SR-400-005 (13)
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Council Mtg: December 16, 2003 Santa Monica, California
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DEe I 6 2003
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM City Staff
SUBJECT: Introduction and First Reading of Interim Ordinance Extending the
Modifications to Development Standards, Uses Subject to a Performance
Standards Permit, Uses Subject to a Use Permit, Prohibited Uses and the
Development Review Threshold within the C2 Neighborhood Commercial
District along Montana Avenue.
INTRODUCTION
This report recommends that the City Council introduce for first reading an interim
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ordinance extending until September 11, 2004 the provisions of Ordinance Number 2040
(CCS) which modified development standards, uses subject to a Performance Standards
Permit, uses subject to a Use Permit, prohibited uses and the development review
threshold within the C2 Neighborhood Commercial District along Montana Avenue
Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) will expire on February 27,2004 unless extended prior to
that date. The proposed ordinance, which will extend the interim standards until September
11, 2004, is contained in Attachment A.
BACKGROUND
On May 23,2000 the City Council adopted Ordinance Number 1975 (CCS) amending the
development standards in the C2 Neighborhood Commercial district along Montana
Avenue. The provisions of Ordinance Number 1975 (CCS) were extended until February
27, 2004 by Ordinance Number 1978 (CCS) adopted on June 27, 2000 and Ordinance
Number 2040 (CCS) adopted on March 5, 2003 to provide staff with additional time to
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implement a permanent ordinance. The proposed ordinance would extend the provisions
of Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) until September 11,2004.
Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) requires staff to disapprove all applications for
administrative approval and development review permits filed after May 23, 2000 for any
development or business within the C2 District on Montana Avenue between 6th Court and
1 yth Street, unless the project or business complies with standards contained in the
ordinance. It also allows existing cinemas as a permitted use and grants them minor
increases in floor area. The ordinance furthers two objectives of the Land Use and
Circulation Element: Objective No. 1.2, which requires that the City's policies ensure
compatibility of adjacent land uses with particular concern for protecting residential
neighborhoods; and, Objective NO.1. 7, which requires that neighborhood commercial
districts protect and expand uses that provide for the day-to-day shopping and service
needs of nearby residents.
The need for the proposed ordinance remains the same as when the original ordinance
was introduced, adopted, and subsequently extended. There still exists within the adjacent
residential neighborhoods concern over the size and compatibility of commercial
development and the adverse effects of sidewalk dining and incidental food service.
Copies of the staff reports relating to the original ordinance are attached for reference
(Attachments C, D and E).
DISCUSSION
The proposed ordinance will continue to address incidental food service establishments,
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floor area ratios (FAR), and discretionary review thresholds. However, the provision to
allow minor additions to existing cinemas has been removed because the Aero Theater is
currently proposed to be remodeled without additional floor area
Given staff's current work load, competing priorities and existing staff vacancies, staff
recommends an extension to Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) until September 11 , 2004 to
allow the City Planning Division sufficient time to evaluate the effectiveness of the interim
standards and allow the participation of neighborhood organizations and merchant
associations in the process of developing a permanent ordinance prior to Planning
Commission and City Council hearings.
Staff will be conducting meetings with the North of Montana and Wilshire/Montana
neighborhood organizations and the Montana Avenue Merchants Association to get
feedback on the current interim ordinance and those provisions that should be retained in a
permanent ordinance. The provisions of the proposed permanent ordinance will be made
available for a 30-day public review and comment period which will be followed by a
community meeting to gather input on the proposed changes. A hearing before the
Planning commission is anticipated in the Spring 2004 with a subsequent hearing before
the Council expected in early Summer 2004.
CONCLUSION
Staff recommends that the provisions of Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) be extended until
September 11, 2004. This length of extension is necessary to complete the process
required for implementing a permanent ordinance, which will involve input from various
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neighborhood organizations and merchant associations. Further, given the City Planning
Division's current workload and the high priorities of other projects, including revisions to
multi-family development, downtown design guidelines and standards and the City's Noise
Ordinance, an extension of the provisions of the interim ordinance is recommended.
