 minutes or less in 95% of the cases and within 5 minutes or less in 75q of the cases. The Fire Department indicated that the nearest fire station is approximately 1.25 miles from the site and that the site can be reached in approximately 3 minutes. The Fire Department will require the relocation of the existing fire hydrant on Main Street and the installation of one private hydrant. In addition, a knox box is required for gated entrance off Main Street. Therefore, the project is in compliance with this policy. Police The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that police units -must respond to Priority 1 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority calls of 4.5 minutes or less. Police units must respond to Priority 2 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority 2 calls of 7 minutes or less. The Police Department is currently maintaining an acceptable level of service based on the threshold standard and does not anticipate any significant impacts as a result of the proposed project. Traffic The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that all intersections must operate at a Level of Service (LOS) "C" or better, with the exception that LOS "D" may occur during the peak two hours of the day at signalized intersections. Intersections west of I-805 are not to operate at a LOS below their 1987 LOS. No intersection should reach LOS "F" during the average weekday peak hour. The City Engineering Department estimated that the proposed project could add an estimated 10 trips per day. The existing LOS on Main Street is LOS A. -Upon project completion, the. LOS would remain the same. Thus, the project is not expected to have a significant traffic impact. -3- 4,. Park/Recreation The Threshold/Standards Policy for park and recreation applies only to residential projects. 5. Drainaoe - The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that storm water flows and volumes shall not exceed City Engineer Standards. The project is not within the 100-year flood boundary. The City Engineering Department has determined that the existing and proposed drainage improvements in the area are adequate to handle the projected storm flows. No significant impacts are anticipated as a result of project development. 6. Sewer The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that sewage flows and volumes shall not exceed City Engineering Standards. The City Engineering Department estimated that the project could generate an additional 265 gallons of sewage per day. The 15" sewer line that drains west under Main Street is deemed adequate to serve the project. Thus, no significant impacts are anticipated. Water The Thresholds/Standard Policy requires that adequate storage, treatment, and transmission facilities are constructed concurrently with planned growth and that water quality standards are- not jeopardized during growth and construction. The proposed project will not require water service, other than for fire fighting, and will have no impact on water availability. Identification of Environmental Effects Geology/Soils The City Engineering Department will require the completion of a preliminary geologic/soils report prior to development. However, since other portions of the project area have already been approved for development, no significant impacts are anticipated. Mitioation Necessary to Avoid Significant Effects Since there are no anticipated significant environmental effects, no mitigation is required. -4- G. Findings of Insignificant Imoact 1. The project does not have the potential to (a) substantially degrade the quality of the environment; (b) substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species; (c) cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaining levels; (d) threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community; (e) reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered -plant or animal; (f) eliminate .important. examples of the major periods of California history or prehistory. The project does not have the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long-term environmental goals. The project does not have passible effects which are individually limited but cumulatively considerable. The environmental effects of the project will not cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly. Construction impacts will be insignificant, short-term noise and traffic impacts. Consultation Individuals and Organizations City of Chula Vista: Barbara Reid, Assistant Planner George H. Smith, Fire Department Roger Daoust, Sr. Civil Engineer Ken Larsen, Director of Building & Housing Hal Rosenberg, Traffic Engineer Shauna Stokes, Parks & Recreation Keith Hawkins, Police Department R. Solorzano, Engineering Dept. Lee McEachern, Contract Planner Chula Vista City School District: Kate Shurson Sweetwater Union High School District: Thomas Silva Documents Title 19 (Zoning), Chula Vista Municioal Code General Plan, City of Chula Vista City of Chula Vista, Policy: Threshold/Standards and Growth Management Oversight Committee, as amended November 30, 1989 -5- This _ determination, that the project will not have any significant environmental impact, is based on the attached Initial Study, any comments on the Initial Study, and any comments on this Negative Declaration. Further information regarding the environmental review of the project is available from the Chula Vista Planning Department, 276 Fourth .Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 9203,Q. _ _ ENVIRO NTAL REVIEW COORDINATOR WPC 8087P negative declaration PROJECT NAME: 82 Fourth Avenue Apartments PROJECT LOCATION PROJECT APPLICANT: CASE N0: IS-90-55 82 Fourth Avenue Hector Zuniga A. Pro.iect Setting DATE: August 14, 1990 The project site consists of 14,500 square feet (0.33 acre) on the west side of Fourth Avenue, in the midst of a developed area. It is currently occupied by a single-family residence, and there is no on-site native vegetation. There is a single-family residence to the immediate south, south and southwest of which are additional multi-story apartment buildings. The site is bounded on the west, by a large parcel containing a single-family residence that fronts on Casselman Street, further west. To the immediate north of the site are two-story apartment buildings, north of which are three-story apartment buildings. North of those apartment complexes is Eucalyptus Park, in the southwest quadrant of the intersection of Fourth Avenue and C Street. West of Fourth Avenue, between C and D Streets, is a mixture of single-family houses and two-story apartment buildings. Proiect Description The project proposes to demolish the existing residence and construct two two-story buildings with parking beneath the units (total of three stories). The buildings will house 12 units and will be a maximum of 45 feet high. The units will range from 720 to 820 square feet in area. The project proposes two one-bedroom units and 10 two-bedroom units that will rent at an estimated $675 per month. Approximately 30% of the lot will be covered by structures and 23 parking spaces will be provided. The project will entail approximately yards of fill in additional to the backfilling trenches. The maximum depth Compatibility with Zoning and Plans 250 cubic yards of cut and 200 cubic grading necessary for excavating and of both cut and fill will be 5 feet. The project site is zoned R-3 Residential and is designated as mid-high residential density on the General Plan. As this is a "pipeline" project, the allowable density under the old General Plan standards is 27 units per acre. The project site consists of approximately .33 acres which would allow nine units on this site. However, if Council approves a density bonus, the additional three units proposed could be allowed. Compliance with the Threshold/Standards Policy Fire EMS The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that fire and medical units ~~~~/ ~~~ 22w city of Chula vista planning department an of environmental review section CHULA VISTA -2- must be able to respond to calls within 7 minutes or less in 95% of the cases and within 5 minutes or less in 75% of the cases. The Fire Department has indicated that the site is within 3/4 mile of the nearest fire station and that the Fire Department's estimated response time is 2 to 3 minutes. Thus, the project has been determined to be in compliance with this policy. 