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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning Comm min 1973/02/14 MINUTES OF A REGULAR ADJOURNED MEETING OF THE CITY PLANNING COMMISSION OF CHULA VISTA, CALIFORNIA February 14, 1973 The regular adjourned meeting of the City Planning Commission of Chula Vista, California was held on the above date beginning at 7:05 p.m. with the follow- ing members present: Rice, Macevicz, Chandler, Rudolph, Whitten, Wilson, Swanson and ex-officio member Miller. Also present: Acting Director of Planning Williams, Director of Public Works Cole, Assistant Director of Pub- lic Works Robens, Environmental Review Coordinator Reid, City Attorney Lindberg and Assistant City Attorney Blick. The pledge of allegiance to the flag was led by Chairman Rice, followed by a moment of silent prayer. APPROVAL OF MINUTES MSUC (Chandler-Whitten) The minutes of the meeting of January 22, 1973 be approved as mailed. PUBLIC HEARING: Consideration of Environmental Impact Report for Sports World - Dr. Leonard Bloom Chairman Rice commented that the public hearing would be opened and testimony heard on the Environmental Impact Report, but because additional information had been received from the applicant and his consultants too recently to be evaluated, it would be necessary to continue the hearing to a later date. Assistant City Attorney Blick further pointed out that the EIR is yet to be completed and in giving testimony it should be kept in mind that much of the existing document has been supplemented, questioned and amended, which would change it drastically. Acting Director of Planning Williams advised that Mr. Reid and Mr. Cole wished to make statements regarding the recently received information. Environmental Review Coordinator Reid reported he had had an opportunity to review the new data and believed the information submitted would be adequate for development of the Environmental Impact Report. He suggested that copies of the revisions be placed in the Library and with the City Clerk in order that the public might have an opportunity to review them, and requested any public input to be included in his report to the Planning Commission reach him by February 21st. He recommended the public hearing be continued to February 26th. Director of Public Works Cole commented on the great amount of technical information, including graphs and maps, received by his department and very important information received as late as ~qonday. He asked Mr. Robens to comment regarding their analysis of what had been received to date with the -2- 2/14/73 thought that it might aid the Commission with reference to the information - presented at the hearing. Assistant Director of Public Works Robens limited his remarks to the problems of traffic congestion. He said that prior to the opening of 1-805 traffic would travel through very restricted routes to the arena and a capacity crowd of 20,000 would cause massive traffic jams. However, a crowd of that size would be expected possibly once during the first year and two or three times during each of the second and third years. Where the developer anticipates that type of attendance he should make arrangements to provide for alternate travel modes into the arena, such as public transit buses, because the road system would not handle 20,000 people, or even 15,000 people. A crowd of lO,O00 could be handled, causing major congestion on "E" Street for about a two-hour period. If attendance figures were realized, this would occur per- haps once a month during the first year and three times a month the second and third years. The average arena event would attract 7,000 or less, and "E" Street, anticipated to be the critically congested street, could handle 7,000. 5,000 or less would cause little or no congestion on "E" Street or on "J" Street. Bonita Road would take the number of vehicles anticipated for 10,000 attendance satisfactorily, and "J" Street should handle that attendance with very little difficulty. There would be some backing up and some conges- tion, but no real problems, and anything less than 10,000 should cause no problems there at all. Members of the Commission asked if the figures were based on most of the traffic coming down I-5 and traversing the width of the City, what the traffic effect would be on "L" Street and Telegraph Canyon Road, and where cars were expected to go from Bonita Road to get into the arena? Mr. Robens replied that based on existing conditions and anticipated traffic patterns, it is assumed approximately 70% of the traffic would come down I-5 and cross on "E" Street to the arena. 30% would be expected to come up from the south and down Bonita Road from the east. "J" Street would carry much of the traffic from the south, with "L" Street and Telegraph Canyon Road being congested, but not overwhelmed. The proposed development plan shows a 4-lane road, Lynwood Drive, going from Bonita Road to the arena site. Mr. Robens said after the opening of 1-805 no major congestion is anticipated due to the arena. The shopping center would cause most of the congestion, which v~ould be on the extension of "H" Street and not in the area of existing City streets. He would not expect the congestion to be intolerable. City Attorney Lindberg advised that he wished to clarify a couple of points which had been raised in the past two days. (1) Based upon the requirement of our P-C zoning ordinance that the applicant for P-C zoning must