Chair CITY QF FARMERSVILLE PLANNING Marisa Llamas a COMMISSION Commissioners H REGULAR MEETING AGENDA Jerry Luna FARMERSVILLE Raul Casas June 18, 2025, 6:00 P.M. Irene Taff Council Chambers = 909 W. Visalia Rd., Farmersville, CA Notice is hereby given that the Farmersville Planning Commissioners will hold a Regular Meeting on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 at 6:00 p.m. Rules for Addressing the Planning Commission: Members of the public may address the Planning Commissioners on matters within the jurisdiction of the City of Farmersville. Persons wishing to address Commissioners concerning an item on the agenda will be invited to address the Commissioners during the time that Commissioners are considering that agenda item. Persons wishing to address Commissioners concerning issues not on the agenda will be invited to address Commissioners during the Public Comment portion of the meeting. When invited by the Chair to speak, please step up to the lectern, state your name and city of residence, and make your comments. Comments are limited to two minutes per speaker. Americans with Disabilities Act Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, persons with disabilities who may need assistance should contact the City Clerk prior to the meeting at (559) 747-0458 ext. 1003 or via email at giovani@cllyofarmersvile-ca.goy 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. ROLL CALL 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE - Led by Choose an item. 4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA 5. PUBLIC COMMENT - The public is invited to comment on any subject under the jurisdiction of the Farmersville Planning Commissioners. Please note that speakers that wish to comment on a Regular Item or Public Hearing on tonight's agenda will have an opportunity to speak when public comment for that item is requested by the Chair. Comments shall be limited to two (2) minutes per person, with twenty (20) minutes for the total comment period, unless otherwise indicated by the Chair. The public may also choose to submit a comment before the meeting via email. Public comments received via email will be distributed to the Planning Commissioners prior to the start of the meeting and incorporated into the official minutes; however, they will not be read aloud. Under state law, matters presented under public comment cannot be acted upon by the Commissioners at this time. 6. PRESENTATIONS City of Farmersville Page 1 7. CONSENT CALENDAR Routine items approved in one motion unless an item is pulled for discussion. There will be no separate discussion of these matters unless a request is made, in which event the item will be removed from the Consent Calendar to be discussed and voted upon by a separate motion. 8.1 Minutes of the Regular Meeting 12-18-2025 Action & Recommendation: Approve as submitted Submitted by: Rochelle Giovani, City Clerk 8. ACTION ITEMS None 9. PUBLIC HEARINGS None 10. DISCUSSION ITEMS 10.1 Discussion & Overview of project review and long-range planning activities ongoing in the City of Farmersville. 11. Commissioner Comments 12. City Planner Comments 13. ADJOURNMENT Farmersville Planning Commissioners meetings are held in the Civic Center City Council Chambers at 909 W. Visalia Road in Farmersville, California beginning at 6:00 P.M. on the third Wednesday every month unless otherwise noticed. Materials related to an Agenda item submitted to the legislative body after distribution of the Agenda Packet are available for public inspection in the office of the City Clerk during normal business hours. A complete agenda is available at WWW. cltyofarmersvlle-ca. us. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act & Ralph M. Brown Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, or to be able to access this agenda and documents in the agenda packet, please contact the office of the City Clerk at (559) 747-0458 ext. 1003. Notification prior to the meeting will enable the City to ensure accessibility to this meeting and/or provision of an alternative format of the agenda and documents in the agenda packet. AFFIDAVIT OF POSTING AGENDA I hereby certify, in conformance with Government Code Sections 54954.2 and 54956, this agenda was posted in the bulletin board at the Farmersville Civic Center, 909 W. Visalia Road, as well as on the City of Farmersville's website www.citlyoffarmersvile-ca.gov). DATE & TIME POSTED: Friday, June 13, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. Rochelle Giovani, City Clerk City of Farmersville Page 2 CITY OF Minutes 74 - FARMERSVILLE, Farmersville Planning Commission - Regular Meeting Marisa Llamas, Chairperson Wednesday, December 18, 2024 6:00 PM Araceli Ochoa, Commissioner Meeting held in Civic Center Council Chambers - Jerry Luna, Commissioner Raul Casas, Commissioner 909 W. Visalia Road Farmersville, California Irene Taff, Commissioner Pending no technical difficulties, the City Council meeting will also be streamed (for