O2175
f: \atty\mu ni\laws\bar\baysidedistrictretail-12d .doc
City Council Meeting 2-14-06 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBE R 2175 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA AMENDING SANTA MON ICA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTIONS
9.04.08.15.020 AND 9.04.08.15.040 AND ADDING SECTION 9.04.08.15.085 TO THE
MUNICIPAL CODE TO ESTABLISH A DISCRETIONARY REVIEW PROCESS TO
REGULATE THE CONVERSION OF ANY PORTION OF A RESTAURANT USE OR
ANY ASSOCIATED RECREATIONAL OR ENTERTAINMENT USE TO A NEW OR
EXPANDED RETAIL USE LOCATED ON THE GROUND FLOOR LEVEL ADJACENT
TO THE THIRD STREET PROMENADE
WHEREAS, in 1965, the City Council sought to revitalize its declining downtown
business district by closing three blocks of Third Street to vehicular traffic in order to
create a pedestrian shopping mall pursuant to the Pedestrian Mall Act; and
WHEREAS, the Third Street Mall did not attract shoppers; and, as a result, retail
businesses on the mall failed, and the downtown business district continued to decline;
and
WHEREAS, in 1986, the City Council again acted to save its downtown by
adopting the Third Street Mall Specific Plan to provide a framework for reviving the
Third Street Mall and surrounding areas; and
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WHEREAS, the Specific Plan made diversity the foundation of the mall's future,
mandating a mixture of uses and activities sufficient to ensure that the mall would attract
a diverse group of residents and visitors; and
WHEREAS, thereafter, the City embarked upon a substantial effort to transform
the moribund Third Street Mall into a new kind of public space which would serve as a
community gathering place, attract visitors from near and far and define the City's
municipal character; and
WHEREAS, the redesign included numerous improvements to the pedestrian
street: retail pavilions, landscaping, water elements, public benches, street lamps, and
topiary dinosaur sculptures in the central landscaped area of each block and the area
was also renamed the Third Street Promenade; and
WHEREAS, this space was, from the time of its conception, distinguished from
other shopping areas, by the carefully planned and unusual mix of opportunities it
afforded, including street performers, sidewalk dining, cinema, bookstores, special
events, clothing stores, specialty shops, and night clubs; and
WHEREAS, as conceived, the Third Street Promenade was not simply a
shopping mall; it was a place to go for entertainment, company, relaxation, strolling; a
place where one could watch jugglers and dancers, dine outdoors, argue politics, listen
to music, browse a bookshop, take in a movie and more; and
WHEREAS, moreover, the Third Street Promenade was planned as a gathering
place for all segments of society: children, the elderly, and people from all cultural and
economic groups; and
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WHEREAS, the plan succeeded, and the Third Street Promenade became a
resounding success as a favored destination for local residents, Southern Californians
and international travelers alike; and
WHEREAS, as such, it became, and still is, an engine which drives Santa
Monica's economy; however, this success has had its costs; and
WHEREAS, the influx of visitors to the Third Street Promenade has brought
significant traffic and parking problems; and
WHEREAS, at present, these problems are being addressed by a downtown
parking strategy; however, the problem is significant and the options are limited
because the area is very small, has been built out for decades and features a mixture of
uses, including residential, which is inconsistent with simply building larger and larger
parking structures; and
WHEREAS, maintaining the delicate balance of entertainment, restaurants and
retail, which is the foundation of the Third Street Promenade's success, has been an
ongoing challenge; and
WHEREAS, over the years, market forces have threatened the mix many times;
and the City has responded to preserve the Third Street Promenade's unique character
through the adoption of laws and polices which promote the general welfare by
maintaining the Promenade's eclectic character; and
WHEREAS, in 1996, the City revised the Third Street Mall Specific Plan through
the adoption of the Bayside District Specific Plan, a critical objective of which remained
to attract and accommodate a mix of uses serving residents, visitors and tourists during
both daytime and evening hours; and
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WHEREAS, to this end, the specific plan established a ten-year projection and
plan for the controlled growth of retail outlets on the Third Street Promenade; and
WHEREAS, the actual growth of retail far outstripped the planned growth to the
point that the ten year projection was already met just five years into the planning
period; and
WHEREAS, as of 2001, there was already approximately 530,000 square feet of
retail on the three block Third Street Promenade and the pressure to create more retail
spaces continued unabated; and
WHEREAS, the massive influx of retail establishments displaced restaurants and
sidewalk dining; and
WHEREAS, five restaurants were lost in the two years prior to the adoption of the
initial interim ordinance and four more were near or at the end of their leases; frontage
devoted to sidewalk dining shrunk; and
WHEREAS, as reflected by these changes, the balance of uses on the Third
Street Promenade was once again threatened; this time by a loss of restaurants and
influx of additional retail; and
WHEREAS, if left unchecked, this trend will deprive the Third Street Promenade
of its unique character and vitality by rendering it simply a standard shopping mall; and
WHEREAS, the influx of retail not only impacted the mix of establishment located
