This page provides the draft revisions proposed as part of the General Plan/Zoning Consistency Project. Two sets of revisions are proposed:
Municipal Code Amendments
The draft amendments to the City's Municipal Code are available here. The revisions cover Titles 23 (Zoning), 22 (Land Development), and 30 (Solid Waste). The following summarizes the proposed revisions.
Chapter 23.10 – Planning Agency
- The review of real property transactions for consistency with the General Plan was added to the roles of the City Council. The Planning Commission would no longer consider these questions. Rather, the Council would consider General Plan consistency as part of their action on the property transaction.
- A reference was added to EGMC 21.15 relative to the Planning Commission’s role in reviewing the Capital Improvement Program.
- Added a reference to the General Plan Annual Report as a responsibility of the Development Services Direction as provided under Government Code section 65400.
Section 23.14.040.C – Notice of Hearing
- This section was updated to add references to the applicable community plans as provided in the General Plan, rather than the references to land use designations. Under this revision, if a property is designated as Rural Residential or Estate Residential, but it is outside of these Community Plan areas, the larger noticing requirements would not apply. There are a number of Estate Residential areas in the urban area that were not intended for this noticing when the section was first adopted.
Section 23.16.080.H – Deviations from Standards
- This section was updated for consistency with a companion change in EGMC 30.90.050, which is described below.
Section 23.24.020.C – Residential Districts
- This section has been updated to add descriptions for the new residential zoning districts, the RD-8, RD-12, RD-18, and RD-40 zones.
- Revisions were made to the RD-25 zone to remove references to single family units, which would not be developed in this zone due to the density requirements.
- Revisions were made to the RD-30 zone to recognize the creation of the RD-40 zone.
Section 23.26.050.F - Description of land use classifications
- The title of Not-for-Profit Business was changed to “Community Assistance Organization” to more accurately describe the use.
- The title of Second Dwelling Units was changed to Accessory Dwelling Units, consistent with State law and the provisions of EGMC 23.90 and 23.100. The description was also updated to use the same language in 23.100.020.F.
- The description of Fueling Stations was updated to add a reference to hydrogen fueling.
Table 23.27-1 – Allowed Uses and Required Entitlements
- The title of Second Dwelling Units was changed to Accessory Dwelling Units, consistent with State law and the provisions of EGMC 23.90 and 23.100.
- Allowed use provisions for Supportive Housing was updated for consistency with State law (Government Code Section 65650, et seq).
- The allowed use provisions for Not-For-Profit was revised to allow in the MP zone with a Conditional Use Permit. If the site is zoned MP and has a General Plan designation of Industrial, the use would be permitted by right pursuant to the footnote. This is consistent with the provisions for the industrial zoning districts.
- Outdoor Event Centers were removed from the Agricultural and Residential zoning districts, based upon prior Council direction.
- Footnotes six and nine for the Office Zoning Districts were revised to refer to the underlying General Plan land use designations, rather than the existing text “industrial park.” The updated language is more precise.
Table 23.29-1, Part A: Development Standards for Agricultural and Residential Zoning Districts
- Standards were added for the new RD-8, RD-12, RD-18, and RD-40 zones.
- Minimum density standards for the RD-10, RD-15, and RD-20 zones were revised to recognize the creation of the new zones.
- Footnote 8 was revised to reduce the setback requirement from 100 feet to 50 feet. This reduction is necessary for projects in these zones to achieve the minimum density required by the applicable zoning district. A reference to the deviation process provided through Design Review has also been added.
Table 23.29-1, Part B: Development Standards for Commercial, Mixed Use, Office, Industrial, and Public/Quasi-Public Zoning Districts
- Height limits in the Village Center Mixed Use (VCMU) and Residential Mixed Use (RMU) districts were increased to reflect the more urban nature of these development types. The VCMU was increased to 75 feet, which is equivalent to five stories, and the RMU was increased to 60 feet, or the equivalent of four stories. The standard for sites located less than 100 feet from agricultural, agricultural residential, residential, and open space zones in both the VCMU and RMU was also increased to 40 feet.
