For the Planning Commission Meeting of November 24, 2021
TO: Honorable Chairman and Planning Commissioners
APPROVAL: Sean Moore, Community Development Director
FROM: Daniel Casey, Acting Community Development Manager
Title
Precise Plan of Design No. 2020-0011: A request to allow the development of a new concrete block manufacturing facility consisting of a 135,581 square foot manufacturing plant building, a 10,018 square foot administration building, a 21,360 square foot mechanic shop/storage building, a 21,534 square foot metal canopy structure, and associated paving, landscaping, lighting, fencing, and drainage improvements on 32.48 gross acres of land (APNs: 0260-061-41, -42, & -67) located at the terminus of Fortuna Way approximately 525 feet east of Industrial Drive within the Heavy Industrial (H-IND) land use district of the Agua Mansa Specific Plan. A Mitigated Negative Declaration (Environmental Assessment Review No. 2020-0008) has been prepared for consideration in conjunction with the project.
Body
APPLICANT:
Angelus Block Co., Inc., 3435 S. Riverside Avenue, Bloomington, CA 92316
LOCATION:
The project site consists of three (3) parcels of land (APNs: 0260-061-41, -42, & -67) located at the terminus of Fortuna Way approximately 525 feet east of Riverside Avenue (Refer to the attached Location Map (Exhibit A)).
BACKGROUND:
Surrounding General Plan Land Use Designations
|
Location |
General Plan Designation |
|
Site |
General Industrial with a Specific Plan Overlay |
|
North |
General Industrial with a Specific Plan Overlay |
|
East |
General Industrial with a Specific Plan Overlay / City of Colton |
|
South |
General Industrial with a Specific Plan Overlay |
|
West |
General Industrial with a Specific Plan Overlay |
Surrounding Zoning Designations
|
Location |
Zoning |
|
Site |
Agua Mansa Specific Plan (Heavy Industrial (H-IND)) |
|
North |
Agua Mansa Specific Plan (Heavy Industrial (H-IND)) |
|
East |
Agua Mansa Specific Plan (Heavy Industrial (H-IND)) / City of Colton |
|
South |
Agua Mansa Specific Plan (Heavy Industrial (H-IND)) |
|
West |
Agua Mansa Specific Plan (Heavy Industrial (H-IND)) |
Site Characteristics
The project site is a relatively flat, asymmetrical shaped piece of land comprised of three (3) parcels. Altogether, the project site is 32.48 gross acres in size with approximate dimensions of 2,000 feet (north-south) by 725 feet (east-west). The project site mostly consists of vacant land, however, approximately 10.5 acres of land on the south end of the project site currently contains an active recycling operation and outdoor storage of miscellaneous products, materials, and equipment from Angelus’ various other facilities in the area.
Surrounding Area
The area surrounding the project site predominantly consists of lands developed with industrial uses and vacant lands designated for industrial uses. To the north of the project site is an 83.72-acre active construction debris landfill operated by Agua Mansa Properties, Inc., and to the east is the Agua Mansa Pioneer Cemetery and approximately 11.74 acres of vacant land. To the south of the project site is an 11.34-acre concrete paver manufacturing facility operated by Angelus Block Co, Inc., and to the west is an 11.07-acre cement product manufacturing facility operated by E-Z Mix, Inc. and approximately 30.5 acres of vacant land designated as a habitat conservation area.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION:
Project Proposal
Angelus Block Co., Inc., the applicant, proposes to construct and operate a new concrete block manufacturing facility on the project site. The facility will consist of a 135,581 square foot manufacturing plant building, a 10,018 square foot administration building, a 21,360 square foot mechanic shop/storage building, a 21,534 square foot metal canopy structure, and associated paving, landscaping, fencing, lighting, and drainage improvements. Primarily, the facility will produce a variety of concrete masonry blocks to be used in the construction of new walls and buildings throughout the region. In general, the concrete block manufacturing process will include raw material delivery, material mixing, product forming, curing, and finishing. Finished products are packaged, temporarily stored on-site, and then shipped to customers.
Entitlement Requirements
According to Table 8 (Permitted Uses) of the Agua Mansa Specific Plan, the development and operation of concrete product manufacturing facilities are permitted by right within the Heavy Industrial (H-IND) land use designation. As such, the following entitlements are required for the applicant’s proposal:
• Precise Plan of Design: Per Section 18.65.010 of the Rialto Municipal Code, the design of the development and the related site improvements (e.g. building exterior, screen walls, landscaping, etc.) requires the approval of a Precise Plan of Design.
