4A Public Hearing 2014 0602 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Exhibit C: Excerpt of Planning Commission Meeting Minutes of April 17, 2014 Page 5 of 10 Planner Barros said the process Secretary Liao described would involve extensive community outreach and environmental review, so adding entertainment uses at Bayfair Center could be postponed until that planning bears fruit. Commissioner Rennie said it would take more information to convince him that an entertainment use such as a dance hall or nightclub at Bayfair would be managed properly and also make economic sense.  Commissioner Rennie also brought up a point he made at the January 30, 2014 Work Session when he expressed concern about proposed changes in the CC District because they don’t seem appropriate along the stretch of MacArthur Boulevard between Estudillo Avenue and Dutton Avenue. He asked whether staff has given any thought to rezoning that section, which is more akin to a Commercial Neighborhood (CN) District. Planner Barros said staff and Community Development Director Cynthia Battenberg discussed potential rezoning as the next step in Zoning Code revisions to undertake. She said some areas downtown also might be more suitably rezoned, specifically some of the Industrial Limited (IL) Districts that are adjacent to DA Districts. Commissioner Fitzsimons inquired about some of the changes shown in the staff report under entertainment events. He asked whether “any form of recorded entertainment using amplified recorded music, such as karaoke systems” was being stricken because amplified recording music would be characteristic of an entertainment “activity” rather than an “event.” Planner Barros said yes, that with karaoke or a restaurant with background music, for example, people come and go at staggered times as opposed to all arriving and/or leaving at once. For clarification, Commissioner Fitzsimons posed a hypothetical situation of a church festival in a parking lot, with a disc jockey, CDs or a radio providing music, asking whether this stricken provision would not apply since the occasion wasn’t a musical event per se but a church festival. Secretary Barros said that he’s correct; the focus is on “events” when land -use issues come into play, with people arriving within a short window of time and noises happening around a specific time period. Commissioner Fitzsimons also found the line, “Televised events where advertised as a stand- alone event or separate admission” vague and requested clarification about whether a restaurant that has TVs and advertises World Cup viewing is staging a stand-alone event. Planner Barros said it would be considered an event if patrons were told to come at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday for a big World Cup party. She explained that the Englander, for example, has a CUP for comedy and other events, but not just for having sports on all their TV screens. Commissioner Fitzsimons said the word “advertising” might cause the confusion since it’s difficult to isolate whether the business with TVs during basketball playoffs is advertising itself or a playoff game; for a sports restaurant with TVs, advertising its TVs would be a normal part of its advertising. If TV is part of the restaurant ambience, he said it would be unfair to make the business run afoul of the law by advertising more than six events per year. Secretary Liao said part of this stems from staff’s practical experience in dealing with the community. He cited an example of a neighborhood bar with TVs promoting an event to attract more business, resulting in neighborhood concerns about parking, traffic and noisy crowds of people hanging around outside late in the evening. People can go to Chili’s to watch the World Series or NBA finals, he said, but Chili’s doesn’t necessarily advertise that. Commissioner Fitzsimons said he understands and agrees with the intent, but believes a more complete definition of stand-alone event is needed to avoid problems. To put the proposed change in context, Planner Barros referred to the broader text of Zoning Code Article 3. She said the original statement that Commissioner Fitzsimons cited read,