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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCD 2021-0027; FIRE STATION NO. 2 LANDSCAPE PLAN AND PARKING MODIFICATIONS; Admin Decision LetterCcityof Carlsbad December 14, 2021 8FILE COPY rr;,,,·,~,t 12/1s/z1 Steven Stewart Facilities Engineering Project Manager Public Works, Fleet & Facilities Department 1635 Faraday Avenue Carlsbad, CA 92008 SUBJECT: CD2021-0027 (PUB 2018-0010) -Fire Station No 2 Landscape Plan and Parking Modifications The City Planner has completed a review of your application for a revised landscape and parking plan to reflect unforeseen conditions discovered at the site during construction at Fire Station No 2, at 1906 Arena I Road (APN: 215-140-1900) which is a modification to CUP 2018-0014, SUP 2018-0009, V2018-0007, a request to construct a 10,782 square foot, two-story fire station in place oqhe former Fire Station No 2 building. After careful consideration of the request, the City Planner has determined that the request meets all of the findings below and APPROVES this request. The proposed modifications include: • Revisions to the landscape plan, including the loss of eight trees, made necessary to accommodate site constraints and unanticipated, encroaching wall footings, to ensure parking accessibility, and to increase and enhance landscape areas, including: • An increase of roughly 1,025 SF of enhancement to the area of the northerly portion of the parcel along El Camino Real that was approved for only mulch amongst existing, scattered landscaping and that will feature two new trees, shrubs and groundcover. • Replacement of four of the lost trees through the addition of: two trees along El Camino Real, one tree in front of the fire station, and one more tree in a new planter at the back of the site. • Replacement of 150 SF of six tree wells with three separate planting areas totaling 280 SF of landscaped area • The addition of vines on the ornamental fence in the Southeast corner to screen the trash enclosure • Reconfiguration of the three approved parking spaces along Arenal Road due to code requirements regarding required space for accessible parking and electrical vehicle charging. No loss of parking along the street would occur with the reconfiguration. • Revisions to the on-site parking to account for slope and to ensure adequate access and use, causing the loss of two spaces for fire station personnel behind the fire station building. Community Development Department Planning Division I 1635 Faraday Avenue I Carlsbad, CA 92008 I 760-602-4600 I 760-602-8560 fax CD2021-0027 (PUB 2018-0010) -Fire Station No 2 Landscape Plan and Parking Modifications December 14, 2021 Pa e 2 In order for a Discretionary Permit Consistency Determination to be approved, all of the following findings must be made: 1) No project condition, feature, facility or amenity is changed or deleted that had been considered essential to the project's design, quality, safety or function in that the facility would continue to function as intended and operate safely and the design of the building would remain the same. The landscape changes would re-distribute landscape to areas that are more visible to the public such as the northerly portion of the parcel along El Camino Real, and the parking along Arena/ Road has been reconfigured to allow for additional vehicle mobility, ADA accessibility, and an EV charging station in compliance with building code requirements. 2) The request represents an upgrade in overall design features and or materials and improves upon the project's compatibility with the surrounding neighborhood in that trees were approved to be at the back of the building where they had minimal visibility to the public, and the northerly portion of the parcel was approved to feature mulch ground cover and maintain the existing landscape. The revisions would remove those trees at the back of the building and plant some of them along the northerly portion of the parcel. The northerly portion would also be landscaped with a variety of shrubs and ground cover providing an upgrade in the overall design from the public view along El Camino Real. Further, the request will result in replacement of an existing street tree along El Camino, the loss of which was made necessary due to the tree's proximity to project improvements and maintain screening of a trash enclosure through installation of vines instead of a tree. Arena/ Road parking revisions would maintain parking quantity as originally approved but in a code complaint manner. 3) The proposed revision does not change the density or boundary of the subject property in that the boundary of the subject property would remain the same and the density or intensity would remain the same through no changes to the approved building footprint, height or building or site uses. 4) The proposed revision does not involve the addition of a new land use not shown on the original permit in that the land use would remain as approved which was a fire station facility. 