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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 1996-03-06 Mayor lack Drago Council: Joseph A. Fernekes Eugene R. Mullin "-lohn R. Penna Robert Yee MINUTES City Council Municipal Services Building Community Room March 6, 1996 SPECIAL MEETING CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO MARCH 6, 1996 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, pursuant to Section 54956 of the Government Code of the State of California, that the City Council of the City of South San Francisco will hold a Special Meeting on Wednesday, the 6th day of March, 1996, at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Conference Room, City Hall, 400 Grand Avenue, South San Francisco, California. Purpose of the meeting is a joint study session with the Planning Commission to discuss: 1. The roles of Council, Planning Commission and staff in the planning process. Council expectations: a) Protection/preservation of neighborhoods; b) Economic development. Visioning - creating a community vision and a comprehensive plan update. 4. Design Review: a) Problem areas; b) Policy issues and direction. 5. Other issues of mutual concern. 6. Adjournment. City Clerk City of South San Francisco Dated: February 29, 1996 CALL TO ORDER: ROLL CALL: AGENDA (Cassette No. 1) ACTION TAKEN 7:06 p.m. Mayor Drago presiding. ~ ~ Council Present: Fernekes, Mullin, Penna~ and Drago. Council Absent: None. Planning Commissioners Present: Barnett, DeZordo, Lucchesi, Masuda, Padreddii, Romero 3/6/96 Page 1 AGENDA A~TION TAKEN .... R_OLL CALL - Continued. 1. The roles of Council, Planning Commission and staff in the planning process. ! ?? and Warren. Planning Commissioners Absent: None. Mayor Drago stated he wanted to conclude this meeting by 9:00 p.m. and if more time is needed there can be another meeting for he has to go somewhere at 3:00 a.m. in the morning. He stated there is an agenda to be used as a guideline, but it does not have to be fol- owed to the letter, only to have discussion between the two Agencies. He stated the first thing is the roles of Council, Planning Commission and staff and the planning process and he is not sure that all Council agrees what the roles are. He will express his opinion and the other members can jump in and then the Com- mission will state their opinions. He stated the Council's role is to establish the gen- eral policies and practices of the City and they are elected to do that. The Planning Commission is like our eyes, ears, arms and reviews for the Council the various issues delivered by staff. Staff's role is to provide the technical end, not to set policies, but to come up with the details so we don't act out of order. So, the Commission is actually in the mid- dle, as he sees it, and should be reflecting the Council's wishes. That should be the number one thing and he knows we are here to do the best for the City, and he hopes they agree on what has to be done to get to that point. So they need to assist the public and not resist the public. Vice Mayor Fernekes stated he concurred. Councilman Penna stated he had nothing further to add. Councilman Yee saw things a little bit different. We have a General Plan, zoning, rules and laws to guide the Planning Commission, so one of the rea- sons why we have people in the community involved in the Commission is because we have a diverse community. He does not necessarily feel that the Commission has to agree with the City Council's wishes, but should in the larger picture, for example if the Council says you should encourage a develop- ment, then he does not think the Commission should 3/6/96 Page 2 ~ENDA ACTION TAKEN The roles of Council, Planning Commission and staff in the planning process - Continued. Visioning - creating a community vision and a com- prehensive plan update. go against it, but should express their opinion for even the Council does not always agree, the Com- mission is not unanimous all the time which is okay, because it is a public input and that is why we select people from the community to represent the commu- nity in the planning process. Mayor Drago stated maybe it is not specific, the interpretation that arises, but the Council majority is saying no growth or full growth, but the messages that are sent out of the Planning Commission should reflect that and they could assist, not resist. Councilman Yee stated that is the main message. Councilman Mullin stated 25 years ago he was on the Commission and the Council gave us direction and that was simply to give the applicant a fair hearing, come prepared and use the best judgment you can and that is about all anyone can do. On the pro or slow growth within the parameters, he would expect the Commissioners would do their homework and be ready for the hearing, listen to the people testify and make unbiased judgments - which he has seen. He has attended a couple of meetings in the last three months, has been impressed and has no complaints with what the Commission is doing. Chairwoman Warren stated one of the biggest ques- tions that needs to be answered - is there pro growth, no growth, or slow growth. Obviously the City is not no growth, so we can throw that out. She thinks the type of growth that the City wants to see, as reflected by the Council, is important for the Commission to know. Unfortunately we hear a lot of rumors on what the Council thinks, everything from the extreme of roll over and play dead, don't let them complain, because that means all hell is going to break loose and we don't want that