CEQA STATUS
The proposed interim ordinance is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines
Sections 15061 (b)(3) and 15301 (e)(1).
Section 15061 (b)(3) provides that CEQA only applies to those projects that have the
potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. The proposed development
standards and permitted uses do not have this potential. Instead, these standards are
environmentally beneficial. The proposed interim ordinance results in additional limitations
to the permitted uses on Montana Avenue and reduces the amount of development
permitted in the area. Further, the reduced discretionary review threshold will require that
smaller development projects are subject to Planning Commission review, As a result,
these projects will be evaluated individually for CEQA compliance,
PUBLIC NOTICE
A legal advertisement was published in the "California" section of the Los Angeles Times at
least ten consecutive calendar days prior to the hearing. A copy of the notice is contained
in Attachment C.
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FINANCIAL IMPACT
The recommendation presented in this report has no budget or financial impact.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council introduce for first reading the interim ordinance
included in Attachment A.
PREPARED BY:
Suzanne Frick, Director of Planning and Community Development
Amanda Schachter, Acting Planning Manager
Paul Foley, Senior Planner
Attachment: A:
B.
C.
D.
E.
Proposed Interim Ordinance
Public Notice
May 23, 2000 City Council staff report
June 27,2000 City Council staff report
February 26, 2002 City Council staff report
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ATTACHMENT A
PROPOSED ORDINANCE
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F :\ppd\share\Montana\Ord2040extend .doc
ORDINANCE NUMBER xxxx (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN INTERIM ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA
MONICA EXTENDING THE MODIFICATIONS TO DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS,
USES SUBJECT TO A PERFORMANCE STANDARDS PERMIT, USES SUBJECT
TO A USE PERMIT, PROHIBITED USES AND THE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW
THRESHOLD WITHIN THE C2 NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL DISTRICT
ALONG MONTANA AVENUE
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOllOWS:
Section 1. Findings and Purpose. The City Council finds and declares:
(a) The Land Use Element of the General Plan identifies the commercial
area along Montana Avenue as a neighborhood commercial district. Objective #1.7
requires that neighborhood commercial districts: "Protect and expand uses that provide for
the day-to-day shopping and service needs of nearby residents",
(b) Objective #1.2 of the Land Use and C~rculation Element requires that
the City's policies: "Ensure compatibility of adjacent land uses with particular concern for
protecting residential neighborhoods".
(c) Montana Avenue is zoned C2 Neighborhood Commercial District.
Consistent with ~he General Plan, this district is intended to promote businesses providing
convenience goods and services used frequently by local residents while providing for a
scale and character of development that is consistent with pedestrian-orientation and
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walk-in clientele. The Montana Avenue commercial district is surrounded by residential
districts.
(d) The commercial area along Montana Avenue is dominated by single
story buildings, scaled to the pedestrian, This street has historically provided a mix of
commercial uses, including retail and service businesses, which serve the adjacent
residential neighborhoods to the north and south,
(e) The existing cinema on Montana Avenue is a long-established and
well-known visual feature in the area and is consistent with the existing scale
character of the district and the adjacent residential neighborhood.
(f) Recent trends have transformed the mix of businesses on Montana
Avenue from those that serve the local community to those that attract patrons from the
larger regional area. As a result, greater numbers of visitors are patronizing the area.
growth and change has significantly increased the pedestrian and vehicular traffic in this
area and heightened the noise and congestion associated with these activities,
(g) Prior to adoption of the current interim ordinance, the City Council
received extensive written communication and testimony from the community regarding
the impacts on area residents that have resulted from increased building size, increased
development and business activity, and subsequent increases in vehicular and pedestrian
traffic within the area.
(h) There has been a proliferation of business establishments along
Montana Avenue that include incidental food service as part of their operation,
majority of these establishments are located within a five block area between 7th Street
and 12th Street and in the two blocks between Euclid Street and 15th Street. This growth
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in incidental food establishments led to a concurrent growth in sidewalk dining areas and
related amenities. This reduced the area available for pedestrian access even though
there is an ever increasing number of pedestrians, creates potential safety hazards, and
negatively impacts business establishments and patrons.
