Parente DEIR Staff Report

To:	PLANNING COMMISSION
From:	DANIEL M. WATROUS, SENIOR PLANNER
Subject:	FILE #39902: REVIEW OF DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR THE PARENTE PRECISE DEVELOPMENT PLAN (PD #4) TO CREATE FIVE BUILDING SITES ON A 10.3 ACRE PARCEL; PARENTE ROAD/ANTONETTE DRIVE; Amerippon, Inc., owners; Phillip Moss/Neil Sorensen, applicants; Assessor=s Parcel No. 38-111-16
Report Date: Meeting Date:	OCTOBER 19, 2001 OCTOBER 24, 2001

An application has been filed by Amerippon, Inc. for a Precise Development Plan for development of a 10.3 acre parcel into five (5) single-family residential lots. The project is located toward the northern end of the Tiburon Peninsula. The property slopes down from Ring Mountain toward Paradise Drive, and would be accessed from Parente Road and Antonette Drive, both of which connect to Paradise Drive.

A draft environmental impact report (DEIR) has been prepared for this project by the firm of Leonard Charles and Associates, and is currently being circulated for public review and comment. The comment period is currently scheduled to conclude on November 8, 2001, at 5:00 p.m. Written comments may also be submitted at the hearing (forms will be provided). At the conclusion of the comment period, the consultants will respond to all oral comments made to the Planning Commission as well as written comments submitted during the comment period.

The primary purpose of this public hearing is to receive public testimony concerning the contents of the Draft Environmental Impact Report for the project. The applicant will also have an opportunity to address the Planning Commission at this hearing concerning issues related to the DEIR. Speakers are encouraged to express their views on the adequacy of the DEIR. Comments should focus on the sufficiency of the DEIR in discussing possible impacts on the environment, ways in which adverse impacts might be minimized, and alternatives to the project. Following the conclusion of the public testimony, the Planning Commission should provide comments on the DEIR.

A separate public hearing will be held to address the issue of whether the DEIR has been prepared in conformance with CEQA and adequately addresses environmental impacts. This hearing will be held following closure of the public review and comment period.

In addition, a hearing or hearings will be scheduled for consideration of project merits by the Planning Commission. This hearing will be held following the release of a Final EIR (FEIR) which will contain the responses to comments on the DEIR.

Reference copies of the DEIR may be reviewed at the Town Planning Department or at the Belvedere-Tiburon Public Library during business hours.

The project is the proposed approval of a precise development plan (the Parente Precise Development Plan, File #39902) to subdivide a 10.3 acre parcel into five lots. The precise plan would provide for the development of a single-family dwelling on each of the five separate lots on the site. Lot 1, on the lower, northernmost portion of the site, would have an area of 2.01 acres; moving generally to the southwest and upslope, Lot 2 would have an area of 2.01 acres; Lot 3 would have an area of 2.00 acres; Lot 4 would have an area of 2.05 acres; and Lot 5 would have an area of 2.10 acres.

The site consists of an irregularly-shaped parcel located toward the northern end of the Tiburon Peninsula. The property slopes down from Ring Mountain toward Paradise Drive, with a north to south slope of 20% to 30%. Access would be provided to the site from a private driveway serving all five proposed lots leading to an extension of Parente Road and Antonette Drive, both of which connect to Paradise Drive.

Vegetation on the site consists of native grasses, scattered brush and a grove of toyon, bay and canyon live oak trees. No wetlands areas exist on the site. Landslide complexes exist in the northwest corner of the site and in the drainage area crossing the southernmost portion of the property. Four separate watersheds on the site drain to the north and southeast of the property.

Various residential developments surround the subject property, including portions of the Lands of Kahn, Ring Mountain, and Taylor Road subdivisions, along with individual lots along Parente Road, Antonette Drive and Paradise Drive. These areas consist of detached single-family homes.

The Parente Precise Development Plan would establish building envelopes and other planning limitations for the five proposed lots. The proposed limitations for these five lots are described as follows:

Access would be provided to all proposed lots from a 20 foot wide private street extending from the cul-de-sac at the end of Antonette Drive. The private street would curve around the building envelope for Lot 1; curve to the west below the building envelope for Lot 2; curve south between the building envelopes for Lots 2 & 3; then end in a cul-de-sac at the intersection of Lots 2, 3, 4 & 5. Previous review by the Tiburon Fire Protection District indicates that the width, slope and turnaround area for this private street appear to be acceptable.

The proposed street may be offered for dedication to the Town of Tiburon as a public street. At this time, the Town is not inclined to accept such an offer of dedication, particularly for a street that is only accessible via two other private streets (Antonette Drive and Parente Road). It is recommended that the project be reviewed with the understanding that the proposed street would be private, with the issue of future dedication to be resolved between the property owner and the Town. Offers of dedication of public streets are irrevocable and may be accepted at any time once the offer is made.

To illustrate the potential housing construction on each of the proposed lots, the applicant has submitted conceptual plans for five houses which would meet the criteria for the proposed precise development plan. Although these plans are conceptual in nature, and would require subsequent approval by the Design Review Board, the plans are probably representative of the type of construction which would be expected for each lot, given the building envelope constraints proposed.

