Glendora officials review draft objective design standards for zoning code

Glendora officials and their consultant presented a draft ordinance to create objective design standards (ODS) for architecture and site design across most of the city, asking the joint City Council and Planning Commission for feedback at a Sept. special study session.

The proposal would consolidate scattered design guidance into a single new chapter of the zoning code (Title 21) and convert many discretionary or guideline-style provisions into objective requirements that use language such as "shall" or "must," city principal planner Hans Bridal told the joint meeting. "Objective design standards are written as requirements, rather than as guidelines," Bridal said.

The draft would apply citywide outside designated hillside and certain project-specific plan areas and is explicitly written not to change existing land-use rules for density, height or permitted uses, consultant Alan Loomis of PlaceWorks said. "Objective design standards are not changing the underlying existing regulations that govern density and height within the city," Loomis said. Loomis and Bridal said the ordinance is intended to make design review more predictable for applicants and staff and to implement commitments in Glendora's most recent housing element and strategic plans.

Why it matters

State law has required objective standards for qualifying housing projects in recent years; Bridal cited California Government Code Section 66300(a)(7) while explaining that objective language reduces subjective decision-making and litigation risk. Staff said the ODS are part of the city's housing-element implementation (listed as a pending action in the element) and of a broader zoning cleanup to make development rules clearer and…