- Height limits in the Business Professional (BP) zone was increased to 60 feet, or the equivalent of four stories.
Section 23.40.020 – Special Planning Areas Districts
- Reference to the Auto Mall SPA and CMD Court SPA were added. These are existing SPAs that were not included in the March 2019 edits by mistake.
Section 23.50.020 and 23.50.070 – Density Bonus
- The State Legislature made several revisions to State Density Bonus law in 2018 that need to be incorporated into the City’s implementing regulations. These are:
- Provisions for density bonus for transitional foster youth housing development.
- Provisions for density bonus for lower income student housing development.
- Provisions relative to the processing of a density bonus application and notifications the City must provide to the applicant.
- Note, the State has also adopted provisions for a Floor Area Bonus. The City has discretion to adopt/implement; however, the provisions only apply to development within a transit priority area (which the City does not have), or within one-half mile of a major transit stop (which the City does not have). Therefore, this has not been incorporated.
Table 23.58-2, Parking Requirements by Land Use
- The parking requirement for storage uses have been updated for consistency with industry best practices. It has been information by a parking study completed for an application currently in process and a review of standards for other jurisdictions.
Section 23.58.110 – Off-Street Loading Requirements
- This section has been comprehensively updated based. Staff identified several issues with the current provisions, including excessively high space requirements for commercial uses (compared to other jurisdictions). These issues have been addressed in the proposed draft.
Chapter 23.62.110 – Signs
- Section 23.62.110.C was updated to provide a more detailed reference to the standards for menu/order board signs. No changes are being made to the standards themselves.
Chapter 23.68 – Accessory Uses
- This chapter is proposed for repeal. A number of conflicts with other portions of the Zoning Code were identified, including for alcohol sales and accessory retail. These activities are covered in the allowed use listings in Table 23.27-1. Other provisions of the chapter directed the reader to other sections of the Title, which are not necessary. To eliminate confusion and redundancy, staff proposes the chapter be repealed.
Section 23.100.020 – General Definitions
- The definition of Accessory Dwelling Unit has been updated for consistency with the allowed use description in Section 23.26.050.F.
- The definition of Floor Area Ratio was updated to reflect final language in the General Plan and provide more detail on the calculation methodology for consistency with General Plan buildout calculations.
Chapter 22.20 – Procedures
- This chapter addresses the procedures for subdivision and parcel maps. The section has been updated to note that the Zoning Administrator is the designated approval authority for extensions of time for all tentative subdivision maps, vesting tentative subdivision maps, and tentative parcel maps.
Chapter 30.90.050 – Solid Waste Management, Commercial Locations, Enclosures
- This section has been updated to address consistency in the text and to provide flexibility with regard to siting of solid waste enclosures on a commercial property. The revisions allow for deviations through the Design Review process, which requires specific findings about improved pedestrian or vehicle movement and other improvements to site design as provided in EGMC 23.16.080.H.
Laguna Ridge Specific Plan
The Laguna Ridge Specific Plan was first adopted in June 2004. A comprehensive update is proposed for consistency with the City’s 2019 General Plan. A copy of the proposed revisions are available here and are presented in “track changes.”
The proposed revisions generally cover the following:
- Updates to figures and graphics throughout, including the Land Plan graphic to reflect current land use approvals and prior plan amendments.
- Updates to land use acreage information based upon prior Land Plan amendments and changes incorporated as part of the General Plan Update.
- Updated description of the Civic Center based upon current construction activity and approved master planning.
- Comprehensive update to Chapter 3, Land Use. The revisions remove specific development standards and allowed use provisions, referring back to the City’s Zoning Code for this information. Development standards in the Zoning Code are consistent with the Zoning Code standards for the same zones.
- References to updated street standards in the City’s Improvement Standards were added to Chapter 4. Existing street designs and approvals are “grandfathered”.
- Updated utility service diagrams and based upon current approved utility master plans.
- Comprehensive updates to the Finance section to reflect the presence of the Laguna Ridge Community Facilities District (CFD 2005-1) and current approaches to infrastructure financing and phasing.
- Updated administrative provisions based upon the City’s current practices.