Chino council adopts targeted zoning amendments as part of 2045 General Plan update

The Chino City Council on Sept. 2 approved targeted zoning map amendments tied to the draft 2045 General Plan and its environmental review, moving the multiyear update another step toward implementation. The council passed an ordinance amending the zoning map (Ordinance No. 2025-006) on a 4-0 vote with the mayor absent; Council member Lucio made the motion and Council member Comstock seconded it.

The vote followed a staff presentation and public hearing in which planners described the product of roughly three years of outreach and analysis. Mike Hitz, principal planner, told the council the update began with community bus tours and more than 2,300 residents and businesses participating in outreach. Consultant Andrew Hill, identified in the record as representing Diet Bhatia, said: “Tonight really marks a major milestone in this important multiyear citywide effort.” The draft plan projects about 9,705 new homes and 8,985 new jobs by 2045 and focuses growth into several “opportunity areas” while preserving existing neighborhood character elsewhere.

Why this matters: the general plan is the city’s long‑range blueprint for land use, circulation, infrastructure and community character. The update adds new land‑use designations intended to guide future private development and public investments. Those new designations are: downtown (civic/cultural mixed use), regional mixed use (to evolve large shopping centers), boulevard mixed use (for key commercial corridors) and employment mixed use (a mix of retail along Euclid Avenue with light industrial/manufacturing behind it). For the employment mixed‑use designation, staff said a future development agreement would require between 75,000 and 120,000 square feet of retail along Euclid’s frontage if industrial uses are proposed behind it.

Environmental review and limits: Recon Environmental consultant Nick Larkin summarized the draft environmental impact report (EIR), which was prepared under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Larkin said the EIR found most impacts would be less than significant once standard mitigation is applied; eight specific impacts under biology, cultural and paleontological resources and stationary noise could be mitigated to less‑than‑significant levels. He said some broader regional impacts — including air quality and greenhouse gas emissions tied to traffic — remain “significant and unavoidable” because they are influenced by regional vehicle travel that a local plan cannot fully control. Larkin noted agencies including South Coast Air Quality Management District and Caltrans provided comments during the public review period and requested coordination on later projects.

Cross‑jurisdiction concerns: officials from neighboring Pomona pressed the council on industrial definitions and truck routing. Atal Khan, deputy director for economic and business affairs for the city of Pomona, said Pomona’s recent zoning code work refined industrial definitions (distinguishing logistics, fulfillment, distribution and manufacturing) to help enforce different operational impacts. Nora Garcia, Pomona city council member, told Chino council members that residents near Reservoir Street have reported vibration and structural damage tied to heavy truck traffic and urged Chino to adopt “enforceable good neighbor policy” and to explore alternative truck routes that do not rely on Pomona streets. Garcia said: “My house shakes and rattles uncontrollably. Every time a big rig drives by, it feels like an earthquake.”

Council members and staff signaled willingness to continue regional coordination. Director of Development Services Warren Morelian and other staff said the comprehensive zoning code update that will implement the new general plan is scheduled for the coming year; targeted zoning map changes were adopted this evening and a second reading on ordinance/zoning map amendments was scheduled for Sept. 16. Staff also noted some specific, council‑directed edits incorporated into the draft — for example, adding off‑street bicycle and trail connections to the list of amenities that can earn bonus floor area ratio for shopping center owners, and considering incentives for healthy food restaurants and for commercial centers to add solar and battery storage.

Next steps: staff recommended, and the council’s motion adopted by ordinance, to advance the zoning map changes and proceed with the implementation program. The council will consider the comprehensive zoning code update next year, and staff said they will return with more detailed proposals and potential Measure M or ballot timing for downtown or other large changes.

Provenance: The discussion of the public hearing and general plan begins in the staff presentation at the public hearing (transcript at the public hearing start) and finishes with the ordinance reading and vote later that evening.

Ending: With the ordinance approved and targeted map amendments adopted, the council directed staff to continue to work with regional partners and return with implementation steps for the general plan, including the comprehensive zoning code update and follow‑up items identified during the hearing.