To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Vincent Smith, Community Development Director
Prepared By: Steven Rosen, Associate Planner
TITLE:
Title
Trinitas Mixed-Use Extension II - Extension of an Approved Hotel, Office, and Winery Mixed-Use Project
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution (1) approving a second two-year extension of the Use Permit and Design Review Permit for the previously approved Trinitas Mixed-Use Project at 2650 Napa Valley Corporate Drive; and (2) determining that the actions authorized by this resolution were adequately analyzed by the previous CEQA action.
Body
DISCUSSION:
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The Applicant, Pacific Hospitality Group, requests a second two-year extension of the previously approved Use Permit and Design Review Permit for the Trinitas Mixed-Use Project (File No. PL16-0054). Similar to the original project approval, the extension request must be reviewed by the Planning Commission with final approval by the City Council. The project was originally approved by the City Council on July 17, 2018, with an initial expiration date of July 17, 2020. An extension (PL20-0033) was granted on September 3, 2020, which will expire on July 17, 2022. Pursuant to Napa Municipal Code (NMC) Sections 17.68.130 and 17.68.140, the filing of an extension application before the approval’s expiration date automatically extends the approval until final action on the extension request is taken by the original approval body. No changes to the project are proposed with this extension.
The Applicant requests this extension at this time due to COVID-19-related delays. The entitlement does not expire until July 17, 2022, but their development timeline was delayed to such an extent that they already know they will need additional time.
The project consists of a four story 253 room “dual branded” hotel building consisting of a 100 room Marriott Residence Inn and a 153 room AC Hotel, a single-story winery building, and a two-story office building, along with associated parking (441 total parking spaces) on a 11.55-acre site located within the Napa Valley Commons Corporate Park.
At the request of the City Council, the Applicant committed to recording an affordable housing deed restriction for at least 12 units, in lieu of paying the Affordable Housing Impact fee for the hotel project. The Applicant has already fulfilled all obligations and complied with all requirements regarding the Affordable Housing Impact Fee Alternative Equivalent Proposal. The Applicant has executed an affordable housing agreement and recorded a deed restriction on a property at 2375 Old Sonoma Road that will result in 20 below-market-rate apartments. The City Council approved the Caritas Affordable Apartments in 2019, and construction of this project is currently underway.
CONTEXT
The 11.55 acre project site is located within the Napa Valley Commons Corporate Park, and is bordered by SR 221 on the east, Napa Valley Corporate Way to the south, two existing office/light industrial buildings and Napa Valley Corporate Drive to the west, and a vacant parcel currently owned by Kaiser Corporation to the north. The site is visible due to its location along SR 221 with approximately 750 lineal feet of SR 221 frontage. The surrounding area is largely built-out with low-rise office and light industrial development and hospitality uses. The site of the proposed Napa Pipe Project is located immediately to the west of the Napa Valley Commons Corporate Park. The project site is also within the flight path of the Napa County Airport, which is located approximately four miles to the south.
PERMIT EXTENSIONS
Extensions of Use Permits and Design Review Permits are regulated by NMC Chapter 17.68. A two-year extension of these entitlements is allowed subject to the following findings:
The extension is supported by the findings required for the issuance of the original
permit.
No applicable changes have been made to the project or the applicable City policies and regulations. As such, the original findings made for the Use Permit and Design Review are still applicable.
No substantially new uses will be added, density will not be substantially increased,
and the structure will not be substantially enlarged.
No changes have been proposed to the original project.
The changes are consistent with the intent and spirit of the original approval.
No changes have been proposed to the original project.
There are no resulting violations of this code or State law.
The extension of the Use Permit and Design Review Permit do not result in any violations to the Napa Municipal Code or State law.
There will be no new significant adverse environmental effects.
Because there have been no changes to the project or the project site, no new significant environmental effects will result from the project.
GENERAL PLAN
The property is located within the CP-720, Corporate Park General Plan Designation, which allows for development at a floor area ratio of 0.4. The Applicant will have to prepare improvement plans that meet this standard.
There have been no substantial changes to the General Plan which would conflict with the findings made as a part of the original approvals; and Staff finds that the project is consistent with the General Plan.
ZONING
The Project is consistent with the objectives of the Zoning Ordinance and the purposes of the district in which the site is located. The Project Site is split by two zoning districts, IP-A, Industrial Park - Area A and IP-B, Industrial Park - Area B. The IP-A District allows a wider range of uses and contains less restrictive development standards. The proposed hotel building is located within the IP-A District, while the winery and the office building are located within IP-B District. Napa Municipal Code (NMC) Chapter 17.14 establishes land use regulations and property development standards for the Industrial Districts. There have been no substantial changes to NMC Chapter 17.14 since the project’s original approval which would conflict with the proposed extension of the Use Permit and Design Review Permit. Therefore, the project continues to be consistent with the development standards of the NMC.
AIRPORT COMPATIBILITY OVERLAY DISTRICT
The property is also located within the AC, Airport Compatibility Overlay District, which requires that the City and Airport Land Use Commission review all on-site improvements to determine compatibility and consistency with the Airport Land Use Compatibility Plan. There have been no substantial changes to these regulations since the project’s original approval which would conflict with the project; therefore, the project continues to be consistent with the AC Overlay District.
PARKING
Section 17.54.040 of the Zoning Ordinance establishes parking requirements. There have been no changes to these regulations since the project’s original approval which would conflict with the project; therefore, the project continues to be consistent with the parking regulations.
PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
The Planning Commission recommended approval of the extension at its hearing on the extension request on October 21, 2021 by a vote of 5-0. There were no public speakers for the hearing.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
No direct financial impacts to the General Fund have been identified with this application.
CEQA:
The City Council had previously determined that the potential environmental effects were adequately examined by the Environmental Impact Report for the original Trinitas Mixed-Use Project (File No. PL16-0054) certified on July 17, 2018. Staff has determined that there have been no changes in the project, City requirements, or circumstances which would require subsequent environmental review. Therefore, Staff recommends that the City Council determine that the potential environmental effects of approving the extension application were adequately analyzed in the previously adopted Environmental Impact Report pursuant to Section 15162 of the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Draft Resolution
ATCH 2 - October 21, 2021 Planning Commission Staff Report and Attachments
NOTIFICATION:
Notice of the scheduled public hearing was provided on November 17, 2021 by US Postal Service to all property owners within a 500-foot radius of the subject property. Notice of the public hearing was also published in the Napa Valley Register on Saturday, November 29, 2021 and provided to people previously requesting notice on the matter at the same time notice was provided to the newspaper for publication. The Applicant was also provided a copy of this report and the associated attachments in advance of the public hearing on the project.