The geotechnical report prepared for this application indicated the presence of several landslide deposits on the site. The DEIR recommends mitigation measures that would allow the residences, street and other project improvements to be constructed without resulting in significant impacts.

The DEIR concludes that the project as proposed would be inconsistent with Policy OSC-11 of the Open Space and Conservation Element of the Tiburon General Plan, which encourages that grading be minimized in order to maintain existing landforms. This Element identifies Significant Ridgeline 0, which traverses the center of the subject property from southwest to northeast. The location of the proposed street and residences along this ridgeline would involve construction work that would be inconsistent with the direction of Policy OSC-11 to "minimize grading." The DEIR concludes that the only feasible mitigation measure for this potentially significant impact would be to approve a project alternative that reduces the number of residences and changes their locations on the site.

Four watersheds have been identified by the hydrology report prepared for this project. Although there is the potential for increased water runoff and erosion as a result of this project, the DEIR recommends mitigation measures that would reduce these impacts to less than significant levels.

No special status species of plants or animals, and no wetlands or sensitive natural communities have been found on the project site. Potential loss of vegetation or wildlife habitat that would be caused by the construction of the proposed project can be mitigated to less than significant levels through the implementation of mitigation measures recommended by the DEIR.

The traffic study prepared for this project estimates that a total of 50 trips per day would be generated by the proposed project. This projected increase in traffic would not have a significant impact on any nearby streets, and all intersections in the vicinity of the project site would continue to operate at level of service (LOS) C or better. The DEIR recommends the implementation of a construction traffic control plan to mitigate any potential construction traffic impacts.

The DEIR concludes that the intersection of Parente Road and Paradise Drive is a dangerous intersection, with inadequate line of sight for vehicles turning left out of Parente Road. The DEIR recommends that either Antonette Drive be used as the sole access for the project; or that Parente Road be used only for access to the project from Paradise Drive, with Antonette Drive used for project egress. Recommendations are also made to widen Antonette Drive; the DEIR concludes that this widening can be accomplished without changing the character of the surrounding neighborhood, but recognizes that this is a subjective conclusion that may not be held by all residents living in that neighborhood.

Views from nearby residences and more distant neighborhoods, along with some views from the Ring Mountain Open Space Preserve, could be affected by the construction of the proposed project. A headlight study indicates that one nearby residence immediately north of the project site (4885 Paradise Drive) could be impacted by headlights from vehicles travelling along the private street for the project. The DEIR recommends mitigation measures that would reduce each of these impacts to less than significant levels.

The DEIR concludes that the project as proposed would be inconsistent with Policy OSC-5 of the Open Space and Conservation Element of the Tiburon General Plan, which states that "to the maximum extent feasible, all new development shall be located well below [significant] ridgelines." As previously noted, Significant Ridgeline 0 extends through the center of the subject property, and the proposed project would place homes and a street on and near this ridgeline. The DEIR again concludes that the only feasible mitigation measure for this potentially significant impact would be to approve a project alternative that reduces the number of residences and changes their locations on the site.

Construction noise associated with the project could affect several nearby residences. The DEIR recommends mitigation measures that would reduce these impacts to less than significant levels.

Fugitive dust from the construction of the proposed project could adversely affect the air quality of nearby homes, but can be mitigated to less than significant levels through the implementation of mitigation measures recommended by the DEIR. The number of traffic trips generated by the project in the future would not be large enough to result in a measurable deterioration of local air quality.

Water supply, school capacity, police services and sanitary sewer capacities are adequate to serve the proposed project. The Tiburon Fire Protection District can supply adequate fire protection services to the project, although a variety of mitigation measures are recommended by the DEIR to improve the ability of the fire district to successfully fight fires on the property.

As previously noted, the DEIR concludes that the proposed project would be inconsistent with several Tiburon General Plan policies that encourage development that minimizes grading to preserve existing landforms and protects Town-identified ridgelines.

Diagram OSC-3 of the Open Space and Conservation Element identifies the subject property as "potential open space." The DEIR evaluates the potential for "prime open space" on the site, and notes that several of the defining characteristics of such open space, including the presence of a secondary ridgeline, greenbelt potential, and open space views, are present on the subject property. The DEIR once again concludes that the only feasible mitigation measure for this potentially significant impact would be to approve a project alternative that reduces the number of residences and changes their locations on the site.

The DEIR notes that the proposed project would require the expenditure of energy, and recommends a number of energy-saving measures. The DEIR concludes that the project would not directly induce substantial growth in the area, and that the project plus other development in the area would not result in any new significant impacts beyond those identified with the project itself.

The DEIR identifies five feasible project alternatives to the proposed project and the proposed project with the recommended mitigation measures. These alternatives would involve the development of the property with one, two, three or four residences, or the relocation of five residences elsewhere on the site. In general, the DEIR concludes that the fewer homes on the site, the less impact to open space and grading.

The DEIR identifies two (2) significant unavoidable ("SU") impacts of the project which could not be eliminated or reduced to a less-than-significant level through mitigation measures identified in the DEIR:

As of the date of this report (October 19, 2001), comment letters regarding the DEIR have been received from the Marin Municipal Water District and the Marin County Department of Public Works.

The Commission will need to schedule a public hearing, following the close of the comment period, at which it will determine whether or not the DEIR has been prepared in conformance with CEQA. At that hearing, the Commission may either: