A.
The
city of Glendora has undertaken the lead role in preparing this specific
plan for the eventual development of property commonly referred to
as the "Monrovia Nursery." This property is located in west central
Glendora on approximately 95 acres. This specific plan governs only
the 95-acre property formerly occupied by the Monrovia Nursery operations.
However in the course of implementation it is certain that some infrastructure
improvements (circulation, drainage) will occur outside of the specific
plan. The specific plan appears as two large undeveloped parcels,
one on the north adjacent to Sierra Madre Avenue and one on the south
adjacent to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad right-of-way.
These are being referenced as specific plan - north and specific plan
- south.
B.
The
plan calls for the development of 124 minimum 20,000 square foot detached
single-family residential lots; all lots will be served by public
water, and sewer. All parcels will be accessed by public streets with
the exception of five lots and an existing home at 1326 West Sierra
Madre Avenue, which will be served by a private drive.
(Ord. 1944 §§ 1,
2 (Exh. A), 2011)
A specific plan was chosen for this project to provide a document
that applies development requirements for the property that are not
possible through the application of the city of Glendora Zoning Code
alone. In general a specific plan provides the regulations for the
construction of new homes, grading and access, open space, and a comprehensive
infrastructure plan and utilizing development standards and guidelines
attuned to the setting to assure that new development fits the community
character. The development standards and guidelines contained herein
govern placement, size, style, level of detail, landscaping and drainage.
This specific plan also implements the city's general plan land use
objectives. Development within the specific plan area will be subject
to standards that are more specific than the requirements of the underlying
E-7 20,000 zoning district (the specific plan area will be rezoned
"specific plan").
(Ord. 1944 §§ 1,
2 (Exh. A), 2011)
A.
Many
neighborhoods in Glendora were developed with large subdivision tracts
that included complete road networks, unified single-purpose land
uses and functional comprehensive infrastructure. In contrast, the
specific plan's foothill neighborhood evolved incrementally over several
decades, by means of an assortment of tracts and individual home building
actions. Many homes have evolved over time per a series of modifications.
As a result the neighborhood exhibits vastly different looks across
the landscape. In some cases, such as along Baldy Vista Avenue, the
streetscape includes large homes with similar roof pitches and a limited
range of exterior treatments, all set back identically. On the other
hand, homes elsewhere in the neighborhood are often one-of-a-kind,
with varying setbacks, styles, sizes, and details.
B.
The
streetscapes are also markedly different. For instance, Baldy Vista
Avenue has a generous pavement width and concrete curbs. On the other
hand, Milton Drive in the same neighborhood narrows to nearly a single
curb-less lane, with the homes displaying a range of sizes, styles
and setbacks. Similarly the neighborhood along Yucca Ridge Road has
a rural character and shares nearly no characteristics with Foxglove
Court's residences of uniform vintage and similar design.
C.
Throughout
all of this, the neighborhood has remained incomplete, always divided
and interrupted by nearly 95 acres of nonresidential land use in the
form of the Monrovia Nursery (the specific plan). Now that the nursery
has ceased operations on this acreage it is vacant and the neighborhood
has an opportunity to be completed.
D.
In
response to the eclectic character of the neighborhood, this specific
plan was tasked with providing standards and directives that assure
compatibility within a diverse design setting while ensuring that
city requirements for development and infrastructure are met. The
attraction of this neighborhood lies in the range and variety of homes
that display individual expression and largely recede into generously
shaded home sites. This specific plan seeks to respect this character
and fit within it. The following factors drove this specific plan:
1.
Infill
in Character. The neighborhood is protective of the appeal of their
community. The infill that is to occur in the specific plan will not
be a jarring departure from the general character.
2.
Compatible
Design. The city of Glendora and the neighborhood wanted to see development
in the specific plan that is compatible and performs a transition
between the current neighborhood, and new development.
3.
Non-Standardized
Architecture. The neighborhood does not have a single consistent identifiable
"architecture," therefore stock design standards that rely on specific
architecture (e.g., "Mediterranean," "Craftsman," "American Farmhouse")
were not applicable.
(Ord. 1944 §§ 1,
2 (Exh. A), 2011)
The neighborhood has been active in framing this process and
helping this specific plan address their concerns. As in most public
input undertakings, this process sorted through an array of concerns,
ideas, suggestions, constraints and opportunities. As the process
advanced, a balance was attained between individual desires, broader
public policy and community building approaches. Consequently, though
many ideas were incorporated, several demands were not included. For
instance, many in the neighborhood initially opposed extending streets
linking the northern specific plan area with the southern specific
plan area due to concerns about traffic. For the most part concerns
about traffic rested primarily on the possibility of passthrough traffic.
And in response to this, previous concepts included no street connections
between the north and south. It is worthy to note that current city
of Glendora general plan policy no longer allows the extension of
streets or completion of street links between the city of Glendora
and other jurisdictions. Therefore, though previous concepts proposed
a street link to Citrus Avenue within the city of Azusa, such a link
is now prohibited. As a result, concerns about "cut-through" or non-neighborhood
traffic are no longer valid. Instead, the specific plan proposes the
extension of Baldy Vista Avenue, thus providing a route through the
neighborhood between Sierra Madre Avenue and Barranca Avenue near
the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad crossing. An access point
is proposed into the city of Azusa for pedestrians, bicycles and emergency
vehicles, but not public vehicular traffic.
(Ord. 1944 §§ 1,
2 (Exh. A), 2011)
A.
This specific plan proposes 124 detached single-family residential homes on lots of at least 20,000 square feet. Although this specific plan contains its own development standards, it closely follows the city of Glendora's E-7 20,000 zoning district (Glendora Municipal Code Section 21.04.010). This specific plan contains a set of grading, drainage, circulation and design guidelines created to result in new homes compatible with the existing neighborhood.
B.
This
specific plan includes text and diagrams that specify the following
in detail:
1.
The
distribution, location, and extent of the land uses within the specific
plan.
2.
The
distribution, location of public and private circulation, sewage,
water, drainage, and other essential facilities proposed to be located
within the specific plan needed to support the land uses.
3.
Standards
and criteria by which development will proceed.
5.
A
statement of the relationship of the specific plan to the general
plan.
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Figure 1: Regional Location
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