2. Police The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that police units must respond to Priority 1 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority calls of 4.5 minutes or less. Police units must respond to Priority 2 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority 2 calls of 7 minutes or less. The Police Department is currently maintaining an acceptable level of service based on the threshold standard, and the project is within a developed area. Therefore, the project is not anticipated to have any impacts. 3. Traffic The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that all intersections must operate at a Level of Service (LOS) "C" or better, with the exception that LOS "D" may occur during the peak two hours of the day at signalized intersections. Intersections west of I-805 are not to operate at a LOS below their 1987 LOS. No intersection should reach LOS "F" during the average weekday peak hour. The Fourth Avenue/C Street and Fourth Avenue/D Street intersections, which are the closest to the project site, meet the required criteria. An additional 5 feet of right-of-way and improvement of 3 feet for road widening of Fourth Avenue may be required. 4. Park/Recreation The Threshold/Standards Policy requires 2 acres of park and recreation land for every 1,000 people. The project is within a block of a community park (Eucalyptus Park). There are 24 acres required in the project's Park Service District and 19.8 acres of parkland available. However, the project will generate only approximately 24 people, and the applicant will pay park fees. Therefore, no impacts are anticipated. 5. Drainaoe The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that storm water flows and volumes shall not exceed City Engineer Standards. The Engineering Department has determined that the proposed project is compatible with the standard. -2- -3- Sewer The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that sewage flows and volumes shall not exceed City Engineering Standards. The Engineering Department has determined that the proposed project is compatible with the standard. Water The Thresholds/Standard Policy requires that adequate storage, treatment, and transmission facilities .are constructed concurrently with planned growth and that water quality standards are not jeopardized during growth and construction. The Sweetwater Authority, the water provider, has determined that adequate water is available at .this time. However, if the current drought continues, water monitoring and conservation may be required. 8. Schools The project site is within the Chula Vista City School District and the Sweetwater Union High School District, and developer fees will be paid to both districts to mitigate potential impacts. The Chula Vista City School District, which serves children from Kindergarten through Grade 6, requires payment of a developer fee of $0.70 per square foot of area. The Sweetwater Union High School District has stated that it will require the payment of fees for the project, but has not stipulated the required amount. The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires City-wide conformance, and the standards are reviewed annually. The standards are not applicable to specific individual projects. Identification of Environmental Effects 1. Schools The closest elementary school to the project site, Feaster School, is currently over capacity, as are Chula Vista Junior High School and Chula Vista High School. However, the payment of developer fees will mitigate the potential impact of additional students to a level of insignificance. Water Most of the state of California is currently experiencing water shortages as a result of an extended drought. However, the site is already using water for the single-family residence and the Sweetwater Authority feels that adequate water is available at this time to serve the proposed project. If the current drought continues, water monitoring and conservation may be required on a district-wide basis. -3- -4- F. Mitigation Necessarv to Avoid Significant Effects The project .applicant has agreed to pay the required school fees to mitigate the potential impact on the school districts. G. Findings of Insionificant Impact 1. The project does not have the potential to (a) substantially degrade the quality of the environment; (b) substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species; (c) cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaining levels; (d) threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community; (e) reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal; (f) eliminate important examples of the major periods of California history or prehistory. 2. The project does not have the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long-term environmental goals. 3. The project does not have possible effects which are individually limited but cumulatively considerable. 4. The environmental effects of the project will not cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly. The noise, traffic and visual impacts will be short-term impacts during construction. H. Consultation 1. Individuals and Oroanizations City of Chula Vista: Barbara Reid, Assistant Planner Greg Smith, Fire Department Roger Daoust, Sr. Civil Engineer Ken Larsen, Director of Building and Housing Shauna Stokes, Parks & Recreation Keith Hawkins, Police Department Lee McEachern, Contract Planner Robin Keightley, Advanced Planner Chula Vista City School District: Kate Shurson Sweetwater Union High School District: Thomas Silva 2. Documents Title 19 (Zoning), Chula Vista Municipal Code General Plan, City of Chula Vista City of Chula Vista, Policy: Threshold/Standards and Growth Management Oversight Committee, as amended November 30, 1989 -4- -5- This determination,. that the project. will not have any significant environmental impact, is based on the attached Initial Study, any comments on the Initial Study, and any comments on this Negative Declaration. further information regarding the environmental review of the project is available from the Chula Vista Planning Department, 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 92010_ ~~ ENVIRON TAL REVIEW COORDINATOR WPC 8111P -5- negative declaration PROJECT NAME: Thermo King Demolition PROJECT LOCATION: 340 Bay Boulevard (APN 567-022-35) PROJECT APPLICANT: Redevelopment