Site Design
According to the site plan (Exhibit B), the applicant will construct the 135,581 square foot manufacturing plant building in the center of the project site. Meanwhile, the 10,018 square foot administration building will be located approximately 300 feet south of the manufacturing plant building, and both the 21,360 square foot mechanic shop/storage building and the 21,534 metal canopy structure will be located approximately 320 feet from the manufacturing plant building on the east end of the project site. The proposed site layout includes a passenger vehicle parking area on the west side of the administration building and designated outdoor storage areas for raw material and finished product around the perimeter of the manufacturing plant building and on the south end of the site.
Two (2) new twenty-six (26) foot wide driveways connected directly to a cul-de-sac at the end of Fortuna Way on the west end of the site will provide full access for both trucks and passenger vehicles, and a third thirty-three (33) foot wide existing driveway connected directly to a cul-de-sac at the end of Singleton Drive on the south end of the site will provide full access for trucks only.
Other proposed on-site improvements include paving in the form of interlocking concrete pavers, lighting, landscape planters, concrete screen walls, and wrought-iron perimeter fencing.
Architectural Design
The proposed administration building will feature significant vertical and horizontal wall plane articulation on the west side of the building in the form of a projected mass, recessed windows, and roofline height variations. As shown on the elevations (Exhibit C), the building height ranges from 14 feet to 37 feet from the finished floor level. The exterior of the building will consist of split-face block, burnished block, and precision block with a “natural gray” finish. Other architectural features of the building include a painted steel portico with a mono-slope roof, dark gray block accent bands, metal brow accents, and glazing.
The exteriors of the proposed manufacturing plant building, mechanic shop building, and canopy structure will all consist of painted corrugated metal panels. The structures will also feature an eight (8) foot high split-face block wainscot around the base of each structure. The manufacturing plant building will have a maximum height of 56.5 feet from the finished grade, the mechanic shop building will have a maximum height of 31 feet from the finished grade, and the canopy structure will have a maximum height of 29 feet from the finished grade.
Parking
The development will have 69 auto-parking spaces, including five (5) ADA accessible parking spaces. This quantity equals the minimum parking requirement as shown in the parking calculation chart below and as required by Table 13 (Off-Street Parking Requirements) of the Agua Mansa Specific Plan, which requires one (1) parking space for every 300 square feet of office space gross floor area, one (1) parking space for every 1,000 square feet of warehouse space gross floor area up to 10,000 square feet, one (1) parking space for every 2,000 square feet of warehouse space gross floor area beyond 10,000 square feet, and one (1) parking space for each employee on the largest shift for manufacturing uses:
|
Type of Use |
Floor Area (square feet) |
Parking Ratio |
Number of spaces required |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Office Storage Floor area up to 10,000 square feet Floor area 10,001 square feet or more Manufacturing |
10,018 10,000 4,160 N/A |
1 / 300 1 / 1,000 1 / 2,000 1 Per Employee on Largest Shift |
34 10 3 22 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total Required/Total Provided |
|
|
69/69 |
Landscaping
The project will include a twenty-five (25) foot landscape setback along the entire frontage of Fortuna Way, as well as landscape planters around the perimeter of the building and throughout the passenger vehicle parking area. The landscape coverage for the proposed passenger vehicle parking area is 10.6 percent, which exceeds the minimum required amount of 10.0 percent. 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 D).
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY:
The General Plan land use designation of the site is General Industrial with a Specific Plan Overlay. According to Chapter 2 (Managing Our Land Supply) of the Rialto General Plan, manufacturing and processing uses, such as the project, are consistent with the General Industrial 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 2-22: 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 NV5, Inc. to prepare an Initial Study (Environmental Assessment Review No. 2020-0008) for the project in accordance with the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The Initial Study is attached to the agenda report (Exhibit E). 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 Mitigated Negative Declaration identified potential impacts related to biological resources, cultural resources, and transportation/traffic, any of these impacts will be reduced to a level of insignificance subject to the imposition of the recommended mitigation contained within the project’s Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (Exhibit F).
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 300 feet of the project site. A twenty (20) day public comment period for the Mitigated Negative Declaration began on October 25, 2021 and ended on November 13, 2021. No comment letters were received during the public comment period.
Traffic
NV5, Inc. prepared a Traffic Impact Study (TIS), dated September 6, 2021, to assess the project’s potential impacts to local streets and intersections (Exhibit G). The TIS estimates that the project will generate up to approximately 758 actual daily vehicle trips (1,270 PCE daily vehicle trips) with 117 trips in the AM peak hour and 127 trips in the PM peak hour. Trucks will constitute up to 303 of the 758 actual daily vehicle trips.
