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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1693 - RECOMMEND TO APPROVE COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE OF THE NEWPORT BEACH GENERAL PLAN.RESOLUTION NO. 1693 A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDING APPROVAL TO THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE OF THE NEWPORT BEACH GENERAL PLAN [PA2006- 159] WHEREAS, Section 65300 et seq., of the California Government Code requires cities and counties to prepare long- range, comprehensive guides known as general plans; and WHEREAS, the City of Newport Beach adopted a general plan consisting of mandatory and optional elements in 1973 through 1975, consisting of text and maps; and WHEREAS, the last major revision of the City of Newport Beach General Plan was accomplished in 1988, being comprehensive revisions to the Land Use and Circulation Elements; and WHEREAS, other elements have been amended and updated from time to time, including the Housing, Noise, and Recreation and Open Space Elements; and WHEREAS, since its original adoption, two optional elements have been added to the General Plan, being the Growth Management and Harbor and Bay Elements; and WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that the existing General Plan, as amended, must be revised to sufficiently address the range and breadth of issues, technological, environmental, economic, and demographic changes, within and outside the city, that have affected Newport Beach since the plan was adopted; and WHEREAS, Section 707 (a) of the Newport Beach Charter requires the Planning Commission to recommend to the City Council the adoption, amendment or repeal of a Master Plan, or any part thereof, for the physical development of the City; and WHEREAS, California Government Code Section 65353 requires that, when local regulations have authorized a Planning Commission to review and make recommendations on a proposed General Plan or amendments to a General Plan, the Commission shall hold at least one public hearing before making its recommendation; and Planning Commission Resolution No. 1693 Page 2 of 5 WHEREAS, the Planning Commission conducted a series of meetings to make recommendations on the project description on which to base the Environmental Impact Report on the following dates: September 9, 2004 December 9, 2004 May 19, 2005 June 9, 2005 August 16, 2005 — Adjourned Meeting August 30, 2005 —Adjourned Meeting November 17, 2005 WHEREAS, the Planning Commission also conducted a series of meetings to make recommendations to the City Council on the policies to be included in the various elements of the General Plan on the following dates: March 3, 2005 October 4, 2005 — Adjourned Meeting October 20, 2005 — Adjourned Meeting October 20, 2005 November 29, 2005 — Adjourned Meeting December 6, 2005 — Adjourned Meeting January 31, 2006 — Adjourned Meeting March 9, 2006 WHEREAS, the Planning Commission considered public testimony in a series of public hearings which were fully noticed as required by California Government Code Section 65091 on the following dates: April 6, 2006 April 20, 2006 May 4, 2006 May 18, 2006 June 1, 2006 —Adjourned Meeting June 15, 2006 — Adjourned Meeting June 22, 2006 July 6, 2006 July 13, 2006 — Adjourned Meeting July 20, 2006 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Planning Commission of the City of Newport Beach as follows: Section 1. Adoption of Draft General Plan. The Planning Commission recommends that the City Council adopt the comprehensive revision of the Newport Beach General Plan (PA 2006 -195, GP2006 -005), including text, F: \USERS \PLN \Shared\GP Update GBR \Planning Commission\GP Reso 7- 20- 06FINAL.doc Planning Commission Resolution No. 1693 Page 3 of 5 graphics, and land use map as presented at the public hearing of July 20, 2005. The Planning Commission declares as follows: a. Finding of Completeness and Adequacy. The recommended General Plan contains a thorough and adequate treatment of land use and development issues. The General Plan includes all elements mandated by California planning and development law, and three optional elements: Harbor and Bay, Historical Resources, and Arts and Cultural. The existing Growth Management Element has been incorporated into the Circulation Element. b. Promotion of Public Health, Safety, and Welfare. The plan addresses long -term planning needs for the City's public safety services, incorporating new policies regarding police, fire and emergency services protection, coastal hazards, seismic and geologic hazards, flood hazards, fire hazards, hazardous materials, aviation hazards, and disaster preparedness. C. Based on Community Vision. The plan is based on input received from residents and property and business owners during the visioning and update processes, and the Vision Statement developed at the culmination of the visioning process. d. Good City Planning Practices. The plan calls for improvements in the handling of new development by requiring a high level of architectural design quality, traffic and transportation management, and other initiatives. The plan