HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem No. 2 - Staff Report - Lakefront Plaza Revitalization
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REPORT TO PLANNING COMMISSION
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Planning Commission
From: Damaris Abraham, Community Development Director
Prepared by: Carlos Serna, Associate Planner
Date: August 20, 2024
Subject: Planning Application No. 2023-17 (Lakefront Plaza Revitalization) – Proposal
for Exterior Building Façade and Related Site Improvements with a Request
for Parking Reduction for an Existing Commercial Center on a 1.99 -acre Site
Located at 31681 and 31701 Riverside Drive
Applicant: Richard Leigh, Fluid and Fare
Recommendation
1. Find that the proposed project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 (Class 1 Existing Facilities); and
2. Adopt A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LAKE
ELSINORE, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING PLANNING APPLICATION NO. 2023 -17
(COMMERCIAL DESIGN REVIEW NO. 2023-05) FOR EXTERIOR BUILDING FAÇADE AND
RELATED SITE IMPROVEMENTS WITH A PARKING REDUCTION FO R THE EXISTING
LAKEFRONT PLAZA COMMERCIAL CENTER LOCATED AT 31681 AND 31701
RIVERSIDE DRIVE (APNS: 379-381-053 AND 379-381-054).
Project Location
The project site is an existing 1.99 -acre commercial center located along Riverside Drive between
Joy Street and Lincoln Street at 31681 and 31701 Riverside Drive. The project site encompasses
Assessor Parcel Numbers (APNs) 379 -381-053 and 379-381-054.
The commercial retail plaza was originally entitled in the mid -to-late 1980s and is now known as
the Lakefront Plaza. The site is fully developed with an approximately 14,000 -square-foot two-
story commercial building and 12,000 -square-foot one-story commercial building along with
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existing parking spaces and landscaping. Existing businesses at Lakefront Plaza include a
mixture of religious institutions, commercial retail shops, and two restaurants.
Environmental Setting
EXISTING
LAND USE GENERAL PLAN ZONING
Project
Site Commercial General Commercial (GC) General Commercial (C-2)
North Residential Medium Density Residential (MDR) Medium Density Residential (R-2)
South Commercial Commercial Mixed Use (CMU) Commercial Mixed Use (CMU)
East Commercial General Commercial (GC) General Commercial (C-2)
West Commercial General Commercial (GC) General Commercial (C-2)
Table 1: Environmental Setting
Project Description
Planning Application No. 2023 -17 is a request for a Commercial Design Review (CDR No. 2023-
05) to remodel the existing exterior façade and interior renovations of the commercial buildings
including the following proposed improvements:
• Demolish both structure’s existing storefront, roof membrane, and interior/exterior walls
and doors to construct a new storefront façade with interior renovations including
partition walls and restrooms;
• Demolish a small portion of the existing two -story building to reduce the building size
from 13,837 square feet (sq. ft.) to 13,435 sq. ft.;
• Demolish the existing exterior stairwell attached to the two -story building and construct a
new interior stairwell with an accessible chair lift;
• Construct a new 833-square-foot patio with a second story deck for the existing two -
story building; and
• New commercial center identification signage, individual unit signage, and site
improvements to the parking and landscaping.
The applicant is also requesting a reduction in the required number of parking spaces associated
with the proposed remodeling and change in uses (refer to Attachment 5 for the Parking Study).
The proposed improvements are intended to accommodate a mix of new and existing retail, office,
and restaurant tenant spaces. Notably, two new restaurant spaces will be added including a
second story modern restaurant with a view of Lake Elsinore. The appl icant has experience in
opening and operating successful restaurants in neighboring cities including Temecula (1909 and
Toast). The applicant is seeking to revitalize the existing center and bring new restaurant concepts
to serve the Lake Elsinore community including visitors.
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Analysis
The following analysis below provides a discussion of the proposed project’s consistency with the
commercial development standards and requirements pursuant to the Lake Elsinore Municipal
Code (LEMC) as well as the General Plan. In addition, t he Design Review Committee, including
Staff from Planning, Building and Safety, Fire, and Engineering Departments and the Elsinore
Valley Municipal Water District, has reviewed the project and have included recommended
conditions of approval to ensure compliance with adopted plans, policies, and regulations.
