Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

All right, good evening and welcome to the Planning Commission meeting of the City of Moreno Valley. I now call this meeting to order on August 13, 2026 at 6.01 p.m. I invite Commissioner Sykes to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Sorry. No worries.

Henry Hart, ready? Begin.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Thank you. OK, can we have a roll call, please?

Yes, Chair. Commissioner Zaitz?

Present.

Commissioner Taylor is absent. Commissioner Steffen? Present. Vice Chair Baker?

Here.

Chairperson Nijanet?

Present. Okay. We have a request by Commissioner Taylor to be for an excused absent. Do we have a motion for an excused absence?

I'll motion.

I'll second. Okay.

Can we have a vote, please?

Commissioner Zaitz?

Yes.

Commissioner Steffen? Yes. Vice Chair Baker?

Yes.

Chairperson DeGeneres?

Yes.

Motion carries.

Okay, we're going to move on to the approval of the agenda. However, do any planning commissioners have a request to reorganize the agenda or change the order of any agenda item?

I do. I want to move item one before public comments.

Okay.

You need a second? Probably, yes.

I'll second. Okay. Can we have a vote?

Commissioner Zaitz? Yes. Commissioner Steffen? Yes. Vice Chair Baker? Yes. Chairperson DeGeneres?

Yes.

Motion carries.

Okay. All right. So now that we've had the agenda reorganized, we're going to go to that item. If necessary, I'm just reading it. Look at that. I'm just so automatic. All right. So before we hear public comments this evening, I ask and encourage everyone participating to keep their comments respectful.

This goes first. I'm going to move the comments. Are we doing the continuance first? Yeah. Before public comments.

Okay, let me see if that's correct.

I make a motion to continue item one.

Do we have the motion to continue it?

Chair, so the motion was to reorganize the agenda, and that was passed. And so now you move that item to now before public comment.

Okay. So now we need to have a motion to continue item one.

I'll make a motion to continue item one.

I'll second that. Okay, can we have a vote, please?

Commissioner Zaitz?

Yes.

Commissioner Steffen? Yes. Vice Chair Baker?

Yes.

Vice, I'm sorry, Chairperson Dejanik? Yes. Motion carries. Okay.

All right.

Excuse me, Chair. I'm sorry. We do have two comment cards for this item. Will we be opening public testimony?

Okay. So let me explain that now that the item has moved before the public. Mr.

Chair, we should allow public comment on that. before you make a motion to continue it. Before you vote on it.

I'm sorry.

Acoustics are kind of weird over this quarter.

Is that the continuance only?

Mr. Chair, I'm happy to explain it to you. At the reorganization, the motion was to move item 1.1 up before public comment. Therefore, as chair, you call item 1.1, you turn to staff to see if there's a staff report so you go through the motion okay as if calling it once staff gives presentation it is a continuance item then you ask if there are public comments then there's a motion for the continuance okay all right yeah that's what i was going to explain that we were

We moved item number one up and we still go through the motions. However, we're only speaking about the continuance, not the merits of item one. So at this point in time, we'll open up a public comment. No, staff report. Staff report. Do we have a staff report, please?

Thank you, Chair Desjardins.

I'm right here. Got it.

Tonight, this item entails a continuance to a date uncertain. In the future, when the applicant is ready to move forward with the project, staff would notice it in its regular manner. So in the paper, posting the site and mail to the project notification list. With that, that's the item tonight for that.

All right. Do we have any public comments on the continuance?

Yes, sir. I presently have two comic cards. Our first speaker is Ismael Gonzalez, followed by Lindsey Robinson.

Greetings. Good evening, commissioners, city staff, audience members. My name is Oswan Gonzalez. I reside in District 2. Surprising to move this at the very front of the meeting and to continue it. I think we all kind of were aware that the developer requested the continuance to a date uncertain. I want to take this time to just provide some context not mention anything about the project itself but I just want to make sure that the commissioners the city staff did receive the Sierra Club San Gregorio Chapter Box Springs Group letter dated July 20th, 2026 from our conservation co-chair, Dr. Michael McCarthy. I hope you have that letter in your email, maybe even physical copy. If you don't, please let me know. At some point today, I'll be happy to forward that to you. Dr. McCarthy gives a great explanation as to what should be considered regarding this project. I'm not sure if you guys are aware, but that community in Edgemont is a top 1% environmental justice community in the whole state. What does that mean? That means that community is burdened with some of the most polluted air and polluted environment. that can be found in the state. They are in the 90 percentile of receiving cancer. So, I mean, Dr. McCarthy can explain it better than I can in his letter, but I'm pretty sure that means they have like a 10 percent chance of getting cancer rather than the average american please consider that you are literally encasing at least seven residents seven homes uh between the parking lot and the project itself this project is bigger than what the land zoning can accommodate it is an exception that you will be making at some point but considering that the The developer has continued this to a date uncertain. It's pretty much dead in the water, in my opinion. If there's no date tied to this discussion anymore, then it's a sitting duck, right? It's not moving forward. It's not doing anything. The developer said that they will take this time to address these concerns, right? I would love to see when they will actually address these concerns. How do you address the 1% environmental justice community as designated by the state? I think we were just in negotiations with the California Attorney General regarding warehouse mitigation measures. This is going against that. Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Lindsey Robinson.

Good evening, Commissioner Staff. Just like he said, I think no more time should be wasted on this zone change, especially after the attorney promised us that only 93 acres in the cities would come forward as warehouses. And this is a zone change right after the general plan update. They keep continuing it and if I recall correctly, you guys said they could continue it as much as they want. So they probably are hoping everybody's gonna go away and then they can sneak it through. Let's not waste any more time. You promised no more warehouses other than on the 93 acres that are zoned for warehouses. Edgemont doesn't need this and the city of Moreno Valley doesn't need this. So continuing it on and on and on is wrong, and you need to stop it now. Thank you.

Thank you. Do we have any more speakers?

I have no more speaker cards for this item.

Okay. Now, my question would be this. Since we've already voted to continuous, do we have to go through that process? Oh, that would be the next step in the line there.

The question from the chair is, since there was already a motion and there was a vote, do they need to retake the vote? Yes. Yes.

Okay, so we need a continued vote.

So motion and vote. Okay.

Do we have a motion and a second to continue item one?

Yeah, I'll motion to continue it. And I'll second. Item one.

Have a vote, please.

Commissioner Zaitz? Yes. Commissioner Steffen? Yes. Vice Chair Baker? Yes. Chairperson DeGeneres?

Yes.

Motion carries.

Okay. Do we do a staff wrap-up on that?

We can do that. So let the record show that a motion carried to continue the item to date uncertain by a vote of 4-0.

All right, now we're going to move into the public comment procedures. So before we hear public comment this evening, I ask and encourage everyone participating to keep their comments respectful toward others, especially towards individual speaking. I embrace and support the First Amendment right to free speech, including everyone's right to speak at this meeting and share his or her views about issues concerning our cities. Any person wishing to speak either under the public comment section of the agenda's scheduled items or public hearings must fill out a request to speak form available at the door. The completed form must be submitted to the secretary prior to the end of the public comment period. During the public comment period for each item, including the items not in the agenda, each member of the public who has signed up to speak will have a maximum of three minutes to speak. The public must direct their comments to the chairperson of the commission. All right, we'll move into items not on the agenda. Are there any speakers for items that are not on the agenda?

Yes, Chair. I presently have one speaker card, Ismael Gonzalez.

Hello again. At previous meetings, I have acknowledged the weather in some informal capacity to emphasize our direct connection to climate change here in Moreno Valley. The Planning Commission, you consistently consider countless industrial and commercial projects that inherently jeopardize public health, community development, and yes, the weather. Today, I am reinforcing this position with newly released data and a historical perspective. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, also called NOAA, Their climate report for July 2026, published on August 13th, last month was the hottest month ever recorded in their 132 year of reporting climate data. It began in 1895. The average temperature in the US last month was 76 degrees Fahrenheit, nearly four degrees above the average in the last century. They also ranked July as the driest month in 14 years. Total precipitation average across the US was only 2.5 inches, which is below average by comparison to the last century. About 59% of the US was in consideration to be moderate to extreme drought at the end of July. As we all know, average temperatures here in the last month consistently were between 90 degrees and 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The hottest day reached about 105 degrees Fahrenheit, and we experienced virtually no rain. As Miranda Valley residents, we get our water from essentially two companies, the Western and Eastern Municipal Water Districts. According to the latter, 50% of all water is allocated by the Colorado River. Three days ago, the Guardian reported Lake Mead, the largest reservoir in the United States, has plummeted to historic low water levels, calling it the Colorado River Crisis. As an admirer of history, I find it astonishing and eerie that NOAA began its tracking of climate data in 1895, just about the same time Frank Brown, our city's namesake, was constructing the water tunnel from Redlands and constructing the Bear Valley Dam. He and his company advertised to people all across the nation to come here for fertile farmland. They did. They believed him. Guess what happened? According to Noah, that same decade, we were suffering an extreme drought. Those farmers came here, bought land, and had to relocate to other cities. He left the company without a good reputation. He left Redlands in disgrace, and now it's happening all over again. We are reaching a critical point. We need to be thinking about water retention and just, you know, thinking about whenever it rains, just retaining all that water as much as possible.

Thank you, sir. Do we have any other speakers?

I have no more speaker cards, sir.

Okay. All right. The next item on the agenda is the approval of the consent calendar. All items listed on the consent calendar are considered to be routine and non-controversial and may be enacted by a motion unless a member of the commission requests that an item be removed for separate action. Items withdrawn from report or discussion will be heard before the action on the consent calendar. Excuse me. Questions or comments from the public on the consent calendar matter must pertain to the subject under consideration. At this time, will the commissioner like to pull an item from the consent calendar for a separate vote or discussion? Okay, I'll take that as a, nobody's moving, all right. Do we have any public comments for the items on the consent calendar?

I have no speaker card, sir.

Okay. Do we have a motion and a second for the consent calendar?

Motion to accept the consent calendar?

I'll second that.

Okay. We have a motion and a second.

Commissioner Zaitz? Yes. Commissioner Steffen? Yes. Vice Chair Baker? Yes. Chairperson Dejeuner? Yes. Motion carries.

Okay. All right, looks like we're going into, all right, we're moving on to our first item, which is a master plot plan, PEN 25-0098, a conditional use permit, PEN 250100. Do we have a staff report?

We do, Chair. Tonight, Principal Planner Regine Kennedy will be giving the presentation for this item.

