HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-06-24; City Council; 12; Introduce an Ordinance to Install Stop Signs on Kelly Drive at the Intersections at Park Drive and Hillside DriveCA Review TL
Meeting Date: June 24, 2025
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Geoff Patnoe, City Manager
Staff Contact: Miriam Jim, Senior Engineer
miriam.jim@carlsbadca.gov, 442-339-2757
Subject: Introduce an Ordinance to Install Stop Signs on Kelly Drive at the
Intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive
District: 1
Recommended Action
Introduce an ordinance amending Title 10, Chapter 10.28 of the Carlsbad Municipal Code to
amend Sections 10.28.993 and 10.28.994 and add Section 10.28.998 to establish all-way stop
control on Kelly Drive at the intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive.
Executive Summary
The City Council adopted a resolution at its meeting on June 17, 2025, to install all-way stop
control on Kelly Drive at the intersections with Park Drive and Hillside Drive.
The City Council’s approval is required because establishing all-way stop control on Kelly Drive
at the intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive requires an ordinance amending the
Carlsbad Municipal Code.
Explanation & Analysis
The two intersections on Kelly Drive at Park Drive and Hillside Drive have yellow ceramic domes
delineating traffic circle configurations. They were installed in 2013 as a pilot project for
intersection traffic control at these two intersections.
The City Council’s June 17, 2025, resolution calls for removing the interim traffic circles
comprised of yellow ceramic domes from the intersections of Kelly Drive/Park Drive and Kelly
Drive/Hillside Drive and adding all-way stops on Kelly Drive at the intersections at Park Drive
and Hillside Drive.
The two all-way stops will be implemented as part of the Pavement Management Program,
Capital Improvement Program Project No. 6001, specifically the 2023 Slurry Sealing Project,
Capital Improvement Program Project No. 6001-23SS.
Fiscal Analysis
Sufficient funds are available in the Pavement Management Program, Project No. 6001, to
install the needed signage and striping for all-way stops on Kelly Drive at the intersections at
Park Drive and Hillside Drive.
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 1 of 9
Next Steps
Following the City Council’s introduction of the ordinance, it will be scheduled at the City
Council’s next meeting for adoption. The ordinance will then become effective 30 days
following adoption.
Staff will issue a change order to the ongoing 2023 Slurry Sealing Project, Project No. 6001-
23SS, to install the appropriate signage and striping on Kelly Drive at the intersections at Park
Drive and Hillside Drive.
Environmental Evaluation
The proposed action to establish all-way stop signs and associated roadway striping is
categorically exempt from environmental review under CEQA Guidelines Section 15301(c)
because it involves the maintenance, repair or minor alteration of existing facilities with
negligible or no expansion of the existing or former use. This exemption covers changes in
traffic and parking regulations, including installation and replacement of signs in connection
therewith, where such changes do not establish a higher speed limit along a significant portion
of the street and will not result in more than a negligible increase in use of the street. No
exceptions to the categorical exemption as set forth in CEQA Guidelines Section 15300.2 or
Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 19.04.070(C) apply.
The proposed action is also exempt from the requirements of a minor coastal development
permit and coastal development permit because the proposed action is to establish all-way
stop signs. Activities of public utilities as specified in the repair, maintenance, and utility hookup
exclusion adopted by the Coastal Commission, including but not limited to miscellaneous traffic
safety projects, are exempt in accordance with Carlsbad Municipal Code Section
21.201.060.B.11. A permit issued by the city for a development which is categorically excluded
or exempt from the coastal development permit requirements is exempt from the notice and
hearing requirements of Carlsbad Municipal Code Chapter 21.201.
The proposed action to adopt an ordinance amending Title 10, Chapter 10.28 of the Carlsbad
Municipal Code to amend Sections 10.28.993 and 10.28.994 and add Section 10.28.998 to
establish all-way stop control on Kelly Drive at the intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive
is also exempt from environmental review under CEQA Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and
15378(b)(5) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the proposed
action may have a significant effect on the environment.
