Planning commission grants design, coastal and use approvals for Laguna Nursery and approves limited sign variance

The Laguna Beach Planning Commission on Aug. 20 approved a package of entitlements for Laguna Nursery at 481 North Coast Highway — including design review, a coastal development permit, a conditional use permit for outdoor display and valet parking, and a sign permit — and granted a limited variance related only to the site’s total allowable wall sign area after weeks of debate and more than a dozen public comments.

Planning staff summarized the application as a multi‑entitlement request for an existing multi‑tenant building occupied by Laguna Nursery, a massage center and a nail salon. The proposal included outdoor display areas around three sides of the nursery, five signs (four wall signs and a blade sign), parking lot restriping and exterior color changes. Staff said the project was submitted in response to a code‑enforcement case and that the applicant had installed signage and outdoor displays without required permits.

Staff told the commission the site’s allowable combined wall sign area (based on suite frontage) is 21 square feet, while the applicant’s proposal originally totaled 45.44 square feet and requested variances to exceed both the allowable sign area and the maximum number of wall signs. The application also showed 12 on‑site parking spaces where the code required 13 based on the proposed outdoor display area. Staff recommended approval of design review, the coastal permit, the conditional use permit and the sign permit conditioned to bring the project into code compliance, and recommended denial of the requested variances unless the applicant reduced the display area and eliminated signs.

The applicant proposed adjustments during the hearing. Owner Ruben Flores described the business as a boutique nursery that requires outdoor space for plants and goods and said he had field‑grown olive trees and planned to add a coast live oak; he proposed removing one wall sign and reducing another to meet code. "Plants and soil and pots fountains all need an exterior environment," Flores said during his presentation.

Public comment included about 15 speakers supporting the nursery, emphasizing its role in community garden walks and local beautification. Several residents urged the commission to be flexible on signage and parking given the site’s recessed storefront and limited visibility from Coast Highway.

Commissioners and staff negotiated an outcome that would avoid approving broad variances for parking while addressing visibility and the nursery’s operational needs. The commission ultimately directed staff to return with a resolution approving design review 24‑21901, coastal development permit 24‑2411, conditional use permit 24‑21903 and sign permit 24‑21603, and approved variance 24‑2410 only as it pertained to total allowable wall sign area with the specific reconfiguration the commission described (move the existing cut‑letter nursery sign to the Coast Highway location proposed for Sign 5; eliminate the originally proposed Sign 5; reduce the north wall sign by 50 percent). Staff will prepare a final resolution reflecting those changes. Commissioner Sadler voted no on the variance; the other commissioners voted yes, and the motion passed.

Staff also recommended a condition allowing the applicant to seek an administrative adjustment to outdoor display if the city’s upcoming zoning code update changes parking rules; staff said a new condition would allow administrative review and approval for additional display if later code revisions made the display lawful without variances.

The commission’s decision resolves the outstanding code‑enforcement case provided the applicant follows the approved site plan and conditions; staff will verify compliance before closing the enforcement matter.