Good evening. Chair and members of the Planning Commission, Regine Kennedy, Principal Planner. The item before you tonight is a request for consideration of a master plot plan and a conditional use permit to allow the construction of a convenience store, gas station, car wash, and a retail building for future development. As a reminder, staff has reviewed the project for consistency with the development standards and provisions set forth in the city's municipal code. The project has objectively met the requirements set forth in the municipal code and has been duly noticed for a public hearing where it is brought for your consideration today. The project site is approximately three acres in site, located at the southwest corner of Cactus Avenue and Indian Street. The site is zoned neighborhood commercial, which allows an auto service station with accessory uses, including a convenience store, and car wash located within 300 feet of a residential zone or use subject to the approval of a conditional use permit. Retail sales are permitted in the neighborhood commercial zone subject to the approval of a plot plan. The primary purpose of the neighborhood commercial zone is to satisfy the daily shopping needs of Marina Valley residents by providing construction of conveniently located neighborhood centers, which provide limited retail commercial service. Surrounding land uses include single family residential to the north, south, and west. To the east of the project is the Bayside Community Day School. Basically, the CUP and the plot plan are required to ensure that the auto service use along with the accessory uses and the retail building does not result in adverse impact to the surrounding neighborhood. The project consists of a 5,000 square foot convenience store, a 2,478 square foot fueling station canopy with 10 fuel dispensers, a 2,524 square foot drive-through car wash tunnel with eight vacuum stalls, and a 7,000 square foot retail building for future development. The site will be accessed by two new driveways along Cactus Avenue and Indian Street. The internal site circulation has been designed to adequately accommodate on-site vehicular circulation, including access to the fuel dispensers, convenience store, car wash and retail building for future development. Pedestrian circulation is provided through a network of walkways connecting the building entrances to on-site parking areas and to the public sidewalk along Indian Street. ADA compliant paths of travel are incorporated throughout the site to ensure accessibility and pedestrian safety. The project provides a total of 85 vehicular parking stalls, including standard accessible electric vehicle and EV-capable spaces. The parking supplies exceeds the municipal code requirements and has been designed to provide safe, efficient, and organized circulation for both vehicles and pedestrians. The project is conditioned to provide a security plan for city review and approval to help ensure the safety of the public and the employees. The proposed buildings feature contemporary design using a combination of materials including smooth stucco and aluminum metal panels to create visual interest and architectural variation. The convenience store building, which is located at the center of the project site, includes prominent tower elements and enhanced glazing to provide a strong pedestrian-oriented frontage. At the corner of the site closest to the intersection of Indian and Cactus and sited away from the residential uses is the proposed gas station with 10 fuel dispensers. The canopy and columns are designed to be compatible with the rest of the development. As a matter of information, the convenience store will be open 24 hours a day and will sell fresh foods, drinks, and snacks. Alcohol and tobacco sales are not proposed for this location. The car wash and vacuum stations are designed to be architecturally and aesthetically consistent with a convenience store and gas station. The use of car wash and vacuum stalls will be limited to the hours of 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. and will need to comply with the city's noise ordinance. In addition, the development will provide a six foot high masonry block wall along the south and east property boundary lines, which are adjacent to the existing single family residential uses. The project provides enhanced landscaping consisting of street trees, shade trees, shrubs, and drought-tolerant plant materials along the street frontages, parking areas, and building perimeter to improve the site's visual quality and provide shade. Site lighting includes parking lot, pedestrian scale, and building-mounted features designed to ensure safety and visibility. All lighting will be shielded and directed downward to minimize glare and impacts on surrounding properties. As proposed and designed, the project meets and exceeds the required design landscape and lighting standards and objectives of the municipal code and exceeds the city's parking requirements. The proposed project complies with the section 9.02060 for conditional use permits, section 9.02070 plot plan, and all the applicable development standards of the zoning code. The project has been analyzed under CEQA with required technical studies to support a class 32 infill development exemption. In addition, the applicant has conducted community outreach to neighboring properties. With the recommended conditions of approval, staff is recommending that the Planning Commission adopt Resolution 2026-17, determining that the master plot plan and conditional use permit is categorically exempt. using the infill 15332 exemption and approve the master plot plan and conditional use permit subject to the attached conditions of approval shown as exhibit A on resolution 2026, 017. This concludes staff's presentation. I'm available for any questions. The applicant is also available and in the audience. Thank you.

Thank you. Are there any commissioner questions for staff?

I do. Did we get any negative comments on this one? from the public at all?

Yes, we did receive three comment letters on this project and it dealt with concerns about traffic, noise and compatibility with the neighborhood and all those comments have been forwarded to the commissioners prior to our meeting today.

I know it's in our paperwork and stuff, but just for general knowledge, what is the height of this building for the convenience store for the convenience store?

Let me get that information for you. It would be, um, I have on my notes 23 feet. Yeah.

Let me see if I can pull that up for you.

We could even see it here. Now, this one's about 20.

I'm not sure what the height of this is.

Well, if you do 10, I mean, I'm just, seems to me like it might be pretty close.

It's an approximately two.

Yeah, to the center. 24.

Why don't you jump up there and touch it?

No, I just think you can eyeball it.

Okay.

Any other questions for staff? Well, let me see. I guess this one would be for fire. Has the fire department reviewed the proximity to the school?

Good evening Planning Commissioners, Edgar Gonzalez Fire Marshal with the City. When we reviewed this particular plot plan we just reviewed what was in front of us which was just the scope of the project.

So I guess my question would be is in the event And this is just my general thought working at the school myself, not that particular school. If there's a field spill, a major, would the school adjacent probably have to be evacuated?

Depending on the scope of the spill, the fire department's hazardous materials response team would respond to the incident and take the appropriate precautions for any potential spill.

Okay. Do we know, and not for fire, but do we know how close the closest building is to the school that's across the street? Pumps. Or pumps, better yet. Either way, the building or pumps. Is it, I didn't really see it in the plans. Right, if it was set back at all.

That's all education on this side. Well, right. It's not a school.

No, this is Bayside.

This is Bayside.

All right.

Bayside, that's a continuation school.

Probably about 100, 190 students. And then right here is Badger Springs. And then right here in elementary.

Okay, I guess we can come back to that.

I just wondered how close it was because I couldn't see it there. I was looking for it there. I don't, I just wondered, because I didn't see it in the plan, I guess because the plan is here, is how far back that building was set away from the school or the closest pub. No alcohol is good. No cigarettes. But There are actually two other schools that are very, very close. Badger Springs is just another block away and then there's an elementary right next to that. Which I believe is Chaparral Hills. Yeah, they're both, I mean like literally a block away. Yeah, it doesn't show there which one is Indian and which one is... That's Indian. Yeah. Right there, so... I don't imagine these are the... So the convenience store is closer. So the pumps are on the back side.

So, Chair Dijonet, we don't have the exact figure, but we could certainly see that, you know... So the canopy is set back, which would be the closest structure. The canopy is set back 50 feet, and then you've got an intervening... uh road right away which is probably at least 80 feet wide um but i'm not certain about that so we're talking about at least 130 feet away from the school's property line so that building looks to be set back another maybe five feet so we're talking about 135 feet more or less but we don't have that exact figure any other questions from commissioners to staff

No? OK. Would the applicant like to speak? I'm sorry.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Hang on. I'm sorry.

Because this looks to the commission to question the staff. All right. So we're now going to open up the public testimony at 6.34 PM. And would the applicant like to speak?

Good evening, honorable chair, commission members, city staff, Michael Ramirez for Beyond Food Mart. I'm here to answer any questions that you may have. I just have one clarification that I wanted to correct with regards to the car wash. They're open from sunrise to sunset, not closing at 10 p.m. So they're closed much earlier than that 10 p.m. marker. In addition to that, we brought a video to kind of explain who we are, and that way you can take a look at what we're hoping to bring to the city of Moreno Valley.

Mark strives to set an example as a safe, community-friendly business. To achieve this, we enforce a strict program of increased employee and customer safety, enhanced security measures, regulation of lawyering, and crime prevention protocols. Beyond Food Mart employees and new franchisee owners participate in programs that train and inform employees about security procedures, violence avoidance, and recommended behaviors for managing a robbery or other potentially violent encounter. We periodically train our staff on how to prevent the sale of age-restricted products such as alcohol and cigarettes. This is done with new hires and on a yearly basis for veteran employees. All Beyond Food Mart locations incorporate state-of-the-art video camera systems and alarms. Our surveillance system is a 24-hour closed-circuit video camera with audio capabilities and a high-resolution color monitor mounted in clear view of the customers. Multiple cameras will be displayed, one at the main entrance, one at the cash register, one at the storefront, and one at the exterior for the fuel canopy. Along with a time access safe, employees will be instructed to keep no more than $50 and $30 at night in the cash register at all times. Beyond Food Mart prides itself on the relationship with its community's local law enforcement. We apply their knowledge to institute crime prevention methods such as increasing our store's interior lighting, allowing access to our security systems, installing a locking device on our cash registers, and carrying the minimum amount of cash at all times. In an attempt to curb any loitering, Beyond Food Mart retains at least three employees per shift and a total of three shifts for every 24 hours. Employees are trained to keep a clean premises that maintains a clear line of sight in and out of the store. We also provide the proper no loitering signs and prohibit employees from selling single bottles of high alcohol content beverages. By focusing on the above action, Beyond Food Mart hopes that this will showcase to the community that our establishment is a clean and safe environment where all will be welcomed. Thank you.

I wanted to let you know that some of the stores that you saw in that video was our Dos Lagos store over off the 15 freeway at Dos Lagos. And if you notice there, there's almost 300 to 400 units of housing. And that location's been operating for about two years now without any incident. The other store that you saw was our location here in the city already at Day in Eucalyptus. That was one of the first stores that we opened with the Beyond Branding. So we've been in your community for a while and we're hoping to be able to share this new type of branding with the city. We have thrifty ice cream hand packed that you can go in there and order. Fresh sandwiches that are being made. There's an area where you can sit down and enjoy any of 20 different types of coffee while you wait. We're going to have electric chargers there, so if you have people that need car charging, that will be there as well. I do want to answer any questions that you may have, and then I'd like to address any other issues that maybe the public might bring up.

Okay. Are there any commissioner questions for the applicant?

I know you probably can't answer this completely because it's part of doing business, but the car wash part of this, is this basically being installed for convenience for the neighborhood so they can get their cars washed?

That's correct. Yes, sir.

So it's not really a – I don't know if I can ask this question or not, and you can tell me don't answer it, but it's not really the moneymaker of the thing. Your store is actually your main –

That's correct. It's not a standalone car wash like Quack Quack or any of those. It's there for convenience purposes. You get gas, you get your groceries, you get your car washed, start your weekend.

Okay.

Thank you.

Any other commissioner questions for staff? I mean, sorry, for the applicant. No? My curiosity there is why so close to a school?

You know, at the end of the day, we're following the city's zoning. It's zoned for neighborhood commercial. Had there been a different zoning designation, we probably wouldn't look at it. But at the end of the day, that property is zoned for that type of use. We're not asking for a variance. We're not asking for a zone change. We actually need the CEQA standard for an exemption on this project. But we've gone through all the CEQA studies, the traffic, the noise, because the city felt that they wanted the benefit of having those reports in case anybody questioned the process. So the reports that were constructed for this were done with participation of city staff and we met the standards with regards to noise, with regards to traffic. Now, some issues have popped up, but I want to take those as they're presented so that we make sure you can see that we're taking this seriously and we've got some scientific information and some proposals to make that issue more mitigated, if you will. So I don't know if there's anybody in the public that's going to want to come up and speak, but, you know, I want to take that opportunity to rebut to those questions and concerns at that time.

Anybody else? Maybe after public comment, he says that he'll come back.

All right. Thank you, sir. Appreciate your time.

I want to reiterate, although the video was mentioning the sales of alcohol and tobacco, this site will not be issuing that or not requesting that.

I understand. Okay.

Thank you.

All right, we'll now move on to the public comment, and the clerk will ask each person to come up who has requested to speak.

Hi Chair, we have three comment cards presently. Our first speaker is Ishmael Gonzalez, followed by Lindsey Robinson, then followed by Tatiana Flores.

