This project was reviewed pursuant to the guidelines of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and determined to be exempt pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA guidelines which covers activities with no possibility of having a significant effect on the environment.

Staff is requesting a number of amendments to the LHMC that are intended to be part of a larger Code Streamlining and Improvement Program, in which, on a semi-annual basis, City staff will propose code amendments to bring the Zoning Code into compliance with recent State legislation, streamline project processing, remove unnecessary regulations and clarify requirements to make the Zoning Code easier to implement. The amendments that are the subject of this request are to Title 2 (Administration and Organization) and Title18 (Zoning) and pertain to reducing the minimum number of Planning Commission meetings held monthly from two meetings to one meeting, exempting City projects from Title 18, simplifying the permitting requirements for restaurants that serve food "to-go" and restaurants with outdoor seating, and bringing Title 18 into compliance with State Density Bonus law. The proposed amendments are briefly described below; italics identify original text in the Municipal Code, red strike-through (strike through) identifies text that is proposed to be removed, bold, blue font (blue font) identifies added text. The report is structured in chronological order based on Title, Chapter and Section. The requested changes to the Municipal Code are identified in full in the attached Exhibits A through G.

Meetings. The planning commission shall hold at least two regular meetings one regular meeting each month for the transaction of its business. The commission shall adopt rules and regulations to govern procedures and shall, by a duly adopted resolution, set a time for regular meetings. Additional adjourned or special meetings may be held from time to time as needed, provided that said meetings are properly called and noticed according to state law.
 

On average within the last four years, 20 percent of the regularly scheduled Planning Commission meetings have been canceled and more than half of the meetings have only had a single public hearing item for consideration. Planning Commission meetings with a single public hearing item may last between 15 and 25 minutes in total duration.
 

Calendar Year	Number of Commission Meetings	Canceled Meetings	Meetings with a single Item for consideration
2018	23	3	13 meetings
2019	24	7	11 meetings
2020	27	6	10 meetings
2021	24	5	12 meetings

To increase efficiency for both Staff and the Planning Commission, it is recommended that the meeting schedule be modified by reducing the number of Planning Commission meetings to one regular meeting each month (as per Exhibit A). This change would result in more projects being heard at each meeting, making better use of the Commissioners time and staff resources. Should the need for an additional meeting arise, the code continues to allow for additional adjourned or special meeting in any given month. For example if the Commission wished to continue, they could adjourn to a date certain and hear an item as soon as practical in lieu of waiting a full month. If the proposed amendment is adopted by City Council, staff will follow this action with a Planning Commission resolution to set a time for these meetings; staff recommends that the meetings be held on the second Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m.
 

“Food-to-go restaurant” means any premises or retail place of business where beverages, foods or refreshments are prepared, processed or treated for retail sale on the premises, and not to be consumed with limited on-site consumption. on the premises where sold. A maximum of five (5) tables and ten (10) seats may be provided for waiting food orders and/or food consumption. If at least fifty percent of the premises is designed for, constructed for or used for the purposes enumerated herein, then such place of business shall be deemed to be a food-to-go restaurant.
 

The requested update to modify the definition for "food to go restaurant" is designed to provide restaurant operators the option of limited dining functions or seating for those waiting for their orders to be filled (as per Exhibit B).The primary function would remain to-go. This would help to accommodate and streamline the regulations for smaller restaurants that specialize in items that are typically purchased for off-site consumption, such as coffee, boba, ice cream or sandwiches. 

The proposed amendments to Section 18.04.030 Terms defined, Table 18.06.040.A - Land Use Matrix, and parking Table 18.14.060.B.6, will authorize food to go restaurants with limited interior seating capacity to be permitted outright. The Land Use Matrix will identify "Restaurants - food to go" as a permitted use within commercial zones and within commercial districts of the La Habra Boulevard Specific Plan (as per Exhibit C). A Conditional Use Permit (CUP) will still be required for all restaurant types located within light industrial, planned commercial industrial and open space zones since, general commercial uses including restaurants are not common within those three zoning classifications. A CUP will also still be required for all alcohol sales and service in conjunction with any restaurant.