be either the owner or have control over the development of property in order to be a proper party of interest, there has been a question regarding the standing of the applicant in this case. He said he had reviewed the agreements between Dr. Bloom and the Otay Land Co. and was satisfied regarding the proper standing of the party in this matter. Mr. Lindberg further advised that (2) necessity for the Commission to determine - all 8 findings listed under the P-C zone, when in fact this is a modification of -3- 2/14/73 an existing P-C zone, has been questioned. Upon review, Mr. Blick and he had determined that the significant changes being made to that zone would require that all of those findings be made by the Commission after hearing. He hoped the Commission would limit testimony and evidence at this time in order to eliminate testimony which might not be pertinent in light of the new factors introduced by the revisions. Acting Director of Planning ~lilliams agreed and commented that Mr. Reid and Mr. Robens had given verbal reports because the material had been so recently received there was no opportunity to commit them to writing. He suggested that testimony be taken and the hearing continued to permit the staff to proceed with evaluation of the EIR and pointed out that consideration of the General Development Plan must be deferred until the EIR is completed. This being the time and place as advertised the public hearing was opened. Dr. Leonard Bloom, the applicant, remarked that it has been approximately five months since he made application for modification to the P-C zone. He felt he and his consultants in every manner had given the information requested of them; he had never voiced an objection to giving all the information that is neces- sary; and the new material submitted had been at the specific request of the staff. He pointed out the model of the existing site and renderings showing in three dimensions the proposed development which his staff had provided for the meeting with the hope of making clearly visual what his plans are. He expressed disturbance at the seeming lack of direction and the automatic ex- tension of time to review documents which were requested prior to the hearing. He felt that everyone should have an opportunity to review them but that two weeks should be adequate. He believed he has been reasonable, but wants a home for his teams, and requests that he be given a decision. Michael McQuillen, 4425 VistaNacion, Lynwood Hills area, questioned the good faith in which the reports had been submitted. He also noted that nowhere in the reports had the noise level of traffic on the new Lynwood Drive been considered. Irma Morris, representing the South Bay Grass Root Movement to Support the Arena, said that in three days she had collected over 1,300 signatures on a petition in favor of the arena, and believed that in two weeks would have many more. She requested that Dr. Bloom's project be given approval with any conditions which the Commission might wish to attach. Esther Lassman, 264 Rogan Road, inquired if there were going to be a cut-off date beyond which no more information could be submitted by the applicant for the EIR so that the public would have an opportunity to survey and digest everything. Chairman Rice replied that in most cases the information had been supplied at the request of the staff who considered it necessary in order to make adequate findings. He did not find it unreasonable that information should continue to come in when it had been asked for. Assistant City Attorney Blick commented that the cut-off date had been estab- lished; it had been agreed that by the 26th would be sufficient time for the -4- 2/14/73 staff, and it should be enough time for the public, to consider what has been submitted. He pointed out that although the State guideline with regard to EIR review does not provide for a public hearing, it merely provides that the public may be able to submit information which would be considered, this public hearing had been provided to make it a little easier for the public to submit its information. Ms. Lassman asked if the 20-day period applied to the additional information as it applied to the original EIR and Mr. Blick told her that it didn't. Carol Smith, 87 "F" Street, stated that she believed this project to be extremely premature and that a premature project brings disaster instead of good, long- term benefits to the City. Cary Wright, 242 East "J" Street, commented on the great amount of public inter- est generated by this project and asked if it were unreasonable for the citizens to have two weeks for review and input after the last evidence submitted. Chairman Rice advised him that would be discussed after they had finished taking testimony. Peter Watry, 81 Second Avenue, said he would like the public to have 20 working days to consider the recently submitted information prior to another hearing. He believ~several statements in the EIR to be in error, mentioning that the Sports World-related estimated tax revenues and City expenses were inaccurate since no capital outlay items were included and City services for the shopping center and arena were ignored. He exhibited transparencies listing City budget categories which seem likely to be increased as a result of the development. He expressed concern that grading in Rice Canyon would result in drainage problems and flooded areas on Bonita Road, and passed pictures to the Com- missioners