observation only) via Zoom and accessed as follows: Please dial 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: - 0 80 Password: 238891 1. Call to Order: 6:00 pm 2. Roll Call: Title Status Arrived Chairperson Llamas Present 6:00pm Vice Chair Casas Present 6:00pm Commissioner Valdovinos Present 6:00pm Commissioner Luna Absent Commissioner Taff Absent 3. Pledge of Allegiance: Chairperson Llamas 4. Public Comment: none given This portion of the agenda is reserved for persons wishing to address the Planning Commission on any matter that is not listed for review on the agenda. Individuals must give their name and address and limit their comments to three minutes. Issues raised during Public Comments are informational only and the Planning Commission cannot take action at this time. All comments shall be directed towards the Chairpersons and not to individual Commissioners or staff. 6. Approval of Minutes: A. Minutes of Regular Planning Commission Meeting 11-20-2024 Recommend approval of minutes. Documents: Draft Action Minutes 11-20-2024 Planning Commission Action: It was moved by Planning Commissioner Casas, seconded by Chairperson Llamas, and unanimously approved with a 3-0 vote. 7. General Business : A. Cherry Creek Medical. An application to approve a Site Plan Review 2024-01 (Cherry Medical Clinic) for the construction and operation of medical clinic on Farmersville Boulevard north of Walnut Avenue. a. Resolution 2024-17 (Site Plan Review) Chairperson Llamas opened the public hearing at 6:17pm and closed it at 6:17pm. Planning Commission Action: It was moved by Planning Commissioner Valdovinos, seconded by Chairperson Casas, and unanimously approved with a 3-0 vote. 8. Commissioner Comments: Chairperson Llamas attended the Christmas Tree Lighting and said it was a great turn out. City Manager Michael Schulte informed the Planning Commission on the upcoming Stratgic Plan in February. He told them that he would review the information with them. 9. City Planner Comments: City Planner Tom Navarro informed the Planning Commission that two new developments, Plum Blossom and Sierra Woods, are currently underway. Additionally, a meeting is scheduled with the City Planner to review the feasibility of another small subdivision. 10. Adjournment: Chairperson Llamas adjourned the meeting at 6:28pm. Respectfully Submitted Rochelle Giovani City Clerk CITY OF STAFF REPORT Item #: 10.1 & Discussion Items FARMERSVILLE TO: Farmersville Planning Commission MEETING DATE: June 18, 2025 DEPARTMENT: Planning FROM: Karl Schoettler, City Planning Consultant AGENDA TITLE: Update on Planning Activities ACTION & RECOMMENDATION The following is an overview of project review and long-range planning activities ongoing in the City of Farmersville. The Planning Commission has not met in several months, sO staff thought it beneficial to provide an update on various projects and planning efforts. No action is requested at this time. ANALYSIS A. LONG RANGE PLANNING PROJECTS Several long-range planning efforts are currently underway. These are discussed below. 1. General Plan Update Every city and county in California is required to have a General Plan that establishes maps and policies to guide future growth of the City. The current FarmersVille General Plan was adopted in 2002 and intended to sunset in 2025. Accordingly, the City has begun work on a new General Plan and is contracting with 4Creeks to prepare the update. The new General Plan is intended to guide Farmersville's growth for the next 20 years. The General Plan is required to include a number of elements" that pertain to key issues related to planning and future growth. These elements include: Land Use Element. This element designates land around the community (including future growth areas) for specific types of development, including residential, commercial, industrial and public (schools, parks and other public facilities). The element also establishes policies to guide growth of the City. Of note, the General Plan predicts the City will grow at an average annual growth rate of 1 percent per year. The General Plan will determine where future land uses should be located, including single family residential subdivisions, multi- family residential development, commercial development, industrial development and public uses, among others. Circulation Element: This element establishes maps and policies to guide the development of the City's circulation system. While vehicle circulation is important, other ways of getting around must be planned for also, including walking, cycling and transit. Open Space and Conservation Element: This combined element of the General Plan establishes maps and policies to guide the development of future parks and recreation facilities and programs, and also the protection of resources like open space, agricultural land, air quality, endangered species and other resources. 