Hello, once again, Ismael Gonzalez here, District 2. I want to begin by first off saying with all due respect to everybody who has said otherwise, it is in our assessment, advocates like me, there's quite a few who believe that this is incompatible with the municipal code. I want to direct you to Chapter 9, Section 420D, neighborhood commercial district. The primary purpose of this neighborhood commercial district is to satisfy the daily needs of residents by providing construction of conveniently located neighborhood centers which provide limited retail commercial services. These centers must be compatible with the surrounding residential communities. Look at chapter 9, section 15, definitions for compatible. The term compatible means capable of coexisting in harmony or without significant conflict to the neighboring areas. I don't believe that this shopping center, which it is, it's not just one business, it's just it seems like there's going to be an office building of 7,000 square feet. plus everything else. That's not limited. That's not compatible with residential zoning. And it's like you said, it's right across from a school. How does that make sense? That's where my mind goes to, exactly your thought. What happens if there's an oil spill? I live on Ironwood in District 2. I go to the gas station right there, buy food for less. I've actually seen a gas spill happen there. It's not pretty. It's very scary to see because the person is in shock. They don't know what to do. Someone has to go run to hit that button or call 911. But to have it right next to a school, that's insane. I've done more research on this topic. And like you said, staff only mentions one school. There's actually four schools in that one mile radius. There's also four convenience stores with gas stations in that one mile radius of that school as well. According to those four schools, there's at least 2,000 students that live in that neighborhood that roam around. Do you think it's appropriate to have a business that has 85 stalls for parking to increase traffic and pollution, like noise pollution? Pollution of every kind, if you think about it. Noise, light. I just finished talking to you about how commercial increases traffic. greenhouse gases. Just by having passenger vehicles and trucks to bring supplies, right? That's going to be right across the school. That's incompatible. And we're ready to oppose this project at every step. It's insane to think about how a lot of details were left out of the staff report. It is about 100 feet away from Badger.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Lindsey Robinson, followed by Tatiana Flores.

Hello again. I agree with most of what he says. I do have a question. On the printout on that, it said 500 square feet and 700, not 5,000 and 7,000. I was reading the screen, so I wanted to verify that it's 5,000 and 7,000, not 500 and 700 square feet for the retail and the convenience store. I don't have a problem with the convenience store there, although I think their prices are a lot higher than they would get at a market, so that's not really an asset to the community. What I really have a problem with is I think you're playing fast and loose with infill. and saying that a gas station is exempt from CEQA, that makes no sense whatsoever because of, as I said, oil spills, gas spills, so I think you need to revisit that and the gas station should not be exempt. Their presentation spoke a lot about alcohol and tobacco. Are they going to be allowed to come back later if you approve this and then decide and ask for permission to sell alcohol and tobacco after getting it approved without it? Can you put something in there that denies them coming back ever to sell alcohol and tobacco? It was brought up on their presentation multiple times, and it should not be allowed. Again, you are so close to so many schools. You're going to be bringing in trucks, extra traffic. Kids will be jaywalking to get to the convenience store. I just don't believe it's going to be as safe and safe than for them to say there's no adverse effects. That's nonsense. The pollution, the traffic, the noise, 24-7 when they don't have that right now, those are all adverse effects. Common sense tells you there are going to be adverse effects, so I wish the staff would quit telling us there's no adverse effects from extra traffic, extra pollution, extra noise, extra the light 24-7. It can really affect your sleep and your commuting. They're not going to bring a lot of jobs. We do have enough car washes as... No, we don't. So, you know, let's put stuff there that fits with the neighborhood and that they can really use. You know, a grocery store, sure. Maybe a doctor's office, anything like that, but not a gas station and not a car wash. Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Tatiana Flores.

Hello, Planning Commission. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Tatiana Flores and I'm a resident in District 4. I guess I wanted to start by mentioning that something I would want to be considered is that at a previous Planning Commission meeting, we had discussed data centers and our concerns with car washes, that sort of thing. And there was a motion, I guess, to start working on a study session to actually discuss all of these things. So I did want to make a note that this project is proposing a car wash, which is something we were actually planning to, you know, have that study session cover alongside data centers. So I just wanted to make that known just for people who weren't there at that meeting. And to my knowledge, it still hasn't happened. So I think it would be beneficial to actually have that study session before approving a project that is, you know, discussing something that we had previously mentioned should be a part of that study session. I also want to make a note that I would like to be alerted through email when that study session will be happening, but that's something else. And something else I wanted to discuss is that I actually attended a meeting at the city of Paris to discuss a child care law that they were proposing with Corey Jackson. But at that meeting, they actually talked about a gas station and they discussed a lot of guidelines that, you know, the city of Rupa Valley, I believe, has, including limits to gas stations by intersection and by minimum distance and like previous speakers have mentioned there are several gas stations within the vicinity including mobile arco circle k and and like i guess 7-eleven so um i guess i would want that to be a push in this meeting where we actually consider what some of those limitation and guidelines should be for the future and um At that same meeting, they actually called for more consideration for the setbacks near residential and school sites, which is something that we hear previous speakers mentioning as well. And like Lindsay mentioned, I don't personally mind the convenience store as much. I think having a grocery store, commercial, some type of store would be nice there, especially because there are schools. So I could imagine some of the kids want to grab a snack after school or something. but yeah i think it just calls this project to me just calls for more consideration and more like creativity um like and that's all i guess thanks thank you we have no more speaker cards chair

all right then at this time we're going to close the pup i'm sorry do you have any additional comments yeah so i want to take a moment just to address some of the issues that were brought up um i don't know if you can bring up an aerial or a google map

of the site, no? Okay, can you bring up the aerial that you had, though, with the lot empty? Because I just want to point out, the school directly across the street is actually adult school. It's for 11th and 12th graders that never...

Sorry, we need to pull the presentation back up.

Oh, sorry.

Sorry about that. Thank you.

Yeah, but let me just go speak. So at the end of the day, immediately across the street, the Bridges Learning Center is for... 11th graders and 12th graders and they do like adult education there as well the perimeter of that property all the way down to glen crest that driveway you see down there has about a six foot high all metal wrought iron with panels to block it so you can't see through it and you can't pass through it all along the perimeter and to the other driveway over on cactus so Any comments with regards to jaywalking, those types of things? You cannot physically walk across that property anywhere on the east side of Indian to our site, because you literally have to walk all the way down to Glencrest in order to get around that fence. So I want to just point that out. Any children walking this way will have to come down the sidewalk to get access to our store. I think we talked about the car wash operation, the noise. We met the standard. In fact, the operation is the same as you mentioned. You can hear the kids playing. I have my sound consultant here that they did all the tests that we sent to the city. And at the end of the day, in those readings and those tests, met the standard and were also below just a few decibels of what the standard is. I understand the concern about the school over it. You mentioned something about a fuel spill. I'm not too sure what your definition of a fuel spill is, but these stations are all designed through AQMD and also state DTSC. So if there is any fuel spill, it flows and there's containers that are meant to catch it. You know the tanks in the ground where the fuel is maintained are double wall insulated tanks to avoid any type of fuel coming out of the tanks. All the buildings except the canopy are fire sprinkler. So at the end of the day, if there's a fire of some sort on a building, it's going to be contained on the inside. with regards to setbacks on the retail building in the rear that's being proposed. We added additional, almost 10 feet additional setback because it was a formula the city has with regards to the height of the building itself. So those issues were addressed with regards to setbacks to the buildings and where they lay in the property. I just want to clarify that for the board or for the commission. Sorry.

I have a question. On one of the buildings when I was looking at it at home, it stated that there was going to be maybe a dental office there.

We're building it spec right now. We don't know what's going to be there, but as soon as, if we're able to move forward, we'll put a sign on it and start offering it up to local users.

Okay, I thought I saw something about that. That and maybe some sort of drive-thru restaurant.

no there's no drive-through restaurant that's being proposed obviously there's no room at the end of the day we are expecting um you know community use nail salon dry cleaner those types of uses for that 7 000 square foot building a dental center if somebody wants to run a daycare center out of there and they want to use it and we can figure out if the parking's there we're going to have extra parking more than we're required so although it will be up for whatever the market will introduce and the city will approve.

I thought you already had somebody there.

No, it's a little, yeah, we got to get through tonight first.

Commissioner, I also do want to add that that 7,000 square foot retail building for future development will have to come back to city staff. They would have to do an admin plot plan since there isn't a tenant identified right now.

I don't know if this is staff or him, but the additional development, is there going to be driving between property behind that building and the houses there, or is that going to be?

No, there's no access there.

There will be no access, so there won't be, like, trucks parking back there unloading in the middle of the night?

On the side of the building is all going to be a sidewalkway. As you can tell, on the south side of the building and to the north will be a walkway and then parking.

How big are those other two buildings that you were saying that?

The other building is the retail building that's their spec is 7,000 square feet Our belief is going to be that either It's going to be split into four of maybe about 12 to 1500 square feet So there might be four occupants for it We don't know when we get to that point

Well, thank you, sir. I appreciate your time. That clarifies a few issues.

Are there any other questions we may have that we can provide you additional information?

Not that I can think of. I don't have any. You already talked about underground fill tanks. You already talked about traffic.

Okay. Okay.

No, I can't thank you. Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you. All right. Now we're going to close the public testimony at 6.57 p.m. and move into deliberations.

As was stated by some of the citizens, the convenience store is not a bad thing. It's in a neighborhood and it's always nice to run down to the corner and buy something instead of hopping into your car and disappearing or going across town or whatever. My major concern is with the car wash itself. Granted, yeah, the noise is only during certain times of the day and whatnot, but with today's society and whatnot, people don't work 9 to 5 jobs and they come home and sleep from like 10 o'clock till 7 o'clock in the morning. I just have a concern with the noise and the extra basically traffic because of the car wash. As of the project in whole, I don't have really a problem with it.

The only thing I have is the car wash.

I mean, if something could be done, maybe just put more retail space where the car wash is and probably make more money on rent on that than you would on the car wash. That would make me think more of liking this project a little bit better. I do have a concern with the schools around it, even with all the California laws and whatnot. You know, you go into a gas station and it smells like a gas station. People spill, people... shake the nozzles off, and there's chemical spills there. There's gasoline spills. If this project has gone through, I would like to put in, one, I'd like to see the car wash taken out, but number two, I would like to have something maybe put up by the developer, if possible by him, that would set up some kind of evacuation training and supplies and whatnot for the school across the street if something of that nature would happen. But again, I'm not a real fan of the car wash. I like the buildings to be a little lower and kind of just fit in instead of standing out. Most of your neighbors are gonna know that that is there. I don't really want it to be like a focal point where somebody looks for it or something where it stands out like a sore thumb in the area. Those are some of my concerns with this. I don't know if we can do anything with that or not, but that's my thing. And then I'd also like to know, with a conditional use permit, a conditional use permit, as far as I understand, meaning that it can't meet all the requirements 100%?

That's not accurate, Commissioner Zeitz. A conditional use permit is, just as it sounds, you know, This is adjacent to residential. If this were not adjacent to residential, it would be a law by right. But because it's adjacent to residential, we want to make sure that we have the ability to address any unintended consequences of the development with conditions of approval. Worst case scenario is that there's a number of issues. It becomes a nuisance to the surrounding neighborhood. We could call it back to this body for additional conditions of approval, additional requirements. The worst case scenario would be the revocation of a conditional use permit. That's an extreme situation, but it is a possibility. So it's not that it doesn't meet all the requirements. it's that it has the potential to have impacts on surrounding land uses. We want to make sure that we can address them ahead of time to the extent that we can. When we find that we can't, which doesn't happen very often, we have the ability to bring it back and further review the project.

So yeah, if it doesn't fall, if something happens or whatever that changes what's going on, then it will, it could possibly come back to us. That's correct. So it's an unknown factor at that point.

Those are the things, the unintended consequences that we can't anticipate. Sometimes they present themselves, sometimes they do not.

Okay, thank you. The applicant stated that the car wash was going to be like from 7 to dawn. Sunset. Sunset, okay. From dusk to dawn. And maybe we could, instead of 10 o'clock, we can set a time a little less than 10 o'clock. And as far as community outreach, they did community outreach, and there was three people that you said said anything, but there's a lot of houses around there, so I don't think that anybody was really that opposed to having it there. And then they're not asking for a zone change, which is really wonderful, and it is community commercial. I've been to that store on Eucalyptus and Day. It's a very nice store, very clean. It actually looks very nice. All that whole corner does. It actually elevated that area when they put it in. And there is another school down the way, which is Edgemont. And that is an elementary, I believe, isn't it?

