2005 AGN DEC 20 I02 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Council Meeting — December 20, 2005 General Plan Amendment, Zone Change & Appeal Page 2 of 3 canopies, a warehouse that contains offices and an assembly area, and a parking lot. Their lumber is delivered to the site by trucks and by rail, utilizing a Union Pacific Railroad spur, from the southwest portion of the property. These operations were approved as part of Conditional Use Permit No. DCV -77-01 which was approved by the Planning Commission on September 25, 2001. The Appellants propose to expand these operations by utilizing a 10.5 acre vacant parcel that is adjacent to and immediately south of the existing pallet company. According to the Appellants the proposed lumber milling operation is needed in order to handle the volume of damaged trees that have been infested with the bark beetle and from the fires that occurred in 2003 in the San Bernardino National Forest. The proposed improvements to the Subject Property include construction of three separate 60 x 150 -foot open canopies, additional parking, and staging areas. A new gravel road will also be constructed to provide transport of materials to and from the existing operations to the Subject Property. The two canopies that are located closest to the existing operations will be utilized for storage of milled lumber. The third canopy, which is located furthest to the west and away from residences located on Congress and Florez Streets, will be utilized for the actual milling of lumber. The equipment used to mill the lumber includes head rigs, edgers, rippers, and six saw blades. Initially, the applicant proposed using diesel powered generators to operate the saw blades, however, the Appellant has decided to utilize the City's electrical power. Two log loader tractors will be used to transport the logs from the staging area to the mill. At the Commission public hearings, adjacent residents requested that the project be denied due to concerns with the current operations of pallet company, and perceived negative impacts that the lumber milling operation would have on surrounding residences concerning noise, air quality, traffic. The residents requested that the existing Open Space land use designation remain. At the conclusion of their deliberations, the Planning Commission denied the project by a 4 to 2 vote, and: 1. Adopted Resolution Number R-15-05 - a recommendation to the City Council for denial of the General Plan Amendment, Zone Change, and Adoption of a Mitigated Negative Declaration; and 2. Adoption of Resolution Number R-16-05 - denying a Conditional Use Permit, Architectural and Site Plan Review to establish and operate a lumber milling operation. ALTERNATIVES: 1. The City Council may uphold the Planning Commission's denial of File Index Number DAP -000-284 by adopting the attached Resolution; or 2. The City Council may overturn the Planning Commission's denial and approve the project which includes a General Plan Amendment, Zone Change, Architectural and Site Plan, Conditional Use Permit, and a Mitigated Negative Declaration, by directing staff to prepare the appropriate resolutions and ordinance. FISCAL IMPACT: The 10.5 acre site is vacant. It is unknown at this time the exact financial impact the project will ORANGEVMXM\22368.1