Agency of the City of Chula Vista CASE N0: IS-90-56 A. Pro.iect Settinq DATE: July 9, 1990 The project site consists of a 1.02 acre rectangular shaped lot located at 340 Bay Boulevard. The site presently contains a 3,000 square foot one-story .metal pre-fabricated industrial building used for refrigerated truck 'repairs and approximately 7,750 square feet of concrete and the remainder of the site is asphalt. The project site is within the coastal zone and requires issuance of a coastal development permit. In addition, a demolition permit is also required. As part of the project, the asbestos lined tiles in both restrooms will be required to be removed prior to the issuance of the demolition permit. The project is bounded by industrial uses to the north, vacant land to the south, Bay Boulevard and Interstate 5 to the east, and the San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railroad right-of-way to the west. Pro.iect Description The property is located in Subarea E of the Bayfront Redevelopment Project Area. The proposed project consists of the demolition of the 3,000 square foot single story metal pre-fabricated building and the removal of approximately 7,750 square feet of concrete and the balance of the asphalt to leave the site flat and clear for resale of the property. Compatibility with Zoning and Plans The Chula Vista Bayfront Specific Plan designates this site as Industrial Business Park. The proposed demolition does not affect the specific plan nor the zoning on the site of Industrial, subject to a precise plan. Compliance with the Threshold/Standards Policv Fire/EMS The Threshold/Standards Policy requires that fire and emergency medical units must be able to respond throughout the City to calls within five minutes in 75 percent of the cases and seven minutes in 95% of the cases. The project site is located one mile from the ~«r~ _.._.~~ city of Chula vista planning department C N O environmental review section CHULA VISTA -2- nearest fire station, and the Fire Department's estimated response time is four minutes. Therefore, the project is considered to be compatible with the City's policy. Police The Threshold/Standards Policy require that police units must be able to respond to emergency calls throughout the City within five minutes in 75 percent of the cases and within seven minutes in 90 percent of the cases. The Police Department has indicated that there is no problem regarding the adequate servicing of the project site. Therefore, the project is considered to be compatible with the City's policy. 3. Traffic The Threshold/Standards Policy require that a level of service (LOS) "C" be maintained at all intersections, with the exception that LOS "D" may occur at signalized intersections for a period not to exceed a total of two hours per day. The proposed demolition project will not generate any new traffic and, therefore, is considered to be compatible with the City's policy. Park/Recreation The Threshold/Standards Policy does not apply to land west of Interstate 805. In addition, the project does not propose any residential uses that would create impacts on park and recreational facilities. Therefore, the proposed project is deemed compatible with the City's policy. 5. Drainage The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that water flows and volumes must not exceed City engineering standards. The proposed project will generate only minor water flows and will have no impact on this policy. 6. Sewer The Threshold/Standards Policy requires that sewage flows and volume must not exceed City engineering standards. The proposed project will not generate any sewage and will have no impact on this policy. Water The Threshold/Standards Policy requires that adequate water service be available for proposed projects. The proposed project will have no impact on water availability. -3- Identification of Environmental Effects 1. Hazardous Materials Between October 1987 and August 1988, conducted tests on this site as well a which included both surface and subsurface investigation of subsurface metallic contamination survey to determine if any materials existed on the sites. Woodward-Clyde consultants s several adjacent parcels exploration, a geophysical objects and an asbestos contamination by hazardous In addition, Ninyo and Moore consultants conducted further testing on two adjacent parcels in 1989 for evidence of lead contamination. Lead Contamination in the Soil In their analysis of the two adjacent parcels located at 350 and 360 Bay Boulevard, Ninyo and Moore excavated a series of soil borings and trenches. Upon laboratory analysis of the soil samples obtained, one sample indicated a lead concentration of 1059 mg/kg. The regulatory TTLC level is 1000 mg/kg. All other samples were well below the regulating limit as defined in the California Code of Regulations, Title 26. Based upon statistical analysis when compared to be rest of site soil samples that were obtained and analyzed for lead, Ninyo and Moore have concluded the one sample with a lead concentration above the regulatory limit to be an outlier, not representative of the lead content in the soil of the entire site and speculate the point source contamination is from battery parts as the previous use of the site was an auto dismantling business. Groundwater Contamination Trichloroethene and chloroform concentrations were discovered in the groundwater. These contaminants, however, according to Ninyo and Moore, are within regulatory levels. In addition, it does not appear that these contaminants originated on site. c. Asbestos Contamination Asbestos was detected in the industrial building located on the site. It was found that this contaminant was present on the t he backing in both the men's and women's restrooms. The asbestos is potentially mobile, but poses no immediate health threat as long as it remains undisturbed. Since the proposed project calls for the demolition of the building, the the in both the restrooms should be properly removed and disposed of prior to demolition. -4- F. -Mitigation necessary to avoid significant effects 1. Hazardous Materials a. `Lead Contamination in the Soil Based on analysis by Ninyo and Moore, all the soil samples except one are below regulatory levels. Since their report further states that the one sample that was above regulatory levels is considered an outlier and is not a true representation of the lead content in the soil of the entire site, no further mitigation is required. b. Groundwater Contamination Trichloroethene and chloroform concentrations were found in the groundwater. Since the concentrations are below regulatory levels and because the contamination does not appear to have originated on site, no further mitigation is necessary. c. Asbestos Contamination Asbestos was detected in the the backing in both the men's and women's restrooms on .the site. As long as it remains undisturbed, it poses no immediate health threat. Since the proposed project calls for the demolition of the building which would disturb the asbestos, the the in both the restrooms will be required to be properly removed and disposed of prior to the issuance of the demolition permit. Therefore, no further mitigation is necessary. G. Findings of Insignificant Impact Based on the following findings, it is determined that the project described above will not have a significant environmental impact and no environmental impact report needs to be prepared. 