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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 2d - Intention to vacate an Easement for Street and Highway Purposes DATE: May 2, 2017 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Jason Kruckeberg, Assistant City Manager/Development Services Director Philip A. Wray, Deputy Director of Development Services/City Engineer SUBJECT: RESOLUTION NO. 7164 DECLARING ITS INTENTION TO VACATE AN EASEMENT FOR STREET AND HIGHWAY PURPOSES OVER LAND BOUNDED ON THE SOUTHWEST BY THE ARCADIA PAR-3 GOLF COURSE, AND ON THE NORTHWEST BY DAINES DRIVE, IN THE UNINCORPORATED COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, SETTING A PUBLIC HEARING RELATIVE THERETO FOR JUNE 6, 2017, AND APPROVING A CATEGORICAL EXEMPTION PURSUANT TO THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT (“CEQA”) Recommendation: Adopt SUMMARY In the 1940’s, the City received land and an access easement associated with the Arcadia Par-3 Golf Course. Subsequently, the land was subdivided and four (4) lots were developed over the easement. The easement no longer serves its intended purpose for access, however, a portion of the easement contains overhead utility lines. The property owners have requested that the easement be vacated. It is recommended that this easement be vacated to the underlying property owners, with the retention of a public utility easement over a portion. As part of the street vacation process, the City Council must set a time and place to hold a public hearing to ascertain the necessity to abandon and vacate the easement. It is recommended that a public hearing be scheduled for the regular City Council meeting of June 6, 2017. BACKGROUND In December of 1940, the City of Arcadia received a grant of real property for what is now the Arcadia Par 3 Golf Course. Along with that grant, the City received an easement for “Street and Highway Purposes” connecting the Golf Course property to Daines Drive northwest of the Golf Course. The easement lies entirely within the Unincorporated County of Los Angeles. The property containing the easement was owned by the same owner as the future Golf Course land, and was apparently granted Resolution No. 7164 Declaring its Intention to Vacate an Easement for Street and Highway Purposes May 2, 2017 Page 2 of 3 as an access to the Golf Course property from a public street. Sometime after that, the City obtained a public access, connecting the property directly to Live Oak Avenue, which is in use today. In April of 1946, Tract Map No. 13780 was recorded, which officially subdivided the land underlying the City’s easement. The underlying land was subdivided into portions of four lots and a public street. The Mayor and the City Clerk of the City of Arcadia signed the map acknowledging the subdivision. No further documentation of the easement, or any efforts to vacate the easement, were found. As a prerequisite to the vacation, all utility companies were notified of the City’s intention and requested to identify any potential conflicts. AT&T responded that they own the existing overhead lines in the easement, and requested that the City retain a public utility easement for the portion containing their lines. On March 14, 2017, the Arcadia Planning Commission adopted Resolution No. 1989, finding the requested vacation consistent with the goals and policies in City’s General Plan Circulation Element, and forwarded a recommendation of approval to the City Council. ANALYSIS The easement appears to have been the shortest route to connect the Golf Course property to a public street, which is now Daines Drive. Although it may have been intended as a public access to the Golf Course, it is doubtful that it was ever improved and/or served that purpose because there is no evidence of a street, and it would have had to cross the Santa Anita Wash. Since the time that Tract Map No. 13780 was recorded, it appears from aerial photographs that structures have been constructed over portions of the easement. It was also discovered, from visual inspections, that a portion of the easement contains overhead utility lines. The property owner of 3204 South Eighth Avenue, one of the four lots underlying the easement, recently approached the City with the request to vacate the easement, and paid the processing fee of $2,500. The property owner plans to make improvements to his property, and the County will not permit any further work until they have proof that the easement has been vacated. The easement no longer serves its intended purpose for access and is recommended for Vacation. In response to the AT&T request, the retention of a public utility easement for the portion containing their utility lines will be proposed in the final vacation action. Resolution No. 7164 Declaring its Intention to Vacate an Easement for Street and Highway Purposes May 2, 2017 Page 3 of 3 The purpose of this action is to state the City’s intention to vacate the easement and to set the public hearing for the regular City Council meeting of June 6, 2017. If approved, notices will be posted in accordance with the California Streets and Highways Code for street vacations. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The proposed right-of-way vacation is categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to Section 15301(c) because the action consists of a legal transfer of ownership, which will result in negligible or no expansion of use. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council adopt Resolution No. 7164 declaring its intention to vacate an easement for street and highway purposes over land bounded on the southwest by the Arcadia Par-3 Golf Course, and on the northwest by Daines Drive, in the Unincorporated County of Los Angeles; setting a public hearing relative thereto for June 6, 2017, and approving a categorical exemption pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”). Attachment No. 1: Resolution No. 7164 (includes Exhibits “A” and ”B”)