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HomeMy WebLinkAbout031-86 CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION NO. 31-86 A RESOLUTION OF THE DANVILLE CITY COUNCIL CERTIFYING REVIEW AND CONSIDERATION OF FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT, MAKING FINDINGS WITH RESPECT TO SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS, AND ESTABLISHING MITIGATION MEASURES FOR AMENDMENT OF THE GENERAL PLAN FOR THE EL CERRO STUDY AREA (GPA 84-3). WHEREAS, an environmental impact report (the "EIR") for E1 Cerro Study General Plan Amendment (the "Project") was prepared by the City of Danville (the "city") pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (Public Resources Code Sections 21000 et. seq., and the Guidelines for Implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act (14 Cal. Adm. Code Sections 15000 et. seq., hereafter the ("State EIR Guidelines"); and WHEREAS, on September 26, 1985, the City forwarded the Draft Environmental Impact Report to the State Clearinghouse for distribution to those agencies which have jurisdiction by law with respect to the Project, and other interested persons and agencies, and sought the comments of such persons and agencies; and WHEREAS, notice of the completion of the Draft EIR was mailed to all interested persons and agencies and was published in the Valley Times on October 12, 1985; and WHEREAS, the Draft Environmental Impact Report was thereafter reviewed and supplemented to adopt changes suggested, to incorporate comments received, and the City's response to said comments, and as so revised and supplemented, a Final Environmental Impact Report was submitted to the City Council of the City of Danville; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission held a duly noticed public hearing on the Draft EIR on November 25, 1985 and all persons expressing a desire to comment thereon or object thereto having been heard; and WHEREAS, the Planning Commission on February 10, 1986 considered the Final EIR, which includes the Draft EIR and the Responses to Comments document and recommended to the City Council that the Final EIR be certified; and WHEREAS, the City Council on April 10, 1986 and May 5, 1986 considered the Final EIR including all comments received and the response thereto. -4- NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DANVILLE that: A. The City hereby finds and certifies that the Final EIR has been completed in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act, as amended ("CEQA"), and the State EIR Guidelines, and that the City has reviewed and considered the information contained in the Final EIR prior to making a decision on the Project. B. In accordance with Section 15091 of the State EIR Guidelines, the city finds that the project will have the following significant impacts and makes findings regarding their mitigation: 1. Land Use a. Impacts i. Implementation of the plan as proposed would result in these general impacts: o An intensification of uses along the E1 Cerro Blvd. corridor and area to the south o The creation of a larger and more consolidated office district near E1 Cerro Blvd. and 1-680 ii. The placement of office and multiple-family residential uses along E1 Cerro Blvd. would increase the density of development along this corridor and eliminate the potential for six single-family residences. These new uses would be less sensitive to the potential visual and noise impacts associated with traffic on E1 Cerro Blvd. and the freeway. The higher land use intensity would create changes in the visual character of the corridor and could affect views from three existing residences. -5- t~ iii. iv. V. vi. The designation of areas south of E1 Cerro Blvd. for limited office uses would lead to the displacement of existing single-family residences, and the creation of an office area of comparable size to the office area along La Gonda Way north of E1 Cerro Blvd. The expansion of office development would create a more consistent land use pattern in the central portion of the planning area whose development character would be more dense and more urban. The potential for land use conflicts (i.e., noise, glare, privacy, etc.) exists where office areas are adjacent to the three single-family residences that take access off of Elsie Drive. The introduction of limited office uses along La Gonda Way south of E1 Cerro would remove the last single-family residences along this segment of roadway that take direct access off La Gonda Way. It would thus contribute to the general intensification of uses along this corridor. The configuration of existing parcels could limit their development potential due to size limitations and access considerations. The location of multiple-family housing at the north end of West E1 Pintado would provide a transitional use between existing single-family neighborhoods and the freeway and office development to the north. The multiple-family development could, depending on design, provide existing residences with buffering of negative visual and noise elements. However, it would also increase the density of development adjacent to the single-family homes and alter the semi-rural character to which the presently vacant and