HomeMy WebLinkAboutMosher 05232019May 23, 2019, Planning Commission Item 4 Comments
These comments on a Newport Beach Planning Commission agenda item are submitted by:
Jim Mosher ( jimmosher@yahoo.com ), 2210 Private Road, Newport Beach 92660 (949-548-6229).
Item No. 4. REED RESIDENTIAL VARIANCE (PA2019-060)
I am concerned that this proposal is being considered without any meaningful simulations of
what the completed project would look like from either Kings Road or Coast Highway.
In particular, Goal NR 23 of our General Plan is that “Development respects natural landforms
such as coastal bluffs,” to which end Policy NR 23.1 (“Maintenance of Natural Topography”)
was adopted to “Preserve cliffs, canyons, bluffs, significant rock outcroppings, and site
buildings to minimize alteration of the site’s natural topography and preserve the
features as a visual resource.”
Nothing in the present proposal appears to further either that goal or its supporting policy.
As to whether the proposed development would actually be occurring on a coastal bluff, in
addition to the reference to the property as “bluff top” in Section 3.A.1 of the proposed
Resolution of Approval, it might be noted that the Land Use Element (see City Council
Resolution No. 1988-100) previous to the present one noted on page 8: “Natural coastal bluffs
represent a significant scenic and environmental resource. As used in this Section, "coastal
bluff' is any natural landform having an average slope of 26.6 degrees (50 %) or greater, with a
vertical rise of 25 feet or greater.” And as to whether there is an inherent right to develop slope
faces, it did not regard steeply sloping parts of lots as being developable at all: “Buildable Lot
Area. The buildable lot area is the net parcel area less any slope areas greater the Two to
One and less any submerged lot area.” (page 18)
Although it is an enduring mystery why Kings Road and the slopes below it are not in the
Coastal Zone, our City’s Coastal Land Use Plan (page 4-77) supports the notion they are
indeed coastal bluffs, and therefore a visual resource worthy of protection under the Natural
Resources Element our broader current General Plan:
“Coastal bluffs are a prominent landform in Newport Beach. There are ocean facing coastal
bluffs along the shoreline of Corona del Mar, Shorecliffs, and Cameo Shores. There are also
coastal bluffs facing the wetlands of Upper Newport Bay, Semeniuk Slough, and the degraded
wetlands of the Banning Ranch property. Finally, there are coastal bluffs surrounding Lower
Newport Bay. These can be seen along Coast Highway from the Semeniuk Slough to
Dover Drive and in Corona del Mar above the Harbor Entrance. These bluffs faced the open
ocean before the Balboa Peninsula formed and are now generally separated from the shoreline.
Coastal bluffs are considered significant scenic and environmental resources and are to be
protected.”
In short, it is difficult to understand how the Planning Commission can be expected to evaluate
this proposal without a clearer exposition of how it impacts significant resources protected by
City policies not cited in the staff report.