LAGUNA BEACH CITY COUNCIL WRAP-UP

The following is from the July 17 meeting of the Laguna Beach City Council.

PUBLIC COMMENT

He asked the council to take action because, in his opinion, presenting his request to the Parking, Traffic and Circulation Committee would be too time-consuming.

“Going through the PTC is the usual procedure and I think we have to stick with it,” Mayor Toni Iseman said.

Councilman Kelly Boyd asked staff to review the speed of traffic on Park Avenue.

CONSENT CALENDAR

EDITOR’S NOTE: Consent calendar items are approved in one motion unless a member of the council, staff or public “pull” the item, which then requires opening it for public comment and a separate vote.

Approved without comment:

The council voted to honor the request by adding $2,640 from the Housing in Lieu Fund, which was the original source of funding for the purchase of the shelter, to the $300 outstanding in the grant fund.

Pulled for discussion:

HEISLER PARK CONTRACT 5-0

Although the city had yet to receive the expected preliminary funding commitment letters from granting agencies, the council was asked to approve a $4,185,000 contract with Faris Construction for the first and second phases of the Heisler Park Preservation and Renovation Project.

“We are moving faster than the state can execute agreements, so we are asking the council to authorize the city manager to sign the contract when it comes up,” Assistant City Manager John Pietig said.

A transfer of $1.2 million from the Lifeguard Headquarters and Public Restroom project to the park project also was approved.

“We are not signing the contracts for the project yet,” City Manager Ken Frank said. “We are waiting until we get a letter from the state agency indicating that the project has been approved for the grant, even if we don’t have all the paperwork done.

“If we don’t get that, the project doesn’t go through.”

The proposed first phase will include Rockpile Beach; the second, Picnic Beach. Two new restrooms will replace existing facilities.

Construction is scheduled to begin Sept. 4 and end in May, 2008.

The master plan for the entire park renovation is estimated to cost in excess of $8 million.

SOUTH LAGUNA STREETSCAPE 5-0

The council added $60,000 to its contract with Willdan for the coordination of the proposed improvements along Coast Highway from West Street to Fifth Avenue in South Laguna.

Considerable delays and design cost overruns have occurred since the council approved in 2003 the design concept and budget for the project, that was mostly be funded by a $910,000 federal grant, provided the design is completed within specified time limits.

Public Works Director Steve May opined that it will be difficult for the design project to be completed before the time limit runs out and within the adopted budget due to the difficulties encountered in obtaining rights of way from private property owners along the project route.

However, May recommended the city proceed with the project and attempt to acquire the rights of way by the June 30, 2008 deadline, which the council approved. If the attempt fails the city would have to come up with the $910,000 to complete the project.

The risk was offset, May said, by community support for the project.

Staff was directed to bring proposals for right-of-way acquisition to the council and options to obtain the rights of way outside the confines of the grant.

UNDERGROUNDING DISTRICT 4-0, Kinsman recused

The council adopted resolutions to declare its intention to order the construction of improvements and to form an underground utility assessment district that includes Harold, Poplar, Lookout, Linden, High and Olive streets; and preliminary adoption of the engineer’s report.

Kinsman recused herself because a business client is a property owner in the proposed district.

FLAMINGO OVERHEAD 5-0

The engineer’s report for a proposed Flamingo Road underground utility district was approved and a resolution was adopted declaring that public safety and welfare requires the removal of overhead utilities.

All overhead utilities in the proposed district are to be removed by Nov. 30.

Assessments are based on the benefits to the individual property owner and combined benefits to the neighborhood. Benefits include view enhancement and safety.

“The ones that want the district are the ones who get a huge view enhancement,” City Manager Frank said. “Those are the people who are driving every one of these districts except for Canyon Acres.”

VEHICLE EMISSION STANDARDS 5-0

The council voted to support the state’s request to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to allow California to establish more stringent emission standards for passenger vehicles than required nationally.

HEIGHT LIMIT HOW TO’S 5-0

The Planning Commission will be asked to take a look at height restrictions in the city’s commercial and industrial zones.

A problem arises when a commercial project includes underground parking, to which access is opening to daylight, which creates a third story under the mansionization ordinance.

The current restrictions do not allow a third story that has any openings. The idea is to prevent the later development of “storage-only” basements to be converted to habitable areas that were not calculated in the approved square footage.

“Mansionization [ordinance regulations] didn’t take commercial building into consideration,” Councilman Boyd said.

He wants the commission to come up with a version that does not penalize commercial building projects for putting parking underground where the city wants it.

“I think refinements are needed,” said architect Morris Skendarian, speaking on behalf of the Laguna Beach Architects Guild. “The limitation is two stories — if parking underground is open to daylight, it is three stories, even if it doesn’t exceed the height limit.”

A commercial project in North Laguna recently was rejected by the Planning Commission because of day-lighted, underground parking, although the commercial and residential components were only two stories high and under the height limit.

DIRT 5-0

The council gave preliminary approval to an amendment of the municipal code that establishes a new minimum of landscaped open space for new home or major remodeling projects.

Proposed minimums range from 15% on a lot less than 2,500 square feet and up to 35% on lots of more than 14,500 square feet.

“It’s as simple as that,” Montgomery said.

The commission recommended against approval of the amendment as proposed at the June 5 council meeting, which stipulated a 20% maximum of impervious surface — surfaces that do not allow water to percolate into the soil.

Principal Planner Monica Tuchscher said the commission did not want to promote pervious surfaces in landslide-prone areas and also found it difficult to ban cement yards on small, steep hillside lots because of fire department emergency access requirements.

The commission also favored including techniques that addressed landscaping and the pervious/impervious surfaces in the Residential Design Guidelines being developed.

A second reading is required for passage of the amendment.