The record, one story at a time

June 22, 2022 · Haven Avenue and Arrow Route

Haven & Arrow: 248 apartments that never came to the council

• What was approved: 248 apartments and 23,750 square feet of commercial space on about 9.4 acres at the southwest corner of Haven Avenue and Arrow Route.
• Who decided: the Planning Commission, on June 22, 2022. It allowed 47 fewer parking spaces than the code requires, 5–0. City staff said all 47 were commercial spaces and the apartments had all the parking the code requires.
• Who spoke: at the hearing, no one but the project's architect. At the meeting's public comment, no one.
• What the council could have done: a majority of the council can call a Planning Commission decision up within ten days. No council meeting was held in those ten days, and no special meeting was called. (The July 6 meeting was cancelled; the council next met July 20.) The approval stood.
• Who was on the council: Mayor Pro Tem Lynne Kennedy and Councilmember Kristine Scott, with Mayor Dennis Michael and Councilmember Ryan Hutchison.
• A year earlier, the council, Kennedy and Scott among them, called up a 7-Eleven gas station and said no (the next story).

May–August 2021 · Archibald Avenue and 9th Street

The one the council did call up: a 7-Eleven

• May 12, 2021: the Planning Commission approved a gas station and convenience store at the southwest corner of Archibald Avenue and 9th Street, 3–2.
• May 19, a week later: the City Manager put the question on the council's agenda, and the council called the project up, 4–1. Councilmember Spagnolo moved it, citing the City's review of gas stations; Councilmember Scott seconded. Councilmember Hutchison voted no.
• July 7: after a public hearing, Scott moved and Mayor Pro Tem Kennedy seconded to deny the gas station's and the store's permits, 4–1.
• Aug. 4: the denial was made final, 3–1, on Scott's motion, with one member absent.

2019–2026 · Etiwanda Heights

The Etiwanda foothills: a 3,000-home cap, set and then removed

• Oct. 2, 2019: the council adopted the Etiwanda Heights plan, capped at about 3,000 homes.† Kennedy seconded. 5–0, all five members present, Scott among them.
• Nov. 6, 2019: Kennedy moved the plan's ordinances. 5–0.
• Jan. 21, 2026: the council approved the amendment The Previti Group applied for, replacing the cap with a limit of 8 homes per gross acre.* 16 of the 17 public speakers opposed it, and four e-mails did too. Councilmember Hutchison moved and Scott seconded. 5–0, all five present.
• Feb. 4, 2026: final adoption, Ordinance 1055. Scott moved. 5–0.

* Under that limit, the City's staff report puts the "theoretical maximum" at about 5,780 homes and says the actual number will be lower: that figure does not count streets, parks, schools and other infrastructure, while the 2019 cap was counted after they were taken out, so "the numbers alone do not represent an equal comparison." † 3,000 includes up to 300 transferred units.

Oct. 4, 2017 · Foothill Boulevard by Red Hill

Condos on the hillside by Red Hill: 11 speakers against, approved 4–1

• The project: 175 condominiums on 24 acres on the north side of Foothill Boulevard, between Red Hill Country Club Drive and the Pacific Electric Trail, with a variance to build above the 30-foot height limit and permission to remove 180 trees.
• The council's own call: it needed a change to the General Plan to allow building on slopes of 30 percent or more. The Planning Commission could only recommend that change; the council had to approve it. The Commission's approval was also appealed.
• Who spoke: eleven speakers at the public hearing opposed it, citing traffic, safety, habitat and public notice. None spoke in favor.
• The vote: the council changed the General Plan and denied the appeal, 4–1. Councilmember Spagnolo moved and Mayor Pro Tem Kennedy seconded. Councilmember Alexander voted no.