It is.

Yes. And they've never had an issue. I know that my grandson went to... The continuation school there. And he did very well. And I think there is a need for a gas station there. Because I don't believe there's one in that area that close. And because you are going to have some other retail there, I think it's going to be an asset. Because some of these gas stations, they just put a gas station, a car wash, gas station, car wash. At least you've got some extra that you can infill in there with other businesses, which will probably be a, you know, asset to that community right there I don't see a whole lot and this one wrong with it I really didn't see a lot of people from that area come in and complain I got the feel that other people came from another city to make a comment which I kind of myself I want to hear from the residents I That's just my stance on it, and it's a personal issue. But I really don't see a problem with it myself.

You know, I think it's a good project. This company puts together a good product. They got the one on South Reno Valley, right, down on Paris. Is that one of yours, too, or not? Then the one up on Eucalyptus, and then you're doing another one at, let me think, Graham and...

that's an email bar are those all yours are not irishman over is where we uh... it's going to be the the newest one that will be building it's a good quality product i'll say that i like it not yet yeah i think i'm a little ambiguous a little bit uh... The car wash, and I can understand their noise studies and stuff like that. I get it. I think this would be the absolutely, this would be the closest gas station to a school. Absolutely in this city. I don't think we have anything that's directly adjacent right across the street from a school. And I know, like, say you've got Badger Springs and Alamance, we do have gas stations that are around the corner and down the street. However, A lot of these that we do have, like on Day Street, they're not within, they're not in foot traffic areas. This is a neighborhood. And I've said it before, gosh, I've been in the school district since 1989. Oh. No gasps. And nobody said, that guy's old. Anyway, but I have seen, look, you're around the corner from Badger Springs. They're coming. You know, the kids are going to be walking in there. They're going to be snatching stuff out the aisle. They're coming. You know, trust me on that one. They're within foot traffic. A lot of our places that we're... where the gas stations are, the people drive past them. They'll pull in and buy their snacks for the kids, but there's going to be a lot of foot traffic. Kids walk up and down that to get to their schools. And so that potentially could be a problem. They're close enough to say now that, oh, I don't really have a place to ditch to to go get something. They will now. So that's another thing that can happen. And trust me, we've had them where they've ditched and even gone to the hospital to eat lunch. because they didn't like the school lunches leaving campus. But now there's fresh sandwiches and candy and soda pop and stuff like that. So that could be an issue. That doesn't have anything to do with you and your COP or anything. It's just things that are potential issues. The other thing that I think, too, is that I did happen to grow up right around the corner from a gas station. It was a Circle K, a convenience store. And that became a neighborhood hub. It was fantastic. You know the people that worked there. Now this was back in the day and you can go there and you had credit in the store and let me pick up some milk. And even when I was a young lad, under the age, your mom could sing you there to go pick up her Virginia Slims mentholated. And they'd give them to you as a kid or the alcohol. And you'd hustle back with your mom and going and get it. But it really did. I did not ride a horse. It was within walking distance. And it was a great place to go. We went there for ice cream, stuff like that. So it does have a great potential to be a neighborhood hub because it's right around a lot of houses. So I kind of think about the two. And yes, it's a continuation school. And at any given point in time, I think the max is 198. But they generally operate around 60 or 70 in general. And again, that is not the first building that's right there. They are set back. You know, again, with, you know, I think what sways me more than anything is the potential for it to be a neighborhood hub, you know, for people to be able to just walk out of their house, walk down the street, walk into the convenience store, pick up something that's going to be right there. It's right around the corner from my house. I can grab some stuff, bing, and I can be right there, you know. So I... I think I might be okay with this part. Yeah. Yeah, you got it.

I move that we adopt that resolution 2026-17 and determining that the master plot plan PN25-0098 and conditional use permit PN25-0098 1-0-0 are categorically exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Act and guidelines of class 32 exemption infill development in accordance with CEQA guidelines section 15332 and then also approving the master plot plan of PN25-0098 and conditional use permit PN25 dash 0100 subject to the attached conditions of approval included in exhibit a of resolution 2026-17 as shown on the approval plan all second commissioner zaitz no commissioner stephen yes vice chair baker yes chairperson dejanay

i get the swing vote yeah can i hold on to this that would be a yes motion carries okay the motion carries do we have a staff wrap-up we do uh let the record show that the motion approving the project uh passes three to one uh the planning commission's uh determination is final unless an appeal is received within 10 days by the community development director

Thank you. All right. The next item on an agenda is item, okay, is a Brodea Residential Development General Plan Amendment, PEN 250011, changes on PEN 250012, vesting tentative track map 39162, PEN 250011. 250010 and the conditional use permit for a plan unit development PEN 250014. Do we have a staff report?

Regine Kennedy, principal planner, is going to present this item to the Planning Commission.

Good evening, Chair, me again, and members of the Planning Commission, Regine Kennedy, Principal Planner. The project before you is a request to consider a general plan amendment, a change of zone, a vesting tentative tract map, and a conditional use permit for a planned unit development. to construct 134 single-family residential lots. As a reminder, staff reviewed the project for consistency with the development standards and provisions set forth in the city's municipal code. The project has objectively met the requirements set forth in the municipal code and has been duly noticed for a public hearing where it has been brought for your consideration today. The project site consists of 14.4 acres of vacant land located on the north side of Brodea Avenue and east of Moreno Beach Drive. The site is surrounded by residential to the north and south and vacant land with a few residential homes to the east and west. A commercially zoned area abuts the northwest corner of the property on Moreno Beach Drive and Alessandro Boulevard. The project proposes a general plan amendment to change the existing land use from R3, residential three, to R10, residential 10. The primary purpose of areas designated with R10 is to provide for a variety of residential products and to encourage innovation in housing types with a maximum density of 10 dwelling units per acre. There are several R-10 zone properties within the vicinity of the project site including just south of the project across Brodea Avenue and another located just a parcel east of the project site. The project is also required to request a change of zone, to change the existing zoning designation from R3, Residential 3, to R10, Residential 10. The primary purpose of the R10 district, again, is to provide for a variety of housing types with enhanced amenities such as common open space and recreational areas. The applicant is proposing to subdivide the 14.4 vacant project site into 134 single-family residential lots. The proposed density is 9.3 dwelling units per acre, and the lots range in size from 2,800 square feet to 4,500 square feet. The map includes the associated interior streets, open space, water quality feature, and off-site improvements as required. you The proposed project also includes a conditional use permit for a planned unit development, which provides for greater innovation in housing developments, including a variation in lot sizes and amenities that are not found in standard housing tracks. The proposed PUD, the planned unit development, provides guidelines for various architectural styles of housing that meet or exceed city-wide standards in the municipal code. All development within the tract is required to meet the standards as stated in the PUD, including plotting, setbacks, open space areas, and architecture. The community also provides a community park with a pavilion gathering area, picnic tables, and a common space area at the center of the development offers open grass areas and an exercise track. Architectural guidelines for the Brodella development area included in the conditional use permit include a character for future development and provide a structured approach to achieving a high standard of design within the community. Special consideration is given to elements such as floor plans, roof designs, building materials, and color schemes to create a visually appealing neighborhood that enhances the broader community character. The primary architectural styles identified for the project are cottage, farmhouse, Monterey, and Santa Barbara. With these architectural styles, there will be four elevation options and three color combinations to provide interest among the different housing types. Each lot will have a front-facing garage with a minimum backyard setback of 15 feet from the back of the house to the property line. The minimum setback between structures is 8 feet, and the minimum side yard setback is 4 feet, and that's from the property line. All the front yards will be landscape designed per the city's landscape requirements and the planned unit development guidelines. All community landscaping will be designed per the PUD and maintained by the required home owners. Association. Landscaping will feature California friendly plant selections that prioritize water efficiency. The chosen plant palette will establish a cohesive aesthetic throughout the development and incorporate Mediterranean and California native species to enhance visual harmony and sustainability. The project sites landscaping will include all ornamental trees, shrubs, and ground covering plants throughout the development. The project will access the main driveway along Brodea Avenue at the central portion of the frontage. The access will include decorative paving and is designed to accommodate gated access with a call box and adequate turnaround. The easterly driveway is for emergency access only when needed. All units will include a two-car garage with no on-street parking allowed. However, there are 34 open space parking to accommodate guests and visitors. There will be a six-foot-high perimeter block wall and vinyl fences surrounding the project site, which provides separation between units. With respect to environmental analysis, an initial study was prepared by EPC Environmental Incorporated in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act, CEQA. The initial study examined the potential of the proposed project to have any significant impacts on the environment. The ISMND, the initial study provides information in support of the finding that a mitigated negative declaration serves as an appropriate CEQA documentation for the proposed project. And that the proposed project with the implementation of mitigation measures identified will not have a significant effect on the environment. The mitigation measures which are recommended for the proposed project are in the following areas. This include biological resources, cultural tribal resources, geology and soils, and transportation. These are all incorporated into the attached mitigation monitoring and reporting program, which is a part of the environmental initial study. And based on the initial study with mitigation, the project will not cause substantial impacts on the environment. So staff, with the recommended conditions of approval, staff recommends that the planning condition, or sorry, planning commission, a lot of talking today. Staff recommends that the planning commission adopt resolution number 2026-27 recommending to the city council that they adopt the initial study mitigated negative declaration per the CEQA guidelines and adopt the mitigation monitoring reporting program prepared for the proposed project and approve resolutions number 2026-24-25-26 recommending that the city council approve general plan amendment pn25011 change of zone PEN250012, vesting tentative tract map 39162, which is PEN25-0010, and conditional use permit for a planned use development. Permit number PEN250014. And as of the publishing of the agenda, staff had modifications to the conditions of approval as outlined in the memo provided to the Planning Commission today. These modifications include the deletion of conditions 37 and number 111 and modifications to condition 134, 136, 138, and 139. And staff is available for any questions. This concludes my presentation. And the applicant team is in the audience if you have any additional questions. Thank you. Thank you.

All right. Are there any commission of questions for staff? this is right in the area where is this the it can't be the same one i mean we literally looked did we look at something very similar literally right in the same area yeah i want to say it's referred to a project but it's not this project site it's a different project site okay got it Any commissioner questions? All right, we'll now open the public hearing at, I don't know, let's see. Yep, 7.21 p.m. And at this time, would the applicant like to speak?

Good evening, chair. Good evening, planning commissioners. My name is Moses Kim, project manager for Warmington. First off, I just want to thank staff for working with us. It's been about two years now since we had our first initial meeting and conversation on this project. And no, I just appreciate the prompt responses, the communication with Sean, Angelica, Regine, Kurt, Larry, everyone that I've worked with. So I appreciate that. There was a presentation slide that I had sent, was that, is that ready? Just wanna share a little bit about Warmington, who we are.

Can media pull up the applicant presentation, please?