underutilized properties contribute. The proposed change in the General Plan land use designations would also require changes to be made in some of the area's zoning designations to maintain consistency with the General Plan as required by law. -6- b. Mitigation Measures i. Mitigation measures contained on pages 6 and 7 of the Draft EIR and further described on pages 50 and 51 are hereby incorporated as conditions of project approval, except as may be modified below. ii. The City finds that amendment of the General Plan as it relates to park use of the 26 acre Barrett property is not appropriate due to the presence of other more suitable park sites in the City and, as such mitigation measures pertaining to park use of the site are not adopted. iii. The City finds that inclusion of limited office uses in lieu of multi-family uses along La Gonda Way and in the north end of West E1 Pintado is more appropriate and as such mitigation measures pertaining to multi-family uses in these areas are not adopted. 2. Population, Housing and Employment a. Impacts i. Under the proposed plan the total residential population is projected to decrease about 3 percent from the level projected under the current General Plan. The projected population of 1,483 would represent about 45 percent increase over the existing planning area population. ii. The principal change that would occur under the proposed plan with regard to the area's housing would be removal of approximately 12 acres of housing designation and replacement with Limited Office designation. iii. The proposed plan would increase the amount of office development in the planning area, hence, increase the number of jobs generated by the planning area. The plan is projected to create between 300 and 700 more jobs than would be created under the existing plan. This is an increase of between 85 and 195 percent. This addition of employment opportunities within the city is considered a positive action which will contribute to the city's housing/jobs balance (which currently has far more housing than jobs). -7- be Mitigations Measures: The City finds that the above cited impacts are not significant effects on the environment as defined by Section 15382 of the State CEQA Guidelines and therefore not mitigation measures are required or appropriate. 3. Transportation a. Impacts: Traffic impacts associated with buildout of the proposed plan will be substantially the same as those expected under buildout of the existing plan. Traffic calculations indicate that the total average daily trips and peak-hour trips would increase only slightly under the proposed plan. However, buildout of the planning area under either plan will result in traffic congestion along several of the area's street segments due to cumulative increases in traffic. The following is a list of street segments and intersections where traffic movement would be expected to be worse than a level of service D without mitigation measures: be o La Gonda Way/Danville Blvd. intersection o E1 Cerro Blvd./W. E1 Pintado/I-680 southbound intersection o E1 Cerro Blvd./I-680 northbound intersection o Diablo Rd./W. E1 Pintado intersection o Danville Blvd. (Hartz Ave. to E1 Portal Rd.) Mitigation Measures: Mitigation measures contained on page 8 of the Draft EIR and further described on pages 66 and 67 are hereby incorporated as conditions of project approval. 4. Public Services and Utilities: a. Impacts: The proposed plan's intensification of land uses immediately south of E1 Cerro Boulevard will exacerbate the existing drainage deficiencies in the open channels in this area and necessitate improvements to the storm drainage system. b. Mitigation Measures: i. Mitigation measures contained on pages 9 and 74 of the Draft EIR were corrected through preparation of the Response to Comments document and are not adopted. -8- ii. The revised mitigation measures contained on page 9 of the Response to Comments document described on the response to comment 3c of the Contra Costa County Flood Control and Water Conservation District are hereby incorporated as conditions of project approval. 5. visual and Other Natural Resource Impacts: a. Impacts: i. The intensification of uses (office and multiple-family residential) in parts of the planning area in conjunction with the application of the city's new development design guidelines will mean that the visual character of some areas within the planning area will be significantly altered under the proposed plan. ii. The scenic views out from the planning area and the area's vegetation and open space are natural resources that contribute to the overall character of the planning area. Development in the planning area under either the proposed or existing plan will effect these resources. All impacts would tend to be fairly localized in that they would involve obstruction of view corridors, the removal of mature vegetation, and the elimination of open space that would be viewed from only limited areas. iii. The intensification of uses along the south side of the E1 Cerro Boulevard corridor will alter the semi-rural character that currently exists, replacing it with a more urban/suburban character. iv. Development along the south side of E1 Cerro Boulevard