1 Of note, the General Plan predicts that growth of the City will warrant the creation of approximately 14 acres of new parks by 2045. The Element will need to designate the locations of these new park facilities. The Safety Element identifies existing and future safety concerns and establishes policies and programs to minimize these hazards as the City grows. In general, Farmersville is located in one of the safest parts of California. The primary safety hazards include flooding, heat and potential for hazards resulting from spills from trucks and trains. The Noise Element predicts potential noise impacts and establishes maps and policies to reduce these issues to acceptable levels as the community grows. Of note, Farmersville is relatively less-affected by noise than many other Cities because the City lacks an airport and only has one railroad with infrequent, low-speed trains. Further, most sensitive uses in Farmersville (residential neighborhoods, parks and schools) are located away from the freeway (a major noise source). Air Quality Element Cities in the San Joaquin Valley are required to prepare and adopt an Air Quality Element. This element chronicles local air quality issues and establishes policies to protect air quality as the City grows and develops. The Environmental Justice (EJ) Element is a fairly new State requirement for the General Plan. The EJ Element seeks to avoid impacts to minority and low-income communities from land use decisions and the siting of industrial and other facilities that can have a negative impact on their surroundings. Of note, compared to many cities, Farmersville is a minority-majority' community. That is, the City is majority Hispanic and also has a higher proportion of lower income households than most cities in the Valley. Work Completed The Consultant has completed most of the Existing Conditions" section of the General Plan and is now also working on the actual policy portion of the document. A subconsultant is also working on an Environmental Impact Report that must be prepared for the General Plan. It is' hoped the document will be complete and ready for adoption by early 2026. 2. Housing Element The Housing Element is that portion of the General Plan that establishes policies to ensure that housing is available for all segments of the community The Housing Element is unique (compared to other elements of the General Plan) in that it must be updated every 8 years and is also subject to strict review and approval by the State of California. The State (and by extension the City) is particularly concerned with the availability of housing for those who can least afford it - lower income households and the homeless. Farmersville has joined with 6 other cities in Tulare County to prepare a single Multi-Jurisdictional Housing Element that is being prepared by the consulting firm Rincon Consultants". 2 Individual Sections of the Housing Element are as follows: Public Participation Housing Needs Assessment Housing Constraints Analysis Housing Resources Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Analysis Review of Past Housing Accompishments Housing Plan Work Completed The consultant has completed the Housing Element and it has been submitted to the State for review and comment. The State is now in its third round of comments. It is hoped the Housing Element will be ready for final adoption by the end of this year. 3. Downtown Specific Plan The Downtown Specific Plan is being prepared to help revitalize downtown Farmersville through a series of public improvements and also land use and planning policies and programs. Key improvements and actions that have been identified through this planning effort include: A road diet to help the downtown become a more pedestran-orented shopping and dining district. Farmersville Boulevard would be converted from two lanes to one lane in each direction along with left turn lanes and on-street diagonal parking. This would replace the existing overly-wide street which is hostile to pedestrians and not conducive to the desired pedestran-orented downtown character. The introduction of mixed uses and multi-family housing, designed in the downtown style" (building on the front of the site and parking to the rear). Having people live in the downtown will help add street life and also customers for downtown businesses. An events plaza Park space Street trees for shade and peautification New street lamps with banners Benches and seating Landscape planters Fountains and artwork 3 Other Strategies to Incentivize Development in the Downtown: Reduce or eliminate impact fees Reduce on-site parking requirements Expedite project processing Work Completed The consultant has completed a profile of existing conditions, along with goals and action programs for revitalization of the downtown area. Upon initial presentation of the road diet concept 1 some members of the City Council were uncomfortable with this concept and the potential impacts on traffic. The City has recently secured additional funding for additional analyses of traffic impacts related to the road diet concept to see if this idea can move forward. 