The public review period for this important document ended May 2, 2008. The CHB and CPC heard these cases on May 21st and 22nd and made their recommendations. Every Riversider needs to help direct the future of our downtown by expressing their questions and concerns outlined in this report. To do this you MUST appear at the public hearing below!
June 10,
2008-City Council Hearing, Council Chambers 3 PM.
(Staff is hoping the middle-of-the-day time will reduce opposition!)
Old Riverside Foundation
has engaged the services of a Preservation attorney as result
of the city's rushed actions to push this project through beofre
the public reveiw period is concluded. There are dozens of issues
concerning this project and its blatant failure to comply with
the guidelines and standards set forth and agreed to by Riverside
citizens in the Downtown Specific Plan..
Copies of the Executive Summary, draft EIR, and case files for
the CHB and Planning Commissions are included here for your reveiw
and download. We encourage you to reveiw these for yourself and
send a letter to the Planning Departement expressing your concerns
regarding this important project.
On April 21, 2008 a letter was sent to each member expressing
the concerns of the Foundation and providing some information
on this project. We have included the letter here for you today:
Please check back regularly as we be posting updates on this project as well as important imformation geared to grab your interest and motivate you to get invlolved, contact your civic leaders, and send in your comments and concerns regarding the draft Environmental Impact Report on Fox Plaza
The CHB reviewed the draft EIR on May 21st and forwarded their recommendations to the council. The CHB was to consider and approve a COA (Cetificate of Appropriateness) for the project, however, a letter was sent to the board from the City Manager removing their authority to make this action. This is one of the primary powers of the CHB. It was removed from the board without any explaination. According to representatives from the National Trust, this action places in jeopardy the City's 'Certified Local Government' status. This could have substantial monetary consequences in the future.
The CPC heard this case the following day. The commission certified the draft EIR with their comments and fowarded the EIR to the council for certification. This action is questionable as the commisision voted to approve a document they had not yet seen! The CPC also approved a small portion of the Fox Plaza project rejecting ALL the proposed variences requested by the developer and supported by city staff. The commission sent the Stalder block portion back to the developer asking for a reduction in density and requiring the upper floors of the block be 'stepped back' from the street.
Our challenge on the 10th is to voice the same objections to the project. WHY? Because since the CPC approved the draft EIR the council could merely reject the recommendations made by the CPC and approve the entire project as originally submitted. Council members need to hear from their constituents and pressure needs to be applied to convince the council this project needs to go back to the drawing boards in its entirety and a new EIR prepared when the project is redesigned to comply with the Downtown Specific Plan.
PLEASE CALL, WRITE, OR VISIT YOUR COUNCIL MEMBER AND LET THEM KNOW WHAT THEY NEED TO DO!!
WE NEED YOU AT THE COUNCIL MEETING ON THE 10TH!!
Have you seen the bumpers stickers around town?
The past few weeks have seen a groundswell of opposition to the current plans for Fox Plaza. The size and density of the project and the destruction of ALL the Historic resources within the project area are grave concerns to residents, businesses, and community groups. There have been numerous letters to the Press-Enterprise regarding this project and Council members, GHB members, and Planning commissioners ahve reached many calls. While everyone agrees Fox Plaza is long overdue in Downtown, this project needs to be downsized and made to match the desires of Riversiders made clear in the Downtown Specific Plan. The CHB and CPC hearing dates are fast approaching. Please make plans to be at these hearings as nothing makes an impression faster than a room full of concerned citizens...
