ITEM 11-A
Council Mtg: September 25, 1990 Santa Monica, California
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Staff
SUBJECT: Recommendation to Direct City Attorney to Prepare an
Ordinance Approving Text Amendment 89-001 to Facilitate
Housing Development in the Commercial Areas of the
City. Applicant: Community Corporation of Santa
Monica (CCSM)
SUMMARY
This report recommends modification of Municipal Code Section
9018.6 regarding FAR standards in the C3 District, and Section
9050.11, regarding Performance Standards for residential units in
commercial zones. The proposed amendment to Section 9018.6(b)
would apply to the C3 zone FAR standard. The amendments to
Section 9050.11 would apply to commercial zones throughout the
City where a Performance Standards Permit (PSP) is required for
residential units to be developed, including: C2 (Neighborhood
Commercial District); C3 (Downtown Commercial District); C3-C
(Downtown Overlay District); C4 (Highway Commercial District);
C6 (Boulevard Commercial District); and CP (Commercial
Professional District. The proposed amendments have been reviewed
by the Planning Commission and recommended for approval.
PROPOSED PROJECT
Two of the three text amendments were proposed by CCSM in
response to design issues encountered in development of two
Single Room Occupancy (SRO) affordable housing projects on Second
Street in the City's downtown. One of the projects is currently
under environmental review; application for the second project is
pending. Another text amendment is being proposed by staff as an
add-on to CCSM's amendment of the PSP section of the code and is
supported by CCSM, although it would have no effect on the two
Second Street projects.
The first of the proposed text amendments would involve the
modification of Section 9018.6(b) (SMMC) of the C3 Property
Development Standards section. The purpose of the proposed Text
Amendment is to permit an FAR of 3.0 if at least 50% of the floor
area of the project is restricted to residential uses, and not
less than 49% of the units are deed restricted for low and
moderate-income households. The FAR otherwise permitted in the
C3 district is 2.0. An FAR of 3.0 is allowed in the C3 district
by Section 9040.40 "upon approval by the City Council of specific
review criteria." The amendment would provide such criteria.
The second text amendment to Section 9050.11(a) of the
Performance Standards section of the code is one proposed by
staff. The amendment would delete language prohibiting ground
floor locations for residential units in commercial zones, and
substitute a requirement that any such units be located at least
50 feet from the ground floor street front.
The third text amendment, which is proposed by CCSM, would delete
Section 9050.11(i) of the Performance Standards section of the
code. The amendment would delete requirements that any
residential units be located an average of 10 feet and a minimum
of 5 feet from any property line. As originally requested, the
amendment would have simply deleted the 5 foot minimum
requirement and retain the 10 foot average requirement, but the
Planning Commission recommended that the entire section be
deleted, since the Uniform Building Code contains standards
governing provision of light and air to residential units which
the Commission felt were adequate. Staff supports the
Commission's action.
CEQA STATUS
The proposed Text Amendments are categorically exempt from the
provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant
to Class 5(10) of the Santa Monica Guidelines for Implementation
of CEQA.
ANALYSIS
The Zoning Ordinance contains several "bonus" provisions to
encourage and facilitate housing development. For example, in
the C3C zone, an FAR of 2.5 is permitted, but floor area devoted
to residential uses can be discounted at 50%. In the C3 zone,
which one of the amendments would affect, an FAR of 2.5 is
permitted in the area bounded by 6th and 7th streets between
Santa Monica Boulevard and Broadway, if at least 50% of the
project is restricted to residential uses.
The proposed amendment to the C3 FAR standard would allow an FAR
of 3.0 if at least half the project is residential, and if at
least 49% of the units are deed restricted for low and moderate
income households. This increase in FAR appears to be a logical
progression from the 2.5 FAR allowance in part of the C3 zone for
simply providing a project which is 50% residential. The text
amendment is consistent with the City's goal of encouraging
housing development, and particularly affordable housing
development in the commercial districts.
