On August 1, 2019, the Planning Commission of the City of La Habra approved Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) of Environmental Impacts 19-01 (SCH2019069091) for the Vista Grande Park Improvement Project, subject to the Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program and the Statement of Findings of Fact. Staff has reviewed Design Review 22-01 (proposed project) against the previously-approved MND and determined that said MND adequately analyzed and addressed all impacts of the proposed project. All applicable mitigation measures have been made conditions of approval of the proposed project.

That the Planning Commission approve:

A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LA HABRA APPROVING DESIGN REVIEW 22-01 TO CONSTRUCT PARK IMPROVEMENTS AT 1101 WEST LAS LOMAS DRIVE, AS PER THE APPROVED PLAN, MAKING THE APPROPRIATE FINDINGS AND SUBJECT TO CONDITIONS.

The City of La Habra is proposing to construct upgrades to the Vista Grande Park.  The 17.54 acre property was a former Class 3 municipal landfill that was acquired by the City in 1959.  Class 3 landfills are only permitted to accept non-hazardous municipal wastes.  The park straddles the Coyote Creek and the subject portion of the park located on the south side of the creek was previously used for ballfields and has a dilapidated restroom building and gravel parking lot. 

The proposed project is within the area that is bound by Coyote Creek to the north, multi-family developments to the east, Las Lomas Drive to the south, and Idaho Street to the west, (see Vicinity Map).  The General Plan land use designation for the site is Open Space.  The zoning for the site is OS (Open Space) which implements the General Plan land use designation.

The park has historically had limitations on its development due to the prior use of the property as a landfill and related issues with land settling and shifting.  Full development of the park was not possible at that time of acquisition until the settlement stopped.  Because of this, the park was not built out and was relegated to mainly passive open space use.  Between 1965 and 1985, the park had four baseball fields on it with minimal improvements.  Additionally, the park was not accessible to people with disabilities and therefore, was not available to a portion of the community.  However, in early 2000, based on continual monitoring, staff determined that the amount of settlement had stabilized.   In 2016, the City's contracted geotechnical engineers confirmed that the settlement of the soil ceased and that development of the park could commence.

In addition to land settling and shifting, methane gas generation, which was a result of decomposing organic materials, has also been an issue limiting the development of the site for many years.  The site was required to have a soil cap over landfill materials of between three feet and 23 feet.   A series of gas vents were installed to ensure that methane gas didn't accumulate on site.   These vents were monitored to ensure compliance with Air Quality Management District (AQMD) standards.   This monitoring has determined that there have been no releases of methane gas that have exceeded AQMD standards since October 2017.  In order to confirm that methane gas does not become an issue in the future, a condition of approval for the proposed park requires all vent and monitoring systems remain in place during and after construction of the new park. 

Staff initially developed two design options for the site.  A design labeled “Alternative A” was created for an “active” park that included a soccer field, basketball courts, tot lot, an amphitheater, and dog play areas.  A design labeled “Alternative B” was created for a “passive” park that omitted the soccer field and basketball courts, replacing these spaces with open lawn areas.

Staff conducted outreach to the community to gather input on the project.  In April 2019, mailers were sent out to all property owners in the City and in June and July of that same year, five community meetings were held.   The purpose of these meetings was to discuss the two proposed park lay-outs and obtain attendee park amenity preferences.  The majority of the attendees preferred a park plan that removed the soccer field and replaced it with a large landscaped open space.

The two alternatives were presented to the City Council on July 15, 2019.  The Council considered the two alternative concepts and directed staff to proceed with the final park design plan to include implementing items from the comments obtained from the community meetings.  The final design of the park implements the input from the community and provides the necessary geotechnical mitigation measures required to keep the site stable.

The lay-out of the park includes a two-way driveway from Las Lomas Drive and a ring road that allows vehicles to circle the park and stop at any of the four parking lots, which are strategically spaced out along the road (see Site Plan, above).  The various parking lots provide a total of 102 parking stalls: the lot at the northeast corner of the park provides 27 spaces, the main parking lot at the south end provides 38 spaces; the lot along the west edge provides 19 spaces; and, the lot at the northwest corner provides 18 spaces.  A small turn-around will be placed at the eastern portion of the park, just north of Las Lomas Drive, that will allow food trucks to park and sell food for special events.
 

Major amenities in the park will include the following:

- Children's playground (southwest corner)
- Amphitheater (west side)
- Basketball courts (west side)
- Volleyball court (northwest corner)
- Gazebo (northeast corner)
- Dog park with separate large dog and small dog sections (northeast corner)
- Restroom and storage building (southeast corner - see images, below)
- Work-out trail with equipment (runs parallel to ring road in northern half of park)

In addition to the aforementioned amenities, picnic benches and trash receptacles will be scattered throughout the park.  No floodlights are planned for installation in the park.

Prior to any of the improvements being made on-site, geotechnical work is necessary to ensure that the soils won't start to shift or settle again.  More specifically, the top several feet of soil will be temporarily removed so that an impermeable membrane can be placed over the landfill area, which was prone to shifting and settling, and then buried.  The primary purpose of this membrane is to keep rainwater from percolating through the aggregate materials, which may cause the soils to start shifting again.   In addition, three rainwater catch basins will be constructed along the perimeter of the membrane-covered area to handle the run-off from the ring road and divert water away from the membrane covered area.