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April 21, 2008
Every place
looks like no place, and no place looks like home. Dear Old Riverside Foundation Member: Riverside is at a crossroads. City management and the Council see future downtown Riverside as a vertical building mass in the heart of the historic Mission Inn district. Others in the community, including those on City Boards and Commissions, desire to see growth that is compatible with, and incorporates Riverside's historic past. The epicenter in the current debate is the Fox Plaza project. The plan features six and seven story condominiums, parking garages, and ground floor retail spaces located on the Fox Theater block (excluding the Theater itself), the Stalder Building block, and the block containing Aamco Transmissions and RB Graphics. All buildings on these blocks, other than the Fox Theater, are slated for demolition. The Old Riverside Foundation is seeking to work with the City to establish a plan that incorporates the restoration and/or reuse of the:
The Foundation was forced to use its resources to retain legal counsel to protect the public's right to due process and to protect our irreplacible historic resources. The reason? The City scheduled public hearings and recommended that (1) the Cultural Heritage Board (CHB) approve a Certificate of Appropriateness to demolish the Stalder Building (April 16), and that (2) the City Planning Commission (CPC) approve a Conditional Use Permit for the condos at a density of 105 units per acre, together with a subdivision map (April 17). This hearing followed action by the City Council (April 15) to approve a Development and Disposition Agreement with the developer. These actions all occur during an ongoing public review period of the project environmental impact report, (EIR), that does not conclude until May 2. The Old Riverside Foundation, other community organizations, and private citizens intend to provide comments pertaining to the EIR and the project. These comments require responses by the City that will complete the environmental document and form the Final EIR. In essence, the CHB and CPC were asked to approve a Final EIR before the document even exists. The Fox Plaza project, a development that readily could be an asset to downtown Riverside, is flawed in many ways and at many different levels. The project proposes 105 units per acre (similar to high-density areas along Wilshire Blvd. in Los Angeles), whereas the Downtown Specific Plan allows only 60 units per acre. The height of the proposed buildings will range from six to seven stories, which will dwarf the Fox Theater. The current project averages 72' with portions as high as 96'. The plan destroys the architectural and visual connectivity that links the Mission Inn and the Fox Theater. This callous disregard for public input, avoidance of superior design alternatives, and needless variances are contrary to state environmental and land use law, and lead the Board to seek legal intervention. However, because the CHB and the CPC continued their respective cases for one month, the public has the opportunity to state their concerns to these bodies on May 21 and 22, and to offer comments about the EIR by May 2. Letters received before May 2 will be incorporated into the Final EIR. Until now, our Council and Commissions have heard only from board members of the Old Riverside Foundation. They need to know other Riversiders also want growth that respects Riverside's historic past and protects rare and unique quality of our historic downtown. The question is: do we want to be as highly urbanized as downtown Cincinatti or Denver or Los Angeles? Enclosed are illustrations of the proposed project that show the magnitude of change that is planned for this very important and prominent Riverside location. It is critical that you schedule time for 3 PM May 21 for the next CHB hearing, and May 22 at 9 AM for the next CPC hearing to make your views known. Be sure to tell your friends and bring a neighbor. If you cannot attend these hearings, please send a letter to Steve Hayes, Senior Planner, Riverside City Planning Department, 3900 Main Street, Riverside, CA 92522. And finally, we need to be fully prepared for an extended legal battle to protect Riverside's downtown historic district. A special legal fund is being established for this effort. Please send your tax-deductible donation to the Old Riverside Foundation, P.O. Box 601, Riverside, CA 92501. A bumper sticker is enclosed to place on your vehicle to let your views be known. Yours in Preservation,
David M. Leonard, President
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You can download the Executive Summary, DDA Agreement, and Draft EIR here:
Draft
Environmenta Impact Report
Table of Contents
Exec Summary
Introduction
Project Description
Cumulative
Environmental Analysis
Traffic
Parking
AirQuality
Noise
Historic Resources
Aesthetics
Geology
Fire Protection
Police
Recreation Urban Trail
Water Supply
Alternatives
Long-Term Implications
Significant Unavoidable
Effects Found Not Significant
Persons Consulted
Bibliography
Environmental Impart Report Appendices
2006 NOP Initial Study
2007 Revised NOP Study
2006 NOP Comments
2007 NOP Comments
Traffic
Analysis
Parking Analysis
Air Quality Analysis
Noise Analysis
Architectural Resources Group Riverside Fox Plaza
CEQA Historical Resource Evaluation
JMRC Cultural Resources Survey & Evaluation
Of Impacts For The Proposed Fox Plaza Project
Melvyn Green And Associates Structural Review
Report Stalder Building
Public Services/Utility Correspondence
Water Supply Assessmant
As part of our ongoing effort to inform and educate our members and the general public of the importance of Historic Preservation, ORF has published the first Endangered Buildings List for the City of Riverside.
Included are sixteen buildings compiled by the ORF Board that are considered the most endangered Historic resources in the city. The publication of this list could not have come at a better time as all the buildings proposed for demolition as part of the Fox Plaza project made the list.
This list will be updated annually and published each year in May. We have included a link below to download the list. We produced 2,000 of these lists and they are almost gone with requests for more arriving daily, so it seems we accomplished our goal....