TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THRU: Tom Kisela, City Manager
FROM: Russell Bunim, Community Development Director
1. Subject
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Public Hearing to consider introduction and First Reading of two ordinances approving a Zoning Text Amendment and Development Agreement allowing expanded business activities at Blue Ribbon Nursery and dedication of a former sand and gravel pit to the City of Orange as permanent open space at 5309 East Santiago Canyon Road and alternate addresses 1425 North Santiago Boulevard and 1921 Old Country Park Road; and finding of CEQA exemption. Ordinance Nos. 26-24 and 27-24. Resolution No. 11572.
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2. Summary
The applicant proposes an Ordinance amending Chapter 17.13 of the Orange Municipal Code to allow the sale of building materials and landscape supplies in a Sand and Gravel Zone in conjunction with an existing commercial nursery subject to a Conditional Use Permit, and associated Development Agreement to allow expanded business activities at an existing nursery in conjunction with dedicating the naturalized former “Chandler Pit” sand and gravel pit to the City to retain as permanent open space at Blue Ribbon Nursery.
3. Recommended Action
recommendation
1. Conduct and close Public Hearing.
2. Introduce and conduct First Reading of Ordinance No. 26-24. An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Orange amending Title 17 of the Orange Municipal Code to allow the sale of building materials and landscape supplies in a Sand and Gravel Zone in conjunction with a commercial nursery subject to a conditional use permit.
3. Introduce and conduct First Reading of Ordinance No. 27-24. An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Orange approving a Development Agreement No. 0010-24 by and between the City of Orange and OC Reclamation, LLC a California Limited Liability Company.
4. Adopt City Council Resolution No. 11572. A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Orange approving Conditional Use Permit No. 3229-24 to allow the expanded sale of building materials and landscape supplies in conjunction with the existing Blue Ribbon Nursery at 5309 East Santiago Canyon Road.
5. Find that the proposed action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) per State CEQA Guidelines pursuant to, but not limited to Section 15305, 15307, and 15308.
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4. Fiscal Impact
None
5. Strategic Plan Goals
Goal 3: Enhance and promote quality of life in the community
e: Develop and strengthen collaborative partnerships to enhance and promote quality of life programs, projects, and services.
6. Discussion and Background
The City of Orange approved Conditional Use Permit No. 1744 and Administrative Adjustment 89-4 in 1989 to allow for the operation of the Blue Ribbon Nursery at the approximately 14-acre subject property. Adjacent to north of the Blue Ribbon Nursery site is the naturalized excavated “Chandler Pit” and the abutting Santiago Creek corridor. Sand and gravel mining ceased at the Chandler Pit in the 1960s, and over the course of the ensuing 50 years the pit has become naturalized with mature vegetation, wetlands, and habitat for a variety of species associated with the Santiago Creek corridor.
Creek corridor planning efforts on the part of community groups, the City, and the County of Orange dating back to the 1970s have contemplated establishing a greenbelt along Santiago Creek, recognizing the sand and gravel pits along the creek corridor as opportunities for protected open space for purposes of habitat or recreation.
The overall site presently consists of three Assessor Parcels, one of which encompasses the Chandler Pit (see Attachment 10). The parcel and operational footprint associated with the Blue Ribbon Nursery’s 1989 Conditional Use Permit does not include the parcel immediately adjacent to Santiago Canyon Road that is of a similar depth to the nursery parcel nor the larger Chandler Pit parcel. In 2017, the applicant paved the parcel at the southeastern corner of the site for informal use as parking, truck, and equipment storage for the nursery. At the present time, the area is used for truck and equipment storage, as well as for the storage of landscape materials, building supplies, and firewood.
The overall site is zoned Sand and Gravel (SG). Under the current SG provisions of the Zoning Ordinance, use of this paved parcel for parking or other materials storage or sales associated with the nursery is not permitted. The applicant proposes to expand the operating area of the existing nursery and landscape supply business and enter into a Development Agreement with the City of Orange to dedicate the Chandler Pit to the City to retain as open space. A Zoning Text Amendment is proposed to allow the sale of building materials and landscape supplies in the SG zone in conjunction with an existing commercial nursery subject to a Conditional Use Permit (CUP). Therefore, the applicant is also requesting approval of a CUP to accommodate an expanded operational footprint for the nursery. A Lot Line Adjustment will be required as a condition of approval (Condition #10 in Resolution No. 11572) to establish a lot line following the upper limits of the Chandler Pit, separating it from the portion of the site that will be actively used for the nursery and landscape supply operation.
Detailed information about proposed material storage, hours of operation, and equipment and vehicle storage are provided in Attachments 9 and 10.
Issue 1: Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment and Conditional Use Permit
While the proposed Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment allowing the nursery expansion in the SG zone and proposed CUP are being heard concurrently, Condition of Approval #6 in Resolution No. 11572 (Attachment 4) specifies that the CUP will not be in place until the effective date of the proposed Ordinance and execution of the Development Agreement.
Issue 2: Community Benefit
Creating a means to formalize the Blue Ribbon Nursery’s operational needs in conjunction with dedication of the Chandler Pit as open space benefits the community in multiple ways. The proposed actions resolve the long-standing questions and concerns about the filling of the pit and its future development potential, support public interest and Santiago Creek plans by incrementally establishing a greenbelt along the creek, and supporting the expansion and viability of a long-time local business. Leaving the pit in its naturalized state also supports habitat for flora and fauna associated with the creek corridor, and the City’s ecological diversity.
7. ADVISORY BOARD ACTION
Planning Commission
The Planning Commission conducted a public hearing for the Zone Change on August 5, 2024 and recommended approval to the City Council by a 6-0 vote. Meeting minutes are provided as Attachment 8.
8. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Categorical Exemption: The proposed action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to, but not limited to, State CEQA Guidelines Section 15305 (Minor Alterations in Land Use Limitations), Section 15307 (Actions by Regulatory Agencies for the Protection of Natural Resources), and Section 15308 (Actions by Regulatory Agencies for Protection of the Environment) because it accommodates the storage and sale of building materials and landscape supplies on portions of a commercial nursery site that are already paved or are unpaved but in a disturbed, non-native condition and retains a former sand and gravel pit in a naturalized condition that has evolved since excavation ceased, to include wetlands and habitat for flora and fauna associated with the Santiago Creek corridor. For this reason, no further CEQA documentation is required.
9. ATTACHMENTS
• Attachment 1 Ordinance No. 26-24 (Clean)
• Attachment 2 Ordinance No. 26-24 (Redline)
• Attachment 3 Ordinance No. 27-24
• Attachment 4 Resolution No. 11572
• Attachment 5 Planning Commission Resolution No. PC 21-24
• Attachment 6 Planning Commission Resolution No. PC 22-24
• Attachment 7 Planning Commission Resolution No. PC 23-24
• Attachment 8 Planning Commission Minutes, August 5, 2024
• Attachment 9 Planning Commission Staff Report, August 5, 2024
• Attachment 10 Attachment Project Plans