(i) More than fifty percent of existing properties in the commercial district
along Montana Avenue consist of parcels with 7,500 square feet or less which under the
existing Zoning Ordinance have the potential to be combined to accommodate larger
scale developments such as two 2-story projects of just under 11,000 square feet on
15,000 square foot parcels approved prior to the interim ordinance adoption.
U) Larger scale developments have the potential for adverse noise,
traffic, parking, aesthetic, privacy, light and air, and shade and shadow impacts on the
single family residential area to the north of Montana Avenue and on the low density multi-
family area to the south.
(k) New, larger developments in the commercial district along Montana
Avenue have the potential for incompatibility with the existing scale and character of the
area and would not provide an appropriate transition between the commercial district and
the neighboring residential areas.
(I) The potential for development and the allowable land uses under the
current standards contained in the Zoning Ordinance, including dining areas and outdoor
newsstands on the public sidewalk, pose a current and immediate threat to the public
health, safety and welfare of the nearby residents and the approval of permits for such
development would result in a threat to the public health, safety and welfare.
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(m) For the reasons stated above, the Zoning Ordinance requires review
and revision as it pertains to the appropriate development standards and uses in the C2
District along Montana Avenue.
(n) Pending completion of this review and revision, in order to protect the
public health, safety and welfare, it is necessary on an interim basis to change the current
development standards and land uses which can occur within the C2 District on Montana
Avenue in a number of ways, including the following: reduce allowable floor area ratios;
reduce the development review thresholds to allow for environmental review and more
public review and comment on larger developments; and prohibit sidewalk cafes and other
uses of the public sidewalk. The interim development and land use standards are
necessary to ensure that the character of the commercial district along Montana Avenue is
not irreversibly changed to the detriment of the nearby residential areas.
(0) In light of the above-mentioned concerns, the City Council adopted
Ordinance Number 1975 (CCS) on May 23, 2000 modifying the development standards in
the Zoning Ordinance and adopted Ordinance Number 1978 (CCS) on June 27,2000 and
Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) on March 5, 2003. However, that ordinance will expire on
February 27,2004.
(p) As described above, the City Council finds that another interim
ordinance extending Ordinance Number 1975 (CCS), Ordinance Number 1978 (CCS) and
Ordinance Number 2040 (CCS) is necessary because there exists a current and
immediate threat to the public safety, health and welfare should development and land
uses inconsistent with the contemplated revisions to the development standards and land
uses in the C2 District on Montana Avenue be allowed to occur. Approval of additional
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development or land uses inconsistent with the proposed interim standards would result in
a threat to the public health, safety or welfare. Consequently, this ordinance extends the
provisions of Ordinance Number 1975 (CCS), Ordinance Number 1978 (CCS) and
Ordinance 2040 (CCS) up to and including September 11, 2004 establishing on an interim
basis the following standards for the C2 District on Montana Avenue.
SECTION 2 Interim Zoninq,
City staff is directed to disapprove all applications for an administrative
approval, conditional use permit, performance standards permit, use permit, development
review permit, and zoning conformance filed after May 23, 2000 for any development or
business within the C2 District on Montana Avenue between Sixth Court and Seventeenth
Street unless the project or business complies with the following standards:
Permitted Uses. The following convenience goods and service type
uses shall be permitted, if conducted within an enclosed building,
except where otherwise permitted:
Appliance stores.
Appliance repair shops.
(c) Art galleries.
Artist studios above the first floor.
Branch offices of banks or savings and loan institutions.
(f) Barber or beauty shops.
Child day care centers.
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Cinemas in existence prior to the effective date of Ordinance
Number 1975 (CCS)
(i) Cleaners.
U) Congregate housing.
Domestic violence shelters.
(I) General offices above the first floor; and on the ground floor for
parcels located at least one hundred fifty feet from Montana
Avenue, Ocean Park Boulevard, or Pico Boulevard.
General retail and specialized retail uses.
Homeless shelters with less than fifty-five beds.
Laundromats.
Libraries.
Multifamily dwelling units.
(r) Offices and meeting rooms for charitable, youth, and welfare
organizations.