on the Third Street Promenade, it also exacerbated parking and traffic problems; and
WHEREAS, residents and visitors come to the Third Street Promenade for dining
and entertainment, typically for many hours; in contrast, persons who are simply
shopping, stay for shorter periods of time, resulting in more people making more trips
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and thereby placing ever-increasing demands on the downtown's already overtaxed
traffic and parking capacities; and
WHEREAS, these increased demands degrade the quality of residents' lives and
the desirability of the Third Street Promenade and the City as destinations and thereby
threaten the City's welfare; and
WHEREAS, in order to preserve the City's economic and social welfare, the City
Council must act in order to protect the unique qualities and vitality of the Third Street
Promenade by ensuring the best possible mix of restaurants, retail and entertainment;
and
WHEREAS, in general, the City must ensure the best possible mix of
restaurants, retail and entertainment so that the Promenade remains unusual and
attractive and does not become simply an average shopping mall through the continued
expansion of retail at the expense of other uses; and
WHEREAS, similarly, the City must preserve the outdoor dining opportunities
which have become one of the hallmarks of the Promenade; and
WHEREAS, exactly how best to accomplish this end is a complex question which
required detailed study, including a review of the specific plan; and
WHEREAS, in light of these concerns, the City Council adopted Ordinance
Number 2030 (CCS) on November 27, 2001, a forty-five day ordinance which
established a moratorium on new or expanded ground floor retail use on the Third
Street Promenade, adopted Ordinance Number 2032 (CCS) which extended Ordinance
Number 2030 (CCS) until January 9, 2003, adopted Ordinance Number 2062 (CCS)
which extended Ordinance Number 2030 (CCS) until September 9, 2003, adopted
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Ordinance Number 2082 (CCS) which extended Ordinance Number 2030 (CCS) until
September 9, 2005, and adopted Ordinance Number 2162 (CCS) which extended
Ordinance Number 2030 (CCS) until March 26, 2006; and
WHEREAS, after adoption of Ordinance Number 2030 (CCS), the City Council
established a Promenade Uses Task Force to study the Promenade issues described
herein, to seek feedback and input from the community, and to make recommendations
to the City Council regarding the appropriate mix of uses on the Promenade; and
WHEREAS, the Task Force met regularly between May 2002 and March 2003,
considering goals and objectives for the Promenade and the Downtown, reviewing
relevant City policies and regulations, and conducting community workshops; and
WHEREAS, the Task Force subsequently prepared a series of recommendations
for review by the City Council; and
WHEREAS, in March, 2005, the City Council adopted an ordinance implementing
the legislative changes for restaurants recommended by the Task Force; and
WHEREAS, at the time of the ordinance's adoption, it was not clear how these
legislative changes and other implementation measures would affect the viability of
restaurants on the Promenade; and
WHEREAS, due to this uncertainty, the City Council retained the interim
standards; and
WHEREAS, for the reasons described above, the City's Comprehensive Land
Use and Zoning Ordinance should be revised to accommodate restrictions on the
expansion or establishment of new ground floor retail uses on the Third Street
Promenade to ensure and maintain the district's unique mix of uses; and
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.
WHEREAS, the Planning Commission co nducted public hearings and considered
the proposed amendment on December 14, 2005 and January 4, 2006; and
WHEREAS, the City Council held a public hearing on the proposed text
amendment on January 24, 2006; and
WHEREAS, the proposed Zoning Ordinance text amendment is consistent in
principle with the goals, objectives, policies, land uses, and programs specified in the
adopted General Plan, specifically, Land Use Element Objective 1.3, which states that
the City's land use policies should seek to "reinforce Downtown as the focus of the City,
supporting the greatest concentration of activity; and
WHEREAS, the proposed amendment would limit the amount of retail uses on
the Third Street Promenade and allow for the preservation of dining opportunities to
ensure the unique mix of restaurants, retail, and entertainment, maintaining focus and
concentration of activity on the Promenade and Downtown area; and
WHEREAS, the proposed Zoning Ordinance text amendment is also consistent
with Land Use Element Objective 1.4, which states that the City's land use policies
should seek to "encourage revitalization of the Third Street Mall, recognizing the
important role the Third Street Mall can play in making Downtown the activity focus of
the City;" and
WHEREAS, the proposed amendment would limit the expansion of retail uses at
the expense of restaurant uses and would encourage and maintain the viability of the
Promenade and Downtown area by preserving the character and unique mixture of
uses, a key element to the success of the Promenade; and
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WHEREAS, the public health, safety, a nd general welfare the adoption of the
proposed amendment in that the amendment would help preserve the City's economic
and social welfare, protect the unique qua lities and vitality of the Third Street
Promenade by ensuring the best possible mix of restaurants, retail, and entertainment,
and maintain the quality of residents' lives and the desirability of the Promenade and the
City as a destination,
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.08.15.020 is hereby
amended to read as follows:
9.04.08.15.020 Permitted uses.
(1 ) The following uses shall be permitted in the
BSC-1 portion of the BSC District, provided that any such
use shall obtain a use permit pursuant to Section
9.04.13.060 if its Third Street Promenade first-floor frontage
exceeds fifty feet, and that the conversion of any portion of a
restaurant use or any associated recreational or
entertainment use to a new or expanded retail use located
on the ground floor level adjacent to the Third Street
Promenade shall obtain a conditional use permit pursuant to
Section 9.04.08.15.085. All uses shall be conducted within
an enclosed building, except where otherwise specified:
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(a) Art galleries.
(b) Artist studios above the first floor and at the rear
seventy-five feet of a parcel.
(c) Bakeries.
(d) Barber or beauty shops.
(e) Business colleges.
(f) Child day care centers.
(g) Cleaners.
(h) Congregate housing.
(i) Cultural facilities.
0) Dance studios.
(k) Domestic violence shelters.
(I) Exercise facilities.
(m) General offices above the first floor and in the
rear seventy-five feet of a parcel.
(n) General retail, subject to the limitations
contained in Section 9.04.08.15.085.
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(0) Homeless shelters with less than fifty-five beds.
(p) Medical, dental and optometrist clinics and
laboratories above the first floor and in the rear seventy-five
feet of a parcel.
(q) Multi-family dwelling units.
(r) Museums.
(s) Outdoor newsstands.
(t) Pawnbrokers.
(u) Photocopy shops.
(v) Places of worship.
(w) Restaurants, subject to the limitations contained
in Section 9.04.08.15.080.
(x) Senior group housing.
(y) Senior housing.
(z) Sidewalk cafes, subject to the provisions of the
Outdoor Dining Standards for the Third Street Promenade,
approved by resolution of the City Council, and subject to the
limitations contained in Section 9.04.08.15.080.
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(aa) Single-room occupancy housing.
(bb) Tailors.
(cc) Trade schools.
(dd) Transitional housing.
(ee) 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 and
not more disturbing or disruptive than permitted uses.
(ff) Other uses determined by the Zoning
Administrator to be similar to those listed above and which
are consistent and not more disturbing or disruptive than
permitted uses.
(2) The following uses shall be permitted in the
BSC-2, BSC-3 and BSC-4 portions of the BSC District. All
uses shall be conducted within an enclosed building, except
where otherwise specified:
(a) Art galleries.
(b) Artist studios above the first floor.
(c) Appliance repair shops.
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(d) Bakeries.
(e) Banks and savings and loan institutions.
(f) Barber or beauty shops.
(g) Business colleges.
(h) Child day care centers.
(i) Cleaners.
0) Congregate housing.
(k) Cultural facilities.
(I) Dance studios.
(m) Domestic violence shelters.
(n) Exercise facilities.
(0) General offices above the first floor and in the
rear seventy-five feet of a parcel.
(p) General retail.
(q) Homeless shelters with less than fifty-five beds.
(r) Laundromats.
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(s) Medical, dental and optometrist clinics and
laboratories above the first floor and in the rear fifty feet of a
parcel.
(t) Multi-family dwelling units.
(u) Museums.
(v) Outdoor newsstands.
(w) Pawnbrokers.
(x) Party equipment rentals.
(y) Photocopy shops.
(z) Places of worship.
(aa) Restaurants, subject to the limitations contained
in Section 9.04.08.15.080.
(bb) Senior group housing.
(cc) Senior housing.
(dd) Single-room occupancy housing.
(ee) Tailors.
(ff) Theaters.
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(gg) Trade schools.
(hh) Transitional housing.
(ii) 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 and
not more disturbing or disruptive than permitted uses.