Currently, the La Habra Municipal Code (LHMC) requires a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for all restaurants that prepare food and drinks/beverages/refreshments onsite. In practice, a CUP has been required for all coffee shops, sandwich shops, juice, smoothies and specialty drink stores (boba), ice cream and yogurt shops, bakeries and donut shops that include onsite food and beverage preparation. A CUP has also been required for convenience stores and grocery stores that include retail of food items that are prepared and packaged onsite. Some of these businesses can be described as "specialty type restaurants" specializing in the preparation of a particular food or beverage. The operational characteristics of the above-mentioned uses are considered less intensive than a drive-thru or a full dine-in type restaurant that includes alcoholic beverages in conjunction with meals.

Some specialty type restaurants can be found within commercial shopping centers, typically operating within smaller sized suites. Based on the size of suite and available onsite parking, seating capacity is typically limited to a waiting area and a few tables and chairs as the main business function revolves around food to go service. The zoning code does not define "specialty type restaurants", however, "food to go restaurant" is defined in the code as a "retail place of business where beverages, foods or refreshments are prepared" thus including all restaurant types. The current "food to go restaurant" definition does not allow the consumption of food or beverages onsite. The intent of the zoning code amendment is to broaden the definition to allow food to go type restaurants the option to include a dining area limited to a maximum of five tables and ten seats. The limited interior dining area would allow customers to consume food or beverages onsite. Over the years, various comments have been received by potential restaurant operators and property owners, of the difficulty in establishing a food-to-go restaurant or specialty type restaurant in the City, as these uses are processed exactly the same as a full service, dine in and drive-thru style restaurant.

The requested amendment will exempt City projects from the requirements of Title 18 to allow for greater design flexibility for civic projects that may have characteristics that would not comply with standard zoning requirements (as per Exhibit D). Currently, if a City project does not meet Title 18 requirements, there is limited flexibility in the Code to allow such deviation, the proposed Code amendment would provide this flexibility. For example, the City would like to provide more parking for the Community Center on property it recently purchased. Strict enforcement of the development standards required for this property would greatly limit the number of spaces that could be provided for the civic use, making the project impracticable. If the proposed amendment is approved, City projects would continue to be reviewed internally by the Development Review Committee (DRC), which includes staff members from all City departments including but not limited to LA County Fire, Police, Public Works, Community Services, and Community Development; and would be required to meet all other requirements of the LHMC, including the Building Code. In addition, City projects would be expected to meet or exceed Title 18 requirements; however, there would be room for flexibility in the event that the civic purpose of the development requires such flexibility. 

In 2020, the Planning Division approved over 41 temporary outdoor dining permits Citywide, which provided local restaurants the opportunity to remain open during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The permits allowed temporary outdoor dining areas on private property within parking lots and sidewalk areas. The temporary outdoor dining permits were administrative permits with general guidelines not involving any processing fees or design standards. The zoning code currently includes regulations for outdoor seating areas approved and adopted in 2010. Under the current regulations, outdoor seating areas are limited to 250 square feet and approved via an Administrative Adjustment. The current regulations do not allow the conversion or use of on-site parking into an outdoor seating/dining area. 

Staff is proposing to revise the section entirely to allow the use of on-site parking for permanent outdoor seating areas; the complete revised section is provided in the attached draft ordinance (Exhibit E) and generally summarized as follows.  The proposed requirements would allow outdoor seating areas that are less than or equal to 25 percent of the restaurant's total floor area to be approved via an Administrative Adjustment and would not require additional parking. Larger seating areas beyond 25 percent will be subject to a parking study and review and approval by Planning Commission as a CUP Modification. This threshold was intended to be consistent with the amount of parking that is used for Special Events. Currently, under the Special Event Policy Guidelines, special events, some of which take place in parking lot areas, are classified as small events or large events based on the percentage of available on-site parking utilized for the event. Small events do not utilize more than 25 percent of available on-site parking, while large events can utilize more than 25 percent. The 25 percent threshold has been a successful measuring tool and is proposed to be applied to the outdoor seating area requirements.

