HomeMy WebLinkAboutPA2021-096_20210823_Letter to Zac RhemCommunity Development Department
CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH
100 Civic Center Drive
Newport Beach, California 92660
949 644-3200 newportbeachca.gov/communitydevelopment
August 23, 2021
Mr. Zach Rehm, District Supervisor
California Coastal Commission South Coast Area Office
301 Ocean Blvd., #301
Long Beach, CA 90802
RE: Director’s Determination No. DD2021-01 (Accessory Residential Uses
Within Resort Hotels)
Dear Mr. Rehm:
This letter is sent in response to your August 20, 2021 correspondence regarding the
upcoming appeal of Director’s Determination No. DD2021-01 (“Director’s
Determination”), which is on the City Council’s August 24, 2021 agenda.
We appreciate the support you expressed for the City of Newport Beach’s (“City”) City
Council Policy K-4, Reducing the Barriers to the Creation of Housing, and its stated goal
to increase the City’s housing supply for current and future residents.
We would like to take this opportunity to address the questions raised in your
correspondence:
This [Director’s Determination], however, is not supported by the plain language of
the Local Coastal Program (LCP)…which defines [a] hotel use….”
The Director’s Determination and City Council Policy K-4 interpret the existing LCP and
related regulations to allow accessory residential uses at certain hotels. Both the
Director’s Determination and City Council Policy K-4 restrict these accessory residential
uses to certain resort hotel properties located outside of the Coastal Commission’s
Appeal Jurisdiction, and limit the number of accessory residential uses to no more than
30% of the approved hotel rooms. As provided in the LCP hotel definition, hotels are
allowed to have related accessory uses and those uses “may include conference rooms
and meeting rooms, restaurants, bars, and recreational facilities.” This listing of
accessory hotel uses is meant to be illustrative in nature and not exhaustive. In this
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manner, the City is allowed discretion under the LCP to make interpretations about other
uses which may be appropriately classified within the hotel use category, which the
Director’s Determination and City Council Policy K-4 both do with regards to accessory residential uses that are no more than 30% of the approved hotel rooms at a hotel
property.
The Community Development Director does not have the authority to change land
uses or interpret the LCP differently from the plain language and designated uses.
The appropriate process for changes to land use regulation in the coastal zone is
an LCP amendment….
LCP Implementation Plan (“IP”) Section 21.12.020 grants the Community Development
Director the authority to interpret the LCP in a way that expands the permitted uses,
provided that certain findings are made. The Community Development Director made said
findings, which are included in the Staff Report for the City Council’s agenda. Additionally,
Newport Beach Municipal Code (“NBMC”) Section 20.12.020(E) and LCP IP Section
21.12.020(E), clearly allow the Community Development Director to determine that an
unlisted land use may be allowed, again provided that certain findings are made.
The Director’s Determination is an appropriate use of the Community Development
Director’s authority under the LCP, and is consistent with past practice. Most notably,
Director’s Determination No. DD2017-002/PA2017-207 was issued on October 13, 2017
for an expansion of permitted uses in the Title 20 CV Zoning District and Title 21 CV
Coastal Zoning District related to the fire station located at 2708 Newport Boulevard,
which is within the Coastal Zone. This interpretation occurred following certification of the
City’s LCP and expressly added a use that was not previously permitted in the CV Zoning
District or the CV Coastal Zoning District.
…[W]e can schedule a Dispute Resolution hearing before the Coastal Commission
consistent with Section 21.50.050(B)(4) of the LCP.
As clearly explained in Footnote 8, Table 21.50-1 (Review Authority) of LCP Section
21.50.020(A), “Appeal procedure for interpretations shall only apply to interpretations
made by the Director on the determination of whether a development is categorically
excluded, exempt, non-appealable or appealable to the Coastal Commission according to the dispute resolution process in compliance with Section 21.50.50(B).” First and
foremost, there is no coastal development permit application or project before the City at
this time; therefore, LCP Section 21.50.050(B)(4) is not applicable in this instance.
Instead, the Director’s Determination is contemplated by, consistent with, and in
furtherance of, City Council Policy K-4. Both City Council Policy K-4 and the Director’s
Determination require any project located within the coastal zone to obtain a coastal
development permit. Thus, there is no question as to whether a future project is subject
to a coastal development permit. If a project is located in the coastal zone, it requires a new coastal development permit, period. Similarly, both City Council Policy K-4 and the
Director’s Determination exclude properties that are located within the Coastal
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Commission’s Appealable Jurisdiction. Thus, there is no question as to whether a future
project is appealable to the Coastal Commission. If a project is located within the Coastal
Commission’s Appealable Jurisdiction it is not eligible for consideration under City Council Policy K-4 or the Director’s Determination.
Again, thank you for supporting City Council Policy K-4 and sharing your thoughts about
the Director’s Determination. The clarifications provided above should bring this matter to
a close. We share the California Coastal Commission’s goals of increasing the State’s
housing supply, and we believe the Director’s Determination is an important first step
towards this worthy and critical goal.
Sincerely,
cc: Mayor Brad Avery
City Council Members
Grace Leung, City Manager