75C - PH MORTIMER MIXED USE - Laserfiche WebLink

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Appeal Application No. 2020-02, ER No. 2018-13 & AA No. 2020-04 — 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use Development December 1, 2020 Page 9 For the subject project, the City has applied Section 21166 (see Section I(a) above) and determined that substantial evidence supports the determination that the changes required for the 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use project (i.e., the site plan review, zone change, and variance) do not result in new significant impacts and does not require preparation of a Supplemental or Subsequent EIR. This determination is subject to the substantial evidence standard, and not the fair argument test. c. The appellant contends that the EIR for the Transit Zoning Code cannot have any informational value relative to the 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use Development Project, because the 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use Development Project seeks a zone change and variance. Summary of Appeal Reasoning: The appellant states that the 2010 EIR has no informational value to the project and since the project exceeds the density and massing analyzed in the 2010 EIR it is a new "project," and requires that the CEQA process start at the beginning. Staff Response: The appellant provides no legal citation for this statement, and the statement is untrue. The TZC EIR analyzes and documents the environmental impacts of zoning for the integration of new infill development into existing neighborhoods, the provision of a range of housing options in downtown, and the provision of a transit -supportive, pedestrian -oriented development framework to support the addition of new transit infrastructure. The 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use project proposes a minor change to the zoning established in the TZC and analyzed in the TZC EIR. The project is consistent with the objectives of the TZC, and, as documented in the addendum, the TZC EIR's conclusions relating to aesthetics, air quality, biological resources, cultural resources, hazardous materials, hydrology, land use and planning, noise, population and housing, public services, transportation, and utilities remain unchanged, even with implementation of the 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use project's zone change and variance. For each of these resource areas, the analysis in the TZC EIR still applies and is still correct for the downtown area. Therefore, the EIR has informational value relative to the 4th and Mortimer Mixed -Use Development project. d. The appellant contends that because the Transit Zoning Code EIR identified significant and unavoidable impacts, State CEQA Guidelines section 15152(f) and Communities for a Better Environment v. California Resources Agency (2002) 103 Cal.AppAth 98 the City cannot use an addendum. Summary of Appeal Reasoning: The appellant states that State CEQA Guidelines Section 15152(f) prohibits the use of an addendum when the original EIR identified significant and unavoidable impacts. Furthermore, the appellant provides findings that the Communities for a Better Environment v. California Resources Agency (2002) 103 Cal.App.4th 98 holds that an addendum cannot be used where the original EIR has identified significant and unavoidable impacts. 75C-9