2020-065 - Adopting Environmental Findings of Fact

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The Warner Redhill Mixed -Use Project CEQA Findings of Fact The City of Santa Ana has adopted the CBC as part of the Municipal Code Chapter 8, Article 2, Division 1, which regulates all building and construction projects within the City and implements a minimum standard for building design and construction that includes specific requirements for seismic safety, excavation, foundations, retaining walls and site demolition. Structures built in the City are required to be built in compliance with the CBC. The Project would be required to adhere to the provisions of the CBC as part of the building plan check and development review process. Compliance with the requirements of the CBC for structural safety would reduce hazards from strong seismic ground shaking. Because the proposed Project would be required to be constructed in compliance with the CBC and the City's Municipal Code, which would be verified through the City's plan check and permitting process and is included as PPP GEO-1, the proposed Project would result in a less than significant impact related to strong seismic ground shaking. Plans, Program and Policies: PPP GEO-1: CBC Compliance. The Project is required to comply with the California Building Standards Code (CBC) as included in the City's Municipal Code as Chapter 8, Article 2, Division 1, to preclude significant adverse effects associated with seismic and soils hazards. As part of CBC compliance, CBC related and geologist and/or civil engineer specifications for the proposed Project shall be incorporated into grading plans and building specifications as a condition of construction permit approval. Impact Finding: The Project would not expose people or structures to potential substantial adverse effects, including the risk of loss, injury, or death involving seismic -related ground failure, including liquefaction (Draft EIR at p. 5.5-8). Facts in Support of Findings: The Project site is located within a liquefaction hazard area. In addition, the Geotechnical Report identified that onsite soils include relatively isolated loose to medium dense sand layers, generally located approximately 40 to 50 feet below existing grade that are considered susceptible to liquefaction; and the depth of groundwater is in the range of 24 to 33 feet below ground surface (bgs), but the historic high groundwater is approximately 10 feet below the existing grade. Based on these onsite soils and groundwater conditions, the Geotechnical Report determined that the seismic settlement potential is estimated to be 2 inches or less; and differential seismic settlement is estimated as 1-inch over a horizontal span of about 40 feet. However, structures built in the City are required to be built in compliance with the CBC, as included in the City's Municipal Code as Chapter 8, Article 2, Division 1 (and in the Draft EIR as PPP GEO-1), which regulates all building and construction projects within the City and implements a minimum standard for building design and construction that includes specific requirements for seismic safety, excavation, foundations, retaining walls and site demolition. The Geotechnical Report (Geo 2019) prepared for the Project site provides CBC seismic design criteria that are specific to the onsite soils and the potential liquefaction and settlement. Compliance with the CBC, as included as PPP GEO-1, would require proper construction of building footings and foundations so that it would withstand the effects of potential ground movement, including liquefaction and settlement. The CBC, as currently adopted in the City's Municipal Code Chapter 8, Article 2, Division 1, includes provisions to reduce impacts caused by potential major structural failures or loss of life resulting from geologic hazards. The City requires the Project specific engineering design recommendations be incorporated into grading plans and building specifications as a condition of construction permit approval. Therefore, the development of the proposed Project would be required to conform to the seismic design parameters of the City of Santa Ana 13 May 2020