in our town. At least for her perspective, it would be helpful to know what the Council wants to see. Recently the Commission had an applicant come before them to reopen a business and we were trying to encourage additional landscaping in an area where no landscaping was required. We were trying to make it more attractive and the applicant was saying yes, no and maybe, but there was a sense by some Commissioners that we needed the business so we should not be asking the applicant to do that. Oth- ers felt there ought to be a lot of effort in upgrading 3/6/96 Page 3 ,.3~. Visioning - Continued. Council expctations: a) Protection/preservation of neighborhoods; b) Economic development. the property and we ended up somewhere in the middle, but its that kind of situation where the atti- tudes and opinions of the Council come into play - and for her perspective, she does not know what the Council wants. She has no problem with the Council overturning their decisions, but has to admit when it occurs she wants to see feedback. She does not always get a chance to see the Council meetings because she does not have the time, but it would be helpful to find out when an appeal was granted - why it occurred or if the Council is unhappy that we did not understand what the reasoning was and it is not right for the staff to relate their opinions for us. She stated there has to be a device to let the Commission know - for that would be helpful. Mayor Drago stated, first is to protect the neighbor- hoods, secondly it is to encourage economic devel- opment and how it is done is up to the Planning Commission. Councilman Mullin stated it is a little hard to argue against apple pie and motherhood. He feels the priority is correct, we do owe an obligation to the neighborhood for we all came from different back- grounds. As a Commissioner he spent a lot of time worrying what the Council wanted, tried to make the most logical decision and let it fall, and there were times the appeals were upheld by Council but there were findings to support the decisions. He again advised, give everyone the same treatment, and do your homework - which is the same at this level. Councilman Yee stated there is always a human element involved in appeals to Council. He remembers the guy in Westborough with the addi- tion in the back, Council discussed it and some other facts came out, for whatever reason, that the staff knew about the violation for two years and did not bring it out - yet, he does not remember that being discussed at the Planning Commission meeting. So, those are the kinds of things we want to be fair in for that is where he is coming from, he tries to be as fair as he can regardless of who the people are and look at the facts of the case. City Manager Wilson stated the number of appeals are very small. 3/6/96 Page 4 AGENDA A~TION TAKEN 2. Council expectations - Continued. 3/6/96 Page 5 Chairwoman Warren stated she watched the Council meeting one evening, and if she had not just taken a shower, she would have dressed and come to the meeting, because of a comment, "I don't understand where the Commission was coming from." She stated it was like it was the perception that the Commission did not know what they are doing. She stated that the issue is not based on new' facts coming to the Council during an appeal, but something the Commission is doing or it is a Motion that is not in keeping with the direction the Council wants to go in. She stated if the Commission does not know that direction, then it is not going to look at it right. Mayor Drago stated the Council hears the same comments, in other words, the Commission says what is the difference the Council, will overrule us any way. He did not understand the comment when the appeals are only 1% to 2% of the Commission's actions. Vice Mayor Fernekes stated things could be pre- sented in a different manner which would give a different credence, because as Councilman Yee said, we try to be fair to everyone. He stated the Coun- cil has a copy of the Council's meeting tapes if a Commissioner wants to see what transpired and what was said by the Council. Chairwoman Warren stated she does receive the Council minutes, however, when an appeal is upheld she would like to see the findings come back to the Planning Commission. City Clerk Battaya stated sometimes that is a prob- lem, because staff will be rewriting the timings as the meeting progresses and unless they are incorpo- rated into a resolution the only other way to find them is in the minutes. Mayor Drago stated, many times a developer likes to present a hidden bullet and the Council will send it back to the Commission for their input, but sometimes that is dangerous because the Commis- sion might think the Council is trying to get them to change their decision. Councilman Mullin stated, when something is sent back to the Commission it should not just contain the negative things. AGENDA ACTION TAKEN 2. Council expectations - Continued. 