General Plan Consistency
The subject site has a General Plan Land Use designation of General Commercial (GC) and is
located in the Lakeview District. The GC Land Use designation provides for retail, services,
restaurants, professional and administrative offices, hotels and motels, mixed -use projects, public
and quasi-public uses, and similar and compatible uses with a maximum 0.40 floor area ratio
(FAR). The project is proposing to modify an existing multi-tenant commercial retail building with
an existing 0.26 FAR. The proposed project includes changes in uses that will continue to be
consistent with the intent of the GC Land Use designation. The proposed project improvements
do not involve an expansion in square footage or FAR. Therefore, the project is consistent with
the General Plan.
Municipal Code Consistency
The current zoning designation of the subject site is General Commercial (C -2). According to
LEMC Section 17.124.020, all permitted uses of the Commercial Office (C -O) and the
Neighborhood Commercial (C-1) district as contained within LEMC Sections 17.116.020 and
17.120.020 are also permitted uses in the C-2 zone. Restaurants and retail stores are considered
permitted uses in the C-O and C-1 zones and as such, also permitted in the C-2 zone. The
proposed remodel and exterior site improvements comply with th e applicable development
standards for the C-2 zone including building setbacks, height, and landscaping.
The proposed parking reduction request is consistent with the findings outlined in LEMC Section
17.148.030.D.1 and is discussed in detail in the Parking Analysis Section below. In addition, the
project includes conditions of approval to address any future parking concerns.
Architectural Elevations
The architectural design of the proposed building complies with the Nonresidential Development
Standards (Chapter 17.112) of the LEMC. The commercial building exteriors would be
modernized through a more rectangular form with asymmetrical walls and varying rooflines. The
structure also employs recessed and pop -out walls to add additional architectural articulation and
stone veneer will be employed throughout the structure to avoid long expanses of untreated open
walls. The updated exterior consists of stucco in cool shades of white and gray with blue accents.
Furthermore, the proposed landscaping improvements complement the proposed building design,
provide shade and break-up expanses of pavement.
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Parking Analysis
LEMC Section 17.148.030.A requires one (1) space for each 250 sq. ft. of gross floor area for
commercial uses in the C-2 zoning district. For restaurant uses, LEMC Section 17.148.030.E.13
requires one (1) space for each 45 sq. ft. of customer area plus one (1) space for each 200 sq. ft.
of non-customer area. Notably, the applicant indicated that the proposed patio and second story
deck will not be used as a dedicated dining area resulting in expanded customer capacity.
Accordingly, it was determined that su ch area should not be counted towards the customer area
for purposes of calculating the parking requirement for the customer area. The proposed project
would require 179 parking spaces based on the LEMC (refer to Parking Summary Table below).
SUITE TENANT NAME LAND
USE LEMC REQUIRED PARKING
REQUIRED
PARKING
STALLS
Building One
A Commercial Uses (TBD) Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 11.9
B AP Beauty Supplies Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 4.8
C/D 74 Cantina Mexican
Cuisine Restaurant
1 space for each 45 square feet of customer
area, plus 1 space for each 200 square feet
of non-customer area. Gross floor area
includes 40% customer area and 60% non-
customer area.
52.5
E/F All-Pro Engine and Mower
Supply Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 82.6
Building Two
G/H Restaurant (TBD) Restaurant
1 space for each 45 square feet of customer
area, plus 1 space for each 200 square feet
of non-customer area. Gross floor area
includes 40% customer area and 60% non-
customer area.
22.9
I/J Aero Delivery, Inc. Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 7.1
K Dreamcatchers
Photography Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 3.0
L Commercial (TBD) Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 2.9
M/N VIP Best Insurance Agency Retail 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 10.7
O Pizza Bowl Restaurant
1 space for each 45 square feet of customer
area, plus 1 space for each 200 square feet
of non-customer area. Gross floor area
includes 40% customer area and 60% non-
customer area.
21.5
P Restaurant TBD Restaurant
1 space for each 45 square feet of customer
area, plus 1 space for each 200 square feet
of non-customer area. Gross floor area
includes 40% customer area and 60% non-
customer area.