Exhibits
1.City Council ordinance
2.Notice of Exemption
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 2 of 9
Exhibit 1
ORDINANCE NO. CS-497
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARLSBAD,
CALIFORNIA, AMENDING TITLE 10, CHAPTER 10.28 OF THE CARLSBAD
MUNICIPAL CODE TO AMEND SECTIONS 10.28.993 AND 10.28.994 AND ADD
SECTION 10.28.998 TO ESTABLISH ALL-WAY STOP CONTROL ON KELLY DRIVE
AT THE INTERSECTIONS AT PARK DRIVE AND HILLSIDE DRIVE
WHEREAS, pursuant to Article XI, Section 5 of the California Constitution and Government Code
Section 37100, the City Council may pass ordinances not in conflict with the Constitution and laws of
the State of California or the United States; and
WHEREAS, the City of Carlsbad, California is a charter city, duly organized under the California
Constitution, the Charter of the City of Carlsbad, and the laws of the State of California; and
WHEREAS, Vehicle Code Section 21100 allows local authorities to regulate traffic by means of
official traffic control devices; and
WHEREAS, the City Council desires to protect the public safety and welfare of persons and
property within the City of Carlsbad; and
WHEREAS, on June 17, 2025, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2025-145 adopting the
plans and specifications to remove interim traffic circles comprised of yellow ceramic domes from the
intersections of Kelly Drive/Park Drive and Kelly Drive/Hillside Drive, slurry seal, restripe to the city’s
current standard operating procedure, and add all-way stops on Kelly Drive at the intersections of Park
Drive and Hillside Drive.
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California, ordains as follows:
1.That the above recitations are true and correct.
2.That the proposed action to establish all-way stop signs and associated roadway striping
is categorically exempt from environmental review under CEQA Guidelines Section
15301(c) because it involves the maintenance, repair or minor alteration of existing
facilities with negligible or no expansion of the existing or former use. This exemption
covers changes in traffic and parking regulations, including installation and replacement
of signs in connection therewith, where such changes do not establish a higher speed
limit along a significant portion of the street and will not result in more than a negligible
increase in use of the street. No exceptions to the categorical exemption as set forth in
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 3 of 9
CEQA Guidelines Section 15300.2 or Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 19.04.070(C)
apply.
3.That the proposed action is exempt from the requirements of a minor coastal
development permit and coastal development permit because the proposed action is
to establish all-way stop signs. Activities of public utilities as specified in the repair,
maintenance, and utility hookup exclusion adopted by the Coastal Commission,
including but not limited to miscellaneous traffic safety projects, are exempt in
accordance with Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 21.201.060.B.11. A permit issued by
the city for a development which is categorically excluded or exempt from the coastal
development permit requirements is exempt from the notice and hearing requirements
of Carlsbad Municipal Code Chapter 21.201.
4.That the proposed action to adopt an ordinance amending Title 10, Chapter 10.28 of
the Carlsbad Municipal Code to amend Sections 10.28.993 and 10.28.994 and add
Section 10.28.998 to establish all-way stop control on Kelly Drive at the intersections at
Park Drive and Hillside Drive is also exempt from environmental review under CEQA
Guidelines Sections 15061(b)(3) and 15378(b)(5) because it can be seen with certainty
that there is no possibility that the proposed action may have a significant effect on the
environment.
5.That Carlsbad Municipal Code, Title 10, Chapter 10.28, Section 10.28.993 is amended to
read as follows:
10.28.993 Hillside Drive.
Drivers shall stop where the following described streets intersect Hillside Drive:
Kelly Drive
Park Drive
6.That Carlsbad Municipal Code, Title 10, Chapter 10.28, Section 10.28.994 is amended to
read as follows:
10.28.994 Park Drive.
Drivers shall stop where the following described streets intersect Park Drive:
Hillside Drive
Kelly Drive
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 4 of 9
7.That Carlsbad Municipal Code, Title 10, Chapter 10.28 is amended by adding Section
10.28.998 to read as follows:
10.28.998 Kelly Drive.
Drivers shall stop where the following described streets intersect Kelly Drive:
Hillside Drive
Park Drive
SEVERABILITY: If any portion of this ordinance or its application to particular persons or
circumstances is held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a final decision of a court of competent
jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter to
persons or circumstances not similarly situated.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This ordinance shall be effective thirty days after its adoption. The City Clerk
shall certify the adoption of this ordinance and cause the full text of the ordinance, or a summary of
the ordinance prepared by the City Attorney to be published at least once in a newspaper of generation
circulation in the City of Carlsbad within fifteen days after its adoption.
INTRODUCED AND FIRST READ at a Regular Meeting of the Carlsbad City Council on the 24th
day of June, 2025, and thereafter
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of
Carlsbad on the __ day of ________, 2025, by the following vote, to wit:
AYES:
NAYS:
ABSTAIN:
ABSENT:
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY:
_________________________________
CINDIE K. McMAHON, City Attorney
__________________________________
KEITH BLACKBURN, Mayor
__________________________________
SHERRY FREISINGER, City Clerk
(SEAL)
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 5 of 9
Exhibit 2
NOTICE OF EXEMPTION
To: Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk From: CITY OF CARLSBAD
Attn: Fish and Wildlife Notices Planning Division
1600 Pacific Highway, Suite 260 1635 Faraday Avenue
San Diego CA 92101 Carlsbad, CA 92008
MS: A-33 (442)339-2600
Subject: Filing of this Notice of Exemption is in compliance with Section 21152b of the Public Resources
Code (California Environmental Quality Act).