1. The project has the potential to substantially degrade the quality of the environment, substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species, cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaim ng levels, threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community, reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal, or eliminate important examples of the major periods of California history or prehistory. The project site will not impact any rare or endangered species nor the habitat of any sensitive plant or animal species as the site is currently developed. ~" -5- 2. The- project has the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long-term environmental goals. The proposed project does not have the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long term environmental goals. 3. The project has possible effects which are individually limited but cumulatively considerable. As used in the subsection, "cumulative)y considerable" means that the incremental effects of an individual project are considerable when viewed in connection with the effects of past projects, the effects of other current projects, and the effects of probable future projects. The proposed project does not have possible effects which are individually limited but cumulatively considerable. 4. The environmental effects of a project will cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly. The proposed project will not result in any significant increases in hazardous substances, the release of emissions, or any significant increase in ambient noise levels. The proposed project will not create any substantial adverse impacts to human beings. H. Consultation 1. Individuals and Organizations City of Chula Vista: Applicant's Agent: 2. Documents Alex Saunders, Building and Housing Roger Daoust, Senior Civil Engineer Carol Gove, Fire Marshal Shauna Stokes, Parks and Recreation Keith Hawkins, Police Department Robin Keightley, Advance Planning Lee McEachern, Contract Planner Robin Putnam, Community Development Pam Buchan, City of Chula Vista Title 19 Zoning, City of Chula Vista Chula Vista General Plan EIR - Chula Vista General Plan Update Bayfront Redevelopment Project Plan Chula Vista Bayfront Specific Plan Third Party Review Report - Bay Boulevard properties (Ninyo and Moore, March 9, 1989) -6- Hazardous Substance Contamination Site Assessment - Thermo King of San-Diego (Woodward-Clyde, June 17, 1988) Subsurface Investigation Report - Bay Boulevard (Ninyo and Moore, December 8, 1989) Letter - Ninyo and Moore to Robin Putnam (October 9, 1989) This determination, that the project will not have any significant environmental impact, is based on the attached Initial Study, and comments on the Initial.. Study and any comments on this Negative Declaration. Further information regarding the environmental review of the project is available from the Chula Vista Planning Department, 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 92010. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW C ORDINATOR EN 6 (Rev. 3/88) WPC 7980P r negative declaration PROJECT NAME: Dan Way Apartments PROJECT LOCATION PROJECT APPLICANT CASE N0: IS-91-02 A. Pro.iect Setti~ DATE: July 20, 1990 The 0.427-acre project site is currently occupied by a vacant single-family house, a garage, and a storage shed. The majority of the site consists of vacant land, with some weedy species on-site. There is no native vegetation on-site. The site slopes vary gradually, at a gradient of 2% to 10%, to the south. It is bounded by a somewhat dilapidated picket fence and, on the west, by a 5 to 6-foot high solid, masonry wall. The northern part of the site containing the house is separated from the southern part by another fence. The site is in the midst of a developed area. It is bounded on the north by Arizona Street. To the immediate north of Arizona Street, and northwest of the site, are a number of small restaurants and a parking lot. Immediately north of the site and Arizona Street, and also to the northeast, are several two-story apartment complexes. Immediately east of the site are three-story townhomes for rent, east of which are additional apartments. The site is bounded on the south by additional apartments fronting on Moss Street. The site is bounded on the west by a variety of commercial uses, most of which front on Broadway. The Fritz Garage Import Car Repair and Davis Upholstery businesses are located immediately west of the northern portion of the site, with Arizona Street addresses. Immediately west. of these businesses, in the southeast quadrant of the Broadway/Arizona Street intersection, is the Earl Scheib Auto Body and Painting business. Proiect Descriotion The project proposes to construct 10 apartment units in a two-story building on the southern portion of the site and 20 parking spaces in a 13'6"-high garage structure on the northern portion of the project site. The 27-foot high apartment building will contain six 2-bedroom apartments and four 3-bedroom units ranging from 850 square feet to 1,100 square feet. Each unit will have a separate space heater and water heater. Approximately 24% of the site will be covered by structures, with another 35% of the site in paved surfaces. An estimated 5,645 square feet of open space will be retained. The gross density will be 22 units per acre. 588 Arizona Street Dan Way city of Chula vista planning department environmental review section \« // ~~ -~~ CIN OF CHULA VISTA -z- The project will entail the grading of approximately 11,400 square feet, with an estimated 800 cubic yards of fill imported. The maximum depth of fill will be 24 inches. On-site catch basins will catch drainage and channel it into a below-grade culvert at the rear of the property. C. Compatibility with Zoning and Plans The project site is zoned R-3 (Apartment Residential) and is designated for High Density Residential uses (18 to 27 dwelling units per acre). The land to the north and south, which is already developed with apartments., has the same zoning and land use designation. The land to the immediate east, which is developed with townhomes, is zoned R-3 and designated for Low to Medium Density Residential (3 to 6 units per acre). The land to the west, which is developed with a variety of commercial uses, is zoned CTP (Commercial Thoroughfare with Precise Plan) and is designated for Retail Commercial/High Density Residential uses. The proposed project is in conformance with the existing General Plan land use designations for the site as well as surrounding properties, and will not change the nature, the surrounding land uses. The proposed project will bring the existing site into conformance with the land use designation and zoning and will be consistent with the surrounding multi-family and commercial uses. D. Compliance with the Threshold/Standards Policv 1. Fire EMS The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that fire and medical units must be able to respond to calls within 7 minutes or less in 95% of the cases and within 5 minutes or less in 75% of the cases. The Fire Department indicated that the nearest fire station is approximately 1.15 miles from the site and that the site can be reached in less than 5 minutes. Therefore, the project is in compliance with this policy. 