HomeMy WebLinkAboutAUP_2016-07-25_AgendaPacket C ITY OF A TASCADERO
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT
6500 PALMA AVE ▪ ATASCADERO, CA 93422 ▪ (805) 461 -5035 ▪ FAX 461-7612
Administrative Use Permit Hearing
A G E N D A
The City of Atascadero’s Zoning Hearing Officer will hold a public hearing
at 2:00 p.m. or later on Monday, July 25, 2016 in Room 106, at City Hall,
6500 Palma Ave., Atascadero, to consider the following:
1. 7120 VALLE AVE. PLN 2016-1598; Request is for a sloping lot adjustment
to the front setback for a single-family residence. The garage will be
placed 10 feet from the front property line, while the residential portion
of the house will be located at the unadjusted setback of 25 feet from
the front property line. (Sean Knoph) (Katie Banister, Assistant
Planner)
PLEASE NOTE: Any court challenge to the actions taken at the public
hearing items may be limited to considering only those issues raised at the
public hearing described in this notice or in written correspondence to the
City of Atascadero at, or prior to, the public hearing.
Any decision of the Hearing Officer is final unless a ppealed to the Planning
Commission within 14 days of the action. Any person aggrieved by the
decision may file an appeal. Appeal forms are available in the Community
Development Department or on the City’s website (www.atascadero.org).
The fee for filing an appeal is $721 and must accompany the appeal
documentation.
ITEM NUMBER: ITEM NUMBER: 1
DATE: 7-25-16 CITY OF ATASCADERO
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTME NT
Administrative Use Hearing Staff Report
FROM: Katie Banister
Assistant Planner, (805) 470-3480
FILE NUMBER: PLN 2016-1598 / AUP 2016-0081
PROJECT ADDRESS: 7120 Valle Avenue, Atascadero, CA 93422.
APN# 029-371-037
SITUATION: The applicant seeks to build a single-family residence on a steeply
sloping lot. A sloping lot adjustment to the front building setback (AMC 9-4.106) is
requested to minimize the length of the driveway and the quantity of grading needed to
develop the site.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends the Administrative Hearing Officer
approve Administrative Use Permit 2016-0081 reducing the front setback for the
attached garage from 25 to 10 feet from the front property line on Valle Avenue.
BACKGROUND: The subject lot was created in a two lot subdivision completed in
1988. The property was zoned RSF-X (1/2 minimum lot size) in 1984 when the
application for the tentative map was received. T he municipal sanitary sewer is
available and will be used for the project. Both lots created, which have an average
slope of approximately 35%, are currently vacant. The tentative map app roval
anticipated the need for a Conditional Use Permit to allow grading on land greater than
30% slope (which is no longer a requirement of the Municipal Code). The approval also
encouraged the use of the sloping lot adjustment.
The property is on the south side of Pine Mountain, near Stadium Park along a relatively
straight stretch of Valle Avenue perched on a bench high above El Camino Real. There
are 5 lots in this stretch of road, which slope steeply down toward Sombrilla Avenue.
Two neighbors to the southeast, 7140 and 7150 Valle Avenue, have been developed
with the residences set back further than the minimum required, and served by steep
driveways. Each home required a Precise Plan and an adjustment to the maximum
slope of its driveway, which are both greater than 20%. The property at 7150 Valle
Avenue required 225 cubic yards of cut and 200 cubic yards of fill. In contrast, 7100
Valle Avenue was granted an adjustment to the front setback (Adjustment 05 -85) that
allowed the garage to be placed 5 feet from the front property line. It required
significantly less grading, and was categorically exempt the California Environmental
Quality Act (i.e. did not need a Precise Plan).
Page 2
7140 Valle Ave. with 7150 Valle Ave. in background.
Note longer, steep driveway and fill pad for lawn.
7100 Valle Ave. (front setback reduced by adjustment)
EVALUATION:
The fifth goal of the Land Use, Open Space and Circulation element of the General Plan
is to “[p]reserve the contours of the hills.” The policies and programs that support this
goal are generally to increase minimum lot size on steeper slopes and to use site
planning that minimizes the amount of grading needed. The Hillside Grading Guidelines
interpret this General Plan goal and give practical requirements for development
projects that propose grading. They include the prohibition of cut and fill pads when the
native slope is 30% or greater.
Atascadero Municipal Code (AMC) 9-4.106(a)(3) permits an adjustment for the front
setback for sloping lots, where the slope results in an elevation change of at least 7 feet,
50 feet from the center line of the adjacent road (i.e. the average slope for the 50 feet
from the center of the road is an average grade of 14%). The adjustment allows the
garage to be placed as close as 5 feet from the front property line, while the other
portions of the residence must be placed at the standard 25 foot setback.
