Foothills Sentry August 2021

Foothills Sentry Page 4 August 2021 JOHNSON MOTORCARS 31 Years of Specializing in the Service and Repair of Mercedes-Benz Gary Johnson 714-997-2567 982 N. Batavia # B13, Orange, CA 92867 gary@johnsonmotorcars.com Guest Commentary Studies needed on Orange Paseo By Adam Duberstein When the City of Orange vot- ed to temporarily close Glassell Street north and south of the Pla- za during the pandemic, the effort had near unanimous support from the community. Businesses were struggling, and restaurants could not serve their customers inside. Closing the streets was a lifeline to many restaurants. Even though there were impacts to the sur- rounding community by closing off a major city street, we were all in it together. Now that the worst of the pan- demic is behind us and indoor seating is again permitted, there was an assumption from many in the community that Glassell would reopen to traffic, and life would resume as normal. The city council, however, has voted to keep the Paseo open in- definitely, and has no plans to do an impact study on this major change in the community. City staff provided a report noting that keeping the Paseo closed is cost- ing Orange taxpayers $50,000 per month in cleaning, trash pick-up and other services. Addition- ally, the city is gifting the pub- lic streets to the restaurants and shops on Glassell for free. The city polled the restaurants that benefit from this gift of pub - lic funds, and found, unsurpris- ingly, that 13 of the 14 shops sur- veyed would like to continue re- ceiving this benefit. The city did not bother to check in with even one resident who lives in the area about the impact the closure of a major city street has had on us. Tens of thousands of vehicles each week, including public bus- ses, have been rerouted to go down residential streets, creating noise, air quality and traffic im - pacts. The impact to the residents, however, is apparently irrelevant to this city council. At a minimum, the city should review the impacts of closing down one of the city’s major ar- terial roadways before doing so by fiat. The lack of regard for the residents in Orange and for the history of the Plaza is staggering. But, based on the history of this city council, not surprising. Closing this street not only has a negative impact on the resi- dents, but also on the vast major- ity of Orange businesses that do not enjoy the added benefit of significantly increasing their op - erating space. Those businesses asked the council to consider their struggles and their efforts to get back on their feet post-pandemic, but this council is clearly interest- ed in creating an uneven playing field, by picking winners and los - ers, when it comes to businesses in Orange. And once again, the residents end up getting ignored entirely. When one thinks of a govern- ment spending tax dollars to ben- efit certain businesses, while de - nying others, and simultaneously casting aside the interests of their citizens, countries like Cuba or China come to mind. This is not the Orange I know, and this is not the direction Orange should be taking. Adam Duberstein is a founder of Respect Orange, a non-parti- san group of concerned citizens focused on bettering life in Or- ange. Sentry Commentary The California legislature is poised to pass two bills that will destroy neighborhoods and for- ever alter the concept of single- family communities. The legis- lative body is not setting out to ruin neighborhoods specifically, but that’s exactly what SB9 and SB10 will do. The bills have al- ready passed the state senate and await approval by the assembly. Positioned as a way to solve the “housing crisis,” the bills will override local land-use plans and zoning designations. They will pave the way for split lots and multifamily dwellings to replace single-family homes, with little oversight and no public input. Neither bill, however, stipulates affordable housing, referring to the new units as market rate. The pending legislation, for example, would allow North Tu- stin’s large residential lots to be subdivided to allow for two sin- gle-family homes (or duplexes) on each half. Those units could be joined by accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and junior ADUs, which have already been exempt- ed from local control by legisla- tion. That means each property could host up to 10 units. The same goes for Orange Park Acres and Villa Park. Large lots, however, are not the primary target. “Middle class” neighborhoods, like most of Or- ange and the flatlands of North Tustin, are central to the scheme because they are more attrac- tive to investors. The legisla- tion would allow lot splitting on smaller properties as long as each new plot is 1,200 square feet. SB9 and SB10 were written by State Senators Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) and Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco). Both say they want to see an end to single-fam- ily zoning in California. Weiner has stated that “single-family homes and yards are immoral.” SB9 rezones, by state statute, virtually all parcels within sin- gle-family residential zones. It preempts local zoning, prohibits public hearings and discretion- ary decisions on split-lot housing, and exempts those developments from environmental review. Ap- plications to split lots must be ap- proved “ministerially.” There is no consideration for community values, i.e., heritage trees, views, bike paths, open space. With only four-foot setbacks required, units can be crammed together with no greenspace. Developers are not required to contribute to infra- structure or provide parking. SB9 does exempt historic dis- tricts, hazardous waste sites, high fire zones or land designated for conservation. Enter SB10. It gives city coun- cils and county supervisors the ability to ministerially rezone properties in loosely defined “ur - ban infill” or “transit rich” areas for 10-unit buildings.