west of La Gonda Way could obstruct views from the road of the scenically designated Las Trampas Ridge to the southwest. -9- b. V. The higher intensity development along La Gonda Way south of E1 Cerro Boulevard will eliminate the open space that is currently associated with the existing semi-rural, large-lot residences. The corridor will have a much more urban character and the introduction of office uses along the corridor will create a more consistent and higher level of development standards. The increased intensity of development, however, could lead to the removal of a greater number of mature trees, and any two-story structures located too near adjacent residences could create a sense of encroachment if not properly screened. vi. The introduction of office uses at the north end of West E1 Pintado will create a higher intensity development whose visual character will differ from the single-family residences to the south. Two story development could create visual conflicts (encroachment and loss of privacy) with adjacent single-family homes, but could also provide screening of views of the freeway. Mitigation Measures: Mitigation measure contained on pages 11 an 12 of the Draft EIR and further described on pages 89 and 90 are hereby incorporated as conditions of project approval. . Noise a. Impacts: i. The major noise contributor to the planning area will continue to be traffic on 1-680. Due to increases in traffic volumes, the planning area is projected to experience an increase 2dB in the CNEL. ii. The increased noise levels will mean that several properties designated for residential use will have noise levels that exceed the city's 60 dB standard. iii. The single-family-low density parcel at the north end of the planning area would be severely impacted by the freeway noise levels and based on the noise compatibility standards would be considered "normally unacceptable" for single-family development. -10- ms Mitigation measures: A detailed acoustical analysis should be required for any residential project for which projected noise levels from 1-680 exceed 60 dBs. The acoustical analysis should identify the noise levels associated with projected traffic on 1-680 and should indicate mitigation measures required to reduce noise levels toacceptable standards as specified in the Noise Element of the General Plan. Ce Pursuant to section 15089 of the State EIR Guidelines, the City finds that implementation of the project will have the following significant impacts which are unavoidable: le Visual Resources· The increased land use density proposed in the plan would lead to more multi-storied structures which will block to some extent views out from the planning area toward Las Trampas Ridge. The more intense development, particularly in the south, will also change the visual character of the area from semi-rural to suburban/urban. · Land Use. The increased land use intensity in the southern half of the planning area would result in unavoidable land use conflicts involving privacy, noise, traffic congestion, etc. · Municipal Services. The demand for sewer and water would be slightly higher under the proposed plan than under the current plan, due to the combination of office uses and residential uses. The City allows these impacts to occur due to the following: l· Development within the Project Area will contribute to the vitality of the community through provision of needed housing and office space; · Development of residential, particularly multiple family residential, uses on the property will assist the City in providing needed housing stock partially satisfying goals of the Housing Element; · Development within the project area will result in rehabilitation and redevelopment of obsolete and underutilized parcels; and · Implementation of the General Plan Amendment will result in a more comprehensive approach to the land use pattern in the Project Area minimizing the potential for conflict between incompatible land use. -11- De . Impacts r~ ted to changes in visual ality, loss of privacy, increased noise, and increased traffic occur with new development or increased intensity of development and are accepted results of that development. The benefits to the community in terms of housing opportunities, provision of services to the community, stenghtening the business community and increased revenues to the City justify allowing these impacts to occur. Further, mitigations adopted by this resolution substantially reduce these impacts by requiring construction of noise attenuation features, construction of traffic and circulation improvements, and participation in funding of expansion and extension of various infrastructure facilities. Upon approval of the Project by the City Council, the City Clerk is hereby directed to file a Notice of Determination with the County Clerk of Contra Costa County pursuant to the provisions of Section 21152 of the Public Resources Code and the State EIR Guidelines adopted pursuant thereto. PASSED AND ADOPTED this following vote: 5th day of May ,1986 by the AYES: NOES: ABSENT: ABSTAIN Councilmembers: Councilmembers: Councilmembers: Councilmembers: Kennett, Lane, McNeely, Schlendorf None None Offenhartz Mayor / ATTEST: ~_ Cit~t Clerk -12-