Napa Planning Commission Regular Meeting - July 20, 2023
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Napa Planning Commission Regular Meeting - July 20, 2023
The Napa Planning Commission met on July 20, 2023, at 5:30 PM in City Hall to consider a consent hearing for a parcel map subdivision, receive the quarterly development report, and discuss future work priorities. The meeting included roll call (Commissioners Huether, Kelley, Massaro, Myers, Shotwell), approval of minutes, and administrative reports.
Consent Calendar
- Approved the Planning Commission Regular Meeting Minutes for June 15, 2023.
Consent Hearings
- 3180 Browns Valley Road Tentative Parcel Map (PL23-0053): Approved a Design Review Permit, Tentative Parcel Map, and Use Permit to subdivide an approximately 1.8-acre property into 2 single-family lots, including creation of a flag lot. Staff determined the project was exempt from CEQA under Section 15315 (division of property in urbanized areas). The item remained on consent and was approved unanimously (motion by Commissioner?; all aye).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Randy Galardi (applicant representative): After the consent hearing approval, he briefly commented on the property. Later, during administrative reports, he provided market observations: low interest rates (2.5-3%) are keeping homeowners from selling, spurring ADU additions; new home sales remain strong despite 6-6.5% rates; single-family rental vacancy is under 1%; apartment vacancy (currently 2%) may rise with new units like Braden phase two.
- No public comments on non-agenda items.
Administrative Reports
- Quarterly Development Report (Q2 2023): Presented by Michael Walker. Key statistics: 16 single-family permits and 15 ADU permits issued in Q2, with 31 ADUs out of 49 total residential permits year-to-date. Quarter-over-quarter trends were skewed by Braden phase two (199 units) in Q2 2022. Commissioners discussed ADU locations (often on larger lots or garage conversions) and asked about the housing deficit for workforce needs. Staff noted the General Plan build-out projections (20-year horizon) but lacked a market-demand analysis. Commissioner Massaro requested future data on the gap between housing supply and need.
Discussion Items
- Commissioner Hurtado requested a future discussion on ADU accessibility and the process for the community.
- Vice Chair Shotwell reported attending a NAPA Makes panel on the shortage of studio space for local artists; she urged the commission to explore ways the city could support artists.
- Chair Massaro made several requests for future meetings:
- Update on the Design Review Guidelines project (including status of consultant and use of the ~$700,000 council allocation).
- Workshop on the role of the Planning Commission relative to the Planning Department and City Council.
- Staff report on SB 330 (Housing Accountability Act) guidelines to clarify how projects are reviewed under that law.
- Staffing update: Planning Manager Ricky Caperton reported two open positions (Planning Aid and Management Analyst) but noted recent hires in Building, Engineering, and Planning.
Key Outcomes
- Approved consent calendar and consent hearing items as presented.
- Directed staff to provide updates on design review guidelines, role of Planning Commission workshop, and SB 330 guidelines at a future meeting.
- Staff to consider providing data on housing deficit (workforce housing gap) after further research.
- Commission acknowledged the need to explore ADU access and artist space support.
Meeting Transcript
Napa regular meeting for the planning commission. May we have roll call, please? Commissioner Urtalu. Present. Vice Chair Shotwill. President. Chair Masaro. Here. And Commissioner Kelly on Hugh, they're noted absent. May we do the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And the republic for which stands one nation under God and the visible with liberty and justice for all. His name gets spoken so many times all over California. And pursuant to the city's rules of order for planning commission meetings, policy resolution 10. Staff, do we have any changes to this evening's agenda? We do not, but uh before we get started, I did want to introduce uh our new office assistant, Myra Espinoza over there. Um if you haven't already, she's she's gonna be sending out um more emails and correspondence. Um she comes from us. Uh she worked part-time um in parks and Iraq for two and a half years. So then a full-time position came up with us and we we poached her and happy we did. Warm welcome, Mara. Welcome. I'm glad to be here. I'm sure Patty will do a great job of orienting you. Oh, yeah. Uh commissioners, any changes to tonight's agenda? Nope, good. Public comment. This is the type time of our meeting when anyone can speak on anything not on tonight's agenda. Do we have anyone who would like to take the podium on that item? Anything they would like to talk about, not on tonight's agenda. Okay, let's move ahead. Consent calendar. These are routine items, may be approved by a single vote. However, any member of the public or the commissioner or commissioner may remove an item for the consent calendar. This evening's on consent, we have the planning commission regular meeting minutes for June 15th. Is there a motion to approve this consent item? So move. Abstain. Okay, so I approve them. That's two approvals. We're good. Okay. Consent hearings. These are the items that are required to be noticed as a public meeting, but the city is not aware of any interest by members of the public to comment on this item. However, any members of the public or commissioners may remove an item from the consent hearing calendar. Tonight we have 3180 Browns Valley Road tentative parcel map. The staff report has been written. We all have it. Is there a request from any commissioner or member of the public to re pull this item from consent?
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