“Urban infill” in California means virtu - ally any lot containing housing or businesses, or any vacant lot. “Transit rich” means there is a bus line a half-mile away. SB10 will allow 10-unit “market-rate” apartment buildings plus granny flats on most blocks in most com - munities. The only exemption is state-de- fined high fire zones. The bill does not reconcile the impacts on in- frastructure. It invalidates CC&R restrictions and, most egregious, it allows local governing bodies to overturn zoning restrictions en- acted by voter initiative. Attorney Robert Perlmutter, who has represented Orange citi- zens on land-use issues, wrote a letter to Senator Atkins’ legal counsel regarding SB10. “As the California Supreme Court has repeatedly affirmed,” he wrote, "the initiative power is not a right granted to the people. Rather, it is a power reserved by them in their constitution. A fundamental aspect of the initiative power at the local level is that it gives the voters the final legislative word. SB10 would turn this principle on its head by giving legislative bod- ies the final word over voters.” Developers and investors are salivating. Homeowners who may see an opportunity to cash in on their residential investment might be disappointed. They must pay off their mortgages when they split their lots, and the new parcels will be reassessed at the resulting higher value. Home- owners may not want to take on a higher property tax burden, but developers will. And why not? Backed by a stable of investors, developers can outbid families looking for a home and replace a single residence with up to 10 units, with no pesky local ordi- nances to work around, no envi- ronmental impact reports to pro- duce, and no public hearings to endure. The bills must still pass the as- sembly and may go back to the senate. Assemblyman Steven Choi represents Villa Park, North Tustin, the canyons and most of Orange. Dave Min is the area's state senator. Readers are encour- aged to contact both. Commission approval for Nexx Burger appealed to city council for a good reason As a long-term East Orange property owner, I recently ap- pealed a Conditional Use Permit, Design and Minor Site Plan Re- view for a proposed Nexx Burger located at 2940 E. Chapman Ave- nue. It was approved by the plan- ning commission on May 17. The appeal centers around two important issues. First, the com- mission’s approval to use a lower parking rate -- 18 spaces instead of 31 – for Nexx Burger, by rely- ing solely on a citywide parking code that may be adopted later this fall. The future code amendment would permit a lower parking rate for all drive-thru restaurants in town. The Orange Municipal Code and California law require changes to local zoning code be done via an ordinance, reviewed first by the planning commission and then formally adopted by the city council. It’s unclear why the new code was applied to this proj- ect in May, and why the parking code amendment was moved up for council consideration from fall to Aug. 10 after my appeal. Why not follow the legal pro- cess and schedule the project for a hearing, after the new parking code was adopted? This appeal will give the city council the ability to review all of this more closely. Second, the proposal for a new 3,070 sq. ft. fast-food Nexx Burger includes a new drive-thru. The property was formerly home to Johnny Rebs which didn’t have a drive-thru. The addition of a drive-thru brings the need for proper vehicle queuing, detailed vehicle clearance for cars to park and circulate around the building, safe pedestrian paths including ADA needs, and trash truck, de- livery and emergency access. I believe the council should take a careful look at these details too. This second look should en- sure vehicle conflicts on and off-site will not occur. Plus, it lets the neighbors chime in. All the owners in the area have pri- vate property rights that must be equally guaranteed and protected. A delay in cooking an order or a full parking lot, could push park- ing onto the surrounding streets, to adjacent commercial centers, and/or have vehicles stacked out to Chapman Avenue. I strongly support Nexx Burger joining the Orange business com- munity. But we should expect it to follow the rules. The final record should reflect that the details are spot-on, and no parking problems or circulation issues will ever happen on or off-site. I would also like to know if the city coun- cil concurs that it's appropriate to use a lower parking code rate without reviewing or adopting it first. The council hearing is Aug. 10. What do you think? Adrienne Gladson, AICP, for- mer Orange Planning Commis- sion chair. Guest Commentary Foothill High to hold 50th reunion A reunion for members of the Foothill High Class of 1971 is slated for Saturday, Sept. 25 at the Tustin Ranch Golf Club, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Lunch will be served, and an alumni directory/biography booklet will be provided to all attend- ees. For information, visit the re- union website at reunion-spe- cialists.com or call (760) 721- 0525. Tickets are $115 per per- son prior to Aug. 25, and may be purchased via the website. Single-family zoning is under fire statewide