HISTORIC TOWN CENTER MASTER PLAN CITY COUNCIL PRESENTATION APRIL 3, 2012
REQUESTED CITY COUNCIL ACTIONS Certification of the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR); and, Approval of General Plan Amendments to the Land Use Element, Circulation Element, and Parks & Recreation Element; and, Approval of the Historic Town Center Master Plan with modifications; and, Introduction of an Ordinance adopting the Form-Based Code and amending the Official Zoning Map. 2
BACKGROUND In early 2008, the City retained the Urban Land Institute (ULI) to prepare recommendations and identify opportunities for improving the downtown business climate. In June 2009, as a result of the findings of the ULI Report, the City Council decided that the 1995 Historic Town Center Master Plan should be comprehensively updated. In January 2010, the City Council retained Studio 111 to prepare a comprehensive update of the Historic Town Center Master Plan and they began the update process with a series of community workshops and design charrettes. City Council Urgent Strategic Priority #4 3
CREATING THE MASTER PLAN: March 23, 2010: City Staff and Steering Committee Kick-Off. May 4, 2010: City Staff review of existing conditions. May 26, 2010: Public Workshop on existing conditions. June 9, 2010: City Staff, Stakeholder review and Public Workshop. June 10, 2010- Open Studio and Public Update. June 11, 2010- Public Presentation by Studio 111. 4
CREATING THE MASTER PLAN (CONT.): July 22, 2010: Review of the 60% Draft Master Plan. September 23, 2010: Review of the 85% Draft Master Plan. November 2, 2010: City Council review of the Draft Historic Town Center Master Plan and HTC Form-Based Code. January 19, 2011: City conducts Draft PEIR Scoping Meeting. February through November 2011- Templeton Planning Group prepares the Draft Program EIR. November 2011 through February 2012 Advisory Commission review of the Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR), Master Plan and Form-Based Code. 5
MASTER PLAN OBJECTIVES Preserve and enhance the role of the Town Center District as the civic and commercial heart of the City. Encourage an expanded mix of retail, commercial, civic and residential uses to create a lively 18-hour mixed-use environment. Preserve and honor the historic buildings and other resources of the Town Center as integral and generative elements of its urban and architectural character. Enhance the design of all open spaces, including streets, parks, plazas, courts, paseos, as a well-connected network of a comfortable pedestrianoriented public realm, the outdoor rooms in which the life of the town may thrive. Support a village-scaled density with building massing that strengthens the pedestrian realm and historic character. 6
MASTER PLAN OBJECTIVES (cont.) Develop an interconnected street network to encourage a pedestrian supportive block structure. Rebalance transportation modes and parking arrangements to emphasize comfortable and safe pedestrian, bicycle, transit and equestrian access and circulation, while enabling convenient automobile access at speeds that complement these modes. Implement a shared parking system to manage an adequate pool of onstreet and off-street parking as a critical element of community infrastructure. Encourage new buildings and renovations of existing buildings to provide welcoming frontages scaled to the pedestrian and attractive facades that extend and complete the historic town pattern, defining the public realm of the district. Make the Town Center the local and regional focal point for celebration of the history and culture of South Orange County. 7
Historic & Cultural Landmarks 1. Mission San Juan Capistrano 2. Blas Aguilar Adobe 3. Esslinger Building 4. Manuel Garcia Adobe 5. Domingo Yorba Adobe 6. Montanez Adobe 7. Stroschein House 8. Los Rios Historic District 8
MASTER PLAN OVERVIEW Master Plan consists of four elements: a Vision Plan, a Public Realm & Infrastructure element, a Mobility Plan & Strategy and an Implementation Plan. Establishes a vision for the future development of the Historic Town Center with a focus on 31-acre historic downtown. Establishes design concepts for public streetscapes and public spaces with the Historic Town Center Park as the centerpiece of the downtown. Establishes a plan for the design of public streets, potential future street extensions, and accommodating parking demand. Establishes short-term, medium term, and long term phasing plans. Provides the foundation for the adoption of a Form-Based Code to guide physical development in the Historic Town Center. 9
HTC MASTER PLAN Existing Net Change Build out Retail 559,089 27,385 531,704 Commercial/Office 103,434 113,665 217,099 Civic 49,872 20,661 70,533 Religious 107,490 1,116 108,606 Education 77,617 0 77,617 Other 19,385 4,478 14,907 Subtotal 916,887 103,579 1,020,466 Residential (239 at 1,150 gsf @) 0 274,850 274,850 Hotel (214 at 858 gsf @) 0 183,566 183,566 Subtotal 916,887 561,995 1,478,882 Parking 3,419 58 3,477 Residential 40 239 279 Hotel 0 214 214 10
VISION PLAN: HTC MASTER PLAN ILLUSTRATIVE CONCEPT 11
