HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-03-09; City Council; 20151; Citizen Presentation Village H PropertyRECOMMENDED ACTION:
ClTY OF CARLSBAD - AGENDA BILL
rj I 9
To receive a presentation from Walt Meier regarding 3.2 acres of land known as the Village H
property.
ITEM EXPLANATION:
- DEPT. DIRECTOR'J( ,
CITY ATTORNEY
CITY MANAGER
AB# 20,151
MTG. 3-9-10
DEPT. CM
The City Council provides an opportunity for citizens and organizations to have an item placed
on a City Council Agenda by submitting a request to the City Manager. Attached is a request
(Exhibit I), from Walt Meier requesting that the City Council receive a presentation relating to
the land known as the Village H property.
CITIZEN PRESENTATION
REGARDING VILLAGE H PROPERTY
FISCAL IMPACT:
None.
EXHIBIT:
1. February 23, 2010 e-mail from Walt Meier.
DEPARTMENT CONTACT: Rob Houston (760) 434-2958, rob.houston@carlsbadca.gov
FOR ClTY CLERKS USE ONLY.
COUNCIL ACTION: APPROVED & CONTINUED TO DATE SPECIFIC
DENIED CONTINUED TO DATE UNKNOWN
CONTINUED RETURNEDTOSTAFF
WITHDRAWN OTHER - SEE MINUTES
AMENDED COUNCIL RECEIVED THE PRESENTATION.
A*; \ ;:- j 1 1
Sheila Cobian
From:
Sent:
To:
Subject:
Jasanna Maher [jasannawalt@mac.com]
Tuesday, February 23,201 0 4.1 1 PM
Sheila Cobian
agenda item
Sheila,
Please list our item on Village H for the agenda of March 9th 2010.
Thank you,
Walt Meier
7607176814
A /&ha;a, @ C I T Y 0 F
CARLSBAD
Memorandum
Feb. 26,2010
A11 Receive
For the Information of the:
CITY COUNCIL,
To: Lisa Hildabrand, City Manager
From: Gary T. Barberio, Community and Economic Directo
Via: Sandy Holder, Interim Assistant City Manager
Re: Village H - Calavera Hills
Background
Under the public comments section at the February 16'~ City Council meeting, residents of
Carlsbad addressed the City Council regarding the Village H - Calavera Hills property. By way of
background information on the Village H property, please find attached to this memorandum a
Village H "Fact Sheet", "Chronology", and two site exhibits depicting the location and physical
layout of Village H - Calavera Hills.
Follow-up to Februarv 16'~ Citv Council Meeting
At the February 16'~ City Council meeting, Councilmember Blackburn asked three specific
questions, answers to which are provided as follows:
Can we condemn? If so, what is the process? What are the pros and cons of doing so?
"Eminent domain" (also called "condemnation") is the power of the government to
acquire property for "public use" in exchange for payment of "just compensation" to the
property owner. The government may exercise its power of eminent domain even if the
property owner does not wish to sell the property. The Fifth Amendment of the United
States Constitution and Article I, Section 19 of the California Constitution allow private
property to be taken by eminent domain only for a "public purpose." However, the
term "public purpose" has been interpreted very broadly by the Courts, which have
generally required only that a public benefit must result from the project. Some
recognized uses for which the power of eminent domain may be exercised include
acquiring property to build schools, parks, roads, highways, subways, fire and police
stations, public buildings, and the elimination of blight through redevelopment.
The "eminent domain" process is lengthy and could involve offers to purchase,
appraisals, public hearings, court filings, discovery, jury trials, and court judgments. The
general eminent domain process has been summarized in an attachment to this
memorandum.
Community & Economic Development
1635 Faraday Ave. 1 Carlsbad, CA 92008 1 760-602-2710 1 760 602-8560 fax
VILLAGE H - CALAVERA HILLS
Feb. 26,2010
Page 3
that the designated area will ever develop with CF uses. The Calavera Hills Master Plan
does not contain the minimum ten year requirement provision and therefore requires the
development of CF uses.
In order to change or eliminate the Village H CF requirement, a Major Master Plan
Amendment would be required to relocate the site to another location in the Master Plan.
To date no alternative location has been identified. Another option is a Major Master Plan
Amendment to eliminate the CF site. This option would need to rely on the provisions of
CMC Section 21.25.030 listed above which are not currently included in the Master Plan. At
this time it has not been ten years since the final inspections of the first residential phase.
The Master Plan has only been approved for 8 years. Another option would be to amend
the General Plan and Zoning Ordinance to modify or eliminate the CF requirement citywide.
