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Planning Commission approves parcel map to create permanent open space at 700 N. Sunnyside
Summary
The Sierra Madre Planning Commission on March 20 approved Tentative Parcel Map 25-01 (Map No. 84653) to subdivide the Mata Del Rosa Retreat Center property and create a roughly 7-acre restricted open-space parcel in perpetuity at 700 North Sunnyside Avenue.
Sierra Madre — The Planning Commission on March 20 voted unanimously to approve Tentative Parcel Map 25-01 (Map No. 84653), a subdivision of the Mata Del Rosa Retreat Center property at 700 North Sunnyside Avenue that will create a new restricted open-space parcel to be held in perpetuity.
The approval implements a provision of the development agreement and The Meadows at Bailey Canyon specific plan. Staff told commissioners the existing lot is about 27 acres and the proposed open-space parcel will be approximately 7 acres. The subdivision is being processed under the Subdivision Map Act and Sierra Madre Municipal Code; staff said the project qualified for categorical CEQA exemptions, including Class 1 (existing facilities), Class 17 (open-space contracts/easements) and the common-sense exemption under CEQA §15061 because the project proposes no new development.
"We just received a recorded easement from LA County for the Carter Avenue road widening," a planning staff member said during the presentation. Staff also reported that the tentative tract map for 42 homes had been approved on Feb. 27, 2024, and that the parcel map had been reviewed by the city surveyor, civil engineer, public works, planning, fire and the city attorney.
The staff report said the development agreement and specific plan require the congregation that owns the retreat center to subdivide the property, record a conservation easement against the northern parcel and seek rezoning of that parcel as Retreat Center Open Space. "Staff was not able to make any of the findings" that would require denial, the staff presentation said, and the report included recommended conditions of approval and a CAL FIRE subdivision finding form.
Commissioners asked about contingencies if the broader development stalled. The city attorney said the open-space dedication will be recorded independently: "Once this is approved, we are going to record the lot tie, the open space conservation and the zone change with the county," the city attorney said, noting those records would stand even if later steps were delayed.
A motion to approve the tentative parcel map (25-01, Map No. 84653) carried unanimously. The commission record shows no public speakers opposed to the map during the hearing. Next steps are recording the conservation easement and proceeding with the ministerial filings needed to finalize the subdivision.
The approval applies only to the parcels and uses described in the application and the development agreement; design review and subsequent construction approvals for the residential portion remain subject to later hearings and permits.