(s) Photocopy shops.
Places of worship.
Plant nurseries (provided all supplies, except planted stock,
are kept entirely within an enclosed building).
(v) Restaurants of fifty seats or less and at which no alcohol is
served or consumed.
Schools.
Senior group housing.
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Senior housing.
Shoe repair stores.
Single-family dwelling units.
Single-room occupancy housing.
Specialty offices.
Tailors.
Theaters with fewer than seventy-five seats.
Transitional housing.
Accessory uses which are determined by the Zoning
Administrator to be necessary and customarily associated with,
and appropriate, incidental, and subordinate to, the principal
permitted uses and which are consistent with and no more
disturbing or disruptive than permitted uses,
Other uses determined by the Zoning Administrator to be
similar to those listed above which are consistent with and no
more disturbing or disruptive than permitted uses.
2 Uses subject to performance standards permit.
Large family day care homes.
3. Uses subject to use permit.
Outdoor newsstand, except those on a public sidewalk or right-of-
way.
4, Conditionally permitted uses All uses permitted in Section
9.04.08.16.040 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code.
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5. Prohibited uses,
Cinemas, unless in existence prior to the effective date of
Ordinance Number 1975 (CCS).
Drive-in and drive-through restaurants.
Firearms dealerships.
Incidental food service.
Outdoor newsstands on the public sidewalk or right-of-way
(f) Parking structures located below the ground in conjunction with
commercial development, except for parking below grade
exclusively for residential uses.
Rooftop parking.
Sidewalk cafes,
(i) Any use not specifically authorized.
6, Property development standards. All property shall be developed in
accordance with the following standards:
(a) Front Yard Setback. Landscaping as required pursuant to Santa
Monica Municipal Code Part 9.04.10.04. The building must comply
with build-to-line requirements pursuant to the provisions contained in
Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.10.02.050.
(b) Maximum Building Height. Two stories, not to exceed thirty feet.
(c) Maximum Floor Area Ratio. The maximum floor area ratio shall
be determined as follows:
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Parcel Square Footage
FAR
FAR if at Least Thirty
Percent of Project is
Residential
0-7,500
7,501 - 15,000
15,001 - 22,500
22,501 and up
0.60
0.40
0.35
0.25
0.75
0.75
0.65
0.55
Minimum Lot Size. Seven thousand five hundred square feet.
Each parcel shall have minimum dimensions of fifty feet by one
hundred fifty feet, except that parcels existing on the effective date of
this Chapter shall not be subject to this requirement.
Rear Yard Setback. None, except:
(1) Where rear parcel line abuts a residential district, a rear
yard equal to:
5' + (stories x lot width)
50'
The required rear yard may be used for parking or loading to
within five feet of the rear parcel line provided the parking or
loading does not extend above the first floor level and provided
that a wall not less than five feet or more than six feet in height
is erected and maintained along the rear commercial parcel
line.
Access driveways shall be permitted to cross perpendicularly
the required rear yard provided the driveway does not exceed
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the minimum width permitted for the parking area. A required
rear yard shall not be used for commercial purposes.
(2) That needed to accommodate landscaping and screening
for a rear yard buffer required pursuant to the provisions of
Part 9.04.10.04.
(f) Side Yard Setback. None, except:
(1) Where the interior side parcel line abuts a residential
district, an interior side yard equal to:
5' + (stories x lot width)
50'
The interior side yard may be used for parking or loading to
within five feet to the interior side property line provided the
parking or loading does not extend above the first floor level
and provided a wall not less than five feet or more than six feet
in height is erected and maintained along the side commercial
parcel line. A required interior side yard shall not be used for
access or for commercial purposes.
(2) That needed to accommodate landscaping required for a
street side yard, landscape buffer and screening pursuant to
the provisions of Part 9.04.10.04,
(3) A ten-foot setback from an interior property line shall be
required for portions of buildings that contain windows, doors,
or other openings into the interior of the building. An interior
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side yard less than ten feet shall be permitted if provisions of
the Uniform Building Code related to fire-rated openings in side
yards are satisfied.