3/6/96 Page 6 Councilman Yee asked, doesn't staff give you a report at the next Commission meeting. Chairwoman Warren stated if it comes back in written form it is more helpful for the oral report comes up at the end of the meeting when Commis- sioners are not that attentive. Commissioner Romero stated three out of five cases coming to the Commission are no brainers and the Commission can approve them, but one or two require discussion and may not be the best project to come into the City. The Commission wants to see the applicant do more than he wants to do, and there is the grey area the Council wants, and we are trying to separate those and find what we can do to accommodate our needs. The Commission wants to try to get a project in and ask the applicant to spend more money. We do not want to discourage them, but at least spend an amount of money where it will not be a blight. Those are difficult to deal with, you are walking a tight rope, you can't throw them out the door but you can't be loose and let them build whatever they want. He questioned: how does the Council feel about the quality of the projects and how stringent the Com- mission should be with their interpretation of the Codes, landscaping and the setbacks; is it acceptable for the Commission to waive a percentage to allow the applicant to build a project. Discussion followed: has any member of Council approached a Commissioner with a complaint; no, never; being a former Fire Chief, the Mayor knows how hard it is to apply Codes and the person has to make a judgment call; the landscaping could be reduced to 9% or 8% as a judgment call, instead of 10%, because maybe it is physically impossible to get 10%; Councilman Penna felt you can ask for more with a new project because there is an eco- nomic factor, but with the older projects there has to be some attention given to the lack of setbacks and other things to make improvements up to Code; if you continue with the strict lines of the Code you end up with the continued blight and there is a responsibility to clean up the blighted areas; etc. Commissioner Lucchesi stated one of his concerns is the rumor mill, but unless we hear it from the Council's mouth - forget it. AGENDA ACTION TAKEN 2. Council expectations - Continued. 3/6/96 Page 7 ! 3Z Councilman Penna stated the Commissioners all know Council and there is no reason they cannot call, if there is a question. Mayor Drago cautioned them not to play the num- bers game, don't poll Council. Commissioner Lucchesi stated there were just a few projects where there were rumors being fed back that he did not appreciate, but he did not hear it from Council. Councilman Yee stated this disturbs him, because this should never happen unless we are at an open meeting, because if his uncle wants a 7-11 store he has to prove it and the worse thing a Commissioner has to worry about is being fired and even that should not be worried about. The Commission has to do what they believe is right and it will come out alright. Commissioner Lucchesi stated his other concern is the divergence from the General Plan and Codes. He stated the PUD process is a mechanism pulled out of its normal function. He wanted to know if the Council feels that is good or should tho Commis- sion review the General Plan and think other things rather than using the PUD to grant things. Councilman Yee did not feel that is the use of a PUD, it is tailored for a special purpose and did not feel it should bo used to short circuit the system. Chairman Warren stated her interpretation of the PUD was almost a quid pro quo where the City was supposed to get something better than the normal, but in return the developer owed us and had to provide a higher quality. Councilman Mullin added, and a City bonus in exchange for amenities. Discussion followed: the Commission reviews the Codes, but there are exceptions to every Code; cutting the landscaping requirements can only be done with the PUD process; Council can review the questionable standards to get flexibility and come back with changes and, perhaps agree with a lower landscaping percentage; Councilman Mullin is not sure economic hardship is a good reason for a change, because people will nickel and dime you to ~ENDA ACTION TAKEN Council expectations - Continued. 3/6/96 Page 8 get it down, other than for odd exceptions; a prob- lem did occur with the Salvation Army use on Mis- sion Road where the City made requirements not only for that building but for the whole square which was a true hardship; the problem is with rehab of an old building which will be covered in Item No. 4; etc. Commissioner Barnett questioned: what kind of economic development does the City want here and what kind for the future; if the Commission passes a new project - what is it going to look like in 20 years; in the east of 101 there are businesses starting to encroach on the residential areas; there are gas stations and convenience stores - are those the kind of projects we want to encourage in S.S.F.; if it is bringing new money into S.S.F., is that okay, he does not think that is right; we want quality money; if there is a vacant lot he is not saying to put just anything up; what value is the project going to give to the City; we should revisit the General Plan; he is concerned about the use just approved at the last Council meeting, because it could be used for some- thing else; etc. Discussion followed: the Planning Commission cannot stop a use if it meets the zoning; if the Com- mission feels there are two many used car lots on Airport, they can go after a rezoning - but not retro- active; they can make that recommendation to Coun- cil; process followed for a new business use; the Commission should take a look to see if the proce- dures serve the needs of the neighborhood; what if the Commission sees a project that they feel is inap- propriately zoned commercial and should be residen- tial; the Commission can initiate anything they want because they are the eyes, ears and arms of the Council; should the Commission take into consider- ation the concerns of the owner of the property; Commissioner Padreddii felt if the Commission