Okay, we can go to the next slide. So, one back, please. Oh yeah, so here's Warmington. This is who we are. We're approaching 100 years since we started our business in Hollywood, California. I'm proud to say that we've grown to doing community development, acquisitions, apartment, commercials across the state and I believe in Arizona and Utah. So, no, we're proud to be here in the city of Moreno Valley. Again, we're not new to this business. We've been around for a long time. Next slide, please. That's a site aerial view of the project. I think Regine's already showed it. We can move on to the next slide. This is the site plan that was already depicted previously by Regine's presentation. We can keep going. Here's a blow-up of our common area as presented. The long, narrow, what you call, you know, That's really a walkway for anyone that wants to get their 10,000 steps in throughout the day. But really there's an oil line easement there that we're restricted to doing any kind of construction or any other additional amenities. So that's why we made it that way. Yeah. Next slide, please. One of the things I wanted to highlight is this project brings four-sided architecture. We've added shutters at every side of every home on this project. So just wanted to, you know, highlight that, that we've trying to bring in a really good project, really good product to the city and to this community. Next slide, please. Here are a couple renderings of how it's going to look, kind of more with color and visual. Next slide, please. And this is where we want to talk about who our buyers will be, who all these folks will be moving into this community. We're targeting and anticipating first-time home buyers, young families with children, perhaps seniors moving down. You know, the lot sizes do range from about 2,800 to 4,400 square feet, and it's set that way because we want to keep the price point at, like, a low 500K starting point. And in order to attain that price, that's why we have these lot sizes and home sizes of this square footage. Just want to also highlight the way we do business. When we have a buyer lined up, we always fully disclose. With CC&Rs, with the whole HOA rules and regulations, they're discussed before every closing. So when the buyer does sign off and close on their property, they are fully aware that they're moving into a community that has an HOA with rules and regulations. before them. So dues were targeted around 200 a month in that range. Next slide, please. Parking and traffic, I know this could be a topic that gets brought up quite often. I do want to share that this project, each home has two car garages, two car driveways, 34 guest parking spaces throughout the entire project. That equates to about four and a quarter total spaces per unit. We will have an HOA. An HOA will communicate with residents on making sure that all the guest parking spaces are used efficiently and there's no overstayed vehicles. No strangers coming in and just parking their car. We'll have a thorough communication system. Our HOA, the way they work is they create a board and they're in constant communication with each of the board members to making sure uh it's regulated um some other things that's uh brought forth here is overhead lines that currently exist we're undergrounding those along verdea we will bring in a new curb and gutter sidewalk along the project side a new asphalt pavement full width of verdea avenue so that's not just halfway but it's actually the full width to the other side along the project limits And then the vehicle miles travel study that we conducted for SQL requirements had shown a result of less than a significant impact. One other item that's not here I wanted to share real quick. We are installing a new 10-inch sewer line that runs from our project all the way down to Merino Beach Drive. And so for any other adjacent development status to come in the future, can also tap into that sewer line. So we're providing that sewer line. We've worked with Larry and his team to make sure that it is designed accordingly. So that will be constructed as part of this project. And then lastly, we're going to build a new traffic signal right on the corner of Merino Beach Drive and Bredana Avenue. I know that, you know, traffic's a big, you know, a big question mark for everyone. You know, there's always traffic happening. We want to become not just a builder, but also a business that comes in and benefits the community. And by bringing a traffic signal here, we believe will definitely benefit not just our project, but the surrounding neighborhood. We'll put in new ramps, new access ramps, striping, signage, and we've worked with staff to make sure that the condition of approval has stated that. So that's that. Next slide. We talked about, Regine talked about the land use compatibility for a bit, and just wanted to highlight that there are R10 zonings surrounding the project, north, south, and east, and so the compatibility is there. Next slide, please. And then neighbor outreach. I want to highlight this before the commission. So I personally and one of my colleagues who's also here with me, we've worked a number of days trying to make sure the word got out. We wanted to be transparent and making sure everyone understood that there's a project here that's coming, that we're working with staff. On November 13th, 2025, we did a door-to-door outreach to all the residents within a 600-foot radius. of the project, including the nursery. I handed them, every one of them, if they were not available, I handed them a flyer of the project with my name and number so that if they had any questions, they can call me or text me or email me. Since then I didn't have any calls or emails or texts from those residents around the property. I did have a discussion with the landscape nursery owner who expressed the desire to see growth there and support housing here. On April 27th, 2026, I mailed out an invitation to all the residents within 600 feet radius. Again, I wanted to make sure everyone was aware that this project is happening. And then it was basically an invitation for a community meeting. And then on April 30th, I had a sign installed right in front of the project, right in front of the property, so everyone who's walking by, jogging, or driving by can see that sign that there is an on-site community meeting being done on May 13th. So on May 13th, I hosted an on-site meeting from 5 to 6.30. A number of residents did show up. Questions were asked about what's the size of the project, how many homes, what are the project limits. We've answered them. A couple of the comments that did come our way were, well, Moses, what's the timing of construction? When are you guys going to start? One of the comments we received was, You know, we see a lot of unwanted strangers hanging out in this area. We'd love to see something different, and this might be a good, this is a good project to bring forth. What are the home prices? What are you guys selling them at? So, all in all, that meeting went, from what we see, residents who supported this, they wanted to see change. Is there a sidewalk that you're building? Yes, there's a sidewalk that you can use. We're building a sidewalk right there. And then on May, July 17th and July 30th this year, I reached out to local small businesses within a neighborhood, the Chevron across the street, the car wash, even a few stores down at the strip plaza there, and just was able to talk to folks about the project, and some actually supported the project and submitted letters. So yeah, that was, I just wanted to share that we did a neighborhood out, we wanted to make sure it was a thorough outreach, folks knew about it that were in the area, and we understand that, yeah, that we wanted to make sure a thorough job here so that this project is well presented. So yeah, and then next slide. Yeah, questions, I have my traffic consultant, my engineer here with me. If there's any questions about the signal, existing traffic flows, those sort of things, he's here to help answer questions. So am I, so thank you.

Where footage of these houses?

I'm sorry?

What is the square footage of these houses?

1700, I believe ranging from 1700 to 2150, 2150 square feet, three to four bedrooms.

Is that for the smaller lots?

No, there's four different products. There are four homes, and the smallest square foot is about 1,705 square feet. It's a three-bedroom, and then the largest home is 2,150 square feet.

Okay. Now, did I get this right, that the smallest lot is 2,805?

The smallest lot is, I think it's 20... 2805.

Yes, it is. Correct. And the smaller house is 1721, you said?

Yeah.

I'm just trying to wrap my head around it.

I would say that the setbacks are four feet.

So it's mostly all house?

Yeah, but some of the... I would say if you look at the plan again, the rear yard... yeah it does range from 15 feet to 33 feet yeah so like the houses along right there off of private driveway those are 33 foot long backyards along lots 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 the ones on the other side are 15 feet yeah so it ranges 15 feet I don't know um

And the frontage on that, it's right there, right?

Oh, in the front of the entrance of the community? Yeah, that would be a block wall. Actually, it would be a sidewalk. There would be some landscape, and there is like a storm drain pipe that's underground there. Mostly it would be kind of like a greenbelt area with planting and then a wall.

So you just have to park your car in the garage?

Yes, folks would park their car in the garage. as far as the residents that will be living in this community, and they have two car driveways. So two car garages and two car driveways with 34 guest parking spaces throughout the project.

Yeah, but there's not going to be extra for, I'm just saying, because some people have more than two cars. Okay, I'm just trying to wrap my head around the whole, get the mental picture. Okay. Okay.

All right, you said that there was a, Sub-dedicated area for walkway, stuff like that, correct? Yes.

Okay. There's something underneath.

Which means this probably wouldn't actually zone out to an R10. It's got to be a little less than that.

Well, I think we're yielding close to... It's 9.3 dwell units per acre, so just under the 10. Okay. Okay.

The eastern driveway is restricted to emergency access only?

That is correct.

Okay. There was something else. Anybody else? Nope. Seems really close. I mean, like I said, 1,700 square feet with a 2,800 lot, that leaves about 1,100 square feet. That's very tight.

Chair DeGeneres, if I might add some clarification, you got to recognize that the footprint of the house isn't 1,700 square feet because they're multi-story. So the footprint's probably half of the 1,700 square feet. So it leaves more open space than you might expect.

Where are the orientation of the larger homes? Are they closer to the outside, or are they just throughout the?

They're throughout the project, yeah. The plan fours are our largest homes, and they're spread out. I think there was a colored red, orange site plan, and that shows you the variations of homes. Not on mine, I think it was on your presentation.

Can we pull up the staff presentation, please?

So the reds, the reds are the plan fours. That's the larger ones.

Is that right?

You said the red ones are the larger ones? Yeah, the red ones are the larger ones.

Okay, so they're throughout. Okay.

All right, any more questions for the applicant? Okay.

I don't know if staff can answer or applicant, but in your notification at 600 feet, I understand they're large lots. Do you know the actual number of people you notified?

Yeah, so if you have an aerial view, I can show you visually where I walked and who I spoke to and that whole area. It's 600 feet, so it covered about 120 addresses. Adam Hall in the nursery. The rental units, I think they're rental units, because it seemed like when I was talking to a few folks, at the few homes across the street. When I went in there, I just said hello. I tried to be very, very professional and handed my business card. We're a developer right here behind your units, and this is what we're planning to do. I gave them my brochure of the project that showed a site plan of 134 homes, so they knew it was going to be But I didn't get a chance to really have a sit down and talk with the residents in that area. But I did hand out my brochure and my information.

Okay.

Yes, I walked actually six blocks in the southerly track. That's about 112 homes. So I've left my business card and a site plan copy to each one of those homes and asking them to give me a call or email or text if you had any questions. There was one resident who actually did open her door And she just wanted to know how big the project was. And I told her it was right there. It's 134 homes. And she said, OK, that's all I needed to know. And she didn't have any other questions. The two residences that are directly adjacent to this project, right where I think it's the second home, where Bredea Avenue is, He came out while we were hosting our meeting. He asked questions about, what are this? What is that? These are trees. These are our homes. This is our entrance. This is our EVA on the east side. And at the end of our conversation, he mentioned that this is something I would like to see. this is this is this is real nice project another homeowner just east of I would say where the other project is there's like a smaller housing development tract that's happening he came out and also had questions about the project where is it aligned up with my house how far are you and I showed him the site plan just like kind of like here with an aerial and He said, you know, I've seen a lot of unwanted strangers in that area, because there is two, like, landscape sheds out there, and I guess there might be people going, probably people trespassing our property here. But he said he would love to see that changed. We'd love to see homes, how much are those homes going for? I think, oh, okay, I think that will help our value. Yeah, unfortunately, it's Tuesday night, and I asked him, if you feel comfortable, you would come out and support, Um, they're not here. I mean, it's Tuesday night. It's hard to have folks come out and show up to planning commission meetings, but he did express support him and the other direct race resident. Yeah. And we've got three letters as well from other folks in the area that I spoke to.

Yeah. Thank you. I was just going to give some context. So the city's notification policy of 600 feet is twice that of what the state requires, which is only 300 feet. So ample notification has been provided. In addition, the city has a practice where we post public hearing signs at the site. So anyone who lives nearby and is interested would have seen the sign at the site. So every effort's been made to make the local residents aware that this project's being processed and that there was a hearing tonight.

Any other Commissioner questions? Just one last thing.

This project started over two years ago with planning and laying out and whatnot.

That is correct.

I just have a question of, because we've gone through so many, not so many, but with our general plan update, that's changing zoning and everything. this may be something to the staff why wasn't since this project was come up why wasn't it considered in our general plan update why at that time was it not said okay yeah let's do r10 here because it's a good idea or it will be helpful why are we doing after we're doing a general plan update why are we coming back and making such a major change

Good evening, Angelica Castellupo, Community Development Director. So while this project was first submitted to the city about two years ago, the general plan update was actually updated in 2021. And because of the lawsuits after the general plan update was approved by the Planning Commission and the City Council, the land use designations remained. And so when we went back to revise the general plan update, it was on the environmental, not on the land use. So I hope that answers your question, Commissioner.

But does that mean that because on the general plan it was designated a different zoning, Wasn't even contemplated in there.