5} The proposed revision does not rearrange the major land uses within the development in that the approved land use (a fire station facility} would remain the same, and the orientation of the building and the drive aisles would also remain the same. 6} The proposed revision does not create changes of greater than ten percent provided that compliance will be maintained with the applicable development standards of the Carlsbad Municipal Code in that, while revisions result in the loss of some trees, they also increase the amount of landscape area by 130 square feet and add approximately 1,025 square feet of enhanced landscaping to the northerly portion of the parcel. In addition, revisions maintain the three spaces available to the public.and decrease by two (from 9 to 7) spaces for fire staff; while the staff parking area remains the same dimensionally, fewer spaces are proposed to recognize site constraints, including grades, and to improve parking space accessibility. The Fire Department has determined these seven spaces remain adequate to accommodate staff parking, except possibly during morning shift changes, as explained in a December 13, 2021, letter from the Fire Chief contained in the project file. During shift changes staff may need to park temporarily along Arena/ Road. Use of the street for shift change parking was also acknowledged as part of the original project approval (CUP 2018-0014}. CD2021-0027 (PUB 2018-0010) -Fire Station No 2 Landscape Plan and Parking Modifications December 14, 2021 Pa e 3 7) The proposed change will not result in any significant environmental impact, and/or require additional mitigation in that a mitigated negative declaration analyzed the environmental impacts and included mitigation to reduce those impacts to less than significant, and no new impacts and no new information would result from these revisions and thus no new mitigation or additional environmental review is required. BJ The proposed change would not result in any health, safety or welfare impacts in that the project was adequately reviewed for compliance with standard safety codes and policies and the revisions would not result in compromises to the standards of health, safety and welfare. 9) There were not any major issues or controversies associated with the original project which would be exacerbated with the proposed change in that the project would continue to provide an updated fire station facility that is necessary to continue to provide quality fire protection services with updated fire apparatus equipment. 10} The proposed change would not be readily discernable to the decision makers as being substantially different from the project as originally approved in that per the revisions: • The trees that would be removed from the previously approved landscape plan were mostly located at the back of the building which would not have been readily visible to the public. • The improved landscape in the northerly portion of the parcel along El Camino Real would be visible, but it is consistent with previously approved landscape palette and thus once constructed the change to the landscape plans would not be readily discernable to the public or decision makers. Similarly, the replacement of the street tree along El Camino Real and planting of vines to screen the trash enclosure help maintain approved aesthetics. • The configuration of the parking available to the public along Arena/ Road would change, but the quantity would remain the same as previously approved. • The staff parking quantity would change but would remain adequate to accommodate the staff present at the fire facility and thus would not be readily discernable to the decision makers as being substantially different from the project as originally approved. Further, temporary use of Arena/ Road for shift change parking was also contemplated as part of the original approval. Therefore, the City Planner has determined that the application qualifies for a consistency determination with the approved permit and approves the changes to the project based on Planning Division Administrative Policy No. 35. Please submit two (2) blueline copies (24" X 36") of all applicable exhibits for the project file of the amended site plan. The copies must be submitted, stamped "Consistency Determination," and signed by the City Planner prior to •issuance of any grading or building permits for the project. The Consistency Determination Title Block stamp, and other Title Block stamps, can be downloaded from the City's website at https://www.carlsbadca.gov/departments/community-development/permits-applications- forms/planning-applications-forms. The Title Block (stamp) is located at the bottom of the page. CD2021-0027 (PUB 2018-0010) -Fire Station No 2 Landscape Plan and Parking Modifications December 14, 2021 Pa e4 NOTICE Please take NOTICE that approval of your project includes the "imposition" of fees, dedications, reservations, or other exactions hereafter collectively referred to for convenience as "fees/exactions." You have 90 days from the date of final approval to protest imposition of these fees/exactions. If you protest them, you must follow the protest procedure set forth in Government Code Section 66020(a), and file the protest and any other required information with the City Manager for processing in accordance with Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 3.32.030. Failure to timely follow that procedure will bar any subsequent legal action to attack, review, set aside, void, or annul their imposition. You are hereby FURTHER NOTIFIED that your right to protest the specified fees/exactions DOES NOT APPLY to water and sewer connection fees and capacity charges, nor planning, zoning, grading or other similar application processing or service fees in connection with this project; NOR DOES IT APPLY to any fees/exactions of which you have previously been given a NOTICE similar to this, or as to which the statute of limitations has previously otherwise expired. This decision may be appealed by you or any other member of the public to the Planning Commission within ten days of the date of this letter. Appeals must be submitted in writing to the Planning Division at 1635 Faraday Avenue in Carlsbad, along with a payment of $786.00. The filing of such appeal within such time limit shall stay the effective date of the order of the City Planner until such time as a final decision on the appeal is reached. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please feel to contact Christina M. Bustamante at (760) 602-4644. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please feel free to contact your project planner, Christina M. Bustamante at 760-602-4644. CITY OF CARLSBAD DON NEU, AICP City Planner DN:CB:cf c: Laserfiche/File Copy Data Entry