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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCUP 112; Fire Station No. 3; Conditional Use Permit (CUP) (2)DATE : SEPTEMBER 10, 1975 TO : ASSISTANT TO PLANNING DIRECTOR FROM: Assistant City Manager SUBJECT: FIRE STATION NO. 3 SEf' 10 1975 CITY OF CARLSBAD Flanning Department The location of Fire Station No, 3 which is proposed at the southwest corner of Catalina and Chestnut Avenue was purchased approximately nine years ago for use as a fire station site by the City. A great deal of effort was made to find an alternate location which would be more suitable. While we found one location at the southeast corner of El Camino and Chestnut, it proved to be too costly to acquire and develop for this purpose. As a result, a series of neighborhood meetings were held with residents adjacent to the Catalina - Chestnut site. In attendance to provide information to the citizens of the area were Fire Chief Anear, Administrative Assistant Roger Greer, and Assistant City Manager Bill Baldwin. In these meetings we attempted to cover questions regarding the use of the property as a fire station site. There was little opposition to the fire station; some were noncommittal and others were definitely in favor of it. The majority knew when they purchased property in the area that the City planned to make use of it for a fire station, During our series of three meetings I only found one party, Mr, Sylvester, whose home is directly across the street from the proposed station, who vociferously objected to the fire station. His main objection was the feeling his property value would go down as much as $10,000.00. We had researched the question as to whether a lending institution, the Veteran's Administration, or the Assessorf's office would indeed make a substantial reduction in assessment or loan if the property should change hands. We were assured this is not the case and it would have no effect if a fire station were placed on that corner. This was pointed out to Mr. Sylvester, but apparently he did not choose to accept statement, We then provided him with names and telephone numbers of persons he could call to acquire this information firsthand. Some questions were raised as to the amount of noise that would emanate from the station. It was pointed out that by hookup to the signal lights at El Camino and Chestnut at the time an alarm was received, the lights could be frozen thus making it unnecessary for a departing fire engine to use either the siren or the Klaxon until it was out of the area. As a matter of interest, this is not the case now. Several people complained that when fire engines come from Station 1 down Chestnut to El Camino Real, they have to really sound the siren and the Klaxon in order to get through that intersection. We feel this creates more noise than the proposed method of operation. September 10, 1975 Page 2 Subject: Fire Station No. 3 The other principal objection to the location of the station was the number of small children who play in the area. We attempted to reassure the parents of these children that our drivers were probably the best in town and undoubtedly they would make friends with the children and warn them of the dangers of skateboarding or bike riding in the driveway of the station or in the immediate proximity, I do not feel that this is a major factor inasmuch as the fire engine does not leave the station at a high rate of speed. The drivers would most certainly be cognizant of the fact that there are children in the area, Approximately 35 persons were contacted in our three meetings and, as I stated previously, the only serious objection came from one individual. There were, however, several persons who expressed no opinion either pro or con. There were probably a half dozen who expressed a keen interest in having this station established. One party said it was a major factor as to why they purchased property within three doors of the proposed station site. A great deal of time and effort was put into these meetings and talking with the individual residents. We feel it is now possible to have the CUP hearing with little or no opposition to the fire station. I hope this information will be of use to you and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. WILLIAM C. BALDWIN Assistant City Manager WCB : ldg 't NEIGHBORHOOD INFORMATION SHEET - CARLSBAJJ FIRE STATION #3 May I introduce myself; I am Girard W. Anear, or as my friends call me, "Lefty" or-"Jerry", your fire chief. The purpose of this letter is to acquaint you with the City's program to improve fire protection in this area in particular and the City in general. To do this we propose to erect a two-story house compatible with the neighborhood to serve as a firqstation on the vacant lot at Catalina and Chestnut. The only difference between it and a con- ventional dwelling will be the.oversized garage doors and a small identifying sign, and probably a flag pole. The plans for this station were drawn by Phillip Ferguson, A.I.A. of Vista and we are