Anaheim Planning Commission meeting for May 22, 2023

The Anaheim Planning Commission has a scheduled meeting on May 22, 2023 at 5:00pm in the city council chambers. The agenda for the meeting is available online.

There is only one item on the agenda, and it’s very similar to Item 1 from the last meeting. It seems like a very straightforward request, but I’m going to complicate it a bit.

Item 1 - Variance Request - Southern California Institute of Technology

Muller St. looking north at Corporate Way

The Southern California Institute of Technology is requesting a variance to allow for a six-foot tall fence around their property within the required landscape setback. The site is located on the northwest corner of N. Muller St. and W. Corporate Way. The proposed fence would be along the frontages on both streets. The required setback along Muller is 15 feet, with the proposed fence located seven and a half feet from the property line. The required setback along Corporate Way is five feet, which the where the fence would be located except where the Corporate Way cul-de-sac bulb encroaches into the property.

When this project was originally approved back in the 1990s, the code only required a 10 foot setback along Muller St. Because of this, the parking lot is built right up to the old setback line, and there isn’t the ability to build a fence at the new setback line without removing parking. The applicant wants to install the fence to reduce the amount of trespassing and vandalism on their site, and to cut down on the number of cars illegally parking in their lot.

One of the findings that the Commission needs to make is that, “because of special circumstances, strict application of the zoning code deprives the property of privileges enjoyed by other property under identical zoning classification.” The staff report cites two adjacent properties that have been allowed to construct fences within the required right of way.

Across the street to the east is an Anaheim Union High School District offices and bus depot. The site is enclosed with a chain link fence that’s located less than ten feet from the curb. Judging by the architecture of the buildings there, I’d estimate that this site was developed in the 1960s or ‘70s, long before the current setback requirements were in place. My expectation is that if this site was to be developed today with the exact same uses, it would be required to provide a 15-foot landscape buffer from the street right of way. When we update the code, we should not be required to allow future applicants to reduce their requirements to the old standard just because neighboring properties were developed under the old standard. The school district property is poor justification for approving this proposal.

Muller St. looking south from Crescent Way

The property just north of the Southern California Institute of Technology provides better justification, but is also a cautionary tale. This church property was allowed to build a similar fence within the required setback. (Although I don’t know when this fence was built, or what the required setback was when it was built, so it may be that it didn’t need a variance. This is something I’m going to need to ask about.) However, looking at this streetscape, I’m unsure if this condition is something we want to perpetuate and expand. A narrow road with fences on both sides feels a lot like a prison corridor.

The problem with this street is, as Jane Jacobs would say, there are not enough eyes on the street. When buildings turn their back on the street, or are shut away by walls and fences, it increases the likelihood of unwanted behavior on the street. This block appears to have long been out of sight. There are two options for a street like this, either wall off everyone’s property and make the street into a true car sewer, or open up properties to the street and put more eyes on it. I don’t see such a change in direction happening for this street, so it might be that continuing to wall it off is the best option for this particular property owner, but it’s just going to make the task of bringing life back to the street more difficult in the future.