2. Police The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that police units must respond to Priority 1 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority calls of 4.5 minutes or less. Police units must respond to Priority 2 calls within 7 minutes or less and maintain an average response time to all Priority 2 calls of 7 minutes or less. The Police Department is currently maintaining an acceptable level of service based on the threshold standard. -3- 3. Traffic The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that all intersections must operate at a Lever of Service (LOS) "C" or better, with the exception that LOS "D" may occur during the peak two hours of the day _at signalized intersections. Intersections west of I-805 are not to operate at a LOS below their 1987 LOS. No intersection should reach LOS "F" during the average weekday peak hour. The site is accessed from Broadway via a half-block-long segment of Arizona Street just east of Broadway. The existing traffic level on Broadway is 24,930 daily trips, and it is operating at LOS A. The project will generate an estimated 60 trips per day and will have no significant impact on traffic circulation. Broadway will remain at LOS A upon project completion. Therefore, the project is compatible with this standard. 4. Park/Recreation The Threshold/Standards Policy requires 3 acres of park and recreation land for every 1,000 people. The project applicant will pay fees to ensure that the City can meet its standard. 5. Drainaoe The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that storm water flows and volumes not exceed City Engineer Standards. There is an existing 13-foot x 11-foot RCB (Telegraph Canyon flood control channel) to the south of the project site. Drainage flows westerly, and .is considered by the City Engineering Department to be adequate to handle the drainage from the project site. 6. Sewer The Thresholds/Standards Policy requires that sewage flows and volumes shall not exceed City Engineering Standards. The proposed project will generate an estimated 2,250 gallons of sewage per day. The project sewage will be carried by the existing 8-inch sewer line in Arizona Street, which flows west, to the 8-inch line in Broadway. The City Engineering Department has determined that these lines are adequate to handle the projected flow. 7. Water The Thresholds/Standard Policy requires that adequate storage, treatment, and transmission facilities are constructed concurrently with planned growth and that water quality standards are not jeopardized during growth and construction. The proposed project will require an estimated 2,860 gallons per day of water. Although most of California is currently suffering from an extended drought, -4- the Sweetwater Authority has indicated that it will provide water service to the project. If the drought continues in future years, it is possible that district-wide water monitoring and conservation will be required. 8. Schools The project site is within the Chula Vista City School District and the Sweetwater Union High School District. The Chula Vista City School District serves children from Kindergarten through Grade 6. Rice School is_ the closest existing facility to the project. However, because the school is already over-capacity, it is not known which school may be attended by project residents. If children are required to attend a school in another location, the District would provide transportation. School assignments may also be based on individual pupil needs, special programs, or the district's integration goals. The District currently charges a development _fee of E0.70 per square foot of assessable area for residential projects. Payment of this fee by the project applicant will mitigate potential impacts to a level of less than significant. The Sweetwater Union High School District serves junior and senior high school students. The applicant will be required to pay 337,871 for permanent classroom space and 54,640 for relocatable classroom space. With payment of the fees, potential impacts will be reduced to a level of less than significant. E. Identification of Environmental Effects 1. Air Oualitv The project site is located immediately east of a foreign car repair service shop and Davis Upholstery, west of which is the Earl Scheib Auto Body and Painting facility. Thus, within several hundred feet of the site are potential sources of air pollutants. With a predominantly westerly flow of air (from west to east), the northern portion of the site could be impacted by fumes from the various repair facilities. However, due to the project orientation, location of the residential units will be on the southern portion of the site, adjacent to commercial uses with less potential for emission impacts. Therefore, the potential for residents being affected by fumes and emissions from existing land uses to the northwest is not considered significant. In addition, some of the measures required for noise attenuation will further reduce the potential for air quality impacts to residents. The automobile usage resulting from the proposed project will generate the following estimated amounts of air pollutant emissions: 70.98 grams of carbon monoxide; 1098 grams of hydrocarbons; 1200 grams of nitrogen oxides; 90 grams of -5- particulates; and 46.8 grams of sulfur. These emissions are considered to be less than significant and will not create significant air quality impacts. Land Use The project proposes to construct a 10-unit apartment complex, with a gross density of 22 units per acre, on land that is zoned R-3 (Apartment Residential) and designated for High Density Residential uses (18-27 units per acre). Therefore, the project is compatible with the zoning and General Plan designation. It is also compatible with the existing multi-family housing to the north, east and south. The residential building will be located on the southern portion of the property, adjacent to typical commercial uses along Broadway. The northern portion of the site adjacent to the auto repair and upholstery shops, will contain the project parking, thus, reducing potential impacts to project residents from fumes and noise associated with these commercial uses. Potential land use impacts of these adjacent land uses will be minimized and are considered to be less than significant. Traffic Implementation of the proposed project will eliminate the potential for any trips previously generated by the existing single-family residence and will result in the generation of approximately 60 automobile trips per day. Broadway is currently operating at LOS A, and the addition of 60 ADT with the proposed project, is considered to be less than significant. Social Displacement The project site currently contains one single-family residence, which is presently vacant. Therefore, no one will have to be relocated and there are no socio-economic or social displacement impacts associated with the proposed project. Noise The project site is located behind a variety of commercial uses, including a foreign auto repair shop, which may produce substantial noise volumes. Therefore, a technical noise analysis was prepared by a qualified acoustical consultant to assess potentially significant noise impacts. The analysis, attached as Appendix A, determined that the project residents would not be significantly impacted by noise from adjacent commecial uses. The project is in conformance with the City's noise