very pleased with them and feel the physical appearance of the building will be an asset to the neighborhood, Drop in at Station #1 across from City Hall; we'd like to show the plans to you. I am anticipating several questions I would have if I were you and will try to answer them for you: 1. Noise - The building will be insulated; the alarm bells viJ.3, be small; that should create DQ outside prablems, Only minor routine maintenance of equipment will be done on apparatus in quarters. All major repairs will either be done at Station #I or the City Shop- The traffic signals at Chestnut and El Camino Real will be controlled from the station and very little use of sirens will be necegsary until emergency apparatus reaches Kelly Drive or Marron Road, 2. Effect on property values - I personally discussed this with the following people: Mr. Charles Hale, Oceanside Savings and Loan; he is their loan afficex (722-1131- Oceanside office); Mr. Thomas Light, San Diego County Tax Assessor's Office, manager of the Wsta office, and Action Realtoks, 500 W, Broadway, Vista (724-5985) e Mr. Hale stated it 'would make absoiutely no difference to his organization in financing real estate sales in the vicinity of a fire station. Mr. Light said there was no detrimental effect an property values as far as the assessors' office was concerned, and a cheek of the tax records verified this. Action Realty had just sold a dwelling, 2789 College Blvd., two ~OOKS north of Oceanside's residential fire station. The price received was one of the highest,identical property has ever sold for in the area. The Vk appraisal on this property is identical for any other simj-iar unit in the tract. I mentioned the namesp addresses and telephone numbers to enable you to verify this information if you so desire. I have also talked to some of the neighbors 3. 4. of the Oceanside Fire Station and their reaction in every case was favorable; none of them objected to living'adjacent to or across the street from the' station . There may be a parking problem - There will be parking spaces for 8 cars inside the yard. Incidentally there will be an attractive fence around the outer boundary of the property. consistant with the neighborhood and all City requirements. Traffic Hazards - We continually stress and train on de- fensive driving. We have not had an accident involving emergency equipment in years. When we back apparatus, one man af-ways precedes the truck to make sure it can be done safely. If necessary other men control traffic while this is being done. Advantages to having a neighborhood fire station: 1. 2. 3. 4. We are good neighbors; most of us live in the community, and we are proud of our community and our department, YOU will never have to worry about the appearance of our facilities. them that way. For a fire or medical emergency we are only seconds away instead of nearly 5 minutes. The majority of our members are skilled emergency medical technicians as well as fire fighters, and every heavy duty piece of fire apparatus carries a resuscitator and a well equipped first aid kit. In many medical emergencies, seconds count; i.e., swimming pool accidents, heart attacks, electric shocks, severe accidents involving bleeding, etc. Our standards are high and we intend to keep Insurance savings: This station will at least enable us to retain the cuxrent insurance rate and there is an excel.lent chance that it will result in a better insurance classification and consequently a savings in fire insurance. This station is the key to our entering into an automatic response agreement with the Oceanside Fire Department. Presently in this area, on receipt of an alarm of fire, we respond with one pumper unit and one rescue-salvage unit with a total of 5 or 6 men. With ansther company, the total- would be 8 men. With Oceanside's participation we would have 11 men responding and believe me, this number is needed to effectively search the building for victims, lay lines, and conduct other operations to efficiently control fires, (Twelve men are the recommended minimum to respond to any fire call) . . Location of nearby fire stations in residential neighborhoods: Oceanside Station 2 - 2700 Block of College Blvd. Oceanside Station 4 - Cassidy and Ditmar Encinitas (Cardiff) Station 2 - MacKinnon and Birmingham Vista Station 3 - East Vista Way and Taylor Carlsbad Station 2 - Arena1 and El Camino Real I feel sure that if you drop in'at any fire station in north San Diego County you will be impressed with the caliber of personnel you will find employed and the way the premises and equipment are maintained. and I'm certain you will find they feel we make "good neighbors." I welcome the opportunity to talk to you personally and in the near future we will have several neighborhood meetings to display the plans and discuss the matter with concerned and interested parties Also talk to the adjacent neighbors, If you are unable to make one of these meetings 8r far any reason whatsoever would like to discuss this with me at my office, please contact me. Sincerely