Project Number and Title: Pavement Management Program, Capital Improvement Program Project No.
001 and 2023 Slurry Sealing Project, Capital Improvement Program Project No. 6001-23SS - Ordinance
to Install Stop Signs on Kelly Drive at the Intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive ________
Project Location - Specific: Kelly Drive at the intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive.
Project Location - City: Carlsbad Project Location - County: San Diego
Description of Project: The two intersections on Kelly Drive at Park Drive and Hillside Drive have yellow
ceramic domes delineating traffic circle configurations. They were installed in 2013 as a pilot project for
intersection traffic control at these two intersections. The Project removes the interim traffic circles
comprised of yellow ceramic domes from the intersections of Kelly Drive/Park Drive and Kelly
Drive/Hillside Drive and adds all-way stops on Kelly Drive at the intersections at Park Drive and Hillside
Drive.
Name of Public Agency Approving Project: City of Carlsbad
Name of Person or Agency Carrying Out Project: Miriam Jim, Senior Engineer
Name of Applicant: Miriam Jim, Senior Engineer
Applicant’s Address: 1635 Faraday Avenue, Carlsbad CA 92008
Applicant’s Telephone Number: (441) 339-2757
Name of Applicant/Identity of person undertaking the project (if different from the applicant above):
Exempt Status: Categorical Exemption: Class 1 (Existing Facilities)
Reasons why project is exempt:
Class 1 consists of the operation, repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration
of existing public or private structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features,
involving negligible or no expansion of use beyond that existing at the time of the lead agency's
determination. Subdivision (c) includes existing highways and streets, sidewalks, gutters, bicycle and
pedestrian trails, and similar facilities (this includes road grading for the purpose of public safety).
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 6 of 9
The installation of stop signs and roadway striping is categorically exempt from environmental review
under CEQA Guidelines Section 15301(c) because this exemption covers changes in traffic and parking
regulations, including installation and replacement of signs in connection therewith, where such changes
do not establish a higher speed limit along a significant portion of the street and will not result in more
than a negligible increase in use of the street. There is no expansion in the roadway or number of traffic
lanes.
Exceptions to Exemptions
CEQA Section 15300.2 – Exceptions
Planning staff evaluated all the potential exceptions to the use of Categorical Exemptions for the proposed
project (in accordance with CEQA Guidelines Section 15300.2) and determined that none of these
exceptions apply as explained below:
a. Location. “Classes 3, 4, 5, 6, and 11 are qualified by consideration of where the project is to be located
- a project that is ordinarily insignificant in its impact on the environment may in a particularly sensitive
environment be significant. Therefore, these classes are considered to apply in all instances, except
where the project may impact on an environmental resource of hazardous or critical concern where
designated, precisely mapped, and officially adopted pursuant to law by federal, state, or local
agencies.”
Response – The location exception is not applicable to Class 1 Exemptions for Existing Facilities.
b. Cumulative Impact - “All exemptions for these classes are inapplicable when the cumulative impact of
successive projects of the same type in the same place, over time is significant.”
Response – In identifying projects that may contribute to cumulative impacts, the CEQA Guidelines
allow the use of a list of past, present, and reasonably anticipated future projects, producing related
or cumulative impacts, including those that are outside of the control of the lead agency. The Project
is not considered to have a significant growth-inducement impact because it involves the repair and
maintenance of an existing public road, including traffic control signing, resurfacing and is
comparable to other improvements within the existing right-of-way of the vicinity. The two
intersections on Kelly Drive at Park Drive and Hillside Drive are located in a predominantly developed
portion of the city. (The area to the south of the Kelly Drive and Park Drive intersection is dedicated
open space.) The Project is consistent with the Pavement Management Program, Capital
Improvement Program Project No. 001 and the 2023 Slurry Sealing Project, Capital Improvement
Program Project No. 6001-23SS.
There is no evidence to conclude that significant impacts will occur based on past project approvals
or that the proposed Project's impacts are cumulatively considerable when evaluating any
cumulative impacts associated with construction air quality, noise, transportation, or water quality in
the area surrounding the proposed Project. Accordingly, the Project’s incremental impacts, when
considered together with the impacts of the related projects, would not result in a cumulatively
considerable contribution to a significant cumulative impact.
