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HomeMy WebLinkAbout0721 MINUTES PALM DESERT PLANNING COMMISSION TUESDAY -JULY 219 2009 6:00 P.M. - CIVIC CENTER COUNCIL CHAMBER 73-510 FRED WARING DRIVE I. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Tanner called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Members Present: Van Tanner, Chair Connor Limont, Vice Chair Sonia Campbell Nancy DeLuna Mari Schmidt Members Absent: None. Staff Present: Lauri Aylaian, Director of Community Development Bob Hargreaves, Deputy City Attorney Jill Tremblay, of Best, Best & Krieger Tony Bagato, Principal Planner Kevin Swartz, Assistant Planner Mark Greenwood, Director of Public Works Page Garner, Senior Engineer/City Surveyor Christina Canales, Assistant Engineer Tonya Monroe, Administrative Secretary III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Chairperson Tanner led in the pledge of allegiance. Chairperson Tanner asked for a moment of silence in honor of former City Manager Carlos L. Ortega, who passed away that morning. IV. SUMMARY OF COUNCIL ACTION Ms. Aylaian summarized pertinent July 9, 2009 City Council actions. V. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS r.. None. MINUTES PALM DESERT PLANNING COMMISSION DULY 21. 2009 .r V1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Request for consideration of the July 7, 2009 meeting minutes. Action: It was moved by Commissioner Limont, seconded by Commissioner DeLuna, approving the July 7, 2009 meeting minutes. Motion carried 4-0-1 (Commissioner Schmidt abstained). VII. CONSENT CALENDAR None. Vill. PUBLIC HEARINGS Anyone who challenges any hearing matter in court may be limited to raising only those issues he, she or someone else raised at the public hearing described herein, or in written correspondence delivered to the Planning Commission at, or prior to, the public hearing. A. Case No. MISC 09-299 — FRANCISCO J. URRUTIA, Applicant +r Request for approval to lower an existing pad for a portion of the property to allow for a garage and entry motor courtyard in the Canyon View Estates at Ironwood Country Club at 49- 825 Desert Vista. Assistant Planner Kevin Swartz reviewed the staff report and recommended approval, subject to the conditions. Chairperson Tanner opened the public hearing and asked the applicant to address the Commission. MR. FRANK URRUTIA, Urrutia Architects, 165 Luring Drive in Palm Springs, California, identified himself as the architect for this project. He wanted to explain that there are several of these lots that are quite high above the street. He said this particular lot ranges anywhere from five feet to almost eight feet on one end above the street level. The homeowner's association guidelines have a requirement that they cannot exceed 12% slope for a driveway. If he were to comply with that requirement, the driveway would actually extend past the center of the lot, which would make it very impractical to ... 2 MINUTES PALM DESERT PLANNING COMMISSION JULY 21, 2002 w provide a home there. Another requirement is that they have to have a motor court to provide two parking spaces, two guest parking spaces, and they have to be screened. Based on those two requirements, this was the solution they came up with, to lower the garage and the upper portion of the lot in order to accommodate the motor court. It was only the front portion of the lot. They were not altering any other part of the pad. He asked for any questions. Also present was their civil engineer if they had any questions regarding the flood issues. Commissioner Limont indicated she had some questions of the project engineer. MR. RON FEIRO, 75-108 Gerald Ford Drive, Suite 1 in Palm Desert, stated that he was the engineer for this project. Commissioner Limont noted that the staff report said that in 2003 Tetra Tech said that the pad elevations on the rough grading did not protect lots from flooding. There was a horrendous flood back in the late 1970's, and as a result of that the washes were re- engineered and re-built. If she looked on the map and looked at the lot location in Ironwood, it seemed that the alluvial plain seemed to pretty much come down that way. Mr. Feiro stated that he reviewed both hydrology studies for the tract. One of the sheets in their packet was right in front of this lot. It divided this site into drainage areas. A certain portion drains to one place, another portion drains to another. It was all divided and each of those areas as part of the study, it calculated