For the Planning Commission Meeting of October 2, 2024
TO: Honorable Chairman and Planning Commissioners
APPROVAL: Colby Cataldi, Director of Community Development
REVIEWED BY: Paul Gonzales, Community Development Manager
FROM: Daniel Rosas, Senior Planner
Title
Conditional Development Permit No. 2022-0036: A request to allow the development and use of a 118,000 square foot industrial warehouse building on 5.63 acres of land (APN: 0258-171-57 & 0258-171-31) located on the west side of Willow Avenue approximately 1,300 feet south of Santa Ana Avenue within the Heavy Industrial (H-IND) zone of the Agua Mansa Industrial Corridor Specific Plan. A Mitigated Negative Declaration has been prepared for the proposed project pursuant to the requirements of California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Environmental Assessment Review No. 2022-0058).
Precise Plan of Design No. 2022-0060: A request for site and architectural review of the proposed 118,000 square foot industrial warehouse building
Body
APPLICANT:
Scannell Properties, 8801 River Crossing Blvd, Suite 300, Indianapolis, IN 46240
LOCATION:
The project site consists of two (2) parcels of land (APN: 0258-171-57 & 0258-171-31) located on the west side of Willow Avenue approximately 1,300 feet south of Santa Ana Avenue within the Heavy Industrial (H-IND) zone of the Agua Mansa Industrial Corridor Specific Plan, as shown on the attached location map Exhibit A.
BACKGROUND:
Surrounding General Plan Land Use Designations
|
Location |
General Plan Designation |
|
Site |
General Industrial with Specific Plan Overlay |
|
North |
General Industrial with Specific Plan Overlay |
|
East |
General Industrial with Specific Plan Overlay |
|
South |
Light Industrial with Specific Plan Overlay |
|
West |
Light Industrial with Specific Plan Overlay |
Surrounding Zoning Designations
|
Location |
Zoning or Specific Plan Land Use Designation |
|
Site |
Heavy Industrial (H-IND) of the Agua Mansa SP |
|
North |
Heavy Industrial (H-IND) of the Agua Mansa SP |
|
East |
Heavy Industrial (H-IND) of the Agua Mansa SP |
|
South |
Light Industrial (M-1) |
|
West |
Heavy Industrial (H-IND) of the Agua Mansa SP |
Site Characteristics
The project is comprised of two (2) parcels totaling approximately 5.63 gross acres in size with approximate dimensions of 330 feet (north-south) by 743 feet (east-west). The project site is bound on the east by the Willow Avenue. Approximately 4 acres of the site is developed and consists of two existing industrial buildings occupied by Dura Technologies and Revchem Composites on one of the parcels. The remaining 1.6-acre parcel remains vacant.
Surrounding Area
North of the project site is a transportation logistics facility occupied by the Hub Group. To the east the project site, across Willow Avenue, is a 10.5-acre reinforcing steel facility occupied by the Pacific Steel Group. To the south of the project site is a transportation logistics facility occupied by the Hollywood Delivery Service. To the west of the project site 3.8 acres of vacant land.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION:
The applicant, Scannell Properties, proposes to construct a 118,00 square foot industrial warehouse building with on and off-site improvements for the project site. The building would accommodate various storage and distribution uses.
Site Design
As shown on the site plan (Exhibit B), the applicant proposes to construct a 118,000 square-foot industrial warehouse building. The proposed layout includes passenger vehicle parking on the east and west sides of the building and a truck court on the south side of the building. A total of 89 passenger vehicle parking stalls are proposed on-site. The proposed truck court will have 16 dock doors, 1 grade-level door. Two (2) driveways are proposed along the Willow Avenue frontage to provide access to the site. The south driveway will be full access for all vehicles including trucks. The north driveway will be limited to passenger vehicles and emergency vehicle access only. As such, trucks will only be permitted to enter and exit the site via the south driveway (as shown in Exhibit C - Truck Flow Diagram).
Lot Line Adjustment
As previously mentioned, the project site currently consists of two parcels and the applicant is required to consolidate the two parcels into one parcel to facilitate the development. A Lot Line Adjustment application (LLA2023-0007) has previously been approved by the Community Development Department to merge the parcels and the merger is currently being processed through the Engineering Division for review and approval. A condition of approval has been added to the resolution requiring that the applicant to record the lot merger (as shown in Exhibit D - Lot Line Adjustment) with the County of San Bernardino prior to the issuance of building permits.
Floor Plan
The floor plan for the proposed building (Exhibit E) consists of 7,000 square feet of office space and 111,000 square feet of warehouse storage area. The office space will occupy the southeast corner of the building with 3,500 square feet on the ground floor and 3,500 square feet on the second floor. The south side of the building will have sixteen (16) dock high loading doors and one (1) grade level roll-up door.
Architectural Design
The proposed building will feature significant vertical and horizontal wall plane articulation in the form of recessed wall panels, projected wall panels, and panel height variations on all four (4) sides of the building. As shown on the elevations (Exhibit F), the height of the building will range from 40’-6” to 42’-0” feet from the finished grade. The exterior of the building is proposed with concrete tilt-up wall construction painted with a palette of three (3) gray tones, white and blue. Additional architectural features of the building include wall panel reveals, metal canopy accent, and high-performance glazing.