The Project, and all future projects, will be required to comply with all applicable local, regional, and
state laws, regulations, and guidelines, and any significant conflicts would be mitigated or resolved
through the city discretionary review and approval. As described above, any potential impact cause
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 7 of 9
by the Project’s construction and operation would continue to be less than significant and would not
contribute significantly to regional cumulative impact in the broader project region. Therefore, this
exception does not apply.
c. Significant Effect - “A categorical exemption shall not be used for any activity where there is a
reasonable possibility that the activity will have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual
circumstances.”
Response – There are no unusual circumstances that would have a significant impact on the
environment due to the Project. The Project does not involve any unusual circumstances. The Project
involves the repair and maintenance of an existing public road, including traffic control signing,
resurfacing and is comparable to other improvements within the existing right-of-way of the vicinity.
The two intersections on Kelly Drive at Park Drive and Hillside Drive are located in a predominantly
developed portion of the city. (The area to the south of the Kelly Drive and Park Drive intersection is
dedicated open space.)
d. Scenic Highway - “A categorical exemption shall not be used for a project which may result in damage
to scenic resources, including but not limited to, trees, historic buildings, rock outcroppings, or similar
resources, within a highway officially designated as a state scenic highway. This does not apply to
improvements which are required as mitigation by an adopted negative declaration or certified EIR.”
Response – The two intersections on Kelly Drive at Park Drive and Hillside Drive are not considered a
historical and scenic corridor throughout Carlsbad, is not a highway officially designated as a State
Scenic Highway, nor is it visible from a Carlsbad historical or scenic corridor or State Scenic Highway.
The Project site (intersections within existing public-right-of-way) is also surrounded on all sides by
existing land development and/or improvements. (The area to the south of the Kelly Drive and Park
Drive intersection is dedicated open space.) The installation of stop signs on Kelly Drive at the
intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive do not obstruct coastal views.
e. Hazardous Waste Site - “A categorical exemption shall not be used for a project located on a site which
is included on any list compiled pursuant to Section 65962.5 of the Government Code.”
Response – The Project site is not identified on the Department of Toxic Substance Control geoportal
map as a Cleanup, Hazardous Waste, or Inspection site. Furthermore, there is no indication that the
site has had any previous uses associated with hazardous materials, such as dry-cleaning or gas station.
f. Historical Resources - “A categorical exemption shall not be used for a project which may cause a
substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical resource.”
Response – The Project site (intersections within existing public-right-of-way) is also surrounded on all
sides by existing land development and/or improvements. (The area to the south of the Kelly Drive
and Park Drive intersection is open space.) The installation of stop signs on Kelly Drive at the
intersections at Park Drive and Hillside Drive do not impact historical resources. As such, development
of the Project would not cause a substantial adverse change in the significance of a historical resource,
and this exception does not apply.
Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 19.04.070(B) - Exceptions
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 8 of 9
Exceptions. Even though a project may otherwise be eligible for an exemption, no exemption shall apply
in the following circumstances:
1. Grading and clearing activities affecting sensitive plant or animal habitats, which disturb, fragment or
remove such areas as defined by either the California Endangered Species Act (Fish and Game
Code Sections 2050 et seq.), or the Federal Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. Section 15131 et seq.);
sensitive, rare, candidate species of special concern; endangered or threatened biological species or
their habitat (specifically including sage scrub habitat for the California Gnatcatcher); or
archaeological or cultural resources from either historic or prehistoric periods;
Or
2. Parcel maps, plot plans and all discretionary development projects otherwise exempt but which affect
sensitive, threatened, or endangered biological species or their habitat (as defined above),
archaeological or cultural resources from either historic or prehistoric periods, wetlands, stream
courses designated on U.S. Geological Survey maps, hazardous materials, unstable soils, or other
factors requiring special review, on all or a portion of the site. (Ord. NS-593, 2001)
Response – The Project site does not involve grading or earth moving activities to disrupt or interfere
with animal habitats, sensitive, rare, candidate species of special concern; endangered or threatened
biological species or their habitat (specifically including sage scrub habitat for the California
Gnatcatcher); or archaeological or cultural resources from either historic or prehistoric periods.
Hazardous materials, unstable soils or other factors requiring special review do not apply or are not
found within this project location.
Lead Agency Contact Person: Mike Strong Telephone: 442-339-2721
MIKE STRONG, Asst. Director of Community Development Date
June 24, 2025 Item #12 Page 9 of 9