TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Carrie Tai, AICP, Community Development Director
SUBJECT:Title
Receive a 30-Day Progress Report on the Residence Inn by Marriott, Located at 1700 N. Sepulveda Boulevard (Community Development Director Tai).
RECEIVE REPORT
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council receive the report.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
There are no direct fiscal implications associated with the recommended action.
BACKGROUND:
On October 20, 2020, the City Council conducted a review of the Conditional Use Permit, as amended, for the Residence Inn by Marriott. At the conclusion of the Use Permit review, the City Council, directed staff to schedule a public hearing to consider modifications to the Use Permit in accordance with Section 10.104.030 of the Municipal Code, in order to incorporate additional operational measures as conditions of approval. Furthermore, the City Council requested a progress report within 30 days to determine whether there was reason to consider a revocation process instead. This report summarizes progress made between October 21, 2020, and November 20, 2020.
DISCUSSION:
Following the October 20, 2020, City Council review, the representatives of Residence Inn by Marriott convened a meeting with City staff on October 26, 2020, to catalog and discuss concerns that were expressed by City Council, members of the public, and City staff. The Residence Inn representatives indicated that they took immediate action in the following areas of progress:
• Received funding approval for physical improvements at the property, including but not limited to, increasing the height of the fence on the east property line, and installation of a mechanism to control access to the parking lot;
• Met with several neighbors to discuss fence height and other issues;
• Met with the City’s traffic engineer on location and requirements for a parking gate or control arm;
• Internally evaluating the type of parking control system (security system versus computerized access);
• Securing a designer to prepare plans for the parking control system and fence height improvements;
• Consulted with the City’s Planning Division on fence height requirements;
• Consulted with the City’s Building Division on fence permitting requirements;
• Consulted with the Fire Department on rear gate height and access;
• Increased on-site security to three personnel - one to patrol site wide, one stationed at the parking lot entrance, and one at the rear (east) gate;
• Added signs throughout the property indicating that no smoking is allowed property wide;
• Increased security lighting on the property, particularly at the rear of the property;
• Amended guest policies to indicate that no parties are allowed;
• Strategizing on neighborhood-wide outreach to engage all neighbors on hotel concerns;
• Requiring guest deposits, which will be forfeited if violations occur; and
• Continued temporary operational measures, such as a two-night minimum stay, prohibiting same-day reservations after 5:00 p.m., requiring reservations via phone or online (no walk-ins), and raising of room rates.
The Residence Inn met with City staff again on November 10, providing a written summary of actions taken since the City Council review. During that time, the Residence Inn fielded several neighborhood inquires and continued to meet with neighbors. Staff reviewed the summary and concurred on the points. Residence Inn has also indicated that preliminary plans for the fence and parking control system have been prepared, and the next anticipated steps are to formally submit those.
Staff also inquired with the City’s Police Department on the number of public safety response calls from October 1 to the present. In October, there were eight calls. From November 1 to November 16, there was one call, but likely unrelated to the site.
Per City Council direction on October 20, 2020, staff intends to schedule the public hearing for the Use Permit modifications on January 5, 2021.
PUBLIC OUTREACH:
After analysis, staff determined that public outreach was not required for this report. In accordance with the Municipal Code, public notification for the upcoming public hearing for the Use Permit modification will consist of a published newspaper ad and mailed notices to property owners of properties within 500 feet of the Residence Inn site.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed activity for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that the activity is not a “Project” as defined under Section 15378 of the State CEQA Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to Section 15060(c)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines the activity is not subject to CEQA. Thus, no environmental review is necessary.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENT:
1. Summary from the Residence Inn (November 9, 2020)