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Rezoning may be key to revitalizing Tapo Street
As part of the ongoing process to update the city's General Plan- the document that will guide development and redevelopment in Simi Valley for years to come- members of city staff, with the help of a paid consultant, have identified 13 areas (see info box on page 9) that they believe could benefit from changes in land-use designations. These areas, most of which are designated primarily commercial or industrial, were selected because they were determined to be vacant, underutilized or performing poorly. Over the next two months, the Simi Valley Acorn will highlight each of these portions of the city and the alterations proposed for them in an ongoing series we're calling "Rethinking Simi Valley." The purpose of this series is to inform our readers about the significant changes that are being considered and to give them a chance to respond.
At its July 14 joint meeting, the Simi Valley City Council and the planning commission individually evaluated the 13 conceptual landusealternative areas and gave city staff direction on whether it should move forward with additional study. Those areas that received the green light for further consideration will undergo a prescreening for potential fiscal, community service, infrastructure, traffic and environmental impacts. These findings will be later reviewed by the General Plan advisory committee and the public in a community workshop before being presented at the next joint City Council/Planning Commission meeting. One area to be studied further includes a substantial portion of Tapo Street, which is a primary northsouth corridor for the community. The street is one that many would consider blighted, with a mix of small and large parcels of vacant land. The overlay district includes parcels along Tapo Street from just north of Alamo Street to slightly south of E. Los Angeles Avenue as well as parcels fronting along E. Los Angeles Avenue from Bishop Lane on the west to Lucky Lane on the east. The Tapo Canyon Business Park is located southeast of the area, while single-family and some multi-family homes are found to the north, east and west. Land use in the area is now a mixture of residential, commercial, office and industrial. Currently under construction is the new Marketplace on the west side of Tapo Street, which will feature townhomes, senior apartments and retail commercial uses. A staff report listed a number of planning issues associated with the district, including the lack of direct freeway access to the area, making it an undesirable location for commercial activity. Another problem is that the capacity for property zoned for commercial development may exceed the amount that can be supported by the projected population within Simi. The entire Tapo Street corridor is within the city's redevelopment project area, a designation that allows the city to consolidate parcels and provide additional financial and infrastructure incentives for new development. Santa Susana Plaza, which is situated on Tapo Street between Cochran Street and E. Los Angeles Avenue, has a number of vacancies, including the loss of its anchor grocery store. According to a staff report, the loss has contributed to a decline in the vitality of the center but may be suited for redevelopment in the future. Though Tapo Street lies within Simi's redevelopment project area, Peter Lyons, director of environmental services for the city, said that was not the reason it was chosen as one of the 13 opportunity areas. "The General Plan update has nothing to do with redevelopment," Lyons said, adding that at this stage the city is just considering land-use zoning. Changing land use designations on certain vacant or underutilized properties brings in new interest from private developers who would not have bought and developed the land before. In the staff report, members of the General Plan advisory committee recommended that, where appropriate, the city consider utilizing available development tools, like eminent domain, to advance the objectives of the area. But Lyons said the city does not plan to use eminent domain on any properties. "This city has no plan to use eminent domain with any of the General Plan update projects," he said, acknowledging residents' negative association with the term "eminent domain." "We're very cautious of that," Lyons continued. "We're looking at other tools to recycle some of the other poorly performing properties in Simi, such as rezoning." Altogether, the Tapo Street corridor has retail commercial, mixeduse, residential and industrial development possibilities. The smaller, scattered vacant parcels offer an opportunity for infill development in the neighborhood, while the large vacant or underutilized properties along Tapo Street north of the 118 Freeway have potential for higherdensity residential developments. There is also potential for office and business park uses in the older commercial area along E. Los Angeles Avenue, as supported by the nearby industrial park. A staff report noted that an increased amount of professional offices in the area would help boost employment in the city, and the mixeduse and residential developments would provide a greater retail base for the area. However, Councilmember Glen Becerra argued that the city already has plenty of housing and that he would rather see more office and job space. "I want to be very careful about the residential component of this," he said. "I would like to see us do mixed-use with all three (residential/commercial/office) with a higher focus on the commercial/office rather than the strict residential. The jobs/housing balance needs to be strengthened in this city, and this would be an opportunity to do that." Commissioner Jim Dantona, on the other hand, said that in order to make existing small commercial office space viable in the city more nearby residential- particularly rental- housing must be included. "While we have a lot of forsale, we don't have that transitional housing for young people in the community who want to transition out of Mom's house," he said. "Office space is needed, but in order to fill that space we need to have the people here," adding that residential should be added in areas close to transit. To view the full staff report and find more information on the General Plan update, visit generalplan.simivalley.org. The city's 13 conceptual land-use-alternative areas • Tapo Street Overlay Area • Los Angeles Avenue Overlay Area • Kadota-Fig Neighborhood • Leeds Street Neighborhood • Patricia Avenue Neighborhood • West End Industrial Specific Plan • Katherine Road Connection • Easy Street Industrial Area • Old Town Area • Parker Ranch Expansion • Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Improvement Area • Los Angeles Avenue Industrial Metrolink • Simi Valley Hospital Area |
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