which he said had been taken recently showing leveling and grading begun a couple of years ago by Dr. Bloom in Mira Mesa for a 2,000 seat ice skating rink and abandoned when a request to have the seating capacity i'ncreased to 14,000 was denied. He asked what would happen to the flood control project if Rice Canyon were treated similarly? Acting Director of Planning Williams suggested that any questions be entered into the record for the staff to answer in their written comments to the Commission. Mr. Watry asked if the EIR mention of street capacity on "J" Street assumed the use of the existing two lanes, or the use of four lanes; if the traffic pro- jection during peak hours on "E" Street, as well as "L" Street and Telegraph Canyon Road, took into consideration night classes at Southwestern College 5 nights a week; if Lynwood Drive is widened, who will pay for it? -~ the developer or the taxpayers? He questioned also the developer's statement that there would be a great increase in traffic on the new streets (after 805 is completed), but little increase on the existing streets. LCDR Ted Cahill, 645 Melrose Avenue, said thy~ee other Naval officers had asked that he represent them. They question the need for another arena tn the San Diego area. Their main concern is for the safets of their chiildren who walk -5- 2/14/73 along East "J" Street to Halecrest School; sidewalks have not been completed along the entire length of the street and they are apprehensive about the effect of additional traffic. Betty Vaden, 1672 Elmhurst Street, wondered if many of the opponents of the arena and shopping center were considering only their own selfish interests rather than what might be best for the whole City of Chula Vista in the matter of better shopping and entertainment facilities. She said she had faith in the future and rather than predicting what may happen in the year 2000 with our present know-how, she would like to think that our advances in scientific know- ledge would be able to solve the problems of traffic, noise and air pollution. Raquel McDonald, 600-14 Sheffield Court, predicted the building of the Sports World development would increase air pollution by 36.5% and would smother Chula Vista with smog and dirty air. Cary Wright, 242 East "J" Street, described the area around the San Diego Arena as a hodgepodge of drive-in theaters, fast food operations, transfer and storage companies, beer parlors, and strip-tease and topless bars, with a very great amount of asphalt paved parking area. He said we have an opportunity to main- tain one of the most beautiful cities in the southwestern part of the United States, and although we cannot stop growth we have a choice as to the kind of community we live in and what we wish to attract to the area, and he did not believe the development around the San Diego Arena is the type of development wanted for Chula Vista. Esther Lassman, 264 Rogan Road, stated she had gone to some lengths in chal- lenging the misrepresentation in figures and facts in the EIR and had gathered data from State and County sources. She said there is a gross incompatibility between the highway system and the land use in our area projected for 1995; given the input of factual information from the City of Chula Vista and State studies, the figures provided would indicate either increasing the capacity of roads in the State system, that is, increase 1-805 from an 8-lane highway to a 20-lane highway, or alter tire projected land use. Acting Director of Planning Williams advised the Commission that a letter had been received from Eugene Coleman, 1670 Gotham Street, requesting a 20-day period for review of the EIR. Chairman Rice inquired of Mr. Blick if it would be reasonable to request time beyond February 26th in the event the Commissioners decided it was needed. Mr. Blick replied that the Commission must make the decision in evaluating how much time they would need. The staff had stated how much ti~e they needed, and there is no legal additional 20-day requirement. The Commissioners gave consideration as to whether the hearing should be con- tinued to February 26th or until March 5th. Mr. Williams pointed out that the staff could submit a proposed report to them on the 26th and recommended the hearing be continued to that date, then the Commission could proceed on the basis of the information they had in their hands at that time. -6- 2/14/73 MSC (Wilson-Swanson) Consideration of the Environmental Impact Report for Sports World be continued to February 26, 1973. The motion carried by the following vote: AYES: Members Wilson, Swanson, Chandler and Rice NOES: Members Macevicz, Rudolph and Whitten ABSENT: None MSC (Wilson-Swanson) Consideration of amendment to General Development Plan for Sports World be continued to February 26, 1973. The motion carried by the following vote: AYES: Members Wilson, Swanson, Chandler, Rice, Rudolph and Whitten NOES: Member Macevicz ABSENT: None Chairman Rice called for oral communications and none were presented. Director's Report Acting Director of Planning Williams advised that the staff is proceeding with the preparation of a 1973~74 budget proposal for the Commission and asked for an indication of the number of Commissioners who would like to attend the League of California Cities Annual Meeting in San Francisco in October. All seven Commissioners expressed an interest. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, [eoda Scholl Acting Secretary