Eliminating the CF designation for Village H would satisfy persons wanting the site to remain
as open space, assuming the site is re-designated as open space. However, this action may
subject the City to legal action from the property owner or require that the City purchase
the property. The City Attorney should be consulted on this matter.
The cons of eliminating the CF designation include: 1) Conflict with General Plan and CMC
requirements. These requirements exist to ensure that CF uses which benefit the social,
religious, and human service needs of the community have an opportunity to locate in the
community; 2) Inconsistency with how other Master Plans have been administered. Most
developers would prefer not to provide the required CF sites. A Master Plan Amendment
was previously processed for a site in the Rancho Carrillo Master Plan to eliminate a site.
The amendment was denied by the Planning Commission; and, 3) The Village H site is
privately owned. Removing the CF designation and changing it to open space may require
that the City purchase the property.
If the residents wanted to assess themselves and purchase the property, what are
their options? What is the process?
A benefit assessment district is a special charge levied on property to pay for public
"improvements" that benefit property in a predetermined district. The philosophy behind
benefit assessments (also known as special assessments, or assessment ballot proceedings)
is to link the cost of public "improvements" to those landowners and properties who
specifically benefit from those "improvements". A benefit assessment places an annual levy
on property that is receiving a "special benefit" from the assessment. These assessments
usually appear on property tax bills. Benefit assessments are usually defined geographically
and levied on all properties within a designated benefit assessment district.
California has more than 30 benefit assessment acts on the books and California law
authorizes local governments to levy special assessments upon property owners in order to
VILLAGE H - CALAVERA HILLS FACT SHEET
Owner: Thompson Corp.
APN: 167-101-19
General Plan Designation: Community Facilities (CF) and Open Space (0s)
Zoning: Planned Community (P-C)
Calavera Hills Master Plan (MP 139 - Villages H and I)
Approximately 60 acres in total - 37 acres north of Carlsbad Village Drive and 24
acres south of the roadway.
The northern portion is already included in the Habitat Management Plan (HMP)
Hardline Preserve and under a Conservation Easement for open space
preservation and management by the Center for Natural Lands Management,
funded by a non-wasting endowment.
South of Carlsbad Village Drive is a mixture of uses and zoning:
3.2 acre future Community Facilities (CF) site required by the Calavera
Hills Master Plan to meet Zoning Ordinance requirement at the time the
Master Plan was approved on 111 5/02. Any proposal to remove the CF
designation would necessitate the replacement of that land use elsewhere
within the Master Plan.
2.3 acre existing Calavera Hills Master HOA RV storage area (note: the
RV storage area is within Village I of the Master Plan but a separate legal
parcel has yet to be created);
= 18.5 acres of Master Plan open space, containing some native habitat,
eucalyptus trees, and non-native grasses;
Existing Master Plan trail and future Citywide trail.
Preservation of the entire southern portion of the property for HMP open space
would necessitate confining public access to the future trail alignment along the
western edge of the property, removal of non-native invasive species (including
many of the eucalyptus trees), and revegetation of the CF site with native
plantings.
Property was nominated for City acquisition to the Proposition C Open Space
Committee by both the previous property owner (Calavera Hills II LLC) and
neighbors.
Based upon the information received and the approved ranking criteria, the
property was ranked 2" in the Open Space Committee list of potential property
acquisitions.
City Council considered purchase of property under closed session in early 2008
and declined the offer from Calavera Hills II LLC at that time since it would not
significantly add additional open space to the City system (over 94 percent of the
site is already set aside as open space), a large amount of non-native species
CHRONOLOGY OF VILLAGE H
February 26,2010
1974 - Calavera Hills Master Plan (MP-150) was adopted. The area within the Master Plan
was zoned either Limited Control (L-C) or Residential Agriculture (R-A) prior to the adoption
of the Master Plan. After the MP was adopted the area was zoned Planned Community (P-
C). What is known as Village H today was divided into two villages, Village I to the north of
Carlsbad Village Drive and Village H to the south of Carlsbad Village Drive. The land was still
one legal parcel.
1978 - Calavera Hills MP was amended [MP 150 (A)] to allow 33 single family homes over
22 acres (Zoned R-1) on the southern area of Village H and 42 single family homes on the
northern area that was called Village I and is now the northern portion of the lot that has a
General Plan (GP) Land Use designation of Open Space (0s).