the predicted flow within those areas. What she was referring to about the pad heights being changed, he hadn't seen that, so he didn't know what reasoning there was or what explanation there was for doing that. All he could go by were the two approved reports, and both of them were clear about the area tributary to this lot. He said it was about a portion of six lots that drain into the street and drain past this lot at a flow rate predicted of about six cubic feet per second. Also in the same report was street capacity calculation, which basically said this is the street and the tract and based on this cross section of the street, it calculates flow rates for different steepnesses of the road. So he took the steepness of the street that their survey crew 3 MINUTES PALM DESERT PLANNING COMMISSION JULY 21, 2002 measured in front of this lot and calculated how much the Now tract hydrology had predicted that street could handle. It was predicted it could handle about 13 cubic feet per second. So from the reports that were approved, the street is capable of carrying even twice the hundred year storm. The pad height, like Mr. Urrutia explained, is six to eight feet above the street; he wasn't sure how that came to be, but he would be very surprised if it was because of some flooding issue. As modern subdivisions develop, you protect it from flooding. That was the whole purpose of the two hydrology reports. They wouldn't leave a brand new modern tract with lots with that potential. Commissioner Limont said they hope not. The reason she was asking is because obviously they were the experts and they have a wonderful reputation and she was not questioning that. She was just trying to get some clarity here because she looked at it from a standpoint that if the homeowner brings in an independent engineer, they are in a gated community and are following the guidelines there, and the owner has an insurance company, etc. etc., it wasn't like the City had a liability, but she did think it was worthwhile to ask the question because they get a summer flood or a desert flood and they are impressive, that's all. So she was just looking at it from the standpoint if they get hit with this water, it is coming downhill, sees a driveway, and goes right in. Her question was just because there was one sentence in there that says, "The hydrology study that was submitted ascertained that the approved elevations did not adequately protect the lots from flooding." She was wondering if she was misreading that or if because the way the lots were set up those facts had changed. Mr. Feiro didn't know how to respond to that since he hadn't read what she just read. He just knew from both reports that the runoff from the mountains didn't come into the streets and onto the pad. It was very deep at 15 feet plus deep channel that collects the runoff from the mountains and channels it down to the golf course around the pads. He didn't think any part of this had been designed for the runoff from the mountains to come onto the streets. Commissioner Limont said that was exactly what she was looking for and thanked him. 4 MINUTES PALM DESERT PLANNING COMMISSION JULY 21, 2009 There were no other questions. Chairperson Tanner asked if anyone wished to speak in FAVOR of or in OPPOSITION to the proposal. There was no one and the public hearing was closed. Chairperson Tanner asked for Commission comments. Action: It was moved by Commissioner Campbell, seconded by Commissioner Limont, approving the findings as presented by staff. Motion carried 4-0-1 (Commissioner Schmidt abstained). It was moved by Commissioner Campbell, seconded by Commissioner Limont, adopting Planning Commission Resolution No. 2509, approving Case No. MISC 09-299, subject to conditions. Motion carried 4-0-1 (Commissioner Schmidt abstained). IX. MISCELLANEOUS None. X. COMMITTEE MEETING UPDATES r.. A. ART IN PUBLIC PLACES No meeting. B. LANDSCAPE COMMITTEE No meeting. C. PARKS & RECREATION Chairperson Tanner reported that there was a meeting, but he was unable to attend. D. PROJECT AREA 4 COMMITTEE Commissioner Schmidt noted that the meeting was postponed. XI. COMMENTS None. WMW MINUTES PALM DESERT PLANNING COMMISSION JULY 21, 2009 XII. ADJOURNMENT It was moved by Commissioner DeLuna, seconded by Commissioner Campbell, adjourning the meeting by minute motion. Motion carried 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 6:13 p.m. �E�U--R—1 MYAIAN, Secretary ATTEST: VAN G. TANNER, Chair Palm Desert Planning Commission AM 6