As described above outdoor seating areas that are less than or equal to 25 percent of the restaurant's total floor area would be approved through an Administrative Adjustment; larger outdoor seating areas would be reviewed using the "Modification" Application process.  In this process a restaurant's approved Conditional Use Permit could be modified to include the permanent outdoor seating area. The Modification permit process will require DRC review as well as Planning Commission approval. Restaurant CUPs are linked to an approved resolution that includes Standard Conditions and Project Specific Conditions of approval. Most resolutions include Standard Condition 1.6 Plans, which specifies the CUP's project plan's date stamped (or date of submittal) and Planning Commission approval date. The condition also specifies: "the project shall be developed and maintained in substantial conformance with said plans, except as otherwise specified in these conditions of approval". The Modification, once approved, will include a new resolution that will reference the original CUP and include a new set of project plans depicting the outdoor seating area thereby binding the outdoor seating area to the CUP.  This process will allow permanent outdoor seating areas in conjunction with a CUP to continue so long as the business is in operation. 

For reference, ksf is defined as "1,000 square feet" and GFA is defined as "Gross Floor Area". The above requested modification to Table 18.14.060.B.6 will eliminate the phrase "no seating" to the "Restaurant - food to go" land use to tie in with the above changes for food to go restaurants (as per Exhibit F). In addition, these uses would be subject to the same requirements as retail and general commercial (four storefronts or less) and integrated retail commercial center (at least five storefronts), which required four spaces per ksf GFA and 3.3 per ksf GFA, respectively.  The intent is to incorporate flexibility in the zoning code by allowing food to go restaurants outright within the specified commercial zones. On-site parking in conjunction with a food to go restaurant is not anticipated to cause a detriment to the public welfare or unreasonably interfere with the use of surrounding and adjacent properties. The amendment will provide local property owners with an additional option when it comes to leasing a vacant commercial suite or building.  

Title 18 Zoning, Chapter 18.80 Affordable Housing Incentives
Parts of Chapter 18.80 are required to be updated to reflect current State legislation related to The Density Bonus Law as specified in Government Code Sections 65915 through 65918, which would provide additional design flexibility for projects that provide affordable housing, as required by State law (as per Exhibit G).

The requested amendments to the zoning code related to food to go restaurants will eliminate the Conditional Use Permit requirement for that specific use which involves a processing fee of $6,252.00 per project; these uses would still be subject to plan check, building permit and City business license fees, as applicable. The proposed amendment related to permanent outdoor seating areas will include the filing of an application for an "Administrative Adjustment" at a fee of $334.00 or a "Modification" at a fee of $4,291.00 per project, as identified in the Master Fee Schedule. The amendment to exempt City projects from Title 18 is anticipated to reduce staff time allocated to the review and approval of these projects, freeing up resources for other City activities.

The 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 no disturbance of soil will occur, this project is exempted by the Water Quality Ordinance from the preparation of a WQMP.

This project implements Policies LU 2.2 Places to Shop, LU 2.3 Places to Work, LU 3.2 Uses to Meet Daily Needs, LU 4.1 Development Compatibility, LU 4.4 Design Review, LU 6.1 Equitable Distribution of Uses and Amenities, LU 11.1 Diversity of Uses, LU 11.2 Compact and Vital Commercial Development, LU 11.9 Retail Streetscapes, ED 2.3 Business Attraction-Retention, ED 5.2 Code Incentives, H 1.1 Support State Housing Policy, and P 1.4 Small Business Parking Requirements of the La Habra General Plan 2035.