SR-401-031
PCD:SF:JT:AS:PF\f:\plan\share\council\strpt\monintordextend2.wpd
Council Mtg: June 27, 2000 Santa Monica, California
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Staff
SUBJECT: Recommendation to Adopt an Emergency 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 on Montana Avenue and Modifying the Permitted Uses on Montana
Avenue to Include Existing Cinemas and the Maximum Floor Area Ratio for
Existing Cinemas.
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INTRODUCTION
This report recommends that the City Council adopt a two year extension to the existing
emergency interim ordinance modifying the allowable uses and development standards for
the C2 Neighborhood Commercial District located along Montana Avenue. On May 23,
2000 the City Council adopted a 45-day emergency ordinance that modified the allowable
uses and development standards in this area. This ordinance will expire on July 7, 2000
unless the proposed emergency interim ordinance (Attachment A) is adopted.
In adopting the emergency interim ordinance, the Council directed staff to examine the
impacts of the proposed development standards on small parcels to determine if any
adjustments to the maximum allowable floor area ratio (FAR) on parcels less than 7,500
square feet were necessary. In addition, due to the Council and community support for
preservation of the Aero Theater located at 1328 Montana Avenue, staff proposes, as part
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of the emergency interim ordinance, a modification to the permitted uses in the C2 district
on Montana Avenue to include existing cinemas and to modify the maximum allowable
floor area ratio for cinemas to allow for a minor addition to the facility.
BACKGROUND
The 45-day emergency ordinance modified the allowable uses in the C2 District along
Montana Avenue by prohibiting new incidental food serving establishments as well as
sidewalk cafes and newsstands that use the public sidewalk. In addition, the emergency
ordinance lowered the maximum allowable FAR and reduced the discretionary review
threshold to require Planning Commission review for developments that exceed 5,000
square feet of floor area.
Public testimony at the May 23, 2000 hearing identified a concern regarding the impacts of
the proposed FAR reduction on small parcels. Specifically, since covered at-grade parking
is included in FAR calculations, development on small parcels, particularly those less than
7,500 square feet, could be severely limited. Council directed staff to study if modifications
to the proposed FAR reductions on smaller parcels were required.
Council also expressed support for the preservation of the Aero Theater, a historically
significant neighborhood movie house located at 1328 Montana Avenue. Since the
building is a legal nonconforming use that also exceeds the maximum allowable FAR, any
proposed preservation would preclude even minor alterations such as an expanded
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projection room or relocated walls to accommodate disabled access. Staff recommends
ordinance changes to allow a new tenant to occupy the theater.
DISCUSSION
Floor area ratios on smaller parcels
The 45-day emergency interim ordinance reduced maximum allowable FAR in the
following manner:
FAR if at Least
Thirty Percent of
Parcel Square Footage FAR Project is Residential
0 7,500 0.60 0.75
B
7,501 15,000 0.40 0.75
B
15,001 22,500 0.35 0.65
B
22,501 and up 0.25 0.55
Staff has analyzed the parcel sizes and floor area ratios of all of the parcels in the C2
District along Montana Avenue using Los Angeles County Assessor information. A majority
of the parcels within the C2 District on Montana Avenue are 7,500 square feet or less. The
median parcel size in the district is 6,000 square feet. The prevailing FAR, average FAR
and median FAR for all sized parcels ranges from 0.58 to 0.60. Staff believes an FAR
increase above .60 would result in buildings inconsistent with Montana Avenues low scale
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character. Since the Council direction was to maintain the existing character of Montana
Avenue through the emergency interim ordinance pending further study, staff does not
recommend increasing the emergency interim ordinance FAR for parcels 5000 square feet.
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In addition, staff does not recommend exempting at-grade covered parking from floor area
calculations since exempting these parking areas would increase the size and mass of
proposed buildings.
Aero Theater
The Aero Theater is a legal nonconforming use as cinemas are not a permitted use in the
C2 District. In addition, the building currently exceeds the C2 District and emergency
interim ordinance maximum allowable floor area. Renovations are anticipated to allow re-
use of the facility for cinema purposes that will include improvements to comply with
current Building Code as well as minor modifications to expand and add a projection booth.
These minor alterations will result in both a floor area increase of less that 300 square feet
as well as an expansion of the legal nonconforming use. In response to the community
and the Council support for preservation of the Aero, staff proposes that the emergency
interim ordinance identify existing cinemas as permitted uses on Montana Avenue as well
as allow existing cinemas to expand by no more than 300 square feet, for an FAR not to
exceed 1.11. These modifications will preserve an existing use which has served the
neighborhood for over sixty years. This structure is an established and familiar visual
feature in the neighborhood that is consistent with the existing scale and character of
Montana Avenue and the adjacent residential community. Therefore, staff believes the
proposed modification to the emergency interim ordinance to facilitate preservation of the
Aero Theater is consistent with the Councils intent to protect the areas character pending
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further study.
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CEQA STATUS
The proposed emergency 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 emergency 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.
The proposed modification to facilitate continued use of the Aero Theater for cinema
purposes is categorically exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15301(e)(1) of the CEQA
Guidelines in that it permits the minor expansion of an existing facility that is either 50% of
the floor area of the structure before the addition, or 2500 square, whichever is less.
CONCLUSION
The proposed emergency interim ordinance is necessary to allow for a comprehensive
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planning process that will address development and over concentration of uses
inconsistent with the pedestrian-oriented scale and character of the Montana Avenue
neighborhood commercial district. Further, by reducing the maximum permitted FAR and
lowering the discretionary review threshold, the emergency interim ordinance will ensure
that new development in the area is compatible with the existing development scale and
provides a sensitive transition between the commercial district and the neighboring
residential areas. Finally, by modifying the emergency interim ordinance to permit existing
cinemas in the C2 District along Montana Avenue and allow existing cinemas minor
increases in floor area, the Aero Theater can be re-used to serve the residents of the
neighborhood as it has for sixty years.
BUDGET/FINANCIAL IMPACT
The recommendation presented in this report will have no budget or financial impacts.
RECOMMENDATION
It is respectfully recommended that the City Council adopt the emergency interim
ordinance included in Attachment A.
Prepared by: Suzanne Frick, Director
Jay M. Trevino, AICP, Planning Manager
Amanda Schachter, Principal Planner
Paul Foley, Associate Planner
Planning and Community Development Department
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Attachment: A: Proposed Emergency Interim Ordinance
B: Notice of Public Hearing
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