Two amendments are proposed to the Performance Standards section
of the Code concerning development of residential units in
commercial zones. The first of these would allow residential
units to be located on the ground floor in these zones, as long
as the units were not closer than 50 feet to the ground floor
street front of the parcel. The present prohibition against
ground floor units makes development of mixed use projects which
are predominantly residential problematic--particularly for
larger sites. For example, several prospective developers of
primarily residential projects on a large site on Pico Boulevard
would have been forced to develop the ground floor entirely with
commercial uses, when their preference would have been street
front commercial, with interior ground floor areas in residential
use. The proposed amendment would preserve the commercial
integrity of the streets-fronts in affected districts, while
facilitating residential development away from the street front.
The final proposed text amendment regards setback requirements
for residential units permitted via PSP. Presently, Section
9050.11(i) requires that residential units be setback an average
of 10 feet, but no less than 5 feet from all property lines. The
amendment would delete these requirements, and setbacks would
simply have to conform to provisions of the Uniform Building Code
regarding provision of light and air to residential units. The
present requirement assumes that side setbacks are the most
appropriate method of assuring adequate light and air for
residential units in commercial zones. However, in some
situations, this requirement is not ideal given the location and
size of adjacent structures. For example, one of the CCSM
projects would be located immediately adjacent to a City parking
structure, which will tower over the CCSM housing project. In
such a situation, central court areas or light wells may be more
appropriate than rigid 5- and 10-foot setbacks around the
perimeter of the project. Thus, the proposed amendment would
allow greater flexibility in design solutions for residential
projects in commercial zones. The Uniform Building Code requires
that at least ten percent of the space in habitable rooms be
provided light and air via windows, light wells, and other means.
Planning Commission Action
On August 1, 1990 the Planning Commission conducted a public
hearing on the proposed text amendments. All of the public
speakers favored the amendments. The Planning Commission
approved the proposed amendments, making the one change to the
setback requirements discussed above. The Commission is
recommending that the Council approve the amendments.
Text Amendment Procedures
The procedures for the processing of Text Amendments are
specified under SMMC Section 9120.4. If, from the facts
presented, the Council finds that "the proposed amendment is
consistent in principle with the goals, objectives, policies,
land uses, and programs specified in the General Plan" and that
"the public health, safety, and general welfare require the
adoption of the proposed amendment," the Council may approve the
amendments. The City Council may, by Ordinance, effect the
amendment or any portion thereof.
CONCLUSION
The proposed Text Amendments are intended to facilitate housing
development in the commercial areas of the City, as well as
affordable housing, which is consistent with the goals of the
Housing Element.
BUDGET/FINANCIAL IMPACT
The recommendations of this staff report would have no budget or
financial impacts.
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council approve the amendments
with the following findings, and direct the City Attorney to
prepare an ordinance amending the relevant sections of the Zoning
Ordinance:
(a) The proposed amendments are consistent in principle
with the goals, objectives, policies land uses, and
programs specified in the adopted General Plan in that the
City's adopted 1987 version of the Housing Element has
numerous policies and objectives promoting housing
development, with a particular emphasis on affordable
housing. For example, a key goal is to "Promote the
construction of new housing"; and one of the Element's
policies is to "Encourage and create incentives for the
development of housing in commercial zones..."
Development of affordable housing is also of prime import,
as expressed by the committment to "Maintain and increase
the supply of housing affordable to low- and
moderate-income persons."
(b) The public health, safety, and general welfare require
the adoption of the proposed amendments, in that the
amendments will facilitate the development of affordable
housing projects in the C3 zone as well as mixed-use proj-
ects in the commercial zones of the City, which is antici-
pated to result in more efficient use of resources through
reduced reliance on the automobile for transportation,
since the units will be located in commercial areas with
ample public transportation, and within walking distance
to shopping and employment opportunities.
Prepared by: D. Kenyon Webster, Senior Planner
David Martin, Associate Planner
Attachments: Proposed amendements
NOTE: The attachments are not available on PEN, but may be
obtained from the City Clerk's office.