Planning Commission Staff Report
Report Prepared by: : Matt Livingston, Assistant Planner, Development Services Department
Title
SUBJECT: Vacation #24-02, to abandon an undeveloped 10-foot-wide storm drain easement at 1965 West Olive Avenue
ACTION:
Finding
1) The proposed vacation is consistent with the General Plan.
SUMMARY
Merced Security Storage, LLC is requesting a vacation of a 10-foot-wide storm drain easement at the eastern portion of 1965 West Olive Avenue (Attachment 1). This public utility easement was originally included in the plans for this development, but it was never completed. City Engineering and Planning have agreed that the proposed easement is no longer needed and can be returned to the property owner. The General Plan does not address the abandonment or vacation of easements; and thus, this action does not conflict with any General Plan policies, text, or maps, so it can be considered “consistent.” The area to be vacated is 10 feet wide and runs from the southern property line to the northern property line for approximately 13,850 square feet. (Attachment 3)
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a motion by minute action adopting a Finding that the proposed Vacation #24-02 is consistent with the General Plan.
Body
DISCUSSION
Project Description
The subject site at 1965 West Olive Avenue has a Business Park General Plan designation, within Planned Development (P-D) #12 zoning district. The City of Merced’s Public Works Department indicated that the easement originally was going to house a storm drain line to catch storm runoff from Conestoga Court, as well as portions of Olive Avenue. The storm drain was never installed, and there are no plans to install in the future.
The applicant is requesting that the city vacate this easement, as they are planning on building Merced Mini Storage on this lot, and the City will not be utilizing the easement.
Background
The subject site (approximately 6 acres) was annexed into the City in 1970, as part of the Fahrens Creek Annexation which incorporated approximately 576.60 acres into the City limits. The land uses in the area included Light Industrial (I-L) to the east of the subject site and Low Density Residential (LDR) to the west of the subject site. The subject site was designated for Commercial Office (CO) to be a buffer between the industrial and residential uses. The CO designation offered reduced impacts to the adjacent residential properties as professional and medical offices tend to have limited hours of operation during the evening and weekends with less traffic and noise compared to light industrial uses.
On August 21, 2023, the City Council of Merced voted 7-0 in approval of General Plan Amendment #23-02, and Site Utilization Plan Revision #3 to Planned Development (P-D) #12, which changed the General Plan designation to Business Park and designated the site for Mini Storage. This approval granted REM Land Group, LLC, the right to develop this lot into a self-storage and long-term parking space business, with approximately 440 storage units and approximately 171 parking spaces. The property owner reached out to the City of Merced Engineering Department requesting the City vacate the area that was originally planned for the easement that was not built.
Findings/Considerations
City Staff believes that this easement is no longer needed, and the easement should be abandoned and given to the owners of the property. The General Plan does not address the abandonment of easements; and thus, this action does not conflict with any General Plan policies, text, or maps, so it can be considered “consistent.”
ATTACHMENTS
A. Location Map
B. Legal Description
C. Parcel Map