That the City Council APPROVE THE FIRST READING OF ORDINANCE NO. CC 2025-__ ENTITLED: AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LA HABRA, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING ZONE CHANGE 25-0003 (ZC 25-0003), TO ADD CHAPTER 18.65 (SPECIAL EVENT PERMITS) TO TITLE 18 (ZONING) AND AMENDING SECTION 18.04.030 (TERMS DEFINED) OF CHAPTER 18.04 (DEFINITIONS), SECTION 18.06.040 (LAND USES) OF CHAPTER 18.06 (ZONES ESTABLISHED – ZONING MAP BOUNDARIES AND LAND USES), AND SECTION 18.23.090 (SIGN REGULATIONS – TEMPORARY SIGNS) OF CHAPTER 18.23 (SIGN STANDARDS) OF TITLE 18 (ZONING) OF THE LA HABRA MUNICIPAL CODE FOR CONSISTENCY WITH CHAPTER 18.65 (SPECIAL EVENT PERMITS) AND MAKING A DETERMINATION THAT THE ORDINANCE IS EXEMPT FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA) PURSUANT TO SECTIONS 15378(b)(5) AND 15061(b)(3) OF THE CEQA GUIDELINES.

On March 18, 2024, pursuant to Chapter 18.78 (Zone Changes) of the La Habra Municipal Code (LHMC), the City Council directed staff to initiate Zone Change 24-01 to, among other amendments, amend the La Habra Municipal Code (LHMC) to add regulations relating to Special Event Permits with the goal of establishing clear and consistent procedures for the application, review, and approval of special events. That City Council staff report is provided as Attachment 2. The implementation of this request is identified as Zone Change 25-0003. The Planning Commission reviewed the proposed Zone Change at a public hearing on September 22, 2025, and recommended City Council approval. Detailed information about the public hearing and the Planning Commission's recommendation is provided below under "Planning Commission Action" and in Attachments 3-5.

Section 5.04.610 (Seasonal commercial sales lots) of Title 5 (Business Taxes, Licenses and Regulations) is the only section of the LHMC that currently contains specific regulations for the approval of special events. These regulations are specific to seasonal commercial sales lots, which consist of the following three defined activities: pumpkin and Christmas tree commercial sales lots, produce stand commercial sales lot, and farmers' market commercial sales lot. The subject Zone Change does not include any modifications to the regulations for these uses, which are further described in the Planning Commission staff report (Attachment 3).

Section 18.06.040 (Land Use Matrix) of the Zoning (Title 18) Code identifies a Special Event Permit as a permitting requirement for seasonal commercial sales lots and temporary outdoor sales within all non-residential zones and prohibited in all residential zones and the open space zone. However, the requirements for obtaining a special event permit for temporary outdoor sales are not identified in the LHMC.

Staff receives requests for a variety of special events throughout the year, including: grand openings, car meet-ups/car shows, holiday promotional events, back-to-school events, and toy drives. Many of these events are limited in scope and may not include any outdoor sales, making it difficult to justify their inclusion in the same land use category as temporary outdoor sales or commercial sales lots. Staff currently relies on the procedures and restrictions identified in the Special Event Permit Application (see Attachment 3 of the Planning Commission staff report). In light of the limited regulations currently in place, staff has typically interpreted any event that is supplementary to the main business at the location as subject to the approval of a Special Event Permit. Staff processes these requests by requiring applicants to fill out and submit a Special Event Permit Application. The requirements to hold a special event are stated on the application form; however, since these requirements are not codified, they are difficult for the City’s Code Enforcement Division to enforce. The intent of the subject Zone Change is to codify and clarify these restrictions.

The proposed Zone Change would modify the language in the Land Use Matrix to cover a range of special events, which will aid in providing clarity to applicants, as well as code enforcement activities related to unpermitted events. In addition, the proposed Zone Change would add a new Chapter 18.65 (Special Events) to the Zoning Code, aimed at codifying the planning practices that staff are currently using to permit special events occurring on private property.

The new chapter would continue to differentiate between small and large special events, using the following definitions and approval authorities:

Examples of Large Special Events typically include community festivals, large car shows, and street fairs. Large Special Events will be subject to discretionary review and approval by the Planning Commission. Small special events are defined as any special event that does not qualify as a large special event. Examples of Small Special Events typically include minor promotional and holiday events, grand openings, and small car shows/meet-ups. Small Special Events will be subject to review and approval by the Director of Community and Economic Development. Appeals of the Director's decisions on Small Special Event permits will be made to the City Manager. Appeals of the Planning Commission's decisions will be made to the City Council.