Parking
The development will have 89 auto-parking spaces including six (6) ADA accessible parking spaces. This quantity exceeds the minimum parking requirement as shown in the parking calculation chart below and as required by Chapter 18.58 (Off-Street Parking) of the Rialto Municipal Code:
|
Type of Use |
Floor Area (square feet) |
Parking Ratio |
Number of spaces |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Office |
|
|
|
|
Ground |
7,000 |
1 / 300 |
24 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Warehouse |
|
|
|
|
Floor area up to 10,000sf |
10,000 |
1 / 1,000 |
10 |
|
Floor area beyond 10,000sf |
101,000 |
2 / 1,000 |
51 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total Required |
|
|
85 |
|
Total Provided |
|
|
89 |
Landscaping
The landscape coverage for the project is 10.4 percent which exceeds the city landscape requirement. This includes a twenty-five (25) foot landscape setback along Willow Avenue as well as planters around the perimeter of the building and the project site. All the landscape planters will feature a variety of trees spaced every thirty (30) linear feet and an abundant number of shrubs and groundcover (Exhibit G).
Traffic
Kimley-Horn and Associates prepared a Focused Traffic Study, dated November 23, 2024, to assess the project’s potential impacts to local streets and intersections, as well as vehicle miles travelled (Exhibit H). The TIA estimates that the project will generate up to 205 actual daily vehicle trips with approximately 20 trips in the AM peak hour and 22 trips in the PM peak hour. Trucks will constitute approximately 82 of the 205 potential daily vehicle trips. The TIA concluded that the project would generate an insignificant amount of traffic, and all nearby intersections and roadway segments will continue to operate at acceptable Level of Service (LOS). Although there are no recommended improvements at the study area intersections, the project will be required to pay Development Impact Fees and project improvements may include a combination of fee payments construction of specific improvements, payment of a fair share contribution toward future improvements or a combination of these approaches.
Land Use Compatibility
The project is consistent with the M-IND zone, the regulations contained within Chapter 18.112 (Indoor Storage Uses) of the Rialto Municipal Code, and the existing industrial uses to the north, east and south of the project site. The are no sensitive uses near the project site. The development and operation of the proposed industrial warehouse building will not significantly impact the surrounding uses since measures, such as the placement of the truck court on the south side of the building, the installation of solid screen walls around the truck court, and the installation of landscape planters around the perimeter of the building and the project site will reduce both noise and visual impacts to acceptable levels. Additionally, the Draft Resolutions of Approval contain conditions of approval requiring that the project not exceed the traffic estimates contained within the traffic study, thereby ensuring that the project will not significantly impact local streets and intersections. The project will be a benefit to the community and an improvement to the surrounding area.
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY:
The General Plan land use designation of the site is General Industrial. According to Chapter 2 (Managing Our Land Supply) of the Rialto General Plan, industrial warehouse and distribution buildings, such as the project, are consistent with the General Industrial land use designation. Furthermore, the project is consistent with the following goals of the Land Use Element and Economic Development Element of the Rialto General Plan:
Goal 2-16: Improve the architectural and design quality of development in Rialto.
Goal 2-22: Promote commercial and/or industrial development that is well designed, people-oriented, environmentally sustainable, sensitive to the needs of the visitor or resident, and functionally efficient for its purpose.
Goal 3-1: Strengthen and diversify the economic base and employment opportunities and maintain a positive business climate.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT:
California Environmental Quality Act
The applicant engaged Kimley-Horn and Associates to prepare an Initial Study (Environmental Assessment Review No. 2022-0058) for the project in accordance with the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The Initial Study is an attachment to the agenda report (Exhibit I). Based on the findings and recommended mitigation within the Initial Study, staff determined that the project will not have an adverse impact on the environment and prepared a Mitigated Negative Declaration. Although the Initial Study indicates that the project could present a significant effect with respect to Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Geological Resources, Hazards and Hazardous Materials, and Tribal Cultural Resources, any potential impacts will be mitigated through the implementation of the mitigation measures included within the Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (Exhibit J).
The Planning Division published a Notice of Intent to adopt the Mitigated Negative Declaration for the project in the San Bernardino Sun newspaper, mailed copies to all property owners within 1,000 feet of the project site. Staff also completed a Notice of Completion and distributed copies of the Initial Study to the State Clearinghouse. A thirty (30) day public comment period for the Mitigated Negative Declaration began on May 3, 2024 and ended on June 2, 2024. One comment letter from Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) was received during the public comment period and all the provided recommendations have been incorporated into the project proposal.
PUBLIC NOTICE:
Staff prepared a public hearing notice for the proposed project, published the public hearing notice in the San Bernardino Sun newspaper as required by State law, posted copies of the public hearing notice outside the Council Chambers and the Project Site, and mailed public hearing notices to all property owners within 1,000 feet of the project site.
RECOMMENDATION:
The Planning Division recommends that the Planning Commission:
1. Adopt the attached Resolution (Exhibit K) to approve a Mitigated Negative Declaration (Environmental Assessment Review No. 2022-0058) for the proposed project and authorize staff to file the attached Notice of Determination with the Clerk of the Board of San Bernardino County; and
2. Adopt the attached Resolution (Exhibit L) to approve Conditional Development Permit No. 2022-0036g, subject to the findings and conditions therein; and
3. Adopt the attached Resolution (Exhibit M) to approve Precise Plan of Design No. 2022-0060 subject to the findings and conditions therein.