(g) Development Review. A Development Review Permit is
required for any development of more than five thousand
square feet of floor area. Square footage devoted to residential
use shall be reduced by fifty percent when calculating whether
a development review permit is required.
7. Deed restrictions. All projects and uses requiring deed restrictions
pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.08.16.065.
8. Special project design and development standards. All projects
shall comply with the provisions of Santa Monica Municipal Code
Section 9.04.08.16.070.
9. Architectural review. All projects shall comply with the provisions
of Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.08.16.080.
SECTION 3. This ordinance shall be of no further force or effect after
September 11, 2004, unless prior to that date, after a public hearing, noticed
pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.20.22.050, the City Council,
by majority vote, extends this interim ordinance.
SECTION 4. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or
appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent
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of such inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent
necessary to affect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 5. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of
any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it
would have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection,
sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard
to whether any portion of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or
unconstitutional.
SECTION 6 The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the
passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published
once in the official newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance
shall become effective thirty days after its adoption
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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ATTACHMENT B
Public Notice
y.,Itf. 0019
NOTICE OF A PUBLIC HEARING
BEFORE THE SANTA MONICA CITY COUNCIL
SUBJECT: PROPOSED INTERIM ORDINANCE TO MODIFY PART 9.04.08.16 OF
ARTICLE IX OF THE SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATED TO
ALLOWABLE USES AND DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS IN THE C2
NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL DISTRICT ON MONTANA AVENUE;
THE INTERIM ORDINANCE ALSO PROPOSES TO MODIFY THE
ALLOWABLE USES IN THE C2 NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL
DISTRICT ON MONTANA AVENUE TO INCLUDE EXISTING CINEMAS
(THE AERO THEATER) AS A PERMITTED USE
WHEN: Tuesday, December 16,2003 at 6:45 p.m
WHERE: City Hall Council Chambers
1685 Main Street
Santa Monica, California
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The City Council will conduct a public hearing to consider extending until September 11,
2004, an interim ordinance to modify the allowable uses and development standards for
the C2 Neighborhood Commercial district located along Montana Avenue. The proposed
ordinance will prohibit approval of additional incidental food serving establishments,
prohibit any new uses of the public sidewalk, reduce allowable floor area of new
developments and reduce the development review threshold for Planning Commission
review. The interim ordinance also proposes to modify the allowable uses in the C2
Neighborhood Commercial District on Montana Avenue to include existing cinemas (the
Aero Theater) as a permitted use. Staff is recommending adoption of the interim
ordinance to allow for a comprehensive planning process to revise the development
standards for the Montana Avenue commercial district.
HOW TO COMMENT
You may comment at the City Council public hearing, or by writing a letter. Written
information received before 3:00 p.m. on the Wednesday before the hearing will be given
to the City Council in their packet. Information received after that time will be given to the
City Council prior to the meeting.
Address your letters to: City Clerk
1685 Main Street, Room 102
Santa Monica, CA 90401
MORE INFORMATION
For more information about this project, please contact Associate Planner Bill Rodrigues at
(310) 458-8341. Information is also available on the City=s web site at www.santa-
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monica.org. The meeting facility is wheelchair accessible. For disability-related
accommodations please contact (310) 458-8341 or (310) 458-8696 TTY at least 72 hours
in advance. All written materials are available in alternate format upon request. Santa
Monica Bus Lines 1, 2, 3 and 7 serve City Hall.
Pursuant to California Government Code Section 65009(b), if this matter is subsequently
challenged in Court, the challenge may be limited to only those issues raised at the Public
Hearing described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City of Santa
Monica at, or prior to, the Public Hearing.
ESPANOL
EI Concilio Municipal de la ciudad de Santa Monica tendra una audencia publica para
revisar applicaciones proponiendo desarrollo en Santa Monica. Para mas informacion,
lIame a Carmen Gutierrez al numero (310) 458-8341.
APPROVED AS TO FORM
(J..~/(J ~~P\::)
AMANDA SCHACHTER
Acting Planning Manager
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Attachments C, D, and E
(See meeting dates for those staff reports)