COSTA MESA PLANNING COMMISSION PREVIEW

Here are some items the Planning Commission will consider Monday.

CONDO CONVERSIONS

Developer Barry Saywitz wants to convert a total of 19 units from rental apartments into condos for sale. The properties he wants to convert include four units on Pomona Avenue, three units on Ogle Street, eight units on West 18th Street and Park Drive, and four units on Orange Avenue.

The Orange Avenue apartments were built in 1956 and are the oldest of the group. Tenants at all of the properties now pay rents ranging from $1,425 for two-bedroom units to $1,795 for three-bedroom units. The commission will consider four separate requests from Saywitz.

The commission can deny a condo conversion request if less than 3% of the city’s apartments are vacant, because selling the units could leave fewer places for people with low incomes to live. Although 2000 census data showed the rental vacancy rate at 2.8%, planning staff members recommend approving conversion to condos because the council wants to increase the number of owner-occupied homes. Recent statistics showed 60% of the city’s homes are rental housing.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Planning staff members recommend allowing all 19 rental units to be converted to condos for sale.

CHIROPRACTIC OFFICE

The commission will decide whether to let a chiropractic office stay in an industrial park in the 3300 block of Newport Boulevard. The Atlas Wellness Center opened in the commerce park without the proper permit, and in 2004 the commission rejected the business’ request for a permit.

The city has allowed the chiropractic center to remain until January 2007, but planning staff members recommend rejecting another request for a permit because they consider the business incompatible with other operations in the industrial park.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Staff members expect the business could create parking problems in the future, but the commission also will have to consider that the business owners have signed a new lease that lasts until July 2009 and could be held to it.

— Compiled by Alicia Robinson