OJ) Other uses determined by the Zoning
Administrator to be similar to those listed above and which
are consistent and not more disturbing or disruptive than
permitted uses. 9.04.08.15.020
SECTION 2. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.08.15.040 is hereby
amended to read as follows:
9.04.08.15.040 Conditionally permitted uses.
(1 ) The following uses may be permitted in the
BSC-1 portion of the BSC District subject to the approval of
a conditional use permit. Additionally, any use for which the
Third Street Promenade first-floor frontage exceeds fifty feet
shall obtain a use permit pursuant to Section 9.04.13.060,
and the conversion of any portion of a restaurant use or any
associated recreational or entertainment use to a new or
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expanded retail use located on the ground floor level
adjacent to the Third Street Promenade shall obtain a
conditional use permit pursuant to Section 9.04.08.15.085:
(A) Bars, subject to the limitations contained in
Section 9.04.08.15.080;
(B) Billiard parlors;
(C) Bowling alleys;
(D) Cinemas;
(E) Clubs and lodges;
(F) Convention and conference facilities;
(G) Fast-food food courts, subject to the limitations
contained in Section 9.04.08.15.080;
(H) Homeless shelters with fifty-five beds or more;
(I) Hotels and motels;
(J) Nightclubs, subject to the limitations contained
in Section 9.04.08.15.080;
(K) Open-air farmers markets;
(L) Skating rinks;
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(M) Theaters.
(2) The following uses may be permitted in the
BSC-2, BSC-3 and BSC-4 portions of the BSC District,
subject to the approval of a conditional use permit:
(A) Automobile parking lots and structures;
(B) Bars, subject to the limitations contained in
Section 9.04.08.15.080;
(C) Billiard parlors;
(D) Bowling alleys;
(E) Cinemas;
(F) Clubs and lodges;
(G) Convention and conference facilities;
(H) General offices uses on the ground floor in that
portion of a parcel between twenty-five feet and seventy-five
feet from the front parcel line;
(I) Homeless shelters with fifty-five beds or more;
(J) Hotels and motels;
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(K) Nightclubs, subject to the limitations contained in
Section 9.04.08.15.080;
(L) Open-air farmers markets;
(M) Skating rinks.
(3) In addition to those uses specified in subsection
(2) of this Section, the following uses may be permitted in
the BSC-3 portion of the BSC District subject to the approval
of a conditional use permit:
Expansion or intensification of automobile repair
facilities existing as of July 8, 1997 provided such property is
physically improved to comply with the Bayside District
special project design and development standards set forth
in Section 9.04.08.15.070 and the special conditions for auto
repair facilities set forth in Section 9.04.14.050.
SECTION 3. Section 9.04.08.15.085 is hereby added to the Santa Monica
Municipal Code to read as follows:
Section 9.04.08.15.085. Conversion of any portion
.
of a restaurant use or any associated recreational or
entertainment use to a new or expanded retail use
located on the ground floor level adjacent to the Third
Street Promenade.
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In the BSC-1 portion of the BSC District, the
conversion of any portion of a restaurant use or any
associated recreational or entertainment use to a new or
expanded retail use located on the ground floor level
adjacent to the Third Street Promenade shall require a
conditional use permit subject to the following requirements:
(a) All standards, required findings, and conditions for
conditional use permits pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal
Code Part 9.04.20.12 shall apply.
(b) The additional finding of fact shall be made: the
proposed use would preserve the unique mixture of
restaurants, retail and entertainment on the Third Street
Promenade and maintain the vitality and diversity of the
Promenade and the Bayside District.
(c) The provisions of this Section shall apply to all
restaurant uses located on the ground floor level adjacent to
the Third Street Promenade. However, the conversion of the
rear portion of a ground floor restaurant to a retail use shall
not require a conditional use permit provided that the retail
area is located within the rear 75 feet of the property and
access to the retail area is taken from an alley.
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SECTION 4. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices
thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such
inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary
to effect 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 30 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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Approved and adopted this 14th day of February, 2006.
~-:-~
Robert T. Holbrook, Mayor
State of California )
County of Los Angeles) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Maria M. Stewart, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby certify that the
foregoing Ordinance No. 2175 (CCS) had its introduction on January 24, 2006, and was
adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting held on February 14, 2006, by the
following vote:
Ayes: Council members: Bloom, Genser, McKeown, O'Connor
Mayor Pro Tem Shriver, Mayor Holbrook
Noes: Council members: None
Abstain: Council members: None
Absent: Council members: Katz
ATTEST:
~~ ~~..~
Maria M. Stewart, ity Clerk
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