Residential standards proposed for home businesses, urban farms, B&Bs

Note: the PowerPoint presentation for this meeting is attached to this article in two PDFs.

Altadena got a first look at new residential standards Monday night (March 10, 2015), and while it’s trying to ease the barriers for home-based businesses and urban farms, one of the hot-button issues promises to be where fences and hedges are placed.

New community standards for Altadena are about two years away, with lots of community meetings, opportunities for comment, and legal massaging along the way.  Monday night’s meeting was formally the Community Standards District Committee’s presentation to the Altadena Town Council, although it was open to the public.

The committee has been meeting for two years to update Altadena’s community standards for businesss zones and residential areas.  The business zone standards were introduced several months ago.

The committee identified several key issues to address:

Filming: the committee wanted to preserve opportunities for Hollywood filming to continue in residential areas as a source of local income, but also wanted to set standards that minimized disruption, inconvenience, and traffic issues.

Bed & breakfasts: the committing said they wanted to encourage an alternative use for some of Altadena’s large houses, rather than allowing them to deterioriate or converting them to group homes.  A bed and breakfast industry would provide opportunities for local entrepreneurs, provide guest accommodations for visitors, encourage tourism and support lcoal merchants. However, they must max out at seven rooms, guest parking must be on-site, and food service must be for guests only (no banquet/catering services).

Second units in R-1 zones: the proposed standards encourage the development of “granny flats” in single-family residential areas, as a source of low-income housing, a source of income for residents, and allowing multiple generation and/or caregiver housing.

Home-based businesses: while seeking to maintain the residential character of neighborhoods, the committee wants to loosen rules to allow more kinds of businesses to be run from home.  Currently light office equipment is permitted, but the new rules will allow businesses that require more specialized equipment — film and sound editing, picture framing, upholstery, etc.  It will also relax limits on using the garage for business.  Some home-based businesses will still be prohibited (for example, porn, tattoos, body piercing, or physican and dental offices).

Urban agriculture: mostly affecting animals, the standards will set square footage requirements for various farm animals.  It also says that farm animals, and bees, must be kept closer to your house than your neighbor’s.  Beekeeping will be allowed as long as the hives are set back from the property line and a source of water is provided so the bees don’t venture into neighboring ponds and pools.

Fences & hedges:  a complex issue — the committee estimates that up to one fifth of Altadena properties are out of compliance with current fencing regulations. A big violation is high fences and hedges that go up to the street, which effects traffic and pedestrian safety.  There is also an esthetic issue: some fences and hedges are more attractive than others.

The committee proposed to grandfather in certain fences and hedges that are currently not allowed, but that new fences and hedges be subject to the new standards unless they can successfully prove the need for a nonconforming fence.  But they acknowledged that fences and setback requirements in Altadena have been wildly inconsistent.

County planners said that there will be several meetings to approve and massage the standards, as well as community meetings and opportunities to comment on the plan.  A draft ordinance will be ready by sumemr 2016, which will them be subject to more meetings and hearings before final approval.