used common sense it stops people from going to the Council and makes the Council look like they are doing a good job with good development; if the Commission votes on something and it goes to the Council, that is your prerogative and that is fine with Commissioner Padreddii; if the Commission says 10% landscaping is the minimum, but it be- comes a hardship like the one on Mission Road and it was economically impossible to put in the 10%, then you have to look at the old rehabs that have been coming back in and you can't apply the same AGENDA A~TION TAKEN Council expectations - Continued. Design Review: a) Problem areas; b) Policy issues and direction. standards as for new uses; Commissioner Masuda stated his question was how the day care center could be in operation for several years with- OUt a use permit, the Commission did not approve it but they got the permit anyway. His other problem is the car lot on Airport. Mayor Drago stated the staff liaison to the Com- mission is the Planning Director, you tell him the problem and he takes care of it or tells the City Manager that someone is not doing their job, if it is Code Enforcement or whatever. Code Enforcement comes under the Fire Department, are not over- worked and must set priorities just like anyone else. There are two Code Enforcement Officers, yet ten years ago there were none. Commissioner Masuda stated at the last meeting with the Design Review Board Mr. Beyer said he did not like lollypop signs, but if you go by Oliver's there is a new one and it does go before the Com- mission. Mayor Drago stated it should be reported to the City Manager just as a Councilman would do after re- ceiving a call anonymous or not. Commissioner Masuda stated So. City Ford was supposed to do the landscaping on Miller and Air- port. Mayor Drago stated it is still a matter of reporting it for if it ends up in the City Attorney's lap then it goes into Court. Otherwise something is wrong and someone has dropped the ball. Commissioner DeZordo stated they have been talk- ing about the Design Review Board for a year and a half, he feels they have improved it, but not enough. He feels the makeup of the Board is wrong and he wants to see more citizens where now it is all professionals. A person may come in with a home rehab and is uncomfortable to face all those profes- sionals telling you what he needs. On one occasion the applicant said he wanted to paint his building beige and two Boardmembers said what color beige. Discussion followed: the Commission hires the Board; the Commission has been a motion away from getting rid of the Board, but Commissioner DeZordo is not sure that is the right thing to do; that 3/6/96 Page 9 AGENDA ACTION TAKEN Design Review - Continued. Other issues of mutual concern. 3/6/96 Page 10 is up to the Commission; the variance process is geared for hardships like the fellow who built a garage without the setbacks and people said he had tO knock down the garage; others said it's an im- provement and a good project they can accept; Mayor Drago still believes it was a good project; a second variance was where a person opened a pizzeria on Linden Ave. and later removed the space next to him for expansion, the business was success- ful and the neighborhood didn't have a problem with the business; the City shut down the project because of the parking and he didn't have a use permit, so he came before the Commission; he had to have parking because of the sit down use; it was a com- mercial area with a mixed use which the Mayor likes; the City found a solution because a bus came by the building so the City could allow the use because there was public transportation; the interpre- tation of hardship is wide open; City Attorney's interpretation of flexibility; the Commission cannot modify parking for the whole town, only in the old part of town; the PUD process was in a way substi- tuting for the variance process; the problems in the Lanes downtown; the Council will deal with the landscaping and setbacks for the alleys specifi- cally, because it is not working and the garages are falling down, they can't wipe out their yard for the 20' setback; this will come to the Commission and then the Council; after tonight's discussion the Com- mission should have a good idea of what the Council wants for the alleys downtown; Commissioner DeZordo stated there are also problems in Sunshine Gardens and other areas of the City that are not being addressed; it sounds like the Council is saying use the variance process throughout the City; City Attorney cautioned the two Bodies that there are constraints that apply to variances and elaborat- ed; he also thought he heard the Council say they want a quid pro quo, they want improved standards coming back to the City from the developer. Consensus of Council - To have a quid pro quo with improved standards coming back to the City from the developer. Councilman Mullin did not want to see more gener- alists on the Design Review Board and felt it should be professionals, but if it is not working then look into who is on it. Commissioner DeZordo stated the interesting thing AGENDA ACTION TAKEN 5. Other issues of mutual concern - Continued. 