increases open space and recreation opportunities, recommends traffic calming and neighborhood protection strategies, and offers new policies for the first time in the areas of historical resource management, community arts and cultural resources and community design. The plan also increases housing opportunities in close proximity to and within employment centers, which will reduce traffic within the community, reduce vehicle miles traveled and improve jobs /housing balance. The plan provides a strong correlation between the Land Use and Circulation Elements as required by law. It also strengthens protections for environmental resources, including the Upper Newport Bay and other sensitive habitats. e. Improved Traffic Flow. The land use mix and circulation system improvements in the plan result in the generation of fewer trips over the life of the plan than the existing plan, and an improvement in traffic flow and intersection performance. f. Relationship to General Plan Environmental Determination. It is the intent of the Planning Commission that the General Plan and the Final Environmental Impact Report be seen as integrally related documents. F:IUSERSIPLN\Shared\GP Update GBR\PIanning Commission\GP Reso 7- 20- 06FINAL.doc Planning Commission Resolution No. 1693 Page 4of5 1. The Planning Commission declares that the issues and concerns analyzed in the Final EIR have been addressed in the General Plan as policies designed to address those issues and concerns. 2. The Planning Commission declares that adoption of this General Plan and Final EIR does not preclude the necessity or requirement for any further environmental review which would normally be conducted in conjunction with project approvals under the City of Newport Beach policies regarding the implementation of the California Environmental Quality Act. Section 2. Consistency with Recent Statutes. In recommending adoption this General Plan, the Planning Commission finds, determines and declares that every reasonable effort has been made to incorporate recent legislation into the General Plan. This includes the incorporation of specific provisions, goals, objectives and policies as follows. a. Water. This includes water supplies, stormwater management and groundwater issues as required by recent legislation. b. Social Services and the Homeless. The General Plan, as recommended by the Planning Commission, contains a series of specific objectives and policies with respect to the provision of social services, and the homeless as provided by relevant provisions of State law. C. Environmental Review. The recommended General Plan is consistent with the provisions of Assembly Bill 3180 (1988) in that it directly incorporates policies to address specific environmental effects. The Planning Commission recommends that the Planning Director or his /her designee shall be the primary party responsible for successful completion of the policies specified in the plan. The Planning Department shall file an annual report with the City Council demonstrating progress toward implementation of the plan. d. Housing. The General Plan, through its Housing Element, provides objectives, quantified targets, and specific policies for development of municipal housing programs consistent with State law. The Housing Element has been previously certified by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, and the updated element will be submitted for their review. The updated Housing Element contains substantially the same policies as the certified element, but significantly increases the number of sites available for residential development, which improves the City's ability to fulfill a level of housing production needed to meet the existing and future RHNA goals for the term of the plan. F: \USERS \PLN \Shared\GP Update GBR\Planning Commission \GP Reso 7- 20- 06FINAL.doc Planning Commission Resolution No. 1693 Page 5 of 5 Section 3. Consistency with Regional Plans. The Planning Commission finds and declares that through its efforts to reduce vehicle trips, promote walkability, preserve and protect critical watercourses and embrace sustainable technologies, the plan is consistent with: a. The regional Air Quality Management Plan of the South Coast Air Quality Management District; b. The Southern California Association of Governments Regional Comprehensive Plan, C. Airport Environs Land Use Plan for John Wayne Airport. Section 5. Public Comment. The Planning Commission affirms that it considered, to the best of its ability, all public testimony and all relevant information provided to it; and that the General Plan recommended by this resolution represents its best effort to accommodate the diverse and competing needs of residents, property owners, and social and economic components of the City's population and workforce. APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 20th day of July, 2006, by the Planning Commission of the City of Newport Beach, California. AYES: Eaton Hawkins, Toerge, Cole, Tucker McDaniel, Henn NOES: None BY: c 7obert GlIairman BY: ins, Secre F:IUSERSIPLN\Shared\GP Update GBR\PIanning Commission\GP Reso 7- 20- 06FINAL.doc