1993 - Calavera Hills MP was amended [MP-150 (G)] to allow only 42 single family homes
on 6.8 acres on the entire site. The site was changed from multi-family to single family. The
majority of the property is steep slopes. The reasoning was that the single family
designation would be more compatible with the slope constraints on the site and would
also increase the open space buffer around this site. This amendment changed the GP Land
Use designation of the area to the north of Carlsbad Village Drive to Open Space from
residential with a public access easement for a pedestrian trail on the property. The owner
at the time (McMillin Co.) set up an endowment and arranged for the Center for Natural
Lands Management (CNLM) to manage this preserve in perpetuity.
2001 - McMillin Companies & Brookfield Homes (Owner) submitted a Hillside Development
Permit (HDP 01-03) to grade the Community Facilities site to create a 2-acre buildable pad, .
and a minor subdivision application (MS 01-01) to subdivide the parcel into four separate
parcels as stated below. The MS is needed in order for the owner to convey the RV parking
lot to the Calavera Hills HOA and the CF site or open space lots to other entities. The RV
parking lot area is within Village I of the MP but a separate legal parcel has yet to be
created. These permits have not been approved and there has not been any recent activity
on the applications by the owners.
2002 - Phase II of the Master Plan triggered the requirement for a Community Facility
site(s) and additional spaces at the existing RV storage area within the Calavera Hills Master
Planned Community. Due to Phase II the MP was amended [MP-150 (H)] to eliminate
2007 - A workshop was convened on September 19, 2007. ltem #2 was a discussion of
Proposition C and other capital projects including their financial implications when
implemented. The majority of the discussion was spent on the open space portion of
Proposition C including economic and fiscal data. The key points of the meeting were: 1) an
operating budget reserve number should be developed; 2) more detailed information on
project costs and development of projects is needed; and 3) an outline of what is needed
for completion of a trail system. The Mayor and Council requested that the following open
space properties be reviewed; Sunny Creek, Manazano, Proposition D lands (South Shore,
48 acres and balance).
2008 - A workshop was convened on February 20, 2008. ltem #3 was a discussion and
update on Open Space acquisitions, Open Space Committee reports including update to list
of candidate acquisitions. The Mayor asked that staff continue to look for willing sellers and
identify properties, other than those acquired from developers, which can link trails.
2008 - The City Council considered purchasing the Village H property at a closed session
meeting in early 2008. The city declined the offer from Calavera Hills II LLC (owner) at that
time since purchasing the property would not significantly contribute additional acreage to
the City's open space system (more than 94 percent of the site is already set GP Land Use
designated as Open Space) and a large amount of non-native species removal (including
eucalyptus trees) and revegetation with native species would be needed to add to the
property to the city's Habitat Management Plan preserve system. In addition, the City
would be responsible for the annual ongoing cost for maintenance and management of the
open space.
2009 -The Thompson Corporation purchased Village H in April of 2009 and installed a fence
around the property. A no trespassing sign and a gate were later installed at the trail head
off of Victoria Avenue. A lock was later installed on the gate to prevent the public from
using the property.
2009 - Staff gave a presentation of the open space acquisition program report to the City
Council at their May 12, 2009 meeting. Staff mentioned that the City Council has previously
ruled out purchasing Village H as most of the property is already set aside as open space.
Other properties on the Open Space Committee list were discussed.
2009/2010 - City staff met with and are continuing to meet with the new owner to discuss
proposed plans for a CF use and public trail on the southern section of Village H. No permits
General Steps in an Eminent Domain Proceeding
1. Initial contact by government agency to express interest in the property and'set a
scheduling date for appraisal of the property;
2. Appraisal of the property, including improvements, by an agency retained
appraiser;
3. An offer to purchase the property is made to the owner, together with summary of
the appraisal upon which offer to purchase is made;
4. Notice of a public hearing to adopt a "resolution of necessity" to acquire property
by eminent domain;
5. A public hearing is held to adopt the "resolution of necessity" to acquire the
property by eminent domain;
6. The eminent domain case is filed in court and served on property owner;
7. A deposit by the agency of the probable amount of just compensation is paid into
the court and a request by the agency is made for early possession of the
property;
8. Discovery (for example, depositions and document production) takes place in the
eminent domain action, and both the property owner and government hire
appraisers to determine "fair market value" of the subject property;
9. The property owner and government exchange their respective appraiser's
reports;
10. Final settlement cannot be reached, trial of the eminent domain action takes place
before a jury whose job it is to determine "fair market value" of the subject
property;
11 .The jury returns verdict and judgment is entered;
12.The government pays judgment within 30 days following entry of judgment and
title to subject property is transferred to the government by the court.
must carry the agency's address or include a self-addressed envelope so that property
owners can return their ballots by mail.