3/6/96 Page 11 about the Board is it should be the reflections of the values and esthetics of tho community, yet each Boardmember is from a different City which is not true of the Planning Commission. Mayor Drago pointed out that it is the Commission that is making decisions based on the professionals opinions, and they make the judgment. Commissioner DeZordo stated it is a community based review board that is making the judgments and felt they should be from the community. Discussion followed: expand it to three from the community and three professionals; that is redun- dant; many times when an architect is making a presentation, there is criticism; sometimes an archi- tect can get a feel for the community; Commissioner Padreddii feels that the architects are from other cities and project plans for this City from their own City; the Commission had a meeting with Genentech and the Board and one of the Boardmembers tore into the man from Genentech and told him what a lousy plan they had; it is very difficult to find archi- tects in S.S.F. other than the one resident they have; Councilman Mullin wants the Commission and Council to ignore complaints they hear; Mayor Drago asked the Chairman to call and tell him all complaints and he will do the same; Chairwoman Warren wanted to know if the Council wanted the Commission to look at the General Plan towards the areas that are problem areas for that will save them from doing it twice; the General Plan has not been updated for ten years; there is no law, but State guidelines and the only mandatory requirement is for the housing requirement; if the General Plan is suspect for potential litigation, then it should be updated; Commissioner Padreddii asked about the parking 'lot across the street from the State Room - what is the intention of the Council for he has been hearing many rumors; Mayor Drago stated he was given permission to build a parking lot period, everything else is talk; he has plans and the City has plans, but the Council is not aware of any specific plans; it is actually coming up to the City Manager and they talked about cleaning it up to improve it or clean it up; for the logistics of trading property, that was talked about, but there was more to it; Commis- sioner Padreddii asked about the Bertolucci proper- ty for he heard a City park is going in there; Mayor Drago stated the City Manager came up with an idea AGENDA A~TION TAKEN Other issues of mutual concern - Continued. 3/6/96 Page 12 to create green spots; there was a dump and it was a mess and the City has permission from the owner to go in there and grade it and put landscaping there which will be paid for by a private provider with an assignment; after that is finished the City Manager will look at the next eyesore and all the vacant lots and make them parks; we are using redevelopment funds; next is the PG&E lot on Linden; Commis- sioner Barnett asked what the plans are for Shear- water in the future; a developer has approached the City, but nothing concrete - all talk; the person that has the option to buy is Bill Poland who is trying to get people to come in and finance it; there are obli- gations for the Overpass of $20 million and $1 to $10 million for the toxic cleanup, so there are a lot of things to be worked out; the Council separated density in the downtown area because one Council- member thought it would muddy it; second units in the downtown; the Council is not looking to legiti- mize second units, but is looking for ideas; a second unit is one of the ways to make the property value attractive and increases the cost of the house and could make the houses be better maintained; the Kaiser property; Kaiser doesn't know where they are going; Kaiser has said they will keep us up to date and he did get a phone call before the newspaper article came out telling him they do not know if they are going or staying; Chairwoman Warren stated the problem is with medical health care and Kaiser is looking at closing Kaiser Oakland and shoving pa- tients out to Walnut Creek and also shutting down hospital facilities in Redwood City or Santa Clara or South San Francisco; these meeting should be held more frequently; Council is going to meet with each Commission; if the Commission runs into problems they should call for a meeting with Council; Mayor Drago always reads the Planning Commission min- utes and is interested in the minority vote; the best way for Council to know how a Commissioner feels is for the Commissioner to express his views on tape; Mayor Drago wants to put together a bus trip with both Agencies and Department Heads and drive through the City; etc. Ms. Jo Ann Wendler stated many years ago second units were seen as a panacea for housing stock in expensive areas and now, many years later, it is a negative impact because it turns the houses into duplexes. It affects parking and water service and has a positive affect on schools with more students. This has an impact on a neighborhood to turn it into AGENDA ACTION. TAKEN Other issues of mutual concern - Continued. ADJOURNMENT: an R-2 zone and many people are doing it under the table as a way of making money. She urged the Council to protect the neighborhoods. M/S DeZordo/Lucchesi - To adjourn the Planning Commission meeting. Carried by unanimous voice vote. Time of adjournment was 8:48 p.m. M/S Fernekes/Mullin - To adjourn the Council meeting. Carried by unanimous voice vote. Time of adjournment was 8:49 p.m. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, arbara A. Battaya, City Clerk ity of South San Francisco APPROVED. gty o;~go°u~h San FrancMay~ isco The entries of this Council meeting show the action taken by the City Council to dispose of an item. Oral communica- tions, arguments and comments are recorded on tape. The tape and documents related to the items are on file in the Office of the City Clerk and are available for inspection, review and copying. 3/6/96 Page 13