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CITY OF VENTURA CITY COUNCIL ~GfNDA Supplemental Information Packet Public Communications Received by 4:00 p.m., November 9, 2020. Meeting of November 9, 2020 Supplemental Information: Any agenda related public documents received and distributed to a majority of the City Council after the Agenda Packet is printed are included in Supplemental Packets. Supplemental Packets are produced as needed. The Supplemental Packet is available in the City Clerk's Office, 501 Pol i Street, Room 204, Ventura, during normal business hours as well as on the City's Website - www.cityofventura.ca.gov https://www.cityofventura.ca.gov/1236/City-Council-Public-Hearing-NoticesSuppl Ventura City Council Agenda www.cityofventura.ca.gov AGENDA ITEM 7 PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS pc Antoinette Mann From: Patty Overley (personal) Sent: Thursday, October 29, 20 To: Matt Lavere; Cheryl Heitmann; Erik Nasarenko; Christy Weir; Sofia Rubalcava; Jim Friedman; Lorrie Brown; City Manager Internet Email; Jamie Peltier; Dara Sanders Cc: Glenn Overley Subject: -EXT- Haley Point (HP) proposed development concerns To whom it may concern, With COVID 19 upon us, this City's Development process, created by the city in an attempt to dea l with the non-face to face meetings is not working for me and many others who are not computer literate. To visit web-type meeting is not something I can do easily. I am sure many others are in the same boat as me. This process is not fa ir and has limited citizens from participating in city council meetings and government processes. There needs to be another process to make certain all residents in the affected area of Ha ley Point have an opportunity to state their position on this proposed project that will directly impact their day to day exposure to the project in a negative way. The city has an enormous amount of information.on file about the 2005 general plan and all the addendums and discussions that has occurred over the years, since 2005. To require a citizen to retain or research this information to make an intelligent statement regarding development or re-development withi n the city is impossible. From what I have read and learned from those that have shared their thoughts with me, the following statement contains my concerns about this proposed development. I am not opposed to development, but do not want to see a "plug and play" approach to fill in open parcels because of 5B330. This is not "planned development" it is "reactionary development" that will harm the look and feel of Ventura forever. It does not have to be that way. 1.) Medium density and high density development are both appropriate for fill in type development under certain circumstances, the Ha ley Point proposal " IS NOT ONE OF THOSE PARCELS". Other areas on major roadways like Main Street and Thompson are both more suitable for this type of development. They have immediate access to main roadways and do not use residential streets to ga in access to a development that does not fit the neighborhood. The Mid-Town Channel Drive Parcel is different than the parcels on Main Street and those on Thompson. What differs is the fact that Channel does not have DIRECT access to a major roadway. Instead, Haley Point (HP) will use residential streets to ga in access to Channel to enter the HP complex. If the railroad crossing at Seaward were still ground level, as it was when the HP parcels were originally zoned as Ml, then the complex would make since, as HP residents cou ld gain access from a main roadway (Seaward), similar to those parcels on Main and also on Thompson. The point is that the city wants to claim that this proposal follows the letter of the law and is in compliance with the amended General Plan for Ventura. The truth is the HP proposed development is not in the "spirit" of t he General Plan. I do not think anyone ever intended for multi-storied medium density development inside a predominately single story residential tract that was developed during the forties and fifties. This wi ll destroy the look and feel of t he neighborhood forever, if allowed. If you look at the homes on Porter, in the same tract, they are newer, but more compliant with the feel of the original neighborhood. The difference is they won't have the ocean views the HP project will have if they are al lowed to develop a parcel with multiple stori es. 2.) HP project by design will require huge amounts of water. This is water that the city has continua lly struggled to provide its existing customers. Th ink about it for a m inute. If the parcel as designed allows 72 units, that mean 150 or so (2 baths/2.5 baths) toilets being supplied with water. That means that sewage for these same toilets w ill also be moved from the complex, via a sewer trunk that was designed decades ago. Kitchen sinks (72), bathroom sinks (150+), washers (72), dish washers (72) and water for the HP landscape needs. That is a lot of water. The other potential issue is water pressure for existing customers in the neighborhood that could be affected. I have extreme low pressure and hard water now. What will adding 72 more (homes) users to an older (many decades old) water system do to existing customers water service? The quality of the water and low pressure is already an issue . Is it going to get better with more customers on the same supply lines? Is this a situation where the city is placing the cart in front of the horse? Are we going to try and fix this issue after the fact and then charge tax payers to fix the problem the city created with the developer? 3.) What are the environmental, public utilities and traffic issues associated with this potential HP project. Prior to any approval, will the city require environmental impact studies, traffic related studies, and soil contamination studies. Additionally will that city reach out to wildlife experts to determine any potential impact on wildlife as a result of the disruption to the current environment? I visited the site toda and was uickl reminded of how beautiful the view is and how well and stron the breeze is that comes from the beach up the mild bluff toward Channel Drive. This will forever be changed if developed as proposed by the HP developer. The ramifications of a decision like this should be made with eyes completely open and not be taken lightly. The property has been used for many years to complete automotive and oil drilling equipment repairs. The logical conclusion is that oil related products and asbestos, both listed as hazardous chemicals by the state of California, may be present on the site and may require mitigation prior to any development. The aforementioned studies should not be waived by the city. They should be an absolute requirement before any decision is made by the city. Along the utilities aspect of the proposed HP project. The main utilities (SCE) have power lines and poles on the railway side of the project. Consideration should be given to remove these poles and place utilities underground to improve the views and aesthetics of the project at a cost to the developer. Traffic studies will determine the impact of traffic moving in an out of the tract. Keep in mind, that although the HP proposed development are currently listed at 72 units, the fact is most homes have at least two vehicles per household. If any of these households have teenage children, add a car or two Realistically, the traffic study should consider at least 150 cars plus any vehicles for visitors. Then there is another component to add for delivery vehicles. Finally, how can an accurate traffic study be completed under COVID conditions? In conclusion, the point of any residential development within an in-fill situation should be to improve the area with development. This development as proposed does not appear to do that. It appears upon the surface, that much more still needs to be investigated by the city before a decision to approve a project like this can be rendered. I want to clearly state for the record that I am not against development, as long as it is right for the area . I would like to see this project scaled down. I see 8 condos per acre more appropriate for the space and surrounding complex's. I do not believe that block walls on Channel to separate the complex from the existing neighborhood is appropriate. Roadways in the complex should resemble the existing neighborhood. With more parking permitted in the complex. The units should be a mix of one and two story buildings. Three story height does not fit the neighborhood. Being on the bluff, makes it too visible as a three story unit. It is good for the developer, who will sell the units as coastal view properties at a premium cost. As proposed, it is not good for the neighborhood. The studies I mentioned protect the city and the neighborhood from issue in the future and should be required. That area was initially designed (historically from the 40's and S0's) to allow for light industrial, with traffic flowing off of Seaward, when the roadway still crossed over the railway tracks at road level. Now with many years passed, it is important to investigate all the impacts that maybe at play. This includes traffic related issues and any environmental components that have been created on the subject property from its use as a Ml zoned property, actively involved in industries that have used dangerous chemicals over the years, prior to the state knowing their danger.