New landscaping on-site will be substantial and consist of trees, shrubs, and turf.  The majority of the area within the ring road area and dog run area will be planted with turf and will have trees interspersed through-out this space.  The area surrounding the gazebo will be planted with native plants and shrubs, which are generally drought-tolerant and have low water use requirements.  The area outside the ring road will be planted with trees, shrubs, and ground-cover plants.

ANALYSIS

Section 18.42.050.d, of Chapter 18.42 Open Space Zone of the LHMC requires approval of a Design Review by the Planning Commission for all improvements, as per the requirements of Chapter 18.68 "Design Review" of the LHMC, "Design review is established in order to ensure that site design, buildings, structures, signs, and landscaping will be in harmony with other structures and improvements in the vicinity of the proposed development and consistent with the general plan."  The Vista Grande Park Improvement Project entails a new site design, extensive landscaping, and construction of two new structures (i.e. restroom building and gazebo).  Therefore, Planning Commission approval is required for the Design Review approval of the project to ensure that the design of the site, buildings, and landscaping are in harmony with adjacent improvements. 

In order for the Planning Commission to recommend approval of the Design Review, the following findings must be made:

1.  The proposed plan is consistent with the City's General Plan.

The project implements policies LU 2.5 Places Supporting the Quality of Life, LU 2.6 Places that Support Healthy Lifestyles, LU 3.5 Complete and Livable Neighborhoods, LU 7.5 Walkable Neighborhoods, LU 8.3 Parks and Open Space Amenities, LU 17.6 Parks and Open Spaces, OS 2.1 Parkland Standard, OS 2.4 Park Types, OS 2.12 Compatibility, OS 2.13 Sustainable Parks, OS 2.14 Healthy Parks, and OS 2.15 Accessible Facilities of the La Habra General Plan 2035.

2.  The proposed plan is consistent with the City's Zoning Ordinance.

The proposed project is a park within the area that is bounded by Coyote Creek to the north, multi-family developments to the east, Las Lomas Drive to the south, and Idaho Street to the west.  The General Plan land use designation for the site is Open Space.  The zoning for the site is OS (Open Space) which implements the site's General Plan land use designation.

3.  The proposed plan is in the best interest of the public health, safety, and welfare of the community.

The development of the park will provide usable open space and recreational amenities to the neighborhood, community, and people with disabilities.  The project will be designed and plan-checked to ensure that the public health, safety, and welfare are maintained such as conforming to relevant fire, building, accessibility, and safety codes.  Therefore, the proposed plan is in the best interest of the public and the community.    

4.  The nature of the proposed land use and the design is appropriate for the proposed location and is compatible to the surrounding land uses and improvements.

The subject site is surrounded by residential development and has a land use designation is Open Space.  The scale and design of the project are compatible with the surrounding uses which include apartment complexes, residential condominiums, a mobile home park, and single-family residences.

 
5.  The project complies with all requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act.

On August 1, 2019, the Planning Commission of the City of La Habra approved Mitigated Negative Declaration of Environmental Impacts 19-01 (SCH2019069091) for the Vista Grande Park Improvement Project, subject to the Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program and the Statement of Findings of Fact.  Staff has reviewed Design Review 22-01 against the previously-approved MND and determined that said MND adequately analyzed and addressed all impacts of the proposed project. All applicable mitigation measures have been made conditions of approval of the proposed project.

Since all the appropriate findings for the requested Design Review can be made, staff recommends that the Planning Commission approve Design Review 22-01 for the Vista Grande Park Improvement Project at 1101 West Las Lomas Road, subject to the findings and conditions in the attached resolution.

The City has obtained various grants to cover the construction of the park improvements.  All funding will be reviewed and approved by the City Council at the time of contract award.  At this time, the construction of the park improvements is estimated to cost $8.8 million dollars.  Funding has been secured to pay for these improvements to include the following sources: Statewide Park Program (SPP) Round 4 Grant ($3M), St. Jude Grants ($40K), Legacy Disposal Site Abatement Partial Grant Program ($750K), La Habra Refuse Fund ($4.7M), La Habra Water Fund ($277K), and the La Habra Park Acquisition Fund ($100K).  The construction is proposed to start in August 2022 and be completed April 2024.

The Applicant’s proposal has been reviewed pursuant to the requirements of the City’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Permit, the Local Implementation Plan (LIP), and the Model Water Quality Management Plan (WQMP), Section 7.2.  Since the proposal will constitute the disturbance of more than 5,000 square feet of soil, a Priority WQMP is required.  A Preliminary Priority WQMP has been approved.  All work undertaken will be required to incorporate Best Management Practices (BMPs) as required by the WQMP.

The project implements policies LU 2.5 Places Supporting the Quality of Life, LU 2.6 Places that Support Healthy Lifestyles, LU 3.5 Complete and Livable Neighborhoods, LU 7.5 Walkable Neighborhoods, LU 8.3 Parks and Open Space Amenities, LU 17.6 Parks and Open Spaces, OS 2.1 Parkland Standard, OS 2.4 Park Types, OS 2.12 Compatibility, OS 2.13 Sustainable Parks, OS 2.14 Healthy Parks, and OS 2.15 Accessible Facilities of the La Habra General Plan 2035.