TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: David Chantarangsu, Development Services Director
PREPARED BY: Carl Stiehl, City Planner
SUBJECT: Multi-Family Residential and Mixed-Use Objective Design
Standards
title
end
RECOMMENDATION
recommendation
Conduct the second reading by title only and with further reading waived, adopt Ordinance No. 595-23 entitled: An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Murrieta, California, Amending Title 16 of the Murrieta Municipal Code to Revise the CIty's Development Code, to Implement Multi-Family Residential and Mixed-Use Residential Objective Design Standards and a Ministerial Development Plan Permit Process for Certain Qualifying Projects.
body
PRIOR ACTION/VOTE
On May 2, 2023, the City Council adopted Urgency Ordinance No. U-590-23, amending Title 16 of the Murrieta Municipal Code to revise the City's Development Code to implement multi-family residential and mixed-use residential objective design standards (Vote: 5-0).
On September 5, 2023, the City Council approved the introduction and first reading of Ordinance No. 595-23 (Vote: 5-0).
CITY COUNCIL GOAL
Maintain a high performing organization that values fiscal sustainability, transparency, accountability and organizational efficiency.
BACKGROUND
At its regular meeting on September 5, 2023, the City Council conducted the first reading of Ordinance No. 595-23 (Attachment 1). This ordinance is a Development Code Amendment to adopt and implement the revised final Multi-Family Residential and Mixed-Use Residential Objective Design Standards. The City of Murrieta (City) previously adopted an Urgency Ordinance on May 2, 2023 to begin implementation of the Objective Design Standards while the document was on public review.
As part of the Urgency Ordinance Section 16.08.040 Multi-family Residential Design Standards was amended by the City Council in May in order to reference the Standards. The Development Code Amendment (MCA 2023-00002) to fully implement the Standards provides a ministerial (by-right) Development Plan permit process for certain qualifying projects. Amendments are proposed to Section 16.08.040 Multi-family Residential Design Standards and 16.56.025 Authority, related to Development Plan permits. A Multi-Family project that is proposed that is consistent with the new State Laws to facilitate affordable housing, or that is located in the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) or Downtown and proposes 20% or more affordable housing to low-income households are allowed to utilize a streamlined ministerial Development Plan permit process. The ministerial process would be a Director level decision not subject to CEQA. A development entitlement may be approved by-right if a qualifying development meets all of the applicable standards in the Code. This is consistent with the two recently adopted Housing Element Policy Actions, 1-8 to Allow By Right Development for Projects that Propose 20 Percent Affordable Units and 3-5 to Adopt Residential Standards (the Objective Design Standards).
The implementation of a ministerial Development Plan process for these certain affordable housing projects helps to facilitate the development of the majority of the City's housing sites, identified by the Housing Element, which are located (predominately) in the Downtown and the TOD. This allows an affordable housing developer to obtain the initial entitlement on a project faster, which in turn allows the developer to apply for financing (for example, with the State) earlier in the process, which can be time consuming. The existing discretionary Development Plan process would continue for the vast majority of all other Multi-Family sites outside the Downtown, TOD or those sites not proposing to utilize the new State Laws, such as AB 2011 SB 6 or SB 35. The Objective Design Standards are primarily the same as was adopted in May with some slight changes and updates.
Environmental Documentation
The proposed action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) as this meets the required actions of CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 Projects Consistent with a Community Plan or Zoning, because it involves direction to staff to adopt and implement Design Standards, which will not cause significant environmental impact and implements a uniformly applied development policy or standard that is consistent with the General Plan Housing Element policy to further regulate multi-family residential development. This determination is predicated on Section 15004 of the guidelines, which provide direction to lead agencies on the appropriate timing for environmental review. The project(s) for which the Design Guidelines are utilized or are intended for may require preparation of an environmental document as part of their project(s) review in accordance with State CEQA Guidelines. Therefore a Notice of Exemption (NOE) with additional supporting analysis has been prepared (Attachment 2) and filed.
FISCAL IMPACT
None.
ATTACHMENTS
1) Ordinance No. 595-23
2) CEQA Notice of Exemption