Public hearing - After local officials hold their public meetings, they must call a public
hearing where the benefit assessment plan can be approved or rejeded. Property
owners must be notified of the hearing at least 45 days in advance. At the hearing, local
officials count the ballots and make them public. Unlike votes cast in elections, votes
cast in assessment proceedings are not secret.
Ballots are weighted by the amount each property owner is to pay, with those paying
more getting a larger share of the vote. In other words, the ballots are weighted in
proportion to the amount of benefit each property receives from the benefit assessment.
This means that a property owner that receives twice the benefit of another property
owner would pay twice the assessment. The property owner paying twice as much
would have their vote count twice as much.
If the assessment passes, local officials can still modify the plan in response to public
comment. However, if substantial modifications are made to the assessment plan upon
which landowners cast their vote, a new election may be required. The local agency
cannot increase an assessment after the property owners approve it except as provided
in the original assessment proposal.
Levying assessments - After local officials adopt the assessment plan, they impose
the benefit assessment. Most assessment acts allow the agency to begin work on the
facilities and services immediately. Assessments appear on a property owner's annual
property tax bill. Some assessment plans call for benefit assessments to increase
occasionally to keep up with the cost-of-living or as new facilities and services become
available. If the plan calls for the benefit assessments to increase according to a formula
or range, property owners' bills can increase automatically. However, if local officials
want larger increases, they must go through the same procedures: another public
meeting, another election, and another public hearing.
Calavera Hills -Village H
March 9, 2010
Calavera Hills
Village H
carwad, Qli(bmh
m -
Calavera Hills -Village H
•Owner:Thompson Corp. (04/09)
•60 acres total:35.7 ac North & 24.3 ac South of CVD
o Northern 35.7 ac-OS/HMP Hardlined/CE/CNLM
•GP:Community Facilities (CF) & Open Space (OS)
•Zoning: Planned Community (P-C) –Calavara Hills
Master Plan –Villages I & H
Calavera Hills -Village H
Southern 24 ac:
•3.2 ac gross/2.04 ac net –CVHMP CF site
o CF Uses
•3.57 ac -CVHMP RV Storage
o 145 RV Spaces
•17.45 ac –CVHMP Open Space
o Open Space and Public Trail
Calavera Hills -Village H
What is the CVHMP Community Facility (CF) requirement?
•CF Required with 2002 CVHMP Amendment
o 3.04 net ac total
1 net ac at Village Y on College Blvd (vacant)
2.04 net ac at Village H on CVD (vacant)
Calavera Hills -Village H
o Day care (child or senior)
o Churches
o Youth organizations (B&G
Club, YMCA)
o Civic associations
o Veteran’s organizations
o Welfare and charitable
services
What does Community Facilities (CF) mean?
•Uses that benefit the Social/Religious/Human Service
needs of the Community as a whole
Calavera Hills -Village H
History of the issue of Village H as an OS Purchase
•2001 –Prop C passed by the voters of Carlsbad
•October 2005 –Prop C Open Space and Trails Ad Hoc Citizen’s
Committee formed
•March 2007 –OS Comm Final Report to CC
(Village H ranked No. 2)
•September 2007 –CC Workshop on Prop C OS /Trails
•February 2008 –CC Workshop on OS Acquisitions
Calavera Hills -Village H
History of the issue of Village H as an OS Purchase
(continued)
•Early 2008 –CC considered Prop C OS purchase of Village H
(declined)
•April 2009 –Thompson Corp purchases Village H
•May 2009 –OS Acquisition Program -CC presentation
•2009/2010 –City staff negotiates for public trail access on
Village H
Calavera Hills -Village H
What is the City’s position on the purchase Village H for OS?
•Would not significantly contribute additional acreage to the
City’s OS system
o 94% of the site (57 ac) is already GP/Zoned as OS
Northern 35.7 ac –already OS/HMP Hardlined/CE/CNLM
o Non-native species removal & revegetation needed
on Southern 20.65 ac
o City would be responsible for annual ongoing costs for
Management, Monitoring, and Maintenance to HMP standards
Calavera Hills -Village H
•Questions?