So that's correct. The zoning in the general plan was already established back 2021 or so. This project came in two years ago and was.

And back then it was zoned. What are three? Yes, it was still zoned R3, so it was still zoned R3 when the general plan was done OK.

Commissioners?

I don't want to start a argument. Okay.

All right. We'll now move into public comment. The clerk will call upon each person who is requested to speak.

Yes, Chair. We presently have three speakers. Our first speaker is Lindsey Robinson, followed by Ishmael Gonzalez, then followed by Rebecca Perez. Yes. Good evening again.

I sure wish Louise was here to say wow for me because I can't do her wow correctly. I'm shocked that we are bringing a general plan amendment and zone use change so quickly after the extensive general plan update. And yes, you did make land use changes with these new acronyms and that included the Sunnymead Village, which was a a land zone change, so this should have been in there since it was two years ago. We far exceeded RHNA, so we don't really need... Mr. Robinson, may I interrupt you for a second?

I apologize. Can we get the other... So we can add the timer, please? Thank you.

Oh, I like that one better, but... Oh, now you've cut my time? No.

Apologies for the interruption.

And this is very similar to one you already turned down. We're running out of our higher lot sizes if you change this to R10. If I looked at the map correctly, it looks like there was the red arrows, only one entrance in and out for 134 homes. four cars, I mean, that's a fire hazard. Maybe you have some, they had the restricted exits, but you're creating a major mess if you got 134 houses times two to four cars all coming in and out one entrance. That needs to be changed. He said this is a senior step-down community maybe. Seniors don't step down to two-story houses. You need one-story houses for seniors. That's ridiculous. And then he says they're so attractive and beautiful and they have shutters. Those look exactly like every other development that's going up in Moreno Valley right now with these large houses on small lots. Now, my other question is the city's pushing ADUs. Can you put an ADU on a 15-foot area or a 33-foot area? Are you going to allow them to have ADUs? They just look like everything else. And it's just wrong to be rezoning and changing the general plan so quickly after the extensive revised general plan update. And you did change land uses. You came up with new acronyms. Sunnymead Village, I went to their meeting, or whatever it's called, and they said, yes, they did change the zoning. So you need to follow the rules and the laws and stop messing with our community. We need our larger lots. We need single story homes. Please respect that and do not recommend this as it is. You need to change single store. You need more entrances and exits, which he can't do because north of him up to El Alessandro is other people's property. But one entrance and exit is just asinine. Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Ronald Gonzalez, followed by Rebecca Perez.

All right. Hello. I just want to acknowledge a few things first. This, just like the last item on the agenda, are both conditional use permits. Something that Joanne mentioned, with all due respect, Joanne, you said that most people in the audience were probably from other cities. I counted six people that were the applicants for the last item. They up and walked out after they got their approval. there's three applicants for this item here. So half of the audience, you're correct, they're out of ‑‑ they're from out of city but they're not ‑‑ I think that statement was ‑‑ needs to be addressed, right? Like the people in the audience are not residents and they're advocating something that residents don't want. The applicant here said that he reached out to everybody in 600 feet. I could say the same thing. There's no proof that he did. He said that there was only one person that opened up the door. That's not an overwhelming yes to this project. And same thing with the last item. These are conditional use permits. How does this benefit public health, safety and welfare of the community? You guys should have David, you should have asked for that condition that you brought up. That should have been, you know, clear. I'm okay with the convenience store, but a gas station right next to a school, that's insane. This one here is insane as well. There's going to be over 100 residents stuck on that lot with only one entrance and exit in and out. Let me remind you, The springs fire burned 4,000 acres back in April. I went to the wildfire talk with fire chief Jesse Park at Valley View High School. They recommend clearing 10 to 15 feet away from your home so it doesn't catch fire. I hope you could maybe attest to that. How are residents going to do that when they're 10 to 15 feet away from the next house? This neighborhood was evacuated because of that wildfire. How are you going to evacuate 130 plus people in this community with one exit? That's insane. And no one is mentioning this, but I would be heartbroken if I spent $500,000 on a brand-new home And no one's telling me that I'm going to be less than a mile away from the World Logistics Center breathing in that pollution that all those trucks are going to have. The item next, city staff even admitted 1,300 trucks come into the city every day. That's about 400,000 daily trucks a year. And that's only going to get worse with the World Logistics Center. You're going to put people, brand new homeowners, right next to the World Logistics Center? That's insane. They're going to have cancer. They're going to have respiratory illnesses. And they're not going to even know about it because the World Logistics Center has not even been constructed. So to them, hey, it's open land, you know? Let me drop a half mil right here. That's ridiculous. Please, make it better.

Our next speaker is Rebecca Perez.

Hello. I just want to I'm going to make it real quick because it's freezing in here. I'm not for this just because if I spent $500,000 and $200 a month on HOA and couldn't park in front of my own house, I'd be pissed off. I think that the lots are way too small. The streets are probably too small. And one fourth of a parking spot per house extra for guests is crazy unless you only have one fourth of a friend. Yeah, I just there's not enough parking. There's not enough space. And I do kind of it did rub me the wrong way that when they were talking about the walking area that he was like, yeah, we put that there because we couldn't put anything else there because there's existing infrastructure. So you're telling me that you were going to try to shove more houses in there when there's already not enough room? I'm totally against it. I don't think we should be doing a zone change. I don't know why developers make these elaborate plans for areas that are not zoned for it. That's just me, I'm out.

Thank you.

We have no more speaker cards, sir.

Thank you. Excuse me. All right. There are no more speakers, and we're going to close the public testimony at 7.52 p.m. and move into deliberations.

Chair, you can offer the applicant an opportunity to come up and clarify or respond to any comments.

I understand a zone change is a big ask, and a general plan amendment is a big ask. And so what we're bringing here is not just 134 homes being delivered to new families moving into town, but I do want to highlight that we're also improving infrastructure, a new sewer line that can be used by other developers and other developments next to us, going towards Mareeja Beach Drive. And as a matter of fact, I think the traffic signal during peak hours, I don't think it's a high score. And so putting in a traffic signal that we would put in, not five years from now or whatnot, it would be when we're in the middle of our construction. We would install or design, work with staff, make sure it's in compliance with code and standards, construct a brand new signal at that intersection where it would improve anyone and everyone, businesses, residents, driving all along Merino Beach Drive. I know there's complaints about, oh, it gets backed up sometimes during the morning and in the afternoon during peak hours. Well, having a signal there improves that, where folks don't have to wait until traffic gets clear, but it's an actual signal now where folks can come out and it'll be safer and it'll flow a lot more better for the residents in that area. So I just wanted to... Highlight that and again, it's a big ask. That's why we did a neighborhood outreach. We went out not once, just knocking on doors, all 120 doors in one nursery. But we also hosted a meeting on site. We wanted to make sure everyone knew about the project and that we took in as many questions as we could. So I just wanted to share that.

Thank you. Chair, our fire marshal wants to add a clarification for the record about some of the comments made regarding access to the site.

Certainly.

Yes, for in regards to the secondary access to the site, the gates that are equipped on that secondary access will be required to be motorized and equipped with exit loops. So it will be an exit for people that live in the community.

And that's not for emergencies only?

It's going to be equipped with the preemptive automatic opening device that is in sync with our stroke system for it not to delay us to get onto the site. And so we will be able to come on site and people will be able to exit when they approach the gate because it will be motorized. Okay.

into deliberations.

I do have concerns with this large of a zoning change in this area. we did have a project near there that we did not do this just basically because it's such a large zoning change and it did change the neighborhood yeah there isn't much of a neighborhood there per houses at this point but um there can be in it and i I don't like making zoning changes like this since we just had a general plan update done. I know that it said that they only did environmental, but at that time, there could have been zoning changes with the latest one by the court ruling that they could have made zoning changes if needed. I'm not sure why this wasn't asked at that time to have done. The other thing that does concern me, and I understand the fire department does a lot of studies on this and whatnot, but I do, if you have... half your residents in there and you have an incident, fire or something, whatever, they're going to be hitting the gates getting out. So how is emergency vehicles going to be getting in? That is a huge concern for me. Even though the one is an automatic gate and whatnot, people are going to line up there. People are going to know it's there. And are they going to go head-to-head with our first responder equipment? How is it? I just... that just bothers me in that area because we do still have fires in that area and what not and people are going to be they don't care they're going to want to get out and they're not going to get out of the way of the fire trucks and what not but my biggest concern is such a large zoning change And I also, with notification, I know 600 is double. I would love to see, and that's something that maybe can be brought up, because in some of these areas, there's only five people within 600 feet. I think we should have a minimum number that are notified. No matter how far out goes if it goes a half a mile. We still have to notify that many people I would feel better and having things of that nature. That's something that we can discuss at a later time I just We spent a lot of money in setting up our general plan to make our city the way it is to meet our housing elements our traffic our public safety And now we wanna all of a sudden come in and change it and add all these people. Again, also, all these people being so close to the World Logistics Center. bothers me because nothing in all this presentation was anything brought up except by a resident about World Logistics Center only being a mile away. I just have major concerns. I mean, if they wanted to drop it maybe from three to five, that would seem to be more fitting of the area. But to 10, I just can't see it. Thank you.

I, again, other projects don't have any bearing or any weight compared to the project that's here. I can't consider the other projects in the area. I have to look at the merits of this project. One of the things I would have liked to seen is scoot that entry and exit over Because it looks like you have two main streets here I'm looking at. And if you just scooch it over all the way to the end so they can come straight in and then put a second one right there. So there'd be two entries.

So people can get in and out. That's a lot of homes.

Now, I don't live in a 134 lot area. Mine's only 7980. However, even at the 7980, I... rarely see another person coming in and out. When I go to work every morning, I might see one other car, meaning that people probably commute and they're up long before me. Every now and then I might see my neighbor now and then wave hi, but not 79 people trying to get in and out at the same time. I've never experienced that in a neighborhood anywhere. So I really don't think that's upbearing. And I'm sure people that live in their neighborhoods, everybody's not trying to get in and out at the same time. I mean, that's just reality. I can't think there's a person sitting in this audience that say they get out of their house and run into a traffic jam, turning out of their driveway and have 70, 80, 90, 100 people driving out at the same time. I don't think that's... But the density of this is... That's a lot for that area. Now, I did happen to sit on the general plan update. And one of the things we did when we looked at that general plan update was to make a plan for Merino Valley. And some of the things for the plans for Merino Valley is we don't want, we literally just don't want a city of a whole bunch of density. We just don't. So we left some areas where there were some lower density areas. And we're getting a lot of developers coming in to say, no, let's get it. And I get it. I do. Because to put houses on an R3 now or R2, it's, I mean, the price is huge. Nobody's going to pay for that. So it's going to stay empty. So we have to start thinking about ourselves as a community, as Marina Valley, do we want these dirt lots just to stay there? Because I guarantee you, R3s are just not happening anymore. The people that live in the R3s and the R2s, they bought those homes way, way back. I want to say in the 60s and the 70s. They're just not compatible today. If you came out to Marina Valley to buy on an R3 now, you better be talking about 1.5. If I'm going to buy a house from 1.5, probably not Marina Valley. Going to Malibu. I mean, yeah, probably not. And then so we have to think about what do we really want? Do we want some development? I heard somebody say this once. If God came down right now and said, hey, I'm going to put a plan right here, there'd be a lot of people to still say no. Sorry, you can't put anything there. You can't put a warehouse there. You can't put a house there. You can't put anything. They're just going to say no. Yeah, okay. And their idea is more like if it's not a park, if it's not a doggy park, if it's not a playground and stuff like that, then we don't want it.

Well, that can't happen either.