ordinance standards and the proposed project is not associated with any significant noise impacts. No project specific mitigation of noise impact is deemed to be necessary. -6- 6. Schools The project site is within the Chula Vista City School District and the Sweetwater Union High School District. The Chula Vista City School District serves children from Kindergarten through Grade 6. Rice School is the closest existing facility to the project. However, because the school is already over-capacity, it is not known which school may be attended by project residents. If children are required to attend a school in another location, the District provides transportation. School assignments may also be based on individual pupil needs, special programs, or the district's integration goals. The District currently charges a development fee of $0.70 per square foot of assessable area for residential projects. Payment of this fee by the project applicant will mitigate potential impacts to a level of less than significant. The Sweetwater Union High School District serves junior and senior high school students. The applicant will be required to pay $37,871 for permanent classroom space and $4,640 for relocatable classroom space. With payment of the fees, potential impacts will be reduced to a level of less than significant. 7. Drainaoe The existing FEMA floodplain maps indicate that the southern portion of the site is within the 100-year floodplain. However, the construction of the Telegraph Canyon flood control channel to the south has removed the site from the floodplain. All drainage from the site can be adequately handled by the off-site flood control channel. Therefore, no adverse drainage impacts are anticipated. F G. Mitigation Necessarv to Avoid Sionificant Effects The proposed project is not associated with any significant adverse environmental impacts, therefore no project specific mitigation is deemed to be necessary. Findings of Insignificant Impact The applicant has agreed to implement the measures recommended to mitigate potential school impacts. Therefore, 1. The project does not have the potential to (a) substantially degrade the quality of the environment; (b) substantially reduce the habitat of a fish or wildlife species; (c) cause a fish or wildlife population to drop below self-sustaining levels; (d) threaten to eliminate a plant or animal community; (e) reduce the number or restrict the range of a rare or endangered plant or animal; (f) eliminate important examples of the major periods of California history or prehistory. -7- The project does not have the potential to achieve short-term environmental goals to the disadvantage of long-term environmental goals. The project does not have possible effects which are individually limited but cumulatively considerable. The environmental effects of the project will not cause substantial adverse effects on human beings, either directly or indirectly. The noise, traffic and visual impacts on adjacent residences during construction will be short-term impacts. Consultation 1. Individuals and Organizations City of Chula Vista: Maryann Miller, Contract Planner E. Haisfall, Fire Department Roger Daoust, Sr. Civil Engineer Ken Larsen, Director of Building & Housing Hal Rosenberg, Traffic Engineer Shauna Stokes, Parks & Recreation Keith Hawkins, Police Department Chula Vista City School District: Kate Shurson Sweetwater Union High School District: Thomas Silva Sweetwater Authority: Hector Garcia Applicant's representative: Dan Way Documents Title 19 (Zoning), Chula Vista Municioal Cade General Plan, City of Chula Vista City of Chula Vista, Policy: Threshold/Standards and Growth Management Oversight Committee, as amended November 30, 1989 This determination, that the project will not have any significant environmental impacts, is based on the attached Initial Study, any comments on the Initial Study, and any comments on this Negative Declaration. Further information regarding the environmental review of the project is available from the Chula Vista Planning Department, 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 92010. ENVIRO yNTAL REVIEW COORDINATOR ~%%% WPC 8072P ,C 2.46.100 Duties and functions designated. The youth commission shall perform the following duties and functions: A. Establish a direct communications link between the young people of the city and the city council, to assist in those matters which are of concern to the young people, and in turn, to the entire community; B. Provide recommendations and suggestions to the city council and to all boards and commissions of the city reflecting the point of view of the young people of this community; C. Assign one or more of its members t deliberations of the various boards accordance with reasonable rules and said boards and commissions and thus b and commissions.. - ' ~ sit with and participate in the and commissions of the city in regulations that may be adopted by e ex officio members of said boards D. Perform any other additional duties and functions as may from time to time be developed by the youth commission itself. (Ord. 1335 § 1 (part), 1971:. Ord. 1283 § 1 (part), 1970: prior code § 1.603.) 2.46,110 Staff assistance-and funding. The city manager may make available staff and clerical supports as requested by the commission, to fulfill its functions and duties, provided such staff and clerical support is available. 'In the event that private funds or funds from other governmental agencies are made available for special projects, surveys, educational programs or general program support, the city manager is authorized, upon recommendation of the commission and approval of the council, to enter into appropriate contracts for the utilization of such funds in furtherance of the purpose and intent of, and the duties and functions of the commission. (Ord. 1335 § 1 (part), 1971: Ord. 1283 § 1 (part), 1970: prior code § 1.604.) Chapter 2.48 COMMUNITY PLANNING COMMITTEE21 Sections: 2.48.010 2.48.020 2.48.030 2.48.040 2.48.050 2.48.060 2.48.070 2.48.080 2.48.090 2.48.100 2.48.110 2.48.120 2.48.130 Purpose and intent. Creation authorized. Formation procedure within incorporated and hearing required. Formation procedure in territory proposed Public hearing-Scope-Council authority. Resolution for creation-Contents. Governing board-Composition-Term-Conduct Powers and functions. Review duties-Generally. area-Petition, notice for annexation. generally. Review duties-C~neral plan and subdivision and zoning provisions. Review duties-Variances and conditional use permits-Public hearing when. Funding and other assistance-Report duty. Recommendations-Scope. _ . -- 74 2.48.010 Purpose and intent. A. It is the purpose of the city council to establish procedures for the creation of advisory groups in the various communities of the city having particular community identification and cohesion, to be known as community planning committees. Said committees would participate at all stages in the formulation of the community's element of the general plan of the city, and in the implementation of said community element through the adoption of zoning regulations and the imposition of such regulations upon property .within the community and the granting of variances and conditional use permits. B. It is the intent of the city council in encouraging the creation of such community planning committees to develop a more immediate representative and responsive voice in the democratic governmental process by those citizens in areas within .the city which can truly be called distinctive communities facing problems pecul-iar •to said communities. The primary purpose of such community planning committees is intended to be, but not limited to, direct participation in the. planning .process of the city as it relates to their own community. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1001.) 2.48.020 Creation authorized: The city council does- hereby authorize the electors of the several communities of the city to create community planning committees which will be recognized by the city council for the purposes set forth herein and shall be granted duties and powers prescribed hereinafter. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1002 (part).) G 2.48.030 Formation procedure within incorporated area-Petition, notice and hearing required. Community planning committees shall be initiated by submission of a petition to the city council delineating the territory of the community, which territory should be based upon demographic .considerations providing for some well-defined geographic area as well as a community of interests. Said petition shall affirm that at least five thousand persons reside within the proposed community and must be signed by twenty-five percent of the electors within said territory. Upon receipt of the petition, the city council shall set a public hearing, publishing notice of said hearing twice prior thereto, the second publication being not less than ten days prior to the day and hour set for the hearing, and notice shall also be posted in any commercial centers located within the proposed community territory. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1002(1).) 2.48.040 Formation procedure in territory proposed for annexation. In an area proposed for annexation, the city council shall at the time of the public hearing consider the question of the formation of a community planning committee and may place the issue of annexation and the formation of a community planning committee. The city council may fill the positions on the community planning committee by: A. Appointment. B. Placing a slate of candidates composed of electors of the area to be annexed on the ballot. ~_ C. By adopting a resolution at the conclusion of the public hearing requiring ' that the seven candidates with the most votes be elected to the community planning committee for initial terms after which subsequent terms shall be filled by appointment. 75 (R 12/85) The council shall designate the method of selection at the public hearing. (Ord. 1968 § 1 (part), 1982: Ord. 1914 § 1, 1980: Ord. 1367 § 1 (part),. 1971; Ord. 2119; 1985: prior code § 2.1002(2).) 2.48.050 Public hearing-Scope-Council authority. The purpose of the public hearing shall be to receive testimony from all persons residing within the territory proposed to be established for a community planning committee. Said testimony shall be required in order that the city council may determine the necessity and desirability of creating such a committee. At the close of said hearing, the city council shall consider all testimony and determine said necessity and desirability for creating the committee, which -shall be done by resolution. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2..1003.) . 2.48.060 Resolution for creation-Contents. If the city council determines that it is necessary and desirable to create a community planning committee within the territory as defined in the initiative petition, they shall adopt a resolution which shall: A. Fix the boundary of the t-erritory to be represented by the community planning committee after rece-iving a recommendation on said boundaries from the planning commission of the city; B. Adopt the name of the .community planning committee and establish a time and place for the convening of a meeting of the community planning committee, which shall be open to all residents and property owners of the community defined in the resolution. (Ord. 1361 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1004.) 2.48.070 .Governing board-Composition-Term-Conduct generally. A. The community planning committee governing board, which shall be known as the community planning committee, shall be composed of seven members to be selected by one of the following procedures as directed by the city council after hearing testimony at the public hearing as provided in Section 2.48.050: 1. Formation within incorporated area: a. Election at initial meeting of the residents and property owners of the community planning territory called by the city council and noticed in the manner provided by the Government Code of the state of California; b. Appointment by city council; or 2. Formation in territory proposed to be annexed to the city: a. Election on annexation ballot: b. Appointment by city council. B. In order to qualify for membership on the community planning committee, it shall be required that committeemen be at least eighteen years of age and an elector in the community planning area at the time of their appointment or election and shall be nominated by a petition signed by twenty electors of the territory. Committeemen shall serve. for two-year terms; provided however, that the initial committee members shall. upon. election or appointment draw lots to provide that initially four of the committeemen ( L_ 76 (H 12/85) shall serve for a term of two years and three of the committeemen shall serve fora term of one year. Upon its formation, the community planning committee shall select from among its members a chairman, vice~hairman, secretary and treasurer, who shall serve for a period of one year from the date of the initial meeting. The community planning committee shall possess those powers and duties set forth herein. They shall conduct their meetings in public at a regularly scheduled time and place to be designated by the conmmunity planning committee and shall be subject to all rules and regulations related to the conduct of the public's business as contained in the Government Code of the state, provided however, that they shall not be required to publish notices of public hearings except in those cases where- it is determined by the committee that the public interest would be best served_by said publication. C. The city council may review the procedures established by this chapter or the method of operation of a community planning committee- after a period of not less than one year from the date of formation of the first community planning committee in the city, in order to make such changes arid modifications as may be deemed necessary or desirable, e.g., change in method of selection o~members of conm~ittee by appointment to election of said members by the electors of the territory. Said review shall be undertaken at a public hearing to be called by the city council. It is the intent of this provision to. provide a sufficient test period for the operation of a community planning committee. (Ord. 1968 § 1 (part), 1982: Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1005.) 