The findings that the County Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors must make in order to grant a General Plan amendment (GPA) and rezoning to planned development (PUD) are as follows. Additional findings may be required for design review, grading, subdivision approval, etc. Note that ALL findings must be made in order to grant approvals.
General Plan Amendment:
Pursuant to Government Code Section 65358(a), “If it deems it to be in the public interest, the legislative body may amend all or part of an adopted general plan.”
Each GPA must also be consistent with the rest of the General Plan (i.e., an amendment cannot cause the General Plan to become internally inconsistent).
P-1 Rezone/Preliminary Development Plan/Final Development Plan:
84-66.1406 — Evaluations.
When approving and adopting the rezoning application, the preliminary development plan or the final development plan, the planning commission and/or board of supervisors as the case may be, shall be satisfied that:
- The applicant intends to start construction within two and one-half years from effective date of zoning change and plan approval;
- The proposed planned unit development is consistent with the county general plan;
- In the case of residential development, it will constitute a residential environment of sustained desirability and stability, and will be in harmony with the character of the surrounding neighborhood and community;
- In the case of the commercial development, it is needed at the proposed location to provide adequate commercial facilities of the type proposed, and that traffic congestion will not likely be created by the proposed center, or will be obviated by presently projected improvements and by demonstrable provisions in the plan for proper entrances and exits, and by internal provisions for traffic and parking, and that the development will be an attractive and efficient center which will fit harmoniously into and will have no adverse effects upon the adjacent or surrounding development;
- In the case of proposed industrial development, it is fully in conformity with the applicable performance standards, and will constitute an efficient and well organized development, with adequate provisions for railroad and/or truck access service and necessary storage, and that such development will have no adverse effect upon adjacent or surrounding development; and
- The development of a harmonious, integrated plan justifies exceptions from the normal application of this code.
84-66.1402 - Design
objectives.
To achieve design and aesthetic quality for large-scale integrated developments and/or general plan special areas of concern, the following design objectives shall be met:
- Building bulk, height, land coverage, visual appearance from adjacent land, and design compatibility with existing adjoining development and land which will remain, shall be considered and controlled
- A development's design should successfully integrate individual buildings and building groups with the surrounding development, other physical features in the area, and existing development which will remain;
- The design of structures should provide for harmonious composition of mass, scale, color, and textures, with special emphasis on the transition from one building type to another, termination of groups of structures, relationships to streets, exploitation of views, and integration of spaces and building forms with the topography of the site and the urban or suburban character of the area.
- Provisions are to be made for an efficient, direct and convenient system of pedestrian circulation, together with landscaping and appropriate treatment of any public areas or lobbies.
- Off-street parking and loading areas should be integrated into the overall vehicular circulation system.
Requested General Plan Amendment:
It’s important to understand that there currently exists a discrepancy between the County General Plan and the County zoning ordinance for the Saranap area. The County General Plan’s height limits for this area are between 30 feet to 35 feet, whereas the zoning ordinance allows up to 50 feet on a few parcels.
Whenever there are discrepancies between the General Plan and zoning requirements, the General Plan requirements govern. This has been confirmed by the County’s planner. In the County’s General Plan, the maximum height for a residential development is 30 feet; the maximum height for a commercial or mixed use development is 35 feet. Typically, this translates to a two or three story building.
The “scaled back” Hall proposal (the MPA) continues to exceed these limits as
follows:
Another deviation from the General Plan is the maximum allowable residential density, which means the number of homes per acre. The General Plan allows up to 21.9 dwelling units per acre. The density in revised Hall proposal is double that allowed in the General Plan. This equates to double the traffic envisioned in the General Plan.
SHO has preliminarily reviewed the County General Plan and has identified the following goals and policies that the revised Hall proposal conflicts with. Further study is underway.
The
Project violates the following goals of the County General Plan:
3-C. To encourage aesthetically and functionally compatible development which reinforces the physical character and desired images of the County.
The Project is not aesthetically
compatible with the desired semi-rural character of Saranap. The proposed buildings are twice to nearly
three times the height of adjacent buildings.
3-E. To recognize and support existing land use densities in most communities, while encouraging higher densities in appropriate areas, such as near major transportation hubs and job centers.
The Project neither supports nor
respects current residential densities of 20+ du /acre. The residential density
of the Project is more than twice the allowable density; the residential
density of Site A is nearly four times the allowable density. Boulevard Way is not near a major
transportation hub and does not serve as a job center. It is a
neighborhood-serving commercial area.
3-I. To coordinate effectively the land use policies of the County General Plan with those plans adopted by the cities and special service districts.
The development standards proposed in
the Project are incompatible with, and exceed standards in Walnut Creek and
Lafayette. The Project lies within Walnut Creek’s sphere of influence (SOI). Walnut Creek’s height limit adjacent to
Saranap is 50 feet, Lafayette’s is 35 feet and the Project proposes buildings
of 80+ feet in height – a 60% and 129% increase respectively over what is
allowed in Walnut Creek and Lafayette.
The County’s General Plan establishes
height limits of between 30 and 50 feet for the parcels within the Project.
This is consistent with the development standards of nearby jurisdictions and
should be honored.
3-J. To encourage a development pattern that promotes the individuality and unique character of each community in the County.
By proposing buildings of 80 feet and
six stories, the Project destroys,
rather than promotes, the individuality and unique character of Saranap.
3-15. The design of new buildings and the rehabilitation of existing buildings shall reflect and improve the existing character of the commercial districts in the County.
By proposing buildings of 80 feet and
six stories, the Project significantly
and unavoidably alters the character of neighborhood-serving commercial
Boulevard Way and if approved, will establish a precedent for further
altering the character of the neighborhood.
3-28. New residential development shall be accommodated only in areas where it will avoid creating severe unmitigated adverse impacts upon the environment and upon the existing community.
The Project will create significant, unavoidable
and unmitigable impact on the character of Saranap in
terms of its visual, traffic, and parking impacts. It therefore should not be
accommodated.