HTC MASTER PLAN ISSUES/OPPORTUNITIES Geometric design of Ortega Highway and Master Plan of Arterial Highways (MPAH) consistency. Overall street connectivity and planned street extensions. Affect of the Yorba St. extension and the Blas Aguilar Adobe. Affect of the Forster St. on Historic Town Center Park. Affect of Ortega Park Once structure on the Blas Aguilar Adobe. Appropriateness of a future City Hall site within the Historic Town Center Park. Affect of planned Franciscan Plaza parking structure expansion affect the historic Oyharzabal Barn. 12
1. ORTEGA HWY: -DIAGONAL PARKING -LOCAL COLLECTOR - WIDENED SIDEWALKS -OCTA APPROVAL 13
2. STREET EXTENSIONS: -YORBA STREET. -FORSTER STREET. -EL CAMINO REAL. -AVE. LOS PADRES. 14
EMINENT DOMAIN: Proposed HTC Master Plan policy language: For planned street extensions in the Historic Town Center planning area, the City's intent is that eminent domain will only be used to address critical public health and safety issues and will not be used to achieve design or economic objectives of the Master Plan. Moreover, the City will pursue the recommended street extensions only in cases where the affected property owner(s), whose property(ies) the street right-of-way would cross, concur with the street extension. 15
3. YORBA ST. EXTENSION: - BLASAGUILAR ADOBE. -HTC PARK. -SUBSURFACE CULTURAL RESOURCES. 16
4. FORSTER ST. EXTENSION: -HTC PARK. -SUBSURFACE CULTURAL RESOURCES. 17
5. ORTEGA PARKING DECK: -BUILDING MASSING -HTC PARK. -BLASAGUILAR ADOBE. -CULTURAL RESOURCES. 18
ILLUSTRATIVE VIEW OF THE ORTEGA HIGHWAY-DEL OBISPO STREET INTERSECTION DEPICTING THE PARKING DECK WITH A COMMERCIAL FAÇADE. 19
6. FUTURE CITY HALL SITE: -BUILDING MASSING. -HTC PARK. 20
ILLUSTRATIVE VIEW OF THE PLANNED CITY HALL LOOKING EAST FROM THE WEST SIDE OFEL CAMINOREAL. 21
7. FRANCISCAN PARKING DECK: -GARCIA-OYHARZABAL BARN. - ALTERNATIVE LOCATIONS. 22
PHASING PLAN: SHORT-TERM YEAR 2011-2015 a. Plaza Banderas Hotel b. Mission Grille/Pedro s Tacos c. Mission Gift Shop d. Camino Capistrano improvements e. El Camino Real improvements f. Verdugo Street improvements. 23
PHASING PLAN: MEDIUM TERM YEAR 2015-2025 a. Forster Street extension. b. I-5/Ortega Highway Interchange improvements. c. Camino Capistrano improvements (Forster-Del Obispo Street. 24
PHASING PLAN: LONG TERM BEYOND 2025 a. Park-Once (Ortega) Structure and Yorba extension. b. Gateway retail. c. Del Obispo Street North. d. Historic Town Center Park /City Hall 25
IMPLEMENTATION: Capital improvement projects within the Historic Town Center to implement streetscape and parking improvements. Private investment and business decisions by individual property owners. Through review of planned projects for compliance with the HTC Form- Based Code as part of the City s development review process. Continued implementation of the City s façade improvement program. Potential creation of a business improvement district (BID) to fund major capital projects such as the Ortega Park Once structure (would require approval by at least 75% of district landowners). Public-private partnerships between the City and private developers
HISTORIC TOWN CENTER FORM-BASED CODE The proposed Historic Town Center Form-Based Code emphasizes building types and forms, parking locations and façade design through the following features: Zoning Districts: The Form-Based Code creates the TC (Town Center) Zone District and TCE (Town Center Edge) Zone Districts. Regulatory Focus: The Form-Based Code emphasizes building form and recognizes that while uses may change over time, buildings will endure. Uses: The Form-Based Code emphasizes mixed-use development and integrates housing, retail, employment, lodging and entertainment uses. Design: The Form-Based Code establishes design guidelines for public streets, the public realm (streets & parks), and incorporates the City s Architectural Design Guidelines for individual buildings with the objective of creating a sense of place.
HISTORIC TOWN CENTER FORM-BASED CODE Design Review Committee, Planning Commission and staffrecommended revisions to the Form-Based Code: Revisions to permitted and conditional uses in the TCE (Town Center Edge) Zone District and TC (Town Center) Zone Districts. Revisions to the development standards to cap building height in the downtown at 2-stories and 35 feet, except hotels which the Code presently allows up to 3-stories and 45 feet in height. Revisions to incorporate the City s adopted Architectural Design Guidelines by reference. Revisions to incorporate Title 9 findings for decision-making. 28
RECOMMENDATION: Certify the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) for the Historic Town Center Master Plan project; and, Approve amendments to the General Plan Land Use Element, Circulation Element, and Parks & Recreation Element; and, Approve modifications to the Historic Town Center Master Plan and direct staff to prepare text revisions to the Master Plan; and, Introduce an Ordinance Amending Title 9, Land Use Code by adding a Form-Based Code for the Historic Town Center; and, amending the Official Zoning Map.
Questions & Answers 30