AMC 9-4.110 permits covered porches to project 6 feet into the front setback. An
unenclosed front porch, 100 square feet or smaller, is not limited in the depth of its
projection.
The proposed development plan pushes the garage very close to the front property line
alleviating the need for a long driveway. The site will not be graded to create a cut and
fill pad with the exception of the short driveway, which will require some fill. The
Page 3
residence is proposed to use a pier foundation, which is stepped down the hill to respect
the existing contours of the hillside.
The Valle Avenue right-of-way is 40 feet wide, but the asphalt is less than 20 feet in the
general vicinity of the project. The street dead-ends in a loop approximately 450 feet to
the northwest of the subject lot. While Valle Avenue may be improved over time, it is
unlikely to be significantly widened or to see a significant increase in vehicle trips over
time unless a trailhead is developed from this side of Stadium Park (there are no plans
for this improvement). The unused portion of the right -of-way acts somewhat to
increase the front setback, so that while the garage would be 10 feet from the property
line, it is approximately 20 feet from the existing asphalt.
The project requires the removal of three coast live oak trees. The Planning
Commission approved Tree Removal Permit 2016-0201 at their July 19, 2016 meeting.
Findings
AMC 9-1.112 requires the Hearing Officer to make the following 5 findings:
(1) Modification of the applicable standard will not result in a project that is inconsistent
with the General Plan;
Staff comment: Reducing the front setback for the garage will cause a much
smaller impact to the surface of Pine Mountain, in support of Land Use, Open
Space and Circulation (LOC) Element goal number 5. The setback reduction will
result in significantly less grading to develop the site and “[p]reserve the contours
of the hills.”
(2) Modification of the applicable standard will not result in a project that is inconsistent
with the character of the immediate neighborhood or contrary to its orderly
development;
Staff comment: The project is a single-family residence in a single-family
residential zoning district. The neighborhood is located on the steep slopes of
Pine Mountain with narrow, winding roads and houses configured on sites in
multiple ways to accommodate the slope. The home on the adjacent lot to the
west utilized the sloping lot adjustment, and planning staff will encourage its use
on the vacant lot to the east.
(3) Modification of the applicable standard will not result in a project that is not in
compliance with any pertinent City policy or criteria adopted by ordinance or
resolution of the City Council; and
Staff comment: The proposed residence will be in compliance will all pertinent
City policies and criteria.
(4) Modification of the applicable standard will not result in the authorization of a use
not otherwise allowed; and
Page 4
Staff comment: A single-family residence is permitted in the Single Family
Residential zoning district.
(5) Any other findings deemed necessary.
Staff comment: No other findings are deemed necessary.
Environmental Determination
Section 15303 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) categorically
exempts new construction or conversion of small structures including the construction of
one single-family residence in a residential zoning district. The project does not include
a significant amount of grading.
Conditions
1. The garage shall be placed no closer than 5 feet to the front property line.
2. Other portions of the residence shall be placed no less than 25 feet from the front
property line.
3. The front porch covering shall not project more than 6 feet into the front setback.
Code Requirements
1. AMC 9-4.106(a)(3) Sloping Lot Adjustment.
2. AMC 9-1.112 Administrative Use Permit.
3. AMC 9-4.110 Projections into required setbacks.
4. AMC 9-11.105 Tree removal
Action:
Approve
Approve as conditioned
Deny
Continue to: _______________ to allow _________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Continue indefinitely to allow: __________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________
Hearing Officer Date
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Location and Zoning
Attachment 2: Site Plan
Attachment 3: Elevation
Attachment 4: Site Photos
Page 5
ATTACHMENT 1: Location and Zoning
PLN 2016-1598 / AUP 2016-0081
Stadium Park
7120 Valle
Avenue
7100
RMF-20
DO
RSF-Y
7150
7128
7140
RMF-10
CR
Page 6
ATTACHMENT 2: Site Plan
PLN 2016-1598 / AUP 2016-0081
25 feet
10 feet
Existing
Asphalt
Retaining
Wall
Coast live oak trees
to be removed
Front Property Line
Valle
Avenue
Page 7
ATTACHMENT 3: Elevation
PLN 2016-1598 / AUP 2016-0081
Note: AMC 9-4.106 (a)(3) allows a sloping lot adjustment when a point 50
feet from the centerline of the adjacent right -of-way is 7 feet above or below
the elevation of the centerline. In the exhibit above, the slope is measured
from the property line, but the project also meets the actual code
requirement. The right of way is 40 feet wide. From the centerline t o the
front property is 20 feet. Thirty feet from the property line (i.e. 50 feet from
the centerline of the road), the elevation is more than 15 feet lower than the
road.
Page 8
ATTACHMENT 4: Site Photos
PLN 2016-1598 / AUP 2016-0081