So, you know, I'm kind of perplexed with it myself, so I'll mull it around as the other commissioners, maybe they pick up on some of the things that I say. I do think it's a, I would like to have seen an additional entry and exit there. It looks like there might have been some space for it. Also, I also like to see when developers do come, I do like to see that you do have the larger lots, but to be a little more compatible with the surrounding houses. I did see this. You have R5s here, and this guy wants to do whatever R it is. What they did was they put the larger lots next to the houses that were just across. So when they look across, they see houses that look like theirs. I said, that's really nice. And then they moved it back away from to the smaller lots. So that was just kind of adjust to where the larger homes are. There are people to the south of Brodea, and they look across, and you've got this little tiny house right there versus my home. So there could be some adjustments. That's my two cents to it. I could probably ask another. Ooh, I had a whole bunch of them on this one. I did. You know, I'm just leaving it alone. Yeah, I did do the math. Somebody else mentioned a quarter of a friend. 134 homes with 34 lots. Even in my neighborhood with only 70 some odd homes there, we have people that have five or six cars. They do. I own two, three cars by myself and my wife owns a car. You know, nobody's coming in with the plan to say, I'm going to put, and nobody almost these days use their home for cars, their garage. They use their garage for storage. So I don't know. I kid you not, all through my neighborhood, I see the cars in the street and their garages are full of stuff. They need the storage space. So they're going to put cars in the street. And I just don't see any parking for that. However, you know, we do need to put something there. Whether or not we say that, you know, it's going to be an R3 or whatever it is, we just got to get in the mindset, Marino Valley, that if it's a dirt lot, something's going there. And we can't stop Everything. That's just the bottom line. And I may not meet with the schema that you have at night when we're dreaming and cherries and lollipops are going across the head. No, something's going there. If you live across the street from a dirt lot, something's going there eventually. You've got to get that in your brain. That's my two cents.

I wasn't going to say much, but Just for the livability for people, because I know I'm not going to live there, but the parking alone, like we're saying, more people have more than two cars. And then you've got, I mean, I have a very small track by me. It's 7,500 square feet. And those houses, I see those, but at least they have where they can park. two other cars in the drive besides the garage. They are small houses. They're small lots. But when I saw 2805 a lot, I mean, I was like, I couldn't even wrap my head around it. Just for the livability for a resident that buys a home and the price is going to be $500,000, I would want a little more for that $500,000. I know you can't get a lot these days for very much money. But I know. And it's a balancing act. But the thing is, is that even at that, spending that much money, I don't know. I don't know. For the residents, I think they deserve a little better. And we just did do the general plan amendment. And we had, like Sykes said, go from a 3 to a 10. It is a big, huge stretch.

Anybody?

You know, I want to harm in on this a little bit. You know, Warmington's a good company. They built my house 42 years ago, and it's still standing perfect. 42 years ago. And they're a good company. Trust me. I worked with them, and I like their product. The thing we got, people today do not want to take care of yards. I mean, like, I've got a lot that's 175 by 100, which is not a good-sized lot compared to some today. But it's a bear. I mean, taking care of all that. And I've got a big pool back there and actually a model railroad running through the backyard. So we've got a lot of stuff going on. But I understand this. My son has a house like this in Colorado, and that's what they're building in Broomfield, Colorado. And it's all over. I don't know how to get around it. I know we don't like the small lots, but I think it's a good project, and we need to move forward on it, okay? Thank you. I move that we adopt. I'm not going to read all this. I'm just going to read the resolution. Is that okay? Resolution number 26-27. Then we'll go on to the next one, which is adopt resolution 2026-24. Then also adopt resolution 2026-25. Then adopt resolution 2026-26. And I think that's it. Does that work?

So it's as recommended by staff in the staff report. Okay, got it.

And also the modifications to conditions that staff mentioned in our presentation.

Along with the modifications presented by the staff, okay? Correct. Thank you.

I'll second that. Can we have a vote, please?

Commissioner Zients? No. No.

Commissioner Stefan I Think it's the wave of the future.

Yes Vice chair Baker. Yes Chair present these your name.

Yes motion carries Okay, do you have a staff rep?

Let the record show that the motion passes 4-0. This is a recommendation to the City Council. I'm sorry, 3-1. Let me restate that. Let the record show that the motion passes 3-1. This is a recommendation to the City Council. So this is just a recommendation. There's no final decision here. The item will be scheduled for City Council meeting at a future date.

Rather through just motion through, I think it's probably been up here for about two and a half hours. Maybe we could take about ten minutes. Okay, so we'll adjourn for about, let's go with 825 and resume at 825. Okay, folks, we're going to reconvene. We're at that 825 hour here. I missed the gavel. All right. So we're going to reconvene the Planning Commission meeting in Reno Valley at 825 p.m. after a short recess. And move into item number four, which is the Circulation Element and Truck Route Ordinance PEN 260058. And do we have a staff report?

We do, Chair Desjardins. I'll be providing that staff report tonight. So good evening, Chairperson Dejeuner and members of the Planning Commission. The item before you tonight is a consideration of a recommendation to the City Council on an amendment to the circulation element of the adopted 2040 General Plan and revisions to the City's Truck Route Ordinance, which is Chapter 12.36 of the Municipal Code. Part of the project background, these mandated amendments stem from the passage of two pieces of legislation, AB 98 and SB 415. Among other requirements related to logistics warehouse uses, and I think the Planning Commission will recall earlier this summer you made a recommendation to City Council on the Logistics Warehouse Mitigation Ordinance. AB 98 requires that jurisdictions identified within state designated warehouse concentration regions update their circulation element to identify and establish truck routes for the movement of goods. Specifically, AB 98 mandates that designated truck routes that truck routes be designated that prioritize the use of major arterials and highways, that truck routes are required to avoid sensitive land uses, and requires provisions for public signage and accessible mapping. SB 415 specifies ordinance requirements for truck route ordinances. The proposed project is amendment to the MoVal 2040 General Plan and consists of revisions to the circulation element consisting of revisions to the discussion, policy, actions, and exhibits as mandated by AB 98 and SB 415. The amendment to chapter 12.36 includes revisions to the city's truck route map and truck route provisions. Revisions to policies and actions that support Goal C6 of the circulation element, including maintaining and regularly updating a publicly accessible truck route map. It requires new logistic warehouse developments to be located and designed to minimize reliance on local streets and avoid creating new truck traffic conflicts with sensitive receptors, and requirements to coordinate with Caltrans and neighboring jurisdictions and regional agencies to align truck routes and minimize the need for trucks to utilize local streets. It also revises actions that are consistent with AB 98 and SB 415 and support goal C6 of the circulation element, including avoiding, let me go through this. I apologize, I lost my spot here. Yes. Let me go back a slide. So the other amendments include including a diagram identifying major thoroughfares. It includes policies for complete streets. It indicates that the city will require new logistics warehouse developments to prepare truck routing plans consistent with designated truck route network. Finally, additional amendments to the circulation element include revising policies that support goal C6 of the circulation element, which include the maintenance and regular updating of publicly accessible truck route maps, requires new logistics warehouse developments to be located and designed to minimize reliance on local streets and avoid creating truck traffic conflicts with sensitive receptors and also requires coordination with local jurisdictions and regional agencies. It revises actions that are consistent with AB 98 and SB 415 and support goal C6 of the circulation element. Is this a duplicate? I feel like it's a duplicate. So the second part of this item tonight is a revision to the city's truck route ordinance. The slide before you shows the current adopted truck route map. You'll notice that there are streets identified that are kind of all over the city. With the proposed revisions, those streets have been removed. The majority of the streets have been removed and the official truck routes are concentrated and the industrial areas of the city located on the southwest side of the city and the northeast side of the city where the World Logistics Center is located. In addition to updating the truck route map, revisions include changes to Chapter 12.36 of the municipal code, including a host of new sections intended to satisfy the requirements of SB 415, including sections addressing purpose, definitions, applicability, official truck route systems, truck route requirements, truck route signage, truck routing and operation plan requirements, warehouse and logistics access standards, sensitive receptor protection standards, temporary truck protection, route provisions, administrative authority, and violation and enforcement provisions. Collectively, these new provisions satisfy the requirements of SB 415. In an effort to satisfy the community engagement requirements of AB 98, staff conducted a robust outreach to the community and stakeholders. These efforts included the creation of an interactive web page, nine in-person community events, and one virtual workshop, and engagement with stakeholders, including school districts, community organizations, and several local Native American tribes. With respect to CEQA compliance, an addendum was prepared to the Moe Valley 2040 revised program environmental impact report to consider If the proposed project would create any new significant impacts, the proposed project would, the addendum resulted in findings that the proposed project would not result in any new significant impacts and or more severe impacts that were not disclosed, analyzed, or previously mitigated for in the 2040 revised program EIR that supported the general plan update. So at this time, staff is recommending that the Planning Commission adopt the resolution recommending that the City Council determine that the addendum prepared for the MoVal 2040 revised program EIR complies with the applicable provisions of CEQA. Adopt the resolution recommending that the Council approve an amendment to the circulation element of the general plan. and adopt a resolution recommending adoption of the ordinance revising the city's truck route map and amending the truck route provisions contained in the Merino Valley Municipal Code. That concludes my presentation, and I'll be available for any questions that the Planning Commission may have. We also have our City Transportation Engineer and our Assistant City Engineer here as well to answer any questions.

Thank you. Thank you very much. Are there any Commissioner questions?

I have a question. If we would eliminate the northbound Hecox between Cactus Avenue and Alessandro, would that be a huge issue?

I'll let the Public Works guys answer that question, Commissioner Steffen.

So good evening, Commissioners. Harold Zamora, Assistant City Engineer. So to answer your question, it wouldn't satisfy AB 98 requirements completely. And in fact, it's actually going to cause a circulation element issue because what we're doing right now is we're allowing the trucks to navigate through, as you can see, kind of a circular pattern through Alessandro and Cactus to return back to the freeway. So by eliminating one leg, we're going to essentially tell truck drivers they have to turn around and go back down the cactus and cueing all the trucks onto one entrance to the freeway. So, you know, in order to try to satisfy the assembly bill and try to create an effective network system, it's best to leave the two in place.

So basically it wouldn't satisfy what the state requires. Is that what you're saying? Yes, sir. It wouldn't require, it wouldn't satisfy what actually the state requires? Correct. Okay, then forget it. Then we can't. That was a good one. Okay. I just wanted to ask because there was an email. I just wanted to make sure that, you know, we addressed it for the public. Okay, thank you.

For the record, that was based on Mr. Hague's comments. Yes. Thank you.

Well, he's a public.

Okay, again, on Mr. Higgs' comment. I understand and I drive not semi trucks and trailers, but trucks and trailers, that in driving this particular area. I understand why he is asking for it because the east side of that road is residential and we are supposed to keep trucks and everything away from residential as far as possible. And I do realize that southbound on Hecox is a necessity to pull vehicles from the upper, I can't remember the name of the road off the top of my head, to circle around. basically we would, if this was removed, we would just basically, when they would come north, they would have to turn on Cactus. And then, like you said, one exit or entrance, they can, maneuver their way up and go to the other exit. They don't all have to go straight off Cactus. I realize it's an extra turn or two, but I'm still in favor of eliminating the northbound on Hecox. I think it'd be an easy fix. It'd make everybody happy. The residents would be healthier. I don't, granted you have the degrees, I don't, but I just use kind of common sense that if you can't go straight and you have to turn, you have to turn. There is still the traffic circulation on the road above Cactus would be turning right and then coming back down to Cactus, turning right and going home. So you would still have your circulation. You would still be able to get to everywhere. without that little section and I think that it would just be good for our residents not to have that in there. That's my recommendation to do if we could possibly do it.