The TIA analyzed twelve (12) intersections in the project vicinity, listed below:
• Riverside Avenue and Santa Ana Avenue (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Slover Avenue (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and I-10 Eastbound Ramps (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and I-10 Westbound Ramps (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Valley Boulevard (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Jurupa Avenue (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Industrial Drive (Unsignalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Resource Drive (Signalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Singleton Drive (Unsignalized)
• Riverside Avenue and Agua Mansa Road (Signalized)
• Industrial Drive and Fortuna Way (Unsignalized)
• Resource Drive and Enterprise Drive (Unsignalized)
Study intersection historical counts were collected in 2018 & 2019 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in conjunction with a 2% growth rate (compounded annually) to reflect 2021 conditions.
The TIS identified that the project will contribute to cumulative impacts to the following three (3) intersections:
• Riverside Avenue and I-10 EB Ramps
• Riverside Avenue and Slover Avenue
• Riverside Avenue and Santa Ana Avenue
The three (3) intersection impacts are considered significant based on City policy, and these impacts require the payment of a fair-share towards mitigation. The resulting fair-share cost based upon the project’s trip generation is $724,398. The fair share payment will be allocated to mitigate impacts and paid towards construction as the improvements become fully funded.
The Transportation Commission reviewed and approved the TIS on October 6, 2021. In its decision, the Transportation Commission agreed with the findings within the TIS and the recommended “fair-share” mitigation.
Native American Tribal Consultation (Assembly Bill 52 and Senate Bill 18)
In accordance with California Assembly Bill 52, the Planning Division mailed notices to six (6) Native American tribes informing them of the project and allowing them to request consultation on the project. The Planning Division provided each tribe thirty (30) days, from June 4, 2020 to July 3, 2020, to request consultation on the proposed project. One (1) tribe, The Gabrieleño Band of Mission Indians-Kizh Nation (Kizh Nation), requested formal consultation during the period. Planning staff conducted formal consultation with Chairman Andrew Teutimez-Salas and Matt Teutimez of the Kizh Nation on March 31, 2021. The topics discussed included a basic background of the project and the anticipated construction activities. During the consultation, Chairman Teutimez-Salas requested the ability to allow a certified Native American Monitor on-site during all ground disturbance activities. The Draft Resolution of Approval includes a Condition of Approval requiring the applicant to coordinate with the Kizh Nation to allow access to the project site during all ground disturbance activities.
Delhi Sands Flower-Loving Fly
According to Exhibit 4.4.2 of the Rialto General Plan Environmental Impact Report, the project site lies within potential Delhi Sands Flower-Loving Fly (DSF) habitat. In the late 1990’s several biological surveys were performed for the project site and the adjacent areas. The surveys identified that the project site and the adjacent areas contain suitable habitat for the DSF. In response, a Habitat Conservation Plan was established whereby 30.5 acres of land to the west of the project site was set aside as “Conservation Area” in order to facilitate future development of the remaining lands identified within the biological surveys and the Habitat Conservation Plan, including the project site. On August 27, 1999, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service issued a Federal Fish and Wildlife Permit to the applicant permitting future development of the project site. The applicant’s Federal Fish and Wildlife Permit is valid until August 27, 2029. The Habitat Conservation Plan and the Federal Fish and Wildlife Permit are attached as Exhibit H.
PUBLIC NOTICE:
The City published a public hearing notice for proposed project in the San Bernardino Sun newspaper, posted copies of the public hearing notice outside the Council Chambers, and mailed public hearing notices to all property owners within 300 feet of the project site, as required by State law.
RECOMMENDATION:
The Planning Division recommends that the Planning Commission:
- Adopt the attached Resolution (Exhibit I) to approve the Mitigated Negative Declaration for the proposed project and authorize staff to file a Notice of Determination with the Clerk of the Board of San Bernardino County; and
-
- Adopt the attached Resolution (Exhibit J) to approve Precise Plan of Design No. 2020-0011 to allow the development of a new concrete block manufacturing facility consisting of a 135,581 square foot manufacturing plant building, a 10,018 square foot administration building, a 21,360 square foot mechanic shop/storage building, a 21,534 square foot metal canopy structure, and associated paving, landscaping, lighting, fencing, and drainage improvements on 32.48 gross acres of land (APNs: 0260-061-41, -42, & -67) located at the terminus of Fortuna Way approximately 525 feet east of Industrial Drive, subject to the findings and conditions therein.