2.48.080 Powers and functions. A. The primary and initial function of the community planning committee shall be the development of the community element of the general plan of the city for the area encompassed by the community planning committee. B. In addition to the development of the community element of the general plan, the community planning conmiittee shall have the power to review and recommend upon, as provided herein, all of the following items: 1. Precise community plans, including but not limited to all land uses, population density, transportation network planning, including streets and trails (equestrian, bicycle and hiking), open space, park lands, and all other items of a community plan; 2. Zoning regulations in terms of the comprehensive zoning ordinance, including planned community and planned unit development programs, and the incorporation of properties within the territory of the community planning committee into particular zones; 3. Variances; 4. Conditional use permits; 5. Subdivision of land, including the review of tentative and final subdivision maps submitted to the city subdivision advisory committee and planning commission and the review of the subdivision development standards relating to, but not exclusive of the following: a. Local street design, b. Landscaping, c. Grading. and hillside development, d. Open space; '~ 6. Architectural review; 77 1 7. All other police regulations affecting land use, e.g., animal regulations, trees, etc. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1006.) 2.48.090 Review duties-Generally. The planning department and/or the department of public works shall upon receipt of any plans or maps or any proposed changes in the comprehensive zoning ordinance or the subdivision ordinance forthwith transmit copies thereof to-any established-community planning committee and it shall be the duty of said committee to forthwith review said plans or changes in the comprehensive zoning ordinance or subdivision ordinance and any requests for zonings, variances .and conditional use permits and transmit their findings in writing or be present at the hearings before the planning commission of the city or the city council and make known the. conclusions of the community planning committee at said hearings. In the event that the committee deems it advisable, it shall call a public meeting, noticed in the manner set forth herein, to discuss said items and' to arrive at a determination for recommendation to the planning commission 'or the city council. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1007.) 2.48.100 Review duties-C~neral plan and subdivision and zoning provisions. The community planning committee shall review all items of the community planning element of the general plan, zonings, subdivision developments, comprehensive zoning ordinance and subdivision ordinance, related to changes within the territory of the community planning committee and shall report their findings and recommendations to the appropriate body within twenty-one days of receipt of the information from the city or at the time said bodies are conducting a public hearing., Said bodies shall include the subdivision advisory committee and the planning commission, and the city council shall recognize the representative of the community planning committee as a duly selected representative of the community interests of the territory designated as a community planning committee. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1008(1).) 2.48.110 Review duties-Variances and conditional use permits-Public hearing when. In those circumstances where the community planning committee forwards recommendations relative to variances and conditional use permits to the planning commission of the city, the recommendation shall be accepted by the planning commission and weighed with all testimony elicited at the public hearing. The recommendation of a community planning committee made in accordance with the same administrative standards and guidelines required of the planning commission may only be overridden by a vote of five of the seven members of the planning commission. In the event that the request for a variance or conditional use permit is one heard originally by the zoning administrator of the city,. any determination contrary to the recommendation of the community planning committee shall forthwith be forwarded to the planning commission fora public-hearing in accordance with the procedures set forth in Title 19 of this code. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code § 2.1008(2).) - 78 r - 2.48.120 Funding and other assistance-Report duty. Y The city council may from time to time appropriate necessary funds as a portion of the budget of the city to support the activities of community • planning committees established in various areas of the city. Said funds shall be made available for publication of required notices of public hearings or other matters presented to the city council during the course of consideration of the-budget of the city. Expenditure of all such funds shall be supervised by the director of finance, and the community planning committee shall make a quarterly report of their programs and activities and financial expenditures to the city council. The members of the community planning committees shall receive compensation for expenditures in the same manner as may be prescribed from time to time for members of other boards and commissions. The planning department and the department of public works of the city shall at all times maintain close liaison with the community planning committee and shall provide to them all information and material received which shall be presented to the appropriate committee, board or commission of the city as required by this code. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code ~ 2.1009.) 2.48.130 Recommendations-Scope. Neither the planning commission nor the city council shall take action on any matters set forth herein concerning the territory lying within the boundaries governed by a community planning committee before receiving a recommendation from said community planning committee of the area thus ~ affected; provided however, that if no recommendation is forthcoming from the r- community planning committee within twenty-0ne days of transmittal of notification to the community planning committee, said bodies may proceed with -their consideration of the particular matter without regard to the necessity for the recommendation from the .community planning committee. In the event that any of the items to be considered by the community planning committee might require a longer period of time than provided herein, a community planning committee may request ah extension of time beyond the twenty-one day limitation, provided that such request shall be in writing and submitted to the planning cormnission or the city council at least twenty-four hours in advance of the scheduled hearing or meeting where said item is to be considered by the appropriate body; provided however, such extension shall not be granted for a period extending beyond the next regularly scheduled hearing or meeting of the appropriate body nor be in excess of statutory limitations imposed by state or local regulations. (Ord. 1367 § 1 (part), 1971: prior code ~ 2.1010.) Chapter 2.50 MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS22 Sections: 2.50.010 2.50.020 2.50.030 2.50.040 ;~ 2.50.050 Hours polls are to be open.- Authority for polling hours. Authority for Sections 2.50.030 through 2.50.130. Canvass board-Compositiart-Compensation. Canvass board-Appointment-Qualifications. 79