4. Zoning Ordinance Update The consultant is completing a comprehensive update of the Farmersville Zoning Ordinance, which was last fully updated in the early 1980's. More than any other City regulation, the Zoning Ordinance shapes the character of the City, through regulations for building size and type, landscaping, fencing, signage, parking and other building-related standards. The intent of the ordinance is to bring it up to date with modern zoning standards and recent State requirements. The purpose is to also make the ordinance more user-friendly through the use of graphics, flow charts and easy-to-read language. Work Completed Most of the update has been completed; the consultant is now working on final amendments related to the Housing Element update. Chapters of the proposed Zoning Ordinance update include the following: Administration The Zoning Ordinance Administration Public Hearings Appeals Zones Zoning Districts UR Zone (Urban Reserve) OS Zone (Open Space) PQP Zone Public/Quasi Public) R-1 Zones (Single Family Residential) R-1 (MH) Zone (Single Family Residential - Mobile Home 4 RM Zones (Multi-Family Residential) Permitted Uses in Residential Zones CG Zone (General Commercial) CD Zone (Downtown Commercial) CS Zone (Service Commercial) CH Zone (Highway Commercial) Commercial Design Guidelines Permitted Uses in Commercial Zones Zone/IL Zone (Industrial Zones) PD Zone (Planned Development overlay) Standards Special Uses and Standards Landscaping and Irrigation Parking and Loading Signs and Advertising Permits and Procedures Zoning Ordinance Amendments Site Plan Review Conditional Use Permits Variances, Minor Deviations and Reasonable Accommodations Other Topics Non-Conforming Uses Enforcement Definitions B. CURRENT DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS Staff is currently working on the following projects (also see attached Location Map). 1. Fagundes Amnexation'Subdwision This is the annexation of a 22-acre site and creation of a 99 lot single family residential subdivision along with a neighborhood park. Following review by the Planning Commission the project was approved by the City Council. Staff is currently working to prepare and submit the annexation application to LAFCo. 2. Plum Blossom Subdivision This is a single family residential subdivision to create 149 lots and a park on 40 acres located north of Visalia Road west of Virginia Avenue. Developers are revising the traffic study for the area to determine impacts to the existing streets. Staff will revisit mitigation for this project (now that the recently-approved adjacent 5 Kaweah Pointe subdivision appears to not be moving forward) to make sure impacts are mitigated properly before coming forward to Planning Commission. 3. Sierra Woods Subdivision This is an annexation of 19 acres and a subdivision to create 98 single family residential lots. The site is located on the north side of Walnut Avenue, west of the existing city limit boundary. Staff is preparing to submit the application to the Planning Commission for consideration. 4. Eagle Meadows This is a 223 lot single family residential subdivision and neighborhood parks on 49 acres located south of Visalia Road, east of the Virginia Avenue. The Tentative Subdivision Map is approved and the applicant is working to submit their final map along with construction drawings. The project will also require a Development Agreement to be reviewed and approved by the City Council. 5. Gardenia Courtyards This is the first 40-unit phase of an 82-unit multi-family residential project (for families and seniors) located on the east side of Farmersville Boulevard north of Walnut Avenue. The developer has been successful seeking funding for the first 40 units and is hoping to break ground later this year. 6. Cherry Medical Clinic Site Plan Review was approved by the Planning Commission for a 9,088 square foot medical clinic and pharmacy on a one-acre portion of a 2-acre lot on the west side of Farmersville Boulevard north of Walnut Avenue. Building permits and improvement plans are currently in review.. FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact associated with the items covered in this report. Funds for long-range planning activities have previously been budgeted by the City. Funds for processing development projects are covered by application fees. All development projects will pay the City's Development Impact Fees upon issuance of a building permit. ATTACHMENTS 1. (Map 1: Planning Project Location Map) ReviewedApproved: 6 Attachment 1: Location Map of Development Projects Highway/198 e Serrawoods annexationand Cherry Medical subdivision office Gardenia Courtyards 1 - multi-family (Phase1 Walnut Ave. Plum Blossom Fagundes subdivision annexation and subdivision n P t SM Railroad sm Kaweah Pointe Subdivision tal Visalia Road = Ai: Eagle Meadows 1 subdivision IAlen Wastewater Treatment Plant north 7