22.8
Q Commercial (TBD) Office 1 Space Per 250 sq. ft. 5.2
TOTAL PARKING REQUIRED PER LEMC1 179
TOTAL PARKING PROPOSED PER PARKING STUDY 135
Table 2: Parking Summary
1 Pursuant to LEMC Section 17.148.020.C, the number of parking spaces required resulting in a fractional number shall be rounded to the next higher whole number.
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The project proposes to provide 135 parking spaces including six (6) accessible parking spaces.
As such, the applicant is requesting to reduce their required parking by 44 spaces. Per LEMC
Section 17.148.030.D, a request to reduce the number of required parking spaces may be made
to the Planning Commission concurrent with the design review of a commercial or industrial
project or with a proposed change of use within a commercial or industrial building when the
applicant determines that the actual number of needed parking spaces is less than that required
by the code.
Based on the applicant’s parking study completed by K2 Traffic Engineering, Inc. (dated May 23,
2024) for the proposed project, the following findings are in accordance with LEMC Section
17.148.030.D for the requested parking reduction:
1. A parking study prepared by a traffic and parking consultant was submitted for this project
and includes a shared parking analysis based on the mix of current and proposed land
uses within the existing commercial plaza;
2. The shared parking analysis includes a Time -of-Day Factor Model for the proposed project
based on the mix of land uses and square footages as identified on the site plan. This
analysis is based on the principle that different land uses have different peak periods of
parking demand throughout a given day (e.g., restaurants have peak demands during
typical lunch and dinner times). Given the proposed mix of uses and their varying peak
parking demand times, the shared parking analysis determined that they may b e able to
share a single pool of parking;
3. Furthermore, based on the results of the shared parking analysis, the proposed parking
supply of 135 parking spaces including six (6) accessible spaces is projected to
adequately accommodate peak parking demand at 12:00 P.M. on weekdays and 2:00
P.M. on weekends at the project site with a surplus of three (3) parking spaces;
4. Reduced parking will not affect the health, safety and welfare of the public because the
parking study demonstrated a sufficient number of parking spaces would be provided.
Furthermore, the parking lot is designed to allow efficient on -site circulation and access
for emergency vehicles; and
5. The project has been conditioned to ensure compliance with the findings and the intent of
LEMC Section 17.148.030.D and to ensure that an adequate parking management plan
will be implemented to ensure adequate parking spaces will be provided per code
requirements should demand for parking increase on site (COA Nos. 13, 14, and 15).
Environmental Determination
The proposed project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (Cal. Pub. Res.
Code §§21000 et seq.: “CEQA”) and the CEQA Guidelines (14 C.C.R. §§ 15000 et seq.) pursuant
to CEQA Guidelines Section 15301 (Class 1 Existing Facilities). Class 1 consists of the operation,
repair, maintenance, permitting, leasing, licensing, or minor alteration of existing public or private
structures, facilities, mechanical equipment, or topographical features, involving negligible or no
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expansion of use beyond that existing at the time of the lead agency’s determination. The project
proposes to remodel an existing 13,837 sq. ft. two-story commercial building including a 402 sq.
ft. reduction and exterior modifications. The project also pr oposes improvements to the existing
11,959 sq. ft. one-story commercial building fascia.
MSHCP Consistency
The proposed project is consistent with the Western Riverside County Multiple Species Habitat
Conservation Plan (MSHCP). The project site is comple tely disturbed and is developed with an
existing commercial center. The subject property is not located in an MSHCP criteria cell and is
not subject to the City’s LEAP and the Western Riverside County Regional Conservation
Authority’s (RCA) JPR process. The project complies with all other applicable requirements of the
MSHCP.
Public Notice
Notice of the hearing for this application has been published in the Press -Enterprise newspaper
and mailed to property owners within 300 feet of the subject property. A s of the writing of this
report, no written comments concerning this application have been received by staff.
Attachments
Attachment 1 – CDR Resolution
Attachment 2 – Conditions of Approval
Attachment 3 – GIS Exhibits
Attachment 4 – Design Review Package
Attachment 5 – Parking Study
Attachment 6 – Public Notice Package