Calavera Hills -Village H (South)
Vicinity Map
Calavera Hills -Village H (South)
Aerial View
Trailhead
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Calavera Hills-Village H (South)
Trail Head at Victoria Avenue
Calavera Hills -Village H(South)
Trail Improvements
Typical Trail Amenities
–Trail Marker
–Trail Regulations & Trail
Identification Sign
–Dog Waste Station
–Post and Rail Fencing
Other Improvements
-Minor grading of trail
surface to improve drainage
and trail tread
-Eucalyptus tree trimming
and/or removals
Calavera Hills-Village H(South)
Trail Improvements-Typical Trail Amenities
Trail Marker &
Trail Regulations
Trail Identification
(at trail heads)Pet Waste Station
Calavera Hills -Village H(South)
Trail Improvements-Typical Post and Rail Fence
Existing Village H Trail (north of Carlsbad Village Dr.)
Calavera Hills Village H
Village H acreage distribution:
Open space north of Carlsbad Village Dr.= 35.7
Community Facility site = 3.5
Open space south of Carlsbad Village Dr.= 17.5
Future Village I -RV parking lot = 3.6
60.3
Village H acreage distribution:
Open space north of Carlsbad Village Dr.= 35.7
Community Facility site = 3.5
Open space south of Carlsbad Village Dr.= 17.5
Future Village I -RV parking lot = 3.6
60.3
Open Space Committee Ranking
1.South Coast Quarry 175 points
2.Sherman Property (trail) 173 points
2.Calavera Hills Village H 173 points
4.County Airport Property 170 points
5.Kato Property 168 points
5.Mandana Property 168 points
5.CUSD High School Site 168 points
8.Lubliner Property (trail) 156 points
9.Rancho Carlsbad Property 146 points
10.Mitsuuchi Property 145 points
11.Murphy Property 143 points
12.Poinsettia Vernal Pools 102 points
13.Brodiaea Preserve 82 points
Open Space and Trails
Committee property ranking:
1.Land that contains certain plant and animal species of special interest
2.Land that easily connects to other preserve areas
3.Land that serves both open space and trail purposes
4.Land that provides trail linkages
5.Native habitat
6.Land that meets multiple open space priorities
7.Land within or adjacent to the HMP Focus Planning Area and preserve
8.Land with HMP priority habitat type (e.g.wetlands,riparian)
9.Archeological,cultural paleontological resources
10.Scenic connectivity
11.Prospects for improving stream and lagoon water quality
12.Land that doesn't need habitat restoration
13.Land that possesses other unique or special circumstances
Village H acreage distribution:
Open space north of Carlsbad Village Dr.= 35.7
Community Facility site = 3.5
Open space south of Carlsbad Village Dr.= 17.5
Future Village I -RV parking lot = 3.6
60.3
Recent Sales History of Village H
1. Cypress Valley, LLC quitclaimed to Calavera Hills, LLC in
1998 for no consideration (no money paid)
2. Calavera Hills, LLC transferred to Brookfield Tamarack, LLC
in 2003 for less than $500 (evidenced by the documentary
transfer tax of 55 cents). Confirmed with the non-disclosure
Dept. of County of San Diego.
3. Brookfield Tamarack, LLC sold to Thompson Corp. April 1,
2009 for $31 5K.
4. Thompson Corp. listed Village H for $3,950,000 on Sept. 30,
2009.
City reasons for not buying Village H
1. 94% is already zoned as open space
2. If the CF site is not built in Village H, it
would have to be built elsewhere in the
community
3. Waste of taxpayer money
Carlsbad Municipal Code
21.25.010 -Intent and purpose.The intent and purpose of the C-F,
community facilities, zone is:
(1)To ensure that all master plans and residential specific plans (i.e.,
specific plans which include residential units)reserve community
facilities sites of adequate size for uses which benefit the
community as a whole by satisfying social/religious/human service
needs
Community Facility Zone
21.25.040 Uses Permitted (Table A)
In the table,below,subject to all applicable permitting and development requirements of the
municipal code:
"CUP"indicates that the use is permitted with approval of 1 =Administrative hearing process
a conditional use permit.2 =Planning commission hearing process
"Acc"indicates the use is permitted as an accessory use.3 =City council hearing process
"P"indicates the use is permitted.
P CUP Acc
2
3
2
2
x
2
2
2
2
2
x
1
3
2
2
1/2
2
Carlsbad Municipal Code
Community Facility Zone
21.25.060 -Limitations on permitted
uses.(1)All uses shall be conducted
wholly within a building except such uses
as athletic fields, outdoor play areas, and
other uses customarily conducted in the
open.
City reasons for not buying Village H
1. 94% is zoned as open space
2. If the CF site is not built in Village H, it
would have to be built elsewhere in the
community
3. Waste of taxpayer money