The following activities would be exempt from the requirement to obtain a Special Event Permit:

In an effort to promote more small community events, the proposed Zone Change will allow businesses to host up to 12 special events per calendar year, with a minimum of 30 days between events. However, in order to discourage businesses from treating special events with outdoor sales as an extension of the footprint of the primary business on a more permanent basis, staff proposes to restrict special events with outdoor sales to four events per calendar year with 30 days in between events, as currently identified on the City's special event permit application. In addition, this restriction would be consistent with current Zoning Code provisions that require all businesses to operate entirely within an enclosed building except for automobile service stations, newsstands, outdoor garden centers and restaurants with outdoor seating/dining. To provide flexibility to businesses that want to host special events more than 12 times per year, or more than four events containing outdoor sales, the Zone Change will permit additional events, subject to the Planning Commission's approval of a conditional use permit. 

In addition to the amendments to Table 18.06.040.A (Land Use Matrix) and the new Chapter 18.65 (Special Event Permits), the proposed Zone Change includes updates to Zoning Code Section 18.04.030 (Terms Defined) of Chapter 18.04 (Definitions), and Section 18.23.090 (Sign Regulations - Temporary Signs) of Chapter 18.23 (Sign Standards) to be consistent with the language and intent of the new chapter. Staff reviewed and altered the existing definitions from the Special Event Permit Application and added to these definitions for small and large events as needed, to ensure that terms are clearly defined and easy to understand, in order to reduce the potential for the subjective interpretation of the LHMC requirements. Definition additions and changes include:

On September 22, 2025, staff presented Zone Change 25-0003 to the Planning Commission. Discussion was had between Vice Chair Ramsland and staff regarding how the City would handle events that take place on public property and events which are sponsored by the City, such as the Citrus Fair or Tamale Festival. Staff explained that the code update was only for events on private property and/or that take place within the public right of way. Events which occur on public property and that are sponsored by the City would still be processed through Community Services, as they currently are. Commissioner Manley and Chair Mahecha asked staff for further clarification about the number of events that are allowed per calendar year and if outdoor sales would be complementary to the 12 events. Staff responded that the City has received multiple requests from local businesses to host more than four events, the current maximum allowed, and that the four special events that include outdoor sales would count towards the 12-event limit. The commission discussed how a non-profit applicant could apply for a special event permit. Staff explained that the property owner would be the applicant and that all special events would be required to be in conjunction with an existing business. Vice Chair Ramsland also asked a question regarding the findings and who would determine if there is sufficient parking and how the City would ensure that special event activities do not block the right-of-way or restrict property access. Staff explained that this would be considered on a case-by-case basis based on previous similar special events.

During public comment, Bettina Vos, manager at Magnolia Vintage, spoke in favor of the zone change as it would allow for their business to have more than four car shows at their location along with their outdoor boutique sales. Ms. Vos said those events help to increase their sales and more sales means more sales tax for the City. Three additional individuals addressed the Commission, requesting clarification regarding some of the items in the zone change, not speaking in favor or against the Zone Change. Marie Laveaga, President/CEO of the La Habra Chamber of Commerce questioned whether the Chamber’s multiple activities throughout the year at different locations would be considered exceeding the proposed maximum of four outdoor sales events or 12 total special events. Chirag Patel, local business owner and Chamber board member, questioned how long it would take for the City to process a special event permit and how he would be able to determine if an event is small or large if he is unable to confirm how many people are going to show up. Michelle Bernier asked what would happen if a special event permit is approved for one location, but has to relocate to another location. She also questioned what are the penalties for not obtaining a special event permit.

During Commission discussion, Commissioner Manley asked the Commission to further discuss the processing time for a special event application. The Commission discussed concerns about an applicant potentially not being notified of issues in a timely manner, which makes it difficult for the applicant to decide if they would like to cancel or move forward with their special event. Staff explained that timing can be complicated because it can require a coordinated effort between multiple City departments and outside agencies, but that the proposed time frame was consistent with other surrounding cities. Commissioner Manley proposed increasing the minimum submittal time required for large special events from 90 days to 120 days and for small special events from 45 days to 60 days. Chair Mahecha and Commissioner Cardenas said they would be in support of that. Vice Chair Ramsland disagreed with that recommendation, saying the timeframes as written are fine and staff will work with the applicant to get their permit issued or let them know if it looks like they won’t be approved for one, and said if that motion was made he would be voting no. The Planning Commission voted 3-1 (Vice-Chair Ramsland dissented and Commissioner Logan-Canon had an excused absence) to recommend approval to the City Council with two modifications to increase the submittal deadline for small and large events. The Planning Commission staff report, minutes, and resolution are provided as Attachments 3-5.