But David, he said that it wouldn't satisfy the state recommendations.

What part wouldn't the state explain why that it wouldn't satisfy that?

It wouldn't completely satisfy it. You would have a minor positive impact, but it wouldn't satisfy the state requirement. And just to kind of answer a little bit of your question, one thing to consider is if you're traveling northbound on HECOP coming up to Cactus and you want to eliminate that last final lake, The reason for us in transportation that it's a concern is because all our turnpockets are designed for a certain queuing amount or a certain length. When you're now telling every truck they have to make a left turn, that pocket needs to be lengthened, which creates an infrastructure issue all the way down the corridor for us to allow to accommodate for all the trucks to make the left turn to go to Cactus. By keeping it the way it is, if you're headed northbound, you can either choose to make that left turn at Cactus, or if it's too backed up, continue up to Alessandro and make the left turn. That's why I was saying, by eliminating the leg, you're creating more of a deficiency in the circulation.

I don't know. I mean, because neither one of them apparently is large enough to handle the semis. Okay. If you feel that it is going to be a state thing, I'd like to see it go away, but if it is going to mess with us with the state, there's always things around the way of getting things because we know how that happens with other projects. But I still think it would be a good idea to eliminate it. Thank you.

The proposed truck route map, how does that affect future projects?

I'm not sure that. The designation of truck route maps as proposed would affect future projects. What it will do is concentrate truck traffic in those roads that you see highlighted on the map.

Gosh, I hate to even ask this question because we're going to be faced with a project that's coming up that's asking for a large building literally on Day Street, which would probably cause truck traffic. But there is no truck route map or truck route proposed that would accommodate that.

So for clarification, there is a federal law that allows protection for trucks to deliver as what we call their last mile. So there does not need to be a designated truck route for that last mile. So what this is doing here kind of to affect development is it's concentrating the trucks in the industrial zones, and if you go outside of these zones, it's because you're within your last mile for delivery, whether it be a Stater Brothers or a warehouse that you're going to deliver at. They're protected under the federal law for that.

Okay. How soon would this proposal go into effect?

So tonight you're being asked to make a recommendation on this project. The city council will have to consider it at a future date, which we haven't determined when that would be. And then it would have to go back for a second reading. And then 30 days after that, it becomes effective.

So it's fairly quick turnaround.

Within the next four months, it should be effective.

As for our original truck routes and this, this is a huge, huge difference. It was taken in a whole lot of consideration to get this as far as it is, a lot of negotiations back and forth, and I fully understand that. City has done an excellent job with this, working with the different entities that have come in to help. It's good. I mean, compared to what we had before, it's like copper and gold. I mean, it's a good thing. We needed to get it done. It's going to make our city's streets last longer, going to make our city safer. It's just something that needed to be done, and it finally got done, and I'm very happy about that.

Any other questions from sorry that was good. Okay, all right if there's no more commission of questions for staff will now open the public hearing at 8.43 PM. And the clerk will call upon each person who was requested to speak.

Yes, chair. We currently have two speaker cards. Our first speaker is Ishmael Gonzalez and that will be followed by Tatiana Flores.

Hello again. Let me begin by saying that the reason I come here on my own time with my own energy, doing research on every single proposal that comes before you. It's because I want to see this city be the best it can be. I live here. Why wouldn't I, right? I want to see Moreno Valley grow in a positive way. And I do appreciate everybody's hard work. I do appreciate when you actively make Moreno Valley a better city. I cannot say the same thing when you do irresponsible decisions that maybe take us back, right? This is one regard where I have to give you your flowers. Kudos. Thank you so much for providing a new truck route map like this. where it saves a lot of residents from the unnecessary pollution and traffic that otherwise we currently have right now, right? I went to many of those community meetings at City Hall, at Palm Middle School. I was thoroughly involved, so I hope you understand where I'm coming from. Please, really, I'm a resident. I think I am entitled to just share my opinion, right? The city of Moreno Valley in this one regard has done more than any other city or county to our assessment. I will say that I do agree with Mr. Haag. There is a problem with the Hecox area, and I would even say the Alessandro Boulevard area. You are putting... Thousands of trucks, according to the city staff's report, 1,300 or more every day, near hundreds to thousands of residents. The core spirit of AB 98 and SB 415 is to protect those sensitive receptors. You are failing those sensitive receptors near Hecox and Alessandro. when you could easily just invest in a new street on Hecox right there to give more access, more room to that left turn for trucks, you might as well invest it now because by the amount of trucks that you estimate are going to be on that street, you're going to have a lot of wear and tear. Those trucks are heavy. They're going to crack the roads. We're going to have more potholes. You might as well just make the investment now and save all those people from unnecessary risk of cancer, respiratory illness, all of the above. It's just one last hurdle. I would even say, try to do something about Gilman Springs because once the World Logistic Center is built, That's a very narrow, dark path to Hemet. There's going to be a lot of car accidents. A lot of animals are there, a lot of nature. Those trucks are going to be hard to break. It's going to be dangerous. I know it's out of your hands because... Thank you, sir. I appreciate your time.

Our next speaker is Tatiana Flores.

good evening commission once again thank you for the opportunity to speak my name is tatiana and much like ismael i've been going to i think literally all of the meetings that have been had about ap 98 so um just to start there has been a lot of changes as mentioned by david and i'm pretty content with them i think a lot of it really does protect the sensitive receptors along streets like Paris and Alessandro, where we see that there's just a lot of residential area. Even I live really close to Paris myself, so I'm happy to see that change. And staff has been very receptive of meeting with us and actually answering any questions that we have. So thank you, Steve and Harold. So I wanted to mention that I still have a few concerns, though, about the commercial parking area on Heacock. I know that there's an area right there where trucks are allowed to park, and I've seen them park every time I actually drive home from here whenever I come to a city council meeting or planning commission meeting. And so I would like there to be more consideration of, like, where trucks are being allowed to park and where... we can expect them to idle. Like, I know there's going to be signs where there's a call, a number where you can call about those anti-idling, but just some more consideration about that. And I know that that portion that George and Ishmael have been mentioning, if it's not fully possible to remove it, then maybe we can find some way to mitigate some of the impacts that will come to that neighborhood. I don't know if there's a way to like plant more trees in that area or something else to ensure that truckway is also being involved in this process. And one last thing, I am a member of the Fright Communities Action Coalition and we'll be having a meeting on August 22nd, which is a Saturday. So it'll be another opportunity to actually get some more comments and suggestions from community members, not just in Moreno Valley, but in the surrounding western Riverside County area. So we'll actually have AQMD as a partner in that meeting, as well as Elizabeth Vallejo from Paris City Council. where they're going to talk about air quality monitoring as required by AB 98 and SB 415, and running for local office. So good opportunity to actually see what AQMD plans to do. I know that's also important for jurisdictions themselves. So yeah, just wanted to extend that invite. If anybody has any questions or any interest in attending, you guys can ask me for my email or something. Okay, but thank you.

Thank you.

Mr. Chair, I am planning on attending that as part of the further community engagement process before we get to council.

Well, thank you. Then I won't have to go. There's a free lunch involved. Ah, okay. Do we have any other speakers?

We have no more speaker cards, Chair.

Okay. If there's no more speakers, then we'll go ahead and close the public testimony portion at 8.50 p.m. and move into deliberations.

I do understand that the pockets and whatnot are there, but I hope in future when road improvements are done there and say pockets have to be changed or repaired in place, that we do lengthen them and encourage the trucks to go down Cactus. I do like her idea of possibly doing a little more foliage maybe on the side of those neighborhoods on the city lanes and a little more landscaping that might help deter the carcinogens from drifting to the house. Other than that, I mean, this project's been worked on hard, a lot of hours. It's a lot better than we have, and I guess 99% will work.

Okay, I'll move that we adopt Resolution 2026-20. And then also Resolution 2026-24 and then Resolution 2026-22. Is that OK? Yeah. 2621. I'm sorry. 2621. 22. OK. Got it.

And I'll second.

Thank you, Commissioner Zaitz. Yes. Commissioner Steffen. Yes. Vice Chair Baker.

Yes.

Chairperson DeGeneres? Yes. Motion carries.

Okay. Staff wrap-up?

Yes. I'll let the record show that the motion passes 4-0. This is a recommendation to the City Council. The item will be scheduled for a future City Council hearing date, and proper notice will be given for that meeting.

Okay. All right. The next item on agenda is other commission or business, and we have no other commission or business. Next item, staff comments. Do we have any staff comments?

Yes, thank you, Chair Dijonet. We have a couple comments here. First and foremost, starting with the meeting of August 27th, we'll be back in our regular home at the city council chambers at City Hall. So thank you for everyone who helped accommodate meetings here throughout the summer while the chambers were being renovated. The second item is that starting with the meeting of August 18th, the city council meeting of August 18th, The public will now have the opportunity to participate remotely via teleconferencing. We have left instructions on how to participate via teleconference, via remotely. At the back table there, we have those instructions both in English and Spanish. Y para esos que hablan espanol, comenzando con el...

Swag lady.

Hi, good evening, Angelica Frost-Dilupo, Community Development Director. I'm happy to help with the Spanish. Empezando con la junta del 18 de agosto, la reunión del City Council estará disponible para personas que no pueden venir en persona, pueden llamar por teléfono. Y voy a leer exactamente lo que dice aquí el aviso que tenemos acá atrás del cuarto. Aviso de teleconferencia y participación pública. Esta reunión es una reunión híbrida con participación pública disponible en persona, por teléfono o en línea mediante audio o video direccional. I'm glad you did that. I was going to try, but... What did she say? Chair, and just for the record, I did restate in Spanish what our planning manager had just stated regarding teleconferencing at the upcoming city council meeting. Okay. Thank you.

All right, the next item on the agenda is planning commissioner comments under the preview of planning commissioners. Do we have any comments? No. I have a question, and I don't know. My question would be, who would I speak to regarding... I want to say city ordinances, maybe signage, that sort of thing. We run into an issue every year when we open up schools and there's a lot of ticketing and parents are trying to drop off and they're getting hit with tickets and this and that. I just want to know who I can talk to about that. I don't know who...

Are you referring to, Chair, are you referring to like signs posted on the street that limit parking?

Well, maybe some conversation about it because, you know, we know it's the beginning of the school year. There's a ton of parents and they come and as soon as they get to the school sites, boom, they're hit with tickets.

But in reference to street signs.

Yeah, like maybe, you know, no parking, you know, so they get in and get out. They're out of there before, you know, 8 o'clock.

There's two approaches. One is to speak with the Public Works Department, who actually installs those signs. And the other might be to speak with the code enforcement or parking enforcement division, who enforces those parking regulations. So those two options, we could make those contact information available to you. That'd be great.

I think we have to have a conversation with the police, because this has been going on for years. My kids are already grown, but I received a ticket like that just dropping off one of my children. And everybody was behind me, and they said because I was the lead car. I got the ticket. You got there first. Yeah, I got there first.

So that would be a conversation .

But I just think that it's, with all the things we have to pay for nowadays, you know, a ticket, and I know that ticket was 150 bucks back then. So I don't know how much it is now, but that would be, that's just an added burden. When you can buy groceries, you can put gas. So we do need to have a conversation with public, you know, the people that are writing these tickets up. You know, maybe at that hour, they could kind of be a little more lenient with it. And you're right, they do.

I just wanted to know, well, at least that's less than the targeted CCRs that we saw earlier. All right. If there's no more commission, any more commission or comments? All right. With that being said, the planning commission meeting is adjourned at 8.57 p.m. to our next regular meeting on August 27th, 2026 at 6 p.m. Thank you, guys.

Have a good evening.